Isole Tremiti
| Isole Tremiti | ||
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| Comune | ||
| Comune di Isole Tremiti | ||
A view of San Nicola island from the nearby San Domino island, with the Abbey of Santa Maria a Mare fortified complex.
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.svg) Tremiti within the Province of Foggia |
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 Isole Tremiti
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| Coordinates: 42°07′N 15°30′E / 42.117°N 15.500°E | ||
| Country | Italy | |
| Region | Apulia | |
| Province / Metropolitan city | Foggia (FG) | |
| Frazioni | Isola San Nicola, Isola San Domino | |
| Government | ||
| • Mayor | Carmela Palumbo | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 3.13 km2 (1.21 sq mi) | |
| Elevation | 70 m (230 ft) | |
| Population (31 December 2009) | ||
| • Total | 496 | |
| • Density | 160/km2 (410/sq mi) | |
| Demonym(s) | Tremitesi | |
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | |
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | |
| Postal code | 71040 | |
| Dialing code | 0882 | |
| Website | Official website | |
The Isole Tremiti are an archipelago in the Adriatic Sea, north of the Gargano Peninsula. They constitute a comune of Italy's Province of Foggia and form part of the Gargano national park. The name of the islands relates to their seismic hazard, with a history of earthquakes in the area: tremiti means "tremors".
The islands were used for the internment of political prisoners during Benito Mussolini's Fascist regime. This was nothing new: two millennia earlier Augustus had exiled his granddaughter Julia the Younger to one of these islands (then named Trimerus in Latin, maybe from Greek Trimeros, Τρίμερος, meaning "tree places" or "tree islands").
The islands are now an important tourist attraction because of the clear waters surrounding them. Up to 100,000 visitors come to the islands in the summer season. Ferry services from the mainland operate from Termoli, Vieste, Rodi Garganico and Capoiale, while Alidaunia offers flights from San Domino Heliport to Foggia and Vieste.
Inhabited since late Iron Age times (4th-3rd centuries BC), the Tremiti Island have been a confinement place since ancient times. Roman emperor Augustus had his granddaughter Julia the Younger transferred here, where she died after 20 years. In the Middle Ages the archipelago was ruled by the Abbey of Santa Maria a Mare ("Holy Mary on the Sea") at San Nicola island, apparently founded here in the 9th century by Benedictine monks from Montecassino. In the 13th century the abbey had gained its autonomy from the father monastery, and owned lands from the Biferno to Trani on the Apulian mainland. After an alleged period of moral decadence, in 1237 the Benedictines were replaced by the Cistercian order. In 1334 the abbey was sacked by Dalmatian pirates from Omiš.
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Wikipedia