Rovigo (, ; ) is a city and commune in the region of

Veneto Veneto, officially the Region of Veneto, is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the Northeast Italy, north-east of the country. It is the fourth most populous region in Italy, with a population of 4,851,851 as of 2025. Venice is t ...

Northeast Italy Northeast Italy ( or just ) is one of the five official statistical regions of Italy used by the Istituto Nazionale di Statistica, National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT), a Italian NUTS level 1 regions, first level NUTS region and a European ...

, the capital of the eponymous province.

Geography

Rovigo stands on the low ground known as

Polesine Polesine (; ; ) is a geographic and historic area in the north-east of Italy whose limits varied through centuries; it had also been known as Polesine of Rovigo for some time. Nowadays it corresponds with the province of Rovigo in the viewpoint ...

, by rail southwest of

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

and south-southwest of

Padua Padua ( ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Veneto, northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Padua. The city lies on the banks of the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice and southeast of Vicenza, and has a population of 20 ...

, and on the Adigetto Canal. The ''

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 ...

'' of Rovigo extends between the rivers

Adige The Adige is the second-longest river in Italy, after the Po. It rises near the Reschen Pass in the Vinschgau in the province of South Tyrol, near the Italian border with Austria and Switzerland, and flows through most of northeastern Italy ...

and Canal Bianco, west of the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...

, except the ''

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 Fenil del Turco that extends south of the Canal Bianco. Polesine is the name of the low ground between the lower courses of the rivers Adige and Po and the sea; the derivation of the name is much discussed, generally applied only to the province of Rovigo, but is sometimes extended to the near towns of

Adria Adria is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Rovigo in the Veneto region of northern Italy, situated between the mouths of the rivers Adige and Po River, Po. The remains of the Etruria, Etruscan city of Atria or Hatria are to be found below ...

and

Ferrara Ferrara (; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Emilia-Romagna, Northern Italy, capital of the province of Ferrara. it had 132,009 inhabitants. It is situated northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main ...

History

Rovigo (both ''Rodigium'' and ''Rhodigium'' in

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

script) appears to be first mentioned in a document from

Ravenna Ravenna ( ; , also ; ) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire during the 5th century until its Fall of Rome, collapse in 476, after which ...

dating April 24, 838; the origin of the name is uncertain. In 920 it was selected as his temporary residence by the

bishop of Adria The Diocese of Adria-Rovigo () is a Latin diocese of the Catholic Church in the Triveneto. It has existed under this name since 1986. It is a Latin suffragan to the Patriarchate of Venice.Paolo Cattaneo Paolo is a masculine given name, the Italian form of the name Paul. It may refer to: People Art * Paolo Abbate (1884–1973), Italian-American sculptor * Paolo Alboni (1671–1734), Italian painter * Paolo Antonio Barbieri (1603–1649), Ital ...

, after the destruction of his city by Hungarian marauders; the fortifications he ordered were already finished in 945. The

viscount A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. The status and any domain held by a viscount is a viscounty. In the case of French viscounts, the title is ...

s of Rovigo built a line of

brick A brick is a type of construction material used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a unit primarily composed of clay. But is now also used informally to denote building un ...

walls in the 1130s in the name of the

House of Este The House of Este ( , , ) is a European dynasty of North Italian origin whose members ruled parts of Italy and Germany for many centuries. The original House of Este's elder branch, which is known as the House of Welf, included dukes of Bavaria ...

. The current Torre Donà is a remnant of the castle built some time in between; it is 66 m high and it may have been the highest brick

tower A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...

at that time if the date of construction is correct. In 1194 Rovigo became a formal possession of

Azzo VI d'Este Azzo VI (1170 – November 1212), also known as Azzolino, was an Italian nobleman and condottiero. He held the title of Marquis of Este (''marchio Eystensis'') from the death of his father, Azzo V, in 1190 until his death. Biography He was he ...

, duke of

, who took the title of ''conte'' (count) of Rovigo. The Este authority ended in 1482, when the Venetians took the place by siege and retained possession of it by the peace of 1484. Although the Este recovered the city during the

War of the League of Cambrai The War of the League of Cambrai, sometimes known as the War of the Holy League and several other names, was fought from February 1508 to December 1516 as part of the Italian Wars of 1494–1559. The main participants of the war, who fough ...

, the Venetians, returning in 1514, retained possession until the French Revolution. In 1806 Napoleon I Bonaparte created it a

duché grand-fief As Emperor of the French, Napoleon, Napoleon I created Nobility, titles in a newly established ' (imperial nobility) to institute a stable elite in the First French Empire, after the instability resulting from the French Revolution. Like man ...

for general

Anne Jean Marie René Savary Anne Jean Marie René Savary, 1st duc de Rovigo (26 April 17742 June 1833) was a French military officer and diplomat who served in the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars and the French invasion of Algeria. He was Minister of Police ...

. The

Austrians Austrians (, ) are the citizens and Nationality, nationals of Austria. The English term ''Austrians'' was applied to the population of Archduchy of Austria, Habsburg Austria from the 17th or 18th century. Subsequently, during the 19th century, ...

in 1815 made it a royal city. 1864 5soldi Rovigo

With the fall of the 1815–1866

Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia The Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia (), commonly called the "Lombardo-Venetian Kingdom" (; ), was a constituent land (crown land) of the Austrian Empire from 1815 to 1866. It was created in 1815 by resolution of the Congress of Vienna in recogniti ...

, Rovigo was annexed to the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy (, ) was a unitary state that existed from 17 March 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 10 June 1946, when the monarchy wa ...

in 1866; in the same year it was connected by

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

to Padua, Ferrara,

Verona Verona ( ; ; or ) is a city on the Adige, River Adige in Veneto, Italy, with 255,131 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region, and is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and in Northeast Italy, nor ...

(through

Legnago Legnago (; Venetian: ''Lenjago'') is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Verona, Veneto, northern Italy, with population (2012) of 25,439. It is located on the Adige river, about from Verona. Its fertile land produces crops of rice, other c ...

), and

Chioggia Chioggia (; , ; ) is a coastal town and (municipality) of the Metropolitan City of Venice in the Veneto region of northern Italy. Geography The town is located on a small island at the southern entrance to the Venetian Lagoon about sou ...

(through Adria). In the 1900s the first modern industries were established, the most important of which was a

sugar refinery A sugar refinery is a refinery which processes raw sugar from cane or sugar extracted from beets into white refined sugar. Cane sugar mills traditionally produce raw sugar, which is sugar that still contains molasses, giving it color ...

. In 1927 the territory of the ''comune'' was extended including close

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

. In 1937 the course of the Adigetto Canal was diverted to the west edge of the town and a large avenue called ''Corso del Popolo'' was built in place of the former course. In the years 1943–1945 Rovigo was part of the

Italian Social Republic The Italian Social Republic (, ; RSI; , ), known prior to December 1943 as the National Republican State of Italy (; SNRI), but more popularly known as the Republic of Salò (, ), was a List of World War II puppet states#Germany, German puppe ...

and it has been in Italy since 1946. In the 1950s and 1960s Rovigo had a dramatic development and it had the highest

urbanization Urbanization (or urbanisation in British English) is the population shift from Rural area, rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. ...

rate among the towns in the Veneto region after

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 ...

Government

Main sights

Giulio-Monteverdi-Vittorio-Emanuele-II-Rovigo

Ettore-Ferrari-Monumento-equestre-a-Garibaldi-Rovigo

The architecture of the town bears the stamp both of Venetian and of Ferrarese influence. Main sights include : *

Rovigo Cathedral Rovigo (, ; ) is a city and commune in the region of Veneto, Northeast Italy, the capital of the eponymous province. Geography Rovigo stands on the low ground known as Polesine, by rail southwest of Venice and south-southwest of Padua, and ...

(''Duomo'', dedicated to Martyr Pope Steven I), the

co-cathedral A co-cathedral is a cathedral church which shares the function of being a bishop's seat, or ''cathedra'', with another cathedral, often in another city (usually a former see, anchor city of the metropolitan area or the civil capital). Instances o ...

in the bishopric of Adria–Rovigo; it was originally built before the 11th century, but rebuilt in 1461 and again in 1696. The art works of the interior includes a ''Resurrection of Christ'' by

Palma the Younger Iacopo Negretti (1548/50 – 14 October 1628), best known as Jacopo or Giacomo Palma il Giovane or simply Palma Giovane ('Young Palma'), was an Italian painter from Venice and a notable exponent of the Venetian school. After Tintoretto's death ...

. * Ruins of the ''Castle'' (10th century), of which two towers remain * ''Madonna del Soccorso'': church best known as ''La Rotonda''. If was built between 1594 and 1606 by Francesco Zamberlan of Bassano, a pupil of

Palladio Andrea Palladio ( , ; ; 30 November 1508 – 19 August 1580) was an Italian Renaissance architect active in the Venetian Republic. Palladio, influenced by Roman and Greek architecture, primarily Vitruvius, is widely considered to be one ...

, to house a miraculous image of a sitting Madonna with Child carrying a rose. The edifice has octagonal plan, surrounded by a portico, begun in 1594. The original construction had a cupola, which was later substituted by a simple ceiling for static reasons. The fine

campanile A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell to ...

, standing at 57 m, was built according to plans by

Baldassarre Longhena Baldassare Longhena (1598 – 18 February 1682) was an Italian architect, who worked mainly in Venice, where he was one of the greatest exponents of Baroque architecture of the period. His style is characterized by monumentality, skillful use of l ...

(1655–1673). The walls of the interior of the church are wholly covered by 17th centuries paintings by prominent provincial and Venetian artists, including

Francesco Maffei Francesco Maffei (1605 – 2 July 1660) was an Italian painter, active in the Baroque style. Biography He probably trained in his birthplace of Vicenza with his father, and painted mostly in the towns of the Veneto (Venetian mainland). He di ...

, Domenico Stella, Giovanni Abriani,

Alessandro Varotari Alessandro Leone Varotari (4 April 1588 – 20 July 1649), also commonly known as Il Padovanino, was an Italian painter of the late-Mannerist and early-Baroque Venetian school, best known for having mentored Pietro Liberi, Giulio Carpioni, an ...

(''il Padovanino''), Pietro Vecchia,

Pietro Liberi Pietro (Libertino) Liberi (1605 – 18 October 1687) was an Italian painter of the Baroque era, active mainly in Venice and the Veneto. Biography Liberi was born in Padua, his earliest training was with Alessandro Varotari (''il Padovanino''). ...

Antonio Zanchi Antonio Zanchi (; 6 December 1631 – 12 April 1722) was an Italian painter of the Baroque, active mainly in Venice, but his prolific works can also be seen in Padova, Treviso, Rovigo, Verona, Vicenza, Loreto, Brescia, Milano, and Bergamo, a ...

and

Andrea Celesti Andrea Celesti (1637–1712) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, working in Venice. His style gravitated over the years from a turgid and academic weightiness to a lighter, looser brushstroke. Biography Celesti was born in Venice and ...

. *''Immacolata Concezione'' : Church dating to 1213. * ''San Francesco'': church in Gothic-Romanesque style but with extensive intervention from the 19th century. The

belfry The belfry /ˈbɛlfri/ is a structure enclosing bells for ringing as part of a building, usually as part of a bell tower or steeple. It can also refer to the entire tower or building, particularly in continental Europe for such a tower attached ...

is from 1520. In the interior are several ''Saints'' sculptures by

Tullio Lombardo Tullio Lombardo (c. 1455 – November 17, 1532), also known as Tullio Solari, was an Italian Renaissance sculptor. He was the brother of Antonio Lombardo and son of Pietro Lombardo. The Lombardo family worked together to sculpt famous Catholic ...

(1526). * The Town hall, which contains a library including some rare early editions, belonging to the Accademia de Concordi, founded in 1580, and a fair picture gallery enriched with the spoils of the monasteries. *'' Palazzo Roverella'', largely restored but still example of

Renaissance architecture Renaissance architecture is the European architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 16th centuries in different regions, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of Ancient Greece, ancient Greek and ...

, now serves as town art gallery. *''Palazzo Roncale'': Renaissance palace (1555) by

Michele Sanmicheli Michele Sanmicheli, sometimes also transcribed as Sammicheli, Sanmichele or Sammichele (Verona, 1484There is no certainty about the date of his birth. Vasari reports 1484, while architectural historian Giulio Sancassani, through a study of his fat ...

*''Palazzo Venezze'' (1715) *''Pinacoteca dei Concordi'' ("Concordi Gallery") houses important paintings, including a ''Madonna with Child and Christ with the Cross'' by

Giovanni Bellini Giovanni Bellini (; c. 1430 – 29 November 1516) was an Italian Renaissance painter, probably the best known of the Bellini family of Venetian painters. He was raised in the household of Jacopo Bellini, formerly thought to have been his father, ...

, a ''Flagellation of Christ'' by

Palma the Elder Palma Vecchio ( – 30 July 1528), born Jacopo Palma, also known as Jacopo Negretti, was a Venetian painter of the Italian High Renaissance. He is called Palma Vecchio in English and Palma il Vecchio in Italian ("Palma the Elder") to distingu ...

, a ''Venus with the Mirror'' by

Jan Gossaert Jan Gossaert ( – 1 October 1532) was a French-speaking painter from the Low Countries also known as Jan Mabuse (the name he adopted from his birthplace, Maubeuge) or Jennyn van Hennegouwe ( Hainaut), as he called himself when he matriculated ...

, and portraits by

Tiepolo Giovanni Battista Tiepolo ( , ; 5 March 1696 – 27 March 1770), also known as Giambattista (or Gianbattista) Tiepolo, was an Italian painter and printmaker from the Republic of Venice who painted in the Rococo style, considered an importa ...

and

Alessandro Longhi Alessandro Longhi (12 June 1733 – 8 November 1813) was a Venice, Venetian portrait Painting, painter and printmaker in etching (mostly reproductions of paintings). He is known best for his oil portraits of Venetian nobles of state. Like Seba ...

Villages nearby

Barchessa Candiani, Basso Cavallo, Boara Polesine, Boaria San Marco, Borsea, Braga-Cantonazzo, Buso, Busovecchio, Ca'Bianca, Ca'Matte, Ca'Lunga, Campagna Terzi, Campagnazza, Cantonazzo, Capolavia, Ca'Rangon, Concadirame, Corte Lazzarini, Fenile Morosina, Fenil del Turco, Granzette, Grignano Polesine, Grompo, Grumolo, Le Cassette, Le Giarelle, Le Sorbolaro, L'Olmo, Lusia, Mardimago, Roverdicrè, San Sisto, Santa Libera, Santa Rita,

Sant'Apollinare Sant'Apollinare (locally ''Santapunaro'' or ''Santapunare'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Frosinone in the Italy, Italian region Lazio, located about southeast of Rome and about southeast of Frosinone. Sant'Apollinare borde ...

, Sarzano and Spianata.

Twin towns – sister cities

Rovigo is twinned with: *

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population was 106,940. Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire and seat of the Borough of Bedford local government district. Bedford was founded at a ford (crossin ...

, United Kingdom *

Tulcea Tulcea (; also known by #Names, alternative names) is a city in Northern Dobruja, Romania. It is the administrative center of Tulcea County, and had a population of 65,624 . One village, Tudor Vladimirescu, is administered by the city. It is one ...

, Romania *

Viernheim Viernheim () is a midsize industrial town on Mannheim's outskirts and is found in the Rhine Neckar Area, Rhine Neckar agglomeration and economic area. It is the second biggest town in Kreis Bergstraße, Bergstraße district in Hesse, Germany. Since ...

, Germany

Sport

Rovigo is home of

Rugby Rovigo Rugby Rovigo Delta, formerly known until 2010 as Rugby Rovigo, is an Italian rugby union club currently competing in the Top10 (rugby union), Serie A Élite. They are based in Rovigo, in Veneto. Overview The club was founded in 1935 by medical ...

, the city's rugby team has won the Top10 competition 13 times. The team has attracted many famous from around the rugby world, including

Naas Botha Hendrik Egnatius 'Naas' Botha (born 27 February 1958) is a South African former rugby union player who played as a Fly-half for Northern Transvaal, Rugby Rovigo and South Africa (the Springboks). He was voted SA Rugby Player of the Year in ...

and the coach

Carwyn James Carwyn Rees James (2 November 1929 – 10 January 1983) was a Welsh rugby union player and coach. He won two Wales national rugby union team, Welsh international caps but is most famous for his coaching achievements with Llanelli RFC, Llanelli, t ...

. Other practiced sports include football/soccer, swimming, handball, baseball and roller hockey. The "Rosso Blu" as the baseball team is known is at the level of Serie "A" competition. Notable American players who have played for Rovigo Baseball include: Nathan Cardella (Fresno, Ca.) and Mark Peracchi (San Francisco, Ca). Rovigo is the first Italian city to have a

Gaelic football Gaelic football (; short name '')'', commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA, or football, is an Irish team sport. A form of football, it is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score ...

club. Ascaro Rovigo Gaelic Football Club was founded on June 2, 2011. President and founder of Rovigo GAA Raffaello Franco went to Ireland for his honeymoon that year where he watched a football game at

Croke Park Croke Park (, ) is a Gaelic games stadium in Dublin, Ireland. Named after Archbishop Thomas Croke, it is referred to as Croker by GAA fans and locals. It serves as both the principal national stadium of Ireland and headquarters of the Gaelic At ...

– he returned home with an

O'Neills O'Neills Irish International Sports Company Ltd. is an Irish sporting goods manufacturer established in 1918. It is the largest manufacturer of sportswear in Ireland, with production plants located in Dublin and Strabane. O'Neills has a long r ...

ball and a dream to set up a

GAA Gaa may refer to: * Gaa language, a language of Nigeria * gaa, the ISO 639 code for the Ga language of Ghana GAA may stand for: Compounds * Glacial (water-free), acetic acid * Acid alpha-glucosidase, also known as glucosidase, alpha; acid, an e ...

club in Italy. Within two years the resulting club's football team of about 90% Italian players are going from strength to strength as they embrace every code that the GAA has to offer. The team colours are red and blue.

Transportation

Rovigo railway station, opened in 1866, forms part of the Padua–Bologna railway, and is also a

junction station ''Junction station'' usually refers to a railway station situated either on or close to a rail junction, where lines to two or more destinations diverge. Many junction stations have multiple platform faces to enable trains for multiple destinatio ...

for two other lines. Heading eastwards, towards

and

, is the Rovigo–Chioggia railway, and heading west, towards

and

, is the Verona–Legnago–Rovigo railway.