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The Beautiful Italy is also quite often called the country of the thousand towns "Il Paese delle Mille Cittá", with reference to the very high number of Italian towns, big and small that has an historical and artistic interest. This is particularly true in central and northern Italy where in the XIth century the lack of a centralized power favoured the development of self governed structures at town level.
These town states were so successful that in certain circumstances they were able to fight against the German emperor or the pope who both claimed to have sovereign rights over them. They built large churches and town halls as a symbol of their wealth and independence.
Some of these towns gradually became regional powers (Florence, Milan, Venice) at the expense of the others and Renaissance and Baroque monuments replaced or modified most of their medieval buildings.
In northern Latium the independence of these towns came to an end in the XIVth century when Cardinal Gil Alvarez d'Albornoz subdued them and restored the authority of the pope over the Patrimonium Petri, as what is today the province of Viterbo was called for centuries, with reference to the fact that the papal state (St. Peter's patrimony) had its origin there.
Tuscania was conquered by Cardinal Albornoz in 1354 and time seems to have come to a standstill at this point.
Tuscania it self would by many be desribed as a rather small town completely encircled by massive cyclopic walls with high towers, full of imposing churches, palaces and regular streets with ancient mansions and shops, manifestly a very rich place and of high cultural interest.
In 1348-49 a bubonic plague (The Black Death) almost halved the population of Europe. In Tuscania its impact was so heavy that the oldest part of the town where the main medieval churches like the church of S. Pietro and S. Maria Maggiore were located was abandoned.
A sensible town planning has addressed the expansion of modern Tuscania towards an area behind its western walls, preserving the very medieval view of the town from its old center.
The town of Tuscania retains most of its medieval walls and some towers protecting the palaces of the most important families. Even some of the bell towers actually have the appearance of a military building.
The Tower Torre del Lavello protected the palace of the Lavello family who in the early XVth century vainly attempted to lessen papal authority.
Tuscania was an Etruscan town of some importance and many tombs have been found in its neighbourhood. The rich were buried in sarcophagi covered by a statue where they were portrayed as if they were attending a banquet, which actually was part of the funerary ceremonies.
Tuscania was located very close to the Duchy of Castro, a small state run by the Farnese family for more than a century. Their coats of arms on the very few Renaissance buildings of Tuscania show that they really had a great influence on the town.
Tuscania is located in the region of Lazio which has quite a high seismic risk and the Renaissance church of S. Maria del Riposo was protected against the effects of earthquakes by additional walls. The monastery next to it has a very large cloister and it now hosts the archaeological museum of Tuscania.
Some of the main monument of the city is the church of Saint Peter, San Pietro, in Lombard-Romanesque style, begun in the 8th century and renovated in the 11th-12th centuries. The interior has a nave and two aisles divided by low columns and pilasters incorporating half-columns, with antique and mediaeval capitals.
Other points of interest are:
The Etruscan Museum, with sarcophagi from nearby tombs, as well as other objects from the tombs.
The Romanesque Church of Santa Maria Maggiore. It has a façade with three finely decorated portals. The interior is on a nave and two aisles, divided by columns with sculpted capitals. The recessed entrance is flanked by a pair of free standing columns intended to evoke the Boaz and Jachin of the Temple of Solomon at Jerusalem.
The Tower of Lavello
Fontana delle Sette Cannelle a Medieval fountain made with Roman materials
Etruscan necropolises, including the Tomb of the Queen and Pian di Mola.
The Cathedral was almost entirely redesigned in the XVIIIth century, but it retains its XVIth century façade built by Cardinal Gambara, the founder of Villa di Bagnaia. The fountain is thought to be a work by il Vignola, who worked for Cardinal Gambara in Bagnaia.
Tuscania has been admired for centuries for its picturesque setting, dreamy landscapes, medieval walls, cobbled streets and fine culture and foods. Filmmakers such as Pier Paolo Pasolini, Orson Welles and Franco Zeffirelli have chosen it for their films, while the town has also inspired a myriad of artists, painters, photographers and writers. In the last few years Tuscania has also developed a reputation as a center for new forms of contemporary expression and modern art: its vivid cultural life is represented by an active calendar of both arts festivals and lovely exhibitions.