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{{Short description|9th-century walls in Rome}}
[[File:Plan of Rome in the Middle Ages - Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd, 1923.jpg|350px|thumb|A plan of Rome in the Middle Ages. The Leonine City is visible in the upper left section.]]
The '''Leonine City''' ([[Latin]]: ''Civitas Leonina'') is the part of the city of [[Rome]] which, during the Middle Ages, was enclosed with the Leonine Wall, built by order of [[Pope Leo IV]] in the 9th century.{{sfn|Gregorovius|1903|p=95}}

This area was located on the opposite side of the [[Tiber]] from the [[seven hills of Rome]], and had not been enclosed within the ancient city's [[Aurelian Walls]], built between 271 and 275. After Christianity had risen to prominence and the [[Western Roman Empire]] had collapsed, the area had to be defended through the construction of a new wall, since it housed [[Old St. Peter's Basilica|St. Peter's Basilica]].

Today the territory of the former Leonine City consists of the [[Vatican City|Vatican City State]] and the Roman [[rione]] of [[Borgo (rione of Rome)|Borgo]].

==History==
[[File:Torre Giovanni Giardini Vaticani 20110705.jpg|thumb|Leonine wall and Saint John's Tower inside the [[Vatican Gardens]]]]
The Leonine Wall, which defines Leonine City, was constructed by Pope Leo IV following the [[Arab raid against Rome|sacking by Muslim raiders]] of [[Old St. Peter's Basilica]] in 846.<ref>Hodges, Richard. ''Mohammed, Charlemagne & the Origins of Europe'', p.&nbsp;168. Cornell University Press, 1983. {{ISBN|0-8014-9262-9}}</ref> Built from 848 to 852 as the only extension ever made to the walls of Rome, this three-kilometre wall completely encircled the [[Vatican Hill]] for the first time in its history.<ref>Wards-Perkins, Bryan. ''From Classical Antiquity to the Middle Ages'', p.&nbsp;195. Oxford University Press, 1984. {{ISBN|0-19-821898-2}}</ref>  An abortive start had been made by [[Pope Leo III|Leo III]], but disturbances in the city had suspended work, and the Romans dismantled the sections that had been begun and used them in private constructions.{{sfn|Gregorovius|1903|p=96}} Pope Leo IV used his estate workers, inhabitants from the surrounding countryside, [[Saracen]]s captured after the [[battle of Ostia|sea battle of Ostia]] in 849 and funding from an imperial [[Franks|Frankish]] donation, to construct the wall, which ran in an enclosing U-shape from the riverbank at [[Hadrian's Mausoleum]], soon to be known as the [[Castel Sant'Angelo]], up the slopes of the Vatican Hill encircling the basilica and descending again to the river. The walling was constructed of [[tuff]] and tiling, forty feet high,  with 44 strong towers at bowshot intervals. The massive round corner tower that still crowns the Vatican hill has its origins in this construction campaign.{{sfn|Gregorovius|1903|p=97}}

Three new gates gave access to the newly enclosed Borgo. Two were in the stretch of wall that led back from the Castel Sant'Angelo: a small [[postern gate]] behind the fortified Mausoleum, called the ''Posterula S. Angeli'' and later, from its proximity to the Castello, the ''Porta Castelli'', and a larger one, the principal gate through which emperors passed, near the church of St. Peregrino, called the ''Porta Peregrini'', later the ''Porta S. Petri''.{{sfn|Gregorovius|1903|p=97}} A third gate opened the Leonine City to the ''[[rione]]'' of [[Trastevere]]. A festival celebrated the official completion of the walling, 27 June 852.{{sfn|Gregorovius|1903|p=99}}

In addition, [[chain tower]]s  were built along the [[Tiber]] river to repel Saracen assaults by water.<ref>Wards-Perkins, Bryan. ''From Classical Antiquity to the Middle Ages'', p.&nbsp;195. Oxford University Press, 1984. {{ISBN|0-19-821898-2}}</ref>

In 1083, after refusing to crown [[Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor|Henry IV]] as the next [[Holy Roman Emperor]], [[Pope Gregory VII]] found himself under siege within the Leonine City. After Henry took the city, Gregory fled to Castel Sant'Angelo.  Gregory attributed the loss of the Leonine City to famine and negligence and not so much to "the courage of Henry's men".<ref>Robinson, I.S. ''Henry IV of Germany 1056&ndash;1106'', p.&nbsp;224. Cambridge University Press, 2003. {{ISBN|0-521-54590-0}}</ref>

Later, more extensive [[circumvallation]] was effected under [[Pope Pius IV]] (reigned 1559–1565), when Leo's walling was broken in places. Three further gates had been opened in the walls.

In 1870, when the military forces of the [[Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)|Kingdom of Italy]] [[Capture of Rome|captured Rome]], overthrowing what was left of the [[Papal States]], the Italian government intended to allow the [[Pope]] to keep the Leonine City as a small remnant Papal State. However, [[Pope Pius IX]] would not agree to that arrangement, and thus there was a 59-year standoff, when the Popes considered themselves "[[prisoner in the Vatican|prisoners in the Vatican]]",<ref>De Mattei, Roberto. ''Pius IX'', p. 76. Gracewing Publishing, 2004. {{ISBN|0-85244-605-5}}</ref> settled in 1929 by the [[Lateran Treaty]],<ref>Pham, John-Peter, ''Heirs of the Fisherman'', p. 250. Oxford University Press US, 2004. {{ISBN|0-19-517834-3}}</ref> which recognized the sovereignty and independence of [[Vatican City]].

==See also==
*[[Passetto di Borgo]] 
*[[Borgo (rione of Rome)|Borgo]]
*[[Trastevere]]
*[[Index of Vatican City-related articles]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==Bibliography==
{{Commons category|Leonine walls}}
*Gibson, Sheila and [[Bryan Ward-Perkins]]. "The Surviving Remains of the Leonine Wall". ''Papers of the British School at Rome'', 47 (1979): 30–57.
* {{cite book |first=Ferdinand |last=Gregorovius |author-link=Ferdinand Gregorovius |translator-first=Annie |translator-last=Hamilton |title=History of the City of Rome in the Middle Ages |volume=3 |year=1903 |chapter=III "The Leonine City" |url=https://archive.org/details/historycityrome02hamigoog |publisher=[[G. Bell & Sons]] |location=London }}
*Hodges, Richard. ''Mohammed, Charlemagne & the Origins of Europe''. Cornell University Press, 1983. {{ISBN|0-8014-9262-9}}
*Wards-Perkins, Bryan. ''From Classical Antiquity to the Middle Ages''. Oxford University Press, 1984. {{ISBN|0-19-821898-2}}

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{{Vatican City topics}}
{{Monuments of Rome}}
[[Category:Subdivisions of Rome]]
[[Category:Government of Vatican City]]
[[Category:Rome R. XIV Borgo]]
[[Category:Walls of Rome]]