Reggio Emilia and the Tricolour
The hall where the flag was born
Reggio Emilia, a lively city on the Via Emilia between Parma and Modena, is known as the "Città del Tricolore", the city of the Tricolour: it was here, on 7 January 1797, that the delegates of the Cispadane Republic, a sister republic created by Napoleon with Reggio, Modena, Bologna and Ferrara, adopted for the first time the green, white and red flag as the banner of an Italian sovereign state, which would later become the national flag of Italy. The meeting took place in the town hall, in the room that was then called the Sala del Congresso and is now known as the Sala del Tricolore, an elegant elliptical hall with tiers, which still hosts the city council.
Next to the hall, the Museo del Tricolore tells the story of the flag and of the Risorgimento with documents, flags, uniforms and relics. Every 7 January, the anniversary is celebrated as the national Flag Day, with a ceremony attended by the highest state authorities. The historic centre, in the shape of a hexagon, has beautiful squares, such as Piazza Prampolini, with the cathedral and the town hall, and Piazza San Prospero, with its market, the Renaissance Basilica della Ghiara, with a cycle of seventeenth century frescoes by Emilian painters, and the elegant Teatro Municipale Romolo Valli. Reggio is also internationally famous for its pedagogical approach to early childhood, the "Reggio Emilia Approach", by Loris Malaguzzi. Typical of the city is the erbazzone, a savoury pie of chard and Parmigiano.
Tip: the Sala del Tricolore can be visited when there are no council meetings; taste erbazzone in the bakeries of the centre.
Where it is
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