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1915 - ELECTRICITY ARRIVES IN UMBERTIDE From candle to light bulb by Amedeo Massetti and Mario Tosti By the light of a flame In the nineteenth century, going around at night in Fratta was not at all easy, especially when there was no moon. Our ancestors took care to establish the rules in the Statute of Fratta. "We establish and order that no person should go to the castle at night from after the third sign of the bell rang by the town crier, to one hour after sunset for the time in which a miserere is recited, under penalty of 10 soldi per each person and each time. Those who bring lights or embers lit in the vicinity of the house or shop are excluded from the penalty; or doctors or others who brought medicines for the sick or who went to look for the midwife; or even the bakers or whoever brought or brought back the bread from the oven; or for other legitimate causes approved by the podestà. Anyone found by the podestà or by the secret guards with the light or the ember that has gone out against their will, by the wind or other accident, is also excluded from the penalty, provided they are under oath. " Since it was not very convenient for everyone to take their torch for a walk, after a few centuries it was agreed to install fixed night lamps in the most popular places in the historic center of Fratta. Only four or five oil lamps illuminated the darkness of the alleys in the early nineteenth century, as scrupulous and attentive guardians who watched the intimacy of the family and covered the profiles of the houses with soft and suffused light. But they too quickly went out and the faint lights of the few icons, embedded in the walls, which the piety of the faithful lit up every now and then, remained on. In the year 1845, the Frattisan nights were lit by only seven oil lamps. One of them, that of the Piazza dell'Orologio, was larger than the others, with a "more modern" crystal tube; it made more light and consumed more oil. According to the lighting man, it required more work than all the others put together ... The halo of faint light cast by the flames should have created a serene and romantic atmosphere. The maintenance work was less romantic, since the Contractor had to "prepare the street lamps, turn them on and dim them by climbing them by means of a ladder which, being contrary to sound police laws, was a burden to the Contractor himself ... All for 62 scudi a year. " At the end of the century there were 28 street lamps, but the town had also grown and the brightness remained very dim. They remained lit all night only on days of celebration or danger; at the first light of dawn, the man in charge of the street lamps made the rounds to turn them off in order to save the oil, which was at his expense. The arrival of electricity With Perugia, Sansepolcro and Città di Castello rejoicing in the light of the bulbs for some years, Umbertide could not afford to remain in the dark. We began to talk about this need in 1912: the soul of the initiative was Francesco Andreani , a lawyer of great value, elected mayor of Umbertide after the elections of 30 January 1910, which determined an epochal turning point in the Municipality. A preliminary study had been made, probably inspired by the 39 oil lamps currently in existence: perhaps due to the concern about the costs of the new light source, an attempt was made not to take a step longer than the leg, assuming the installation of 35 lamps. . Walking along the way, the appetite increased: the originally planned lamps increased to triple, as shown by the session of the City Council of 24 July 1912, which represented the first formal act towards the goal of electric lighting. Therefore the entire fee charged to the Municipality swelled to £ 4,000, considered by the administrators to be not too burdensome, compared to the great benefits for the country. After three years of ups and downs, on 21 December 1915, with the First World War in progress, the Società Anonima Elettricità Umbra brought electricity to Umbertide. The price of electricity for private individuals was that charged in the city of Perugia by the Concessionaire itself: 60 cents per kWh, when the average hourly earnings of a worker was 25 cents. In the end, 104 light points were called to illuminate the nights of our grandparents and great-grandparents. If, at first, the new form of energy was greeted with amazement and excitement, the shortcomings of the revolutionary service soon cooled the enthusiasm, which turned everywhere into lively protests from the public and the irony of the press. Even the people of Umbria unleashed strong complaints, so that on 9 August 1916 the mayor was forced to take a pen and paper to beat his fists on the manager's table, with almost poetic tones: "It has been noted, and the public expresses complaints, that some time the switching on of the public lighting is carried out in the evening when darkness is advanced and it is switched off before the light of dawn is manifested. Although the expression of the contract regarding the switch-on and switch-off times is a bit vague, please, however, SV Ill. to arrange that this expression is not interpreted in a strictly unilateral way by the employees of the Company but with a criterion of fair breadth. Trusting, thank you and respect. ". The Company, after a week, replied hastily that the hours were the same for all the other municipalities, including that of Perugia, and that no one had complained. However, he left a crack open, proposing a meeting with the Director. And the Mayor had to take the bait, to no avail. Electricity in every home In 1931 the Società Anonima Elettricità Umbra was absorbed by UNES, which took over the service in Umbertide, with the cabin operator Armando Settembre, helped by Romeo Guasticchi and Mariano Manuali. With the growing possibilities offered by electricity, the City developed the capabilities to build and operate new plants. In this task the engineer Egino Villarini played a fundamental role. In fact, for having been part, as secretary, of the National Liberation Committee, he was well known and appreciated in the Municipality; therefore it was natural that in the first years of the postwar period his collaboration was requested and obtained. The opportunity arose when the then manager of the maintenance sector, Mario Tacconi, asked him to examine some estimates for the modernization of the public lighting systems in Via Roma and Via Garibaldi. It was immediately evident how exaggerated the prices were; therefore it would have been much more advantageous to carry out the work economically, with the means and staff of the institution, avoiding tenders. Since then a collaboration relationship was born that would last until the end of the century and beyond. The engineer, having made the calculations, took care of the procurement of materials, obtaining favorable prices thanks to the contacts he already had with suppliers. But to make the connections, a collaborator was needed to take care of the manual work. The choice fell on Giuseppe Tarragoni, a former tailor, then employed in the Municipality of Umbertide as a roadster. From that moment the couple became inseparable. Arranged via Roma and via Garibaldi, via Cibo, via Soli, piazza Marconi, part of the historic center and more were also modernized. Giuseppe learned quickly and well, coming to be hired as an electrician. Electricity accelerated the transition from the old to the new: the symbol of the transition can be well represented by the electric pumps that the engineer Villarini mounted on the treks of a landowner, together with the wooden cabins for the electrical panels, so as to be able to make the shuttles from one point of the Tiber to the other to irrigate the fields. The collaboration of engineer Villarini with the Municipality, which lasted more than thirty years, ended with the lifting of the waters in Monte Acuto. Reached the maximum peak, the time has come for a well-deserved rest. CAINO, the ferryman from oil lamps to electric lights Giuseppe Bettoni, known as Caino , was a knife grinder. To round off he had accepted the task of the Municipality to turn the street lamps on and off. In order to carry out his function, early in the morning Cain wandered through the streets and, either because of that mocking spirit that animated him, or because he did not feel completely alone, he loved to call his acquaintances who lived in the streets where he passed. So he shouted: "Gigia! Stay in bed that nengue!" or "People, alzative 'ché there' l sole" , even if it was not true. In short, he was a precursor of the meteorological service, but with surprise. With the arrival of electricity, the role of dispenser of light by means of a lever, allowed him to gain undying notoriety in the village. In fact, when the light went out, at the same time everyone's thoughts went to him, the only one able to do the miracle: fiat lux! A few minutes of darkness were enough for the common plea to be intoned inside every house: "Cain, the light will burn!" . And if the time was prolonged, the comments spread from window to window: “What is Cain doing tonight! He is sleeping?" , "It is up to you to see, that if he plays with Martina (his wife)!" . The frequent miracle of the defeated darkness, thanks to his intervention on the main switch placed on the external wall of the Town Hall in Via Grilli, had made him deserve a popular refrain that imagined him wandering among the stars of the firmament competing with his street lamps to lighten the night: “I see the moon / I see the stars / I see Cain / making pancakes” . 'THE CUCCO Raffaele Bracalenti, known only as ' l Cucco , was built between the forge and the anvil in the dark cave of the municipal workshop in Via Soli. Particularly devoted to autarchy, perhaps due to unconscious plagiarism suffered during the dictatorship, he had even built, refusing to buy it in the shop, an umbrella with a metal hat shaped like a hammer and fixed at the top to a water pipe from three quarters of an inch. And woe to anyone who thought it uncomfortable! But what does a blacksmith have to do with electricity? The truth is that Cucco had a particular passion for light bulbs, especially for burned out ones, which he considered a precious brass mine, at zero kilometers. To exploit it, he had set up a rigorous procedure, based on a brass pact with the maintenance worker: do not throw away the broken bulbs, but return them to the workshop, an essential condition for having as many new ones in exchange. It is not known what happened to the glass; but inevitably each butt of the old lamps ended up in a basket which, having reached the optimal batch for casting, was emptied into the crucible above the forge. The molten mass was poured into a plaster mold in order to cool in the form of a tube, from which Raffaele, after a day's work, produced a tap for the water of the public fountains. Two birds with one stone: cremator of light bulbs and manufacturer of taps! ZUMBOLA The collection of bills could not fail to be entrusted to Gino Sonaglia, known as Zumbola , who had all the ideal requirements. In fact, with his resume as a collector of rabbit and lamb skins, he knew all the heads of families in the suburbs and in the countryside; with the people of the capital, being a friend of everyone, he knew their stories and residences; moreover, there was no dance party missing, a precious opportunity to get to know the youth. In 1953, UNES jumped at his candidacy as the ideal public relation. To the knowledge of the clientele and the ability to take it by the side of the hair, he added the natural gift of a smiling gaze, reinforced by an intriguing mustache: avant-garde of a jovial and expansive character that captured friendship. Zumbola was the best way to lightly face the thankless task of asking for money for something you don't eat, like light, even from those who didn't have a penny. Gino returned the trust with the utmost commitment. The collection procedure began in the family, where his wife Elvira and their children Luciana and Zumbolino jr fanned the bills on the kitchen table, to group them in order of street, hamlet, country words. With the bag on his shoulder, Gino tackled the tour, every month for companies, every two for families. To take the debtors with caution, preparing them for bloodletting, he did not ring the bell or the knocker of the door, but announced himself from a distance with his powerful voice, interspersed with whistles that broke the eardrums, singing their name with cheerful metrics. From the "Calendar of Umbertide 2015" Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2015 Concept and editorial project: Adriano Bottaccioli ; Texts: Adriano Bottaccioli , Mario Tosti , Amedeo Massetti , Fabio Mariotti. The texts on this page are excerpts from the book: "From the candle to the light bulb" by Amedeo Massetti and Mario Tosti, Local Publishing Group - Digital Editor srl - Umbertide (Pg), also containing ideas taken from the book "Umbertide in the nineteenth century" by Renato Codovini and Roberto Sciurpa - Gesp Editrice, Città di Castello, 2001.

The historic calendars of Umbertide Adriano Bottaccioli, the creator of the Umbertide Calendar and author of the illustrations and of the editorial and graphic project of all editions In the photo alongside, from left: Fabio Mariotti, Adriano Bottaccioli, Mario Tosti and Amedeo Massetti. Below, from left: Walter Rondoni, Fabio Mariotti, Adriano Cerboni, Amedeo Massetti and Mario Tosti with the cover of the second edition of the Calendar. The idea of an Umbertidese lunarium could only arise from the brain (and heart) of an emigrant-commuter fellow citizen, due to that particular sensitivity towards his own land that the distance develops; but Adriano Bottaccioli did not just pull the stone and hide his hand, as many "thinkers" too often do, but sharpened his formidable pencil and intellect to give his intuition a body full of warmth and collective intimacy . An editorial staff was set up around Adriano made up of Mario Tosti , Amedeo Massetti and Fabio Mariotti to whom Walter Rondoni was added who guaranteed quality and continuity of work and to whom other collaborators were then added year by year because good ideas, fortunately, are still contagious and many have been ready to have fun lending a hand, with the enthusiasm of rediscovering themselves part of a community, which comes from the same memories and moves towards the same goals and expectations. The Calendar, on its first release, aroused great surprise and huge success among the citizens, especially among the people of Umbria residents in other cities and abroad (to which was promptly sent): and they began to get enthusiastic letters from the City every where. All copies were snapped up (many requests they came even from nearby cities) and it was necessary prepare a second reissue. This convinced the municipal administration to continue the initiative, considered a important tool to strengthen even more the identity and values of the community and in the same time to fix historical and cultural aspects that otherwise they would have risked getting lost. 1992 calendar Read the calendar 1993 Calendar Laws the calendar 1994 calendar Read the calendar 1992 . The first edition of the Umbertide Calendar has the role of a lunario - almanac, presenting all the aspects of our cultural traditions: from the dialect to the idioms; from proverbs, to games, to nursery rhymes, to popular chants; from the typical dishes of our peasant civilization, to the nicknames that were once given to all the members of our small community. 1993 . The second edition the research on popular traditions and local linguistic aspects continued, but also the "ancient crafts" were included and "portraits" of Umbertidese characters were added who, for their originality and sympathy, had left their mark on the collective memory and were remembered by all with love. There were also memories of nice village events or famous jokes that occurred several decades ago, but still remembered by many. 1994 . The 1994 Calendar, continuing on the traditional mainstay, examined above all the events of the Second World War in Umbertide, with particular regard to the tragic aerial bombardment of April 25, which marked the fiftieth anniversary. 1995 calendar Read the calendar 1996 Calendar Read the calendar 1997 Calendar Read the calendar 1995. The following year, 1995, saw a calendar dedicated to the "great trades" that have characterized the life of the city from 1900 onwards; the most important, those that have interested and continue to interest generations of Umbertidesi and those who have disappeared or risk disappearing in the name of a modernity that too often tramples on traditions and cancels creativity. 1996 . In 1996 the research on popular traditions was extended to twelve municipalities of Altotiberini, Umbria and Tuscany (Anghiari, Citerna, Città di Castello, Lisciano Niccone, Monterchi, Monte S. Maria Tiberina, Montone, Pietralunga, Pieve S. Stefano, San Giustino, Sansepolcro , Umbertide). The Calendar of the Upper Tiber Valley was born, distributed in many copies by the publisher Cerboni of Città di Castello. 1997 . The 1997 Calendar was dedicated to the rediscovery of the ancient districts of Umbertide, with the trades, games and characters that animated the alleys and squares of the time. Ramiro, Giovanni, Bigo Bago, Pàrise, Silvio de Santa Maria, L'Andella and Federico, 'The accountant Martinelli, Checco de Camillo, Peppe de la Fascìna, L'Ottavia, L'Alba de Budidò, Tomassino. 1998 calendar Read the calendar 1999 calendar Read the calendar 2000 calendar Read the calendar 1998 . 1998 was the turn of the historical associations of Umbertide which formed the soul of the city and involved thousands of people in their recreational, social, cultural and sporting activities. 1999 . Since 1999 the main theme of the Calendar has shifted towards historical research on Umbertide, based on the very rich material collected in decades of passionate research by Renato Codovini . The monuments and the most ancient defensive works of the past have begun to be examined in depth, often providing unpublished information, such as those on the "Saracina" tower at the beginning of the bridge, on the Collegiate Church, on the castle walls, on the door of San Francesco, on the great fourteenth-century dam on the Tiber. Numerous news also on the hamlets of Umbertide, such as Preggio, Pierantonio, Montecastelli. On the left, Renato Codovini 2000 . The nineteenth century was the main theme of the end of the millennium calendar. The nineteenth-century Fratta, albeit with the necessary brevity, has been examined in all its aspects: public safety, the administration of the Municipality, traffic and communications, agriculture, associations and institutions, music, theater and leisure, industrial activities, commerce, health, public education, the postal service, transport, the population. An unprecedented slice of life that has fascinated many people. Elementary and middle schools have adopted it as a news source for historical research on our recent past. 2001 Calendar Read the calendar Calendar 2002 Read the calendar Calendar 2003 Read the calendar 2001 . In 2001 the Calendar celebrated its tenth anniversary with a special edition that carried all those of its predecessors on its cover. The main topic was the eighteenth-century Fratta. Map of the siege of Fratta during the "War of the Grand Duke" Drawing by Adriano Bottaccioli 2002 . Always continuing on the historical trend, we arrived at the 2002 calendar, which dealt with Fratta in the seventeenth century, providing information of great interest on the life of our small fortified city in the seventeenth century. The famous “blacksmiths of Fratta” appeared there, the potters with their precious ceramics. The way to live, to dress, to have fun was described. The school, the music, the theater, the "hotels". The life and poems of Filippo Alberti, a famous poet and man of letters from Fratta, a friend of Torquato Tasso. Numerous curiosities. It contained the names of the families of the seventeenth century and their events. Finally, an accurate and exciting exposition of the "War of the Grand Duke" which hit Fratta in the autumn of 1643. The siege of the Tuscan army, the fortifications, the defense of the walls, the great flood of the Tiber. Until the general exultation for the narrow escape. 2003 . No less interesting was the 2003 edition, with the presentation of the laborious life of the Fratta of the sixteenth century. The first “photograph” left by Cipriano Piccolpasso in 1565 was published there, reproduced for the first time from the original - kept in the National Central Library of Rome - with the digital system. The quality of the enlarged image provided details that had not been possible to observe with previous photographic reproductions; many details of the castle and of the lower village emerged, with very interesting aspects of the architectural structure, of the military fortifications, of the productive activities of Fratta. Really exciting. Calendar 2004 Read the calendar 2005 calendar Read the calendar 2006 Calendar Read the calendar 2004 . The 2004 Calendar provided surprising information on the 15th century Fratta. The stay of Pico della Mirandola in our small village, chosen as the ideal place to write the "manifesto of the Renaissance"; the presence of a prestigious Jewish community; the many important figures of national importance who were born here, such as the illustrious jurist Giovanni Pachino and the pontifical archiatrist Andrea Cibo. News always drawn from the precious research of Renato Codovini . 2005 . After popular traditions, dialect, ancient crafts and historical research, a new phase has opened with 2005. This year's Calendar has in fact opened the line of images more important to everyone, than real family albums. A photographic story of the families of Umbria in the most significant moments of life. Edition that has achieved extraordinary success for the sense of intimacy and the high evocative value that it is successful to create. 2006 . The 2006 Calendar also continued in the vein of family images. The most important images for everyone, real family albums. A photographic story of the families of Umbria in the most significant moments of life. Edition that has replicated the success of that of the previous year, always for the sense of intimacy and the high evocative value it created. 2007 Calendar Read the calendar Calendar 2008 Read the calendar Calendar 2009 Read the calendar 2007 . This edition concludes the section dedicated to the images of the families of Umberto in the most significant moments of life. Three editions that have met with great success success for the sense of intimacy and the high evocative value that they managed to create, also involving citizens in the search for often forgotten photos. 2008 . The 2008 Calendar was instead dedicated to the knowledge and enhancement of important works of art in our Municipality. On each page of the month it was one of the great works that are part of the artistic heritage of the city and the territory. Signorelli , Pomarancio , Pinturicchio , Nero Alberti , Corrado Cagli , Ernesto Freguglia : the great artists who have left traces of their work in Umbertide. The graphic design in which the work was carried out is also splendid. 2009 . In 2009, however, the Calendar guided the visit to the Town Hall, formerly the luxurious residence of the Bourbon Marquis of Sorbello, which has been the seat of the local administration offices since 1841. A detailed illustration of this historic building, the heart of public life in Umbertide, of all its architectural features, and its notable artistic merits. In addition to the description of the "noble" floor - seat of the halls of the Mayor, the Council and the Executive - full of sculptures and frescoes, also detailed images and maps to improve knowledge of all the offices that provide services to citizens every day. Calendar 2010 Laws the calendar 2011 Calendar Read the calendar 2012 Calendar Read the calendar 2010. The 2010 edition completely changed the subject, turning attention to the world of work, to the vast productive world of our territory. Shops and workshops, factories and farms, construction sites, schools, hospitals, shops. Ingenious and creative craftsmen who qualify our productive world, competent and passionate entrepreneurs who face sacrifices and risks for their own company. It was surprising to discover the very high technological level of some companies and that certain products for brands of national importance, such as Fiat. Maserati and Ferrari are manufactured in Umbertide. 2011 . The 2011 Calendar was dedicated to the Tiber, to which the life of our city has always been linked. The story of Fratta on the river, a secure military defense and bringer of floods and destruction; the characteristic figures, the washerwomen, the fishermen, the "renaioli", the "bracelets", the carters. The characters who lived in symbiosis with the river, the fishing systems, the fluvial flora and fauna, the cuisine of the Tiber. Finally, the historical events on the Tiber, from the siege of the Tuscan army in 1643 to the aerial bombardment of 1944 which aimed at the destruction of the bridge. Fantastic illustrations: a highly evocative calendar. 2012 . The 2012 edition celebrated the twentieth anniversary of the calendar, with a special issue that retraced the history of the Umbertian lunar year by year, with an exciting ride back in time. We spent more than seven thousand days and 175 thousand hours together. Beautiful and less beautiful days, marked by joys but also by disappointments, successes and failures. Almost a lifetime, and we did it by discovering and rediscovering the history of Fratta, both the big and the small one, made up of many stories, anecdotes, characters who have left their mark on the community. 2013 Calendar Read the calendar 2014 Calendar Read the calendar 2015 Calendar Read the calendar 2013 . This edition was entirely dedicated to CUISINE , in particular the local one, with columns related to the theme of food: the recipe of the month, smells, spices, good herbs, mushrooms and truffles, the professions of food, magnà alla frattegiana, ristulzini 'ntorno al foco, food anthology. A particularly appetizing calendar in which the inspiration and competence of Adriano Bottaccioli were exalted. 2014 . The main theme of the 2014 edition is the Fratta of the nineteenth century which relives every year in the historical re-enactment in costume for the squares, streets and alleys of the historic center. The inns and taverns, the festive air, the shows and events, as people lived then, portraits from the 1800s, 150 years as a Umbertidesi. This edition was dedicated to Amedeo Massetti and Peppe Cecchetti who left us, the first a backbone of the Calendar since birth, the second great collaborator with his photographic art. 2015 . Umbertide between '800 and' 900: The 100 years of the Tiberis, the arrival of electricity in the city, the story of Zelmirina Agnolucci, the Rometti family and ceramic art, the Central Apennine Railway and the Umbrian Central, Leoncillo, the minimal anthology of writings on Umbertide . These are the topics covered. 2016 Calendar Read the calendar 2016 . It is the 25th edition and it is also the last one signed by Adriano Bottaccioli and his editorial staff. An exciting cycle closes with a calendar addressed, as a sign of homage and thanks, to the UMBERTIDESI IN THE WORLD . The history, the memories, the characters, the images of the many people from Umberto who went to seek their fortune all over the world, where they proved to be "... diligent, ingenious, solicitous and avid ..." as they were already defined, in the mid-16th century, by Cipriano Piccolpasso. Help us remember umbertidestoria@gmail.com

ROBERTO MORELLI Caduto ad appena 19 anni combattendo a Montelungo contro la Divisione tedesca Goering con la divisa del nuovo esercito italiano di liberazione di Amedeo Massetti Roberto Morelli era nato a Città di Castello il 10 luglio 1924 da genitori entrambi umbertidesi ed era rimasto legato strettamente alla nostra città, dove ritornava presso i suoi parenti ogni volta che gli impegni scolastici glielo permettevano. Finiti gli studi superiori aveva deciso di diventare ufficiale di marina e per questo aveva raggiunto l'Accademia Navale a Venezia nell'agosto del 1943, per seguire il previsto tirocinio. Sopravvenne l'8 settembre; tutti i giovani concorrenti furono imbarcati sulla nave "Vespucci" il giorno 10 e trasferiti a Brindisi nella sede dell'ex collegio navale, dopo una navigazione piena di pericoli. Nella nuova sede un certo numero di loro lasciò l'Accademia per rientrare in famiglia; la maggioranza rimase, tra questi anche i nove ragazzi, compreso il Morelli, che decisero di non lasciar passare altro tempo per dare un contributo immediato alla rinascita della Patria. Si arruolarono così, dopo aver lasciato quasi clandestinamente l'Accademia, nel 514º Battaglione Bersaglieri Allievi Ufficiali che faceva parte del 12º Raggruppamento motorizzato costituitosi a S. Pietro Vernotico, a poca distanza da Brindisi. II raggruppamento fu portato in linea e nel sanguinoso combattimento dell'8 dicembre 1943 per la conquista di Montelungo, dei nove ragazzi che avevano lasciato l'Accademia cinque caddero, tra cui Roberto, e quattro furono feriti affrontando i veterani della divisione tedesca Goering. La vicenda dei nove ragazzi é stata ricordata con elevate parole anche dall'allora Presidente del Consiglio Carlo Azelio Ciampi , in occasione della sua visita all'Accademia Navale di Livorno nel dicembre 1993 e, a suo tempo, dal Generale Clark, comandante della 9ª Armata Americana in un suo nobile messaggio al 51º battaglione Bersaglieri dopo la battaglia di Montelungo. Motivazione della Medaglia d'Argento al Valor Militare alla Memoria "Arruolatosi volontario partecipava a successive azioni contro i tedeschi, dimostrando in ogni circostanza sprezzo del pericolo. Durante un duro combattimento, conscio della necessità di rifornire di munizioni la sua arma, attraversava più volte la zona battuta dal tiro di armi automatiche avversarie. Ferito in uno di questi tentativi, ricusava di raggiungere il posto di medicazione e visto morire il porta-arma tiratore alla mitragliatrice lo sostituiva. Una raffica micidiale, colpendolo una seconda volta, troncava la sua nobile vita". Una via intitolata a Roberto Morelli Una nuova via nella zona edificata delle Fontanelle. Accanto a quelle intitolate a Massimiliano Kolbe, ai Maestri del Lavoro, a Don Bosco, alle Maestre Pie Filippini e al dottor Mario Migliorati, ce n'è ora una dedicata a un ragazzo morto in guerra a 19 anni: Roberto Morelli, medaglia d'argento al valor militare. Un nome meno conosciuto, di un giovane che riposa nel cimitero di Umbertide, e che l'8 dicembre 1943 cadde a Montelungo, bersagliere volontario dell'appena ricostituito esercito italiano di liberazione. L'Amministrazione comunale ha aderito alle richieste delle associazioni combattentistiche umbertidesi, uniformandosi nell'opera da sempre tesa a ricordare tutti quei cittadini che caddero eroicamente nelle tragiche vicende vissute dal popolo italiano. Così come avvenuto in passato per Pucci, Rosati e Starnini, domenica 7 settembre il sindaco Becchetti ha scoperto la targa della nuova strada adiacente a piazza Berlinguer. La cerimonia è iniziata alle 11 al cimitero. Una messa celebrata da don Gerardo Balbi davanti alla tomba dell'eroico ragazzo. Tante le autorità presenti e tanti i labari delle associazioni di ex combattenti. Con commosse parole, all'omelia, il sacerdote ha ricordato il sacrificio di Roberto e la donazione della sua giovane vita. E infine la preghiera del marinaio letta da Marco Baldassarri, tra le note del "silenzio" del trombettiere della Banda della Marina Militare di La Spezia che ha presenziato al rito. Subito dopo, nella piazza delle Fontanelle, la cerimonia di intitolazione della nuova via. Il Sindaco ha salutato le autorità presenti e tutti gli intervenuti. "Con questa semplice cerimonia - ha detto Becchetti - continuiamo nell'opera che l'Amministrazione comunale ha da tempo avviato: quella di ricordare quei concittadini che, in particolari momenti storici, in momenti estremamente difficili, si sono trovati a dover scegliere, ed hanno, onestamente e coerentemente con i propri principi, fatto scelte coraggiose, pagando con la propria vita." Il Capitano di Fregata avvocato Giuseppe Conforto, dell'Associazione Nazionale Marinai d'Italia, ha tenuto la commemorazione ufficiale e con elevate parole ha ricordato la figura di Roberto Morelli, dall'Accademia Navale a Venezia alla battaglia di Montelungo. Ha messo in evidenza il coraggio e i nobili ideali che ispirarono il giovane nella sua scelta che dovette poi pagare col sacrificio della vita. Quindi, davanti all"'attenti" del picchetto d'onore comandato dal sottotenente Giorgio Cordioli, e alla Banda della Marina che intonava un brano musicale, lo scoprimento della targa. Un momento molto emozionante. Molte le autorità presenti: il vice Prefetto dottor Roberto Aragno, il tenente colonnello Passeri in rappresentanza del generale Franco Stella, il tenente colonnello Cosimo Chiarelli, comandante provinciale di Carabinieri, il generale Federico Marzollo con alfiere e medagliere del 514º Battaglione Bersaglieri, il generale Civello Luccioli con medagliere del Nastro Azzurro di Perugia, l'avvocato Mancini, vice presidente dell'Associazione Forze Armate Regolari della Guerra di Liberazione e i rappresentanti umbertidesi delle Associazioni Alpini, Bersaglieri, Marinai, Combattenti Guerra di Liberazione, famiglie dei Caduti. Per la famiglia di Roberto Morelli c'era il fratello Renato e la cugina Elena . Conclusa la cerimonia, la Fanfara della Marina Militare di La Spezia ha percorso le vie cittadine suonando briosi motivi e, seguita da molte persone, è giunta in piazza Matteotti. Sopra il palco ha tenuto un breve concerto per i cittadini presenti entusiasmando tutti per la brillante ed appassionata esecuzione dei brani proposti. La battaglia di Montelungo La battaglia di Montelungo è, secondo gli storici, l'evento più importante della Guerra di Liberazione. Infatti, ai piedi di questa altura che domina la via Casilina a Sud di Cassino, nella stretta di Mignano, il 14º Raggruppamento Motorizzato Italiano, formato tutto da volontari e che si può definire la cellula fondamentale del nuovo esercito, sostenne il primo combattimento che segnò l'inizio della riscossa italiana. La lotta fu dura; le perdite elevatissime: 320 tra morti, feriti e dispersi. Il monte, quel giorno, non fu conquistato; l'azione dovette essere sospesa per l'insufficiente appoggio dell'artiglieria, per la fitta nebbia e per lo scarso coordinamento con gli Alleati. Ripresa la lotta, il 16 dicembre il monte fu preso. L'avvenimento dimostrò agli Alleati la ferma volontà del popolo italiano di riscattare un passato che non gli apparteneva più. Fino a quel momento gli italiani avevano combattuto con le armi che erano rimaste in dotazione, cioè antiquate e scarse; da quel momento gli Alleati si premurarono di farne un reparto moderno ed efficiente. Nacque così, il 17 aprile 1944, con l'apporto della divisione paracadutisti Nembo (della quale fece parte il concittadino Domenico Brunori) il Corpo Italiano di Liberazione e, successivamente, nell'agosto 1944, i Gruppi di Combattimento Friuli, Mantova, Piceno, Legnano dove combatté e morì il nostro concittadino Starnini e non ultimo il Cremona , nel quale combatterono tanti giovani umbertidesi tra i quali Rosati e Pucci caduti in battaglia e la Medaglia d'Argento Guerriero Leonardi . Fonti: Articolo di Amedeo Massetti su “Umbertide Cronache n. 4 - 1997”

Penetola. Not all the dead die. by Giovanni Bottaccioli Here we present the entire small research book that Giovanni Bottaccioli, recently passed away, several years ago, he realized about the massacre of Penetola. Put in writing the voices and memories of the unfortunate protagonists of the story, giving everyone the opportunity to know them. Thanks to the availability of her daughters, Elvira and Giovanna, we present her entire work, which can also be downloaded or browsed in .pdf below, recommended for smartphones or for those who want to keep it (click from smartphone on the image below, scroll it on tablet and pc). Photo by Fabio Mariotti. PENETULA NOT ALL DEAD DIE by Giovanni Bottaccioli LE ALTRE VITTIME QUELLA PRIMAVERA DEL 1944 IL RACCONTO DI BRUNO IL RACCONTO DI DINA IL RICORDO DI ANNA QUEL 28 GIUGNO ALL'ALBA LE VITTIME DA ORMINDO UN ALTRO GIORNO GRIDA DISPERATE DI UNA DONNA COME PREMESSA COME PREMESSA AS FOREWORD If on 27 April 1997 I had not gone, together with some companions and friends, to the ceremony for the deposition of a crown at the monument to the martyrs of "Penetola", I believe that I would never have written these few pages on that distant and tragic episode that occurred on June 28, 1944, a few days after the liberation of our municipal territory. One of the many that took place in Italy in that period which, even if distant in time, should have remained well engraved in the memory of all, and especially in that of those who were direct or indirect witnesses. The delegation, despite the public posters and the invitations made to the population by the Anti-Fascist Committee and the Municipal Administration, included the Mayor Celestino Sonaglia, the maestro Raffaele Mancini representing the Anti-Fascist Committee, Alberto Mancini, partisan and silver medalist of the Resistance, Alfredo Ciarabelli of the PCI, Ferdinando Bruschi, President of the young volunteers from Umberto I joined the "Cremona" division, with some veterans of the Liberation War, I who write representing the Giunta Municipal and very few other citizens, no more than fifteen people in all, including Giuseppe Ivorio, one of the survivors of the massacre. You will wonder why a crown was placed in memory of the martyrs of "Penetola" on 21 April and not on 28 June, the anniversary of the massacre carried out by the Nazi-Fascists. The explanation is simple: a few days ago the Nazi war criminal Gen. Kappler, sentenced to life imprisonment, had escaped from the infirmary of the Regina Coeli prison in Rome, where he was hospitalized because of an incurable disease. massacre of the Fosse Ardeatine: where 335 "political prisoners" were brutally slaughtered, taken from the Roman prisons in retaliation for a partisan action against the Nazi occupation troops. That sensational escape, incredible for its daring aspects, had a great repercussion in the country, especially in the conscience of the citizens most sensitive to the defense of the democratic institutions born of the Resistance; with that "flight" was seriously offended, not only the memory of the fallen of the Resistance, but the conscience of all those who, with their tribute of struggles and blood, had contributed to the redemption of the Nation from the abyss of war, from the abyss of the barbarism into which Fascism had led it. This was the motivation that had led me together with the other citizens, representatives of the democratic and anti-fascist forces to lay the crowns at the memorial stone placed in memory of the martyrs of "Penetola". Cippo which is located about one kilometer from the hamlet of Niccone, on the left side of the road that leads to Lake Trasimeno and a few hundred meters from the house where the horrendous Nazi massacre was consummated; and erected a few years ago by the municipal administration on the proposal of the Anti-Fascist Committee of Umbertide. While I was witnessing the deposition of the crown, I wondered how it was possible that atrocious events like this and how those that occurred in so many other parts of Italy with thousands of innocent deaths could be forgotten in such a short time, when still many survivors carry them on. The tremendous signs are flesh and memory. From this bitter observation for those who believe that only from the knowledge and memory of our past can the awareness of the defense and development of the values of freedom and democracy arise, the decision to write to remind the forgetful , but above all to young people who do not know what the years of fascism were, and especially that them of the war and the Nazi occupation of our country. I will say, as far as it is possible to reconstruct what happened in those sad days of June 1944, in that small part of the territory that goes from Niccone in Spedalicchio, with particular attention to the “Penetola” massacre in which twelve of our fellow citizens found the horrible death, guilty only of having been there. I will tell, albeit summarily, of other sad episodes that occurred a few days before that terrible 28 June. Episodes that I consider useful and necessary to tell to highlight a broader picture and highlight the climate of fear that we lived in that period, when for some days the shots of the cannons of the now nearby allied troops reached our ears. For the drafting of these few pages I also used the testimonies of some protagonists; they are: Anna Nanni, Bruno Montanucci, Lenin Sonaglia known as Luigi or Nino and finally Mrs. Dina Orsini ved. Ivory, escaped the massacre. THAT SPRING OF 1944 The Nazis, called after the armistice of 8 September 1943 by the fascists of the Italian Social Republic to keep up the shaky regime of terror they established in the country, occupy the national territory. war, the bombing actions by the allied aviation begin. Umbertide was bombed on April 25, 1944 and 74 fellow citizens died under the rubble. Many victims could have been spared if the "republican" authorities of the time had given the air alarm signal through the sound of the sirens that had been set up and that that day did not I was living at that time in the hamlet of Niccone and I was able to see, so I can tell with certainty, that the allied planes, before dropping the deadly bombs, flew for a few minutes over the town and over the targets, which were the two bridges over the Tiber river, that of the road and that of the railway, which then connected Arezzo with Fossato di Vico. Numerous turns over the inhabited area were made by airplanes, perhaps precisely to give the inhabitants the opportunity to get away from the area. The alarm was not sounded, no one moved, so the massacre took place. In this regard, I remember, because we have always talked about it in the family, that that morning, despite my father's insistence, I refused to go to Umbertide by bicycle. Only when the planes that had dropped their death bombs left, did I get on my bike and went to Umbertide. The sight that presented itself to the eyes was tremendous. At the end of via Cibo, the course, mountains of rubble, among these I recognized some willing people who lent help, Antonio Taticchi, a well-known anti-fascist who had a barber's workshop right on the corner of the Vibi palace and Romitelli, the tinsmith, and others who were looking for to extract the bodies of those who were trapped and begging for help. Other mountains of rubble were on via Petrogalli and even there the survivors were desperately looking for their loved ones. Through via Cibo I reached Piazza Matteotti and the spectacle seemed even more terrifying. Some unrecognizable bodies had been composed on the ground, others seriously injured were complaining. Frightened, I went in search of the families of my two aunts who lived there and when I knew for sure that they had not been aged, I took the road and returned to Niccone. In the afternoon there was a new bombardment again by allied aircraft, but this time it caused few victims, perhaps because, contrary to what happened previously, the planes dropped the bombs starting the dive from the Romeggio area and not from Civitella Ranieri as it had happened in the morning. Even the hamlet of Niccone, being at the crossroads between the state road and the road that, along the valley of the Niccone stream, leads towards Lake Trasimeno and from this into the Valdichiana, in Tuscany, could be included among the military objectives. for the two bridges over the river and therefore be subject to bombing actions that the Allies systematically operated, trying to hinder the retreat of the German troops. retreat that had begun after the allied landing in Anzio. The possibility of undergoing aerial bombardments and the fact that large groups of German soldiers had already taken possession of some houses in Niccone and the surrounding areas, advised most of the families of the small hamlet looking for a temporary and safer accommodation in the open countryside near the houses inhabited by the numerous sharecroppers scattered throughout the territory There were thousands, perhaps millions of families in Italy who at that time found accommodation and food with our "peasants", even if this term was and still is used by many people in a derogatory sense. But I believe that their great willingness, costing great sacrifices, to host all those who from the centers, even minor ones, tried to escape the fury of the war, was the greatest demonstration of their generosity, their altruism and their goodness. And this negative attitude towards land workers has been persistent for a long time and perhaps still is. Their great availability was demonstrated, in fact, not only by housing entire families but also by giving them more than enough to feed themselves. who gave us concrete help. I want to thank once again, sure to interpret the desire of many other "citizens", all the farmers in the area and especially the family of Pio Fornaci, known as the "Fornacino", for the great and disinterested hospitality granted to my family. Sometimes I wonder how many of us would be available, should it become necessary for unfortunate necessity, to give to the few remaining farmers or to others in need, part of our houses, our beds, our tables. As I have already said, also my father, a craftsman, who practiced as a barber. he had started looking for an accommodation and found it just beyond the hamlet of Molino Vitelli, at the home of “Fornacino”. The farm was owned of the Boncompagni family, owner of large agricultural estates. My father, my mother and my younger sister had moved into this new “home”, a single room of about twenty square meters which at the time represented a “palace”; I joined them later. At that time I was a soldier assigned to the infantry battalion at the "Biordo Michelotti" barracks in Perugia. I deserted by escaping from the military hospital of Santa Giuliana in Perugia, where I was hospitalized for tests after a 15-day convalescence leave; I did not intend for any reason to serve the Nazi-fascists of the RSI .. I was denounced for desertion. By bicycle I returned to Niccone, found the house empty and learned that my parents were displaced. I got back on my bicycle and looking from one side and the other of the road that crossed the whole hamlet, I noticed many German soldiers who had occupied some houses. Pedaling at a good pace, be careful not to run into some roadblock. I came near the house of the "Fornacino". I am not describing the joy of my parents in seeing me appear at the end of the road that leads from the main road to the farmhouse. This joy was partly mitigated by concern for what might have happened due to my desertion. It was known of the frequent roundups that fascists and Nazis undertook in search of those who either had not presented themselves to the call of the RSI or had deserted the weapons. And it was precisely the constant concern for the roundups that had made me take the decision to build, in the middle of a forest, not far from home, a "den", a refuge that could hardly be discovered, so much had been on my part, the care in camouflaging it with the surrounding environment. Fortunately, only once did I successfully use it to escape a roundup by the Republican National Guard. According to what I later learned, that roundup concerned precisely the search for deserters or reluctant to the continuous calls to arms that Nazis and Fascists posted on the walls and which now also concerned sixteen-year-olds! QUELLA PRIMAVERA DEL 1944 DESPERATE CRYING OF A WOMAN I remember perfectly that Sunday morning of June 26, 1944, when around ten I heard in the distance the cries of a woman coming from the fields that lead from the "Fornacino" house towards the Dogana, a place where she lived with other families, that of Trinari, on the right side of the large curve near Spedalicchio. They were the excruciating screams of a woman who, running through the fields of wheat already ripe enough and close to harvest, urged the men to immediately move away to the houses and flee to the woods to hide, because German soldiers in war gear were shooting all those who found. in the fields and in their homes. It was Ersilia Epi resident in Montecastelli, who had gone to visit her daughter displaced by the Trinari family or in the vicinity and who claimed to have witnessed the capture, by German soldiers, of the men of the area then locked up in a tobacco dryer; he feared they might be shot. f The woman, no longer young, always ran past the house and, without stopping for a moment, repeated, as a kind of begging, that terrible warning: "'Flee men, flee men !!" I was speechless, looked my mother in the face, also terrified by those screams, and without a moment's hesitation walked away across the fields; I tried to take shelter behind the vegetation of the rows of vines already thick enough with the leaves of the new shoots. I had a goal in mind: to reach the home of the Sonaglia family, a sharecropper who lived above the hamlet of Niccone. Owner of the farm, voc. "S. Maria ”, was the IFI company of Montecorona. The two brothers Sonaglia, Eusebio and Dante, with their respective wives and children lived there together with their father Benedetto. It was one of the largest farms on the whole Montecorona farm. I remember that in threshing time, which lasted a few days, the siren, as well as sounding at the beginning and end of the threshing or when the meal was announced, also sounded when 100 quintals of wheat had been reached. For many years I remember that this siren sounded even three times, to the great joy of those who, after their efforts, saw their sweats partially rewarded. In fact, at the Sonaglia home, my father had for the convenience of displaced customers, moved the barber shop, or rather, he was a "walking" barber, so as to be able to maintain relationships with people now scattered a little everywhere and at the same time send on with his earnings, the "wheelbarrow" that was very hard to push. As I ran along the rows of fields in the shelter of the vegetation and quickly moved away from the area, I mulled over what could have happened to my mother and my sister, then 11, who I had left alone at home. With this thought fixed in my mind, every now and then I slowed down and thought if perhaps it was not the case to go back; but the warning of the woman "run away men" sounded insistently in the ears. Accompanied by these thoughts, I continued with an ever faster pace, to go towards the Sonaglia house; I wanted to reach my father as soon as possible. The journey that I knew well and that in other circumstances had seemed short to me, seemed to never end at this juncture. As soon as I reached the Sonaglia house I looked for my father and I immediately told him with my heart in my mouth what had happened, the reason why I had left my mother and my sister at home. He was very shaken and worried and told me to stay around because he would find out as soon as possible what was really happening. We parted with the promise that in a few hours we would meet again to decide if and how to return to the “Fornacino's house”. As I walked away, I noticed my father's strong concern for what I had told him. He was also worried about my brother Attilio, who had fled from the barracks in Orvieto where he was in the military, who just that morning went to Romeggio to visit some friends. Being a deserter himself, he had to be warned of the imminent danger and not to return home. My father, during the great war of 1915/18, had been a prisoner of the Germans and knew, from direct experience, what degree of aberrant treatment the Germans were capable of inflicting on all those who tried to thwart their plans. I thought to myself of how much pain war brings and I was disgusted that I too was the cause, albeit involuntary, of the pains that tormented my parents in those days. My father's prudence was worth nothing: now we were all, and not just us, at the mercy of an enemy who had no scruples or pity. Speaking of my father, I like to remember that it was he, thanks to his experience as a prisoner of the Germans, who advised the Sonaglia family, since the winter of 1943, to dig a hole under the floor of the hut, a pit of about two meters of depth, adequately large, to hide, before the passage of the front, some food supplies and the little linen of the wedding trousseau, kept in the famous "trunk" which, at that time, almost all women, married or about to marry they had. I and my cousins Sonaglia did the excavation of that underground compartment: Elvio, Pietro and Luigi, known as Nino, whose real and first name is Lenin, a name that today, but above all then, in 1922, had an irresistible charm. When Eusebius, Lenin's father, went to the Civil State to "mark" him, register him, no one objected and in the birth register of the year 1922 the child was registered with the name of Lenin. On the other hand, those who objected and did not accept that the newborn was given this name, was the parish priest of the parish of Montemigiano, Don Pericle, despite the insistence and grievances of his father, refused to mark him with that name and entered him in the parish register with Luigi's name. The child thus had two names for several years, that of Lenin for the State and that of Louis for the Church. Later, when Eusebio went to the Civil Status of the Municipality to have the birth certificate of his son to enroll him in the vocational training school, the clerk, reading that "name" on the card, was stunned, but could not fail to issue the certificate. The headmaster of the school did not behave in this way, refusing to register him with that name. For this reason Lenin risked not being able to attend school. The father, who did not intend to have his son interrupt his studies, went to the Court of Perugia and asked to change his son's name. The Court issued a sentence, duly transcribed in the birth book of the Municipality of Umbertide, in which it is declared that from that day the name Lenin was "written and must be understood" as Luigi. Evidently the fascist power also considered an 11-year-old boy with the name Lenin, as an enemy, a "subversive". From the Sonaglia home I reached the one of the Pinzaglia family in a few minutes. It is the farmhouse that was then owned by the Boncompagni estate (Fontesegale) and which is located upstream of the Niccone school. In this farmhouse many young people who resisted the calls to arms of the Nazis and Fascists found hiding places. Being eighteen or twenty at the time and living with what little membership guaranteed was difficult. For what was given to us we thanked with the only coin we could dispose of: every now and then we lent a hand in the work in the fields. Another heartfelt thanks. In that house, also in consideration of the good relations existing for a long time, I had always found an excellent welcome. Since the winter of 1943/44, many of us young people from Niccone who had not responded to the enrollment ordered by the German and Fascist tenders, found great help and understanding with this family. often in the company of rats, in order to escape “possible roundups by the Nazi-fascists. Among those young people I remember with emotion Ezio Forni, a giant about two meters high, whom he will later find together with his brother Edoardo, called Piri, aged sixteen, and his father Canzio, one of the many and good stonecutters of Niccone, horrible death in the massacre of "Penetola". Those who know the peasant world, especially of that time, know that when there are certain jobs to be carried out such as harvesting, sowing, forage, tobacco, grapes, they cannot be postponed to the next day, risking, for a hailstorm or otherwise, of losing the harvest and that, Sunday or a holiday, it is necessary to work on time. For this reason, that Sunday in the fields they worked, where it was possible, to harvest the wheat; now near the end of June it was tradition that for the feast of St. Peter it had to be the harvest completed. The Pinzaglia family had also started this work and I contributed by tying the "grigne" of wheat. When the sun went down I returned to the Sonaglia family, where my father was waiting for me, who in the meantime had inquired: according to what was said, it seemed that everything had returned to "normalcy". Together we resumed, very carefully, the way back from the “Fornacino”. Although my father had a bicycle at his disposal, we retraced together the same path that I had taken in the morning, through the farm roads, leaving the "main road" which could have reserved for us the meeting with some patrol of German soldiers or with the sentries who they had been placed to guard the various bridges and bridges that had been mined for some time by German soldiers close to retreat. Passing through the Arcaleni and Pinzagli houses, always part of the Boncompagni property, we came to the Sassetti family and here we found several people, especially young people, who like me had moved away from the "Trinari" area, and were afraid to make the decision whether to return or less with their families or maybe stay for just one night "out of the area threatened by German soldiers. My father decided to go home, also because my mother would have been alarmed if at nightfall she hadn't seen any of us return. A he told me to stay around and the next morning we would meet again to bring me new news. We were about to leave when two people arrived whose names I do not remember, who informed us about what had happened in the morning at the "Trinari" house. German soldiers, encamped in the area, began, under the threat of weapons, to kidnap all the men found nearby and, after having locked them up in the drying room of the abacco, kidnapped two young women who, always under the threat of weapons, were raped in turns. When Epi saw that the German soldiers were closing the men in the drying room, she thought that they wanted to take these men to Germany, or pass them by arms, and for this reason she immediately took care to go from house to house to warn of the danger. The story filled us with anguish and terror, I thought of my mother and my sister who were left alone at home; those soldiers could have used the same violence against them as well. I left my father telling him that if necessary, he would find me at the house of the Ormindo family, a dear and very good man who was a "cellarman" at the Boncompagni estate, in the large "farm" of Fontesegale, where I too had worked for some time as aide to the Mistruzzi factor. The farm is located between the hamlets of Cioccolanti and that of Montecastelli. GRIDA DISPERATE DI UNA DONNA FROM NOW ANOTHER DAY Rather short in stature, red hair and a friendly face full of freckles. He worked as a "cellarman" together with Lucchetti, and I must say with excellent results if the wine from that farm was considered one of the best in the area. I challenge many of the wines of today in comparison with that wine from Fontesegale. I also had the opportunity to appreciate Ormindo for his high sense of attachment to work: in any weather, even in the coldest months, he never lacked despite the fact that he lived about three kilometers from the farm, a distance that he always covered astride the "pants'" . I spent the night sleeping in the hut near Ormindo's house and the house inhabited by the Biagini family, known as “Beppetto”, in the company of other young people whose names I don't remember all of. Among these certainly the Alboni brothers, Gianni and Vittorio. Bruno Montanucci and others. The following morning, Monday 27 June, the harvest was resumed from Pinzaglia and. I remember perfectly, it was harvested in the fields near the house inhabited by the Morelli family, known as “Bichio” owned by the parish of Montemigiano. Around 11 we noticed two armed German soldiers, one of them with a wicker basket; they walked towards Ormindo's house. The soldier with the basket also wore a cook's "zinarola". I remember his teeth that I could see between his lips and that about half was made of steel teeth. Certain details are never forgotten. The harvest continued and I helped to tie the "grigne" of wheat. Suddenly Vittorio, the brother of Giovanni Alboni, a brave fighter of the “Cremona” division, who lost a leg in a fight in the Alfonsine area (Ravenna), arrived running out of breath and bleached in the face. Vittorio at that time must have been fifteen, he begged us to immediately find a pump to inflate the tire of a bicycle taken by the two Germans we had seen shortly before. If I don't take the pump to the Germans immediately, he told us, Bruno runs the risk of being killed. He did not even finish uttering the sentence that a gunshot was heard, coming from the very area from which Vittorio had arrived. Immediately the thought went to Bruno and we all assumed that the Germans had killed him. In no time at all, some on one side, some on the other, we all ran off to hide. The fright and fear were so great that I entered the first door I found; led to the stable of "Beppetto", I lay down in the "crib" in the midst of the snouts of some oxen. trying to cover myself with straw and hay so that, in the event of a check by the two Germans, everything would be normal. After a few minutes, I heard in the distance voices of men and women interrupted every now and then by a few words of incomprehensible German. When these people got close, I plucked up my courage and went out of hiding. joining the group. The two Germans, who were talking to each other, gave me the impression that they were half-smiling and this attitude made the situation less dramatic. What exactly happened? Why and by whom had the shot been fired? The two soldiers, arrived at Ormindo's house, asked his wife for a little fresh vegetables; the woman replied that she did not have any, neither in the house nor in the garden and to make sure she invited the two soldiers to follow her to the nearby garden. Once on the spot the two soldiers saw leaning against the hedge that delimited the perimeter of the garden, a bicycle and took possession of it. One of them got on the bike, but got off immediately as the tires were completely flat. For this reason they asked Bruno, who was nearby, for a pump to inflate, threatening him, if he did not immediately proceed, to shoot him. This was the background that led Vittorio to look for a pump from us. When the two Germans returned to the garden, with the bike next to them, together with Ormindo's wife, the latter, to lower the tension that had been created, went into the house and went out with a flask of wine to offer it to the Germans. They, perhaps fearing a trap, before drinking it made everyone present taste a little and then gulped down all the contents. DA ORMINDO UN ALTRO GIORNO BRUNO'S STORY “I too, like many young people of 1925, was a“ deserter ”as I fled from the“ Biordo Michelotti ”barracks in Perugia, which at that time was in Corso Cavour. To "escape" I had jumped an outer wall of the barracks that overlooked a small ring road and which had a height of five to six meters, but at that moment it seemed much lower. After an infinity of adventures and fears from Perugia to Umbertide, I managed to get to my house which was located above the town of Niccone, owned by the Gnomi family. Since the house, not far from the national road, was easy prey for the retreating German troops, protagonists of real cattle raids and anything else that happened to them, we decided in the family to remove the animals, in particular the oxen, in open countryside, as far as possible from the communication route. I moved with the cows near the Pinzaglia, Morelli and Biagini families, to the word "Simoncelli". I was guarding my livestock, or rather mine and that of the owner, who grazed near the houses, when two German soldiers, I learned later, who were staying in my house in Niccone, suddenly emerged from the vegetation, forced me, under the threat of weapons, to follow them. One of the soldiers had with him a bicycle that he leaned against a plant and, having removed the rifle from his shoulder, bullet in the barrel, with a very scrambled Italian, he asked me if I had a pump to inflate the tires that were on the ground. The other soldier had continued to walk and was no more than twenty meters ahead of us. To the strange request of the soldier I replied hoping to make him understand that I did not know anything, neither about the bicycle nor the pump. To my negative answer, the German raised his rifle and fired. The bullet passed within inches of my head. The other soldier, unaware of what had happened behind him, when he heard the blow he gave his legs up, stopping only when the "comrade" ', with words incomprehensible to me, managed to make him understand that the blow had started from his He went back and as soon as he reached us, he engaged the bayonet, put the bullet in the barrel, pointed the rifle at my body, telling me to keep my arms raised, and began to shout that there were partisans. "Be partisans" he kept saying , without the other soldier, the one who had shot, saying anything. I thought I was being killed. I was in that situation close to death, when Ida di Pinzaglia passed by, unseen by the Germans. glance, he accelerated his passing until he disappeared in the middle of the vegetation. I later learned that Ida, meeting some people, had already narrated my death and great was the surprise she felt when, a short time later, she saw me wandering around safe and sound in the vicinity of guard de "my" cattle. In fact, the two Germans, perhaps tired of threatening me, had let me go and headed towards the house of Biagini and “Ormindo”. I would like to add another detail to Bruno's story. When the soldiers, even after Ormindo's wife had offered wine, kept repeating that the partisans had fired, I looked for the shell of the bullet near the area where the shot was fired; I found it and showed it to the soldier; he laughed and kept repeating "here partisans, we will return", "here partisans, we will return". All this happened around eleven in the morning. The two soldiers left, taking their bicycles with them, albeit with flat tires: they were always ready to raid anything, even of little value. So much so that a few days earlier, on a Sunday afternoon, always in pairs and armed to the teeth, they came to my house from the “Fornacino” and opened all drawers and small drawers in search of some valuable object. This time they were satisfied with a few bars of soap and a few handkerchiefs. Convinced that the threats pronounced in the morning would not be followed up, we remained to discuss for a few minutes and then, tired of the work of the harvest and still gripped by fear, some on one side, some on another we went to eat, making an appointment for the afternoon in a hut near the home of the Biagini family. I had lunch with the Pinzaglia family. Around two in the afternoon we found ourselves in the hut. There were many of us, all from seventeen to twenty-four, young men and women, who instead of taking a nap to rest preferred to spend a few hours together talking a bit of everything; the main topic was always war. We talked for some time and then some, overcome by fatigue, forgetting what had happened in the morning, fell soundly asleep. Two or three others and I stayed awake continuing to talk about our problems, in a low tone of voice, so as not to disturb the rest. About twenty minutes passed. our conversation and the sleep of the others were abruptly interrupted by the din of the door suddenly opened and slammed against the parapet. Not seeing anyone, we thought of a sudden gust of wind. Not even the time to assess whether it was really the wind that opened the door with such violence that we saw the barrels of two rifles held by the two Germans in the morning emerge. Suddenly the threats uttered by the two came to mind; fear and fright made us utterly mute. One of the soldiers, shouting like a maniac "raus-raus", with the barrel of his gun forced us to leave the hut. When we were all outside, still with their guns pointed at, they grouped us together. While one checked the group, the other put the rifle back on his shoulder and began questioning us one at a time. The first to be called and brought a few meters from the others was me. The German, with words pronounced in a crippled Italian, with the help of gestures, asked if I was the owner of the bicycle they had taken away in the morning; he called her "mascine"; she also asked why she had not been provided with the pump to inflate the tires. I was desperately trying to make him understand that I didn't know anything about what had happened in the morning, that I wasn't the owner of the "mascine" and didn't even know who he was. As I tried to make myself understood, I pointed out my dirty and scratched arms and said that I was at the harvesting work and that I didn't know anything about that damned bicycle. I kept repeating over and over, “io arbait, io arbait”. But he didn't want to understand and angrily repeated that I was the master of the “mascine”; suddenly he took the rifle off his shoulder, and put the bullet in the barrel, pointed it in my stomach, continuing to scream. I believe that no pen can describe the terror that pervades a person threatened in that way. Feeling the gun barrel loaded and ready to shoot at you is hallucinating; it is no longer even possible to speak; incomprehensible words are pronounced, without any meaning, only stammering. I don't remember how many minutes, or maybe seconds, I remained in that situation, when the other soldier, with a slightly hinted smile of pity, turned towards the ward and shouted "kaput, kaput". Terrible word that millions of men, women and children, ordinary people and without guilt, millions of innocent people had heard before they died: "kaput - kaput". This horrible word had the effect that can give a resounding slap to the unconscious: that is, I bring myself back to the harsh reality. I regained my courage and went back to explaining to the "inquisitor" that, not being the owner of the bicycle, I could not have the pump and that they would let me go. The German insisted "kaput-kaput". I cannot say how long that strange and incomprehensible "interview" lasted. Finally the soldier, having removed the rifle from my belly, took a few steps towards his dormitory and approached the group of my companions who remained waiting for "their turn" who had followed the whole scene with fear. As soon as the soldier who had threatened me turned his back to go towards the others, with a sudden jerk I rolled down a steep "crag" and managed to disappear from his sight. For a few minutes I hid among the bushes at the bottom of the slope, my heart wanting to come out of my throat, straining my ear to try to hear a few words. After another few minutes, not hearing any noise, I went out of the hedge and in small steps, trying not to get noticed, I went away for the fields, hidden behind the rows of vines in the direction of the Sonaglia house. When I reached her, I told those who had seen me arrive overwhelmed by fear, what had happened. I was recounting the facts when we heard in the distance, again from the direction of the Biagini family, the terrible screams of a woman calling for help. From the tone of our voice we immediately realized that something serious was happening. A few minutes passed and everything seemed to calm down. Slowly I recovered from the fright at what had happened to me and walked back towards the Biagini house. I asked the people present what had happened. They told me that the two German soldiers, always the same, continued the interrogation of my other comrades. Then they moved away in the direction of Montemigiano which is a couple of kilometers from the house. The two soldiers passed in front of a little hut. far from the farmhouse of "Beppetto". A family of Niccone, also displaced, had found hospitality in the hut. A girl who was fifteen at the time was part of this family. When the Germans saw her, perhaps believing her to be alone, they rushed on her trying to rape her. Of this disgusting episode, which fortunately ended without serious consequences, I bear the direct testimony of one of the women who lived the hallucinating experience and who still today, almost forty years after the event, finds in talking to me the same dismay, the same emotions. and the same terror. It is Mrs. Anna, who remembers as follows: IL RACCONTO DI BRUNO THE MEMORY OF ANNA ......... "I had been married for about four years and my husband had been brought by the Germans to Germany as a prisoner of war after the events of September 8. I lived in Montecastelli but, due to the war, I was displaced together with my family who lived in Niccone, in a farmhouse in the parish of Bastia Creti and precisely in the place called “Mansala” not far from the hamlet of Spedalicchio, in the valley of the Niccone stream. That morning of Monday 27 June I returned to the Montecastelli house to take some objects and also to realize how the situation was in that area. Through the paths of the fields and woods, trying to avoid running into German or fascist troops. I came near a group of houses called “Simoncelli”, where the Biagini, called “Beppetto” and Ormindo families lived, not far from the parish house of Montemigiano. I knew that there were displaced families of Niccone with whom I was a friend; I decided to pay a little visit to feel how they were doing. One of these two families with whom I was on excellent terms had found refuge in a hut attached to the house of the colonist Biagini. A girl who at that time was fifteen years old was part of this family and, finding her at home, she stopped me talking. She told me she was alone because her parents were working in the fields helping the farmers. We sat down and started to tell about our life as displaced people. After a few minutes we heard noises around the hut. We got up to realize what was happening. We did not even get to the door when we saw the rifles held by the two German soldiers. Immediately one of them, pressing the rifle to my ribs. he threw me out of the hut and the other pounced on the girl, trying to throw her to the ground. The girl began to scream with all her breath in her throat, trying to defend herself with all her might from the German. Hearing cries for help coming from inside the hut, I too began to scream to get the attention of those who were in the neighboring houses; several came out and rushed towards me who was still screaming. When the soldiers realized that the situation was not turning, despite the weapons. in their favor, they fled in the direction of Montemigiano. thus leaving the girl free who, for the narrow escape, began to cry with joy. After some time, while we were still commenting on what had happened, we heard shots coming from Montemigiano. These shots alarmed us a lot because we feared that something serious might have happened. Then we learned that the shots were aimed at animals that the Germans wanted to kill to eat. I stayed for a few hours in the company of that girl and those who had helped us. I could not say exactly how much time passed, I only remember that someone again pointed out to us the two German soldiers who had passed a few hours earlier. At this sight I had a premonition: “just see what time he is going they take with me that I called for help. As I ruminated these words in my mind, I saw the two soldiers approaching. Then with small steps, walking backwards so as to always look them in the face, in order to understand their intentions, I tried to reach the colonist's house in order to enter and then close the door. One of the soldiers stopped and, loading his rifle, suddenly turned to the others who in the meantime were watching the scene, threatening them to stay still otherwise he would have fired. I remember well the one who had a "zinarola" over his trousers, perhaps he was a kitchen attendant, accelerated his pace and came even closer. When he was near he invited me to go with him into the garden. At my clear refusal he began to push me towards the cellar of the settler which was under the kitchen, in a basement. This too was used as a dormitory so as soon as the German saw a "net" he pushed me back badly and I could not help but fall on it. I started screaming for help, trying to free myself. Seeing my resistance and always holding my wrists, he began to violently stamp my feet with his boots, causing excruciating pain and small wounds that began to bleed. Nevertheless, I tried to resist with all my strength. Suddenly a woman appeared, no longer young, whom I immediately recognized as Angela Pinzaglia, the milkmaid who every day, morning and evening, brought milk to the inhabitants of the hamlet of Niccone. He was holding it in his hand a large falcinello and, bringing it close to the German's throat, forced him to leave me. The German, taken aback by the threat of Angela, took the rifle off his shoulder, with a quick gesture put the bullet in the barrel and facing the woman threatened her with the terrible word "kaput". Hearing this word. now sadly known to all, I hugged Angela and shouted “mom, mom. save me, ”I fainted. Later when I came to my senses I learned that one of the two soldiers had fired a rifle shot in the direction of the people present and that the bullet had passed so close to Bruno Pacieri that it had taken his cap off his head. Then the two soldiers, given the situation that had arisen, in the meantime other people had gathered who under threat of making them pay dearly, they had not gone without first pronouncing threats in German against everyone. Every now and then I, upset, would start screaming and fainting again. They laid me down on the bed for a while and when the sun began to set some willing. Bruno Pacieri, Renato Romeggini, Luigi and Nino Sonaglia with others accompanied me to Montemigiano. When I arrived and passed in front of the parish church that was open, I went into crisis again and, with desperate tears, I entered, thanking Our Lady for the narrow escape. I was terribly frightened that the parish priest, Don Pericle Tirimagni, realizing my situation, did not allow me to take the road back to the house where I was displaced, five or six kilometers away from Montemigiano. and hosted me in the house until the following morning parish church. "All these events took place on Monday 27 June 1944. In the evening, tired and exhausted from what had happened during the day, I went to sleep with many other friends and peers in the hut from which the German soldiers had forced us in the early afternoon, under the threat of weapons, to get out. IL RICORDO DI ANNA THAT JUNE 28 AT DAWN It was not yet dawn when suddenly some of us were awakened by sharp shots from firearms, occasionally bursts and even louder detonations. The exhaustion was so great that not everyone who slept with us heard these shots. Instead Bruno Montanucci, probably more accustomed than others to fatigue and the loss of a few hours of sleep, got up immediately, went out of the hut to realize what on earth was happening trying to see where the shots were coming from. Almost immediately he went back into the hut and woke up those who slept; he said that the house of "Bendino" in the word "Penetola", where the Ivorio and Luchetti families lived, was in flames. We all got up and went to see. The scene that was not completely visible at the first light of dawn had a terrifying aspect. In the meantime we continued to hear the fire of the weapons incessantly and we, terrified, wondered what on earth was happening; we tried not to think about the worst. From time to time we seemed to glimpse, through the smoke and the glare of the flames that flared up more and more, shadows walking around the house. As the daylight increased, the picture that appeared to our eyes took ever more precise contours, making the scene even more terrible. The fire was inside and outside the house. What happened? And why all those shots? Of partisan and guerrilla actions, not even talking about it. No training, neither organized nor in embryo, was operating in that area. The closest partisan formations operated in the Pietralunga area and in the Trasimeno area, which is also very far from us. We noticed that the cattle were in the fields around the house. The sight of cows, sheep, pigs grazing freely in the fields, instead of reassuring me increased our worries. If those shots weren't aimed at cattle, who had the Germans fired? And why had they set the house on fire? The idea that those shots, those volleys, could be aimed at men, did not even cross my mind. Not only mine, but not even that of those who were with me. We all refused to think that this level of barbarism could be reached for no reason. Then there appeared on the path that from the colonist's house leads, over a small bridge over the Niccone stream, towards the road to Mercatale and Cortona, eighteen armed German soldiers with backpacks on their shoulders that appeared swollen. They walked in single file and sang. Suddenly an isolated allied aircraft appeared in the sky, coming from the south. It was one of those small reconnaissance planes called "storks" for their resemblance to the well-wishing birds. The soldiers crouched down the slope that skirted the path, resuming the march as soon as the plane got lost behind the hills that looked towards Lake Trasimeno. We began to move away from the area, always looking at the German soldiers that we will lose sight of when they entered the middle of the vegetation that is along the banks of the Niccone stream. We went up the hill slowly, before returning to our houses, looking back to try to know the truth about what happened. Speaking of free cattle we all made a consideration, which unfortunately proved to be wrong. If the cattle were. free, even the people could only be free! Proceeding with caution, we passed near some peasant houses and Some of my friends separated from the group. Four or five of us remained to reach the Mazzoli house, a farmhouse also owned by the Boncompagni family, where other Niccone families had found hospitality. From time to time we met someone who asked us for news. When we arrived not far from the Mazzoli house, someone, perhaps Mario Tacconi, I don't remember well, briefly informed us about what had really happened. Terrible news. The shooting had caused several deaths. They were certainly all members of the Forni and Nencioni families. The fate of the other members of the colonial families was unknown. I didn't stay even a second longer to get other details that, taken by fright, I started running towards the Fornacino house where my family were. It was a breathless race, with my heart in my throat, with tears in my eyes. To the fright, to the pain, to the effort, there was added the thought for the fate of my parents. I wondered if the German soldiers, who had certainly passed on the way back near the house where we were displaced, had repeated the monstrous crime. What would I find of my family? Would I have found them alive? This thought, with the passage of time, became a nightmare and caused me more harm than physical effort; I kept running home; when I got close and my father, who in the distance had noticed me running in an unusual way, came to meet me. Only when he saw me did he have the feeling that something terrible had happened. I hugged him and asked him how the others were doing. What I felt knowing everyone was fine, I can't describe. I burst into tears of joy at knowing them all alive, and of pain for what had happened to Penetola. I told in a few words, stammering and crying what had happened. They too, although further away, had seen columns of smoke coming from that direction. They had not been able to explain why. They were thinking of a fire in the forest or other brushwood. Now he knew. He tried to cheer me up, but could hardly find words. Knowing the brutality of war and knowing what the Germans were made of, it was now necessary to be constantly on the alert and with eyes wide open to prevent, if possible, other episodes. Now another reason anguished us. In the house where we were displaced, Nello Migliorati's family had also found hospitality; whose wife Annetta was the sister of Erminia, one of the women murdered together with their daughters. How were we going to do it, where were we going to get the courage to tell her what had happened? I was certainly not in a position to tell him. It was my father's turn; with a half lie he said that there had been a shooting and that there had been very serious injuries. Nello had to immediately reach the locality "Penetola" where his relatives were displaced. I later learned that the sight that appeared in the eyes of the first who came was terrible. Women, men and children, even at an early age, lay on the ground, scattered all over the place. Some were even burned in different parts of the body so much so that the willing rescuers, to take them to the cemetery, had problems loading them into the farm cart. In truth of what I affirm, I say that Guido Medici, a fighter in the great war. several times sent to the assault with the bayonet and accustomed to the brutality of war, he kept a handkerchief over his eyes for several days. Like an automaton he wandered around the house where he was evacuated, with his head in his hands trying to forget the terrifying scene that had impressed itself in his eyes and mind. Also on this episode I have collected the testimony of Bruno who, contrary to what I had done, had always remained in the area to guard "his" cattle. .......... "A few hours after the shooting - so Bruno says - when the Germans had resumed their way back to Spedalicchio for a few minutes, from where the soldiers responsible for the massacre had arrived, continuously following looking at the surrounding area, I saw a man, who I later learned was Domenico, known as Menco, a relative of many murdered, running away from the house holding his hands on his face and shouting in despair. With the other locals, I Marcucci. the Sassofrasso, known as the "Mosconi". and the Angeloni, called the "Bistoni", went to meet him. In the midst of the cries of pain he told us what he had seen and begged us to take a chariot to take the dead to the cemetery. Some went to Penetola's house, I with the others went back to take the cart. I did not go to load the dead and awaited the return of the sad load together with the custodian of the cemetery who was the “Vecchio del Moro”, Giorgi. They arrived with the tragic load which consisted of six bodies. They were those of Forni Canzio with their sons Ezio and Edoardo and of Nenciohi, Ferruccio with his wife Milena, and Eugenia, Ferruccio's sister. Describing the scene is difficult. Even today, after almost forty years, it is not "possible" for me to speak without a magone who takes me by the throat. Eugenia and Milena's mother-in-law, Conforto, known as "Sostegno", another son of Erminia and brother of Ferruccio and Eugenia and the four teenagers of the Ivorio and Luchetti families. relatives and acquaintances ..... With my memories and testimonies told, could I consider the chapter of the "Penetola" massacre closed? Or was it necessary to also have the testimony of some survivor of the massacre? eyewitnesses what happened in that distant 1944? What right did I have to ask for the umpteenth time to tell that tragedy? Was it right to renew the pain and despair of the victims' families? or reflected on these questions. If these pages were to be the testimony of those tragic events, it was also not only right but essential that they be described and told by those who had been direct witnesses and victims of them. So I asked the person who suffered more than the others if he was willing to recall the terrible story. This person is Mrs. Dina Avorio, one of the few survivors still alive, who lost three children in the tragedy and who still bears the irreversible signs of that terrible tragedy in her flesh and spirit. QUEL 28 GIUGNO ALL'ALBA THE STORY OF DINA “At that time we were sharecroppers of the Montalto estate owned by the Gnoni family and we lived in the farmhouse called the word“ Penetola ”. We too, like thousands of other peasant families, did not shirk the moral duty of giving help to their fellow man and therefore, despite being a fairly large family, twelve people, we agreed to give a roof to those who asked for it: war and the front began to be felt very close. The families that we welcomed and to which we willingly gave a "accommodation" were that of my brother-in-law Capecci with his wife and a six-year-old son, that of Nencioni, made up of Ferruccio, his wife Milena, his daughter Giovanna, his mother Erminia; that of Fomi Canzio with his wife Rosa and children Ugo, Ezio, Edoardo known as “Piri”. Our family was made up of twelve people and precisely: me, my husband Mario and the children Renato of 14, Antonio of 11, Carlo of 8, Maria of 6 and Giuseppe of 4, my brother-in-law Luchetti Avellino with his wife Rosalinda and children Remo, Guido and Vittorio; another brother-in-law, Fernando, was in the military and therefore did not have our terrible experience. We had settled down like this: we, the Capecci family and Ferruccio with their wife and one of their daughters, Giovanna, were settled in the house as best they could. The Forni family and the remaining members of the Nencioni family, Erminia, Eufemia and Conforto were housed in the tobacco drying room, about thirty meters from home. Life went by in a "normal" way and we were all waiting for the allied troops, whose artillery shots we could distinctly hear over the hill towards Perugia, would arrive to take us away from the nightmare of Nazi-Fascist domination and war on the front line. A few days before that terrible 28th June 1944, Canzio's wife, Rosa and his son Ugo, left “Penetola” and found accommodation with the Domenichini family (known as Giancamillo), towards the locality of S. Anna. This was because Rosa had been seized by a strong fright due to the bombing actions of the allied aviation which gave no respite to the German troops now retreating towards the north. Our house was located about three hundred meters from the "Niccone road" which leads to Lake Trasimeno. At the point where you leave the road to reach our house, there is a small bridge that had been mined by the German troops. A few soldiers were employed as sentry on the bridge to whom one of my sons, Antonio, brought fresh milk from our cows every morning. The relations of all of us with the soldiers on guard at the bridge had always been very good, if not downright cordial to the point that one of these soldiers used to deal with me. when he called me and when I met him, the nickname "mami". In short, not a disagreement, never a gesture of intolerance, nothing that could arouse suspicion or anything else. At one o'clock on June 28th we were immersed in sleep, when we heard loud knocks on the door of the house on an external balcony which was accessed by a flight of steps. Not even the time to go and open it when a violent push opened it all wide with great noise. My husband Mario, who in the meantime had got out of bed, found himself in front of four soldiers in "German uniform" and with the insignia of the "SS" units. To my husband's question about what they wanted and the reason for that sudden visit, one of the four, "in perfect Italian", told him that outside the house there were other soldiers who wanted fresh water to drink. My husband went down the stairs, accompanied the soldiers who were out to the well not far from the house and after a while he returned. In the meantime, almost all those who slept in the house had gathered around the four soldiers, who were talking among themselves, without deigning us to look or to say a sentence. We asked the reason for that "visit" late at night, but no one answered. After some time one of them, not the one who had asked for water, told us that we were "partisans". It said: “banditen. banditen ". Then he added that they had been ordered to shoot us. Shoot us! For what reason? What had we done? To our protests of innocence they responded with mockery and kept repeating "all die, all die," banditen, banditen. "In the meantime, accompanied by the German soldiers who had remained outside, all the other people who slept in the tobacco drying that, under the threat of weapons, they had been forced to follow them. Terror was painted on everyone's faces. We kept asking for explanations, asking why we were sentenced to death, begging us not to do it because we were all innocent. Nothing we had committed. not a gesture, not a word that could have "offended the Germanic honor", but they continued with the usual phrase "all die, banditen." We again begged for our salvation or at least that of the children. charge small creatures because they deserved death? Nothing to do: not even the children were to be spared. We ALL had to die !!! we could no longer communicate even with each other! A "German" soldier arrived, one of those who had remained outside and forced us all to enter a single environment. Occasionally some other family members who had remained in other rooms would arrive. In the end we counted: we were 24 people. Before locking ourselves in this unique environment, we were literally stripped of all our possessions, even the most insignificant. Those who slept outside had suffered the same fate. They had been plundered of all their belongings before being led into the house. Once again, before all the soldiers left, we begged for safety. at least for children. Nothing, they didn't even answer. where some soldiers were on guard, we saw other soldiers accumulating hay in the adjoining rooms. The soldiers were constantly going outside and returning with large armfuls of hay which they systematically deposited in the rooms. Why did the soldiers pile up all that hay? Did they intend to use it as bedding to spend the night and maybe shoot them in the morning? We pondered this fact when acrid smoke and dense began to invade our room. The smoky air was unbreathable. We tried to escape in other environments, but the fire had already flared up and we were pushed back by the flames and the smoke.No one will ever understand what we felt in those moments, not even I would know exactly what happened.In that atmosphere of terror, I remember that one of the first to find death was my son Renato, who, wanting to understand what was happening outside, cautiously approached the window and, always staying behind the glass, looked out. A flash, an immense flame and a tremendous roar hit us. When I recovered from my daze, I looked towards the window and saw my son lying on the ground with a horribly mutilated arm and other wounds to his face. I approached to bring him help but he, perhaps aware of his imminent death, said to me “Mom, it's over, don't think about me anymore, think about my brothers. Try to escape from this hell ”. These were his last words. Death had come through a bomb that one of the soldiers stationed outside the house, had thrown against the window after having glimpsed the face of my poor boy. Those who had saved themselves from the explosion of the first bomb, left the room trying to take shelter in other rooms not yet reached by the flames. My husband and I were petrified by pain, close to our Renato, when another flash and another detonation tore through the room still saturated with the acrid smoke of the previous explosion. The "beast" had thrown another deadly device through the window, now torn up by the first bomb. I felt terrible wounds all over my body. I began to bleed in several parts, but I always remained conscious. I approached my husband looking for help, but he too was injured by the shrapnel of the deadly device, in the side and in the leg. Despite the injuries and the pain that was beginning to be felt, I tried desperately to be useful to my children. I had one, the youngest, 4-year-old Giuseppe who with his 6-year-old sister had escaped the massacre. Because of the smoke that impregnated the environment, Giuseppe fainted from time to time and I had to shake him so that he could resume "living". Always in the grip of terror we continued desperately to seek refuge in the environments still spared by the fire. I remember that in order to remove the flames we used vinegar that was in a "keg". We soaked the clothes in vinegar and then threw it against the door and the walls of the room that had overheated. We were thus able to extinguish some tongues of fire that licked the doors, opening a passage for us. The shots and volleys of automatic weapons continued to come from outside. I still have before my eyes the figure of Conforto who, with a knife in his hand, wandered from one environment to another trying to do something to get out of that pit of hell. In fact, with the strength of desperation, he had managed to break some tiles on the floor of a room that was above the sheep shed. Little by little he had managed to make a hole in the floor such as to allow, always with difficulty, the passage of a person. From this hole he had his sister Eufemia descend first, then his niece Giovanna. He then returned to our room and begged his mother, who was close to me, to go downstairs too. Erminia was reluctant to go down, but when Conforto told her that Eufemia and Giovanna had already got out, she followed her son and went down to the stable too. Comfort came down last. Later, when the tragedy was over; Erminia, Conforto and her mother, all three were found murdered by bursts of machine guns. Giovanna, on the other hand, was found with a slight wound in the shoulder, at the height of the neck, hidden under a cart in the farmyard. At one point I realized that three of my children, the older ones, were no longer in the room with us. I immediately went in search of them in those environments where it was possible to go. Nothing. Had they tried to escape the tragedy? But where had they gone from to go outside, if the main door that led to the stairs leading out was still burning? They had alighted from some window "? No one had seen them! Outside, there were still shots at times, albeit with less intensity. It was becoming more and more day and from the window we could see the surrounding hills and woods. Where were my three children? What were they? Had it happened? For some minutes we had not heard the gunshots anymore. I remained in the room for a few more minutes: the silence had become total. The soldiers had gone away? Not hearing any noise, I took myself to the window that faced the house of "Bendinello", a neighboring settler, who lived with the Bendini and Bioli families. Slowly I opened the window, but without looking around. a hill, four people looking towards our house. In one of these I recognized the owner of the farm, Gnoni Gio Batta. Always hidden inside, I tried with desperate feats of the hand to recall their and let him know we needed help. But they didn't see me, also because of the smoke still rising from the house. A few more minutes passed; we stayed in the house, we didn't risk going out. Besides, where could we get out if the front door was still burning? After a while my sister-in-law's husband, Capecci, managed to enter our room and took us to another room facing south. From the window of this room, with some sheets tied like a rope, he had made his wife, son and other people come out into the open. But of my children, nothing. Slowly I, my husband and others were lowered too. As soon as we hit the ground, without even standing up, we rolled up the slope like so many "empty cans". The terror, the pain of the wounds were nothing compared to the anguish of not knowing where my children had gone. Slowly, still on all fours, we entered the surrounding vegetation. The Ovens tried to escape from a window that was to the east of the house. Under the window was the enclosure attached to the pig barn. And it is precisely inside the “bregno” of the pigs that the lifeless body of Edoardo (known as Piri) was found, almost as if he were sitting on the ground. Those of the father Canzio and of the other son Ezio were a few meters away from the pig stall, slaughtered with machine gun shots. Ferruccio and his wife Milena were found near the main door of the house, almost on the balcony overlooking the outside. They had tried to escape the tragedy on that side but, seen, they too had been prey to the "beasts" lurking and shot down with machine guns. I don't know how long we spent in this situation. After a while we saw some German soldiers, accompanied by people in civilian clothes, coming towards us. What to do? Run away again? To go where? From their gestures it seemed to us that they wanted to tell us not to fear. But despite this, my brother-in-law Avellino didn't want to wait and in no time at all, he started running and disappearing into the thicket of the nearby wood. As the soldiers approached, they tried to make us understand that they had come to help the wounded and, if necessary, take us to the hospital. In fact, my husband and I, who had more need and urgency to be treated, were loaded onto a military van. They would take us to the Città di Castello hospital. During the journey, about 20 kilometers, we heard the soldiers talking among themselves and every now and then they uttered the words "partisans" "banditen". When we arrived near Città di Castello, through the provincial road of Trestina and we were over the bridge over the Tiber, we seemed to understand that the soldiers were willing to throw us down. In fact they stopped. Then they left again and they crossed the bridge. After crossing the bridge, finding no indications from the hospital, they took us back with the vehicle that was moving at a walking pace. And they always repeating “partisans, banditen”. An old woman appeared to whom the soldiers asked for information from the hospital, which because of the war had been transferred to the seminary in the center of the city. The old woman understood the word hospital and perhaps thinking she could not sufficiently explain the path and also given our condition, the wounds were bleeding profusely, she got on the vehicle and accompanied us to the hospital. The soldiers unloaded us badly by handing us over to the first service person they encountered. In handing over to us they repeated the usual words "partisans, banditen". Hearing these words, even the stretcher bearers who had arrived in the meantime remained undecided on what to do and almost did not intend to hospitalize us. After some explanations they understood the situation and gave us the first attention. On the other hand, the attitude of the hospital staff was also understandable as there was the death penalty for those who had assisted the partisans. During this whole ordeal my mind was always turned to my children. What happened to them? Had they managed to escape the tragedy? So why was no one giving me news? It was a constant torture. The next day or after “a few days, I don't remember, we received a visit from some German soldiers, including some officers. They wanted information and clarification on what had happened and if there had been any serious actions by any of us unleash violent retaliation. They listened to us and before leaving they said that the transport of the bodies to the cemetery had been authorized. I looked at my husband and we immediately understood that the tragedy had not spared our creatures. In fact, Renato, Antonio and Carlo had not escaped. A few days passed and the German soldiers returned to question us again, and again they made us tell the facts of that terrible night. We understood that there was no trace of those who had somehow received "offense" or of those who had authorized the retaliation in the German area command. Mystery. Our hospital stay lasted for about a month and when the wounds "of the flesh" began to heal, we were discharged and brought back to our remaining loved ones who, in the meantime, had moved to a farmhouse further upstream than ours, which had been destroyed. from the fire and the wickedness of "men". IL RACCONTO DI DINA THE OTHER VICTIMS For many years I lived with those poor victims in the same hamlet; I lived in the same building with the Forni family and therefore, knowing them well enough, I would like ... for what emerges from distant memories, to talk about them recalling some facts. Of the Forni family, who was closest to me, Canzio was the head of the family, Rosa his second wife and their children Ugo. Ezio and Edoardo (called Piri). As I have already mentioned, Canzio was part of that large group of Niccone stonecutters, for whom it is necessary to say a few words as their work was required and very important. In fact, most of the stonecutters of the municipality and neighboring municipalities were concentrated in the hamlet of Niccone. I list them according to my memories: Giuseppe Medici and his son Orlando (Guido), Menotti Nencioni, the Testerini brothers (Dante, Primo, Secondo), Canzio Fomi and Ferruccio Nencioni (victims of Penetola), Magino Faloci, Antonio Nanni, Carlo Mattioni , According to Magrini and, the only living ones, Marino Baccellini and Duilio Truffelli; the latter is the rebuilder of the Rocca fountain, which was rebuilt in 1978 by the municipal administration. Their specialty was the processing of “sandstone” or serena stone which they extracted mainly from the “Giappichini” quarries near Molino Vitelli, “Fariale”, near Mita and from Monte Acuto. This type of stone was used for pavement of sidewalks, for gutters, fireplaces, columns and doorposts, stairs, window sills. Some important works of these stonecutters are the facade of the parish church of Niccone, the external columns of the Collegiate church, the door of the town hall and some chapels of the various cemeteries scattered throughout the territory. The martyrdom of Canzio and his sons Ezio and Edoardo, according to reliable rumors of those who were in the house of "Penetola", can thus be reconstructed. Despite the guard that some soldiers kept at the windows, it seems that Ezio found a way to throw himself outdoors, followed by his father Canzio and his brother Edoardo. From the way the corpses of Ezio and his father were found, it seems that Ezio had managed to throw himself out of that hell and take a few steps in the direction of "life". Knowing that his father had jumped out shortly after, not seeing him, he turned back. Instead his father, seen by the Germans, had been mowed down by a burst of machine guns. Ezio saw him and stooped to help him; at that moment the Germans came out and he too was killed and fell face down on his father's body. From Ezio's position, the conviction arises that the facts have had this development. Edoardo was found by the rescuers, sitting on the ground with his back leaning against the wall surrounding the pig barn, as if he were sleeping. Perhaps he too had managed to climb out of the window, but not to escape the lurking "criminals". Ferruccio was also a stone worker and a passionate hunter; who does not remember his hunting tales? They were so precise in all the smallest details that when he told them he made us relive the scenes, the sensations, as if we had been present on the hunt. Ferruccio's mother, Erminia », his wife Milena, his sister Eufemia and his brother Conforto (called Sostegno), all met a horrible death in the tragic night. I have a vivid memory of Conforto (known as Sostegno), as together, he as a private owner, I as an intern, we met at the middle school license exam (Avviamento) and together we prepared for the exams. He worked in Milan at the tram company of the Lombard metropolis and since he wanted to progress in his career, he had returned to his native country to take his secondary school diploma. In Milan he would then undertake evening courses for working students and would have liked to graduate from high school. He was thirty-six at the time of his death, not married not because he lacked opportunities, but he said that before getting married he wanted to secure a better position. Eufemia, she too was not married, had always dedicated herself together with her mother Erminia and her sister Virginia (the only survivor of the tragedy because she was displaced elsewhere with her family) to manage Niccone's grocery store. Milena, Ferruccio's wife, was a talented and sought-after dressmaker for women. The two daughters, Gaetana and Giovanna, who were 13 and 5 years old respectively, were saved from the tragedy that struck the Nencioni family. Gaetana was displaced elsewhere with her maternal grandmother Settimia; Giovanna, finding herself in the place of the massacre, luckily managed to take refuge under a farm cart. The soldiers raged against her too, firing a few rifle shots that luckily failed. All this happened on June 28, 1944. After a few days, while I was walking through the surrounding countryside and precisely near the house of the colonist Ciubini, a sharecropper of the Boncompagni, I saw a black soldier approaching, holding a can, which looked like a mess tin; with a crippled Italian, with the help of his hand, he asked for fresh milk to drink. It was the clear sign that the nightmare was about to end and, now free from the fear of being "taken" by the fascists and the Germans, I ran like a colt not yet tamed, towards the house of "Fornacino" bringing the news to everyone. The next morning the bulk of the allied troops had already established, a few hundred meters south of the “Fornacino” house, a line of fire, which for a few days shelled northwards where the German troops had withdrawn. LE ALTRE VITTIME THE VICTIMS Penetola di Niccone (Umbertide), June 28, 1944 IVORY Antonio - 11 years IVORY Carlo - 8 years IVORY Renato - 14 years FERRINI Milena in Nencioni - 41 years OVENS Canzio - 58 years FORNI Ezio - 21 years OVENS Edoardo - 16 years LUCHETTI Guido - 18 years NENCIONI Conforto - 36 years NENCIONI Eufemia - 44 years NENCIONI Ferruccio - 46 years RENZINI Erminia in Nencioni - 68 years LE VITTIME Photo: Giovanni, known as Gianni Bottaccioli. Photos, like the whole work, granted by the daughters Elvira and Giovanna. Help us remember umbertidestoria@gmail.com

GENERALE ALBERTO BRIGANTI UN PIONIERE DELL’AVIAZIONE GENERAL ALBERTO BRIGANTI AN AVIATION PIONEER curated by Fabio Mariotti by Alvaro Gragnoli The Frecce Tricolori for the 100th anniversary of the General August 31, 1996. The roar of the engines of the PAN MB339s, Aerobatic Team Nazionale Frecce Tricolori, is felt throughout Umbertide making the windows tremble houses. It forces citizens to roll their eyes to admire those planes so low, with the tricolor painted under the wings and on the fuselage, that in an instant disappear from sight. But after a few minutes here they appear again leaving a long trail of white, red and green smoke, and waving its wings in greeting up to disappear in the distance. Enthusiasm and surprise mix because not everyone knows that in the council chamber municipal, with a simple ceremony, wishes are being given to the general of the Alberto Briganti Air Force. He has just turned one hundred and the Frecce Tricolori they came to pay homage to the soldier and the man who had so much importance in the history of national aviation. But the Air Force Band also wanted to be present on this unrepeatable occasion and, in the evening, held a very popular concert at the Teatro del Parco Ranieri. The birth in Umbertide in 1896 If Umbertide has given valuable pilots, some of which are highly decorated (1), and if many young people continue to enlist in aviation, it is also due to the story of Briganti. Which curiously begins as a sailor. Born in Umbertide on December 22, 1896, he was orphaned by his mother at the age of two and was raised by his grandmother, who managed to get him to study until he graduated from secondary school. Perhaps we would have had one more teacher or accountant, and one less general if, during the holidays of the year of middle school, two Umbertidesi had not returned to the city and they would push him to the choice of life. One is long-time captain Armando Bettoni, who is he will thrill with stories about his life as a sailor, and the other is Count Balilla Grilli, director of the “Vittorio Emanuele” marine college in Livorno, who invites him to enroll in his school. And the young Alberto leaves for Livorno, where in 1915 he will obtain his nautical diploma and, at the beginning of 1916, having not yet called up the draft of 1896, he embarks on the steamship “Assiria”. He begins to navigate between the various ports of the Tyrrhenian Sea, but as soon as the course for additional officer cadets at the Naval Academy is announced, he applies and is ranked eleventh out of 120 participants. From the Navy to the Aviation It is during the exams that the admiral commanding the school informs them that the Navy needs airmen and invites them to apply. Sixteen of them decide in this sense and so the young Alberto who, his comment, "I went to the Nautical Institute without having seen the sea and without knowing how to swim, I went to aviation without ever having seen an airplane up close" (2), is envoy at the Flight School of Taranto, where he follows the course held by ten. of ship Mario Calderara, Italian pilot's license n.1 and pupil of Wilbur Wright. In May 1917 he obtained the seaplane pilot license and was assigned to the Venice office. We are in the middle of the war and the bombing and reconnaissance actions carried out at the controls of an L3 aircraft built by Macchi are daily. The objectives are mainly the port of Pula, the base of the navy Austrian, and the area around the Piave river. It is in the course of one of these actions that he is injured the thigh while still managing to return to the base even with the plane riddled with shots. In the Great War he was decorated with two medals bronze for the following reasons: “Bold seaplane pilot, after having strafed at low altitude stalking of enemy machine gunners, although wounded, seen his squadron leader descend into the swamp, he lingered on the spot until he made sure it was rescue from another seaplane and, despite the suffering, he then brought the aircraft back to the departure station demonstrating great fortitude. Basso Piave December 16, 1917 ". "Seaplane pilot was performing numerous bombings […] in enemy territory demonstrating always zeal and in various critical circumstances, admirable courage and calm. Upper Adriatic July-December 1918 "(3). The end of the war found him in Ancona from where he was transferred in May 1919, at the headquarters in Fiume. There he lives with D'Annunzio the whole dramatic history of that city. Returning to civilian life, he founds an airline, which however has a short life troubled. He then presents himself to the competition announced by the Regia Marina for officers in SPE, he brilliantly overtakes it and is embarked on the battleship “Vittorio Emanuele ”with the rank of lieutenant. But it is clear that his fate it is not facing the sea because, when it was founded in October 1923 the Air Force as an independent body, the decision to change the uniform of the Navy with that of the Air Force is taken without any second thoughts. “I had to choose my fate. I had been an aviator for five years […] I was slipped twice into the sea, I had been wounded in the air, faced storms and grazed death many times, but I had never had a moment of perplexity for having chosen to be a pilot " . (A. Briganti. "Op. Quoted) Thus he met Italo Balbo who had been entrusted with the task of organizing the new weapon, became his instructor for the pilot's license on seaplanes and in 1927 he was his flight assistant. In this new role she organizes and participates in various air cruises in the Mediterranean and in Europe. The one that sees him most committed at an organizational level and in which he should have participated as a driver, is the Atlantic crossing on the Savoia-Marchetti S.55A seaplanes from Rome to Brazil, which made Balbo and the Italian Air Force famous all over the world. But comes the appointment as aide-de-camp to the King, to which he cannot say no and must necessarily renounce. He will leave this post in 1933 to take command of the seaplane base of Orbetello. In this capacity, when his subject, the pilot lieutenant Roberto Federici asks him to be a witness at his wedding willingly accepts. The bride is a certain Claretta Petacci, who sadly ended her life alongside the Duce in Dongo. In 1936, at the age of forty, he was promoted to general. Duke Amedeo d'Aosta, commander of the first air division L'Aquila, communicates this to him. From that moment on, he would have been employed by him, having managed "to snatch him from Italo Balbo who wanted him with him" (4). He will remain with the duke for a little less than two years when, after a short period in the ministry as head of the training and operations department of the General Staff, he is assigned to Tripoli as commander of the Libyan Air Force. He thus returned to the employ of Balbo, who at that moment was the Governor of the Italian colony. In 1938 he was at his side in Germany in the meeting he had with Goering and Hitler, and with him he remained in Libya until the end of May 1940, when he was assigned to command the Milan Air Zone. On June 10, Italy also enters the war. On the 28th of the same month Italo Balbo will be shot down by our anti-aircraft in the skies of Tobruch (5). Thus closes a cycle of Briganti's life that had been full of satisfaction and interest. War, imprisonment and escape In March 1943, after spending about a year as commander-in-chief of the Navy Aviation (Italy was preparing an aircraft carrier, "L'Aquila", which was damaged by British bombing and the project was abandoned), destined for the command of the Air Force of the Aegean based in Rhodes. Here is the 8th of September and when the Germans invite all the military Italians to enlist in their army, the gen. Briganti refuses and sends a letter to the German command, of which we report a passage: “Today the King of Italy has ordered the suspension of hostilities towards the Anglo-American armed forces. Having taken an oath of loyalty to the King, the Departments of the Aegean Air Force feel the obligation to obey his orders and therefore declare, through me, to refrain from hostile acts both against the Anglo-Americans and against the Germanic troops: not therefore they can enlist in any army other than the Italian one ”. The consequence of this letter is the arrest and the transfer to Lager 64 / Z of Schokken in Poland, where he arrives after a long transfer first by plane and then by train. Lager 64 / Z is a camp intended for senior officers and the life of the prisoners takes place in an acceptable way if compared to other camps, albeit with many privations. Several times the commander of the camp invites the officers to enlist in the army of the Republic of Salò, but they only accept General Biseo, who was Mussolini's personal pilot, and a few others. Thus we arrive at January 20, 1945 when, to escape the advance of the Russian army, the Germans begin the transfer from the camp. It is a very hard march on frozen snow, with the temperature even dropping to 20 degrees below zero, but after five days of suffering, during a stop in the village of Rosko, near the city of Wielen, then the border with Germany, comes the opportunity to escape. It is a local farmer, a certain Domina, who proposes it to the prisoners to whom he is distributing milk and bread, telling them that he would help them. What to do? Go ahead and face the SS who see them as traitors or take risks with the Soviet soldiers instead? The gen. Briganti, the gen. Francesco Arena and ten. with the. of the air force Carlo Unia decide to try. Helped by the farmer who hides them from the sight of the guards, they slip into the door of a house. The column of prisoners passes in front of their hiding place and when it has disappeared in the distance, the three fugitives, accompanied by the Pole, head towards his home. Here they are refreshed and can finally sleep in shelter and warmth. Three days after the escape, on the evening of January 28, Domina and ten. with the. Unia have been out for a while to listen to a clandestine radio, when the door opens violently and two Soviet soldiers appear. Domina's sister tries to explain that the two are Italian prisoners who escaped from the Germans, but the two Soviets, shouting "Italianski, fascisti", violently push her away and they push Briganti and Arena out of the door threatening them with rifles. In the courtyard, while one of them keeps his rifle pointed, the other searches them and appropriates the little they have. The gen. Arena addresses Briganti with the words "here they kill us like dogs", to which Briganti replies: "Dear Arena, we thought we had guessed, but we were wrong". He does not hear the shot, but only a violent blow to the head that makes him fall to the ground unconscious. He will find out only several days later but, when he is lifeless on the ground, the soldier fires a second shot at him which wounds him in the neck. When he wakes up, he tries to understand what happened and only realizes the wound in his left ear that has torn part of the scalp. He sheds a lot of blood and can't stand, but he's alive, even if the pain in the head is excruciating. Look for gen. Arena and sees it a stone's throw from him poured in his blood. He did not have the same luck (6). With much suffering he drags himself home, the blow to the ear has upset the sense of balance and only with great pain does he manage to enter. All fours approaches the bed and, sitting on the ground, leans on it exhausted. A little later he hears one patter outside the door and thinks it is Unia and Domina returning. He calls them, but sees the two Soviet soldiers from just before entering. Then he lets himself slide to the ground, his right hand under his head, hoping that they think he is dead. It is not so. One shot and the bullet hits the thumb and touches the head. He closes his eyes thinking that this time he will not have the same luck and when he feels a contact in his chest, he thinks it is the barrel of the gun for the last shot. But it is the soldier's hand that tears off the insignia of his uniform and then he goes away. The next morning Domina, together with col. Unia finds him lying on the bed, with the blood he has crossed the pillow and spilled onto the floor. He gives him first aid but only after a fortnight does he partially regain his sense of balance and can be transported to the hospital in Scharnikow about twenty kilometers away. It is here that he discovers that there are two head injuries that, however, are fortunately healing. The wound on the thumb is infected, the finger is very sore and swollen to the point that it needs to be cut. There are no surgical instruments and a sharpener disinfected by the flame of a lighter is used. In the absence of medicines, the wound is treated in an "artisanal" way, with the methods used by local farmers; the effects are still very effective and it will heal perfectly, while it will take several months to recover the balance. Meanwhile, the situation is slowly, albeit chaotically, normalizing and the Soviets organize the grouping of ex-prisoners of the Germans, Italians and allies, for repatriation. The lack of means, the interrupted lines and the resulting chaos will make the return journey long and difficult, albeit alleviated by the availability and help of the populations of the various countries crossed. The first days of September 1945 Alberto Briganti is in Ukraine from where he finally manages to continue with a certain regularity through half of Europe and to reach Italy. On 5 October 1945 he reunites with his family. The two head wounds, now healed, are the silent testimony of how much luck has helped him. The postwar period After the hostilities, we proceed with the reorganization of the Ministry of Aeronautics. Chief of Staff is appointed gen. of air squad Mario Ajmone-Cat, who wants the gen. Brigands in the commission charged with studying the new system. For the laws on the matter, Briganti is submitted to the judgment of the 1st degree commission for the purge of military personnel, accused of "having carried out undoubted fascist political activity by participating in action squads". But he was acquitted "for not having given manifestations of serious bias and having already for many years detached himself from the fascist ideology and abstained from further and specific political activities". In August 1946 he was appointed Deputy Chief of Staff to replace gen. Ajmone-Cat, sent to Paris for peace negotiations. In a speech to the Chamber, the Hon. Cingolani, Minister of the Air Force, to silence concerns that there were generals with fascist and monarchist backgrounds at the top, declares: "If these officers, who yesterday were monarchists in good faith, in good faith today they accept to serve the Republic, and it is the case of the new Chief of Staff (Briganti, ed.), there is no reason not to believe that faith and that word "(7). In the six months that he held the post, Briganti managed to establish excellent personal relationships with his American allies, which gave him the opportunity to reconstitute a first military aviation unit using aircraft decommissioned by the allies. At the same time, he obtained the authorization to set up a civil aviation company. Thus was born the LAI (Italian Airlines) associated with the US TWA, immediately followed by another company, Alitalia, associated with British Airways. Subsequently, the two companies will merge into one, with the name Alitalia. In the years 1948-1949 Briganti was secretary general of the Air Force and in this capacity he was responsible for the design of the new Rome airport, which became necessary because that of Ciampino, due to the increased commercial traffic, is becoming insufficient. The choice falls on the Fiumicino area. Briganti presents a project that, at the Paris Air Show in 1949, collects the admiration of all experts; they call it "the most rational airport in the world". But in 1951, when he was general manager of Civil Aviation, he was unable to oppose a series of changes that would completely upset the project and lead to what is now the “Leonardo da Vinci” airport. Briganti will also hold the positions of president of the superior council of the Air Force and president of the superior council of the Armed Forces. He retired in 1954, having reached the age limit, with the rank of "four-star air squad general". At the time of his leave, the then President of the Republic Giovanni Gronchi, addressed this letter to the general: Dear General, when you leave the permanent service for having reached the age limit, I am pleased to send you the expression of gratitude that the Country and the Air Force owe you for what you have done for both as Navy and Air Force Officer. Bold pilot in peace and war, Commander of large mobilized air units, heroic defender of the island of Rhodes on 8 September 1943, reorganizer of the Italian military and civil Air Force as Chief of Staff and Secretary General of the Air Force, President of the Superior Council of the Armed Forces; these are the brilliant stages of your service, which make you a high example of soldier, organizer and leader. The firmness and pride of mind demonstrated during the internment in Poland, which left marks in His spirit and in His body still visible today, add a note of moral value which, together with the daring and high sense of duty, make it for the Air Force and for the country well worthy of esteem and memory. Please, dear General, my best wishes and many cordial greetings. Giovanni Gronchi. Rome June 16, 1955 (8). Among the many Italian and foreign decorations of which gen. Briganti was awarded the very high honor of "Knight of the Grand Cross of the Military Order of Italy", with the following motivation: "General Officer of high military qualities [...] Commander of the Air Force of the Aegean, at the time of the armistice he kept an exemplary demeanor as a man and as a Commander, personally following and pointing out to his employees the way of honor and duty. Aegean 1943 "(9). The monument at the Umbertide cemetery Briganti died in Rome on 2 July 1997 and was buried in the cemetery of "his" Umbertide. The story could end here, but we want to tell one last episode, indicative of how hard it is to die a mentality anchored in a distant past. In the early 2000s, the Umbertide Airmen Association, led by the colonel pilot Giuseppe Cozzari (silver medal and war cross for military valor), who with gen. Briganti collaborated after the war, he would like to honor with a monument the fellow citizen who gave so much prestige to his hometown. All the associates, but in particular the col. Cozzari and Marshal Muzio Venti , will work body and soul to achieve the target. The task of designing it is entrusted to Adriano Bottaccioli , painter, graphic, historical, much appreciated not only in Umbertide. The local Lions supports the initiative providing all possible help, including financial. The Cassa foundations also contribute di Risparmio di Perugia and Città di Castello. The municipal administration, to which it comes requested a space for the placement of the monument, he prevaricates for a long time until he gives his own decided "no". The reasons, even if not explicitly stated, seem obvious: yes it can honor those who have had a fascist past, albeit subordinated to a high sense of State, even if he acquired considerable merit in the activities to which he was called by Italian republic. We forget that in the much warmer years immediately after the war, with a very different spirit, a municipal administration of the same political color, had even organized the funeral - it was later learned that it was fake because the body was not been found again - to honor the driver Fausto Fornaci, who fell fighting for the Italian Social Republic. Meanwhile the years pass, the col. Cozzari and Marshal Venti and the stalemate does not seem to be unblocked. Finally, in 2008, a compromise was proposed: the monument could have its place inside the city cemetery. If, as Foscolo says, "the strong soul ignites the urn of the strong for excellent things", this is certainly not the ideal place, far from the gaze of anyone. But no alternatives are allowed. The solution is accepted, obtorto collo, and the monument is placed in the area of the new cemetery. A wonderful example to our dear departed ones. NOTE: 1. as Fausto Fornaci (Altotiberine Pages n.50), Gen. EMPucci (2 silver medals and War Cross at VM, Gen. A. Contini (3 silver medals at VM). two wars, there were 18 silver medals in the VM, 4 war crosses, 6 bronze medals, numerous commendations. (Luciana Ranieri Honorati. "The Umbrians in the history of flight" - Perugia 1984 - San Paolo di Tivoli. ) 2. A. Briganti, “Beyond the clouds the serene” Nuovo Studio Tecna - Rome - 2nd ed. Sept. 1994 3. Luciana Ranieri Honorati "The Umbrians in the history of flight - Perugia 1984‐ 4. Duke Amedeo d'Aosta defined Briganti's military and professional qualities in this way: “The complex of his moral skills, his culture and serenity of character, make it easy for him to work as an educator. Employees immediately feel confident in him and carry out their duties with keen enthusiasm. A very skilled pilot, he demonstrates in navigation that he possesses uncommon qualities for safety, expertise and in-depth knowledge of all the most modern systems. Excellent bombing pilot with 20/20. Excellent general of the Air Bombardment Brigade. May 1937 ". (Lucia R.Honorati. Op. Cited) 5. The next day an RAF plane parachuted a laurel wreath on the Italian field with the following note: "The British air forces express their sincere regret for the death of Marshal Balbo, a great leader and a valiant aviator who fate posed in the adverse field ". Today the body of Italo Balbo rests among those of the Atlantic flyers in a sector of the Orbetello cemetery reserved for them. 6. He will be buried in the small cemetery of the town and the grave will always be cared for by some inhabitants, until his return to Italy about fifteen years later. (A. Briganti. Op. Cited) 7. A. Briganti. Op. Cited 8. A. Briganti. Op. Cited 9. Luciana Ranieri Honorati. (Op cited) The photos, and the quotations in italics of the text, are taken from the book " Beyond the clouds the serene " by A. Briganti, and from the internet. The photos of the ceremonies are by Fabio Mariotti. Sources: Alberto Briganti “ Beyond the clouds, the serene ” 2nd edition ‐ September 1994 - Nuovo Studio Tecna ‐ Rome Luciana Ranieri Honorati. “ The Umbrians in the history of flight ” - Perugia 1984 - San Paolo di Tivoli printing press. This essay was published in nr. 53 - 2014 by Pagine Altotiberine published by the "Historical Association of the Upper Tiber Valley" on p. 127 It has also been published on the website “umbertideturismo.it” - Municipality of Umbertide The Frecce Tricolori above the Collegiate Church The religious ceremony in the Collegiate Church On the right, the General accompanied by Marshal Muzio Venti The Macchi L3 plane 1955. The General with the mayor Faloci after his leave The cover of the autobiographical book The Lt. Col. Pilot dr. Giuseppe Cozzari The project of the monument by Adriano Bottaccioli The monument at the Umbertide cemetery (Photo by Alvaro Gragnoli) The monument during the inauguration The deposition of a crown by the military authorities

THE FRACTAL OF THE CINQUECENTO The rules of life in the Fratta of the 16th century Curated by Fabio Mariotti In addition to wrinkles and white hair, the accumulation of birthdays in itself proportionally restricts the feeling of depth of the centuries; if we then realize that the weaknesses of the men of half a millennium ago are substantially the same as today, the norms of the Statutes of the Fratta of 1521 seem to be placed just around the corner left behind us. There is nothing new in plain sight: fears, greed, selfishness, in perennial antagonism with the aspirations of security, justice, equality. And the willingness to turn a blind eye to the former and to the detriment of the latter: every era has its own compromises. Prostitution Although fornication is forbidden by its nature and by divine law, nevertheless the lesser evil is sometimes tolerated in order to avoid the greater one. Therefore we establish and order that in the castle or in the neighboring villages, according to common judgment, a home or refuge is identified for prostitutes who, for a set price, put themselves at the service and give their bodies to the pleasure of young people or others in need. Therefore prostitutes must exercise their service in this place assigned to them or in remote places outside the villages, far from the women's conversation areas, to protect huts and mats so that they cannot be seen. Therefore we establish and order that prostitutes who provide their service in the street, in the square, in the tavern or in other public places be sentenced to 20 soldi: credit can be given to any accuser, assisted by a witness worthy of faith, receiving in this case one third of the sentence. Adultery We establish and order that anyone who attempts to rape any woman, rich or poor, known or unknown, be punished; the penalty is 20 lire if the female is of good family and reputation; it is reduced to 10 lire if it is chat. On the other hand, anyone who actually commits adultery with married women against their will is punished with 25 lire, for each woman and for each time. In the event that the violation is committed - against their will - with spinster women, virgins, unmarried women, nuns or whimsical women, the penalty of 25 lire is added to the penalty established by the Statutes of Perugia: the penalty is halved if the female is consenting. The betrayal If a married man engages in carnal relations with a female in contempt of his woman and, similarly, if a married woman does with a man, in contempt and against the will of her husband, the man or woman will be punished or punished with 10 lire, whoever infringes these rules. In these cases, the testimony of the neighbors constitutes legitimate and sufficient proof. The riots If someone in the castle or in the villages incites or promotes a riot or a fight in order to disturb the quiet of the castle, involving up to 20 people or causing a murder or a beating, he will be subjected to the penalty of 10 lire, without prejudice to the subsequent sentence. by the podestà of Perugia. Anyone who causes disturbances in the council or general assembly, or plots and conspires, will be punished with 10 lire which must be paid immediately without trial before leaving the building. Anyone who provokes a protest or a riot such as to cause a scandal will be punished with 40 soldi. The podestà will have to carry out investigations to identify such wrongdoings, at least once a month; in case of negligence the podestà will have to pay a fine of 100 soldi. The night owls We establish and order that no one should wander around the castle and its surroundings after the third ring of the municipality bell which must be rung by the bell ringer in the evening as soon as the castle clock strikes one hour after dark; time must pass between the strokes to recite a miserere. A penalty of 5 soldi is applied to the bell ringer for every time he does not carry out his task; a penalty of 10 soldi is imposed on anyone who is caught walking around at night without lights. Anyone who has lights or embers lit before leaving the house is exempt from the penalty; also exempt are doctors or pharmacists, bakers who go to order bread, those who bring or withdraw bread from the oven, those who go to look for the midwife and also those who prove that the light has gone out due to the wind or in any case against the his will, or who watches over the fires that the neighbors sometimes light on the street or those who stay cool around the house in the evening. The inns No host or hotelier can house any straggler or rebel or condemned by the Holy Church or by the city of Perugia; may not allow gambling by lending cards, dice or board. The host will have to carry out the serving with the correct and stamped measures. We intend to prohibit hoteliers from accommodating more than 10 men without the authorization of the mayor; in suspicious times no man or woman can be hosted without this authorization, under penalty of 20 soldi. We order that no hotelier lodge an armed guest, unless he has first laid down his arms or refuses to do so; soldiers and officers of the Holy Church and of the city of Perugia who came to the castle by order of the commanders of the same are exempt. The bakers We order that the bakers of the castle must cook the bread brought to their ovens well and according to law, using competence and care. The fee for cooking is set at 2 soldi per bushel of bread; if this remuneration is increased, a penalty of 10 soldi will be imposed each time. If, due to a cooking defect, the bread is bad, the owner of the bread will be compensated. Each oven must be equipped with a chimney that comes out of the roof, to avoid possible fires. Bakers must keep the bread for sale placed in baskets covered with white placemats so that buyers get an appetite and not a stomach upset. Anyone who defrauds the sale will have bread confiscated and assigned, for God's sake, to the poor in the hospital of Santa Croce in Borgo di Sotto. The dead In order for women to behave with due honesty, we order that no female can or should leave the house to cry desperately for any dead, wherever they are, under the penalty of 40 sous. And no female can accompany the dead to the burial, following him weeping and disheveled. And no person, man or woman, is to despair over the grave after the dead have been taken to church and buried and in later times. Anyone who is able to prove such an accusation will receive a third of the sentence, provided they have a trustworthy witness. The corruption To ensure that those in public office have clean hands, we establish and order that no public administrator, in the performance of his function, tries to put any amount of money in his pocket, or behaves with fraud or malice or tries to barter. the benefits granted or forcibly demand or spontaneously receive rewards. Anyone who does not respect these rules will have a penalty equal to four times the amount he has defrauded, traded or illegally earned. Anyone guilty of these crimes will never be able to hold offices again; his crimes must be reported to the public opinion by the auctioneer in all places frequented by the fraudster. The hoarders It is our will to curb the greed and avarice of many people who study with all their ingenuity to accumulate goods (to the displeasure of God and the damage of the neighbor, not satisfied and satisfied with their share) by hoarding wheat and other food to be able to resell when they have increased in value. For this reason we establish and order that no one plots or plots to buy food in this castle and its surroundings and, removing them from common use, causing famine. For each accumulated state a fine of 20 soldi will be applied. Anyone who will allow these hoarders to be unmasked, accusing them, will receive a third part of the sum as a reward. Leprosy In the Old Testament it is written that those infected with leprosy must be segregated from others. So we establish and order that if someone is infected with leprosy the defenders of the castle must inform him or have him informed, with charitable and polite ways, that he is required to move away from the castle and its villages by going to live separated from everyone or in a leper colony. If the leper accepts the invitation, it is better; if, on the other hand, he refuses to leave within an hour, he is advised by the podestà that he must leave the castle within 10 days under the penalty of 5 lire; if he has not left after this deadline, the invitation to leave is renewed within 5 days, under the penalty of 10 lire; if he has not left after this deadline, he is granted another day, under the penalty of 20 lire. If he does not obey, he will have to pay out 20 lire and will be thrown out of the castle door, by popular acclaim. Modesty It is evident that in these modern times honesty has returned to heaven and shame has abandoned even the old ones: in fact, the shameful parts are shown and exposed without respect for anyone, not even for virgins and married women, and with greater insistence by those who have more abundance; and this happens in various places but in particular on the Tiber, in the areas frequented by people. To remedy this filth, we establish and order that those who dare to expose themselves without underwear or other honest cover in the water, swimming at least, to the "stone" or "patollo" along the stretch of Tiber that goes from the Calbi mill to be punished with 5 lire. to the greppo of Cristoforo. Those under the age of 12 and those who jump into the water to save someone who is about to drown are exempt from the sentence. (To facilitate the reading the rules have been reported from the vernacular in the current Italian) Sources: “The rules of life in the Fratta of the '500” are taken from the “Statutes of the Fratta dei Figliuoli di Uberto (Umbertide) of 1521 "(B. Porrozzi, Ed. Pro Loco, Umbertide, 1980). They were published in the Historical Calendar of the Municipality of Umbertide - 1st edition - 1992. All the historic calendars of the Municipality of Umbertide can be found in Pdf format on the institutional websites: www.comune.umbertide.pg.it / www.umbertideturismo.it Le attività economiche La Fratta di Cipriano Piccolpasso Le regole di vita nella Fratta del Cinquecento Le cariche pubbliche Artisti ed opere d'arte Chiese, conventi e il miracolo della Madonna della Regghia I Fanfani di Fratta Gli Statuti della Fraternita di Santa Croce Le regole di vita nella Fratta del Cinquecento La Fratta by Cipriano Piccolpasso Curated by Fabio Mariotti Cipriano Piccolpasso was born in Casteldurante (today's Urbania) in 1524. He began to work as a military architect and was a master of fortifications; from the country of origin it passed to Rimini, Ancona, Fano, Spoleto. Passionate about ceramics, he decided to return to Casteldurante where he distinguished himself as a creator of art majolica and one of the most refined decorators in the sector. Here he opened a factory which soon became famous and which trained numerous workers who later became famous. Author of various works of various kinds, he owes his fame as a writer above all to the treatise “The three books of the potter's art” (1548) in which he illustrates the secrets of the workshop of making ceramics. Here are explained in detail the stages of the production of ceramic products (clay treatment, shaping, firing, glazing, decoration ...), the different construction techniques, the tools used, as well as the different doses of the mixtures and colors. The manuscript is also enriched by autographed plates that report in great detail the decorative types of Durantine widespread in that period (trophies, grotesques, cerquates, ...) and by drawings that illustrate various stages of processing and the fundamental tools of the potter. The treatise, which always remained in Casteldurante first and then in Urbania, became famous starting in 1758, when it was mentioned by Passeri in his book on the history of the majolica of Pesaro and its surroundings. Between 1857 and 1879 it was published at least three times and on 10 January 1861 it was purchased on behalf of the South Kesington Museum (now Victoria and Albert Museum) in London where it still stands today. Piccolpasso died in Casteldurante on 21 November 1579 and was buried in the local church of San Francesco. Cipriano Piccolpasso was for a certain period of time deputy supervisor of the fortresses of Perugia. In this capacity he was sent, in 1565, to visit the state of the fortresses of the castles dependent on that city to ascertain their military potential and then report them. On this occasion he was also at Fratta, he visited the castle walls and the Rocca, making two drawings, one of the perimeter of the walls and a view of the entire castle seen from the south. Piccolpasso came from the Apennines and was almost at the end of the journey, which began in Perugia on April 12 and ended on June 21, 1565. We report his travel notes in which he noted all the steps and the various expenses incurred. Everything is relative to the last week, in which period he was also in Fratta. Piccolpasso reports news on the perimeter of Fratta "La Fratta di Perugia turns rods 138", meaning that the perimeter of the castle walls, measured with the rod used in Perugia (5 meters long), was about seven hundred meters. To make this measurement he used an instrument called "il Bossolo" and also explains how it was used and the inconveniences that can happen if you don't know how to use it. It also gives us information on the distances between Fratta and the neighboring villas and towns Borders of the Fratta of Perugia: Tramontana to the west Città di Castello X miles away, by mile I boundaries; Montone III miles away, for 1/2 mile border; Montalto I miles away, for borders 1/2 miles; Monte Migiano 2 - 1/2 miles away, for borders 1 miles; Monte Castello 3 miles away. Ponente a Mezzogiorno Preggio XII miles away; Castel Rigone far away from Miles XIII. Noon in the Levant Perugia XII miles away; Assisi away XX miles. Levante to Tramontana Gubbio distant XII miles; La Serra and Civitella miles away II. Piccolpasso then goes on to give us the news about Fratta and its inhabitants. The description he gives of the town and its people, compared with that of other cities - even close to us - is among the most beautiful of all. The extremely favorable impression he gave of this town overlooking the Tiber ("like a very clear lake"), with its well-cultivated countryside, with the skilled artisans at work in the shops makes us think with curiosity about the images he saw in this late spring of 1565 and to the life of our ancestors four and a half centuries ago. And, proud of the Frattegiani of the sixteenth century, we are grateful to Cipriano Piccolpasso who was able to describe its fundamental characteristics so well. We faithfully and proudly report his report on Fratta, only by placing it in a more fluent language than the sixteenth-century one he used. “La Fratta has about eighty families. This is a small but nice place where it is very pleasant to stay and has a nice view. It has the Tiber on the west side, like a very clear lake (remember that the dam under the bridge significantly raised the water level), but harmful and of great danger to the place because, if no measures are taken, in a short time, such as he has already started to do, he will take the whole place away (evidently he acted in time if this did not happen!). The men of this country are diligent, solicitous and shrewd because, working their small territory incessantly, they make it bear fruit as an extensive countryside and a very large place. Here we work very well in building arquebuses and auction weapons. The walls, although ancient, are of solid and very sturdy material, but everywhere, above them, there are houses. The fortress is surrounded by large walls and has a tower about one hundred feet high. They have no cattle or pastures. There are no weapons of any kind here (1) " Expenses incurred account - For a dinner in Sassoferrato baiocchi 10 - To those whom I will help to measure baiocchi 30 - For the horse for the Fratta with the boy baiocchi 25 - To dine in Segello and refresh the horse baiocchi 50 - For a dinner at Fratta with the boy and the baiocchi horse 35 - For the horse for Castello baiocchi 30 - For dinner and dinner at Castello baiocchi 20 - For dinner and dinner at Castello baiocchi 20 - To those whom I will help to measure the baiocchi walls 30 - For the horse for the Fratta baiocchi 30 - For dinner and dinner at the Fratta baiocchi 30 - To those who will help me to measure baiocchi 10 - For the horse to Perugia baiocchi 30 - And more made to give to the family of Messer Paulo, said Messer Gherardo soldier of fortress for the 50 (1) Cipriano Piccolpasso - The plants and portraits of the cities and lands of Umbria submitted to the government of Perugia - Ed. Passetto and Petrelli - Spoleto - 1963. Text published on the Historical Calendar of Umbertide 2003 - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2003 Map of Fratta by C. Piccolpasso (1565). The three city gates are clearly visible: the "Porta castellana" to the west for C. di Castello; the "Porta senza nome" in today's Piaggiola for Montone and the State of Urbino; the "Porta Romana" at noon for the current Piazza S. Francesco and Perugia. It can be seen that the Fratta was then completely surrounded by the waters of the Tiber and the Reggia stream. Drawing of the Fratta by C. Piccolpasso (1565) Above, view of Casteldurante (today Urbania) by C. Piccolpasso. Below, cover of the book by C. Piccolpasso on the art of the potter (1548) La Fratta di Cipriano Piccolpasso I Fanfani di Fratta Economic activities curated by Fabio Mariotti The weavers There was an intense craft activity in Fratta, which took place inside many houses: the work of looms to weave the cloth (cotton, hemp, linen), of the reticellai and embroiderers in general, aimed at private citizens and to the brotherhoods for their linen needs in the church. From some documents of these lay associations we find for the first time in Fratta a particular way of working fabrics, called "alla moita" (later used up to the whole of the eighteenth century). With this expression "working at the moita" it was meant that the finished product went half to the owner of the hemp, linen, cotton and half to the person who had done the work, as a reward. Payment, of course, could also be made in cash, which was always preferred. Hemp and flax, produced in the Fratta countryside in quantities satisfactory to the needs of the population, were processed in the houses in a purely artisanal way. Hemp (as well as linen), also called "accia", was first unraveled and then "cured". The unraveling consisted of a first, superficial combing with which the upper part called "il capeccio" (it carried flowers and seeds) was removed from the plant, which was not used for weaving. With this first coarse combing, even the smoothest part of the plant was separated, which was then used to package secondary products (bales for wheat, harnesses for transporting weights, etc.). Flax (like hemp) was tied in thirteen-pound bundles. The one that still had the "capeccio" was worth less than the "scapecciaato" one as it had undergone the unraveling. After this operation, the product was put to macerate in a well of water, then a second combing was carried out which gave the best fiber with which the fabric was manufactured for the finest, most valuable and requested cloths (tablecloths, sheets , linen in general). In the registers of the brotherhoods and in the inventories found in the notarial deeds of the municipal archive there is evidence of a rather singular fact: the big bags used in hospitals as mattresses were made with linen, considered precious. Inside they contained straw and dry leaves, the cheapest material that could be found. This gives an idea of the mentality of the time for which it was not at all scrambling to enclose the humblest material in linen. The trade in scythes Large production of sickles in Fratta, in the sixteenth century, both common that were used to harvest wheat ("ad secandum granum"), and of the "necessarium" type, that is used for crops in general (rye, barley, hay). therefore large trade organized by individuals or groups that from April to June of each year (but also in the other months) dealt with this activity. The operations of steel purchase, production, finishing, transport, sale of the finished product were based on the utmost seriousness and correctness between the parties, who always resorted to a notarial deed. The copy of which also served as a transport document during the journey and was shown to the authorities of the places crossed asking for information on the goods (it was the accompaniment of that time). At the beginning of the sixteenth century the most qualified group in the trade of scythes was formed by Pietro Paolo Tempesta together with Simone di Antonio called "il Guercio", Sante di Antonio, Bernardino del fu Renzo, Paolo Bartoli, Bernardino di Iacopo Cortoni known as "Fallature" and Antonio del fu Mattiolo. In April 1511 they bought five thousand scythes, ordering hundreds of pieces from each blacksmith's shop. Among others, the brothers Giovan Battista, Michelangelo and Gabriele, sons of Francesco; Warrior of Matteo Ridolfo Alberti, Vico of mastro Nicola, Giliotto of mastro Filippo and his brothers. Two or three people work in each workshop and when they have to deal with orders for several thousand pieces, they join together, aided by the "art of blacksmiths" corporation which gives them the necessary assistance for the purchase of raw materials. and for sale. Buyers placed orders in April or early May, delivery took place between the 20th and 24th of this month. Rome and the Maremma were the main destinations, present in every contract, but also "Tuscia" (southern Tuscany) and the castle of Sarteano (just south of Chiusi). The buyers always claimed that the scythes were made to perfection (we always find the phrase "ad usum merci et legalis magistris fabrij ferrarij"). They were tied in bunches of one hundred pieces and transported by horses or mules, sometimes owned by the blacksmiths themselves. The payment, by the month of June, was usually completed in Fratta. As in all contracts of the time, a penalty was established for the party who did not fulfill the written obligations. A notarial deed dated 25 April 1524 provided for an original one. The blacksmith Arcangelo Bavaglioni sells three hundred scythes for twenty-three florins, including transport. The buyer, Cecco del fu Carlo, undertakes to pay the price by the month of June with the agreement that, failing that, he should give the blacksmith Arcangelo, as a penalty, a plot of land with the word "Pagini", up to the competition of the amount due. The arquebusiers In addition to the blacksmiths, united in various companies and famous throughout central Italy, who produced among other things thousands of scythes a year to be sold in the Roman countryside and the Maremma, there were also manufacturers of firearms. They can be considered specialized blacksmiths, because they were successful in this job even though they did not have today's machines to turn the various pieces; they did everything by hand and in an extremely precise way. Various documents contain information on the sale in Fratta of both arquebuses, long weapons, shoulder or easel weapons, and the "scppietti", that is, short weapons. There is also news on accessories: the "powder" and the "flasca", which we think were gunpowder and its container. On 21 December 1510 these artisans sold five hundred arquebuses, the value of which was two gold ducats each. The weapons had to be delivered by March of the following year by the arquebusiers Giovanni Folcantoni, Bonaventura Pulicardi and Sebastiano Brelli, all from Fratta. They, considering the holidays, therefore had to produce five or six arquebuses a day which, given the total manual skill of the work, is certainly a remarkable productivity. Such a large commission also makes it clear how these "artillery" works qualified the activity of these masters of art at a regional level. The deed of sale was drawn up by the notary Paolo Martinelli in the castle of Civitella dei Miuletti [?], Where Raniere dei Ranieri, a noble from Perugia, lived. Buyers are Pier Luigi dei Farnensi and ser Michele Pier Ventura, from Lugnano: they undertake to pay half the amount, that is five hundred ducats, upon delivery (March 1511) and the same amount in mid-August (the nobleman Raniere dei Ranieri guarantees the payment). The buyer ser Michele di Pier Ventura gives a security of fifty gold scudi to be calculated as an advance. The sellers say they will be able to deliver a third of the five hundred arquebuses by the end of January and the remaining month by month, until the delivery is completed in March. In a document dated 12 March 1522 we find a "fidem facio" (I trust) granted by Giovanni del fu Fioravanti, a Perugian citizen living in Fratta, to the blacksmith Sebastiano di Gabriele. It is a guarantee that the first offers to the second, before the notary Marino Sponta who draws up the deed, regarding the commitments that he will want to make from any person or association in building arquebuses, "crackles" and any other kind of "artillery". Sebastiano is therefore authorized to make any notarial deed relating to his work, under the guarantee of Giovanni. Another document dated May 10, 1586 concerns the repair of an arquebus which had a "cracked chest". The owner of the weapon is a certain man from the castro di Danciano (Val di Pierle) and the blacksmith repairer is a certain master Angelo who has a workshop in Fratta. It seems that the arquebus was broken in the "war of Siena" (1554-1555). Cipriano Piccolpasso, deputy superintendent of the fortresses of Perugia, also talks about our arquebusiers. He was sent in 1565 to visit the state of the fortresses of that city and was therefore also in Fratta. In his report he writes among other things: "... Here we work very well with archebugi et weapons auction ". But then he adds:" ... There are no weapons of any sort. " and hid our hand? The shopkeepers Francesco di Cristofano He was "Spetiale", that is a seller of spices but also of medicines, almonds, barley, torches for lighting, candles, "turpentine", white spirit and various spices. These shops, in addition to being "spetierie", were also called "aromatic", perhaps because the predominant goods in them were those products that came from the "new world", discovered by Christopher Columbus about forty years earlier. Francesco the apothecary left us several accounting records between 1530 and 1533. Fabrizio He too was an apothecary, who lived towards the end of the century. We find records of it in the years 1595 and 1596, when he sells wax, "facole" and apothecaries for the sick in a hospital in Fratta. Bernardino Cibo He had a grocery store. We have news of it in the years 1515 and 1528. Bano de Cibo In 1538 he had a shop, unspecified. It belonged to the Cibo family, one of the most important in Fratta. Giomolo In 1539 he sold "aguti" (ie nails), wax, oil and more. Perinelli In 1590 it had an "aromataria". Felice Manfredi He ran an "aromataria" in the years from 1590 to 1595. His shop was in via Regale (today's via Cibo). Ruggero Burelli In 1590 it has an "aromataria" and in 1595 we find news of it in a document in the notary Curtio Martinelli. He is the son of Tolomeo Burelli. Orfeo Burelli In 1590 he had an "apoteca", that is, a shop. He is the son of Francesco Burelli and lives in a house he owns. Gasparino Haberdashery. We find it in 1572 In addition, there were other shops in Fratta: two butchers and two ovens. Fairs and markets In the sixteenth century, when a villa or castle in the Perugian territory wanted to set up a trade fair, it had to ask the authorities of Perugia for permission, then pay an annual tax to this city. The villa or castle in turn recovered the money from those who attended the fair. Fratta was an exception. Since the fifteenth century it had been exempted from this obligation by the Pope of the time, so whoever came to its annual fair in the first days of June did not tax. It was called "free fair", it brought a greater influx of merchants, therefore a greater influx of wealth which benefited all citizens. The annual fair was that of Sant'Erasmo and lasted from 1st to 4th June. In 1506 we find a "Brief" by Pope Julius II who reconfirms the exemption from taxes and adds to the "free fair of Fratta" another six days to the four granted in 1444 ("said fair of St. Erasmus may last up to ten of said June"). In 1532 the duration will be increased to seven days. In 1537 the Perugian magistracy removed all the markets that were held in its countryside; he made an exception for Fratta and allowed them to continue on a weekly basis here. This was confirmed by Pope Paul III on November 4, 1537. From April 6, 1541, the tax exemption granted for the fair was also extended to weekly markets. The day was, like today, Wednesday. In 1542 the exemption was reconfirmed by Cardinal Sforza and in 1547 by Cardinal Crispo, Apostolic Legate for Umbria. A huge number of people attended the fair from nearby villas and castles. Many people also came from Tuscany, passing mainly through the Pierle valley and the Niccone valley. At the fair they sold livestock, agricultural products, fabrics, plates, vases and ceramic objects of the potters of Fratta, agricultural tools produced by blacksmiths. There are two places of sale: the municipal lawn (the "meadow below") at the end of the bridge over the Tiber and the Sant'Erasmo market, now Piazza Marconi (the "meadow above"). A huge cattle fair took place in the municipal lawn. In the market of Sant'Erasmo cereals and all other edible kinds were sold, as well as handicraft products. The early June fair continued until the mid-1960s, while our weekly Wednesday market has more than six centuries of history. Drawings by Adriano Bottaccioli published in the 2003 Umbertide Calendar Photo by Fabio Mariotti from the Historical Photographic Archive of the Municipality of Umbertide Sources: "Calendar of Umbertide 2003" - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2003 "Umbertide from the origins to the sixteenth century" - Roberto Sciurpa - Ed. Petruzzi Città di Castello - 2007 Ancient frame. Drawing by Adriano Bottaccioli Ancient scythes. Drawing by Adriano Bottaccioli Piazza S. Francesco (1930s). In the 16th century it was the seat of the blacksmith shops Ancient weapons. Drawing by Adriano Bottaccioli Street vendors in Piazza Mazzini in the early 1900s Via Cavour and Piazza Marconi (1930s). In the '500 Mercatale di Sant'Erasmo Le attività economiche Public offices curated by Fabio Mariotti The authority Authority of the government of Perugia, also called commissioner, was the representative of the Roman state within the community and had some powers that did not directly affect the administration of public affairs. He was always a foreigner, a "foreigner", as they said, that is, not a citizen of the Roman state. He was allowed to bring with him the notary, two servants (they had to have livery), a horse and, of course, his wife and children. In addition to the tasks of representation, which kept the community of Fratta united in Perugia, its "dominant city", he was allowed to remove from the agenda of the council meetings everything that, in his opinion, could harm the interests of the city of Grifo and the ecclesiastical state. The term of office was variable, depending on the contingent reasons of Perugia. Chancellor Notary of power, who followed in the movements, remained in office for the time of his "vicariate". He was involved in the drafting, on his own books, of everything that concerned the work of the authority, both in relation to the communities where they resided, and in relations with Perugia. The chancellor (or ordinary judge) also kept the volume of the "trials" that he and the authority held in the administration of justice. The defenders Authorities of Fratta, they were the highest representatives of the community, they decided on what to do for the positive development of public affairs and the good living of the population: they combined the powers of today's mayor and the municipal council. They brought in the council meetings the topics to be discussed and on which to vote, with the endorsement of power. The defenders were four, they remained in office for four months. Considered "officials" of the community, they were chosen from among the "bookies" of the castle, that is, people who had real estate registered in the "Cadastre". The three above the guard There were three "officers" who supervised the military apparatus of the castle, that is, the safety of all the inhabitants. They remained in office for four months. The four councilors Persons in charge of advising defenders on matters to be discussed in the council. They were also considered "officials" of the community and remained in office for four months. The camorlengo He was considered the "official" with the task of keeping the accounts of the community. He paid the salaries and expenses, collected the income and various annuities. The office of camorlengo (or chamberlain) lasted four months. These were the twelve most important people for the life of the community, summing up in them the civil and military power. They alone were part of the secret council (or of the twelve). Photo by Fabio Mariotti from the Historical Photographic Archive of the Municipality of Umbertide Sources: "Calendar of Umbertide 2003" - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2003 "Umbertide from the origins to the sixteenth century" - Roberto Sciurpa - Ed. Petruzzi Città di Castello - 2007 The town hall in the 1920s The seal of the Defenders of Fratta 1905 - Piazza Umberto I (now Piazza Matteotti) - 1918 Artists and works of art curated by Fabio Mariotti There have been many, and some of great prestige, the artists who have worked in Fratta in this century. Bernardino di Betto (Pinturicchio) In 1502 the observant Franciscan friars of Santa Maria della Pietà ordered a work from the Perugian painter Bernardino di Betto, known as "il Pinturicchio" (1454-1513). The painting was done on the main facade of the church, above the entrance portal, in the shape of a lunette. It is called the "Lunette of motherhood". It represents the Madonna with Child in her arms and two angels on either side. Also in 1502 the Franciscan friars of Santa Maria commissioned a large painting from Pinturicchio, a pupil of Pietro Vannucci from Perugia, which was to represent the "Coronation of the Virgin". Pinturicchio performed the work admirably. The painting was stolen by Napoleon's soldiers in 1809 to be transported to France. This did not happen and the work stopped in Rome. Subsequently the Roman curia proposed to the Franciscan friars of Fratta the purchase of the painting and they sold it to the Vatican for five hundred scudi. It was the favorite painting of Pope John Paul II under which he often received heads of state and illustrious guests. In its place, in the church of Santa Maria di Umbertide, a photographic reproduction of the same size has been placed. Luca Signorelli In the first months of 1516 Luca Signorelli from Cortona came to Fratta to paint the "Deposition from the cross". The painting had been commissioned from him by the Confraternity of Santa Croce. The painting, on wood, was placed on the wall behind the main altar of the original and small church of the same name. It was only in 1612 that the still existing wooden exhibition was built by Pietro Lazzari of Sant'Angelo in Vado. Signorelli painted three predellas below the picture and, as can be seen from the records of the brotherhood, also a "top", that is a "Pietà" in the shape of a lunette that dominated the whole. All traces of the latter have been lost since the end of the sixteenth century. Black Alberti On 11 January 1523 the Conventual Franciscan friars of Fratta (they had the convent in the Borgo Inferiore, now Piazza San Francesco) ordered the sculptor Nero Alberti, of Borgo San Sepolcro, a wooden statue, four feet high, depicting Saint Anthony of Padua. , for their church. Eleven florins paid for the work. The other artists In 1556, the painter Marino da Perugia painted a "Madonna in relief" with angels around for the church of Santa Croce. The work was paid to him for twenty florins, twelve soldi and eight denarii. Also the brotherhood of Santa Croce, in 1557 commissioned the painter Vittorio da Montone to create frescoes depicting Jesus Christ and St. Joseph for the "new chapel" of the church, which had recently been slightly enlarged. He was paid with more than twenty florins. From the registers of the brotherhood of San Bernardino we finally learn that in 1596 master Antonio was commissioned by the brothers to make the design of the main altar of the church. It means that during the second restructuring works, which took place between 1554 and 1555, the high altar had not yet been built, just as the large picture of the "Last Supper" above the altar had not yet been painted, executed in 1602. by Muzio Flori . Photo Fabio Mariotti Sources: "Calendar of Umbertide 2003" - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2003 "Umbertide from the origins to the sixteenth century" - Roberto Sciurpa - Ed. Petruzzi Città di Castello - 2007 Le cariche pubbliche The lunette by Pinturicchio on the facade of the church of Santa Maria della Pietà The entrance portal with the lunette The coronation of the Virgin. On the right, the photographic reproduction in the church of Santa Maria The Deposition from the Cross by Luca Signorelli. On the right in the precious wooden exhibition The San Rocco by Nero Alberti in the Museum of Santa Croce Church of San Bernardino. The last supper of Muzio Flori Artisti ed opere d'arte Church of San Francesco. Wrought iron gates made by the blacksmiths of Fratta Churches, convents and the miracle of the Madonna della Regghia curated by Fabio Mariotti The churches In the 16th century Fratta, with a population of less than five hundred inhabitants, there were more than a dozen churches. Chapel of Santa Maria di Castelvecchio At the bottom of the Piaggiola, it was also known as the church of Santa Maria dei Meriti. It had its own hospital which was joined, in 1411, by the hospital of Santa Croce. Santa Maria della Regghia Octagonal in shape, commissioned in honor of the Madonna del miracolo (1556), it was begun in 1560 and completed at the end of the century (1598) with the original dome then replaced in 1612. An image of the primitive structure is visible in the painting by Bernardino Magi ( 1602), in the church of San Bernardino. Santa Maria della Pietà In the Borgo Superiore, or Castelvecchio, it was officiated by the Franciscan friars of Santa Maria dell'Osservanza who lived in the adjoining convent. It was built in 1481. Sant'Andrea In the Borgo Superiore, we have news of it since the year 1146. It was located on the place where (1860-1870) the old hospital of Umbertide was built. Our Lady of Carmel On the first east pillar of the bridge over the Tiber, enlarged and modified, a small church had been built, dating back to around 1570, because it does not appear in the 1565 drawing by Cipriano Piccolpasso. It was dedicated to the Madonna del Carmelo, whose feast was celebrated on the 15th in August. Sant'Erasmo It is located in the "mercatale", the space where the markets were held (today Piazza Marconi). Currently it is no longer visible because a house has been built there. On the ground floor, however, you can appreciate the structure of an ancient crypt, dating back to the 11th century. The church had many real estate properties, including the adjoining hospital. The first news dates back to 1145. Sant 'Antonio It existed since 1374 and was in the Borgo Superiore. On 27 February 1556 it was visited by the episcopal vicar Don Giuseppe Sperelli who found it "well decorated but damp". In fact it was between the Piaggiola and today's Piazza Marconi, subject to the floods of the Tiber. Holy Cross It did not have today's dimensions, which it assumed from 1632 to 1644. The original church was much smaller and more backward than the one we see today. We have the first news in 1338. It belonged to the brotherhood of the same name. St. Augustine It was annexed to a convent of the order of the hermits of Sant'Agostino. It was built in 1374 at the end of today's Via Leopoldo Grilli (adjacent to the Migliorati pastry shop), so it was often flooded by the Tiber. The friars owned land. Saint Francis Built starting from 1299, it was in the Lower Borgo, next to the small church of Santa Croce. It was annexed to a convent of friars which had received various bequests in the middle of the century. In 1530 the chapel of San Rocco was still missing, to the left of the central nave. San Bernardino Also in the Lower Borgo, it belonged to the Confraternity of the Good Jesus which owned its own hospital adjacent to it. In 1550 the works for the enlargement of the church began (first restructuring). In 1558 the brotherhood built the bell tower. St. John Baptist It is the first church contained within the castle walls. Its construction and that of the bell tower date back to the 12th century. It was consecrated in 1250. At the beginning of the sixteenth century, the brothers of the brotherhood of San Giuseppe or of the Body of Christ built a new chapel in the space next to the church, in a room that had previously been used as a stable. There were also the churches of the Madonna del Moro and the Madonna del Giglio . In the surrounding area there were finally San Bartolomeo in Camporeggiano, San Cristoforo in Civitella, Sant'Angelo and Stefano in Migianella, the church and monastery of Santa Caterina in Preggio, San Paterniano (today's Pierantonio where, at the beginning of the century, c 'was only Pier Antonio's house and tavern), San Giovanni a Serra Partucci. Convents and brotherhoods Monastery of Santa Maria We have news of it already in 1521, from the Statutes of the Fratta. It is a convent for women, probably located in the same place where one was built in 1604 of the nuns in Castel Nuovo, after Piaggiola, on the left, going down towards today's Piazza Marconi. It is also traced in 1555 and 1596. Immediately after the convent there was the door of Santa Maria which opened onto today's square. Fraternity of disciplines of the church of Santa Maria and hospital of Sant'Antonio The first news dates back to 1405. In 1515, "mayor and procurator" of the brotherhood is Giovan Paolo del fu Cristoforo. It has a land with the word "Seripole". The church is that of Santa Maria di Gastelvecchio, which Pesci calls "Pieve di Santa Maria". The brotherhood also has the hospital of Sant'Antonio, which joined that of Santa Maria in the distant 1411. Brotherhood of Santa Croce It has its origins in 1330. Large, historical, brotherhood of Fratta, it operated for several centuries up to the last one. She was the owner of many assets and engaged in a vast religious and welfare activity. Deeply engraved in the social reality of the country. Capuchin friars Before 1580 they lived, for rent, in two rooms owned by the brotherhood of San Bernardino. They worked in the various hospitals of Fratta. In the second half of the sixteenth century the brotherhood of Santa Croce hosted them in its houses, in today's Via Soli. Cistercians and Camaldolese in Montecorona The abbey of San Salvatore di Monte Acuto, located in the valley, near the Tiber (today's Badia) was built in 1008 by the Camaldolese and inhabited by them until 1234. They also have the small church of San Savino, halfway up the coast of Mount Corona where , in 1190, the saint died. In 1234 Pope Gregory IX transferred them to the Cistercian fathers, who lived there until 1524, the year in which Pope Clement VII gave everything back to the Camaldolese who kept it until around 1860. In 1532 the Camaldolese built the great hermitage on the top of Mount Corona, where their hermits went to live. Observant Franciscan Friars Minor of Santa Maria They lived in the convent of Santa Maria della Pietà since 1481. They also officiated at the church of Sant'Erasmo, providing for the adjoining hospital. Hermits of Sant'Agostino They were in the convent annexed to the church of the same name, at the bottom of the Piaggiola, going down on the right. In 1517 they bought a house owned by the church of Sant'Erasmo, located in the upper district of Fratta, in the town square (today's piazza della Rocca). They had land bordering the word "Le breccie", in the territory of Fratta. In 1597 Fra Gabriele da Polgeto was prior and they owned a field at Petrella, in the word "Campo della nut". Brotherhood of the Good Jesus He owned the church of San Bernardino and the adjoining hospital. In 1587 he signed a contract with the painter Mutio Flori, from Fratta, for a picture to be placed above the main altar ("The Last Supper", still visible today) and in 1588 he built the bell tower of the church. The seat was in the premises adjacent to the church, therefore it was also called the Confraternity of San Bernardino. Brotherhood of Saint Joseph or of the Body of Christ The seat was in the church of San Giovanni Battista, within the castle walls. Brotherhood of Sant'Antonio or della Buona Morte Its church was that of the nuns of Santa Maria Nuova. In 1750 it will be transferred to Sant'Agostino. Convent of San Francesco It was in the Borgo Inferiore, annexed to the church. The conventual Franciscan friars, called zoccolanti, lived there. On February 12, 1516 the general chapter of the friars meets. The custodian and procurator of the convent is friar Angelo di Giovanni, a professor of sacred theology. Other friars are Giuliano, Cipriano di Bartolomeo, Pierfrancesco da Montalcino, Pacifico di Piergiovanni della Fratta, Francesco di Giovanni Ursini. The convent owns a farm in the Rio. The miracle of the Madonna della Regghia The story aroused the explosion of devotion that led to the construction of the great and superb Madonna della Regghia, the Collegiata. We are in the year 1556, on the 14th of September. At Fratta there are many churches, but also several "Maestà" (aedicules with a sacred image) and as many chapels. One of these was located on the public road, on land owned by Francesco Graziani, a nobleman from Perugia, less than twenty meters from the current Collegiate Church (where the former Zampa building now Casi is). This can be deduced from a constructive anomaly in the elements that support the architrave of the west door with respect to those of the north door. The stone columns are placed on bases that each have two oblique sides with respect to the main wall, as if they want to indicate a direction, closely linked to the project. How many times have we walked past it without noticing it? An ideal connection between the existing chapel and the large new building under construction; a set of affection, devotion, gratitude that the people felt towards that image painted inside. The image of the Madonna, hence the "church of the Blessed and Glorious Virgin Mary", near the castle walls of Fratta, called by the people "Madonna della Regghia", from the name of the stream that flowed not far away. On the morning of September 14, a seven-year-old girl, daughter of Orlandino Vibi, born with a serious malformation in a leg that did not allow her to walk without support, was praying in front of the image, when "it is said that this spoke to him" and immediately "she found herself free and healthy and walked frankly." It was the clamor aroused by the event that prompted the bishop of Gubbio to make a pastoral visit to Fratta for two days, Wednesday 7 and Thursday 8 October 1556, appointing his vicar Don Cesare Sperelli to do it. The extraordinary event led the civil and religious community to build a large church in honor of the Madonna, depicted on the small altar of this shrine. A competition of alms and bequests began, so much so that a special metal box had to be built. The construction plans were prepared (authors of the original design were Galeazzo Alessi and Giulio Danti); the Graziani of Perugia ceded the land and in 1560 work began. When they were completed at the end of the century, the painting was transported, together with the wall block on which it was frescoed, to the temple erected to welcome it and placed behind a glass case above the main altar. And today, after so many years, the sacred image of the Madonna is still the object of a special cult on the part of the people of Umbria. Photo by Fabio Mariotti from the Historical Photographic Archive of the Municipality of Umbertide and from the Archive of Giuseppe Severi Sources: "Calendar of Umbertide 2003" - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2003 "Umbertide from the origins to the sixteenth century" - Roberto Sciurpa - Ed. Petruzzi Città di Castello - 2007 S. Maria della Regghia (Collegiata) 100 years ago 1900. S. Maria della Pietà 1976. Church of the Madonna del Giglio Piaggiola today. On the right the building that in ancient times it housed the Monastery of S. Maria and later that of Castel Nuovo The convent of S. Maria in 1977 and today, after the last restoration The abbey of San Salvatore in Montecorona 1980s. Hermitage of Montecorona 1978. Church of the Madonna del Moro 1930s. Church and convent of San Francesco The cloister of San Francesco The image of the Madonna around which it was built the impressive temple The Carmelite church in an ancient painting The church of Sant'Erasmo in a 1910 drawing The Piaggiola. On the left stood the convent of S. Agostino 1915. The facades of Santa Croce and San Francesco 1890. The bell tower of San Giovanni Battista 1910. The church of San Bernardino Chiese, conventi e il miracolo della Madonna della Regghia The Fanfani of Fratta The Fanfani di Fratta, curiously often nicknamed the "Corto" and the "Migno", have been present in our territory for about 300 years, then suddenly there is no trace of this surname in Umbertide. curated by Fabio Mariotti Information taken entirely from the research of the local historian Renato Codovini in the civil and ecclesiastical archives of the ancient Fratta from which the presence of the Fanfani family has been documented from the mid-sixteenth to the mid-nineteenth century. The first news about the Fanfani di Fratta dates back to 1548. It is initially a family of peasants who worked on a Petrella farm, owned by the Confraternity of Santa Croce. In civil and ecclesiastical documents of the time, they are often cited with the nickname of "Corto" and also of "Migno", as if they were people of short stature. In the book of entries and exits of the Confraternity of Santa Croce, year 1548, there is this entry: "And more than many he hauti in the account of the Fanfani for trimming the beam and the ribs ... (it is a Fanfani who lends himself to transport, with the treggia, some wooden beams that probably were used for the house of the Petrella farm; for this work he had 28 baiocchi). From documents of the notary Angelo Tei of 1568 it appears that the "short of the Fanfani" (so generically identified) was a rather quarrelsome type, called into question by several people to whom he caused damage. From these acts it appears that the Fanfani, having to carry pigs or sheep and goats from one place to another, instead of walking along the various farm roads, had the habit, to make it first, to cross the fields of others, even if sown. This caused some damage to the owner of the land who had nothing else to do but sue the "Corto" before the Judge of Fratta. From a civil act of 1607 it appears instead that the Bishop of Gubbio rents a land located along the Carpina to a certain Sante di Tommaso Fanfani who is in partnership with Gerolamo Pisanelli. Rent for three years at 435 scudi a year to be paid the first half on the Feast of St. John the Baptist and the second on December 25th (a sort of Christmas present). From a civil act of 1662 we learn that this Giovanni Maria Fanfani was appointed by the Community of Fratta to make a count on the relationship between flour and the production of bread in the public oven. The Fanfani in question is defined as a "recognized Professor". For the record, the count shows that the flour that comes out of the mill is made up of the following parts: pure flour (51.05%), sembola (33.34%), farinello (6.24%), Tritello (6 , 24%), bait (3.12%). From an ecclesiastical act of 1676 it appears that Bartolomeo Fanfani is Prior of the Confraternity of Santa Croce together with Francesco Burelli and Ippolito Petrogalli. In 1761 Tommaso Fanfani applied to the Church of Santa Croce to be named Spedaliere, a request however not accepted and the assignment was assigned, on May 3, to a certain Giuseppe Padovani. From a civil act of 1767 it appears instead that Alessandro Fanfani is a municipal damsel, whose task was to carry out the orders of the other employees: to clean the building, to ring the public bell for council meetings, for school or for parties. For this he takes a shield of salary every four months, which was the lowest salary, paid monthly with 25 baiocchi. In 1790 Alessandro Fanfani, after 23 years, is still a municipal boy (even then promotions were not within everyone's reach. Perhaps "our Fanfani" did not have enough "Saints in Paradise" and a "White Whale" (1) behind"). From a civil act of 1808 we know that on September 6, during the fence competition (ox against dogs) the scaffolding built in Piazza San Francesco fell. On this occasion, Sante Fanfani, a 54-year-old shoemaker, was questioned about the event. The last official news we have about the Fanfani di Fratta dates back to 1841, when Nicola Fanfani is Prior of the Confraternity of Sant'Antonio da Padova. Since then there has been no news of the Fanfani and this surname is no longer present in Umbertide. Perhaps the Fanfani moved to nearby Tuscany, perhaps to Pieve Santo Stefano, forgetting their ancient Umbrian origins. The most famous was certainly Amintore, a leading exponent of the Christian Democrats from the 1950s to the 1980s (2). Note: 1. " White whale " was the nickname of the Christian Democrats 2. Amintore Fanfani (Pieve Santo Stefano, 6 February 1908 - Rome, 20 November 1999) was an Italian politician, economist, historian and academic. He was president of the Senate three times and five times president of the Council of Ministers between 1954 and 1987 when, at the age of 79 and 6 months, he became the oldest head of the government of the Italian Republic, twice secretary of the Christian Democrats and also party president, Minister of Foreign Affairs, interior and budget and economic planning. - The images of the documents are by Renato Codovini, taken directly from the article by Umbertide Cronache. - Renato Codovini's photo is by Fabio Mariotti - The photo of Amintore Fanfani is taken from the Internet (Wikipedia) Sources: “History of Umbertide - from the century. VIII to the century. XIX "by Renato Codovini (unpublished manuscript) Article by Fabio Mariotti published in “Umbertide Cronache” n.2 - 1995 The Umbertidese historian Renato Codovini GLI STATUTI DELLA FRATERNITA DI SANTA CROCE Dal libro “Statuti e ordini della Fraternita di Santa Croce in Fratta (Umbertide) dal 1567 al 1741” – a cura di Bruno Porrozzi Premessa Allo stato attuale delle conoscenze non siamo in grado di affermare con sicurezza la data precisa di fondazione a Fratta di una confraternita laica di Santa Croce (o di altro nome), ma certamente non dovremmo essere tanto lontani dal vero se ne facciamo risalire le origini al tempo di San Pier Damiani (morto nel 1072), di San Francesco (1182-1226) promotore dei Penitenti, fondatore dei Frati minori. Dopo San Francesco, il pio laico Raniero (o Rainerio) Fasani, propagatore della disciplina pubblica nel territorio perugino e oltre, nel 1260 predicava la necessità di far penitenza, di espiare pubblicamente i peccati rievocando la passione di Cristo, partecipando alle sofferenze di Gesù flagellandosi a sangue. Può essere verosimile che a Fratta, nella seconda metà del XIII secolo, fossero presenti gruppi di penitenti e disciplinati che, riuniti nelle parrocchie, praticavano esercizi penitenziali non quotidianamente, in maniera incruenta, indossando sempre (penitenti) o in certe circostanze (disciplinati) un abito speciale. Con il passare del tempo, dopo il 1260, i confratelli, organizzati in fraternite locali, scelsero una divisa, una uniforme che, per lo più, consisteva in una tunica bianca, rossa o di altro colore, con o senza scapolare e mantello; tali divise venivano conservate, in genere, negli armadi della sede della confraternita ed indossate per andare in processione o durante le riunioni. Le confraternite laiche, secondo quanto affermano il Mavarelli e altri studiosi, avrebbero avuto origine dall'ordinarsi e dal raccogliersi nelle parrocchie delle folle di disciplinati, dopo il 1258-1260, attenuato il primitivo entusiasmo che li aveva portati "fuori dei casali, dei presbiteri, dei tuguri, dei palazzi, per andare processionalmente per le strade e per le piazze e di paese in paese percuotendosi con fruste di cuoio (scope) fino a sangue, implorando con gemiti e lacrime la divina misericordia" (FRANCESCO MAVARELLI, Notizie storiche e laudi della Compagnia di disciplinati di S. Maria Nuova S. Croce nella Terra di Fratta (Umbertide), Stab. Tipografico Tiberino, 1899, pp. 6, 7). Sul finire del XIII o all'inizio del XIV secolo doveva essere attiva a Fratta la Compagnia dei Flagellanti, come attesta un privilegio, concesso dal vescovo di Gubbio, Pietro di Rosso Gabrielli, che reca la data del 1337; il privilegio prevede la concessione di quaranta giorni di indulgenza a chi darà “aiuti per condurre a termine la fabbrica iniziata dell'ospedale” (Cfr. F. Mavarelli, Op. cit., pp. 6, 7). Per carenza di documentazione sicura, non si può dire che dalla Confraternita dei Flagellanti si passò a quella di Santa Maria Nuova e a quella di Santa Croce; di certo c'è che negli Statuti del 1567 che si presentano, si afferma che verso il 1360 “considerando alcuni huomini da bene della Fratta contado di Perugia, come nella detta Terra non si trovava una Compagnia che attendesse alle opere di charità, come nelli altri luoghi si trova, mossi et ispirati dallo Spirito Sancto, si risolvemo unitamente a fondare una sancta fraternita et compagnia sotto il nome prima di Santa Maria nova e di poi sotto il nome et invocazione della S.ma Croce di Cristo..”. A Fratta, come in molti altri luoghi, le confraternite chiesero aiuto ai francescani o ai domenicani per aver in uso una sala per le riunioni e come sede sociale, un cappellano per celebrare i riti religiosi nella chiesa del convento e come assistente spirituale; è questo un momento importante per la vita delle confraternite, per l'istituzione che viene riconosciuta e le vengono accordate delle indulgenze. Numerosi sono gli esempi di confraternite che ebbero l'opportunità di possedere una propria sede, un oratorio, un centro amministrativo, un hospitalis per i pellegrini e poveri malati. La Confraternita di Santa Croce a Fratta ebbe proprietà immobiliari. una chiesa, un ospedale e propri statuti che lasciavano “entro certi limiti” i confratelli liberi di “poter mutare, aggiugnere o dichiarare più et manco li sopradetti capitoli ogni volta che parerà o piacerà alla stessa Fraternita in tutto o per tutto”...; nel 1612 gli statuti del 1567 vengono “aggiornati”, per il buon governo della Compagnia, dal vescovo eugubino monsignor Andrea Sorbolongo e confermati poi dal successore monsignor Alessandro del Monte nel 1622, sempre in occasione della visita pastorale, con decreti del vescovo Sostegno Maria Cavalli nel 1730 e nel 1741. L'indipendenza della confraternita laica dall'autorità religiosa era comunque sicuramente parziale, poiché soggetta al controllo del vescovo che emanava decreti ed esaminava lo statuto sociale con riserva di approvare o apportare modifiche, quasi sempre in occasione delle visite pastorali. Introduzione Il manoscritto originale si compone di due parti ben distinte: la prima di quattro pagine di carta con poche scritte esplicative (1-4), sedici pagine bianche, sempre su carta (5-20), due fogli bianchi (21-24) in pergamena, ventiquattro pagine scritte su pergamena con i più antichi (1567) capitoli degli statuti e ordinazioni della Confraternita (25-48); la seconda parte, su carta, di trentaquattro pagine scritte, con i capitoli degli statuti del 1612 e i successivi ordini (49-80). Concludono il manoscritto otto pagine bianche di carta. Il tutto, nel formato quindici per ventidue centimetri, rilegato in cuoio marrone scuro, redatto in un volgare quasi sempre sufficientemente chiaro e regolare. Le pagine in pergamena non risultano numerate, quelle su carta, dopo l'indice, sono numerate con cifre arabe da mano coeva. La legatura, assegnabile al XVII secolo, è formata da due fogli di cartone ricoperti in pelle, come si è detto, con quattro borchie (oggi scomparse) sulla prima e quarta di copertina. A Fratta, nel tempo, operarono diverse confraternite; le più attive furono quelle di Santa Croce e di San Bernardino, ancor oggi presenti nella realtà umbertidese. Il lavoro di ricerca storica su queste confraternite e su altre rimane ancora tutto da fare, utilizzando la documentazione reperibile negli archivi pubblici e privati in notevole quantità. La pubblicazione dei presenti statuti vuol essere un contributo, uno stimolo all'apertura di un nuovo "cantiere" per la ricerca storica locale, un cantiere interessante, sicuramente significativo se si tiene presente che le confraternite non furono solamente un centro di spiritualità, ma anche una struttura di notevole importanza sociale, politica, economica e culturale nella realtà di Fratta nei secoli XVI-XIX; qualcuno dovrebbe scriverne la storia. In fiduciosa attesa, con la speranza che venga raccolto l'invito, i consiglieri dell'Associazione Pro-loco hanno il piacere di offrire ai propri concittadini i rarissimi, forse unici, documenti che seguono in copia anastatica con "traduzione", ritenendo che leggerli significa, oltre tutto, cercare di capire la nostra storia, le nostre radici, le nostre tradizioni, le origini della solidarietà della quale oggi tanto si parla. A1 termine del lavoro, oltre a chi ha contribuito alla stampa del volume, è doveroso esprimere un sentimento di gratitudine alla dottoressa Silvana Tomassoni , al signor Mario Gasperini , all'architetto Maurizio Pucci , tutti della Soprintendenza ai Beni A.A.A. S. di Perugia, al dottor Stefano Felicetti , archivista e ricercatore, per i preziosi suggerimenti. Capitoli e regole della Compagnia della Croce del castello della Fratta - diocesi di Gubbio - Contado di Perugia Prologo Tutta la vita cristiana e la sua perfezione non è altro che amare, con il cuore e con le opere, nostro Signore Dio, il prossimo nostro, come dicono il medesimo nostro Salvatore nel Vangelo: "Amerai il tuo Dio con tutto il cuore e con tutte le tue forze e il prossimo tuo come te stesso", e il suo diletto discepolo San Giovanni evangelista: "Quello che non ama suo fratello che vede, come può amare Dio che non vede"? Pertanto, alcuni uomini dabbene della Fratta contado di Perugia, considerando come nella detta terra non si trovava una compagnia che si dedicasse alle opere di carità, come avviene in altri luoghi, mossi e ispirati dallo Spirito Santo, decisero concordemente di fondare una santa confraternita e compagnia con il nome, prima di Santa Maria nuova, poi sotto il nome e l'implorazione della Santissima Croce di Cristo, il quale sulla Croce ha dimostrato la maggior carità che mai si è dimostrata verso i poveri peccatori, affinché, anche loro, memori del sacrificio del Cristo, fossero incitati con cristiana carità a compiere le sette opere di misericordia a beneficio dei poveri, secondo le forze che Dio avrebbe concesso loro. Tale confraternita è stata fondata anticamente nella terra di Fratta, duecento anni fa circa, niente di meno, e ai nostri giorni è "alquanto rifreddata", così, sentendosene la mancanza, come si verifica con le cose buone che hanno bisogno di essere riproposte e migliorate, i fratelli sopra citati, desiderando ricostituire la detta confraternita in forma migliore, dedicandola a Dio e alla sua gloriosa madre vergine Maria, riuniti in assemblea generale l'anno del Signore 1566, il giorno della presentazione della Madonna [21 novembre] all'unanimità deliberarono di mandare a Roma, come loro procuratore generale, Gabriello di Bastiano Angelini di Fratta, il quale avesse "piena authorità" di assumere informazioni sugli ordini, capitoli e statuti di qualche confraternita di Roma e di unire a questa la nostra confraternita, che ne imiterà ed osserverà le regole "perpetuamente" ad onore di Dio, della sua santissima Madre e ad aiuto dei poveri della Terra di Fratta. Dunque, avendo il sopracitato Gabriello "ritrovato in Roma la Compagnia della charità" conforme allo spirito della confraternita di Fratta e considerato favorevolmente l'insieme degli ordini della Confraternita della Carità, tenuto conto del prestigio e delle raccomandazioni di questa ed in particolare del consiglio di molti uomini dabbene, specialmente del Reverendo Padre fra' Paulino da Lucca, maestro in sacra Teologia dell'ordine di San Domenico, unita la detta fraternita di Santa Croce alla Compagnia della carità, come risulta da atto pubblico, ne riportò i capitoli infrascritti che si devono osservare da tutti i fratelli "con obbligo non di peccato alcuno", ma di effettuare la penitenza che verrà loro imposta, oppure di essere cancellati dall'elenco dei confratelli. La Confraternita, infine, riunita in assemblea generale potrà deliberare ciò che sembrerà più opportuno e necessario, "secondo li tempi, purchè non si manchi della osservanza, et sustantia di detti capitoli" e, nel più breve tempo possibile, si proceda di bene in meglio, come speriamo, sorretti dalla misericordia di Dio. E poiché prima siamo obbligati ad amare Dio e a cercare la salvezza della nostra anima, poi quella del prossimo, così, prima riporteremo i capitoli che affronteranno "il modo di vivere delli fratelli", poi i capitoli e il modo "circa 1'exercitare le sette opere di misericordia inverso delli proximi". Dunque, ricevano i fratelli questo santissimo dono di Dio, ringraziando sua Maestà [il Signore, il papa, o ...?] e, con grande fervore, si rinnovino al ben fare, come se oggi, di nuovo, fosse fondata questa Santissima Compagnia al nome della Santissima Croce di nostro Signore e della sua Santissima Madre, benedicendo sempre quelli "in saecula saeculorum, amen" [nei secoli dei secoli, così sia]. Capitolo primo Del modo di associare i fratelli di questa Compagnia Quando qualcuno chiederà di far parte della nostra fraternita, la proposta deve essere fatta dal Priore; l'associazione avverrà con voto segreto, con le palline bianche e nere, e dopo che il candidato avrà ottenuto i tre quarti dei voti, altrimenti non sia accettato. Un giorno di festa, poi, riunita tutta la Confraternita, il Priore dirà alcune parole sui presenti capitoli e, chiamato colui che vuole entrare a far parte della Confraternita, lo vestirà della veste della Compagnia, gli darà una candela in mano, mentre i confratelli canteranno l'inno "Veni creator spiritus" o qualche altra orazione; e così sarà inscritto tra i fratelli della Compagnia. Non venga associato alcuno che sia di cattiva fama o che abbia compiuto qualche azione scandalosa o che giochi a carte o che abbia inimicizia o che conduca una vita disonesta o sia un cattivo cristiano. E se qualcuno della Compagnia cascasse in simili vizi o che fosse disobbediente al Priore o che non osservasse i capitoli o non prendesse parte alle processioni o all'ufficio, quando si dirà, dopo essere stato ammonito dal Priore a nome della Compagnia due o tre volte e non volendosi ravvedere, sia espulso immediatamente dalla Compagnia. E affinché nessuno possa invocare ignoranza il Priore convochi una volta al mese tutti i fratelli e, in presenza di tutti, legga i presenti capitoli. Capitolo secondo Degli ufficiali della Compagnia Tutti gli ufficiali della Compagnia si eleggeranno con le palline nere e bianche su nominativi di persone idonee proposti dal Priore; il primo candidato che raggiungerà i tre quarti dei voti verrà nominato ufficiale. Per primo si eleggerà un Priore che resterà in carica per sempre, se, per gravi motivi di grande importanza, la Compagnia non delibererà di eleggerne un altro. Ogni anno, il giorno di Santa Croce, si eleggerà un Sottopriore, il quale farà tanto quanto vorrà il Priore, verrà altresì eletto un Depositario, che, per inventario annoterà e renderà conto, ogni anno, di ogni cosa, né potrà dare né spendere, sia pure un quattrino, senza espressa autorizzazione del Priore; in caso contrario sarà controllato e pagherà del suo. Verranno poi eletti due Sagrestani, ovvero custodi della chiesa, che si dedicheranno a tutte le adunate, feste, processioni, secondo gli ordini del Priore. Infine, si eleggerà uno Spedaliere che stia nell'ospedale a ricevere i pellegrini; se non si comporterà bene il Priore potrà toglierlo dal posto e, con il consenso della Compagnia, metterne un altro. Il Priore potrà distribuire ai poveri e ad altri bisognosi tutti i beni della Compagnia, tenendo però buon conto con il Depositario di ogni cosa, ma non potrà alienare niente, né assumere un cappellano perpetuo, né dare un salario senza l'autorizzazione della Compagnia. Il Priore potrà comandare tutti i fratelli, i quali gli saranno sempre obbedienti nelle cose possibili, ragionevoli e che riguardano l'osservanza dei capitoli e del vivere cristiano, dell'ufficio divino, e nei bisogni e uffici che lui ordinerà; non ci sia alcuno che ardisca ribellarsi e disubbidire, altrimenti sarà cacciato dal Priore dall'Associazione con il consenso della Fraternita. Capitolo terzo Dell'ufficio divino La sera della vigilia di tutte le feste, i fratelli converranno alla loro chiesa a dire il Mattutino della Madonna, la mattina a dire Prima [al sorgere del sole], Terza, Sesta e Nona e, dopo pranzo, a dire Vespro e Compièta; quelli che non sapessero leggere diranno la Corona o il Santo Rosario della Madonna e quelli che, per qualche motivo legittimo, talvolta, non potranno essere presenti mandino o facciano scusa al Priore. Questo medesimo ufficio si dirà tutti i venerdì di Quaresima, e ciascuno dei fratelli sarà obbligato, oltre l'ufficio sopraddetto, a dire ogni giorno cinque Pater noster e cinque Ave Maria a riverenza della Santa Croce e della gloriosa Madre di Dio. Ognuno ancora, potendo, farà di tutto per udire la Messa ogni mattina, per andare alle prediche, per confessarsi una volta al mese, non mancando però mai di confessarsi oltre la Pasqua di resurrezione, alla Pasqua dello Spirito Santo, per Santa Croce di maggio, per la presentazione della Madonna e per il Natale. Tutti imparino, oltre il Pater noster e 1'Ave Maria, ancora il Credo, la Salve Regina e i dieci comandamenti; sarà compito del Priore far controllare simili cose pubblicamente in chiesa durante la festa, affinché chi non le sa le impari. Dopo il giorno di Tutti i Santi si celebri un anniversario per i benefattori della Compagnia, e un altro ancora per i fratelli di detta Compagnia e per i morti sepolti nella loro chiesa. Si faccia ancora la disciplina tutti i venerdì di Quaresima e nelle vigilie comandate. E nei tre giorni della settimana santa si facciano quelle cerimonie che sono riportate sul libro della Compagnia, come si fa negli altri luoghi. Il giorno della Purificazione il Priore farà benedire le candele e, dopo pranzo ne darà una per uno ai fratelli della Compagnia; farà ancora celebrare solennemente tre feste l'anno con il solito ufficio e processione, alle quali feste converranno tutti i fratelli e cioè a Santa Croce di maggio e di settembre e alla Presentazione della Vergine Maria. Capitolo quarto Delle processioni Ogni domenica e ogni venerdì di Quaresima tutti i fratelli andranno a processione devotamente e così i tre giorni di Pasqua di resurrezione e di Pasqua rosata, i tre giorni di Rogazione, il giorno dell'Ascensione, del Corpus Domini, San Bernardino, San Giuseppe, Santa Croce, Sant'Antonio, la Presentazione, la Visitazione e tutte le altre volte nelle quali la Compagnia sarà invitata; chi può si compri la cappa da per sé e a chi non può sia provvista dalla Compagnia e vada cantando o dicendo qualche cosa devota; nessuno ardisca parlare per la strada e chi non sa cantare dica la corona e faccia orazione per tutti. Così in chiesa, nel vestirsi e nello spogliarsi, non si faccia rumore, ma tutti in silenzio e con ordine stiano devotamente, e quando sono alla Messa non parlino, ma stiano in orazione, o leggano o dicano qualche devozione con i due ginocchi in terra e discosti dall'altare con riverenza, mostrando esser presenti al loro Signore. Il medesimo faranno in coro, quando si dirà l'ufficio. E nessuno se ne vada senza licenza del Priore o del Sottopriore. Capitolo quinto Dell'ufficio dello Spedaliere Le sette opere di misericordia sono quelle delle quali, nel giorno del giudizio universale, dobbiamo rendere ragione davanti al tribunale di Dio, per le quali saremo premiati o condannati. Fra queste opere una delle principali è il dedicarsi agli ospedali e ricevere poveri forestieri. Perciò sarà compito dello Spedaliere, quando viene qualche povero secolare o religioso per alloggiare, riceverlo nell'ospedale e subito darne notizia al Priore o Sottopriore, affinché, con loro ordine, sia provvisto di quanto sarà di bisogno per una sera o più, secondo le necessità; e se verrà alcuno che è infermo sarà obbligo del Priore farlo portare o a Città di Castello o a Perugia negli ospedali grandi, secondo il beneplacito dell'infermo; e accadendo che qualcuno muoia nell'ospedale, si provveda ogni cosa circa lo spirituale e il temporale, in vita e in morte, come se fosse un fratello della nostra Compagnia, ricordandosi di fare al prossimo quello che vorremmo fosse fatto a noi stessi. E poiché quello dello Spedaliere è il principale ufficio di questa Compagnia, pertanto, oltre gli altri ufficiali, si userà grandissima diligenza (come anticamente i nostri maggiori hanno fatto e fanno tutti gli ospedali bene ordinati negli altri luoghi) di eleggere ogni anno uno dei fratelli della Compagnia idoneo a questo incarico, da bene, capace, caritativo e sollecito, il quale abbia sempre un compagno coadiutore per tutte le necessità; se sarà necessario la Compagnia potrà deliberare di dare loro un salario giusto e ragionevole affinché non si manchi per alcun motivo a quest'opera tanto degna, la quale è il fondamento di questa nostra Fraternita. Lo Spedaliere, dunque, vigilerà che nell'ospedale non si giochi, non si faccia alcuna cosa disonesta né che sia in disonore di Dio in alcun modo e, se vi sono infermi, che siano somministrati loro tutti i sacramenti della chiesa, e che le donne stiano separate dagli uomini. Lo Spedaliere tenga netto e pulito l'ospedale, i letti provvisti e i poveri forestieri, sani o infermi, siano ricevuti con carità e trattati bene in tutte le cose loro necessarie, pensando che non riceve solamente un povero, ma Cristo Gesù e faccia a loro tutto quello che vorrebbe fosse fatto a sè quando si ritrovasse in simili bisogni. Capitolo sesto Del seppellire i morti Quando ci sarà qualche povero che non ha chi lo seppellisca, il Priore provveda due o tre persone o più secondo il bisogno dei fratelli della Compagnia, le quali lo seppelliscano e facciano tutto quello che sarà necessario a simile opera pia; la confraternita lo porti alla sepoltura e così si faccia per tutti gli altri morti, uomini e donne poveri o ricchi che siano, non essendoci altri che si interessano a questa opera pia. Il Priore potrà dare ordini a quattro fratelli per volta al mese o, come a lui sembrerà più opportuno, a persone più adatte, caritative e sollecite in tale necessità. Il Priore provveda ancora a ricordare i turni di attività e faccia in maniera tale che nessuno muoia senza sacramenti e che nessuno sia abbandonato, né da vivo né da morto, finchè non sarà seppellito. Il Priore provvederà a far lavare i morti, a farli vestire, accompagnare, portare e seppellire; in tutte le cose si faccia quanto richiede la carità e l'abitudine dei buoni cristiani. E tutto questo che si è detto si farà con più diligenza nei confronti dei fratelli della Confraternita quando saranno infermi e poi dopo la morte; verranno vestiti della veste della Fraternita e, con quella sola, senza altri ornamenti della bara, siano portati in chiesa e così sepolti. Tutti i fratelli, quando si seppellisce uno di loro, saranno presenti, leggendo tutti quei salmi o altre devozioni che sono nel libro della Compagnia. I fratelli diranno per il morto, più presto che sia possibile, una volta la Corona, ovvero il Rosario della vergine Maria, mentre il Priore, il giorno medesimo ovvero il seguente se sarà possibile farà dire nella chiesa della Compagnia una messa per l'anima del fratello morto, alla quale messa tutti i confratelli della Compagnia sono tenuti ad essere presenti. Il sagrestano darà in mano a tutti una candela per uno da accendere mentre si dice la messa fino alla fine. Capitolo settimo Del modo di distribuire le elemosine ai poveri Poiché i beni di questa Compagnia sono stati lasciati dai nostri antichi per beneficio dei poveri e non per altro, così il Priore abbia cura che le entrate della Compagnia siano spese esclusivamente per i poveri e per i bisogni della chiesa e dell'ospedale, che non si facciano pranzi solenni né altri pranzi di alcun tipo in alcun luogo. Il Priore vigili affinché non si faccia alcuna elemosina a coloro che non sono poveri e che non hanno bisogno, ma solo a quei poveri che chiederanno l'elemosina, ai quali si dia tutto quello di cui necessitano "in sanità et in infirmità" come pane, vino, medicine, denari e simili e altre cose necessarie; e altrettanto ancora si farà per quelli che sono poveri vergognosi, i quali si vergognano di chiedere. Se poi qualcuno fosse in difficoltà economiche per maritare le sue figlie zitelle, sia aiutato secondo il bisogno e ad arbitrio del Priore. E nei tempi di carestia la Confraternita sia tenuta a distribuire una mina di grano ai poveri nella chiesa della Compagnia ogni venerdì, cominciando il primo venerdì di Quaresima fino al venerdì avanti San Pietro, cioè per circa quattro mesi. Il Priore provveda affinché la Compagnia abbia questi libri: prima il libro che si chiama "Campione", nel quale verranno registrati tutti i beni della Compagnia, mobili e immobili, con le loro misure e confini, chi li tiene e in che modo; il secondo libro riporterà le entrate e le uscite "minutamente" di tutto quello che si spenderà durante l'anno, e ogni anno, dopo la festa di Santa Croce di maggio, si renda conto di ogni cosa in presenza dei sindaci in modo tale però che tali conti siano rivisti e saldati entro e non oltre il mese di maggio e si possa consegnare l'inventario al nuovo depositario. Il terzo libro conterrà tutti i contratti e le scritture importanti della Compagnia e tutti i ricordi di quelle cose che accadranno, meritevoli di essere conosciuti da quelli che verranno, massimamente i presenti capitoli e gli ufficiali che si eleggeranno di anno in anno, gli ordini e i decreti che si faranno dalla Compagnia nel tempo; tutti questi libri saranno conservati dal Priore e da nessun altro. Capitolo ottavo Del correttore, predicatore e cappellano della Compagnia Poiché in tutte le buone opere i secolari hanno bisogno di essere indirizzati e aiutati dai sacerdoti e affinché la Confraternita possa essere governata meglio massimamente nel ben vivere, nel buon costume e nella osservanza dei presenti capitoli, il Priore, con il consenso della Compagnia eleggerà, secondo il costume delle altre compagnie, un sacerdote religioso osservante di buona vita e che voglia attendere, aiutare, consigliare e correggere i fratelli in tutte le cose necessarie al buono stato della Compagnia, al quale sacerdote il Priore con tutti i fratelli, renderà onore e obbedienza e riferirà tutte le iniziative importanti e necessarie; senza il suo consiglio non si ordinerà o cambierà alcuna cosa, in particolare nei confronti dell'osservanza dei seguenti capitoli. Se non sarà possibile avere un sacerdote residente alla Fratta, se ne eleggerà uno che stia a Perugia, ovvero a Città di Castello come meglio sembrerà, mettendolo al corrente delle necessità della Confraternita, invitandolo spesso a venire alla Fratta per insegnare, coordinare tutte quelle cose che saranno indispensabili per lo sviluppo della Fraternita. Il Priore e la Compagnia siano obbligati ad eleggere ogni anno, per predicare tutto l'Avvento fino alla festa dell'Epifania, un religioso osservante dell'ordine di San Domenico o di San Francesco e spendere in simile opera quello che sarà necessario per il predicatore. Se il convento della Fratta non avrà tale predicatore, come non hanno adesso i frati di San Domenico e i frati dei cappuccini, la Compagnia dovrà provvedere l'alloggio il vitto e le altre cose necessarie. Poiché però la Compagnia ha bisogno di continuo aiuto, di esortazioni, messe, confessioni, comunioni e altri simili esercizi cristiani, il Priore dovrà cercare diligentemente, trovare (se però sarà possibile) ed eleggere con consenso della Compagnia e con un salario conveniente, un sacerdote come cappellano della Fraternita e della chiesa, il quale sia uomo di buon esempio, adatto all'opera che dovrà svolgere, e che voglia abbracciare con tutto il cuore questa santa opera, a lode di Dio, utilità comune della Confraternita e di tutti gli uomini e donne della nostra terra. Finis Ed io, Alessandro Marocilli , pubblico notaio, inscritto nell'archivio della curia e segretario dell'Arciconfraternita della Carità di Roma, tutti i sopraddetti capitoli letti e visti, deputato per R. O. da parte dell'Arciconfraternita nel segno della conferma degli stessi capitoli secondo le lettere patenti e la bolla di unione della suddetta Confraternita della Fratta con la predetta Arciconfraternita sotto la data e millesimo infrascritti ho sottoscritto su ordine demandato il giorno 18 del mese di febbraio 1567. Così è, Alessandro Marocilli Come sopra, etcetera. Addì 9 di maggio 1567 Si dichiara per il presente capitolo come i soprascritti capitoli non obbligano, sotto pena di scomunica o di peccato o altra pena o pregiudizio, i fratelli della Compagnia, ma che loro sono liberi di poter mutare, aggiungere o togliere i sopraddetti capitoli ogni volta che sembrerà opportuno o piacerà alla detta Fraternita in tutto e per tutto come del resto è contenuto nella bolla dell'unione fatta il 18 di febbraio 1567. E così io F. Paulino, in presenza della Compagnia, dopo richiesta e consenso di tutti, il giorno sopra scritto ho dichiarato e capitolato per levare via ogni scrupolo dalle menti delle persone. Lode a Dio e alla Santissima Croce. Gli Statuti della Fraternita di Santa Croce GLI STATUTI DELLA FRATERNITA DI SANTA CROCE AGGIORNATI AL 1622 Statuti e ordini per il buon governo della Compagnia di Santa Croce della terra della Fratta fatti da Monsignor Rever.mo Andrea Sorbolongo, vescovo di Gubbio, nella visita dell'anno 1612 e confermati da Monsignor Rever.mo Dal Monte, suo degnissimo successore, Quem Deus etcetera. Capitolo primo Del numero degli ufficiali della Compagnia Essendo necessario per il buon governo di questa Confraternita che vi siano ufficiali con le opere dei quali e col dividere tra loro gli incarichi venga ad essere amministrata e governata con buoni ordini, ordiniamo che ci siano gli infrascritti ufficiali e cioè due Priori, un Camerlengo ovvero Depositario, due Sindaci o Revisori, due Priori dell'ospedale, un Segretario e quattro Sacrestani da durare un anno nell'ufficio; dell'elezione e ufficio degli ufficiali si dirà nei seguenti capitoli. Capitolo secondo Della qualità degli ufficiali Per eliminare alcuni inconvenienti che si possono verificare nelle elezioni degli ufficiali, si ordina che nella Confraternita ci sia un elenco pubblico dei fratelli della Compagnia, nel quale siano riportati e annotati solo quelli che dichiareranno di voler essere di detta Compagnia e vestire l'abito di questa e non di altre di detta terra, dal quale elenco di fratelli così descritti si prenderanno persone adatte per gli uffici della Compagnia, permettendo però che quelli che sono soliti vestire sacchi di altre Compagnie, ancorché siano da lungo tempo anche di questa, nella quale non siano soliti vestire, possano godere gli altri privilegi e grazie spirituali che godono gli altri Confratelli. Non può essere ufficiale chi è scomunicato e bollato di infamia pubblica o che non è comunicato a Pasqua. Similmente è inabile agli uffici chi fosse debitore o creditore o interessato con la Compagnia o che fosse in lite con essa per qualsivoglia causa. Non potranno essere ufficiali nel medesimo tempo padre e figlio, due fratelli, anche zio e nipote. Non possa essere Priore, Camerlengo, Sindaco chi non arriva a venti anni; prima che si effettui qualsiasi elezione, il Segretario legga il presente e il seguente capitolo. Capitolo terzo Del modo di eleggere gli insaccolatori e gli ufficiali Per adattarsi all'uso inveterato di questa Compagnia di eleggere i suoi ufficiali per mezzo di insaccolatori, ordiniamo che nel secondo giorno di Pasqua di Resurrezione dell'anno che si dovrà rifare il sacco dei nuovi ufficiali, in una pubblica assemblea, i Priori, il Camerlengo e i Sindaci eleggeranno sei persone discrete tra i fratelli della Compagnia, dal quale numero si estrarranno tre persone, le quali dovranno rifare il sacco per tre anni; nel fare ciò si procederà in questa maniera: la domenica dell'ottava di Pasqua i tre insaccolatori si riuniranno segretamente in chiesa, ove, recitate le solite preghiere, fatto giuramento di operare con carità e senza tornaconto personale, eleggeranno i nuovi ufficiali o "a voce" o "per voti segreti"; se ci "fosse discrepanza", diversità di vedute, "si metterà la sorte". Il tutto dovrà essere verbalizzato dal Segretario, che parteciperà a tutte le operazioni "senza voto decisivo". Lo stesso Segretario, finita la votazione, rinchiuderà segretamente le schede degli ufficiali eletti per ciascun anno in tre palle di cera, sigillate in un'altra palla simile alle tre, ma più grande, inserendovi un foglio ove saranno annotati tutti gli ufficiali di ciascuno dei tre anni, affinché, verificandosi qualche inconveniente (frode, dubbio o altro) si possa immediatamente confrontare con quanto scritto sul foglio e superare ogni difficoltà o controversia. Si avverte che i tre elettori suddetti "sono privi di voce passiva", cioè non possono essere eletti "per li tre anni futuri" all'ufficio del priorato e camerlengato. Il segretario e i tre elettori dovranno tenere segreti i risultati elettorali [fino al tre di maggio, festa di Santa Croce]. Capitolo quarto Del modo e tempo di dare l'ufficio ai nuovi ufficiali Ogni anno, nel giorno della festa di Santa Croce al 3 di maggio, nella assemblea generale si estrarrà una palla dei nuovi ufficiali il cui contenuto verrà reso pubblico dal Segretario. Quelli che saranno eletti a qualche ufficio andranno avanti all'altare maggiore da dove, pregando Iddio che doni loro la grazia di amministrare bene il detto ufficio e, fatto un cenno dai Priori anziani, se ne ritorneranno; al tornare dei quali, tutti gli ufficiali vecchi si alzeranno in piedi e se ne andranno dal loro posto facendovi sedere i nuovi ufficiali e si consegneranno le chiavi, i libri e il sigillo. Poi il Priore presente più anziano esorterà i nuovi ufficiali a mantenere le opere pie che si fanno dalla Confraternita, pregandoli a conservarne i beni e le robe con ogni loro potere e scusandosi con gli ufficiali passati delle loro negligenze, domanderanno perdono a Dio. Poi si dirà il Te Deum e Deus innocentiae restitutor, e fatto ciò, non essendovi altro da dire, si stabiliranno le ore della giornata nelle quali consegnare le robe, riscontrare gli inventari e rendere i conti in conformità di quanto si dirà nel capitolo settimo. Capitolo quinto Dell'ufficio dei Priori Vogliamo che i Priori siano capi e guida della Compagnia, ai quali ciascuno debba portare rispetto ed essere obbediente nelle cose che riguardano la Compagnia, siano governatori e amministratori di tutti i luoghi e delle robe della Compagnia, procurino che i beni e le robe di essa siano fedelmente amministrate e distribuite in conformità degli obblighi e delle antiche istituzioni della Compagnia affinchè non vengano defraudate le intenzioni e le disposizioni dei benefattori, provvedendo che gli stabili non si usurpino né si alienino. I Priori, all'inizio del loro mandato, siano obbligati ad intervenire ai controlli degli inventari, che si faranno tra gli ufficiali vecchi e nuovi, e ad assistere con i Sindaci alla resa dei conti, avvertendo di non ingerirsi in cosa alcuna prima che siano stati resi i conti dagli ufficiali passati. Procurino, prima che finisca il loro ufficio, di far riscuotere tutti i crediti, pagare tutti i debiti, fare saldo con tutti per non lasciare confusione ai nuovi successori, forse con danno della Compagnia. I Priori siano obbligati, insieme con il Camerlengo, almeno una volta durante il loro ufficio a visitare tutti i beni stabili della Compagnia, faranno convocare tutte le assemblee sia generali sia segrete e assistervi. Provvedano poi affinché nei tempi dovuti siano soddisfatti tutti gli obblighi e carichi della Compagnia. Non possano di loro propria autorità spendere più di uno scudo in cose che non siano ordinarie e solite. Ordineranno tutti i mandati dei pagamenti e spese ordinarie e straordinarie, sottoscrivendoli e timbrandoli col sigillo della Compagnia. Uno di essi dovrà sottoscrivere le lettere missive che occorreranno durante il giorno, in questo modo (I Priori) e l'altro vi metterà il sigillo, il quale dovrà stare in mano di uno solo; il medesimo procedimento potrà essere osservato nel sottoscrivere i mandati. I Priori procurino che si mettano a libro dei ricordi tutte le memorie di atti pubblici e altre scritture pertinenti alla Compagnia, insomma facciano in modo che tutti gli ufficiali e i ministri compiano diligentemente i loro doveri. Terranno una chiave del granaio e della cantina e l'altra il Camerlengo, né la daranno ad alcuno senza andarvi e ritrovarsi presenti, non perché crediamo che il Camerlengo non sia fedele e sincero, ma per togliere via i sospetti e le mormorazioni; per la stessa ragione, fatta la raccolta e finita la vendemmia, si aggiungeranno nell'inventario fatto all'inizio dell'ufficio, tutto il grano, le altre robe raccolte e anche il mosto alla presenza dei Sindaci revisori. Non possano per alcuna via ricevere denari di entrate ordinarie e straordinarie e, finito il loro ufficio si sottopongano al controllo dei sindaci in conformità del capitolo settimo. Procurino di essere più amati che temuti dagli ufficiali e, soprattutto, essendo i primi dei luoghi e degli onori, siano i primi ad osservare i presenti capitoli e, con le opere e il loro esempio, siano specchi, esempio di bene operare per tutti gli altri. Capitolo sesto Dell'ufficio del Camerlengo o Depositario Non ricercandosi minor diligenza nell'eleggere il Camerlengo della Compagnia di quella che si ricerca nel nominare i Priori, avendo egli in mano tutte le robe ed entrate dalle quali dipendono tutte le opere lodevoli che si fanno nella Compagnia, si avvertono gli insaccolatori di eleggere a tale ufficio persona idonea e non sospetta. Il Camerlengo, benché abbia facoltà di spendere per le piccole e consuete cose senza il consenso dei Priori, tuttavia non potrà pagare né spendere denari per qualsiasi causa da tre giulii in su senza il detto mandato, non dovendosi altrimenti ritenere buono dai Sindaci nel rendere i conti; alla fine di ciascun mese farà fare il riepilogo di tutte le spese minute occorse, e delle spese che farà per vigore di qualsiasi mandato, debba farne fare ricevuta a tergo. Userà diligenza nello scrivere nel suo registro, annotando e specificando il nome da chi sono date o prese le robe, il peso, la misura, il numero, il prezzo e il giorno. All'inizio del suo ufficio dovrà prendere in carico ogni cosa per inventario alla presenza dei Priori e dei Sindaci, aggiungendo nel registro, sempre alla presenza dei sopraddetti, il raccolto del grano, del mosto e delle altre cose. Dovrà tenere una chiave del grano, del vino e delle altre robe, mentre l'altra la terrà il Priore, il che si è ordinato solo per rimuovere i sospetti e le mormorazioni; non darà a nessuno la detta chiave senza ritrovarsi presente. Il Camerlengo dovrà ugualmente tenere una chiave delle cassette delle elemosine e l'altra il Priore. Sarà suo dovere riscuotere tutti i lasciti, crediti e altri denari della Compagnia, avvertendo di non lasciare indietro alcun debito o credito per non lasciare confusione ai nuovi ufficiali, forse con danno della chiesa [sic]. In mano sua dovranno pervenire tutti i denari che non si dovranno spendere se non per sua mano; non farà distrazione delle robe ed entrate della Compagnia per convertirle in denari senza la partecipazione dei Priori; finito il tempo dell'incarico consegnerà i suoi libri e l'inventario ai nuovi Sindaci alla presenza dei vecchi e nuovi Priori e si renderanno i conti conformemente al seguente capitolo. Capitolo settimo Dell'ufficio dei Sindaci Benché speriamo che ogni fratello, al quale toccherà qualche ufficio, debba fare il suo dovere diligentemente e con fedeltà, tuttavia, perché a ciascuno è noto quanto siano importanti il giudizio e l'esame degli ufficiali passati, affinché le opere di ognuno siano manifeste e la Compagnia sia servita concretamente, si ordina che i Sindaci che saranno votati nella palla dei nuovi ufficiali, con l'assistenza del vicario foraneo, debbano rendere i conti dell'amministrazione degli ufficiali passati che avranno maneggiato robe e denari della Compagnia; questo sia fatto rapidamente per sommi capi, vedendo solo la realtà del fatto; senza esprimere giudizi si faccia detto controllo entro il termine di dieci giorni, dando assicurazione scritta che verrà consegnata al Segretario affinché la legga in una assemblea generale; resa pubblica, verrà registrata dal Segretario nel registro dei decreti di detta Compagnia. I Sindaci procurino che i nuovi ufficiali piglino l'ufficio col fare l'inventario, dove si specifichi la qualità e quantità delle cose o robe che a quelli si consegneranno e altre circostanze necessarie con la presenza loro, al quale inventario faranno aggiungere, come di sopra tutte le entrate che a suo tempo si ricaveranno dai beni stabili della Compagnia, come grano, vino e biade. Terranno una chiave dell'armario cioè il primo Sindaco una e l'altra il primo Priore. Conformemente a quanto si dirà nel capitolo XIIII, i Sindaci concorreranno ad eleggere gli insaccolatori, conformemente al capitolo XI, interverranno alla assemblea segreta. Sarà cura particolare dei Sindaci "visitare" spesso i beni stabili della Compagnia e procurare che siano ben coltivati e, al possibile, bonificati. Capitolo ottavo Dei Priori dell'ospedale e loro ufficio Sarà carico dei deputati a questo ufficio il sopraintendere al governo dell'ospedale dei poveri e all'ospizio dei padri cappuccini col provvedere quel tanto che farà di bisogno per il servizio di detto ospizio, e di tutte le spese faranno fare mandato, facendolo sottoscrivere come di sopra, da pagarsi per mano del depositario, avvertendo di non comprare robe alle osterie, con maggior spesa della Compagnia, perché non dovrà considerarsi buona l'alterazione dei prezzi. Avvertiranno ancora di non servirsi delle stanze fuori dell'uso convenevole e anche loro siano obbligati a fare tutti gli altri esercizi soliti, dichiarando che nei presenti statuti, facendosi menzione dei Priori, non s'intendono questi dell'ospedale, se non sono specificatamente nominati tali. Capitolo nono Del Segretario e suo ufficio Affinché, tanto dei decreti e risoluzioni che si faranno nelle assemblee, quanto degli infrascritti statuti e di altre scritture pertinenti alla Compagnia, ci sia chi tenga conto del tutto, ordiniamo che ci sia un Segretario il quale dovrà sempre assistere a tutte le riunioni e annotare distintamente tutto quello che si tratterà. Scriverà ancora tutte le lettere missive che occorrono alla giornata, facendole sottoscrivere e sigillare e di quelle terrà copia. Terrà anche conto delle altre lettere che si riceveranno, "facendone filza" [ordinandole], per poterle a suo tempo porre nell'archivio. Noterà in un registro tutti i fratelli e sorelle della Compagnia per ordine alfabetico e se in alcune di dette riunioni il Segretario non fosse presente, qualche altro, su incarico dei Priori, scriverà in un foglio quello che occorrerà, da darsi poi in mano al Segretario affinchè lo riporti sul suo registro; interverrà al momento della resa dei conti e, occorrendo, scriverà gli inventari e altre scritture per la Compagnia. Capitolo decimo Dei Sagrestani e loro ufficio Sarà cura dei sagrestani che la chiesa, l'altare, l'oratorio e tutte le altre robe della sagrestia siano sempre pulite e monde. I sagrestani dovranno assistere la domenica e tutte le feste, alle messe che si celebreranno nella chiesa della Compagnia; saranno diligenti nel far osservare gli obblighi che ha la Compagnia in quanto a messe, funerali e simili e, a questo effetto, dovranno tenere una tabella affissa nella sagrestia, sarà loro cura addobbare con decenza la chiesa nelle feste solite della Compagnia e, per tale effetto, riceveranno dal Camerlengo in denari quel tanto che dai Priori sarà giudicato sufficiente per la spesa di detto apparato, avvertendoli che andrà a loro conto ogni spesa superflua che facessero di loro iniziativa. I Priori avvertiranno ancora detti Sagrestani di non fare, nei giorni di festa "spese straordinarie e indecenti in mangiamenti e refezioni", non dovendole accettare per buone nei conti; se vorranno fare qualche cosa a loro proprie spese sia fatta ancora con ogni temperanza e senza scandalo. I sagrestani renderanno fedele conto ai Priori dei denari e delle elemosine che entrano nella sagrestia ed i Priori dovranno condiscendere ai giusti desideri loro quando facessero istanza, se di dette elemosine e avanzi fatti per loro intervento se ne facesse qualche ornamento per la chiesa o sagrestia durante il loro ufficio. Terranno ancora conto della cera che entrerà nella sagrestia per funerali e altre occasioni. Riceveranno e renderanno per inventario alla presenza dei Priori le robe pertinenti alla sagrestia. Capitolo undicesimo Dell'assemblea segreta Essendo necessario, per la speditezza degli affari della Compagnia, riunirsi spesse volte insieme, e perché sarebbe molto difficile, per ogni circostanza che durante la giornata si presenta, riunire tutti i fratelli, perciò si ordina che una volta al mese, e più o meno secondo che parrà ai Priori, si faccia una riunione segreta, alla quale dovranno intervenire i due Priori, il Camerlengo, i Sindaci, il Segretario e, possibilmente i due Priori vecchi dell'anno precedente, i quali tutti vogliamo che rappresentino la Congregazione [l'Assemblea] segreta, nella quale si possano trattare tutti gli argomenti necessari, proponendo i Priori e rispondendo successivamente gli altri puntualmente; se nel trattare vi sarà controversia, si metterà a votazione e non si potrà prendere decisione in detta riunione se non sono presenti almeno un Priore e cinque altri deputati. Non si possa discutere il problema o prendere una decisione finché non sarà uscito fuori quello (ancorché difficile) che avesse proposto qualche cosa tanto per interesse suo quanto dei suoi sino al terzo grado incluso. La stessa regola si osservi nell'assemblea generale. Detta assemblea segreta avrà facoltà di permettere qualche spesa insolita, però utile per la Compagnia, fino alla somma di tre scudi; alla medesima riunione segreta spetterà di nominare ufficiali nei luoghi che saranno restati vacanti per qualsivoglia accidente, i quali ufficiali saranno nello stesso grado, dignità e ordine che erano quelli insaccolati. Tutto quello che da detta assemblea segreta sarà decretato sia valido come se fosse fatto dall'assemblea generale, ad eccezione però dei casi riservati a detta assemblea generale. Capitolo dodicesimo Della assemblea generale Siccome nella Confraternita tutti i fratelli sono uguali, così la partecipazione ai suoi affari deve essere comune e, presentandosi problemi gravi, si devono risolvere e determinare con il consenso comune; perciò ordiniamo che, oltre la riunione segreta, si devono convocare e riunire tutti i fratelli, tutte quelle volte che ai Priori sembrerà accorgimento utile, in assemblea generale, la quale abbia facoltà di trattare, decidere e risolvere tutti i problemi occorrenti alla Compagnia, proponendo i Priori e rispondendo gli altri puntualmente, dichiarando (per evitare la confusione e il danno della Compagnia) che siano privi di voce attiva e passiva quelli che parleranno quando non tocca loro per ordine in detta assemblea senza avere ottenuto il permesso da uno dei due Priori; questa condizione privatamente duri solamente durante il consiglio o assemblea di quel giorno. Intesi i pareri dei diversi deputati, si metteranno ai voti quelli più "laudabili", e quello che sarà più favorevole rispetto ai voti ottenuti si intenderà approvato. Risolti i problemi e fatti i decreti si rendano pubblici dal segretario con voce intelliggibile; il medesimo si farà nelle riunioni segrete, alle quali assemblee non assisterà alcuno che non sia della Compagnia o che vesta di altre Compagnie e che si presenti armato. Prima che abbiano inizio le riunioni, sia generali sia segrete, si dovrà recitare "Veni Sante Spiritus", come nell'ufficio della Beata Vergine; finita la riunione si reciteranno le preghiere "Post congregatione" come nel medesimo luogo è notato. Capitolo tredicesimo Del modo di mettere i partiti [ai voti] Tutte le votazioni che si andranno a proporre nelle assemblee si devono effettuare per voti segreti, in tutte le riunioni sia generali che segrete e non si intendano valide se i voti non sono più della metà dei fratelli presenti riuniti atti a dare il voto e se non sono i due terzi dei voti favorevoli, come è stato usato sempre in questa Compagnia. Dovendo predisporre per la votazione, si ponga il bossolo davanti ai Priori, dove ordinatamente ciascuno andrà a dare il suo voto; nessuno possa dare voto se non ha almeno quindici anni finiti. Si aprirà poi dal segretario il bossolo davanti a Priori, pubblicamente, e si pubblicheranno e mostreranno i voti a tutta l'assemblea. Capitolo quattordicesimo Del modo di accettare i fratelli Per evitare l'associazione di uomini di cattiva fama e vita scandalosa, al che facilmente da principio si provvede e, successivamente, con difficoltà si rimedia, onde spesse volte succedono scandali e discordie, ordiniamo che, volendo qualcuno entrare a far parte della Compagnia, debba presentare un memoriale ai Priori, i quali, nella prima assemblea generale lo proporranno a votazione ed essendo accettato gli si darà avviso, affinché possa provvedere la veste, o sacco, che farà benedire da qualche sacerdote; sarà poi vestito dal proprio Priore con le solite cerimonie e ammonizioni e allora, non prima, sarà scritto dal segretario nel registro dei fratelli e posto nella tavola pubblica, avvertendolo che per l'avvenire non verranno ammessi nella Compagnia quelli che sono soliti vestire il sacco o la veste di altre compagnie dello stesso luogo. Capitolo quindicesimo Del modo di cancellare i fratelli Occorrendo cancellare qualcuno dei fratelli della Compagnia per qualche giusta causa, questo tale si faccia chiamare davanti ai Priori per sentire se ha qualche legittima difesa; dopo che sarà ascoltato, o non comparendo, il segretario nell'assemblea generale, a nome dei Priori, esporrà la causa. L'assemblea giudicherà a voti segreti e, se il caso proposto meriterà tale punizione, il nome di questo tale si scriverà in un bollettino che verrà stracciato dal Priore; il segretario lo cancellerà nello stesso tempo dal registro e farà nota dei fratelli, in modo tale che se ne faccia perpetua memoria, senza possibilità di essere mai più riammesso. Capitolo sedicesimo Dell'archivio o armario Per conservare i libri e le altre scritture pertinenti alla Compagnia, ove sarà anche l'inventario di detti registri, l'originale dell'inventario delle robe che si consegnano annualmente agli ufficiali, con il quale si confronteranno gli inventari particolari di qualsiasi ufficio, si ordina che vi sia un armario o cassa, dove si conservino tutti i registri, contratti, memorie e altre scritture riguardanti la Compagnia. Il primo Priore terrà una chiave di detto armario o cassa, l'altra la terrà il primo Sindaco. Capitolo diciassettesimo Che non si alienino i beni della Compagnia Desiderando provvedere nei confronti di chi posponesse l'utilità della Compagnia al proprio particolare interesse, stabiliamo che i beni stabili non si possano locare per più di tre anni, e questo con il consenso dell'assemblea generale, né si possano locare a persone, le quali abbiano casa, possessi e altri beni vicini a quelli della Compagnia, affinché non siano usurpati in tutto o in parte e i confini non si sconvolgano. Similmente non si possa locare, vendere o alienare o in qualsiasi modo concedere beni stabili o altre cose ai Priori, al Camerlengo o ad altri ufficiali della Compagnia, né ai loro parenti durante il loro ufficio. Le alienazioni in vita, terze generazioni o perpetue non siano permesse se non quando riguardassero cose dannose, sterili e in caso di grandissima necessità e di evidente utilità della Compagnia, né questo si deliberi senza il consenso dell'assemblea generale, oltre all'approvazione che se ne dovrà ottenere da Monsignor Reverendissimo Vescovo, quando si effettuerà tale alienazione sia fatta a spese del compratore come quando occorresse il sì di qualunque genere. Capitolo diciottesimo Dei prestiti delle robe Poiché prestare le robe della Compagnia è causa di smarrimenti, molte volte per negligenza, oppure di guasti per poca attenzione, con non poco danno di essa, ordiniamo che nessuno possa in qualsiasi modo prestare beni mobili di qualsiasi genere, di proprietà della Compagnia, senza un documento sottoscritto almeno da uno dei Priori, e prestandosi qualche cosa si faccia notare nel registro ciò che è stato prestato e a chi; e quando la riporterà si cancelli. In caso contrario, se le cose prestate perissero o si deteriorassero notevolmente siano a carico di chi le presta. Capitolo diciannovesimo Delle donne che entreranno nella Compagnia Per dare possibilità alle donne che lo vorranno di entrare a far parte della Compagnia ordiniamo che i sagrestani e altri ufficiali che saranno "pro tempore" piglino in nota il nome di quella donna che vorrà entrare nella Compagnia e lo presentino ad uno dei Priori affinché se ne possa prendere debita informazione; dopo aver assunto informazioni e averle trovate idonee, almeno un Priore sottoscriverà quel bollettino, il quale sarà consegnato al segretario affinché lo trascriva nel libro grosso dei fratelli e sorelle della Compagnia delle quali ogni anno gli insaccolatori ne eleggeranno quattro, le quali, con il titolo di Priore, saranno capo e guida di tutte le altre sorelle della Compagnia. Capitolo ventesimo Delle qualità e costumi dei fratelli e sorelle della Compagnia Per ammonire ed avvertire i fratelli e le sorelle di questa Compagnia di incamminarsi ed esercitarsi per la via delle virtù e dei buoni costumi, ci possiamo servire delle ammonizioni ed esortazioni che fa San Paolo nel capitolo quarto delle Epistole che scrive ai Filippesi, ove, dopo molte altre esortazioni vi aggiunge questa: "De cetero, fratres, quaecumque sunt vera, quaecumque onesta, quaecumque sancta, quaecumque amabilia, quaecumque honestae famae, si qua virtus, si qua laus disciplinae, haec cogitate". [Del resto, fratelli, tutto ciò che è vero, tutto ciò che è onesto, tutto ciò che è santo, tutto quello che è amabile, tutto ciò che è rinomato, tutto ciò che è virtuoso e merita lode, sia oggetto del vostro pensiero]. Dovendo riportare da tutto ciò un frutto particolare, questo non sarà altro che quello che lo stesso San Paolo aggiunge: "Deus pacis erit vobiscum". [il Dio della pace sarà con voi] . Se questo riguarda tutti i cristiani, molto di più deve riguardare quelli che, oltre all'obbligo universale della legge cristiana, scegliendo quasi una vita più severa in questa Compagnia, si sono spontaneamente obbligati alle opere di pietà e devozione; per questo vogliamo, dunque, che i fratelli e le sorelle della Compagnia, prima di ogni altra cosa osservino tutti i comandamenti di Dio e della Chiesa, ascoltino ogni giorno la Messa o almeno visitino il Santissimo Sacramento, frequentino i Sacramenti della Confessione e della Comunione, se non una volta al mese, almeno nelle feste principali del Signore e della Madonna, e in particolare per la festa di Santa Croce di maggio e della Madonna di novembre, feste principali della Compagnia, nella propria chiesa tutti insieme. Si esercitino nelle opere di pietà e di misericordia con tutti e in particolare con quelli della Compagnia, soccorrendo i bisognosi, visitando gli infermi di essa, seppellendo i morti, per i quali dovranno far celebrare un ufficio tanto per i fratelli quanto per le sorelle della Compagnia dopo la morte di ciascuno, e fare una particolare orazione per essi. Abbiano qualche devozione particolare e siano riverenti e obbedienti ai superiori, siano solleciti alla frequenza della Compagnia nelle attività e processioni pubbliche, alle quali intervengano sempre con l'abito della Compagnia e con quella modestia pietà e devozione che sono dovute a tale abito, sempre con la faccia coperta e senza cappello in testa. Abbiano sempre davanti agli occhi l'onore e il timore di Dio, perché con tali mezzi verranno ad essere più disposti a conseguire le grazie, e privilegi e le indulgenze concessi a questa Compagnia in conformità di quanto è contenuto più espressamente nelle bolle dell'aggregazione, con l'avvertenza di non lasciare vestire il sacco né di intervenire ad alcune attività a quelli che non sono iscritti alla Compagnia, se non per necessità o convenienza e in questi casi con il permesso degli stessi Priori della Compagnia. Tutti i sopraddetti singoli capitoli, intimati dal Mandatario dell'assemblea generale e quella riunita, furono letti ad alta ed intelliggibile voce da me cancelliere infrascritto, e di nuovo furono accettati ed approvati per voto segreto, nessuno intimamente contrario e il decreto dovrà essere osservato inviolabilmente, riservati il consenso e l'approvazione dell'Illustrissimo e Reverendissimo Signore Alessandro del Monte vescovo eugubino per grazia di Dio e della Sede Apostolica dal giorno 23 ottobre 1622. In fede, scrissi e sottoscrissi di mia propria mano Paolo Cibo notaio e cancelliere I capitoli sopraddetti confermati ed approvati dal vescovo eugubino. Capitoli sopra le doti da vincolarsi per le zitelle Per eliminare molti abusi e dare qualche forma al costituire, al distribuire le doti per elemosina alle zitelle e apportare maggior utile ai poveri, onore e decoro alla Compagnia, si stabilisce e determina che per l'avvenire l'assemblea generale pubblica possa vincolare e assegnare una dote o due al più l'anno, secondo che lo consentiranno le entrate e i bisogni della Compagnia, e non più; e ciascuna delle dette doti possa ammontare alla somma di venticinque fiorini e questi non superare. Parimente si ordina e stabilisce che non si possano proporre per tale effetto se non zitelle povere onorate, di buoni costumi, residenti nella Terra di Fratta o nei suoi borghi, e che dei parenti di quelle almeno il padre sia nativo del detto luogo. Nello sborsare le dette doti se ne debba fare atto pubblico per mano del cancelliere della Compagnia, e si debbano dare con patto o condizione, purchè, per tutto il tempo che, e fino a quando avrà conservato una vita casta ed onesta; e anche con patto che, morendo la donna senza figlioli legittimi e naturali, la dote consegnatale debba ritornare ed essere restituita alla Compagnia nel modo migliore, senza la detrazione del terzo o di altro; e a questo effetto si farà mettere in beni stabili la detta dote, o dare sicurtà idonea di restituirla nei sopraddetti casi, non altrimenti. Si determina ancora che le sopraddette doti non si possano assegnare se non nei giorni delle feste principali della Compagnia cioè nella festività di Santa Croce il 3 di maggio, e nella festività della Presentazione della Madonna il 21 di novembre, una però per ciascuna festa, nel caso che piacesse assegnarne una o due, come si è detto di sopra, e nell'assegnarle si leggeranno i memoriali di ciascuna zitella da proporre all'assemblea pubblica e per ciascuna si metterà la decisione a voto segreto e quella che avrà più voti favorevoli si intenderà assegnata, avendo avuto però più dei due terzi dei voti favorevoli, in modo conforme alle disposizioni della Compagnia; e se eventualmente due o più zitelle riportassero un numero uguale di voti, si scriveranno i nomi in due o più schede "conformi" e da quelle si estrarrà a sorte, intendendo per assegnata quella che verrà estratta, dichiarando che i sopraddetti capitoli, tutti e ciascuno di essi in tutto e per tutto si debbano osservare "inviolabilmente" e contravvenendovi, in tutto o in parte sia nullo e di nessuna importanza ogni atto e la dote si consideri non assegnata, né si debba rimborsare la somma a chi la pagasse. Tutti i sopraddetti singoli capitoli, intimati dal Mandatario dell'assemblea generale, e quella riunita, furono letti ad alta ed intelliggibile voce da me cancelliere infrascritto, e furono accettati ed approvati con voto segreto, nessuno intimamente contrario, e il decreto dovrà essere inviolabilmente osservato, riservati il consenso e l'approvazione dell'illustrissimo e Reverendissimo Signore Alessandro del Monte, vescovo eugubino per grazia di Dio e della Sede Apostolica, dal giorno 23 ottobre 1622. Paolo Cibo notaio e cancelliere I Capitoli sopraddetti confermati ed approvati dal Vescovo eugubino Decreto del 16 giugno 1730 Decreto dell'Illustrissimo e Reverendissimo Signore Sostegno Maria Cavalli vescovo eugubino, emanato il 16 giugno 1730 in occasione della Sacra visita a questa chiesa della venerabile Confraternita di Santa Croce, e trascritto tra gli altri decreti. Ordiniamo che in futuro nessun fratello eletto della medesima società possa prendere il sacco o la veste e indossarli se non per mano del Priore che amministra al momento, fatti salvi i riti e le cerimonie prescritte nei capitoli della Società e inoltre [ordiniamo] che nessun confratello possa essere accolto, eletto o ammesso oltre il numero di quaranta confratelli, altrimenti l'elezione o l'ammissione sia, in ambedue i casi, nulla immediatamente. Pietro Nalducci segretario Decreto del 6 giugno 1741 L'Illustrissimo e Reverendissimo Signore Sostegno Maria Cavalli vescovo eugubino, in occasione della sacra visita effettuata nella chiesa di Santa Croce di questa Terra di Fratta, essendo il suo animo mosso da giusta causa, derogando in quella parte del capitolo XIV ordinò che in futuro la Confraternita non accolga nuovi confratelli se non mediante il consiglio segreto. Così è il 6 giugno 1741. Fratta, in occasione della sacra visita, come sopra Firmato S. M. Cavalli (aggiunta postuma) C. Leandro de Bonfatti Cancelliere vescovile generale

Il massacro di Penetola 28 GIUGNO 1944 LE VITTIME / THE VICTIMS Avorio Antonio, anni 11; Avorio Carlo, anni 8; Avorio Renato, anni 14; Forni Canzio, anni 58; Forni Ezio, anni 21; Forni Edoardo, anni 16; Luchetti Guido, anni 18; Nencioni Conforto, anni 36; Nencioni Eufemia, anni 44; Nencioni Ferruccio, anni 36; Nencioni Renzini Erminia, anni 68. Il massacro di Penetola - voce di Paola Avorio 00:00 / 02:02 The massacre of Penetola - voice by Paola Avorio 00:00 / 02:24 28 GIUGNO 1944 Nella notte tra il 27 e il 28 giugno 1944, nel casolare denominato Penetola di Niccone, i cui ruderi potete scorgere davanti a voi, dodici persone sono state barbaramente uccise dai soldati appartenenti al 305° battaglione genieri dell’esercito tedesco, di stanza poco lontano da qui, in località La Mita, nota anche come La Dogana. Il casolare di Penetola era abitato dalle famiglie Avorio e Luchetti che nel giugno del 1944 ospitarono le famiglie Forni e Nencioni, sfollate dalle proprie case dell’abitato di Niccone, interamente occupato dalle truppe tedesche. Il comando tedesco era invece stanziato a Montalto, il castello che si trova in alto sulla collina di fronte a voi. Da li, il 26 giugno gli ufficiali tedeschi scesero a La Mita a dare ai propri soldati indicazioni su come raggiungere Penetola e il 28 giugno, dopo mezzanotte, 18 militari tedeschi armati bussarono alla porta del casolare e svegliarono tutti. Gli sfollati che dormivano nell’annesso, vennero derubati dei propri averi e.condotti dentro la casa con gli altri. Tutti vennero rinchiusi nella stanza rivolta verso il bosco. Gli animali furono fatti uscire dalle stalle. I soldati presero il fieno del pagliaio e il legname trovato sul posto, li accatastarono alle pareti della stanza dove erano state rinchiuse le 24 persone e alle mura della casa e, utilizzando della benzina, appiccarono un fuoco devastante. Solo dodici delle ventiquattro persone rinchiuse nel casolare sono sopravvissute: 11 superstiti appartengono alle famiglie dei mezzadri Avorio e Luchetti, nessun superstite tra le due famiglie degli sfollati Nencioni e Forni tranne la piccola Giovanna di 6 anni. 28 June 1944 On the night between 27 and 28 June 1944, in the farmhouse called Penetola di Niccone, whose ruins you can see before you, twelve people were killed by soldiers belonging to the 305th engineer battalion of the German army, stationed not far away from here, in La Mita, also known as La Dogana. The Penetola farmhouse was inhabited by the Avorio and Luchetti families who in June 1944 hosted the Forni and Nencioni families, displaced from their homes in the town of Niccone, entirely occupied by German troops. The German command was instead stationed in Montalto, the castle located high up on the hill in front of you. From there, on 26th June the German officers went down to La Mita to give their soldiers directions on how to reach Penetola and on 28th June, after midnight, 18 armed German soldiers knocked on the door of the farmhouse and woke everyone up. They robbed the evacuees who slept in the annex of their belongings and took them into the house with the others. Everyone was locked in the room facing the woods. The cattle was let out of the stables. The soldiers took the hay from the haystack and the wood found on the spot, piled them on the walls of the room where the 24 people had been locked up and on the walls of the house and, using petrol, set a devastating fire. Only twelve of the twenty-four people locked up in the farmhouse survived: 11 survivors belong to the families of the sharecroppers Avorio and Luchetti, no survivors from the two families of the Nencioni and Forni except little 6-year-old Giovanna. Testo tratto da: Paola Avorio, "Tre noci ," Petruzzi Editore, 2011 Immagine di sfondo: disegno di Antonio Renzini "Penetola" Un progetto a cura di Mario Tosti, Unitre di Umbertide, il Centro Culturale San Francesco, Umbertidestoria, con il Patrocinio del Comune di Umbertide; con la collaborazione di Pietro Taverniti, Massimo Pascolini, Sergio Bargelli, Corrado Baldoni, Francesco Deplanu, Sergio Magrini Alunno, Antonio Renzini, Luca Silvioni, Romano Vibi. Help us remember umbertidestoria@gmail.com EH Carr "Change is certain. Progress is not "

THE COAT OF ARMS OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF UMBERTIDE Reflections by Roberto Sciurpa The coat of arms of the municipality of Umbertide dates back to 1189 when the Fratta was subjected to Perugia and changed its original coat of arms (the lily). Guerrini describes it in detail (1) and it is worth reporting its description because over the years it has undergone not marginal adaptations and some interesting details have even disappeared. “... This was composed of the figure of a bridge over running water and in a red field. The bridge has three arches and in the middle of their lights there are initial letters FOV which mean Fracta oppidum Uberti and which therefore by solemn vow of public calamity were converted into Fracta oppidum Virginis. Above the three pillars there are three towers, with the Virgin Patroness of the Castle dominating in the middle; and to the right the Grifo, which indicates the dependence on Perugia; on the left the emblem of the Apostolic Chamber which signifies the high dominion of the Pontiff. And finally an ornate crown encloses the shield all around where we can read these words: Defensores Populi et insignis Comunitatis Terrae Fractae ”. The italics are by Guerrini who wants to highlight the essential characteristics of the coat of arms. The interpretative doubt is linked to the letter "V" which is found in the light of the arch and which for some means "Uberti" and for others "Virginis" (according to Guerrini both would be right). As it is easy to guess, the two sides, at least in the past, were conditioned by logic. belonging (clerical or anti-clerical), but today that both the iconoclastic wave of the Enlightenment and the acrimonious antipapalian resentment linked to the events of the Risorgimento has faded, it is possible to express a serene and detached judgment on the matter. Indeed, a thorough reflection could lead. at least according to my point of view, to reconstruct the truth also on another interesting detail linked to local history, as I will say later. But let's proceed in order: 1. In the space of a few decades at Fratta there were two important events: the opening to worship of the Church of Santa Maria della Reggia and the Tuscan siege of the troops of the Grand Duke. The first (last years of the 16th century) marked a fundamental stage in the faith and customs of the people. The monumental temple that housed the miraculous image of the Madonna, so dear to the piety of the faithful, had finally been completed. From that moment, thanks also to the majestic visibility of her house, the Madonna became the point of reference for all the people. The old patrons (S. Andrea and S. Erasmo) still venerated and loved, slowly faded into the background because the ancient castle was increasingly entrusted to the patronage of the Virgin. In November 1643, in fact, during the siege of the Tuscan troops, the inhabitants overwhelmed by fear gathered in the church of San Giovanni inside the city walls, to implore the Madonna for salvation. It was not a question of winning or losing a battle, but of surviving or dying in the rubble and flames of a fortress that would surely have been razed to the ground, according to the military custom of the time. The people of Fratta, on that occasion, entrusted themselves to the Virgin and not to the secular patrons. A lot of water mixed with sleet fell; the Tiber swelled, discouraging any attempt to ford; the siege was lifted without firing a cannon shot; the Tuscans left and there was talk of a "miracle", giving rise to the conviction of the miracle granted by the Madonna to a castle which thus became oppidum Virginis. And the image of the Madonna inserted above the central tower of the coat of arms, now disappeared with the other surrounding details, seems to reinforce the belief that FOV meant Fracta oppidum Virginis at least from this period onwards. At each centenary anniversary, the "miracle" was commemorated with great solemnity by popular piety. This event consists of the "solemn vote for public calamity" of which Guerrini speaks and which makes Giulio Briziarelli so doubtful that he wonders what the miraculous event had been. (2) 2. I believe that Umbertide is one of the few cities, if not the only one, that has left the ancient Protectors, considered everywhere sacred and untouchable because they are linked to the faith and traditions of one people, to entrust itself to the protection of another, although of higher rank such as the Virgin. And that detail I mentioned in the introduction is also linked to this fact. This is the canvas placed in the church of San Bernardino. Certainly the official accreditation that sees reproduced the image of St. Anthony in adoration, as indicated in some photographic publications relating to the city and in tourist brochures, is incorrect. The symbolism of sacred iconography is an important key to understanding and must be kept in the utmost consideration. The character represented is a martyr because the angel shows a palm which is the symbol of martyrdom (St. Anthony is not a martyr). Furthermore, the person represented is also a bishop, as evidenced by the presence of the miter and the crosier. The abbots are comparable to the office of bishop, but in the pictorial works they are represented with their typical habit and not with the solemn vestments of the bishop's office. The presence of the angel is emblematic. It is true that in sacred iconography the figure of the angel is very widespread, but in the specific case it is said that in the life of St. Erasmus the legend speaks of the recurring role of an angel who accompanied the holy bishop to Syria, then to Dalmatia. , finally to Formia and to martyrdom. If the legend is combined with the reproduced subjects, the Immaculate Conception and the castle of Fratta, it can reasonably be assumed that that saint character had something to do with the small village and that he was even the protector who entrusted his protégés to the superior protection. of the Virgin. The canvas, therefore, could represent the "miracle" of 1643 and "The consignment" of the city to the Madonna by Sant'Erasmo. Popular tradition (3) has always indicated in the painting the memory of the prodigy. hypothesis was founded, the canvas should date back to around 1644 and it could be observed that the dome of the church of Santa Maria della Reggia was no longer there at the time. It is true, but it is a secondary detail, in my opinion, because the completion works of the dome, begun around 1621, were not yet completed. Perhaps the temple was covered by wooden scaffolding and the upper part of the church was incomplete, aesthetically uninteresting and indefinite so it was preferred to reproduce it with its characteristics originals. 3. During 1862, the Mayor of the time had appointed a commission to study the change of the name of the city. A measure to this effect was suggested by a dispatch from the government commissioner at the request of the Ministry of the Interior to avoid confusion caused by the numerous toponyms bearing the name of Fratta. "The commission was composed of the municipal secretary Dr. Ruggero Burelli, the chief engineer of the Municipality of Genesio Perugini, who was completing the history of Fratta left incomplete by the canonical uncle Antonio Guerrini who died in 1845, and by the lawyer Costantino Magi Spinetti. The report presented to the Mayor closed by suggesting a range of four possible names and advocated that of Umberta or Umbertide because it is more closely linked to the memory of its alleged founders descendants of Uberto Ranieri. "Fracta filiorum Uberti is always called even in the ancient Perugian statutes", mentioned a passage in the report. It is worth noting that it does not state that Uberto or Umberto is also the name indicated by the letter "V" contained in the coat of arms (FOV) in order to reinforce the indication suggested in favor of the choice of Umberta or Umbertide by the City Council. It would seem evident that in the conviction of the three commissioners that "V" did not refer to any of the Ranieri, but meant something of different. 4. In Lauri's Latin, the ancient and correct expression of the Perugian statutes “Fracta filiorum Uberti” becomes “Fracta insigne Ubertinorum oppidum”, with a very strange philological contamination. In this regard, it is useful to recall the sharp judgment that Luigi Bonazzi gives of the cited author: “With Bonciario we generally returned to Latin vomit. The fellow disciple, Baldassarre Ansidei, prefect of the Vatican library, and the scholar Giambattista Lauri, both placed between one century and the next, continued to latin with fury, especially Lauri, on the same themes as the fellow citizen rhetorician, one until 1614 , the other up to 1629 ... " (4) . Uberto Ranieri's descendants are called by Lauri "Umbertini" as if the sons of Pietro, Giovanni or Giacomo could be called "Pietrini, Giovannini or Giacobini". Such a license is completely foreign to the Latin language, as indeed to the Italian one, which at most could have tolerated Ranierorum and never Ubertinorum. But the Latins and the Latinists have always prefixed gens to noble names, therefore gens Claudia, gens Cornelia, gens Fabia, and, if anything. "gens Raniera" would have been the correct expression. Bonazzi's judgment on Lauri's "Latin with furore" seems completely founded. It seems very strange, therefore, that the letter "V" stands for "Uberti" because this does not correspond to the historical truth as the founders were his sons (Ugo, Ingilberto and Benedetto) and even more strange that it stands for “Ubertinorum” due to philological incompatibility. I agree with what Guerrini affirms, towards whom I have respect and admiration for the seriousness and scruple, unrelated to some of his critics, with whom he has treated the history of the Land of Fratta. Personally, however, on the basis of the considerations set out in n. 4, I have serious doubts that 'Y' could mean "Uberti", even before 1643. That letter could, in fact, refer to Ugolino who ceded the Fratta to Perugia on February 12, 1189 or to the much better known Ugo, king of Italy, from which the Ranieri descended. It seems strange that history is entrusted with the name of Uberto who had the sole merit of having given birth to the person who rebuilt the castle destroyed by the Goths. One of Uberto's sons, an important element not to be underestimated , was called just Ugo as the most famous ancestor (the grandfather). Note: (1) See History of the Land of Fratta now Umbertide, Tipografia Tiberina, 1883, page 174. (2) See Umbertide and Umbertidesi in history, Unione Arti Grafiche, Città di Castello, 1959, page 247. (3) Testimony of the Bishop of Gubbio, Monsignor Pietro Bottaccioli. (4) Luigi Bonazzi, History of Perugia, Vol. 11, p. 251, Union of Graphic Arts, Città di Castello. 1960. Sources: “A FREE MAN - Roberto Sciurpa, a passionate civil commitment” - by Federico Sciurpa - Petruzzi publisher, Città di Castello, June 2012 Roberto Sciurpa tells the story of Umbertide to school pupils The Municipality of Umbertide Enlargement of the coat of arms of Umbertide located to the right of the access door Unknown author. The Madonna and Sant'Erasmo. Roberto Sciurpa and Petruzz i, in 2007, during the press of the last volume of the history of Umbertide. The cover of the book that his son Federico dedicated to his father Roberto The royal decree of 29.3.1863 authorizing the name change The poster communicating the name change from Fratta to Umbertide

History by themes In this section, with its subsections, you will find the contributions of history buffs, the actual documents and specific topics attributable to a longer time, determined by the economic system that rather than the city has shaped the countryside, the landscape . Our intent is to present all the different "perspectives" with which we can reconstruct the "history" of our country. The "short time" in fact, guideline of the research reported in the subsections described above, gives us back a story focused on the birth and history of the main agglomeration of Fratta / Umbertide, but there allows you to see only institutional-political events, however much they can be added together in a millenary diachronic sequence. While the development and consequences of economic structures need to be recognized an investigation you seek with a "long time. So it appears to us it is essential to reflect on the lining, the basic economic cell of the agricultural world for centuries, together with the territory that becomes a "landscape", slowly modified for centuries by generations of men and women. The sections of the " Gregorian Cadastre " and " Territory and Mezzadria " have the claim to analyze the "long times" with complex processes that have transformed our territory. This historical cut inevitably extends the object of study to the entire Tiber Valley and Central Italy, from which we have to "cut out" our specific space of interest. Space that has followed the typical historical processes, always of central Italy, also for what concerns the "sociolinguistic" perspective ... and here is the section that tries to investigate our " Dialect ". Section that he will not have to deal with reporting idioms or the language of common use, but will have to show how the "dialect" is a historical stratification. Finally we want to return to our country by analyzing what has distinguished it the most: water and road networks. " The Tiber and the water mills of the territory ", because rising on the banks of the great river has characterized the layout of the urban agglomeration with its strategic value, ways of life and use of agricultural land; The great dam on the Tiber , the work of Mario, Marco and Matteo Tosti, brings back to "life" an impressive hydraulic work of medieval Fratta; " Railway " that passing through Umbertide, as for other places in the Umbrian plain, changed the fate of the city. Some profiles of historical figures have been included in the subsection " Biographies Historical ", alongside it is a page of historical biographies of the twentieth century . To complete the claim to have an overall historical look, the section on " Castle and rural lordships " and that relating to " Monuments and Museums " which will have to highlight the works of art of our residential nucleus and its territory, "symbols" of identity for all of us. among the works of art could not miss an in-depth analysis and rich in archive materials on the Deposition of Signorelli, granted by professor Valentina Ricci Vitiani. Help us remember umbertidestoria@gmail.com

Lamberto and the Resistance curated by Isotta Bottaccioli and Francesco Deplanu After the 8th of September 1943 Lamberto Beatini, coming from a family of republican faith, at 19 he refused the call to arms of the Republic of Salò e together with a friend he went into the woods; after a few months he was captured and locked up in the prison of Perugia; Lamberto besides the fear of not leaving that place said "being imprisoned because you refuse war, weapons, violence, oppression, injustices is something that causes you pain and a lot of anger". He saved himself and over the years he became the "Maestrone", a man of the school so called because he was more than 1.90 cm tall. Years ago he told his second wife, Isolde, what happened in that period. Isotta recounts: “ rather than fighting alongside the Nazi-fascists, many young people preferred the bush. Making this courageous choice was very dangerous because we were considered deserters and, if caught, punishable by the death penalty ”. Lamberto made this choice one evening in September 1943 together with a friend of his from Umbria, Antonelli, left towards S. Cristina. The two walked through woods and fields and tired, they stopped behind a haystack not far from a farmhouse. They lay down on a pile of straw and suddenly fell asleep. During the night it started to rain but the two noticed it when they woke up wet and dirty. After a "sgrullata" they set off again and finally reached S. Cristina where, bravely, they were hosted by a relative of Antonelli. A different life began for Lamberto and his partner. Early in the morning they left the host family and were hiding in the nearby woods, returning at dusk. Some evenings, through shortcuts and away from the main road, they went to Lamberto's sister, Costantina known as Gosta, in Civitella Benazzone who, as soon as she saw them, began to make her good tagliatelle. With a full stomach they resumed their way back in the middle of the night. The mother Anna, to see her son again, following alternative routes to the normal ones because she was afraid of being followed, in the early morning she left Umbertide to go to S. Cristina. The road ahead was long and there were many climbs, but for her there were no obstacles, no weariness; the goal was too precious not to be reached at any cost. When the carabinieri knocked on the door of the Beatini family to ask where the deserter son was, the mother replied: << I wish I knew! I would run to him. I really want to see him again. >>. The two deserters spent three months in the bush and in December, perhaps due to a spying on them, they were discovered and taken to prison in Perugia. The stay lasted six months and marked Lamberto so much that when he recounted certain episodes, after so many years, his eyes were shadowed by so much sadness and sometimes tears. After having crossed the door of the prison that Lamberto called << college of Piazza Partigiani >>, his personal details were taken, his fingerprints were taken, everything he had in his pockets was removed, his belt and shoelaces were removed. While awaiting questioning, he was placed in a small cell with other inmates. A few days later he began his tiring interrogation. For a few hours he was asked the same question very firmly and harshly, always in the hope of making him fall into contradiction. So much was the mental fatigue and tension that from the high shoulders sweat was coming out of his coat. At the end of the long interrogation a graduate entered who abruptly asked Lamberto for his personal details. << I'm Lamberto Beatini, son of Antonio and Anna Gregori >>. At this name the Captain stood up and after a loud blasphemy he said \ u0026lt; \ u0026lt; Are you Anna's son? Do you know your mom is my milk sister? but what did you make me do ... >>. But by now Lamberto was in prison, the gear had been set in motion and the superior was also a prisoner of certain laws. For two or three days Lamberto was fasting because the food of the "college" just looking at him made his stomach sick. On the third day, hunger prevailed and he managed to eat a soup where bits of cabbage leaves floated among a few stars of fat. A once he removed 17 flies from the broth before eating it. " In his cell they put a man from Torgiano accused of insulting the fascist party. While he was reading a manifesto of the regime signed by the notorious Rocchi, he voluntarily made a huge burp. It happened that at that moment a fanatic fascist hierarch passed by who, taking the poor man for the collar of his jacket, scrambled him and denounced him.The man was tried and sentenced to a prison sentence.The unfortunate fell into a bad depression could not eat. Not far from Lamberto's cell, on the so-called death row, there was a convict. Nobody knew the reason for the sentence, but everyone thought it was for political reasons. The guards said that the young man knew he was going to die and every time they opened his cell, the young man changed. His body tensed and his complexion turned yellow, as if his blood stopped. This swing of very strong emotions made him lose all hair and hair. Once Lamberto saw him pass between two agents and I am impressed by his thin head, smooth, shiny as a billiard ball, by his thin and blood lips and by two black eyes without lashes and eyebrows that seem to come out of their sockets. That night Lamberto did not sleep because he always had before him the hallucinating visions of this young man. Fortunately, the war ended and the poor fellow was released from prison. Every time he recounted this episode on Lamberto's face one could read the suffering and also the anger at the bestiality of war and dictatorship. A different fate touches another young anti-fascist who was shot a few days before the liberation. This was Mario Bricchi, whose sister Gloria was a high school companion of Maria Teresa Beatini, nephew of Lamberto. " Isotta tells that Lamberto used to tell ... "When my daughter Anna asked me what was the best day of your life I replied: the day I got out of prison. Anna was upset because she knows how much I wanted it, the great love I feel for her. But Anna is a joy that I have tasted minute by minute since I learned it existed, for eight months he was the center of my thoughts, so his birth was a long and beautiful wait. My release was, however, the end of a great nightmare of which I was not sure I could get out alive. Often when i my companions slept, I too closed my eyes and began to dream. I dreamed of my future beautiful, serene, bright, full of girls and love; instead I opened my eyes and saw darkness, not a glimmer of light. Hope alternated with despair and resignation. A whirlwind of emotions me it invaded continuously. Being imprisoned at twenty for your ideas that you find human right, being imprisoned because you refuse war, weapons, violence, oppression, injustices is something that causes you pain and a lot of anger. I remember, still with sorrow and sadness, long afternoons in April and May, when behind the bars I glimpsed trees with their new leaves, when the spring air full of perfumes entered the cell, when you could hear the loving calls of birds and the voices playful of children playing in the street. It was the time of memories, of nostalgia, of sadness. Then I would lie down on my "straw mattress" and think of my family and my friends who free, they could be among themselves, be with their girlfriends, have lunch and dinner with their loved ones, look and touch the spring. Certain sensations, both good and bad, cannot be told, but must be lived to know what one feels and to be innocent in prison, at twenty years old, when someone like me who loves life, light, the heat of the sun, colors, people, freedom, love, is a condition that I do not wish on anyone. "... Isotta continues: "On June 13, 1944, the day of St. Anthony, the prison door opened for Lamberto and his friend Antonelli. Outside the prison door two stopped, looked 360 degrees and took a long sigh of relief. They were free together and began a journey that would bring them home. Passing by chance they arrived at Ponte Felcino in Ponte Valleceppi where grandmother Clorinda lived. They all presented themselves happy about his house, but immediately they cooled down because some German soldiers found him in the house. The moment was embarrassing, but grandmother Clorinda understood the situation and speaking and gesticulating he made the Germans understand that two of them were mentally ill. Which was not difficult because Lamberto, due to the absence of movement, was so swollen that it seemed swollen. He wore trousers that reached the calf of his legs, wore two shoes without very broken laces, the jacket covered the back and a little of the front, the sleeves reached just below the elbow. On the contrary Antonelli, also tall, was dry, lanky, frightened, I looked like a dead man walking. The fact is that the Germans, as if frightened, said goodbye and left. Grandmother Clorinda then greeted them with great warmth, kissing and hugging them, then, quickly, quickly, she began to cook. After being refreshed, they set out along the railway in the direction of Umbertide. In Ponte Pattoli They separated. Antonelli headed for Santa Cristina where he would find his family displaced by relatives, Lamberto continued in the direction of Umbertide. The road was very long, the boots became heavier and heavier, the damaged and swollen feet no longer fit inside the shoes and began to bleed; finally he arrived in Montecorona and felt relieved, in sight of the town he thought to the meeting that his loved ones. He headed for the house of "Guardengolo", a farmer who gave hospitality to his family and that of his brother Pietro. Meanwhile, from the loggia of the farmhouse, mother Anna and Pietro's wife Marietta saw at the end of the road a big fat man walking with difficulty. The two women, a little frightened because they were alone, wondered who he was and what he wanted. As Lamberto approached he made signs of greeting with his arms but the two women remained impassive. Only a few meters away did they recognize him. The mother Anna started running crying with joy and hugged her son in an embrace that never seemed to end. " On 23 July 1944 Lamberto, together with 21 other people from Umberto I, gave life to the Local Committee for National Liberation in the hall of the municipal council. After the war Lamberto yes he adapted to do many small jobs: it was important and necessary to bring something home because it was needed. He worked for the Land Registry, for the Municipality, then he began to study for the master's degree competition which he passed brilliantly. He taught in Colmotino di Cascia, in Reschio, in Civitella Ranieri, ad Umbertide ... then dissatisfied with the teaching he began to work in the secretariat of the elementary school, a job that he did with seriousness, commitment and great competence until 1979. We report here the letter of greeting from Director Candido Palazzetti when Lamberto left school. Maestro Beatini on the step and Director Candido Palazzetti on his left, to his right the other Director Spadoni. In the photos at the beginning we have we report the documents of the Anpi as a "partisan" and the card of the CGIL, the union close to the communist party to which Lamberto joined. Here under the public recognition that the mayor of Umbertide Celestino Sonaglia, in 1974, gave to Lamberto for his being a partisan. In the meantime Lamberto had committed himself body and soul to give life and strength to the section of the Avis of Umbria, donating from the very beginning in person, even directly, that blood that he did not want to shed. In 1959, in fact, Dr. Mariano Migliorati promoted a "Committee" to set up a first nucleus of donors for the hospital of Umbertide, a "hospital" that had already been downgraded to "nursing" under Fascism but was very active. and working with the help of the "medical doctors"; this even after the bombing, in fact, it continued to function in the Serra Partucci headquarters. The members of the Committee were Lamberto Beatini, Raffaele Mancini, Marta Gandin and Aurelio Nocioni. Two teachers and two Headmasters. Lamberto was the only member of the Committee who was also a donor, and had the card no. 1 of the Avis of Umbertide; gift up to the age limit established by law. He was elected among the first 5 members and also President. Office for which he was re-elected until 1986, when became "Secretary". Image from the Facebook page of Avis di Umbertide Lamberto always maintained an ideality together with an extraordinary humanity, a social and democratic vision lived and breathed in the family. In his desk he kept among other things the documents of his father Giovanni, probably obtained from his grandfather Costantino, a letter from Giuseppe Mazzini and the "santino" also from Mazzini where he, as a child, had written his name over the period in which he had followed with his father to Cantiano together with his family, when his father, a former officer in the First World War, played the role of stationmaster. Grandfather Costantino, in fact, was one of the young people of republican faith who tried to oppose the monarchy in Umbertide together with Leopoldo Grilli, who was the animator of the republican circle "Thought and action", Torquato Bucci and Raffaello Scagnetti. Lamberto and Celestino Sonaglia during the delivery of a "partisan" medal in 1974 Costantino Beatini Probably the letter is not complete, the final part seems to be missing at the bottom (let's imagine a sheet made up of six squares); it is thought that by their very existence these letters were dangerous and were introduced folded into several parts and perhaps sewn inside the clothes. The letter is from 1868, after the most famous organizations such as "Giovane Italia" and "Giovane Europa" an indomitable Mazzini did not recognize the Savoyard monarchy as legitimate. He therefore continued to profess and organize associations of "republican faith" such as, in this case, "the Universal Republican Alliance" in Lugano. In the text you can read: The purpose of the Section of the All (eanza) Rep (ubblicana) Univ (ersale) in Lugano should be: to pay homage to the principle that requires the political order of men of republican faith, wherever, few or many, are: they organize multiple means of safe introduction of letters and more from the Canton of Italy: help with the monthly quota of the brothers and with the offers obtained for just once, the coffers of the Alliance: Try to make Italians, belonging to any class e in general they should follow the rules contained in the circular of October 1865 if possible. Giuseppe Mazzini. Nov. 1868 ". Antonio Beatini with the black ribbon of the republicans The letter passed to Lamberto's father, Antonio Beatini, a republican who usually wore the black bow instead of the ties of the time as it was in use among the republicans. Antonio was a supporter of the entry into war against the Austrian Empire in 1915 and wrote in " Il Popolo: organ of the Umbrian-Sabine republicans " on February 6 of that year that it was necessary to go to war against Austria " not out of mania warmonger, but for the protection of the rights and interests of our country, always tampered with and outraged by it ". The newspaper carried on Mazzini's ideals, was born as a party newspaper aimed at aggregating and informing members and supporters. He was suspended for two months in 1915 due to the call to arms of many collaborators, it was then closed in 1922 with the arrival of fascism. Antonio also left as an officer despite the 5 children. The letter it then passed to Lamberto who grew up with different ideals but with the same seriousness and ideality. We conclude with a last anecdote reported by Isotta to make people understand the sensitivity and value that every living being had for Lamberto: " the episode that Lamberto told smiling with such grace is the episode of the little mouse that he managed to teach by becoming his friend. This episode Anna (the daughter), a friend of animals, had it described in a fourth grade theme whose title was: "the father tells", here is the transcript: \ u0026lt; \ u0026lt; I was going to buy candies and as I passed on the sidewalk, with the care of the eye, on the road, I saw a dead mouse. Immediately, frightened, I returned at home. There was my father who, seeing me upset, asked me what had happened. I replied that I had seen a hideous rat squashed with a pancake on the road. It remained a silent moment then he began to tell: “you know Anna, when I was there weren't many entertainments in prison and so if we wanted to play checkers, we had to build the pieces ourselves. We put a piece of bread in our mouth and after chewing it for a long time we made balls that we put to dry outside the bars. The next day instead of the balls there were only crumbs. Immediately I thought of a mouse and then I wanted to try to get him back. I put the balls back on the windowsill for wait for them to dry. The mouse arrived and a little fearful hesitated a little then seeing that I was indifferent approached the balls and began to gnaw. I went up to him, he looked at me with fearful eyes. I stroked him gently on the head and he mounted me on the arm. A few days passed and the little mouse and I were already good friends. He got into the habit, when I was lying on the cot, of mounting on my chest and scrape on my shirt. I had to unbutton myself and he would go inside and then fall asleep. In a short time his coat had become long long and shiny, i his teeth were sharp and he was in good shape. When I got out of the prison I looked for the little mouse but I couldn't find it. I would have taken it away. I was a little sorry but then he understood that the little mouse had to go home, he too had his father and mother. " Father had made me understand that even a mouse could be tamed and become a companion of man. >>. ". Sources: - Family archive of the Beatini-Bottaccioli family - Mario Tosti: " Beautiful works. Information, documents, testimonies and images on life and death events that took place in the Municipality of Umbertide during the Second World War . Edited by Mario Tosti. Municipality of Umbertide, 25 April 1995. - Roberto Sciurpa, The Blood of the Fratta. History of the Avis section of Umbertide, Gesp editrice - http://augustaem.comune.perugia.it/scheda.aspx?ID=12&cod=PORU - http://www.storiatifernate.it/allegati_prod/01-neutralismo.pdf - photo: Archive fam. Beatini-Bottaccioli

FRATTA-UMBERTIDE OF THE 19TH CENTURY curated by Fabio Mariotti ADMINISTRATION, SAFETY AND ROADS The Public Administration At the beginning of the century we do not know the administrators of Fratta. The last meeting of the municipal council took place on December 3, 1799 and the next only on April 16, 1800. There was the indictment of the municipal councilors Giuseppe Savelli and Giambattista Burelli, accused of Jacobinism, but later reinstated in their office. On December 9, 1800, four new priors were elected for the first semester of 1801. In Fratta the population was divided into three different groups. About ten families belonged to the former; they are always the same surnames, the richest owners of houses and farms. A1 second belonged to the artists (craftsmen) and traders. The third, called the "destitute" or the "miserable", belonged to the others, the poor, non-taxable who had no possibility of participation. The elect found themselves having to face serious economic problems. Some foodstuffs and especially wheat were missing. At the beginning of January the municipal oven was in deficit and the municipality, left without money, asked the owners for the grain, each of whom would have had to pay a proportionate share to the extension of the land. Other problems caused the supply of wine to the community of Fratta. This was a genus of primary importance, second only to wheat. Income for the municipality derived from the tax on the cereals that had to be ground and on the distribution of salt. Other incomes were those of the slaughterhouse (which taxed the slaughter and sale of meat), the grocery store (which included fish and salami), the oil shop, the collection of wood from the bridge, the collection of the market stall (there was one person who collected the pen that the animals left in the markets and paid a tax to the municipality), of fishing on the Tiber, of the large steelyard (on weights and measures for large quantities), of the apparatus (in the sense of setting the table), of the hosts and innkeepers (it struck the hosts' ability to serve lunch to customers). In 1803 there was a decrease in revenues which fell to 290 scudi despite the introduction of a new tax, "of the four feet", on each quadrupedal animal that entered the village at the rate of 5 baiocchi for large animals and 1 baiocchi for small. The annual expenses of the municipality were those for the secretariat: wood for the stoves, two flasks of ink, sealing wax torches to put the seal of the municipality on the letters, bunches of quills and Palomba brand writing paper (it had in the visible watermark against the light a small palomba - trademark), headed paper that was printed in Città di Castello since there was not yet a typography in Umbertide. Some salaries paid by the municipality. The postmaster, post office manager (and letter dealer), one shield a month. The lords of magistrate received ten scudi per semester as an honorary salary. The secretary, Giovambattista Burelli, ten scudi per four months, while the (police) commissioner dr. Paolucci receives three scudi per quarter. The chamberlain (cashier) receives 18 Scudi a year paid in quarters. The agent of Rome (that is, one who resides in Rome carries out the affairs of the community in that city) receives seven or eight scudi a year depending on the amount of work. Then there are two country guards, Giambattista Fuochi and Silvestro Catalani: they take four scudi a month. Another concern for the municipality was that of unemployment. A timid attempt to tackle the problem was made when the casengoli (non-owners) made a request to obtain the post of bailiff. It took two a month, in turn. In 1825, the income was 2,200 scudi and the expenditure of 2,250. In 1826 the municipal secretary Giovambattista Burelli, feeling old and tired, asked to be "jubilated", that is, to retire after 43 years of continuous work. He says he would also accept a reduced pension as long as his son Ruggero is appointed in his place. The passage from father to son took place on April 9, 1928. When the caretaker of the town hall, Gaetano Martinelli, asked to retire. the municipal administration does not agree on the fact that he also works as a carpenter and the pension is not granted to him even if "for 40 years he has had the honor of serving this municipality" and because "although ahead of the age keeps you in good health ". In December 1843 all the municipal employees were reconfirmed for another two years: the secretary Ruggero Burelli, the doctor Dr. Paolo Bertanzi, the surgeon dr. Michele Belforti, the moderator of the clock Gaetano Gigli, the postman Nicola Castori, the defender of the poor Costantino Magi Spinetti, a family member Pietro Caracchini, the other family Costantino Beatini, the letter distributor Costantino Magi Spinetti, the meat maker Gioacchino Pucci , the caretaker of the town hall Marino Romitelli, the gravedigger for men Pietro Paolo Vico, the gravedigger for women Camilla Bartolini, the urban police clerk Domenico Porrini. There was indecision whether to reconfirm Camilla Bartolini, the gravedigger of women, because the parish priest Cecchetti had indicated that she only went to rich people and when it came to poor people for whom she was rewarded by the municipality "she refuses to do her duty". September 12, 1860, the day of the transit of the Piedmontese troops. the Frattigiani formed a provisional committee of four citizens: Costantino Magi Spinetti, Raffaele Santini, Giuseppe Agostini (acting prior) and Luigi Igi. On 14 September the Royal Commissioner arrived in Fratta and appointed the definitive municipal commission with the task of preparing the election of the council. The plebiscite for or against Vittorio Emanuele II took place on 4 and 5 November. Fratta and his supporters went to the polls with 2,946 registered on the lists; the voters were 2,568, with 2,565 yes and 1 no. On 11 November the new and first municipal council of the time was elected. In the following meeting on November 22, four councilors and two alternates were appointed, who formed the council: Luigi Santini, Mauro Mavarelli, Quintilio Magnanini and Count Gianantonio Ranieri. Alternates, Giovambattista Ticchioni and Paolo Paolucci, landowners from Fratta. Mayor was Dr. Mauro Mavarelli, directly appointed by the king of Italy. The municipal council of Fratta was made up of twenty councilors who had been elected taking into account the "census". Fratta in 1860 had ten thousand inhabitants and only 71 of these were called to the polls. From the year 1869 the city council increased from twenty to thirty members. In this year the electors were 181 at the administrative offices, against 71 in 1860. Around 1870 the financial situation was quite difficult. A tax on carriages was instituted (there were many around) which was joined by a tax on waiters and maids. In 1891, May 1st was mentioned for the first time as a workers' day. It is discussed in the council meeting of 30 April as, on this day, the honorable Grilli wants to remember 30 April 1849 and the defense of Rome against the French. At the end of his speech he sends "an affectionate greeting to those who tomorrow will affirm the rights of the workers, a prelude to the political renewal of the world". Public Safety At the beginning of the century we find ourselves under the government of the Imperial Regency of Perugia and the Austrian army, since the second half of 1799, had brought the papal state back to power, after the parenthesis of the Roman republic. The Restoration had found a people whom the principles of the French Revolution had awakened and now, more attentive, made itself heard. Bad times then for the standard bearer, Lorenzo Vibi. At carnival the people feel the need to have dance parties, but the gonfalonier sees this as a danger and forbids them. On 27 February 1800 he wrote to Perugia communicating that at the foot of the cross placed where the "infamous" tree of liberty was, they found a tricolor flag. In early July, the pope returns to Rome and appoints Msgr. Rivarola who had a very heavy hand towards Fratta in regulating public life. On November 25, a papal edict approved the expulsion of all merchants, artisans and anyone who had not been domiciled in the territory since before 1797, excluding the ecclesiastics of the convents and parishes, the doctors and public employees. In December there is the problem of the bandit Luigi Rossi, from Sorbello, who had formed a group of brigands and often worked also in Fratta, with robberies and stabbings. At the end of February the commissioner, given the times, asked Perugia to be able to set up a city troop. Rivarola accepts willingly, given the crime around. Small gangs that weren't afraid of "crassing" (ie armed robbery) even in broad daylight. Other interventions in the field of public safety occurred on the occasion of serious scandals that arose in Fratta because prohibited games were organized in a café during the day and at night "to the grave detriment of families and good social order". Rivarola also establishes that the Jews in Fratta, sellers of majolica, cease this trade: "Make them precept to leave immediately". On January 4, 1804, Rivarola again abolished the sale of wine in the theater, where entry is also forbidden for those carrying weapons or sticks. Despite this, on 1 March, during a show Giovambattista Franchi seriously stabbed a certain Antimi: the surgeon reported "the wounds being life-threatening". In 1809 an order arrives from Perugia which bans masks and on the occasion of the carnival also races, parties and any other show. On 7 August a great party was organized in Fratta on the occasion of the raising of the new French coat of arms. The military band of Perugia was called, the heads of the families were invited to illuminate the houses; the same was done for the town hall and the fortress with torches and lanterns. The papal police were quite organized: they had paid informants and people like Friar Pietro Scagnetti who did their unsolicited work. From his letters emerge the names of the Fratigans who leaned towards the republic: Luigi Santini, Domenico Pecchioli, Francesco Paolucci, Innocenzo Lazzarini and Agostino Cambiotti. A difficult life begins for these patriots of Fratta, watched and hunted down. In 1817 the papal carabinieri were stationed in Fratta, carrying out public security activities: the brigade is made up of a brigadier and seven carabinieri, who work on horseback. The barracks do not yet exist and they are housed in the house of a private individual, Domenico Porrini, to whom the municipality pays the rent. In addition to the carabinieri there is a "provincial troop" department. Two financial police, on the other hand, go around the municipality to prevent and stop smuggling but do not act in a completely irreproachable way if in the council meeting of 2 August 1817 it is spoken of negatively and with regret because during the markets they look for tips from the various landowners, they go to the houses of the peasants where they have lunch served without paying. On February 14, 1831 the papal government of Perugia falls. The insurrectionary movement ends on March 25th, the papal edict relating to the delivery of edged and firearms comes out on the 31st. On November 24, 1848 Pius IX fled from Rome and took refuge in Gaeta. On 9 February the Roman republic was proclaimed. There were also great celebrations in Fratta, with the raising of the tree of freedom. In this short period it is a flourishing of "Popular Cìrcoli", associations aimed at completing the new dimension of life long sought and for which many people had carried out their noblest activity. Head of Magistrate of Fratta in that republican period of 1849 was Luigi Santini, landowner, who then held the same office also in the years from 1854 to 1856, after the restoration. There was the ability of the Fratta magistrates of the time to ride any mount: we always find the same surnames in power, look a bit, and they were always landowners. After the siege of Rome by the French troops, on July 31, 1849 the power of the pope returned. There were a thousand problems after 1860, which the civic administration had to provide. The main one was public order, both internal and linked to organized crime in the province. In Fratta the body of the national guard made up of about one hundred soldiers had been reconstituted, suppressed in 1874. The first commander of this renewed national guard was Raffaele Santini. The protection of public morality was also part of public order. On October 17, 1861, the mayor wrote to the public security delegate about the "debauchery to which young women abandon themselves, especially of low conditions, many of whom are already relieved, and many others pregnant. It is not to reiterate their impudence; not having redness of wandering through the public squares and streets at midday, although they have reached the ninth month of pregnancy ... ". The mayor blames the parents, perhaps not considering that the "low condition" of the young girls, that is the miserable life they were forced to lead, was the main cause of their degradation. During the war 1860/1861 there were 24 young people from Fratta who went to fight volunteers among the Garibaldini. In 1866 there was a large group (54) that gathered around the Italian flag, especially in the body of the Garibaldini. On May 22, 1866 there was the departure. The women of the town wanted to give them a very fine, tricolor, silk flag (which the local society of veterans preserves) already used in 1849 in the Republican period, to which on the white side they added the words "Umbertidesi women to their volunteers. 1866" . Among the criminal episodes of 1882 stand out rural thefts, injuries, trading of false coins, insult to public officials, arrests of prostitutes, physical violence and rape. So our district prison had many inmates: in the fourth quarter of 1882 there were 36, for a stay of 344 people. In 1894, the police officer warned the mayor that there were Spanish scammers around. They extort money from people on market days by telling a story of a hidden treasure: it is located in a place known to people who are in Spain but you need money to get it. "Give the Mayor order to the municipal guards to monitor foreigners, especially on market and fair days". At that time there was only one guard in the town, Tommaso Tognaccini, and the head guard, Adamo Simonucci. Viability and communications Looking at the topographical map of the castle of Fratta, drawn by Don Bartolomeo Borghi in 1805, it is easy to see two appendages: one, the Borgo di Sopra along the directrix of the road to Montone, towards the north; the other towards the south, Borgo di Sotto, on the old road to Perugia. With the opening, in 1807, of the new bridge over the Reggia stream, which opened the access to the old castle from the east side towards the Collegiata, a certain development began along the road that led to the territory of Civitella Ranieri and which will later be called via delle Case Nuove (via Bremizia, then via Roma). However, it will be an area of civilian dwellings that will never, over the course of the century, shift the economic importance of the original north-south axis. On the west side, however, the route of the road to Città di Castello stretched, which was of some importance in inter-municipal trade. But it was a source of constant concern because, especially in the stretch below Montalto, it passed very close to the Tiber: in January 1802 a big flood "tore up the provincial road from Montalto", as the gonfalonier said when writing to Perugia for help. In Niccone, the road to Città di Castello underwent a branch towards the marquisate of Sorbello, in Tuscany, and assumed a certain importance also from the economic side, if only for the trade of chestnuts. Immediately after the bridge over the Tiber, instead, the road that led to the Badia di Camaldoli (Montecorona) opened. From here began the mule track towards Perugia which, climbing up to the houses of Ferranti, turned south-east, skirting the north base of Montacuto to descend towards the Nese. In 1814, the first year of the restoration, the municipal administration, although "provisional", took care to rearrange the streets and draw up rules for their maintenance. A first decision was taken in the council meeting of November 30, 1814: the prohibition to let pigs stop in herds on the embankments and gravel roads of the recently arranged roads and especially on the pavement adjacent to the Mavarelli house which was adjacent to the church of S. Erasmo (now Gnoni ), on the road from today's Piazza Marconi to the Collegiata. In 1819 there was discussion on emergency repairs to be made to some municipal roads: - for Montone, identical to today's route except for the first three hundred meters. - delle Case Nuove, which leads to Gubbio. From the beginning, it followed the still existing route. From today's pine forest, through the valley, it went up directly to the castle of Civitella. - that of "Molinello, which leads to Città di Castello by the shortest route". The roads of great communication outside Fratta had a dirt base and in the winter they deteriorated a lot: hence the constant thought for the municipality of having to grab the upper layer. Simple stones from the Tiber were used which some workers broke, one by one. with the hammer, sitting astride the mound that was forming. The first news concerning the maintenance of these streets dates back to 1832, when the city council, on February 1st, decided to "cross the market road from the Porta to the Fonte dei Cavalli" (today's stretch from Piazza Marconi to the beginning of Piazza Caduti of Labor); ... to cross the road of the Case Nuove (via Roma) at the bottom starting from the Collegiate church, ... the Molinello road .... And then the market road, starting from the door to the cross of the Observant Fathers. From this point up to the Rio ditch (on the border with Montone), starting from stretch to stretch where there is more need. In 1860 the road situation in our municipality was not the best. The construction of the roads was vitiated by the economy, the gravel was only done near the town, there were no bridges. The English tourist Adolfo Trollope describes an extremely uncomfortable situation. He tells us that he was not concerned only with the road, but also with those "filthy papal border offices", with insolent and servile commanders who first made the smargiassi, then let themselves be bribed. Trollope, going to Gubbio, tells what he saw from the window of the diligence. When he arrived at Fratta he asked about the state of the road to Gubbio and at the café in the square they replied that at a certain point, swampy, it would be necessary to "trapelo", the "stroppa 'of another beast. To improve the viability of the southern area of the country and the service of his farm in Montecorona, the Marquis Filippo Marignoli applied in 1878 to be able to build a wooden bridge over the Tiber river. On 27 October the prefect sent the authorization decree. But the bridge at that time and in that place was no longer built. The project was resumed in the 1920s and was then built in 1927 opposite the abbey of Montecorona. In 1899 the road to Badia was built, the first part of the connection between Umbertide and Ponte Nese, based on the current route. Also in 1899 the construction of the public gardens behind the Collegiate was completed, with the installation of seats which cost 126 lire in total. In 1890 the piazza del foro boario was arranged to make it more functional for the Wednesday beast market. In 1861 the telegraph service was opened. In 1886 the Central Apennine Railway was inaugurated. Sources: - Renato Codovini - "History of Umbertide - Vol. VII - Sec. XIX". Unpublished typescript. - Calendar of Umbertide 2000 - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2000. Texts by Adriano Bottaccioli, Walter Rondoni, Amedeo Massetti and Fabio Mariotti. 1905. The horse-drawn coach Città di Castello - Perugia (Photo Luigi Codovini) From the book "Umbertide in images - from '500 to the present day", edited by B. Porrozzi Pàrise, one of the last "ciaccabreccie" Old image of the Montecorona farm (Photo by the Pacifici family) 1890. The staff of the depot put on the Couillet locomotive (Tacchini Photo Library - Città di Castello) Cover of the Umbertide 2000 Calendar Mauro Mavarelli Il dominio francese a Fratta - I Parte Le attività economiche e produttive Amministrazione, sicurezza e viabilità Il dominio francese a Fratta - II Parte Popolazione, sanità e servizio postale L'istruzione, le associazioni e il tempo libero l Capitolati dei Servizi di posta e luce Il gioco del pallone e la grande festa per i 200 anni dell'assedio di Fratta I fratelli Martinelli "Fabbricatori d'organi alla Fratta di Perugia" La grande piena del torrente Reggia e del Tevere Amministrazione, sicurezza e viabilità Tronchi appoggiati ad un pilone del ponte dopo le piene. Nell''800 esisteva ancora la tassa per la raccolta delle legne del ponte. I fratelli Martinelli "Fabbricatori d'organi alla Fratta di Perugia" Il gioco del pallone e la grande festa per i 200 anni dell'assedio di Fratta L'istruzione, le associazioni e il tempo libero ECONOMIC AND PRODUCTION ACTIVITIES Agriculture From the statistics of 1870 it can be seen that Umbrian agriculture was, around those years, completely primitive. The activity of the peasants was the same as three centuries earlier, scarcely productive. The ratio of sown grain to harvested grain was 1 to 3 and the farming was mainly sheep. Among the few documents of the period, two inventories of the largest company of the time, that of the Camaldolese friars of Montecorona. They are from 1805 and 1832. The reading makes it clear that something important happened in the first half of the century. In 1805 we find the existence of 197 cattle, which implies a certain cereal production. In 1832, on the other hand, cattle were reduced to a dozen, indicating a cereal production reduced to almost zero; instead we find the existence of hundreds and hundreds of sheep and pigs, witnesses of a total change in agricultural management. If we consider that most of the arable land was, in the early years of the century, in the hands of ecclesiastical bodies and that in 1810 the French abolished all religious communities and confiscated their assets, it remains to think that the disruption suffered by that large company, which can be extended to other similar ones, at least as a consequence of the suppression. It also tells us that the long period of the papal restoration was unable to remedy that state of affairs. leaving the peasants to fend for themselves. With the beginning of the century, according to our municipal archive, we begin to cultivate tobacco. The first news dates back to May 10, 1802. It is a provision of the apostolic delegate of Perugia: he announces that the grower of this plant must let people know "in which land he wants to work it" and pay a tax called the "tobacco leaf" . We find another hint in the year 1814: a letter that the Maire di Fratta, Domenico Reggiani, writes to the provisional pontifical administration of Perugia to ask for authorization to grow tobacco even if it has a smaller area than the forty ares requested, otherwise " tobacco plants cannot be cultivated there in any way ". The request lets us understand that, most likely, in previous years, this cultivation had not started. Another new crop, perhaps started at the time, is that of the "ford" (herbaceous plant, about one meter high, with yellow flowers, from whose leaves a blue substance used in the art of dyeing is obtained) and Perugia recommends to begin by writing to the Maire on April 25, 1812 and giving him accurate instructions on the matter. The lands, worked by a family, are divided into farms consisting of three or four "rubbia" up to fifteen and sixteen. Each farm has a couple or two of working "cattle", one or two cows, about twenty sheep and twenty or thirty goats on the mountain and also a portion of four, six, eight "rubbia" of bitter scrub or cerquata to feed the pigs. Some of these are also kept in the farms on the floor, raising them with the acorns of the oaks scattered on the working grounds. The value of each farm is between five hundred and three thousand scudi. The fruitiness is deduced from the income from wheat, wine, oil, cattle, hemp. The remainder, that is, maize and legumes, is neglected because it serves the expenses of administration, reclamation and maintenance of the plantations and houses of the farm, rented, lease or colony. The land is worked with the plow and the pole. In the plain, the pole is used more than the plow. The spade is also used, but only for hemp fields and to "clean up" the ditches. On the mountains, the hoe is used when the ground is too steep and is not accessible to oxen with the plow. Renters have the freedom to stay wherever they want. The settlers cannot leave the farm without a cancellation made at least ten months before. For wheat seeds, the land is worked three or four times; at the end of winter corn and legumes are planted in the fallow fields. In September, two more interventions are made, then the wheat is sown by covering it with earth with hoes or rakes. Fertilizers are the excrements of livestock mixed with straw and soaked mulches, previously used as bedding for animals. The best excrements are those of sheep, oxen and beasts of burden. From the 1818 census: - cow or pony cattle ......... heads 1,820 - pigs, sheep and goats ...... ... ......... heads 22,160 - cadastral value of the territory ......... 600,000 scudi The totals include the Preggio rates. Another very detailed statistic is found in the year 1826. It provides the quantities produced, consumed, prices, exports and, above all, gives a list of the most common kinds: wheat, maize, spelled, broad beans, beans , chickpeas and cicerchie, lentils, barley, fodder and oats, rice, lupins, potatoes, chestnuts, oil, hay, wool, linen, hemp, silk in cocoons, wine, raw honey, different fruit. Animals: oxen, cows, calves, mules and donkeys, black animals (pigs), sheep and lambs, goats and castrates. At the beginning of June 1837 there was a danger that there was no grain and the gonfalonier asked the "best landowners in the country" for their contribution. The richest owners were Giambattista Gnoni, Domenico Mavarelli, Giovanni Vibi. Giuseppe Rampagni, Giuseppe Ferranti, Giovanni Giovannoni. Francesco Crosti, Luigi Santini, Francesco Santini, Lorenzo Casilli, Domenico Giulianelli, Andrea Ticchioni, Agostino Bettoni, Sebastiano Bebi, Dionisio Squartini. The grape production (160 vines are planted every 100 meters) also had its weak point in the early harvest, against which so much was done in the century. Since 1860, however, grapes have enjoyed greater protection, thanks to the use of an anti-fungal powder to be given to the vines. The advertising of the time advertised it at a miracle level, it was sold by a company in Milan, it costs twenty lire per quintal, like a quintal of soft wheat. At the end of the Sixties, mulberry trees continued to be planted for the leaves, requested by the producers of silkworms. The industry At the beginning of the century, the activity aimed at the transformation of goods, which goes by the name of industry, has an artisan consistency. The work is carried out by hinging on the family unit, helped by a maximum of two or three servants or workers. We have documents of some factories only after 1820, concerning exclusively the milling art. The craftsmanship existing in Fratta in this period were also those of the potters, the kilnsmen, the blacksmiths. There were three different kinds: the blacksmith who had the shop and carried out large hardware works; the magnano, who has a workshop but carries out small jobs such as keys, locks, gàngheni - then called scàncani - catorci, skewers; the marshal wanders around the countryside with his tools, performs blacksmith work, like the magnan, and puts irons on the hooves of the beasts. Kilns and potters had their workshops in Borgo di Sopra; the blacksmiths in the Borgo di Sotto (piazza San Francesco). Of the nine existing mills in the municipality, only two were in the town: one almost close to the castle walls, in the Molinaccio area, along the banks of the Tiber; another about one kilometer away, in the locality of "il Molinello". They were both owned by Agostino Cambiotti. Another production of medium importance was that of the two or three brick kilns. In Santa Maria there was one until a few years ago and it carried out a fair amount of work. The kilns manufacture classic items such as bricks, roof tiles, bent tiles and tiles. Lime worked and, above all, many kinds of those "framed" bricks with which they used to make the finishing lines of the more modest houses. A various pottery factory was managed by Serafino Martinelli, who we find since 1802, but his is the oldest family of potters in Fratta, dating back to the 15th century. In the iron working sector the activity of the Gigli family continues, while we find for the first time the name of the Mazzanti that will continue until the 1930s. The first statistic on the industries of Fratta, commissioned by the government authority of Perugia, dates back to 1827. Manufacture of woolen drapes There is no regular manufacture of woolen drapes in this Commune; twill and mezzolane are worked only by various weavers; some of which are for their own use and some they sell to farmers, at fairs and markets. Factory of earthen vases by Girolamo Chimenti Three men and two boys work there. Each man takes 14 and a half baiocchi a day. Baiocchi boys 4 a day. They are paid per day and sometimes even per week. Quarry earth, river earth and burnt lead are used. Factory of earthen vases by Serafino Martinelli It employs 6 men who take fifteen baiocchi a day. It employs 3 guys who take baiocchi 4. Luigi Cerulli's bone comb factory They employ two men, one takes 30 baiocchi a day; the other baiocchi 10. They employ a boy who is given a shield a year. Production: combs to "clean" the head, 6.650 pieces; women's fashion combs, 70 pieces; hairdressing combs, 300 pieces. Total 7,050 combs. They are sold in nearby towns and "exported" to Romagna. Luigi Santini silk factory It takes two men who take 15 baiocchi a day; then there are 12 women paid the teachers baiocchi 22 a day and the other baiocchi 15 a day. They work 4,000 pounds of cocoons a year, all bought in the town of Fratta. They produce silk of excellent quality, which goes by the name of Fossombrone silk. Antonio Igi silk factory Only one man and eight women work there. It buys 2,000 pounds of cocoons and produces organzine silk for 166 pounds a year, for an amount of 415 scudi a year. Hat factory by Mattia Codovini It employs three men who take one baiocchi 25 the day, another two baiocchi 18 the day; the two women baiocchi 12 a day and two boys who take mediocre food shopping. We use local sheep's wool 1,500 pounds and n. 100 hare skins every year. 1,800 "ordinary" hats and 24 "fine" hats are produced. They "sell" in Perugia, Assisi and Città della Pieve. Starting from the 1940s there is news of the small family-run factory of the Martinelli brothers, which produced church organs, built in 1845. It was owned by Antonio and Francesco. In 1848 the papal government introduced the work book for young people, concerning all workers over fifteen years of age. Many families of Fratta, especially the Casenghi, were involved in the production of silk. The breeding of cocoons lasted until the 1930s, when artificial fibers did not make it uneconomical. In 1861 we find a list of the artisans as shown in the work books (established a few years earlier): potters 12, workers - potter boys 3, shoemakers 2, blacksmiths 7, carpenters 3, tailors 3, apprentices and young shop workers 8. The most important and consistent artisan category is always that of potters and kilnsmen. Statistics from 1871 tell us that in that year the workers in industry were ten per cent of the population throughout the province. In the Eighties (1800) we find a printing plant in Umbertide, owned by Agostini and Tommasi. A second statistic dates back to 1880: - Molino in Umbertide owned by Luigi Santini. It has three millstones, it is moved by water, it grinds grain, corn, olives eight months a year. - Molino known as "il Molinello" owned by Ciucci, in bankruptcy. It is one kilometer from Umbertide, it has three millstones, it is moved by water, it grinds grain eight months a year. corn and olives. - Molino known as "Vitelli" owned by the Marquis Rondinelli. four kilometers away from Umbertide. It has three millstones, it is moved by water, it mills seven months a year for lack of water. - Molino known as "di Casa Nuova" alla Badia, owned by Marignoli. It has five millstones and grinds cereals all year round. Molino inside the Badia owned by Marignoli. It has a single millstone and it grinds seven months a year due to lack of water. - Molino known as "dell'Assino" owned by Anacleto Natali. It is two kilometers from the town. It has three millstones and grinds all year round. - Molino di Pierantonio owned by Florenzi (the marquis, husband of Marianna Florenzi, from Ascagnano). It has two millstones. It grinds seven months a year. - Molino owned by Florenzi (other). It has two millstones. Seven months a year. - Molino di Paolo Sarti in Montecastelli. It is four kilometers from the town. It has two millstones, it grinds seven months a year, only cereals. - Molino della Serra. Property of the Ecclesiastical Fund. It is five kilometers from the town. It has three millstones. Grinds cereals all year round. All these mills grind 33,400 hectoliters of wheat flour, maize and a few cereals. The Commerce The main meeting point, on market and fair days, was the "cattle field" where the trading of working animals, cattle and others took place. The weekly Wednesday markets have started as early as the mid-16th century. The fairs, in Fratta, took place on 1 June, the eve of the feast of St. Erasmus, and on 6 and 7 September, the eve of the 8th anniversary, the feast of the Madonna. Fairs were held in Sorbello on June 20; in Reschio on 22 July (it was important for small animals); in Montalto on 11 July (renowned for its cattle). A place of trade was a place called since the fourteenth century, "the meadow of the municipality", the clearing at the end of the bridge over the Tiber (today the petrol station area) that reached the beginning of the road to Badia. This cattle market will still remain there until around 1818-1820, when, having enlarged the square, it moved under the Rocca, where it remained until about 1940. The change was made necessary to ensure the smoothness of traffic towards Tuscany and Città di Castello, which is in increasing development. The inland localities where the weekly market took place, for all other kinds, were the streets of the town and the square in front of the church of S. Erasmo called, since the 14th century, "il Mercatale". Other goods were sold in piazza S. Francesco, in the central square (piazza Matteotti) known as "the grain" and in some other street. However, they were places that were changed from time to time, depending on the contingent interests of the municipality and the demands of the population. In addition to cereals, it was possible to find products from the fields now no longer cultivated, such as flax and hemp which were used for linen; the canapone, used for large looms and ropes; ropes of all kinds, produced in the country; large quantities of earthenware pots and jugs (at that time there were no industries producing metal pans). At the beginning of the 1800s, the sale of edible oil varied in prices: eight baiocchi a pound for the poor and ten baiocchi for "the comfortable inhabitants". We do not know how this diversification was established, but it is certain that some control was implemented. It was established that there had to be two "oil shops", that this was "always clear, purged and that it did not smell", sold for two quattrini more than in Perugia. The outlets had to stay open for up to an hour at night. The trade in chestnuts was free since 1802, as well as in the grocery and slaughterhouses, but the provisions could vary from year to year. The sale of bread (the so-called "wheat spiano") was subject to a patent, that is, it was a sale controlled by the municipality, in its own oven, and concerned both the "pan venale", common, and the "white" one for a calming purpose , because it didn't cost too much, since it was the most popular kind. A certain regulation also concerned sheep meat, to be sold at the "slaughterhouse of low meat". Three pounds of baiocchi were sold, only from June to December, thus respecting the breeding period of the animal. The trade in rags and that fueled by the production of silkworms was widespread. These ate the leaf of the moors (mulberries) and therefore the relative traffic was developed in Fratta. Even the municipality, which owned several mulberry trees located under the castle walls, sold the leaves as a whole, with a public auction. The reception of foreigners was ensured by some inns which also had some rooms for the night. In 1810 one was held by Antonio Beacci, another by Carlo Tancredi. The best, however, seems to have been that of Pietro Romitelli who (when at the beginning of the century there was that great passage of soldiers) was able to give even fifteen people to sleep for whom even the restaurant service was open. From 1806 we find news of the postillion service, that is the bus service, for Perugia, which had to cross the Tiber at Ponte Pattoli. The postillion, also known as "the post office", was called Bernardino Lisi, made the trip twice a week with passengers, packages and correspondence. We find it in this work of his in 1809 and it is paid by the municipality with eight scudi a year, paid in quarters. In the pacts he is obliged to bring free the box with the money that the municipality paid to Perugia, as well as the letters and parcels of the community. In 1818, regulation of wholesale and retail trade was introduced. From 1824 the transport of goods was regulated with an accompanying document called the "circulation bill", issued by the customs of the city of departure and proving the payment of the duty. In 1834 we find the first news relating to the "dealer" of salts and tobaccos, then included among the "gifts" as a solid state monopoly. In Fratta the "drug dealer" was Giuseppe Perugini and his office depended on the administration of salts and tobaccos in Ancona. In this year another request is made for the opening of a second shop: from Ancona they ask for information from the prior of Fratta, Giovanbattista Gnoni, but he, who knows Perugini well, does not give the consent, because, he says in the answer, "you can not do a similar wrong to the drug dealer Mr. Perugini". During the weekly markets, street vendors put their stalls in the small central square and in the adjacent streets without respecting any order. This was the cause of continuous brawls over the precedence relative to the best position, for which, in the meeting of 21 August 1848, the municipal administration decided to remedy, establishing the places in the various squares of the country and making groupings according to the commodity nature of the products. in sale. Piazza S. Francesco for wheat, maize and legumes; piazza della Rocca for fresh and dried chestnuts and terracotta pots from abroad; shoes and hats in the most spacious points of the districts of Castel Nuovo (from Piaggiola to Piazza Marconi) and of Boccaiolo; vegetables, fruit, hemp, rope and ballottari stalls (roasted chestnuts sellers) in the clock square along the block, leaving the provincial road line free; the fresh and dry grass for the cattle in the square in front of the Giovannoni house (it was placed at the end of the descent that leads to Piazza S. Francesco; there is still a small part of it, but before the electric line railway it was larger) without stand in the way. Sea and lake fish in the old public slaughterhouse (at the beginning of the bridge over the Tiber and the bridge over the Reggia, to go to S. Francesco). The chickens and the eggs, as well as the haberdashery stalls in the usual places without innovation (internal road of the country). The ice, always sold during the century, was used in public places, but also in hospitals. Since there are still no refrigerators for its production (in Umbertide the first machine of this type arrives at the beginning of the 1900s), in winter they pressed the snow that fell into holes in the ground usually in the mountains. The ice was then brought to the village by carts, packed in small irregular blocks. In 1878 a vendor from Città di Castello offered to sell ice to Umbertide. There was no railroad yet, so he would have to travel all night to get there on time. He asked the municipality for a fee, but this was denied him. Sources: - Renato Codovini - "History of Umbertide - Vol. VII - Sec. XIX". Unpublished typescript. - Calendar of Umbertide 2000 - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2000. Texts by Adriano Bottaccioli, Walter Rondoni, Amedeo Massetti and Fabio Mariotti. Oxen on a farm (Photo Giulioni Alfiero) Heading 6 At work on tobacco (Photo Beppe Cecchetti) Agricultural workers with a spade (Photo Archive of the Municipality of Umbertide) 1894. Brand of the furnace located in the Santa Maria area (From the book "Umbertide in the images. From '500 to the present day - edited by Bruno Porrozzi). Aerial photo of the area where the Lido Tevere park is today. Until 1820 the cattle market was held in this area before it was moved under the Rocca 1872. Genesio Perugini. Project of the new covered cereal market in Piazza San Francesco (From the book "Umbertide in the images - from the 16th century to the present day" - edited by Bruno Porrozzi) Le attività economiche e produttive POPULATION, HEALTH AND POSTAL SERVICE The population At the beginning of the century Fratta was a small town which, between the central nucleus and the lower and upper villages, had about nine hundred inhabitants, divided into the parishes of S. Erasmo and S. Croce united (i.e. the two external villages) and that of S. Giovanni Battista, who was the Curator of the castle within the circle of the walls. At the turn of the century almost all people have a surname; probably only two or three out of a hundred did not and were called, as was the custom, with a nickname that usually referred to the patronymic, the place of origin, physical defects, qualities. Among the surnames that turn the seventeenth century and enter the 1800s we find Anticoli, Agostini, Bruni, Burelli, Bertanzi, Brischi, Ciceroni, Caneschi, Caracchini, Ciangottini, Cambiotti, Dell'Uomo, Franzi, Fornaci, Gigli, Igi, Manzini, Majoli , Mazzaforti, Martinelli, Mancini, Moriconi, Magnanini, Mavarelli, Mulinari, Magi Spinetti, Natali, Paolucci, Passalboni, Pucci, Perugini, Pasquali, Reggiani, Santini, Savelli, Scarpini, Scagnetti, Vespucci, Wagner. In the following decades it will go from nine hundred inhabitants to 1,100 / 1,200: these increases do not depend on a constant progression, but on random movements or on erroneous assessments linked to taxation or expense allocations. These are cases in which it sometimes happened that certain families of the center were not considered in the count, while families from the countryside could be included. In 1811 we find nine hundred inhabitants; in 1812 the Maire Magnanini says "about 1,000 inhabitants" and after a few days corrects to 790. In 1814 993 are registered, divided into 196 nuclei, with an average of five people per family. In 1833 we have a first "state of souls", a statistical survey wanted by the bishop, made by the parish priests house by house and therefore quite reliable. From this we learn that the inhabitants of the town are 825 gathered in 205 families, with an average of 4 people per family. Of these, 140 belong to the parish of S. Erasmo and S. Croce united and 65 families to that of S. Giovanni Battista. Another statistic relates to the confirmations that took place every three or four years, usually in the Collegiate Church. In the year 1848 the bishop of Gubbio, Msgr. Giuseppe dei conti Pecci, is to confirm 105 boys, 53 boys and 52 girls. Ten years later, in 1858, there will be 60 males and 62 females, the largest number of confirmations found in the middle of the century. As for the population, we must distinguish between the actual municipality and the augmented one of the appodiati. Finding the number of inhabitants is a bit complex. In fact, in the first years of the century we do not have Civitella Ranieri which belonged to Gubbio; then there is an exchange of villas (hamlets) with Città di Castello. In 1812, in the first months, we did not have Preggio, the subject of an exchange with Perugia, so these data refer to areas of our municipality that were different at various times and therefore impossible to compare. The data, however, tell us that in 1810 the municipality had 8,720 inhabitants; in 1812 there were 7,277 inhabitants in February, 8,630 in May and 7,480 in July. In 1818, 4,000 inhabitants were reported for the municipality and 9,000 for the Appodiati Preggio and Poggio Manente, thus bringing the total to 6,000 units. In the year 1833 we also have seventy farm units, in the two floors, above and below, while in the "state of souls" of 1860 we find that the farm units have risen to 95. Thus we arrive at the year 1860, when the period of the restoration ends and Fratta falls under the Piedmontese jurisdiction. It now has 1,300 inhabitants. Then there are the universities appodiate (hamlets), Preggio, Civitella Ranieri and Poggio Manente (the latter also included the villa of Pierantonio), where another 2,900 people lived, divided into 15 parishes. The total area of the municipality is 19,070 hectares, with a density of about one person for every two hectares. Of this population, the largest (eighty percent) is in the countryside, while twenty percent live in urban centers. This contrasts with the regional average which shows that the centralized population is 51 per cent, the scattered one (farmers) 49 per cent. From subsequent censuses, a slight increase in the population is noted. From 9,400 inhabitants in 1860 to 10,170 in 1861, gradually increasing until reaching 10,838 units in 1865 (with 1,615 families), 10,983 in 1871 and 11,537 in 1896. The average population per family is, around 1870, of 6.70. The numerical difference between the sexes is opposite to today: in 1861 there were 537 more males than females and the difference gradually diminishing until 1865, when men were 402 more than women. For the province, the 1871 census marks an increase in the population in urban centers and therefore, in parallel, a depopulation of the countryside, while in our municipality the growth in the first ten years (1861-1871) is proportionate, maintaining the ratio of one to four between town and countryside. As a consequence, the land / inhabitants ratio has now dropped, for Umbertide, to 1.73 hectares per inhabitant. It corresponds to an average of 57 inhabitants per square kilometer, slightly higher than the corresponding density of the region, which is 55 inhabitants, but lower than the density of the kingdom, 84 inhabitants per square kilometer. Further figures tell us that, in 1878, the inhabitants of the village alone were 2,396; in 1880, 2,500; in 1898 the whole municipality had 13,683 inhabitants. Since the peasants followed the tendency to leave the countryside, the country perhaps had little to offer due to a rather poor economy. Hence agriculture as the main activity, crafts and the tertiary sector of the country as secondary occupations. Healthcare At the beginning of the 1800s, Dr. Domenico Reggiani but, at the end of June, gives up because the municipality pays him with the "assigned" (it was a paper money issued by the French government since 1790, a kind of treasury bill, with a face value of one thousand francs, at the rate of five percent), while he would like to be paid in "singer" money. For this reason, on 1 July, a public announcement was issued by the municipality to fill the vacant position. The four competitors (doctors Rossi, Carleschi, Santicchi and Bacocchi) had the same number of votes from the city council, 14 in favor and six against, so a ballot had to be held which saw Dr. Rossi. However, he did not accept and everything remained on the shoulders of Dr. Giuseppe Magnanini, physician conducted in the countryside around the town, the Piano "di Sopra" and the "di Sotto". We find it up to 1808, reconfirmed several times, for periods of two or three years. Meanwhile, in 1801 there was talk of "bovine epizootic disease", an infectious disease that came from the Marche. In 1804 smallpox, an epidemic pathology that found a human tissue not equipped to withstand its violent attacks and an unprepared science, caused many victims, especially among the poorest. It is a continuous succession of diseases, "the hydrophobia of dogs" until 1808, the "schiavina dei lanuti" until 1811, a chasing and overlapping of the same that gave no breath and kept the population in agitation. In 1811 there was in Fratta, wanted by the French administration of Perugia, a free service for women in childbirth called the "Maternal Society". In 1812 anti-smallpox vaccinations had already begun, but their introduction was hardly accepted by the population, who, mostly destitute, wanted only the "doctor of the poor" at home, whose visits were free. But he too had difficulty in imposing the new techniques. In 1815 the doctor of Fratta was still dr. Giuseppe Magnanini, helped by Dr. Sensi, but the first to get on the alert is the veterinarian Pietro Crosti, sent to make inspections in the countryside for a new suspicion of an epidemic of black animals, that is, pigs. The following year (1816) also Magnanini and Sensi are called to perform extraordinary work as there is an awakening of common diseases such as "gastric and nervous fevers, petechial typhus and others". The municipality decides to make a poster to the public advising them to wash well and keep their hands clean. At the beginning of the spring of 1817, typhus raged throughout the province, especially in Perugia. In July there is still typhus in Fratta and only in September there will be a decrease in cases. Linked to the disease there is always another "evil" called hunger: in a year it reaps six people and probably, given the misinformation, they are not the only ones. Another headache is caused by "dog rage". There are many strays and the municipality notifies all barbers and shoemakers to keep a wooden bowl full of clean water outside their shop, to be changed every day, to quench these beasts (perhaps they thought it was linked to the lack of water. to drink). In 1820 Fratta's surgeon was Dr. Giuseppe Giannini, from Città di Castello. However, both he and the other doctors in Fratta were not satisfied either with the salary or with too much work; they preferred to visit the more wealthy patients and neglected the less well-off categories. In 1823 the surgeon who was conducted wrote to the municipality that he wanted to leave because he found "a more profitable business". To make him stay the Fratta magistrates increase his salary from eighty to one hundred scudi a year. The doctor conducted will increase from 120 to 150 scudi per year. In 1831 cholera arrived. In 1835, from Tuscany and the state of Urbino, it raged again, broke the sanitary cordon and reached Fratta where it raged until 1836. A new health commission was set up, chaired by Domenico Mavarelli, who went around the houses to check the existence of a "comfortable place" (ie the latrine) and if they had "the rinser". From a report by the town's doctors, dated 1849, it is known that the most common diseases were rheumatic and gastric; also diphtheria, diarrhea, inflammation. Cases of scarlet fever in children. Other people who worked in the health field were the pharmacists who made up the medicines sold. In 1860 the only pharmacy belonged to Domenico Mavarelli, landowner and owner of the palace formerly of the Marquis of Sorbello (town hall). The pharmacy was located in the square, in a room on the ground floor and was furnished in a very modest way. Dr. Pietro Chiocci. It will then be sold to the Congregation of Charity in the early 1900s (it will become the hospital's pharmacy). In our municipality there was also the "infamous" pharmacy of Montecorona, an old herbalist's shop wanted and managed by the Camaldolese friars. Its foundation dates back to several centuries earlier, but in the 19th century it also specialized in modern pharmacology. She was not conducted in a productive economy, as she sold at very low prices and gave free medicines to the poor. In 1872 it still existed, it was owned by the Marquis Marignoli, pharmacist Dr. Alessandro Burelli. Who obtained, on August 14, 1876, the authorization to open a fourth pharmacy in Umbertide (the third was in Preggio, opened in 1870) and that of Montecorona was left without a manager. In 1889 the figure of the health officer was established to better control the various hygiene and health activities. The first was Dr. Augusto Agostini. Infant mortality was very high. In 1870 357 children a year were born in our municipality, forty-two per cent died with peaks in July and August. But the most serious and ever present disease was pellagra, which affected farmers and was caused by the lack of vitamins in the corn they ate. In 1880 there were 576 patients with various pathologies in our country. Of these, 124 were the pellagrosi (42 men and 82 women), with an incidence therefore of twenty-one percent. The municipality of Umbertide spent sixty lire a year in the hospital for the treatment of the disease. Other hygiene rules were needed after 1860 to eliminate the ancient custom of throwing dirty water and more out of the windows. The habit turns out to be hard to die and for many years there are fines, even to the many people found "to get rid of their needs in the lawn behind the Collegiate", which seemed to be their favorite place. On May 20, 1872, the new urban police and public hygiene regulations were issued. The rules on public slaughter date back to 14 December 1877; to May 1899 those on the mortuary service. The art. 61 of the seventh chapter explains to us that the "vespillone" receives the wages from the non-poor families of the deceased and has these obligations: to wash and dress and arrange the corpses in the houses; transport the corpses from the morgue to the burial site with the help of the burrower. In the first decades of the 19th century there was still the custom of transporting corpses from the house to the church where they were buried on a "bier", something between the bed and the stretcher, made of wood, fringed in black, brought to shoulders. The dead man was wrapped in a sheet and the funeral blanket spread over it all: in short, an "open air" funeral. Smallpox vaccinations From 1861 onwards, vaccinations against smallpox were done every year and were mandatory both in Umbertide and in the appodiated territories (1). However, it was only a formal obligation that families did not respect due to a leathery mistrust of everything that science suggested which, in the fight against the prejudices of ignorance, ended up having the worst. Furthermore, the vaccine (the "pus") sent from Perugia was scarce and in those few cases in which the doctors were able to be persuasive, its lack did not allow to cover the needs. At that time it was not the children who were taken to the doctor, but it was the doctor who went from house to house to carry out the task of vaccinations. This system offered more guarantees from the point of view of a possible persuasion of families, but created a considerable waste of time and energy, given the conditions of the means of transport of the time. The biggest battle against smallpox, after the search for the vaccine, was therefore that against prejudice, at least in our countryside. In this regard, a short letter that the Banchetti doctor, Francesco Pieroni, wrote to the doctor Casali in the early months of 1863 is eloquent: “… the number of vaccinated people is zero. No matter how much care I have made to bring their children to me to be vaccinated, no one has responded to my care. They are waiting for smallpox to come, rather than being vaccinated ”. Not everywhere the same things happened. In Preggio in 1864, the doctor Tommaso Paci reported having vaccinated only sixteen subjects and no more for lack of the “Pus Vaccino”. In the center of Umbertide, the following year, there were only twenty-five vaccinations and it is difficult to establish whether such a small number depended on people's distrust or the insufficiency of the vaccine. In 1874 there was a major resurgence of smallpox which affected 54 people in Umbertide alone and 13 of them died. In the following year the epidemic became even more raging and in the first half of the year the sick were 40 with 5 deaths. The strangest thing is that in the same period the provincial health authorities announced the definitive disappearance of the disease which instead continued to claim victims even in the second half of the year. Smallpox continued to scare the population and since 1876 vaccinations were done twice a year, in spring and autumn. Not only that, but through official notices which consisted in the announcement made by the parish priests in their churches, people were made to flock to special rooms, saving the doctors the trouble of going house to house. In Umbertide an environment on the ground floor of the former Convent of San Francesco was used, while in the appodiated territories (1) makeshift haunts were used, such as at the Mita where people gathered at the tavern. NOTE (1) Fraction of the municipal territory (belonging to a village) governed by a local prior, or by a mayor, who enjoyed some small autonomies. SOURCES: "Umbertide in the XIX century" by Renato Codovini and Roberto Sciurpa - Municipality of Umbertide - December 2001 The postal service and transport In the early years of the century Fratta had neither a post office nor an autonomous mail service for Perugia. In 1814, after the restoration, we know that he used the postman of Città di Castello because the latter, to go to Perugia, was necessarily passing through and therefore collected both the post and any other packages and parcels that Fratta sent to that city. In the council meeting of 22 December 1814, the 1st pontifical provisional administration of the community of Fratta, considering that the time of the passage of the postman of Città di Castello was not convenient for the population, it determined that from 1 January 1815 the eighteen annual scudi paid for the service sent to the postman elected by the community of Montone on a monthly basis. Which would have passed at a more suitable time, bringing the "bolzetta" of letters to Perugia. Nicola Castori was appointed. Now Fratta had a post office: the director (and also the only employee) was Vincenzo Scarpini. The latter, called "letter distributor" or "letter dealer", was the owner and manager of a spice shop located in via Diritta (via Cibo). In the back of the shop he kept correspondence from and to. In 1816 Scarpini was confirmed in his post as a distributor of letters for another two years, with a salary of twelve scudi a year paid every month. In 1820 the post office in Fratta was considered second class and the municipality asked the government of Rome to pass first, citing various reasons. That Fratta was the capital of the government with 10,500 inhabitants; it includes several appodiati castles (hamlets); the capital alone has 6,500 inhabitants (considering the peasants of the Piano di Sopra and Piano di Sotto); trade flourishes there, there are livestock fairs throughout the year, weekly markets; it has shops of various kinds, factories and two silk spinning mills; it has a school of public education with five teachers. However, the request was answered in the negative on 23 August 1820. In this year we know that the post office is always in the back of Scarpini's shop, but the appodiate also come to post and collect the correspondence. The community of Pietralunga does the same. The letters were put in a special hole, outside the door of the shop, and went to fall into a closed box. They were then sorted in the back, which had a wooden gate on the door leading to the shop so that "no disturbances or irregularities can happen". The postman, or “procaccia” was always Nicola Castori (from Montone) and he went to Perugia twice a week. Since there were no stamps yet, the person who received the letters paid for the service. In 1822 the postman Castori was confirmed for another two years, but on the occasion the governor judged it improper that Fratta "has his postman separated from that of the Municipality of Montone and not a single individual serving both municipalities". letter distributor, Vincenzo Scarpini, finds himself in economic difficulties and therefore the municipality, which had never paid him anything for the rent of the room where he kept his correspondence, decides to give him a shield a year for the future rent and also 22 scudi of arrears. In 1824 the postman Castori asked for an increase because "he was obliged to go to Perugia twice a week, but from 1 April to this part, awaiting the new organization of the post, he was forced to stay a day off more in Perugia; by producing this retention a greater expense to the same, he begs for a suitable increase ... "Thus an increase of six scudi a year was approved. In December 1824 the distributor of letters Vincenzo Scarpini died and in the meeting of 4 January 1825 Procolo Reggiani was called to replace him, while the postman Castori was reconfirmed. But Reggiani after a few days refused this appointment and on 25 February Costantino Magi Spinetti was elected distributor of letters. The latter promises "to exercise with all the fidelity and accuracy that is required and in particular to be responsible not so much for the amount of letters and envelopes that are sent from the Directorate of Perugia, as for any sum that is entrusted to him to be franked; to the observance of all the laws and instructions that have been issued ...... And for the sake of the above, Mr. Francesco, son of the deceased Mr. Bonaventura Magi Spinetti, his parent, has access as his guarantor ... " . From Costantino Magi Spinetti is a letter from 1829 in which he asks for a salary increase. The news comes from the report of the council meeting of February 22, 1829, which speaks of a certain difficulty in the mail service as "with the increase in the population of the country, with the growth of the territory ... the tasks and hardships .. He therefore asks that the annual salary he receives should also increase in proportion, bringing it from scudi 12 to 18 per year ... ". Towards 1850 the passenger and freight service in the papal state was contracted out by Mr. Liborio Marignoli, "enterprising" of long-range races departing from Rome. The lines he managed were the Rome-Naples, Rome-Florence and Rome-Ferrara (via Terni, Spoleto, Foligno, Ancona, Rimini, Bologna). As for the small routes, however, each city or large town had its own diligence services which, with subsequent changes, could convey passengers and goods to the large communication lines managed by Marignoli. Which ceased its activity in 1865, when we find him marquis in the Montecorona estate he bought with the savings of that activity. The stagecoaches were known about the departure, not the arrival, since this was entrusted to providence. Sources: - Renato Codovini - "History of Umbertide - Vol. VII - Sec. XIX". Unpublished typescript. - Calendar of Umbertide 2000 - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2000. Texts by Adriano Bottaccioli, Walter Rondoni, Amedeo Massetti and Fabio Mariotti. Drawing by G. Rossi. Fratta in the mid 19th century One of the first images of the Umbertide hospital. Construction work began in 1858 Via Diritta (Food) at the end of the 19th century Horse-drawn coach (Photo Beppe Cecchetti) Popolazione, sanità e servizio postale EDUCATION, ASSOCIATIONS AND LEISURE TIME Public education At the beginning of the century they existed in Fratta la - School of reading, writing, numerical and grammar principles; - Lower class, unique (not better specified); - School of lower grammar and scientific concepts - School of higher grammar or humanity, eloquence and rhetoric; - School of philosophy and morals, school of theology. The boys who attended them in the early Sixties were very few (35/40) and the females were completely excluded. The "School of reading, writing, numerics and principles of grammar" most likely corresponded to elementary school. Two teachers, one lay and one ecclesiastical. The total number of students, in the early years of the century, was 18, 20 boys. It was accessed at the age of six. One of the two masters, in 1802, is Don Giovanni De Michelis. The school took place in a single room (it was a multi-class) of the town hall in Borgo di Castelnuovo (now via Cavour). The meager salary of the master was, in 1809, at the beginning of the French domination, of one hundred francs a year. From 1810 it was raised to twenty-five francs a month. Another similar school was in Preggio, in 1808: the teacher received eighty francs a year, but he was also given three rubbie of wheat, 14 barrels of wine and 60 pounds of oil. The "School of Lower Grammar and Scientific Notions" also had arithmetic and, in the second class, rhetoric as a subject of instruction. Two clergymen taught there. In 1814 Bonaventura Spinetti, Massimiliano Paolucci, Domenico Martinelli, Pietro Spinetti, Ferdinando Martinelli attended the first class. The "school of higher grammar or humanity, rhetoric and eloquence" also had geometry, history and geography as subjects of instruction. It is known from December 4, 1800, when Don Pietro Testi was confirmed as a teacher. The "School of Philosophy and Morals and School of Theology" was called "superior" and was attended by barely two or three pupils. While the elementary and grammar schools were located in a room in the town hall, there was no classroom available for this school and the teachers were forced to take lessons in their own homes. In 1812 the French administration introduced the Colleges of Public Education in all the municipalities. But the premises for the headquarters were not found in Fratta. Every morning the pupils had to gather for mass. On Saturday afternoon, in the lower schools there was "The exercise of the doctrine" after which everyone gathered in the church to recite the litanies of Mary Most Holy. Four times a year "it will be the care of the masters that their pupils make confession and communion". The exams were public, but they were not used - as is the case today - to verify the student's preparation. Some children were questioned in only one subject and others, always of the same class, in another. A common element of this diversification: all passed the test in the best way and were also rewarded. In 1826 the school of philosophy and morals was inactive due to the lack of students. The boys take a stand because the friar who teaches you philosophy still has the habit of dictating his writings and these boys consider it an ancient and "Asian style" system. The protest of Fratisan students is a real strike, at a time when the meaning of the word was not yet known. In fact there is a motive and it involves everyone, there is the publicity of the motive as it makes everyone know that one does not go to school for that reason and there is (not negligible for the time) the acceptance of a possible severe reproach of the ecclesiastical authority who presided over the teaching. On June 15, 1830, a school for poor girls was established. Teachers are the sisters Sestilia and Marina Savelli. In December 1860 the elementary school was established in Montecastelli (seven, eight pupils); in 1861 he resumed teaching in Preggio which had had elementary school since the early years of the century (16 pupils). In 1868 this fraction will also have an elementary school for girls. In 1862 Pierantonio elementary schools opened, attended annually by 15 boys. After the unification of Italy, the elementary schools were in the town hall; the gymnasium was best placed in another room owned by the municipality and benefited from only one room. Then there were the private primary schools, nine in 1870, held by teachers even without a diploma but quite well prepared, who did school at their home. In 1865 the primary school was attended by about seventy children, but it was still a low number (the parents preferred to send their children to work). It was therefore thought to establish an evening school, which was part of the various efforts made by the government to combat illiteracy, but did not have the expected results. There had been 85 registrations, just 35 frequencies. The number of elementary school children grew as the years passed. In 1880 there were 100 boys and 110 girls, while the night school was reduced to 25 units and the following year it was suppressed. The country schools, all mixed, were in Banchetti. Gulets, Montacuto, Montecastelli, Montecorona, Niccone. Spedalicchio, Pierantonio and Preggio. In addition to elementary school there was also a gymnasium in Fratta, whose origins date back to the end of the 1700s. It was divided into three classes; ecclesiastics appointed by the bishop taught there but after 1860 it had alternate life as a result of the new type of education pursued by the government. In 1880 an agricultural school was established, divided into two years of teaching. It lasted until 1885. So in 1880 we have, apart from the secondary school, a complementary school that has only 15 students in total and an agricultural school that no longer had any. They tried to unify them without success due to the disagreements in the city council. In November 1884 a commission was appointed to study the situation of public education in Umbertide, formed by Antonio Gnoni, mayor of Città di Castello, ing. Cesare Mavarelli, Eng. Giuseppe Natali and Giunio Guardabassi. The commission made a report in the spring of 1885, delivered to the mayor. Subsidies to deserving children , the restoration of the gymnasium ("it does not bear real and practical fruit"), the complementary to elementary school ("the years ... that are spent in this school are perfectly lost") were excluded. The praise of the technical schools was then made and their establishment recommended starting with the first two years. The municipal council, in the session of 7 August 1885. approved the opening of the technical school "Giuseppe Mazzini` which, however, was abolished in 1892 by decree, without motivation, of the government commissioner who in that year was acting as mayor. In 1893 a school of "Arts and Crafts" was inaugurated, specializing in the trades of cabinetmaker, carpenter, stonemason, bricklayer, blacksmith, potter, suppressed in 1897 and replaced with the "Francesco Mavarelli Complementary School" (later Startup). Associations and institutions pawnshop It is the oldest of the charitable institutions, dating back to the 18th century. At the beginning of the 19th century it carried out its function as "Monte Frumentario" and is owned by the Confraternity of San Bernardino. At the beginning of the century it is located in the central square of the town, called "piazza del fiore" because its purpose is to store the grain of the brotherhood and that purchased in times of cash availability, and then resell it in times of greatest scarcity. In 1820, the "Monte Frumentario" changed headquarters and moved to three rooms in the town hall in via di Castel Nuovo (now via Grilli). 1824 is an important year for this institution which partially changed its nature, transforming the grains of capital into cash. It became "Monte dei Pegni" (or Monte di Pietà) or "Monte Pecuniario" to give money to applicants on a "pledge" of greater value, with the obligation to return it or re-affirm it within the year, paying the interest of five per one hundred. In 1865 the Monte di Pietà is still operating, it has its own cash fund, available on loan, of L. 4,315.88 and a total capital of approximately L. 6,000. In this year five hundred citizens of Umbertide benefited from the Monte di Pietà. The Congregation of Charity In 1838 the charitable congregation was established in Fratta, wanted by the bishop of Gubbio, to raise funds to build the new hospital and to help the poorest in cases of absolute need. In 1861 it was absorbed into the new "Congregation of Charity". From 1883 she received an annual subsidy from the municipality of Umbertide of four hundred lire, which made it easier for her to carry out charitable works such as intervening in the costs of burying the poor in the country and, in the coldest winters, distributing them food. From 1896 the municipality gave it the property of the former convent of S. Maria. The Mutual Aid Society It was established in early December 1860. It aimed to defend the interests of the workers of the country, that is, the artisans and workers, and to buy low-cost foodstuffs. But the action of the association was also aimed at the problems of the less well-off classes, such as, for example, bearing the costs of the sick poor. The municipality, in 1863, decided to give her an annual grant of 25 lire for ten years. Mutuo Soccorso was also inserted in the life of the town with dance parties, musical performances and promoting the feast of 8 September to which it gave its contribution to a large extent. It was his initiative for a race of bicycles (those with the large front wheel and small rear wheel) and bicycles organized in 1889 to celebrate the 29th anniversary of the foundation. In 1896 he managed to create a consumer cooperative with a resale to the public of foodstuffs, including a butcher's shop. The Savings Bank In 1862 another private association was created, with certainly productivist but also indirectly social intentions, the Cassa dei Risparmi, which brought benefits for the local crafts and trade that were in those years looking for their own active position in the new economic context. . The promoting committee included Dr. Giuseppe Bertanzi, Dr. Mauro Mavarelli, Dr. Paolo Bertanzi and dr. Annibale Burelli. On 1 June 1862 there was a meeting of the shareholders for the inauguration of the Bank, invited by the promoter Dr. Giuseppe Savelli. There were 89 shareholders, each of whom had bought a share; the municipality had five. The presidents were Dr. Paolo Bertanzi and dr. Mauro Mavarelli; cashier, Santini; secretary, Burelli. In July 1885 it ceased its activity. He took it back as a Banca Popolare Cooperativa. In the summer of 1892 the activity ceased. We find it alive as a Banca di Umbertide, with a share capital of L. 60,000 and it still existed in 1905. The Society of Masons It was known in 1888 when, on June 16, he asked the mayor to rent a property in the former convent of S. Maria, specifying that it was the "fund where the municipality keeps dogs caught". It was therefore a real work cooperative among the bricklayers of the town, who came together to be able more easily to undertake work of great commitment that otherwise they would not have been able to carry out if isolated. It was probably the first cooperative of its kind in Umbertide. It broke up in 1898. The Society of Veterans from the Homeland Battles Traces of it are traced back to April 1883. It was administered by a board of directors and aimed to "tighten the harmony between the veterans and to unite and consolidate their forces for the benefit of the homeland so that it may be free, independent and united". In January 1884 he took the initiative to place a plaque to honor the memory of Giuseppe Garibaldi. He opens a subscription among the citizens and asks the municipality for financial help. However. due to internal disagreements, the Company decides to proceed with its own means and the plaque will be affixed in the atrium of the town hall on 1 June 1884. The Mazzini Club In the second half of the last century there was a great flourishing of political ideas which then resulted in the constitution of the various parties. After 1860 we find a "Circolo Mazzini" born for cultural purposes, but certainly with obvious political implications. In July 1877 he asked the Municipality for the council chamber for a meeting of the members, but the answer was negative. In 1899 the municipal guards office warned the mayor with a letter dated May 1st that "this night, by an unknown hand, the following sentences were written on the walls of this municipal building and in various points of Via Cibo," Viva il 1 ° May, down with the exploiters, down with the Public Security Delegate, long live the Workers ". The writings had been done with black perfume and water. Which was immediately washed by the municipal toilet brushes ». The Rowing Club Practice rowing on the Tiber. The means, however, was not the canoe but a simple, large boat with several oars, single or double. We have news of this in 1890, the year in which he asked the mayor for more space to be able to carry out the activity since the assigned stretch of about one hundred meters upstream of the bridge was decidedly insufficient. The Company therefore asks to be able to use the section from "Salce" to "Corbatto". The municipality refuses the concession because that piece was intended for "wetting women", so it could not be used by rowers "for reasons of decency". In 1893, the Company asked the mayor for the council chamber for a meeting, having to receive Tuoro's colleagues and compete together. The activity of this association lasted until about 1915 and probably ceased with the war. Shooting Shooting clubs had a great development in the last century. The date of its constitution is not known, but it was probably following the great activity carried out by the sister company in Perugia. The need to shoot at the target forced the municipality to build a small polygon equipped with everything needed. It was located along the current Via Roma, halfway to the Pineta Ranieri, in the place and in the direction of today's Via Pachino. The Umbertide section also took part in regional competitions, usually in Perugia where in 1899 (September) the fifth national competition took place, in which, however, the Umbertide company did not participate as it had recently been dissolved. Music, theater and free time At the beginning of the 19th century the brotherhoods and the various congregations had a church as the seat of their activity. A chaplain, paid by them, celebrated the religious offices and taught music to some boys. Simple melodies accompanied the Frattigiani in the early years of the century. The strong personality of the great singer from Fratta, Domenico Bruni, changed a little the limited musical expressions of our people. In his country he performed applauded performances, he often found himself singing in church on major religious holidays, teaching music and singing to young people. At the beginning of the century the theater was on the first floor of the old town hall in piazza della Rocca. It was managed by an "Accademia dei Signori Riuniti", of which the municipality was a partner, which exhibited companies from outside. On the bill works of little artistic value, but understandable to an audience like that of Fratta. In addition to comedies, there were usually "farces", represented by young students from the village; the performances of jugglers from neighboring states; the game of bingo, practiced almost everywhere. Often some representations were denied by the ecclesiastical authority of Perugia. Others, for greater safety, were attended by four surveillance "militiamen". In 1802 there was a company of amateurs in Fratta, of which Giovan Battista Spinetti and Alessio Magnanini were animators. Various festivals took place in the village, linked to the Napoleonic celebrations at the beginning of the century. On October 4, 1809, the victory of Moscow was celebrated. Four days annually in which, during religious services, "sung in music" were performed, with the participation of orchestra professors from nearby cities. Then there was the procession, with the distribution of bread to the poor, lighting the town hall and the town houses with candles. In the evening, then, always fireworks, also called "rays", and some performances in the theater attended by the Maire (mayor). A peculiarity of these festivals was the giving to the poor "poultry as a cuccagna", a term that we meet for the first time in 1809 and makes us think of the game that has come down to us as a "greasy tree". In 1811, for the birth of Napoleon's son, a "carousel" was made using "two geese" and sand: probably the game of the "three jugs" which saw hanging three jars with water, sand and other things, which did not exclude. geese. A big party also took place on the occasion of the pope's return to Rome (May 29, 1814). Other sources of entertainment were the numerous village festivals and for the boys the game of ball, made of rubber and inflated with air. The first news dates back to 1819 and concerns the problems, the damages, the noises caused by the lack of a place to host it. The municipality will choose piazza San Francesco. Another pastime is that of the "tumbling", in need of a special road. The prior, in 1831, indicated for this game, "as for that of cheese", the road "called S. Maria", from the point called "le Fornaci" to the "Rio river". The great centenary party, held in 1844, coinciding with the 8th of September, is noteworthy. We wanted to recall the days in which the war "of the Grand Duke" made itself felt, also fought in our country in the autumn of 1644 between the army of Urban VIII (in the reign of which Fratta was included) and the coalition of the Grand Duke of Tuscany. Most of the expenses were borne by the brotherhoods and from 1 January deputies were formed with the task of raising funds. Invitations were printed to the owners to illuminate their houses with torches and on 6 September there was the raising of the flying balloon and a horse race in the straight section of the road to Città di Castello, immediately after the Tiber bridge. Wooden fences had to be built on the sides of the road to contain the crowds. On the other days there were fireworks bought in Città di Castello; they were a thousand "mortars", fired by the only expert Frattigiano, Pietro Barafano. The town was illuminated by Antonio Carotini, the street lights and the wind torches at the gates were left on for the whole night. There were many religious services and, for the first time, a service of the musical band. Musicians also came from S. Angelo in Vado, Città di Castello, Gubbio, Perugia and Foligno (they went to get them and brought them back in the carriage). Such manifestations were never repeated. The marching band was an entirely citizen ensemble. In 1849, a specification regulated the teacher's tasks, including the school of music for children "in order to take the youth out of idleness, the primary cause of every vice and to soften their soul". In 1852 the band was a non-religious but eminently civilized musical group. In 1871 a violin school was established, presided over and taught by the Umbertidese Francesco Agnolucci. He received a salary of ninety lire a month from the municipality. There were many feasts, linked to the calendar of religious celebrations. In February, S. Brigida, Candelora, Carnival; in May, S. Croce, Rogazioni (three days), S. Bernardino; in June, Trinity, Pentecost, S. Erasmus (two days); in July, S. Bonaventura; in August, Assumption; in September, Madonna (three days), S. Croce di Settembre, S. Tommaso da Villanova; in November, presentation of Mary; in December, Madonna and Christmas. The cost weighed on the brotherhoods that supplied the necessary starting from the wheat for the sweets which, a few days earlier, was brought to the mill. Once the flour was obtained, it was immediately thought of its transformation into loaves, to be distributed at the party, but they also made sweets, simple and appreciated: "ciaramicole", "tarantelle" of small format because each one had to be given one. They also made "pancasciati" (perhaps caciati bread?) And cheese cakes using quintals of flour and hundreds of eggs. The authorities (prior, public security delegate, etc.) enjoyed special treatment and had a separate table where they enjoyed sweets, but also chocolates and flasks of wine. In the evening there was always the shooting of the "mortars" and lighting of pinwheels. The main feast was that of 8 September, considered to thank the Madonna for the narrow escape from the war of 1644, when the sudden flood of the Tiber managed to stop the Tuscan army. There are many festivals in the countryside. Most went there on foot, some in two-wheeled carriages, others in large four-wheeled buggies pulled by a single horse, called "gardener". They had a tarp to protect from the sun and fringed arched sides. There was also a game of "hard-boiled eggs" or pigeon shooting or the "goose carousel". In the second half of the century the lyric spread. In 1871 the most demanding opera ever staged in Umbertide was staged: Verdi's "La Traviata". In 1878 a great singing personality emerges in Umbertide, the baritone Giulio Santini. In 1872 we have the first news about his artistic career: on 10 January he was hired in Fermo as the "first absolute baritone" and he was supposed to sing in all the carnival shows. In 1874 we find him in Borgo Sansepolcro: Francesco Panari and his companions, contractor of that theater, had signed the contract with the company. On December 3 he was called by the Teatro Nuovo in Florence, where he sang important musical works also in the Bellincioni hall. Leaving Florence, Santini went to Siena as the first baritone. In February 1879 he sang "Luisa Miller" by Giuseppe Verdi in Città di Castello, receiving a parchment of gratitude. Sources: - Renato Codovini - "History of Umbertide - Vol. VII - Sec. XIX". Unpublished typescript. - Calendar of Umbertide 2000 - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2000. Texts by Adriano Bottaccioli, Walter Rondoni, Amedeo Massetti and Fabio Mariotti. The "Regina Elena" kindergarten will be built in this space in 1905 and the elementary schools in 1914 (Historical photographic archive of the Municipality of Umbertide) The cover and the first page of the Statute of 1893 Certificate of admission and diploma issued by Mutual Aid Society "G. Garibaldi" Image taken from the "Umbertide 2000 Calendar" Tumbling competition at the Abbey of Montecorona (Pacifici family photo) Image taken from the "Umbertide 2000 Calendar" THE BALL GAME AND THE GREAT 200TH ANNIVERSARY PARTY OF THE SIEGE OF FRATTA BY THE TUSCAN MILITIES The ball game The first news about this game dates back to 1819, but in the following years it was often talked about due to the inconveniences it caused. The game of ball required an available field to be played and at that time the only spaces available were the streets and squares of the town. It is easy to imagine the protests that were unleashed. The speech was also valid for the game of the ball which differed from the ball only for the weight, volume and age of those who played it, but practiced on the narrow streets of the town was equally a cause of noise and annoyance. When the Municipality realized that this game had become a recurring entertainment, it established that it should be practiced only in Piazza San Francesco, being the only one to offer a more adequate space. The current Piazza Matteotti in front of the Town Hall, in that period had a different structure and was much smaller, therefore completely unsuitable for playing football. The noise that ensued and the possible damage to the windows were more limited in the square of San Francesco, both for its urban conformation and for the fact that private homes and commercial activities were less numerous. To get an idea of what could have happened, we report a letter dated July 15, 1819 sent by the Gonfaloniere acting to the Commissioner of Public Safety: “I am in duty bound to make the V S. Ill.ma understand a fact with which I find my convenience and the representation of public authority infringed. Yesterday, towards the setting of the sun, I was watching the football match under the house of Mr. Santini in the company of various honest people. At this juncture I found myself present when Mr. Giuseppe Santini returned a ball that had entered his house, and I later heard the complaints made by the aforementioned Mr. Santini because such a ball was not wanted to be received, on the pretext of having been punched by him. . Knowing that the Gonfaloniere in charge of the police is absent, and in this case the police being entrusted to me also by virtue of the dispatch of the Apostolic Delegation dated 5 February 1819 n. 543, I took it upon myself to verify the fact, so that some inconvenience did not arise and taking the refused ball in hand, I carefully observed it if it had been in any way spoiled. To better examine it and get to know it, I took it to myself to the inflator and had it filled with air according to the art, I found that the balloon was intact and that it did not vent in any part. In the act that I was doing this operation in the hallway of Signor Cristiani's house, the cleaner Nicolò Fanfani entered and scolded the inflator Francesco Mazzanti for having received the ball. I then let him know that the balloon had been taken by me and I had ordered that it inflated to verify the truth of what he wanted to put on Mr. Santini and from the tone with which I spoke, I made it known that I was operating invested with that authority constituted by the law and by the Apostolic Delegation. Fanfani rashly answered me in these precise terms: "Who are you? You give me a mustache of C." I then, not wanting to alter with such a vile Person, considered myself the ball to present it to you, reserving the right to notify, as I do here, the recklessness of the aforementioned Fanfani, requesting that the bold Fanfani come to honor the authority I represented at the time. subjected to that punishment you deserve. I hope that this request of mine will be taken into consideration by VS Ill. But also in order not to oblige me to make equal representation to the police direction .. .... " Similar problems continued to happen even afterwards, as the numerous documents consulted tell us. A similar situation occurred, for example, in 1828 when the boys, to go and get the ball on the roof, went through the attics and damaged the building where the Monte di Pietà was located which was located in via di Castel Nuovo where 'were the schools and the Town Hall. As the years went by, in fact, the number of young players increased and the game of the ball also spread. The square of San Francesco was no longer sufficient for these needs and the boys had taken the will to play in via Dritta (1) or in via di Castel Nuovo. The Municipality no longer knew how to do it and on 11 April 1839 he wrote to the Apostolic Delegation asking him "to suggest how to provide for it, not without letting them know that the square of S. Francesco, intended for the game of football, could not at the same time serve also for that of the ball ". The solutions did not arrive and the situation worsened so much that the young football amateurs turned directly to the Governor on May 8, 1843 asking for "permission to play either in via Dritta or in via di Castel Nuovo" (1) , that is in those two streets where they played illegally every day. The Prior brought the problem to the City Council meeting on May 27 to resolve the issue and it was decided that there was no longer any reason to ban ball games in via di Castel Nuovo as the Municipality had moved for a year. in the new location (the current one) and the disturbance was irrelevant. In front of Castel Nuovo you could only play "gymnastic ball game" and not football, whose field was that of Piazza San Francesco. There was no lack of will to respond to the needs of young people. It was only very difficult to give it, as the provisions issued by the Apostolic Delegation on 9 July 1826 strictly forbade the game of ball in the provincial roads "and in other frequented places from which damage or disturbance to the inhabitants derives" and, therefore, to Fratta only Piazza San Francesco could serve as an approved field for such a sport. The provision of the Apostolic Delegation, issued at the provincial level, makes us understand that the game was spreading everywhere but the idea of equipping a special space in the vicinity of inhabited centers, specifically intended for this type of game, was still far from everyone's mind. . Note: 1. The via Dritta is today's via Cibo or “Corso”; the via di Castel Nuovo is today's via Grilli, from Piaggiola to piazza Marconi. The great celebration for the second centenary of the War of the Grand Duke of Tuscany Among the great festivals that were celebrated in the century there was also that of 1844, the anniversary of the second centenary of the "War of the Grand Duke", which also saw the village of Fratta heavily involved and which ended in the autumn of 1644 (1) . The celebrations took place from the 5th to the 8th of September in parallel with the traditional celebrations of Fratta, which that year ended up taking on a grandiose aspect. The local Confraternities, since the beginning of the year, had been busy to raise funds from the families of the town. Printed tickets were sent to the owners of the houses to illuminate their houses for the whole period of the festival and on 6 September a flying balloon was raised to the applause and admiration of the people. In the straight of the tifernate road, from the end of the bridge and towards the current sports field along the Tiber embankment, there was the race of the "loose horses". A large crowd was expected, as indeed it did, and a fence was built on either side of the road to contain people. Every evening, as night appeared, there was no lack of fireworks bought in Città di Castello. There were more than a thousand "mortars" and they were shot by the only expert Frattigiano, Pietro Barafano. The lights of the lanterns remained on for all three nights and the Town Hall and the town gates were illuminated with "wind torches". There was no shortage of theatrical performances and the Fratta Musical Band made its appearance, one of the first performances of which we have documented historical news. The religious ceremonies, very solemn, with players brought in from S. Angelo in Vado, Città di Castello, Perugia, Foligno and Gubbio, completed the setting of this majestic spectacle that was never repeated in such a grandiose form at Fratta. Note: 1. The war had broken out in 1641 for the possession of the Duchy of Castro, a town in Lazio on the border with Tuscany, located in the valley of the Olpeta stream, seat of a duchy that became a fief of the Farnese since 1538. Thanks to the concessions of the Pope Paolo III Farnese, Castro became the most important fief of the Papal State. When Urban VIII, of the Barberini family, ascended the papal throne in 1623, the clash between the rival families of the Farnese and Barberini families ended in a real war, with the Pope occupying the duchy of Castro militarily. Odoardo Farnese, the ousted duke, found his allies in the Republic of Venice, in the Duchy of Modena, in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and in the political support of France, managing to win the "first war of Castro" which ended with the Peace of Ferrara in 1644 which sanctioned the restitution of the fief to the Farnese. It was this phase of the war that also involved the town of Fratta. Odoardo's successor, Ranuccio II, definitively lost power in 1649 following the "second Castro war" which broke out due to the killing of the Novara Barnabite Cristoforo Giorda, bishop of the city, of which Jacopo Gaufrido, prime minister of the city, was accused duke. Ranuccio II was quickly defeated and Castro was razed to the ground by order of Pope Innocent X. Its ruins are still visible today. (The complete account of this important page of history on umbertidestoria.net - section "History" - page "La Fratta del Seicento"). The old photos are from the historical photographic archive of the Municipality of Umbertide. Sources: "Umbertide in the XIX century" by Renato Codovini and Roberto Sciurpa - Municipality of Umbertide, 2001 THE MARTINELLI BROTHERS "MANUFACTURERS OF ORGANS AT THE FRATTA DI PERUGIA " Mauro Ferrante From “Umbertide nel Secolo XIX” by Renato Codovini and Roberto Sciurpa - Attachment n.8 Between the first and second half of the nineteenth century the ancient Fratta of Perugia originated and developed in Umbertide, the organ factory of the brothers Francesco and Antonio Martinelli whose works, appreciable for the quality of the materials and for the valuable invoice, represent an important testimony of that particular historical period of Italian organ-building, an expression of the synthesis between neoclassicism and romantic renewal (1). Born in Fratta, in the parish of San Giovanni Battista, by Gaetano carpenter and Chiara Massi respectively on 16 September 1806 and 15 May 1811, first Francesco then his younger brother learned the art in the workshop of the well-known Perugian organ builder Angelo Morettini (2), located in via del Circo 44, in the Porta Eburnea area, in Perugia. In fact, at that address Francesco appears to be resident in 1828 and it is he himself who in 1831 carried out some carpentry work on the organ erected by his master, in the month of May of that year, right in Umbertide in the church of the Confraternity of Santa Croce (3). In the project for the organ of the cathedral of Città di Castello (Pg) of 20 December 1837, Antonio will define himself literally as "organ builder of Fratta, a pupil of the famous Morettini of Perugia". The exact time in which the Martinellis opened the Fratta shop is not known but, considering that Francesco was godfather of Vittoria, second daughter of Morettini born in December 1832, and that the first work of the Umbertide factory dates back to 1834, the separation from the master must have occurred around 1833 and, certainly, not without provoking the resentment of these who, in a letter of 1852 addressed to the municipality of Passignano sul Trasimeno, defined Francesco "a spoiler of Fratta, a carpenter in my shop" (4). Francesco, who remained celibate, continued to be part of Antonio's family unit, married to the Perugian Margherita Reggiani with whom he had an only son, Massimo, born on 12 March 1846, who, after the initial apprenticeship at the paternal shop, did not continue the organ building activity which ended with the death of the two founders on a date not yet known. Of their production, estimated perhaps altogether at around forty works spread mainly in Umbria and Marche, but also in Lazio and Tuscany, over thirty instruments are currently documented, most of which have survived, about twenty retain good original conditions and some have enjoyed historical restoration in recent years. After the op. I of 1834, destined for the church of Santa Croce dei Cavalieri in Santo Sepolcro in Perugia and today preserved in the parish church of San Feliciano di Magione (Pg), the oldest surviving attestations of the Martinelli's activity are found in the Marche region: in the church of San Sebastiano in San Sebastiano di Mondolfo (Ps) in fact exists, in excellent conservation conditions, the op. N of 1836 while the following year is the op. VII intended for the church of the Adoration of Jesi (An) and, without the date but probably dating back to that same year, is the instrument of the church of San Filippo in Sant'Angelo in Vado (Ps) which on the strip above the keyboard has a plate with the inscription “FF. MARTINELLI / ALLA / FRATTA DI PERUGIA / OPERA VIII ". The period of construction of the non-surviving instruments intended for unidentified churches of Castelfidardo (An), Gubbio (Pg) and Pietralunga (Pg) (5) should date back to the years 1837 and 1838, while op. XII of 1839, originally erected in the church of the Poor Clares monastery of Monte San Vito (An), it has been preserved since 1885 in the church of San Benedetto Abbot of Morro d'Alba (An). At the church of San Francesco in Narni (Tr) there is instead, much remodeled, an instrument of 1841 built for the cathedral of San Giovenale in the same city (6). The following year the Martinellis built the - new organ - which they then carried out maintenance from 1845 to 1863 - for another important Umbrian cathedral in Città di Castello (Pg), where they also restored the small positive of the Chapel of the Holy Sacrament. (7). Back in the Marches, in the same 1842 they erected the organ for the church of San Francesco in Mondavio (Ps), between 1842 and 1843 the one in the crypt of the church of Ss. Biagio and Romualdo in Fabriano (An) (8) and in 1844 the instrument for the cathedral of Pergola (Ps) which, on the foot of the main barrel of the façade, has the inscription engraved: “FF MARTINELLI / ALLA.FRATTA.DLPERUGIA./ OPERA XX / 1844” (9). The organ for the Lazio cathedral of Poggio Mirteto (Ri) dates back to 1847 and the following year was the one for the church of San Michele Arcangelo in Città di Castello. In those same years the Martinellis built a large two-keyboard instrument, commissioned by the Torlonia princes, for the church of Santa Maria in Aracoeli in Rome; the same Roman nobles had it restored between 1858 and 1867 by the organ builder Enrico Priori who also added a third keyboard with the accordion register and, after a further intervention by the Paoli organ builders of Campi Bisenzio (Fi), the organ it was sold to the parish of nearby Nemi (RM) (10). After having worked again in the Marche, where in the parish church of Sant'Egidio in Castignano (Ap) there is an instrument (perhaps coming from another building) which has a printed plate, applied to the bottom of the secret of the master wind chest, with the inscription : "FF. MARTINELLI / ORGAN MANUFACTURERS / ALLA FRATTA DI PERUGIA / 1849 ”(11), the organ builders of Umbertide completed in 1851 a second large organ, with two keyboards for the cathedral of San Rufino in Assisi (Pg) (12). Probably the instruments that can be observed today in the church of San Nicolò in Belfiore in Foligno (Pg) and, perhaps coming from the church of S. Damiano in Assisi, the one that since 1861 is located in the parish of Casalalta di Collazzone (Pg ), while the instrument preserved in the church of San Bartolomeo in Montefalco (Pg) dates back to 1854. The organ of the parish church of San Giovanni Battista in Sassocorvaro (Ps) dates back to 1856, where in the secretary of the master wind chest there is a printed and pen plate with the inscription: “FF. MARTINELLI / 1856 Fratta "; that of San Michele Arcangelo in Bolognola (Mc) dates back to 1858 and on the central barrel of the façade bears the inscription stamped: “BY CURATION OF D. FRANCESCO MAURIZI / I / FF. MARTINELLI / FECERO / 1858 "; between 1859 and 1860 the organ of the church of the Madonna dell'Oliveto in Passignano sul Trasimeno (Pg) was probably completed. In the request for authorization for expatriation sent on May 4, 1862 to the municipal authority (13), Antonio, after having mentioned an instrument placed the previous year in an unidentified location in Tuscany, declares that he has to go to Lazio to erect the organ of the cathedral of Sutri (Vt) and refers to the commission to build for the next 1863 the one for the collegiate church of Montone (Pg). A last dated work, dating back to 1866, is preserved in the Collegiate Church of Mercatello sul Metauro (Ps) and two other instruments, without the date and the work number, are still found in the Marche region: in the church of San Michele Arcangelo in Sorbolongo di Sant'Ippolito (Ps) and in the church of Santa Maria in Via a Camerino (MC) (14); according to the technical characteristics, the organ kept in the church of San Giovanni Battista in Roncitelli di Senigallia (An) is also attributed to the Martinelli brothers. In the province of Perugia there are further undated Martinellian works in the parish church of Preggio, coming from San Giovanni in Pantano and recently restored, in the church of San Giovanni Battista di Umbertide, of which only a few remains survive, in the church of Santo Spirito in Città di Castle and, of dubious attribution, in the cathedral of Città della Pieve. The last documented attestation of the Martinellis' organ-building activity concerns only Antonio who, in a letter dated 11 November 1883, proposes the purchase of an instrument of his own manufacture to the Compagnia del Ss. Crocifisso at the church of San Rocco in Sansepolcro ( Ar) at a price of 1,100 lire, a sum which was nevertheless considered too high for the Company's finances and therefore the deal was not followed up (15). Finally, in the church of S. Angelo Minore of the Confraternity of the Artieri in Cagli (Ps) there is an instrument by an unknown artist but purchased in Umbertide at the Martinelli workshop. In their works the Umbertidese organ builders basically re-propose unchanged, some technical and stylistic elements of the Morettinian organ whose aesthetics assimilate radically. The affinity, if not the identity, of some construction details is normally evident: from the single arrangement span with cusp with wings of the façade canes, with upper lip as a shield, to the manufacture of the keyboard, delimited by curvilinear modillions veneered in walnut and, in some cases, decorated with brass bas-reliefs; by the careful carpentry of the master wind-chest, always of the shooting type, to the invoice of the tie rods of the registers, to the turned wooden knob from characteristic elongated shape or, more rarely, interlocking throttle. The Martinellis generally manufacture small and medium-sized instruments on the basis of a Principal of 8 'and with a single keyboard (with the exception of the large double instruments from Rome and Assisi, the latter also equipped with a Principal of 16 'starting however from C,) of 50 keys covered in bone, or in boxwood, and ebony with smooth front and extension from C, to F, with first short octave and division between bass and sopranos "Spanish style" (ie from C, and C # 3, as in the first instruments of Morettini). The organs of Mercatello sul Metauro e some cathedrals of Assisi and Pergola have keyboards with the first octave extraordinarily chromatic, respectively of 58 (from C to A5) and 54 keys (from Do, to Fa,). The pedal board, of the lectern type with walnut frets, has the 12-note extension (from C, to Eb ,, with first short octave) than in larger instruments, is expanded to 17 (from C, to G # 2 with short octave) and is usually equipped with a double bass register with reeds of 16 'in fir wood painted red, sometimes with the Octava dei Bassi of 8 'doubling. The stuffing normally extends to the Vigesimanona, while in the instruments smaller is limited to the second vigesimas and rarely, if not in the organs of large proportions such as those of Narni, Città di Castello and Pergola, reaches the Trigesimasesta, or includes the Twelfth practiced by their master from Perugia. The Morettinian apprenticeship of the Umbertide organ builders is also evident from the composition of the concert registers: among the reeds they prefer those a short tuba like the Lira, also called Angelic Voice, of 16 'sopranos - with tubas conical in tin alloy, slightly tapered and with the edges closed at the top, placed on the façade or at the bottom of the wind chest - completed in the bass by the Bassoon, or Cello, 8 'with pyramidal tubes of wood or lead alloy with flattened corners at the top which, when placed on the façade, have a red varnish glaze red lead (16). In the great Assisi instrument there is a 16 'English Horn (17) (in the sopranos, with tubas in tin alloy composed of an inverted truncated conical section surmounted by a cylindrical section closed at the top, and an 8' sopranos oboe of similar shape (the cylindrical section is shorter and more open)). The 8 'tromboncini pipes, always arranged in front, have pyramidal tin tubas in the basses (similar to the Cello) and conical in the sopranos, while the 8' trumpet tubas, also made of tin and placed in front of the show, they are slightly flared conics at the top, like those of the trombette in octave, register of 4 'in the bass. The Fabriano instrument of 1843 presents an 8 'soprani violin with conical alloy tubas which, placed at the bottom of the wind chest in an expressive case that can be operated via a pedal, unequivocally betrays the descent, albeit indirect, of the authors of the Montecarottese school of Vici. Finally, the pedalboard, in the larger organs, has an 8 'register of trombones with pyramidal tubes in red painted wood of real height (as in the Assisi instrument, here called Bombardone) or made up of several truncated conical sections of tin. The following belong to the family of flutes: the original Corno dolce of 16 'sopranos (register that does not derive from the Morettinian inheritance) (18) with conical tubas of rather large cut, some partially covered at the top, placed at the bottom of the wind chest; the Flute Traversié (also called Flute Traverso or Traversiere) of 8 'sopranos with cylindrical pipes capped by an outer cap of lead trimmed with leather, the Flute in octave of 4', with the first octave derived from the Octave and with pipes capped up to Yes and the following cusps, sometimes limited to the sopranos register only and called Ottavino which in the organ of Sorbolongo di Sant'Ippolito, indicated with the French style Flasgiolé, has a particularly lively intonation thanks to the original presence in the pipes of two diametrically opposite; the 2, 2/3 'Quintet in sopranos with cusp-shaped pipes; the decimino of 1,3 / 5 'cylindrical sopranos and with measures from the Principal (19). The presence in Martinellian instruments of the human voice is also constant, the traditional swing register of 8 'sopranos, here with increasing tuning, while the 4' Violetta is rarer in the basses with narrow diameter pipes. Finally, the Umbrian organ builders equip their works with a wide range of accessories from the traditional Tiratutti del Ripieno with crank handle and acoustic drum on pedal board (20) to the more modern Bells (or Carillon), Grand case and Third hand (21). Mauro Ferrante , organ concert artist, organologist and composer born in 1956, is professor of composition at the “Gioacchino Rossini” Conservatory of Music in Pesaro. As Honorary Inspector of the Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities at the Superintendencies of Urbino and Bologna he is responsible for the study and protection of the Italian historical organs on which he has lectured and published various essays, including: The organs of Gaetano Callido in the Marche, The restoration of ancient organs in the Marche: criteria and methodology, Venetian organ builders in the Marche from the 16th to the 19th century, The organ of the convent of Beato Sante in Mombaroccio and the activity of Pietro Nacchini in the Marche, Notes on Cioccolani master organ builders by Cingoli. Note: 1. The biographical information in this contribution is taken from the unique and fundamental essay on the art of organ building in Umbertide by Renzo GIORGETTI, Organs and organ builders in Umbertide, in “studies and documentation. Umbrian magazine of musicology ", n.13 (December 1987), pp. 5-32. By the same author see also Umbrian cathedrals and their organs, ibidem n. 19 (December 1990) pp. 3 - 38 and the Catalog of organ builders active in Umbria, in the 5th “Città di Perugia” organ festival; Perugia 1989, pp. 23 - 41. Historical information and aesthetic considerations are also contained in the essay by Paolo PERETTI The Umbrian-Marche organ-building tradition in the 18th and 19th centuries Historical and critical notes, in “Historical Bulletin of the city of Foligno”, Vol. XIII Foligno 1989 , Fulginia Academy, pp. 83 - 120 2. Angelo Morettini had in turn been a pupil of the Marches organ builder Sebastiano Vici, the most authoritative of the organ-building school of Montecarotto (Ancona). 3. This is the op. 23 by Angelo Morettini commissioned by Ruggero Burelli. 4. See Marco VALENTINI, The main organ of S. Rufino in Assisi. Description and restoration, Quaderni dell'Accademia Properziana del Subasio (5), Assisi, 1998, p. 5. 5. See R. Giorgetti, Bodies and organ builders ... op. cit. pp. 7 - 8. 6. On March 22, 1840, the contract for the organ was stipulated for the sum of 480 scudi. The document is transcribed in R. Giorgetti, Umbrian cathedrals ..., op. cit. pp. 31 - 34 which also reports the news of the addition of the Campanelli register made in 1864 by the same Martinellis. 7. The contract of the organ of 9 May 184-0 is transcribed in R. Giorgetti, Organs e organari ..., op. cit. pp. 27 - 28. The instrument was paid for 500 scudi plus the materials of the old organ. 8. A printed plate with metal frame applied to the center of the strip above the keyboard bears the inscription: "FF Martinelli / 1843" while on the foot of the main barrel of the facade is engraved: "Gregorii XVI PM / in / Romualdum / Munifica Pietate / Hoc / A FF. MARTINELLI, Fractae fuit elaboratum / AD / 1842 ". 9. Transported around 1975 to the church of the Holy Crucifix of S. Lorenzo in Campo (Ps), the instrument was dismantled in 1999 and put aside. 10. See in this regard Alberto CAMETTI, Organs, organ builders and organists of the Senate and of the Roman People in Santa Maria in Aracoeli (1583 - 1848), in "Rivista Musicale Italiana", XXVI (1919) pp. 441 - 483 and Ferdinando DE ANGELIS, Organs and organists of Santa Maria in Aracoeli, Rome, Convent of S. Lorenzo in Panisperna, 1969. 11. The instrument was restored in 1994. 12. The contract for the organ for the sum of 620 scudi, dated June 16, 1848 is transcribed in R. Giorgetti, Organi e organari ..., op. cit., pp. 25 - 27. In 1996 the historical restoration of the instrument was completed. 13. See R. GIORGETTI, Bodies and organ builders ..., op. cit., pp. 17 - 18. 14. The authorship of both works is attested by printed labels with the inscription: “FF. MARTINELLI ". Sorbolongo's instrument presents the original material unaltered and in good conservation conditions; the one from Camerino, after a historical restoration completed in 1994, suffered minor damage following the earthquake of September 1997. 15. See R. GIORGETTI, Ancient organs in the churches of the Confraternities of Mercy in Tuscany, Florence 1994, Arti Grafiche Giorgi & Gambi, pp. 235 - 237. 16. Red saline lead oxide used for the preparation of anti-rust enamels and paints. 17. Originally also existing in the organ of Mercatello sul Metauro, later suppressed. 18. Observable in Castignano (here with the most acute pipes plugged), Mercatello sul Metauro and Passignano sul Trasimeno. 19. The same indicated by Morettini also with the curious name of Acciarini. 20. Controlled by the last key of the pedal board, the drum simultaneously activates a series of bass reeds causing a sound similar to that of the homonymous percussion instrument 21. Mechanical device that connects some keys with the analogues of the higher octave. Sources: “Umbertide nel Secolo XIX” by Renato Codovini and Roberto Sciurpa - Municipality of Umbertide. 2001 THE GREAT FULL OF THE REGGIA STREAM AND THE TIBER A storm of unprecedented violence on 19 July 1800 caused the palace to overflow causing significant disasters. The first big problem occurred on its right bank, after the first bridge (such it was at that time, small, low and built in wood) that linked the market to the Collegiate. The strong current carried away the retaining wall that supported the embankment going up towards the Porta del Soccorso della Rocca, the one facing the market. Proceeding towards the mouth, after circumventing the base of the South East tower (after today's small iron railway bridge) the current had ripped up the wall of the left bank that sheltered the entire village of Santa Croce, and then devastated one of the supporting walls of the bridge along the road that led to San Francesco is relevant. The damage was significant and came to fall in a circumstance in which the Municipality did not even have the money to buy bread. The request for help from the Apostolic Delegate, although reluctantly knowing what kind of man Cardinal Rivarola was, was indispensable. The Priors, therefore, informed the Delegate, who promptly replied on 26 July suggesting that the Council be convened to examine what had happened and asking to be informed "... on the result, after which I will determine what will be more just and the way more suitable and cheaper for refurbishments ". Everything seemed to be going well and the Priors of Fratta commissioned, on 30 July, the master mason Pietro Gentili to carry out the appraisal. The technician made a detailed report on the extent of the excavation to connect the old part with the new works, to redo the arch in order to "accompany it with the other remaining portion"; estimated that 11,340 bricks would be needed to complete the work, including the reconstruction of the removed banks. The total expenditure would have been 742 scudi. The report was sent to Perugia and, in the transmission letter to soften the hardness of Rivarola in terms of disbursements, it was recalled that Fratta paid an annual contribution for the viability. The Cardinal, faithful to his commitment to make known the cheapest system for "renovations", replied that the annual contribution was needed for normal road maintenance and since the floods of rivers are an extraordinary fact, the damage could not fall under this heading and added that "... The Perugia Treasury is so exhausted and so miserable that its situation is in the real powerlessness of making up for the expenses that would be required of this object, even if it were required to do so". The Cardinal's letter ended with the precious advice to accommodate him immediately because "... the longer you wait, the more the damage could become serious, then we'll see". But the Fratta Council did not give up and struck the chord of ideology to grace the prelate, saying that "... Fratta is poor because the inhabitants were impoverished in time of the extinct Democratic Government". The Roman Republic, therefore, had thrown the people of Fratta to the pavement. But the Cardinal was not a man with a tender heart and much less sensitive to ideological references and with a decisive and blunt attitude on August 16 he closed the question as follows: "... If the councilors waste time in discussions, the ruins will become bigger every day, the bridge and the walls will stop falling .... The claim to immediately oblige the necessary expenses without immediately doing anything would be like that of a guest, seeing the house in flames and fire, with the inevitable danger of losing all its belongings, he wanted to wait for the owner, to whom the annual rent corresponds, to think about extinguishing the fire and in the meantime would remain indolent to look at it. Therefore, the Community of Fratta must immediately make repairs at its expense and free us from the incessant complaints that come to us every day from this land ”. The letter left no interpretative doubts and the Municipality decided to fend for itself. Since we were on the threshold of autumn and the rainy season was looming, on 4 September the master mason Ventura Bartoccini was given the task of preparing the project and the phases of execution of the works. Everything was prepared with great care: the wall would be rebuilt by November and the bridge of San Francesco by June. The Municipality allocated the necessary sum in the budget and forwarded to Rivarola the request for the necessary authorizations for the start of the works. The Cardinal was happy, his hard line had won. He quickly granted all the required permits and the necessary faculties to find money among the clergy and the landowners, even if they lived outside the Fratta. But the disasters never come by themselves and once the dispute over the repair of the damage caused by the flood of the Royal Palace was over, in early October, the flood of the Tiber arrived and eroded part of the road to Città di Castello. The bridge was then narrower and had only three arches; Therefore, the mass of water during flood periods was more withheld which, forcing against the embankment from the west part of the bridge, sucked up part of the road. For the second time began the dribbling of the competences between the Municipality and Rivarola who did not want to shell out a penny for the reasons set out above. The Municipality of Fratta had to bear half of the expense and the other half the neighboring municipalities. Sources: “Umbertide nel Secolo XIX” by Renato Codovini and Roberto Sciurpa - Municipality of Umbertide. 2001 La grande piena del torrente Reggia e del Tevere l Capitolati dei Servizi di posta e luce Il dominio francese a Fratta - II Parte Il dominio francese a Fratta - I Parte THE FRENCH DOMAIN IN FRATTA - PART I The annexation to France The Papal State formally exercised all its powers, kept its laws and its administrative structure in force, but the control and interference of the French Authority was becoming heavier every day, not only on economic choices, but above all on those policies. The Pontifical Government had also prepared a radical electoral reform, raising the number of municipal councilors to thirty and reworking some administrative mechanisms within the town hall, but the project remained in the drawer, because the agony of papal power was now nearing its end. The first signs of a rupture between Napoleon and the Pope occurred when the latter was forced to ask for heavy tax surcharges for the maintenance of French troops in Central Italy. Housekeeping expenses increased every day since the spring of 1807 and the tax burden not only became unbearable on taxpayers, but also triggered bitter conflicts between the first two classes for its distribution. At Fratta there was much discussion and lacerating divisions were created on the payment of those 39 annual scudi imposed for the maintenance of the transalpine troops. In the following year (1808) there was a real fiscal strike: the landowners refused to pay and the Municipality was forced to look for another criterion for distributing the tax. This episode would suggest that the burden of the barracks was entirely borne by the first class or that it weighed heavily on this alone. On August 4, 1808, a lively council meeting was held because the Artists, who were in the majority, firmly maintained that the tax had to be paid by the landowners. These, outnumbered by the numbers, appealed to the Governor of Perugia, with undisguised indignation, saying: "The class of artists, who form the largest number, but not the healthiest part, tumultuously opposes any just project, demanding that the burden is imposed either on the land or on the livestock, which is unjustified because it would only affect the Owners ". The Governor gave them reason and imposed the division by "testatic", excluding the class of the "poor": the landowners will pay 9.50 baiocchi each and the artists 5.50. That incident on the "indigent" makes us understand many things about the "testatic" and that is that in more than one case this type of tax also weighed on the "non-taxable" class. By now the semblance of autonomy, which the State of the Church seemed to enjoy, was at sunset. In May (1809) Pope Pius VII was imprisoned and his state annexed directly to the French Empire. He changed masters! Other laws came into force, another administrative structure was organized, the Priors disappeared and the Maire took office in the highest seat of the Municipality. But even the new state of affairs was destined to have a short life because in 1814 the course of history resumed the path it had interrupted five years earlier. They tried to "restore" everything and everyone, as if nothing had happened in the meantime. They did not want to see the tenacious fire of renewal that burned under the ashes and that would slowly flare up, because the uncritical restoration is always violence to the laws of history. Rome, Perugia and Spoleto were annexed to the French Empire on May 17, 1809. Fratta remained in the limbo of uncertainty until July 13. Meanwhile the Priors, in the council meeting of June 22, not knowing which political side to look at, headed the minutes of the meeting as follows: “In the name of God, Amen - On the day of June 22, 1809 In the name of His Majesty the Emperor of the French, King of Italy and Protector of the Confederation of the Rhine ... " After July 13, God was no longer named, but only Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, with what follows. The date remained. The first measures of the French government By now Fratta was a third class municipality of the French Empire, or rather a canton of the Trasimeno Department. Its territory expanded with the addition of the lands of Sorbello (1,615 inhabitants divided into ten parishes), Antognolla (959 inhabitants and six parishes), Solfagnano (847 inhabitants and 4 parishes), Montone (1,224 inhabitants and 4 parishes). All semblance of autonomy disappeared, which, moreover, had never existed even in the papal regime, and the appointments of the heads of the local administration were made directly by the trustees of Napoleon I. On 13 July 1809, in fact, the Superior Commander of the Provinces of Umbria, General Miollis, arrived at Fratta to give precise and peremptory indications on the new political course and to prepare a list of reliable persons to whom to confer administrative duties. The following documents are more telling than any comment: FRENCH EMPIRE In the name of His Majesty Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, King of Italy and Protector of the Confederation of the Rhine July 13, 1809 His Excellency the Adjutant General Miollis, Superior Commander in the Provinces of Umbria and Sabina, appointed by the Extraordinary Council of the Roman States, having to organize the Municipality in this Land in accordance with the decree of that Consulta of the current 5, he personally went to this country and after having summoned the individuals of the present Provisional Magistrate and the heads of the principal families to congress, he requested a note of all those persons who might be able to support the posts of Maire, Adjunct, and the ten Municipal Councilors. Having made this note, after having taken the appropriate information, he decided on the choice of the infrascritti used, as can be seen from his dispatch, which is transcribed here. La Fratta - July 13, 1809 The Superior Commander of the Province of Umbria and Sabina, appointed by the Extraordinary Council for the Roman States of the Organization of the Municipal Administration of the aforementioned Provinces. To Mr. Domenico Bruni - La Fratta According to the session of 5 July, the organization of a Maire, an Assistant and ten Municipal Councilors having been remitted to me by the Extraordinary Council, I have chosen you to take on the office of Maire; you will have as added Mr. Luigi Santini. Councilors will then be the Lords: Vincenzo Mavarelli, Giuseppe Bertanzi, Domenico Reggiani, Giuseppe Paolucci, Giambattista Magi Spinetti, Felice Molinari, Francesco Cambiotti, Angelo Gigli, Gioacchino Pucci, Luigi Passalbuoni. You will let them know their assignment: and at the same time I am going to give an account to the Extraordinary Consultation in order to have the further Orders for the installation. With consideration, your Miollis. The names that appear are always the same, in any regime, with the Pope or against the Pope. Only those of the two alleged Jacobins, Burelli and Savelli, are missing. But perhaps, in their stead, the one of those who plotted against them will figure. So was the world, even then! The new administration immediately worked to put order in the various administrative procedures and in the communication and exchange systems. The registry sector was the object of particular care, with the compulsory registration of births, marriages and deaths, previously left to the diligence of the parish priests. House numbers were imposed on houses, names on streets and squares. The unification of monetary systems, weights and measures was achieved. The articulation of the municipal budgets was structured in chapters (1) , with the possibility of making provisions for unforeseen expenses. The absolute prohibition of burial in churches or inhabited centers was established in application of the Edict of Saint Cloud, now also extended to Italy, a historical circumstance that inspired Ugo Foscolo's I Sepolcri. Apparently these were small things which, however, had an enormous impact on the social fabric, taking into account the level of backwardness in which our populations lived. There was a great deal of work for the naming of the streets and squares (2) and the numbering of the houses, which were just 200. The work was contracted out on 5 October 1810 and the relative specifications were very rigorous and detailed. It stated: 1. Within the month of October, carry out and complete the work of all the folders that will be needed for the numbering of the houses in this town and on the villages and for the indication of the name of the streets and squares. 2. Similar folders will be made on fresh plaster, with a light background and black-colored numbers of the size according to the model that becomes extensible. 3. The cards that will indicate the name of the streets and squares, as they must be larger, will be considered double those of the houses and will be paid by the Municipality. 4. Those of the streets and squares will be placed in the place that will be indicated. 5. The numbering of the houses will be paid by the respective owners in the form of the decree of 7 September which may be forced by the contractor also legally. 6. Finally, any expenses that may be required for the award and register will be borne by the contractor himself. For the contract, the Municipality established the price of eight baiocchi per folder. Several candles were lit which all remained without offer. It was necessary to resort to an auction discount which was won by Giovambattista "del morte" Clemente Giangottini for six baiocchi per page. Among the measures adopted by the French government, there was also that of compulsory conscription. The “lucky” young men who were supposed to serve in Napoleon's army were drawn by lot. A glass amphora, specially ordered from the Piegaro glassworks, contained leaflets with the personalities of the young people. In the absence of a precise registry, the urn contained the names that the various parish priests sent, at the explicit request of the Maire. The collaboration should not have been very enthusiastic if the Baron Rederer, Commander of the French troops in the Trasimeno Department, with an ordinance, imposed that starting from 1 January 1814 all the parish priests would have to deliver the parish registers to the Municipality. Salaries It is interesting to know the remuneration of the first decade of the century in the public sector. It is not a great contribution to history, but a useful element of comparative knowledge to understand the wage dynamics that have taken place and the trade union guarantees that protect this sector today. First let's take a little look at the directors' "indemnities". The Priors received 20 scudi a year which had to be divided among the four Magistrates. It was an honorary recognition for the function performed since 5 scudi per head certainly did not represent a flattering economic resource and the modesty of the figure encouraged the healthy and always valid principle of politics as a service. If we add that this indemnity was paid when the finances of the Municipality allowed it, it can be assumed with reasonable certainty that the local time authority saved this expenditure. There were, however, those who lived there with the salary and had to be paid regularly. The municipal secretary, Giovambattista Burelli, had a golden salary, such as to be looked upon with great envy by all the other public employees. He received 30 scudi a year which were paid in quarterly installments of ten scudi each. Immediately after him came the Camerlengo (cashier) with 18 scudi a year to be paid in quarterly installments. The police commissioner of the municipality, Dr. Paolucci, was poorer, he received only 12 scudi a year as the Director of the Post Office and dealer of letters at the same time. Since it was possible to carry out some paperwork in Rome, at the government headquarters, and it was not easy to go to the papal capital due to transport difficulties, the Municipalities resorted to the appointment of their representative who resided in that city and looked after the handling of the paperwork that was sent to him. The remuneration for the Rome Agent was not fixed and depended on the volume of work he had done during the year. In any case, the average reward was around eight scudi per year. Giambattista Fuochi and Silvestro Catalani were the two country guards of the municipality who had to travel a lot throughout the municipal territory. Their salary was two crowns a month. They had to play a very important or thankless role if they perceived more than the commissioner, the chamberlain and the postmaster. The limits of the municipal area An important measure of the French administration was that of the arrangement of customs operations. The duty ("octroi" as the French forced it to say) had to be paid by the entire population of the Municipality in all kinds of trade and each municipality had its own tariffs and organizational systems. It was therefore essential to know precisely the territorial limits of the Municipality in order to establish with certainty the competences of the taxes and the methods of collection. On January 9, 1813, a provision was issued for the rationalization of the collection of the octroi and therefore for the consequential definition of the municipal territory. The law established that "struts" had to be placed in the border areas of the municipal area that would bear a wooden sign with the inscription "OCTROI DI FRATTA" The signs were posted in the following places: 1. Strada di Montecastelli, near the boat (3) 2. Strada di Banchetti, near the tavern, on the border of the Cura di Verna 3. Near the Osteria di Sorbello 4. Near the La Nese Bridge 5. Close to the Rio Bridge 6. At the limits of the territory, at the New Homes 7. On the road near the Rasina stream 8. On the border of the Cura di Santa Giuliana and Antognolla 9. At the limits of the Cura di Monestevole, to go to Preggio. Public Works In 1803 there was an initial intervention of modest proportions, but destined to significantly change the town planning of the town. At that time the Fratta was an islet between the Royal Palace and the Tiber, and the northern part not lapped by the waters was surrounded by a moat that started from the tower of the Rocca and, skirting the walls, passed under the present Theater, continued for the Piaggiola and flowed into the Tiber next to the Cambiotti mill (today's Molinaccio). This moat was filled and flattened the ground below the Rocca in order to obtain a square used for fairs and markets. A surprising element is given by the fact that despite the fact that the Technical Office, a talented and moreover “hydrostatic” engineer like Don Bartolomeo Borghi, the work was entrusted to Eng. Calindri of Perugia. The era of "external consultancy" had already begun! In 1805 the Municipality decided on some removals for a more rational use of the premises. Three rooms on the ground floor of the current theater were sold to the Accademia dei Riuniti, used as a prison and related services. The prison was transferred to a special sector of the Town Hall and on this occasion the opportunity was taken to carry out some maintenance work. Note: 1. Even today the budgets of public bodies are divided into chapters. At the time we are talking about, the In and Outs were in one cauldron. 2. Under the government of the Papal State no street or square bore its written name. 3. From Montecastelli, to go to Città di Castello, it was necessary to cross the Tiber on a large boat pushed over the water by the sturdy arms of the ferryman, who clung to a large rope anchored to the two pylons located on the opposite banks of the river. The “Passo del Tevere” is still visible; just look a hundred meters upstream of the current bridge to see the remains of the two pylons. This road today bears the name of "via della barca". Since the seventeenth century that point marked the border between the territory of Fratta and that of Città di Castello. The road that crosses Montecastelli headed directly towards Trestina. As there was no bridge, there was not even that unfortunate current curve on which the road to Trestina joins. About 150 m. from the graft, it went steeply downhill on the right (as can still be seen today) towards the “Casa dei Fabbri” which still exists and is called “La Maestà dei Fabbri” (today's Pacciarini property). From the house, after having passed a brick bridge over a small stream, the road turned to the right, towards the bank of the Tiber, where the boat was. On the other side of the river, in the territory of Città di Castello, one could see, until recently, the high “Casa Torre” under which the carriage road passed. Now you can't see why the municipality has allowed the owner to incorporate it into the rest of the building. Perhaps it was the most beautiful tower house in Umbria! Sources: “Umbertide nel Secolo XIX” by Renato Codovini and Roberto Sciurpa - Municipality of Umbertide. 2001 IL DOMINIO FRANCESE A FRATTA – II PARTE L'albero della Libertà I primi anni del secolo, stando alle lettere che il Gonfaloniere di Fratta inviò alle autorità perugine, furono fonte di notevole preoccupazione per l'ordine pubblico nel paese. A dire il vero il tono e il contenuto della corrispondenza ci sembrano esagerati. Fenomeni di scontento per le condizioni economiche e sociali vengono, con studiata disinvoltura, attribuiti a presunti nostalgici del passato regime sì che diventa difficile distinguere i fermenti del dissenso dalle proteste della fame. Non c'è dubbio che la Repubblica Romana aveva alimentato gli ideali liberali propri dell'Illuminismo, come pure è assodato che la caduta del potere papale fu salutata dovunque con tripudio di gioia. Ma non ci fu il tempo per dare all'alternativa politica e ideologica un assetto di stabilità perché la rapida alternanza delle vicende militari tra vincitori e vinti non permise l'assimilazione e il consolidamento dei processi in atto. Solo nelle città più grandi, dove era attiva una borghesia progressista e intraprendente, fu osteggiata con ostinata tenacia la restaurazione papale che, dal canto suo, vedeva pericoli e con giure ovunque (la Tosca di Puccini è ambientata in questo clima politico romano) e dispensava notevoli dosi di galera per il minimo sospetto. Anche alla Fratta l'ordine pubblico era esposto a frequenti episodi di turbativa e il Gonfaloniere Lorenzo Vibi tremava dalla paura vedendo in essi la occulta regia di repubblicani in agguato. Già due illustri cittadini, Burelli e Savelli, a torto o a ragione, erano stati sospettati di simpatizzare per i giacobini. Meglio stare guardinghi. Ma ci doveva essere anche dell'altro se il 1° febbraio del 1800 il Vibi prese carta e penna e scrisse alla Reggenza Imperiale di Perugia: “Le continue risse, li frequenti litigi fomentati in questo basso popolo da partigiani che qui abbiamo del passato Repubblicano Governo, per porre in discredito il presente, tengono tutto in agitazione, non meno noi, che tutti li buoni del nostro partito (1) . Noi senza autorità e senza forza non possiamo tenere in dovere tanti spiriti rivoltosi che c'inquietano... Se le Vostre Signorie Ill.me facessero quivi giungere una Notificazione nella quale manifestassero a questo popolo di stare ogni uno nel proprio dovere e lontano da litigi, e dalle risse, dando facoltà a questo Signor Giuseppe Agostini Capitano di questa piazza... di far arrestare chiunque saprà aver fatto il litigio e la rissa e spedirli poi subito ben custoditi in codesta vostra Città, con la comunicazione di quelle pene che crederanno e che ogni bettola ed osteria debba serrarsi ad un'ora di notte. Tutto questo diciamo richiedere perché più volte il giorno da poco tempo fa occasione replicate risse e rumori...” Il Gonfaloniere, quindi, invocava il carcere per i litigiosi e i rissosi che nelle bettole e nelle osterie osavano affrontare il tabù della politica e parteggiavano per il passato regime. Non gli venne in mente che un progetto politico serio di destabilizzazione non si porta in osteria e che il luogo dei litigi, più che a divergenze di opinioni politiche, faceva pensare a qualche foglietta di troppo con la quale si innaffiavano le miserie. Appena due giorni dopo, infatti, scrisse un'altra lettera allo stesso destinatario la quale ci fa capire, senza volerlo, il vero motivo che stava alla base dei litigi. In essa si diceva che i poveri del paese andavano a macinare dai quattro ai sei chilogrammi di grano alla volta, ma dovevano pagare una bolletta (la tassa sul macinato) su di un minimo di 30 Kg. Il fatto creava grave malcontento e il Gonfaloniere si convinse a chiedere correttivi: “...li clamori continui dei poveri di questa terra e suo circondario che con poche libbre di grano fortunatamente trovate vanno al molino chi con 10 libbre chi con 15 libbre e debbono fare il bollettino per mezza mina... si chiede di fare i bollettini per minore quantità”. Faceva comodo al potere contrabbandare come protesta politica, alimentata da abili mestatori, un malcontento diffuso che aveva origine, invece, nella fame e negli stenti della povera gente. In questa logica si inserì anche la ricorrenza del carnevale. Le feste da ballo potevano diventare un momento di aggregazione pericoloso per esternare il malumore sul quale poteva far leva “la gran massa” del partito repubblicano della Fratta. Basta leggere questa terza lettera del 10 febbraio (quel povero Vibi, che vedeva repubblicani dappertutto, era veramente terrorizzato per scrivere tre lettere dello stesso tenore in appena dieci giorni) per renderci conto che la realtà veniva ingigantita: “Qui si vogliono fare le feste da ballo e ne siamo stati richiesti per darne il permesso; ma non vi abbiamo accudito per timore che possa succedere qualche inconveniente, sul riflesso del gran partito Repubblicano che domina in questa Terra. Rendiamo di tanto avvertite le Signorie Vostre”. Che anche alla Fratta ci fossero simpatizzanti delle idee liberali è fuori di dubbio; ma che costoro avessero un'organizzazione capillare, diffusa e agguerrita non è credibile. Le idee di rinnovamento nell'Italia di allora, e in particolare nella provincia contadina, più che imporsi con la forza organizzativa di un partito, venivano imposte e protette dalle truppe straniere francesi. Forse proprio per questo il timore era grande e si incominciò ad aver paura anche degli alberi. Gli scrittori politici del tempo fanno un gran parlare degli “alberi della libertà” che sarebbero stati piantati in molte città nel periodo della Repubblica Romana, come simbolo dell'inizio di un'era di rinnovamento nella libertà e nel progresso. Spesso tali affermazioni non sono suffragate da documenti certi. Anche la Fratta ne aveva uno (2) e la sua esistenza è documentata in una lettera del Vibi datata 27 febbraio 1800: “Il partito contrario al presente Governo sempre più insolentisce e si rende intollerabile. Noi fin'ora abbiamo il tutto Religiosamente sofferto, ma vediamo che questa nostra indulgenza fa essere sempre più baldanzosi quei tanti che abbiamo del Partito Repubblicano. Ieri l'altra sera circa le ore due della notte due di questi che ne verremo in cognizione ebbero l'ardimento di usurpare quel diritto che spetta alla Guardia Civica, con dire ad alta voce “Alto là - Chi va là”. Similmente martedì mattina ventisei corrente al piedistallo della Croce che sta collocata ove era l'infame arbore fu trovata una piccola bandiera tricolore con infondo un coccardino che tuttora conservasi da noi: ma il colore turchino pallido di una parte di detta bandiera ci dà indizio che possa esserne stato l'autore un famoso Repubblicano avendo questi un abito di simil colore. Bramiamo sapere come dobbiamo regolarci...” Non sappiamo quanti fossero i Repubblicani di Fratta, ma sicuramente erano molti gli oppositori al regime papalino nello Stato Pontificio, se lo stesso Papa Pio VII, il giorno 8 novembre, si vide costretto a concedere “il paterno perdono ai rei della passata rivoluzione”. Intanto il Gonfaloniere Lorenzo Vibi, per non morire di paura (3) , si dimise dalla carica ai primi di giugno, a meno di trenta giorni dalla scadenza naturale del suo mandato. Il passaggio delle truppe straniere L'Alta Valle del Tevere era uno dei percorsi naturali delle truppe che, provenendo dal Nord, si dirigevano a Roma e viceversa. Di solito si trattava di soldati tedeschi, ad eccezione dei due periodi in cui passarono e ripassarono quelli francesi. I costi, sia quelli ufficiali che venivano imposti con le tasse, sia quelli nascosti dovuti alle ruberie, ai soprusi e ai danni prodotti, erano enormi per le comunità locali. Tutte le truppe che si alternarono in quegli anni si comportarono da eserciti occupanti senza il minimo riguardo per le persone e le cose durante il loro passaggio e la loro permanenza. Il 19 giugno del 1800 arrivò alla Fratta un drappello di 20 soldati a requisire provviste per la truppa austriaca che giornalmente sfilava nei pressi di Perugia, diretta verso il Nord. “Vogliate dar loro ciò che abbisognano - ordinava la Reggenza - occorrendo adopreranno la forza. E un affare della più forte urgenza e darete a questi soldati le solite razioni”. Quasi sicuramente si trattava di soldati austriaci che scappavano verso il Veneto dopo la battaglia di Marengo (14 giugno 1800) con la quale Napoleone, vinta l'Austria, si apriva la strada per l'occupazione dell'Italia Centrale. II 12 e il 13 settembre, infatti arrivarono i Cisalpini (4) che, armi alla mano, si appropriarono di numerosi beni dei cittadini per un valore di 15 scudi che la Magistratura di Fratta richiese al Rivarola. Ma nel territorio circostante ancora esistevano forti nuclei di soldati austriaci e aretini (i soldati del Granduca alleato dell'Austria) che riuscirono addirittura a far prigionieri alcuni Cisalpini il 19 dicembre. Il drappello con i prigionieri si fermò alla Fratta e consumò, senza pagare, 48 libbre di prosciutto, 3 di salame, 3,50 di formaggio, pane e vino a volontà. Il ventinove dello stesso mese passarono altri aretini con 154 prigionieri francesi. Lo spettacolo continuò e il 12 gennaio del 1801 la Fratta dovette sopportare il passaggio di un distaccamento di cavalleria tedesca e toscana che prelevò 46 razioni di vino e carne. Il 20 arrivarono i napoletani, alleati dei francesi, che usarono gli stessi metodi dei soldati avversari. Il 5 febbraio del 1801 il Rivarola fece sapere alla Fratta che al passaggio della “pacifica truppa francese” bisognava restare tranquilli e subordinati alla legge del Sovrano (del Papa) aggiungendo che arriverà a Fratta Leone Borgia, suo Commissario, a fare una requisizione di viveri per l'Armata Francese. Se richiesti, bisognava mettere a disposizione vino e bestiame per il trasporto delle merci. Le disposizioni del Rivarola farebbero supporre che i francesi si fossero stabilmente insediati nella zona e fossero padroni della situazione. Invece il 14 febbraio passarono da Fratta, e vi pernottarono, numerose truppe tedesche e toscane con prigionieri francesi. Evidentemente temevano qualche attacco delle vicine truppe francesi dal momento che si rinchiusero nel Palazzo Sorbello (odierno Comune), sprangarono porte e finestre e “si abbarrarono le porte coi chiodi”. Come si vede, la confusione regnava sovrana. Il 19 marzo 1801 una nota del Rivarola impose un'altra requisizione: 40 carri e 40 paia di bovi per servire la numerosa armata francese. Le requisizioni continuarono per tutti gli anni successivi fino al 1808 in cui, per ben sei volte (21 aprile, 26 giugno, 10 e 11 settembre, 15 e 18 ottobre) la Fratta fu sottoposta a pesanti salassi. Così frequenti e normali erano diventate ormai le requisizioni che alcuni impostori, spacciandosi per soldati francesi, si presentavano per prelevare viveri e vettovaglie di ogni genere. Il fenomeno doveva essere esteso anche nelle altre zone del territorio della provincia se il Rivarola, di sua iniziativa, in data 27 ottobre 1801 scrisse in questi termini al Commissario di Fratta: “Ci sono molti impostori che dicono di essere addetti alla Truppa Francese ed esibiscono falsi permessi per estorcere razioni e vetture e quindi dilapidano i paesi dove capitano. Se simili soggetti si presentassero, neghino qualsiasi cosa che volessero e guardino bene i permessi. Se questi sono falsi, arrestateli. Ciò va fatto anche con i soldati francesi e se per caso questi si provassero ad atti indoverosi per le vie di fatto denigranti l'onore della loro nazione, farete in modo che vengano decentemente arrestati con darcene pronto ragguaglio. E che Dio vi feliciti”. La milizia cittadina Correvano davvero tempi pericolosi in quell'inizio di secolo. La miseria della povera gente che non poteva acquistare i mezzi di sostentamento indispensabili, la delusione politica che andava ad inserirsi in un contesto sociale di estrema povertà, le rivalse ricorrenti dei vincitori nei confronti di coloro che avevano simpatizzato per i vinti, creavano un clima di instabilità, di incertezza e di paura. In questo contesto nascevano piccole bande di malfattori formate da diseredati, perseguitati politici, insofferenti verso ogni forma di autorità costituita e infine da tutti coloro che nella delinquenza trovavano l'unica risposta facile ai loro bisogni economici. Alla criminalità dei singoli si aggiungeva anche quella organizzata con un proprio capo, delle regole e l'efficienza dell'organizzazione. Queste piccole bande si facevano sempre più numerose. Alla Fratta operava quella di un certo Luigi Rossi di Sorbello che era molto attiva in tutto il territorio circostante e rinomata per le “grassazioni” (rapine a mano armata), come si diceva allora, e gli accoltellamenti. Tanta era la certezza dell'impunità che i banditi agivano prevalentemente di giorno al “campo della fiera”, dove c'era maggiore abbondanza di portafogli da rapinare. Il Rivarola, preoccupato per l'aumento della criminalità nel territorio umbro, ordinò al Commissario di Fratta di arrestare i banditi e di “far suonare anche la Campana all'Arme e di permettere che si faccia fuoco contro di loro”. I cittadini non si sentivano più sicuri. Anche i locandieri e gli albergatori dovevano registrare, su apposite schede, le generalità dei clienti, unitamente alla “patria” di provenienza. In questo clima la municipalità, per riportare tranquillità entro i propri confini, pensò di organizzare un corpo di milizie cittadine volontarie. Alla fine di febbraio del 1801 il Commissario di Fratta inviò apposita richiesta in tal senso al Rivarola che accettò di buon grado la proposta diretta a rendere più sicura la vita nei territori da lui controllati. “... Non possiamo altro espediente prendere - afferma - se non quello di permettere a formare un Ruolo di otto o dieci persone probe e da bene che abbiano del proprio i fucili onde, come soldati, prevalersi di essi nelle occorrenze: al quale effetto vi conferiamo le facoltà necessarie... a far godere alle persone da voi prescelte tutti li più estesi privilegi militari”. Al Rivarola stava bene tutto, purché non gli si chiedessero soldi. Nei bilanci del Comune di Fratta, da ora in poi, troveremo in uscita anche il costo della polvere e delle palle di piombo per “le caricature”. Non tutte le bande erano composte da briganti. Ci potevano essere anche dei gruppi di oppositori politici che si erano dati alla clandestinità. E una ipotesi che spiega una strana lettera inviata dal Rivarola al Gonfaloniere di Fratta il 14 marzo 1801 relativa alla “... disobbedienza di questa Guardia Urbana” che non volle andare ad arrestare dei briganti segnalati dal Cardinale. Evidentemente i “volontari” di Fratta sapevano distinguere bene i malviventi dai dissidenti politici. Il 16 luglio del 1809 il Corpo della Guardia Civica di Fratta, assieme a quello di Città di Castello, partecipò ad un'azione repressiva contro una banda di briganti che aveva compiuto già diverse scorrerie nell'alta valle del Tevere e che si trovava al Monte Santa Maria. L'ordine venne direttamente dal Generale Miollis che promise anche uno scudo per ogni bandito catturato. Lo stesso Generale francese provvide a munire di fucili e sciabole il gruppo di armati. L'operazione ebbe pieno successo e i briganti furono arrestati. Uomini organizzati ed efficienti come i nostri Civici avevano bisogno anche di una caserma idonea ad ospitare loro, i cavalli e l'armamento. Si provvide ricorrendo all'utilizzo di alcuni locali dell'ex convento di San Francesco che furono opportunamente trasformati nei primi giorni di marzo del 1810 (5) . Vi lavorarono i maestri muratori Pietro Gentili e Giovanni Ribuffi. Da un elenco dei lavori eseguiti ci rendiamo conto anche delle caratteristiche della struttura. Al piano terra c'era la cucina e la scuderia e sopra “due camere servibili”. Alla scuderia si rifece il pavimento per il quale si impiegarono 1.700 mattoni, 30 piedi di tavoloni per fare la greppia, 62 piedi di “stilloni” per fare cinque “battifianchi” (il che fa pensare ad una capienza di sei o sette cavalli). Ai muri della scuderia e agli stilloni si misero 30 “campanelle” di ferro (anelli per fissare le funi). Le guardie mangiavano con posate d'osso, il magazzino del fieno fu posto sopra a due loggiati del cortile e alle finestre c'erano “impannate” di tela. La gara dello steccato Il 6 settembre del 1808 alle ore 21, in piazza San Francesco, fu organizzata una gara di “steccato”. Per l'occasione furono costruiti dei palchi di legno davanti alla porta del “Borgo di San Francesco” o della “Madonna di San Francesco” detta così perché sopra l'arco vi era un affresco con l'immagine della Madonna e di altri Santi, in parte visibile tuttora. Non sappiamo con precisione in che cosa consistesse il gioco e quali fossero le sue regole. Lo spettacolo vedeva in campo i cani contro i bovi che si affrontavano in un ampio recinto (uno steccato, da qui il nome della gara) e lottavano tra loro. È ipotizzabile che lo scontro tra questi due tipi di animali, da sempre cari amici dell'uomo, potesse essere anche cruento e quindi la gara, almeno per la nostra sensibilità, non doveva essere molto edificante. Da un manifesto che il Comune di Marsciano (evidentemente la gara si praticava anche lì) inviò a quello di Fratta si apprende che venivano dati premi al bove e al cane “che si sarebbero portati più valorosi” e che erano vietate “le false prese”. Troppo poco per capire la tecnica del gioco. Le nostre convinte riserve su questo spettacolo non erano condivise dalla gente del tempo che si recò numerosa ad assistere, ma l'impalcatura costituita da tre ampi gradoni che era appoggiata alla porta, crollò improvvisamente provocando molti feriti. Fu aperta un'inchiesta e dai verbali dei testimoni (6) si è potuto intuire la popolarità che questo tipo di intrattenimento raccoglieva e l'entusiasmo che la lotta dei poveri animali era capace di sollevare sui presenti. Gli spettatori sopra i gradoni si agitavano e “atteso il movimento grande delle persone che facevano sopra di essi”, e il “gran battimento di piedi che facevano”, la struttura, non ben fissata al muro, si rovesciò sullo steccato. La ventata anticlericale Nel 1810 non c'era più il Gonfaloniere e nemmeno i Priori, al loro posto c'era il Maire (7) scelto direttamente dai fiduciari di Napoleone. Il Comune di Fratta era un cantone del Dipartimento del Trasimeno, ma il problema dell'ordine pubblico rimaneva sempre attuale anche se con caratteristiche del tutto diverse. Si stava sviluppando un risentimento astioso nei confronti della Chiesa, come reazione naturale alla voglia di protesta repressa negli anni precedenti. E siccome i confini tra l'agire degli uomini e le istituzioni che essi rappresentano non hanno mai contorni precisi, il risentimento contro i ministri del potere papale diventò aperto rigetto della religione. Il fenomeno andava assumendo dimensioni preoccupanti di turbativa dell'ordine sociale per cui il Maire, rappresentante di quel potere che aveva imprigionato il Papa e annesso lo Stato Pontificio alla Francia, si sentì in dovere di scendere in difesa dei principi religiosi con la seguente ordinanza: In nome di Sua Maestà Napoleone I°, Imperatore dei Francesi, Re d'Italia e Protettore della Confederazione del Reno. Il Maire, considerando che il più importante dei suoi doveri è di sorvegliare alla pubblica tranquillità e di prevenire la corruzione dei Spiriti e gli scandali che collidono l'ordine sociale. Considerando che non può restarsi ulteriormente neghittoso dal reprimere la sfrontata baldanza di alcune lingue licenziose che si attentano anche nei pubblici luoghi di oltraggiare gli oggetti più venerabili della nostra Religione. Considerando esser cosa necessaria d'apporre con tutta la possibile energia una qualche barriera a questi criminosi attentati e di richiamare al proprio dovere questi perturbatori dell'ordine e della società. Riflettendo infine che la Religione Cattolica è la Religione della maggiorità dei sudditi dell'Imperatore, che si gloria del titolo sfolgoreggiante di Primogenito della Chiesa è venuto nella determinazione di avvertire quanto segue: Saranno riguardati come fomentatori di disordini i pubblici promulgatori di massime antimorali ed irreligiose e come persone perniciose allo Stato, alle leggi e alla comune tranquillità. Sappiano questi non essere loro permesso dal presente sistema di Governo di conculcare impunemente i Dommi della religione, di scagliare esecrabili invettive contro la Divinità, gl'oggetti del culto ed i suoi Ministri. Si rammentino dei luminosi e sinceri sentimenti intorno alla Religione considerando che Sua Maestà Napoleone il Grande fin dal suo innalzamento a Primo Console li notificò personalmente al Clero di Milano e volle che fossero noti non solo all'Italia e alla Francia, ma all’Europa intera. Non può quindi tollerarsi che si proferischino sfacciatamente nefande ed esecrate bestemmie contro il Divino Autore della Cattolica Religione, contro i suoi attributi, contro il suo culto e si sparghino pubblicamente delle massime contro ogni virtù civile e religiosa. Saranno in conseguenza di simili trasgressioni soggetti alle pene che prevede il Codice, cioè alla multa di 500 franchi ed un anno di prigione e di due anni di prigione in caso di recidiva. Voi pertanto cui il Principe confidò una porzione della sua autorità, o per rapporto all'esecuzione delle leggi od alla pubblica Polizia, concorrete a sì bell'opera procurando di arrestare col rigore delle leggi quel torrente che minaccia travolgere la moltitudine nei gorghi della corruzione e darete così la più sincera prova del vostro zelo per il bene e l'ordine sociale e della vostra fedeltà e attaccamento al Sovrano. Dalla Mairie (8) della Fratta, lì 2 agosto 1810 Il Maire Magnanini Giuseppe Mentre veniva difesa con formale energia la Religione Cattolica e i suoi Ministri, il Governo Francese trasferiva con fermezza all'autorità civile i settori della carità e dell'assistenza gestiti, fino ad allora, dagli enti religiosi. Nei primi mesi di febbraio del 1808, come già ricordato, ci fu la soppressione dei conventi e delle corporazioni religiose. A partire dall'aprile del 1811 vennero soppresse anche le istituzioni di carità i cui capitali furono trasferiti ai Burò di Beneficenza. Alla Fratta la Confraternita maggiore e più apprezzata era quella di Santa Croce che gestiva l'ospedale, detto allora l'Ospedale dei Poveri. Il 4 aprile del 1811 fu sottoscritto formalmente il passaggio delle competenze e dei beni al Municipio, nel Palazzo Comunale, Ufficio del Burò di Beneficenza, alla presenza del Maire e di due Canonici rappresentanti la Confraternita di Santa Croce. In nome di Sua Maestà Napoleone I°, Imperatore dei Francesi, Re d'Italia e Protettore della Confederazione del Reno. La Commissione Amministrativa del Burò di Beneficenza di Fratta, tenuto conto delle odierne leggi sulle amministrazioni degli Ospizi e Ospedali, considerata cessata qualunque autorità o funzione per l'amministrazione degli Ospedali ed Ospizi... esaminate le Memorie della Confraternita di S. Croce... dalle quali risulta che fin dalla sua prima istituzione era essa addetta ad opere di pubblica e privata carità e che tutti i suoi beni e rendite erano impiegati per l'Ospizio e Ospedale dei Poveri... viene nella determinazione di prendere l'amministrazione di tutti li capitali e fondi spettanti al detto Ospizio ed Ospedale, fissando il termine di otto giorni acciò dagli Amministratori di detta Confraternita in S. Croce venghino rimesse tutte le carte e Libri opportuni ed appartenenti al detto Stabilimento di carità, unitamente allo stato della cassa per formarne il processo verbale. Fatto nelle camere della Mairie questo dì 4 aprile 1811. Firmato: Canonico Antonio Guerrini - Canonico Giacomo Pecchioli - Giuseppe Agostini - Per il Maire di Fratta: Santini Luigi aggiunto Il giorno successivo fu redatto il verbale di consegna e presa di possesso dei seguenti beni: 1. Podere vocabolo Petrelle con il bestiame del valore di scudi 160; grano stara 20; fave stara 5; veccia stara 1 e coppe 4; attuale affittuario Pietro Crosti per una corrisposta di scudi 221 l'anno. 2. Locale dell'Ospedale in Piazza di San Francesco n. 4. 3. Casa ad uso granaio in contrada di Porta Nova n. 66. 4. Casa in contrada di San Giovanni n. 42, con fondo ad uso di forno. 5. Due fondi ad uso di stalla nella strada di Santa Croce n. 210. La rapina delle opere d'arte La sistematica e organizzata rapacità francese delle opere d'arte, almeno alla Fratta, ha inizio nel mese di ottobre del 1812 con un programma ben pianificato e articolato. Per essere certi di sottrarre materiale di un certo valore e non semplici “patacche”, la selezione delle opere veniva fatta da esperti, mentre l'imballaggio e il trasporto dalla manovalanza generica. Il furto per i francesi era così naturale e dovuto da annunciarlo ufficialmente tramite lettera, come avvenne il 2 ottobre del 1812 quando il Prefetto del Dipartimento del Trasimeno comunicò al Maire Magnanini che sarebbe arrivato alla Fratta un incaricato per scegliere e requisire le opere d'arte. Non sappiamo come reagissero i nostri Magistrati di fronte ad una simile notizia, se prevalse, cioè, in loro un'apatica accondiscendenza o una legittima astuzia per salvare il salvabile. Dalla corrispondenza che segue si deduce che Magnanini si comportò da zelante esecutore delle richieste francesi. I tempi, in ogni caso, furono molto stretti perché arrivò quasi subito alla Fratta l'Intendente incaricato della scelta e della requisizione delle Opere e il 7 ottobre, ad appena cinque giorni dall'avviso, il Maire autenticò la firma del trasportatore della “refurtiva” a Perugia. L'anno 1812 il giorno 7 di ottobre. Col presente foglio sia noto come il Sig. Innocenzo Lazzarini, figlio del morto Andrea, domiciliato in questo Comune di Fratta, si obbliga di fare trasportare fino a Perugia tre quadri esistenti nei Conventi soppressi di questo Comune, due in tela e uno in tavola e questi fare incassare in una proporzionata cassa di legno e renderli ben custoditi nell'interno con carta perché non soffino detrimento, il tutto a spese del medesimo Lazzarini: e ciò si obbliga di eseguire per la somma di scudi 12 di moneta romana, quali saranno pagati allorché verrà ordinato il trasporto sopra indicato. In fede di che sarà il presente foglio dal medesimo firmato. F.to Innocenzo Lazzarini Visto per la ricognizione della firma del prefato Sig. Lazzarini, il Maire Magnanini Il documento attesta con assoluta certezza che i quadri erano tre, di cui uno “in tavola” (anche la Deposizione del Signorelli è “in tavola” e fortunatamente rimase al suo posto) e che appartenevano ai due Conventi soppressi. Il 9 ottobre, appena due giorni dopo aver autenticato la firma del trasportatore dei quadri, lo zelante Maire Magnanini scrive al Prefetto del Dipartimento del Trasimeno, residente a Perugia, per informarlo dell'avvenuta selezione. Al Prefetto del Dipartimento del Trasimeno di Perugia. L'anno 1812 il giorno 9 di ottobre, avanti a noi Maire del Comune di Fratta si è presentato il Signor Agostino Tofanelli, Conservatore del Museo Capitolino incaricato da S.E. il Signor Cavaliere Basa, Intendente della Corona in Roma, alfine di prendere possesso di tutti gli oggetti d'arte spettanti agli stabilimenti pubblici del Trasimeno, che in virtù del Decreto Imperiale del 25 febbraio 1811 appartengono alla Corona. In conformità adunque degli ordini del Signor Prefetto del suddetto Dipartimento, comunicatoci dal Signor Sotto Prefetto, con lettera del 2 ottobre corrente, Noi Maire suddetto abbiamo posto in Possesso il lodato Signor Tofanelli di tutti li quadri descritti nei due inventari già da noi sottoscritti e verificati. Il fascicolo che contiene la lettera racchiude anche la descrizione inventariale fatta dal Maire: Nel Convento di San Francesco un quadro rappresentante la Vergine col Bambino, San Francesco, San Sebastiano ed altri due Santi. Pittore il Pomarancio. Nell'ex Convento di Santa Maria degli Osservanti due quadri rappresentanti uno l'Incoronazione della Vergine al di sopra e sedici Santi al di sotto in tavola della scuola Pietro Perugino. L'altro in tela rappresentante la Vergine col Bambino, San Lorenzo, Santa Maria Maddalena e San Filippo, del Magi, scolaro del Barocci. Il Maire Magnanini Dall'inventario risulta chiaramente che uno dei tre quadri, quello “in tavola”, è l'Incoronazione della Vergine che si afferma essere della scuola di Pietro (Vannucci) detto il Perugino. Questa Tavola non arrivò mai a Parigi ed ora si trova nella Galleria Vaticana, Sala VII, a Roma. Essa è catalogata come opera di Bernardino di Betto, detto il Pinturicchio, allievo del Vannucci (9) . A chiusura del discorso sulla rapina delle opere d'arte perpetrata dal Governo francese è utile leggere attentamente la lettera che segue per avere la prova di come essa, con ignavia e scarso senso civico, fu consentita dagli Amministratori del tempo. La lettera è del 14 marzo 1813 e fu inviata dal Sotto Prefetto del Dipartimento al Maire di Fratta. La trascriviamo per intero. N. 426. Richiamerete nella risposta il numero qui sopra riportato (10) . Perugia, lì 14 marzo 1813. Il Sotto Prefetto del Circondario di Perugia al Signor Maire della Fratta. È giunto in questo comune il Signor Tofanelli incaricato di far trasportare in Roma quegli oggetti di Belle Arti che avea anticipatamente scelti e ne aveva preso possesso. Io, a tal uopo le accludo il contratto a Lei noto e che fu stabilito tra il Signor Tofanelli ed Innocenzo Lazzarini che si incaricò dell'incasso, imballaggio e trasporto dei quadri indicati nella nota che parimenti le accludo, sino a Perugia. So che il Lazzarini è in Roma, ma egli stesso, che si presentò ieri avanti di me, ne deve avere scritto a cotesto Signor Paolucci, acciò in di lui assenza eseguisca il contratto. Dica adunque al Signor Paolucci che nel principio dell'entrante settimana devono essere in Perugia li tre quadri di cui si tratta. Per facilitare l'operazione io le trasmetto scudi sei che passerà al detto Signor Paolucci, riservandomi di pagare gli altri scudi sei allorché saranno qui giunti li detti quadri. Deggio poi prevenirla, Signor Maire, che se i quadri indicati nella nota riscuotono una speciale venerazione, e sono cari al popolo per la sua devozione, Lei non solo non li manderà, ma non li farà neppure rimuovere dal luogo ove attualmente si trovano. L'intenzione di S.M. è che non si privi il popolo delle cose concernenti il culto. Se poi i detti quadri non sono cari al pubblico culto allora farà subito eseguire l'incasso e il trasporto. Sarà sua cura di rimettermi il contratto che le accludo, il quale penso soffrirà una variazione, se non tutti i quadri espressi nella nota saranno trasportati. Mi reputo con la più distinta stima. SottoPrefetto (firma illeggibile) La lettera lascia trasparire con chiarezza che in data 14 marzo 1813 tutti e tre i quadri si trovavano alla Fratta e non erano ancora stati rimossi dalle pareti dei due Conventi. Ma quello che più indigna è che il Sotto Prefetto invita il Maire, indicandogli anche le motivazioni, a lasciare i quadri dov'erano, o almeno qualcuno di essi. Per timore che questi non avesse capito bene, in chiusura della lettera l'alto funzionario, nel chiedere il rinvio del contratto, aggiunge “il quale penso soffrirà una variazione”. Magnanini, di professione medico, non fece soffrire nessuno e con servile zelo inviò la refurtiva. La coscrizione militare Napoleone aveva un bisogno enorme di soldati, avendo fatto della guerra la sua politica prevalente in Europa. Gli organici militari erano in continua crescita e alla loro copertura non bastavano più i giovani cittadini francesi. Il ricorso a quelli dei territori sottomessi fu la scelta naturale, imposta con estrema disinvoltura. Il meccanismo del reclutamento funzionava sulla base di ferree regole matematiche: si stabiliva quanti coscritti doveva fornire l'Italia, il totale veniva diviso tra i Dipartimenti in base al loro “animato”, ossia alla popolazione, e questa operazione si ripeteva all'interno dei vari Dipartimenti per fissare i coscritti di ogni cantone. In genere il numero era modesto e i nominativi si estraevano a sorte da una palla di vetro entro cui erano state inserite le generalità dei giovani del cantone atti alle armi, alla presenza di una Commissione che veniva da Perugia. Nel marzo del 1812 ci fu una coscrizione per la quale il cantone di Fratta doveva fornire un contingente di quattro reclute. La Commissione che arrivò da Perugia era formata da tre persone, quattro con l'addetto ai mezzi di trasporto, ossia alle cavalcature. Alloggiarono per due giorni nella locanda di Pietro Romitelli (11) . Vennero estratti i nominativi delle quattro reclute, cioè dei “fortunati” che dovevano combattere per Napoleone. A costoro, qualche giorno dopo, arrivava la lettera di chiamata in cui si invitavano a presentarsi a Spoleto. La lettera aveva il seguente contenuto: È ordinato a Pietro, figlio di Paolo Rondini Coscritto della classe del 1812, domiciliato nella Cura del Sacro Eremo di Monte Corona, Comunità di Perugia destinato in seguito all'estrazione per formare il Contingente assegnato a questo cantone, di rendersi a Spoleto il giorno 16 aprile corrente, da dove egli sarà diretto subito al Reggimento, al quale lo destinerà il Consiglio di reclutamento. Il suddetto coscritto non può Per verun motivo dispensarsi di rendersi a Spoleto il giorno sopra indicato. Resta prevenuto che se mancherà di ubbidire al presente ordine verrà dichiarato ritardatario, e a questo titolo verranno mandati quattro soldati in sua casa e in quella dei suoi genitori i quali saranno mantenuti a di loro spese per lo spazio di un mese e pagati a ragione di due franchi al giorno per ogni soldato. Il coscritto sarà arrestato ed allora non sarà più ammesso a servire liberamente nell'armata; ma sarà tradotto al deposito di Civitavecchia per essere trasportato in Corsica ed arruolato nel reggimento del Mediterraneo. Se passato il mese il coscritto ritardatario non sarà arrestato, verrà dichiarato refrattario e condannato ad una multa di 1.500 franchi unitamente ai di lui genitori, come civilmente responsabili. Il coscritto verrà quindi perseguitato, arrestato e tradotto a Civitavecchia per essere arruolato nel reggimento del Mediterraneo in Corsica (12 ). Fatto in Fratta il dì 2 aprile 1812. Le leggi del tempo consentivano la possibilità di evitare la “naia” dietro il pagamento di una congrua cifra. Chi ricorreva a questo sistema veniva chiamato Riformato. Questa lettera indirizzata dal Maire a Vincenzo Mavarelli padre del riformato Giandomenico è eloquente: Lì 2 gennaio 1812 Oggetto: indennizo per coscritto riformato. Vi prevengo, o Signore, che l'indennizzo dovuto per la riforma del vostro figlio Giandomenico della classe del 1811 è stato fissato alla somma di franchi 1.200. Il pagamento di questa somma è esigibile nello spazio di sei mesi, a ragione di una sesta parte per mese. Il Maire Nel mese di settembre del 1812 ci furono anche volontari veri, per di più minorenni con il consenso dei genitori, che chiesero di essere arruolati come Gaetano Martinelli, di anni 19 seguito a pochi giorni di distanza da Giuseppe Morti e Giuseppe Lazzarini. Questi tre giovani avevano le idee chiare sul reparto e la sede: 3° Reggimento di Cavalleria Leggera Ussara, a Versailles. La Guardia Nazionale Nel mese di marzo del 1812 Napoleone, con un ben articolato decreto costituito da 56 articoli divisi in due titoli, istituì la Guardia Nazionale. Si trattava di un corpo militare autonomo, formato da uomini dai venti ai sessanta anni, con compiti di polizia. Oltre a risolvere i vari problemi di ordine pubblico, il nuovo corpo liberò l'esercito napoleonico dagli impegni del controllo dei territori, restituendogli lo spazio e il tempo per dedicarsi alle operazioni militari. La selezione veniva fatto da un Consiglio di Reclutamento presieduto dal Prefetto che aveva ampia discrezionalità nell'individuare gli uomini “suscettibili di essere chiamati”. La Guardia Nazionale si divideva in varie Coorti di 1.120 uomini ciascuna; la Coorte, a sua volta, era formata da otto Compagnie costituite da 140 uomini . Il Dipartimento del Trasimeno dovette fornire 278 coscritti che furono aggregati alla Coorte di Roma. Il Reclutamento nel nostro Dipartimento iniziò il 15 aprile del 1813. Tutti coloro che non si fossero presentati alla chiamata o che avessero abbandonato il loro distaccamento durante il cammino, sarebbero stati trattati come refrattari. La ferma aveva la durata di sei anni e l'organico era rinnovato per un sesto ogni anno. Il “Soldo”, ossia la remunerazione dei soldati, come l'armamento e la divisa, erano uguali a quelli della Fanteria di Linea. La fine del dominio francese Il 1814 fu l'anno di inizio del rapidissimo declino dell'astro napoleonico e degli sconvolgimenti politici che aveva introdotto in Europa. Già da tempo i suoi avversari ne attendevano la fine e avevano programmato con cura meticolosa i meccanismi e i sistemi della Restaurazione, prima ancora che il loro nemico fosse tolto definitivamente di mezzo. Il Congresso di Vienna si aprì, infatti, il 1° novembre del 1814, alla vigilia di quei Cento Giorni che vedranno Napoleone di nuovo in sella a far tremare l'Europa. Gli alleati della coalizione antinapoleonica riportarono una netta vittoria nella battaglia di La Rothiére il 1° di febbraio del 1814 e procedendo in due colonne lungo la Senna e la Marna si diressero verso Parigi con l'intenzione di occuparla e di umiliare lo storico avversario. Napoleone non si dette per vinto e nei giorni successivi riuscì ad ottenere qualche piccolo successo non decisivo, ma venne gravemente sconfitto il 20 e 21 marzo nella battaglia di Bar-surAube. Il 31 marzo i vincitori entrano in Parigi. Il Senato francese dichiarò immediatamente decaduto Napoleone che il 6 aprile fu costretto ad abdicare; gli venne offerto il principato dell'isola d'Elba ed una rendita vitalizia di due milioni di franchi. Il 24 maggio Pio VII fece ritorno sul trono dello Stato Pontificio. Il rapido susseguirsi degli avvenimenti non consentì, fin dai primi mesi dell'anno, a Napoleone di seguire direttamente le sorti dell'Italia Centrale ed il controllo dei territori pontifici fu affidato al cognato Gioacchino Murat, Re delle due Sicilie. L'intestazione dei verbali dei consigli comunali del 16 e 27 marzo riporta la dicitura: "In nome di Sua Maestà Gioacchino Napoleone, Re delle due Sicilie, provvisoriamente occupante li Stati Romani". Il 27 marzo 1814 si ha, dunque, l'ultima riunione consiliare sotto la tutela francese, poi seguirà un periodo di pausa e di incertezza in attesa degli eventi. Il Bonazzi afferma che “a Perugia fu rimesso al suo posto lo Stemma Pontificio il 24 aprile, essendosi il Murat accordato con il Papa. Frati e monache ritornano nei conventi...” Da quella data ebbe inizio l'amministrazione provvisoria in Perugia. Alla Fratta dal 16 maggio 1814. Odiosa transizione Verso i primi di giugno del 1814 si incominciarono a vedere i primi concreti segni del cambiamento di regime. Drappelli di soldati pontifici comparvero qua e là in varie zone del territorio. Arrivarono anche alla Fratta dove si stabilì un picchetto, comandato da un caporale, per sorvegliare l'ordine pubblico non fidandosi della Guardia Civica Cittadina. Il comportamento dei papalini non piacque agli abitanti di Fratta e il Maire Reggiani, che sicuramente non vedeva l'ora di essere sostituito, scrisse al capitano Sebastiano Matteucci, Comandante delle truppe pontificie di stanza in Città di Castello, in questi termini: “Ella non ignora, Signor Capitano, che quei pochi soldati della di Lei Compagnia che dimorano in questo Comune per qualche fatto imprudenziale praticato nel presiedere al buon ordine sono stati presi in odiosità da molti del paese. Non avendo qui li medesimi alcun officiale o persona autorevole che dirige li loro movimenti e non essendo dotati di quel controllo e contegno che deve accompagnare un buon soldato, va a pericolo da un momento all'altro, che possino fàr suscitare delle risse e sconcerti troppo facili a nascere nelle circostanze attuali. Il governo comanda che debba invigilarsi per il buon ordine e per la pubblica tranquillità. Questo distaccamento di truppa lo vedo necessario per questo effetto, e giacchè non può essere comandato da alcun officiale della Compagnia stessa son costretto a pregare la di lei bontà a voler degnarsi ordinare al caporale del picchetto che dipenda in tutte le operazioni dal Maresciallo Roberti, capo della Gendarmeria locale, che qui dimora. La prudenza e cognizioni che accompagnano il detto Officiale Produrrà quell'effetto che si desidera…” I soldati papalini erano stati presi in "odiosità" dai cittadini di Fratta per il loro comportamento (“fatto imprudenziale”"). Non era il miglior biglietto da visita per un ritorno non molto gradito. Note: 1. Si incontrerà più volte la parola "partito" che ha un significato diverso da quello attuale inteso come struttura ideologica e politica gerarchicamente organizzata. Qui si tratta di un raggruppamento vago di persone che la pensano alla stessa maniera. 2. L'albero della Libertà di Fratta fu piantato dai fautori della Repubblica Romana il 16 o 17 febbraio del 1798 e fu abbattuto due mesi dopo, il 28 aprile 1798, da una banda di partigiani clericali venuti da Magione e da Castel Rigone. Era un grosso abete di Monte Corona. A1 suo posto i clericali, tornati al potere nel secondo semestre del 1799, eressero una croce sorretta da un piedistallo in muratura. Il tronco dell'albero venne portato nella chiesa di San Francesco e per molti anni fece da sostegno al soppalco dell'organo. Così “l'albero anticlericale” fu costretto a “servire” in chiesa. 3. Anche il gioco della tombola lo turbava e non sa se “proibire il dannevolissimo gioco che arbitrariamente e nel pubblico Teatro e nelle pubbliche botteghe sfacciatamente si pratica...” 4. Ne parla anche Luigi Bonazzi con una colorita espressione “...I Cisalpini osarono perfino di andare a democratizzare la Fratta...” (Storia di Perugia - Vol. II - Pag. 392) 5. Nei primi mesi del 1808 furono soppressi i Conventi e le Corporazioni religiose. 6. Furono chiamati a testimoniare Tommaso Fanfani, di anni 54, calzolaio abitante al Boccaiolo; Giuseppe Sarti, vasaro; Vincenzo Igi. I feriti più gravi furono Vincenzo Scarpini, Domenico Porrini, Pietro Antonio Migliorati e Pietro Bettoni. Ci fu solo un ferito gravissimo, ma se la cavò: Antonio Brettone. 7. “Maire” è il termine francese con cui si indica il capo del comune, ossia il sindaco 8. “Mairie”, nella lingua francese, significa “comune”. 9. Il Pinturicchio, nato a Perugia nel 1454 e morto a Siena nel 1513, la dipinse nel 1502 su incarico dei Frati Minori dell'Osservanza di Santa Maria di Fratta. Fra i Santi che sono nella parte inferiore vediamo San Francesco al centro, San Bonaventura e San Bernardino a sinistra, Sant'Antonio da Padova e San Luigi da Tolosa a destra. In secondo piano ci sono i dodici Apostoli. La tavola partì da Fratta verso la metà di marzo del 1813 diretta a Parigi, via Perugia, Roma, Civitavecchia. Qualcuno, per fortuna, la fermò a Roma. Attualmente essa si trova nella biblioteca del Papa, dove Giovanni Paolo II, devotissimo della Madonna, volle che fosse collocata. Il Guerrini afferma che nei primi anni del secolo XIX essa fu venduta dai Frati Minori al Vaticano per 500 scudi. La notizia, priva di riscontri documentari, potrebbe essere fondata. Dopo la caduta di Napoleone e la restaurazione del Governo pontificio, con molta probabilità, il Vaticano ne chiese l'acquisto trasformando la rapina iniziale francese in un possesso legittimo dei Musei Vaticani. L'opera, oltre che al maire Magnanini, interessava poco anche ai Frati, che si sono accontentati di collocare al suo posto una riproduzione fotografica delle stesse dimensioni! 10. Da rilevare la novità introdotta dai Francesi, cioè il numero di Protocollo cui fare riferimento per la corrispondenza successiva. 11. Abbiamo la lista dei piatti richiesti dai commissari. Colazione: salsicce, pane, formaggio, due fiaschi di vino moscatello. Pranzo: minestra, lesso, arrosto, pane, frutti, formaggio e vino. Cena: Frittata, arrosto di lonza, pane, frutti, formaggio e due fiaschi di moscatello. 12. Le sanzioni previste per i refrattari ci spiegano perché venivano chiamati “fortunati” coloro che si arruolavano. Fonti: “Umbertide nel Secolo XIX” di Renato Codovini e Roberto Sciurpa – Comune di Umbertide. 2001 I CAPITOLATI DEL SERVIZIO POSTALE E DELLA PUBBLICA ILLUMINAZIONE NELLA FRATTA DI META’ OTTOCENTO SERVIZIO POSTALE - luglio 1848 1. Sarà obbligato il Postino partire da Fratta con la valige delle lettere, pacchi ed altro nel lunedì, mercoledì e venerdì di ogni settimana, non più tardi delle ore cinque antimeridiane e giungere a Perugia per consegnare il tutto a quella Direzione non più tardi del mezzo giorno o anche prima se la Direzione variasse l'ora della partenza del Corriero. 2. Nel lunedì e venerdì sarà obbligato il Postino partire con Calesso o Carrozza a suo piacimento e nel mercoledì gli si permette inviare la valige, pacchi ed altro anche da altri, ma sotto la stretta sua responsabilità e con legge di arrivare in Perugia nell'ora sopra stabilita. 3. A suo maggior profitto potrà ricevere ed eseguire le commissioni dei particolari, purché queste non ritardassero o intralciassero gli obblighi di Officio che andrà egli ad assumere. 4. Sarà obbligato il postino da per sé, o col mezzo di altri sotto la sua responsabilità riportare e consegnare la valige delle lettere, pacchi ed altro a questo Distributore postale, dal primo aprile a tutto settembre alle ore sette antimeridiane, dal primo ottobre a tutto marzo alle ore dieci antimeridiane del martedì, giovedì e sabbato di ogni settimana. 5. Sarà obbligato prendere in formale consegna da per sé, o col mezzo di persona di sua fiducia sotto la sua responsabilità, la valige delle lettere, pacchi ed altro dal Distributore di questa Terra, alle ore due italiane della sera del giorno innanzi alla partenza, ossia di ogni domenica, martedì e giovedì; consegnarla in Perugia all'ora stabilita all'articolo 1 e riportarla e riconsegnarla al Distributore di Fratta nelle ore stabilite all'articolo 4, senza alcun ritardo, meno il caso di vera urgenza, che sempre dovrà legalmente documentare; altrimenti per ogni ritardo non giustificato incorrerà nella penale di baj 50, che gli verrà ritenuta nel saldo a favore della Cassa Comunale, oltre il poter essere sospeso e anche dimesso dall'impiego secondo i casi e la circostanza, specialmente se recidivo. 6. Sarà obbligato portare e riportare dal Registro gli atti del Comune soggetti a detta formalità; come puntualmente eseguire qualunque incombenza che gli affidasse la Magistratura. 7. Sarà obbligato eseguire una idonea fideiussione solidale che garantisca verso il Comune tutte le obbligazioni e responsabilità che andrà egli ad assumere da approvarsi dal pubblico Consiglio. 8. Il Signor Distributore Postale nelle domeniche, martedì e giovedì di ogni settimana sarà obbligato chiudere la valige della corrispondenza alle ore due italiane della sera e farne la formale consegna al Postino. 9. Nei giorni di arrivo della posta sarà obbligato distribuire la corrispondenza mezz'ora dopo che sarà giunta, premesso il suono della campana come al presente: dovrà poi trattenersi nell'Officio per la distribuzione un'ora continua dopo sonata la campana, usando anche la correttezza di consegnare le lettere dopo l'ora indicata, quante volte taluno per assenza non fosse giunto in tempo a riscuoterle. 10. Nei giorni antecedenti alla partenza, dovrà il Distributore trattenersi un'ora nell'Officio avanti la chiusura della valige, per ricavare lettere, pacchi e denari da fiancarsi. 11. Sarà obbligato alla piena osservanza delle leggi e ordini che gli verranno abbassati dalla Direzione Generale delle Poste, dal Governo e dal Municipio e dovrà esibire un fideiussore solidale da approvarsi dal Consiglio che garantisca verso il Comune le obbligazioni e responsabilità che andrà egli ad assumere. PUBBLICA ILLUMINAZIONE NOTTURNA Periodo dagli anni 1851 - 1852 - 1853 Si invitano gli aspiranti a presentare le loro offerte d'appalto...... il 30 settembre prossimo si procederà al primo esperimento d'asta pubblica sulla base del seguente capitolato: 1. Durata dell'appalto: anni tre. 2. Sono compresi in questo appalto n. 8 lampioni costituenti 8 faci, perché il nuovo appaltatore sarà obbligato a far fare del proprio un lampione nuovo simile agli altri esistenti e questo con i necessari ferramenti, catena, serratura, e dovrà collocare il 1 ° gennaio 1851 nella via di San Giovanni di prospetto al voltone che conduce alla via di Porta Nuova in maniera che illumini quella strada traversa… 3. L'accensione dei lampioni sarà regolata come segue: dal giorno che farà il primo quarto la luna, fino alla sera dopo in cui avrà fatto il plenilunio, non si accenderanno affatto. Dalla prima sera dopo il plenilunio si accenderanno per quelle ore in cui non sarà alzata la luna. 4. ..............… 5. L'Appaltatore farà uso per l'illuminazione di olio ben purgato anche al fuoco occorrendo; e a tale effetto prima di incominciare il servizio depositerà nella Segreteria una mostra di olio giudicato capace a produrre una bella e chiara luce, quale verrà suggellato e conservato per servire di campione all'occorrenza. 6. L'Appaltatore sarà obbligato a tutte sue spese provvedersi dei diversi utensili, delle fettucce o lucignoli per i lampioni composti di cotone fino e seta bianca e nella forma e misura del campione esistente in Comune che gli verrà per sua norma esibito, come dovrà provvedere a tutt'altro che sarà necessario senza pretendere alcun compenso.… 7. La fettuccia o lucignoli dovranno fissarsi..... in modo che siano innalzati fuori dalle biffe che le racchiudono un quarto di oncia di piede perugino, quanto appunto ne dovranno ardere perché le fiaccole siano sufficienti all'illuminazione. 8. Sarà obbligato l'appaltatore alla manutenzione di tutti i lampioni, cristalli, lucerne, parabole (o riverberi), bracci di ferro, catene, rotelle di metallo, serrature e chiavi che gli verranno consegnati.… 9. Nei giorni destinati alle assolute vacanze di accensione descritte all'art. 3 dovrà l'Appaltatore ripulire esattamente tutti i lampioni e cristalli anche con gesso macerato per fare sparire tutte le affumicature altrimenti sarà tenuto dei danni. 10. Quante volte per qualunque caso straordinario piacesse alla Pubblica Rappresentanza ordinare l'accensione dei lampioni per dopo la mezzanotte, fermo l'obbligo prescritto all'articolo 3, l'Appaltatore ne sarà proporzionalmente compensato. 11. Sarà obbligato l'Appaltatore tenere accesi tutti i lampioni nelle intere notti della vigilia del SS.mo Natale; e in quelle notti di carnevale in cui al teatro si facessero feste da ballo si terrà accesi fino che saranno terminate; e tutto questo senza poter pretendere alcun compenso. 12. I lampioni che non si trovassero accesi nelle ore descritte importeranno a carico dell'Appaltatore una multa di bajocchi 40 a lampione. 13. .............. 14. ............. 15. Sarà obbligato l'Appaltatore ad esibire un'idonea fidejussione solidale..... e anticipare le spese legali occorrenti… 16. .........… Dalla Residenza Municipale, lì 29 agosto 1850. Fonti: “Umbertide nel secolo XIX” di Renato Codovini e Roberto Sciurpa – Comune di Umbertide, 2001 (Allegati)

REPORT OF MAYOR GIUSEPPE MIGLIORATI IN 1944 on the general situation of the Municipality which he sent to the Prefect of Perugia on 19 September 1944 with a letter bearing the Protocol number 999. It is of the utmost importance because it allows us to know the disastrous state in which the entire territory of the Municipality was immediately after the Liberation. Appointed on 15.8.1944 (1) Mayor of this Municipality by the Governor of the Allied Military Command, I fulfill the duty to submit to the EV this report on the general situation of the Municipality determined after the aerial bombardments suffered by this city, the withdrawal of the troops Germans and the consequent liberation by the allied troops. I state that the situation of the Municipality, as will be demonstrated below, is one of the most critical and consequently I am interested in the EV to be pleased to resolve, in the best way, what is possible. I begin with the municipal offices. MUNICIPAL OFFICES The municipal offices, immediately after the bombing of 25 April in which 88 (2) people were killed and 20 wounded, were transported to the countryside and precisely in the word Brecce. Here they remained until 12 June, until the German troops ordered a subsequent move, which was carried out by transporting what was possible to save from the devastation of the German troops themselves, in the locality of Fontanelle and precisely in the Rinaldi house. After the war operations, all the employees abandoned the offices, the deeds and the furnishings they had been given. The German troops therefore carried out even better the removal of all that they considered useful and the destruction of all that their vandalism advised. From a summary investigation in the process of greater investigations, it is removed or destroyed: 1. The ten typewriters and the calculator supplied to the offices. Now the municipality has no typewriter of its own. 2. The complete furnishings of the Mayor's Cabinet, the Secretary and other offices. 3. The technical tools of the Technical Office. 4. All prints, stationery, etc. supplied to the Offices. 5. Many documents of the Secretariat including all municipal regulations, tariffs, some volume of contract, etc. 6. Almost all the documents of the Bursar. 7. The following acts of the Civil Status: • Much of the personal data (family statuses and personal data sheets); • Migration practices defined relating to the years from 1937 to 1941; • Various procedures defined and being defined relating to the current year; • Files of marriage, birth and death certificates; • The register of list of the poor with the relative file; • Monthly statistics on the natural and migratory movement of the population; • The register of collection of civil status rights, secretariat and urgency; • 24 wooden boxes with automatic closing for the conservation of family statuses; • Lists of the military conscription of the classes from 1913 to 1920. 8. All the existing material in the warehouses, consisting of wood of various kinds and species, pipes for aqueducts, water meters, wheelbarrows, shovels, picks, etc. for a significant value. 9. Two "Beretta" 7.65 caliber automatic pistols supplied with the guards. 10. Motterl rifles also supplied to the guards. 11. The sum of Lire 10,000 located in part at the Treasury Office (approximately Lire 2,500), partly at the Police Office and Lire 5,000 at the milk shop. Much has been done in order to restore the offices to full efficiency, but much more needs to be done. It is necessary to equip them with the essential furniture, for which reason a contribution of at least 500,000 lire is requested from this Prefecture, with which they can buy the essential typewriters, a calculator, the tools for the Technical Office, the furniture for the decor of one room at least. Many deficiencies were found in the internal functioning of the Offices. Among the main notes, the failure to review municipal taxes annually, the failure to collect the fee for drinking water granted to individuals, the regular and complete collection of the amount of the niches and cemetery areas, the failure to stipulate contracts for concessions the aforementioned, the failure to recover the hospitals by the wealthy, the total failure to collect the assets, the neglect in requesting the repayment of the sums advanced on behalf of the State, etc., shortcomings to which he attributes the disastrous financial situation of the Municipality and which currently it is summed up by a cash deficit of over 2,000,000. I have already made provisions for the elimination of these serious drawbacks. Of course, the resolution of the same is subject to the needs of the reconstruction service based on the healthiest principles of almost all services. STAFF A first purge of staff was carried out and 16 elements were suspended among employees, salaried workers and health workers. The seats have been replaced with temporary staff, new to the services to which they have been entrusted. However, after the first period of adjustment, now almost everyone is doing quite well in the tasks entrusted to them. However, I would add that the purge has not finished and that investigations are being undertaken for other elements to ascertain their responsibilities. HOUSES The damage caused to civilian buildings by air raids and war actions are significant. A survey carried out shows that about 50 per cent of the homes have been destroyed or reduced to a condition to be demolished. Two hundred and fifty families were damaged and 900 people left homeless. To regulate the return of the population to the capital, which after the air raids had spread a little everywhere, I set up a special office and a special commission that oversees the relevant services. Despite all the provisions adopted by the Municipality such as those of placing at least two people per room and requisitioning all possible premises, not excluding the placement of families with other families (as many as 2,000 people are currently accommodated in this way, as many as 250 people are now homeless and still provisionally placed in the countryside, in barns, huts and similar premises. Twenty-five percent of homes inhabited and crammed by people need roof repairs before the winter season and window and window repairs. Such a situation cannot last long and this is also to avoid the occurrence of any epidemic diseases. It is therefore necessary to address the resolution of the important problem for which I take the liberty of proposing: 1. to promote, favor and encourage the private initiative of the reconstruction of the destroyed houses, under the control of the Civil Engineers who will have to establish the amount of the damages suffered and which will have to be reimbursed by the State; 2. that the following materials be assigned to this Municipality: a) at least 200,000 tiles; b) a suitable quantity of cement and other binders; c) at least 5,000 square meters of glass; d) timber for reinforcements and fixtures; e) that the necessary investigations to establish which buildings must be demolished and which can be restored are ordered to the Civil Engineering Office. SUPPORT Assistance was very neglected. In fact, only at the beginning of September it was possible to order the continuation of the displacement subsidy which had been suspended since 15 June 1944. However, all services are now being normalized. However, it is necessary that an assignment of clothing, clothing, footwear, blankets, sheets, mattresses, etc. be made. to be distributed to the victims and who cannot be left in such conditions in the approaching winter. POWER SUPPLY Apart from the ration of bread and pasta, given in grain, this population had only 100 grams of sugar per person and 150 grams of salt. Contrary to what was practiced for the other municipalities, this population was not distributed the ration of pig fats for the entire year. These greases were in fact removed by the German troops from the local warehouses of the Municipality where they were still stored. In consideration of this, the population of this Municipality, which following the bombings and the looting of the German troops has seen all the minimum stocks that any provident family could have had destroyed and removed, is in a state of real hardship. The EV is therefore interested in order for the distribution of the following genres to be urgently arranged in favor of this population: • oil (he hasn't had any since January); • pig fat (has not had any more since March); • sugar; • salt; • pasta as a replacement for the flour it has been receiving in wheat for a few months. Furthermore, given that the Municipality has no means of transport, it is necessary that a vehicle be assigned to transport the rationed goods. Cade acconcio that you are speaking here of an initiative taken by the Municipality for the sale of rationed and quoted goods, an initiative that was imposed following the destruction of many shops in the capital and the failure to reopen the others by the owners, who are proving of complete absenteeism. A Bottegone Comunale del Popolo has been established on which the distribution of rationed products, milk is made, which by the Municipality itself is collected from the collection centers where the various producers meet, and what else it is possible to have, to search on the site. This Bottegone will continue to function until normal commercial activity is resumed, unless the opportunity to transform it into a consumer cooperative appears. The Bottegone is currently managed by the members of the Board: Rometti Aspromonte for the technical-commercial part and Cerrini Tramaglino for the accounting part, who have taken care of its organization and operation. Bottegone himself does not affect the municipal budget in any way. MILLS Currently, given the lack of electricity, the grain is milled by means of the eleven mills operated partly by hydraulic power and partly by internal combustion engines. To ensure the functioning of the important service, however, it is necessary to ensure regular refueling. PUBLIC HEALTH Many cases of typhus have occurred and many are still ongoing among the population of this municipality. It is necessary for the EV to be assigned suitable medicines and disinfectants to prevent and fight such diseases. Two of the five doctors are in possession of a permit to circulate; however, it is necessary that the Municipality be made a monthly allocation of petrol to be allocated for this use. ROADS A total of 16 bridges were destroyed by the German troops. The damages suffered for those on municipal roads exceed 5,000,000 lire. Practices have begun for the construction of a voluntary consortium between the interested parties for the construction of footbridges to replace said bridges, in order to ensure in some way the restoration of the viability. The financing of the expenditure, while waiting for the State to do so, will be done by the interested parties through the Municipality. AQUEDUCTS In addition to the aqueduct of the capital, those in the hamlets of Pierantonio, Preggio, Niccone, Cioccolanti, Santa Giuliana and Palazzetto Nese were also damaged, for the repair and efficiency of which is expected to cost around 400,000 lire. PUBLIC BUILDINGS Almost all public buildings have suffered significant damage. These buildings are: Town Hall damages suffered approximately 200,000 lire Center school buildings damages suffered approximately 225,000 lire Rural school buildings damage suffered about lire 80,000 Start-up building damages suffered approximately 225,000 lire Kindergarten damage suffered about lire 45,000 Municipal warehouses damage suffered about lire 35,000 Slaughterhouse damage suffered about lire 28,000 Washhouse damage suffered about lire 30,000 Public latrines damage suffered about lire 21,000 Public hospital damages suffered approximately 100,000 lire Unable to work hospitalizations damage suffered about lire 30,000 Total 1,019,000 lire For the removal of the rubble of the streets and squares of the capital, for the reactivation of the aqueducts, for the clearing of the rubble from the bridges, from the riverbeds, an estimate was compiled by the Technical Office which rises to 1,141,000 lire. This estimate has already been sent to the Civil Engineering Office for approval and to give the authorization to continue the work and the assurance that the same Office will reimburse the expenses that this Municipality will sustain for this reason. UNEMPLOYMENT It is essential that the Civil Engineers assign the aforementioned sum not only for the execution of the urgent and deferrable works for the recovery, albeit minimal, of the normality of the Municipality, also to eliminate the unemployment that is currently relevant. No less than three hundred workers and over fifty employees of different categories (potters, railway workers, etc.) are unemployed. As for the materials necessary for the aforementioned works, since there are two brick kilns in the Municipality, this could ensure the needs if they are assigned the necessary fuel, which is being partially provided with the help of the Allied Military Governor. In order to guarantee the supply of the indispensable materials, this Municipality blocked all the production of the aforementioned two furnaces. The materials themselves are assigned to the owners of buildings following the division of the Technical Office, which in advance checks the requests one by one. I therefore strongly interest the EV because it wants to arrange for the Civil Engineers to assign the requested sum of 1,141,000 lire to the Municipality. PUBLIC SERVICES Currently no public service works. Only the postal service works partially. This Municipality is proceeding so that it can have the premises necessary for the disengagement of the services, but it is not easy to solve the problem given that the Umbrian Central Management, the only owner of suitable premises, puts forward many reasons not to sell them. The electric light doesn't work either. The Unione Esercizi Elettrici has been assured that in a month it will be able to reactivate the supply of electricity to a limited extent and in turn. SCHOOLS Almost all the furniture of the schools, both elementary and secondary, has been removed and destroyed. In order for them to resume their activities, it is necessary that the Municipality be assigned a suitable sum that cannot be less than 1,000,000 lire. It is also essential that all schools be reopened. In this regard, given the serious housing situation and therefore in consideration of the housing difficulties of the teachers who are not resident here, the opportunity arises that professors and teachers resident in this municipality are in charge of teaching, who, both in terms of number and by capacity, they are able to ensure smooth operation. AGRICULTURE The harvest of wheat, maize and secondary products was good and there was no significant damage from the war events. The wine, although promising very well, has recently been very damaged by iodine and therefore will be scarce and of poor quality. The olive harvest, on the other hand, promises very well. The placing of the grain in storage was very satisfactory. Over 30,000 quintals are already piled up. It is essential that provision is made for the assignment of carbon sulphide in order to prevent both the stored grain and that stored in their warehouses by the producers from going bad. It is also essential, given the approach of the sowing season, that both nitrogen fertilizers and fungicides are assigned. It is also necessary that it be arranged for the concession of electricity for oil mills in consideration of the approaching period of processing. CONCLUSION I conclude this report by insisting on the following essential points: 1. that at least the sum of 500,000 lire is assigned for the arrangement and reorganization of the Offices; 2. that the sum of 1,141,000 necessary for the removal of the rubble be assigned; 3. that the sum of 1,000,000 lire be assigned for the construction of school furnishings; 4. that the building materials are assigned: • 200,000 tiles; • cement and binding materials; • timber for reinforcement and window frames; • at least sqm. 5,000 glasses; 5. that fuel be assigned for the grain mills, brick kilns and municipal health services; 6. that carbide and oil are assigned for lighting; 7. that fats and oil are assigned for the population. I trust in the interest of the EV and I am sure that with this valid help I will be able to do some good to this population so tried by the pains of war. MAYOR G. Improve Note: 1. There is an inaccuracy in the date. The post of mayor was formally assumed on 3 September. Perhaps Migliorati refers to the interview with the Allied Military Governor who communicated the purpose of the appointment and which may have occurred on August 15, 1944. 2. Here, too, Migliorati runs into an easily explainable inaccuracy. The dead were 70, but another 14 people had fled the country without reporting it and it was feared that they were buried under the rubble still to be cleared. Sources: "Umbertide in the XX Century 1900 - 1946" by Roberto Sciurpa - Municipality of Umbertide, Gesp - January 2006 THE CITY AFTER LIBERATION 1944 - 1952 Rendiconto Giunta 1946 - 1952 Relazione del Sindaco Giuseppe Migliorati nel 1944 Relazione del Sindaco Giuseppe Migliorati nel 1944 Rendiconto Giunta 1946 - 1952 RELATION SOCIAL-COMMUNIST MUNICIPAL ADMINISTRATION ON THE ACTIVITY CARRIED OUT FROM 1946 TO 1952 curated by Fabio Mariotti We feel the duty to give an account to the population of the activity carried out in our municipality in the period from the elections of 1946 to today. We do not want to judge our work, since it is not up to us to judge; however, we feel we have the right to affirm that we have made an effort to do everything in our power to meet the needs of citizens and to honestly fulfill the mandate they have entrusted to us. PUBLIC WORKS In order to be able to judge our work serenely, it is first of all necessary to recall the disastrous conditions in which we found our country due to the war: the capital, in particular, was reduced to a heap of rubble, so it was dedicated to it. more attention than to fractions. The transitory period of municipal administration, which took place under the aegis of the Allied Military Government and controlled by the latter with the Mayors of the then Liberation Committee, made it possible to begin the reorganization of the administrative offices as soon as possible. Citizens suffered severely from the hardships caused by the war. Almost all the families lacked the essentials: house, food, medicines, electricity, water, household goods, etc. Everything had been destroyed by bombing or removed by the retreating Germans. The city was littered with rubble; traffic was difficult due to the numerous road works that had been destroyed (as many as 27 bridges had been destroyed in our municipality). The lack of housing considerably aggravated the tragic situation of the moment: half of Umbertide's houses were destroyed or seriously damaged. It was an imperative duty of the municipal administration to face all these problems; and faithful to our general program, set out during the electoral campaign, we promptly set them out for a solution. Priority was given to the sanitation and welfare problem, having all the rubble removed; which, in addition to removing the sad vision of the ruins, averted the danger of spreading infectious diseases; Supplementary rations of bread, meat, wine, firewood were distributed. The prompt reactivation of the aqueducts both in the center and in the hamlets was provided. The schools, despite the damage suffered, were repaired and returned to their important function. Only the perimeter walls remained of our hospital; in a short time it was put back into efficiency and thus it was possible to meet those who needed hospital care. Today our hospital has very modern equipment, and it would have perfected its systems again if the Prefecture, without any reason, had not sent a Commissioner to manage the institution. The rapid rehabilitation of the hospital is due to the intelligent activity of its President, comrade Rometti Aspromonte and of the Board of Directors who dedicated so much diligence and passion to this humanitarian work, always supported in their work by the municipal administration and by the esteem of the entire population. The war had completely destroyed the Umbertide-Terni railway and the Fossato-Arezzo railway. Following our concern it was possible to reactivate the Terni-Umbertide section and the reconstruction of its warehouse-workshop in Umbertide. This work could be carried out with the help of the Minister of Transport Hon. Ferrari of the PCI and the Communist and Socialist Deputies of the district, who met in Umbertide at our invitation, to give instructions to the managers of the Mediterranea. The serious problem of the workforce has been tackled by overcoming all our budget possibilities many times, but the scourge of unemployment persists and certainly cannot be resolved with local interventions. This problem will find its complete solution only when it is possible for a truly democratic government to come to power which dedicates its national wealth to works of peace and which translates into action what is enshrined in the constitution. The workforce employed by the Municipality has always been significant and has had a strong impact on the budget. The severe shortage of housing that existed before the war, aggravated by the destruction, raised the urgent problem of building reconstruction and the Administration directed all energy to this. Sixty residential neighborhoods have already been built and occupied (public housing and homes for the victims) and ten neighborhoods have been built by INA-Casa; public housing is now being built in Preggio for 10,000,000 Lire. With all this we are still a long way off to be able to say that all citizens have a modest home. Dozens of families still live in attics, woodsheds, and in places that offend human dignity. The main cause of this was the ministerial provision which suppressed the Prefectural Housing Commissioner; This suppression has led to this inequality: the owners of buildings occupy fifteen rooms in four or five people, while large families live in unhealthy and unsafe hovels (this is certainly not Christian charity!) The streets in the center of Umbertide have been reactivated and asphalted. The damage of the war and the neglect of the past administrations had reduced the eighteenth-century Palazzo del Comune in bad conditions. This Administration has provided for the repair of all the rooms and on the first floor has particularly taken care of the restoration of the frescoed vaults, with a total cost of L. 1,520,000. The work must be continued, as it is a building that due to its style deserves to be preserved and restored to its primitive beauty. The restoration work on the façade has already been contracted for 1,500,000 Lire. The avenues have been enriched with hundreds of ornamental plants; a small garden has also been arranged in Largo Antonio Gramsci, as well as another in a corner of Piazza Mazzini. A small park was built between the council houses and those of the victims; another park was built in Largo Vittorio Veneto. The post office building has been rebuilt and enlarged, which will soon give back to the public a very modern post office. In the space behind the post office building, the reconstruction of old huts was prevented, giving air and sun to buildings that did not have them and creating the vast Piazza 25 Aprile. In addition to the paving of via Petrogalli, works for the pavement with asphalt tiles of the pavements of Via Garibaldi for L. 3,000,000 have already been contracted out. In the streets of our territory they have been 26 bridges rebuilt. It was in Ascagnano rebuilt the footbridge over the Tiber and it is proceeded at the same time to the arrangement of the road that leads to Palazzetto Nese. A stretch of road from Serra was also built Partucci in Campaola. Every possible cure has been dedicated to school problems, element indispensable for creating a better tomorrow. All the buildings have been restored municipally owned school, it was partly renewed the teaching material and furniture; 250 new ones are now under construction desks and 20 professorships in the amount of L. 2,000,000. Not being able to deal with means financial problems of the City the serious problem of school building, we asked insistently the intervention of the state. Three projects to build school buildings in Civitella, Niccone and Montecastelli are al Ministry of Public Works for a total cost of L. 28,000,000. They are complete in each their part and approved in technical and administrative terms; for over two years, however, they have been piled up and forgotten, because unfortunately at this moment the Christian Democratic regime has to satisfy other customers and therefore cannot satisfy the needs of the municipalities governed by popular administrations. A project for a school building site for the construction of the Pian di Nese-Racchiusole road has been at the Ministry of Labor for several years; despite our pressure on the Ministry and the Prefecture, the funding has not yet been granted. The local population insistently claims it as an area devoid of any trace of road; in the winter season it is really a problem to move from the houses scattered in that area. There are still fractions without light. The Municipality has expanded and built plants in Cioccolanti and Montecastelli; a new plant was built in the hamlets of Buzzacchero and Pian d'Assino, for an amount of L. 1,800,000; the lighting in the capital and in the hamlets was improved for a cost of L. 1,000,000. The possibility of giving electric light to the areas of San Benedetto, Petrella, Ospedalicchio, Mita and Banchetti is being studied. Substantial repairs were made to the Cemeteries of Racchiusole, Santa Giuliana, Polgeto, San Bartolomeo, Migianella, San Paolo, Comunaglia, Verna, Leoncini, with a total cost of L. 4,500,000. Modern public urinals have been installed in the center and in the hamlets. New sewers were built in the capital, in Preggio and in Niccone. The lower butcher's shop has been completely transformed according to hygiene requirements; now the restoration works of the municipal slaughterhouse are in progress; for these two works an expense of L. 1,000,000 is required. Taking into account the serious conditions in which many farmhouses are found, especially in the high hills, a municipal commission has been set up for the application of the health law, art. 223 of 27 July 1934, which forces the owners to carry out the necessary repairs: n. 69 farmhouses; the related practices are in progress, with the result that some owners have already had to carry out the required work. The problem of greatest concern is that of aqueducts, also because our area is very poor in second-layer water to feed them. To improve the existing plants in Cioccolanti, Preggio, Montecastelli and in the provincial capital, Lire 2,600,000 was spent, but more remains to be done, especially in the capital. For this reason, after having carried out all the necessary technical and bureaucratic procedures, last year the survey was carried out for the research of underground waters; the outcome was negative due to insufficient means available (Lire 1,000,000 was used). In our opinion it is necessary to insist on drilling, and this is also the suggestion of the technicians in the field of hydraulics, hoping to find sufficient water for the needs of the population, and then get to the financing of the work. However, at present to make up for this deficiency wells and cisterns have been built, subsidiary works that have reduced the serious shortage of water that has worried citizens for over 30 years in the peak months. The sewer system is linked to the problem of the aqueduct; those already existing have been built with antiquated and unsanitary criteria; in the summer they constitute a serious danger to public health. The problem is urgent and must be addressed with an adequate financial plan. The construction of a well-equipped sports field and a theater capable of satisfying the increased needs of the population also remains to be tackled. SUPPORT Assistance has never been neglected within the maximum limits allowed by the budget, especially with regard to hospital admissions for needy citizens, the distribution of medicines, school meals, marine and mountain colonies. But what the Municipality can do in today's society is very little in the face of the real problem of assistance and the great need of most. The state has the duty to provide for the complete solution of the problem, but a bourgeois government will never be able to allocate billions for relief works. The Municipality spent 11 million Lire on assistance to the poor in the financial year 1951 alone. FINANCIAL PROBLEM The current tax system still regulated by the local finance law of 1931 is now outdated by the times, does not allow the Municipalities any autonomy in this matter and is not suitable for ensuring the indispensable means for the financing of institutional services; moreover, it unjustly distributes the tax burden. The needs of the times, made more acute by the backwardness found in all the most elementary collective services, therefore make it extremely difficult for the municipal administrations to carry out their tasks. These difficulties are noted to a greater extent in the administrations run by Social Communists because they, as far as possible, try to relieve the workers from the tax burden, however they reduce budget revenues, since with the system in place, it is difficult for them to find an adequate counterpart by increasing the taxes to the employer class as appropriate, which by resorting to the GPA escapes its duty towards the community. This state of affairs also forced our Administration to have to apply taxes, albeit to the most limited extent, even to the working class, while its intention was substantially the opposite. On the other hand, in order to ensure a minimum of administrative functioning and to resolve, even partially, the serious problems arising from the war and described above, the municipal administration in the current state of affairs cannot dispose of other resources. State funding is almost nil, all engaged in rearmament. We have always granted municipal employees all increases in allowances to the maximum extent permitted by law. The staff of permanent staff has been expanded. ADMINISTRATION AND POLITICAL LIFE This Administration has not failed to give, within the limits of the right, its support to the initiatives taken by the various city organizations in defense of peace and workers' rights. However, this was not to the satisfaction of the higher Authorities, inspired by an antisocial and intolerant mentality, and the Mayor suffered the consequences: he was repeatedly suspended from office and reported to the Judicial Authority for having authorized the posting of posters in the who criticized the work of the Government, for having spoken in a public rally in favor of peace against the threat of war deriving from the well-known adhesion of our Government to the Atlantic Pact. Some might argue that those provisions were just, since the Mayor must be concerned exclusively with administrative problems; but such an objection appears naive if we consider that administrative problems are always closely linked to political problems, that the inhabitants of a city are not abstract numerical entities, but men animated by demands and needs, moved by hopes and ideals. The problems of the municipal administration are closely linked to the struggles that its citizens wage throughout the country for their emancipation. We could not remain insensitive to the events taking place in Italy and in the world; we knew that by fighting against the war, at the same time we were fighting so that the millions allocated for weapons were again converted into civilian expenses, for our homes, for our aqueduct, for our hospital, for our schools, for our streets. When we fought for peace we felt the duty to do so; in memory of the dead of the sad bombings of 1944, worried about the future of the entire citizenry. THE COUNCIL MINORITY Our work as administrators has lacked the contribution of the Christian Democratic minority, which has deserted almost all the meetings of the Council. It, while remaining in the opposition, could have benefited the country if it had limited itself to a serene criticism and had at least supported us in asking for the intervention of its government friends to finance the public works of greatest interest. When, after the liberation, our representatives also sat in the government, Umbertide was able to quickly carry out public works for several hundreds of millions (2 bridges, railway, warehouse-workshop, public houses, etc.). Since the leftist parties have been expelled from the government, the latter has given priority to the expenses of rearmament and has become deaf to the requests of the populations who want to see at least their most urgent problems solved (the construction of school buildings and the school sites for the construction of rural roads has been waiting for funding from the Ministries for years). Leaving the Administration of the Municipality, due to the expiry of the mandate received, we express our gratitude to the employees, to the Bodies, Associations and individuals who have given us their precious collaboration, we thank the working people who have supported us in our efforts, we wish the Directors who will be elected, to be able to continue our work even more profitably for the good of our country. To this end, we make votes so that the future Municipal Administration can carry out its work with the help of a better Government, which instead of hindering the initiatives of the Municipality through the Prefectural Bodies, understands their needs and gives its concrete support to meet them. . We wish peace and freedom to the hard-working population of our municipality for an ever better tomorrow. and social justice. P. THE MUNICIPAL ADMINISTRATION A. BELLAROSA - Mayor A. RENZINI - V. Mayor C. PALAZZETTI - Councilor G. RONDONI - " B. BOLDRINI - " M. BELARDINELLI - “Suppl. A. ROSSETTI " Part of the Palazzo delle Poste and via Petrogalli (destroyed by the war) Casa Borgarelli (from Piazza XXV Aprile, demolished by the air raid Building reconstruction in via Andreani (homes for the victims) The back of the Palazzo delle Poste