Perugia, Umbria, Italy

In 1797, the city was conquered by French troops. On 4 February 1798, the Tiberina Republic was formed, with Perugia as capital, and the French tricolour as flag. In 1799, the Tiberina Republic merged to the Roman Republic.

In 1832, 1838, 1854 and 1997 Perugia was visited by earthquakes; Following the collapse of the Roman republic of 1848-49, when the Rocca was in part demolished, in May 1849 it was seized by the Austrians. In the June of 1859 the hinabitants rebelled against the temporal authority of the Pope and established a provisional government but the insurrection was bloodily defeated by Pius IX's troops. In the September of 1860 the city was finally united, along with the rest of Umbria, to the Kingdom of Italy.
Perugia has become famous for chocolate, mostly because of a single firm, Perugina, whose Baci (kisses) are widely exported[22]. Perugia chocolate is very popular in Italy, and the city hosts a chocolate festival in October of every year.

Perugia today hosts two main universities, the ancient Università degli Studi and the Foreigners University (Università per Stranieri). Stranieri serves as an Italian language and culture school for students from all over the world. Other educational istitutions are the Perugia Fine Arts Academy "Pietro Vannucci" (founded in 1573), the Perugia Music Conservatory for the study of classical music and the RAI Public Broadcasting School of Radio-Television Journalism. The city is also host to the Umbra Institute, an accredited university program for American students studying abroad. The Università dei Sapori (University of Tastes), a National centre for Vocational Education and Training in Food, is located in the city as well.

The city symbol is the griffin, which can be seen in the form of plaques and statues on buildings around the city.