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Sulmona ( nap, label= Abruzzese, Sulmóne; la, Sulmo; grc, Σουλμῶν, Soulmôn) is a city 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 (''Regions of Italy, regioni'') and provinces (''Provinces ...
'' of the
province of L'Aquila The Province of L'Aquila ( it, Provincia dell'Aquila) is the largest, most mountainous and least densely populated province of the Abruzzo region of Central Italy. It comprises about half the landmass of Abruzzo and occupies the western part o ...
in
Abruzzo , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1 ...
, Italy. It is located in the
Valle Peligna The Valle Peligna, also known as ''Conca di Sulmona'', is a plateau in central Abruzzo, southern Italy, included in the province of L'Aquila. It has a surface of some 100 km². The valley takes its name from the Paeligni. In prehistoric t ...
, a plain once occupied by a lake that disappeared in prehistoric times. In the ancient era, it was one of the most important cities of the
Paeligni The Paeligni or Peligni were an Italic tribe who lived in the Valle Peligna, in what is now Abruzzo, central Italy. History The Paeligni are first mentioned as a member of a confederacy that included the Marsi, Marrucini, and Vestini, with whic ...
and is known for being the native town of the Roman poet
Ovid Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom he is often ranked as one of the t ...
, of whom there is a bronze statue, located on the town's main road and named after him.


History


Ancient era

Sulmona was one of the principal cities of the
Paeligni The Paeligni or Peligni were an Italic tribe who lived in the Valle Peligna, in what is now Abruzzo, central Italy. History The Paeligni are first mentioned as a member of a confederacy that included the Marsi, Marrucini, and Vestini, with whic ...
, an Italic tribe, but no notice of it is found in history before 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 ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
conquest. A tradition alluded to by Ovid and
Silius Italicus Tiberius Catius Asconius Silius Italicus (, c. 26 – c. 101 AD) was a Roman senator, orator and epic poet of the Silver Age of Latin literature. His only surviving work is the 17-book '' Punica'', an epic poem about the Second Punic War and th ...
, which ascribed its foundation to
Solymus In Greek mythology, Solymus or Solymos (Ancient Greek: Σολύμου) may refer to two individuals: * Solymus, an ancestral hero and eponym of the Solymi, who inhabited Milyas (i.e the area around Solyma), in south-west Anatolia. He was a son ...
, a
Phrygia In classical antiquity, Phrygia ( ; grc, Φρυγία, ''Phrygía'' ) was a kingdom in the west central part of Anatolia, in what is now Asian Turkey, centered on the Sangarios River. After its conquest, it became a region of the great empi ...
n and one of the companions of
Aeneas In Greco-Roman mythology, Aeneas (, ; from ) was a Trojan hero, the son of the Trojan prince Anchises and the Greek goddess Aphrodite (equivalent to the Roman Venus). His father was a first cousin of King Priam of Troy (both being grandsons ...
, is evidently a mere etymological fiction. The first mention of Sulmo occurs in the
Second Punic War The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of three wars fought between Carthage and Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For 17 years the two states struggled for supremacy, primarily in Ital ...
, when its territory was ravaged by
Hannibal Hannibal (; xpu, 𐤇𐤍𐤁𐤏𐤋, ''Ḥannibaʿl''; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Pun ...
in 211 BC, who, however, did not attack the city itself. Its name is not noticed during the Social War, in which the Paeligni took so prominent a part; but according to Florus, it suffered severely in the subsequent civil war between
Sulla Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix (; 138–78 BC), commonly known as Sulla, was a Roman general and statesman. He won the first large-scale civil war in Roman history and became the first man of the Republic to seize power through force. Sulla had ...
and
Gaius Marius Gaius Marius (; – 13 January 86 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. Victor of the Cimbric and Jugurthine wars, he held the office of consul an unprecedented seven times during his career. He was also noted for his important refo ...
, having been destroyed by the former as a punishment for allegiance to his rival. The writings of that rhetorical writer are not, however, to be taken literally, and it is more probable that Sulmo was confiscated and its lands assigned by Sulla to a body of his soldiers. In all events it is certain that Sulmo was a well-peopled and considerable town in 49 BC, when it was occupied by Domitius Calvinus with a garrison of seven cohorts; but the citizens, who were favorably inclined towards
Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, an ...
, opened their gates to his lieutenant M. Antonius as soon as he presented himself. Not much more is known historically of Sulmo, which, however, appears to have continued to be a considerable provincial town. Ovid speaks of it as one of the three municipal towns whose districts composed the territory of the Paeligni: and this is confirmed both by Pliny and the ''Liber Coloniarum''; yet it does not seem to have ever been large, and Ovid himself designates it as a small provincial town. From the ''Liber Coloniarum'' we learn also that it had received the status of a colony, probably in the time of
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 Pr ...
; though Pliny does not give it the title of a Colonia. Inscriptions, as well as the geographers and Itineraries, attest its continued existence as a municipal town throughout 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 Medit ...
. The chief claim to fame of Sulmona is derived from its having been the birthplace of Ovid, who repeatedly alludes to it as such, and celebrates its salubrity, and the numerous permanent streams of clear water in which its neighbourhood abounded. But, like the whole district of the Paeligni, it was extremely cold in winter, whence Ovid himself, and Silius Italicus in imitation of him, calls it "gelidus Sulmo" Its territory was fertile, cultivation of both in grain and wine are common, and one district, the Pagus Fabianus, is particularly mentioned by Pliny for the care bestowed on the irrigation of the vineyards.


Middle Ages and Renaissance

Traditionally, the beginning of the Christian age in Sulmona is set in the 3rd century. The city was part of the diocese of Valva, while a Sulmonese bishop is known from the 5th century. One of the earliest bishops was Saint Pamphilus (San Panfilo), an Italian pagan convert to Christianity in the 7th century from nearby Corfinium. He was elected bishop of Valva in 682 and died in 706. He is the
patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person. I ...
of Sulmona and is buried in the church dedicated to him, the present Sulmona Cathedral. Sulmona became a free commune under the
Normans The Normans ( Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Franks and Gallo-Romans. ...
. Under Emperor Frederick II an aqueduct was built in the town, one of the most important constructions of the era in the Abruzzo; the emperor made it the capital of a large province, as well the seat of a tribunal and of a fair, which it however lost with the arrival of the Angevins. Despite that, it continued to expand and a new line of walls was added in the 14th century. In the 16th century a flourishing paper industry was started.


Modern age

In 1706 the city was nearly razed by an earthquake. While much of the medieval city was destroyed by the earthquake, some remarkable buildings survive such as the Church of Santa Maria della Tomba, the Palazzo Annunziata, the Aqueduct and the Gothic portal on Corso Ovidio. Much of the city was then rebuilt in the prevailing elegant Baroque style of the 18th century. Sulmona experienced an economic boom in the late 19th century, becoming a railway hub given its strategic geographic position between Rome and the Adriatic coast. The anarchist and labour organiser
Carlo Tresca Carlo Tresca (March 9, 1879 – January 11, 1943) was an Italian-American newspaper editor, orator, and labor organizer who was a leader of the Industrial Workers of the World during the 1910s. He is remembered as a leading public opponent of fas ...
was born there in 1879 and was active in the Italian Railroad Workers' Federation until emigrating to the US in 1904 to escape a prison term. Sulmona's strategic position also made it a target for air raids during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. The railway station, the industrial sections and parts of the old town were damaged, but today they have been mostly restored.


Campo 78

Campo 78 at Sulmona served as a
POW A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...
camp in both world wars. During
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fight ...
, it housed Austrian prisoners captured in the Isonzo and Trentino campaigns; during World War II, it was home to as many as 3,000 British and Commonwealth officers and other ranks captured in North Africa. The camp itself was built on a hillside and consisted of a number of brick barracks surrounded by a high wall. During World War II, conditions in Sulmona for both the officers and the men were indifferent. Accommodation was overcrowded. Normal rations of rice soup and bread were occasionally augmented by fresh fruit and cheese in the summer. Some food parcels from the
International Committee of the Red Cross The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC; french: Comité international de la Croix-Rouge) is a humanitarian organization which is based in Geneva, Switzerland, and it is also a three-time Nobel Prize Laureate. State parties (signator ...
were distributed occasionally. For recreation, the prisoners laid out a football field, and they also had equipment for cricket and basketball. There was a theatre, a small lending library, at least one band, and a newspaper produced by a group of prisoners. In September 1943, as the Italian government neared collapse, the inmates of Sulmona heard rumours that the evacuation of the camp was imminent. They awoke one morning to discover that their guards had deserted them. On 14 September, German troops arrived to escort the prisoners northwards, to captivity in Germany, but not before hundreds of them had escaped into the hills. One such escapee was the South African author, Uys Krige, who described his experience in a book titled ''The way out.'' There were two other smaller camps nearby, ''Fontana d'Amore'', which held British officers, and ''Villa Orsini'', which held very senior Allied officers captured during World War II, including Air Marshal Owen Tudor Boyd, Major-General Sir
Adrian Carton de Wiart Lieutenant-General Sir Adrian Paul Ghislain Carton de Wiart, (; 5 May 1880 – 5 June 1963) was a British Army officer born of Belgian and Irish parents. He was awarded the Victoria Cross, the highest military decoration awarded for valour ...
, Brigadier James Hargest, Lieutenant General Sir
Philip Neame Lieutenant General Sir Philip Neame, (12 December 1888 – 28 April 1978) was a senior British Army officer and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Common ...
, General Sir Richard Nugent O'Connor. All were subsequently transferred to Castello di Vincigliata Campo PG12 near Florence.Hargest, Neame, Carton de Wiart, Leeming,


Main sights

Sights in Sulmona include: * Sulmona Cathedral, located on the northwest side of the old city and was built on the site of a Roman temple. It contains a crypt which retains its Romanesque appearance despite the 18th-century renovation of the main church. * ''Piazza XX Settembre''. One of the main piazzas in the city, including a bronze statue of the Roman poet
Ovid Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom he is often ranked as one of the t ...
. * ''Corso Ovidio''. The city's main thoroughfare connects the cathedral and the major piazzas and is lined by elegant covered arcades, shops, cafes, palaces and churches. * ''Palazzo Annunziata ''and ''Chiesa della SS. Annunziata''. The Palace, one of the rare examples of late
medieval 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 ...
/early
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...
architecture in Sulmona that survived the earthquake of 1706. Its facade contains fine sculpture and tracery work. Inside the Palazzo is a
museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that Preservation (library and archival science), cares for and displays a collection (artwork), collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, culture, cultu ...
showcasing the Roman history of the city as well as various artefacts. The church is a fine example of Baroque architecture and has a beautiful interior and bell tower. * ''Piazza Garibaldi'' is the largest piazza in town with a large baroque era fountain. A Palio style medieval festival and horse race known as th
''Giostra Cavalleresca''
takes place here every year in the Summer. At Easter, crowds gather to witness the ''Madonna che Scappa''. This ceremony involves the procession of a statue of the Madonna which is carried across the piazza while the bearers run to encounter a statue of the resurrected Christ on the other side. On the south side of the piazza is the 12th century Gothic aqueduct. The town square hosts a market twice a week on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The remains of the ancient city are of little interest as ruins, but indicate the existence of a considerable town; among them are the vestiges of an
amphitheatre An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...
, a theatre, and thermae, all of them located outside the gates of the modern city. About from the city, at the foot of Monte Morrone, are some ruins of reticulated masonry, traditionally believed to be Ovid's villa. Today, they are more properly identified as the sanctuary of ''Hercules Curinus''. Nearby is the '' Badia Morronese'', a large ( ) religious complex located near
Pope Celestine V Pope Celestine V ( la, Caelestinus V; 1215 – 19 May 1296), born Pietro Angelerio (according to some sources ''Angelario'', ''Angelieri'', ''Angelliero'', or ''Angeleri''), also known as Pietro da Morrone, Peter of Morrone, and Peter Celes ...
's hermitage. It was founded by Celestine as a chapel in 1241, and was enlarged and later made into a convent.


Confetti

Sulmona is the home of the Italian confectionery known as ''
confetti Confetti are small pieces or streamers of paper, mylar, or metallic material which are usually thrown at celebrations, especially parades and weddings. The origins are from the Latin ''confectum'', with ''confetti'' the plural of Italian '' ...
''. These are sugar-coated
almonds The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genus ...
and are traditionally given to friends and relatives on weddings and other special occasions. Confetti can be eaten or simply used as decoration. The local artisans also colour these candies and craft them into flowers and other creations. There are two main factories in town and several shops that sell these items, the most famous of which is Confetti Mario Pelino.


Twin towns

*
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilto ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world ...
* Constanţa,
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
* Burghausen,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
*
Zakynthos Zakynthos (also spelled Zakinthos; el, Ζάκυνθος, Zákynthos ; it, Zacinto ) or Zante (, , ; el, Τζάντε, Tzánte ; from the Venetian form) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the third largest of the Ionian Islands. Z ...
,
Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
* Šumperk,
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The Cz ...


Sports

The city has a football team, Pro Sulmona Calcio 1921. The club is currently disbanded, last competing in the 2015–16 season in the Promozione Abruzzo, the seventh division of Italian football.


Transports

Sulmona is served by the Sulmona railway station, an important station located at the intersection of three railway lines: the Rome–Sulmona–Pescara railway, the
Terni–Sulmona railway The Terni–Sulmona railway is a regional railway line in central Italy, managed by Rete Ferroviaria Italiana. It links three regions, Umbria, Lazio and Abruzzo, and three provincial capitals: Terni, Rieti and L'Aquila. Together with the Sulmona� ...
and the Sulmona-Isernia railway.


People

*
Ovid Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom he is often ranked as one of the t ...
, Roman poet * Maurizio Bevilacqua, Canadian politician * Virgilia D'Andrea, anarchist poet *
Pope Innocent VII Pope Innocent VII ( la, Innocentius VII; it, Innocenzo VII; 1339 – 6 November 1406), born Cosimo de' Migliorati, was head of the Catholic Church from 17 October 1404 to his death in November 1406. He was pope during the period of the Western ...
*
Carlo Tresca Carlo Tresca (March 9, 1879 – January 11, 1943) was an Italian-American newspaper editor, orator, and labor organizer who was a leader of the Industrial Workers of the World during the 1910s. He is remembered as a leading public opponent of fas ...
, anarchist labor activist, assassinated in 1943 * James Novelli, sculptor (1885-1940) * Edmondo Quattrocchi, sculptor (1889-1966)


See also

* Abruzzo (wine) * Shrine of Hercules Curinus


References


Sources

* Relating to Sulmona POW camp, Villa Orsini and Fontana d'Amore: * ''Playing with Strife'', The Autobiography of a Soldier, Lt-Gen. Sir Philip Neame, V.C., K.B.E., C.B., D.S.O., George G Harrap & Co. Ltd, 1947, 353 pages, * ''Farewell Campo 12'', Brigadier James Hargest, C.B.E., D.S.O. M.C., Michael Joseph Ltd, 1945, 184 pages contains a sketch map of route of capture and escape 'Sidi Azir - London (inside front cover), (no index) * ''Happy Odyssey'', Lt-Gen. Sir Carton De Wiart, V.C., K.B.E., C.M.G., D.S.O., Jonathan Cape Ltd, 1950, in PAN paperback 1956, re-printed by Pen & Sword Books 2007, 287 pages, (foreword by Winston S. Churchill) * ''Always To-Morrow'', 1951, John F Leeming, George G Harrap & Co. Ltd, London, 188p, Illustrated with photographs and maps (Tells of the authors' experiences as a prisoner of the Italians during WW2) * Ranfurly, Hermione, '' To War with Whitaker: The Wartime Diaries of the Countess of Ranfurly 1939–1945'', 1994, William Heinemann Ltd, London, 375 pages, * ''The way out (Italian intermezzo)'', Uys Krige, (South African author), 1946, Collins, London (also Maskew Miller, Cape Town 1955 revised edition)


External links


Official websiteSulmona.org, Guide to Ovidio's townInside AbruzzoSulmona AccommodationMedioeval Giostra Cavalleresca of SulmonaSulmona
��Pictures of Sulmona
Rete5.tv
��Sulmona online news.
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Abruzzo