Trani (source: Visual Puglia )
Trani is situated to the north of Bari, near to Castel del Monte and as planned, by 2008 it will form a new province together with Andria and Barletta. Legend would have it that the city was founded by Tirreno, the son of Diomede, yet the first historical traces of the city have come from the Third Century A.D. Historical documentation, on the other hand, dates back to the IX Century, under Longobard rule. Then, when Trani was under Aragon rule, it experienced a period of significant commercial expansion, aiding in its recovery from the dark period following Angevin rule. It was, however, under Spanish rule that Trani became the most important political-administrative centre of all of Southern Italy and as such was granted the title of main town in the region. This title was later revoked in favour of Bari by Murat and Bonaparte. Trani is divided into three quarters: the old town characterised by the incredible conservation of the buildings; the Nineteenth-Century quarter characterised by noble villas and the modern quarter.
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Imperial Puglia indicates the geographical area including the municipalities of Andria, Barletta, Bisceglie, Canosa di Puglia, Corato, Margherita di Savoia, Minervino Murge, San Ferdinando di Puglia, Spinazzola, Trani, Trinitapoli and is located between the provinces of Foggia and Bari. The project called “Puglia imperiale” stems from the need for promoting the history of those eleven municipalities and unite them under the auspices of the impressive Castel del Monte, which was awarded the status of heritage of mankind by UNESCO and acknowledged as the expression of the creative genius of Frederick II, who lived in this land for long periods. One can either cross this territory along the coast exceeding 40 km or over the Murge plateau, which reaches 600 metres above the sea level, up to the Adriatic sea, but the feeling remains of going through its very ancient history rich in tokens, cathedrals, castles and a wonderful countryside.
Colossus - Barletta
Follow Frederick II’s steps among charming medieval villages and castles. However, the history of this land dates back to a more distant past. The megalithic underground structures of Trinitapoli and San Ferdinando, or the dolmens of Bisceglie and Corato are tokens of archaic civilisations and Canosa, the main city of the region during the Imperial age, maintains the beauty of a glorious past which can be still be traced today
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Civilisation developed along the only river of Puglia. The first tokens date back to the bronze age, followed by the archaic Greek and Latin settlements, until the Romanesque period. The presence of Frederick II is witnessed everywhere, and in the 16th century Barletta saw the emergence of national pride through the victory over the French knights during the famous "challenge"
Barletta, Trani, Bisceglie were important landing sites during the journey to the Holy Land and still host ancient towers to monitor a rich a fruitful coast. The coast of Imperial Puglia exceeds 40 km in length and is characterised by very interesting swamps in terms of the passage of dozens of thousands of migrating birds spending the Winter near the famous Salt works of Margherita di Savoia
Project created in collaboration with InnovaPuglia.
Regione Puglia
Regione Puglia