Marche (Le Marche) is central Italy's 'one region in many' on the Adriatic coast, blending sandy beaches and the dramatic Conero Riviera with Renaissance art cities, medieval hilltop villages, and the snow-capped Sibillini Mountains. From Urbino's Ducal Palace to the underground wonder of the Frasassi Caves, it offers Italy's variety with a fraction of the crowds.
Marche's history spans the ancient Piceni civilization, the Greek founding of Ancona, Roman conquest, the Byzantine maritime Pentapolis, the brilliant Renaissance court of the Montefeltro and Della Rovere dukes of Urbino, and centuries of Papal rule before Italian unification in 1860. Federico da Montefeltro made fifteenth-century Urbino one of the most refined courts in Europe, while Ascoli Piceno preserves Roman bridges and gates, Ancona keeps the Greek-founded port crowned by Trajan's Arch, and Loreto became one of Christendom's greatest Marian pilgrimage shrines. The Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II was born in Jesi in 1194, and the decisive Battle of Castelfidardo in 1860 opened the region to the Kingdom of Italy.
Historical timeline
Key moments that shaped Marche.
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1
Piceni Civilization
The Picene people flourish along the central Adriatic coast and inland valleys, trading with Greeks from the 7th century BC and leaving rich warrior burials and bronze artefacts
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2
Greek Founding of Ancona
Greek settlers from Syracuse, traditionally exiles fleeing the tyrant Dionysius the Elder, found Ankon on the elbow-shaped promontory, giving the port city its enduring Greek name
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3
Battle of Sentinum
Rome wins a decisive victory near Sassoferrato over a coalition of Samnites, Etruscans, Umbrians and Gauls, a turning point in the Roman conquest of Italy
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4
Picenum Annexed by Rome
After the Picentes' revolt is subdued, Picenum is fully absorbed into the Roman state and crossed by the Via Salaria and Via Flaminia
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5
Arch of Trajan Built
The marble Arco di Traiano is raised on Ancona's harbour mole to honour Emperor Trajan for enlarging the port, attributed to the architect Apollodorus of Damascus
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6
Byzantine Pentapolis
Under the Exarchate of Ravenna the maritime Pentapolis of Ancona, Senigallia, Fano, Pesaro and Rimini forms; in 756 Pepin the Short donates the territory to the Papacy
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7
Frederick II Born in Jesi
The future Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, later called Stupor Mundi, is born in a tent in the main square of Jesi to Constance of Sicily
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8
Federico da Montefeltro Rules Urbino
Federico governs Urbino as lord from 1444 and is elevated to Duke of Urbino in 1474, making his court a beacon of Renaissance art, learning and architecture
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9
Basilica of Loreto Begun
Construction of the great basilica enclosing the venerated Holy House begins, transforming Loreto into one of Europe's foremost Marian pilgrimage destinations
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10
Della Rovere Succession
After Guidobaldo da Montefeltro dies without an heir, the Duchy of Urbino passes to the Della Rovere family under Francesco Maria I
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11
Devolution to the Papal States
On the death of the heirless Francesco Maria II della Rovere, the Duchy of Urbino is absorbed into the Papal States, which govern most of Marche until unification
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12
Battle of Castelfidardo
Piedmontese forces under General Cialdini defeat the Papal army of General Lamoriciere at Castelfidardo, opening the Marche to annexation by the new Italian state
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13
Annexation to the Kingdom of Italy
Marche votes by plebiscite to join unified Italy under King Victor Emmanuel II, ending centuries of Papal rule
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14
Central Italy Earthquakes
A sequence of powerful earthquakes strikes the Apennine borderlands of southern Marche, damaging historic towns around the Monti Sibillini and triggering a long reconstruction
Historical eras
The chapters of Marche's past.
Piceni and Roman Period
Picene tribes flourish on the Adriatic, the Greeks found Ancona, and Rome conquers the region, building bridges, gates and the Arch of Trajan
Byzantine Pentapolis and Early Middle Ages
Under the Exarchate of Ravenna the maritime Pentapolis forms, later donated to the Papacy, while monastic foundations rise in the hills
Medieval Communes and Signorie
City-states and lordships rise, the Malatesta fortify the coast, and Frederick II is born in Jesi in 1194
Renaissance Courts and Papal States
Federico da Montefeltro makes Urbino a Renaissance jewel, the Della Rovere succeed, Loreto becomes a great shrine, and the duchy passes to the Papacy
Historical sites
Places where Marche's past comes alive.
Palazzo Ducale di Urbino
The Renaissance palace of Duke Federico da Montefeltro, a masterpiece of fifteenth-century architecture crowned by twin slender turrets and home today to the Galleria Nazionale delle Marche, including Piero della Francesca's Flagellation of Christ.
Where: Piazza Rinascimento 13, Urbino
Admission: €10 full; €2 reduced; free first Sunday of month
Arco di Traiano (Arch of Trajan), Ancona
A tall, slender Roman triumphal arch on the harbour mole of Ancona, raised around AD 115 to honour Emperor Trajan for enlarging the port. Built of Proconnesian marble, it remains one of the best-preserved Roman arches on the Adriatic.
Where: Molo Nord, port of Ancona
Admission: Free (outdoor)
Basilica della Santa Casa, Loreto
One of the foremost Marian pilgrimage shrines in Europe, the basilica encloses the Holy House, three venerated stone walls held by tradition to be the Nazareth home of the Virgin Mary, beneath a great dome and an ornate marble screen.
Where: Piazza della Madonna 1, Loreto
Admission: Free (active pilgrimage sanctuary)
Mole Vanvitelliana, Ancona
A striking pentagonal island fortress in Ancona's harbour, designed by Luigi Vanvitelli and built from 1733 as a quarantine station (lazzaretto). Today it is a cultural centre hosting exhibitions, events and the tactile Omero museum.
Where: Banchina Giovanni da Chio 28, Ancona
Admission: Varies by exhibition/event
Rocca di Gradara (Castello di Gradara)
One of Italy's best-preserved medieval fortresses, ringed by a double circuit of walls and traditionally linked to the tragic lovers Paolo and Francesca from Dante's Inferno. Built and expanded by the Malatesta from the twelfth century.
Where: Piazza Alberta Porta Natale 1, Gradara
Admission: €10 full; €2 reduced; free under 18 and first Sunday of month
Ponte di Solestà and Roman Ascoli Piceno
Ascoli Piceno preserves remarkable Roman remains, above all the single-arched Augustan Ponte di Solestà over the Tronto, one of the largest surviving Roman bridges, together with the Porta Gemina gate and the ruins of the Roman theatre.
Where: Ponte di Solestà and historic centre, Ascoli Piceno
Admission: Free (outdoor)
Archaeological Area of Sentinum, Sassoferrato
The excavated remains of the Roman municipium of Sentinum, with streets, baths, drainage and house foundations, near the site of the famous Battle of Sentinum of 295 BC where Rome defeated a Samnite-led coalition.
Where: Near Sassoferrato (Santa Lucia and Civita zones)
Admission: Visits arranged via Sassoferrato tourist office
Abbazia di San Vittore alle Chiuse, Genga
A compact Romanesque Benedictine abbey church of pale stone at the mouth of the Frasassi gorge, documented from the early eleventh century, with a distinctive central plan and cluster of cylindrical apses.
Where: Via San Vittore 8, San Vittore Terme, Genga
Admission: Free / donation (often bundled with Frasassi complex)
Rocca Ubaldinesca di Sassocorvaro
A rare turtle-shaped Renaissance fortress designed by Francesco di Giorgio Martini for the Montefeltro court, famous as the secret wartime refuge that sheltered thousands of Italian artworks during the Second World War.
Where: Piazza Battelli, Sassocorvaro Auditore
Admission: Museum ticket; confirm current price on site
Monastero di Fonte Avellana, Serra Sant'Abbondio
A serene Camaldolese hermitage and monastery on the slopes of Monte Catria, founded around 980, with a Romanesque church, vaulted scriptorium and a tradition linking it to Dante, who praised it in the Paradiso.
Where: Loc. Fonte Avellana, Serra Sant'Abbondio
Admission: No fixed fee; small offering for guided tour
Museums
Curated collections that tell Marche's story.
Galleria Nazionale delle Marche (Urbino)
The region's premier art gallery in the Palazzo Ducale, holding Piero della Francesca's Flagellation, Raphael's La Muta and Paolo Uccello's Profanation of the Host
Hours: Tue-Sun 8:30AM-7:15PM; closed Mondays
Admission: €10 full; €2 reduced; free first Sunday of month
Museo Tattile Statale Omero (Ancona)
A pioneering state tactile museum in the Mole Vanvitelliana where visitors explore art by touch, with full-size reproductions of masterpieces and original sculpture
Hours: Tue-Sat 3PM-6PM; Sun & holidays 10AM-6PM; Mon-Fri 9AM-1PM by reservation
Admission: Free (main museum); Design Collection section €5
Museo della Carta e della Filigrana (Fabriano)
Paper and watermark museum in Fabriano, where the watermark was invented, with live demonstrations of medieval papermaking and a fine collection of historic filigree
Hours: Tue-Sun 9:30AM-1:30PM, 3PM-6PM; closed Mondays
Admission: €12 adult; €10 over-65; €5 under-18; €24 family
Casa Rossini (Pesaro)
The birthplace of composer Gioachino Rossini, a house-museum in central Pesaro preserving memorabilia, portraits, manuscripts and the rooms of his early life
Hours: Tue-Sun (seasonal hours); closed Mondays
Admission: Pesaro Musei combined ticket €10 full; €8 reduced; free under-19
Museo Internazionale della Fisarmonica (Castelfidardo)
The international accordion museum in Castelfidardo, world capital of accordion making, displaying historic instruments and tracing the craft from Paolo Soprani's nineteenth-century workshop
Hours: May-Oct Tue-Sun 10AM-1PM, 4PM-7PM; reduced Nov-Apr; closed Mondays
Admission: €5 standard; €3 groups; €2 school groups; free under-6
Pinacoteca Civica di Ascoli Piceno
Ascoli's civic picture gallery in the Palazzo dell'Arengo on Piazza Arringo, with works by Crivelli, Titian, Van Dyck and a celebrated medieval painted cope
Hours: Apr-Sep Tue-Sun 10AM-7PM; Oct-Mar reduced hours; closed Mondays
Admission: €10 full; €7 reduced; combined-museums ticket available
Historical tours
Guided experiences that bring history to life.
Walking tours
Guided walking tours of Urbino's historic centre and Palazzo Ducale from the tourist office; Ascoli Piceno travertine old-town tours around €15
Day tours
Full-day historical tours of Urbino or the Frasassi-Genga area from Ancona and the coast from €50-90 per person
Private tours
Private guides available from around €120 per half day in Urbino, Ancona and Ascoli Piceno; book through regional tourist boards