Campagnatico
Encyclopedia
Campagnatico is a comune
(municipality) in the Province of Grosseto
in the Italian
region Tuscany
, located about 100 km south of Florence
and about 20 km northeast of Grosseto
in the valley of the Ombrone
River.
of the Monte Amiata
, which sold it to the Aldobrandeschi family, who are known to hold it in 973. After the death of Omberto Aldobrandeschi, it was acquired by the Republic of Siena
. Later it was contended by the Visconti of Campiglia d'Orcia and the Tolomei of Siena. It belonged to the latter city until it was absorbed into the Grand Duchy of Tuscany
in the mid-16th century.
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
(municipality) in the Province of Grosseto
Province of Grosseto
The Province of Grosseto is a province in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Grosseto.-Geography:It has an area of 4,504 km², and a total population of 227.498...
in the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
region Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
, located about 100 km south of Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
and about 20 km northeast of Grosseto
Grosseto
Grosseto is a city and comune in the central Italian region of Tuscany, the capital of the Province of Grosseto. The city lies 14 km from the Tyrrhenian Sea, in the Maremma, at the centre of an alluvial plain, on the Ombrone river....
in the valley of the Ombrone
Ombrone
The Ombrone is a 160 km long river in Tuscany, central Italy.The Ombrone's source is located near Castelnuovo Berardenga, on the south-eastern side of the Monti del Chianti...
River.
History
The town was founded as a fief of the San Salvatore AbbeyAbbadia San Salvatore
Abbadia San Salvatore is a comune in the Province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 110 km southeast of Florence and about 60 km southeast of Siena, in the area of Monte Amiata....
of the Monte Amiata
Monte Amiata
Mount Amiata is the largest of the lava domes in the Amiata lava dome complex located about 20 km NW of Lake Bolsena in the southern Tuscany region of Italy.-Geology:...
, which sold it to the Aldobrandeschi family, who are known to hold it in 973. After the death of Omberto Aldobrandeschi, it was acquired by the Republic of Siena
Republic of Siena
The Republic of Siena , was a state originating from the city of Siena in Tuscany, Central Italy.It existed for over four hundreds years, from the late 11th century until the year 1555, when was defeated by the rival Duchy of Florence in alliance with the Spanish crown...
. Later it was contended by the Visconti of Campiglia d'Orcia and the Tolomei of Siena. It belonged to the latter city until it was absorbed into the Grand Duchy of Tuscany
Grand Duchy of Tuscany
The Grand Duchy of Tuscany was a central Italian monarchy that existed, with interruptions, from 1569 to 1859, replacing the Duchy of Florence. The grand duchy's capital was Florence...
in the mid-16th century.
Main sights
- The Walls, built in the 12th and 13th centuries. They include the commanding Aldobrandeschi castle, founded in the 10th century.
- Church of Santa Maria della Misericordia, known from 1188. It has a hut-shaped façade in which an oculum was added in the 19th century. The interior, on the Latin cross plan, has kept the medieval transeptTranseptFor the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...
and presbyteryPresbytery (architecture)The presbytery is the name for an area in a church building which is reserved for the clergy.In the oldest church it is separated by short walls, by small columns and pilasters in the Renaissance ones; it can also be raised, being reachable by a few steps, usually with railings....
, with remains of 14th century Sienese school in the main chapel and others from the 15th century in the side chapels, recently discovered and hypothetically attributed to Francesco di Giorgio Martini. - PievePieveIn the Middle Ages, a pieve was a rural church with a baptistery, upon which other churches without baptisteries depended.The Italian word pieve is descended from Latin plebs which, after the expansion of Christianity in Italy, was applied to the community of baptized people...
of San Giovanni Battista, built in the mid-13th century in Romanesque-Gothic style. The façade has a portal with decorated lunette and a small rose window. The interior has a nave with side chapels inscribed by ogival arches. It re-used as bell tower one of the town's walls. It houses a 13th century Madonna with Child by Guido di Graziano and a wooden ciboriumCiborium (architecture)In ecclesiastical architecture, a ciborium is a canopy or covering supported by columns, freestanding in the sanctuary, that stands over and covers the altar in a basilica or other church. It may also be known by the more general term of baldachin, though ciborium is often considered more correct...
from the 16th century. - Former church of Sant'Antonio Abate, in Romanesque style. It houses fragments of 14th century frescoes.
- Pieve Vecchia, south of Campagnatico near the OmbroneOmbroneThe Ombrone is a 160 km long river in Tuscany, central Italy.The Ombrone's source is located near Castelnuovo Berardenga, on the south-eastern side of the Monti del Chianti...
River.