Fossombrone

  - Fossombrone
  (Portraits of Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta - left - and Federico da Montefeltro - right)

If you came to this page directly, you might wish to read a page with an introduction to this section first.

Views from Corte Alta: (above) Fossombrone; (below) mountains west of the town where the Furlo Pass is situated

In 228 BC the Romans completed Via Flaminia a road which linked Rome with Ariminum (today's Rimini) on the Adriatic Sea. Via Flaminia crossed the Apennines near Cagli, but the Roman engineers had to overcome another obstacle before reaching the large valley of the River Metauro and subsequently the coast. A narrow gorge cut between two mountains by a small stream emptying into the Metauro was the only available passage. Today the pass is known as il Furlo because of a short tunnel (Lat. forulum) cut into the rock by Emperor Vespasian in 77 AD. At the end of this difficult section of their journey travellers could rest at Forum Sempronii, a Roman municipium (a town with some form of self-government), perhaps named after Gaius Sempronius Gracchus, who visited the town to implement land reform.
The Roman town was razed to the ground in the VIIIth century by the Longobards. Its inhabitants built a new settlement by the same name (corrupted into Fossombrone) on the slope of a hill to the east of the ancient one which was situated on the plain.

(left) Palazzo del Magistrato; (right) medieval windows near Palazzo del Magistrato

Initially the inhabitants of Fossombrone settled at the top of the hill, but eventually the town developed along Via Flaminia at its foot. A small square was the heart of the medieval town. Palazzo del Magistrato, probably the residence of the podest�, a foreigner appointed by the citizens to rule the town for a short period, stood on its northern side and the Cathedral (see below in the page) stood opposite it.

(left) Walls of the castle built by the Malatesta at the top of the hill; (right-above) coat of arms of the Malatesta in S. Agostino; (right-below) heraldic symbol of the Malatesta in Via Flaminia

In the first half of the XIVth century, the Malatesta, a powerful family of Rimini, were assigned Fossombrone as Vicars of the Pope. The possessions of the Malatesta were mainly situated on the coast where they controlled Pesaro, Fano and Senigallia in addition to Rimini. Fossombrone was situated inland at only ten miles from Urbino, which was ruled by the da Montefeltro. The Malatesta fortified Fossombrone by building a fortress at the top of the hill, but the fortification turned out to be useless in preventing the da Montefeltro from acquiring control over the town. In 1441 Galeazzo Malatesta was so indebted that he sold Pesaro to the Sforza and Fossombrone to the da Montefeltro.

(left) Corte Rossa (below) and Corte Alta (above); (centre) Corte Bassa; (right) coat of arms of Cardinal Giulio della Rovere in Corte Bassa

Guidobaldo I da Montefeltro, the last of his family, suffered from gout and in general he had poor health. He found the climate of Fossombrone was beneficial and he often resided there. His example was followed by the della Rovere who succeeded him as Dukes of Urbino, so that Fossombrone has three palaces where the Dukes or other members of the family spent long periods (e.g. Cardinal Giulio della Rovere, brother of Duke Guidobaldo II).

(left) En route to Corte Alta; (right) S. Maria del Popolo (1710) aka Chiesa degli Zandri

Two palaces (Corte Rossa and Corte Bassa) were in town and have not retained much of their historical significance. Corte Alta was built in a commanding position, immediately below the Malatesta fortress. A long cordonata, a sloping road with stripes of stones or bricks, starting from the main square allowed the Dukes and their guests to reach the palace on horseback (you may wish to see Cordonata Capitolina in an etching by Giuseppe Vasi).
In 1710 a small chapel was built at the end of the steps by a local wealthy family.

Corte Alta which houses a small archaeological museum

Duke Guidobaldo I died in Corte Alta which is made up of two buildings linked by a passage. The upper one houses a small archaeological museum with exhibits found in the area. The lower building enjoys a commanding view over Fossombrone and the River Metauro valley.

(left) Porticoes along Via Flaminia; (centre) Palazzo Staurenghi or Dedi; (right) Palazzo Zanchi

The presence of the Dukes and their court was beneficial for the economic development of the town. During the XVIth century several small palaces with some artistic aspects were built along Via Flaminia. They all had porticoes which were used during market days. In 1607 Fossombrone (with Urbino, Cagli, Gubbio, Pesaro and Senigallia) was one of the towns of the Duchy which were asked to appoint a member of an advisory body created by Duke Francesco Maria II (at the time aged 58) to assist his son Federico Ubaldo (at the time aged two) in case of his death. Eventually the son died before the father in 1623 and the advisory body was asked to help in the negotiations for the peaceful transition of the Duchy to the direct Papal administration which occurred in 1631.

(left) S. Agostino; (right) Cathedral

Being a bishopric seat was a positive factor for the economy of Fossombrone during direct Papal administration, but not enough to avoid its decline. Some medieval churches such as S. Agostino were enlarged or renovated. The Cathedral was almost entirely rebuilt in 1776-1784.
The image used as background for this page shows a 1512 fountain opposite the Cathedral.