Tagliacozzo ( Marsicano: ') 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

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 of ...

Abruzzo , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1 ...

, central

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 ...

History

Tagliacozzo lies in an area inhabited in early historic times by the

Aequi 300px, Location of the Aequi (Equi) in central Italy, 5th century BC. The Aequi ( grc, Αἴκουοι and Αἴκοι) were an Italic tribe on a stretch of the Apennine Mountains to the east of Latium in central Italy who appear in the early hist ...

and the

Marsi The Marsi were an Italic people of ancient Italy, whose chief centre was Marruvium, on the eastern shore of Lake Fucinus (which was drained for agricultural land in the late 19th century). The area in which they lived is now called Marsica. D ...

, although the first mentions of the town dates from the 11th century AD. Later it was a possession on the

Orsini Orsini is a surname of Italian origin, originally derived from Latin ''ursinus'' ("bearlike") and originating as an epithet or sobriquet describing the name-bearer's purported strength. Notable people with the surname include the following: *Angel ...

, who established a mint here. They were succeeded by the

Colonna The House of Colonna, also known as ''Sciarrillo'' or ''Sciarra'', is an Italian noble family, forming part of the papal nobility. It was powerful in medieval and Renaissance Rome, supplying one pope (Martin V) and many other church and pol ...

(local lords including

Prospero Prospero ( ) is a fictional character and the protagonist of William Shakespeare's play '' The Tempest''. Prospero is the rightful Duke of Milan, whose usurping brother, Antonio, had put him (with his three-year-old daughter, Miranda) to se ...

and Marcantonio Colonna), who held the Duchy of Tagliacozzo until 1806. Near the modern city (more precisely, near

Scurcola Marsicana Scurcola Marsicana is a ''comune'' and town in the province of L'Aquila, in the Abruzzo region of central Italy. It is located at the feet of Mount San Nicola, on the western rim of the former Fucine Lake. History The most ancient findings of hum ...

) was fought the

Battle of Tagliacozzo The Battle of Tagliacozzo was fought on 23 August 1268 between the Ghibelline supporters of Conradin of Hohenstaufen and the Guelph army of Charles of Anjou. The battle represented the last act of Hohenstaufen power in Italy. The capture and ...

(1268) between

Conradin Conrad III (25 March 1252 – 29 October 1268), called ''the Younger'' or ''the Boy'', but usually known by the diminutive Conradin (german: link=no, Konradin, it, Corradino), was the last direct heir of the House of Hohenstaufen. He was Duke ...

of Hohenstaufen and

Charles I of Anjou Charles I (early 1226/12277 January 1285), commonly called Charles of Anjou, was a member of the royal Capetian dynasty and the founder of the second House of Anjou. He was Count of Provence (1246–85) and Forcalquier (1246–48, 1256–85) i ...

, which resulted in Conradin's defeat and eventual execution.

Main sights

*The ''Palazzo Ducale'' (Ducal Palace), built at the end of the 14th century by Roberto Orsini. *The Convent of St. Francis, housing the tomb of Tommaso da Celano. *''Museo Orientale'', with collections of Egyptian, Ethiopian and Eastern findings. *13th century fountain in Piazza dell'Obelisco, a national monument. *Sanctuary of ''Maria Santissima dell'Oriente'', on a hill from town. It is cited as early as the 14th century.

People

Andrea Argoli Andrea Argoli (1570–1657), born in Tagliacozzo, was a versatile Italian scholar. He was a jurist, mathematician, astronomer and astrologer, and medical writer. His father was Ottavio and his son, Giovanni. He was professor of mathematics at ...

(1570–1657)

Notes and references

External links

Page on Tagliacozzo in the ''Borghi più belli d'Italia'' websiteImages of Tagliacozzo
Hilltowns in Abruzzo Marsica Tagliacozzo Ski areas and resorts in Italy {{Abruzzo-geo-stub