Blera

Blera is a small town and comune in the northern Lazio region of Italy near Rome, known during the Middle Ages as Bieda, an evolved form of its ancient name, which was restored in the twentieth century. It is the birthplace of Pope Sabinian; Pope Paschal II was also originally thought to be from here. It is situated on a long, narrow tongue of rock at the junction of two deep glens. History In ancient times, Blera was an Etruscan town on the Via Clodia. It was of little importance, and is known to be mentioned only by geographers and in inscriptions. In 772, it was destroyed by the Lombards of King Desiderius. In the thirteenth-fifteenth centuries, it belonged to the Di Vico family. In 1247 the army of Frederick II ravaged it. In the fifteenth century, Pope Boniface IX gave Blera to the Anguillara family, who owned it until 1572, apart from a short period from 1465 under direct Papal control. Later it followed the history of the Papal States. Main sights Some remains of the town walls still exist, and also two ancient bridges, both belonging to the Via Clodia, and many tombs hewn in the rock with small chambers imitating the architectural forms of houses, and beams and rafters represented in relief. References External links Official website George Dennis on Blera (Chapter 17 of Cities and Cemeteries of Etruria)