and shipbuilding are carried on.
Ancona is situated on the railway between Bologna and Brindisi, and is also connected by rail with Rome, via Foligno and Orte.
After the fall of the Roman empire Ancona was successively attacked by the Goths, Lombards and Saracens, but recovered its strength and importance. It was one of the cities of the Pentapolis under the exarchate of Ravenna, the other four being Fano, Pesaro, Senigallia and Rimini, and eventually became a semi-independent republic under the protection of the popes, until Gonzaga took possession of it for Clement VII. in 1532. From 1797 onwards, when the French took it, it frequently appears in history as an important fortress, until Lamoricière capitulated here on the 29th of September 1860, eleven days after his defeat at Castelfidardo. (T. As.)
- Scanty remains of the ancient town walls, of a gymnasium near the harbour and of the amphitheatre are still extant.
- It was connected by a road with the Via Flaminia at Nuceria (Norcera), a distance of 70 m.