Mincio

Mincio/Sarca
Basin countries	Italy
Length	194 km (121 mi) (total); 78 km (48 mi) (Sarca) 41 km (25 mi) (Lake Garda); 75 km (47 mi) (Mincio)

Mincio (Italian pronunciation: [ˈmintʃo]; Latin: Mincius, Ancient Greek: Minchios, Μίγχιος) is a river in the Lombardy region of northern Italy.

Called the Sarca River before entering Lake Garda, it flows from there about 65 kilometres (40 mi) past Mantua and into the Po River.

At Mantua the Mincio was widened in the late 12th century, forming a series of three (originally four) lakes that skirt the edges of the old city. The original settlement here, dating from about 2000 BC, was on an island in the Mincio.

The former lower part of the course of the Mincio flowed into the Adriatic Sea near Adria until the breach at Cucca in 589, roughly following the course of the river that is currently known by the name of Canal Bianco; it had been a waterway from the sea to the lake until then.

In 452 CE, Attila the Hun received an embassy sent by the Western Roman Emperor Valentinian III near this river. The Roman delegation was led by Pope Leo I. After this meeting, Attila withdrew from Italy.

References

• (Italian) Rubis Zemella: La mia Polesella perduta, printed by his own (1992) and reprinted by A.V.I.S. di Polesella (1998).