Vibo Valentia
Encyclopedia
Vibo Valentia (ˈviːbo vaˈlɛntsja) is a city and comune
(municipality) in the Calabria
region of southern Italy
, near the Tyrrhenian Sea
. It is the capital of the province of Vibo Valentia
, and is an agricultural, commercial and tourist center (the most famous places nearby are Tropea
, Ricadi
and Pizzo
). There are also several large manufacturing industries, including the tuna district of Maierato. Very important for the local economy is the Vibo Marina
's harbour.
, by inhabitants of Locri
, a principal city of the Italian Magna Graecia
, south of Vibo Valentia on the Ionian Sea
. Diodorus Siculus
reports that the city was taken in 388 BC
by Dionysius the Elder tyrant of Syracuse
, who deported all the population. The population came back in 378 BC
, with the help of the Carthaginians
. In the following years Hipponion came under the dominion of the Bruttii
, who controlled most of Calabria
. After the town fell to Rome
, the name was Latinized to Hipponium. The town became a Roman colony in 194 BC
with the name of Vibo Valentia. After a phase of prosperity during the late Republic and early Empire, the town was almost completely abandoned after the fall of the Western Roman Empire
.
In 1070 the Normans built a castle at the site of the old Acropolis and in 1235 a new city was established by Frederick II
, Holy Roman emperor and king of Sicily, with the name of Monteleone. The city got back the old Roman name of Vibo Valentia only in 1928.
, Italy Ruda Slaska
, Poland Vrnjačka Banja
, Serbia Ituzaingó
, Argentina
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
(municipality) in the Calabria
Calabria
Calabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....
region of southern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, near the Tyrrhenian Sea
Tyrrhenian Sea
The Tyrrhenian Sea is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy.-Geography:The sea is bounded by Corsica and Sardinia , Tuscany, Lazio, Campania, Basilicata and Calabria and Sicily ....
. It is the capital of the province of Vibo Valentia
Province of Vibo Valentia
The Province of Vibo Valentia is a province in the Calabria region of Italy, set up by a national law of 6 March 1992 which came into effect on 1 January 1996, and formerly part of the Province of Catanzaro...
, and is an agricultural, commercial and tourist center (the most famous places nearby are Tropea
Tropea
Tropea is a municipality located within the province of Vibo Valentia, in Calabria .The town is a famous bathing place, situated on a reef, in the gulf of St...
, Ricadi
Ricadi
Ricadi is a small rural town, as well as a municipality, located along the Tyrrhenian coast, in the province of Vibo Valentia), in the Italian region of Calabria.-Boundaries:...
and Pizzo
Pizzo, Calabria
Pizzo is a seaport and comune in the province of Vibo Valentia , situated on a steep cliff overlooking the Gulf of Santa Eufemia.Fishing is one of the main activities, including that of tuna and coral.-History:...
). There are also several large manufacturing industries, including the tuna district of Maierato. Very important for the local economy is the Vibo Marina
Vibo Marina
Vibo Marina is a port town in the province of Vibo Valentia, in the Calabria region of southern Italy. It is a frazione of the town of Vibo Valentia. It has around 10,000 inhabitants.The town lies in the Gulf of Saint Eufemia, on the Tyrrhenian Sea...
's harbour.
History
Vibo Valentia was originally the Greek colony of Hipponion. It was founded, probably around the late 7th century BC7th century BC
The 7th century BC started the first day of 700 BC and ended the last day of 601 BC.The Assyrian Empire continued to dominate the Near East during this century, exercising formidable power over neighbors like Babylon and Egypt. In the last two decades of the century, however, the empire began to...
, by inhabitants of Locri
Locri
Locri is a town and comune in the province of Reggio Calabria, Calabria, southern Italy. The name derives from the ancient Greek town Locris.-History:...
, a principal city of the Italian Magna Graecia
Magna Graecia
Magna Græcia is the name of the coastal areas of Southern Italy on the Tarentine Gulf that were extensively colonized by Greek settlers; particularly the Achaean colonies of Tarentum, Crotone, and Sybaris, but also, more loosely, the cities of Cumae and Neapolis to the north...
, south of Vibo Valentia on the Ionian Sea
Ionian Sea
The Ionian Sea , is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, south of the Adriatic Sea. It is bounded by southern Italy including Calabria, Sicily and the Salento peninsula to the west, southern Albania to the north, and a large number of Greek islands, including Corfu, Zante, Kephalonia, Ithaka, and...
. Diodorus Siculus
Diodorus Siculus
Diodorus Siculus was a Greek historian who flourished between 60 and 30 BC. According to Diodorus' own work, he was born at Agyrium in Sicily . With one exception, antiquity affords no further information about Diodorus' life and doings beyond what is to be found in his own work, Bibliotheca...
reports that the city was taken in 388 BC
388 BC
Year 388 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Tribunate of Capitolinus, Fidenas, Iullus, Corvus, Flavus and Rufus...
by Dionysius the Elder tyrant of Syracuse
Syracuse, Italy
Syracuse is a historic city in Sicily, the capital of the province of Syracuse. The city is notable for its rich Greek history, culture, amphitheatres, architecture, and as the birthplace of the preeminent mathematician and engineer Archimedes. This 2,700-year-old city played a key role in...
, who deported all the population. The population came back in 378 BC
378 BC
Year 378 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Tribunate of Medullinus, Fidenas, Lanatus, Siculus, Pulvillus and Macerinus...
, with the help of the Carthaginians
Carthage
Carthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...
. In the following years Hipponion came under the dominion of the Bruttii
Bruttii
The Bruttii , were an ancient Italic people who inhabited the southern extremity of Italy, from the frontiers of Lucania to the Sicilian Straits and the promontory of Leucopetra, roughly corresponding to modern Calabria.-History:...
, who controlled most of Calabria
Calabria
Calabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....
. After the town fell to Rome
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
, the name was Latinized to Hipponium. The town became a Roman colony in 194 BC
194 BC
Year 194 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Africanus and Longus...
with the name of Vibo Valentia. After a phase of prosperity during the late Republic and early Empire, the town was almost completely abandoned after the fall of the Western Roman Empire
Western Roman Empire
The Western Roman Empire was the western half of the Roman Empire after its division by Diocletian in 285; the other half of the Roman Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire, commonly referred to today as the Byzantine Empire....
.
In 1070 the Normans built a castle at the site of the old Acropolis and in 1235 a new city was established by Frederick II
Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick II , was one of the most powerful Holy Roman Emperors of the Middle Ages and head of the House of Hohenstaufen. His political and cultural ambitions, based in Sicily and stretching through Italy to Germany, and even to Jerusalem, were enormous...
, Holy Roman emperor and king of Sicily, with the name of Monteleone. The city got back the old Roman name of Vibo Valentia only in 1928.
Main sights
- Norman-Hoehenstaufen Castle, located most likely on the site of Hipponion acropolis, and built around 1000. For its construction materials from the Greek temples nearby were used. It was damaged by an earthquake in 17831783 Calabrian earthquakesThe 1783 Calabrian earthquakes were a sequence of five strong earthquakes that hit the region of Calabria in southern Italy , the first two of which produced significant tsunamis. The epicenters form a clear alignment extending nearly 100 km from the Straits of Messina to about 18 km SSW...
. Today the castle is home to a state museum. - Walls of Hipponion, including c. 350 meters of remains and foundings of eight towers (whose height has been estimated in 10 meters).
- Church of Santa Maria Maggiore e San Leoluca (Cathedral), built in the 9th century over the remains of a Byzantine basilica. It has a 18th century marble high altar with a 16th century sculpture of "Madonna della Neve", and a Renaissance triptych.
- Church of Santa Ruba (c. 1000), built by Pope Callixtus II. It has a large cupola in Oriental style.
- Church of the Rosario (c. 1337), located over a Roman temple. Originally in Gothic style, it was remade after the 1783 earthquake.
Twin towns
CorleoneCorleone
Corleone is a small town and comune of approximately 12,000 inhabitants in the Province of Palermo in Sicily, Italy....
, Italy Ruda Slaska
Ruda Slaska
Ruda Śląska is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. It is a district in the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union, a metropolis with a population of 2 million. It is located in the Silesian Highlands, on the Kłodnica river ....
, Poland Vrnjačka Banja
Vrnjacka Banja
Vrnjačka Banja is a town, municipality, and a resort, mineral spa located in Raška District of Serbia. It contains the world's only hot spring with a temperature measuring exactly that of the human body ....
, Serbia Ituzaingó
Ituzaingó
Ituzaingó is a word of Guaraní origin meaning approximately "waterfall, cascade". It may refer to:* The Battle of Ituzaingó * The Club Atlético Ituzaingó, an Argentine football club* Ituzaingó, Buenos Aires a city in Argentina...
, Argentina