CIVIDALE DEL FRIULI, a town of Venetia, Italy, prov ince of Udine, tom. E. by N. by rail from the town of Udine; 453ft. above sea-level; it was the ancient Forum Iulii. Pop. (1921) 4,22o (town) ; 11,409 (commune). The river Natisone forms a picturesque ravine here. The cathedral of the i5th cen tury contains an octagonal marble canopy with sculptures in relief, with a font below it belonging to the 8th century. The museum contains Roman and Lombard antiquities, mss. and gold, silver and ivory objects formerly belonging to the chapter. The small church of S. Maria in Valle belongs to the 8th century, and con tains fine decorations in stucco probably of the i 2 th century. The fine 15th-century Ponte del Diavolo leads to the church of S. Martino, which contains an altar of the 8th century with reliefs executed by order of the Lombard king, Ratchis. At Cividale was born Paulus Diaconus, the historian of the Lom bards in the time of Charlemagne. A railway runs to Caporetto (16m.).
The Roman town of Forum Iulii was founded either by Julius Caesar or by Augustus, when the Via Iulia Augusta was built through Utina (Udine) on its way north. After the decay of Aqui leia and Iulium Carnicum (Zuglio) it became the chief town of the district of Friuli and gave its name to it. The patriarchs of Aquileia resided here from 773 to 1031, then returned to Aquileia, and finally in 1238 removed to Udine. This last change of resi dence was the origin of antagonism between Cividale and Udine, terminated by their surrender to Venice in 1419 and respectively.
See G. Fogolari, Cividale del Friuli (Bergamo, 1906), well illustrated; Memorie Storiche Forogiuliesi, passim (Udine, 1905, sqq.—in progress).