Posada (, ), also previously known as ''

Feronia Feronia may mean: * Feronia (mythology), a goddess of fertility in Roman and Etruscan mythology * Feronia (plant), ''Feronia'' (plant), a genus of plants * Feronia Inc., a plantations company operating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo * Fero ...

'' or ''Pausata'', is a ''

comune A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the City status in Italy, titl ...

'' (municipality) in the

Province of Nuoro The province of Nuoro (; ) is a province in the autonomous island region of Sardinia, Italy. Its capital is the city of Nuoro. It has an area of , and, , a total population of 210,972. The province is divided into 74 ''comuni'' (: ''comune''), t ...

in the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

region

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; ; ) is the Mediterranean islands#By area, second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, and one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. It is located west of the Italian Peninsula, north of Tunisia an ...

. The city sits on the coast of the

Tyrrhenian Sea The Tyrrhenian Sea (, ; or ) , , , , is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy. It is named for the Tyrrhenians, Tyrrhenian people identified with the Etruscans of Italy. Geography The sea is bounded by the islands of C ...

. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 2,394 and an area of .All demographics and other statistics: Italian statistical institute

Istat The Italian National Institute of Statistics (; Istat) is the primary source of official statistics in Italy. The institute conducts a variety of activities, including the census of population, economic censuses, and numerous social, economic, a ...

. Posada borders the following municipalities:

Budoni Budoni (Gallurese: ''Budùni'', ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Sassari in the Italian region Sardinia, located about northeast of Cagliari and about southeast of Olbia. As of 31 December 2014, it had a population of 5,125 an ...

Siniscola Siniscola (; ) is a (municipality) in the province of Nuoro in the Italian region Sardinia, located about northeast of Cagliari and about northeast of Nuoro Nuoro ( ; ) is a city and (municipality) in central-eastern Sardinia, Italy, situat ...

and Torpè. It is one of

I Borghi più belli d'Italia () is a non-profit private association of small Italian towns of strong historical and artistic interest, that was founded in March 2001 on the initiative of the Tourism Council of the National Association of Italian Municipalities, with the a ...

("The most beautiful villages of Italy").

History

Within Posada's territory was the ancient city of

or Pheronia, the foundation of which is ascribed to the

Faliscans The Falisci were an Italic tribe who lived in what is now northern Lazio, on the Etruscan side of the Tiber River. They spoke an Italic language, Faliscan, closely related to Latin. Originally a sovereign state, politically and socially th ...

, which contained a now lost temple to the Etruscan goddess

. During the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

period, the town's importance declined with the foundation of nearby Portus Luguidonis. In the Middle Ages, Posada was main town of an historical district called ''Baronia di Posada'' or ''Baronia Alta'' (to be distinguished from Baronia Bassa or Baronia di

Orosei Orosei () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Nuoro in the Italy, Italian region Sardinia, located about northeast of Cagliari and about east of Nuoro. The town has 5000 inhabitants and at least 13 churches, including San Giaco ...

Galtellì Galtellì (; ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Nuoro in the Italian region Sardinia, located about northeast of Cagliari and about northeast of Nuoro. Galtellì borders the municipalities of: Dorgali, Irgoli, Loculi, Lula, ...

), on the Tyrrhenian coast of the island. The ancient part of the town is in a spectacular position on the top of a hill, where it preserves a particular

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

historical center, with ruins of a

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

(Castello della Fava) and a square panoramic tower of the 13th century. The castle has been the equivalent of a holiday residence for the ''Giudichessa'' Eleanor of Arborea, and was object of alternate possession by the Giudicato d'Arborea and the

Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...

, during the long fight before the Spanish conquest. The castle became then the seat of the Baron of Posada, a title and a

fief A fief (; ) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal alle ...

created in 1431 for Don Nicolò Carroz and formally ended in 1856, when it was finally bought by the

kingdom of Sardinia The Kingdom of Sardinia, also referred to as the Kingdom of Sardinia and Corsica among other names, was a State (polity), country in Southern Europe from the late 13th until the mid-19th century, and from 1297 to 1768 for the Corsican part of ...

(the last one of all Sardinian fiefs).

Economy

Tourism in Posada is the main economic activity.

References

External links

Official regional website in Italian

Tourist information for Sardinia

Photo from Posada

Posada and surroundings
Borghi più belli d'Italia {{Sardinia-geo-stub