Villa Rossi Martini, in the Genoese district of Sestri Ponente, is a seventeenth-century Genoese noble villa built at the behest of the Lomellini family, who sold it after a few years to the Centurion Spinola family.
During the siege of Genoa in 1800 the villa became the seat of the Austrian headquarters where Colonel Radetzky operated as a senior officer.
In 1855 it was purchased at auction by the noble Genoese banking family Rossi – Martini and subsequently, in 1931, it became the property of the Municipality of Genoa, which converted it into the headquarters of the “Anita Grimaldi” primary school for girls. Among the illustrious people who stayed in the villa we remember Princess Sissi, wife of the Emperor of Austria – Hungary Franz Joseph.
The 40,000 m2 park of the villa represents the green lung of the Sestri Ponente district. It still retains the characteristics of the era today. It was designed by the landscape architect Giuseppe Rovelli in English style and decorated with different species of palms and tall trees, such as pines, cedars, holm oaks and cypresses.
Villa Rossi Martini today is used for cultural events and concerts in the summer season.
