Barletta

A bridge to the Holy Land

The origin of Barletta (or Baruli) is closely connected to the events of the nearby ancient cities of Canne and Canosa. The area of the city, which probably served as the seaport of Canosa, hosted the inhabitants of these cities after their destruction by the Goths and Lombards. In the following centuries the settlement also accepted other migratory flows which contributed to defining its shape, through the construction of hamlets.

Overlooking the Adriatic and connected by important ancient roads, Barletta became an important port for pilgrims heading to the Holy Land in the Middle Ages, and starting from the Norman age it gained the permanent status of royal city, not subject to any feudal lord. 

Its privileged status was also confirmed by Frederick II, who established the Scholae ratiocinii there, and by Charles I of Anjou, who chose it as the location of the Royal Mint. 

In the second half of the fifteenth century, the pre-eminence of Barletta as a "state-owned city" is also shown by the choice of King Ferrante of Aragon, who was crowned in the mother church on 11 February 1459. In medieval times, because of its central role in Mediterranean trade, the port city imported prestigious artifacts from Constantinople, such as the famous Colossus. Despite this, Barletta struggled to gain full recognition as a city, as it had no episcopal seat until 1860. To support its aspirations it therefore attempted to build a civic identity around the mother church, claiming the legacy of Canne, hosting two deterritorialized bishops from the Holy Land: the bishop of Nazareth and the Patriarch of Jerusalem. The challenge between thirteen Italian and thirteen French knights during the Franco-Spanish war for the conquest of the Kingdom of Naples (1503), is inextricably linked to the city. The events leading to the episode took place in Barletta, where the Italians in the Spanish army were stationed when they got involved in the duel. They returned as victors to pay homage to the Virgin. 

Lastly, the city was home to several Renaissance intellectuals, including the doctor and treatise writer Mariano Sano or the jurist and poet Mario di Leo. It cannot be ruled out that the city’s elites had nothing to do with the widespread phenomenon of antiquities reuse, in the case of Barletta originating from Cannae and Canosa.