Conversano

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Conversano
Comune
Comune di Conversano
Coat of arms of Conversano
Coat of arms
Location of Conversano
Map
UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
70014
Dialing code080
Patron saintSaint Flavian
Saint dayNovember 24
WebsiteOfficial website

Conversano (

Barese: Cunverséne) is an ancient town and comune in the Metropolitan City of Bari, Apulia, south-eastern Italy. It is 30 kilometres (19 mi) southeast of Bari and 7 kilometres (4 mi) from the Adriatic
coast, at 219 metres (719 ft) above sea level.

The counts of Conversano owned a stud that they used to breed black

hocks. One horse born in 1767, Conversano, became one of the principal stallions for establishing the Lipizzan
horses (Lipizzaner).

History

The town of Conversano was settled as early as the Iron Age, when the

Visigothic
invasion of Italy in 410–411.

The toponym, Casale Cupersanem, is known from the 5th century AD and was a bishopric seat from the 7th century. This new town gained importance when, in 1054, the

Giovanni Antonio del Balzo Orsini died; the county was inherited by his daughter Catherine, whose husband, Giulio Antonio Acquaviva, started the long rule of the Acquaviva
family, which lasted until the early 19th century.

In 1690 the town was struck by plague and decimated. Feudalism was abolished in 1806.

In 1921, a local socialist deputy, Giuseppe Di Vagno, was assassinated in Mola di Bari by Fascist militia.

Counts of Conversano

This list may not be complete.

Year(s) Name Notes
1072–1100 Geoffrey, Count of Conversano first Count of Conversano
1100–1132 Alexander, Count of Conversano son of Geoffrey; deprived of his territories in 1132 by King Roger II of Sicily; died after 1142
1132–1138 Robert I of Basseville brother-in-law of Roger II of Sicily
1138–1182
Robert II of Basseville
 son of Robert I; also Count of Loritello as Robert III
1182–1187 Adelise of Loritello wife of previous; also Countess of Loritello

Main sights

Conversano's main attraction is the

Gothic Wars (6th century), although it was rebuilt from the 11th century. It has a single round tower that was added by Giulio Antonio Acquaviva
.

The

matronea
and, in the left one, a 15th-century fresco from the Pisan school. The church houses the icon of the Madonna della Fonte, protector of the city.

The Benedictine Monastery, founded, according to tradition, in the 6th century, was once one of the most powerful in Apulia. In 1266, the Benedictines were replaced by a group of Cistercian nuns from Greece. It was the only convent in western Europe that allowed nuns to wear male religious symbols, such as the

Paolo Finoglio
. The crypt, dedicated to San Mauro, is from the 11th century. The bell tower rises higher than that of the cathedral, to symbolize the superior status of the nuns over the local bishop.

Other landmarks include the megalithic walls (6th century BC) erected by the Pelasgi, the Baroque church of SS. Cosma e Damiano, the church of St. Francis (1289), and, 1 km outside the city, the church of St. Catherine (c. 12th century). In the neighborhood are the church of Santa Maria dell'Isola (1462, enlarged in 1530), the Castle of Marchione (an 18th-century country residence of the Acquaviva), and the ruins of Castiglione (13th-16th centuries).

Sport

The local

handball
team won the national league in the 2002–03 2003–04 2005–06 2009–10 seasons.

Twin towns

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Conversano.

References

  1. ^ "Superficie di Comuni Province e Regioni italiane al 9 ottobre 2011". Italian National Institute of Statistics. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  2. Istat

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Conversano&oldid=1161256892"