Assisi is a town in Perugia province, in the Umbria region of Italy. It is located on the western flank of Monte Subasio, approximately 12 miles (19km) East-Southeast of Perugia. The ancient name of the town was Asisium. Assisi is well known as the birthplace of St Francis, whom founded the Franciscan religious order in the town in 1208. It is also the birthplace of St. Clare (the founder of the Poor Sisters, which later became the Order of Poor Clares after her death) and of the 19th-century Saint Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows. It is also generally regarded as the birthplace of the Latin poet Propertius, born around 50–45 BC.
The town contains a medieval fortress, a 12th-century cathedral and the sacred convent of St. Francis. With a population of just over 28,000, the main industry of the town is tourism. Assisi was hit by two devastating earthquakes, which shook the region in September 1997. Since that time, the recovery and restoration projects have been outstanding, although at the time of writing (2018), there is still much work to be done. The Franciscan structures of Assisi are designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. For further reading on the main sights in Assisi, a link to the Wikipedia article may be found Here. Photographs of Assisi taken in the Summer of 2018 are shown in the thumbnail gallery below [click on an image to enlarge]:
Back to Top
