Oderzo

Oderzo
—  Comune  —
Comune di Oderzo
Piazza Grande (Main Square).
Coat of arms
Oderzo Location of Oderzo in Italy
Coordinates: 45°46′48″N 12°29′17″E / 45.78°N 12.48806°E / 45.78; 12.48806
Country	Italy
Region	Veneto
Province	Treviso (TV)
Frazioni	Camino, Colfrancui, Faè, Fratta, Rustignè, Piavon
Government
- Mayor	Pietro Dalla Libera
Area
- Total	42 km2 (16.2 sq mi)
Elevation	14 m (46 ft)
Population (31 December 2008)
- Total	20,094
- Density	478.4/km2 (1,239.1/sq mi)
Demonym	Opitergini
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
- Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	31046
Dialing code	0422
Patron saint	San Tiziano
Saint day	16 January
Website	Official website

Oderzo (Latin: Opitergium) is a town and comune in the province of Treviso, Veneto, northern Italy. It lies in the heart of the Venetian plain, about 66 km to the northeast of Venice. Oderzo is traversed by the Monticano River, a tributary of the Livenza.

The centro storico, or town center, is rich with archeological ruins which give insight into Oderzo's history as a notable crossroad in the Roman Empire.

Political division

The six suburbs or frazioni which surround Oderzo almost in the form of a hexagon. Starting from the north and then proceeding clockwise, they are:

Camino (c. 2,300 inhabitant) Fratta (c, 1,000 inhabitants) Piavon (c. 1,800 inhabitants)

Rustignè (c. 500 inhabitants) Faè (850 inabitants) Colfrancui (1,400 inhabitants)

History

Venetic period

The earliest settlement of the area can be dated to the Iron Age, around the 10th century BC. From the mid-9th century BC the Veneti occupied site and gave it its name. Etymologically, "-terg-" in Opitergium stems from a Venetic root word indicating a market (q.v. Tergeste, the old name of Trieste). The location of Oderzo on the Venetian plain made it ideal as a center for trade.

Remains of a Roman villa in the Roman Forum.

Romanization

The Veneti of Oderzo appear to have maintained friendly relations with the Romans and the population was gradually Romanized. The Via Postumia road, finished in 148 BC, increased the importance of Oderzo.

During the Roman Civil War, Caius Volteius Capito, a centurion born in Oderzo, fought on the side of Julius Caesar against Pompey.

In 48 BC the city was elevated to the rank of Roman municipium and its citizens assigned to the Roman tribe Papiria. With the reforms of Augustus Oderzo was incorporated into Regio X of Italia, Venetia et Histria. The Roman era witnessed prodigious building projects including a forum, a basilica, temples and many private homes.

Middle Ages

During the barbarian invasions, Oderzo was sacked by the Marcomanni (167) while, according to a local legend, Attila hid a treasure in a town's pit. Under the Byzantine Empire, it became the seat of an exarch and was held by the Byzantines until its destruction by the Lombard king Grimoald in 667. Much of its population fled to the nearby city of Heraclea, still under Byzantine control. Most of its territory passed to the Count of Ceneda.

According to tradition, the first Doge of Venice, Paolo Lucio Anafesto, came from Oderzo. The town, which had grown again around a castel from c. 1000, was contended between the bishops of Belluno and Ceneda, the comune of Treviso and the feudal da Camino (originary of the Camino castle, now part of Oderzo) and da Romano families until, in 1380, it became a stable possession of the Republic of Venice.

Modern era

Oderzo was annexed to the Kingdom of Italy in 1866. In 1917, during World War I, the town was damaged in the aftermath of the Italian rout at Caporetto.

In 1943 it was a centre of the civil war between the German puppet Republic of Salò (RSI) and the partisan resistance. In 1945 120 people suspect of allegiance to the RSI were executed (see Oderzo Massacre).

The city was governed by the Italian Christian Democratic party from 1945–1993, and lived a notable economic boom, which also attracted a massive immigration from the southern Italy regions.

Main sights

• The scenographic Piazza Grande
• The Duomo (Cathedral) of St. John the Baptist, begun in the 11th century over the ruins of the Roman temple of Mars, and re-consacrated in 1535. The original Gothic-Romanesque appearance has been modified by the subsequent renovations. It includes some notable works by Pomponio Amalteo.
• Archaeological area of the Roman Forum. It includes the remains of the basilica and a wide staircase.
• Torresin (watchtower)
• The Renaissance Palazzo Porcia e Brugnera.
• The former Prisons (Porta Pretoria). It includes the remains of a Middle Ages prison, whose most famous guest was the trobadour Sordello da Goito.

In the frazione of Colfrancui is the mysterious Mutera, an artificial hill of the Adriatic Veneti, probably used as an observatory.

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Italy

Oderzo is twinned with:

• Pontremoli, Italy
• Suffolk, United States

References

Sources

• Brisotto, G.B. (1999). Guida di Oderzo. 

External links

• Official website