Acquapendente is a city and ''

comune A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the City status in Italy, titl ...

'' in the

province of Viterbo The province of Viterbo () is a Provinces of Italy, province in the Lazio region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Viterbo. Geography Viterbo is the most northerly of the provinces of Lazio. It is bordered to the south by the Metropolitan Cit ...

, in

Lazio Lazio ( , ; ) or Latium ( , ; from Latium, the original Latin name, ) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy, administrative regions of Italy. Situated in the Central Italy, central peninsular section of the country, it has 5,714,882 inhabitants an ...

(

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

). Acquapendente is a centre for the agricultural production of

vegetables Vegetables are edible parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. This original meaning is still commonly used, and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including flowers, fruits, ...

and

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented fruit. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the fruit and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Wine is most often made f ...

, and has a tradition of

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...

craftsmanship. Its ''

frazione A ''frazione'' (: ''frazioni'') 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 consolidat ...

'' of Torre Alfina is one of

I Borghi più belli d'Italia () is a non-profit private association of small Italian towns of strong historical and artistic interest, that was founded in March 2001 on the initiative of the Tourism Council of the National Association of Italian Municipalities, with the a ...

("The most beautiful villages of Italy").

History

The area of modern Acquapendente was settled by

Etruscan __NOTOC__ Etruscan may refer to: Ancient civilization *Etruscan civilization (1st millennium BC) and related things: **Etruscan language ** Etruscan architecture **Etruscan art **Etruscan cities **Etruscan coins **Etruscan history **Etruscan myt ...

s in

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

times, as archaeological finds have shown. 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 The Via Francigena (), also known as Francisca or Romea, is an ancient road and Christian pilgrimage, pilgrimage route running from the City status in the United Kingdom#Cathedral towns, cathedral city of Canterbury in England, through France and ...

. A document from Emperor

Otto I Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), known as Otto the Great ( ) or Otto of Saxony ( ), was East Francia, East Frankish (Kingdom of Germany, German) king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the eldest son o ...

, dated 964, contains the first recorded use of the name ''Acquapendentem'' which means "hanging water", from several small waterfalls in the Paglia river on the boundary between Lazio and

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...

. Acquapendente was the first stop in Italy in the travels of

Saint Roch Roch (lived c. 1348 – 15/16 August 1376/79; traditionally c. 1295 – 16 August 1327), also called Rock in English, was a Majorcan Catholic confessor whose death is commemorated on 16 August and 9 September in Italy; he was especially invo ...

in the early 14th century; the saint supposedly spent several days in the hospital there curing plague victims. The city was later part of the

March of Tuscany The March of Tuscany (; Modern ) was a march of the Kingdom of Italy and the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages. Located in northwestern central Italy, it bordered the Papal States to the south, the Ligurian Sea to the west and Lombardy to ...

and, from the end of the 14th century and beginning of the 15th, it was part of the commune (later Republic) of Siena. In 1449 it became an independent centre within the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; ; ), officially the State of the Church, were a conglomeration of territories on the Italian peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope from 756 to 1870. They were among the major states of Italy from the 8th c ...

. After the complete destruction of

Castro, Lazio Castro was an ancient city on the west side of Lake Bolsena in the present-day ''comune'' of Ischia di Castro, northern Lazio, Italy. It was destroyed at the conclusion of the Wars of Castro in the 17th century. Early history The settlement of ...

in 1649, Acquapendente, previously part of the diocese of

Orvieto Orvieto () is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Terni, southwestern Umbria, Italy, situated on the flat summit of a large butte of volcanic tuff. The city rises dramatically above the almost-vertical faces of tuff cliffs that are compl ...

, became the seat of a diocese that included what had been the diocese of Castro. The diocese of Acquapendente continued in existence until 27 March 1986, when its territory was added to that of

Viterbo Viterbo (; Central Italian, Viterbese: ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Lazio region of Italy, the Capital city, capital of the province of Viterbo. It conquered and absorbed the neighboring town of Ferento (see Ferentium) in ...

. No longer a residential bishopric, Aquipendium, as it is called in Latin, is today listed by the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

as a

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbi ...

.''Annuario Pontificio 2013'' (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2013 ), p. 823

Geography

Located in the north of the

, near the borders with

and

Umbria Umbria ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region of central Italy. It includes Lake Trasimeno and Cascata delle Marmore, Marmore Falls, and is crossed by the Tiber. It is the only landlocked region on the Italian Peninsula, Apennine Peninsula. The re ...

, the municipality of Acquapendente borders with

Allerona Allerona is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Terni in the Italian region Umbria, located about 50 km southwest of Perugia and about 60 km northwest of Terni. It is one of I Borghi più belli d'Italia ("The most beautiful vil ...

( TR),

Castel Giorgio Castel Giorgio is a comune (municipality) in the Province of Terni in the Italian region Umbria, located about southwest of Perugia and about 60 km northwest of Terni on the Alfine Highland, facing the Lake Bolsena. The municipality of Cast ...

(TR),

Castel Viscardo Castel Viscardo is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Terni in the Italian region Umbria, The town lies about 60 km southwest of Perugia and about 35 km northeast of Terni. Castel Viscardo borders the following municipali ...

(TR),

Grotte di Castro Grotte di Castro is a municipality () in the Province of Viterbo in the Italian region of Latium, located about northwest of Rome and about northwest of Viterbo Viterbo (; Central Italian, Viterbese: ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipali ...

, Onano, Proceno,

San Lorenzo Nuovo San Lorenzo Nuovo is a small town and ''comune'' in the province of Viterbo, in the Latium region of Italy. It is an agricultural center producing potatoes, olive oil, garlic, onions, cereals and grapes. A second source of revenue is tourism. Ge ...

San Casciano dei Bagni San Casciano dei Bagni is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Siena in the Italian region of Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence and about southeast of Siena. It is one of I Borghi più belli d'Italia ("The most beautiful vill ...

( SI) and

Sorano Sorano is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Grosseto, in southern Tuscany, Italy. It is an ancient medieval hill town perched on a tuff outcrop overlooking the Lente River. History Sorano was probably inhabited by the Villanovan culture ...

( GR).

Main sights

* Acquapendente Cathedral (1149) *The Watch Tower, remains of the Imperial Castle *The church of St. Augustine (16th century) *The church of St. Francis *The castle of the ''

'' Torre Alfina, whose central tower () was built by the Lombard king

Desiderius Desiderius, also known as Daufer or Dauferius (born – died ), was king of the Lombards in northern Italy, ruling from 756 to 774. The Frankish king of renown, Charlemagne, married Desiderius's daughter and subsequently conquered his realm. De ...

. The castle was captured by the Neapolitan ''condottiero'' Fabrizio Maramaldo during the 1527 Siege of Rome, but the defenders gallantly retained the Cassero. *The castle of the ''

'' Trevinano known from the 12th century. *The Monte Rufeno Natural Reserve, north of the city, at an elevation of . It has spectacular woods housing wildlife including, among others,

wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a Suidae, suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The speci ...

Eurasian eagle-owl The Eurasian eagle-owl (''Bubo bubo'') is a species of eagle-owl, a type of bird that resides in much of Eurasia. It is often just called the eagle-owl in Europe and Asia. It is one of the largest species of owl. Females can grow to a total le ...

turtle Turtles are reptiles of the order (biology), order Testudines, characterized by a special turtle shell, shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Crypt ...

s and

beech marten The beech marten (''Martes foina''), also known as the stone marten, house marten or white breasted marten, is a species of marten native to much of Europe and Central Asia, though it has established a feral population in North America. It is li ...

s. *A

POW camp A prisoner-of-war camp (often abbreviated as POW camp) is a site for the containment of enemy fighters captured as prisoners of war by a belligerent power in time of war. There are significant differences among POW camps, internment camps, an ...

from

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Personalities

Hieronymus Fabricius Girolamo Fabrici d'Acquapendente, also known as Girolamo Fabrizio or Hieronymus Fabricius (; 20 May 1533 – 21 May 1619), was a pioneering anatomy, anatomist and surgeon known in medicine, medical science as "The Father of Embryology." Lif ...

(1537–1619),

anatomist Anatomy () is the branch of morphology concerned with the study of the internal structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old scien ...

and

surgeon In medicine, a surgeon is a medical doctor who performs surgery. Even though there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon is a licensed physician and received the same medical training as physicians before spec ...

References

External links

Sagra della Fregnaccia in Acquapendente at Discover SorianoOfficial website

Monte Rufeno Natural ReserveTuscia 360 about Acquapendente
with VR panoramas of Pugnaloni
Acquapendente pro loco association
{{Authority control Gothic sites in Lazio Borghi più belli d'Italia