Sora () 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 ...

'' of

Lazio it, Laziale , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

, Italy, in the

province of Frosinone The Province of Frosinone ( it, Provincia di Frosinone) is a province in the Lazio region of Italy, with 91 '' comuni'' (singular: ''comune''; see Comuni of the Province of Frosinone). Its capital is the city of Frosinone. It has an area o ...

. It is built in a

plain In geography, a plain is a flat expanse of land that generally does not change much in elevation, and is primarily treeless. Plains occur as lowlands along valleys or at the base of mountains, as coastal plains, and as plateaus or uplands ...

on the banks of the

Liri The Liri (Latin Liris or Lyris, previously, Clanis; Greek: ) is one of the principal rivers of central Italy, flowing into the Tyrrhenian Sea a little below Minturno under the name Garigliano. Source and route The Liri's source is in the ...

. This part of the

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams ove ...

is the seat of some important manufacturing, especially of paper mills. The area around Sora is famous for the costumes of its peasants. Cattedrale di Sora

Sora - Palazzo di Giustizia (già Sottoprefettura)

History

Sora, an ancient Volscian town, was thrice captured by the Romans, in 345, 314, and 305 BCE, before they managed, in 303, by means of a colony 4,000 strong, to confirm its annexation as a

Latin colony A Roman (plural ) was originally a Roman outpost established in conquered territory to secure it. Eventually, however, the term came to denote the highest status of a Roman city. It is also the origin of the modern term ''colony''. Characteri ...

. In 209, it was one of the colonies that refused further contributions to the war against

Hannibal Hannibal (; xpu, 𐤇𐤍𐤁𐤏𐤋, ''Ḥannibaʿl''; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Pu ...

. By the ''

lex Julia A ''lex Julia'' (plural: ''leges Juliae'') was an ancient Roman law that was introduced by any member of the gens Julia. Most often, "Julian laws", ''lex Julia'' or ''leges Juliae'' refer to moral legislation introduced by Augustus in 23 BC, o ...

'', it became a

municipium In ancient Rome, the Latin term (pl. ) referred to a town or city. Etymologically, the was a social contract among ("duty holders"), or citizens of the town. The duties () were a communal obligation assumed by the in exchange for the priv ...

, but under

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pr ...

, it was colonized by soldiers of the legio IV Sorana, which had been mainly enrolled there. It belonged technically to ''

Latium adiectum Latium adiectum () or Latium Novum was a region of Roman Italy between Monte Circeo and the river Garigliano, south of and immediately adjacent to Old Latium, hence its name of ''attached Latium''. Sources As a geographical term, it was used at l ...

''. Located in the ''Ducatus Romanus'' under the authority of the pope during the early Dark Ages, it was captured by the

Lombards The Lombards () or Langobards ( la, Langobardi) were a Germanic people who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the ''History of the Lombards'' (written between 787 an ...

of Gisulf I of Benevento in 705. The castle of ''Sorella'', built on the rocky height above the town, was in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

a stronghold of some note. In 1229, during the War of the Keys, it submitted to the

Papacy The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

and was then sacked by the

Emperor Frederick II Frederick II (German: ''Friedrich''; Italian: ''Federico''; Latin: ''Federicus''; 26 December 1194 – 13 December 1250) was King of Sicily from 1198, King of Germany from 1212, King of Italy and Holy Roman Emperor from 1220 and King of Jer ...

, its inhabitants hanged. In 1443, King Alfonso of Naples made Sora the seat of an independent

Duchy A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a medieval country, territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or queen in Western European tradition. There once existed an important difference between ...

; it was afterwards seized by

Pope Pius II Pope Pius II ( la, Pius PP. II, it, Pio II), born Enea Silvio Bartolomeo Piccolomini ( la, Aeneas Silvius Bartholomeus, links=no; 18 October 1405 – 14 August 1464), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 Augu ...

, but being restored to the Cantelmi by

Pope Sixtus IV Pope Sixtus IV ( it, Sisto IV: 21 July 1414 – 12 August 1484), born Francesco della Rovere, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 August 1471 to his death in August 1484. His accomplishments as pope include ...

, it ultimately passed to the duke Giovanni Della Rovere. Against

Cesare Borgia Cesare Borgia (; ca-valencia, Cèsar Borja ; es, link=no, César Borja ; 13 September 1475 – 12 March 1507) was an Italian ex-cardinal and ''condottiero'' (mercenary leader) of Aragonese (Spanish) origin, whose fight for power was a major i ...

, the city was heroically defended by Francesco Maria I Della Rovere. It was purchased by Pope Gregory XIII for 11,000 ducats and bestowed under the suzerainty of Gregory's son, Giacomo Boncompagni (who was the first duke of Sora of the family).

Geography

The distance from Sora to centre of

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

is 115 km; heading in the opposite direction, the downtown area of

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adm ...

is 138 km from Sora. The municipality, located next to

Abruzzo , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1 ...

, borders with Arpino, Balsorano ( AQ), Broccostella, Campoli Appennino, Castelliri, Isola del Liri,

Monte San Giovanni Campano Monte San Giovanni Campano is a '' comune'' (municipality) of about 12,800 inhabitants in the province of Frosinone in the Italian region Lazio, located about southeast of Rome and about east of Frosinone. Monte San Giovanni Campano is in the ...

, Pescosolido, and

Veroli Veroli ( la, Verulae) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Frosinone, Lazio, central Italy, in the Latin Valley. History Veroli (''Verulae'') became a Roman municipium in 90 BC. It became the seat of a bishopric in 743 AD, and was occupied ...

Main sights

The original

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 ...

, consecrated by

Pope Adrian IV Pope Adrian IV ( la, Adrianus IV; born Nicholas Breakspear (or Brekespear); 1 September 1159, also Hadrian IV), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 4 December 1154 to his death in 1159. He is the only Englishman t ...

in 1155, was destroyed by the earthquake of 1634. Above the town on a precipitous rock, elevation , that guards the Liri's valley and the entrance to the

Abruzzi , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1 ...

are remains of polygonal walls; here, possibly, was the citadel of the original Volscian town. Also, remains of medieval fortifications are there. Among the churches in town are the Sanctuary of the Madonna della Figura and San Silvestro Papa.

Notable people

Suranus Saint Suranus (died ) was an abbot in Umbria, Italy who was martyred by Lombards. His feast day is 24 January. Life Suranus was abbot of a monastery at Sora near Caserta, Italy. He was martyred by marauding Lombards around 580 AD when the ...

Caesar Baronius Cesare Baronio (as an author also known as Caesar Baronius; 30 August 1538 – 30 June 1607) was an Italian cardinal and historian of the Catholic Church. His best-known works are his ''Annales Ecclesiastici'' ("Ecclesiastical Annals"), w ...

* Luca Brandolini *

Ludovico Camangi Ludovico Camangi (14 February 1903, Sora, Lazio – 2 September 1976) was an Italian politician. He represented the Italian Republican Party in the Constituent Assembly of Italy from 1946 to 1948 and in the Chamber of Deputies The chamber of dep ...

* Vittorio Cristini * Alfredo De Gasperis * Vittorio De Sica *

Enzo Di Pede Enzo Di Pede (born January 3, 1957) is a retired Italian-born goalkeeper who played in the North American Soccer League and the original Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL). Career In 1976, he played in the National Soccer League with Toronto ...

* Tony Evangelista * Alessio Giustini *

Filippo Iannone Filippo Iannone (born 13 December 1957) is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who has been president of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts since April 2018. He has been a bishop since 2001 and an archbishop since 2012. He is a m ...

* Lucius Mummius *

Stefano Pescosolido Stefano Pescosolido (; born 13 June 1971) is a former tennis player from Italy, who turned professional in 1989. Pescosolido was born in Sora. He represented his native country at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, where he was def ...

* Giulio Polerio * Quintus Valerius Soranus *

Anna Tatangelo Anna Tatangelo (born 9 January 1987) is an Italian pop singer and television personality. At the age of 15, she became the youngest person to win the Newcomer's Award at the prestigious Sanremo Music Festival singing contest. Her repertoire con ...

* Zappacosta *

Davide Zappacosta Davide Zappacosta (born 11 June 1992) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a full-back for club Atalanta. Club career Early career Born in Sora, Lazio, Zappacosta joined hometown's Sora's youth setup in 1998, aged six, as a fo ...

Twin towns

* Vaughan, Canada * Athis-Mons, France

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sora Cities and towns in Lazio Roman sites in Lazio Sorella