Capua

Capua
/kap"yooh euh/; It. /kah"pwah/, n.
a town in NW Campania, in S Italy, N of Naples. 17,581.

* * *

Italy
Latin  Casilinum,  

      town and episcopal see, Campania region, southern Italy, on the Volturno River and the ancient Appian Way, north of Naples. Casilinum was a strategic road junction and was contended for by the Carthaginian general Hannibal and the Romans from 216 to 211 BC, during the Second Punic War; it lost its importance to ancient Capua (now Santa Maria Capua Vetere), 3 miles (5 km) southeast. Modern Capua was founded on the site of Casilinum in AD 856 by the citizens of ancient Capua, which had been destroyed by the Saracens. Modern Capua changed hands frequently in the Middle Ages and was part of the Kingdom of Naples until 1860. The town is medieval in appearance, dominated by the cathedral (founded 856), which was rebuilt after destruction in 1943. Other landmarks are the Norman castle (1050), the towers of the castle of the Holy Roman emperor Frederick II (1239), and several churches and palaces, one housing the Campano Museum. Capua has good road and rail connections; its industry includes munitions, chemical, and sugar factories. Pop. (2006 est.) mun., 19,026.

▪ ancient city, Italy
modern  Santa Maria Capua Vetere 

      in ancient times, the chief city of the Campania region of Italy; it was located 16 miles (26 km) north of Neapolis (Naples) on the site of modern Santa Maria Capua Vetere. The nearby modern city of Capua was called Casilinum in antiquity. Ancient Capua was founded in c. 600 BC, probably by the Etruscans, and came to dominate many of the surrounding communities (e.g., Casilinum, Calatia, and Atella). After the period of Etruscan domination, it fell to the Samnites, an Italic people (c. 440 BC). The people of Capua spoke the Oscan dialect of Italic. They supported the Latin Confederacy in its war against Rome in 340 BC. After Rome's victory in the war, Capua passed under Roman control as a municipium (self-governing community), and its people were granted limited Roman citizenship (without the vote). The city kept its own magistrates and language. In 312 BC Capua was connected with Rome by the Appian Way (Via Appia). Its prosperity increased and it became the second city of Italy, famous for its bronzes and perfumes. During the Second Punic War (Punic War, Second) (218–201 BC) Capua sided with Carthage against Rome. When the Romans recaptured the city in 211 BC, they deprived its citizens of political rights and replaced their magistrates with Roman prefects. The Roman colonies of Volturnum and Liternum were founded on Capuan territory in 194 BC. Spartacus, the slave leader, began his revolt at Capua in 73 BC. Although it suffered during the Roman civil wars in the last decades of the republic, it prospered under the empire (after 27 BC). The Vandals under Gaiseric sacked Capua in AD 456; later Muslim invaders (c. 840) destroyed everything except the church of Sta. Maria, which gave its name to the medieval and modern town.

      Early tombs and traces of two 6th-century-BC temples survive. Capua's Roman monuments include an amphitheatre (where Spartacus fought as a gladiator), baths, a theatre, and a temple dedicated to the god Mithra.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Capua — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Capua Escudo …   Wikipedia Español

  • Capua — Capua …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Capua — Capua,   1) Stadt in Kampanien, Provinz Caserta, Italien, an einer engen Schleife des Volturno, 19 400 Einwohner; Erzbischofssitz; Nahrungsmittelindustrie, Zuckerfabrik.   …   Universal-Lexikon

  • CAPUA — CAPUA, town in southern Italy, 13 mi. (22 km.) north of Naples. The Jewish community dates back to the last centuries of the Roman Empire. Probably Jews continued to live there afterward; the community is known to have flourished in the latter… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Capŭa [1] — Capŭa, 1) Stadt am Volturno im District Caserte der neapolitanischen Provinz Terra di Lavoro, mit Befestigungswerken; Sitz eines Erzbischofs; die große Kathedrale, deren Kuppel auf 18 antiken Säulen verschiedener Größe ruht, hat Gemälde von… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Capŭa — Capŭa, Stadt und Festung in der ital. Provinz Caserta, links am Volturno, an der Eisenbahn Rom Neapel, Sitz eines Erzbischofs, hat 18 Kirchen (darunter die Kathedrale, eine ganz modernisierte dreischiffige Basilika aus dem 11. Jahrh. mit antiken… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Capua — [kap′yo͞o ə] town in S Italy, near Naples: pop. 19,000: ancient city of Capua (destroyed A.D. 841) was on a nearby site …   English World dictionary

  • Capŭa [2] — Capŭa, Carlo Fernando, Prinz von C., zweiter Sohn des Königs beider Sicilien, Franz I., geb. 10. Oct. 1811; vermählte sich gegen den Willen desselben 1836 zu Gretna Green mit der Britin Miß Penelope Smith. Er lebte erst in England, dann an… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Capua — Capūa, befestigte Stadt in der ital. Prov. Caserta, am Volturno, (1901) 14.285 E. Das alte C., Rivalin Roms und Karthagos, sprichwörtlich wegen seiner verweichlichenden Üppigkeit, lag 4 km südöstl., bei Santa Maria C. Vetĕre (21.825 E.) …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Capua — Capua, Hauptstadt des alten Campaniens, von Tuskern gegründet, später von Samnitern besetzt, 334 v. Chr. von den Römern mit dem Bürgerrechte beschenkt. Im 2. pun. Kriege fiel die Stadt zu Hannibal ab, der hier sein Hauptquartier hatte; als die… …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

  • Capua — • Situated in the province of Caserta, Southern Italy Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006 …   Catholic encyclopedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”