The ports of Italy: a journey through their rich history

In the history of the ports of Italy, one image remains etched in the memory of those who lived through that time: thousands of people crowded into Genoa’s Piazza De Ferrari or on the docks of Naples, waiting for a ship to board and leave the country. It is the frame of the great migrations—millions of people, in various waves from the late 19th century to the mid-20th century, seeking fortune elsewhere in distant lands such as Argentina, Australia, and, of course, the United States of America.

The journey toward a better future began at the great ports, which over centuries have maintained their central role in the economic, social, and cultural life of the Italian peninsula. With its approximately 7,900 kilometers of coastline, Italy has found in the sea both an opportunity for development and a path to progress.

Italy exports 70% of its finished goods by sea, a statistic that alone underscores the importance of ports for the country’s growth. According to the latest available data (2023) of the World Bank Logistic Performance Index, maritime hubs account for 17.5% of the entire maritime economy, producing an economic value of €8.1 billion.

Italian ports play a crucial role in global trade, with 62 key commercial hubs coordinated by 16 Port System Authorities. Their development is vital to capturing shares of the world’s maritime commerce. Today, 90% of goods globally are transported by sea, with maritime shipping and logistics comprising 12% of the global GDP.

Due to its geographical features and its strategic role in the Mediterranean, Italy must invest in these infrastructures—key nodes in the intermodal logistics network that connects sea routes to land, particularly by rail.

According to the latest World Bank Logistic Performance Index (2023), inefficiencies in logistics cost Italy €70 billion annually. This highlights the urgent need to renew infrastructures, starting with those that accelerate the logistics development process.

This is already happening in Genoa, where the Third Pass of the Giovi project is being realized—a high-speed/high-capacity railway linking Genoa to Milan and the rest of northern Europe. This major infrastructure project includes an “urban last mile” to enhance the Genoa Rail Node, enabling the separation of traffic flows between regional and long-distance/freight trains, with the latter reaching the Ligurian capital’s port.

The project, carried out by the Webuild Group, will act as a development accelerator for one of Italy’s largest ports, connecting it to the Trans-European Transport Networks (TEN-T) and effectively linking Genoa with Rotterdam along high-speed rail routes.

The history of Italian ports dates back to the Mycenaean, Etruscan, and Phoenician settlements and continues with Greek colonies. In Sicily, Zancle (modern-day Messina) is an example, named for its natural sickle-shaped harbor (“zancle” in Sicilian, later passed into Greek).

During Ancient Roman times, ports underwent a significant transformation into integrated logistics hubs—actual commercial towns for storing and handling goods transported across the Empire. In Ostia, a coastal suburb of Rome that now hosts the capital’s marina, the archaeological remains of what was a massive maritime infrastructure commissioned by Emperors Claudius and Trajan can still be seen.

Construction of this port began under Claudius in 42 CE and was completed in 64 CE under Nero, with a basin of about 150 hectares. Surrounding the basin were accommodations for sailors, creating a small but thriving community in Ostia. In 100 CE, Emperor Trajan launched a project to expand and modernize the port, accompanied by the construction of a vast urban complex with warehouses to store goods and markets to sell them.

The use of the italian ports saw significant growth during the Crusades and, later, in the Middle Ages with the rise of the Maritime Republics. Centuries later, in 1591, Ferdinando I de’ Medici established the first free port in history in Livorno, introducing laws guaranteeing not only freedom of trade but also of worship for all individuals and ethnic groups contributing to the port’s commercial growth. It is no coincidence that the first mosque built in Europe was erected in the 17th century within Genoa’s Old Port, recognizing the right to worship for Saracens and Turks detained in the city’s prisons.

Even today, Genoa, with the Third Pass and the new Breakwater, is at the forefront of revitalizing Italy’s great ports—age-old infrastructures that continue to play a crucial role in shaping global trade’s future.