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For the civilisation of classical antiquity, see Ancient Rome.
For other uses, see Rome (disambiguation). Rome (Template:Pron-en; Template:Lang-it, Template:Pronounced; Template:Lang-la) is the capital city of Italy and Lazio,[1] and is Italy's largest and most populous city, with 2,705,317 residents,[2] an urban area of 3,457,690[3] as well as a metropolitan area of about 4 million inhabitants spread over a 5,352 km² area.[4] It is located in the central-western portion of the Italian peninsula, on the Tiber river. Rome's history as a city spans over two and a half thousand years, as one of the founding cities of Western Civilisation. Even outside of the history of the Roman Empire, Rome has a significant place in the story of Christianity up to the present day as the home of the Roman Catholic Church. As one of the few major European cities that escaped World War II relatively unscathed, central Rome remains essentially Renaissance and Baroque in character. Rome is the third most visited tourist destination in the European Union,[5] and its historic centre of Rome is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.[6] HistoryHere is the complete setlist for Guitar Hero III, which will also include all downloadable content (when released).
Single Player Setlist1. Starting Out Small
2. Your First Real Gig
3. Making The Video
4. European Invasion
5. Bighouse Blues
6. The Hottest Band On Earth
7. Live in Japan
8. Battle For Your Soul
Co-Op Setlist1. Getting a Band Together
2. We Just Wanna Be Famous
3. Overnight Success
4. Getting the Band Back Together
5. Jailhouse Rock
6. Battle for Your Souls...
Bonus Tracks
Downloadable ContentSinglesHalo Theme MJOLNIR Mix - Released November 22, 2007 on XBL. Ernten Was Wir Säen - Released December 20, 2007 on XBL & January 3, 2008 on PSN. So Payso - Released December 20, 2007 on XBL & January 3, 2008 on PSN.
Antisocial - Released December 20, 2007 on XBL and January 3, 2008 on PSN.
We Three Kings - Released December 20, 2007 on XBL & PSN. Dream On - Released Febuary 18, 2008 on XBL & PSN. I am Murloc - Released June 26, 2008 on XBL and PSN.
Track PacksCompanion Pack - Released October 31, 2007 on XBL. Foo Fighters Pack - Released November 8, 2007 on XBL & PSN. Velvet Revolver Pack - Released November 8, 2007 on XBL & PSN. Boss Battle Pack - Released November 15, 2007 on XBL and November 29, 2007 on PSN. Warner/Reprise Track Pack - Released December 20, 2007 on XBL and January 3, 2007 on PSN. Classic Rock Track Pack - Released January 24, 2008 on XBL and PSN.
No Doubt Track Pack - Released Febuary 28, 2008 on XBL and PSN. Modern Metal Track Pack - Released March 6, 2008 on XBL & PSN. Dropkick Murphys Track Pack - Released March 13, 2008 on XBL & PSN. Def Leppard Track Pack - Released April 24, 2008 on XBL & PSN.
Guitar Virtuoso Pack - Released July 24, 2008 on XBL & PSN. DragonForce Track Pack - Released August 21, 2008 on XBL & PSN From founding to EmpireImage:She-wolf suckles Romulus and Remus.jpg Rome's early history is shrouded in legend. According to Roman tradition, the city was founded by the twins Romulus and Remus on April 21, 753 BC.[7] Archaeological evidence supports the view that Rome grew from pastoral settlements on the Palatine Hill built in the area of the future Roman Forum. While some archaeologists argue that Rome was indeed founded in the middle of the 8th century BC, the date is subject to controversy.[8] The original settlement developed into the capital of the Roman Kingdom (ruled by a succession of seven kings, according to tradition), and then the Roman Republic (from 510 BC, governed by the Senate), and finally the Roman Empire (from 27 BC, ruled by an Emperor). This success depended on military conquest, commercial predominance, as well as selective assimilation of neighbouring civilisations, most notably the Etruscans and Greeks. From its foundation Rome, although losing occasional battles, had been undefeated in war until 386 BC, when it was briefly occupied by the Gauls.[9] According to the legend, the Gauls offered to deliver Rome back to its people for a thousand pounds of gold, but the Romans refused, preferring to take back their city by force of arms rather than ever admitting defeat, after which the Romans recovered the city in the same year. Roman dominance expanded over most of Europe and the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, while its population surpassed one million inhabitants. For almost a thousand years, Rome was the most politically important, richest and largest city in the Western world, and remained so after the Empire started to decline and was split, even as it lost its capital status to Milan and then to Ravenna, and was surpassed in prestige by the Eastern capital ConstantinopleTemplate:Fact. Fall of the Empire and Middle AgesWith the reign of Constantine I, the Bishop of Rome gained political as well as religious importance, eventually becoming known as the Pope and establishing Rome as the centre of the Catholic Church. After the Sack of Rome in 410 AD by Alaric I and the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 AD, Rome alternated between Byzantine control and plundering by Germanic barbarians. Its population declined to a mere 20,000 during the Early Middle Ages, reducing the sprawling city to groups of inhabited buildings interspersed among large areas of ruins and vegetation. Rome remained nominally part of the Byzantine Empire until 751 AD when the Lombards finally abolished the Exarchate of Ravenna. In 756, Pepin the Short gave the Pope temporal jurisdiction over Rome and surrounding areas, thus creating the Papal States. In 846, Muslim Arabs invaded Rome and looted St. Peter's Basilica.[10] Rome remained the capital of the Papal States until its annexation by the Kingdom of Italy in 1870; the city became a major pilgrimage site during the Middle Ages and the focus of struggles between the Papacy and the Holy Roman Empire starting with Charlemagne, who was crowned its first emperor in Rome in 800 by Pope Leo III. Apart from brief periods as an independent city during the Middle Ages, Rome kept its status as Papal capital and "holy city" for centuries, even when the Papacy briefly relocated to Avignon (1309–1377). Renaissance RomeThe latter half of the 15th century saw the seat of the Italian Renaissance move to Rome from Florence. The Papacy wanted to equal and surpass the grandeur of other Italian cities and to this end created ever more extravagant churches, bridges and public spaces, including a new Saint Peter's Basilica, the Sistine Chapel, Ponte Sisto (the first bridge to be built across the Tiber since antiquity), and Piazza Navona. The Popes were also patrons of the arts engaging such artists as Michelangelo, Perugino, Raphael, Ghirlandaio, Luca Signorelli, Botticelli and Cosimo Rosselli. The period was also infamous for papal corruption with many Popes fathering children, and engaging in nepotism and simony. The corruption of the Popes and the extravagance of their building projects led, in part, to the Reformation and, in turn, the Counter-reformation. Towards the reunification of ItalyImage:Attacco garibaldino contro i francesi 30 aprile 1849.jpg Italy became caught up in the nationalistic turmoil of the 19th century and twice gained and lost a short-lived independence. Rome became the focus of hopes of Italian reunification when the rest of Italy was reunited under the Kingdom of Italy with a temporary capital at Florence. In 1861 Rome was declared the capital of Italy even though it was still under the control of the Pope. During the 1860s the last vestiges of the Papal states were under French protection. And it was only when this was lifted in 1870, owing to the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War, that Italian troops were able to capture Rome. 20th centuryAfter a victorious World War I, Rome witnessed the rise to power of Italian fascism guided by Benito Mussolini, who marched on the city in 1922, eventually declaring a new Empire and allying Italy with Nazi Germany. This was a period of rapid growth in population, from 212,000 people at the time of unification to more than 1,000,000, but this trend was halted by World War II, during which Rome was damaged by both Allied forces bombing and Nazi occupation. After the execution of Mussolini and the end of the war, a 1946 referendum abolished the monarchy in favour of the Italian Republic. Rome grew momentously after the war, as one of the driving forces behind the "Italian economic miracle" of post-war reconstruction and modernisation. It became a fashionable city in the 1950s and early 1960s, the years of la dolce vita ("the sweet life"), and a new rising trend in population continued till the mid-1980s, when the commune had more than 2,800,000 residents; after that, population started to slowly decline as more residents moved to nearby suburbs. Administration[[File:CampidoglioCityHallRome.jpg|thumb|Rome City Hall.]] Capital of ItalyRome is the national capital of Italy and is the seat of the Italian Government. The official residences of the President of the Italian Republic and the Italian Prime Minister, the seats of both houses of the Italian Parliament and that of the Italian Constitutional Court are located in the historic centre. While the state ministries are spread out around the city. These include the Ministry of Foreign Affairs which is located in Palazzo della Farnesina near the Olympic stadium. City GovernmentRome constitutes one of Italy's 8,101 communes, albeit the largest both by extent and population. It is governed by a Mayor, currently Giovanni Alemanno, and a city council. The seat of the commune is in on the Capitoline Hill the historic seat of government in Rome. The local administration in Rome is commonly referred to as "Campidoglio", the name of the hill in Roman dialect. Administrative divisionsRome is divided into 19 administrative areas, called municipi or municipalities. They were created for administrative reasons to increase decentralisation in the city. Each municipality is governed by a president and a council of four members who are elected by the residents of the municipality every five years. The municipalities frequently cross the boundaries of the traditional, non-administrative divisions of the city. Rome is also divided into differing types of non-administrative divisions. The historic centre is divided into 22 rioni, all of which are located within the Aurelian walls except Prati and Borgo. After the designation of the newest and last rione, Prati, newer districts of the city were designated as quarters. There are 35 of these and they go all the way to the sea at Ostia, where they are called marine quarters. Rome also has six officially designated suburban zones and 52 agricultural zones. Many of the latter, however, have actually been subject to considerable development. GeographyLocationRome is in the Lazio region of central Italy on the Tiber river (Template:Lang-it). The original settlement developed on hills which faced onto a ford beside the Tiber island, the only natural ford on the river. The historic centre of Rome was build on seven hills: the Aventine Hill, the Caelian Hill, the Capitoline Hill, the Esquiline Hill, the Palatine Hill, the Quirinal Hill, and the Viminal Hill. The city is also crossed by another river the Aniene with joins the Tiber north of the historic centre. Although the city centre is about Template:Convert inland from the Tyrrhenian Sea, the city territory extends to the shore, where the south-western district of Ostia is located. The altitude of the central part of Rome ranges from Template:Convert above sea level (at the base of the Pantheon) to Template:Convert above sea level (the peak of Monte Mario).[11] The Commune of Rome covers an overall area of about Template:Convert, including many green areas. TopographyImage:Rome L7 8 3 2001 lrg.jpg Historically, the urban limits of Rome were considered to be the area within the city walls. Originally, these consisted of the Servian Wall which was built twelve years after the Gaulish sack of the city in 390 BC. This contained most of the Esquiline and Caelian hills, as well as the whole of the other five. Rome outgrew the Servian Wall, but no more walls were constructed until almost 700 years later, when in 270 AD Emperor Aurelian began building the Aurelian Walls. These were almost Template:Convert long, and were still the walls the troops of the Kingdom of Italy had to breach to enter the city in 1870. Modern Romans frequently consider the city's urban area to be delimited by its ring-road, the Grande Raccordo Anulare, which circles the city centre at a distance of about 10km. The Commune of Rome, however, covers considerably more territory and extends to the sea at Ostia, the largest town in Italy that is not a commune in its own right. The Commune covers an area roughly three times the total area within the Raccordo and is comparable in area to the entire provinces of Milan and Naples, and to an area six times the size of the territory of these cities. It also includes considerable areas of abandoned marsh land which is neither suitable for agriculture nor for urban development. Consequently the density of the Commune is not that high, the communal territory being divided between highly-urbanised areas and areas designated as parks, nature reserves, and for agricultural use. The Province of Rome is the largest by area in Italy. At 5,352 km², its dimensions are comparable to the region of Liguria, and more than three times the size of the greater metropolitan area of London. ClimateRome enjoys a typical Mediterranean climate which is characteristic of the Mediterranean coasts of Italy. It is at its most comfortable from April through June, and from mid-September to October; in particular, the Roman ottobrate (which can be roughly translated as the "beautiful October days") are famously known as sunny and warm days. By August, the temperature during the heat of the day often exceeds 32 °C (90 °F). Traditionally, many businesses closed during August, and Romans abandoned the city for holiday resorts. In more recent years, however, in response to growing tourism and changing work habits, the city is increasingly staying open for the whole summer. The average high temperature in December is about 13 °C (57 °F), but subzero lows are not uncommonTemplate:Fact. Template:- Template:Rome weatherbox Demographics[[File:SaintPeter'BasilicaRome.jpg|thumb|right|200px|St. Peter's Basilica from the River Tiber. The iconic dome dominates the skyline of Rome.]] At the time of the Emperor Augustus, Rome was the largest city in the world, and probably the largest built until the 19th century. Estimates of its peak population range from 450,000 to over 3.5 million people, with 1 to 2 million being most popular with historians. Estimates have been made using the weight and consumption of imported grain and the free dole to 20% of the population. In the 1st and 2nd centuries this suggests an 800,000 - 1.2 million inhabitants based on various per captia consumption figures. The figure 25.5 million modii of grain (400 million pounds) in storage in the time of emperor Septimius Severus is taken from the late 4th century Historia Augusta. The city opulation may have been as high as 600,000 until the loss of the richest North African Provinces in the 430s, 440s and 450s. Thereafter the population fell rapidly without grain imports (except for some from Sicily and Sardinia) and the unwillingness of the upper classes to support the continued cost to them after the loss of many of their own estates outside Italy. Moreover, it was not worth the effort to maintain an artificially large population. However, every effort was made to keep the area of the Palatine and Forum intact as well as the largest Baths and some other amenities for a smaller population of 90-150,000. After the fall of the Roman Empire, the city's population fell dramatically to less than 50,000 people, and continued to either stagnate or shrink until the RenaissanceTemplate:Fact. When the Kingdom of Italy annexed Rome in 1870, the city had a population of about 200,000, which rapidly increased to 600,000 by the eve of World War I. The Fascist regime of Mussolini tried to block an excessive demographic rise of the city, but failed to prevent it from reaching one million people by 1931. After the Second World War, growth continued, helped by a post-war economic boom. A construction boom also created a large number of suburbs during the 1950s and 1960s.
In 2007, there were 2,718,768 people resident in Rome (some 4 million live in the greater Rome area), located in the province of Rome, Lazio, of whom 47.2% were male and 52.8% were female. Minors (children ages 18 and younger) totalled 17.00 percent of the population compared to pensioners who number 20.76 percent. This compares with the Italian average of 18.06 percent (minors) and 19.94 percent (pensioners). The average age of a Roman resident is 43 compared to the Italian average of 42. In the five years between 2002 and 2007, the population of Rome grew by 6.54 percent, while Italy as a whole grew by 3.56 percent.[12] The current birth rate of Rome is 9.10 births per 1,000 inhabitants compared to the Italian average of 9.45 births. ImmigrationAs of 2006, 92.63% of the population was Italian, either born in Rome or coming from other cities in the country. The largest ethnic minority groups came from other European countries (mostly from Romania and Poland): 3.14%, East Asia (mostly Filipino): 1.28%, and the Americas (mostly from Argentina): 1.09%. Tens of thousands of illegal migrants also live in Rome. Religion[[File:Vatican StPeter Square.jpg|thumb|center|400px|St. Peter's Square in the Vatican City.]] Much like the rest of Italy, Rome is predominantly Roman Catholic. Although Rome is home to the Vatican City and St. Peter's Basilica, Rome's cathedral is the Basilica of St. John Lateran located to the south-east of the city centre. There are around 900 churches in Rome in total, aside from the cathedral itself, some others of note include: the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, the Basilica di San Clemente, San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane and the Church of the Gesu. There are also the ancient Catacombs of Rome underneath the city. Numerous highly important religious educational institutions are also in Rome, such as the Pontifical Lateran University, Pontifical Biblical Institute, Pontifical Gregorian University and Pontifical Oriental Institute. Image:Facade San Giovanni in Laterano 2006-09-07.jpg The territory of Vatican City is part of the Mons Vaticanus, and of the adjacent former Vatican Fields where St. Peter's Basilica, the Apostolic Palace, the Sistine Chapel, and museums were built, along with various other buildings. The area was part of the Roman rione of Borgo until 1929. Being separated from the city, on the west bank of the Tiber river, the area was an outcrop of the city that was protected by being included within the walls of Leo IV, and later expanded by the current fortification walls of Paul III/Pius IV/Urban VIII. When the Lateran Treaty of 1929 that gave the state its present form was being prepared, the boundaries of the proposed territory was influenced by the fact that much of it was all but enclosed by this loop. For some tracts of the frontier, there was no wall, but the line of certain buildings supplied part of the boundary, and for a small part of the frontier a modern wall was constructed. The territory includes St. Peter's Square, distinguished from the territory of Italy only by a white line along the limit of the square, where it touches Piazza Pio XII. St. Peter's Square is reached through the Via della Conciliazione which runs from the Tiber River to St. Peter's. This grand approach was constructed by Benito Mussolini after the conclusion of the Lateran Treaty. According to the Lateran Treaty, certain properties of the Holy See that are located in Italian territory, most notably Castel Gandolfo and the major basilicas, enjoy extraterritorial status similar to that of foreign embassies. Cityscape[[File:Colosseum-panoramic.view.jpg|thumb|700px|center|The Coloseum and the Arch of Constantine.]] Ancient RomeImage:Pantheon rome 2005may.jpg One of the symbols of Rome is the Colosseum (70–80 AD), the largest amphitheatre ever built in the Roman Empire. Originally capable of seating 60,000 spectators, it was used for gladiatorial combat. The list of important monuments of ancient Rome includes the Roman Forum, the Domus Aurea, the Pantheon, Trajan's Column, Trajan's Market, the Catacombs, the Circus Maximus, the Baths of Caracalla, Castel Sant'Angelo, the Mausoleum of Augustus, the Ara Pacis, the Arch of Constantine, the Pyramid of Cestius, and the Bocca della Verità. MedievalOften overlooked, Rome's medieval heritage is one of the largest in Italian cities. Basilicas dating from the Paleochristian age include Santa Maria Maggiore and San Paolo Fuori le Mura (the latter largely rebuilt in the 19th century), both housing precious 4th century AD mosaics. Later notable medieval mosaic and fresco art can be also found in the churches of Santa Maria in Trastevere, Santi Quattro Coronati and Santa Prassede. Lay buildings include a number of towers, the largest being the Torre delle Milizie and the Torre dei Conti, both next the Roman Forum, and the huge staircase leading to the basilica of Santa Maria in Ara Coeli. Renaissance and Baroque[[File:Trevi Fountain wide.jpg|thumb|right|The Trevi Fountain.]] Rome was a major world centre of the Renaissance, second only to Florence, and was profoundly affected by the movement. The most impressive masterpiece of Renaissance architecture in Rome is the Piazza del Campidoglio by Michelangelo, along with the Palazzo Senatorio, seat of the city government. During this period, the great aristocratic families of Rome used to build opulent dwellings as the Palazzo del Quirinale (now seat of the President of the Italian Republic), the Palazzo Venezia, the Palazzo Farnese, the Palazzo Barberini, the Palazzo Chigi (now seat of the Italian Prime Minister), the Palazzo Spada, the Palazzo della Cancelleria, and the Villa Farnesina. Rome is also famous for her huge and majestic squares (often adorned with obelisks), many of which were built in the 17th century. The principal squares are Piazza Navona, Piazza di Spagna, Campo de' Fiori, Piazza Venezia, Piazza Farnese and Piazza della Minerva. One of the most emblematic examples of Baroque art is the Fontana di Trevi by Nicola Salvi. Other notable 17th century baroque palaces are the Palazzo Madama, now the seat of the Italian Senate and the Palazzo Montecitorio, now the seat of the Chamber of Deputies of Italy. NeoclassicismImage:RomaPalazzoQuirinale.JPG
Fascist architectureThe Fascist regime that ruled in Italy between 1922 and 1943 developed an architectural style which was characterised by its links with ancient Roman architecture. The most important Fascist site in Rome is the E.U.R. district, designed in 1938 by Marcello Piacentini. It was originally conceived for the 1942 world exhibition, and was called "E.42" ("Esposizione 42"). The world exhibition, however, never took place because Italy entered the Second World War in 1940. The most representative building of the Fascist style at E.U.R. is the Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana (1938–1943), the iconic design of which has been labelled the cubic or Square Colosseum. Image:Galleria borghese facade.jpg After World War II, the Roman authorities found that they already had the seed of an off-centre business district of the type that other capitals were still planning (London Docklands and La Defense in Paris). Also the Palazzo della Farnesina, the current seat of Italian Foreign Ministry, was designed in 1935 in Fascist style. Parks and gardensPublic parks and nature reserves cover a large area in Rome, and the city has one of the largest areas of green space amongst European capitals.[13] The most notable part of this green space is represented by the large number of villas and landscaped gardens created by the Italian aristocracy. While many villas were destroyed during the building boom of the late 19th century, a great many nonetheless remain. The most notable of these are Villa Borghese, Villa Ada, and Villa Doria Pamphili. Rome has a number of regional parks of much more recent origin including the Pineto Regional Park and the Appian Way Regional Park. There are also nature reserves at Marcigliana and at Tenuta di Castelporziano. EconomyWith a 2005 GDP of €94.376 billion (US$121.5 billion),[14] the city produces 6.7% of the national GDP (more than any other single city in Italy) and its unemployment rate, lowered from 11.1% to 6.5% between 2001 and 2005, is now one of the lowest rates of all the European Union capital cities.[14] Rome grows +4,4% annually and continues to grow at a higher rate in comparison to any other city in the rest of the country.[14] Although the economy of Rome is characterized by the absence of heavy industry and it is largely dominated by services, high technology companies (IT, aerospace, defense, telecommunications), research, construction and commercial activities (especially banking) and the huge development of tourism are very dynamic and extremely important to its economy. Rome's international airport, Fiumicino, is the largest in Italy and the city hosts the head offices of the vast majority of the major Italian companies, as well as the headquarters of three of the world's 100 largest companies: Enel, Eni, and Telecom Italia.[15] Universities, national radio and television and the movie industry in Rome are also important parts of the economy: Rome is also the hub of the Italian film industry, thanks to the Cinecittà studios, working since the 1930s. The city is also a centre for banking and insurance as well as electronics, energy, transport and aerospace industries. Numerous international companies and agencies headquarters, government ministries, conference centres, sports venues and museums are located in Rome's principal business districts: the Esposizione Universale Roma (EUR); the Torrino (further south from the EUR); the Magliana; the Parco de' Medici-Laurentina and the so-called Tiburtina-valley along the ancient Via Tiburtina. Tourism is inevitably one of Rome's chief industries, with numerous notable museums including the Vatican Museum, the Borghese Gallery, and the Musei Capitolini: in 2005 the city registered 19.5 million of global visitors, up of 22.1% from 2001.[14] In 2006 Rome has been visited by 6.03 million of international tourists, reaching the 8th place in the ranking of the world's 150 most visited cities.[16] CultureTemplate:Infobox World Heritage Site EducationRome is a nation-wide centre for higher education. Its first university, La Sapienza (founded in 1303), is the largest in Europe and the second largest in the world, with more than 150,000 students attending.Template:Fact Two new public universities were founded: Tor Vergata in 1982, and Roma Tre in 1992, although the latter has now become larger than the former. Rome also contains a large number of pontifical universities and institutes, including the Pontifical Gregorian University (The oldest Jesuit university in the world, founded in 1551), the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, and many others. The city also hosts various private universities, such as the LUMSA, the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (Roman centre), the LUISS, Istituto Europeo di Design, the St. John's University, the John Cabot University, the IUSM, the American University of Rome, the Scuola Lorenzo de' Medici, the Link Campus of Malta, the S. Pio V University of Rome, and the Università Campus Bio-Medico. Rome is also the location of the John Felice Rome Centre, a campus of Loyola University Chicago. MusicRome is an important centre for music. It hosts the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia (founded in 1585), for which new concert halls have been built in the new Parco della Musica, one of the largest musical venues in the world. Rome also has an opera house, the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, as well as several minor musical institutions. The city also played host to the Eurovision Song Contest in 1991 and the MTV Europe Music Awards in 2004. CinemaImage:Martin scorsese gangs of new york set in cinecitta italy.jpg Rome hosts the Cinecittà Studios, the largest film and television production facility in continental Europe and the centre of the Italian cinema, where a large number of today's biggest box office hits are filmed. The 99 acre (40 ha) studio complex is 5.6 miles (9 km) from the centre of Rome and is part of one of the biggest production communities in the world, second only to Hollywood, with well over 5,000 professionals — from period costume makers to visual effects specialists. More than 3,000 productions have been made on its lot, from recent features like The Passion of the Christ, Gangs of New York, HBO’s Rome, The Life Aquatic and Dino De Laurentiis’ Decameron, to such cinema classics as Ben Hur, Cleopatra and the films of Federico Fellini. Founded in 1937 by Benito Mussolini, the studios were bombed by the Western Allies during World War II. In the 1950s, Cinecittà was the filming location for several large American film productions, and subsequently became the studio most closely associated with Federico Fellini. Today Cinecittà is the only studio in the world with pre-production, production and full post-production facilities on one lot, allowing directors and producers to walk in with their script and "walk out" with a completed film. LanguageThe original language of Rome was Latin, which evolved during the Middle Ages into Italian. The latter emerged as the confluence of various regional dialects, among which the Tuscan dialect predominated, but the population of Rome also developed its own dialect, the Romanesco. The ancient romanesco, used during the Middle Ages, was a southern Italian dialect, very close to the Neapolitan. The influence of the Florentine culture during the renaissance, and, above all, the immigration to Rome of many Florentines, amongst them the two Medici Popes' (Leo X and Clement VII) and their suite, caused a major shift in the dialect, which began to resemble more the Tuscan varieties (the immigration of Florentines was mainly due to the Sack of Rome in 1527 and the subsequent demographic decrease). This remained largely confined to Rome until the 19th century, but then expanded to other zones of Lazio (Civitavecchia, Latina), from the beginning of the 20th century, thanks to the rising population of Rome and to better transportation systems. As a consequence, Romanesco abandoned its traditional forms to mutate into the dialect spoken within the city, which is more like standard Italian, although it remains distinct from the other Romanesco-influenced local dialects of Lazio. Dialectal literature in the traditional form Romanesco includes the works of such authors as Giuseppe Gioacchino Belli, Trilussa, and Cesare Pascarella. Contemporary Romanesco is mainly represented by popular actors such as Aldo Fabrizi, Alberto Sordi, Nino Manfredi, Anna Magnani, Gigi Proietti, Enrico Montesano, and Carlo Verdone. SportsRome hosted the 1960 Summer Olympics and is an official candidate to hosting the 2020 Summer Olympics. Football is the most popular sport in Rome, as in the rest of the country. The Olympic Stadium hosted the final game of the 1990 FIFA World Cup; it is also the home stadium for local Serie A clubs A.S. Roma and S.S. Lazio, whose rivalry has become a staple of Roman sports culture. Indeed, famous footballers who play for these teams and are also born in the city tend to become especially popular, as has been the case with players such as Francesco Totti and Daniele De Rossi (both for A.S. Roma). While far from being as popular as football, Rugby union is gaining wider acceptance. The Stadio Flaminio is the home stadium for the Italy national rugby union team, which has been playing in the Six Nations Championship since 2000, albeit with less than satisfactory performances, as they have never won the championship so far. Rome is home to local rugby teams, such as Unione Rugby Capitolina, Rugby Roma, and S.S. Lazio. Every May, Rome hosts the ATP Masters Series tennis tournament on the clay courts of the Foro Italico. Cycling was immensely popular in the post-WWII period, although its popularity has faded in the last decades; Rome has hosted the final portion of the Giro d'Italia twice, in 1989 and 2000. Rome is also home to many other sports teams, including basketball (Virtus Roma), volleyball (M. Roma Volley), handball or waterpolo. TransportationImage:Esquilino - stazione Termini 1872st.JPG Rome is at the centre of the radial network of roads which roughly follow the lines of the ancient roman roads that began at the Capitoline Hill and connected Rome with its empire. Today Rome is circled, at a distance of about Template:Convert, by the ring-road called the Grande Raccordo Anulare. Due to its location in the centre of the Italian peninsula, Rome is a principal railway node for central Italy. Rome's main train station, Termini, is one of the biggest train stations in Europe and the most heavily used in Italy with around 400 thousand travellers passing through every day. The second largest station in the city, Roma Tiburtina, is currently being redeveloped as a high-speed rail terminus.[17] Rome is also served by three airports. The intercontinental Leonardo Da Vinci International Airport is Italy's chief airport and is more commonly known as "Fiumicino Airport", as it is located within the nearby Commune of Fiumicino, south-west of Rome. The older Rome Ciampino Airport is a joint civilian and military airport. It is more commonly referred to as "Ciampino Airport", as it is located beside Ciampino, south-east of Rome. A third airport, the Aeroporto dell'Urbe, is a small, low-traffic airport located about 6 km north of the city centre, which handles most helicopter and private flights. The city suffers from considerable traffic problems largely due to this largely radial street pattern which make it difficult for Romans to easily move from the vicinity of one the radial roads to another without going into the historic centre or using the ring-road. Problems which are not helped by limited size of Rome's metro system when compared to other similarly sized cities. In addition, Rome has only 21 taxis for every 10,000 inhabitants, far below other major European cities.[18] Chronic congestion caused by cars during the 1970s and 1980s led to restrictions being placed on vehicle access to the inner city centre during the hours of daylight. Areas where these restriction apply are known as Limited Traffic Zones (Zona a Traffico Limitato (ZTL) in Italian). More recently, heavy night-time traffic in Trastevere and San Lorenzo has led to the creation of night-time ZTLs in those districts, and there are also plans to create another night-time ZTL in Testaccio. [[File:RomemetroEmanuele.JPG|thumb|right|Metropolitana of Rome.]] A 2-line metro system called the Metropolitana operates in Rome. Construction on the first branch started in the 1930s. The line had been planned to quickly connect the main train station with the newly planned E42 area in the southern suburbs, where the 1942 World Fair was supposed to be held. The event never took place because of war. The area was later partly redesigned and renamed EUR (Esposizione Universale di Roma: Rome Universal Exhibition) in the 1950s to serve as a modern business district. The line was finally opened in 1955 and it is now part of the B Line. The A line opened in 1980 from Ottaviano to Anagnina stations, later extended in stages (1999 – 2000) to Battistini. In the 1990s, an extension of the B line was opened from Termini to Rebibbia. This underground network is generally reliable (although it may become very congested at peak times and during events, especially the A line) as it is relatively short. As of 2005, its total length is Template:Convert. The two existing lines, A & B, intersect at Roma Termini station. A new branch of the B line (B1) is under construction with an estimated cost of € 500 million. It is scheduled to open in 2010. B1 will connect to line B at Piazza Bologna and will have 4 stations over a distance of Template:Convert. A third line, line C, is under construction with an estimated cost of €3 billion and will have 30 stations over a distance of Template:Convert. It will partly replace the existing Rail Road line, Termini-Pantano. It will feature full automated, driverless trains.[19] The first section is due to open in 2011 and the final sections in 2015, but archaeological findings often delay underground construction work. A fourth line, line, is also planned. It will have 22 stations over a distance of Template:Convert. The first section is projected to open in 2015 and the final sections before 2035. Above ground public transport in Rome is made up of a bus and tram network. This network is run by Trambus S.p.A. under the auspices of ATAC S.p.A. (which originally stood for the Bus and Tram Agency of the Commune, Azienda Tranvie ed Autobus del Comune in Italian). The bus network is currently made up of in excess of 350 bus lines and over 8 thousand bus stops. Whilst the more limited tram system currently has 39 km of track and 192 stops.[20] International entities, organisations and involvementRome is unique in having a sovereign state located entirely within its city limits, the Vatican City. The Vatican is a enclave of Rome and a sovereign possession of the Holy See the supreme government of the Roman Catholic Church. Rome hosts foreign embassies to both Italy and the Holy See, although frequently the same ambassador is accredited to both. Another body the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM) took refuge in Rome in 1834 after having lost Malta to Napoleon. It is sometimes classified as having sovereignty but doesn't claim any territory in Rome or anywhere else, hence leading to dispute over its actual sovereign status. Rome is also the seat of significant international organisations of the United Nations, such as the World Food Program (WFP), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). Rome has traditionally been heavily involved in the process of European political integration. In 1957, the city hosted the signing of the Treaty of Rome, which established the European Economic Community (predecessor to the European Union), and also played host to the official signing of the proposed European constitution in July 2004. Rome was also where the Statute of the International Criminal Court was formulated. Sister and partner citiesRome has one sister city, and a number of partner cities: Sister cityPartner citiesSee also
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Rome
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