Sutri, the Borgo that gave birth to Orlando Furioso

Not to be missed

The testimonies of the ancient civilizations that had settled here, and the contaminations of the societies that replaced them over the centuries, are indeed many and all fascinating. The Roman amphitheater, lined with low vegetation that seems arranged on purpose as comfortable padding; the Etruscan and Roman necropolis, niches and tunnels carved into the tuff; the mithraeum, a place of worship of the god Mithras, later adapted to a Christian rock chapel... Visiting these places gives the traveler a greater awareness of the history of the lovely village of Sutri, allowing him to fully enjoy every glimpse.

A bit of history

According to a very ancient legend, it seems that Sutri was founded by Saturn, an ancient Greco-Roman god. In fact, it is from his name, which the Etruscans pronounced Sutrinas, that the town's name would derive. It seems that as early as pre-Etruscan times there was a human settlement here, as evidenced by the various caves visible in the cliffs, later repurposed as necropolises. In 568 the village fell under Longobard domination until, in 728, Liutprand ceded it to Pope Gregory II with the famous Donation of Sutri. The village remained under the Papal States until the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861.

Trivia

According to a widespread tradition rooted in legend, Charlemagne's sister Bertha is said to have tied her life inextricably to Sutri. On her way with her brother to Rome she was caught in labor and thus had to stop and seek shelter to give birth. They were in the vicinity of Sutri where, in an Etruscan tomb dug into the tuff, she gave birth to Orlando, the famous paladin of the Chanson de Roland.