Fossombrone is a town and
comuneIn Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division of both provinces and regions, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.- Importance and function :...
in the
province of Pesaro e UrbinoThe Province of Pesaro and Urbino is a province in the Marche region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Pesaro. It also borders the state of San Marino.It has an area of 2,892 km², and a total population of 365,249...
(
MarcheThe Marche is one of the 20 Regions of Italy...
,
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
).
History
The ancient Roman colony of
Forum Sempronii took its name from Gaius Sempronius Gracchus.
Near the Furlo Pass, during the
Gothic WarSee Gothic War for the war on the Danube.The Gothic War was a war fought in Italy and the adjoining regions of Dalmatia, Sardinia, Sicily and Corsica from 535 until 554 between the forces of the Eastern Roman Empire and the forces of the Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy...
, was fought (552) the
battle of TaginaeAt the Battle of Taginae in June/July 552, the forces of the Byzantine Empire under Narses broke the power of the Ostrogoths in Italy, and paved the way for the complete Byzantine conquest of the Italian Peninsula...
, in which
TotilaTotila was king of the Ostrogoths from 541 until his death. He waged the Gothic War against the Byzantine Empire for the mastery of Italy...
was overcome by the
ByzantineThe Byzantine Empire or Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered on the capital of Constantinople, and ruled by Emperors in direct and de jure succession to the ancient Roman Emperors...
general,
NarsesNarses was, with Belisarius, one of the great generals in the service of the Eastern Roman Emperor Justinian I during the so-called "Reconquest" that took place during Justinian's reign....
.
Fossombrone was included in the Donation of Pippin, but remained subject to the
Duchy of SpoletoThe independent Duchy of Spoleto was a Lombard territory founded about 570 in central Italy by the Lombard dux Faroald.- Lombards :The Lombards, a Germanic people, had invaded Italy in 568 and conquered much of it, establishing a Kingdom divided between several dukes dependent on the King, who had...
until 1198, when it passed under Papal rule. The
MalatestaThe House of Malatesta was an Italian family that ruled over Rimini from 1295 until 1500, as well as other lands and towns in Romagna.Malatesta da Verucchio The House of Malatesta was an Italian family that ruled over Rimini from 1295 until 1500, as well as (in different periods) other lands and...
sold it to the famous Federico III da Montefeltro, under whom the city flourished. Also positive for the city was the reign of the
della RovereDella Rovere is a noble historical family of Italy. Coming from modest beginnings in Savona, Liguria, the family rose to prominence through nepotism and ambitious marriages arranged by two Della Rovere popes, Francesco della Rovere, who ruled as Pope Sixtus IV and his nephew Giuliano...
dukes, who enlarged it (especially
Francesco Maria IIthumb|250px|Francesco Maria II della Rovere by [[Federico Barocci]].Francesco Maria II della Rovere was the last Duke of Urbino.- Biography :...
expanded the settlement in the lower area up to the
MetauroThe Metauro is a river of the Marche, central Italy. It rises in the Apennine Mountains and runs east for 110 km ....
river). In 1631 it returned to the Papal States, being annexed to Italy in 1860.
Main sights
The city and its environs abound in antiquities, especially inscriptions. Noteworthy remains are the statue of the god
VertumnusIn Roman mythology, Vertumnus — also Vortumnus or Vertimnus — is the god of seasons, change and plant growth, as well as gardens and fruit trees...
; the
Furlo Passthumb|240px|Entrance of the Roman tunnel.The Furlo Pass is a gorge on the ancient Roman road Via Flaminia in the Marche region of central Italy, where it passes near the Candigliano river, an affluence of the Metauro.The gorge was formed between the Pietralata and Paganuccio Mounts by the waters...
, constructed by the Emperor Vespasian to shorten the passage of that mountain; and the bridge of
TrajanMarcus Ulpius Nerva Traianus, commonly known as Trajan , was a Roman Emperor who reigned from A. D. 98 until his death in A. D. 117...
(115) near Calmazzo, and that of
DiocletianGaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus , born Diocles and commonly known as Diocletian , was Roman Emperor from 20 November 284 to 1 May 305. Born to a Dalmatian family of low status, he rose through the ranks of the military to become cavalry commander to the emperor Carus...
(292), both over the Metaurus.
Other points of interests include:
- Church of Sant'Agostino (14th century, enlarged in the 18th century). It has a hut-like facade with the coat of arms of the House of Malatesta
The House of Malatesta was an Italian family that ruled over Rimini from 1295 until 1500, as well as other lands and towns in Romagna.Malatesta da Verucchio The House of Malatesta was an Italian family that ruled over Rimini from 1295 until 1500, as well as (in different periods) other lands and...
. The interior hosues a canvas by Federico ZuccariFederico Zuccari, also known as Federigo Zuccaro , was an Italian Mannerist painter and architect, active both in Italy and abroad.-Biography:Zuccari was born at Sant'Angelo in Vado, near Urbino ....
.
- Ducal Palace, attributed to Francesco di Giorgio Martini and Girolamo Genga
Girolamo Genga was an Italian painter and architect of the late Renaissance, Mannerist- Biography :Genga was born near Urbino. According mainly to Giorgio Vasari's biography, by age thirteen Genga had gained an apprenticeship in Orvieto under Luca Signorelli. He was afterwards for three years with...
, and built for Cardinal Giuliano della Rovere, brother of the Duke Guidobaldo IIGuidobaldo II della Rovere was an Italian condottiero, who was Duke of Urbino from 1539 until his death.- Biography :...
. Notable are the Renaissance court and the Cardinal's chapel.
- The 16th century Corte Bassa, a residence of the Dukes of Urbino
The Duchy of Urbino was a sovereign state of northern Italy.The first lords of Urbino were the Montefeltro, who obtained the title of counts from Emperor Frederick II in 1213. The first Duke was Oddantonio, who received the title from Pope Eugene IV in 1443...
. The Corte Bassa is instead from the 13th century, and was later renewed under Federico da Montefeltro with a notable Renaissance façade and pavement. The duke Guidobaldo I soujourned here frequently, and also died here.
- Palazzo Comunale (Town Hall, 16th century).
- Palazzo Vescovile ("Bishop's Palace", built from 1479). It has a Renaissance façade with a portico and a Crucifixion fresco attributed to Bartolomeo di Gentile (1493).
- The Cathedral was almost entirely rebuilt in Neo-Classicist style by Cosimo Morelli
Cosimo Morelli was an architect and one of the greatest exponents of the neoclassical architecture in Italy.-Biography:He was born at Imola...
in 1776-1784, but has maintained some Renaissance works in the interior.
- Ruins of the Rocca Malatestiana (13th-15th centuries).
Sports
- FC Fossombrone
S.S.D. F.C. Bikkembergs Fossombrone is an Italian football club located in Fossombrone, Marche. The small club was made popular after it was acquired by Belgian fashion designer Dirk Bikkembergs.-History:...
: famous for its total look and the uniform produced by Dirk BikkembergsDirk Bikkembergs is a Belgian fashion designer.-Early life and designer career:Dirk Bikkembergs was born in Cologne, Germany, to a Belgian father and German mother. After high school graduation, he decided to start studying at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Belgium...
, a BelgianThe Kingdom of Belgium is a country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters, as well as those of other major international organizations, including NATO...
fashion designer.