Venosa (Venusia in Latin, Venòse in the Lucanian dialect) is an Italian municipality in the province of Potenza, and a member of the association “I borghi più belli d’Italia” (Italy’s Most Beautiful Villages).
Venosa was founded in the north of the region, in the Vulture area, on a plateau situated between two valleys, surrounded by lush vegetation and several hills.
This explains the differences in elevation throughout the town; bear in mind that the town hall is situated 415 metres above sea level.
Etymology
There are various theories. Given the similarity to Venus, the theory that it was founded in honour of the Greek goddess (Venus in Latin) is widely accepted.
Conversely, some believe that his name actually refers to the adjective wine-like, whether for the abundance of its wines or for the water veins with which it is rich.
Finally, others trace “Venosa” back to suction cup, given its breezy climate.
History
The Neolithic burial ground discovered near Toppo d’Aguzzo in Rapolla, close to Venosa, provides evidence of human presence as far back as prehistoric times. Most of this evidence is compiled in the Notarchirico Palaeolithic Park
Venosa has clear Latin origins: it is thought that the Romans seized it from the Samnites in 291 BC under the command of the consul Lucius Postumius Megellus. He, in fact, established it as a colony that was home to around 20,000 people.
Following the Battle of Cannae in 216 BC, the consul Gaius Terentius Varro, who had been defeated there, found refuge in the town. In 208, however, the town witnessed the death of another consul, who had also fallen in battle (the Second Punic War) at the hands of Hannibal: Marcus Claudius Marcellus.
From the Hannibalic War onwards, the city was repopulated through the arrival of further settlers. In 190 BC, it benefited from the construction of the Appian Way, which fostered its development.
Venosa sided with the Italians during the Social War, but was subsequently subjugated by Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius and in 89 BC, despite this, he was granted the title of Municipium (a Roman city), thereby securing the right to vote and citizenship for its inhabitants.
As I have just mentioned, the Via Appia, not only the road linking Brindisi to Rome, but also the renewed wave of settlement gave fresh impetus to the site, which, in 65 BC, was the birthplace of an illustrious poet of antiquity: Quintus Horatius Flaccus who later moved to Rome.
A few years later, in 43 BC, it was once again taken over by the triumvirs, who expropriated the land belonging to the’ager publicus, redistributing them amongst the veterans.
The Imperial Age
During this period, Christianity began to take hold (around 70 AD), leading to the establishment of one of the first Jewish communities in Italy in Venosa itself, where its members managed to integrate easily with the local population.
This is evidenced by the Maddalena Hill, whose cavities contain both Semitic and Christian burials.
In 114 AD, the opening of the Via Traiana undermined the city’s economy: by linking Benevento to Brindisi, but bypassing the Municipium, it had disastrous consequences.
During the Imperial period, in the early days of Christianity (around 70 AD), one of the first Jewish communities in Italy settled in Venosa, and it managed to integrate with the local population. Evidence of this coexistence can be found on Maddalena Hill, where both Semitic and Christian burials are situated within its caves. In 114 AD, the Via Traiana was opened, linking Benevento and Brindisi but bypassing Venosa, which had adverse economic consequences for the town.
The fall of the Roman Empire did not spare Venosa from the barbarians in the 5th century,
In 476, Odoacer and his Heruli. The Ostrogoths in 493, who made it an administrative, political and economic centre – a status later conferred upon Acerenza. Between 570 and 590, the Lombards chose it as the seat of a gastaldate; in 842, the city was sacked by the Saracens, who were in turn driven out by Louis II, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.
Next came the Byzantines, who were defeated by Arduino’s Normans at the Battle of the River Olivento in 1041. During the Norman period, Venosa was assigned to Drogone d’Altavilla. Also worth noting is the presence of the Greeks around 980 AD, as evidenced by the monastery of “San Nicola di Morbano”. In 1133, Venosa was sacked and set ablaze by Roger II of Sicily. With the arrival of the Swabians, Frederick II had a castle built on the site of an 11th-century Lombard fort, which he designated as the Kingdom’s Treasury (Ministry of Finance).
From 1200, the castle became a convent for the Augustinian friars, before passing to the Salesians and finally to the Trinitarian Fathers, who still reside in the building today. Around 1177, at roughly the same time as the Augustinian friars, there were nuns living in the “Monastery of St Benedict”. In 1232, the future Swabian king Manfredi, son of Frederick II and Bianca Lancia, was born in Venosa. The Swabians were succeeded by the Angevins and, in 1304, King Charles of Anjou granted Venosa, with the title of count, to his son Robert, known as “the Wise”.
Following a succession of feudal lords, the town was granted as a fief to the Orsini family in 1453. It was given as a dowry in 1443 by Donata Orsini to Duke Pirro Del Balzo, who had the Castle built (between 1460 and 1470) and the co-cathedral of Sant’Andrea (of which only the date of completion, 1502, and the date of consecration, 1531, are known). It suffered considerable damage and some fatalities as a result of the 1456 earthquake in central and southern Italy.
Following the Angevins, the Aragonese members of the Gesualdo family settled here; in 1561, they became feudal lords and princes of Venosa, transforming the town into an important centre of cultural, intellectual and artistic activity. It was during this period that Prince Carlo Gesualdo lived, one of the most prestigious musicians of his time but also one of the most controversial; it is said that the composer took refuge in his fiefdom of Gesualdo after murdering his wife (and cousin) Maria d’Avalos in Naples, who was accused of having betrayed him with the Duke of Andria, Fabrizio Carafa.
During this period, Venosa also saw the emergence of a number of important cultural centres: in 1582, the Accademia dei Piacevoli e dei Soavi was founded, whose members included Luigi Tansillo, Annibale Caracciolo, Ascanio and Giacomo Cenna, Bartolomeo and Luigi Maranta, Orazio de Gervasiis, Scipione de Monti and Giovanni Antonio Rossano; and in 1612, the Accademia dei Rinascenti, the latter founded by Emanuele Gesualdo, son of the composer. In 1589, in accordance with the decrees of the Council of Trent, the convent of “Santa Maria della Scala” was relocated and rebuilt outside the city walls. In the late Renaissance, the future Cardinal Giovanni Battista De Luca was born in 1614; he moved to study in Salerno and Naples, before settling in Rome, where he was appointed cardinal by Pope Innocent XI. In 1647, Venosa took part in the Masaniello revolt, led in Basilicata by Matteo Cristiano.
The 17th century was characterised by considerable seismic activity; in particular, three events caused significant damage and loss of life: the first occurred in 1625, with its epicentre right in the city itself, and claimed 40 lives. The effects of the 1688 Sannio earthquake[13] were particularly severe, as were those of the 1694 Irpinia and Basilicata earthquake a few years later.
From the 18th century to the present day
In both centuries, the fiefdom of Venosa was entrusted to various noble families, such as the Ludovisi and the Caracciolo. Towards the end of the 18th century, the Rapolla family and other prominent citizens of Venosa drew up the constitution of the republican municipality, a process which was hampered by popular uprisings, thus creating a bitter conflict between the two sides.
In 1808, Venosa became the third-largest town in Basilicata in terms of land holdings, after Melfi and Matera, and also held the right to vote and stand for election in the Napoleonic National Parliament. In 1820, it played a minor role in the peasant uprisings and the Carbonari uprisings. During the uprisings of 1848, Luigi La Vista, a young poet and writer of liberal leanings from Venosa, emerged as a leading figure; he was killed on 15 May 1848 in Naples by a group of Swiss soldiers.
Between January and July 1849, Venosa experienced what was probably the darkest period in its modern history. A bitter feud broke out between landowners: some were in favour of granting plots of land to the peasants, whilst others were opposed to the idea. The disagreement escalated into a full-blown civil war, exacerbated by political interests and acts of revenge. The conflict was brutally suppressed, and many people (most of them innocent) ended up in the dungeons of the castle.
The 1851 Vulture earthquake struck the town with great force, causing several buildings to collapse and claiming the lives of four people. A few years later, further damage was caused by the 1857 Basilicata earthquake.
Following the unification of Italy, in 1861 it was captured by the brigands led by Carmine Crocco from Rionero, who, after defeating the garrison of the Venosa National Guard, were welcomed and supported by the local population. During the occupation, Francesco Saverio Nitti, grandfather of the southern Italian scholar of the same name, was killed. In 1866, Vincenzo Tangorra, a member of parliament for the Popular Party and Minister of the Treasury during Mussolini’s first government, was born in Venosa. In 1889, Giustino Fortunato was awarded honorary citizenship in recognition of his dedicated efforts in the construction of the Rocchetta–Gioia del Colle railway line.
In 1908, the town switched from oil and gas lighting to electric lighting. It was hit by the 1930 Vulture earthquake: some houses collapsed, whilst many others were damaged. In 1944, towards the end of the Second World War, an airstrip was built for the troops of the USAAF’s 485th Bombardment Group. It was the only airport built in Basilicata during the war. In 1946, following the end of the Second World War, the constitutional referendum on 2 June recorded 3,047 votes in favour of the monarchy and 2,959 in favour of the republic. The earthquake of 23 November 1980 was felt quite strongly, causing panic and damage – mostly minor – to a large proportion of homes. In 1992, the two-thousandth anniversary of the death of Horace Flaccus.
