Bastia Umbra

Sister cities

• Karancslapujtő
• Sant Sadurní d'Anoia
• Luz-Saint-Sauveur
• Höchberg

History

At the end of the 5th century two Perugian nobles, Speme and Domizio, obtained permission from Theodoric, king of Italy, to drain the lake that surrounded the area, cutting a channel near Bettona and Torgiano. Bastia Umbra is first documented in records dating to the 13th century, when it was known by the names Insula Cipi, Insula Vetus, and Insula Romana. By the late 14th century the name Bastia had come into use. During the Middle Ages the settlement was strongly fortified, with drawbridges and a fortress that is still largely preserved. The fortress was surrounded by towers, bastions and ramparts, which were later destroyed. The town suffered heavily during the wars of the 14th and 15th centuries, both from internal conflicts and from struggles between neighboring cities, especially Perugia and Assisi. Control of Bastia alternated between these powers, and it endured repeated and prolonged sieges, including involvement by the Sforza and papal legates. The Baglioni family of Perugia held dominion over Bastia several times, at times by popular will and at others by force; Pope Clement VII granted lordship to Malatesta Baglioni. In 1566 Pope Pius V granted it in fief to Astorre and Adriano Baglioni, who governed through a lieutenant. During the rule of the Baglioni family, the town was governed by a local official appointed by its lords, who swore an oath to uphold the local statutes. Conflicts between the Baglioni and the Papacy led to the demolition of the town's fortifications by papal order. In that same period, as the earlier fortifications declined, habitation expanded toward the east in an area known as the Aggiunta, and Bastia gradually developed into a significant inhabited center. From 1580 Bastia formed part of the Papal State, a condition that…

Geography

Bastia is situated in the at a modest elevation. It stands in an open plain, with the horizon only limited to the east by Monte Subasio at a distance of . In 2021, 670 people lived in rural dispersed dwellings not assigned to any named locality. At the time, most of the population lived in Bastia Umbra proper (17,552).