The construction of the Annunziata dei Catalani began in the second half of the 11th century (apse, transept, dome) and was completed at the beginning of the following century (façade and porches) after an earthquake. It seems that the builders of the church incorporated elements (columns) from an ancient temple of Neptune into its construction. The church has a typical plan of late Norman architecture in Sicily.
The Cathedral of Messina was consecrated on 22 September 1197 in the presence of Emperor Henry VI (1191-1197) and his wife Constance, daughter of the Norman king Roger II of Sicily. In the course of history, it has been destroyed and rebuilt several times so that practically nothing remains of the original structure of the building. In each of the earthquakes of 1783 and 1908, the entire interior furnishings were also destroyed by the collapse of the walls. After the 1783 earthquake, the bell tower was removed and two neo-Gothic towers were added to the two side apses next to the choir. After the earthquake of 1908, the cathedral was rebuilt in its medieval state from 1919 to 1923. In 1933, a free-standing bell tower was erected next to the cathedral. On the night of 13 June 1943, Messina was bombed and the cathedral was completely burnt down. The independent bell tower, however, was spared. The cathedral was consecrated again in August 1947.
The church of Santa Maria Alemanna, founded in 1195, is a fine example of Gothic art in the Mediterranean region. Around 1485, the church was abandoned by the Teutonic Knights and passed into the care of the Arciconfraternita dei Rossi, which ran the adjacent hospital. In 1571, after the battle of Lepanto, a remarkable person found refuge here, the Spanish writer Miguel de Cervantes.
The present church of Santa Caterina di Valverde was built between 1926 and 1932, but there has been a church here since the Middle Ages. Since 1330, the history of this church has been linked to that of the monastery of Santa Maria Valverde, built around 1255. After the Val di Noto earthquake of 1693, the monastery became unusable and the structures of the Temple of Venus, on whose ruins it stood, collapsed. A new monastery and church dedicated to St Catherine of Alexandria was built, with a single nave and a semicircular apse. The 1783 earthquake in southern Calabria destroyed the church and most of the frescoes. This event led to a second reconstruction. After the Messina earthquake of 1908, the entire complex was demolished to allow for the new urban topographical division. The current reconstruction was carried out on a project by the architect Cesare Bazzani 1926-29. The new temple was opened for worship on 12 March 1932.
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