Nocera Umbra

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Nocera Umbra
Comune di Nocera Umbra
Aerial view of Nocera Umbra (before 26 September 1997).
Aerial view of Nocera Umbra (before 26 September 1997).
Coat of arms of Nocera Umbra
Location of Nocera Umbra
Map
UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
06025
Dialing code0742
Patron saintSt. Raynald of Nocera
Saint dayFebruary 9
WebsiteOfficial website

Nocera Umbra is a town and comune in the province of Perugia, Italy, 15 kilometers north of Foligno, at an altitude of 520 m above sea-level. The comune, covering an area of 157.19 km², is one of the largest in Umbria. It is one of I Borghi più belli d'Italia ("The most beautiful villages of Italy").[3]

History

Ancient Age

Lombard grave goods excavated in Nocera Umbra. Museo dell'alto Medioevo, Rome

The town of Nocera was founded in the 7th century BC by inhabitants from

Osco-Umbrian
language was Noukria, meaning "New" (town).

The Roman town was not located on the hill - where modern Nocera lies - but in the valley, near the Topino river.

The town - with the

S. Giovanni Profiamma, near Foligno) to Fanum, on the Picenum. According to another interpretation, Nuceria Favoniense could be another town (today's Pievefavonica), located not far from today's Nocera. Several remains of the Roman roads are still visible today. From Nuceria the Romans also built another road – the Septempedana - leading to the Roman military outposts of Prolaqueum and Septempeda, on the Adriatic side of the Apennines
.

According to

Fauna, a Goddess) and the other Camellani (originating from Camerinum, or possibly makers of camellae, small wooden containers). Strabo records that the town was famous for the production of wooden vases (possibly barrels
).

During the

Trasimeno
, is said to have camped with his army near the town (in a place still known as Affrica). Near Nuceria, on the shores of what is now the dried up Lacus Plestinus, the commander of the Roman cavalry,
Gaius Centenius, fought a battle with 4,000 knights against Carthaginian troops headed by Maharbal.

The town reached the height of its prosperity during the first two centuries AD.

During the 5th century, the

diocese of Nocera
was established.

The Roman town was destroyed at the beginning of the 5th century, possibly by the Visigoths of Alaric, on their way to Rome: the survivors rebuilt their homes on top of the hill, where today's Nocera still stands.

Middle Ages

The

Gastaldatus and finally, at the beginning of the 9th century (during the Frankish period) it became a county. The walled town – it was named arx fortissima in contemporary documents - guarded the northern border of the Duchy of Spoleto against the Byzantine garrison at Gualdo Tadino. The importance of Nocera during the Lombard period is underlined by the Necropolis excavated in 1897, whose artefacts – weapons, jewels, household utensils, ceramics - form the core of the Museo dell'alto Medioevo
in Rome.

During the Middle Ages Nocera became a walled town, very much as it exists today.

In 1202 the town came under the control of Perugia, and in 1248 it was destroyed by emperor Frederick II. A few years later it was destroyed by a large earthquake. Shortly thereafter it came into the possession of the Trinci of Foligno.

In 1421 the

Corrado
, who took revenge for the murder of his relatives, attacking the town and killing the treacherous castellan.

In 1439 Cardinal Giovanni Vitelleschi crushed the Trinci's Signoria, and Nocera was annexed to the Papal States.

Modern Ages

The town, with the exception of the Napoleonic period, remained under papal control until 1860 when, as a part of Umbria, it was annexed to the Kingdom of Italy and assigned to the Province of Perugia in Umbria.

The town and the surrounding hamlets have been struck several times by earthquakes. The major ones took place on April 30, 1279, April 17, 1747, and September 26, 1997. The damage caused by the last of these has been fully repaired in 2016.

Main sights

The Campanaccio, after its reconstruction because of the 1997 earthquake

A characteristic medieval town perched on a hill and famous for the quality of its water springs Angelica (Six kilometers south-east of the town in the frazione of Bagni) and Cacciatore, exported to Constantinople in the 17th century, it has several historical monuments:

  • Campanaccio: The town is dominated by the large tower that is the symbol of the town, the only remnant of the sturdy fortress of its Gastalds, then its Counts, dating back to the 11th century.[4] The building commemorates the massacre of the Trinci family, which took place in 1421. The tower was almost completely destroyed by the 1997 earthquake (only part of one side remained standing) and rebuilt.
  • Co-cathedral of the Assumption: Of the ancient church, incorporated into the fortress, only the 10th-century portal remains. The building was rebuilt in the 15th century and renovated several times in the 18th and 19th centuries.
  • Church of San Francesco: Of great artistic importance, it was built in
    Clement VII
    and also held the chair of Greek at the University of Rome.

In the

Longobard tombs, from the 6th and 7th centuries, from the Arimannia
settled in the territory of Nocera.

The principal mountain of the commune is the Monte Pennino with an altitude of 1,575 m. The town is dominated by the Monte Alago, whose meadows are the destination of walks.

Infrastructure and transport

Roads

The municipality is served by the

SS 3 Flaminia
rebuilt as a variant through the junctions of Nocera Scalo, Nocera Umbra and Colle/Gaifana.

Railways

Nocera is served by the Rome–Ancona railway line, on which the station of the same name (in the frazione Nocera Scalo) is located.

Frazioni

Acciano, Africa, Aggi, Bagnara, Bagni, Boschetto, Boschetto Basso, Capannacce, Casaluna, Casa Paoletti, Case, Case Basse, Castiglioni, Castrucciano, Cellerano, Colle, Collebrusco, Colle Croce, Colpertana, Colsaino, Gaifana, Isola, La Costa, Lanciano, Largnano, Le Moline, Maccantone, Mascionchie, Molina, Molinaccio, Montecchio, Mosciano, Mugnano, Nocera Scalo, Nocera Umbra Stazione, Pettinara, Ponte Parrano, Salmaregia, Schiagni, Sorifa, Stravignano, Villa di Postignano, Ville Santa Lucia.

Twin towns

Sources

  • Sigismondi, Gino (1979). Nuceria in Umbria (in Italian). Foligno: Ediclio.
  • Boschi, Enzo; et al. (1988). I terremoti dell’Appennino umbro-marchigiano area sud orientale dal 99 a.C. al 1984 (in Italian). Bologna: ING-SGA, Bologna.

References

  1. ^ "Superficie di Comuni Province e Regioni italiane al 9 ottobre 2011". Italian National Institute of Statistics. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  2. ^ "Bilancio demografico anno 2022 (dati provvisori)". demo.istat.it (in Italian). ISTAT.
  3. ^ "Umbria" (in Italian). Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  4. ^ "Umbria", guida TCI, 1996, p. 101.

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainChisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Nocera Umbra". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 19 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 730.