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The Cathedral of San Cesareo: A Medieval Church Built on the Roman Temple of the Emilian Forum
In 1074 the Christians of Terracina built a cathedral that incorporated the main temple of the Emilian Forum, probably the Capitolium of the Roman city. The Co-Cathedral of San Cesareo still stands there, in Piazza Municipio, in the upper part of town, overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea. The building is dedicated to San Cesareo (St Caesarius), a deacon martyred in Terracina in the 2nd century and patron saint of the city. It has held the title of co-cathedral in the diocese of Latina-Terracina-Sezze-Priverno since 1986.
The Conclave of 1088
In 1088 this church was the venue for the conclave that elected Urban II to the papal throne. Eight years later, at the Council of Clermont, Pope Urban II would launch the First Crusade to the Holy Land with the cry "Deus vult!" (God wills it!). It is one of the few conclaves held outside Rome — and Terracina's cathedral preserves the memory in 18th-century frescoes in the presbytery.
The Cosmati-style Portico and Interior
A stairway leads to the portico comprising six reused Roman columns, Ionic capitals, bases decorated with lions and an entablature with mosaic frieze in Cosmati style from the first half of the 13th century. The Romanesque bell tower is curious: it is raised above ground, and supported by four pillars. The interior has three naves, divided by reused Roman columns, with Cosmati-style flooring from the 12th-13th centuries. The pulpit, raised on five columns, and the twisted column for the paschal candle, signed "Crudele" and dated 31 October 1245, are from the same period. The original timber roof structure was replaced by a barrel vault in the early 18th century.
