The Battle of Benevento was a major medieval battle fought on 26 February 1266, near Benevento in present-day Southern Italy, between the forces of Charles I of Anjou and those of King Manfred of Sicily. Manfred's defeat and death resulted in Charles' conquest of the Kingdom of Sicily, effectively ending the rule of the Hohenstaufen dynasty in the Italian Peninsula and marking the rise of the royal Capetian House of Anjou. The engagement was part of the conflict which pitted Guelphs against Ghibellines.
Battle of Benevento, from Giovanni Villani's Nuova Cronica
Benevento is a city and comune of Campania, Italy, capital of the province of Benevento, 50 kilometres (31 mi) northeast of Naples. It is situated on a hill 130 metres above sea level at the confluence of the Calore Irpino and the Sabato. In 2020, Benevento has 58,418 inhabitants. It is also the seat of a Catholic archbishop.
Main landmarks in Benevento. Clockwise from the upper left: the Arch of Trajan, the church of Santa Sofia, the Cathedral's main portal, the castle and the Roman theatre
View of the Roman Theatre of Benevento.
Panoramic view of Benevento from the mount Pentime, part of the Taburno Camposauro
The Arch of Trajan, provided with a portcullis, as it appeared in the 18th century, etching by Giovanni Battista Piranesi. Some of the bas-reliefs are now in the British Museum.
