Isola del Liri (simply known as ''Isola Liri'',

Campanian The Campanian is the fifth of six ages of the Late Cretaceous epoch on the geologic timescale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). In chronostratigraphy, it is the fifth of six stages in the Upper Cretaceous Series. Campa ...

: ) is an Italian town of

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, in the

province of Frosinone The province of Frosinone () is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Frosinone. It has an area of and a total population of 493,605 (2016). The province contains 91 ''comuni'' (: ''comune''), listed in the ...

. As its name implies, Isola is situated between two arms 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 ...

. The many waterfalls of this river and of the Fibreno are used by factories.

History

Of Volscan origin, after the fall of the

Western Roman Empire In modern historiography, the Western Roman Empire was the western provinces of the Roman Empire, collectively, during any period in which they were administered separately from the eastern provinces by a separate, independent imperial court. ...

Isola del Liri was ruled by the Byzantines and then the

Lombards The Lombards () or Longobards () were a Germanic peoples, Germanic people who conquered most of the Italian Peninsula between 568 and 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the ''History of the Lombards'' (written betwee ...

. In the early Middle Ages the town was, alternatively, under the rule of the Byzantines and the

, until it became part of the county of Sora in the

Principality of Capua The Principality of Capua ( or ''Capue'', Modern ) was a Lombards, Lombard state centred on Capua in Southern Italy. Towards the end of the 10th century the Principality reached its apogee, occupying most of the Terra di Lavoro area. It was ori ...

. Isola del Liri was the feud of the dell'Isola (de Insulae) family from the 12th century to the 14th century. Members of the family include Roffredo dell'Isola, Abbot of Monte Cassino, Count d'Arce, and Bartholomew dell'Isola who enjoyed the honors in the seat of Capuano Naples. At the end of the 14th century, Isola del Liri was ceded to the Cantelmo family. Later it was part of the

Duchy of Sora The Duchy of Sora was a Historical states of Italy, semi-independent state in Italy, created in 1443 by King Alfonso V of Aragon, Alfonso I of Naples and dissolved in 1796. It occupied the south-eastern part of what is today Lazio, bordering what i ...

, becoming a ducal seat under the

Boncompagni The House of Boncompagni is a princely family of the Italian nobility which settled in Bologna in around the 14th century, but was probably originally from Umbria. In 1572 Ugo Boncompagni was elected pope, taking the name Pope Gregory XIII, Greg ...

family. In 1796 it was annexed to 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 ...

. It was once in the old

Terra di Lavoro Terra di Lavoro (Liburia in Latin) is the name of a historical region of Southern Italy.Campania Campania is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy located in Southern Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian Peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islan ...

, but was transferred to the Lazio during the Fascist period.

Main sights

The town's main sight is the Castello Boncompagni-Viscogliosi, a fortified palace near two waterfalls, Cascata Grande and Cascata del Valcatoio, each about high, and a bridge on river. It is mentioned for the first time in 1100. After the acquisition of the

by the

della Rovere The House of Della Rovere (; literally "of the oak tree") was a powerful Italian noble family. It had humble origins in Savona, in Liguria, and acquired power and influence through nepotism and ambitious marriages arranged by two Della Rovere p ...

family, it became one of their main residences. It was also housed by their successors as dukes, the

; in the 17th century Costanza Sforza turned into a luxurious palace, with biblica frescoes and basreliefs of the duchy's lands, as well as a garden. About north of the town is the church of San Domenico, erected in the 12th century, which is said to mark the site of the villa of

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, orator, writer and Academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises tha ...

Culture

Isola del Liri is the seat of the eponymous blues festival since 1988. ''Liri Blues'' is an international festival has been free ever since its first year. Liri Blues is an event that happens every year during a week in July. Concerts are held in the main square (Piazza Boncompagni), in the streets and jam sessions happen late at night. In 1997, for the 10th edition of the festival, the town of Isola del Liri signed a twinning with the city of

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

(Louisiana, USA).

Twin towns

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

History

Main sights

Culture

Twin towns

References

Sources

See also