Perugia | Terni | Assisi | Gubbio | Foligno | Spoleto | Orvieto | Amelia | Todi | Trasimeno | Norcia-Cascia | C. Castello
 Versione Italiana |
Historical outline of Perugia Originally settled by Umbrian tribes, Perugia rose to prominence under the Etruscans between the sixth and fifth centuries BC, and from the third to the first century BC it became the most important city of the Upper Tiber Valley. Its retained much of its Etruscan character and independence even after its defeat by the Romans, with whom it maintained an ambivalent relationship - as neither friend nor enemy - but was finally brought completely under Roman subjugation in 40 BC by Octavian. Originally settled by Umbrian tribes, Perugia rose to prominence under the Etruscans between the sixth and fifth centuries BC, and from the third to the first century BC it became the most important city of the Upper Tiber Valley. Its retained much of its Etruscan character and independence even after its defeat by the Romans, with whom it maintained an ambivalent relationship - as neither friend nor enemy - but was finally brought completely under Roman subjugation in 40 BC by Octavian. The city took the name `Augusta', and embarked on a period of wealth and splendour. In the third century BC Emperor Vibio Treboniano Gallo gave it the name `Colonia Vibia Augusta Perusia'. In 547 Totila, King of the Ostrogoths, invaded and sacked the city. It was then annexed to the Papal States and awarded the protection of the papacy, as a result of which it allied itself firmly with the Guelphs  (who supported the Pope, as opposed to the Ghibellines who supported the Holy Roman Emperor), although it retained much of its strongly independent spirit. A demonstration of this spirit was manifested on the death of Pope Innocent III, who died on a visit to Perugia in 1216. His mortal remains were bedecked with finery and laid out in the cathedral, but during the night the corpse was robbed of all its riches, as if to make the point that one dead body was no better than another.In spite of this, five papal conclaves took place in Perugia, an indication of its importance in the eyes of Rome. In 1308 the university was founded. In 1369 Pope Urban V declarded war on the city and forced it to accept papal legates. But a few years later the citizens rebelled at the oppressive rule imposed on them by the Abbot of Cluny and threw him out of the city.  There then began a period of fierce feuding between its most powerful families, the most famous clashes being those between the Raspanti and Becherini families. After a few years of truce under the popular Biordo Michellotti, a leading soldier of fortune, power was seized by Gian Galeazzo Visconti, Duke of Milan; the city was then taken over by Pope Ladislao of Naples, by the great `strongarm' Braccio Fortebraccio, by Montone and Fiero and finally by the Baglioni family, who dominated Perugia until 1531, when the troups of Pope Paul III were sent in to take power back into the hands of the Church. It remained under Church supremacy for the next three centuries.After the `salt war', in which the citizens of Perugia rose up in protest against the imposition of a salt tax by the papal states, many of the splendid Baglioni palaces were torn down to make way for Pope Paul III's great fortress known as the Rocca Paolina. Subjugation to the Church continued until the arrival of the French in 1798, when Perugia became part of the Department of Trasimeno. After the fall of Napoleon it returned to the papal states until it was finally liberated by Garibaldi's troops in 1860, when Italy became a republic.Accommodation in Perugia Complet List What to see at Perugia - Gothic Cathedral (1490) - Etruscan Arch, via Ulisse Rocchi - Fontana Maggiore - Rocca Paolina - Il Palazzo dei Priori - La Galleria Nazionale dell'Umbria - Il Museo Archeologico Nazionale - Accademia Pietro Vannucci - Oratorio di S. Bernardino - La Chiesa di San Domenico - Etruscan Well - The Old Oratory of Confraternita di S. Agostino - The Palace of Old University - The Palace og Gallenga Stuart - The Church - Tower of Sant'Ercolano - The temple of San Michele Arcangelo - The Basilica of San Pietro Feasts and festivals in Perugia - Good Friday: Cerimonia della Desolata - April: «Umbriafiction» - June: «Rockin'Umbria» - July: «Umbria Jazz» - July/August: Open-air theatre - summer season; International courses run by Accademia di Belle Arti - August/September: Bande Musicali Umbre - September/October: Festival of Umbrian sacred music - October: Antiques fair - November: Deads' fair How to Get There By car - Autostrada A1; from the north, Valdichiana exit; from the south, Orte exit, follow main Orte-Terni road, then Superstrada E45 to Perugia By train - Rome-Ancona line to Perugia - Rome-Bologna line to Perugia By air - Internal flights to Perugia S. Egidio airport |
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Perugia | Terni | Assisi | Gubbio | Foligno | Spoleto | Orvieto | Amelia | Todi | Trasimeno | Norcia-Cascia | C. Castello
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