Fermo

Fermo rises on a hill above the Adriatic coast of the Marche. The Romans founded Firmum Picenum as a Latin colony in 264 BC, placing it at a junction of roads inland from the sea. In the Middle Ages it became a bishop's seat and the centre of the March of Fermo.

Fermo became a free city in 1199, but its position exposed it to struggles between the papacy, emperors and local lords. The city had already endured repeated sieges during the wars between the Hohenstaufen and the papacy. Francesco Sforza held the city until he was expelled in 1446. Later Oliverotto Euffreducci ruled Fermo before Cesare Borgia had him killed in 1503. His son Ludovico died in battle in 1520, after which the city returned to direct papal control.