Acquapendente

Acquapendente
—  Comune  —
Comune di Acquapendente
Coat of arms
Acquapendente Location of Acquapendente in Italy
Coordinates: 42°44′N 11°51′E / 42.733°N 11.85°E / 42.733; 11.85Coordinates: 42°44′N 11°51′E / 42.733°N 11.85°E / 42.733; 11.85
Country	Italy
Region	Lazio
Province	Viterbo (VT)
Frazioni	Torre Alfina, Trevinano
Government
• Mayor	Alberto Bambini
Area
• Total	120.28 km2 (46.44 sq mi)
Elevation	420 m (1,380 ft)
Population (2008)
• Total	5,739
• Density	48/km2 (120/sq mi)
Demonym	Aquesiani
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	01021
Dialing code	0763
Patron saint	Saint Hermes
Saint day	August 28
Website	Official website

Acquapendente is a city and comune in the province of Viterbo, in Lazio (Italy). Acquapendente is an important centre for the agricultural production of vegetables and wine, and has a tradition of pottery craftmanship.

History

The area of modern Acquapendente was settled by Etruscans in Roman times, as archaeological finds have shown^{[citation needed]}. However, the first historical document of the modern city dates from the 9th century AD, with a town named Farisa or Arisa along the Via Francigena. A document from Emperor Otto I, dated 964, contains the first recorded use of the name Acquapendentem. The name of the city, meaning "Hanging Water", stems from the presence of several small waterfalls forming the Paglia, a stream setting the boundary between Lazio and Tuscany.

Acquapendente was the first stop in Italy in the travels of Saint Roch in the early 14th century; the saint supposedly spent several days in the hospital there curing plague victims.^[1]

The city was later part of the March of Tuscany and, from the end of the 14th century and beginning of the 15th, it was part of the commune of Siena. In 1449 it became an independent centre within the Papal States.

Acquapendente was also the birthplace of the anatomist Hieronymus Fabricius.

Main sights

• Acquapendente Cathedral (1149).
• The Watch Tower, a remain of the Imperial Castle.
• The church of St. Augustine (16th century).
• The church of St. Francis.
• The Castle of the frazione Torre Alfina, whose central tower (Cassero) was built by the Lombard king Desiderius. The castle was captured by the Neapolitan condottiero Fabrizio Maramaldo in 1527, during the Siege of Rome, but the defenders gallantly retained the Cassero.
• The Castle of the frazione Trevinano (known from the 12th century).
• The Monte Rufeno Natural Reserve, 2 km north to the city, at an altitude of 748 m. It has spectacular woods housing wildlife including among others boars, eagle owls, turtles and beech martens.
• POW camp from World War II

External links

• Sagra della Fregnaccia in Acquapendente at Discover Soriano
• Official website
• Tourism page (Italian)
• Monte Rufeno Natural Reserve
• Tuscia 360 about Acquapendente with VR panoramas of Pugnaloni
• Acquapendente pro loco association (Italian)

Notes