Corso de Parma, named after Riccio de Parma, a knight of the Disfida di Barletta and a proud native of Vasto, is now part of the city’s main historical axis. This route connects Piazza Rossetti to Palazzo d’Avalos, forming the most prestigious area of Vasto’s historic center.
The Corso specifically links Piazza Diomede, where the eastern wing of Castello Caldoresco stands, to Piazza Lucio Valerio Pudente, in front of the Cathedral of San Giuseppe.
Given its prominent location and the presence of some of Vasto’s most beautiful buildings, one might assume that Corso de Parma has always been the city’s main street. However, its current layout was only established in the early 20th century, and its urban structure has undergone multiple changes over the centuries.
The street roughly follows the southern boundary of the ancient Roman city walls of Histonium.
Before the 14th century, this area lay between two fortified settlements that had emerged during the Early Middle Ages: Guasto d’Aymone, built upon the ruins of the Roman city, and Castel Gisone, a settlement likely of Byzantine origin, corresponding to the present-day bell tower of Santa Maria.
With Vasto’s commercial expansion in the 14th century, these two settlements grew beyond their original walls, merging into a single urban entity. In 1385, King Charles III of Durazzo officially united them into one community, known as Vasto d’Aymone, while simultaneously expanding the city walls.
Where Corso de Parma now meets Piazza Diomede, there once stood a medieval “landward gate,” opening toward the countryside. From here, a road led to the Augustinian convent, now San Giuseppe, and its orchards overlooking the sea.
The subsequent construction of Giacomo Caldora’s palace—later acquired by the Marquises d’Avalos—transformed this road into a “corsea” (a track for galloping horses), used by riders traveling between the palace and the gate.
When Caldora completed the city’s new walls in 1439, the Corsea terminated in a large square, the current Piazza Diomede, then known as “Piazza del Castello” since the newly enclosed Caldoresco Castle had become a dominant feature.
Next to the castle stood Porta Castello, now the most important of the city’s four gates, as it connected Vasto directly to the road leading to Naples.
With Napoleon’s rise to power and the abolition of feudal privileges, the d’Avalos marquisate declined, and the city walls were gradually demolished, allowing Vasto to expand beyond its medieval boundaries. No longer serving as a link between the castle gate and the marquises’ palace, the Corsea evolved into a new commercial hub.
The open area in front of the castle, today’s Piazza Rossetti, became a marketplace for cattle and livestock fairs, attracting people from the surrounding countryside. As a result, the Corsea filled with artisans and shoemakers, earning the nickname “Corsea degli Scarpari” (Shoemakers’ Corsea).
Between 1910 and 1912, the street was widened by demolishing a row of buildings on its northern side. The newly constructed buildings reflected the neoclassical style of Palazzo Palmieri, a structure designed by architect Pietrocola on the ruins of Caldoresco Castle, despite being built nearly a century later.
The most notable of these buildings is Palazzo Mattioli, located at the corner of Via Bebbia. Now owned by the municipality, it serves as an exhibition space. The building features a rusticated ground floor, while its upper levels are adorned with four pilasters (semi-columns) framing three balconies and windows.
In 1895, Raffaele Mattioli was born here—a man who would become Italy’s most influential banker of the 20th century, serving as president of Comit and founder of Mediobanca.
Opposite, on the corner of Vicolo Raffaello, stands Palazzo Fanghella, which shares a similar design. It has three floors and three vertical sections per façade, but unlike Palazzo Mattioli, it features only windows on the first floor and balconies on the second.
