Known for its beauty and for being the birthplace of various intellectuals and artists, including poets and internationally renowned screenwriters, Santarcangelo also had a pope: Clement XIV Ganganelli. The square and a few monuments dedicated to him, honour his memory.
The first Roman settlements followed the foundation of nearby Ariminum (Rimini) around 268 BC. The consular road Emilia, which still crosses it today, favoured trading and gave the impetus for its transformation into a centre of exchange and meetings, a characteristic that has never abandoned it and still makes it a destination for visitors and tourists.
In the Middle Ages the town expanded towards Colle Giove, where the typical structure of a fortified village is still recognizable today. A harmonious and elegant historic centre is dominated by the Rocca dei Malatesta, who ruled here starting from the 14th century. An already existing fortification, the one that can be admired today is the result of the enlargements and embellishments made by the lords of Rimini. Between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries, the borgo clementino expanded while maintaining good urban harmony: noble buildings joined and integrated themselves with the social ones, generating the current Santarcangelo.
This is the home of art, culture, history and traditions; you can sense this in its squares, suggestive corners, countless typical places and many events that mark the seasons, and that over time have become tourist attractions. Proof of this is the well-known “Festival Internazionale del Teatro in Piazza” (“International Theatre Festival in the Square”) which in 1971 brought the cultural ferments of those years here, recording them yet re-elaborating them, always going hand in hand with international social and cultural developments. Similarly, it has been capable of updating the traditions and folklore of its ancient fairs. Among others, the historical “Fiera di San Martino“.
Rich in food and wine excellences, Santarcangelo is among the Città del Vino (Wine Cities), but also the Città d’Arte (Art cities) of Emilia-Romagna and Cittaslow, an international network of cities with good living standards.
The territorial brand “Cheers, traveler” and its promotion is one of the actions directed by the
GAL – GROUP OF LOCAL ACTIONS MARECCHIA AND CONCA VALLEY Soc. Cons. a r.l.
