Castelnuovo Scrivia
Encyclopedia
Castelnuovo Scrivia is a comune
(municipality) in the Province of Alessandria
in the Italian
region Piedmont
, located about 90 km east of Turin
and about 20 km northeast of Alessandria
.
. An ally of Frederick Barbarossa in his war against the Lombardy communes, it took part in the destruction of Tortona
in 1115, obtaining certain privileges in exchange. Around 1300 Castelnuovo became part of the Duchy of Milan
.
In 1570 it changed name from Castelnuovo di Tortona to Castelnuovo Scrivia, and become a fief of the Marini family and, after their extinction in 1778, of the Centurione family.
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 Alessandria
Province of Alessandria
The Province of Alessandria is an Italian province, with a population of some 430,000, which forms the southeastern part of the region of Piedmont. The provincial capital is the city of Alessandria....
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 Piedmont
Piedmont
Piedmont is one of the 20 regions of Italy. It has an area of 25,402 square kilometres and a population of about 4.4 million. The capital of Piedmont is Turin. The main local language is Piedmontese. Occitan is also spoken by a minority in the Occitan Valleys situated in the Provinces of...
, located about 90 km east of Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
and about 20 km northeast of Alessandria
Alessandria
-Monuments:* The Citadel * The church of Santa Maria di Castello * The church of Santa Maria del Carmine * Palazzo Ghilini * Università del Piemonte Orientale-Museums:* The Marengo Battle Museum...
.
History
The city was fortified around 500 CE by order of Theoderic the Great, king of the Ostrogoths, and in 722 it was enlarged by the Lombard king LiutprandLiutprand, King of the Lombards
Liutprand was the King of the Lombards from 712 to 744 and is chiefly remembered for his Donation of Sutri, in 728, and his long reign, which brought him into a series of conflicts, mostly successful, with most of Italy. He profited by Byzantine weakness to enlarge his domains in Emilia and the...
. An ally of Frederick Barbarossa in his war against the Lombardy communes, it took part in the destruction of Tortona
Tortona
Tortona is a comune of Piemonte, in the Province of Alessandria, Italy. Tortona is sited on the right bank of the Scrivia between the plain of Marengo and the foothills of the Ligurian Apennines.-History:...
in 1115, obtaining certain privileges in exchange. Around 1300 Castelnuovo became part of the Duchy of Milan
Duchy of Milan
The Duchy of Milan , was created on the 1st of may 1395, when Gian Galeazzo Visconti, Lord of Milan, purchased a diploma for 100,000 Florins from King Wenceslaus. It was this diploma that installed, Gian Galeazzo as Duke of Milan and Count of Pavia...
.
In 1570 it changed name from Castelnuovo di Tortona to Castelnuovo Scrivia, and become a fief of the Marini family and, after their extinction in 1778, of the Centurione family.
Main sights
- The parish church, in Romanesque style, dates to the 12th century although restored in the 16th and 19th century. It has a portal with medieval lions sculptures, lunette and capitals executed in Frederick Barbarossa times. The interior, on a nave and two aisles, houses a 15th century fresco with the Madonna of the Misericordia and four 11th century capitals from the old 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...
. - Palazzo Pretorio (castle of the Torriani and Bandello families) has an ogival portico, with mullined windows. The upper storey has 11th and 16th centuries frescoes. The castle has a 39 m-high crenellated tower.
- Church of Sant'Ignazio (17th century)
- Palazzo Centurione (17th century), in Genoese style. It houses the city museum
Notable people
- Matteo BandelloMatteo Bandello-Biography:Matteo Bandello was born at Castelnuovo Scrivia, near Tortona , c. 1480 or 1485. He received a good education, and entered the church, but does not seem to have been very interested in theology. For many years he lived at Mantua, and superintended the education of the celebrated Lucrezia...
(c.1480–1562), writer. - Cesare ZerbaCesare ZerbaCesare Zerba was an Italian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Secretary of the Sacred Congregation for the Discipline of the Sacraments in the Roman Curia from 1958 to 1965, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1965.-Biography:Cesare Zerba was born in Castelnuovo Scrivia, and...
(1892-1973), Roman Catholic cardinal. - Vittorio Malosti (1900-1945). Artisan, killed one month after the end of World War II. Tha location of his body and the identity of his murderers were never revealed.