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EMILIA

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Originally appearing in Volume V09, Page 339 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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EMILIA , a territorial See also:

division (compartimento) of See also:Italy, bounded by See also:Venetia and See also:Lombardy on the N., See also:Liguria on the W., See also:Tuscany on the S., the See also:Marches on the S.E., and the Adriatic See also:Sea on the E. It has an See also:area of 7967 sq. m., and a See also:population of 2,477,690 (1901), embracing eight provinces, as follows:—(I) See also:Bologna (pop. 529,612; 61 communes); (2) See also:Ferrara (270,558; 16 communes); (3) Forli (283,996; 41 communes); (4) See also:Modena (323,598; 45 communes); (5) See also:Parma (303, 694; 50 communes); (6) See also:Piacenza (250,491; 47 communes); (7) See also:Ravenna (234,656; 18 communes); (8) Reggio nell' Emilia (281,085; 43 communes). In these provinces the See also:chief towns, with communal populations, are as follows: (I) Bologna (147,898), See also:Imola (33,144), Budrio (17,077), S. Giovanni in Persiceto (15,978), See also:Castelfranco (13,484), See also:Castel 2 The obvious misprint of Dromeicus in this author's See also:work (Analyse, &c., p. 54) was foolishly followed by many naturalists, forgetful that he corrected it a few pages farther on (p. 70) to Dromaeus—the properly latinized See also:form of which is Dromaeus. S. Pietro (13,426), Medicina (12,575), Molinella (12,081), Creval- core (11,408). (2) Ferrara (86,675), Copparo (39,222), Argenta (20,474), Portomaggiore (20,141), See also:Cento (19,078), Bondeno (15,682), See also:Comacchio (10,745). (13,721), (3) Forli (43,321), See also:Rimini (43,595), See also:Cesena (42,509). (4) Modena (63,012), See also:Carpi (22,876), See also:Mirandola See also:Finale nell' Emilia (12,896), Pavullo nel Frignano (12,034).

(5) Parma (48,523), Borgo S. Donnino (12,019). (6) Piacenza (35,647). (7) Ravenna (63,364), See also:

Faenza (39,757), See also:Lugo (27,244), See also:Bagnacavallo (15,176), Brisighella (13,815), Alfonsine (10,369). (8) Reggio nell' Emilia (58,993), See also:Correggio (14,445), See also:Guastalla (11,091). The See also:northern portion of Emilia is entirely formed by a See also:great See also:plain stretching from the Via Aemilia to the Po; its highest point is not more than 200 ft. above sea-level, while along the E. See also:coast are the lagoons at the mouth of the Po and those called the Valli di Comacchio to the S. of them, and to the S. again the plain See also:round Ravenna (ro ft.), which continues as far as Rimini, where the mountains come down to the coast. Immediately to the S.E. of the Via Aemilia the mountains begin to rise, culminating in the central See also:chain of the Ligurian and Tuscan See also:Apennines. The boundary of Emilia follows the highest summits of the chain in the provinces of Parma, Reggio and Modena, passing over the See also:Monte Bue (5915 ft.) and the Monte Cimone (7103 ft.), while in the provinces of Bologna and Forli it keeps somewhat See also:lower along the N.E. slopes of the chain. With the exception of the Po, the See also:main See also:rivers of Emilia descend from this portion of the Apennines, the See also:majority of them being tributaries of the Po; the Trebbia (which rises in the See also:province of See also:Genoa), Taro, Secchia and Panaro are the most important. Even the See also:Reno, Ronco and Montone, which now flow directly into the Adriatic, were, in See also:Roman times, tributaries of. the Po, and the Savio and Rubicone seem to be the only streams of any importance from these slopes of the Tuscan Apennines which ran directly into the sea in Roman times (see APENNINES). Railway communication in the plain of Emilia is unattended by See also:engineering difficulties (except for the bridging of rivers) and is mainly afforded by the See also:line from Piacenza to Rimini. This, as far as Bologna, forms See also:part of the main route from See also:Milan to See also:Florence and See also:Rome, while beyond Rimini it follows the S.E. coast of Italy past See also:Ancona as far as See also:Brindisi and See also:Lecce.

The description follows this main line in a S.E. direction. Piacenza, being immediately S. of a See also:

bridge over the Po, is an important centre; a line runs to the W. to See also:Voghera, through which it communicates with the lines of W. Lombardy and See also:Piedmont, and immediately N. of the Po a line goes off to See also:Cremona. A new bridge over the Po carries a See also:direct line from Cremona to Borgo S. Donnino. From Parma starts a main line, followed by expresses from Milan to Rome, which crosses the Apennines to See also:Spezia (and See also:Sarzana, for See also:Pisa and Rome), tunnelling under the pass of La Cisa, while in a N. and N.E. direction lines run to See also:Brescia and Suzzara. From Reggio See also:branch lines run to Guastalla, Carpi and Sassuolo, there being also a line from Sassuolo to Modena. At Modena the main line to See also:Verona through Suzzara and See also:Mantua diverges to the N.; there is also a branch N.N.E. to Mirandola, and another S. to Vignola. Bologna is, however, the most important railway centre; besides the line S. to See also:Pistoia and Florence over the Apennines and the line S.E. to Rimini, Ancona and Brindisi, there is the main line N.N.E. to Ferrara, See also:Padua and See also:Venice, and there are branches to Budrio and Portomaggiore to the N.E., and to S. Felice sul Panaro and See also:Poggio Rusco to the N., which connect the main lines of the See also:district. At Castel Bolognese, 5 M. N.W. of Faenza, a branch goes off to Lugo, whence there are connexions with Budrio, Lavezzola (on the line between Ravenna and Ferrara) and Ravenna, and at Faenza a line, not traversed by See also:express trains, goes across the Apennines to Florence.

Rimini is connected by a direct line with Ravenna and Ferrara; and Ferrara, besides the main line S.S.W. to Bologna and N. by E. to Padua, has a branch to Poggio Rusco, which goes on to Suzzara, a station on the main line between Modena and Verona. There are also many See also:

steam tramways in the flatter part of the province, the fertility and agricultural activity of which are considerable. The main See also:pro-ducts of the plain are cereals, See also:wine, and, in the marshy districts near the Po, See also:rice; the See also:system prevailing is that of the mezzadria —half the produce to the owner and See also:half to the See also:cultivator. The See also:ancient Roman divisions of the See also:fields are still preserved in some places. There are also considerable pastures, and See also:cheese is produced, especially Parmesan. See also:Flax, See also:hemp and See also:silk-See also:worms are also cultivated, and a considerable quantity of poultry kept. The See also:hill districts produce cereals, vines, See also:olives and See also:fruit; while on the mountains are considerable See also:chestnut and other forests, and extensive summer pastures, the flocks going in part to the See also:Maremma in summer, and in part to the pastures of the plain of the Emilia. The name Emilia comes from the Via Aemilia (q.v.), the Roman road from See also:Ariminum to Placentia, which traversed the entire district from S.E. to N.W., its line being closely followed by the See also:modern railway. The name was transferred to the district (which formed the eighth Augustan region of Italy) as See also:early as the See also:time of See also:Martial, in popular usage (Epigr. vi. 85. 5), and in the 2nd and 3rd centuries it is frequently named as a district under imperial See also:judges (iuridici), generally in See also:combination with See also:Flaminia or Liguria and Tuscia. The district of Ravenna was, as a See also:rule, from the 3rd to the 5th See also:century, not treated as part of Aemilia, the chief See also:town of the latter being Placentia.

In the 4th century Aemilia and Liguria were joined to form a consular province; after that Aemilia stood alone, Ravenna being some-times temporarily added to it. The boundaries of the ancient district correspond approximately with those of the modern. In the See also:

Byzantine See also:period Ravenna became the seat of an See also:exarch; and after the See also:Lombards had for two centuries attempted to subdue the Pentapolis (Ravenna, Bologna, Forli, Faenza, Rimini), See also:Pippin took these cities from Aistulf and gave them, with the See also:March of Ancona, to the papacy in 755, to which, under the name of Romagna, they continued to belong. At first, however, the See also:archbishop of Ravenna was in reality supreme. The other chief cities of Emilia—Ferrara, Modena, Reggio, Parma, Piacenza—were, on the other See also:hand, See also:independent, and in the period of the communal See also:independence of the individual towns of Italy each of the chief cities of Emilia, whether belonging to Romagna or not, had a See also:history of its own; and, notwithstanding the feuds of Guelphs and Ghibellines, prospered considerably. The study of Roman See also:law, especially at Bologna, acquired great importance. The imperial See also:influence kept the papal See also:power in check. See also:Nicholas III. obtained See also:control of the Romagna in 1278, but the papal dominion almost See also:fell during the See also:Avignon period, and was only maintained by the efforts of See also:Cardinal See also:Albornoz, a Spaniard sent to Italy by See also:Innocent VI. in 1353. Even so, however, the papal supremacy was little more than a name; and this See also:state of things only ceased when See also:Caesar See also:Borgia, the natural son of See also:Alexander VI., crushed most of the See also:petty princes of Romagna, intending to found there a See also:dynasty of his own; but on the See also:death of Alexander VI. it was his successors in the papacy who carried on and profited by what Caesar Borgia had begun. The towns were thenceforth subject to the See also:church and administered by cardinal legates. Ferrara and Comacchio remained under the See also:house of See also:Este until the death of See also:Alphonso II. in 1597, when they were claimed by See also:Pope See also:Clement VIII. as vacant fiefs. Modena and Reggio, which had formed part of the Ferrara duchy, were thenceforth a See also:separate duchy under a branch of the house of Este, which was descended from a natural son of Alphonso I.

Carpi and Mirandola were small principalities, the former of which passed to the house of Este in 1525, in which See also:

year See also:Charles V. expelled the Pio See also:family, while the last of the See also:Pico dynasty of Mirandola, See also:Francesco Maria, having sided with the See also:French in the See also:war of See also:Spanish See also:Succession, was deprived of his duchy in 1709 by the See also:emperor See also:Joseph I., who sold it to the house of Este in 1710. Parma and Piacenza were at first under the See also:Farnese, Pope See also:Paul III. having placed his natural son See also:Pier See also:Luigi there in 1545, and then, after the extinction of the family in 1731, under a secondary branch of the Bourbons of See also:Spain. In 1796-1814, Emilia was first incorporated in the See also:Italian See also:republic and then in the See also:Napoleonic Italian See also:kingdom; after 1815 there was a return to the status quo ante, Romagna returning to the papacy and its ecclesiastical See also:government, the duchy of Parma being given to See also:Marie See also:Louise, wife of the deposed See also:Napoleon, and Modena to the See also:archduke See also:Francis of See also:Austria, the See also:heir of the last Este. In Romagna and Modena the government was oppressive, arbitrary, corrupt and unprogressive, while in Parma things were better. In 1821 and 1831 there were unsuccessful attempts at revolt in Emilia, which were sternly and cruelly repressed; chronic discontent continued and the See also:people joined again in the See also:movement of 1848-1849, which was crushed by See also:Austrian troops. In 1859 the struggle for independence was finally successful, Emilia passing to the Italian kingdom almost without resistance.

End of Article: EMILIA

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