Trieste, capital of the autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia and of Trieste Province, is situated at the northeastern angle of Adriatic Sea, east of Venice. The town is lying in a narrow strip of costal territory . Northeast of Trieste some rocky hills are rising to a height of over 305 m. (1,000 feet), joining a plateau along the border with Slovenia.
Trieste was an outpost of the Roman Empire. Many conquerors and numerous changes of authority gave the city a cosmopolitan flavour which was unusual for a small town. The fundamental event was the granting of "Status of Free Port" by Emperor Karl VI in 1719. So Trieste developed from a small fishing and salt exploiting village (6,000 inhabitants) into a thriving emporium with a population of about 160,000 inhabitants in 1860 becoming the third city in the Austrian Empire.
Until the end of the World War I, the Austrians ruled, and their influence is still evident especially in the style of the buildings. After World War I Trieste was ceded to Italy along with its large province. After the end of the World War II and the chaotic situation Trieste was occupied by Marchal Tito's Yugoslav troops in May 1945 (40 days), then the Peace Treaty of Paris in 1947 created the Free Territory of Trieste under Anglo-American Forces and it returned to Italy in 1954.
Nowadays besides the port, which is still active and developing, Trieste has already acquired the feature of a tecnocity.

The Province of Trieste