Native name: Astura | |
|---|---|
  Torre Astura Location within Lazio | |
| Etymology | Astura (Ancient Greek: Ἄστυρα) |
| Geography | |
| Location | Tyrrhenian Sea |
| Adjacent to | Tyrrhenian Sea |
| Total islands | 1 (now a peninsula) |
| Administration | |
Italy | |
| Region | Lazio |
| Province | Metropolitan City of Rome Capital |
| Comune | Nettuno |
| Capital and largest Largest city | Rome (pop. 2,873,632 (2023)) |
| President | Sergio Mattarella |
| Area covered | 301,340 km2 (116,350 sq mi) |
| Demographics | |
| Languages | Italian |
| Ethnic groups | Italian |
| Additional information | |
| Time zone |
|
| • Summer (DST) |
|
Torre Astura, formerly an island called by the ancients merelyAstura (Greek:Ἄστυρα), is now a peninsula in thecomune ofNettuno, on the coast ofLatium,Italy, at the southeast extremity of the Bay ofAntium, on the road toCirceii. The name also belongs to a medieval coastal tower in the same site, as well as to the river which rises at the southern foot of theAlban Hills, and has a course of about 33 km before flowing into the sea immediately to the southeast.[1]
It was calledStoras (Στόρας) byStrabo,[2] who tells us that it had a place of anchorage at its mouth.[3][1] It was on the banks of this obscure stream that was fought, in 338 BC, the last great battle between theRomans and theLatins, in which the consulGaius Maenius totally defeated the combined forces ofAntium,Lanuvium,Aricia andVelitrae.[4] At a much later period the little island at its mouth, and the whole adjacent coast, became occupied with Roman villas; among which the most celebrated is that ofCicero, to which he repeatedly alludes in his letters, and which he describes aslocus amoenus et in mari ipso (a pleasant place and right by the sea), commanding a view both of Antium and Circeii,[5] and to which he retired on the death of his daughterTullia in 45 BC.[1] It was from thence that, on learning his proscription by the triumvirs, he embarked, with the intention of escaping to joinBrutus inMacedonia; a resolution which he afterwards abandoned.[6] We learn fromSuetonius also that Astura was the occasional resort both ofAugustus andTiberius,[7] but due to its unhealthy climate, both Augustus and Tiberius contracted here the illnesses which proved fatal to them.[8] Existing remains show that many of the Roman nobility must have had villas there.[9] There is scholarly conflict as to whether there was a town of the name, as asserted byServius.[10] Up to at least the early 20th century, the remains of only one villa had been found on the island itself, but along the coast c. 1.5 km to the north-west a line of villas begins, which continues as far as Antium. To the south-east, on the other hand, remains are almost entirely absent, and this portion of the coast seems to have been sparsely populated in Roman times.[8]
The island was at some time or other joined to the mainland by a bridge or causeway, and it thus became, as it now remains, a peninsula projecting into the sea. It is surmounted by a fortified tower, called the Torre di Astura, a picturesque object, conspicuous both from Antium and the Circeian headland, and the only one which breaks the monotony of the low and sandy coast between them.[citation needed] The medieval castle of theFrangipani family, in whichConradin vainly sought refuge after thebattle of Tagliacozzo in 1268, is built upon the foundations of a very large villa, of opus reticulatum with later additions in brickwork, and with a small harbour attached to it on the south-east.[8] The castle was later a fief of theCaetani, theOrsini and theColonna. Remains of buildings also exist behind the sand dunes, which possibly mark the line of the channel which separated the island from the mainland, and these may have belonged to the post-station on theVia Severiana.[8]
TheTabula Peutingeriana reckons Astura c. 10 km from Antium, which is rather less than the true distance. The island seems to have existed as such in the time ofPope Honorius III.
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Ashby, Thomas (1911). "Astura". InChisholm, Hugh (ed.).Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 2 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 820.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Smith, William, ed. (1854–1857).Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography. London: John Murray.