Troia, Apulia

Troia
Comune
Città di Troia
Cathedral of Troia at night Cathedral of Troia at night
Troia Location of Troia in Italy
Coordinates:
Country	Italy
Region	Apulia
Province / Metropolitan city	Foggia (FG)
Frazioni	Borgo Giardinetto
Government
• Mayor	Edoardo Beccia
Area
• Total	167.22 km2 (64.56 sq mi)
Elevation	439 m (1,440 ft)
Population (1 August 2009)
• Total	7,414
• Density	44/km2 (110/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	Troiani
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	71029
Dialing code	0881
Patron saint	Sts. Urbanus, Pontianus, Heleuterius, Anastasius and Secondinus
Saint day	July 17
Website	Official website

Troia (Greek: Αῖ̓και, transliterated as Aika or Aikai or Ece; Latin: Aecae or Æcæ; also formerly Troja) is a town and comune in the province of Foggia and region of Apulia in southern Italy.

History

According to the legend, Troia (Aecae) was founded by the Greek hero Diomedes, who had destroyed the ancient Troy.

Aecae was mentioned both by Polybius and Livy, during the military operations of Hannibal and Fabius Maximus in Apulia. In common with many other Apulian cities it had joined the Carthaginians after the battle of Cannae, but was recovered by Fabius Maximus in 214 BC, though not without a regular siege. Pliny also enumerates the Aecani among the inland towns of Apulia (iii. 11); but its position is more clearly determined by the Itineraries, which place it on the Appian Way between Aequum Tuticum and Herdonia, at a distance of 29 to 31 kilometres (18 to 19 mi) from the latter city. This interval exactly accords with the position of the modern city of Troia, and confirms the statements of several chroniclers of the Middle Ages, that the latter was founded about the beginning of the 11th century, on the ruins of the ancient Aecae.

Cluverius erroneously identified Aecae with Accadia, a village in the mountains south of Bovino; but his error was rectified by Holstenius. Troia is an episcopal see, and a place of some consideration; it stands on a hill of moderate elevation, rising above the fertile plain of Apulia, and is 15 kilometres (9 mi) south of Lucera, and 22 kilometres (14 mi) southwest of Foggia.

The current Troia was founded as a fortified town in Apulia in 1018 by Basil Boiannes. It defended the entrance into the Apulian plain from the Normans. Until overshadowed by Foggia, it was an important strategic town in southern Italy, and was several times besieged, notably, by the emperors Henry II and Frederick II. After the latter's fall, it sided for the Angevines, and later, against the former, for the Aragonese.

After the Piedmontese led conquest of Southern Italy (1861), Troia rebelled and the Savoy troops intervened with the use of cannons.

Main sights

• Troia Cathedral, an example of Apulian Romanesque architecture
• Basilica of St. Basil (11th century)
• Baroque church of St. Francis
• Church of San Vincenzo (10th century)
• Palazzo Principi d'Avalos
• Jesuits' Palace (16th century)
• Municipal Museum, with archaeological findings from the area and an art gallery
• Diocesan Museum, housed in the 18th century Benedictine Nunnery, and the New Museum of the Cathedral's Treasure. The latter is home to medieval rolls of the Exultet.

Transportation

File:Troia cathedral.jpg

The façade of Troia Cathedral

It is the only municipality in Italy to provide free public transport.

See also

• Roman Catholic Diocese of Lucera-Troia

Sources and references

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: 

External links

• Adrian Fletcher’s Paradoxplace – Troia Photo Page