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Manfredonia is a town and
commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...
of
Apulia it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...
, Italy, in the
province of Foggia The Province of Foggia ( it, Provincia di Foggia ; Foggiano: ) is a province in the Apulia (Puglia) region of southern Italy. This province is also known as Daunia, after the Daunians, an Iapygian pre-Roman tribe living in Tavoliere plain, and ...
, from which it is northeast by rail. Manfredonia is situated on the coast, facing east, to the south of Monte Gargano, and gives its name to the
gulf A gulf is a large inlet from the ocean into the landmass, typically with a narrower opening than a bay, but that is not observable in all geographic areas so named. The term gulf was traditionally used for large highly-indented navigable bodie ...
to the east of it. its population was 56,932.Source:
Istat The Italian National Institute of Statistics ( it, Istituto nazionale di statistica; Istat) is the main producer of official statistics in Italy. Its activities include the census of population, economic censuses and a number of social, economic ...
2011


History

The area of current Manfredonia was settled in ancient times by the
Greeks The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...
, founded by
Diomedes Diomedes (Jones, Daniel; Roach, Peter, James Hartman and Jane Setter, eds. ''Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary''. 17th edition. Cambridge UP, 2006.) or Diomede (; grc-gre, Διομήδης, Diomēdēs, "god-like cunning" or "advised by ...
. The flourishing Greek colony, having fallen into the hands of the
Samnites The Samnites () were an ancient Italic people who lived in Samnium, which is located in modern inland Abruzzo, Molise, and Campania in south-central Italy. An Oscan-speaking people, who may have originated as an offshoot of the Sabines, they for ...
, was retaken about 335 BC by King
Alexander of Epirus Alexander I of Epirus ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος Α'; c. 371 BC – 331 BC), also known as Alexander Molossus (), was a king of Epirus (343/2–331 BC) of the Aeacid dynasty.Ellis, J. R., ''Philip II and Macedonian Imperialism' ...
, uncle of
Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...
. In 189 BC Sipontum was conquered by the Romans and became a colony of citizens. It was a port at the junction of the road which basically followed the Adriatic coast (but giving the Garganus mountain's peninsula just north a miss) and a road through
Arpi Arpi ( grc, Ἄρποι), Argyrippa ( grc, Ἀργύριππα), and Argos Hippium ( grc, Ἄργος Ἵππιον) was an ancient city of Apulia, Italy, 20 mi. W. of the sea coast, and 5 mi. N. of the modern Foggia. The first name was ...
,
Luceria Luceria is an ancient city in the northern Apennines, located in the comune of Canossa in the Province of Reggio Emilia, on the right bank of the river Enza. Toponym The name might derive from ''lucus'', which means "sacred grove". It is not ...
,
Aecae Troia (also formerly Troja; nap, label= Foggiano, Troië; grc, Αῖκαι, Aîkai; la, Aecae) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Foggia and region of Apulia in southern Italy. History According to the legend, Troia (Aecae) was founded ...
and
Aequum Tuticum Aequum Tuticum was a Roman vicus in southern Italy, about 35 km east-northeast of Beneventum. The site lies beside Saint Eleuterio hamlet, overlooking at an elevation of 575 m, about 15 km north of the modern Ariano Irpino, within Irp ...
connecting at Beneventum to the
Via Appia The Appian Way (Latin and Italian: ''Via Appia'') is one of the earliest and strategically most important Roman roads of the ancient republic. It connected Rome to Brindisi, in southeast Italy. Its importance is indicated by its common name, rec ...
. In AD 663 it was taken and destroyed by the
Slavs Slavs are the largest European ethnolinguistic group. They speak the various Slavic languages, belonging to the larger Balto-Slavic branch of the Indo-European languages. Slavs are geographically distributed throughout northern Eurasia, main ...
( Narentines). In the 9th century, Sipontum was for a time in the power of the
Saracens file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century Germany in the Middle Ages, German woodcut depicting Saracens Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings, to refer ...
. In 1042 the
Normans The Normans (Norman language, Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norsemen, Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Fran ...
made it the seat of one of their twelve counties, while the Monte Gargano remained Byzantine. The Normans won a decisive victory there over the Byzantine general Argyrus in 1052. Siponto was an archbishopric in the Norman
countship of Apulia The County of Apulia and Calabria (), later the Duchy of Apulia and Calabria (), was a Norman state founded by William of Hauteville in 1042 in the territories of Gargano, Capitanata, Apulia, Vulture, and most of Campania. It became a duchy whe ...
. Having become unhealthy owing to the stagnation of the water in the lagoons after the 1223 earthquake, Siponto was abandoned. The modern city of Manfredonia was built by King Manfred between 1256–1263, several kilometers north of the ruins of the ancient Sipontum. The Angevins, who had defeated Manfred and stripped him of the
Kingdom of Sicily The Kingdom of Sicily ( la, Regnum Siciliae; it, Regno di Sicilia; scn, Regnu di Sicilia) was a state that existed in the south of the Italian Peninsula and for a time the region of Ifriqiya from its founding by Roger II of Sicily in 1130 un ...
, renamed it ''Sypontum Novellum'' ("New Sypontum"), but that name never stuck. In 1528 Manfredonia resisted a French attack led by the Viscount of Lautrec. In 1620 it was destroyed by the
Turks Turk or Turks may refer to: Communities and ethnic groups * Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages * Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation * Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic o ...
, who left only the castle and part of the walls.


Geography

Manfredonia is located in south of
Gargano Gargano (, Gargano Apulian Italo-Romance arˈgæːnə is a historical and geographical sub-region in the province of Foggia, Apulia, southeast Italy, consisting of a wide isolated mountain massif made of highland and several peaks and forming ...
. It borders with the municipalities of
Carapelle Carapelle ( Foggiano: ) is a town and ''comune'' belonging to the Province of Foggia and situated in the Apulia region of southern Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Sou ...
,
Cerignola Cerignola (; nap, label= Cerignolano, Ceregnòule ) is a town and ''comune'' of Apulia, Italy, in the province of Foggia, southeast from the town of Foggia. It has the third-largest land area of any ''comune'' in Italy, at , after Rome and Ra ...
,
Foggia Foggia (, , ; nap, label= Foggiano, Fògge ) is a city and former ''comune'' of Apulia, in Southern Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. In 2013, its population was 153,143. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere, also known ...
,
Monte Sant'Angelo Monte Sant'Angelo ( Foggiano: ) is a town and ''comune'' of Apulia, southern Italy, in the province of Foggia, on the southern slopes of Monte Gargano. History Monte Sant'Angelo as a town appeared only in the 11th century. Between 1081 and 1103, ...
,
San Giovanni Rotondo San Giovanni Rotondo is the name of a town and ''comune'' in the province of Foggia and region of Apulia, in southern Italy. San Giovanni Rotondo was the home of Saint Pio of Pietrelcina from 28 July 1916 until his death on 23 September 1968. T ...
,
San Marco in Lamis San Marco in Lamis ( sændə ˈmærkə is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Foggia in the Apulia region of southeast Italy. It is located in the Gargano massif area within the Parco Nazionale del Gargano and it belongs to the Comunità Mont ...
and
Zapponeta Zapponeta ( Pugliese: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Foggia in the Apulia region of southeast Italy. Until 1975 it was a ''frazione'' of Manfredonia Manfredonia is a town and commune of Apulia, Italy, in the province of Foggia ...
. It counts 7 civil parishes (''
frazioni A ''frazione'' (plural: ) is a type of subdivision of a ''comune'' (municipality) in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist era (1922–1943) as ...
''): Borgo Mezzanone, Riviera Sud (Sciali and Ippocampo), Pastini, Ruggiano, San Salvatore,
Siponto Siponto ( la, Sipontum, grc-gre, Σιπιούς) was an ancient port town and bishopric in Apulia, southern Italy. The town was abandoned after earthquakes in the 13th century; today the area is administered as a ''frazione'' of the ''comune'' ...
and Tomaiuolo.


Main sights

The medieval castle, begun by the
Hohenstaufen The Hohenstaufen dynasty (, , ), also known as the Staufer, was a noble family of unclear origin that rose to rule the Duchy of Swabia from 1079, and to royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 until 1254. The dynasty ...
and completed by the Angevins, and parts of the town walls are well preserved. The castle received a new line of walls in the 15th century In the church of San Domenico, the Chapel of the Maddalena contains old paintings of the 14th century. Three kilometers () to the southwest is the former Siponto Cathedral, now the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore di Siponto, built in 1117 in the Romanesque style, with a dome and crypt. The Abbey of San Leonardo in Lama Volara, nearer to
Foggia Foggia (, , ; nap, label= Foggiano, Fògge ) is a city and former ''comune'' of Apulia, in Southern Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. In 2013, its population was 153,143. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere, also known ...
, belonging to the
Teutonic Order The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...
, is of the same date. Manfredonia is also the location of the seat of the Archbishopric of Manfredonia-Vieste-S. Giovanni Rotondo in Manfredonia Cathedral, rebuilt in about 1600 after the destruction by the Turks of its 13th-century predecessor.


Transport

A
dual carriageway A dual carriageway ( BE) or divided highway ( AE) is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation (BrE) or median (AmE). Roads with two or more carriageways which are ...
links Manfredonia to
Foggia Foggia (, , ; nap, label= Foggiano, Fògge ) is a city and former ''comune'' of Apulia, in Southern Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. In 2013, its population was 153,143. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere, also known ...
, a distance of and to
A14 motorway This is a list of roads designated A14. * A014 road (Argentina), a beltway ring-road around San Juan, San Juan Province * A14 motorway (Austria), a road connecting Hörbranz and the German Autobahn 96 to Bürs * A14 motorway (Belgium), a road ...
. Manfredonia railway station is the terminal of the Foggia-Manfredonia line. Other stations serving the municipal territory are Manfredonia Città (closed),
Siponto Siponto ( la, Sipontum, grc-gre, Σιπιούς) was an ancient port town and bishopric in Apulia, southern Italy. The town was abandoned after earthquakes in the 13th century; today the area is administered as a ''frazione'' of the ''comune'' ...
(in the homonymous village), Frattarolo, Candelaro and Amendola.


People

* Laurence of Siponto (died 545), bishop, saint, patron of Manfredonia *
Vettor Pisani Vettor Pisani (132413 August 1380) was a Venetian admiral. He was in command of the Venetian fleet in 1378 during the war against the Genoese, whom he defeated off Capo d'Anzio; subsequently he recaptured Cattaro, Sebenico and Arbe, which had ...
(1324–1380), Venetian admiral *
Pino Rucher Pino Rucher (1 January 1924 – 16 August 1996) was an Italian guitarist active in orchestral settings and in film soundtracks. Biographical notes and musical career Early life Rucher started playing the guitar when his father came back from t ...
(1924–1996), guitarist and arranger


See also

*
Manfredonia Calcio Manfredonia Calcio Società a responsabilità limitata, S.r.l. Sportiva Dilettantistica commonly known as Manfredonia Calcio or just Manfredonia is an Football in Italy, Italian association football club, based in Manfredonia, in the Province of ...
* 1976 Manfredonia accidental release of arsenic *
Manfredonia Molo di Levante Lighthouse Manfredonia Lighthouse ( it, Faro di Manfredonia) is an active lighthouse located at the debut of the east pier of the harbour of Manfredonia, in Apulia on the Adriatic Sea. Description The lighthouse was built in 1868 and consists of a white oct ...


References


Sources

*A. Beltramelli, ''Il Gargano'' (Bergamo, 1907) *Westermann, ''Großer Atlas zur Weltgeschichte''


External links


Manfredonia official websiteManfredonia NewsManfredonia News "Stato Quotidiano"
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Apulia Castles in Italy 1256 establishments in Europe 13th-century establishments in Italy Coastal towns in Apulia