Angrogna (

Piedmontese Piedmontese (; autonym: or , in it, piemontese) is a language spoken by some 2,000,000 people mostly in Piedmont, northwestern region of Italy. Although considered by most linguists a separate language, in Italy it is often mistakenly regard ...

: ''Angreugna'',

Occitan Occitan may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain. * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France. * Occitan language Occitan (; o ...

: ''Angruenha'') is a ''

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

'' (municipality) in the

Metropolitan City of Turin The Metropolitan City of Turin ( it, Città metropolitana di Torino, Piedmontese: ''Sità metropolitan-a 'd Turin'') is a metropolitan city in the Piedmont region, Italy. Its capital is the city of Turin. It replaced the Province of Turin and co ...

in the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

region

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

, located about southwest of

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) 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 ...

. Angrogna borders the following municipalities:

Perrero Perrero (Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lo Perrier'', French: Le Perrier) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italy, Italian region Piedmont, located about southwest of Turin. Perrero borders the following mun ...

Prali Prali (french: Praly) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southwest of Turin, on the border with France. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 322 and an area of ...

, Pramollo,

San Germano Chisone San Germano Chisone (French: Saint-Germain) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southwest of Turin. San Germano Chisone borders the following municipalities: Inverso Pin ...

, Prarostino,

Villar Pellice Villar Pellice (Vivaro-Alpine dialect, Vivaro-Alpine: ''Lo Vilar de Pèlis'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southwest of Turin. As of 31 December 2004, it had a popul ...

Bricherasio Bricherasio (French: Briqueras) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southwest of Turin. Bricherasio borders the following municipalities: Angrogna, San Secondo di Pinerol ...

Torre Pellice Torre Pellice (Vivaro-Alpine: ''La Torre de Pèlis'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southwest of Turin. It is crossed by the Pellice river. Torre Pellice is the cent ...

, and

Luserna San Giovanni Luserna San Giovanni ( Occitan: ''Luzerna e San Jan'', Piedmontese: ''Luserna e San Gioann'', French: Lucerne Saint-Jean) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located in the Val Pellice ...

Waldensian presence

The valley of Angrogna, Val di Angrogna, situated in the

Cottian Alps The Cottian Alps (; french: Alpes Cottiennes ; it, Alpi Cozie ) are a mountain range in the southwestern part of the Alps. They form the border between France (Hautes-Alpes and Savoie) and Italy (Piedmont). The Fréjus Road Tunnel and Fréjus Rai ...

between

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

has historic significance for the

Waldensian Church The Waldensian Evangelical Church (''Chiesa Evangelica Valdese'', CEV) is a Protestant denomination active in Italy and Switzerland that was independent until it united with the Methodist Evangelical Church in Italy in the Union of Methodist and ...

. A narrow Alpine valley starting in

Val Pellice The Pellice (in Piedmontese ''Pélis'') is a Italian torrent, which runs through the Metropolitan City of Turin. The stream is a tributary of the Po River, into which it flows near Villafranca Piemonte. Geography The stream is formed at the weste ...

, the valley of Angrogna ends at the village of Pra del Torno which was the location of a Waldensian mission centre during The Middle Ages. Due to its narrowness, the valley was a military and religious refuge for the Waldensians and Pra del Torno were the centre of Waldensian resistance from the 13th to the 18th centuries. As evidence of their persecutions, there is still a sort of catacomb located near the village of San Lorenzo. In pre-Reformation times Waldensian missionaries were trained in a college at Pra del Torno by 'barbes', their pastors, to work as traders spreading their message across Europe. The ruins of this college still exist. There are both

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and Waldensian churches today situated at Pra del Torno, as well as in a number of other villages in the valley. Angrona was selected as the Waldensian refuge from Papal armies under Papal legate, Cataneo in 1488. Cataneo was charged by a Papal Bull to destroy the 'heretic' populations of the Waldensian valleys but the Waldensians defenders were able to repel the Papal troops' just outside Pra del Torno and protect their main population in the village from massacre. In 1532, at Chanforan in Angrogna, a Waldensian

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word ''wikt:synod, synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin ...

of churches in France,

Calabria , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

and

Apulia it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...

took the decision that the Waldensian Church should join the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

which their doctrines had prefigured. The Waldensians in Angrogna suffered fierce persecutions throughout the 17th century but were supported by

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

and William of Orange. In 1686, Vittorio Amedeo II, in accordance with the policy of

Louis XIV of France , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Versa ...

, began the systematic expulsion of the Waldensian valleys. Local troops destroyed the houses of Waldensians and their land in the valley was expropriated and sold to Catholics coming from elsewhere in

. After reconciling with Victor Amadeus, the Waldensians returned to their land and homes in the valley.

Charles Albert of Savoy Charles Albert (; 2 October 1798 – 28 July 1849) was the King of Sardinia from 27 April 1831 until 23 March 1849. His name is bound up with the first Italian constitution, the Albertine Statute, and with the First Italian War of Independen ...

gave the Waldenses freedom to worship, in February 1848. In the 19th century, British supporters of the Waldensians, who funded the Waldensian headquarters in nearby

founded a primary school for Waldensian children living in Angrogna.

People

* Willy Bertin (b. 1944), ski mountaineer and biathlete

References

Sources

James Aitken Wylie James Aitken Wylie (9 August 1808 – 1 May 1890) was a Scottish historian of religion and Presbyterian minister. He was a prolific writer and is most famous for writing ''The History of Protestantism''. Life Wylie was born on 9 August ...

, ''History of the Waldenses'' {{authority control Cities and towns in Piedmont Articles which contain graphical timelines