Forlì

Coordinates: 44°14′N 12°03′E / 44.233°N 12.050°E / 44.233; 12.050
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Forlì
Furlè (
Romagnol)
Comune di Forlì
Piazza Saffi
Flag of Forlì
Coat of arms of Forlì
Location of Forlì
Map
UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
47121-47122
Dialing code0543
Patron saintBeata Vergine del Fuoco
Saint dayFebruary 4
WebsiteOfficial website

Forlì (

Latin: Forum Livii) is a comune (municipality) and city in Emilia-Romagna, Northern Italy, and is, together with Cesena, the capital of the Province of Forlì-Cesena. It is the central city of Romagna
.

The city is situated along the

Geronimo Mercuriali and Giovanni Battista Morgagni. The University Campus of Forlì (part of the University of Bologna
) is specialized in Economics, Engineering, Political Sciences as well as the Advanced school of Modern Languages for Interpreters and Translators (SSLMIT).

Climate

The climate of the area is

Mediterranean
features, fairly mitigated by the relative closeness of the city to the sea.

Forlì is characterized by hot and sunny summers, with temperatures that can exceed 30 °C (86 °F) and even reach 40 °C (104 °F) during the hottest weeks of the year.

Winters are cool and moist, with frequent fog. Occasionally the warm Sirocco wind blows from the south, bringing warmer temperatures for brief periods.

History

Ancient era

The surroundings of Forlì have been inhabited since the Paleolithic: a site, Ca' Belvedere of Monte Poggiolo, has revealed thousands of chipped flints in strata dated 800,000 years before the present era, which indicates a flint-knapping industry producing sharp-edged tools in a pre-Acheulean phase of the Paleolithic.

Forlì was founded after the Roman conquest of the remaining

Metaurus River in 207 BC), who gave it the Latin name Forum Livii, meaning "the place of the gens Livia". Others argue the town may have been founded later, during the time of Julius Caesar.[4] In 88 BC, the city was destroyed during the civil wars of Gaius Marius and Sulla, but later rebuilt by the praetor Livius Clodius.[5]

Middle Ages

After the collapse of the

Byzantine / Eastern Roman power in Italy known as the Exarchate of Ravenna. During this time the Germanic Lombards repeatedly took the city – in 665, 728, and 742. It was finally incorporated with the Papal States in 757, as part of the Donation of Pepin.[5]

By the 9th century the commune had taken control from its bishops, and Forlì was established as an independent Italian city-state, alongside the other communes that signalled the first revival of urban life in Italy. Forlì became a republic for the first time in 889. At this time the city was allied with the Ghibelline factions in the medieval struggles between the Guelphs and Ghibellines, partly as a means of preserving its independence – and the city supported all the Holy Roman Emperors in their campaigns in Italy.[4]

Local competition was involved in the loyalties: in 1241, during Frederick II's struggles with Pope Gregory IX the people of Forlì offered their support to Frederick II during the capture of the rival city, Faenza, and in gratitude, they were granted an addition to their coat-of-arms -the Hohenstaufen eagle.[4]

With the collapse of Hohenstaufen power in 1257, imperial lieutenant

Emperor Frederick II
) was one of his advisors.

The following year the city's exhausted Senate was forced to cede to papal power and asked Guido to take his leave. The commune soon submitted to a local

Ordelaffi
came into power.

Local factions with papal support ousted the family in 1327–29 and again in 1359–75, and at other turns of events the bishops were expelled by the Ordelaffi. Until the

condottieri
for other states to earn themselves money to protect or embellish Forlì.

Porta Schiavonia

Modern age

The most renowned of the Ordelaffi was Pino III, who held the Signiory of Forlì from 1466 to 1480. Pino was a ruthless lord; nevertheless he enriched the city with new walls and buildings and was a sponsor of the arts. When he died aged 40, under suspicion of poisoning, the situation of Forlì was weakened as factions of Ordelaffi fought one another, until Pope Sixtus IV claimed the signory for his nephew Girolamo Riario. Riario was married to Caterina Sforza, the indomitable Lady of Forlì whose name is associated with the city's last independent history. Forlì was seized in 1488 by the Visconti and in 1499 by Cesare Borgia, after whose death it became more directly subject to the pope than ever before (apart from a short-lived return of the Ordelaffi in 1503–1504).[4]

Church and convent of the Corpus Domini, photograph by Paolo Monti, 1971. Fondo Paolo Monti, BEIC.

In June 1796, during the

Jacobin French troops entered the city — with Napoleon arriving on 4 February 1797. The French General recruited local officials and soldiers, resulting in political turmoil between 1820 and 1830, with risings in 1821 —including the revolutionary movement of the Carbonari in 1831 and 1848.[4] Napoléon Louis Bonaparte, Napoleon
I's nephew who was involved with the Carbonari, died there in 1831.

In the 19th century, Forlì was part of the

Italian unification (or "the Risorgimento"), a political and social movement that agglomerated the different states of the Italian Peninsula into the single state of Italy. The citizens of Forlì were particularly inspired by military figure Giuseppe Garibaldi, who at this time was a commander. However, the city and its farmers had difficulty adapting to agrarian reform under the unification, thus lending rise to republican and socialist parties.[4]

Forlì participated considerably during World War I, resulting in it being awarded the "Fulcieri Paolucci De' Calboli [it]" gold medal. Afterwards in the 1920s, Benito Mussolini became actively involved in the local politics, before becoming dictator of Italy — a situation that remained for 20 years before the start of World War II. The war left the city with destroyed monuments and artistic losses, such as the Church of San Biagio [it], which included frescoes by Melozzo da Forlì. After the war, however, the city experienced a quick economic recovery, entering a new stage of democratic life.[4]

Economy

Forlì is a prosperous agricultural and industrial centre, with manufacture primarily focused on silk, rayon, clothing, machinery, metals, and household appliances. In the city also has seat the Ferretti Group, one of the most famous producers of yachts.

Government

Main sights

Abbey of San Mercuriale

Forlì is the location of various buildings of architectural, artistic and historical significance, that include frescoes as part of their decorations. At the heart of the city sits the

Dominican Church of San Giacomo Apostolo
; better known as the Church of San Domenico – a late medieval church built in the 13th century in the southern part of the town.

Other medieval buildings include the Rocca di Ravaldino, a fortress enlarged in the 14th century by the

Ordelaffi and Gil de Albornoz
, and later in the 15th century.

The city hosts the Palazzo Hercolani, with decorations dating from the 19th century; containing the artwork La Beata Vergine del Fuoco con i Santi Mercuriale, Pellegrino, Marcolino e Valeriano by Italian painter Pompeo Randi [it]. The Palazzo del Podestà [it] is a civic building which was frescoed by Adolfo de Carolis in the 20th century.

Forlì has parks located in green areas, including the

Teatro Diego Fabbri
is a theatre which opened in September 2000.

Territorial subdivisions

Forlì is divided into territorial subdivisions, or frazione.

Villafranca di Forlì

Landing field in Villafranca di Forlì, with hamlet in the background

Villafranca di Forlì is a hamlet which a dependency of the municipality of Forlì, located on the north side of the main town, and spans over a territory sided on the west side by the River Montone. The hamlet was the birthplace of Benito Mussolini's mother, Rosa.[8]

An

Civil Defence.[9]
This recreational aerodrome is complementary to Forlì's main airport, south of the city.

Other frazioni

  • Bagnolo
  • Barisano
  • Borgo Sisa
  • Branzolino
  • Carpena
  • Carpinello
  • Casemurate
  • Caserma
  • Castiglione
  • Ca'Ossi
  • Cava
  • Collina
  • Coriano
  • Durazzanino
  • Forniolo
  • Grisignano
  • Ladino
  • Magliano
  • Malmissole
  • Massa
  • Ospedaletto
  • Para
  • Pescaccia
  • Petrignone
  • Pianta
  • Pieve Acquedotto
  • Pievequinta
  • Poggio
  • Ponte Vico
  • Quattro
  • Ravaldino in Monte
  • Romiti
  • Roncadello
  • Ronco
  • Rotta
  • Rovere
  • San Giorgio
  • San Leonardo in Schiova
  • San Lorenzo in Noceto
  • San Martino in Strada
  • San Martino in Villafranca
  • San Tomé
  • San Varano
  • Vecchiazzano
  • Villa Rovere
  • Villa Selva
  • Villagrappa
  • Villanova

Transport

Forlì railway station is on the Bologna–Ancona line. Opened for use in 1926, it replaced the original station, which had been in use since 1861. The passenger building of the original station still stands, about 100 metres (330 ft) west of the present station.

Forlì Airport was closed on 29 March 2013 due to bankruptcy of the company that ran it. After 8 years in March 2021 the airport start functioning again.

In popular culture

People

The best-known painter of the

Forlì painting school. Carlo Cignani
was not born in Forlì (but near Forlì), but painted important works there.

Other notable Forlivese people are:

International relations

Twin towns

Forlì is

twinned
with:

See also

References

  1. ^ "Superficie di Comuni Province e Regioni italiane al 9 ottobre 2011". Italian National Institute of Statistics. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  2. Istat
  3. ^ "Forlì (FC) – Emilia Romagna, Italy". Retrieved 26 February 2010.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g "Forlì and its historical background". Retrieved 26 February 2010.
  5. ^ a b "Forlì". New Advent. Retrieved 26 February 2010.
  6. ^ The Chronicle of Salimbene de Adam, translated by Joseph L. Biard (Binghamton: Center for Medieval and Early Renaissance Studies, 1986). Excerpted in "Warfare between Bologna and Faenza (1275)". De Re Militari. Retrieved 6 November 2013.
  7. ^ Ashby 1911.
  8. . Retrieved 25 May 2010.
  9. ^ "VOLA a Forlì – al Flight Simulator Show, la più grande fiera evento dedicata al volo simulato in Italia" (in Italian). Comunicati.net. 30 April 2004. Retrieved 26 May 2010.
  10. Oath Tech Network Aol Tech
    . Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  11. ^ Totilo, Stephen (29 January 2010). "Assassin's Creed II: The Battle of Forli Micro-Review: An Un-Machiavellian Plan". Kotaku. Gizmodo Media Group. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  12. ^ Beer, Moses. "ALEXANDER DE FRANCISCIS, HEBRÆUS". Retrieved 1 March 2010.

Further reading

External links

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