above the present road, is CXX, corresponding to . It was probably in consequence of this road cut that some of the more important buildings of the imperial period were erected on the low ground near the small harbour. The construction of the coast road, the Via Severiana, from Ostia to Terracina, added to the importance of the place. The Via Appia and the Via Severiana met some few miles east of Terracina, and the Via Appia then traversed the pass of Lautulae, between the mountains and the Lake of Fondi, where the Samnites defeated the Romans with losses in 315 BC. The natural environment and scenery of the promontory, with its luxuriant flora and views, had caused it to be frequented by the Romans as early as 200 BC. Terracina became an important centre for the development of the fertile valley lying to the west, and started to grow new settlements at the foot of the hill which turned into a sanctuary area with some patrician mansions. New public edifices were erected starting from the time of Sulla including a new theatre and forum, while the sanctuary was renovated. Marcus Favonius, the imitator of Cato the Younger, was born in Terracina, as was the emperor Galba (in 3 BC); both Galba and Domitian possessed villas in the area. The port was built under Trajan and Antoninus Pius in the 2nd century AD. The last Roman construction was that of a new line of walls during the 5th century AD. The nearby mineral springs by the coast, known to the Romans as and later renamed , are still in use, except one containing arsenic which was blocked up both by the ancients and again in 1839 as a precaution. Middle Ages Terracina is mentioned in the history of the Gothic War, and Theodoric is said to have had a palace here. It was sacked in 409 and 595. After the Lombards had conquered part of Italy in the late 6th century, Terracina remained an important military stronghold of the Eastern Roman Empire, and later became part of the Duchy of Naples. It was one of the northernmost outposts of Byzantine authority in the south. A monument bearing the name of Duke George of Naples stood there at the turn of the 20th century. In 872, Pope John VIII brought it under the domination of the Holy See. However, after the