Ordona Griko: Herdonìa | |
---|---|
Comune di Ordona | |
Coordinates: 41°19′N15°38′E / 41.317°N 15.633°E | |
Country | Italy |
Region | Apulia |
Province | Foggia (FG) |
Area | |
• Total | 39.96 km2 (15.43 sq mi) |
Elevation | 120 m (390 ft) |
Population (31 December 2003) [2] | |
• Total | 2,584 |
• Density | 65/km2 (170/sq mi) |
Demonym | Ordonesi |
Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
Postal code | 71040 |
Dialing code | 0885 |
Patron saint | San Leone Vescovo |
Saint day | 22 January |
Ordona is a small town and comune of the province of Foggia in the region of Apulia in southern Italy.
Ascoli Satriano, Carapelle, Foggia, Orta Nova, Cerignola are nearby towns.
Ordona lies near the ancient site of Herdonia or Herdoniae, a Roman town where Hannibal fought a major battle against the Roman Army. The ruins of Herdonia were discovered in the years after the Second World War, and remain only partially excavated; they are a short drive from the present-day town.
The ancient centre, founded by the Daunians, immediately enjoyed a noteworthy development and saw its maximum splendour. Its economic decline began during the 4th century BC. The construction of defensive walls during this period suggests a period of battles with other centres in the region, probably comprising clashes with the Greek hegemonic cities in the territory, among them neighbouring Taranto. [3] It passed over to the Romans, with the rest of Apulia, after the wars of the Greek-Messapian League, commanded by King Pyrrhus of Epirus (280–275 BC). Herdonia was a protagonist during the Second Punic War (219–202 BC) and in particular, during the events linked to the war's most famous battle at Cannae on 2 August 216 BC. According to the Roman historian Livy, after the Battle of Cannae the City passed to Hannibal, but then was soon recovered by the Romans, in 214 BC; it was taken once more by the Carthaginian General Hannibal who demolished it completely and saw its population transferred to Metaponto and Turi. From this moment on, the city did not recover until its insertion along the Via Traiana route, a coastal alternative of the Via Appia (Appian Way), at the beginning of the 2nd century AD. [3] Today's central habitation began in the 9th century, but had difficulties in developing due to terrible conditions in the territory. In fact, during the Medieval era, the Tavoliere delle Puglie (Apulian Table) lost its agricultural vocation and became a main transhumance for sheep arriving from all of central Italy. The Jesuits took over the centre and tried to push Ordona's economy by reclaiming part of its territory and allowing families to settle here. In 1774, Ordona became part of royal Bourbon property, allowing important new reclamation work to take place throughout the entire 19th century. Remains from the Roman Erdonia are situated in the following areas: the Forum, the Augustea Basilica, a part of the Via Traiana route where one can visit the remains of shops and the Market (Macellum), the remains of a temple from the Imperial era, the Amphitheatre and thermal baths with mosaic flooring. Below this level, in the area of the Basilica, finds uncovered tombs and houses from the Daunian city. The diffusion of Christianity is testified by the remains of a Paleochristian Basilica from the 6th century AD. Today's digs[ timeframe? ] have still not touched all the various levels and the Herdonia site could still reserve many surprises for archaeologists and enthusiastic visitors. [3]
Ordona's economy is agricultural.
HannibalBarca was a Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Punic War.
The Second Punic War was the second of three wars fought between Carthage and Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For 17 years the two states struggled for supremacy, primarily in Italy and Iberia, but also on the islands of Sicily and Sardinia and, towards the end of the war, in North Africa. After immense materiel and human losses on both sides, the Carthaginians were once again defeated. Macedonia, Syracuse and several Numidian kingdoms were drawn into the fighting, and Iberian and Gallic forces fought on both sides. There were three main military theatres during the war: Italy, where Hannibal defeated the Roman legions repeatedly, with occasional subsidiary campaigns in Sicily, Sardinia and Greece; Iberia, where Hasdrubal, a younger brother of Hannibal, defended the Carthaginian colonial cities with mixed success before moving into Italy; and Africa, where Rome finally won the war.
Apulia, also known by its Italian name Puglia, is a region of Italy, located in the southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Otranto and Ionian Sea to the southeast and the Gulf of Taranto to the south. The region comprises 19,345 square kilometers (7,469 sq mi), and its population is about four million people. It is bordered by the other Italian regions of Molise to the north, Campania to the west, and Basilicata to the southwest. The regional capital is Bari.
This article concerns the period 219 BC – 210 BC.
Year 216 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Varro and Paullus. The denomination 216 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Canosa di Puglia, generally known simply as Canosa, is a town and comune in the province of Barletta-Andria-Trani, Apulia, southern Italy. It is located between Bari and Foggia, on the northwestern edge of the plateau of the Murgia which dominates the Ofanto valley and the extensive plains of Tavoliere delle Puglie, ranging from Mount Vulture at the Gargano, to the Adriatic coast. Canosa, the Roman Canusium, is considered the principal archaeological center of Apulia, and is one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in Italy. A number of vases and other archaeological finds are located in local museums and private collections. It is not far from the position on the Ofanto River where the Romans found refuge after the defeat of the Battle of Cannae and is the burial place of Bohemund I of Antioch.
Barletta is a city and former comune in Apulia, in southeastern Italy. Barletta is the capoluogo, together with Andria and Trani, of the Province of Barletta-Andria-Trani. It has a population of around 94,700 citizens.
The province of Foggia is a province in the Apulia region of Italy.
Arpi, Argyrippa, and Argos Hippium was an ancient city of Apulia, Italy, 16 miles (26 km) west of the sea coast, and 2 miles (3.5 km) north of modern Foggia. The first name was Argos Hippium then Argyrippa and later Arpi.
Cerignola is a town and comune of Apulia, Italy, in the province of Foggia, 40 kilometres southeast from the town of Foggia. It has the third-largest land area of any comune in Italy, at 593.71 square kilometres (229.23 sq mi), after Rome and Ravenna and it has the largest land area of any comune in Italy among those that are not the provincial capital. In 2017, it had a population of 58,534.
The first Battle of Herdonia was fought in 212 BC during the Second Punic War between Hannibal's Carthaginian army and Roman forces led by Praetor Gnaeus Fulvius Flaccus, brother of the consul. The Roman army was destroyed, leaving Apulia free of Romans for the year.
The second battle of Herdonia took place in 210 BC during the Second Punic War. Hannibal, leader of the Carthaginians, who had invaded Italy eight years earlier, encircled and destroyed a Roman army which was operating against his allies in Apulia. The heavy defeat increased the war's burden on Rome and, piled on previous military disasters, aggravated the relations with her exhausted Italian allies. For Hannibal the battle was a tactical success, but did not halt for long the Roman advance. Within the next three years the Romans reconquered most of the territories and cities lost at the beginning of the war and pushed the Carthaginian general to the southwestern end of the Apennine peninsula. The battle was the last Carthaginian victory of the war; all battles which followed were either inconclusive or Roman victories.
The Battle of Numistro was fought in 210 BC between Hannibal's army and one of the Roman consular armies led by consul Marcus Claudius Marcellus. It was the fourth time they met in a battle. Previous encounters were located around the walls of Nola (Campania) in 216, 215, and 214 and had been favourable for the Roman side.
Troia is a town and comune in the province of Foggia and region of Apulia in southern Italy.
Anzano di Puglia is a small town and comune in the province of Foggia and region of Apulia in southeast Italy. It rises 760 metres (2,490 ft) above sea level.
Ascoli Satriano is a town and comune in the province of Foggia in the Apulia region of southeast Italy. It is located on the edge of a large plain in Northern Apulia known as the Tavoliere delle Puglie.
Orta Nova is a town and comune about 25.4 kilometres (15.8 mi) from Foggia, in the region of Apulia, in southern Italy. It stretches to the southern part of the Tavoliere on the right bank of the river Carapelle.
Panni is a village and comune in the province of Foggia in the Apulia region of southeast Italy.
The Daunians were an Iapygian tribe that inhabited northern Apulia in classical antiquity. Two other Iapygian tribes, the Peucetians and the Messapians, inhabited central and southern Apulia respectively. All three tribes spoke the Messapic language, but had developed separate archaeological cultures by the seventh century BC.