Tortona

Coordinates: 44°53′39″N 08°51′56″E / 44.89417°N 8.86556°E / 44.89417; 8.86556
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Tortona
Torton-a (Piedmontese)
Comune di Tortona
Coat of arms of Tortona
Location of Tortona
Map
ISTAT code
006174
Patron saintSt. Marcian of Tortona
Saint day6 March
WebsiteOfficial website

Tortona (Italian:

Piemonte, in the Province of Alessandria, Italy. Tortona is sited on the right bank of the Scrivia between the plain of Marengo and the foothills of the Ligurian Apennines. Its frazione of Vho is one of I Borghi più belli d'Italia ("The most beautiful villages of Italy").[3]

History

Tortona Cathedral (postcard from c. 1890)
Piazza Duomo, with the cathedral and on the right the bishops' palace

Known in ancient times as Dertona, the city was probably the oldest colony under Roman rule in the westernmost section of the Valley of the

Velleius mentions it among those founded under the Republic, it appears to have been recolonised under Augustus; some inscriptions therefore give it the title of Julia Dertona.[4] The assassin of Caesar, Brutus, encamped at Dertona on his march in pursuit of Mark Antony, after the Battle of Mutina,[5] and it was one of the places where a body of troops was usually stationed during the later ages of the empire.[6]

A bishopric was founded at Tortona early, but its first bishops are purely legendary, like

Saint Marcianus of Tortona, called the first bishop of Piedmont and a disciple of Barnabas, the companion of Paul. Until the 9th century, the city was under the rule of its bishop; in 1090 it became a free commune
with the name of Terdona. In 1133 the diocese was separated from the archbishopric of Milan to the new archdiocese of Genoa (CE "Lombardy").

In 1155 Frederick Barbarossa besieged, captured and leveled Tortona to the ground, leaving not one stone upon another.[7]

During the

King of Sardinia, and "count of Tortona" was added to the titles of the House of Savoy
.

Colli Tortonesi

Tortona is the capital of an area known as Colli Tortonesi, which stretches from the town to the border with

Black Truffle
and scorzone.

Main sights

People

People born in Tortona, or with close links to the town, include:

Twin towns

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. ^ "Piemonte" (in Italian). Retrieved 31 July 2023.
  4. Vell. Pat., Historiae, i. 15; Plin.
    , H.N., iii. 5. s. 7.
  5. ^ Cic. ad Fam. xi. 1. 0
  6. ^ Not. Dign. ii. p. 121.
  7. ^ Norwich, John Julius. Byzantium: The Decline and Fall (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1996) p. 108
  8. ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Tortona" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 27 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 71–72.
  9. ^ History of Florence, ch. 7
  10. ^ "History of Florence by Niccolo Machiavelli: Chapter 7".

Sources

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainSmith, William, ed. (1854–1857). "Dertona". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography. London: John Murray.

  • The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites (eds. Richard Stillwell, William L. MacDonald, Marian Holland McAllister)
  • Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD)


 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainHerbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)