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PARMA
457km
(283 miles) NW of Rome, 97km (60
miles) NW of Bologna, 121km (75
miles) SE of Milan.
Parma is one of the most well-to-do cities in modern Italy.
It first rose to power and
influence in the sixteenth
century, when it became the seat
of the Farmese Duchy. It later
came under the control of the
French Bourbons, and its most
beloved ruler was, Marie-Louise,
the widow of Napoleon, who arrived
in 1815 after the Congress of
Vienna awarded her this duchy.
Marie-Louise was a great
benefactor of the arts, and much
of the collection she attained is
exhibited at the Galleria
Nazionale. Rising unrest in 1859
compelled her to abdicate, and in
1860, following a plebiscite,
Parma joined the kingdom of Italy.
Parmo was a city that was fond of opera and was a Mecca for
opera lovers such as Verdi, the
great Italian composer whose works
include Il Trovatore and Aïda.
He was born in the small village
of Roncole, north of Parma, in
1813. It was because of Verdi that
Parma became addicted to music,
and soon his operas were being
conducted in the Teatro Regio, the
opera house that was built under
the orders of Marie-Louise. This
love of music still remains in the
hearts of the people of Parmw and
the opera house is jampacked in
season.
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