The parade of carriages leaves Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples, Italy, beneath the watchful Castel Sant’Elmo and the Certosa di San Martino
This post is to remember in photographs a parade of carriages and their teams on a morning when the weather played fair.
The setting was Napoli, and it was the Sunday of the last weekend in May 2016. The occasion was to commemorate a day in 1734, also in the month of May, when 18-year-old Carlo di Borbone rode into the city of Naples on the brink of becoming its king.
The carriages make their way along the seafront of Naples, Italy
We joined the parade during its pause in the grand space of the Piazza del Plebiscito – perfect for the display and turning of carriages.
Parade of carriages in the Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples, Italy
Beautiful horses, expertly handled, dealt quietly with the wait and the attention.
The carriage parade in Naples, Italy
The crowd was a mix of the curious and those just passing.
Parade of carriages in the Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples, Italy
The huge space of the piazza, a luxury anywhere, provided the perfect frame for the occasion …
The Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples, Italy
… and the gleam of well-groomed horses suited its stage.
The Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples, Italy
Everyone was dressed up, and out to look their best.
The carriage parade in Naples, Italy
The brightest colours came from Sicily.
Colour from Sicily in the parade of carriages in Naples, Italy
Each painted carriage was a work of art.
Detail on a carriage from Sicily
The kings on their prancers must have relished the company.
Detail of decoration on a carriage from Sicily
Ladies stretched their legs …
The grand occasion of the carriage parade in Naples, Italy
… thankful for the breeze on a warm day.
Parade of carriages in the Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples, Italy
There was plenty of ‘bella figura’, patience, and cheerful hands-on curiosity in the huge space of the Piazza del Plebiscito.
Hats off to the horses who paraded in Naples, Italy
When the parade moved off at the end of the morning it trotted its way past Vesuvius …
Carriage parade in Naples, Italy
… its clatter and colour in contrast to the blue stillness of the volcano.
Moving out along the seafront in Naples, Italy
Maschio Angioino, the medieval castle that would have been almost five hundred years old by the time the young Carlo di Borbone rode into the city, stood indifferent to the brief ruffle around its feet.
Maschio Angioino, Naples, Italy
Young horses trotted in the hoof-prints of centuries …
Moving out along the seafront in Naples, Italy
… and the traffic made way for the unexpected with hardly a blink.
The carriages make their way back through the traffic in Naples, Italy
Just another day on the roads in Naples …
The carriages make their way back through the traffic in Naples, Italy
… a reminder of a small chapter in the lives of all that have passed through this city … and the horses were at the heart of it. They didn’t have to be big to take part …
they just had to be handsome … and they were.
Copyright Georgie Knaggs & The Phraser 2018
The Phraser 
Reblogged this on The Phraser and commented:
I took the photographs for this (it’s mainly photographs and two short video clips at the end) in Naples, Italy in May of last year. The horses were handsome and the weather fair … it was a lovely morning
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Beautiful horses, Georgie … lucky you!
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Wonderful horses and great to see them all dressed up in the Piazza del Plebiscito! Thanks – grazie mille – for taking so much time to look through all these wait out there on the edge of the Zambezi … good luck with elephants and the cafe!
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The horses were lovely Georgie. I hear you aren’t come g home until the Autumn now. Must mean you are enjoying it. I love the blogs.
Love Ginny
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Hi Ginny – thanks for reading the blogs! Am writing this outside Pompei which, like everything here, is endlessly fascinating … lucky us 🙂 Hope all well with you – with love Georgie
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The horses are magnificent and your photos are lovely. Sounds like a very special day
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Thank you Lyn. It was a grand morning.
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Beautiful, I love the Sicilian paint job!
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Thanks for looking in. The Sicilian carriage I looked at in detail wasn’t just brightly coloured – the painting on the side told stories of battles, etc. I’d never seen them before.
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I wonder if they got the royal carriages from San Martino out of hock
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Hi Bambi – don’t think they did but some looked like they might have come from the Carriage Museum at Villa Pignatelli. The horses were beautiful …
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