Monticiano is a town and comune

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:...

on the right bank of the Val di Merse

Val di Merse

Val di Merse is one of the regions of the province of Siena, in Tuscany. It is located on the border with the Upper Maremma and it is renowned for its unspoilt nature. The territory comprises the area between the rivers Farma and Merse and it is covered in woods which hide medieval hamlets and...

, 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 ....

, Italy

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...

, administratively part of the Province of Siena

Province of Siena

The Province of Siena is a province in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Siena.It has an area of 3,821 km² , and a total population of 252,288 . There are 36 comuni in the province...

. It has 1,412 inhabitants as of December 31, 2004. The town is situated on the Colline Metallifere

Colline Metallifere

The Colline Metallifere are a mountain-hill groups in the Tuscan Antiapennine, in central Italy. The occupy the central-western part of Tuscany, divided between the provinces of Livorno, Pisa, Siena and Grosseto....

.

One of its frazioni

Frazione

A frazione , in Italy, is the name given in administrative law to a type of territorial subdivision of a comune; for other administrative divisions, see municipio, circoscrizione, quartiere...

, Bagni di Petriolo, is popular for its thermal waters.

History

First historical mentions of the "Castle of Monticiano" dates from 1189, when it was under the suzerainty of the bishop of Volterra. In 1266, due to tis citizens' participation to the Ghibelline defeat at Benevento, it was occupied by the Sienese

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...

 troops. In 1554 it became part of 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...

. From 1629 to 1749 it as a fief of the Pannocchieschi family.

In 1860, its 723 inhabitants unanimously agreed to join the Kingdom of Italy

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...

. During World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, partisans from the Siena zone started their first organizational operations in Monticiano, where a resistance brigade, named after Spartaco Lavagnini, also operated.