No article found for “File:History of Russian Design 06.jpg”.

Castiglione dei Pepoli

☆ Save On Wikipedia ↗
Castiglione dei Pepoli
Emilian: Castión
Comune
Comune di Castiglione dei Pepoli
View of Castiglione dei Pepoli
View of Castiglione dei Pepoli
Coat of arms of Castiglione dei Pepoli
Coat of arms
Castiglione dei Pepoli is located in Italy
Castiglione dei Pepoli
Castiglione dei Pepoli
Location of Castiglione dei Pepoli in Italy
Show map of Italy
Castiglione dei Pepoli is located in Emilia-Romagna
Castiglione dei Pepoli
Castiglione dei Pepoli
Castiglione dei Pepoli (Emilia-Romagna)
Show map of Emilia-Romagna
Coordinates: 44°9′N 11°9′E / 44.150°N 11.150°E / 44.150; 11.150
CountryItaly
RegionEmilia-Romagna
ProvinceBologna (BO)
FrazioniBaragazza, Ca' di Landino, Creda, Lagaro, Rasora, Roncobilaccio, San Giacomo, Sparvo, Spianamento, Monte Baducco, Valli
Government
 • MayorTommaso Tarabusi[1]
Area
[2]
 • Total
65.76 km2 (25.39 sq mi)
Elevation
691 m (2,267 ft)
Population
 (31 December 2024)[3]
 • Total
5,486
 • Density83.42/km2 (216.1/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
40035
Dialing code0534
Websitewww.comune.castiglionedeipepoli.bo.it

Castiglione dei Pepoli (Emilian: Castión) is a comune (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It lies in the Bolognese Apennines, near the border with Tuscany, about 40 km (25 mi) south-west of Bologna.[4]

The town takes its name from the Pepoli family of Bologna, who controlled the territory for several centuries after acquiring it in the 14th century. Castiglione dei Pepoli developed as an Apennine settlement between Emilia and Tuscany, in a strategic position along routes connecting Bologna and Prato.[5]

The municipality is characterised by chestnut and fir woods, mountain landscapes, pilgrimage sites, small artificial lakes and historical infrastructure linked to the Bologna–Florence railway.[6]

Geography

Castiglione dei Pepoli is located in the southern part of the Bolognese Apennines, near the border between Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany. The town stands in a mountain area overlooking the Brasimone valley and is surrounded by wooded scenery.[5] The surrounding territory includes chestnut and fir woods and several hills and peaks slightly above 1,000 m (3,281 ft).[6]

Near the town is the small artificial Lake Santa Maria, also known as Lake San Damiano. The reservoir, built in 1917 on the Brasimone stream, is part of a wider hydroelectric system connected with the reservoirs of Suviana, Brasimone and Pavana.[7]

Part of the municipality is included in the Regional Park of the Lakes of Suviana and Brasimone, whose protected area extends across the municipalities of Camugnano, Castel di Casio and Castiglione dei Pepoli.[8]

History

The area of Castiglione was historically important because of its position between the Emilian and Tuscan sides of the Apennines, along routes connecting Bologna and Prato. In the Middle Ages it belonged to the feudal sphere of the Alberti counts of Prato and Mangona.[5]

The medieval settlement was associated with a castle known as the Castellaccio or Citerna, located on a hill above the present town. The castle is documented from the second half of the 13th century and was destroyed by the Bolognese in 1317. In 1340 Giacomo and Giovanni Pepoli, sons of Taddeo Pepoli, purchased the castle of Castiglione dei Gatti, part of Baragazza and other lands from Count Ubaldino degli Alberti of Mangona. The acquisition was confirmed in 1369 by Emperor Charles IV, who granted the Pepoli family feudal investiture over the territory.[9]

The settlement was formerly known as Castiglione dei Gatti. Its present name reflects the long rule of the Pepoli family over the territory.[5]

During the Italian campaign of the Second World War, Castiglione dei Pepoli was involved in the fighting along and beyond the Gothic Line. The town was entered by the 6th South African Armoured Division at the end of September 1944.[10]

Main sights

Palazzo Pepoli and the historic centre

Palazzo Pepoli, also known as Palazzo della Ragione, stands in the main square of Castiglione dei Pepoli. It was built towards the end of the 15th century and enlarged between the 16th and 18th centuries. It is now the seat of the municipal administration.[4] The palace recalls the long presence of the Pepoli family in the territory.[5]

On the opposite side of the square stands the Public Clock Tower, built in 1724. A plaque near the main arch commemorates the first Festa degli Alberi ("Tree Festival") held in Italy, in 1899.[4][6]

Churches

The Church of San Lorenzo, dedicated to the patron saint of the town, originated around 1576 as the oratory of the Compagnia della Misericordia. It contains a fresco of Saint Lawrence in ecstasy before the Virgin on the clouds by the Bolognese painter Giacomo Cavedoni.[4]

The 17th-century Church of the Madonna della Consolazione is regarded as the oldest place of worship in Castiglione dei Pepoli and contains works from the 17th and 18th centuries.[4]

Sanctuary of Boccadirio

The Sanctuary of the Beata Vergine delle Grazie di Boccadirio is located near Baragazza, a frazione of Castiglione dei Pepoli. According to local tradition, it arose on the site of a Marian apparition to two young shepherds in 1480.[11] It is one of the best-known pilgrimage destinations in the Bolognese Apennines.[4]

The sanctuary preserves a glazed ceramic relief of the Madonna and Child traditionally associated with the workshop of Andrea della Robbia.[12]

Lake Santa Maria

Lake Santa Maria is a small artificial reservoir near Castiglione dei Pepoli. It lies on the Brasimone stream and dates from 1917. Its waters, together with those of the Suviana, Brasimone and Pavana reservoirs, are used for hydroelectric production.[7] A circular walking route from the historic centre reaches the lake and the South African war cemetery.[7]

Castiglione South African Cemetery

The Castiglione South African Cemetery is located north of the town, on the western side of the road entering Castiglione dei Pepoli. It contains 502 identified Commonwealth burials from the Second World War.[10]

The cemetery was begun in October 1944 by the 6th South African Armoured Division, which had entered Castiglione at the end of September and remained in the area until the following April. Many of the burials came directly from the battlefields of the Apennines, where South African troops held positions north of Castiglione during the winter campaign.[10] The cemetery includes a memorial building originally erected by South African troops.[10]

Culture

The Paolo Guidotti Cultural Centre was inaugurated on 5 April 2014 in the former premises of an elementary school. It includes the municipal library, meeting rooms, youth spaces and museum rooms devoted to the culture, history and natural environment of Castiglione dei Pepoli and the Bolognese Apennines.[13]

The museum includes sections on early settlement, rural life and traditional crafts, Castiglione between the 19th and 20th centuries, the South African war memorial and the geological heritage of the area.[13] Its Sala della Terra presents mineralogical and palaeontological material collected in the Apennine area around Castiglione dei Pepoli, Camugnano and Grizzana Morandi.[14]

Nature and walking routes

Castiglione dei Pepoli is associated with several walking routes through the Bolognese Apennines. The Via della Lana e della Seta ("Wool and Silk Trail"), a long-distance hiking route between Bologna and Prato, passes through the area and crosses the Apennines between Emilia and Tuscany.[15] Castiglione dei Pepoli is the last Emilian stop on the route before the Tuscan border.[6]

The municipality is also linked to the Via Mater Dei, a devotional route connecting Marian sanctuaries in the Bolognese Apennines; the Sanctuary of Boccadirio is one of its stages.[6]

Transport

The nearest railway station serving the municipality is San Benedetto Val di Sambro–Castiglione dei Pepoli railway station, on the Bologna–Florence railway line. The station is listed by Rete Ferroviaria Italiana as S. Benedetto Sambro-Castiglione Pepoli.[16]

Castiglione dei Pepoli was also closely connected with the construction of the historic Bologna–Florence railway, known as the Direttissima. At Ca' di Landino, a locality in the municipality of Castiglione dei Pepoli, two inclined shafts were dug to speed up the excavation of the Apennine Base Tunnel; miners working from Ca' di Landino advanced towards the teams coming from Vernio to the south and Lagaro to the north.[17]

Inside the Apennine Base Tunnel was the unusual Precedenze station, inaugurated with the Direttissima on 22 April 1934. Located about 450 m (1,476 ft) underground and reachable by 1,863 steps, it was designed to allow slower trains to be overtaken by faster ones, hence its name. It also served passenger traffic until the 1960s, when this use was discontinued for safety reasons and because of limited demand.[18]

The hamlet of Ca' di Landino preserves a complex of buildings originally built in the 1920s as housing and services for workers employed on the Florence–Bologna Direttissima tunnel. The complex is listed by the Italian Ministry of Culture among abandoned cultural properties.[19]

By road, the municipality is connected with the Apennine routes between Bologna and Tuscany. The frazione of Roncobilaccio is associated with the A1 motorway crossing of the Apennines.

Twin towns

Castiglione dei Pepoli is twinned with:

In astronomy

Asteroid 400193 Castión was named after the town by its dialectal name. The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 25 September 2018.[21][22]

See also

References

  1. "Sindaco". Comune di Castiglione dei Pepoli. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  2. "Superficie di Comuni Province e Regioni italiane al 9 ottobre 2011". Italian National Institute of Statistics. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  3. "Popolazione Castiglione dei Pepoli 2001-2024". Tuttitalia. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  4. "Castiglione dei Pepoli". Emilia Romagna Tourism. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  5. "Castiglione dei Pepoli". Italia.it. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  6. "Castiglione dei Pepoli". Appennino Bolognese. Metropolitan City of Bologna. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  7. "Anello di Santa Maria". Bologna Montana. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  8. "Parco Regionale dei Laghi di Suviana e Brasimone: L'Area Protetta". Parks.it. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  9. "Il "castellaccio" di Castiglione". Centro di Cultura Paolo Guidotti. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  10. "Castiglione South African Cemetery". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  11. "Santuario di Boccadirio". Comune di Castiglione dei Pepoli. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  12. "Beata Vergine delle Grazie di Boccadirio, Madonna con Bambino". Catalogo generale dei Beni Culturali. Ministero della Cultura. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  13. "Centro di Cultura Paolo Guidotti di Castiglione dei Pepoli". Centro di Cultura Paolo Guidotti. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  14. "Cultural centre and museum Paolo Guidotti". Bologna Welcome. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  15. "Via della Lana e della Seta". Via della Lana e della Seta. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  16. "S. Benedetto Sambro-Castiglione Pepoli". Rete Ferroviaria Italiana. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  17. "Direttissima Bologna-Firenze". Centro di Cultura Paolo Guidotti. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  18. "I 90 anni della stazione di Precedenze". Rete Ferroviaria Italiana. 22 April 2024. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  19. "Borgo Cà di Landino". Beni culturali abbandonati. Direzione Generale Archeologia Belle Arti e Paesaggio, Ministero della Cultura. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  20. "Unir les villes pour unir les peuples". Ville de Nogent-sur-Marne. 8 September 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  21. "400193 Castion (2006 XW60)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  22. "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive" (PDF). Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 17 October 2018.