Santa Margherita di Belice is a small hill town in Sicily’s Valle del Belìce, set between the areas of Agrigento, Trapani and Palermo. Its landscape is one of open hills, wheat fields, vineyards and prickly pears, giving the town a rural setting that feels closely tied to the surrounding countryside.
The settlement grew on the ruins of the ancient hamlet of Menzil-el-Sindi and was founded in 1572 by Baron Antonio Corbera. In 1610, under Baron Girolamo Corbera, it took the name Santa Margherita. These origins, together with traces of earlier Sicani, Greek, Roman and Byzantine presence in the territory, give the town a layered historical identity without losing its compact village character.
Santa Margherita is especially known for its connection with Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa and *Il Gattopardo*, a link strong enough for it to be remembered as the “City of the Gattopardo”. Severely damaged by the 1968 Belìce earthquake and rebuilt on the same site, it is distinctive for the way literary memory, aristocratic history and post-earthquake rebirth meet in one place.
Patron Saint:
Saint Rosalia (Santa Rosalia) – 4 September
Nearest Airport:
Trapani (Birgi) – (89 km, 01:27)
Neighboring Cities:
