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Ville d'Aoste <br> Comune di Aosta
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Aosta Valley
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none
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583
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21
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December 31 , 2004
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34,270
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1,616
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CET , UTC +1
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Arpuilles, Cache, Champailler, Entrebin, Excenex, Laravoire, Porossan, Seyssinod, Signayes, Vignole, Cossan
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0165
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11100
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Aostani (Aostains)
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St Gratus
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September 7
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Guido Grimod
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wwwcomuneaostait
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( in the
Italian Alps , 110km north-northwest of
Turin . It is situated near the Italian entrance of the
Mont Blanc Tunnel , at the confluence of the
Buthier and the
Dora Baltea , and at the junction of the
Great and
Little St. Bernard routes. Aosta is not the capital of the province, as these functions are shared by the region and the communes.
Aosta was settled in proto-historic times and later became a
Celtic -
Ligurian city of the
Salassi .
Terentius Varro captured it in
25 BC and founded the
Roman colony of ''Augusta Praetoria''. After
11 BC Aosta became the capital of the ''Alpes Graies'' ("Grey Alps") province of the
Empire .
After the fall of the
Western Empire , the city was conquered by the
Burgundians , the
Ostrogoth s, the
Byzantines . The
Lombards , who had annexed it to their Italian kingdom, were expelled by the
Frank s of
Pepin The Younger . Under
Charlemagne Aosta acquired importance as a post on the
Via Francigena , leading from
Aachen to
Italy . After
888 it was part of the renewed Kingdom of Italy under
Arduin Of Ivrea and
Berengar Of Friuli .
In the
10th Century Aosta became part of the
Kingdom Of Burgundy . After the fall of the latter in
1032 , it entered the lands of
Umberto I Biancamano of the
House Of Savoy . After the creation of the
County Of Savoy , with its capital in
Chambéry , Aosta followed its history, as well as the later
Kingdom Of Sardinia and unified Italy.
Under the House of Savoy, Aosta was granted a special status that it maintained when the new Italian Republic was proclaimed in
1948 .
The main monuments of the city include:
- The Arch of Augustus, erected in 35 BC to celebrate the victory of the Roman troops led by consul Varro Murene over the local Salassi.
- The ''Porta Praetoria'' ( 1st Century AD), once the eastern gate to the city, which has preserved its original forms apart from the marble covering. It is formed by two series of arches enclosing a small square.
- The Roman theatre, of which the southern façade remains today, 22 m tall. The structure, dating from the late reign of .
- The Cathedral Of Aosta , built in the 4th Century and replaced in the 11th Century by a new edifice dedicate to the Madonna. It is annexed to the Roman Forum.
- The Romanesque - Gothic '' Sant'Orso '' (Saint-Ours). Its most evocative feature is the ancient cloister, which can be entered through a hall on the left of the façade. It is dedicated to Ursus Of Aosta .
- The Saint-Bénin College, built about 1000 by the Benedictine s. It is now an exhibition site.
- Of the 20 towers of the Roman walls the following are well preserved:
- ---''Tour du lépreux'', which has been given this name after a leper was jailed there in the late 17th Century . ''Le lépreux de la cité d'Aoste'', a novel by Xavier De Maistre , was named after this tower.
- ---''Tour Neuve'' ( 13th Century ).
- ---''Tour du Pailleron''.
- ---Tower (Castle) of Bramafan, built in the 11th century over a Roman bastion. It was the residence of the Savoy viscounts. The Franco-Provençal term ''Bramafan'' is translated as "He who screams for hunger".
- ---''Tour du Baillage''.
- ---''Tour Fromage'' ("Cheese tower").
