Cannae

History

It is primarily known for the Battle of Cannae, in which the numerically superior Roman army suffered a disastrous defeat by Hannibal in 216 BC. There is considerable controversy as to whether the battle took place on the right or the left bank of the river.

Later, the place became a municipium, and the remains of an unimportant Roman town still exist upon the hill known as Monte di Canne. In the Middle Ages, probably after the destruction of Canosa di Puglia in the 9th century, it became a bishopric. It again saw military action in the second battle of Cannae, twelve centuries after the more famous one (1018). The Byzantine catapan, Basilios Bojoannes, successfully drove off the invading Lombard and Norman army. The town was wrecked in 1083 by Robert Guiscard, who left only the cathedral and the bishop's residence, and was ultimately destroyed in 1276.