Cascina () 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 Pisa 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 west 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 southeast of

Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the cit ...

. Cascina is located on the left shore of the

Arno River The Arno is a river in the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the most important river of central Italy after the Tiber. Source and route The river originates on Monte Falterona in the Casentino area of the Apennines, and initially takes a s ...

, on a markedly plain terrain. The ''comune ''borders the following municipalities:

Calcinaia Calcinaia (Latin: ''Vicus Vitri'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) and town in the province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about west of Florence and about east of Pisa. Calcinaia borders the following municipalities: Bientina, C ...

, Collesalvetti,

Crespina Crespina is a '' frazione'' (hamlet) in the '' comune'' of Crespina Lorenzana, in the Province of Pisa in the Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic gro ...

Casciana Terme Lari Casciana Terme Lari is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southwest of Florence and about southeast of Pisa. Geography Casciana Terme Lari borders the following municipalities: C ...

Pontedera Pontedera (; la, Pons Herae) is an italian comune with a population of 29.270 inhabitants, located in the province of Pisa, Tuscany, central Italy. The town is located 20 km (12 miles) from Pisa and 50 km (31 miles) from Florence. It house ...

San Giuliano Terme San Giuliano Terme is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about west of Florence and about northeast of Pisa. Main sights The area of the Pisa hills was already an attraction for enlighte ...

Vicopisano Vicopisano is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about west of Florence and about east of Pisa. It occupies the former valley of the Arno River (which now flows some km southwards), boun ...

History

The first mention of Cascina is from a document of 750 AD. The origin of the name is uncertain, but it could derive from '' Casina'' ("Small House"), or from the creek that crossed it (now disappeared), or from an

Etruscan __NOTOC__ Etruscan may refer to: Ancient civilization *The Etruscan language, an extinct language in ancient Italy *Something derived from or related to the Etruscan civilization **Etruscan architecture **Etruscan art **Etruscan cities ** Etrusca ...

personal name A personal name, or full name, in onomastic terminology also known as prosoponym (from Ancient Greek πρόσωπον / ''prósōpon'' - person, and ὄνομα / ''onoma'' - name), is the set of names by which an individual person is known ...

, Latinized as ''Cassenius''. On 26 July 1364, the eponymous

battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

between the armies of

and

was fought here. The event was later reproduced by

Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was insp ...

in painting, of which now preparatory drawings and a copy by Aristotile da Sangallo (also known as

Bastiano da Sangallo Bastiano da Sangallo (1481May 31, 1551) was an Italian sculptor, painter and architect of the Renaissance period, active mainly in Tuscany. He was a nephew of Giuliano da Sangallo and Antonio da Sangallo the Elder. He is usually known as Aristotil ...

) exist. The city had in fact a strategical importance as a fortified stronghold on the main road connecting the two cities.

Geography

; ''Frazioni'' The municipality is formed by the municipal seat of Cascina and the villages (''

frazioni A ''frazione'' (plural: ) is a type of subdivision of a ''comune'' (municipality) in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist era (1922–1943) as a way to consolidate territ ...

'') of Arnaccio, Casciavola, Laiano, Latignano,

Marciana Marciana is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Livorno, Tuscany (Italy), located in the western Elba Elba ( it, isola d'Elba, ; la, Ilva) is a Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino on the Italian ma ...

, Montione, Musigliano, Navacchio, Pettori, Ripoli, San Benedetto, San Casciano, San Frediano a Settimo,

San Giorgio a Bibbiano San Giorgio a Bibbiano is a village in Tuscany, central Italy, administratively a frazione of the comune of Cascina, province of Pisa. San Giorgio a Bibbiano is about 13 km from Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, cen ...

San Lorenzo a Pagnatico San Lorenzo a Pagnatico is a village in Tuscany, central Italy, administratively a frazione of the comune of Cascina Cascina () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about west of Florenc ...

San Lorenzo alle Corti San Lorenzo alle Corti is a village in Tuscany, central Italy, administratively a frazione of the comune of Cascina Cascina () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about west of Florence ...

, San Prospero,

San Sisto al Pino San Sisto al Pino is a village in Tuscany, central Italy, administratively a frazione of the comune of Cascina, province of Pisa. San Sisto al Pino is about 6 km from Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, ...

Zambra ''Zambra'' (), (from Andalusi Arabic ''zamra'', originally from classical Arabic ''zamr'') is a style of flamenco dance, typical of the Roma of the provinces of Granada and Almería (Andalusia, Spain). It is believed that the zambra is a continua ...

Main sights

*Medieval walls *Castle of Ripoli *''Pieve di Santa Maria'' *''Oratorio di San Giovanni'' *Church of the ''Madonna dell'Acqua'' (Madonna of the Water) * Parish church of Saints Ippolito and Cassiano In the village of

there is a 9th-century church with unusual wall paintings of fish in pre-Romanesque style. At San Casciano, a ''frazione'' with c. 3,000 inhabitants, is a

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its name ...

, renovated in the 12th century in Pisane-Gothic style. The ''frazione'' of

has the church of ''San Miniato'' (10th century). At Montione is found the Abbey of San Savino.

Infrastructure

The ''frazione'' of

Santo Stefano a Macerata Santo Stefano a Macerata is a village in Tuscany, central Italy, administratively a frazione of the comune of Cascina, province of Pisa. At the time of the 2001 census its population was 86.European Gravitational Observatory The European Gravitational Observatory (EGO) is a consortium established to manage the Virgo interferometric antenna and its related infrastructure, as well as to promote cooperation in the field of gravitational wave research in Europe. It was ...

and the

Virgo interferometer The Virgo interferometer is a large interferometer designed to detect gravitational waves predicted by the general theory of relativity. Virgo is a Michelson interferometer that is isolated from external disturbances: its mirrors and instrumentat ...

, one of the few facilities in the World for the search for

gravitational wave Gravitational waves are waves of the intensity of gravity generated by the accelerated masses of an orbital binary system that propagate as waves outward from their source at the speed of light. They were first proposed by Oliver Heaviside in 1 ...

Twin towns - Sister cities

Cascina is twinned with: * Umm Dreiga, Western Sahara *

Sebnitz Sebnitz (; hsb, Zebnica) is a town in the Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge district, in Saxony, Germany. Geography The town of Sebnitz lies in the valley of the river Sebnitz and its side valleys between 251 and 460 m above sea level betwee ...

, Germany * Saliès, France, since 2007

References

External links

Official website
Cities and towns in Tuscany Castles in Italy {{Pisa-geo-stub