Oderzo Comune di Oderzo | |
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| Comune of Oderzo | |
 Piazza Grande ("Main Square") | |
 Coat of arms | |
Location of Oderzo  | |
  Oderzo Location of Oderzo in Italy Show map of Italy Oderzo Oderzo (Veneto) Show map of Veneto | |
| Coordinates:45°46′48″N12°29′17″E / 45.78000°N 12.48806°E /45.78000; 12.48806 | |
| Country | Italy |
| Region | Veneto |
| Province | Treviso (TV) |
| Frazioni | Camino, Colfrancui, Faè, Fratta, Rustignè, Piavon |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Maria Scardellato (Lega Nord) |
| Area | |
• Total | 42.35 km2 (16.35 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 13 m (43 ft) |
| Population (2022)[2] | |
• Total | 20,003 |
| • Density | 470/km2 (1,200/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Opitergini |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
| Postal code | 31046 |
| Dialing code | 0422 |
| ISTAT code | 026051 |
| Patron saint | San Tiziano |
| Saint day | 16 January |
| Website | Official website |
Oderzo (Latin:Opitergium;Venetian:Oderso) is acomune, with a population of 20,003,[3] in theprovince of Treviso, in theItalian region ofVeneto.It lies in the heart of the Venetian plain, about 66 kilometres (41 miles) to the northeast ofVenice. Oderzo is crossed by the Monticano river, a tributary of the Livenza.
Thecentro storico, or town center, is rich with archeological ruins which give insight into Oderzo's history as a notable crossroad in theRoman Empire.
The six suburbs orfrazioni which surround Oderzo almost in the form of a hexagon. Starting from the north and then proceeding clockwise, they are:
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The earliest settlement of the area can be dated to theIron Age, around the 10th century BC.From the mid-9th century BC theVeneti occupied site and gave it its name. Etymologically, "-terg-" inOpitergium stems from aVenetic root word indicating a market (q.v.Tergeste, the old name ofTrieste). The location of Oderzo on the Venetian plain and between theMonticano andNavisego[4] rivers made it ideal as a center for trade.
The Veneti of Oderzo appear to have maintained friendly relations with the Romans and the population was gradually Romanized after the Romans moved into the area around 200 BC. The town was granted Latin rights in 182 BC. TheVia Postumia, finished in 148 BC, passing through Oderzo, connectedGenua toAquileia, and thus, increased the importance of Oderzo.
Citizens of Oderzo likely were involved in theSocial War in 89 BC since acorn-like missiles with names in Venetic and Latin inscriptions have been found atAscoli Piceno.[5]
During theRoman Civil War, Caius Volteius Capito, a centurion born in Oderzo, led a number of men from the town to fight on the side ofJulius Caesar againstPompey.[6] For their loyalty, Caesar exempted Oderzo from conscription for 20 years and enlarged its territory.[7] Moreover, in 48 BC the city was elevated to the rank of Romanmunicipium and its citizens assigned to the Roman tribe Papiria by theLex de Gallia Cisalpina.
With the reforms of Augustus Oderzo was incorporated intoRegio X ofItalia,Venetia et Histria. The Roman era witnessed prodigious building projects including a forum, a basilica, temples and many private homes.
Oderzo achieved its greatest splendor during the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. Its population grew to about 50,000 inhabitants. It lent its name to the Venetian lagoon which was calledlaguna opitergina and to the mountains ofCansiglio which were calledmontes opitergini. A number of Roman authors mention the city, among whom areClaudius Ptolomeus,Strabo,[8]Pliny the Elder,[9]Lucan,[10]Tacitus,[11]Livy andQuintilian.
Unfortunately, prosperity made Oderzo a target. During theMarcomannic Wars in 167 AD, Oderzo was sacked and destroyed by a force ofMarcomanni andQuadi, who then went on to besiegeAquileia.[12] By the 5th century, Oderzo shared the fate of the rest of Venetia and had to deal with attacks in 403 by theVisigoths led byAlaric, in 452 by theHuns whose leader,Attila, according to a local legend hid a treasure in a town's pit, in 465 during a revolt of Visigothic and Roman soldiers who objected to the rule ofSeverus and in 473 by theOstrogoths who took control of Rome and all of Italy after 476.
By 554, the town was restored to the Empire byJustinian's devastatingGothic War in Italy. Under theByzantine Empire, Oderzo became the a major center within theExarchate of Ravenna with adux as its chief official. It would be held by the Byzantines, even after much of northern Italy was conquered by theLombard in 568, until its destruction by the Lombard kingGrimoald in 667/8.
Paul the Deacon attributes the Lombard hatred for the city to the perfidy of a certain citizen of Oderzo, a "patricius Romanorum" named Gregory, who in 641, while under the promise of a truce, beheadedTaso andCacco, sons ofGisulf, the Lombard duke ofForum Iulium. The Lombard king,Rothari, subsequently led a war of vendetta and, having breached Oderzo's defenses, inflicted upon it severe devastation. However, the Lombards apparently withdrew, since in 667, Oderzo was again in the hands of the Byzantines. In that year, Lombard king,Grimoald I, still holding a grudge for the murder of Taso and Cacco, laid siege to Oderzo. Much of its population fled to the nearby cities ofHeraclea andEquilium still under Byzantine control. According to Venetian tradition, one of the refugees from Oderzo was the firstDoge of Venice,Paolo Lucio Anafesto. After his victory, Grimoald destroyed the city and divided its territory between the dukes ofTarvisium,Forum Iulii, andCeneta, with the bulk going to Ceneta.[13]
It was not until about AD 1000 that Oderzo again gained relative importance. Over time, the town had grown again around a castle. It would be contested between the bishops of Belluno and Ceneda, thecomune of Treviso and the feudalda Camino (originally of the Camino castle, now part of Oderzo) andda Romano families until 1380 when it became a stable possession of theRepublic of Venice.
Oderzo was annexed to theKingdom of Italy in 1866. In 1917, duringWorld War I, the town was damaged in the aftermath of the Italian rout atCaporetto.
In 1943 it was a centre of the civil war between the German puppetItalian Social Republic (RSI) and theItalian resistance movement. In 1945, 120 people suspected of allegiance to the RSI were executed (seeOderzo Massacre).
The city was governed by theItalian Christian Democratic party from 1945–1993, and experienced a notable economic boom, which also attracted a massiveimmigration[citation needed] from the southern Italian regions.
The Ciclocross del Ponte Faè di Oderzo is acyclo-cross race held in December.
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In thefrazione of Colfrancui is the mysteriousMutera, an artificial hill of theAdriatic Veneti, probably used as an observatory.
Oderzo istwinned with:
Pontremoli, Italy
Suffolk, United States
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