History: Medieval Gaeta (The Duchy and the Walls)

THE INDEPENDENT DUCHY:
– In the 9th century Gaeta became a castrum, a fortified stronghold, and then a flourishing independent duchy.
– Sea power: it built up intense trade across the Mediterranean and minted its own coins, acting as a maritime republic in all but name.
– The Battle of the Garigliano (915): Gaeta played a crucial part in the clash between Christians and Saracens.

HOW THE TOWN AND ITS WALLS GREW:
– Original core: perched on the tip of the headland (Sant’Erasmo).
– The two rings of walls (Docibilis II and John I):
1. The first protected the ancient settlement (the Santa Lucia and Castle area).
2. The second extended as far as today’s Piazza Commestibili.
– Birth of the Borgo: fishermen and farmers began to settle outside the walls (the Via Indipendenza and Cappuccini area), around the church of Saints Cosmas and Damian.