Bertinoro () is a town and ''

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

'' in the

province of Forlì-Cesena The province of Forlì-Cesena ( it, provincia di Forlì-Cesena) is a province in the Emilia–Romagna region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Forlì. The province has a population of 394,273 as of 2016 over an area of . It contains 30 '' co ...

Emilia-Romagna egl, Emigliàn (man) egl, Emiglièna (woman) rgn, Rumagnòl (man) rgn, Rumagnòla (woman) it, Emiliano (man) it, Emiliana (woman) or it, Romagnolo (man) it, Romagnola (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title ...

(Italy). It is located on hill Mount Cesubeo, in

Romagna Romagna ( rgn, Rumâgna) is an Italian historical region that approximately corresponds to the south-eastern portion of present-day Emilia-Romagna, North Italy. Traditionally, it is limited by the Apennines to the south-west, the Adriatic to th ...

, a few kilometers from the

Via Emilia The ( it, Via Emilia; en, Aemilian Way) was a trunk Roman road in the north Italian plain, running from ''Ariminum'' (Rimini), on the Adriatic coast, to ''Placentia'' (Piacenza) on the river ''Padus'' ( Po). It was completed in 187 BC. The ' ...

History

There are remains of a settlement dating from the

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly ...

, next to the ''

frazione A ''frazione'' (plural: ) is a type of subdivision of a '' comune'' (municipality) in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist era (1922–1943) as a way to consolidate terri ...

'' of Casticciano. As for Bertinoro itself, it was probably a strongpoint on the Roman road connecting

Forlì Forlì ( , ; rgn, Furlè ; la, Forum Livii) is a '' comune'' (municipality) and city in Emilia-Romagna, Northern Italy, and is the capital of the province of Forlì-Cesena. It is the central city of Romagna. The city is situated along the Vi ...

Rimini Rimini ( , ; rgn, Rémin; la, Ariminum) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It sprawls along the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia (the ancient ''Ariminu ...

. Later, during the barbaric invasions, it was moved to the current location. In 1177 the castle, already well developed and known as ''Castrum Cesubeum'', housed the emperor

Frederick Barbarossa Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (german: link=no, Friedrich I, it, Federico I), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death 35 years later. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt ...

. The named changed to ''Castrum Brittinori'' during the reign of

Otto III Otto III (June/July 980 – 23 January 1002) was Holy Roman Emperor from 996 until his death in 1002. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto III was the only son of the Emperor Otto II and his wife Theophanu. Otto III was crowned as King of ...

, becoming seat of the countship.

Main sights

*The ''Rocca'' (castle), built around the year 1000. It is now home to the Museum of Holy Arts and a section of the

University of Bologna The University of Bologna ( it, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna, UNIBO) is a public research university in Bologna, Italy. Founded in 1088 by an organised guild of students (''studiorum''), it is the oldest university in contin ...

. *The Communal Palace, built in 1306 by

Pino I Ordelaffi Pino I (or II) Ordelaffi (c. 1356 – July 1402) was an Italian condottiero and lord of Forlì from 1386 until his death. A member of the Ordelaffi family, he was the son of Giovanni Ordelaffi and Tebalda Malatesta. He was also Papal vicar of Forlim ...

. *''Colonna delle Anelle'' ("Column of the Ring" or "Column of hospitality"). It is a column in white stone with 12 rings erected in 1300 by the noble families of the town to show their hospitality. Each one of the rings corresponded to one family, when the foreigners arrived in the town and tied the horse bridles to a ring they selected their host. *The

Cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations ...

, built in the 16th century. *The ''

Pieve In the Middle Ages, a pieve (, ; la, plebe, link=no; plural ''pievi'') was a rural church with a baptistery, upon which other churches without baptisteries depended. The Italian word ''pieve'' is descended from Latin ''plebs'' which, after t ...

'' (church) of San Donato, in the ''frazione'' of Polenta. It became famous as the object of a poem by

Giosuè Carducci Giosuè Alessandro Giuseppe Carducci (; 27 July 1835 – 16 February 1907) was an Italian poet, writer, literary critic and teacher. He was very noticeably influential, and was regarded as the official national poet of modern Italy. In 1906, h ...

. It has maintained parts of the original late 9th century edifice.

Culture

Bertinoro is home to a "Hospitality Festival". Held in the first weekend of September, it encompasses an entire night of music, dances and events (between Friday and Saturday), some historic reenactments, and the final hospitality rite (Sunday late morning). In this ceremony anyone can be hosted for meal by a family in the town simply taking one of the envelopes tied to the rings of the Hospitality column (which inside has the name of the hosting family).

People

Obadiah ben Abraham Obadiah ben Abraham of Bertinoro ( he, ר׳ עוֹבַדְיָה בֵּן אַבְרָהָם מִבַּרְטֵנוּרָא; 1445 – 1515), commonly known as "The Bartenura", was a 15th-century Italian rabbi best known for his popular comm ...

, also known as "The Bartenura" after the town, or "RAV-רע"ב," an abbreviation for "Rabbi Ovadia fBartenura" was a 15th-century rabbi and commentator of the

Mishnah The Mishnah or the Mishna (; he, מִשְׁנָה, "study by repetition", from the verb ''shanah'' , or "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first major written collection of the Jewish oral traditions which is known as the Oral Tor ...

Twin towns

Ale Ale is a type of beer brewed using a warm fermentation method, resulting in a sweet, full-bodied and fruity taste. Historically, the term referred to a drink brewed without hops. As with most beers, ale typically has a bittering agent to bala ...

, Sweden *

Kaufungen Kaufungen is a municipality in the district of Kassel, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated in the narrow valley of the river Losse, surrounded by the steep, wooded hills of the Kaufunger Wald, approx. 10 kilometres east of Kassel. Geography Divi ...

, Germany *

Budești Budești (Romani: ''Budeshti'') is a small provincial town in Călărași County, Muntenia, Romania. Three villages are administered by the town: Aprozi, Buciumeni, and Gruiu. It officially became a town in 1989, as a result of the Romanian rural ...

, Moldova

References

External links

Official website
Hilltowns in Emilia-Romagna {{EmiliaRomagna-geo-stub