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Mount Vesuvius (Italian Vesuvio, from Oscan word fesf, “smoke”), volcano in southern Italy, near the shore of the Bay of Naples and the city of Naples. It is the only active volcano on the European mainland. A solitary mountain rising from the plain of Campania, it has a base 50 km (30 mi) in circumference and is surmounted by two summits, of which the higher is the cone known as Vesuvius proper. On August 24 in the year ad 79, a great eruption of Mount Vesuvius began; the top of the mountain was blown off by an explosion, and the cities of Herculaneum, Pompeii, and Stabiae were overwhelmed by a rain of ashes and mud. About 2,000 people were killed. An eruption in 1631 destroyed five towns and caused the deaths of more than 3,000 people. In 1794 a violent eruption destroyed the town of Torre del Greco. Following numerous smaller eruptions, a violent eruption took place in April 1906, lasting ten days and causing great destruction and the loss of 2,000 lives. Since then smaller eruptions have occurred in 1913, 1926, 1929, and 1944. The height of Mount Vesuvius is 1,277 m (4,190 ft), while that of Monte Somma, the lesser summit, is 1,132 m (3,714 ft). The volcano's slopes are covered with vineyards and orchards. Higher up, oak and chestnut grow. A funicular railroad has been constructed from the base of the cinder cone to the summit close to the edge of the crater, and an observatory is maintained near the crater.
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