Fermo
a walled city of central Italy, till 1860 capital of a delegation of same name, forming part of the states of the Church in the province of Ascoli, 3 miles from the Adriatic, and 32 S. S. E. of Ancona. Its harbor on the Adriatic, called Porto di Fermo, is small, and but little frequented. Fermo was founded by the Sabines before Rome existed, was colonized by the Romans toward the beginning of the First Punic War, and was repeatedly sacked by the Goths and other barbarians. In the 8th century the city was transferred to the Holy See. Pop. about 5,000.