Gavi is a ''

comune A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the City status in Italy, titl ...

'' (municipality) in the

Province of Alessandria The province of Alessandria (; ; in Piedmontese of Alessandria: ''provinsa ëd Lissändria'') is an Italian Provinces of Italy, province, with a population of some 425,000, which forms the southeastern part of the region of Piedmont. The prov ...

in the Italian region

Piedmont Piedmont ( ; ; ) is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the northwest Italy, Northwest of the country. It borders the Liguria region to the south, the Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna regions to the east, and the Aosta Valley region to the ...

, located about southeast of

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

and about southeast of

Alessandria Alessandria (; ) is a city and commune in Piedmont, Italy, and the capital of the Province of Alessandria. It is also the largest municipality of the region. The city is sited on the alluvial plain between the Tanaro and the Bormida rivers, ...

. Gavi borders the following municipalities:

Arquata Scrivia Arquata Scrivia (local dialect: ''Auquâ'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Alessandria in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southeast of Turin and about southeast of Alessandria. Arquata Scrivia borders the following ...

Bosio Bosio is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Alessandria in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southeast of Turin and about southeast of Alessandria. Bosio borders the following municipalities: Campo Ligure, Campomorone, ...

, Carrosio,

Francavilla Bisio Francavilla Bisio is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Alessandria in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southeast of Turin and about southeast of Alessandria. Francavilla Bisio borders the following municipalities: Basaluzz ...

Isola del Cantone Isola del Cantone () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Genoa in the Italian region Liguria, located about north of Genoa. Isola del Cantone borders the following municipalities: Arquata Scrivia, Busalla, Gavi, Grondona, ...

Novi Ligure Novi Ligure (; , ; , ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) north of Genoa, in the province of Alessandria, in the Italian region of Piedmont. The town produces food, iron, steel, and textiles. It is an important junction for both road and railroad ...

, Parodi Ligure, San Cristoforo,

Serravalle Scrivia Serravalle Scrivia is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Alessandria in the Italian region of Piedmont, located about southeast of Turin and about southeast of Alessandria. Serravalle Scrivia borders the following municipalities: Ar ...

, Tassarolo, and Voltaggio.

History

The area of Gavi was already settled in

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

times; later it perhaps housed a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

military outpost defending the

Via Postumia The Via Postumia was an ancient military Roman road of northern Italy constructed in 148 BC by the ''consul'' Spurius Postumius Albinus Magnus. It ran from the coast at Genoa through the mountains to Dertona, Placentia (the termination of the ...

. After the fall of the

Western Roman Empire In modern historiography, the Western Roman Empire was the western provinces of the Roman Empire, collectively, during any period in which they were administered separately from the eastern provinces by a separate, independent imperial court. ...

it was captured by the

Magyars Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common culture, language and history. They also have a notable presence in former parts of the Kingdom of Hungary. The Hungarian language belongs to the ...

and later by the

Saracens file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century History of Germany, German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to ...

. According to the legend, the current name would derive from that of a princess of the latter, Gavia or Gavina, who had established herself in a castle here. Later in the Middle Ages the town was under the Marquisses of Gavi, allied with

Frederick Barbarossa Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (; ), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death in 1190. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aachen on 9 March 115 ...

, who took refuge here after the

Battle of Legnano The battle of Legnano was a battle between the imperial army of Frederick Barbarossa and the troops of the Lombard League on 29 May 1176, near the town of Legnano, in present-day Lombardy, Italy. Although the presence of the enemy nearby was al ...

. In 1202 Gavi was sold to the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( ; ; ) was a medieval and early modern Maritime republics, maritime republic from the years 1099 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italy, Italian coast. During the Late Middle Ages, it was a major commercial power in ...

. After a parenthesis under the

Visconti Visconti is a surname which may refer to: Italian noble families * Visconti of Milan, ruled Milan from 1277 to 1447 ** Visconti di Modrone, collateral branch of the Visconti of Milan * Visconti of Pisa and Sardinia, ruled Gallura in Sardinia from ...

and France, it returned to Genoa in 1528. In 1625, during the

First Genoese–Savoyard War The Relief of Genoa took place between 28 March 1625 and 24 April 1625, during the Thirty Years' War. It was a major naval expedition launched by Spain against the French-occupied Republic of Genoa, whose capital, Genoa, was being besieged by a ...

, it was attacked and stormed by French-

Savoy Savoy (; )  is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps. Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south and west and to the Aosta Vall ...

troops, but the Genoese retook it after only 21 days. It was decided to turn Gavi into a powerful fortress. After a French domination from 1804, in 1815 it was assigned to the

Kingdom of Sardinia The Kingdom of Sardinia, also referred to as the Kingdom of Sardinia and Corsica among other names, was a State (polity), country in Southern Europe from the late 13th until the mid-19th century, and from 1297 to 1768 for the Corsican part of ...

. The fortress was later turned into a penitentiary; during World War II it was used as a POW camp ( P.G. 5, a "bad boys" prison for those who attempted escape from other camps''For You The War Is Over'' by Gordon Horner (private printing, 1948)).

Main sights

*The

fortress A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from L ...

, rebuilt in the 17th century around the pre-existing castle. *Church of ''San Giacomo Maggiore'', in Romanesque style *Municipal Palace. Remains of its medieval line of wall can be seen today. *Franciscan convent of ''Nostra Signora dele Grazie della Valle'', outside the town (18th century). It houses a statue of St. Bernardino and a painting of the Virgin from the 15th century.

Wine

Gavi is in the

DOCG The following four classification of wine, classifications of wine constitute the Italy, Italian system of labelling and legally protecting Italian wine: * ''Denominazione di origine'' (DO, rarely used; ; 'designation of origin'); * ''Indicazione ...

region of

Cortese di Gavi Cortese di Gavi, or simply Gavi, is an Italian dry white wine produced in a restricted area of the Province of Alessandria, Piedmont, close to the Ligurian border. The wine was awarded DOC status in 1974 and elevated to DOCG in 1998. The name de ...

; Cortese di Gavi produced within the comune of Gavi may be labeled "Gavi di Gavi".

References

External links

Official website
Cities and towns in Piedmont {{Alessandria-geo-stub