Brindisi

Brindisi (ancient, Brundisium), city in southern Italy, capital of the province of Brindisi in the region of Apulia, a seaport on the Adriatic Sea. The city is an important trading centre with the eastern Mediterranean, and has factories producing chemicals and foodstuffs. Notable features in Brindisi include a castle built in the 13th century by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II.

In ancient times the city was the principal naval port of the Roman Empire on the Adriatic Sea. The Appian Way ended in Brindisi at a point marked by two columns, one of which is still standing. The city declined with the collapse of the Roman Empire: repeatedly sacked by the Saracens, it was rebuilt in the 11th century and served as a point of embarkation during the Crusades. With the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, it became a port of call for ships travelling to and from eastern Asia. During World War I Brindisi was an important naval station. Population 90,222 (2007 estimate).