Columbia Aquila
Columbia Aquila
Comune della Columbia Aquila | |
|---|---|
 From top-left clockwise: The Piazza della Resurrezione; Valle del Martire; Casa dei Coraggiosi; Stadio dell'Eroico | |
 Flag  Seal | |
| Nickname(s): | |
| Motto(s): "Ubi mors ibi spes" Where there is death, there is hope | |
| Country |  Etruria |
| State |  Dinara |
| Comune | Settentrionali |
| Founded | 14 May 1939 |
| Founded by | Ettore Caviglia |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor and council system |
| • Body | Communal Assembly |
| • Mayor | Flavio Adriano Zanotto (Tribune Movement) |
| Area | |
| • Total | 206.63 km2 (79.78 sq mi) |
| Population (2020) | |
| • Total |  159,608 |
| • Density | 772.52/km2 (2,000.8/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Aquiliani |
| Time zone | -1 |
| Patron saint | Saint Diocletian of the Settentrionali |
| Saint day | 13 February |
Columbia Aquila is a city located in the northwestern region of Settentrionali, of which it is the regional capital, in Dinara, Etruria with a population of 159,608. It is the largest urban centre in the Settentrionali and the third largest in the state of Dinara. The wider metropolitan area of Columbia Aquila covers 1,244 km² (480.31 sq mi) and has a population of 488,600, most of which are predominately centered around small rural towns and villages. It is a major tourist destintation, both for its status as a "Novam Urbem", one of several towns and cities constructed between the Great War and Solarian War, by the National Solarian regime, and as the setting for the Battle of Columbia Aquila during the latter conflict. It hosts a variety of musuems, exhibitions and events relating to the conflict and is the primary destination for tourists or well-wishers travelling to the Valle del Martire.
The city was officially founded on the 14 May 1939, three years after the Settentrionali was annexed from Gaullica in wake of the Great War. The city was to be constructed as part of the wider Novam Urbem program of new cities being built to provide housing for war veterans and their families. Between 1939 and 1941, the city dramatically expanded from the core district with the aid of up to 18,000 workers and labourers, many of whom were de-mobilised soldiers, by early 1942 the city had expanded to incorporate the villages of Quintino and Tarquinia Inferiore. The city along with its sisters under the Novam Urbem, were built in a rationalist form. By 1945, the city had a population of 18,500 but would be all but destroyed during the Battle of Columbia Aquila, where the town was selected as a defensive stronghold by the National Solarian regime during the final stages of the Solarian War. The battle saw 40,000 Etrurian defenders attempt to hold back the advancing Soravian army, resulting in their defeat and annihilation, the defence and subsequent claims of Marian apparitions during and after the battle resulted in the city becoming a cultural and national centre for the memorialising of Etruria's war dead.
Following the war, the town was demolished and ignored, until the 1960s when the military dictatorship decided to rebuild the city to facilitate the re-populating of the Settentrionali. Controversially, the city was rebuilt to the exact designs of the GSR-construction, including the Stadio del'Eroico, a sporting complex built for the 1945 Invictus Games, leading many critics to claim the military was openly building an "open-air shrine" to the GSR. Between 1962 and 1968, the city was rebuilt and expanded with the addition of manufacturing sites and numerous industries to support the booming agricultural recovery in the region. In 1968, the Valle del Martire was completed as the nation's principal war memorial, with direct connections to Columbia Aquila. By 1980, the city had a population of 100,000 and would grow steadily for the next three decades.
Today, the city is renowned for its various myths and supposed religious events related to its wartime history and has since become one of Etruria's most important socio-religious centres. It's location near the Aventine Mountains has also resulted in a wider tourist boom, providing services for various skiing resorts and mountain retreats.
Name
The name Columbia Aquila was devised during the latter stages of the Novam Urbem program, according to GSR records, the name was derived from the Settentrionali's Solarian Imperial mythological figure of Quintus Columbus, a man born with superhuman strength who became a Centurion and defeated a Minotaur-like creature singlehandedly in the foothills of the Aventine Mountains. The addition of "Aquila" meaning eagle, was rooted in the original street plans providing the city with an eagle-like shape with its wings spread south to north. However, rapid growth of the city's population would see this unique urban design vanish.
History
Construction
Solarian War
Post-war demolition
Reconstruction
Modern
Geography
Columbia Aquila is located in the central area of the Settontrionale region of Dinara, in northwestern Etruria. To the city's east are the Passi di Santa Caterina, a region of foothills that precede the Aventine Mountains. To the south, west and north, the city is bound by relatively flat open plains. The area surrounding the Valley of the Martyr is a National Park and protected from development, securing it as one of the largest forested areas in Etruria, the boundaries of the park reach the eastern outskirts of the city, forcing urban sprawl toward the west and southwest.
The city is divided in thirteen quartieri (quarters), each Quartieri serves as a sub-municipal administrative division like other Etrurian cities, which elect three council members:
- Piazza della Resurrezione
- Nostra Signora della Clemenza
- San Matello
- San Romolo
- Arcangelo
- Sessiano
- San Genaro Nord
- San Genaro Sud
- Columbia Ercolano
- Columbia Sagittario
- Columbia Tauro
- Columbia Libera
- Columbia Aquario
Climate
The climate of Columbia Aquila is predominately classified as hot-summer Solarian (Csa), with influences of warm temperate climate (Cfa). Winters in Columbia Aquila are mostly cool and windy owing to its relative altitude and location within the Settentrionali. Fog is a near typical feature of winter mornings, especially from the east where it forms in and around the Passi di Santa Caterina. Snow and below-freezing temperatures have been recorded, mostly reliant on cold fronts from the west.
Owing to its location, Columbia Aquila is relatively more drier than Etruria's northern regions, although there is reliable year-round precipitation. Average annual precipitation is 423 mm (16.7 in) and the average annual relative humidity is 60%. In winter, temperatures only tend to drop below freezing in November/December time, often reaching temperatures as low as −8 °C (18 °F) during these months, and snowfall is common, while the summer months see average high temperatures of 32 °C (90 °F). The lowest recorded temperature in Columbia Aquila was −15.8 °C (3.6 °F) in November 2017 and the hottest 43.2 °C (109.8 °F) in July 2019.
| Climate data for Columbia Aquila, normals 1998-2018, extremes 1970-2020, 335 m (1,099 ft) altitude | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 17.2 (63.0) |
22.9 (73.2) |
25.9 (78.6) |
29.6 (85.3) |
34.4 (93.9) |
39.8 (103.6) |
43.2 (109.8) |
39.5 (103.1) |
38.2 (100.8) |
31.3 (88.3) |
24.0 (75.2) |
21.4 (70.5) |
43.2 (109.8) |
| Average high °C (°F) | 8.2 (46.8) |
11.2 (52.2) |
15.2 (59.4) |
16.9 (62.4) |
21.0 (69.8) |
27.0 (80.6) |
30.7 (87.3) |
30.1 (86.2) |
25.6 (78.1) |
18.9 (66.0) |
12.4 (54.3) |
8.6 (47.5) |
18.8 (65.8) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 4.2 (39.6) |
5.9 (42.6) |
9.0 (48.2) |
10.7 (51.3) |
14.5 (58.1) |
19.3 (66.7) |
22.3 (72.1) |
22.1 (71.8) |
18.5 (65.3) |
13.2 (55.8) |
7.9 (46.2) |
5.0 (41.0) |
12.7 (54.9) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 0.2 (32.4) |
0.7 (33.3) |
2.8 (37.0) |
4.6 (40.3) |
7.9 (46.2) |
11.6 (52.9) |
14.0 (57.2) |
14.1 (57.4) |
11.3 (52.3) |
7.6 (45.7) |
3.5 (38.3) |
1.3 (34.3) |
6.6 (43.9) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −11 (12) |
−11.5 (11.3) |
−10.2 (13.6) |
−6 (21) |
−1.7 (28.9) |
2.6 (36.7) |
3.2 (37.8) |
3.6 (38.5) |
0.0 (32.0) |
−3.4 (25.9) |
−15.8 (3.6) |
−10.8 (12.6) |
−15.8 (3.6) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 40 (1.6) |
27 (1.1) |
22 (0.9) |
46 (1.8) |
49 (1.9) |
29 (1.1) |
13 (0.5) |
16 (0.6) |
31 (1.2) |
55 (2.2) |
52 (2.0) |
53 (2.1) |
433 (17.0) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 6 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 68 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 83 | 72 | 62 | 62 | 60 | 52 | 45 | 48 | 56 | 70 | 79 | 84 | 64 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 101 | 147 | 215 | 232 | 272 | 322 | 363 | 334 | 254 | 182 | 117 | 89 | 2,624 |
Demographics
Religion
Education
Healthcare
Government
Culture
Main Sights
Infrastructure and transport
Public transport
All public transport within Columbia Aquila is operated by the regional public transport company, Collegamento Ipertestuale Settentrionali (CIS), though owned and managed by the Dinara Department for State Transportation. When Columbia Aquila was founded in 1939 and through to 1946, prior to its destruction, the city operated a limited tram service, connecting the centre (based around the Piazza di Stato; now named the Piazza della Resurrezione) to the various small industries to the south. From its reconstruction in the 1960s through to 1995, the trams were replaced with trolleybuses which connected a wider area, before being replaced by a city-wide bus service.
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A select bus service is operated to provide transportation from Columbia Aquila to the Valley of the Martyr monument.
Since 2012, the city has operated a bike sharing scheme called “Pedala Llungo la Strada” which is operated by the municipal government. A total of 3,500 bikes are provided for small rental fees.
Rail
Columbia Aquila’s position in the heart of the Settentrionali places it along a major route, linking Amathia and Gaullica, while also serving as the primary hub for links across the region. The city serves as a link between rail lines crossing east-west between Amathia and Gaullica to San Alessandro to the south-east, giving the city rail access to central Euclea. The city operates international rail lines south-north to Slirnia, while its links to San Alessandro, enable access to south-eastern and eastern Euclea.
The main station for Columbia Aquila is the Columbia Aquila Nostra Signora della Luce located south of the Piazza della Resurrezione. It handles 80,000 passengers per day and 29.2 million per year, this peaks on the 17 October each year, due to an increase in passenger traffic for Memorial Day at the Valley of the Martyr monument, where the station may handle as many as 250,000 passengers. This places Columbia Aquila as the tenth busiest station in Etruria.
Two smaller stations are also used in the city, the Memoriale Nazionale which receives trains servicing the northern and western areas of the Settentrionali, this station is located north-west of the city centre. The second station, the Porta Aquila only provides night time sleeper services to San Alessandro.