Cesena

Town in Emilia-Romagna region, north-central Italy, on the River Savio, 20 km/12 mi southeast of Forli; population (1991) 88,500. It is situated in a valley, overlooked by a fortress, and is the centre of an intensive, specialized, and prosperous agricultural area; products include fruit and wine; industries include foodstuffs and agricultural machinery. There is a cathedral, partly 14th-century, and a library, the Biblioteca Malatestiana, containing valuable manuscripts.

Two popes, Pius VI and Pius VII, were born here, and the poet Dante alludes to the history of Cesena in his Inferno.