fleeing from Cividale, landed on Neapolitan territory (1409), and went thence to Gaeta. After the end of the Italian Wars, the new Spanish rule and the shift of commerce due to the discovery of America impoverished Lanciano, which, in 1640, became a baronial possession. Later, the city took the part of the Neapolitan Republic of 1799 and rose against the Bourbon kings in 1848, 1849 and 1853. In 1860 it voted for annexation to the newly formed Kingdom of Italy. During World War II it was an active center of the Resistance against the German occupation. On 6 October 1943 Italian citizens attacked German soldiers (revolt of the martyrs of October 1943). In 1952 it was awarded the Gold Medal to Military Valour by President Luigi Einaudi. Monuments and sites of interest Religious architecture or sites Cathedral of Santa Maria del Ponte ("St. Mary of the Bridge"), so called because it is built on bridgework along a precipice: is the work of Michitelli (1619) and has some paintings by Pozzulaniello (Giacinto Diana). It houses also an 8th-century Byzantine statue portraying the Madonna, probably brought here during the iconoclast controversy. Santa Maria Maggiore: 13th-century Gothic-style church: in the 19th-century, the interior was stripped of Baroque stucco-work, accentuating gothic ribbed vaults. Decorated ogival portal dates to 1317. San Francesco (1258): church built over a pre-existing 7th-century temple. The high altar houses the relics of the local Eucharistic Miracle. Sant'Agostino (1270): church façade has maintained the original rose window and the gate, while the single nave interior is a Baroque restoration. San Biagio (11th century): oldest church of the city. It has a bell tower and it's always opened on 3 February for the anointing of the throat, a Catholic rite linked to the cult Saint Biagio. Secular architecture or sites Porta San Biagio (11th century), the only one gate remaining of the nine once existing. Torri Montanare, a relic of the ancient walls (11th century). They consist in two massive towers, the most recent dating to the 15th century, offering a panoramic view of the area. Torre civica (19th century), was built over a pre-existing tower next to the cathedral. Nowadays it is a belfry and a clock tower. Torre Aragonese, (15th century) was a tower along the ancient walls. Palazzo dell'Arcivescovado, (16th century) is still the seat of the archbishop and houses a diocesan Museum. Botteghe medievali, was a house built