Napoli: city centre

In front of the main facade of the San Carlo Theatre there is one of the entrance arches of Galleria Umberto I (the Gallery), that was inaugurated in 1892 as symbol of the new urbanistic planning performed by the Italian Government. It consists of four arms with structure of masonry, covered by a rooftop of glass and iron. The style is the neo-Renaissance chosen by the new Italian State for celebratory buildings, in order to recall the great heritage of the artistic and cultural Age of Renaissance, that was in common among all the small Italian States which Italy was divided into. 

The Gallery joins the Theatre to Via Toledo, that has been for a long time the most important street in the city of Naples. Via Toledo became soon the heart of the city because it joined the new Viceroy's Palace (the future Royal Palace) and the harbour area with the entrance gates of the city. On its sides all the noble families settled and built their new palaces, while in the empty space between Via Toledo and the new walls the Spaniards built the soldiers' residence (the "Spanish Quarters") with a strictly regular structure still visible nowadays. As time passed they have become popular lodgings.

Between Via Toledo and the harbour there are some of the most important public and private offices in Naples (among them the Town Hall inside the Palace of San Giacomo, the former Stock Exchange, the General Post Office, the Headquarters of the Bank of Naples, the Faculty of Architecture) and also some churches and monasteries, like the Church and Cloister of Santa Maria la Nova which today hosts some offices, belonging to the Province of Naples and to some associations.