Umbria

History

The region takes its name from the Umbrian tribe, who settled in the region around the seventh century BC (672 BC is the legendary date of foundation of the city of Terni).

After two centuries of Etruscan domination, the region in 295 BC was conquered by the Romans, who founded colonies such as Spoleto. During the period of Roman domination, , the region was the scene of some of the most famous battles in history: it was here, in fact, that was fought the Battle of Lake Trasimeno against Hannibal, and many of the battles during the Roman civil war between Mark Antony and Octavian, battles that led to the destruction of Perugia.

After the collapse of the Roman Empire, Ostrogoths and Byzantines came to conflict several times for the supremacy in the region, and the Lombards founded the Duchy of Spoleto, covering a large part of modern Umbria.

When Charlemagne conquered most of the Lombards' kingdoms, some of the Umbrian territories were given to the Pope, while some cities have acquired over time a certain autonomy, giving themself the form of communes.

During the medieval cities of Umbria have often fought each other in the context of the broader conflict between the papacy and the Holy Roman Empire, or between the Guelphs and Ghibellines.

In the fourteenth century, some cities began to take power, but soon the Papal States took control of the region, ruling it until the late eighteenth century.

After the French Revolution and the French conquest of Italy, Umbria joined the short Roman Republic (1789-1799) and, later, the Napoleonic Empire (1809-1814).

With the restoration that followed the defeat of Napoleon, the State of the Church regained control over the region, control that lasted , however, only a few years: in fact, with the Risorgimento and the expansion of Piedmont, in 1860 the region became part of the new Reign of Italy.