Pescaglia 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

Province of Lucca The province of Lucca ( it, provincia di Lucca) is a province in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Lucca. It has an area of and a total population of about 390,000. There are 33 '' comuni'' (singular: ''comune'') in the pr ...

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

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

, located about northwest of

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

and about northwest of

Lucca Lucca ( , ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the Serchio River, in a fertile plain near the Ligurian Sea. The city has a population of about 89,000, while its province has a population of 383,957. Lucca is known as one o ...

. Pescaglia borders the following municipalities:

Borgo a Mozzano Borgo a Mozzano is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Lucca, in northern Tuscany (Italy), located on the Serchio River. History The town is mentioned for the first time in 879, when a document mentioned one place ''In loco Mozzano prope Dec ...

Camaiore Camaiore is a city and ''comune'' of 32,513 inhabitants within the province of Lucca, Tuscany, central-western Italy. It stretches from the Apuan Alps to the east, to the plains and the coast of Versilia to the west. History Camaiore has Roman or ...

Fabbriche di Vallico Fabbriche di Vallico was a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Lucca in the Italian region Tuscany, located about northwest of Florence and about northwest of Lucca. On 1 January 2014 it was merged with Vergemoli in the new ''comune'' o ...

, Stazzema,

Fabbriche di Vergemoli Fabbriche di Vergemoli is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Lucca in the Italian region of Tuscany. It was created on 1 January 2014 from the merger of Fabbriche di Vallico and Vergemoli Vergemoli was a ''comune'' (municipality) in t ...

History

The name ''Pescaglia'' is thought by some to derive from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

''Pascualia'', meaning pastureland, and by others from the verb ''pescare'', meaning "to fish". Both relate to the abundant natural resources of the territory. While mention of Piscalia or Pascualia exist from Roman times the first specific record of the town is thought to be in documents relative to the ownership of property by the church of San Pietro in Rome dated around the 9th century. After this documents reveal that large parts of the comune were owned by the Rolandinghi of Lombard origin. These were succeeded by the Antelminellis during the period when Pisa dominated Lucca. Recorded control of the town and territory was achieved by Lucca in 1272. Instruction to razeoriginal castle was recorded in the Statute of 1308 in order to weaken the local lords. It is questionable if this order was carried out, but in 1584, architect

Vincenzo Civitali Vincenzo Civitali (1523 - 1597) was an Italian Renaissance sculptor, jeweler, and architect, active in his native Lucca. Biography He was the son of the sculptor and architect Nicolao, and the grandson of the sculptor Matteo. Vincenzo is said to ...

was instructed to rebuild the castle. Pescaglia remained within control of Lucca from that period to today growing in size and importance.

Geography

Pescaglia, the town, is found in the geographical centre of the comune and valley of the Pedogna. It is broken into three distinct urban units, Castello del Poggio or simply il Poggio, Piazzanello and Villabuona. Batoni is a hamlet within the comune.

Main sights

* Church of San Giovanni Battista * Teatrino di Vetriano, Pescaglia

Transport

Travel within the territory is by road. Each of the three valleys, the Pedogna, the Freddana and the Turrite are served by main roads along the bottom the valley that link to the SS12 which runs from Lucca to Modena. In recent years the improvements to key roads joining the valleys has greatly improved communication across the valleys.

References

Sources

* Cities and towns in Tuscany {{Lucca-geo-stub