Monti is the 1st '' rione'' of Rome, identified by the initials R. I, located in

Municipio I Municipio I is an administrative subdivision of the municipality of Rome, encompassing the centre of the city. It was first created by Rome's city council on 19 January 2001 and has a president who is elected during the mayoral elections. On 11 ...

. The name literally means "mountains" in Italian and comes from the fact that the Esquiline, the Viminal Hills, and parts of the Quirinal and the

Caelian Hill The Caelian Hill (; la, Collis Caelius; it, Celio ) is one of the famous seven hills of Rome. Geography The Caelian Hill is a sort of long promontory about long, to wide, and tall in the park near the Temple of Claudius. The hill ov ...

s belonged to this ''rione'': currently, however, the Esquiline Hill belongs to the

rione Esquilino Esquilino is the 15th '' rione'' of Rome, identified by the initials R. XV, and is Located within the Municipio I. It is named after the Esquiline Hill, one of the Seven Hills of Rome. Its coat of arms bears two figures: a tree and three g ...

. The coat of arms consists of three green mountains with three tops on a silver background.

History

In ancient times, the ''rione'' was densely populated; Monti was home to the

Forum Romanum The Roman Forum, also known by its Latin name Forum Romanum ( it, Foro Romano), is a rectangular forum ( plaza) surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient government buildings at the center of the city of Rome. Citizens of the ancien ...

and the so-called ''

Suburra The Suburra, or ''Subura'' (unknown etymology), was a vast and populous neighborhood of Ancient Rome, located below the '' Murus Terreus'' on the ''Carinae'' and stretching on the slopes of the Quirinal and Viminal hills up to the offshoots of ...

,'' where poor people lived, full of disreputable locals and brothels. In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

the situation was completely different: the Roman aqueducts were damaged, and it was very difficult to bring water to Monti since it was on the hills. Hence many inhabitants moved to

Campus Martius The Campus Martius (Latin for the "Field of Mars", Italian ''Campo Marzio'') was a publicly owned area of ancient Rome about in extent. In the Middle Ages, it was the most populous area of Rome. The IV rione of Rome, Campo Marzio, which cov ...

, a lower level part, where they could drink the water from the river

Tiber The Tiber ( ; it, Tevere ; la, Tiberis) is the third-longest river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where it is joined by the Ri ...

. From the Middle Ages to the beginning of the 19th century, the ''rione'' remained an area full of vineyards and vegetable gardens. Monti was not densely populated because of the lack of water and because it was quite far from the Vatican, the center of Christian culture. The area did not become abandoned thanks to the church of San Giovanni in Laterano and the constant high number of pilgrims. Still in the Middle Ages the inhabitants of Monti, called ''monticiani'', developed a strong identity: their Roman dialect was different from that spoken in the other rioni. Their main enemies were the people from the other rione with a strong identity, Trastevere, and they often used to fight with one another. Then, with growing urbanization at the end of the 19th century after Rome had become the capital of a united Italy, the great changes of the Fascist period completely changed the appearance of the rione. In particular, between 1924 and 1936, a large part of the rione, consisting of small streets and popular houses, was destroyed to make way for the Via dei Fori Imperiali (the street artificially dividing the Roman Forum and most of the Imperial forums) and the archaeological buildings of the Forum Romanum were excavated. Thanks to its position, Monti is full of archaeological sites such as: *

Colosseum The Colosseum ( ; it, Colosseo ) is an oval amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphitheatre ever built, and is still the largest standing amphitheatre in the world ...

* Ludus Magnus (the gym for

gladiator A gladiator ( la, gladiator, "swordsman", from , "sword") was an armed combatant who entertained audiences in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire in violent confrontations with other gladiators, wild animals, and condemned criminals. Some gla ...

s) *

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 unt ...

Domus Aurea The Domus Aurea (Latin, "Golden House") was a vast landscaped complex built by the Emperor Nero largely on the Oppian Hill in the heart of ancient Rome after the great fire in 64 AD had destroyed a large part of the city.Roth (1993) It repla ...

* the Baths of Trajan * the

Baths of Titus The Baths of Titus or ''Thermae Titi'' were public baths (''Thermae'') built in 81 AD at Rome, by Roman emperor Titus. The baths sat at the base of the Esquiline Hill, an area of parkland and luxury estates which had been taken over by Nero (AD 5 ...

* part of the

* Markets of Trajan

Geography

Boundaries

To the north, the ''rione'' borders with Trevi (R. II), from which it is separated by the Foro Traiano, Via IV Novembre, Largo Magnanapoli, Via XXIV Maggio and Via del Quirinale; and with Castro Pretorio (R. XVIII), the boundary being defined by Via delle

Quattro Fontane The Quattro Fontane (the Four Fountains) is an ensemble of four Late Renaissance fountains located at the intersection of Via delle Quattro Fontane and Via del Quirinale in Rome. They were commissioned by Pope Sixtus V and built at the direction ...

, Via

Agostino Depretis Agostino Depretis (31 January 181329 July 1887) was an Italian statesman and politician. He served as Prime Minister of Italy for several stretches between 1876 and 1887, and was leader of the Historical Left parliamentary group for more than a de ...

, Piazza dell'Esquilino and Via dell'Esquilino. To the east, the ''rione'' borders with Esquilino (R. XV): the boundary is marked by Piazza di Santa Maria Maggiore, Via Merulana, Piazza di San Giovanni in Laterano and Piazza di Porta San Giovanni. To the south, it is separated from '' Quartiere'' Appio-Latino (Q. IX) by the stretch of the Aurelian Walls between Porta San Giovanni and

Porta Metronia Porta Metronia is a gate in the third-century Aurelian Walls of Rome, Italy. The gate is located in the southern section of the wall between Porta San Giovanni to the east and Porta Latina to the south. During the tenth century, beyond this ga ...

. To the west, Monti borders with Celio (R. XIX), whose boundary is marked by Piazza di Porta Metronia, Via della Navicella, Via di Santo Stefano Rotondo, Via di San Giovanni in Laterano and Piazza del Colosseo; it also borders with Campitelli (R. X), whose boundary is marked by Via dei Fori Imperiali.

Places of interest

Palaces and other buildings

* Casa dei Cavalieri di Rodi, in Via Campo Carleo. * Palazzo Brancaccio, In Via Merulana. * Palazzo della Consulta, in Piazza del Quirinale. * Palazzo del Grillo, in Piazza del Grillo. * Palazzo delle Esposizioni, in Via Nazionale. * Palazzo Koch, seat of the Banca d'Italia, in Via Nazionale. * Palazzo del Laterano, in Piazza di San Giovanni in Laterano. * Palazzo Pallavicini-Rospigliosi, in Via XXIV Maggio. * Palazzo del Viminale, in Piazza del Viminale.

Churches

Sant'Agata dei Goti Sant'Agata dei Goti is a church in Rome, Italy, dedicated to the martyr Agatha of Sicily. It is the ''diaconia'' assigned to Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke, patron of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. (It became ''pro hac vice'' title in 20 ...

* Sant'Andrea al Quirinale * San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane * San Clemente * Santa Maria dei Monti * Santa Maria Maggiore * San Martino ai Monti * Santa Prassede * San Pietro in Vincoli * Santa Pudenziana * Santi Quirico e Giulitta *

Santi Domenico e Sisto The Church of Santi Domenico e Sisto is one of the titular churches in Rome, Italy in the care of the Roman Catholic Order of Preachers, better known as the Dominicans. It is located at No. 1 Largo Angelicum on the Quirinal Hill on the ...

Santo Stefano Rotondo The Basilica of St. Stephen in the Round on the Celian Hill ( it, Basilica di Santo Stefano al Monte Celio, la, Basilica S. Stephani in Caelio Monte) is an ancient basilica and titular church in Rome, Italy. Commonly named Santo Stefano Rotondo, ...

* San Vitale * San Giovanni in Laterano * Santi Marcellino e Pietro *

Santa Lucia in Selci The Church of Saint Lucy in Selci ( it, Santa Lucia in Selci, also known as ' or ') is an ancient Roman Catholic church, located in Rome, dedicated to Saint Lucy, a 4th-century virgin and martyr. History The church was built no later than th ...

Archaeological sites

Forum of Augustus The Forum of Augustus ( la, Forum Augustum; it, Foro di Augusto) is one of the Imperial fora of Rome, Italy, built by Augustus (). It includes the Temple of Mars Ultor. The incomplete forum and its temple were inaugurated in 2 BC, 40 years aft ...

* Forum of Caesar * Forum of Nerva *

Trajan's Forum Trajan's Forum ( la, Forum Traiani; it, Foro di Traiano) was the last of the Imperial fora to be constructed in ancient Rome. The architect Apollodorus of Damascus oversaw its construction. History This forum was built on the order of the empe ...

* Trajan's Market *

* Baths of Trajan *

* Ludus Magnus

Education

The ''biblioteca federata'' ''Scaffale d'arte Palaexpo'' is located in Monti.Biblioteche ed i Centri specializzati
" City of Rome. Retrieved on 8 September 2012. The Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas, ''Angelicum'' is located in ''Monti''.

References

External links

History, maps and images of the rione
{{DEFAULTSORT:Monti (Rione Of Rome) Rioni of Rome