Monteriggioni 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 ...

'' in the

province of Siena The province of Siena ( it, provincia di Siena, link=no, ) is a province in Tuscany, Italy. Its capital is the city of Siena. Geography The province is divided into seven historical areas: * Alta Val d'Elsa * Chianti senese * The urban area o ...

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 of

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 ...

. It borders on the communes of

Casole d'Elsa Casole d'Elsa �kaːzoleis a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southwest of Florence and about west of Siena. Main sights The church of ''San Niccolò'', of Romanesque origin, has ...

Castellina in Chianti Castellina in Chianti is a ''comune'' (municipality) of c. 2,800 inhabitants in the province of Siena, in the Italian region Tuscany, located about south of Florence and about northwest of Siena. It is part of the Chianti Hills, between th ...

Castelnuovo Berardenga Castelnuovo Berardenga is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence and about east of Siena. Since 1932 it has been included in the Chianti wine-production area. The ...

Colle di Val d'Elsa Colle di Val d'Elsa or Colle Val d'Elsa is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Siena, Tuscany, central Italy. It has a population of c. 21,600 . Its name means "Hill of Elsa Valley", where Elsa is the name of the river which crosses it and ...

Poggibonsi Poggibonsi is a town in the province of Siena, Tuscany, central Italy. It is located on the river Elsa and is the main centre of the Valdelsa Valley. History The area around Poggibonsi was already settled in the Neolithic age, although the firs ...

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 ...

, and

Sovicille Sovicille is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about south of Florence and about southwest of Siena. Sovicille borders the ''comuni'' of Casole d'Elsa, Chiusdino, Monteriggioni, Monteroni ...

. The town is architecturally and culturally significant; it hosts several piazzas, and is referenced in

Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri (; – 14 September 1321), probably baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri and often referred to as Dante (, ), was an Italian poet, writer and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called (modern Italian: '' ...

's ''

Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' ( it, Divina Commedia ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun 1308 and completed in around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature and ...

''.

History

left, City walls of Monteriggioni. Monteriggioni is a medieval walled town, located on a natural hillock, built by the

Sienese 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 ...

in 1214–19 as a front line in their wars against

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 ...

, by assuming command of the

Via Cassia The ''Via Cassia'' ("way of Cassius") was an important Roman road striking out of the ''Via Flaminia'' near the Milvian Bridge in the immediate vicinity of Rome and, passing not far from Veii, traversed Etruria. The ''Via Cassia'' passed throug ...

running through the Val d'Elsa and Val Staggia to the west. During the conflicts between Siena and Florence in the Middle Ages, the city was strategically placed as a defensive fortification. It also withstood many attacks from both the Florentines and the forces of the

Bishop of Volterra The Diocese of Volterra ( la, Dioecesis Volaterrana) is a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory in Tuscany, central Italy. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Pisa.Medicis The House of Medici ( , ) was an Italian banking family and political dynasty that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici, in the Republic of Florence during the first half of the 15th century. The family originated in the Mu ...

, Zeti simply handed the keys of the town over to the Medicean forces— considered a "great betrayal" by the town's people.

Main sights

The roughly circular walls, totalling a length of about and following the natural contours of the hill, were built between 1213 and 1219. There are 14 towers on square bases set at equidistance, and two portals or gates. One gate, the Porta Fiorentina opens toward Florence to the north, and the other, the Porta Romana, faces Rome to the south. The main street within the walls connects the two gates in a roughly straight line. The main town square, the Piazza Roma, is dominated by a Romanesque church with a simple, plain façade. Other houses, some in the Renaissance style (once owned by local nobles, gentry, and wealthy merchants) face into the piazza. Off the main piazza smaller streets give way to public gardens fronted by the other houses and small businesses of the town. In more hostile times, these gardens provided vital sustenance when enemies gathered around the walls during

siege A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition warfare, attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity con ...

s. Other sights in the town's countryside include: * Badia of Santi Salvatore e Cirino in

Abbadia a Isola Abbadia a Isola is a village in Tuscany, central Italy, administratively a frazione of the comune of Monteriggioni, province of Siena. At the time of the 2001 census its population was 136.Pieve In the Middle Ages, a pieve (, ; la, plebe, link=no; plural ''pievi'') was a rural church with a baptistery, upon which other churches without baptisteries depended. The Italian word ''pieve'' is descended from Latin ''plebs'' which, after th ...

'' of Santa Maria a Castello, known since as early as 971 *Romanesque-

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

hermitage of San Leonardo al Lago * Villa Santa Colomba

Cultural significance

The Tuscan poet

used the turrets of Monteriggioni to evoke the sight of the ring of giants encircling the Infernal abyss. Monteriggioni also plays a significant role in the games ''

Assassin's Creed II ''Assassin's Creed II'' is a 2009 action-adventure video game developed by Ubisoft Montréal and published by Ubisoft. It is the second major installment in the ''Assassin's Creed'' series, and the sequel to 2007's '' Assassin's Creed''. The g ...

'' and '' Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood'', both of which are loosely based around certain key historical events in Renaissance Italy. It is home to protagonist

Ezio Auditore Ezio Auditore da Firenze () is a fictional character in the video game series ''Assassin's Creed'', an Italian master assassin who serves as the protagonist of the series' games set during the Italian Renaissance. His life and career as an assas ...

and his uncle Mario, who live in the fictional Villa Auditore, which is based on

Villa di Maiano Villa di Maiano is a 15th-century villa at Via del Saviatino 1 in the Maiano area of Fiesole, near Florence, Italy. History and architecture The original "palagio di Maiano" was battered in 1467 by a hurricane, so much so that the then owner, Ba ...

Education

Public schools include: * Preschools (Scuole dell'Infanzia): C. Collodi, Don Muzzi, and Pinocchio * Elementary schools (Scuole primare): I. Calvino, G. Rodari, and Don L. Milani * One junior high school (Scuola secondaria di 1° grado): Scuola Media Statale "Dante Alighieri" All public schools within the commune are a part of the ''Istituto Comprensivo Statale di Monteriggioni'', School District #38.

International School of Siena International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

, a private international school, is in the commune.Home

. Retrieved on October 22, 2016.

Demographic evolution

Municipal government

Monteriggioni is headed by a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

(') assisted by a legislative body, the ', and an executive body, the '. Since 1995, the mayor and members of the ' are directly elected together by resident citizens, while from 1945 to 1995 the mayor was chosen by the legislative body. The ' is chaired by the mayor, who appoints others members, called '. The offices of the ' are housed in a building usually called the ' or '. Since 1995, the mayor of Monteriggioni is directly elected by citizens, originally every four, then every five years. The current mayor is Andrea Frosini ( PD), elected on 26 May 2019 with 43.3% of the votes. ;Notes

Gallery

File:Foto aerea del castello di Monteriggioni.jpg File:Panorama of Monteriggioni.jpg File:Monteriggioni 886c03ae15 o.jpg File:Monteriggioni (Siena) - panoramio.jpg File:Monteriggioni Toscana 01.JPG

References

External links

Official site
{{Authority control Hilltowns in Tuscany