Cesena (ancient Caesena) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy, south of Ravenna and west of Rimini, on the Savio River, population (july 2004) 93,110, co-chief of the Province of Forli-Cesena. It is at the foot of the Apennines, and about 15 km (10 mi) from the Adriatic Sea.

It is notable as the birthplace of Pope Pius VI and Pope Pius VII, and once had Pope Pius VIII as bishop, and is therefore calls itself the "city of the three popes".

Cesena was originally an Umbrian town, then taken over by Romans in the 3rd century BC. It was a garrison town of strategic importance which was destroyed in the wars between Marius and Sulla. Pliny mentions the wines of Cesena as among the best.

Cesena was on the border that the Exarchate of Ravenna shared with the Lombards. It was presented to the Papacy by its Frankish conqueror in 754 and passed back and forth between the popes and the archbishops of Ravenna, was briefly a communal republic 1183 - 1198 and was long contested between popes and Holy Roman Emperors a fief held sometimes by the Malatesta, sometimes directly held by the papacy, not without resistance. The heroic defense of the town by Cia, wife of the Lord of Forli against beseiging Papal troops in 1357 was ultimately unsuccessful. The little commune revolted again in 1377. This time it was recaptured by troops of Ser John Hawkwood the English-born condottiere under the command of Robert, Cardinal of Geneva, the late anti-Pope Clement VII who, acting as the legate of Pope Gregory XI directed the savage murder of thousands of civilians, an atrocity by the rules of war at the time that earned the label the "Cesena Bloodbath" and the cardinal the "butcher of Cesena." In 1377, Robert of Geneva, (and later Antipope Clement VII) sacked the town, massacring many of the inhabitants. But during the period 1379-1465, it recovered and prospered, once more under the rule of the Malatesta, who rebuilt the castle (called Rocca Malatestiana) overlooking the town. The Malatestiana Library, near the castle, is considered a fine example of a Renaissance library and holds many valuable manuscripts.

Cesena's industry centers on agriculture, handicrafts, and tourism.

External links

• Cesena home page (Italian) (http://www.comune.cesena.fc.it)
• Cesena history and info in English (http://www.comune.cesena.fc.it/cesena/turismo/lacittaEng.asp)
• Cesena info in English (http://poseidon.csr.unibo.it/ain/general.htm)
• Detailed timeline of Cesena's rulers (http://www.hostkingdom.net/rome.html)

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