Monteriggioni
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Monteriggioni 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 ...
'' in the
province of Siena The province of Siena (, ) is a Provinces of Italy, province in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Siena. It has 259,826 inhabitants. Geography The province is divided into seven historical areas: * Alta Val d'Elsa * Chian ...
in the
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
region of
Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...
. It borders on the communes of Casole d'Elsa, Castellina in Chianti,
Castelnuovo Berardenga Castelnuovo Berardenga is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence and about east of Siena. Since 1932 it has been included in the Chianti wine-production area. The ...
,
Colle di Val d'Elsa Colle di Val d'Elsa or Colle Val d'Elsa is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Siena, Tuscany. It has a population of c. 21,600 . Its name means "Hill of Elsa Valley", where Elsa (river), Elsa is the name of the river which crosses it and Val ...
,
Poggibonsi Poggibonsi is a town in the province of Siena, Tuscany, Central Italy. It is located on the River Elsa (river), Elsa and is the main centre of the Valdelsa, Valdelsa Valley. History The area around Poggibonsi was already settled in the Neolithic ...
,
Siena Siena ( , ; traditionally spelled Sienna in English; ) is a city in Tuscany, in central Italy, and the capital of the province of Siena. It is the twelfth most populated city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 52,991 ...
, and Sovicille. The town is architecturally and culturally significant; it hosts several piazzas, and is referenced in
Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri (; most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri; – September 14, 1321), widely known mononymously as Dante, was an Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer, and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called ...
's ''
Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' (, ) is an Italian narrative poetry, narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun and completed around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature and one of ...
''.


History

left, City walls of Monteriggioni. Monteriggioni is a medieval walled town, located on a natural hillock, built by the Sienese in 1214–19 as a front line defensive fortification in their wars against
Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...
, by assuming command of the
Via Cassia The Via Cassia () was an important Roman road striking out of the Via Flaminia near the Milvian Bridge in the immediate vicinity of Rome and, passing not far from Veii, traversed Etruria. The ''Via Cassia'' passed through Baccanae, Sutrium ...
running through the Val d'Elsa and Val Staggia to the west. It withstood many attacks from both the Florentines and the forces of the Bishop of Volterra. In 1554, the Sienese put the town's garrison under the command of Giovannino Zeti, who had been exiled from Florence. In 1554, in an act of reconciliation with the Medicis, Florence's ruling family, Zeti simply handed the keys of the town over to their forces— considered a "great betrayal" by the townspeople.


Main sights

The roughly circular walls, totalling a length of about and following the natural contours of the hill, were built between 1213 and 1219. There are 14 towers on square bases set at equidistance, and two portals or gates. One gate, the Porta Fiorentina opens toward Florence to the north, and the other, the Porta Romana, faces Rome to the south. The main street within the walls connects the two gates in a roughly straight line. The main town square, the Piazza Roma, is dominated by a Romanesque church with a simple, plain façade. Other houses, some in the Renaissance style (once owned by local nobles, gentry, and wealthy merchants) face into the piazza. Off the main piazza smaller streets give way to public gardens fronted by the other houses and small businesses of the town. In more hostile times, these gardens provided vital
sustenance {{wiktionary Sustenance can refer to any means of subsistence or livelihood. * food * any subsistence economy: see list of subsistence techniques ** hunting-gathering ** animal husbandry ** subsistence agriculture * Any agricultural and natural ...
when enemies gathered around the walls during
siege A siege () . is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or by well-prepared assault. Siege warfare (also called siegecrafts or poliorcetics) is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict charact ...
s. Other sights in the town's countryside include: * Badia of Santi Salvatore e Cirino in Abbadia a Isola, a Romanesque abbey from the mid-12th century *Romanesque church of San Lorenzo in Colle Ciupi *Romanesque ''
Pieve In Italy in the Middle Ages, a ''pieve'' (, ; ; : ''pievi'') was a rural church with a baptistery, upon which other churches without baptisteries depended. ''Pieve'' is also an Italian and Corsican term signifying the medieval ecclesiastical/a ...
'' of Santa Maria a Castello, known since as early as 971 *Romanesque- Gothic hermitage of San Leonardo al Lago * Villa Santa Colomba


Cultural significance

The Tuscan poet
Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri (; most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri; – September 14, 1321), widely known mononymously as Dante, was an Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer, and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called ...
used the turrets of Monteriggioni to evoke the sight of the ring of giants encircling the Infernal abyss. Monteriggioni also plays a significant role in the games '' Assassin's Creed II'' and '' Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood'', both of which are loosely based around certain key historical events in Renaissance Italy. It is home to protagonist Ezio Auditore and his uncle Mario, who live in the fictional Villa Auditore, which is based on Villa di Maiano.


Education

Public schools include: * Preschools (Scuole dell'Infanzia): C. Collodi, Don Muzzi, and Pinocchio * Elementary schools (Scuole primare): I. Calvino, G. Rodari, and Don L. Milani * One junior high school (Scuola secondaria di 1° grado): Scuola Media Statale "Dante Alighieri" All public schools within the commune are a part of the ''Istituto Comprensivo Statale di Monteriggioni'', School District #38. International School of Siena, a private international school, is in the commune.Home
International School of Siena. Retrieved on October 22, 2016.


Demographic evolution


Municipal government

Monteriggioni is headed by a
mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
(') assisted by a legislative body, the ', and an executive body, the '. Since 1995, the mayor and members of the ' are directly elected together by resident citizens, while from 1945 to 1995 the mayor was chosen by the legislative body. The ' is chaired by the mayor, who appoints others members, called '. The offices of the ' are housed in a building usually called the ' or '. Since 1995, the mayor of Monteriggioni is directly elected by citizens, originally every four, then every five years. The current mayor is Andrea Frosini ( PD), elected on 26 May 2019 with 43.3% of the votes and re-elected on 9 June 2024 with 64.9% of the votes. ;Notes


Gallery

File:Foto aerea del castello di Monteriggioni.jpg File:Panorama of Monteriggioni.jpg File:Monteriggioni 886c03ae15 o.jpg File:Monteriggioni (Siena) - panoramio.jpg File:Monteriggioni Toscana 01.JPG


References


External links


Official site
{{Authority control Hilltowns in Tuscany