The Metauro is a river in the Marche region of central

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. It rises in the Apennine Mountains and runs east for or if the Meta is included as its uppermost reach. The name of the river in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

is ''Metaurus'' or ''Mataurus.'' In

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

, the name of the river is ''Métauros'', '' Μέταυρος'' which stems simply from the union of the two torrents: Meta, running from the Apennine pass Bocca Trabaria, at an elevation of , and Auro, flowing from Monte Maggiore, at an elevation of . The source of the river is located near

Monte dei Frati Monte dei Frati is a mountain in the Italian province of Arezzo near the border with Pesaro e Urbino and Perugia. Geography The mountain is in height. It is on the border between the Umbrian Apennines and the Umbrian-Marchean Apennines. ...

in the border region between the provinces of Pesaro e Urbino, Arezzo and

Perugia Perugia (, , ; lat, Perusia) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber, and of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and pa ...

. It flows east through Pesaro e Urbino near

Mercatello sul Metauro Mercatello sul Metauro ( Romagnol: ''Mercatèl'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino in the Italian region Marche, located about west of Ancona and about southwest of Pesaro. Economy is mostly based on agricultur ...

Sant'Angelo in Vado Sant'Angelo in Vado is a ''comune'' (municipality), site of Ancient Tifernum Metaurense and former bishopric in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino in the central Italian Adriatic region Marche. Geography It is located about west of Ancona and abo ...

(where the river forms the Cascata del Sasso, "Waterfall of the Stone"),

Urbania Urbania is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino in the Italian region of Marche, located about west of Ancona and about southwest of Pesaro, next to the river Metauro. Urbania borders the following municipalities: Ac ...

, Fermignano,

Fossombrone Fossombrone is a town and '' comune'' in the province of Pesaro e Urbino, Marche, central Italy. History The ancient Roman colony of ''Forum Sempronii'' took its name from Gaius Sempronius Gracchus. Near the Furlo Pass, during the Gothic War ...

(in whose territory it receives the waters of the

Candigliano The Candigliano is a river in the Marche and Umbria regions of Italy. Its source is in the Appennino Umbro-Marchigiano mountains in the province of Pesaro e Urbino near the border with the province of Perugia. The river flows east and forms the b ...

), and, after flowing into a tight valley, the Gola del Furlo,

Montemaggiore al Metauro Montemaggiore al Metauro is a ''frazione'' of the ''comune'' of Colli al Metauro, Marche, central Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in t ...

, from which it starts to flow in a plain area. The river flows northeast near Calcinelli,

Saltara Saltara is a frazione of the ''comune'' of Colli al Metauro in the province of Pesaro e Urbino, Marche, central Italy. It is on a hill overlooking the lower Metauro valley. It was a separate ''comune'' until 1 January 2017. Before World War II S ...

, Lucrezia, Cartoceto and Cuccurano before flowing into the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to t ...

near

Fano Fano is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Marche region of Italy. It is a beach resort southeast of Pesaro, located where the '' Via Flaminia'' reaches the Adriatic Sea. It is the third city in the region by po ...

Battles

Two battles were fought on the banks of Metauro in ancient times. *in 207 BC,

Hasdrubal Barca Hasdrubal Barca (245– 22June 207BC), a latinization of ʿAzrubaʿal ( xpu, 𐤏𐤆𐤓𐤁𐤏𐤋 ) son of Hamilcar Barca, was a Carthaginian general in the Second Punic War. He was the brother of Hannibal and Mago Barca. Youth and Iberi ...

, while marching to the aid of Hannibal, was defeated and slain by a Roman army led by the

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throu ...

Marcus Livius Salinator Marcus Livius Salinator (254 – c. 191 BC) was a Roman general and politician who fought in the Second Punic War, most notably during the Battle of the Metaurus. Born in 254 BC, Livius was elected consul of the Roman Republic with Lucius Aemili ...

and

Gaius Claudius Nero Gaius Claudius Nero (c. 247 BCc. 189 BC) was a Roman general active during the Second Punic War against the invading Carthaginian force, led by Hannibal Barca. During a military career that began as legate in 214 BC, he was propraetor in 211 B ...

. The

Battle of the Metaurus The Battle of the Metaurus was a pivotal battle in the Second Punic War between Rome and Carthage, fought in 207 BC near the Metauro River in Italy. The Carthaginians were led by Hasdrubal Barca, brother of Hannibal, who was to have brought sie ...

was the decisive battle of the Second Punic War. The exact site of the battle is uncertain; tradition places it between

and the Furlo, but it is probable that it occurred nearer the Adriatic coast; *in 271, Roman Emperor Aurelian defeated in the

Battle of Fano The Battle of Fano, also known as the Battle of Fanum Fortunae,Michael Grant, The History of Rome, p. 285 was fought in 271 between the Roman Empire and the Juthungi. The Romans, led by Emperor Aurelian, were victorious. Background Aurelian h ...

, fought near the river, the Alamanni, who had invaded the northern part of

Italia Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the Italy (geographical region) ...

the previous year.

References

;Attribution *

External links

La Valle del Metauro
Database about natural and human aspects of the valley
Il Giornale del Metauro on-line news from the valley towns and villages
{{Authority control Rivers of the Province of Pesaro and Urbino Rivers of Italy Adriatic Italian coast basins