Cagli (Roman Cale) is a bishop's town on the Via Flaminia where the road runs up the Burano valley toward the pass of the Scheggia and Gubbio.
Its contado is mountain land under Monte Catria and Monte Petrano, with the hermitage of Fonte Avellana in its hills (a Church record) and the Furlo gorge at its northern end. It borders Gubbio's land, a rival on the Apennine frontier. On 1 January 1200 it is a self-governing commune under papal overlordship; no war or officer is recorded. The medieval hill town will burn in 1287 and be rebuilt on the plain in 1289.
Who holds it
- Title
- The commune of Cagli
- Since
- not pinned
- Confidence
- low
No officer of Cagli is documented for 1200 in the sources read.
Lord in 1200
The commune; its bishop has his own rights (not pinned).
Overlord
The pope, as lord of the March.
Allies and rivals
Gubbio across the mountains; Fossombrone and Urbino down the valley.
How things stand that morning
Self-governing under papal overlordship. Across the Apennine passes lies Gubbio (Umbria records); Pergola is not yet founded (1234).
Wealth
Road tolls and mountain pastures.
Military
Walls and mountain castles (not pinned).
Threats
- Gubbio on the frontier castles
Communities
Not documented.
Militia
Citizen militia.
Walls and castle
A walled hill town (the later town on the plain dates from 1289).
Trade and crafts
The Flaminia traffic, wool and the mountain pastures.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Nothing specific to 1199-1200 was found.
On the map: A guessed mountain contado; Cantiano and Frontone may have been held by local lords or disputed with Gubbio in 1200.
Primary sources for Papal State
Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.
- Annals of Montecassino; Annals of Ceccano (Fossanova) (12th and early 13th centuries; Ceccano to 1217). Two sets of annals from either side of the papal and Sicilian frontier. Read online
- Chronicle of Richard of San Germano, Richard of San Germano (first version about 1216, enlarged to 1243). The fullest southern narrative of the Hohenstaufen kingdom, written by a notary on the border of the Terra di Lavoro. Read online
- Chronicle of Alberic of Trois-Fontaines, Alberic of Trois-Fontaines (about 1227 to 1241, at the Cistercian abbey of Trois-Fontaines in Champagne). The widest net of any Latin chronicle for 1200, compiled from dozens of sources, many now lost. Read online
- Chronicle of Andres, William of Andres (about 1220 to 1234). The chronicle and cartulary of a small abbey between Guines and Ardres, near the border of Flanders and Boulogne. Read online
- Chronicle of Burchard of Ursberg, Burchard of Ursberg (about 1229 to 1230, reworked by Conrad of Lichtenau). Written a generation later by a fierce partisan of the Staufen and a critic of Innocent III. Read online
- Chronicle of Robert of Auxerre, Robert of Auxerre (Robert of Saint-Marien) (about 1190 to 1211; continued at Saint-Marien to 1227). A universal chronicle whose last twenty years are contemporary and well informed from Burgundy and the Auxerrois. Read online
- Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. Read online
- Chronicle of Sicard, bishop of Cremona, Sicard of Cremona (about 1210 to 1213). A universal chronicle whose last part is a well-placed eyewitness account by a Lombard bishop who served emperors and popes. Read online
12 more in the sources library for Southern Italy and the Islands.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.