The name is derived from ancient Latin settlement of
Lavinium, now from the sea, and part of the nearby municipality of
Pomezia. The foundation of Lavinium is mentioned prominently in the great Roman epic, the
Aeneid by the Mantuan poet Publius Vergilius Maro (
Virgil). Lavinio adjoins the regional park of Tor Caldara, which features a medieval watch tower that was built in the Middle Ages to defend the area from the frequent incursions of
Saracens and later from the Arabic pirates. In 1565 the tower was restored by
Marcantonio Colonna, of the
powerful noble family and large
fief holders in
Lazio and the
Papal States. Sulfur was also mined there in the 16th century. In 1999 the ruins of an ancient
Roman villa were discovered adjacent to the tower. The park features
evergreen oak trees and
Mediterranean vegetation that before commercial development extended along the whole coastline of the region. Characteristic springs and water courses can be found in the area. During
World War II, Allied soldiers fought and died on the beach and in the surrounding countryside of this town. On January 22, 1944 it was the approximate location of the British beachhead landing during the
Battle of Anzio, part of the
Allied advance to Rome. A greater number of American forces landed in
Anzio and
Nettuno, south. A total of 110,000 troops landed. As a perennial memory, a marble stele, elevated and in front of the sea, remembers this sacrifice. ==References==