Civita Castellana

Civita Castellana was the site of Falerii, the town of the Falisci, which was captured by Camillus in B. C. 396. The Romans destroyed Falerii and founded Falerium Novum in the plain, but in the Middle Ages the inhabitants went back to the old, better protected site. The little town was given by Sixtus IV to Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia, who built a circle of walls and on the top of the hill a fortezza, che fu ampliata da Giulio II e Leone X e usata per secoli come Prigione di Stato. The strength of the fortress eventually made the walls redundant and they were pulled down with the exception of the main gate decorated with remains of a Roman sarcophagus. Lo stemma del Cardinal Borgia (Alessandro VI) è sovrastato da quello di Paolo V aggiunto più di un secolo dopo.

Anagni

Anagni is also called "la Città dei Papi" because of the four popes who were born here (Innocentius III, Gregorius IX, Alexander IV and Bonifatius VIII, all between 1198 and 1303) and who made it prosperous. The walls were largely restored by Pius IV in the XVIth century. Above you can see Porta S. Maria, which shows a resemblance to Porta Pertusa. You may wish to follow Ferdinand Gregorovius' walk in Anagni.

Visso

Visso is a small town in Val Nerina commanding one of the main roads crossing the Appennines. Its medieval walls were restored by Gregorius XIII in the late XVIth century. The coat of arms on the gate named Porta di Via Lata, is somewhat unusual maybe because its architect had hearsay knowledge of the coats of arms being sculpted in Rome.

Perugia

Perugia, the capital of Umbria, built on several hills, had a very long and tortuous ring of walls. With the growth of the population new peaks were included in the walls and new gates opened. Above Porta S. Costanzo erected under Sixtus V, an addition to the existing walls to protect the church of S. Pietro de' Casinensi.

Viterbo

Viterbo was the central point of the extensive grant called the "patrimony of St. Peter" and is frequently mentioned in history as the residence of the popes and the scene of the papal elections in the XIIIth century. Here the popes felt more secure than in Rome. The walls were built at that time. The most important gate is Porta Romana rebuilt on the occasion of a visit of Innocentius X in 1653 and embellished under Clemens XI in 1705. Between the coats of arms of the popes, the statue of S. Rita, patroness of Viterbo.

Castelgandolfo

Castelgandolfo, splendidly situated high above the Lake of Albano, venne in possesso dei papi nel 1596. Pope Urbanus VIII erected a large Papal palace and Castelgandolfo became (and still is) a favourite summer resort of the popes. The access to the central square is controlled by this elegant XVIIIth century gate with the coat of arms of Clemens XII.

Montefiascone e Valentano


Montefiascone e Valentano sono due cittadine sulle colline che circondano il Lago di Bolsena. entrambe ebbero nuove porte nel '700. Porta Viterbese (a sinistra) a Montefiascone fu eretta sotto Benedetto XIV in 1744. La porta principale di Valentano (a destra), nell'antico Ducato di Castro fu costruita nel 1779 sotto Pio VI.