Urbino

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For the bus series, see Solaris Urbino.

Urbino

Comune

Comune di Urbino

Urbino

Coat of arms

show
Location of Urbino
Urbino

Location of Urbino in Italy

Show map of Italy Show map of Marche Show all

Coordinates:  43°43′N 12°38′ECoordinates:  43°43′N 12°38′E

Country Italy

Region Marche

Province Pesaro and Urbino (PU)

Frazioni Ca' Mazzasette, Canavaccio, Castelcavallino, La Torre,

Mazzaferro, Pieve di Cagna, San Marino, Schieti,
Scotaneto, Trasanni

Government

 • Mayor Maurizio Gambini

Area

[1]
 • Total 226.50 km2 (87.45 sq mi)

Elevation 451 m (1,480 ft)

Population

 (30-4-2017)[2]

 • Total 14,786

 • Density 65/km2 (170/sq mi)

Demonym(s) Urbinate(i)

Time zone UTC+1 (CET)

 • Summer UTC+2 (CEST)
(DST)

Postal code 61029

Dialing code 0722

Patron saint St. Crescentinus

Saint day June 1

Website Official website

Historic Centre of Urbino

UNESCO World Heritage Site

 The church of San Bernardino near Urbino

Criteria Cultural: ii, iv

Reference 828

Inscription 1998 (22nd session)

Area 29.23 ha

Buffer zone 3,608.5 ha

The Ducal Palace.

A view from Urbino

 View of the Duomo.

Urbino (UK: /ɜːrˈbiːnoʊ/ ur-BEE-noh,[3] Italian: [urˈbiːno] ( listen)) is a walled city in

the Marche region of Italy, south-west of Pesaro, a World Heritage Site notable for a
remarkable historical legacy of independent Renaissance culture, especially under the
patronage of Federico da Montefeltro, duke of Urbino from 1444 to 1482. The town,
nestled on a high sloping hillside, retains much of its picturesque medieval aspect. It
hosts the University of Urbino, founded in 1506, and is the seat of the Archbishop of
Urbino. Its best-known architectural piece is the Palazzo Ducale, rebuilt by Luciano
Laurana.

Contents

 1Geography
 2History
o 2.1Origins and Middle Ages
o 2.2Period of Federico da Montefeltro
o 2.3Cesare Borgia and the years of the Duchy Della Rovere
o 2.4Annexation by the Papal States
o 2.5The Albani and the French occupation
o 2.6Redevelopment of the nineteenth century
o 2.7Unification of Italy
o 2.8First half of the twentieth century
o 2.9Urbino and De Carlo
 3Maiolica
 4Main sights
o 4.1Palaces and public buildings
o 4.2Churches
o 4.3Other points of interest
 5Notable people
 6See also
 7References
 8Sources
 9Further reading
 10External links
Geography[edit]
The city is located in a predominantly hilly area, at the foothills of the Northern
Apennines and the Tuscan-Romagnolo Apennines. The city is in the southern area
of Montefeltro, an area classified as medium-high seismic risk. In the database of
earthquakes developed by the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology, nearly
65 seismic events have affected the town of Urbino between 26 March 1511 and 26
March 1998. They include 24 April 1741, when the shocks were stronger than VIII on
the Mercalli intensity scale, with an epicenter in Fabriano (where it reached 6.08 on the
moment magnitude scale).[4]

History[edit]

Antique plan of Urbino (1689) by Tommaso Luci.

Origins and Middle Ages[edit]

The modest Roman town of Urbinum Mataurense ("the little city on the river
Mataurus") became an important strategic stronghold in the Gothic Wars of the 6th
century, captured in 538 from the Ostrogoths by the Byzantine general Belisarius, and
frequently mentioned by the historian Procopius.
Though Pepin the Short (King of the Franks) presented Urbino to the Papacy in 754–56,
independent traditions were expressed in its commune, until, around 1200, it came into
the possession of the House of Montefeltro. Although these noblemen had no direct
authority over the commune, they could pressure it to elect them to the position
of podestà, a title that Bonconte di Montefeltro managed to obtain in 1213, with the
result that Urbino's population rebelled and formed an alliance with the independent
commune of Rimini (1228), finally regaining control of the town in 1234. Eventually,
though, the Montefeltro noblemen took control once more, and held it until 1508. In the
struggles between the Guelphs and Ghibellines, when factions supported either the
Papacy or the Holy Roman Empire respectively, the 13th and 14th century Montefeltro
lords of Urbino were leaders of the Ghibellines of the Marche and in
the Romagna region.
Period of Federico da Montefeltro[edit]
The most famous member of the Montefeltro family, Federico da Montefeltro, ruled as
Duke of Urbino from 1444 to 1482. A very successful condottiere, a skillful diplomat and
an enthusiastic patron of art and literature, he took over in 1444 as the son
of Guidantonio, after a conspiracy and the murder of the legitimate Oddantonio, hated
for his "unbridled lust" and for the excessive taxation exercised during his seventeen
months in office.
Federico set his hand to the political imperative and began a reorganization of the state,
which also included a restructuring of the city according to a modern conception -
comfortable, efficient and beautiful. Thanks to his efforts, for the nearly four decades of
his rule the government aimed at this purpose, and thanks to the Duke's extraordinary
qualities combined with a considerable fortune, he fully realized this dream.
At his court, Piero della Francesca wrote on the science of perspective, Francesco di
Giorgio Martini wrote his Trattato di architettura (Treatise on Architecture)
and Raphael's father, Giovanni Santi, wrote his poetical account of the chief artists of
his time. Federico's brilliant court, according to the descriptions in Baldassare
Castiglione's Il Cortegiano (The Book of the Courtier, published in 1528), set standards
of what would characterize a modern European "gentleman" for centuries to come.