Territory
ORVIETO
Orvieto origins go back to the Etruscan civilization: the first Etruscan settlements, going back to the 9th Century B.C., infact, were found inside the tufaceous caves in the bedrock upon which today rises the city. Annexed in the 3rd Century B.C. to the territories of Rome, it remained under the Roman domination until the decline of the Western Roman Empire. Afterwhich it became a free municipality, and during the struggles between Guelphs and Ghibellines, was a valiant opponent of Barbarossa, remaining faithful to the Pope. Riding on the support of the Papal State, it was allowed to prosper through the entire Medieval Period, reaching the top of its development in the 13th Century with the constitution of the General Council of the 400 and the election of the Captain of the People. It was during this period that one saw the fervent work of erecting palaces and holy buildings among which the very famous Cathedral stands out, dating back to 1263, undoubtedly the most important architectural landmark of the city, with its splendid Gothic facing and the richness of the ornaments and internal chapels. In the ancient town we also find the St.Patrizio well, built in 1527 based on a plan of Antonio da Sangallo il Giovane, the Palace of the Seven from 1300, the Palace of People Captain (12th Century) inside which took place the meetings of the People's Council, Saint Andrew's Church (12th Century), Saint Domenic's Church (12th Century), Saint Giovenale's Church (11th Century), Soliano Palace (1262) within which, one will find two museums: the Museum of the Opera del Duomo and the Museum of Modern Art. Moreover we remember the Mancinelli Theatre (1866), the suggestive Underground City and the Necropolis of the Crucifix of Tufo dating back to the Etruscan period.
CITTÁ DI CASTELLO
For the most part still surrounded by town walls dating back to the 16th century, the town of Città di Castello spreads out along the Tiber valley, on the spot where the Romans had founded the township of Tifernum Tiberinum. After having been sacked and destroyed on the orders of Totila during the barbarian invasions, it was rebuilt under Bishop Florido and first took the name of Castrum Felicitatis and later, in the 10th century, that of Castrum Castelli. It became a Comune during the late Middle Ages and was subjected to the rule of Perugia, to that of the Church and then to that of Florence; only in the 16th century, under Cesare Borgia, it definitely became dominion of the Papal State. Buildings which used to be the seat of administrative structures such as the Palace of the Podestà, with its baroque facade dating back to 1686, and the Town Hall, built in the Gothic style with an elegant portal and windows with two lights, testify to the ancient history of this Umbrian town. Traces of Gothic art are still to be found of the left-hand side of the Cathedral, which, having been constructed during the 11th century on the site of a Roman temple, was already radically modified in the middle of the 14th century.The churches of St.Dominic (1424), with its incomplete facade and ogival portal on the left-hand side, of St.Mary Maggiore, dating back to the Gothic era but adorned by a Renaissance facade, and finally that of St.Francis with its poligonal apses (1273), remodelled in the first years of the 18th century, complete the panorama of the town's religious buildings. The Municipal Pinacoteque contains works of art by Raffaello, Signorelli and Domenico Ghirlandaio, apart from others by Umbrian, Tuscan and Marche schools.
GUBBIO
Lying on the slopes of Monte Ingino, Gubbio is one of the most ancient towns of Umbria, extremely well preserved during centuries and rich of monuments testifying its glorious past.
Two important witnesses of the past are the Tavole Eugubine, one of most important documents referring to the ancient people called Italici and the Roman Theatre just outside the walls of the town. Dominated from the top by the Basilica on which the rests of St. Ubaldo are buried, Gubbio keeps architectonic masterpieces testifying the beauty and the imprtance of what used to be during the Middle ages, a real town-state.
At the beginning of the XIV century the Consuls Palace, today symbol of the town, was constructed together with the square Piazza Pensile and Pretorio Palace. To remind the palaces Beni, del Bargello with the famous fountain, of People Captain , in typical renaissance style, Dukes Palace by Francesco Giorgio Martini which testity the importance of the period on which the Montefeltro's family had the administration of the town.
Very interesting are also the Cathedral (XII century), St. Maria Nuova (inside which one can admire the Madonna del Belvedere painted by Ottaviano Nelli on 1413), Church and Convent of St. Agostino (XIII century ) with inside frescoes of Nelli, Church and Convent of St. Francesco (XIII century), St. Giovanni (XII century) characterised by the facade and bell tower in romanic style, St. Peter enlarged in 1505 and St. Domenico enlarged in the XIV century. Among the most important manifestations taking place in the city we should absolutely mention the Racing silk of the Crossbow and the Ceri Race.
VALNERINA
The Valnerina is the valley of the Nera river, which originates in the Sibillini Mountains of the Marches, and reaches Terni and there it flows into the Tevere river near Orte. The valley is surrounded by mountains: narrow and winding, the main centres of which are Ferentillo, Visso and Scheggino, while Norcia, Cascia and Spoleto are easily reachable. The word Valnerina usually indicates the villages around the high valley of the Nera and under the province of Perugia, excluding the Terni area. The only villages belonging to the Valnerina are Cascia, Cerreto di Spoleto, Monteleone di Spoleto, Norcia, Poggiodomo, Preci, Sant'Anatolia di Narco, Scheggino, Vallo di Nera. Located along an important direction, it has been the centre of the Spoleto Earldom during the Longobard period.
LAGO TRASIMENO
Lake Trasimeno, is the largest lake in the Italian peninsula with a surface area of 128 km², slightly less than Lake Como. The Tiber River flows some thirty kilometers to the east of the lake, but the lake and the river are separated by hills: no major river flows directly into nor out of Lake Trasimeno, and the water level fluctuates significantly according to rainfall levels and the seasonal demands from the towns, villages and farms dotted round the shore.
Trasimeno is surrounded for half of its shores by hills, rich in olives that are among the most important resources of the local agriculture. On the western shore, near Tuscany, there are vineyards, and fruit and vegetables are grown. There, the hills are much lower and the climate is warmer. It's possible to see Monte Subasio near Assisi, about 70 km to the east, and Monte Amiata, about 70km to the west.
The vegetation includes pines, willows and poplars all around the shores, many over 30m tall.
The main towns, all quite small, are Passignano sul Trasimeno, Tuoro, Monte del Lago, Torricella, S.Feliciano, S.Arcangelo, Castiglione del Lago and Borghetto. Castiglione del Lago has the longest shore, because its on a the only significant peninsula of the lake. There were stories that this was an island that was joined to the shore by the Romans.
All around the lake there are old small towns, and isolated castles, like Zocco castle, now in ruins, and a tower near Passignano. Monte del Lago was originally built to control the road from Trasimeno to Perugia.
There are three islands in the lake. The second largest, Isola Maggiore, is the only inhabited one. The small fishing village, which reached its height in the 14th century, today has only around thirty residents. Most of the buildings, including the ruins of a Franciscan monastery, date from the 1300s. The largest of these isles is Isola Polvese, almost 1 km².
