San Gemini

History

San Gemini is traditionally connected with the ancient Umbrian city of Carsulae, a municipium of some importance in the Roman period, located along the Via Flaminia. The date of the abandonment of Carsulae is unknown.

In 1014 San Gemini passed under the dominion of the Church as part of the territories known as the Terre Arnolfe, transferred through territorial exchanges agreed between Emperor Henry II and Pope Benedict VIII.

Destruction followed in 1241 at the hands of Frederick II, and in 1244 San Gemini was subjugated by Perugia. During the 13th century it aligned with the Ghibelline side together with other cities of central Italy.

Municipal statutes were adopted in the early 14th century. Control returned to the Church in 1330, while throughout the 14th century the town faced repeated threats from neighboring centers and was defended by papal troops.

In 1527 San Gemini was sacked and partially burned during the passage of Venetian troops under Francesco Maria I, Duke of Urbino.

In 1530 Pope Clement VII granted San Gemini in vicariate to Ferdinando, Duke of Gravina, and his brother Giovanni Antonio Orsini; the arrangement was later confirmed in perpetuity along the male line.

In 1590 San Gemini was elevated to a duchy. In 1701, San Gemini was recorded as a feudal domain of Princess Orsini, and in 1726 it was sold by Duke Flavio Orsini to Prince Valerio Santacroce.

Papal briefs in 1781 and 1804 confirmed the title of San Gemini as a city. In 1817, it belonged to Prince Don Francesco Publicola di Santacroce.

During the 19th century San Gemini underwent several administrative changes. It was elevated to a baronial municipality in 1814, placed within the district government of Terni in 1816, and in 1817 became the seat of a local governor, with Portaria as a dependent settlement. It became a podesteria under Terni in 1827, and by 1833 functioned as a municipality under the governor of Terni.

In the mid-19th century the municipality had a population of 1,899 inhabitants. Of these, about 700 resided in the town and 1,199 in rural dwellings.