- Umbertide
Infobox CityIT
img_coa =umbertide-Stemma.gif
official_name = Comune di Umbertide
name = Cerreto di Umbertide
region =Umbria
province = Perugia (PG)
elevation_m = 247
area_total_km2 = 200
population_as_of =2004-12-31
population_total = 15603
population_density_km2 = 78
timezone = CET, UTC+1
coordinates = coord|43|18|N|12|20|E|
frazioni = Badia, Calzolaro, Castelvecchio, Comunaglia, Leoncini, Mita, Molino Vitelli, Montecastelli, Niccone, Pierantonio,Preggio , Spedalicchio
telephone =075
postalcode =06019
gentilic =Umbertidesis
saint = Madonna della Reggia
day =september 8
mayor = Giampiero Giulietti (since June 2004)
website = [http://www.comune.umbertide.it/ www.comune.umbertide.it]Umbertide is a town and "comune" (township) of
Italy , in theprovince of Perugia in northwesternUmbria , at the confluence of the Reggia river and theTiber . It is 30 km (19 mi) North ofPerugia and 20 km (12 mi) South ofCittà di Castello . With 15,300 inhabitants according to the 2003 census, Umbertide is one of the larger towns of Umbria; and basically flat, which is relatively unusual for the region. It is an important regional industrial center producing machine tools, farm machinery, textiles, packaging material, and ceramics.History
Umbertide or the surrounding area was inhabited in pre-Roman and Roman times: the 19th‑century archaeologist
Mariano Guardabassi even attributed a small building at Lame, about 1 km from the center of the modern town, to the Etruscans, although this is by no means certain The Roman town of "Pitulum", destroyed byTotila in the mid-6th century, may account for Roman remains in S. Maria delle Sette. In its present incarnation, Umbertide was founded in the 8th or 10th century, depending on the scholar; its original name was Fratta, and it received its present name in 1863 in honor of then Crown Prince Umberto.Main sights
Although there are remains of the medieval walls, a few medieval houses, and part of the Rocca or citadel, many of Umbertide's best monuments are of later periods. The main church in town is the collegiate church of S. Maria della Reggia, often referred to simply as the "Collegiata": it is an octagonal 16th century brick building topped by an elegant cupola, housing a few paintings by
Pomarancio . S. Maria della Pietà, with the attractive funerary chapel of the counts of Sorbello, is late medieval andRenaissance . The 17th‑century church of S. Croce houses a museum with a good collection of paintings, including a Deposition byLuca Signorelli . The largest church, S. Francesco, is Gothic: in the early 21st century it was undergoing a major restoration that promised to be protracted. The 20th‑century church of Cristo Risorto is also noteworthy.Beyond the city limits, the township's principal monuments are:
*the castle of Civitella Ranieri, 5 km (3 mi) NE, one of the best-preserved medieval fortresses in Umbria.
*the abbey of S. Salvatore di Montecorona 4 km (2.5 mi) S, which has a beautiful 11th‑century crypt with early Romanesque capitals and naïve 18th century painted ceilings.
*the medieval castle of Polgeto
*the abbey church of S. Bartolomeo de' Fossi ,strikingly sited on a sharp ridge with distant views on either side
*the walled medieval village of Borgo S. GiulianaExternal links
* [http://www.comune.umbertide.it/ Official Site]
* [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/Europe/Italy/Umbria/Perugia/Umbertide/Umbertide/home.html Bill Thayer's site]"(Incorporates text from Bill Thayer's site, by permission.)"
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