Rome is the capital city of Italy and the capital of the Lazio region, located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, along the shores of the Tiber river. With 2.9 million residents in 1,285.3 km2, it is the countrys largest and most populated comune and the fourth-most populous city in the European Union by population within city limits. Romes history spans more than two and a half thousand years, since its legendary founding in 753 BC. It is often referred to as "The Eternal City" and is regarded as one of the birthplaces of Western civilization. Rome is generally considered to be the "cradle of Western civilization and Christian culture", and the center of the Catholic Church. Some of the most famous landmarks in Rome include the Pantheon, the Colosseum, the Vatican Museums, and the Trevi Fountain.