HISTORY OF MANTUA:
Mantua (Mantova) was one of the settlements founded by the ancient Umbrian people around 2000 BC. It was subsequently inhabited by the Etruscans, who were followed by the Celts, and then by the Romans. Read More [...]
After the fall of the Western Roman Empire at the hands of Odoacer in 476 AD, Mantua was conquered by the Ostrogoths, along with the rest of Italy.
Mantua was retaken by the Eastern Roman Empire around the middle of the 6th century following the Gothic war, but was subsequently lost again to the Lombards. The city was conquered by Charlemagne in 774, and incorporated into the Frankish Empire.
In 1273, during the struggle between the Guelphs and the Ghibellines, Pinamonte Bonacolsi took advantage of the situation to seize the power in Mantua. The Bonacolsi family ruled the city for the next two generations, but were overthrown on August 16, 1328, by Luigi Gonzaga, supported by the Della Scala family of Verona. The Gonzaga family reigned over Mantua until 1707.
In 1707, the Gonzaga family left the city in the hands of the Austrians. The French and again Austrian domination followed in 1815. In 1866, Mantua became part of the Kingdom of Italy.
GEOGRAPHY OF MANTUA:
Mantua is located in the southeastern Lombardy, not far from the Lake Garda and the border with the Veneto and Emilia-Romagna regions, on the banks of the River Mincio, which flows from the Lake Garda to the Adriatic Sea. Read More [...]
In the 12th century, the architect Alberto Pitentino, on behalf of the Municipality of Mantua, organized a defensive system by rearranging the Mincio River, in order to completely surround the town with four lakes. Three of these lakes still remain today.
The city is located about 39 kilometers southwest of Verona, 67 kilometers southeast of Brescia, 84 kilometers southwest of Vicenza, 101 kilometers northwest of Bologna, 102 kilometers southwest of Padua, 117 kilometers southeast of Bergamo, 140 kilometers southwest of Venice, 148 kilometers east of Milan, 198 kilometers north of Florence, and 480 kilometers north of Rome.
TRANSPORT TO MANTUA:
The closest airport to Mantua is the Verona Villafranca International Airport, also known as the Valerio Catullo Airport, located about 32 kilometers north of the city, near Verona. Read More [...]
To get from the Valerio Catullo Airport to Mantua, you can take the shuttle bus Aerobus to the Verona Porta Nuova railway station, and then the train. The bus trip to the railway station takes about 15 minutes and a ticket costs 6€. The train ticket to Mantua costs 4.35€ and the trip takes 46 minutes.
By train, you can get to Mantua from Venice in about two hours and a half, from Bologna in about one hour and 45 minutes, and from Milan in almost 2 hours. The cheapest train ticket from Venice costs 12.95€, from Bologna is 8.95€ and from Milan costs 12€.
TOURIST ATTRACTIONS IN MANTUA:
In 2008, the historical center of Mantua was declared by UNESCO to be a World Heritage Site. The cultural value of Mantua is outstanding, the city being known for its architectural treasures, beautiful churches, elegant palaces, and the medieval cityscape. Read More [...]