Santa Igia or Santa Ilia, modern Santa Gilla lagoon (''Santa Ilia'' being a contraction of ''Santa Cecilia''Corrado Zedda; p. 121.), was a city in

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...

, in what is now Italy, which existed from the 9th century AD to 1258, when it was destroyed by

Pisan Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the cit ...

troops. It was the capital of the

Giudicato of Cagliari The Judicate of Cagliari ( sc, Judicadu de Càralis / Càlaris, it, Giudicato di Cagliari) was one of the four Sardinian ''judicates'' of the Middle Ages, kingdoms of Byzantine origins. The Judicate of Cagliari covered the entire south and centra ...

, one of the kingdoms in which the island was divided in medieval times. Parts of its remains are now found in

Cagliari Cagliari (, also , , ; sc, Casteddu ; lat, Caralis) is an Italian municipality and the capital of the island of Sardinia, an autonomous region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name ''Casteddu'' means ''castle''. It has about 155,000 inhabitant ...

, as well as in the island of Sa Illetta.

History

The area of Santa Igia was inhabited by the

Phoenicia Phoenicia () was an ancient thalassocratic civilization originating in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily located in modern Lebanon. The territory of the Phoenician city-states extended and shrank throughout their histor ...

ns and the

Romans 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 ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

. The latter, in particular, built a port (''Portus Scipio'') on the shores of the

Stagno di Santa Gilla The Stagno di Santa Gilla, or Stagno di Cagliari (literally ‘Pool of Cagliari’), is a coastal lagoon at the mouths of the rivers Cixerri and Mannu near Cagliari, on the Golfo degli Angeli in southern Sardinia, Italy. It has been designated ...

. In 718 Arab pirates launched their first raids against Cagliari, destroying sectors of the city and enslaving some inhabitants. Thus some of the Cagliaritani moved to the area facing the island of Santa Gilla, founding the city of Santa Igia, whose port had been used also by the Byzantines. Starting from the 9th century AD, it became the seat of the ''giudice'', the archbishop and the administration of the giudicato of Cagliari. The area was walled and connected to the Castle of St. Michael. In 1257, during the process of conquest of the Giudicato of Cagliari, the Pisans destroyed it.

References

Sources

* {{Coord missing, Italy Former populated places in Italy Medieval Sardinia 1258 disestablishments in Europe History of Cagliari