Susa ( lat, Segusio, french: Suse, frp, Suisa) is a town and ''

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

'' in the Metropolitan City of Turin,

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. In the middle of

Susa Valley The Susa Valley ( it, Val di Susa; pms, Valsusa; french: Val de Suse; oc, Val d'Ors) is a valley in the Metropolitan City of Turin, Piedmont region of northern Italy, located between the Graian Alps in the north and the Cottian Alps in the sou ...

, it is situated on at the confluence of the

Cenischia The Cenischia (; french: Cenise, ) is a mountain torrent which straddles the south-west French department of Savoie and the north-west Italian Metropolitan City of Turin, in Piedmont. Part of the Po basin, it is a left tributary of the Dora Rip ...

with the

Dora Riparia The Dora Riparia (; pms, Dòira Rivaira; french: Doire Ripaire or ''Doire''; la, Duria minor) is an alpine river, a left-hand tributary of the Po. It is long (of which 5 km in France), with a drainage basin. It originates in the Cottian ...

, a tributary of the

Po River The Po ( , ; la, Padus or ; Ligurian language (ancient), Ancient Ligurian: or ) is the longest river in Italy. It flows eastward across northern Italy starting from the Cottian Alps. The river's length is either or , if the Maira (river), Mair ...

, at the foot of the

Cottian Alps The Cottian Alps (; french: Alpes Cottiennes ; it, Alpi Cozie ) are a mountain range in the southwestern part of the Alps. They form the border between France (Hautes-Alpes and Savoie) and Italy (Piedmont). The Fréjus Road Tunnel and Fréjus Rai ...

, 51 km (32 mi) west of

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

History

Susa ( la, Segusio) was founded by the

Ligures The Ligures (singular Ligur; Italian: liguri; English: Ligurians) were an ancient people after whom Liguria, a region of present-day north-western Italy, is named. Ancient Liguria corresponded more or less to the current Italian regio ...

. It was the capital of the

Segusini The Segusini (Gaulish: *''Segusinoi'', 'those of Segusio') were a Gallic tribe dwelling around present-day Susa, in the Alpes Cottiae, during the Iron Age. Name They are mentioned as ''Segosianō̃n'' (Σεγοσιανῶν) Strabo (early 1st c. ...

(also known as Cottii). In the late 1st century BC it became voluntarily part of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...

. Remains of the Roman city have been found in the excavations of the central square, the Piazza Savoia. Susa was the capital of the province of

Alpes Cottiae The Alpes Cottiae (; English: 'Cottian Alps') were a small province of the Roman Empire founded in 63 AD by Emperor Nero. It was one of the three provinces straddling the Alps between modern France and Italy, along with the Alpes Graiae et Poenin ...

. According to the medieval historian

Rodulfus Glaber Rodulfus, or Raoul Glaber (which means "the Smooth" or "the Bald") (985–1047), was an 11th-century Benedictine chronicler. Life Glaber was born in 985 in Burgundy. At the behest of his uncle, a monk at Saint-Léger-de-Champeaux, Glaber was sent ...

, Susa was "the oldest of Alpine towns". In the Middle and Modern ages, Susa remained important as a hub of roads connecting southern France to Italy. Taking part of the county or

march of Turin The March or Marquisate of Turin ( it, marca di Torino) was a territory of medieval Italy from the mid-10th century, when it was established as the Arduinic March ( la, marca Arduinica). It comprised several counties in Piedmont, including the cou ...

(sometimes "march of Susa"). In 1167,

Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (german: link=no, Friedrich I, it, Federico I), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death 35 years later. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt on ...

and Holy Roman Empress Beatrice were attacked here; the emperor disguised as a horse servant to flee, while the empress was imprisoned until permitted to depart in 1168. In 1174 the emperor pillaged Susa in revenge.

Henry of Segusio Henry of Segusio, usually called Hostiensis, (c. 1200 – 6 or 7 November 1271) was an Italian canonist of the thirteenth century, born at Susa (Segusio), in the ancient Diocese of Turin. He died at Lyon. Life He undertook the study of Roman law ...

, usually called Hostiensis, (c. 1200 – 1271) an Italian canonist of the thirteenth century, was born in the city. During the

Napoleonic Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

era a new road, the Via Napoleonica, was built. The city's role as a communications hub has been confirmed recently by a nationwide dispute over the construction of the proposed Turin-Lyon high-speed rail link (TAV) to France.

Main sights

Susa Cathedral , fullname = Cathedral of Saint Justus it, Cattedrale di San Giusto , other name = , native_name = , native_name_lang = , image = Susa Dom.jpg , imagesize = 250px , ...

( it, Cattedrale di San Giusto) (1029). *The triumphal Arch of Augustus, erected by a Romanized Sugusian chief to

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...

in 8 BC. *The

Roman Amphitheater Roman amphitheatres are theatres – large, circular or oval open-air venues with raised seating – built by the ancient Romans. They were used for events such as gladiator combats, ''venationes'' (animal slayings) and executions. About 230 Ro ...

.Raymond G. Chase: Ancient Hellenistic and Roman amphitheatres, stadiums, and theatres: the way they look now. P. E. Randall, Portsmouth 2002, ISBN 1-931807-08-6 *Castle of Marquise Adelaide. It is likely located in the same site of the ancient Roman ''Praetorium''. *Archaeological area of Piazza Savoia.

Twin cities

* Barnstaple, United Kingdom * Briançon, France * Paola, Italy

Sources

External links

*
Cities and towns in Piedmont Hilltowns in Piedmont Castles in Italy {{Turin-geo-stub

History

Main sights

Twin cities

See also

Sources

External links