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The Greeks may have founded a colony here as early as the 10th century BC. Greek customs and language generally survived during the Roman period, when this was a favourite place for the élite to build holiday villas and to send their young for higher education.

Campania suffered a chaotic period between the 5th and 6th centuries, caused by barbarian invasions, the Gothic war and the Longobard conquest. However, with the reconquest of the coastal areas by the Byzantines, Naples, Sorrento, Amalfi, Salerno and other cities were set up as dukedoms and flourished until the 11th century.

Naples finally fell to the Normans in 1139. As a result, the established trade with the East went into decline and Naples became a feudal possession, beholden to Sicily. Nevertheless, the Norman period was one of relative prosperity.

With the advent of the Angevins (1266–1442) and the Aragons (1442–1503), Naples was now a modern capital and a powerful employment magnet. This led to severe overcrowding – a chronic Neapolitan problem to this day.

One of the most significant periods of the two centuries of Spanish viceroys occurred under Emperor Charles V (1516–56), who sent Pedro de Toledo to govern Naples for more than 20 years. The infrastructure, both materially and politically, was strengthened and embellished.

In 1734, the kingdom of Naples as an autonomous entity was re-established and Charles of Bourbon was chosen to rule. He ordered notable public works, and presided over the age when Naples was high on the list for Grand Tour enthusiasts.

Although embraced by royalist Neapolitans, Unification resulted in the city’s marginalization when Rome was chosen as capital. Not long after, a cholera epidemic in 1884 also made it plain that Naples had problems. The Urban Renewal Plan remedied the overcrowding and poor sewage system to some extent.

Ironically, the gutting of the city’s derelict structures was accomplished in large part by World War II bombs, but the city was left devastated and starving. More than 20,000 civilians lost their lives in Allied air raids.

After the war, ugly apartment blocks throughout the region paved over what had been one of the most beautiful landscapes in the world. Corruption was rife, and La Camorra (the local Mafia) gained unprecedented power. In 1980 an earthquake destroyed thousands of shoddy buildings.

In 1992 the Mani pulite (“clean hands”) movement transformed Italian politics and a new generation of leaders came to the fore. Naples’ mayor Antonio Bassolino, elected in 1993, began restoration projects, new parks and better public transport that have changed the face of the city.