VILLA DEI PRINCIPI

The Villa is a huge building on the cliff edge, south of Cityold (as Civitavecchia used to be known).

From 1883 to 1887, one Balthazar Odescalchi referred to it as “a pleasant home for wife and sons”.

In the 1920′s it occasionally hosted the Italian Royal Family; King Vittorio Emanuele III and Queen Elena. Here they enjoyed music performed by local bands.

In 1930 Marconi rented the Villa and soon erected some wire antennas to study propagation, alignment of lobes, wave angle and ground reflection. (The reference for this is his radio operator, Adelmo Landini in the book “Navigando con Marconi a bordo del yacht Elettra” 1950 Page 99).

Also in 1930 came the birth of Marconi’s daughter Elettra. Her mother was Marconi’s second wife Mary Christine Bezzi Scali.

On July 27th 1930 Landini heard, one way via EME, an uncommon intelligent signal echo with 2 seconds of delay, from Rio de Janeiro (ibidem, same page).

Then on July 30th Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli baptised Elettra in the Villa. Later the same day Marconi and the Cardinal embarked on the yacht Elettra which was docked nearby. See picture below

Also in 1930 came the birth of Marconi’s daughter Elettra. Her mother was Marconi’s second wife Mary Christine Bezzi Scali.

On July 27th 1930 Landini heard, one way via EME, an uncommon intelligent signal echo with 2 seconds of delay, from Rio de Janeiro (ibidem, same page).

Then on July 30th Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli baptised Elettra in the Villa. Later the same day Marconi and the Cardinal embarked on the yacht Elettra which was docked nearby. See picture below.

On 12th August 1930 Marconi left the Villa because his yacht was damaged by fire while in the harbour of Civitavecchia.

On 19th September 1930 Marconi received his nomination as President of the Reale Accademia d’Italia by its Secretary, Arturo Marpicati who wrote in “Uomini e fatti del mio tempo” (ed, Sei, Page 53), “….The young wife, a very beautiful and gentle woman, had given him a short time before, a baby girl, who kicked about her legs in the cradle. There in an angle of the garden, Elettra, sky blue pupils, love’s fruit …….”

In 1961 the Villa dei Principi became a top-class and exclusive restaurant which was patronised by actors such as Marcello Mastroianni, Liz Taylor, Richard Burton, Peppino de Filippo, Silvana Pampanini, Massimo Troisi; politician Amintore Fanfani; TV star Corrado; also the family of Marconi’s widow Christine and many others.

Here on January 9th 2000 Elettra and the Mayor of Civitavecchia, Pietro Tidei, were guests of Patrizio Ciancarini’s family. They planned a marble Marconian epigraph (I0KHP’s text) to place at the Michelangelo Fortress and to give citizenship to Elettra to take place on May 13th.

In February 2000 the restaurant closed down and a year later the building then hosted a High School specialising in Tourism, but was again sold in 2009.

Patrizio I0KHP hopes it will be possible to celebrate Marconi on International Marconi Day from the Villa for may years to come.

On December 24th, in Rome, Princess Elettra wrote “Very pleased for this important activity to remember my father Guglielmo Marconi. Long life to IMD”.  

VILLA DEI PRINCIPI

The above is taken from information  provided by Patrizio Ciancarini I0KHP