San Marino

Where the name comes from

San Marino honours Saint Marinus, by tradition a stonemason from Rab, in today’s Croatia, who founded a community on Mount Titano around AD 301.

First people

By tradition, Saint Marinus founded a community on Mount Titano around AD 301, and the documented medieval town came much later.¹

Known for

San Marino is known as one of the world’s oldest republics, with three towers on Mount Titano, and its parliament chooses two Captains Regent to serve as heads of state for six months.^2,3

Outside contact

It kept its self-rule while neighbouring Italian states were absorbed into larger kingdoms, though Cesare Borgia occupied it briefly in 1503.¹

The modern country

Napoleon respected its independence, and in 1862 it signed a friendship treaty with the new Kingdom of Italy.¹