Villa Strongoli, Sorrento

The Villa Strongoli is a former rural palace located on Vittoria Veneto #1, on the Bay of Naples shoreline of Sorrento, in Campania, Italy. The buildings since 1812 have constituted a hotel, the Imperial Hotel Tramontano.

History

A villa at the site was established by the Pignatelli family in the 17th century, however, tradition was reputed to hold that the property includes the natal house of Torquato Tasso.^[1][2][3] The Pignatelli family was replaced by the aristocratic family of the Principe of Strongoli family in the 18th century. By the 19th century, along with most of the seaside villas, Villa Strongoli had become a hotel. Even by the 19th century, the Hotel Tramontana held an appeal for British and American travelers because the ownership was advertised as English.^[4] A review from 1896-1897 describes one of the managers as a Mr Doyle from Ireland, nephew of the wife of the owner.^[5] By the late 1880s, there would have been competition for Anglo-Saxon travelers from other Sorrentine seaside hotels Bristol, d'Angleterre (Villa Nardi), and Vittoria.^[6]

The hotel website history asserts that numerous 19th-century authors, in addition to royalty, have been guests at the hotel.^[7] It is also claimed that in 1902 the popular song of Torna a Surriento was written at the request of the town's mayor and hotel owner and for Prime Minister of Italy, who was staying at this hotel.

References