Situation
Reggio di Calabria (to distinguish it from Reggio nell'Emilia), "Reggio Calabria" for short, lies in the southwest of Italy, on the east side of the Strait of Messina. There are numerous shipping links between Reggio di Calabria and Messina
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Importance
The old port, the Greek Rhegion (founded in 743 B.C.) or Roman Rhegium, is the principal town of Calabria, the capital of the province and the see of an archbishop.
It was destroyed by an earthquake in 1783, and again suffered heavy damage in 1908. Thereafter it was rebuilt and recovered all its former economic importance. Reggio is the world's principal center for the production of oil of bergamot, used in making perfumes.
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