Mantua

Mantua (Italian, Mantora), an ancient Italian city, is situated on a peninsula in the

Mincio, 25 miles south of Verona. It has an eventful history, having passed from Rome to the Ostrogoths, from them to the Lombards, becoming next a fief of the Empire under the Marquis of Canossa and the Duke of Lorraine. Matilda of Tuscany wrested it from the Empire, and after her death Mantua was an independent member of the Lombard League, till the Gonzagas attained power. In the 18th century the city again came under imperial power, and though captured by Napoleon in 1797 and restored in 1801 after its recapture, it remained Austrian till 1866. Mantua was the birthplace of Virgil and Mantegna, and contains noble memorials of the skill of Giulio Romano as architect and painter. It has also a fine library and an academy of arts and sciences. Its situation on a sluggish river, and amid swamps and stagnant pools, renders it very unhealthy, but makes it the strongest fortress in Italy.