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Sutri (Latin ''Sutrium'') is an Ancient town, modern '' comune'' and former bishopric (now a Latin titular see) in the province of Viterbo, about from Rome and about south of Viterbo. It is picturesquely situated on a narrow tuff hill, surrounded by ravines, a narrow neck on the west alone connecting it with the surrounding country. The modern '' comune'' of Sutri has a few more than 5,000 inhabitants. Its ancient remains are a major draw for tourism: a Roman amphitheatre excavated in the tuff rock, an Etruscan necropolis with dozens of rock-cut tombs, a Mithraeum incorporated in the crypt of its church of the Madonna del Parto, a Romanesque Duomo.


History

Ancient Sutrium occupied an important position, commanding as it did the road into
Etruria Etruria () was a region of Central Italy, located in an area that covered part of what are now most of Tuscany, northern Lazio, and northern and western Umbria. Etruscan Etruria The ancient people of Etruria are identified as Etruscan civiliza ...
, the later Via Cassia: Livy describes it as one of the keys of Etruria, nearby Nepi being the other. It came into the hands of Rome after the fall of Veii, and a Latin colony was founded there; it was lost again in 386 BC, but was recovered and recolonized around 383 BC. It was besieged by the Etruscans in 311–310 BC, but not taken. With Nepi and ten other Latin colonies it refused further help 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 ...
in 209 BC. Its importance as a fortress explains, according to
Festus Festus may refer to: People Ancient world *Porcius Festus, Roman governor of Judea from approximately 58 to 62 AD *Sextus Pompeius Festus (later 2nd century), Roman grammarian *Festus (died 305), martyr along with Proculus of Pozzuoli *Festus (h ...
, the proverb ''Sutrium ire'', of one who goes on important business, as it occurs in Plautus. It is mentioned in. the war of 41 BC, and received a colony of veterans under the
triumviri A triumvirate ( la, triumvirātus) or a triarchy is a political institution ruled or dominated by three individuals, known as triumvirs ( la, triumviri). The arrangement can be formal or informal. Though the three leaders in a triumvirate are ...
(''Colonia coniuncta lulia Sutrina''). Inscriptions show that it was a place of some importance under the empire, and it is mentioned as occupied by the Lombards. Sutri retained its strategic importance as a fortified place near the borders of the Duchy of Rome. The Donation of Sutri was an agreement reached at Sutri between the Lombard king Liutprand the Lombard and Pope Gregory II in 728. At Sutri the two reached an agreement, by which Sutri and some hill towns in Latium (see Vetralla) were given to the
Papacy The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
, "as a gift to the blessed
Apostles An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...
Peter and Paul" according to the ''
Liber Pontificalis The ''Liber Pontificalis'' (Latin for 'pontifical book' or ''Book of the Popes'') is a book of biographies of popes from Saint Peter until the 15th century. The original publication of the ''Liber Pontificalis'' stopped with Pope Adrian II (867 ...
''. The pact formed the first extension of Papal territory beyond the confines of the Duchy of Rome. An important hoard of jewellery dating from this time, known as the
Sutri Treasure The Sutri Treasure is an important Lombardic hoard found at Sutri, Italy in the late nineteenth century that is currently in the collections of the British Museum in London. Discovery The rich grave group was found in 1878 near the town of Sutr ...
, was found near the town in the 19th century. It is now in the British Museum.British Museum Highlights
/ref> Sutri, the seat of a bishopric (see below), was retrieved for the Papacy after the defeat of the Lombards. Pope Gregory VI abdicated at Sutri on December 20, 1046, following the Synod of Sutri convened at the request of Emperor Henry III. In 1111 it was the seat of the treaty between Paschal II and Emperor Henry V; in 1146 and 1244
Eugene III Pope Eugene III ( la, Eugenius III; c. 1080 – 8 July 1153), born Bernardo Pignatelli, or possibly Paganelli, called Bernardo da Pisa, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 15 February 1145 to his death in 1153. He w ...
and Innocent IV took refuge here, respectively. In 1244 it was conquered by Pietro di Vico, but was later taken by Pandolfo, count of Anguillara, who gave it back to the Papal States. The city witnessed the struggles between
Guelphs and Ghibellines The Guelphs and Ghibellines (, , ; it, guelfi e ghibellini ) were factions supporting the Pope and the Holy Roman Emperor, respectively, in the Italian city-states of Central Italy and Northern Italy. During the 12th and 13th centuries, ri ...
. In 1433 the condottiero
Niccolò Fortebraccio Niccolò Fortebraccio (1375–1435), also known as Niccolò della Stella, was an Italian condottiero. Born in Sant'Angelo in Vado, he was the son of Stella, sister of Braccio da Montone. His half-brother Oddo and his cousin Carlo were also condo ...
set fire to Sutri, and from that point onward the city declined in favour of Ronciglione.


Ecclesiastical history

Established circa 500 as Diocese of Sutri (Italian) or Sutrium (Latin), without direct predecessor. In 900 it gained canonical territory from the suppressed
Diocese of Monterano Canale Monterano is a '' comune'' (municipality), former bishopric and Latin titular see in the Metropolitan City of Rome, in the central Italian region of Lazio (Ancient Latium). Canale Monterano, located about northwest of Rome, borders th ...
. Pope Gregory VI abdicated at Sutri on December 20, 1046, following the Synod of Sutri, a non-ecumenical council convened at the request of Emperor Henry III to resolve three rival claims to the papacy, ultimately in favor of an imperial German protégé, Pope Clement II. On 1435.12.12 it was suppressed itself, its territory and title being merged into the newly renamed Diocese of Nepi-Sutri. Recorded incumbent Bishops ''(very incomplete):'' * Tommaso, Dominican Order (O.P.) (1325.06.07 – ?)


Titular see

The diocese was nominally restored in 1991 as Latin Titular bishopric of Sutri (Curiate Italian) or Sutrium (Latin). It has had the following incumbents, of the fitting episcopal (lowest) rank ''with two archiepiscopal exceptions:'' * ''Titular Archbishop:
Paolo Sardi Paolo Sardi (1 September 1934 – 13 July 2019) was an Italian cardinal of the Catholic Church who spent his career in the Roman Curia. He was patron of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta from 2009 to 2014. Early life and priesthood Sardi wa ...
(1996.12.10 – 2010.11.20), between Roman Curia offices: previously Vice-Assessor for General Affairs of
Papal Secretariat of State The Secretariat of State (Latin: ''Secretaria Status''; Italian: ''Segreteria di Stato'') is the oldest dicastery in the Roman Curia, the central papal governing bureaucracy of the Catholic Church. It is headed by the Cardinal Secretary of Stat ...
(1992 – 1996.12.10), later Vice-Chamberlain of the Holy Roman Church of the
Apostolic Camera The Apostolic Camera ( la, Camera Apostolica), formerly known as the was an office in the Roman Curia. It was the central board of finance in the papal administrative system and at one time was of great importance in the government of the Stat ...
(2004.10.23 – 2011.01.22), Pro-Patron of
Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta ( it, Sovrano Militare Ordine Ospedaliero di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme, di Rodi e di Malta; ...
(2009.06.06 – 2010.11.30), created Cardinal-Deacon of S. Maria Ausiliatrice in Via Tuscolana (2010.11.20 011.05.24– ...), promoted Patron of above Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta (2010.11.30 – 2014.11.08)'' * Titular Bishop: Christoph Schönborn, Dominican order (O.P.) (1991.07.11 – 1995.04.13) as Auxiliary Bishop of Wien (Vienna, Austria) (1991.07.11 – 1995.04.13); later promoted Coadjutor Archbishop of above Wien (Austria) (1995.04.13 – 1995.09.14), succeeding as Metropolitan Archbishop of above Vienna (Wien, Austria) (1995.09.14 – ...), also Ordinary of Austria of the Eastern Rite (1995.11.06 – ...), created Cardinal-Priest of
Gesù Divin Lavoratore {{Infobox church , name=Church of Jesus the Divine Worker , other name=Iesu Divini Opificis {{in lang, la , native_name=Chiesa Parrocchiale di Gesù Divino Lavoratore {{in lang, it , image=Q11 Portuense - Gesù Divino Lavoratore 06.JPG , caption=F ...
(1998.02.21 998.11.22– ...), President of Episcopal Conference of Austria (1998.06.30 – ...), Member of Commission of Cardinals overseeing the Institute for Works of Religion (2014.01.15 – ...) * Titular Archbishop:
Antonio Guido Filipazzi Antonio Guido Filipazzi (born 8 October 1963) is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who has worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See since 1992. He has been Apostolic Nuncio to Nigeria since 2017 and before that was Nuncio to In ...
(2011.01.08 – ...)


Main sights

There are some remains of the ancient city walls of rectangular blocks of tuff on the southern side of the town, and some rock-cut sewers in the cliffs below them. The cathedral, of Romanesque origin, is largely modern: of the medieval edifice the belltower (1207) and the crypt, from the Lombard period, with seven naves divided by twenty columns of different origin. In the cliffs opposite the town on the south is the rock-cut church of the '' Madonna del Parto'', developed out of one of the numerous Etruscan tombs of the area (according to some scholars, it was a mithraeum, pagan soldier cult site). The most striking edifice is the rock-hewn amphitheatre of the
Roman period The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...
, one of the most suggestive monuments of the ancient Latium (Lazio). Of elliptical plan, it measures about .


Transportation

Sutri can be reached through the Via Cassia from Rome or Viterbo. The nearest railway station, on the line for Rome, is that of Capranica.


References

* , an account of the author's time in Sutri.


Sources and external links


George Dennis on Sutri in 1848



{{Authority control Roman sites in Lazio Cities and towns in Lazio Roman amphitheatres in Italy