Piazza Giustino Fortunato

Piazza Giustino Fortunato is the principal square of Rionero in Vulture, named for the historian and senator born in the town in 1848. The Fortunato family palace faces the square, joining the town’s civic centre with the memory of one of Basilicata’s most influential public figures.

Why it matters

Giustino Fortunato represented the Melfi constituency in the Italian Chamber of Deputies from 1880 to 1909 and served in the Senate from 1909. His writing and political work helped shape discussion of the Southern Question and the conditions of the Mezzogiorno. The square bearing his name is described by the municipality as Rionero’s principal public square.

What to notice

The square faces Palazzo Giustino Fortunato, the family residence established in 1728. The municipality records that the palace later became home to the municipal library and collections relating to local rural life and the Fortunato family. The open civic space and the historic palace together connect Rionero’s public life with its local history.

Context and history

Giustino Fortunato was born in Rionero in Vulture on 4 September 1848 and died in Naples in 1932. A historian and parliamentarian, he argued that the Mezzogiorno’s poverty had deep structural causes and promoted reforms and historical study of southern Italy. The Fortunato family settled in Rionero in the early eighteenth century; the palace on the square dates to 1728. Fortunato’s association with the town remains central to the square’s commemorative name.