| Aosta | |
| Official Name: | Città di Aosta Ville d'Aoste |
| Native Name: | |
| Pushpin Map: | Italy Aosta Valley#Italy#Europe |
| Coordinates: | 45.7333°N 26°W |
| Region: | Aosta Valley |
| Frazioni: | Arpuilles, Beauregard, Bibian, Bioulaz, Borgnalle, Brenloz, Busséyaz, Cache, La Combe, Les Capucins, Chabloz, Champailler, Collignon, Cossan, Cotreau, Duvet, Entrebin, Excenex, Les Fourches, Laravoire, Montfleury, Movisod, Pallin, Papet, Pléod, Porossan, La Riondaz, La Rochère, Roppoz, Saraillon, Saumont, Seyssinod, Signayes, Talapé, Tsanté, Tzambarlet, Vignole |
| Mayor Party: | Ind. |
| Mayor: | Gianni Nuti |
| Area Total Km2: | 21.37 |
| Population Footnotes: | [1] |
| Population Total: | 33093 |
| Population As Of: | 31 December 2022 |
| Population Demonyms: | Italian: Aostani French: Aostois Francoprovençal: Veullatsou |
| Elevation M: | 583 |
| Saint: | St. Gratus |
| Day: | September 7 |
| Postal Code: | 11100 |
| Area Code: | 0165 |
Aosta ([2],[3] pronounced as /it/; French: Aoste pronounced as /fr/) is the principal city of the Aosta Valley, a bilingual region in the Italian Alps, 110km (70miles) north-northwest of Turin. It is situated near the Italian entrance of the Mont Blanc Tunnel and the Great St Bernard Tunnel, at the confluence of the Buthier and the Dora Baltea, and at the junction of the Great and Little St Bernard Pass routes.
Aosta was settled in proto-historic times and later became a centre of the Salassi, many of whom were killed or sold into slavery by the Romans in 25 BC.[4] The campaign was led by Terentius Varro, who then founded the Roman colony of Augusta Praetoria Salassorum, housing 3,000 retired veterans. After 11 BC Aosta became the capital of the Alpes Graies province of the Empire. Its position at the confluence of two rivers, at the end of the Great and the Little St Bernard Pass, gave it considerable military importance, and its layout was that of a Roman military camp.
After the fall of the Western Empire, the city was conquered, in turn, by the Burgundians, the Ostrogoths, and the Byzantines. The Lombards, who had annexed it to their Italian kingdom, were expelled by the Frankish Empire under Pepin the Short. Under his son, Charlemagne, Aosta acquired importance as a post on the Via Francigena, leading from Aachen to Italy. After 888 AD it was part of the renewed Kingdom of Italy under Arduin of Ivrea and Berengar of Friuli.
In the 10th century Aosta became part of the Kingdom of Burgundy. After the fall of the latter in 1032, it became part of the lands of Count Humbert I of Savoy.
The privilege of holding the assembly of the states-general was granted to the inhabitants in 1189. An executive council was nominated from this body in 1536, and continued to exist until 1802. After the Congress of Vienna restored the rule of Savoy it was reconstituted and formally recognized by Charles Albert of Sardinia, at the birth of his grandson Prince Amedeo, who was created duke of Aosta.
Aosta is in the rain shadow of the Mont Blanc massif and features a humid subtropical climate (Köppen: Cfa), bordering on a cool semi-arid climate (Köppen: BSk), also bordering on an oceanic climate (Köppen: Cfb) and under the Köppen climate classification due to its low average annual rainfall. It is considered temperate oceanic (Trewartha: Do) in the Trewartha climate classification.
The city experiences cool to very cold winters, hot summers and relatively dry conditions throughout the year.
The ancient town walls of Augusta Prætoria Salassorum are still preserved almost in their entirety, enclosing a rectangle 724mby572mm (2,375feetby1,877feetm).[5] They are 6.4m (21feet) high, built of concrete faced with small blocks of stone. At the bottom, the walls are nearly 2.75m (09.02feet) thick, and at the top 1.83m (06feet).
Towers stand at angles to the enceinte and others are positioned at intervals, with two at each of the four gates, making twenty towers in total. They are roughly 6.5m (21.3feet) square, and project 4.3m (14.1feet) from the wall. Of the 20 original towers, the following are well preserved:[6]
The east and south gates exist intact. The latter, a double gate with three arches flanked by two towers known as the Porta Praetoria (1st century AD) was the eastern gate to the city, and has preserved its original forms apart from the marble covering.[7] It is formed by two series of arches enclosing a small square.
The rectangular arrangement of the streets is modeled on a Roman plan dividing the town into 64 blocks (insulae). The main road, about 10m (30feet) wide, divides the city into two equal halves, running from east to west. This arrangement makes it clear that guarding the road was the main raison d'être of the city.
The Roman theatre, of which the southern façade remains today, is 22m (72feet) tall.[8] [9] The structure, dating from the late reign of Augustus, occupied an area of 81mby64mm (266feetby210feetm); it could contain up to 4,000 spectators. In the nearby was the amphitheatre, built under Claudius. A marketplace surrounded by storehouses on three sides with a temple in the centre with two on the open (south) side, as well as a thermae, have also been discovered.
Outside the town walls is the Arch of Augustus, a triumphal arch in honour of Augustus, built in 35 BC to celebrate the victory of consul Varro Murena over the Salassi.[10] About 8km (05miles) to the west is a single-arched Roman bridge, called the Pont d'Aël. It has a closed passage, lighted by windows for foot passengers in winter, and above it an open footpath.There are considerable remains of the ancient road from Eporedia (modern Ivrea) to Augusta Praetoria into the Aosta Valley. The modern railway follows this route, notable for the Pont Saint-Martin, which has a single arch with a span of 35m (115feet) and a roadway 4.5m (14.8feet) wide; the cutting of Donnas; and the Roman bridges of Cillian (Saint-Vincent) and Aosta (Pont de Pierre).
Aosta lies on the crossroad of two major trans-alpine trunk roads: national road 26 (Italian: SS26, French: RN26[11]) connecting the city of Chivasso to Little St Bernard Pass on the Italy-France border, and national road 27 (Italian: SS27, French: RN27[12]) connecting the city of Aosta to the Great St Bernard Pass on the Italy-Switzerland border. Aosta is also served by the A5 motorway between Turin and Courmayeur.[13]
Aosta railway station, opened in 1886, forms part of the Chivasso–Ivrea–Aosta railway. Direct trains only connect Aosta up to the city of Ivrea. The branch line to nearby Pré-Saint-Didier, in the Valdigne, on the way towards Courmayeur was closed in 2015. Train service is operated by Trenitalia.[14]
The main bus hub is located near the Aosta train station. Buses connect the city of Aosta to the nearby valleys and to destinations outside the region, including Turin, Milan, Chamonix (France) and Martigny (Switzerland).[15]
Aosta airport is located 5 km to the east of the city.
See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Italy.
Aosta is twinned with:[18] [19]
Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, France
Kaolack, Senegal Narbonne, France
Sinaia, Romania