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The city of Naples was probably
founded by the Greeks around the
eighth century BC, just kilometres
from the older town of Partenope;
this ‘new town’ or ‘Neapolis’ has
been absorbing the influences of its
settlers and invaders ever since.
Romulus Augustulus, last emperor of
the Roman Empire, was imprisoned
here after being overthrown in 476.
In the sixth century, Naples was
conquered by the Byzantines, and it
was one of the last duchies to fall
to the all-conquering Normans in
1039, as they founded the Kingdom of
Sicily. In 1266 Naples and the
kingdom of Sicily were given by Pope
Clement IV to Charles of Anjou, who
moved the capital from Palermo to
Naples. In 1284 the kingdom was
split in two, and stayed that way
till 1816, when they would form the
kingdom of Two Sicilies. In between,
Naples had been under the rule of
Spain, Austria, and the Bourbons,
and had (briefly) been a Jacobin
republic. Finally, in October 1860,
it became part of the new Italy.
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