On 26 December 1194, in a tent pitched in the market square, empress Constance gave birth before witnesses to Frederick II: thus Jesi entered history, and the "stupor mundi" always called it "my Bethlehem". The walled town, its fourteenth-century circuit still walkable, also keeps the memory of composer Pergolesi and a gallery with Lorenzo Lotto masterpieces.
Around it, the "castles of Jesi" grow Verdicchio, one of Italy's great whites: wineries welcome visitors among walled villages. A hardworking art town without crowds — the Marche in summary.
Near Jesi
The closest destinations covered by our editors, with straight-line distance.
