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The Sile (
Venetian Venetian often means from or related to: * Venice, a city in Italy * Veneto, a region of Italy * Republic of Venice (697–1797), a historical nation in that area Venetian and the like may also refer to: * Venetian language, a Romance language s ...
: ''Sil'') is a 95 km
river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of ...
in the
Veneto Veneto (, ; vec, Vèneto ) or Venetia is one of the 20 regions of Italy. Its population is about five million, ranking fourth in Italy. The region's capital is Venice while the biggest city is Verona. Veneto was part of the Roman Empire unt ...
region in north-eastern
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 ...
. Its springs are in the municipality of Vedelago in the
Province of Treviso The Province of Treviso ('' it, Provincia di Treviso'') is a province in the Veneto region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Treviso. The province is surrounded by Belluno in the north, Vicenza in the west, Padua in southwest, Venice in t ...
. It flows into the northern part of the Lagoon of Venice at the mouth of the River Piave Vecchia. It receives the waters of its tributary, the
Botteniga The Botteniga is a river in Northern Italy, a distributary of the Piave, it meets the River Sile at Treviso Treviso ( , ; vec, Trevixo) is a city and '' comune'' in the Veneto region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of T ...
, at Treviso. Some of the rivers in the plain of the Veneto come from springs in the nearby Alps, while others have
groundwater Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and Pore space in soil, soil pore spaces and in the fractures of stratum, rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit ...
spring Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season), a season of the year * Spring (device), a mechanical device that stores energy * Spring (hydrology), a natural source of water * Spring (mathematics), a geometric surface in the shape of a h ...
s in the plain. The Sile originates in the plain and therefore it is a short river. Its springs are in the area of Albaredo, Casacorba and Cavasagra in the municipality of Vedelago. The fontanasso dea Coa Longa is considered to be the main spring. Two initial branches join at
Morgano Morgano is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Treviso in the Italian region Veneto, located about northwest of Venice and about west of Treviso. Morgano borders the following municipalities: Istrana, Paese, Piombino Dese, Quinto di ...
. The river has an initial west-east windy course which passes through or by Santa Cristina,
Quinto di Treviso Quinto di Treviso is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Treviso in the Italian region Veneto, located about northwest of Venice and about southwest of Treviso. In the church of Santa Cristina, a ''frazione ''of Quinto, is a Lorenz ...
, Canizzano and
Treviso Treviso ( , ; vec, Trevixo) is a city and '' comune'' in the Veneto region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Treviso and the municipality has 84,669 inhabitants (as of September 2017). Some 3,000 live within the Vene ...
. In Treviso it turns in a northwest-southeast direction towards the lagoon and passes by Silea,
Casier Casier is a town and '' comune'' in the province of Treviso, Veneto region, in north-eastern Italy. The commune has its seat in Dosson di Casier, and includes the localities of Frescada (partially), Le Grazie (partially), La Sicilia, Cà Matte. C ...
, Cendon, Lughignano, Sant'Elena,
Casale sul Sile Casale sul Sile is a ''comune'' with c. 13,000 inhabitants in the province of Treviso in the Veneto, north-eastern Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It ...
, Quarto d'Altino, Trepalade and Portegrandi. The Sile used to flow into the lagoon at Portegrandi in the municipality of Quarto d'Altino. However, in 1683 the
Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia ...
diverted its course through the Taglio del Sile canal and made it flow into the old bed of the River Piave which at the time was dry because Venice had earlier diverted it further east. Hence, this final tract of the Piave is called Piave Vecchia, Old Piave. The Sile's old final tract into the lagoon was preserved. Its water flow was (and still is) regulated with locks. It now called Canale Silone. It continues to flow through the northern part of the lagoon through a lagunar channel whose tracts are called Canale della Taia Grande, Canale Silone, Canale Borgononi, Canale di Burano and Canale di Treporti. It reaches 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 th ...
through the lido inlet. It flows between the islands of
Torcello Torcello ( la, Torcellum; vec, Torceło) is a sparsely populated island at the northern end of the Venetian Lagoon, in north-eastern Italy. It was first settled in 452 CE and has been referred to as the parent island from which Venice was p ...
, Mazzorbo and
Burano Burano is an island in the Venetian Lagoon, northern Italy, near Torcello at the northern end of the lagoon, known for its lace work and brightly coloured homes. The primary economy is tourism. Geography Burano is from Venice, a 45-minute t ...
, between the Palude dei Mortesini, Palude i Cona and Palude dei Laghi marshes and between the Palude della Centrega and Palude di Burano mashes. There are barene ( saltmarshes) along this lagunar course. During
Antiquity Antiquity or Antiquities may refer to: Historical objects or periods Artifacts *Antiquities, objects or artifacts surviving from ancient cultures Eras Any period before the European Middle Ages (5th to 15th centuries) but still within the histo ...
the Sile was connected to port town of
Altinum Altinum (in Altino, a ''frazione'' of Quarto d'Altino) was an ancient town of the Veneti 15 km SE of modern Treviso, close to the mainland shore of the Lagoon of Venice. It was also close to the mouths of the rivers Dese, Zero and Sile. ...
through an eastern tract of the Siloncello canal which went close to its mouth at Portegrandi. At the time the River Piave must have flowed into the Sile. The Piave was a preferred route for the transport of wood from the forests of
Cadore Cadore (; lld, Ciadòre; vec, italic=yes, Cadór or, rarely, ''Cadòria''; german: italic=yes, Cadober or ''Kadober''; Sappada German: ''Kadour'';
towards Altinum as attested by an inscription found in
Feltre Feltre ( vec, Fèltre) is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Belluno in Veneto, northern Italy. A hill town in the southern reaches of the province, it is located on the Stizzon River, about from its junction with the Piave, and southwes ...
. Thus, this canal was of strategic importance for Altinum's supply of wood. The eastern tract of the Siloncello canal also turned south before reaching Portegrandi and reached the Palude di Cona in the Lagoon of Venice. Through this Altinum was connected with the lagunar channel of the Sile. This was a navigable route that gave Altinum's sea trade access to the Adriatic Sea. Altinum was eventually abandoned and its inhabitants moved to the islands of the northern part of the Lagoon of Venice. Torcello became the main administrative, religious and trading centre of these islands. It was the seat of the governor of the northern part of the lagoon. Its
bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...
covered the whole of this area. Torcello and other islands in the northern part of the lagoon were later abandoned because of
environmental degradation Environmental degradation is the deterioration of the environment through depletion of resources such as quality of air, water and soil; the destruction of ecosystems; habitat destruction; the extinction of wildlife; and pollution. It is defin ...
in the area and
malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. ...
and because many families moved to the nascent Venice, which became the commercial and political heart of the lagoon. In
Dante Dante Alighieri (; – 14 September 1321), probably baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri and often referred to as Dante (, ), was an Italian poet, writer and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called (modern Italian: ' ...
’s “Third Sphere” of the Paradiso of his
Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' ( it, Divina Commedia ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun 1308 and completed in around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature a ...
, Cunizza da Romano predicts the fate of Riccardo da Camino, who was apparently murdered at a chess game. Dante located this event at the confluence of the Sile and the Cagnan, one of the branches the River Botteniga splits into when it reaches the gates of the town wall of Treviso:See
Henry Francis Cary The Reverend Henry Francis Cary (6 December 1772 – 14 August 1844) was a British author and translator, best known for his blank verse translation of '' The Divine Comedy'' of Dante.Richard Garnett (1887). " Cary, Henry Francis". In ''Dic ...
’s footnotes to his translation, 3rd edn. c.1844.


Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sile (River) Rivers of the Metropolitan City of Venice Province of Treviso Rivers of Italy Adriatic Italian coast basins