Spoleto
| Title: | Spoleto | |||||||
| Category: | Destinations We Visit on Our Norcia Vacations | |||||||
| Author: | Daniele Pintaudi | Updated: | Jan 30, 2019 | Views: | 3,385 | |||
| Tags: | spoleto spoleto umbria place to visit umbria | |||||||
Spoleto is a beautiful town on the western slopes of the Apennines, separating Tuscany and Umbria. It dates back to the Bronze Age. As a Roman town in the 3rd century B.C., Spoleto was a site that fought off Hannibal in Roman times.
Spoleto became the stronghold of many rulers during the Dark Ages. The Lombards made it the capital of their empire in the 8th century; the duke they installed here governed most of central Italy until the turn of the 12th century, when it fell into papal hands, and began to decline in importance.
Today's Spoleto has two levels: the Lower Town, rebuilt after World War II; and the well-preserved medieval Upper Town.
Spoleto contains a number of ancient Roman and medieval sacred sites - in addition to the Duomo, there are many Romanesque churches and a Roman theater, now restored and once again in use.
Today, Spoleto is best-known for its annual "Festival of Two Worlds" Jazz festival, which is held every summer here, and in South Carolina.