Asiago (; Venetian: ''Axiago'', Cimbrian: ''Slege'',

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

: ''Schlägen'' ) is a minor township (population roughly 6,500) in the surrounding plateau region (the ''Altopiano di Asiago'' or '' Altopiano dei Sette Comuni'', Asiago plateau) in the

Province of Vicenza The Province of Vicenza ( it, Provincia di Vicenza) is a Provinces of Italy, province in the Veneto region in northern Italy. Its capital city is Vicenza. The province has an area of 2,722.53 km², and a total population of 865,082 (as o ...

in the

Veneto it, Veneto (man) it, Veneta (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = ...

region of Northeastern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. It is near the border between the

and

Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol it, Trentino (man) it, Trentina (woman) or it, Altoatesino (man) it, Altoatesina (woman) or it, Sudtirolesegerman: Südtiroler (man)german: Südtirolerin (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = Official ...

regions in the foothills of the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Swi ...

, approximately equidistant (60 km) from

Trento Trento ( or ; Ladin and lmo, Trent; german: Trient ; cim, Tria; , ), also anglicized as Trent, is a city on the Adige River in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol in Italy. It is the capital of the autonomous province of Trento. In the 16th ce ...

to the west and

Vicenza Vicenza ( , ; ) is a city in northeastern Italy. It is in the Veneto region at the northern base of the ''Monte Berico'', where it straddles the Bacchiglione River. Vicenza is approximately west of Venice and east of Milan. Vicenza is a thr ...

to the south. The Asiago region is the origin of

Asiago cheese Asiago ( or ; ) is a cow's milk cheese, first produced in Italy, that can assume different textures according to its aging, from smooth for the fresh Asiago (called , which means 'Pressed Asiago') to a crumbly texture for the aged cheese (, whi ...

. The town was the site of a major battle between Austrian and Italian forces on the Alpine Front of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. It is a major ski resort destination, and the site of the Astrophysical Observatory of Asiago, operated by the

University of Padua The University of Padua ( it, Università degli Studi di Padova, UNIPD) is an Italian university located in the city of Padua, region of Veneto, northern Italy. The University of Padua was founded in 1222 by a group of students and teachers from ...

Geography

Climate

Culture

Until the middle of the nineteenth century many of the people of Asiago spoke Cimbrian, an ancient

German dialect German dialects are the various traditional local varieties of the German language. Though varied by region, those of the southern half of Germany beneath the Benrath line are dominated by the geographical spread of the High German consonant ...

. Asiago is the birthplace of author

Mario Rigoni Stern Mario Rigoni Stern (1 November 1921 – 16 June 2008) was an Italian author and World War II veteran.Emilio Lussu Emilio Lussu (4 December 1890 – 5 March 1975) was an Italian soldier, politician, anti-fascist and writer. Biography The soldier Lussu was born in Armungia, province of Cagliari (Sardinia) and graduated with a degree in law in 1914. Lussu ma ...

's ''A Year on the Altopiano''.

Battle of Asiago

The

Battle of Asiago The Battle of Asiago (Battle of the Plateaux) or the Südtirol Offensive (in Italian: Battaglia degli Altipiani), nicknamed ''Strafexpedition'' ("Punitive expedition") by the Italians, was a major counteroffensive launched by the Austro-Hungari ...

(Battle of the Plateaux) was a counter-offensive launched by the Austro-Hungarians on the Italian Front in May 1916, during

. It was an unexpected attack that occurred near Asiago (now in northeast Italy, then on the Italian side of the border between the Kingdom of Italy and Austria-Hungary). Commemorating this battle and the fallen soldiers of

is the

Asiago War Memorial The Asiago War Memorial is a World War I memorial located in the town of Asiago in the Province of Vicenza in the Veneto region of northeast Italy. Surrounded by mountains that were the site of several World War I battles, the monument houses th ...

, a monument and museum that is a popular site for visitors to the area.

Ernest Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century f ...

fought here. In a later engagement in 1918,

Edward Brittain Edward Harold Brittain, MC (30 November 1895 – 15 June 1918) was a British Army officer who was killed in the First World War; he was immortalised by his sister Vera Brittain in '' Testament of Youth''. Early life Brittain was born at Maccles ...

, brother of

Vera Brittain Vera Mary Brittain (29 December 1893 – 29 March 1970) was an English Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD) nurse, writer, feminist, socialist and pacifist. Her best-selling 1933 memoir '' Testament of Youth'' recounted her experiences during the Fir ...

, was killed and was buried in the Granezza British military cemetery on the plateau. In 1970 Vera's ashes were scattered on his grave. The Barenthal, Boscon, Granezza, Magnaboschi and Cavalletto Military Cemeteries at Asiago were designed by Sir

Robert Lorimer Sir Robert Stodart Lorimer, KBE (4 November 1864 – 13 September 1929) was a prolific Scottish architect and furniture designer noted for his sensitive restorations of historic houses and castles, for new work in Scots Baronial and Got ...

in 1920.

Sport

The city is home to

HC Asiago Asiago Hockey 1935 is an Italian ice hockey team from Asiago which plays in the ICE Hockey League. Until 2021–22, Asiago played in the Italian Hockey League - Serie A, winning the championship eight times. Honours ;Domestic *Italian Hockey Leag ...

, a professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

team currently playing in the international

Alps Hockey League The Alps Hockey League (AlpsHL) is a professional ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of s ...

https://www.asiagohockey.it/ as well as in the Italian top tier Serie A. The Asiago Vipers, based in Asiago, are a professional

inline hockey Roller inline hockey, or inline hockey is a variant of hockey played on a hard, smooth surface, with players using inline skates to move and ice hockey sticks to shoot a hard, plastic puck into their opponent's goal to score points. The spo ...

team. The team plays in the highest Italian inline league. * Enrico Fabris, long track speed skater who has won three World Cup races. *

Ivan Lunardi Ivan Lunardi (born 15 May 1973) is an Italian former ski jumper. Career At the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, he finished seventh in the individual large hill event. Lunardi's best individual finish at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships ...

, one of the best Italian ski jumpers in history. * Aldo Stella, ski mountaineer and cross-country skier. * Lucio Topatigh, Italian ice hockey legend. * Nicola Tumolero, European champion speed skater.

The Asiago Award

The Asiago Award is known as the Oscar of the Philatelic World. Since 1970 the "Circolo Filatelico Numismatico Sette Comuni Asiago" (Numismatic and Philatelic Chapter of the Seven Asiago Communities) has been awarding the prize for the best designed postage stamp of the year.

Sister cities

Noventa Vicentina Noventa Vicentina is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Vicenza, Veneto, northern Italy. It is west of SP247 provincial road. Noventa Vicentina was first inhabited by the Romans in the 1st century AD. Afterward in the early 1500s, the town was ...

Lockport, Illinois Lockport is a city in Will County, Illinois, United States, located 30 miles southwest of Chicago. Per the 2020 census, the population was 26,094. The city was incorporated in 1853. It is situated along the Illinois and Michigan (I&M) Canal, an ...

References

External links

Official site

Asiago plateau

Asiago7Comuni
news and general information

Astrophysical Observatory of Asiago

Asiago on The Campanile Project

{{Authority control Geography of Veneto