The Country of San Marino
The very tiny country of San Marino is only 61.2 square kilometers (23.6 square miles) in size which is about 1/3 of the size of Washington D.C. It has a population of around 33,000 and is surrounded entirely by Italy.
Surprisingly, it's more than a city-state.
It's capital city is also called San Marino and has a population of around 4000.
The Official Origins
In 301, St. Marinus, a Christian stonemason, fled Roman persecution and fled to the mountain of Mt. Titano (elevation 855 meters), where he declared the city of San Marino to be a republic.
The Legend
Like with many Catholic saints, the date remembered is actually the one of his death. He died uttering these words: “Relinquo vos liberos ab utroque homine” or “I leave you free from both men,” referring to both the Emperor and the Pope.
According to the legend from the San Marino website, Marinus had actually been on Mt. Titano since about 257 when he fled to the location, escaping the tyranny of Emperor Diocletian. He was gifted Mt. Titano by Donna Felicissima for the deed of healing her son.
How Can San Marino Even Exist?
The main reason that San Marino was allowed to exist appears to be the fact that the Roman Empire didn't know it was there at all. Obviously, St. Marinus wasn't keen on being loud either - being that he was trying to avoid Roman persecution!
For many years, San Marino grew and thrived as a monastery and independent nation. Eventually, Rome stopped persecuting Christians and adopted the religion as their official one.
That wasn't enough to make San Marino safe.
They agreed to be vassals of conquering nations in order to be allowed to be left alone on their mountain.
The country actually picked up extra territory in the 1460s to make its present shape and size - and the reason why San Marino even has a capital city.
(Modern photo of San Marino - Source)
Here's an interesting YouTube video about San Marino.
Sources
Previous issues
Lori Svensen
author/designer at A'mara Books
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