Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of

Northern Italy Northern Italy ( it, Italia settentrionale, it, Nord Italia, label=none, it, Alta Italia, label=none or just it, Nord, label=none) is a geographical and cultural region in the northern part of Italy. It consists of eight administrative regions ...

. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the capital of the Ostrogothic Kingdom until it was re-conquered in 540 by the Byzantine Empire. Afterwards, the city formed the centre of the Byzantine Exarchate of Ravenna until the last

exarch An exarch (; from Ancient Greek ἔξαρχος ''exarchos'', meaning “leader”) was the holder of any of various historical offices, some of them being political or military and others being ecclesiastical. In the late Roman Empire and ea ...

was executed by the Lombards in 751. Although it is an inland city, Ravenna is connected to the Adriatic Sea by the Candiano Canal. It is known for its well-preserved late Roman and Byzantine architecture, with eight buildings comprising the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Early Christian Monuments of Ravenna".

History

The origin of the name ''Ravenna'' is unclear. Some have speculated that "Ravenna" is related to "Rasenna" (or "Rasna"), the term that the Etruscans used for themselves, but there is no agreement on this point.

Ancient era

The origins of Ravenna are uncertain. However, the oldest archaeological evidence found allows us to date the Umbri presence in Ravenna at least to the 5th century BC, where they remained undisturbed until the 3rd century BC, when the first contacts with Roman civilization began to take place. Its territory was settled also by the Senones, especially the southern countryside of the city (that wasn't part of the lagoon), the ''Ager Decimanus''. Ravenna consisted of houses built on piles on a series of small islands in a marshy lagoon – a situation similar to

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

several centuries later. The Romans ignored it during their conquest 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 ...

Delta, but later accepted it into the Roman Republic as a federated town in 89 BC. In 49 BC, it was where

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, and ...

gathered his forces before crossing the Rubicon. Later Octavian, after his battle against Mark Antony in 31 BC, founded the military harbor of Classis. This harbor, protected at first by its own walls, was an important station of the Roman Imperial Fleet. Nowadays the city is landlocked, but Ravenna remained an important seaport on the

Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) ...

until the early Middle Ages. During the Germanic campaigns, Thusnelda, widow of

Arminius Arminius ( 18/17 BC – 21 AD) was a chieftain of the Germanic Cherusci tribe who is best known for commanding an alliance of Germanic tribes at the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in 9 AD, in which three Roman legions under the command of ge ...

, and

Marbod Maroboduus (d. AD 37) was a king of the Marcomanni, who were a Germanic Suebian people. He spent part of his youth in Rome, and returning, found his people under pressure from invasions by the Roman empire between the Rhine and Elbe. He led the ...

, King of the Marcomanni, were confined at Ravenna. Ravenna(Peutinger Map)

Ravenna greatly prospered under Roman rule. Emperor Trajan built a long aqueduct at the beginning of the 2nd century. During the

Marcomannic Wars The Marcomannic Wars (Latin: ''bellum Germanicum et Sarmaticum'', "German and Sarmatian War") were a series of wars lasting from about 166 until 180 AD. These wars pitted the Roman Empire against, principally, the Germanic Marcomanni and Quadi ...

, Germanic settlers in Ravenna revolted and managed to seize possession of the city. For this reason, Marcus Aurelius decided not only against bringing more barbarians into Italy, but even banished those who had previously been brought there. In AD 408,

Emperor Honorius Honorius (9 September 384 – 15 August 423) was Roman emperor from 393 to 423. He was the younger son of emperor Theodosius I and his first wife Aelia Flaccilla. After the death of Theodosius, Honorius ruled the western half of the empire while ...

transferred the capital of the Western Roman Empire from Rome to Ravenna; it subsequently served as the capital of the empire for most of the 5th century and the last de facto western emperor Romulus Augustulus was deposed here in AD 476. At that time it was home to 50,000 people. The transfer was made partly for defensive purposes: Ravenna was surrounded by swamps and marshes, and was perceived to be easily defensible (although in fact the city fell to opposing forces numerous times in its history); it is also likely that the move to Ravenna was due to the city's port and good sea-borne connections to the Eastern Roman Empire. However, in 409, King

Alaric I Alaric I (; got, 𐌰𐌻𐌰𐍂𐌴𐌹𐌺𐍃, , "ruler of all"; c. 370 – 410 AD) was the first king of the Visigoths, from 395 to 410. He rose to leadership of the Goths who came to occupy Moesia—territory acquired a couple of decades ...

of the Visigoths simply bypassed Ravenna, and went on to sack Rome in 410 and to take

Galla Placidia Galla Placidia (388–89/392–93 – 27 November 450), daughter of the Roman emperor Theodosius I, was a mother, tutor, and advisor to emperor Valentinian III, and a major force in Roman politics for most of her life. She was List of Visigothi ...

, daughter of Emperor Theodosius I, hostage. After many vicissitudes, Galla Placidia returned to Ravenna with her son, Emperor Valentinian III, due to the support of her nephew Theodosius II. Ravenna enjoyed a period of peace, during which time the Christian religion was favoured by the imperial court, and the city gained some of its most famous monuments, including the Orthodox Baptistry, the misnamed Mausoleum of Galla Placidia (she was not actually buried there), and

San Giovanni Evangelista San Giovanni Evangelista is a church in Ravenna, Italy. It was built in the fifth century AD by the Roman imperial princess Galla Placidia. In the Middle Ages the Benedictines annexed to it an important monastery. In the 14th century both the ch ...

Ostrogothic Kingdom

The late 5th century saw the dissolution of Roman authority in the west, and Romulus Augustulus was deposed in 476 by the general

Odoacer Odoacer ( ; – 15 March 493 AD), also spelled Odovacer or Odovacar, was a soldier and statesman of barbarian background, who deposed the child emperor Romulus Augustulus and became Rex/Dux (476–493). Odoacer's overthrow of Romulus Augustul ...

. Odoacer ruled as King of Italy for 13 years, but in 489 the Eastern Emperor Zeno sent the

Ostrogoth The Ostrogoths ( la, Ostrogothi, Austrogothi) were a Roman-era Germanic people. In the 5th century, they followed the Visigoths in creating one of the two great Gothic kingdoms within the Roman Empire, based upon the large Gothic populations who ...

King Theodoric the Great to re-take the Italian peninsula. After losing the Battle of Verona,

retreated to Ravenna, where he withstood a siege of three years by Theodoric, until the taking of Rimini deprived Ravenna of supplies. Theodoric took Ravenna in 493, supposedly slew Odoacer with his own hands, and Ravenna became the capital of the Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy. Theodoric, following his imperial predecessors, also built many splendid buildings in and around Ravenna, including his palace church Sant'Apollinare Nuovo, an Arian cathedral (now Santo Spirito) and Baptistery, and his own

Mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be consid ...

just outside the walls. Mausoleum of Theoderic

Both Odoacer and Theodoric and their followers were

Arian Arianism ( grc-x-koine, Ἀρειανισμός, ) is a Christological doctrine first attributed to Arius (), a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt. Arian theology holds that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who was begotten by God t ...

Christians, but co-existed peacefully with the Latins, who were largely Catholic Orthodox. Ravenna's Orthodox bishops carried out notable building projects, of which the sole surviving one is the Cappella Arcivescovile. Theodoric allowed Roman citizens within his kingdom to be subject to Roman law and the Roman judicial system. The Goths, meanwhile, lived under their own laws and customs. In 519, when a mob had burned down the synagogues of Ravenna, Theodoric ordered the town to rebuild them at its own expense. Theodoric died in 526 and was succeeded by his young grandson

Athalaric Athalaric (; 5162 October 534) was the king of the Ostrogoths in Italy between 526 and 534. He was a son of Eutharic and Amalasuntha, the youngest daughter of Theoderic the Great, whom Athalaric succeeded as king in 526. As Athalaric was only ...

under the authority of his daughter

Amalasunta Amalasuintha (495 – 30 April 534/535) was a ruler of Ostrogothic Kingdom from 526 to 535. She ruled first as regent for her son and thereafter as queen on throne. A regent is "a person who governs a kingdom in the minority, absence, or disabil ...

, but by 535 both were dead and Theodoric's line was represented only by Amalasuntha's daughter Matasuntha. Various Ostrogothic military leaders took the Kingdom of Italy, but none were as successful as Theodoric had been. Meanwhile, the

orthodox Christian Orthodoxy (from Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion. Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Antiquity, but different Churche ...

Byzantine Emperor Justinian I opposed both Ostrogoth rule and the

variety of Christianity. In 535 his general Belisarius invaded Italy and in 540 conquered Ravenna. After the conquest of Italy was completed in 554, Ravenna became the seat of Byzantine government in Italy. From 540 to 600, Ravenna's bishops embarked upon a notable building program of churches in Ravenna and in and around the port city of Classe. Surviving monuments include the

Basilica of San Vitale The Basilica of San Vitale is a late antique church in Ravenna, Italy. The sixth-century church is an important surviving example of early Christian Byzantine art and architecture. It is one of eight structures in Ravenna inscribed on the UNESCO ...

and the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in Classe, as well as the partially surviving San Michele in Africisco.

Exarchate of Ravenna

Following the conquests of Belisarius for Eastern Roman Emperor Justinian I in the 6th century, Ravenna became the seat of the Byzantine governor of Italy, the

Exarch An exarch (; from Ancient Greek ἔξαρχος ''exarchos'', meaning “leader”) was the holder of any of various historical offices, some of them being political or military and others being ecclesiastical. In the late Roman Empire and ea ...

, and was known as the Exarchate of Ravenna. It was at this time that the Ravenna Cosmography was written. Under Byzantine rule, the archbishop of the

Archdiocese of Ravenna The Archdiocese of Ravenna-Cervia ( la, Archidioecesis Ravennatensis-Cerviensis) is a metropolitan archdiocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy.autocephaly Autocephaly (; from el, αὐτοκεφαλία, meaning "property of being self-headed") is the status of a hierarchical Christian church whose head bishop does not report to any higher-ranking bishop. The term is primarily used in Eastern O ...

from the Roman Church by the emperor, in 666, but this was soon revoked. Nevertheless, the archbishop of Ravenna held the second place in Italy after the pope, and played an important role in many theological controversies during this period.

Middle Ages and Renaissance

The Lombards, under

King Liutprand Liutprand was the king of the Lombards from 712 to 744 and is chiefly remembered for his multiple phases of law-giving, in fifteen separate sessions from 713 to 735 inclusive, and his long reign, which brought him into a series of conflicts, mos ...

, occupied Ravenna in 712, but were forced to return it to the Byzantines. However, in 751 the Lombard king, Aistulf, succeeded in conquering Ravenna, thus ending Byzantine rule in northern Italy. King Pepin of the Franks attacked the Lombards under orders of

Pope Stephen II Pope Stephen II ( la, Stephanus II; 714 – 26 April 757) was born a Roman aristocrat and member of the Orsini family. Stephen was the bishop of Rome from 26 March 752 to his death. Stephen II marks the historical delineation between the Byzant ...

. Ravenna then gradually came under the direct authority of the Popes, although this was contested by the archbishops at various times. Pope Adrian I authorized Charlemagne to take away anything from Ravenna that he liked, and an unknown quantity of Roman columns, mosaics, statues, and other portable items were taken north to enrich his capital of

Aachen Aachen ( ; ; Aachen dialect: ''Oche'' ; French and traditional English: Aix-la-Chapelle; or ''Aquisgranum''; nl, Aken ; Polish: Akwizgran) is, with around 249,000 inhabitants, the 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, and the 28th- ...

. In 1198 Ravenna led a league of

Romagna Romagna ( rgn, Rumâgna) is an Italian historical region that approximately corresponds to the south-eastern portion of present-day Emilia-Romagna, North Italy. Traditionally, it is limited by the Apennines to the south-west, the Adriatic to t ...

cities against the Emperor, and the Pope was able to subdue it. After the war of 1218 the

Traversari The Traversari (or ''domus Traversariorum'', according to medieval chroniclers) are a noble Italian family. The dynasty's history was mostly connected to Ravenna, which it ruled between the 12th and 13th centuries. St. Romuald was the son of Duke ...

family was able to impose its rule in the city, which lasted until 1240. After a short period under an Imperial vicar, Ravenna was returned to the Papal States in 1248 and again to the Traversari until, in 1275, the

Da Polenta The da Polenta () or Polentani () were an old noble Italian family whose name derives from the Castle of Polenta near Bertinoro in Romagna. The founder of the house is said to have been Guido, surnamed "l'Antico" (the Elder), who wielded great a ...

established their long-lasting seigniory. One of the most illustrious residents of Ravenna at this time was the exiled Florentine poet Dante. The last of the Da Polenta, Ostasio III, was ousted by the Republic of Venice in February 1441, and the city was annexed to the Venetian territories in the Treaty of Cremona. Ravenna was ruled by Venice until 1509, when the area was invaded in the course of the Italian Wars. In 1512, during the

Holy League Commencing in 1332 the numerous Holy Leagues were a new manifestation of the Crusading movement in the form of temporary alliances between interested Christian powers. Successful campaigns included the capture of Smyrna in 1344, at the Battle of ...

wars, Ravenna was sacked by the French following the Battle of Ravenna. Ravenna was also known during the Renaissance as the birthplace of the

Monster of Ravenna The Monster of Ravenna was a possibly apocryphal late Renaissance-era monstrous birth whose appearance in early 1512 near the city of Ravenna was widely reported in contemporary European pamphlets and diaries. Images of its grotesque features were ...

. After the Venetian withdrawal, Ravenna was again ruled by legates of the Pope as part of the Papal States. The city was damaged in a tremendous flood in May 1636. Over the next 300 years, a network of canals diverted nearby rivers and drained nearby swamps, thus reducing the possibility of flooding and creating a large belt of agricultural land around the city. Ravenna quattrino

Modern age

Apart from another short occupation by Venice (1527–1529), Ravenna was part of the Papal States until 1796, when it was annexed to the French puppet state of the Cisalpine Republic, ( Italian Republic from 1802, and Kingdom of Italy from 1805). It was returned to the Papal States in 1814. Occupied by Piedmontese troops in 1859, Ravenna and the surrounding

area became part of the new unified Kingdom of Italy in 1861. During World War II, troops of 4th Princess Louise Dragoon Guards - 5th Canadian Armoured Division and the British

27th Lancers The 27th Lancers was a British Army cavalry regiment from 1941 to 1945. History The regiment was raised in June 1941 from a cadre of personnel taken from the 12th Royal Lancers. It was assigned to the 11th Armoured Division as the divisional reco ...

entered and liberated Ravenna on 5 December 1944. A total of 937 Commonwealth soldiers who died in the winter of 1944-45 are buried in Ravenna War Cemetery, including 438 Canadians. The town suffered very little damage.

Government

Main sights

Basilica of San Vitale - triumphal arch mosaics

Mausoleum of Galla Placidia ceiling mosaics

Arian Baptistry ceiling mosaic - Ravenna

Eight early Christian buildings of Ravenna are inscribed on the World Heritage List. These are * Orthodox Baptistery also called ''Baptistry of Neon'' (c. 430) * Mausoleum of Galla Placidia (c. 430) *

Arian Baptistery The Arian Baptistry in Ravenna, Italy is a Christian baptismal building that was erected by the Ostrogothic King Theodoric the Great between the end of the 5th century and the beginning of the 6th century A.D., at the same time as the Basilica o ...

(c. 500) *

Archiepiscopal Chapel The Archbishop's Chapel (or Archiepiscopal Chapel) is a chapel on the first floor of the bishops' palace in Ravenna, Italy, the smallest of the famous mosaic sites of the city. It is a private oratory of Trinitarian bishops dating from the turn ...

(c. 500) * Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo (c. 500) * Mausoleum of Theodoric (520) *

(548) * Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in Classe (549) Other attractions include: * The church of

is from the 5th century, erected by

after she survived a storm at sea. It was restored after the World War II bombings. The belltower contains four bells, the two majors dating back to 1208. * The 6th-century church of the '' Spirito Santo'', which has been quite drastically altered since the 6th century. It was originally the Arian cathedral. The façade has a 16th-century portico with five arcades. * The Basilica of San Francesco, rebuilt in the 10th–11th centuries over a precedent edifice dedicated to the Apostles and later to St. Peter. Behind the humble brick façade, it has a nave and two aisles. Fragments of mosaics from the first church are visible on the floor, which is usually covered by water after heavy rains (together with the crypt). Here the funeral ceremony of Dante Alighieri was held in 1321. The poet is buried in a tomb annexed to the church, the local authorities having resisted for centuries all demands by Florence for return of the remains of its most famous exile. * The

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

church of ''

Santa Maria Maggiore The Basilica of Saint Mary Major ( it, Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, ; la, Basilica Sanctae Mariae Maioris), or church of Santa Maria Maggiore, is a Major papal basilica as well as one of the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome and the larges ...

'' (525–532, rebuilt in 1671). It houses a picture by

Luca Longhi Luca Longhi (14 January 1507 – August 12, 1580) was an Italian painter of the late-Renaissance or Mannerist period, active in and near Ravenna, where he mainly produced religious paintings and portraits. Biography It is unclear who his mas ...

. * The church of

San Giovanni Battista San Giovanni Battista is the Italian translation of Saint John the Baptist. It may also refer to: Italian churches * San Giovanni Battista, Highway A11, a church in Florence, Italy * San Giovanni Battista, Praiano, a church in Praiano, Italy * , a ...

(1683), also in Baroque style, with a Middle Ages campanile. * The basilica of Santa Maria in Porto (16th century), with a rich façade from the 18th century. It has a nave and two aisles, with a high cupola. It houses the image of famous ''Greek Madonna'', which was allegedly brought to Ravenna from Constantinople. * The nearby Communal Gallery has various works from Romagnoli painters. * The '' Rocca Brancaleone'' ("Brancaleone Castle"), built by the Venetians in 1457. Once part of the city walls, it is now a public park. It is divided into two parts: the true Castle and the Citadel, the latter having an extent of . * The "so-called Palace of Theodoric", in fact the entrance to the former church of San Salvatore. It includes mosaics from the true palace of the Ostrogoth king. * The church of '' Sant'Eufemia'' (18th century), gives access to the so-called

Stone Carpets Domus In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...

(6th–7th century): this houses splendid mosaics from a Byzantine palace. * The

National Museum A national museum is a museum maintained and funded by a national government. In many countries it denotes a museum run by the central government, while other museums are run by regional or local governments. In other countries a much greater numb ...

. * The Archiepiscopal Museum

Music

The city annually hosts the

Ravenna Festival The Ravenna Festival is a summer festival of opera and classical music (as well as dance, jazz, ethnic, musical theater, ballett, sacred music, electronic music, drama, film, plus conventions and exhibitions) held in the city of Ravenna, Italy and t ...

, one of Italy's prominent classical music gatherings. Opera performances are held at the

Teatro Alighieri Teatro may refer to: * Theatre * Teatro (band) Teatro, Italian for "theatre", is a vocal group signed to the Sony BMG music label. The members of Teatro are Jeremiah James, Andrew Alexander, Simon Bailey and Stephen Rahman-Hughes. Band member ...

while concerts take place at the Palazzo Mauro de André as well as in the ancient

and Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in Classe. Chicago Symphony Orchestra music director Riccardo Muti, a longtime resident of the city, regularly participates in the festival, which invites orchestras and other performers from around the world.

In literature

Giovanni Mochi - Dante Alighieri in atto di presentare Giotto a Guido da Polenta

* After his banishment from his native Florence, Dante spent most of the rest of his life in Ravenna, and he mentions the city in Canto V of his '' Inferno''. * Also in the 16th century, Nostradamus provides four prophecies: ** "The Magnavacca (canal) at Ravenna in great trouble, Canals by fifteen shut up at Fornase", in reference to fifteen French saboteurs. ** As the place of a battle extending to Perugia and a sacred escape in its aftermath, leaving rotting horses left to eat ** In relation to the snatching of a lady "near Ravenna" and then the legate of Lisbon seizing 70 souls at sea ** Ravenna is one of three-similarly named contenders for the birth of the third and final Antichrist who enslaves Slovenia (see Ravne na Koroškem) * Ravenna is the setting for ''

The Witch A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft. Witch, WITCH, or variations thereof may also refer to: Animals * Witch (lefteye flounder) (''Arnoglossus scapha''), a Pacific flatfish * Witch (righteye flounder) (''Glyptocephalus cynoglossus''), a Euro ...

'', a play by Thomas Middleton * Lord Byron lived in Ravenna between 1819 and 1821, led by the love for a local aristocratic and married young woman,

Teresa Guiccioli Teresa, Contessa Guiccioli (1800–1873) was the married lover of Lord Byron while he was living in Ravenna and writing the first five cantos of '' Don Juan''. She wrote the biographical account ''Lord Byron's Life in Italy''. On 19 January 1 ...

. Here he continued '' Don Juan'' and wrote ''Ravenna Diary'', ''My Dictionary'' and ''Recollections''. * Ravenna is the location where Lionel, the protagonist of Mary Shelley's post-apocalyptic novel '' The Last Man'', comes ashore after losing his companions to a howling storm in the Aegean Sea. *

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is ...

(1854–1900) wrote a poem ''Ravenna'' in 1878. * Symbolist, lyrical poet Alexander Blok (1880–1921) wrote a poem entitled ''Ravenna'' (May–June 1909) inspired by his Italian journey (spring 1909). * During his travels, German poet and philosopher Hermann Hesse (1877–1962) came across Ravenna and was inspired to write two poems of the city. They are entitled ''Ravenna (1)'' and ''Ravenna (2)''. *

T. S. Eliot Thomas Stearns Eliot (26 September 18884 January 1965) was a poet, essayist, publisher, playwright, literary critic and editor.Bush, Ronald. "T. S. Eliot's Life and Career", in John A Garraty and Mark C. Carnes (eds), ''American National Biogr ...

's (1888–1965) poem "Lune de Miel" (written in French) describes a honeymooning couple from Indiana sleeping not far from the ancient Basilica of Sant' Apollinare in Classe (just outside Ravenna), famous for the carved capitals of its columns, which depict acanthus leaves buffeted by the wind, unlike the leaves in repose on similar columns elsewhere. *

J.R.R. Tolkien John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, ; 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlins ...

(1892–1973) may have based his city of Minas Tirith at least in part on Ravenna.

In film

Michelangelo Antonioni Michelangelo Antonioni (, ; 29 September 1912 – 30 July 2007) was an Italian filmmaker. He is best known for directing his "trilogy on modernity and its discontents"—''L'Avventura'' (1960), ''La Notte'' (1961), and ''L'Eclisse'' (1962 ...

filmed his 1964 movie ''Red Desert'' (''Deserto Rosso'') within the industrialised areas of the Pialassa valley.

Transport

Ravenna has an important commercial and tourist port.

Ravenna railway station Ravenna railway station ( it, Stazione di Ravenna) serves the city and ''comune'' of Ravenna, in the region of Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy. Opened in 1863, it forms part of the Ferrara–Rimini railway, and is also a terminus of two secondar ...

has direct Trenitalia service to Bologna,

Ferrara Ferrara (, ; egl, Fràra ) is a city and ''comune'' in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital of the Province of Ferrara. it had 132,009 inhabitants. It is situated northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream ...

Lecce Lecce ( ); el, label=Griko, Luppìu, script=Latn; la, Lupiae; grc, Λουπίαι, translit=Loupíai), group=pron is a historic city of 95,766 inhabitants (2015) in southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Lecce, the province ...

, Milan, Parma, Rimini, and Verona.

Ravenna Airport Ravenna Airport ( it, Aeroporto di Ravenna) is an airport serving the locality of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna province of Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern ...

is located in Ravenna. The nearest commercial airports are those of Forlì, Rimini and Bologna. Freeways crossing Ravenna include: A14-bis from the hub of Bologna; on the north–south axis of EU routes E45 (from Rome) and E55 (SS-309 "Romea" from Venice); and on the regional Ferrara-Rimini axis of SS-16 (partially called "Adriatica").

Amusement parks

* Mirabilandia *

Safari Ravenna Safari Ravenna is a Safari park and Zoo in Ravenna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy, created in 2012 near the amusement park of Mirabilandia (Italy), Mirabilandia; extending over an area of 340.000 square metres. There is a large area for large mammals and ...

Twin towns – sister cities

Ravenna is twinned with: * Chichester, United Kingdom, since 1996 * Speyer, Germany, since 1989 *

Chartres Chartres () is the prefecture of the Eure-et-Loir department in the Centre-Val de Loire region in France. It is located about southwest of Paris. At the 2019 census, there were 170,763 inhabitants in the metropolitan area of Chartres (as d ...

, France, since 1957

Sports

The traditional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club of the city is

Ravenna F.C. Ravenna Football Club is an Italian association football club, based in Ravenna, Emilia-Romagna. It currently plays in Serie C after achieving promotion as Group D champions in the 2016-17 Serie D season. The club was founded in 1913. Histo ...

Currently it plays in the third tier of Italian football, Serie C. A.P.D. Ribelle 1927 is the football club of

Castiglione di Ravenna Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the ca ...

, a town to the south of Ravenna and was founded in 1927. Currently it plays in Italy's Serie D after promotion from Eccellenza Emilia-Romagna Girone B in the 2013–14 season. The president is Marcello Missiroli and the manager is Enrico Zaccaroni. Its home ground is ''Stadio Massimo Sbrighi'' with 1,000 seats. The team's colors are white and blue. The beaches of Ravenna hosted the

2011 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup The 2011 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup was the sixth edition of the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, governed by FIFA. Overall, this was the 16th edition of a world cup in beach soccer since the establishment of the ''Beach Soccer World Championships'' ...

, in September 2011.

People

* Valentinian III (419-455), Roman Emperor *

Matteo Plazzi Matteo Plazzi (born in Ravenna) is an Italian sailor who has competed in multiple America's Cups. Plazzi's first foray into the America's Cup was with ''Azzurra'' in the 1987 Louis Vuitton Cup. In addition to competing in the America's Cup, Matte ...

, Italian sailor *

Laura Pausini Laura Pausini (; born 16 May 1974) is an Italian singer. She rose to fame in 1993, winning the newcomer artists' section of the 43rd Sanremo Music Festival with her debut single "La solitudine", which became an Italian standard and an internat ...

(b. 1974), Italian pop singer-songwriter, record producer and television personality * Raul Gardini (1933-1993), Italian businessman *

Franco Manzecchi Franco (Gian) Manzecchi (September 10, 1931, Ravenna – March 25, 1979, Konstanz) was an Italian drummer. Biography Manzecchi's older brother Gino was also a trumpeter and drummer. He moved from his hometown Ravenna, Italy, to Bologna, then t ...

(1931-1979), Jazz drummer *

Andrea Montanari Andrea Montanari (born 10 August 1965) is a retired Italy, Italian sprinter who specialized in the 400 metres. He won one medal, at senior level, at the International athletics championships and games, International athletics competitions. Biogra ...

(b. 1965), Italian sprinter * Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1713), Baroque violinist and composer *

Luigi Legnani Luigi Rinaldo Legnani (7 November 1790 – 5 August 1877) was an Italian virtuoso guitarist, singer, composer and luthier. Life Born in Ravenna, Legnani was trained as a string player while very young but dedicated himself to guitar and voice. Hi ...

(1790-1877), guitarist and luthier * Tullio Bassi (b. 1937), Italian violin maker * Peter Damian (c. 988 - 1072 or 1073), Catholic Saint and Cardinal *

Francesco Ingoli Francesco Ingoli (21 November 1578 – 24 April 1649) was an Italian Catholic priest, lawyer and professor of civil and canon law. Early life Born in Ravenna Italy, Ingoli learned a number of languages, including Arabic, and graduated from t ...

(1578-1649), Theatine scientist, lawyer, and disputer of Galileo *

Francesca da Rimini Francesca da Rimini or Francesca da Polenta (died between 1283 and 1286) was a medieval noblewoman of Ravenna, who was murdered by her husband, Giovanni Malatesta, upon his discovery of her affair with his brother, Paolo Malatesta. She was a co ...

(1255 - c. 1285), historical person *

Guido I da Polenta Guido I da Polenta (died 1310) was lord of Ravenna from 1275 until his abdication in 1297. The son of Lamberto da Polenta, he was ousted from Ravenna by the imperial troops in 1240. When the city was returned to the Papal States in 1248, Guido was ...

(d. 1310), lord of Ravenna *

Francesco Baracca Count Francesco Baracca (9 May 1888 – 19 June 1918) was Italy's top fighter ace of World War I. He was credited with 34 aerial victories. The emblem he wore side by side on his plane of a black horse prancing on its two rear hooves ins ...

(1888-1918), Italy's top fighter ace of World War I *

Federico Caricasulo Federico Caricasulo (born 6 April 1996 in Ravenna) is an Italian motorcycle racer Motorcycle racing (also called moto racing and motorbike racing) is the motorcycle sport of racing motorcycles. Major varieties include motorcycle road racing ...

(b. 1996), Motorcycle road racer * Marco Melandri (b. 1982), Motorcycle road racer *

Davide Tardozzi Davide Tardozzi (born in Ravenna, January 30, 1959) is a former Italian Superbike racer and current race team manager. After an unsuccessful attempt at competing in the 250cc Grand Prix world championships in 1984 and 1985, Tardozzi turned his at ...

(b. 1959), Superbike racer and team manager * Ivano Marescotti (b. 1946), actor *

Amadeus (presenter) Amedeo Umberto Rita Sebastiani (born 4 September 1962), known professionally as Amadeus, is an Italian television and radio presenter. Life and career Born in Ravenna, son of Sicilian parents, Sebastiani grew up in Verona.Giorgio Dell'Arti, ...

(b. 1962), presenter * Romolo Gessi (1831-1881), explorer *

Romuald Romuald ( la, Romualdus; 951 – traditionally 19 June, c. 1025/27 AD) was the founder of the Camaldolese order and a major figure in the eleventh-century "Renaissance of eremitical asceticism".John Howe, "The Awesome Hermit: The Symbolic ...

(с. 951 - c. 1025/27), abbot, founder of the

Camaldolese The Camaldolese Hermits of Mount Corona ( la, Congregatio Eremitarum Camaldulensium Montis Coronae), commonly called Camaldolese is a monastic order of Pontifical Right for men founded by Saint Romuald. Their name is derived from the Holy Hermita ...

order * Marco Dente (1493-1527), engraver *

Paolo Roversi Paolo Roversi (born 1947) is an Italian-born fashion photographer who lives and works in Paris. Early life Born in Ravenna in 1947, Paolo Roversi's interest in photography was kindled as a teenager during a family vacation in Spain in 1964. Ba ...

(b. 1947), fashion photographer *

Angelo Mariani (conductor) Angelo Maurizio Gaspare Mariani (11 October 182113 June 1873) was an Italian opera conductor and composer. His work as a conductor drew praise from Giuseppe Verdi, Giacomo Meyerbeer, Gioachino Rossini and Richard Wagner, and he was a longtime pe ...

(1821-1873), conductor * Giuseppe Vitali (1875-1932), Mathematician * Evangelista Torricelli (1606-1647), physicist and mathematician * Federico Marchetti (businessman) (b. 1969), founder of YOOX *

Gianluca Costantini Gianluca Costantini (born December 19, 1971) in Ravenna, Italy, is a cartoonist, artist, Comic journalist, and activist. Biography Gianluca Costantini he graduated from the Art Institute Gino Severini of Ravenna in 1991 in Applied Art and t ...

(artist) (b. 1971) *

(1790-1877), (musician,composer) *

Luigi Rossini Luigi Rossini (1790–1857) was an Italian artist, best known for his etchings of ancient Roman architecture. Early life Rossini was born in Ravenna,Luigi Rossini, ''Le città del Lazio'', 1826, edizione di Vincenzo Pacifici, Tivoli, 1943, pp. 7� ...

(artist) (1790–1857) *

Alex Majoli Alex Majoli (born 1971) is an Italian photographer known for his documentation of war and conflict. He is a member of Magnum Photos. Majoli's work focuses on the human condition and the theater within our daily lives. Life and work Majoli was born ...

(photographer) (b.1971)

References

Sources

* Cameron, Averil. "Ravenna: Capital of Empire, Crucible of Europe". ''History Today'' (September 2020) pp 94–97. * Janet Nelson, Judith Herrin, ''Ravenna: its role in earlier medieval change and exchange'', London, Institute of Historical Research, 2016,

External links

Ravenna - Catholic encyclopedia

Tourism and culture
Official website *
Ravenna, A Study
' (1913) by Edward Hutton, from Project Gutenberg
Ravenna's early history and its monuments - Catholic Encyclopedia

Deborah M. Deliyannis, ''Ravenna in Late Antiquity'' (Cambridge University Press, 2010)
{{Subject bar, commons=y, voy=y, wikt=y, s=y Capitals of former nations Castles in Italy Cities and towns in Emilia-Romagna Former islands of Italy Mediterranean port cities and towns in Italy Papal States Pre-Roman cities in Italy Roman harbors in Italy Roman sites of Emilia-Romagna World Heritage Sites in Italy