Monterotondo 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 ...

'' in the

Metropolitan City of Rome Metropolitan City of Rome Capital ( it, Città metropolitana di Roma Capitale) is an area of local government at the level of metropolitan city in the Lazio region of the Republic of Italy. It comprises the territory of the city of Rome and 120 ...

, central

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 ...

History

According to some historians, Monterotondo is the heir of the ancient

Sabine The Sabines (; lat, Sabini; it, Sabini, all exonyms) were an Italic people who lived in the central Apennine Mountains of the ancient Italian Peninsula, also inhabiting Latium north of the Anio before the founding of Rome. The Sabines divide ...

town of Eretum, although the modern settlement appeared in the 10th-11th centuries in a different location. The name derives from the medieval corruption (then ''Mons Teres'', then ''Monte Ritondo'') of the original ''Mons Eretum''. Monterotondo

In the Middle Ages, due to its location across the

Via Salaria The Via Salaria was an ancient Roman road in Italy. It eventually ran from Rome (from Porta Salaria of the Aurelian Walls) to ''Castrum Truentinum'' ( Porto d'Ascoli) on the Adriatic coast, a distance of 242 km. The road also passed throu ...

, Monterotondo was a strategic point for the defense 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 ...

. Initially under the Capocci family, it was sold in the 12th century to the Orsini, who held it until the 18th century. In 1432, it was seized by the ''condottiero''

Niccolò Fortebraccio Niccolò Fortebraccio (1375–1435), also known as Niccolò della Stella, was an Italian condottiero. Born in Sant'Angelo in Vado, he was the son of Stella, sister of Braccio da Montone. His half-brother Oddo and his cousin Carlo were also con ...

, and in 1485, it was set on fire by the Orsini. In 1634, the

Barberini The House of Barberini are a family of the Italian nobility that rose to prominence in 17th century Rome. Their influence peaked with the election of Cardinal Maffeo Barberini to the papal throne in 1623, as Pope Urban VIII. Their urban pala ...

acquired the town, restoring or enlarging several edifices, and building the cathedral in 1639. On 28 April 1864, the Rome and Monterotondo Rail Road was opened for service. In 1943, after the Italian

armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the ...

with the Allies, 800 German paratroopers tried unsuccessfully to reconquer it.

Main sights

*The Baroque ''Duomo'' (Cathedral) Church of ''Madonna delle Grazie'' *''Palazzo Orsini'', including frescoes by

Girolamo Siciolante Girolamo is an Italian variant of the name Hieronymus. Its English equivalent is Jerome. It may refer to: * Girolamo Cardano (1501–1576), Italian Renaissance mathematician, physician, astrologer and gambler * Girolamo Cassar (c. 1520 – ...

, the Zuccari brothers and Perin del Vaga (attributed). *Archaeological museum, with remains from Eretum,

Crustumerium Crustumerium (or Crustumium) was an ancient town of Latium, on the edge of the Sabine territory, near the headwaters of the Allia, not far from the Tiber. In the legends concerning Rome's early history, the Crustumini were amongst the peoples whic ...

and Nomentum.

Science and Technology

The

European Molecular Biology Laboratory The European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) is an intergovernmental organization dedicated to molecular biology research and is supported by 27 member states, two prospect states, and one associate member state. EMBL was created in 1974 a ...

outstation in Rome is actually situated in Monterotondo. Its research is focused on

Epigenetics In biology, epigenetics is the study of stable phenotypic changes (known as ''marks'') that do not involve alterations in the DNA sequence. The Greek prefix '' epi-'' ( "over, outside of, around") in ''epigenetics'' implies features that are " ...

and

Neurobiology Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system (the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system), its functions and disorders. It is a multidisciplinary science that combines physiology, anatomy, molecular biology, developmen ...

. It has become established as a basic research center of excellence and innovation in mouse genetics and functional genomics. It captures new opportunities and applications of mouse genetic manipulation. Alliances with other European academic research and clinical centers have established EMBL Rome as a hub for the international mouse research network which exploits applications of mouse genetic manipulation to biomedical problems.

Sports

Polisportiva Monterotondo Calcio was the major football club of the city. The club played in Serie D several times. However, the club started to play in Rome and was renamed Polisportiva Monterotondo Lupa in 2011 and again relocated to Maccarese, Fiumicino as

Pol. Maccarese Giada A.S.D. Maccarese Calcio was an Italian football club headquartered in Maccarese, a ''frazione'' of Fiumicino, itself part of the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital (formerly Province of Rome). The club was also known as S.S. Maccarese until renam ...

in 2013. In 2014 that team was folded. Another team of the city, Atletico Monterotondo, merged with another football club from Marino and started to play in Eccellenza Lazio in 2013 as

A.S.D. Monterotondo Calcio Società Sportiva Dilettantistica a r.l. Eretum Monterotondo Calcio , known as just Eretum Monterotondo is an Italian football club based in Monterotondo, in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital (former Province of Rome). Eretum Monterotondo ...

. In 2016 the club merged with another team A.S.D. Eretum, to become A.S.D. Eretum Monterotondo. The third team of the city, Real Monterotondo Scalo, located in 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 territ ...

'' of Monterotondo. The team was promoted

Serie D The Serie D () is the top level of semi-professional football in the country. The fourth tier of the Italian league system, the competition sits beneath the third professional league, Serie C. It is administered by the Lega Nazionale Dilettant ...

in 2021.

References

External links

* Cities and towns in Lazio {{Lazio-geo-stub