Soncino is a 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:...

(municipality) in the Province of Cremona

Province of Cremona

The Province of Cremona is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Cremona.The province has an area of 1,771 km² and in 2008 census, had a population of 358,628. There are 115 comuni...

 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 Lombardy

Lombardy

Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...

, located about 60 km east of Milan

Milan

Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...

 and about 30 km northwest of Cremona

Cremona

Cremona is a city and comune in northern Italy, situated in Lombardy, on the left bank of the Po River in the middle of the Pianura Padana . It is the capital of the province of Cremona and the seat of the local City and Province governments...

. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 7,440 and an area of 45.3 km².

Soncino borders the following municipalities: Casaletto di Sopra

Casaletto di Sopra

Casaletto di Sopra is a comune in the Province of Cremona in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 50 km east of Milan and about 35 km northwest of Cremona...

, Cumignano sul Naviglio

Cumignano sul Naviglio

Cumignano sul Naviglio is a comune in the Province of Cremona in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 50 km east of Milan and about 30 km northwest of Cremona...

, Fontanella

Fontanella, Italy

Fontanella is a comune in the Province of Bergamo in the Italian region of Lombardy, located about 50 km east of Milan and about 30 km southeast of Bergamo...

, Genivolta

Genivolta

Genivolta is a comune in the Province of Cremona in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 60 km east of Milan and about 25 km northwest of Cremona...

, Orzinuovi

Orzinuovi

Orzinuovi is a town and comune in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy, Italy.-History:It was founded in 1193 as a boundary fortress with a statute of the comune of Brescia, with the name of "Orci Novi". Its history thenceforth closely follows that of Brescia, therefore sharing the Venetian...

, Roccafranca, Ticengo

Ticengo

Ticengo is a comune in the Province of Cremona in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 50 km east of Milan and about 30 km northwest of Cremona. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 451 and an area of 8.1 km²....

, Torre Pallavicina

Torre Pallavicina

Torre Pallavicina is a comune in the Province of Bergamo in the Italian region of Lombardy, located about 50 km east of Milan and about 30 km southeast of Bergamo...

, Villachiara

Villachiara

Villachiara is a comune in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy.Its coat of arms is orange-red on the bottom and shining gold on the top, an eagle on the top and a grey-colored castle on the bottom part of the coat of arms....

.

Soncino received the honorary title of city with a presidential decree on November 18, 2004.

Main sights

• The famous, well-preserved Castle (Rocca Sforzesca), built in 1473 for Galeazzo Maria Sforza
  Galeazzo Maria Sforza
  Galeazzo Maria Sforza was Duke of Milan from 1466 until his death. He was famous for being lustful, cruel and tyrannical....
  
  . It has three square towers and a round one. It has been chosen as set for movies like Ladyhawke
  Ladyhawke
  Ladyhawke is a 1985 fantasy film directed by Richard Donner, starring Matthew Broderick, Rutger Hauer and Michelle Pfeiffer. The film marked the second 20th Century Fox film to be co-produced and co-released by Warner Bros.. The first was The Towering Inferno; this time Warner got the U.S...
  
  and Il mestiere delle armi.
• The church of San Giacomo and the annxed former Dominican
  Dominican Order
  The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
  
  convent, with an octagonal pending tower.
• The church of Santa Maria Assunta (12th century).
• The Town Hall with the Civic Tower.
• The Casa degli Stampatori ("Printers' House"), where, in 1488, the first complete Jewish Bible in the world was printed.
• The Renaissance Santa Maria delle Grazie, with a fine interior.

External links

• Site of Soncino's Landscape (in Italian)
• Semi-Serious blog about Soncino (even a little satirical)
• Pro Loco di Soncino (tourism promotion)
• Castrum Soncini (tourism promotion) (More information about Soncino)
• Comune di Soncino
• sito.rup.cr.it/comune.soncino/