Istia d'Ombrone () is a small town in southern

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 ...

, Italy, a ''

frazione 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 the ''

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 ...

'' of

Grosseto Grosseto () is a city and ''comune'' in the central Italian region of Tuscany, the capital of the Province of Grosseto. The city lies from the Tyrrhenian Sea, in the Maremma, at the centre of an alluvial plain on the Ombrone river. It is the m ...

History

In the area surrounding the centre of Istia there have been found some ruins of ancient habitations dating back to the Etruscan era in the area of ''Poggio Cavallo''. It was inhabited also during the

Roman era In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...

, as testified by some construction materials reused in later periods to build the walls of Istia. In that period there was also a series of roads which crossed the area allowing communication with the Prile Lake and with the hinterland. However the centre of Istia arose as a settlement fortified along the Valley of

Ombrone The Ombrone (Latin: ''Umbro'') is a long river in Tuscany, central Italy. The Ombrone's source is at San Gusmè, near Castelnuovo Berardenga, on the south-eastern side of the Monti del Chianti. After a twisting route, it receives the waters of ...

and from 862 was owned by the bishops of Roselle, which had feudal rights with the title of counts and so here they established a residence. Later it passed to the family of the

Aldobrandeschi The Aldobrandeschi were an Italian noble family from southern Tuscany. Overview Of probable Lombard origin, they appear in history as counts in the 9th century. The first known count was Hildebrand II (857). Their possession extended to what i ...

, becoming in 1226 a free Comune with the acceptance of the relative statute. In 1274 it was assigned to the County of Santa Fiora at the moment of the division of the goods and the territories controlled by the Aldobrandeschi family. In the

Medieval period In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

the centre became also home to a residence of bishops, after the passage of the diocese from Roselle to

. In the course of the 14th century it passed under the control of

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuri ...

, enduring a very serious demographic decline between 1331 and 1353, also because of the diffusion of the

Yersinia pestis ''Yersinia pestis'' (''Y. pestis''; formerly '' Pasteurella pestis'') is a gram-negative, non-motile, coccobacillus bacterium without spores that is related to both ''Yersinia pseudotuberculosis'' and ''Yersinia enterocolitica''. It is a facult ...

which occurred right at the end of that period. In the 15th century Istia had become a feud of the

Piccolomini The House of Piccolomini (pronounced ) is the name of an Italian noble family, Patricians of Siena, who were prominent from the beginning of the 13th century until the 18th century. The family achieved the recognised titles of Pope of the Cathol ...

family, even though it continued to maintain the status of free Comune and having a high degree of autonomy within the

Republic of Siena The Republic of Siena ( it, Repubblica di Siena, la, Respublica Senensis) was a historic state consisting of the city of Siena and its surrounding territory in Tuscany, central Italy. It existed for over 400 years, from 1125 to 1555. During its e ...

. After the final political fall of Siena, Istia become part of the

Grand Duchy of Tuscany The Grand Duchy of Tuscany ( it, Granducato di Toscana; la, Magnus Ducatus Etruriae) was an Italian monarchy that existed, with interruptions, from 1569 to 1859, replacing the Republic of Florence. The grand duchy's capital was Florence. In th ...

. Consequently, there was another demographic fall which stopped only during the course of the 18th century, after the beginning of some restorations done by will of the Lorena. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the 22 March 1944 the massacre of Maiano Lavacchio perpetrated into the nearby countryside; the abridgement process was held at the school of Istia purposely emptied.

Main sights

The town walls, nearly completely destroyed in 1137 by

Henry X, Duke of Bavaria Henry the Proud (german: Heinrich der Stolze) (20 October 1139), a member of the House of Welf, was Duke of Bavaria (as Henry X) from 1126 to 1138 and Duke of Saxony (as Henry II) as well as Margrave of Tuscany and Duke of Spoleto f ...

, were rebuilt only under the Sieneses. Some ruins of the ''Portaccia'' and the ''Porta Grossetana'', which backs to the ''Palzzo della Giustizia'' dating to the 1400, are conserved. The residence of the bishop-counts, the ''Palazzo di San Salvatore'', was afterwards transformed into a fortification by the Sieneses. In the town there are also two churches, one within the walls and the other on the outside of the walls in front of the Porta Grossetana.

Military architecture

*''Walls of Istia d'Ombrone'', fortified walls of the town. *''Porta Grossetana'', one of the two original doors along the ancient walls, made in medieval times, almost certainly around the 12th century . *''Cassero Senese'', also known as ''Episcopal Palace'', was built in the first half of the 13th century, as a place of temporary residence for bishops of the

Diocese of Grosseto The Diocese of Grosseto ( la, Dioecesis Grossetana) is a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory in Italy, a suffragan of the archdiocese of Siena-Colle di Val d'Elsa-Montalcino, in Tuscany. Its current bishop is Giovanni Roncari, OFMCap.s>Ott ...

. With the passage of Istia d'Ombrone under the control of Siena, the building was transformed into a ''cassero''. *''Porta Senese'', the door in the north-east side of the walls, it was built during the 12th century with the tower in which it is incorporated. Chiesa di San Salvatore Istia d'Ombrone (GR)

Chiesa di San Salvatore Istia d'Ombrone (GR)

Palazzi

*''Palazzo di Giustizia'', a courthouse built in the 15th century. *''Spedale dei Battenti'', a sort of hospital, built in 1321 to provide assistance. It is now used for residential purposes.

Churches

*''Church of San Salvatore'', dating to the 13th century, was many times restored in the centuries to come. It conserves a wooden sculpture dating to the 1400 of the Sienese School, a contemporary painting of the ''Madonna con bambino'' by

Giovanni di Paolo Giovanni di Paolo di Grazia (''c.'' 1403–1482) was an Italian painter, working primarily in Siena, becoming a prolific painter and illustrator of manuscripts, including Dante's texts. He was one of the most important painters of the 15th cent ...

and another painting by Vincenzo Tamagni of 1528. *''Church of San Sebastiano'', once dedicated to Saint Stephan, placed in the little square outside the walls.

Missing architecture

*''Oratorio di San Gherardo'' *''Chiesa della Santissima Annunziata'' *''Chiesa di San Donato''

Bibliography

*Aldo Mazzolai. ''Guida della Maremma. Percorsi tra arte e natura.'' Florence, Le Lettere, 1997. *Giuseppe Guerrini. ''Torri e Castelli della provincia di Grosseto (Amministrazione Provinciale di Grosseto).'' Siena, Nuova Immagine Editrice, 1999. *Carlo Citter. ''Guida agli edifici sacri della Maremma.'' Siena, Nuova Immagine Editrice, 2002.

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Istia D'ombrone Frazioni of Grosseto Castles in Tuscany