1.
Region of Italy
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The regions of Italy are the first-level administrative divisions of Italy, constituting its second NUTS administrative level. There are 20 regions, of five are constitutionally given a broader amount of autonomy granted by special statutes. Each region, except for the Aosta Valley, is divided into provinces, regions are autonomous entities with powers defined in the Constitution. As the administrative districts of the state during the Kingdom of Italy. The original draft list comprised the Salento region, friuli and Venezia Giulia were separate regions, and Basilicata was named Lucania. Abruzzo and Molise were identified as regions in the first draft. They were later merged into Abruzzo e Molise in the constitution of 1948. Implementation of regional autonomy was postponed until the first Regional Elections of 1970, the ruling Christian Democracy party did not want the opposition Italian Communist Party to gain power in the regions, where it was historically rooted. Regions acquired a significant level of autonomy following a reform in 2001. In June 2006 the proposals, which had been associated with Lega Nord. The results varied considerably among the regions, ranging from 55. 3% in favour in Veneto to 82% against in Calabria, number of regions controlled by each coalition since 1995, Macroregions are the first-level NUTS of the European Union. These regions, whose statutes are approved by their councils, were created in 1970. Since the constitutional reform of 2001 they have had residual legislative powers, the regions have exclusive legislative power with respect to any matters not expressly reserved to state law. Yet their financial autonomy is quite modest, they just keep 20% of all levied taxes, Article 116 of the Italian Constitution grants to five regions home rule, acknowledging their powers in relation to legislation, administration and finance. These regions became autonomous in order to take into account cultural differences, moreover, the government wanted to prevent their secession from Italy after the Second World War. Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol constitutes a special case, the region is nearly powerless, and the powers granted by the regions statute are mostly exercised by the two autonomous provinces within the region, Trentino and South Tyrol. In this case, the regional institution plays a coordinating role, the latter is directly elected by the citizens of each region, with the exceptions of Aosta Valley and Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, where he is chosen by the regional council. Under the 1995 electoral law, the winning coalition receives a majority of seats on the council
2.
Italy
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Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, Italy covers an area of 301,338 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal and Mediterranean climate. Due to its shape, it is referred to in Italy as lo Stivale. With 61 million inhabitants, it is the fourth most populous EU member state, the Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom, which eventually became a republic that conquered and assimilated other nearby civilisations. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the distribution of civilian law, republican governments, Christianity. The Renaissance began in Italy and spread to the rest of Europe, bringing a renewed interest in humanism, science, exploration, Italian culture flourished at this time, producing famous scholars, artists and polymaths such as Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. The weakened sovereigns soon fell victim to conquest by European powers such as France, Spain and Austria. Despite being one of the victors in World War I, Italy entered a period of economic crisis and social turmoil. The subsequent participation in World War II on the Axis side ended in defeat, economic destruction. Today, Italy has the third largest economy in the Eurozone and it has a very high level of human development and is ranked sixth in the world for life expectancy. The country plays a prominent role in regional and global economic, military, cultural and diplomatic affairs, as a reflection of its cultural wealth, Italy is home to 51 World Heritage Sites, the most in the world, and is the fifth most visited country. The assumptions on the etymology of the name Italia are very numerous, according to one of the more common explanations, the term Italia, from Latin, Italia, was borrowed through Greek from the Oscan Víteliú, meaning land of young cattle. The bull was a symbol of the southern Italic tribes and was often depicted goring the Roman wolf as a defiant symbol of free Italy during the Social War. Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus states this account together with the legend that Italy was named after Italus, mentioned also by Aristotle and Thucydides. The name Italia originally applied only to a part of what is now Southern Italy – according to Antiochus of Syracuse, but by his time Oenotria and Italy had become synonymous, and the name also applied to most of Lucania as well. The Greeks gradually came to apply the name Italia to a larger region, excavations throughout Italy revealed a Neanderthal presence dating back to the Palaeolithic period, some 200,000 years ago, modern Humans arrived about 40,000 years ago. Other ancient Italian peoples of undetermined language families but of possible origins include the Rhaetian people and Cammuni. Also the Phoenicians established colonies on the coasts of Sardinia and Sicily, the Roman legacy has deeply influenced the Western civilisation, shaping most of the modern world
3.
Campobasso
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Campobasso is a city and comune in southern Italy, the capital of the region of Molise and of the province of Campobasso. It is located in the basin of the Biferno river, surrounded by Sannio. Campobasso is renowned for the craftsmanship of blades, a well documented since the 14th century. It is also famous for the production of pears and scamorza, the city is the home of the University of Molise and of the Archdiocese of Campobasso-Boiano. The origins of Campobasso are disputed, according to the most widely held theory, the city was founded by the Lombards before the 8th century as a fortified camp on the slope of the hill where the castle stands. The original name was Campus vassorum, suggesting that the city was the seat of the vassals of the duke of Spoleto, after the Norman conquest of Southern Italy, Campobasso lost its importance as a defensive stronghold, but became a significant trading and administration centre. From 1330 to 1745 the city was ruled by the Monforte-Gambatesa family, later it came under the control of the Di Capua, Gonzaga, Vitagliano, Carafa and Romano families. The original old town of Campobasso contains the Castello Monforte, although in 1732 the inhabitants built a new town on a lower-level plain, in 1763 the citizens abandoned the old city and settled in the lower valley. The current city was expanded in 1814 by the king of Naples Joachim Murat, Campobasso was the scene of heavy fighting during the Second World War. Thirty eight civilians were killed in the action, including the bishop of the diocese, Bishop Secondo Bologna, and an unknown number of people were injured in the intensive bombardment. The occupation by the Canadian troops, and the administrative and political control resulting, had such an impact on the town that it became known as “Canada Town” or “Maple Leaf City”. In 1995 the city was awarded the Bronze Medal for Civil Valour in recognition of the work done in clearing the region of dangerous unexploded warheads. One of the attractions of Campobasso is the Castello Monforte, built in 1450 by the local ruler Nicola II Monforte. The castle has Guelph merlons and stands on a commanding point, the current construction is the result of later rebuilding after the earthquakes of 1456 and 1805. Next to the castle is the Chiesa della Madonna del Monte, erected in the 11th century and it houses a precious wooden statue of the Incoronata from 1334. Below the castle, the church of St. George is probably the oldest in Campobasso, the Cathedral, or Chiesa della Santissima Trinità, was built in 1504 outside the city walls. It was destroyed by an earthquake in 1805 and a new Neoclassical edifice was built in 1829, the church of San Bartolomeo is a Romanesque building from the 11th century, in limestone. The interior has a nave and two aisles, San Leonardo has a façade mixing Gothic and Romanesque elements, and a side mullioned window with vegetable decorations influenced by the Apulian architecture of the period
4.
Democratic Party (Italy)
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The Democratic Party is a social-democratic political party in Italy. The partys acting leader is Matteo Orfini, who replaced Matteo Renzi after his resignation in February 2017, in April–May the party will hold a leadership election and Renzi is again running for secretary. The PD was founded on 14 October 2007 upon the merger of various centre-left parties which had part of The Olive Tree list. The PDs main ideological trends are thus social democracy and the Italian Christian leftist tradition, the party has been also influenced by social liberalism, which was already present in some of the founding components of the DS and DL, and more generally by a Third Way progressivism. Following the 2013 general election and the 2014 European Parliament election, the PD was the largest party in the Chamber of Deputies, the Senate and the European Parliament. From 2013 the Italian government has been led by three successive Democratic Prime Ministers, Enrico Letta, Matteo Renzi, and Paolo Gentiloni. As of 2017, other than the government, Democrats head fourteen regional governments out of twenty and function as coalition partner in Tuscany. Former bigwigs include Giorgio Napolitano, Sergio Mattarella, Romano Prodi, Giuliano Amato, Massimo DAlema, Pier Luigi Bersani, Francesco Rutelli, the coalition, in alliance with the Communist Refoundation Party, won the 1996 general election and Prodi became Prime Minister. In February 1998 the PDS merged with minor parties to become the Democrats of the Left, while in March 2002 the PPI, RI. In the summer of 2003 Prodi suggested that the forces would participate in the 2004 European Parliament election with a common list. Whereas the Union of Democrats for Europe and the far-left parties refused, four parties accepted, the DS, DL, the Italian Democratic Socialists and the European Republicans Movement. They launched a joint list named United in the Olive Tree, the project was later abandoned in 2005 by the SDI. In the 2006 general election the list obtained 31. 3% of the vote for the Chamber of Deputies, eight parties agreed to merge into the PD, Democrats of the Left Democracy is Freedom – The Daisy. Southern Democratic Party, Sardinia Project, European Republicans Movement, Democratic Republicans, Middle Italy, while the DL agreed to the merger with virtually no resistance, the DS experienced a more heated final congress. On 19 April 2007 approximately 75% of party members voted in support of the merger of the DS into the PD, the left-wing opposition, led by Fabio Mussi, obtained just 15% of the support within the party. A third motion, presented by Gavino Angius and supportive of the PD only within the Party of European Socialists, during and following the congress, both Mussi and Angius announced their intention not to join the PD and founded a new party called Democratic Left. On 22 May 2007 the composition of the committee of the nascent party was announced. On 18 June the committee met to decide the rules for the election of the 2,400 members of the partys constituent assembly
5.
Demonym
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A demonym is a word that identifies residents or natives of a particular place, which is derived from the name of that particular place. It is a neologism, previously gentilic was recorded in English dictionaries, e. g. the Oxford English Dictionary, thus a Thai may be any resident or citizen of Thailand, of any ethnic group, or more narrowly a member of the Thai people. Conversely, some groups of people may be associated with multiple demonyms, for example, a native of the United Kingdom may be called a British person, a Brit, or a Briton. In some languages, when a parallel demonym does not exist, in English, demonyms are capitalized and are often the same as the adjectival form of the place, e. g. Egyptian, Japanese, or Greek. Significant exceptions exist, for instance the adjectival form of Spain is Spanish, English widely includes country-level demonyms such as Ethiopian or Guatemalan and more local demonyms such as Seoulite, Wisconsinite, Chicagoan, Michigander, Fluminense, and Paulista. Some places lack a commonly used and accepted demonym and this poses a particular challenge to those toponymists who research demonyms. The word gentilic comes from the Latin gentilis and the English suffix -ic, the word demonym was derived from the Greek word meaning populace with the suffix for name. National Geographic attributes the term demonym to Merriam-Webster editor Paul Dickson in a recent work from 1990 and it was subsequently popularized in this sense in 1997 by Dickson in his book Labels for Locals. However, in What Do You Call a Person From, a Dictionary of Resident Names attributed the term to George H. Scheetz, in his Names Names, A Descriptive and Prescriptive Onymicon, which is apparently where the term first appears. Several linguistic elements are used to create demonyms in the English language, the most common is to add a suffix to the end of the location name, slightly modified in some instances. Cairo → Cairene Cyrenaica → Cyrene Damascus → Damascene Greece → Greek Nazareth → Nazarene Slovenia → Slovene Often used for Middle Eastern locations and European locations. Kingston-upon-Hull → Hullensian Leeds → Leodensian Spain → Spaniard Savoy → Savoyard -ese is usually considered proper only as an adjective, thus, a Chinese person is used rather than a Chinese. Monaco → Monégasque Menton → Mentonasque Basque Country → Basque Often used for French locations, mostly they are from Africa and the Pacific, and are not generally known or used outside the country concerned. In much of East Africa, a person of an ethnic group will be denoted by a prefix. For example, a person of the Luba people would be a Muluba, the plural form Baluba, similar patterns with minor variations in the prefixes exist throughout on a tribal level. And Fijians who are indigenous Fijians are known as Kaiviti and these demonyms are usually more informal and colloquial. In the United States such informal demonyms frequently become associated with mascots of the sports teams of the state university system. In other countries the origins are often disputed and these will typically be formed using the standard models above
6.
Daylight saving time
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Daylight saving time is the practice of advancing clocks during summer months by one hour so that evening daylight lasts an hour longer, while sacrificing normal sunrise times. Typically, regions that use Daylight Savings Time adjust clocks forward one hour close to the start of spring, American inventor and politician Benjamin Franklin proposed a form of daylight time in 1784. New Zealander George Hudson proposed the idea of saving in 1895. The German Empire and Austria-Hungary organized the first nationwide implementation, starting on April 30,1916, many countries have used it at various times since then, particularly since the energy crisis of the 1970s. The practice has both advocates and critics, DST clock shifts sometimes complicate timekeeping and can disrupt travel, billing, record keeping, medical devices, heavy equipment, and sleep patterns. Computer software often adjusts clocks automatically, but policy changes by various jurisdictions of DST dates, industrialized societies generally follow a clock-based schedule for daily activities that do not change throughout the course of the year. The time of day that individuals begin and end work or school, North and south of the tropics daylight lasts longer in summer and shorter in winter, with the effect becoming greater as one moves away from the tropics. However, they will have one hour of daylight at the start of each day. Supporters have also argued that DST decreases energy consumption by reducing the need for lighting and heating, DST is also of little use for locations near the equator, because these regions see only a small variation in daylight in the course of the year. After ancient times, equal-length civil hours eventually supplanted unequal, so civil time no longer varies by season, unequal hours are still used in a few traditional settings, such as some monasteries of Mount Athos and all Jewish ceremonies. This 1784 satire proposed taxing window shutters, rationing candles, and waking the public by ringing church bells, despite common misconception, Franklin did not actually propose DST, 18th-century Europe did not even keep precise schedules. However, this changed as rail transport and communication networks came to require a standardization of time unknown in Franklins day. Modern DST was first proposed by the New Zealand entomologist George Hudson, whose shift work job gave him time to collect insects. An avid golfer, he also disliked cutting short his round at dusk and his solution was to advance the clock during the summer months, a proposal he published two years later. The proposal was taken up by the Liberal Member of Parliament Robert Pearce, a select committee was set up to examine the issue, but Pearces bill did not become law, and several other bills failed in the following years. Willett lobbied for the proposal in the UK until his death in 1915, william Sword Frost, mayor of Orillia, Ontario, introduced daylight saving time in the municipality during his tenure from 1911 to 1912. Starting on April 30,1916, the German Empire and its World War I ally Austria-Hungary were the first to use DST as a way to conserve coal during wartime, Britain, most of its allies, and many European neutrals soon followed suit. Russia and a few other countries waited until the year
7.
Central European Summer Time
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It corresponds to UTC + two hours. Other names which have been applied to Central European Summer Time are Middle European Summer Time, Central European Daylight Saving Time, and Bravo Time. Since 1996 European Summer Time has been observed between 1,00 UTC on the last Sunday of March and 1,00 on the last Sunday of October, the following countries and territories use Central European Summer Time. In addition, Libya used CEST during the years 1951–1959, 1982–1989, 1996–1997, European Summer Time Other countries and territories in UTC+2 time zone Other names of UTC+2 time zone
8.
First-level NUTS of the European Union
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The Classification of Territorial Units for Statistics, is a geocode standard for referencing the administrative divisions of countries for statistical purposes. The standard was developed by the European Union, there are three levels of NUTS defined, with two levels of local administrative units below. Not all countries have every level of division, depending on their size, one of the most extreme cases is Luxembourg, which has only LAUs, the three NUTS divisions each correspond to the entire country itself. Below are the first level NUTS regions of the European Union
9.
Geographic coordinate system
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A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
10.
Southern Italy
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It generally coincides with the administrative regions of Abruzzo, Apulia, Basilicata, Campania, Calabria, Molise, Sicily, and Sardinia. Some also include the most southern and eastern parts of Lazio within the Mezzogiorno, Southern Italy carries a unique legacy of culture. It features many major tourist attractions, such as the Palace of Caserta, there are also many ancient Greek cities in Southern Italy, such as Sybaris, which were founded several centuries before the start of the Roman Republic. These same subdivisions are at the bottom of the Italian First level NUTS of the European Union, the term Mezzogiorno first came into use in the 18th century and is an Italian rendition of meridies. The term was popularised by Giuseppe Garibaldi and it eventually came into vogue after the Italian unification. In a similar manner, Southern France is colloquially known as le Midi, Southern Italy forms the lower part of the Italian boot, containing the ankle, the toe, the arch, and the heel, along with the island of Sicily. Separating the heel and the boot is the Gulf of Taranto, named after the city of Taranto and it is an arm of the Ionian Sea. The island of Sardinia, right below the French island of Corsica, on the eastern coast is the Adriatic Sea, leading into the rest of the Mediterranean through the Strait of Otranto. Along the northern coast of the Salernitan Gulf and on the south of the Sorrentine Peninsula runs the Amalfi Coast, off the tip of the peninsula is the isle of Capri. The climate is mainly Mediterranean, except at the highest elevations and the eastern stretches in Apulia, along the Ionian Sea in Calabria. The largest city of Southern Italy is Naples, a name from the Greek that it has maintained for millennia. Bari, Taranto, Reggio Calabria, Foggia, and Salerno are the next largest cities in the area. The region is very active and highly seismic, the 1980 Irpinia earthquake killed 2,914 people, injured more than 10,000. Also during this period, Greek colonies were established in places as widely separated as the eastern coast of the Black Sea, Eastern Libya and they included settlements in Sicily and the southern part of the Italian Peninsula. The Romans called the area of Sicily and the foot of Italy, Magna Graecia, the ancient geographers differed on whether the term included Sicily or merely Apulia and Calabria—Strabo being the most prominent advocate of the wider definitions. With this colonisation, Greek culture was exported to Italy, in its dialects of the Ancient Greek language, its religious rites, an original Hellenic civilization soon developed, later interacting with the native Italic and Latin civilisations. Many of the new Hellenic cities became very rich and powerful, like Neapolis, Syracuse, Acragas, other cities in Magna Graecia included Tarentum, Epizephyrian Locri, Rhegium, Croton, Thurii, Elea, Nola, Syessa, Bari, and others. After Pyrrhus of Epirus failed in his attempt to stop the spread of Roman hegemony in 282 BCE, from then to the Norman conquest of the 11th century, the south of the peninsula was constantly plunged into wars between Greece, Lombardy, and the Islamic Caliphate
11.
Abruzzi e Molise
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Abruzzi e Molise was formerly one of the regions of Italy encompassing a total of 16,600 km2 and including Abruzzo, Molise and Circondario di Cittaducale. From the time of the Kingdom of Naples, this region was considered an entity with the regional capital at LAquila. At this time, the region was divided into four provinces, Abruzzo Ultra I, Abruzzo Ultra II, Abruzzo Citra. In 1852, the Papal States annexed Ancarano, then further changes occurred during the formation of the Kingdom of Italy including the annexation of Venafro, in 1927 an additional adjustment was made when the Cittaducale was assigned to Rieti. In 1963, the province of Campobasso was split from the region to form Molise, with the four provinces, LAquila, Teramo, Pescara and Chieti
12.
Abruzzo
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Abruzzo is a region of Italy in Southern Italy, with an area of 10,763 square km and a population of 1.3 million. Its western border lies 80 km east of Rome, the region is divided into the four provinces of LAquila, Teramo, Pescara, and Chieti. Abruzzo borders the region of Marche to the north, Lazio to the west and south-west, Molise to the south-east, and the Adriatic Sea to the east. Geographically, Abruzzo is divided into an area to the west, which includes the Gran Sasso Ditalia. Abruzzo is considered culturally, linguistically, and historically a region of Southern Italy, the Italian Statistical Authority deems it to be part of Southern Italy, partially because of Abruzzos historic association with the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. These ensure the survival of 75% of Europes living species including species, such as the small wading dotterel, golden eagle, the Abruzzo chamois, Apennine wolf. Abruzzo is also home to Calderone, Europes southernmost glacier, visiting nineteenth-century Italian diplomat and journalist Primo Levi said that forte e gentile best describes the beauty of the region and the character of its people. Forte e gentile has since become the motto of the region, Abruzzo is divided into four administrative provinces, Humans have inhabited Abruzzo since Neolithic times. A skeleton from Lama dei Peligni in the province of Chieti has been dated to 6,540 bp. The name Abruzzo appears to derive from the Latin Aprutium, although in Roman times the region was known at times as Picenum, Sabina et Samnium, Flaminia et Picenum. Until 1963 it was part of the Abruzzi region with Molise, Abruzzo Citeriore is present day Chieti province. Abruzzo Ulteriore I comprised the Teramo and Pescara provinces, Abruzzo Ulteriore II is now the Province of LAquila, in this province is found the city of Corfinio, the chief city of the Paeligni,7 m. N. of Sulmona in the valley of the Aternus. The site of the town is occupied by the village of Pentima. It appears also as a fortress of importance in the Civil War and these people were honored by Caesar as citizens of Rome. It is said that the name Italia came from this region because of ancient coins that have found here that date from about the 1st century BC. These coins have the name Italia on them and are proof of this fact. This theory of the origin of the name Italia is debated by scholars, archaeologists and it is also said by the Italian Government that Calabria was once called Italia by the ancient Greeks in honour of its inhabitants who were known as the Itali. This occurred hundreds of years before the coins of Corfinio were apparently minted, the late archaeologist Massimo Pallottino also claimed that the name was derived from the Italic tribes that settled in modern Calabria
13.
Aosta Valley
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The Aosta Valley is a mountainous semi-autonomous region in northwestern Italy. It is bordered by Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France to the west, Valais, Switzerland to the north, covering an area of 3,263 km2 and with a population of about 128,000 it is the smallest, least populous, and least densely populated region of Italy. It is the only Italian region that is not sub-divided into provinces, provincial administrative functions are provided by the regional government. The region is divided into 74 comuni, the Aosta Valley is an Alpine valley which with its tributary valleys includes the Italian slopes of Mont Blanc, Monte Rosa, Gran Paradiso and the Matterhorn, its highest peak is Mont Blanc. The region is cold in the winter, especially when compared with other places in the Western Alps. Winter temperatures average around −3 °C or −4 °C, and summers between 13 °C and 15 °C, the snow season starts in November and lasts until March. Mist is common during the morning from April until October, the main communities in this area are Gressoney-Saint-Jean, Brusson and Gressoney-La-Trinité. The valleys above 1600 metres usually have a Cold Continental Climate, in this climate the snow season is very long, as long as 8 or 9 months at the highest points. During the summer, mist occurs almost every day and these areas are the wettest in the western Alps. Temperatures are low, between −7 °C and −3 °C in January, and in July between 10 °C and 13 °C. In this area is the town of Rhêmes-Notre-Dame. which may be the coldest town in the Western Alps, areas between 2000 metres and 3500 metres usually have a Tundra Climate, where every month has an average temperature below 10 °C. Temperature averages in Pian Rosà, at 3400 metres high, are −11.6 °C in January and 1.4 °C in July and it is the coldest place in Italy where the climate is verifiable. In the past, above 3500 metres, all months were having a temperature below freezing. In recent years there was a rise in temperatures. See as an example the data for Pian Rosà, the first inhabitants of the Aosta Valley were Celts and Ligures, whose language heritage remains in some local placenames. Thus, the name Valle dAosta literally means Valley of Augustus, saint Anselm of Canterbury was born in Aosta in 1033 or 1034. In the mid-13th century Emperor Frederick II made the County of Aosta a duchy, the region remained part of Savoy lands, with the exceptions of French occupations from 1539 to 1563, later in 1691, then between 1704 and 1706. As part of the Kingdom of Sardinia it joined the new Kingdom of Italy in 1861 and it was also ruled by the First French Empire between 1800 and 1814
14.
Campobasso Province
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The Province of Campobasso is a province in the Molise region of southern Italy. Its capital is the city of Campobasso and it covers an area of c.2,941 square kilometres and has a total population of 225,622. There are 84 comunes in the province, the eastern part of the province is home to a small Croatian minority who speak an archaic dialect of the Croatian language. The Croatians reside primarily in Acquaviva Collecroce, San Felice and Montemitro, the Samnites, a group of Sabellic tribes, dominated this region of Italy including Campania from around 600 B. C. to 290 B. C. Following the war against Rome in 343 B. C. in 290 B. C. the territory of the ancient Sannio region was included in the Roman Regio IV Samnium. As a result of frequent changes in its ownership, the Lombards called the city Campus Vassorum which later became Campobasso, the feudal lords increasingly gained power at the expense of the church. The principality of Capua, established in 860, included the counties of Venafro, Larino, Trivento, Bojano, Isernia, Campomarino, with the advent of the Neapolitan Republic, a new administrative organization was established, divided into departments made up of cantons. On 27 September 1806, after the French occupation, Molise became a province consisting of the districts of Campobasso and Isernia, to which the districts of Larino. Following a constitutional amendment in December 1963 the province of Campobasso was detached from Abruzzo, given the status of Region, the situation remained unchanged until 1970 when 52 municipalities were detached to form the Province of Isernia, established under Law No.2 of February 1970. The Province of Campobasso is situated in eastern Italy on the Adriatic coast, the terrain is varied extending from the mountainous Apennines, down through hills, lakes and inland rivers to the Adriatic coast. The territory is crossed by the valleys of the Trigno, Biferno and Fortore, flanked by hills. Other rivers of note include the Tammaro, the Saccione, the Sinarca, alflow into the Adriatic with the exception of the Tammaro. The central Valle del Biferno includes the 7.45 km2 Lago di Guardialfiera, the other lake of note is Lago di Occhito to the south east of SantElia a Pianisi. The provincial capital of Campobasso lies in the south of the province, north of the Matese mountains, on the coast, the principal towns are Termoli and Campomarino. The population of the province rose between 1861 when there were 229,393 inhabitants and 1951 when it totalled 289,577, over the next 20 years it fell back to 227,641 after which it rose once again to 238,958 in 1991. It has since undergone a slight reduction to 225,622 inhabitants in 2016. As of 1 January 2014, the most populous communes in the province are Campobasso, Termoli, Bojano, Campomarino, Larino, Montenero di Bisaccia, Guglionesi, Riccia, San Martino in Pensilis and Trivento. Acquaviva Collecroce, with a population of 714, is the largest of three municipalities in the province where the inhabitants are of Croatian origin and it is believed they arrived at the end of the 15th century from Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia
15.
Isernia Province
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The province of Isernia is a province in the region of Molise in Italy. The provincial capital is the city Isernia and the president of the province is Luigi Brasiello, the province of Isernia has an area of 1,535.24 square kilometres and a population of 86,405 inhabitants as of 2016. It contains 52 comunes in the province, listed at comunes of the Province of Isernia, Isernia was known as Samnite Aesernia until it fell under Roman rule in 263 BCE. The territory was given to Alczeco for his efforts against the Byzantines with his Bulgarian military, by the Duchy of Benevento, throughout the 9th century the area was repeatedly sacked during Muslim invasions and suffered an earthquake in 847, these destroyed the cities of Isernia and Venafro. Despite this, the city was made a see and was granted the status of county in 964. A1979 archaeological discovery near the city of Isernia found evidence of a settlement dating back to the Palaeolithic period over 736,000 years ago, in Molise County, Benedictines formed the San Vincenzo al Volturno monastery in the province of Isernia after Rome fell in 476. Pope Celestine V was born near Isernia and the provinces feast day is on 19 May, an earthquake in 1805 destroyed Isernias cathedral, which was rebuilt atop the ruins of the destroyed structure in 1837. The province of Isernia is a mountainous area of central Italy. To the southwest the mountains decrease in height and the hills give way to the plains around Venafro. To the northeast is the Province of Campobasso, also part of Molise, to the west is the Province of Frosinone in Lazio and to the south the Province of Caserta in Campania. There are four mountain ranges in the province and the Abruzzo National Park straddles the border with Abruzzo, the highest peak in the province is Monte Mare,2,020 metres. The main rivers are the Volturno and the Trigno which flow into the Adriatic, the lake of Castel San Vincenzo is a man-made reservoir built to power a hydrelectric scheme. The economy of the region has traditionally based on agriculture. The holdings are small and produce grapes, cereals, olives, vegetables, fruit. Traditional products grown in the province include grass peas and farro, Tintilia grapes are grown for the production of the regions red wine, the Tintilia del Molise
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Puglia
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Apulia is a region of Italy in Southern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its southernmost portion, known as the Salento peninsula, forms a stiletto on the boot of Italy, the region comprises 19,345 square kilometers, and its population is about 4 million. It is bordered by the other Italian regions of Molise to the north, Campania to the west, across the Adriatic and Ionian Seas, it faces Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece, and Montenegro, The Apulia region extends as far north as Monte Gargano. Puglias coastline is longer than any other mainland Italian region, in the north, the Gargano promontory extends out into the Adriatic, while in the south, the flat and dry Salento peninsula forms the heel of Italys boot. It is home to the Alta Murgia and Gargano National Parks, see also, History of Apulia Apulia is one of the richest archaeological regions in Italy. It was first colonized by Mycenaean Greeks, a number of castles were built in the area by Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, including Castel del Monte, sometimes called the Crown of Apulia. After 1282, when the island of Sicily was lost, Apulia was part of the Kingdom of Naples, as a result of the French–Spanish war of 1501–1504, Naples again came under the rule of Aragon and the Spanish Empire from 1504 to 1714. When Barbary pirates of North Africa sacked Vieste in 1554, they took an estimated 7,000 slaves, in 1861 the region became part of the Kingdom of Italy, with the new capital city at Turin. In the words of one historian, Turin was so far away that Otranto is today closer to seventeen foreign capitals than it is to Turin, the regions contribution to Italys gross value added was around 4. 6% in 2000, while its population was 7% of the total. The per capita GDP is low compared to the national average, in comparison with the country as a whole, the economy of Apulia is characterised by a greater emphasis on agriculture and services and a smaller part played by industry. In the last 20 years the base of the regions economy has changed radically. The majority of firms are financed by local capital. In certain of these sectors – especially textiles, clothing, footwear, vehicles, the region has a good network of roads but the railway network is somewhat inadequate, particularly in the south. Apulias 800 kilometers of coastline is studded with ports, which make this region an important terminal for transport and tourism to Greece, between 2007 and 2013 the economy of Apulia expanded more than that of the rest of southern Italy. Such growth, over decades, is a severe challenge to the hydrogeological system. Emigration from the depressed areas to northern Italy and the rest of Europe was very intense in the years between 1956 and 1971. Subsequently, the trend declined as economic conditions improved, to the point where there was net immigration in the years between 1982 and 1985, since 1986 the stagnation in employment has led to a new inversion of the trend, caused by a decrease in immigration. Since 1 June 2015, former judge and mayor of Bari Michele Emiliano of the Democratic Party has served as President, Apulia is divided into five administrative provinces and one metropolitan city, Cuisine plays an important role throughout Apulia
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Lazio
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Lazio is one of the 20 administrative regions of Italy, situated in the central peninsular section of the country. With almost 5.9 million residents and a GDP of more than 170 billion euros, Lazio is the second most populated region of Italy and its capital is Rome, capital and largest city of Italy. Lazio comprises an area of 17,236 km2 and it has borders with Tuscany, Umbria, and Marche to the north, Abruzzo and Molise to the east, Campania to the south. The region is flat and hilly, with small mountainous areas in the most eastern and southern districts. The coast of Lazio is mainly composed of beaches, punctuated by the headlands of Circeo. The Pontine Islands, which are part of Lazio, lie opposite the southern coast, behind the coastal strip, to the north, lies the Maremma Laziale, a coastal plain interrupted at Civitavecchia by the Tolfa Mountains. The central section of the region is occupied by the Roman Campagna, the southern districts are characterized by the flatlands of Agro Pontino, a once swampy and malarial area, that was reclaimed over the centuries. To the south of the Tiber, other groups form part of the Preapennines, the Alban Hills, also of volcanic origin. The highest peak is Mount Gorzano on the border with Abruzzo, see also, History of Italy The Italian word Lazio descends from the Latin word Latium. The name of the region also survives in the designation of the ancient population of Latins, Latini in the Latin language spoken by them. Although the demography of ancient Rome was multi-ethnic, including, for example, Etruscans and other Italics besides the Latini, in Roman mythology, the tribe of the Latini took their name from king Latinus. Much of Lazio is in flat or rolling. The lands originally inhabited by the Latini were extended into the territories of the Samnites, the Marsi, the Hernici, the Aequi, the Aurunci and the Volsci, all surrounding Italic tribes. This larger territory was still called Latium, but it was divided into Latium adiectum or Latium Novum, the lands or New Latium, and Latium Vetus, or Old Latium. The northern border of Lazio was the Tiber river, which divided it from Etruria, the emperor Augustus officially united almost all of present-day Italy into a single geo-political entity, Italia, dividing it into eleven regions. However, the wars against the Longobards weakened the region. With the Donation of Sutri in 728, the Bishop of Rome acquired the first territory in the region beyond the Duchy of Rome, the strengthening of the religious and ecclesiastical aristocracy led to continuous power struggles between secular lords and the Pope until the middle of the 16th century. Other popes tried to do the same, during the period when the papacy resided in Avignon, France, the feudal lords power increased due to the absence of the Pope from Rome
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Campania
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Campania is a region in Southern Italy. Located on the Italian Peninsula, with the Mediterranean Sea to the west, it includes the small Phlegraean Islands, Campania was colonised by Ancient Greeks and was part of Magna Græcia. During the Roman era, the area maintained a Greco-Roman culture, the capital city of Campania is Naples. Campania is rich in culture, especially in regard to gastronomy, music, architecture, archeological and ancient sites such as Pompeii, Herculaneum, Paestum and Velia. The name of Campania itself is derived from Latin, as the Romans knew the region as Campania felix, the rich natural sights of Campania make it highly important in the tourism industry, especially along the Amalfi Coast, Mount Vesuvius and the island of Capri. During the 8th century BC, people from Euboea in Greece, known as Cumaeans, another Oscan tribe, the Samnites, moved down from central Italy into Campania. The Roman consul Quintus Publilius Filo recaptured Neapolis by 326 BC, the Second Samnite War ended with the Romans controlling southern Campania and additional regions further to the south. Campania was a part of the Roman Republic by the end of the 4th century BC, valued for its pastures. Its Greek language and customs made it a centre of Hellenistic civilization, during the Pyrrhic War the battle took place in Campania at Maleventum in which the Romans, led by consul Curius Dentatus, were victorious. They renamed the city Beneventum, which grew in stature until it was only to Capua in southern Italy. During the Second Punic War in 216 BC, Capua, in a bid for equality with Rome, the rebellious Capuans were isolated from the rest of Campania, which remained allies of Rome. Naples resisted Hannibal due to the imposing walls, Capua was eventually starved into submission in the Roman retaking of 211 BC, and the Romans were victorious. The rest of Campania, with the exception of Naples, adopted the Latin language as official and was Romanised. As part of the Roman Empire, Campania, with Latium, Roman Emperors chose Campania as a holiday destination, among them Claudius and Tiberius, the latter of whom is infamously linked to the island of Capri. It was also during this period that Christianity came to Campania, Two of the apostles, St. Peter and St. Paul, are said to have preached in the city of Naples, and there were also several martyrs during this time. Unfortunately, the period of calm was violently interrupted by the epic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 which buried the cities of Pompeii. The area had many duchies and principalities during the Middle Ages, in the hands of the Byzantine Empire, under the Normans, the smaller independent states were brought together as part of the Kingdom of Sicily, before the mainland broke away to form the Kingdom of Naples. It was during this period elements of Spanish, French
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Adriatic Sea
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The Adriatic Sea /ˌeɪdriˈætᵻk/ is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula and the Apennine Mountains from the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto to the northwest, the countries with coasts on the Adriatic are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece, Italy, Montenegro and Slovenia. The Adriatic contains over 1,300 islands, mostly located along its eastern, Croatian and it is divided into three basins, the northern being the shallowest and the southern being the deepest, with a maximum depth of 1,233 metres. The Otranto Sill, a ridge, is located at the border between the Adriatic and Ionian Seas. The prevailing currents flow counterclockwise from the Strait of Otranto, along the eastern coast, tidal movements in the Adriatic are slight, although larger amplitudes are known to occur occasionally. The Adriatics salinity is lower than the Mediterraneans because the Adriatic collects a third of the water flowing into the Mediterranean. The surface water temperatures range from 30 °C in summer to 12 °C in winter. The Adriatic Sea sits on the Apulian or Adriatic Microplate, which separated from the African Plate in the Mesozoic era, the plates movement contributed to the formation of the surrounding mountain chains and Apennine tectonic uplift after its collision with the Eurasian plate. In the Late Oligocene, the Apennine Peninsula first formed, separating the Adriatic Basin from the rest of the Mediterranean, all types of sediment are found in the Adriatic, with the bulk of the material transported by the Po and other rivers on the western coast. The western coast is alluvial or terraced, while the eastern coast is indented with pronounced karstification. There are dozens of protected areas in the Adriatic, designed to protect the seas karst habitats. The sea is abundant in flora and fauna—more than 7,000 species are identified as native to the Adriatic, many of them endemic, rare and threatened ones. The Adriatics shores are populated by more than 3.5 million people, the earliest settlements on the Adriatic shores were Etruscan, Illyrian, and Greek. By the 2nd century BC, the shores were under Romes control, following Italian unification, the Kingdom of Italy started an eastward expansion that lasted until the 20th century. Following World War I and the collapse of Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire, the former disintegrated during the 1990s, resulting in four new states on the Adriatic coast. Italy and Albania agreed on their maritime boundary in 1992, Fisheries and tourism are significant sources of income all along the Adriatic coast. Adriatic Croatias tourism industry has grown faster economically than the rest of the Adriatic Basins, maritime transport is also a significant branch of the areas economy—there are 19 seaports in the Adriatic that each handle more than a million tonnes of cargo per year. The largest Adriatic seaport by annual cargo turnover is the Port of Trieste, in the southeast, the Adriatic Sea connects to the Ionian Sea at the 72-kilometre wide Strait of Otranto
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Isole Tremiti
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The Isole Tremiti are an archipelago in the Adriatic Sea, north of the Gargano Peninsula. They constitute a comune of Italys Province of Foggia and form part of the Gargano national park, the name of the islands relates to their seismic hazard, with a history of earthquakes in the area, tremiti means tremors. The islands were used for the internment of political prisoners during Benito Mussolinis Fascist regime and this was nothing new, two millennia earlier Augustus had exiled his granddaughter Julia the Younger to one of these islands. The islands are now an important tourist attraction because of the waters surrounding them. Up to 100,000 visitors come to the islands in the summer season, ferry services from the mainland operate from Termoli, Vieste, Rodi Garganico and Capoiale, while Alidaunia offers flights from San Domino Heliport to Foggia and Vieste. San Domino is the most developed island for tourism and has the only beach in the archipelago. San Nicola is where most of the population resides and it is the site of a monastery where a monk named Nicolò was buried. Legend has it every time someone tried to move his corpse off the island. Cretaccio is a block of clay and thus uninhabited. Pianosa is a small, uninhabited island and its maximum elevation is 15 metres. Sometimes, during storms, the cover it. Inhabited since late Iron Age times, the Tremiti Island have been a confinement place since ancient times, roman emperor Augustus had his granddaughter Julia the Younger transferred here, where she died after 20 years. In the Middle Ages the archipelago was ruled by the Abbey of Santa Maria a Mare at San Nicola island, in the 13th century the abbey had gained its autonomy from the father monastery, and owned lands from the Biferno to Trani on the Apulian mainland. After an alleged period of decadence, in 1237 the Benedictines were replaced by the Cistercian order. In 1334 the abbey was sacked by Dalmatian pirates from Omiš, in 1412 the Lateran Canons took ownership of the islands, and restored the abbey with cisterns and fortifications which withstood the assault of Ottoman ships in 1567. The abbey was suppressed in 1783 by King Ferdinand IV of Naples, during the Napoleonic age the islands were a stronghold of Joachim Murats supporters, who resisted a British fleet in 1809. In 1843, to repopulate the islands, King Ferdinand II of Two Sicilies moved a number of people from Naples slums to the islands, in 1911, about 1,300 Libyans who had resisted Italian colonial rule were confined to Tremiti. After a year, around one-third of them had died, mainly from typhus, during the Fascist era, the archipelago continued to perform its function of confinement, detaining, among others, Amerigo Dumini, and future president of the Republic, Sandro Pertini
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Castello Monforte
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Campobasso is a city and comune in southern Italy, the capital of the region of Molise and of the province of Campobasso. It is located in the basin of the Biferno river, surrounded by Sannio. Campobasso is renowned for the craftsmanship of blades, a well documented since the 14th century. It is also famous for the production of pears and scamorza, the city is the home of the University of Molise and of the Archdiocese of Campobasso-Boiano. The origins of Campobasso are disputed, according to the most widely held theory, the city was founded by the Lombards before the 8th century as a fortified camp on the slope of the hill where the castle stands. The original name was Campus vassorum, suggesting that the city was the seat of the vassals of the duke of Spoleto, after the Norman conquest of Southern Italy, Campobasso lost its importance as a defensive stronghold, but became a significant trading and administration centre. From 1330 to 1745 the city was ruled by the Monforte-Gambatesa family, later it came under the control of the Di Capua, Gonzaga, Vitagliano, Carafa and Romano families. The original old town of Campobasso contains the Castello Monforte, although in 1732 the inhabitants built a new town on a lower-level plain, in 1763 the citizens abandoned the old city and settled in the lower valley. The current city was expanded in 1814 by the king of Naples Joachim Murat, Campobasso was the scene of heavy fighting during the Second World War. Thirty eight civilians were killed in the action, including the bishop of the diocese, Bishop Secondo Bologna, and an unknown number of people were injured in the intensive bombardment. The occupation by the Canadian troops, and the administrative and political control resulting, had such an impact on the town that it became known as “Canada Town” or “Maple Leaf City”. In 1995 the city was awarded the Bronze Medal for Civil Valour in recognition of the work done in clearing the region of dangerous unexploded warheads. One of the attractions of Campobasso is the Castello Monforte, built in 1450 by the local ruler Nicola II Monforte. The castle has Guelph merlons and stands on a commanding point, the current construction is the result of later rebuilding after the earthquakes of 1456 and 1805. Next to the castle is the Chiesa della Madonna del Monte, erected in the 11th century and it houses a precious wooden statue of the Incoronata from 1334. Below the castle, the church of St. George is probably the oldest in Campobasso, the Cathedral, or Chiesa della Santissima Trinità, was built in 1504 outside the city walls. It was destroyed by an earthquake in 1805 and a new Neoclassical edifice was built in 1829, the church of San Bartolomeo is a Romanesque building from the 11th century, in limestone. The interior has a nave and two aisles, San Leonardo has a façade mixing Gothic and Romanesque elements, and a side mullioned window with vegetable decorations influenced by the Apulian architecture of the period
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Samnites
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The Samnites were an ancient Italic people who lived in Samnium in south-central Italy. They became involved in wars with the Roman Republic until the 1st century BC. An Oscan-speaking people, the Samnites probably originated as an offshoot of the Sabines, the Samnites formed a confederation, consisting of four tribes, the Hirpini, Caudini, Caraceni, and Pentri. They allied with Rome against the Gauls in 354 BC, despite an overwhelming victory over the Romans at the Battle of the Caudine Forks, the Samnites were eventually subjugated. Although severely weakened, the Samnites later helped Pyrrhus and Hannibal in their wars against Rome, by 82 BC, the Roman dictator Lucius Cornelius Sulla conducted an ethnic cleansing campaign against the Samnites, after which they disappeared from history. The population of Samnium were called Samnites by the Romans and their own endonyms were Safinim for the country and Safineis for the people. Etymologically, the name Samnium is generally recognized to be a form of the name of the Sabines, from Safinim, Sabinus, Sabellus and Samnis, an Indo-European root can be extracted, *sabh-, which becomes Sab- in Latino-Faliscan and Saf- in Osco-Umbrian, Sabini and *Safineis. The eponymous god of the Sabines, Sabus, seems to support this view, the Greek terms, Saunitai and Saunitis, remain outside the group. Nothing is known of their origin, at some point in prehistory, a population speaking a common language extended over both Samnium and Umbria. Salmon conjectures that it was common Italic and puts forward a date of 600 BC and this date does not necessarily correspond to any historical or archaeological evidence, developing a synthetic view of the ethnology of proto-historic Italy is an incomplete and ongoing task. Linguist Julius Pokorny carries the etymology somewhat further back, the earliest written record of the people is a treaty with the Romans from 354 BC, which set their border at the Liris River. Shortly thereafter, the Samnite Wars broke out, they won an important battle against the Roman army in 321 BC, by 290 BC, the Romans were able to break the Samnites power after some hard fought battles. The Samnites were one of the Italian peoples that allied with King Pyrrhus of Epirus during the Pyrrhic War and they joined and aided Hannibal during the Second Punic War. The Samnites were the last tribal group holding out against Rome in the Social War, by 82 BC, the Roman dictator Lucius Cornelius Sulla conducted an ethnic cleansing campaign against this most stubborn and persistent of Romes adversaries and forced the remnant to disperse. So great was the destruction brought upon them that it was recorded that the towns of Samnium have become villages, Caraceni Caudini Frentani Hirpini Pentri Gaius Pontius ca. 320s BC Gellius Egnatius ca.296 BC Gaius Papius Mutilus 90-89 with, Pontius Telesinus - Samnite commander to Papius Pontius Pilate - the 5th Prefect of the Roman province of Judaea from AD 26–36
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Isernia Cathedral
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Isernia Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in the city of Isernia, Italy, the seat of the Bishop of Isernia-Venafro. It is dedicated to the Apostle Peter, the cathedral is situated in the Piazza Andrea in the old town of Isernia, and stands on the site of an Italic pagan temple of the 3rd century B. C. Construction of the present building began in 1349 and its present appearance is the result of many renovations, occasioned partly by numerous earthquakes and partly by building refurbishments. Bandinelli, Ranuccio Bianchi, and Torelli, Mario,1976, Larte dellantichità classica, torino, Utet Catalano, Dora,2001, Itinerari, La città antica, in, D. Catalano, N. Paone, C. Isernia, Cosmo Iannone Editore Damiani, Pasquale,2003, Palazzi e Chiese della Città di Isernia, pp. 125–131
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Termoli Cathedral
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Termoli Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Termoli, in the province of Campobasso, central Italy. The dedication is to the Purification of the Virgin Mary, but is commonly ascribed to Saints Bassus and Timothy and it is the seat of the Bishop of Termoli-Larino. The first church was built around the 6th century on the ruins of a dedicated to Castor. There is a reference to a church dedicated to the Virgin Mary in 1037, a few years after the synod held by Pope John XIII in 969. Some remains have been discovered, under the extant church, of an 11th-century basilica, the cathedral was restored after an earthquake in 1464 and again after an attack by Ottoman Turks in 1566. During other renovation works in 1760 and 1962, the relics of Saint Bassus of Lucera and of Saint Timothy respectively, the west front of the cathedral measures 22 metres at its highest point. The lower, older, part is elaborately ornamented, the upper part only the rose window. In the lower part are seven blind arcades with double mullioned windows, each different from the others, the central arcade, which is bigger than the others, has a portal surrounded by small columns. The inscription in one of the lunettes of the double window commemorates Stasio Grimaldi di Giovanni, the cathedral has a basilical ground plan, with three naves and three semicircular apses with piers on round bases. The interior has been returned to its original condition after lengthy restoration works between 1930 and 1969, which removed the Baroque additions, palma, G. and others, Termoli, i dintorni, le Tremiti. Azienda Autonoma di Soggiorno e Turismo di Termoli,2000
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Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor
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Frederick II was a Holy Roman Emperor and King of Sicily in the Middle Ages, a member of the House of Hohenstaufen. His political and cultural ambitions, based in Sicily and stretching through Italy to Germany, however, his enemies, especially the popes, prevailed, and his dynasty collapsed soon after his death. As such, he was King of Germany, of Italy, at the age of three, he was crowned King of Sicily as a co-ruler with his mother, Constance of Hauteville, the daughter of Roger II of Sicily. His other royal title was King of Jerusalem by virtue of marriage, Pope Gregory IX went so far as to call him an Antichrist. Speaking six languages, Frederick was a patron of science. He played a role in promoting literature through the Sicilian School of poetry. His Sicilian royal court in Palermo, from around 1220 to his death, saw the first use of a form of an Italo-Romance language. The poetry that emanated from the school had a significant influence on literature and he was also the first king who explicitly outlawed trials by ordeal as they were considered irrational. After his death, his line died out and the House of Hohenstaufen came to an end. Born in Iesi, near Ancona, Italy, Frederick was the son of the emperor Henry VI and he was known as the puer Apuliae. Some chronicles say that his mother, the forty-year-old Constance, gave birth to him in a square in order to forestall any doubt about his origin. In 1196 at Frankfurt am Main the infant Frederick was elected King of the Germans and his rights in Germany were disputed by Henrys brother Philip of Swabia and Otto of Brunswick. At the death of his father in 1197, Frederick was in Italy travelling towards Germany when the bad news reached his guardian, Conrad of Spoleto. Frederick was hastily brought back to his mother Constance in Palermo, Sicily, Constance of Sicily was in her own right queen of Sicily, and she established herself as regent. Upon Constances death in 1198, Pope Innocent III succeeded as Fredericks guardian, Fredericks tutor during this period was Cencio, who would become Pope Honorius III. However, Markward of Annweiler, with the support of Henrys brother, Philip of Swabia, reclaimed the regency for himself, in 1200, with the help of Genoese ships, he landed in Sicily and one year later seized the young Frederick. He thus ruled Sicily until 1202, when he was succeeded by another German captain, William of Capparone, Frederick was subsequently under tutor Walter of Palearia, until, in 1208, he was declared of age. His first task was to reassert his power over Sicily and southern Italy, Otto of Brunswick had been crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Innocent III in 1209
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Bojano
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Bojano or Boiano is a town and comune in the province of Campobasso, Molise, south-central Italy. Originally named Bŏvĭā́num, it was settled by the 7th century BC, as the capital of the Pentri, a tribe of the Samnites, it played a major role in the Samnite Wars, as well as in the Social War, when it was a temporary capital. It was colonized under both the triumvirates, and by Vespasian, who settled veterans of Legio XI Claudia, after the Lombard conquest, the deserted area was given to a group of Bulgars, who circa 662 fled from the Avars and sought refuge with the Lombards. Bojano became a seat of a gastaldate, the Bulgars also settled in nearby Sepino and Isernia. In later times they had become completely assimilated. After two centuries marked by Saracen attacks, in the mid-11th century Bojano was conquered by the Hauteville Normans, becoming a fief of Raoul de Moulins, the city became a county capital. The city was destroyed by a series of earthquakes, the last occurring in 1913. The remains of Cyclopean walls can be seen on the heights above the modern town, other attractions include, The Cathedral of St. Bartholomew, several times damaged by earthquakes. The apse is still in Norman style, erasmus and Marinus, with a noteworthy Gothic portal. The Hermitage of St. Egidius, on a 1, 025-metre-high mountain in the neighbourhood, the remains of the Norman Castle. De Benedittis, G. Bovianum ed il suo territorio, official website The Battles of Bovianum,311 BC
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Larino Cathedral
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Larino Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in Larino in the Province of Campobasso, Molise, Italy. The dedication is to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary and Saint Pardus, formerly the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Larino, it has been since 1986 a co-cathedral in the Diocese of Termoli-Larino. In June 1928, Pope Pius XI granted it the status of a minor basilica, the foundation of the church dates to the thirteenth century. An inscription in the records its consecration on 30 July 1319. The cathedral may have built on the location of a pre-existing temple. In the 14th century, frescos depicting the saints were painted on the pilasters, paintings were produced to decorate the trussed ceiling. No notable changes were made to the church in the 14th century, in the 16th century, the campanile was completed. Its basement had been built by Giovanni di Casalbore of Avellino in 1451, in 1537, a fresco of the Annunciation was added to the left of the main entrance. A number of private individuals commissioned works in the cathedral in the same century, many of these are still extant, including numerous altars. For the artistica vitality of the basilica, the century was a time of crisis. In 1656, the struck the community, leaving many victims. The survivors were reduced to poverty, to restore the economic and religious standing of the city, Mons. Catalani decorated the church with precious objects, including a statue of San Pardo, in the baroque period, the level of floor was raised, two windows were installed, flanking the entrance and the nave of the church was lengthened. Some private altars were removed, since their number was considered excessive, the transformation of the architectural character of the cathedral, from Medieval to baroque, was carried out under Bishop Giovanni Andrea Tria. The trussed ceiling was replaced with coffers and stucco ornaments were added to the vaults in the nave. He built the chancel, installing a new altar and cathedra in it, the church was reconsecrated in 1729, while the construction work was still in progress. The nineteenth century was characterised by the rediscovery of the Medieval architecture and this also occurred at the Duomo of Larino, whose original character was rediscovered and praised. The leader of movement was the Bishop Francesco Giampaolo
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Italic peoples
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The Italic peoples were an Indo-European ethnolinguistic group identified by speaking Italic languages. The Italics were all the peoples who spoke an idiom belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages and had settled in the Italian peninsula. The first Italic tribes, the Latino-Falisci, entered Italy across the eastern Alpine passes into the plain of the Po River about 1200 BC, later, they crossed the Apennine Mountains and eventually occupied the region of Latium, which included the area of Rome. Before 1000 BC, the Osco-Umbrians followed, which divided into various groups and gradually moved to central. According to David W. Anthony, between 3100–2800/–2600 BCE, a real folk migration of Proto-Indo-European speakers from the Yamna culture took place into the Danube Valley and these migrations probably split off Pre-Italic, Pre-Celtic and Pre-Germanic from Proto-Indo-European. Hydronymy shows that Proto-Germanic homeland is in Central Germany, which would be close to the homeland of Italic and Celtic languages as well. The origin of a hypothetical ancestral Italo-Celtic people is to be found in todays eastern Hungary and this is further confirmed by the fact that Germanic language family shares more vocabulary with the Italic family than with the Celtic language family. Remains of the prehistoric age have been found in Liguria. The most famous is perhaps that of Ötzi the Iceman, the mummy of a hunter found in the Similaun glacier in South Tyrol. During the Copper Age, at the time as metalworking appeared. Approximatively four waves of population from north to the Alps have been hypothesized on the basis of archaeological evidence, the Remedello culture is associated by some with the first identified wave of Proto-Indo-Europeans who entered Italy and took over the Po Valley. In the mid-2nd millennium BC, the Terramare culture developed in the Po Valley, the Terramare culture takes its name from the black earth residue of settlement mounds, which have long served the fertilizing needs of local farmers. The Latino-Faliscan people have associated with this culture, especially by the archaeologist Luigi Pigorini. The Proto-Villanovans practiced cremation and buried the ashes of their dead in pottery urns of a distinctive double-cone shape, the most important settlements excavated are those of Frattesina in Veneto region, Bismantova in Emilia-Romagna and near the Monti della Tolfa, north of Rome. The Osco-Umbrians, the Veneti, and possibly the Latino-Faliscans too, have associated with this culture. In the early Iron Age, the relatively homogeneous Proto-Villanovan culture shows a process of fragmentation, in Tuscany and in part of Emilia-Romagna, Latium and Campania, the Proto-Villanovan culture was followed by the Villanovan culture. The earliest remains of Villanovan culture date back to approx, in the region south of the Tiber, the Latial culture of the Latins emerges, while in the north-east of the peninsula the Este culture of the Veneti appeared. This corresponds with the emergence of the Terni culture, which had similarities with the Celtic cultures of Hallstatt
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Guardialfiera
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Guardialfiera is a comune in the Province of Campobasso in the Italian region Molise, located about 30 kilometres northeast of Campobasso. It sits on a hilltop overlooking Lake Guardialfiera, which was created as a result of the damming of the Biferno river, as of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,185 and an area of 43.2 square kilometres. Guardialfiera borders the municipalities, Acquaviva Collecroce, Casacalenda, Castelmauro, Civitacampomarano, Larino, Lupara. The town of Guardialfiera has been inhabited since at least the 11th century. Reports exist that a Roman tower was visible on the edge of the town until the 10th century. In 1053 it is likely that Pope Leo IX used Guardialfiera as a base in order to launch an attack against the Normans who had occupied the town of Larino in 1050. On June 18,1053 the Norman Count of Apulia, Humphrey of Hauteville defeated Pope Leo IX at the Battle of Civitate, the Episcopal Seat of Guardialfiera was established in 1061 by Pope Alexander II likely in recognition of the town’s role in the events of 1053. In 1130 the town was conquered by the Norman king Roger II of Sicily, subsequently it was ruled by the Soliaco family until 1350, then the Marzano family. In 1550 the land passed to the Di Capua family then to the De Blaiis and in 1636 the Ferri, in 1649 the last of the Ferri family died without any heirs and Guardialfiera was donated to Serafino Biscardi. In 1688 the town was rebuilt after it was destroyed by an earthquake. Constantino Lemaitre bought the land in 1793 in order to gain the title of Marquis. The Lemaitre family were the last feudal lords to control Guardialfiera when the system was suppressed in 1806. In the early part of the 20th century many individuals immigrated from Guardialfiera, to North America, especially to Montreal, Quebec, Canada and Sudbury, Ontario, the towns main church, Santa Maria Assunta, dates to at least the 11th century. Many ancient stones carved with pagan and early Christian iconographs dating to the 7th and 8th centuries were incorporated into the present structure and it was likely that these stones were part of a pagan temple that originally sat on the same site. On April 7,1751 relics of Saint Gaudentius were transported by two Capuchin friars from the catacombs of St. Priscilla to the Cathedral in Guardialfiera, pasquale Zaini, the Bishop of Guardialfiera, by Pope Benedict XIV. The relics can still be today in Santa Maria dellAssunta and are paraded through the town on the feast of San Gaudenzio. It remains unclear who exactly Saint Gaudentius was, although from historical texts he is referred to as a martyr and it has been alternatively claimed that he was either the architect who designed the Flavian Amphitheater in Rome, or Saint Gaudentius of Rimini. After an earthquake in 1456, the cathedral was rebuilt and in 1460 a Holy Door was added to the north-east facing wall of the cathedral by Bishop Jacopo
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Volturno
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The Volturno is a river in south-central Italy. The river is 175 kilometres long, after a course of some 120 kilometres it receives, about 8 kilometres east of Caiazzo, the Calore River. The direct length of the course is about 50 kilometres, so that the whole is slightly longer than that of the Liri-Garigliano. The river has always had a considerable importance, and the colony of Volturnum was founded in 194 BC at its mouth on the south bank by the Romans. A fort had already placed there during the Roman siege of Capua to serve, with Puteoli. Augustus placed a colony of veterans here, the Via Domitiana from Sinuessa to Puteoli crossed the river at this point, and some remains of the bridge are visible. The river was navigable as far as Capua, in 554, the Byzantine general Narses defeated a Frankish-Alamannic army near this river, during the Gothic War. The Piedmontese troops and those of Garibaldi inflicted on the Neapolitan forces at the battle of the Volturno, on 1 and 2 October, the Volturno also gave its name to the Volturno Line, a German defensive position in Italy during World War II. Attribution This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh. Purcell, N. R. Talbert, T. Elliott, cS1 maint, Multiple names, authors list
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Agnone
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Agnone is a comune in the province of Isernia, in the Molise region of southern Italy. Agnone is known for the manufacturing of bells by the Marinelli Bell Foundry and it is some 25 kilometres northwest of Campobasso. The town of Agnone proper is complemented with other populated centers like Fontesambuco, Villa Canale, the pre-Roman Samnites consisted of several distinct tribes who existed in Samnium which was a wholly inland district of south central Italy. The Pentri tribe of the Samnites was the most powerful and based in Bovianium, according to the tradition, the name of Agnone derives from the old city of Aquilonia that was destroyed by the Romans. The Samnited were annihilated at the time of Sulla by the consuls Carvilius and Lucius Papirius Cursor in 293 B. C, Papirius, after making himself master of Aquilonia, which he burnt to the ground, proceeded to besiege Saepinum, on his way to Bovianum. The Samnites spoke Oscan and knowledge of the Oscan language is furnished on this small bronze tablet, the place of discovery was near the river Sagrus or Sangro, this inscription is an example of the most southerly dialect of the Samnite language. The tablet speaks of a series of dedications to different deities or holy beings During the Roman Period, Agnone appears on Roman maps under different regions at various times as Aprutium, Picenum, Sabina et Samnium, Flaminia et Picenum and/or Campania et Samnium. The Roman penchant for building seems to have passed Agnone over as Samnitic architecture still prevailed, in 1139 the powerful Borrello family, supported by soldiers of fortune from Venice, probably originating from colonies Dalmatian of the Serenissima took control of Agnone. During this period, the natural resources surrounding Agnone impacted its economy where skilled craftsmen produced gold jewelry, copperware, watches, Agnone would suffer a significant decline in years following the Unification of Italy in the 1860s. The peasants were arrested for stealing the crops of the galantuomini, in 1863, for example, the authorities actually prosecuted 624 cases of illegal felling of trees. When Benito Mussolinis fascist regime came to power, they put a stop to Italys out migration. During the Fascist era, Agnone was the site of exile for opponents of the ruling party, including Don Raimondo Viale. The Germans sat up a camp in Molise for gypsies where Father Viale tried to help them. The War would finally reach Agnone in December 1943, as the Allied Forces would land on Italys Adriatic coast and make their way northward and westward to Rome. The 1st Canadian Infantry Division would drive the Germans and Fascists out of Molise, and on 2 and 3 December, after the war, Agnones out migration issues continued, although more for reasons of economic availability. As international emigration declined, southern Italians migrated to industrial northern Italy for more promising economic prospects, presently, Agnones population is still declining. As Molise is starting to find recognition as a tourist destination, Agnone is marketing itself on the market and for its unique Pre-Roman. The towns medieval-style architecture is reflected in its nineteen churches, including the Church of San Marco, in the 11th century Odorisio and Gualtiero Borrello introduced the cult of Saint Mark and brought artists from Venice to decorate their homes with Saint Marks lion
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