Castiglione delle Stiviere (
Upper Mantovano: ) is a town and ''
comune'' in the
province of Mantua
The Province of Mantua ( it, provincia di Mantova; Mantovano, Lower Mantovano: ; Upper Mantovano: ) is a province in the Lombardy region of Northern Italy. Its capital is the city of Mantua. It is bordered to the north-east by the Province o ...
, in
Lombardy
Lombardy ( it, Lombardia, Lombard language, Lombard: ''Lombardia'' or ''Lumbardia' '') is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in the northern-central part of the country and has a population of about 10 ...
, Italy, northwest of
Mantua by road.
History
The town's castle was home to a cadet branch of the
House of Gonzaga, headed by the
Marquis
A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman wi ...
of Castiglione. Saint
Aloysius Gonzaga
Aloysius de Gonzaga ( it, Luigi Gonzaga; 9 March 156821 June 1591) was an Italian aristocrat who became a member of the Society of Jesus. While still a student at the Roman College, he died as a result of caring for the victims of a serious epid ...
(1568–1591) was born there as heir to the marquisate, but became a
Jesuit
, image = Ihs-logo.svg
, image_size = 175px
, caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits
, abbreviation = SJ
, nickname = Jesuits
, formation =
, founders ...
. He died tending plague victims in Rome and was buried there, but his head was later translated to the
basilica in Castiglione which bears his name.
During the
War of the Spanish Succession, the French under the
duc de Vendôme occupied the town. In 1706, in the
first Battle of Castiglione a French army under
Jacques Eléonor Rouxel de Grancey
Jacques Eléonor Rouxel de Grancey, Comte de Médavy (31 May 1655 – 6 November 1725) was a French military officer and Marshal of France who fought in the Nine Years' War and the War of the Spanish Succession .
Early life
Jacques Eléonor R ...
defeated here a Hessian army led by
Frederick I, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel.
During the
siege of Mantua in 1796, the Austrians under
Dagobert Sigmund von Wurmser were defeated here in the
second Battle of Castiglione by the revolutionary French army under
General Augereau, later
Marshal of France, who in 1808 was created Duke of Castiglione by Emperor
Napoleon I
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
, a hereditary
victory title (so there never was an actual territorial duchy attached to it) extinguished in 1915.
Castiglione received the honorary title of city by presidential decree on 18 October 2001.
Main sights
It has an old castle, much altered and restored, especially by the
Gonzaga family of Mantua in the 16th century.
The
Fountain of Domenica Calubina is a small hexagonal fountain in the piazza Dallò in the center of the town.
Castiglione is the birthplace of the International Red Cross, which was established by
Henri Dunant during the aftermath of the
Battle of Solferino in 1859. There is a museum in the center of the town dedicated to the IRC.
International relations
Castiglione delle Stiviere is
twinned
Twinning (making a twin of) may refer to:
* In biology and agriculture, producing two offspring (i.e., twins) at a time, or having a tendency to do so;
* Twin towns and sister cities, towns and cities involved in town twinning
* Twinning inst ...
with:
*
Barentin,
France
*
Leutkirch im Allgäu,
Germany, since 1995
*
Monteprandone,
Italy
References
External links
Heraldico.org- Napoleonic victory titlesMuseo Internazionale della Croce RossaImages of Castiglione
Cities and towns in Lombardy
{{Mantua-geo-stub