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Chiavenna (SO)
Encyclopedia
This article is about the Italian municipality. For the astronomer, see Paolo Chiavenna
.
Chiavenna is a comune
(municipality) in the Province of Sondrio
in the Italian
region Lombardy
, located about 100 km north of Milan
and about 40 km northwest of Sondrio
. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 7,263 and an area of 11.1 km².
The municipality of Chiavenna contains the frazioni
(subdivisions, mainly villages and hamlets) Campedello, Loreto, Pianazzola, and San Carlo.
Chiavenna borders the following municipalities: Mese
, Piuro
, Prata Camportaccio
, San Giacomo Filippo
.
Chiavenna, the Roman
Clavenna, was a town of Rhaetia, on the Italian side of the Alps
, about 16 km from the head of the Lacus Larius (modern Lake Como
), at the foot of the Valle Spluga
which leads up to the Splügen Pass
. The Itineraries demonstrate that the pass was frequented in ancient times; as well as another, which separated from it at Clavenna, and led by a more circuitous route over to Curia (modern Chur
), where it rejoined the preceding road. (Itin. Ant. pp. 277, 278; Tab. Peut.; P. Diac. vi. 29.) It was by one or other of these passes that Stilicho
crossed the Alps in midwinter, a feat celebrated by Claudian
(de B. Get. 320-358). After the collapse of the Western Roman Empire
the city marked the northern limit of the Ostrogothic Kingdom
in Italy. Clavenna was retaken by the Romans in the mid 6th century during the reign of Justinian and avoided capture by the Lombards
until the 7th century. Clavenna probably derived some importance from its position at the junction of these two passes, as does the modern town of Chiavenna, which is the chief town of the surrounding district.
Paolo Chiavenna
Paolo Chiavenna is an Italian astronomer who is active at the Sormano Astronomical Observatory in the north Italian province of Como. The observatory was founded in 1987 and is a member of the GIA , an Italian association of amateur astronomers who specialize in the observation of minor bodies...
.
Chiavenna is a comune
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
(municipality) in the Province of Sondrio
Province of Sondrio
The Province of Sondrio is in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the town of Sondrio.It has an area of 3,212 km², and a total population of 176,856...
in the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
region Lombardy
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
, located about 100 km north of Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
and about 40 km northwest of Sondrio
Sondrio
Sondrio is an Italian town and comune located in the heart of the Valtellina. Sondrio counts approximately 22,000 inhabitants and it is the administrative centre for the Lombard Province of Sondrio.- History :...
. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 7,263 and an area of 11.1 km².
The municipality of Chiavenna contains the frazioni
Frazione
A frazione , in Italy, is the name given in administrative law to a type of territorial subdivision of a comune; for other administrative divisions, see municipio, circoscrizione, quartiere...
(subdivisions, mainly villages and hamlets) Campedello, Loreto, Pianazzola, and San Carlo.
Chiavenna borders the following municipalities: Mese
Mese
Mese may refer to:*Mese, Burma, a town in Kayah State of eastern Myanmar*Mese, Lombardy, a comune in the province of Sondrio, Italy* Mese, the Hungarian name for Meşendorf village, Buneşti Commune, Braşov County, Romania...
, Piuro
Piuro
Piuro is a comune in the Province of Sondrio in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 100 km north of Milan and about 40 km northwest of Sondrio, on the border with Switzerland...
, Prata Camportaccio
Prata Camportaccio
Prata Camportaccio is a comune in the Province of Sondrio in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 100 km north of Milan and about 40 km northwest of Sondrio...
, San Giacomo Filippo
San Giacomo Filippo
San Giacomo Filippo is a comune in the Province of Sondrio in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 100 km north of Milan and about 45 km northwest of Sondrio, on the border with Switzerland...
.
Location and history
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
Clavenna, was a town of Rhaetia, on the Italian side of the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
, about 16 km from the head of the Lacus Larius (modern Lake Como
Lake Como
Lake Como is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of 146 km², making it the third largest lake in Italy, after Lake Garda and Lake Maggiore...
), at the foot of the Valle Spluga
Valle Spluga
The Valle Spluga, also known as the Val San Giacomo, is an Alpine valley in the north Italian Province of Sondrio , which extends from the Splügen Pass, on the border with Switzerland, south to Chiavenna. It is the valley of the river Liro....
which leads up to the Splügen Pass
Splügen Pass
The Splügen Pass is a high mountain pass which marks the boundary between the Lepontine and Rhaetian Alps....
. The Itineraries demonstrate that the pass was frequented in ancient times; as well as another, which separated from it at Clavenna, and led by a more circuitous route over to Curia (modern Chur
Chur
Chur or Coire is the capital of the Swiss canton of Graubünden and lies in the northern part of the canton.-History:The name "chur" derives perhaps from the Celtic kora or koria, meaning "tribe", or from the Latin curia....
), where it rejoined the preceding road. (Itin. Ant. pp. 277, 278; Tab. Peut.; P. Diac. vi. 29.) It was by one or other of these passes that Stilicho
Stilicho
Flavius Stilicho was a high-ranking general , Patrician and Consul of the Western Roman Empire, notably of Vandal birth. Despised by the Roman population for his Germanic ancestry and Arian beliefs, Stilicho was in 408 executed along with his wife and son...
crossed the Alps in midwinter, a feat celebrated by Claudian
Claudian
Claudian was a Roman poet, who worked for Emperor Honorius and the latter's general Stilicho.A Greek-speaking citizen of Alexandria and probably not a Christian convert, Claudian arrived in Rome before 395. He made his mark with a eulogy of his two young patrons, Probinus and Olybrius, thereby...
(de B. Get. 320-358). After the collapse of the Western Roman Empire
Western Roman Empire
The Western Roman Empire was the western half of the Roman Empire after its division by Diocletian in 285; the other half of the Roman Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire, commonly referred to today as the Byzantine Empire....
the city marked the northern limit of the Ostrogothic Kingdom
Ostrogothic Kingdom
The Kingdom established by the Ostrogoths in Italy and neighbouring areas lasted from 493 to 553. In Italy the Ostrogoths replaced Odoacer, the de facto ruler of Italy who had deposed the last emperor of the Western Roman Empire in 476. The Gothic kingdom reached its zenith under the rule of its...
in Italy. Clavenna was retaken by the Romans in the mid 6th century during the reign of Justinian and avoided capture by the Lombards
Lombards
The Lombards , also referred to as Longobards, were a Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin, who from 568 to 774 ruled a Kingdom in Italy...
until the 7th century. Clavenna probably derived some importance from its position at the junction of these two passes, as does the modern town of Chiavenna, which is the chief town of the surrounding district.