| Comune di Otranto | |
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 Municipal coat of arms |
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| Country |  Italy |
| Region | Puglia |
| Province | Lecce (LE) |
| Mayor | Luciano Cariddi |
| Elevation | 15 m (49 ft) |
| Area | 76 km² (29 sq mi) |
| Population (as of December 31, 2004) | |
| - Total | 5,487 |
| - Density | 72/km² (186/sq mi) |
| Time zone | CET, UTC+1 |
| Coordinates | |
| Gentilic | Idruntini or Otrantini |
| Dialing code | 0836 |
| Postal code | 73028 |
| Patron | Blessed Otrantine Martyrs |
| - Day | August 14 |
| Website: www.comune.otranto.le.it | |
Otranto is a town and commune in the province of Lecce (Apulia, Italy), in a fertile region once famous for its breed of horses. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Apulia ( Italian: Puglia) is a region in southeastern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east the Ionian Sea In Italy, a Province (in Italian provincia) is an administrative division of intermediate level between Municipality ( Comune The Province of Lecce (Provincia di Lecce is a province in the Apulia region of Italy. Events 406 – Vandals, Alans and Suebians cross the Rhine, beginning an invasion of Gallia. "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " Central European Time ( CET) is one of the names of the Time zone that is 1 hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. UTC+1 is used in the following locations Central European Time West Africa Time Western European Summer Time A geographic coordinate system enables every location on the Earth to be specified in three coordinates using mainly a spherical coordinate system. A demonym or gentilic is a word that denotes the members of a People or the inhabitants of a place Here are a list of area codes in Italy. All numbers here begin with the country code (0039 Events 1183 - Taira no Munemori and the Taira clan take the young Emperor Antoku and the three sacred treasures The Province of Lecce (Provincia di Lecce is a province in the Apulia region of Italy. Apulia ( Italian: Puglia) is a region in southeastern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east the Ionian Sea Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest
Otranto (Greek: Hydros) is situated on the east coast of the Salento peninsula. Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly Salento (Salentu in local dialect is the south-eastern extremity of the Apulia region of Italy. The Strait of Otranto, whom the city gives his name, connects the Adriatic Sea with the Ionian Sea and Italy with Albania. The Strait of Otranto connects the Adriatic Sea with the Ionian Sea. The Ionian Sea is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, south of the Adriatic Sea. This article is about the country in southern Europe For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Albania topics. The harbour is small and has little trade.
About 50 km southeast lies the promontory of Santa Maria di Leuca (so called since ancient times from its white cliffs, leukos being Greek for white), the southeastern extremity of Italy, the ancient Promontorium lapygium or Sallentinum. Santa Maria di Leuca, often spelled simply Leuca, Λευκη Lefki (white is a Frazione of the Comune of Castrignano The district between this promontory and Otranto is thickly populated, and very fertile.
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History
Otranto occupies the site of the ancient Hydrus or Hydruntum, a town of Greek origin, which, in the wars of Pyrrhus and of Hannibal sided against Rome. Hannibal (Pronounced in Phoenician: Hanniba'al means " Ba'al is my grace " or " Ba'al has given me grace " 247 BC &ndash
In Roman times it was a city in the Provincia Calabria. Italia, under the Roman Republic and later Empire, was the name of the Italian peninsula. As it is the nearest port to the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea, it was perhaps more important than Brundisium (present Brindisi), under the Roman emperors as a point of embarkation for the East, as the distance to Apollonia was less than from Brundisium. Brindisi can also refer to a song in which a company is exhorted to drink such as the "Tea-Cup Brindisi" in Gilbert and Sullivan 's " The
In the 8th century, it was for some time in the possession of duke Arechis II of Benevento. The 8th century is the period from 701 to 800 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian / Common Era. Arechis II (also Aretchis, Arichis, Arechi or Aregis; died August 26 787) was Duke (and later Prince of It remained in the hands of the Byzantine emperors until it was among the last cities of Apulia to surrender to the Norman Robert Guiscard in 1068, and then became part of the Principality of Taranto. This is a list of the Emperors of the Eastern Roman Empire, commonly known as the Byzantine Empire by modern historians Robert Guiscard (from Latin Viscardus and Old French Viscart, often rendered the Resourceful, the Cunning, the Wily The Principality of Taranto was a Norman state created in 1088 for Bohemond I, eldest son of Robert Guiscard, as part of the peace between him In the Middle Ages the Jews had a school there.
- See also Battle of Otranto for the 1480 invasion. In 1480 and 1481 the city and fort of Otranto, in Apulia, southern Italy, were held by Ottoman troops
In 1480, without warning, an Ottoman Turkish fleet invaded, landing nearby the city and capturing it along with its fort. The Pope called for a crusade, with a massive force built up by Ferdinand I of Naples, among them notably troops of Hungarian king Matthias Corvinus, despite frequent Italian quarreling at the time. Ferdinand I of Naples should not be confused with Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies, a latter king of Naples Matthias Corvinus ( Matthias the Just; February 23 1443 &ndash April 6 1490) was King of Hungary and The Neapolitan force met with the Turks in 1481, thoroughly annihilating them and recapturing Otranto. However, in the two battles, the city was utterly destroyed, and has never since recovered its importance since the sack of Otranto by the Turks, in which 12,000 men are said to have perished — among them, Bishop Stephen Pendinelli, who was sawn to death. A large percentage of these captured were given the choice of converting to Islam or death - 800 men were beheaded outside the city. The "valley of the martyrs" still recalls this dreadful event.
In 1537, the famous Turkish corsair and Ottoman admiral Barbarossa captured Otranto and the Fortress of Castro, but the Turks were eventually repulsed from the city and the rest of Puglia. Barbarossa Hayreddin Pasha ( Turkish: Barbaros Hayreddin Paşa or Hızır Hayreddin Paşa; also Hızır Reis before being promoted to the
In 1804, the city was obliged to harbour a French garrison that was established there to watch the movements of the English fleet. Under the French name of Otranto it was created a duché grand-fief de l'Empire in the Napoleonic kingdom of Naples for Joseph Fouché, Napoleon's minister of Police (1809), the grandfather of Margareta Fouché. A duke is a member of the Nobility, historically of highest rank below the Sovereign, and historically controlled a Duchy or a Dukedom Joseph Fouché, 1st Duc d' Otrante ( May 21, 1759 Le Pellerin, near Nantes, France - December 25, Margareta Fouché d'Otrante, (1909-2005 was the wife of Gustav Albrecht 5th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, and the mother of Richard 6th Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg The family used the title of duc d'Otrante after Joseph Fouché's death.
In 1997 dozens of Albanians died aboard a boat "accidentally" sunk by the Italian navy. This is remembered as one of the biggest tragedies in modern Albanian history.
Main sights
Otranto main monuments include:
- The Castello Aragonese (Castle), reinforced by Emperor Frederick II and rebuilt by Alphonso II of Naples in 1485-1498. Frederick II ( December 26, 1194 &ndash December 13, 1250) of the Hohenstaufen dynasty was a Pretender to the title Alfonso II of Naples ( November 4, 1448 &ndash December 18, 1495) also called Alfonso II d'Aragon, though he was King of Naples It has an irregular plan with five sides, with a moat running along the entire perimeter. In origin it had a single entrance, reachable through a draw-bridge. A drawbridge is a type of Movable bridge typically associated with the entrance of a Castle. Towers include three cylindrical ones an a bastion called Punta di Diamante ("Diamond's Head"). The entrance sports the coat of arms of Emperor Charles V. Charles V (24 February 1500 &ndash 21 September 1558 was
- The Cathedral, consecrated in 1088, a work of Count Roger I adorned later (about 1163), by Bishop Jonathas, with a mosaic floor; it has a rose window and side portal of 1481. The interior, a basilica with nave and two aisles, contains columns said to come from a temple of Minerva and a fine mosaic pavement of 1166, with interesting representations of the months, Old Testament subjects and others. In Western Christianity, the Old Testament refers to the books that form the first of the two-part Christian Biblical canon. It has a crypt supported by forty-two marble columns. The same Count Roger also founded a Basilian monastery here, which, under Abbot Nicetas, became a place of study; its library was nearly all bought by Bessarion. Basilios Bessarion or Basilius Bessarion (in Greek Βασίλειος Βησσαρίων ( January 2 1403 &ndash November 18
- The church of San Pietro, with Byzantine frescoes.
- The catacombs of Torre Pinta.
- Idro, a small river.
Culture
Otranto is the setting of Horace Walpole's book, The Castle of Otranto, which is generally held to be the first gothic novel. Horace Walpole 4th Earl of Orford ( 24 September, 1717 &ndash 2 March, 1797) more commonly known as Horace Walpole, was a politician The Castle of Otranto is a 1764 Novel by Horace Walpole. It is generally regarded as the first Gothic novel, and it was indeed the Gothic fiction (sometimes referred to as Gothic horror) is a genre of literature that combines elements of both horror and romance.
See also
Sources and references
- This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain. In 1480 and 1481 the city and fort of Otranto, in Apulia, southern Italy, were held by Ottoman troops The Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition (1910–1911 is a 29-volume reference work that marked the beginning of the Encyclopædia Britannica The public domain is a range of abstract materials &ndash commonly referred to as Intellectual property &ndash which are not owned or controlled by anyone
- This article incorporates text from the public-domain Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913. The public domain is a range of abstract materials &ndash commonly referred to as Intellectual property &ndash which are not owned or controlled by anyone The Catholic Encyclopedia, also referred to today as the Old Catholic Encyclopedia, is an English-language Encyclopedia published by The Encyclopedia
- Heraldica.org- Napoleonic
- GigaCatholic
External links
- Guide of Otranto (Italian)
- archdiocsan website (Italian)
- Adrian Fletcher’s Paradoxplace – Otranto Cathedral Mosaics Photo Page
- Otranto Guide
- Otranto Cultura
- Otrano Video in English
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