Benevento - Teatro romano

Due to its location and importance, Benevento was an important base for Roman rule in southern Italy for centuries. After the expansion of the Lombards, Benevento became the seat of Lombard dukes but repeatedly fell into dependence on the Franks and the German emperors. In 840, Benevento was occupied by the Muslims for a few years. The city has been the seat of the Archbishopric of Benevento since 969. In 1047 it fell into the hands of Norman princes with the exception of the city, which Emperor Henry III gave to Leo IX in 1053. In the 11th and 12th centuries, four councils were held in Benevento.

On February 26, 1266, in the Battle of Benevento, the Hohenstaufen Manfred, natural son of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, was defeated by Charles of Anjou, after which the latter seized Apulia, Sicily, and Tuscia.

The Roman theater was built in the 2nd century. Abandoned in Longobard times, it was used for centuries as a quarry to extract building materials, but also to build new houses. The first excavations took place in the 1890s. After the expropriation of the houses built on its walls in the 1930s further excavations were carried out. In 1957 after significant restoration works the theatre became a public monument.