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Visit Narni

Narni is placed on the borders between the Umbria and Lazio, along the Flaminia Road [Via Flaminia], which began from Rome and continued towards the Middle and Northern Adriatic Seaports. Its location on the Via Flaminia made it an important, prosperous and rich city not only in Roman Age, but also later on.

Narni history

In the Middle Ages Narni suffered from barbarian invasions and for some time was occupied by the Longobards; then in the following centuries belonged to the famous Countess of Canossa. Unfortunately, the invasions in the Modern Age had some serious consequences on the artistic heritage of the city, which was largely destroyed in the 16th century by Spanish troops of Charles V, for which numerous works both historical and artistic were forever lost. In the 17th and the 18th century Narni had considerable importance for some mining and commercial activities.

The recommended route for a cultural tour of Narni is the following: start from Piazza Garibaldi, which a long time ago was called "Square of the Lake" [Piazza del Lago], because of the presence of a large water cistern. Rising from Piazza Garibaldi, we trace the route of the ancient Via Flaminia, passing the so-called front door of the Bishop" [La Porta del Vescovo].

Soon you will reach Piazza Cavour, where you will find the Cathedral, preserving in the façade the appearance it had in the 13th century with its three front entrances. There are also visible some transformations operated by the Lombardi Masters in the 14th and 15th centuries, who worked an elevation of the Cathedral itself. The monument to the Saints Juvenal and Cassius, rebuilt in its present form in the mid-17th century, are still visible in the aisle fourth on the right.

Continuing along Via Garibaldi we come to Piazza dei Priori, in the heart of the ancient Roman and medieval city. There is the "Podestàs Palace" on the left and on the right the Piazza dei Priori", with the Torre Civica nearby. The Palazzo del Podestà today is the seat of the Municipal Council; here, in a separate room, is the Library, where they keep some manuscripts of the 15th century. The Palazzo dei Priori (attributed to the Gattapone [Architect-Gubbio: 1300-1383]) was the House of the Fathers Scolopi (19th century), who here founded a city school.

In the square there are also the Municipal Theater (19th century) and the Church of St. Francis (13th century).

The tourist route through Narni may continue along Via Mazzini, where we can admire two Palaces of the seventeenth century (Bocciarellis Palace and Moscas Palace) and the ancient Church of Santa Maria Pensole, divided into three aisles and with some capitals of different type.

From Piazza Mazzini we come to Piazza XII Giugno, where the Church of St. Domenico (12th century) is situated. It contains important works of art, such as "The Annunciation", of the painter Benozzo Gozzoli (Benozzo from Lese, Florence: 1420-1497). The square also has other important palaces, then continuing on Via delle Mura you can see the remains of the ancient fortifications and the walls (15th century) of Narni.

Next we reach Porta Nuova and Porta delle Fiere, where they are important Palaces of the 15th century,such as the famous Gattamelatas House". We can admire the impressive Cappoccias Palace in Gattamelata Street in Narni.

A very important and significant Church ( Santa Margherita, 17th century) is located in the southern part of the city, called "Terziere di Mezule".

We conclude that Narni offers a series of various services to tourists: at least twenty restaurants, inns and pizzerias; and some Agriturismi, scattered in the surrounding territory.