Metauro
Encyclopedia
The Metauro is a river
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...

 of the Marche
Marche
The population density in the region is below the national average. In 2008, it was 161.5 inhabitants per km2, compared to the national figure of 198.8. It is highest in the province of Ancona , and lowest in the province of Macerata...

, central Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

. It rises in the Apennine Mountains
Apennine mountains
The Apennines or Apennine Mountains or Greek oros but just as often used alone as a noun. The ancient Greeks and Romans typically but not always used "mountain" in the singular to mean one or a range; thus, "the Apennine mountain" refers to the entire chain and is translated "the Apennine...

 and runs east for 110 km (121 if the Meta is included as its first trait).

Its source is located between the Alpe della Luna
Alpe della Luna
thumb|250px|Ripa della Luna.The Alpe della Luna is a mountain massif in the northern Apennine Mountains of central Italy. It is situated across the boundaries of Tuscany, Marche and Umbria. Its highest peaks are the Monte dei Frati, at 1,453 m above sea level, and Monte Maggiore...

, Monte Nerone
Monte Nerone
The Monte Nerone is a mountain in the Umbrian Apennines, in the province of Pesaro e Urbino, Marche, central Italy. The highest peak is at 1,525 m above sea level.The Monte Nerone is a limestone massif, including several aspects of Karst topography....

 and Monte Catria
Monte Catria
The Monte Catria is a mountain in the central Apennines, in the province of Pesaro e Urbino, Marche, central Italy. The highest peak is at above sea level.It is a massif of limestone rocks dating to some 200 million years ago....

; its name (from Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 Metaurus or Mataurus, in Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...

 Métauros, Μέταυρος) stems simply from the union of the two torrents Meta (running from the Apennine pass Bocca Trabaria, at 1,044 m of altitude) and Auro (flowing from the Monte Maggiore, at 1,384 m).

Communes crossed by Metauro include, in order, Sant'Angelo in Vado
Sant'Angelo in Vado
Sant'Angelo in Vado is a comune in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino in the Italian region Marche, located about 90 km west of Ancona and about 50 km southwest of Pesaro....

 (where the river forms the Cascata del Sasso, "Waterfall of the Stone"), Urbania
Urbania
For the 2000 film, see Urbania Urbania is a comune in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino in the Italian region of Marche, located about 80 km west of Ancona and about 40 km southwest of Pesaro, next to the river Metauro....

, Fermignano
Fermignano
Fermignano is a comune in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino in the Italian region Marche, located about 70 km west of Ancona and about 35 km southwest of Pesaro.Renaissance architect Donato Bramante was born here.-History:...

, Fossombrone
Fossombrone
Fossombrone is a town and comune in the province of Pesaro e Urbino .-History:The ancient Roman colony of Forum Sempronii took its name from Gaius Sempronius Gracchus....

 (in whose territory it receives the waters of the Candigliano), and, after flowing into a tight valley, the Gola del Furlo, Montemaggiore al Metauro
Montemaggiore al Metauro
Montemaggiore al Metauro is a comune in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino in the Italian region Marche, located about 50 km northwest of Ancona and about 15 km south of Pesaro.-References:...

, from which it starts to flow in a plain area. It flows into the Adriatic Sea
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...

 near Fano
Fano
Fano is a town and comune of the province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Marche region of Italy. It is a beach resort 12 km southeast of Pesaro, located where the Via Flaminia reaches the Adriatic Sea...

.

Battles

Two battles were fought on the banks of Metauro in ancient times.
  • in 207 BC
    207 BC
    Year 207 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Nero and Salinator...

    , Hasdrubal Barca
    Hasdrubal Barca
    Hasdrubal was Hamilcar Barca's second son and a Carthaginian general in the Second Punic War. He was a younger brother of the much more famous Hannibal.-Youth and Iberian leadership:...

    , while marching to the aid of Hannibal, was defeated and slain by a Roman army led by the consul
    Consul
    Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...

    s Marcus Livius Salinator
    Marcus Livius Salinator
    Marcus Livius Drusus Salinator , the son of Marcus , was a Roman consul who fought in both the First Punic wars and Second Punic wars most notably during the Battle of Zama....

     and Gaius Claudius Nero
    Gaius Claudius Nero
    Gaius Claudius Nero was a Roman consul who fought in the Battle of the Metaurus . He was member of the gens Claudia. He is not to be confused with the Roman Emperor Nero.In 207 BC, the thirteenth year of the war, he was elected consul with Marcus Livius Salinator, and with his colleague he led the...

    . The Battle of the Metaurus
    Battle of the Metaurus
    The Battle of the Metaurus was a pivotal battle in the Second Punic War between Rome and Carthage, fought in 207 BC near the Metauro River in present-day Italy. The battle gets a chapter in the classic The Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World by Sir Edward Shepherd Creasy...

     was the decisive battle of the Second Punic War
    Second Punic War
    The Second Punic War, also referred to as The Hannibalic War and The War Against Hannibal, lasted from 218 to 201 BC and involved combatants in the western and eastern Mediterranean. This was the second major war between Carthage and the Roman Republic, with the participation of the Berbers on...

    . The exact site of the battle is uncertain; tradition places it between Fossombrone
    Fossombrone
    Fossombrone is a town and comune in the province of Pesaro e Urbino .-History:The ancient Roman colony of Forum Sempronii took its name from Gaius Sempronius Gracchus....

     and the Furlo, but it is probable that it occurred nearer the Adriatic coast;
  • in 271
    271
    Year 271 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aurelianus and Bassus...

    , Roman Emperor Aurelian
    Aurelian
    Aurelian , was Roman Emperor from 270 to 275. During his reign, he defeated the Alamanni after a devastating war. He also defeated the Goths, Vandals, Juthungi, Sarmatians, and Carpi. Aurelian restored the Empire's eastern provinces after his conquest of the Palmyrene Empire in 273. The following...

     defeated in the Battle of Fano
    Battle of Fano
    The Battle of Fano - also known as the Battle of Fanum Fortunae - was fought in January 271 between the Roman Empire and the Alamanni. The Romans were led by Emperor Aurelian, and they were victorious....

    , fought near the river, the Alamanni
    Alamanni
    The Alamanni, Allemanni, or Alemanni were originally an alliance of Germanic tribes located around the upper Rhine river . One of the earliest references to them is the cognomen Alamannicus assumed by Roman Emperor Caracalla, who ruled the Roman Empire from 211 to 217 and claimed thereby to be...

    , who had invaded the northern part of Italia
    Italia (Roman province)
    Italia was the name of the Italian peninsula of the Roman Empire.-Under the Republic and Augustan organization:During the Republic and the first centuries of the empire, Italia was not a province, but rather the territory of the city of Rome, thus having a special status: for example, military...

    the previous year.
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