Trasimène

Trasimène (French: [tʁa.si.mɛn]) was a department of the First French Empire from 1809 to 1814 in present-day Italy. It was named after Lake Trasimeno. It was formed on 15 July 1809, when the Papal States were annexed by France. Its capital was Spoleto.

Département de Trasimène
Department of the First French Empire
1809–1814
Location of Trasimène in France (1812)
Capital	Spoleto
Area
• Coordinates	42°44′N 12°44′E
• 1812[1]	11,120 km2 (4,290 sq mi)
Population
• 1812[1]	300,000
History
• Annexation of the Papal States	15 July
• Treaty of Paris	1814
Political subdivisions	3 arrondissements[1]
Preceded by Succeeded by Papal States Papal States

The department was disbanded after the defeat of Napoleon in 1814. At the Congress of Vienna, the Papal States were restored to Pius VII. Its territory is now divided between the Italian provinces of Perugia, Terni, Macerata and Viterbo.

Subdivisions

Main article: List of subdivisions of the department of Trasimène

The department was subdivided into the following arrondissements and cantons (situation in 1812):^[1]

• Spoleto, cantons: Arquata, Cascia, Norcia, Spoleto (2 cantons), Terni (2 cantons) and Visso.
• Foligno, cantons: Assisi, Bettona, Bevagna, Foligno, Gualdo, Montefalco, Nocera, Spello and Trevi.
• Perugia, cantons: Castiglione del Lago, Città della Pieve, Città di Castello, Fratta, Monte Santa Maria, Panicale, Passignano and Perugia (3 cantons).
• Todi, cantons: Acquapendente, Amelia, Baschi, Ficulle, Marsciano, Massa, Orvieto and Todi (2 cantons).

Its population in 1812 was approximately 300,000, and its area was approximately 3,357 square Italian miles (11,120 square kilometers).^[1]

Media

The official departmental newspaper was the Giornale del Trasimeno, published in Italian between 1810 and 1813.^[2][3] It served as the organ of the prefecture of the department and included decrees, circulars and administrative notices alongside public speeches and commentary.^[2]

Unlike other contemporary official newspapers, which often appeared in French or bilingually, the Giornale del Trasimeno was printed entirely in Italian, though it incorporated a large number of Gallicisms.^[2]

Under the Roman Republic

A department called Trasimène also briefly existed as a subdivision of the Roman Republic (1798–1799), with the same territory, but with Perugia as its capital city.