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The Ciccicocco (edited by Francesco Deplanu) THE "CICCICOCCO", or "CICOLO" (Eugubino dialect) is an almost lost tradition of Easter Thursday in which the boys, often masked, went to knock on the door of the houses to ask for a gift, once pieces of fat, eggs and sausages with a skewer to collect them e a basket, later used for pennies and candies. The tradition is centuries old and perhaps linked to pre-Christian customs. What we do know is that from Città di Castello up to Perugia, in the Cortona and Mercatale area the name of the custom and the modalities are the same, in the Gubbio the tradition is the same but only the name by which it is indicated differs: " cicolo ". And in the rest of Italy? In the Modena area with "Unnṡer al spròoch" , to grease the stick, always on Shrove Thursday, the boys went, it seems not in disguise, with a kind of spit to ask for fat in the countryside, knocking on doors with nursery rhymes. In Salento , in the province of Lecce, they did not ask for food but always disguised themselves for Fat Thursday and groups of young people disguised themselves and went into the streets or from house to house carrying their jokes with jokes and allusions ("G. Palumbo," Some customs of the Carnival in the Province of Lecce ", Vol. 10, N.2, p. 127 , Olschki 1939). In our homes, especially in the countryside, a piece of fat was hung, usually behind the door. Even with us they went with the spit pronouncing variants of nursery rhymes such as " Ciccicocco pane 'ntento, damme n'ovo pel mi' zi Menco ... "Isotta Bottaccioli, on the other hand, remembers one nursery rhyme which was handed down to Niccone: " Ciccicocco pane 'ntento, se' n mel de tel ficco drento ... " very little reassuring given the use of the "spit". A Lama on the border between Umbria and Tuscany For 12 years, elementary schools have tried to transmit the memory of tradition to the youngest. We insert this video from TTV: https://www.facebook.com/ttvteveretv/videos/124234005673331/ Sources: - Oral sources - https://dialettocarpigianocarpimodena.blogspot.com/2013/01/unnser-usi-e-tradizioni-per-capodanno-e.html?m=1 - https://m.facebook.com/comunedicittadicastello/posts/1871279396421429 - https://www.facebook.com/ttvteveretv/videos/124234005673331/ - G. Palumbo, " Some customs of the Carnival in the Province of Lecce ", Vol. 10, N.2, p. 127, Olschki 1939 Help us remember umbertidestoria@gmail.com

Storia, memoria ed identità Umbertide. Il sito si propone di divulgare la storia, la cultura e la memoria di coloro che hanno abitato ad Umbertide (Pg) per contribuire alla costruzione di una identità culturale comune nel rispetto dei principi Costituzionali. Questa divulgazione è e resterà senza sc HISTORY AND MEMORY UMBERTIDE Virtual place of memory and identity in motion Who we are We are a group of history lovers and scholars who want to create a space for the transmission of documents, memories and traditions of our city. The aim is the development of a shared identity that is inclusive of those who lived and those who live in Umbertide. The cultural and economic aspects, together with the Second World War, over time they have shaped the city, with its architectural elements and its spaces, but also the rural territory which for centuries has maintained its characteristic of scattered "settlement" and polyculture. For about 70 years, the scenario has been rapidly evolving. We are convinced that knowing the past, or who we were, will help understand how the life of the population will be structured, that is who we will be. Knowing allows you to have "new eyes" to see ... and think. Scopri le nostre pagine dinamiche Ogni pagina è un percorso, un grande contenitore dinamico, anche con decide di approfondimenti, sempre in possibile crescita perché la ricerca non deve avere una fine. Ogni pagina è un piccolo "sito" specifico all'interno di "Umbertidestoria". Pagine strutturate in modo da facilitare la navigabilità e quindi la fruizione. La Fratta di Carta Prima della progressiva standardizzazione della cartografia tra '700 ed '800 si sono prodotte rappresentazioni del territorio e di città mosse da diverse esigenze... Montecorona Sabbianiani Estratti a cura di Giuliano Sabbiniani sulla storia, vita e produzione della Tenuta di Montecorona dal suo libro “Montecorona – la Tenuta e la sua gente”, Gruppo editoriale locale, Digital Editor srl, Umbertide - 2021"... Memoria e Tradizioni La sezione delle nostre tradizioni e della memoria da preservare, curata da Sergio Magrini Alunno... Video di Storia e Territorio Raccolta di pagine con video si luoghi storici architettonici e particolari fonti storiche della storia e del territorio di Umbertide... Ricordi umbertidesi Nuova pagina del sito nella quale intendiamo dare spazio a tutti coloro che vorranno condividere con noi i loro ricordi e i personaggi caratteristici nella Umbertide di una volta anche con documenti e foto d’epoca... Fratta del Quattrocento Prima pagina dinamica che raccoglie i vari aspetti del sito su uno specifico periodo storico: il XV secolo dell'antica Fratta... Approfondisci la "memoria" ad ottanta anni di distanza dal bombardamento del 1944... Visita "OTTANTANNI" la sezione dedicata al progetto con UNITRE di Umbertide, IL CENTRO SOCIO-CULTURALE S. FRANCESCO con il Patrocinio del COMUNE DI UMBERTIDE. OTTANTANNI Il 1944 In costruzione.. In questa sezione il progetto "Ottantani" per il ricordo della tragedia che colpì la nostra città il 25 aprile 1944. Tragedia che si lega in modo più vasto al territorio dell'alta Umbria per il periodo del passaggio del fronte nel 1944. Progetto a cura di Mario Tosti, Unitre di Umbertide, il Centro Culturale San Francesco, con il Patrocinio del Comune di Umbertide. Con la Collaborazione di Corrado Baldoni, Mario Bani, Serio Bargelli, Sergio Magrini Alunno, Massimo Pascolini, Antonio Renzini, Luca Silvioni, Pietro Taverniti, Romano Viti. Gennaio In costruzione... Aprile In costruzione... Luglio In costruzione... Ottobre In costruzione... Febbraio In costruzione... Maggio In costruzione... Agosto In costruzione... Novembre In costruzione... Marzo In costruzione... Giugno In costruzione... Settembre In costruzione... Dicembre In costruzione... .... o visita le nostre pagine tematiche di raccordo... ... o scopri le nostre pagine tematiche tradizionali , strutturate come raccordo degli articoli singoli, a volte ancora da sistemare, da dove puoi accedere a specifici approfondimenti.. Nel tempo sostituiremo le pagine tradizionali con quelle dinamiche... "work in progress"! STORIA vai alla pagina STORIA PER TEMI vai alla pagina MEMORIA vai alla pagina TRADIZIONI vai alla pagina ARRIVI E PARTENZE vai alla pagina CALENDARI vai alla pagina TESI DI LAUREA vai alla pagina ALBUM vai alla pagina The information from the birth of the first residential agglomerations to the first archive news, The rapid time of political changes from the Middle Ages to the history of the twentieth century, the architectural remains, our monuments and works of art, the slow pace of changes in the territory that have come to define our landscape, the structuring of traditions, family memory ... all this defines the identity of a place and of the people who live there. Please help us to remember by sending photos (with date and place if possible), reporting errors on our texts, suggesting improvements or writing your memoirs, possibly with historical and contemporary sources, to build a vision of our future. Those who choose to send us images can choose to do overwrite, with the "water mark" technique, your "name and surname" or "family archive ..." on your photos, this to prevent the images from being used once on the web beyond the cultural purposes that we aim. For the same reason we have applied the " umbertidestoria " watermark over the historical photos of Umbertide which have been on the web for some time and in various private archives; in this way we try to avoid that further disclosure on our part favors purposes that are not consonant with our intentions. We come out publicly with parts that are incomplete and to be improved. Ours is an ongoing project that needed to be shared in order to grow. For now, thank you ... Adil, Adriano, Alberto, Alessandro, Alessandro C., Andrea Levi, Anna, Anna Maria, Brunella, Diego, Dritan, Fabio, Federico, Francesco, Giovanna, Giovanni, Giulio, Imperia, Isotta, Mario, Miriam, Loredana, Kalida, Paola, Silvia, Simona, Tiziana, Valentina RV, Valentina P. and all those who have sent us photos or supported. Help us remember umbertidestoria@gmail.com EH Carr "Change is certain. Progress is not " The information from the birth of the first residential agglomerations to the first archive news, The rapid time of political changes from the Middle Ages to the history of the twentieth century, the architectural remains, our monuments and works of art, the slow pace of changes in the territory that have come to define our landscape, the structuring of traditions, family memory ... all this defines the identity of a place and of the people who live there. Please help us to remember by sending photos (with date and place if possible), reporting errors on our texts, suggesting improvements or writing your memoirs, possibly with historical and contemporary sources, to build a vision of our future. Those who choose to send us images can choose to do overwrite, with the "water mark" technique, your "name and surname" or "family archive ..." on your photos, this to prevent the images from being used once on the web beyond the cultural purposes that we aim. For the same reason we have applied the " umbertidestoria " watermark over the historical photos of Umbertide which have been on the web for some time and in various private archives; in this way we try to avoid that further disclosure on our part favors purposes that are not consonant with our intentions. We come out publicly with parts that are incomplete and to be improved. Ours is an ongoing project that needed to be shared in order to grow. For now, thank you ... Adil, Adriano, Alberto, Alessandro, Alessandro C., Andrea Levi, Anna, Anna Maria, Brunella, Diego, Dritan, Fabio, Federico, Francesco, Giovanna, Giovanni, Giulio, Imperia, Isotta, Mario, Miriam, Loredana, Kalida, Paola, Silvia, Simona, Tiziana, Valentina RV, Valentina P. and all those who have sent us photos or supported. Who we are We are a group of history lovers and scholars who want to create a space for the transmission of documents, memories and traditions of our city. The aim is the development of a shared identity that is inclusive of those who lived and those who live in Umbertide. The cultural and economic aspects, together with the Second World War, over time they have shaped the city, with its architectural elements and its spaces, but also the rural territory which for centuries has maintained its characteristic of scattered "settlement" and polyculture. For about 70 years, the scenario has been rapidly evolving. We are convinced that knowing the past, or who we were, will help understand how the life of the population will be structured, that is who we will be. Knowing allows you to have "new eyes" to see ... and think. 2019 | the "Collegiate" - S. Maria della Regghia About 1920 | the fourteenth-century fortress and the market The Abbey of Montecorona during the flood of the Tiber in 2005. By clicking here you can to download the photo in original resolution. For a study of the extent of the flood in Umbria you can see the IRPI report here ( Authority of Basin of the River Tiber).

THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY FRATTA curated by Fabio Mariotti Life in Fratta In the land of Fratta the seventeenth century, with the exception of the "War of the Grand Duke" (1643-44) (1), was a century of peace that flowed between the usual difficulties and the numerous religious events (feasts, processions, etc.). ). The life of the Frattegiani was hard from birth: the "archoglitrici", also called mammane, did not attend special courses to carry out their work and had to rely on the only practice they could have. It was probably one of the components of the high infant mortality, especially that of the first day which - consulting the parish archives - was five percent. The percentage remained high even in the first year of life, if we look at a statistic of the decade 1661-1670 relating to the parish of Sant'Erasmo. During this period, 166 people died here (about 17 per year) and of these 45, that is 27 per cent, within the first year of life. In the same decade, as many as 88 people (53 percent) died before their tenth birthday. More males than females were born and the trend will continue until the second half of the nineteenth century, when the reverse trend will begin. Women had an average life span of two years and two months longer than that of men which was 25 years. There were many, as has been said, the chances of dying on the first day: the "archglers", even if experienced, lacked any notion of hygiene, just as they lacked the indispensable and prompt medical care to be done in the first minutes after giving birth in case of difficulty. Since there was a danger of death, it was the mother who baptized the child. The names with which the people were baptized were three (they could also be four or five, the nobles or the wealthiest families also gave eight or nine). When there were many, three were always those of the Magi: Belshazzar, Gaspar and Melchior. People often did not know their date of birth. Following the provisions of the Council of Trent, publications began to be made of weddings. The bride's dowry was linked to the actual consummation of the marriage and failing that it had to be returned. An attempt was made to leave the patrimony to the males and in particular to the elder. The head of the family excluded in time as many daughters as he could, allocating them as children to a future monastic life. These, growing up, they were kept at home, far from the social life, even if it was restricted at the time, so that the separation from the family and the entry into the monastery were less heavy. Here is a reason for the growth of the various female convents too in Fratta where, in 1604, the construction of the monastery of Santa began Maria Nuova (at the end of the Piaggiola going down on the left, where it was the mechanic Remo). The Petrogalli family. rich landowners of Fratta with manor house along the Tiber, in 1610 it was made up of two brothers, Marcello and Cristoforo, who they had two daughters each to take care of. They solved the problem by sending one in a monastery in Perugia, while two others made them enter the monastery of Santa Maria Nuova di Fratta established a few years ago, giving them as a dowry how much required by the rule, that is, more than four hundred scudi per daughter. This sum it might seem elevated, in fact it was not, as the fourth girl, daughter Marcello, somehow managed to avoid the convent and get married, had to bring two thousand scudi as a dowry, a figure four or five times higher than that paid by his father for his sister and the two most unfortunate cousins. This was also the case for male children, not firstborn. In this period little changed even in the way of dressing. French dresses appeared, whereby the women showed the upper part of the chest from the wide square neckline. The men shortened the dress below the belt and, putting down the long white or colored wool breeches, they adopted short breeches, even if not yet tied to the knee as in the eighteenth century. What did not change was that world of ancient habits, taboos, diabolical presences, various witchcraft, where the witches worked tirelessly making or dissolving "bills" and increasing the fears that were handed down from generation to generation. Hunting was practiced a lot, mostly using hounds and greyhounds. In addition to the "schioppi", the "lepore nets" (ie hare nets) and the "cortinelle", for partridges, were in vogue. The animals with the greatest appetite were “hares, partridges, pheasants, quails, rock partridges, goats and pigs”. The fishing was practiced with the "cannicciaia" (a reed trap, built so that the fish, once in. They could not get out), with the "ice", leaded net tool to stay underwater, or with the “Tramaglio”, long trawl net. This means of fishing, to which weights were applied to immerse it and corks to keep the upper part at the surface of the water, crossed the first half of the twentieth century and remained almost unchanged. Among the games, an inventory from 1662 mentions "a shape for making balls". They were terracotta balls with which children always have played, also using them in Umbertide until the Fifties (of the twentieth century) before the advent of colored glass balls. The "Goose Game" was also very popular, a table pastime like today's bingo, embodied in a large billboard where 63 cartoons were drawn, progressively numbered. More people could participate using a die that was used to proceed forward, with the prospect of encountering penalizing stations. Note: 1. The complete account of the "War of the Grand Duke" it can be found on this site, in the History Section Drawing by Adriano Bottaccioli Photo Tiber by Fabio Mariotti Greyhound photo (Wikipedia) Sources: - History of Umbertide - Vol. V - Sec - XVII - Renato Codovini - Unpublished manuscript - Calendar of Umbertide 2002 - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2002 Il Boccaiolo (Drawing by Adriano Bottaccioli) The Tiber just before the old snaps An ancient game of the goose La ceramica Martinelli - l'agricoltura, i vocaboli e gli animali del podere La vita in Fratta Le botteghe artigiane e il commercio Scuola, musica e teatro, alberghi L'abbigliamento e le abitazioni Il servizio postale, la viabilità e la sanità La rovinosa piena del Tevere del 1610 Le mura che circondano il castello di Fratta L'Abbondanza di Fratta Le fornaci, l'edilizia, la caccia e la pesca La guerra del Granduca di Toscana La nuova cupola della Collegiata e la chiesa di Santa Croce La storia della chiesa di Santa Croce La vita in Fratta The artisan shops and trade The potters The processing of terracotta pots, as well as of pans, warmers, jars, scine and more, useful for everyday family life, was very popular in the 17th century Fratta. It was an activity that came from afar, together with that of building bricks that brought a certain well-being to our society. That the manufacture of vases was relevant is confirmed by the Frattegiano Costantino Magi who, in his manuscript on the History of Fratta (1725), tells us: "The artisan activities of Fratta are mainly around iron and earth, which works with a lot of artifice . Its potters offer Italy very fine majolica of various kinds, that is white, black, stained, the white and the branded ones are very vague. The black women, adorned with arabesques and gold leaf and figures with vivid colors, are so beautiful that they also make a noble ornament for the beliefs of the great ". The processing of the vases took place in the Upper Town and in the market square (Mercatale di Sant'Erasmo). Another historian who dealt with the subject was the engineer Vincenzo Funghini who in his work Historical notes and observations on ancient Italian majolica (1889) makes it known that a large part of the potter production of Fratta was worked "by scratch" (also called "graffito "or" stick "), made on the engobe. It was superior to that of Città di Castello, known as "alla Castellana". Also in this city they worked "by scratching" (Funghini always says) but with a few simple shades of green or yellow, while the production of Fratta was richer in color and decorations. The factories and shops of the potters stood in the Mercatale di Sant 'Erasmo (today's Piazza Marconi). The origin dates back to the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, when they were built outside the castle walls because evidently there was no longer room in the small and winding via "degli Scodellari", inside the castle. An area close to the Old Castle, it was easy and comfortable to go to work, but there was also a ready possibility of taking refuge within the walls in case of imminent danger of war or raids by criminals. In the year 1643 factories and shops were deliberately destroyed by the soldiers of the garrison due to the war of the Grand Duke of Tuscany and no trace of them remains because the houses that now exist in that square and in the adjacent street were then built on their rubble. The factories and shops were then rebuilt a little further north, still on the road to Montone, in the area between the mill and the church of the observant Franciscans. In this area there was also the Martinelli vase factory, the only family of artisans of which we have any memory. The shape of the Fratta plates was the same as that of Deruta, Pesaro, Urbino, the "Durantini" (from the city of Castel Durante, later Urbania). They were different in the paint. What covered the factories of Fratta was not "enamel", but simple "showcase", that is, lead and silica based paint, translucent, or indeed half majolica. The mold-form used it was made of plaster, an imitation of the "burrine" of Deruta and of the "durantine", which gave a plate with a very wide rim, covered with friezes, leaves and other ornaments. The cups were very deep, mostly small, and barely had a border embryo. This also applies to the cups, placed on a base foot, larger and often equipped with handles. The vases were fashioned according to the whim of the artist, at a time when the taste for fine arts had penetrated all places, even the humblest and even minor artists knew how to give their products a very pleasant aspect. In the "scratch" work the piece, in red earth, naturally dried in the open air, was subjected to a light fire that gave it a certain consistency, preventing it from disintegrating when immersed in the liquid that formed the engobe. In the first half of the seventeenth century this liquid was made up of earth from Vicenza and burnt tartar or white earth taken from other areas (white majolica was also produced in Fratta). Instead of tartar, it was sometimes possible to use the dregs of the grapes, also burned, from which the white part was then taken. These components, well ground and mixed with water, were brought to a certain density, as is done with enamel. The jar was immersed in the liquid and placed again on a light fire so that it dried quickly, even if it was always kept raw. Taken out of the oven, the object was covered with transparent varnish so that the decoration was white, on the original red background. From the second half of the seventeenth century the engobbing is obtained with a lighter earth, tending to pale yellow or straw yellow, as can be found in many works by Palaia, Castelfiorentino, Castelli dell'Abruzzo. The Fratta vases appear especially with this color, to be attributed to the absence of the white earth of Vicenza or Valenza or other localities and the use of the yellowish earth of Trequanda, a locality in the province of Siena, later used for all the dozen of the following century. Scratching was not the only method used in the factories of Fratta; some pieces had a real painting on the white or yellowish earth of the engobe in order to form a new modality that is placed between the engobe decoration and that of the half majolica. The colors were light blue, obtained through the use of saffron combined with white, green with very diluted copper-green, red and yellow. The decorations used in our factories were different from each other: the edges of the plate usually painted peacock feathers, flowers, wreaths of leaves; in the center instead birds, plants, heraldic coats of arms or shields, figures, chimeras, grotesques and sometimes sacred subjects, cherubs, cupids, rarely found, all scratched and very colored. The Smiths Florentine art in Fratta, all historians talk about it. Our blacksmiths bought iron in Foligno (in 1646 to make it the circle of the dome of the church of Santa Maria della Reggia), but also in Senigallia and were able to forge many of the articles of common use: nails, hammers, files, boilers, pots , pans, basins, which they then sold in their laboratory. The same goes for lead, which came from Gubbio or Rome, which they then worked on, transforming it into objects for the home or for other craftsmen. Brass wire, which they bought in Perugia, is also widely used, mainly to garnish their works. They were adept at casting metals for small utility items. In such cases they had forms that they made themselves from time to time, filled with a special very fine and compressed earth, into which they poured the molten metal, obtaining objects that they then sold in their own shops. The art of blacksmiths was the greatest practiced in Fratta, a lot to make it renowned throughout the territory of the Roman state. The annals of the city of Perugia recall the construction of the gate for the fountain in the Piazza Maggiore made by the blacksmiths of Fratta. From 1647 to 1667 there are numerous contracts concerning the production of sickles to harvest wheat and its sale in Rome. The first, from the year 1647, says that some blacksmiths from Fratta met in society, they undertake to build in a year and then to sell 14,000 (fourteen thousand!) Scythes of various types. Other element remarkable we find it in a clause for which the same contract may undergo changes if they are brought to the square in Rome, at the same time, other batches of scythes for reaping, produced in other cities or in Fratta. This means that, in addition to that group, they also existed in Fratta other companies, capable of such production and related trade in the city of Rome. Another peculiarity: it is the blacksmiths of Fratta who establish the selling price of their products, which the wholesalers buyers of that cities contractually undertake to practice. It is a very strange clause: in fact today the seller practices the price he wants, to the producer it only interests to be paid, on time. We find a new interesting contract for the sale of scythes in 1667: one of the parti is a woman who works in the commercial field of Fratta. It is Camilla Mazzoni, wife of Annibale Burelli, and supplies "steel" to some blacksmiths from whom he then buys the sickles that they will produce during the year. "On the one hand, Donna Camilla Mazzoni ... from Fratta, on the other hand ... master Angelo and Mastro Cristoforo promise and agree to make scythes large wheat for use in the countryside of Rome number four thousand, e small sickles likewise for wheat, called campagnole numero dui milia ... ". As can be seen from other writings, Mrs. Burelli is favored in this work by her husband who rents the Sant'Erasmo mill. located outside today's gate. This mill had mechanisms and wheels for the grinding of the scythes, which moved with the water of the Tiber channeled up to there: in short, it is easy for Mrs. Mazzoni to undertake commercial business with the blacksmiths of Fratta. This document also proves that there were several artisans who produced scythes by the thousands for the Roman market. They had to be ready in May and, immediately after grinding, were delivered to carters who, with four-wheeled carts, they took them to Rome. There is a document in the archive: it dates back to 1666, it was released to a carter from Fratta who had to transport sickles to Rome, via Foligno. The carrier is called Antonio del Cuoghi, he carries eight hundred sickles weighing three thousand pounds, manufactured in Fratta "with acciari bought by Girolamo Francesconi in Sinigaglia from Rafaele Matrici". The shops Since the beginning of the century we have found in Fratta a fair number of shops of various kinds which together develop a certain amount of commercial work, such as to be one of the cornerstones of the town's economy. All had the common feature in the great promiscuity of the articles. The "aromataria" shop, which should have had, according to the name, spices (aromas) and medicines, instead also sold wax, nails, tin, glass. There was no specialization in some articles, as it will begin to do towards the end of the nineteenth century, but a considerable confusion of goods placed in a great disorder. Of modest cubage, they were dark and multi-odorant. The only exception to the promiscuity of the genres was the shop of the "slaughterer" (butcher), which contained only meat. They were displayed en masse on the walls, in large and small pieces hooked to hooks. The following did not end at the door, it also continued outside, on the public road, along with cured meats and sausage necklaces. The "butchers" did not use paper to wrap the meat, they put it in a venco and the customer, if he really did not have a "door", took it away dangling at his hips. The bread shop did not have regular sales as the bread came from the baker in his own oven. The fact remains that it was sold elsewhere, ending up in glass, nails, paints and "codfish". Shops and owners - Pellicciari Adriano : in 1600 it had an "aroma", in 1603 it passed to its heirs - Pellicciari Gapocho Pietro : from 1605 to 1615 he sold yarns, silk and various other kinds - Tommaso Pellicciari : in 1603 he sells foil - Giovan Francesco : in 1601 it has an "aroma", in 1610 it is "spetiale" - Wedges : in 1603 he was a haberdasher. It is also called "il pettenaro", that is, a seller of combs - Cecco D'Angiolo : in 1605 he was a merchant - Stella Anton Maria : in 1609 he sells canvas - Saints : in 1612 it is merciaro - Garognoli Fabritio : in 1606 it is "spetiale"; in 1607 he sells wax; in 1609, wax and fàcole; in 1611 he has an "aromatherapy" and in 1630 he sells "robbe for the sick" and other things - Bernardine food : in 1612 he sells bread - Burelli Ruggero : in 1601 it has an "aromateria" located in "strata regal", that is the via Diritta (today via Cibo). This is located under the house of Orfeo Burelli. In 1603 it has an "aromatic apotheque", in 1607 it is "spetiale" and this is until 1619 - Burelli Pompeo : in 1605 he sells wax, ropes, facets, aguti (large nails) and "other robbe"; in 1609, medicaments. Pompeo has an "apoteca" located in "strata regal" (now via Cibo), bordered by Ruggero Burelli and on the back with the "fence" of the community (towards the Tiber). In 1619 Pompeo has the qualification of "spetiale" (he sells spices and medicines, but also agutes, wax, ropes, facets and more) - Burelli Scipione : in 1613 (up to 1648) he sells wax, medicines, torches, little faces and "ghost stuff" for the hospital of Santa Croce. Also sells priest's hats. In 1614 he gave medicine to a poor sick woman. In 1621a workshop still exists in his name, probably run by a son - Tartagli Erasimo : in 1623 he sells wax - Pellicciari Giovan Paolo : in 1633 it was "special". Sells "giulebbe, sugar, rosé oil, termentina, bread" - Bottari Giulio Cesare : in 1637 he sells haberdashery - Check Alfonso : in 1611 he has a haberdashery shop - Stella Cosimo : in 1654 he sells salt - Lazzari Agostino : in 1638 he has a food shop - Forani Giuliano : in 1634 (until 1653) he was an apothecary and also sold wax - Francesco Fracassini : in 1641 he sells iron - Erasimi Giovan Battista : in 1654 (until 1664) he was a "grocer". It sells wax, brushes, tinplate, cloth for clothes - Mosè di Leone : in 1656 he sells cloth for "camisci" and also ortichokes. He is probably Jewish - Pharmacy of Montecorona : in 1658 it was transferred from the hermitage to the underlying abbey. - Herculaneum di Bilardino : in 1659 he sells eggs - Massi Francesco : in 1663 he sells wax - Francesco died : in 1666 he sold wax and other "robbe" - Cristiani Ludovico : in 1667 he sells gunpowder - Burelli Filippo : in 1672 (until 1692) he sells facules, medicines, medicaments - Martinelli Vincenzo : in 1683 he sells cloth - Iacomini Antonio : in 1686 he sells gold and remosino - Leoni Samuele : in 1696 he sells church chasubles and more. He is probably Jewish Drawings by Adriano Bottaccioli Sources: - History of Umbertide - Vol. V - Sec XVII - Renato Codovini - Unpublished manuscript - Calendar of Umbertide 2002 - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2002 1996. Aerial view of the center of Umbertide. In the foreground Piazza Marconi (ancient Mercatale di Sant'Erasmo). At the bottom right you can see the old furnace and further up, along the Tiber, the former Draga (Photo Amedeo Massetti) Le botteghe artigiane e il commercio Potters tools (Drawing by Adriano Bottaccioli Drawing by Adriano Bottaccioli The tools of the blacksmiths - Hammers and sickles (Drawings by Adriano Bottaccioli) Ancient shop (Drawings by Adriano Bottaccioli) School, music and theater, hotels The school The school was run by a clergyman who lived in a house in the Borgo Inferiore and was paid both by the brotherhood of Santa Croce and by the community. Located in the same house inhabited by the master, it was next to the hospital of Santa Croce, with the "back" (north) side facing the Reggia stream The subjects were reading, writing and doing the four operations: a course that did not go beyond the current third or fourth grade. A higher level teaching existed in Fratta already in the previous century and in the seventeenth century, even if we have very little news of it. We think this "high school" was attended by very few boys, all from rich families, who had to start an ecclesiastical career and therefore needed a higher education capable of placing them in the high school of Perugia. The brotherhood of Santa Croce owned the headquarters of the school and the house of the teacher and thought of the expenses related to the building, the furnishings and what was needed by the teacher who probably lived alone, almost always came from nearby cities and he remained in Fratta for a few years before being replaced. A document dated 1605 makes it known that citizens who sent their children to school had to pay a certain sum to the municipality. This then gave the teacher a fee, including the dues paid by family members. Payment was made every four months. The monthly income was enough for the teacher for an almost comfortable life. Not paying the rent, taking into account what he received from the municipality and the various brotherhoods, the extra services, the private music school, he collected about sixty / seventy baiocchi a day, while the living expenses were about thirty. In 1604 the master was Don Mariotto Ciarli, from Citerna, who was also commissioned by the Confraternity of San Bernardino to celebrate mass in his own church. He is given ten baiocchi for each "low" mass. In 1606 it is Don Battista Gatti of Castel Durante (Urbania since 1631). The master could also be paid with goods in kind. In 1639 Don Horatio Pulcinelli was the master. In 1644, due to the "War of the Grand Duke", among the many damages suffered by the town, there was also some damage to the public school. The windows of the school and the children's benches had to be redone, although they had been built in 1632. From 1661 to 1669 the teacher was Don Giobelardino, chaplain of Santa Croce, in charge of officiating this church. In 1689 the master was Don Giuseppe Traversini. It will remain until 1694, replaced in 1695 by Don Pietro Paolo Vincenti, from Nocera. Music and theater From the books of the brotherhoods we know that these lay societies of Fratta had their own chaplain (he could serve several brotherhoods at the same time), who also performed the functions of chapel master. This person was in charge of the musical part of the various religious offices when there was the obligation to make music and, together with him, there was the group of his students. In a recording dated May 1669, the Confraternity of Santa Croce paid a certain sum to Don Giambattista Fuli, archpriest of San Giovanni, to reimburse him for the expenses incurred in the purchase of "some music books for the service of some young men who go to learn and come to honor our church on all occasions ". There was therefore a musical activity which, in addition to the choirmaster, also involved some young people who went to learn. That is, there was a real school, suitable for forming a certain musical education. As regards the theatrical activity, we have the first news in the years 1614 and 1615. They concern the second constitution (a first - we know from the deed - in fact took place at the beginning of the century) in Fratta of an academy called, according to the ways in use at that time, of the "Inestables" and that, among various events, we will see reaching up to the twentieth century. Between the end of the sixteenth century and the first half of the seventeenth century associations of people who feel the need to make theater are formed in the various states of Italy. They had a first generic name (Academy, Congregation) followed by a more qualifying term, in a deliberately humorous sense (Sbalzati, Insensati, Illuminati). Those who were part of it were mostly educated people, professionals and writers, but also landowners and representatives of the town's commercial world, all united by the desire to tread the stage. They knew they were an avant-garde and were surrounded by a large majority of uneducated people, with great limitations on the art of theater. Each member had to choose a nickname, also somewhat humorous (the "Stracco", the "Fool", etc.), recorded in the books, used to call each other when they were there. The leader was "the prince", a name that later became "president". In our Fratta we wanted to follow the fashion of the time and the theatrical association was called "Congregation of the Unstable", that is of the Unstable, as if it were made up of people who in the way of acting, speaking, thinking, were not "stable", firm, decided. Instead, they were educated people, they knew what they wanted, they came from well-known families in the village, united by the desire to do theater, even if more for themselves than for any audience. We have two notarial deeds of the constitution: one of February 1614, one of March 1615. This association was transformed, towards the middle of the eighteenth century, into the Accademia dei Signori Riuniti and so much will be established in the following centuries to become our current Accademia dei Riuniti. In the deed of incorporation of 1614 appear Scipione Burelli, Paolo Cibo, Mutio Flori, Pietro Giovanni Martinelli, Pietro Magi, Paolo Spunta, Angelo Francesconi and Cristiano Christiani, all from Fratta. Every year, on the first Sunday of Lent, they had to meet to appoint the head of the Congragation (the "Prencipe"), the one who had obtained the most votes. A "Viceprencipe", a "Councilor", a "Secretary" and a "Depositary" were also elected. The offices assigned could not be refused once the election has taken place, under penalty of payment of a sum of money. The "Prencipe" had great authority over the other offices and over all the members of the Congregation, who taxed themselves the established sum on the occasion of comedies and performances "both spiritual and profane". It was also forbidden to enter the rehearsal room before the comedy was recited, while the actors were obliged not to refuse the part assigned by the "Prencipe". Anyone who did it was required to pay all the expenses incurred for the staging of the show. Accounting was done every month and any receipts were given to the "Depositary". A year later, on Saturday 7 March 1615, there was another meeting of the partners at the notary. They are always the same people: it is "Prencipe" Mutio Flori and they want to admit three new members to the Congregation, considered worthy of being part of it: Francesco Maria Soli, Alessandro Bartolelli and Giulio Santi. The hotels The "hospitji" were, in the broadest sense of the word, places of shelter and lodging for travelers. There were some within the town and in the surrounding villages, but also along the main transit routes between villages. The hospices of the cities had only the function of receptivity that today we define hotel; those in the open country always combined other and different activities more or less inherent to the traffic on those roads. Given the dangerousness of the times and the concentration of the population in cities, towns, villas and castles (closed and protected places), the countryside was sparsely inhabited and there were very few houses between the cities, so you had to travel many miles before meeting the safety of four walls. This state of affairs, in addition to causing problems for the wayfarer, also created problems for those who decided to manage a hospice in an unprotected place (e.g. Pier Antonio's tavern, close to the church and parish house of San Paterniano. , today's Pierantonio), facing a certain underworld that infested the streets of Italy. Given the danger of social life, these taverns-inns could only be considered safe places in the immediate vicinity of a strong house or a military post. An example, the osteria di Galera, on the border of Fratta, where Perugia had built a strong house (still visible even if very dilapidated) manned by its own soldiers. Since it was very dangerous to keep a hospice in the open countryside and in an unsecured place, only the economic advantage pushed the managers, who were looking for more activities to provide them with the necessary income. In fact, in the country hospices there was an inn, for food; the accommodation (inn); a fairly capable stable, because everyone used the horse to move around; the coach house (the four-wheeled wagons remained outdoors); the seat for the diligence, the "postal courses", a duty to which the managers could not escape and which included, in addition to the scheduled service, also the stop and change of the horse for private couriers; temporary residence and accommodation for public security guards (cops), a compulsory service even if paid; the managers also had to give hospitality to the poorest travelers, or even the sick ones, although it was potentially uneconomical. In Fratta there was a hospice in the Borgo Superiore, owned by the abbey of San Salvatore di Monte Acuto (Montecorona). It was located near today's Piazza Marconi. There was also one in the lower village "in loco ditto le fabrecce" (piazza San Francesco), called "hospice of the bell". In 1601 we have the first news of the existence of the Osteria della Corona, also known as the hospice of the Crown. It is located in the place called "le fabrecce" (Borgo Inferiore, precisely, piazza San Francesco, seat of many blacksmith shops). It is owned by Count Ranieri di Civitella. He rented it in 1611 to Antonio del fu Mariano Savelli for fifteen years. The tavern was at the beginning of the square "in front of the public street and behind the Tiber" (roughly where the mechanic Edilio Belia is now). The Savelli family was then one of the richest in the country: Antonio hired Francesco Mori, known as San Marco, to run the tavern. In 1626, the host of the Crown was Jacomo Mori, son of Francesco. A Pierantonio, Pier Antonio's innkeeper, in 1637, is a certain Baldino. In Montalto, host in 1637, he is a Warrior. He works near the Tiber, under the Montalto hill, along the road that leads from Fratta to the villa del Niccone. Photo by Fabio Mariotti (Historical photographic archive of the Municipality of Umbertide) Drawings by Adriano Bottaccioli Sources: - History of Umbertide - Vol. V - Sec XVII - Renato Codovini - Unpublished manuscript - Calendar of Umbertide 2002 - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2002 Scuola, musica e teatro, alberghi Interior of the church of San Bernardino Drawings by Bottaccioli Drawings by Adriano Bottaccioli 1929. Montalto castle from behind Drawing by Adriano Bottaccioli Clothing and housing The clothes The Sumptuary Laws (1) forbade wearing clothes with precious ornaments and embroidery and Cardinal Bevilacqua issued a ban, in 1600, to rigorously remember these provisions and impose severe penalties against offenders, who must have been many. Among the types of fabric used we find the "hemp steel", with which table blankets and even socks were made; the "linen steel"; The "amuer", a fabric used to make church hangings and pillows, cost four paoli the arm; the "bambage", used for children's clothes, bed pavilions, bed blankets, women's and baby socks; the "brocade", used for church wallpapers and chasubles, church and hall pillows, dresses for women; the "cambellotto", a fabric made of camel hair for women's dresses, sleeves, dryers and busts; the "cambraia", coming from the city of Cambrai in France; the "camorrino", cloth fabric, gave its name to an item of clothing; the "damasco", originally from the city of Damascus, with complex weaving and design; 1 "'ermesino", came from the city of Ermuz in Persia, used for pillows and bed covers, robes, church chasubles, room pillows; the "filo in dente", hemp or linen fabric that was also made on Fratta looms (sometimes we find "filo un dente", which makes us think of the number of teeth on the loom comb used in making it); the "mezzolano", very resistant, made of hemp and wool, warm, usually used for work clothes, with which women clothes were also sewn, mostly in yellow, green and gray colors (they worked in plain colors or even striped, times mixed with silk). Then there was the "twill", made of light wool, barbed, made with the "twill", that is the armor that gave the fabric the herringbone weft. There was silk for the more expensive garments, as well as accessories. Finally, there was the "sgarza", with which the cheap chairs and the "wheelies" of the windows were dressed (in the latter case it could be treated with oil to resist water). The velvet was used for garments, then finished in gold. The fabrics came from Bergamo, Brabant (Netherlands), Brescia, Cambrai (France), Camerino, Cyprus, Città di Castello, Damascus, Perpignan (France), Ermuz, Flanders (Netherlands), Mossul (Middle East), Pergola, Perugia, Turin, Verona. The rich dress, for women, had a square neckline, with lace, pearl necklace and short sleeves. The bust covered the upper part of the waist and was usually an outer garment. Men's breeches could have slings with cuts; shirts, lace at the cuffs and neck. The "Camorra" was a cloth dress, for men and women. It could have been twill and lace. In the men's type it was long to the feet and open at the front, with a long row of buttons. The "ferrajolo" was a men's garment, wool, black or brown, long, possibly with a jerkin. The cloak, on the other hand, was typically feminine. The "manighe" were widely used because they saved the expense of an entire garment. In fact, the sleeves were used but not the relative shirts. They are mentioned in many inventories of the 17th and 18th centuries. The "sciugatoro" was a rectangular, fairly well finished garment for the shoulders. However, it also had other uses: bringing babies to baptism or other occasions. If, for example, a heavy object had to be loaded on the head, a "cercina" (twisted cloth) was placed between the "dryer" and the basket. The "zàzara" was the mop, that is, a wig. It could have been real hair or made with hemp. Note: 1. Sumptuary laws were legislative devices designed to regulate the ostentation of luxury by social class, sex, economic, religious or political status. Known in Italy since Roman times, these rules took on prominence from the thirteenth century, with the expansion of commercial exchanges and the birth of new needs and related symbols of wealth. More and more are those who can show off precious clothes and ornaments, with the risk of undermining the barriers between social groups and entering into conflict with the morality invoked by the Church. Despite their severity, the sumptuary laws proved to be of little effect and at the end of the 18th century they were almost totally transgressed. Homes Each house in the village is a block of its own, the height being the pre-eminent size (usually ground floor plus three floors). After the height comes the depth and the width on the street front which is the smallest dimension. Each block is not joined to the neighbor by a common wall, between one and the other there is a void, a cavity, it is not visible from the outside as the wall is continuous on the street front for reasons of public safety , hygiene and aesthetics. Features: First type - house for a family of medium economic status A single owner lives there with his family. It therefore has an entrance for its own use and stairs with a single flight, unidirectional, broken up floor by floor. On the ground floor there is usually a shop (but there may also be a "cellarer" or a "stable"). It has the door on the main street and when the house is divided in two another door opens on the opposite street. From the entrance you go up to the first floor and the first step is less than a meter from the door. Under the first flight of stairs there is always a basement used as a storage room. On the upper floors the surface is the same, but a diversification can be found in the use of the staircase: someone has one or two passage rooms; others have a corridor that eliminates the inconvenience of passing through the rooms. See the house located in via Leopoldo Grilli, at n. 11. Second type - house inhabited by poor families When houses were built for which the rent would be minimal, they tried to eliminate some expenses, of which the largest was that of the stairs. So only one ramp was built, unidirectional and continuous. Starting from the external door, on the ground, it went directly up to the third floor, with a broken uniqueness, on the various floors, by a landing. For greater savings, the space between the two blocks, that is, the interspace, was used when building it. This resulted in a rigid staircase with high steps. On the landings there was also the entrance, to the right and to the left, of two small apartments per floor. Examples can be seen in today's via Alberti, at numbers 24 and 26. The rooms on the ground floor were vaulted. Inside the castle walls there were houses of the outlined typology that constituted a harmonious whole well inserted in the architectural complex of the town. There were, however, also small living spaces, irregularly shaped houses with a very narrow double flight staircase, sometimes joined to a spiral staircase. There were also, albeit in small numbers, in the external villages (Borgo di Sopra and Borgo di Sotto), buildings that echoed the country building that had been affirming itself in the middle of the previous century (in the sixteenth century), the peasant house with the external staircase. One of these is still visible, inhabited, at the north end of the Boccaiolo. Another type of construction present in Fratta is the stately home It had an entrance door used only by the owner and family, a staircase to double ramp quite wide, built on a barrel vault, many rooms at each floor and the servants' apartment on the top floor. None of these were built with door and internal courtyard to allow entry and maneuvering for carriages on horses, as in the nearby Città di Castello and Gubbio. Drawings by Adriano Bottaccioli Sources: - History of Umbertide - Vol. V - Sec XVII - Renato Codovini - Unpublished manuscript - Calendar of Umbertide 2002 - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2002 L'abbigliamento e le abitazioni Drawings by Adriano Bottaccioli Houses in the Trocascio square (Drawings by Adriano Bottaccioli) Last cover page of the Calendar of Umbertide 2002 realized by Adriano Bottaccioli Il servizio postale, la viabilità e la sanità Le poste Nel Seicento Fratta era già dotata di un servizio postale. Non essendoci ancora i francobolli, le lettere venivano tassate al loro arrivo, pagate da colui al quale erano dirette. Il costo variava a seconda della distanza. Una lettera da Roma, ad esempio, pagava molto di più di una da Perugia. Era chiamata "piego": non esistendo le buste, si piegava nei lati destro e sinistro, poi quello inferiore e superiore, come si fa oggi con i telegrammi. Il postiglione veniva pagato anche dalla comunità di Fratta. Il ricevitore e dispensiere della posta (chiamato anche il "custode delle lettere") era responsabile e gestore dell'ufficio postale. Era impiegato unico, doveva fare tutto: riceveva lettere e plichi da spedire (ricevitore), consegnava le lettere e plichi in arrivo (dispensiere). Nel 1634 tale incarico era affidato a Cosimo Stella che ritroviamo anche nel 1637. Il servizio nello Stato romano era regolato da un bando del cardinale Aldobrandini il quale stabiliva, fra l'altro, che solo i principi e i cardinali potessero avere un servizio di posta proprio. Tutti gli altri dovevano usare il sistema statale ed era loro vietato inviare lettere "a mezzo di propri corrieri o a mezzo di pedoni, mulattieri, carrozzieri, barcaroli, senza licenza espressa e in scriptis del Mastro generale (di posta)". Severe pene per chi contravveniva. Le strade La strada principale che attraversava il nostro territorio percorreva l'alta valle del Tevere, da Borgo San Sepolcro a Fratta. Terminava alla confluenza dei fiumi Niccone e Tevere, alla fine del territorio di Città di Castello. Era una discreta carrabile, come pure il piccolo tratto fra la villa del Niccone e Fratta, spettante alla nostra comunità. Nel punto di passaggio sul Tevere, poco a monte dell'odierna Montecastelli, all'angolo fra la strada e il fiume, c'era una casa-torre di origine militare costruita dalla comunità di Città di Castello nel Quattrocento per proteggere il transito sul fiume, distrutta nel 1980. L'attraversamento avveniva in barca e la strada risaliva l'opposta sponda girando sulla sinistra, su un percorso ancora visibile, passando accanto alla "casa dei fabbri", esistente tuttora. Terminata questa curva, c'era la Parrocchiale di Montecastelli e poi l'ultima casa-torre di sorveglianza nell'odierna località Cioccolanti (ancora esistente), dopo di che la strada si dirigeva alla confluenza per la valle del Niccone e la Toscana (Mercatale). A sud est di Fratta la strada proseguiva verso Perugia, attraverso la pianura, ed era chiamata la "strada del piano" per distinguerla dalla "strada del monte". La "strada del piano" usciva da Fratta da due punti diversi. Uno di periferia, a nord-est dell'abitato e precisamente dal confine con Civitella Ranieri (odierno incrocio bar Italia); si dirigeva lungo il lato nord della pianura toccando le prime colline (il "Macchione") sull'odierno percorso di via Morandi fino alla zona industriale Buzzacchero; si dirigeva quindi verso la casa-torre ancora esistente al vecchio vocabolo Cenerelle. Da qui proseguiva verso quella collinetta per scendere a Pian d'Assino dove c'era il guado del fiume. Si è sempre chiamata via "vicinale". L'altra strada usciva dall'abitato di Fratta attraverso la porta di San Francesco, prendeva il nome di "strada della Caminella" (dall'Ottocento si chiamerà via Secoli) e si dirigeva verso la Madonna del Moro: da qui volgeva un poco a nord per ricongiungersi con la strada vicinale di cui sopra. La risultante, come abbiamo detto, arrivava all'Assino uscendo così dal territorio di Fratta ed entrando in quello del castro di Serra Partucci (e parrocchia di Poggio Manente). Una strada dall'abitato di Fratta si dirigeva verso il castello di Civitella Ranieri: si svolgeva lungo l'odierna via Roma fino alla Pineta Ranieri, scendeva verso il vallone per risalire verso il castello. E' ancora esistente. La strada per l'abbazia di Montecorona iniziava dopo il ponte sul Tevere volgendo a sud (come oggi) e dopo trecento metri c'era il bivio per Romeggio (a lato esiste ancora un antico pozzo). Da qui proseguiva per l'odierna strada che conduce al Palazzo del Sole; dopo centocinquanta metri proseguiva in discesa verso il fosso dei Cardarelli, lo attraversava e risaliva fino alla casa colonica, passando sulla destra (ovest) per poi proseguire verso la chiusa del molino di Casanova, da dove proseguiva con il tracciato odierno. La strada per la Toscana risaliva la valle del Niccone fino a Reschio, poi verso la val di Pierle. Il primo tratto (valle del Niccone) era nel territorio di Città di Castello, il secondo (val di Pierle) in territorio dei marchesi Bourbon del Monte, ramo di Sorbello. Era importante sia dal punto di vista militare, sia da quello economico per i passaggi di merci dalla Toscana al territorio di Urbino. La strada per Città di Castello aveva inizio dal Borgo Superiore di Fratta (zona Sant' Erasmo, Piazza Marconi), si dirigeva ad ovest passando per il Molinello e la Petrella, evitando, così, sia il ponte sul Tevere di Fratta che il passo della barca di Montecastelli (si arrivava a Città di Castello costeggiando la sponda sinistra del Tevere). La strada per Montone, che aveva inizio nel Borgo Superiore di Fratta all'altezza del convento di Santa Maria, proseguiva verso nord con un tracciato leggermente ad ovest dell'odierna strada (verso via P. Burelli, via degli Ostaggi). La salute Vari documenti tramandano i nomi dei medici che svolsero il loro lavoro in Fratta nel Seicento I medici Dall'inizio del secolo, fino al 1644, il dottor Piero Lignani di Città di Castello viene pagato dalla confraternita di Santa Croce. Alternerà il suo incarico, nel corso degli anni, con Jacobo Pachetto, Pier Gentile, Bonaventura Spinetti, Cova, Ascanio Spinetti. Il compenso annuale, all'inizio del secolo e fin verso la metà, è di dieci scudi per il lavoro che svolgeva all'ospedale di Santa Croce. Veniva anche pagato come medico della comunità che gli passava novanta scudi l'anno. Nel 1638 è medico il dottor Agatoni e nel 1640 Alessandro Garognoli. Abita in una casa di proprietà della confraternita di San Bernardino. Nel 1652 è medico Costantino Magi. E' il nonno di quel Costantino Magi che nel 1715 scriverà la "Storia di Fratta Perugina". Nel 1654 abbiamo Pier Matteo Mancini, che veniva da Mercatello, e dopo di lui Gio Tommaso Spoletini. Nel 1663 ritroviamo Costantino Magi. Seguono poi Ascanio e Francesco Spinetti, Carlo Ranni, Innocenzo Fracassini, Alfonso Spunta. Dal 1667 al 1670 esercitano Spoletini e Costantino Magi insieme ad Alessandro Pellicciari. Dal 1680 al 1682 è ancora medico Gio Tommaso Spoletini e poi, alla fine del secolo, Agostino Fracassini, Paolo Santinelli e Giovan Battista Cherubini che nel 1694 visita i malati ricoverati all'ospedale di Santa Croce. Gli vengono pagati settanta baiocchi per ciascuna delle quattordici visite. Oltre ai medici, svolgevano la loro professione anche i cerusici. Erano persone molto capaci ed esperte nel cavare il sangue agli ammalati, aprendo una vena del braccio o applicando le sanguisughe (mignatte). Queste operazioni venivano eseguite anche dai dottori e a volte anche dai barbieri. Persona particolarmente esperta è un certo Lutio, barbiere, spesso chiamato ed anche ben pagato. C'erano poi le ostetriche o arcoglitrici, o mammane, o obstetrici: donna Marsilia del Cerusico, donna Mila di Giovan Battista, ' Faustina Remeri, Margarita de Censi, Giustina Mancinelli, donna Olinda e una tale Giulia. Le malattie Le malattie peggiori, nel secolo, erano la peste, il colera, la febbre di Maremma (malaria) e la lebbra. La peste ed il colera erano ricorrenti, anche se a periodi di 15-20 anni. Infierivano direttamente in paese o si arrestavano ai confini del territorio; qui potevano essere fermate o dagli sbarramenti doganali (poi si chiameranno cordoni sanitari) con sorveglianza continua o per semplice e casuale affievolirsi del male. La febbre di Maremma colpiva coloro che si recavano per lavori stagionali nelle terre dell'alto Lazio e Toscana del sud e molti di essi, tornando in paese, dovevano essere ricoverati perché assaliti da questo male a carattere ricorrente. La lebbra poi colpiva diverse persone e c'era un apposito istituto per ricoverarle, la Casa degli Incurabili, in Castel Nuovo (dalle parti di piazza Marconi). Nel 1630 ci fu la peste a Milano (vedi Manzoni, I Promessi Sposi). Si estese nel 1631 all'Emilia, quindi alla Toscana e il pericolo si avvicinò ai territori di Fratta. Si misero allora i "cancelli" ai luoghi di confine, sorvegliati da militari e sanitari. Il più vicino era nella zona dove termina la val di Pierle ed inizia la valle del Niccone, fra i castelli di Sorbello e di Reschio, al confine con la Toscana. Il 12 dicembre 1632 la peste era già in Toscana. Per passare il confine bisognava avere, oltre al passaporto normale, anche il "passaporto di sanità". Il contagio fu contenuto, ma nel 1643 un'altra ondata invase il territorio perugino. Arrivò in Fratta a novembre. Era il tempo della guerra col Granduca di Toscana e negli ospedali di Fratta, oltre ai soldati feriti, c'erano anche diversi ammalati di peste che, nel febbraio dell'anno dopo (1644), non si era ancora attenuata. "Contagiosa e maligna, con delirio e con copia grande di vermi per la grande putredine propria di detta febbre", colpiva persone di ogni età e sesso. Molti ne morivano e per lo più erano persone che svolgevano attività produttive, come capi di bottega e capi famiglia, in quanto più esposti ai contatti con la gente. Non fu trovato rimedio "se non lo smeraldo preparato e l'applicazione delle mignatte ("i vivificatori") messe immediatamente dopo il quarto giorno dall'inizio del male". A Fratta morirono una trentina di persone, per lo più capi di bottega e di famiglia, benché si fossero ammalati in più di trecento in due mesi ed a marzo morirono ben centocinquanta soldati. La peste tornerà a Città di Castello nel 1656 e nel 1689. Nel 1658 la farmacia dei Padri camaldolesi di Montecorona, situata all'eremo, fu portata a valle, nell'abbazia. L'anno seguente scoppiò ancora un'epidemia di peste, ma Fratta ne rimase indenne e in occasione della Festa della Immacolata Concezione fu fatta una processione di ringraziamento ("per rendimento di gratie per haverci preservato dalla peste"). Gli ospedali All'inizio del XVII secolo nel castello di Fratta non ci sono più gli otto ospedali del secolo precedente (del Cinquecento). Ne sono rimasti soltanto due: nel Borgo Inferiore, a lato della chiesa di Santa Croce, e nel Borgo Superiore, l'ospedale di Sant'Erasmo. Questi ospedali appartenevano alla confraternita di Santa Croce. In uno prestavano l'opera i frati Cappuccini. L’"ospedale de sotto", detto anche "di Santa Croce", seguitò nella sua opera umanitaria fin verso il 1845 quando, in attesa che si costruisse l'ospedale nuovo (1877), fu chiuso e trovò sede in alcuni locali presi in affitto in più case del paese. L'ospedale "de sopra" era quello situato nel Borgo Superiore, nella piazza del mercatale, aderente alla chiesa di Sant'Erasmo. L'edificio è visibile tuttora, disposto in direzione nord-sud ed è costituito dal piano terra e dal primo piano. La sua volumetria ci fa pensare che fosse il maggiore dei due ospedali ed infatti, nel corso della Guerra del Granduca, molti feriti furono trasportati dall'ospedale di Santa Croce a quello di Sant'Erasmo "...per meglio loro salute". In questo ospedale prestavano la loro opera i Frati Zoccolanti di Santa Maria, cioè i Minori Osservanti, che svolgevano la funzione di infermieri. C'era anche un ospedale a Galera, una villa posta alla base di Monte Acuto, al confine con Perugia. Disegni di Adriano Bottaccioli Foto di Mariotti Fabio Fonti: - Storia di Umbertide – Vol. V – Sec - XVII – Renato Codovini – Manoscritto inedito - Calendario di Umbertide 2002 – Ed. Comune di Umbertide - 2002 La rovinosa piena del Tevere del 1610 La violenza dell’acqua distrusse due arcate del ponte sul Tevere che rimase inagibile fino al 1617, anno in cui fu ultimata la ricostruzione Il 1609 ed il 1610 furono anni di grandi e devastanti piogge che ingrossarono la portata del Tevere. Il Bonazzi definisce la piena del 1609 “Immensa”. Alla Fratta fu catastrofica quella del 20 ottobre dell'anno successivo che distrusse un pilone del ponte e fece crollare due arcate. Rimase in piedi solo quella adiacente alle mura castellane. Fu un grosso colpo per tutta l'economia della zona perché si interrompevano i collegamenti con il nord e quelli con la Toscana attraverso la valle del Niccone. Passarono quattro anni prima che iniziasse l'opera di ricostruzione, nonostante le pressioni di Giovan Battista Spoletini, personaggio influente e introdotto presso la corte del Papa Paolo V. I lavori iniziarono nel 1614 ed il progetto di ricostruzione prevedeva la riedificazione del ponte con due arcate soltanto, secondo i piani del progettista G. Rinaldi di Roma, incaricato direttamente dal Papa Paolo V. L'impresa del capo mastro muratore Bernardo Cappelli vinse l'appalto per la somma complessiva di 7.000 scudi che furono addossati per 9/12 alla città di Perugia (scudi 5.250), per 2/12 a Città di Castello (scudi 1.167) e per 1/12 alla Fratta e a Montone nella misura di 2/3 (scudi 389) e 1/3 (scudi 194) rispettivamente. Spoletini fu nominato sovrintendente alla costruzione, che ebbe un inizio disastroso perché il 30 agosto del 1614 un'altra piena del fiume distrusse i lavori già fatti e travolse le impalcature predisposte. Anche allora quando succedevano cose del genere, si mettevano in moto i processi per la ricerca delle responsabilità. Giovan Battista Spoletini fu subito accusato di frode all'amministrazione pontificia per aver permesso alla ditta l'utilizzazione di materiali scadenti e il 15 giugno 1615 fu arrestato. Ottenne la libertà provvisoria versando mille scudi di cauzione e alla fine del processo fu assolto con formula piena e risarcito dei danni subiti. Per certi versi la piena del 30 agosto fu provvidenziale perché costrinse i responsabili della ricostruzione a rivedere interamente il progetto. L’impeto della corrente e la portata del fiume convinsero i tecnici più riottosi che due arcate erano poca cosa per un manufatto del genere e avrebbero lasciato un varco troppo esiguo al deflusso delle acque, con il prevedibile crollo dei piloni inadeguati a sopportare l'impeto delle piene. Fu disegnato di nuovo il progetto con tre arcate, esattamente uguali a quelle crollate nel 1610. Intanto i lavori erano stati bloccati e si rifece una nuova gara d'appalto, che fu vinta dal mastro muratore Ercolano di Civitella per 6.050 scudi. La ricostruzione riprese il 4 settembre 1617, condotta dai mastri muratori Francesco Valentini e Filippo Marinelli sotto la direzione dell'architetto Guido Bettoli e la sovrintendenza di Filippo Fracassini. La cerimonia di inaugurazione e di posa della prima pietra si svolse con un rito solenne, presieduto dal rappresentante del Papa, monsignor Antonio Diaz, Governatore di Perugia, accompagnato dalle più alte Autorità locali. Costantino Magi , nel suo manoscritto, racconta nei particolari lo svolgimento della celebrazione e a lui ci riferiamo per riportare gli elementi essenziali di quel lunedì 4 settembre 1617. La solenne processione partì dalla chiesa di San Francesco dove si era radunata tanta gente non solo della Fratta, ma anche delle località vicine. In testa sfilavano le quattro Confraternite: quella di Sant'Antonio della Morte, con le cappe nere, apriva il corteo; seguiva quella di San Bernardino, o Buon Gesù, con le cappe bianche, e dietro la Compagnia di Santa Croce, con le cappe azzurre; chiudeva la serie delle Confraternite quella del Santissimo Sacramento, con le cappe rosse. Dietro a loro sfilava tutto il clero regolare e secolare tra due cori di Musici e due Trombetti. “Ultimo a tutti questi seguiva il Prelato, accompagnato dal Magistrato e da molte altre persone e della Terra e Forestieri più principali, e poi la frequenza del popolo d'uomini prima e poi di donne e suonando intanto tutte le campane della Fratta con molt'allegrezza, si passò il fiume per un ponte di legno fatto per tale effetto”. Vicino al fondamento era stato eretto un altare con un grande baldacchino ricoperto da drappi di seta rossa. Il Governatore vi prese posto con al fianco due Priori della città di Perugia, nel cui territorio si trovavano le arcate crollate, i quattro difensori della Fratta in abito da cerimonia, e il personale ecclesiastico che assisteva l'alto prelato. Il rito si svolse tra applausi scroscianti uniti agli squilli delle trombe e al rullo dei tamburi, mentre tutte le campane del castello suonavano a distesa. Dall'alto delle torri si fece sentire un nutrito crepitio di artiglieria e ci fu chi pianse di commozione e di gioia. La prima pietra, benedetta e posata da monsignor Antonio Diaz, recava su di un lato una croce ed il nome di Gesù; sull'altro la scritta: “D.O.M. Deipare Virgini Ill.mi Praesidis Antonii Diaz Rom. Episcop. Casert. manibus ad totius reparationis molem fulciendam vimque demolientis amnis derimendam hic primus iniit lapis Pridie nonas Septembris - Anno humanitatis reparatae MDCXVII Pauli V - Pont. Max. - An. XIII”. I due archi crollati furono ricostruiti in mattoni posati sull'originario pilone, ritenuto idoneo a reggere la spinta delle piene. Nei primi giorni di settembre del 1619 il ponte era finito e le due arcate ancora oggi resistono alle sfuriate del Tevere. Nell'agosto 1673, la superficie carrabile “dalla Madonna del Ponte sino alla Porta del suo capo ovest”, cioè la parte che era stata ricostruita, venne lastricata con mattoni e con lastre di pietra (le due grandi guide su cui scorrevano le ruote dei carri), dal mastro Horatio Angelini per un importo di “tre quattrini il piede”. Fonti: “Umbertide nel secolo XVII” di Renato Codovini e Roberto Sciurpa – Comune di Umbertide, 2004 Le mura che circondano il castello di Fratta a cura di Fabio Mariotti Relazione ritrovata nell'Archivio Comunale di Umbertide, Fondo Amministrativo Storico. Risale alla prima metà del 1600 e l'estensore è ignoto. Potrebbe trattarsi di un sopralluogo effettuato in occasione della predisposizione delle difese per fronteggiare l'esercito del Granduca di Toscana nel 1643. "Nella Terra della Fratta è situata una fortezza con una torre di forma quadrata alta piedi(1) 110 e larga(2) 2,86 e le sue mura di larghezza piedi 4 e once 8, la quale ha due porte principali, una a ponente e riguardante verso la Terra con suo ponte levatoro(3), fossa e controfossa aldidentro, qual porta viene guardata da due bocchette per due pezzi di artiglieria. L’altra porta verso levante(4), parimente con ponte levatoro, che appoggia in un rivelino(5) a tondello, chiamata “del Soccorso” in cui vi sono due bocche per l'artiglieria. Nei fianchi della medesima Rocca vi sono due torrioni in forma rotonda che abbracciano la medesima con i suoi merli larghi piedi 60. Tutto questo forte contiene al primo piano una caminata a andito dove sono 1'impostatura per 14 pezzi d'artiglieria; sotto di esso vi sono due stanze per uso di polveriera, una per uso di cantina e l'altra per la legnara con carcere e segrete e da un lato due pozzi d'acqua perenne e in fondo della detta Rocca vi è sempre l'acqua. Nel secondo piano vi è una stanza col camino e due altre contigue per quartiero delli soldati dove si possono alzare comodamente dieci letti. Vi è anche il forno per comodo per la cucina. Vi è ancora una stanza con quattro buche per le sentinelle che corrispondono sopra la porta grande di detta Rocca e in questo piano vi sono otto imposte per pezzi otto di artiglieria. Nel terzo piano vi è lo scoperto di detti due torrioni con sua sentinella dalla parte del fiume Reggia, nel quale si richiedono sei pezzi d'artiglieria per ciascheduno. Nella medesima Rocca, principiando dal piano dei torrioni, vi sono cinque stanze una sopra l'altra, una dando l'ingresso all'altra mediante le scalette di pietra, tutte a volta con loro camini ed altri commodi, quali ponno servire per abitazione del castellano e sua guardia potendosi alzare letti sei per ciascheduna. Nella sommità poi della Rocca vi si possono mettere pezzi quattro di artiglieria. Ai lati di questo forte, dalla parte esteriore, si producono le mura castellane de detta Terra, fatte a scarpata di altezza di piedi 30, tutte terrapienate; e dalla parte di mezzogiorno per la distanza di piedi 316 dalla Rocca c'è un torrione sopra il fiume Reggia alto 50 piedi con i suoi fori per l'artiglieria, il fondo fatto a volta. Continuando la muraglia da questo torrione per piedi 227 sino ad altro torrione che riguarda la Porta di San Francesco, alto piedi 60 dall'alveo di detta Reggia. Questo torrione ha la comunicazione con altro fortino sopra la Porta di San Francesco e il ponte, con i suoi merli, luogo per le sentinelle e fori per l'artiglieria. Alla testa poi del medesimo ponte posto sopra il Tevere vi è un altro baluardo con muro di grossezza di piedi 6 in circa, detto della Saracina continente due stanze per uso dei soldati con fori quattro per l'artiglieria e buche per le sentinelle, dove vi è la saracinesca per serrare la porta e impedire l'ingresso al ponte. Dalla parte poi di ponente sino a settentrione continua la suddetta muraglia castellana per piedi 250, bagnata dal fiume Tevere sino ad un angolo a forma di torrione e da questo sino alla porta della Piaggiola, cioè per piedi 200, si erge un torrione alto piedi 60 e largo 48 ed ha la comunicazione sopra le muraglie castellane dalla porta di settentrione terrapienate come le altre. Queste muraglie per altri piedi 514 si uniscono al fortino o Rocca come sopra descritto". La relazione evidenzia alcuni aspetti che è bene sottolineare: 1. il perimetro delle mura castellane era di 1800 piedi circa; 2. la porta principale della Rocca, nella Piazza del Comune, aveva ancora il ponte levatoio con fossa e controfossa; 3. la Porta del Soccorso era munita di ponte levatoio che si gettava sopra un ramo della Reggia; 4. la Rocca poteva essere munita di 42 pezzi di artiglieria, fra pesante e leggera; 5. l'altezza delle mura castellane era di 30 piedi; 6. la Saracina sopra il ponte del Tevere non disponeva più del ponte levatoio e veniva chiusa con una saracinesca (da cui il nome). Essa aveva due locali soprastanti, comunicanti tramite una scala a chiocciola (quello superiore conteneva i meccanismi per azionare il ponte levatoio) e poteva essere armata con quattro pezzi di artiglieria. Note: 1. Un piede perugino corrisponde a cm.36,54 2. Per larghezza, qui e più avanti si intende la misura del perimetro del quadrato 3. E’ l’odierna porta d’ingresso alla Rocca, sulla piazza omonima 4. Oggi non esiste più. Consentiva l’uscita verso la piazza del Mercato 5. Era una sporgenza in muratura posta sopra la Porta del Soccorso. Se ne vedono ancora le tracce. E’ stato eliminato tra il 1910 ed il 1920 Disegni di Adriano Bottaccioli Foto dall’Archivio fotografico del Comune di Umbertide e di Fabio Mariotti Fonti: “Umbertide nel secolo XVII” di Renato Codovini e Roberto Sciurpa – Comune di Umbertide, 2004 L'Abbondanza di Fratta Un servizio di assistenza per mantenere basso il prezzo del grano in favore della popolazione più disagiata a cura di Fabio Mariotti Erano molte, nel Seicento, le opere di assistenza e beneficenza messe in piedi dagli organismi religiosi. Tra queste primeggiava l'Abbondanza, un particolare servizio che aveva il compito di fare provviste di grano e di rivenderlo al prezzo di costo, o addirittura inferiore, nei periodi di scarsità del prodotto. In altre parole, l'Abbondanza era la versione Seicentesca di quello che nei secoli successivi sarà il Monte Frumentario. La prima notizia certa sulla sua esistenza risale al 1630, quando il Comune si fece prestare 2.000 scudi dal conte Ranieri “... per servitio dell'Abbondanza”. Il prestito, garantito dalla vendita successiva del pane, era un'operazione senza rischi e il rientro del denaro era sicuro. L’addetto al servizio veniva chiamato “Procuratore dei Grani” e aveva la responsabilità della gestione complessiva del settore, comprese le provviste, il commercio e la tenuta della contabilità. Per chiedere il prestito di 2.000 scudi prima accennato, fu necessario avere il consenso del vescovo di Gubbio e non delle Autorità perugine e centrali. Il che fa supporre che l'Abbondanza, almeno all'origine, fosse un'iniziativa inserita nel programma degli interventi umanitari della diocesi, anche se gli organi del Comune avevano un ruolo determinante per quell'intreccio solido e costante tra il momento amministrativo e quello religioso, che era la caratteristica dei tempi. Il riconoscimento formale avvenne nel 1678, quando il Governatore di Perugia, monsignor Lorenzo Lomellini, emanò l'atto ufficiale della costituzione dell'Abbondanza di Fratta. Il nuovo "status" poneva questo importante e delicato settore sotto la tutela ed il controllo rigido del governo centrale e del Governatore di Perugia, ma indipendentemente dal rispetto formale delle procedure le cose continuarono a svolgersi in stretta collaborazione tra il Comune di Fratta, il Procuratore dei Grani e la Curia di Gubbio. In omaggio alle norme generali impartite dal cardinale Cibo, fu creato un consiglio di tre Abbondanzieri, che duravano in carica un quadrimestre, e venne istituito l'organo dei revisori dei conti, composto da due membri, per il controllo di tutta la parte amministrativa. L'avvicendamento quadrimestrale degli incarichi e l'organo del revisorato dei conti stavano ad indicare l'importanza di questo presidio umanitario, e non a torto se si considera che l'Abbondanza, con i suoi 3.000 scudi di bilancio annuale, era l'azienda più grande della Fratta, di gran lunga superiore allo stesso Comune. In una nota del 29 maggio 1655 della Confraternita di Santa Croce venne registrato uno scudo in entrata “... hauto dalli Signori Abbondanzieri della Fratta quali pagano per cinque mesi per appigione della stalla dove essi tengono le fascine...”. Il riferimento alle fascine chiama in causa il Forno Pubblico e quasi con certezza in quel periodo l'Abbondanza gestiva il forno, anche se non sappiamo sotto quale forma, se dell'appalto o ad altro titolo. Documentazione d’archivio Alla Fratta c'era bisogno di grano e i Magistrati e gli Abbondanzieri si erano subito attivati per avanzare la richiesta al Governo Centrale, seguendo la via gerarchica, in ossequio alle disposizioni impartite. Al Governatore di Perugia “... Dovendo la Comunità della Fratta provvedere nell'anno corrente di grani per servitio pubblico per la tenuità del raccolto, ha ordinato la Sacra Congregazione del Buon Governo che, quando fatte le necessarie diligenze non si trovi chi offerisca all'appalto del forno, si esamini prima che quantità ne possa occorrere per lo spiano del pane da farsi dal Forno Publico, e poi conceda licenza all'Abondanzieri eletti di prendere a nome proprio sino alla somma di scudi mille cinquecento a Censo al minore interesse possibile, con 1'obligo loro d'estinguere detto Censo nel corso di tutto l'anno con ritratto che si farà del grano nello spiano del quale si dovrà non solamente calcolare il prezzo, ma anche ogni altra spesa che ne fosse occorsa senza che ne segua scapito di sorta alcuna e non vi s'interessi in conto alcuno la Comunità, ma tutto resti a carico degli Abondanzieri, i quali dovranno essere rilevati indenni dal publico consilio dello scapito che fortuitamente facessero, con far osservare poi per regola di buon governo gli ordini dati sin sotto li 18 agosto dell'anno scorso e Dio la prosperi”. Roma 30 luglio 1678 Di Vostra Signoria come Fratello Il cardinale CIBO Giovanni Bussi Segretario * * * * * Stralcio del verbale dei revisori dei conti che documenta il riconoscimento ufficiale da parte del Governo Pontificio dell’Abbondanza di Fratta che esisteva ed operava già negli anni precedenti in forma non ufficiale Adì 20 agosto 1680 “Furono rivisti li conti della loro amministrazione alli signori dottor Giovan Tommaso Spoletini Cassiero, Cristofano Stella e per esso al signor Monti suo figlio, Vittorio Spunta e Francesco Illuminati Abondanzieri della Terra della Fratta, quale Abondanza fu eretta con ordine di Mons. Ill.mo e Rev.mo Lorenzo Lomellini, Governatore di Perugia, l'anno 1678 adì 21 di agosto dalli molto illustri signori Annibale Pellicciari e Compagni, moderni Difensori di questa Terra della Fratta e fu trovato nell'anno della loro amministrazione haver detti Abondanzieri comperato some di grano quattrocentosettantacinque (475) comprate da essi in conti in diversi partiti come appare da libri..... Alla quale Abondanza è stato dato principio con scudi quattrocentonove (409) e baj quarantacinque (45)”. Foto: Archivio fotografico del Comune di Umbertide Fonti: “Umbertide nel secolo XVII” di Renato Codovini e Roberto Sciurpa – Comune di Umbertide, 2004 Le fornaci, l'attività edilizia, la caccia e la pesca Le fornaci di laterizi Le fornaci di laterizi erano strutture produttive importanti e diffuse alla Fratta e nel suo territorio. Ci riferiamo ai grandi impianti che producevano materiale edilizio e non alle numerose aziende familiari, munite di piccoli forni, che si dedicavano alla produzione di vasellame di ceramica e di altri oggetti del genere. In questi grandi impianti i prodotti più ricorrenti erano i mattoni, la calce “viva” e “smorzata”, le “scine” per il bucato, gli orci e altri tipi di vasi di grandi dimensioni. Si trattava di un lavoro impegnativo, con orari particolari che reclamavano una presenza costante, per cui spesso era tutta la famiglia che si dedicava all'attività della fornace. Alla Fratta quella più rinomata e importante si trovava nei pressi di Santa Maria ed apparteneva al conte di Civitella Ranieri. La sua struttura edilizia esterna esisteva fino a qualche anno fa, dove oggi è stato realizzato il quartiere “La Fornace”. Si producevano due tipi di mattoni: “quadri” e “scorniciati”. Il primo tipo era quello maggiormente diffuso e comprendeva mattoni comuni, pianelle da tetto e da solaio, mezzanelle, quadrucci, quadroni per pavimenti, tegole e coppi per la copertura dei tetti. Ad eccezione di questi due ultimi prodotti, il resto era costituito da paràllelepipedi di terra cotta di varie dimensioni per cui tutta la produzione si indicava con il termine di “lavoro quadro” e “lavorare in quadro” aveva il significato di realizzare un prodotto comune che richiedeva minori tempi di esecuzione. Il materiale “scorniciato” aveva finalità ornamentali ed aggraziava l'aspetto estetico degli edifici. Non si trattava di un lusso o di una ricercatezza esagerata poiché il gusto del secolo, e anche di quelli successivi, ricorreva a simili ricercatezze anche per le case coloniche. Si era soliti abbellire le facciate con rilievi sporgenti, marcare le sagome delle finestre e dei portoni d'ingresso con tratti meno spigolosi, evidenziare con i “marcapiani” i vari livelli delle abitazioni, collocare accanto alle finestre i “reggi-vaso” che non si utilizzavano per i gerani ma per poggiare il vaso da notte, ricavare nicchie per l'immagine di qualche santo protettore. Questo tipo di laterizi veniva eseguito su ordinazione del costruttore. Il fornaciaio predisponeva “lo stampo” di legno dalle giuste dimensioni che dava la forma voluta all'argilla e poi la cottura avrebbe pensato a rendere stabile il manufatto. Oltre alla fornace di Santa Maria del conte Ranieri, c'era quella di Poggio Manente, detta la "Fornace del Poggio", che apparteneva ai conti di quel territorio, e la fornace della Badia dei frati Camaldolesi di Monte Corona, situata lungo il Tevere, a poca distanza dall'Abbazia. Quella di Monte Acuto attraversò un periodo di particolare fortuna perché apparteneva al mastro e valido architetto Filippo Fracassini, l'appaltatore delle opere più importanti della Fratta. È chiaro che i mattoni necessari alle opere prese in appalto se li fabbricava da solo, realizzando un doppio profitto. Costui, infatti, nel 1637 vendette tremila mattoni alla chiesa della Madonna della Reggia di cui stava rifacendo la cupola. Nel 1641 ricevette dalla stessa 25 scudi “per le cotte della fornace” e nel 1646 altri trenta scudi “per coprire la fabbrica”; l'espressione lascia supporre che si trattasse delle tegole di copertura del tetto. Il 25 gennaio 1610 i frati Camaldolesi affittarono la loro fornace ad Agostino Meneconi di Villa del Colle di San Savino, per tre anni. Riportiamo una parte del contratto per renderci conto in modo diretto dell'attività che si praticava: “In prima Agostino conduttore si obbliga a dare gratis et amore al detto locatore et suoi successori tutta la calcina che cuocerà in detta fornace et anche tutti i pezzi del lavoro che nel cuocersi si rompessero. Item che il locatore sia obbligato a portargli la legna per cuocere, a sue proprie spese, mentre per tutte le altre spese deve essere tenuto il conduttore. Il conduttore deve dare al locatore la metà di tutto il lavoro che cuocerà nella fornace, mentre l'altra metà resta per il conduttore Agostino che la venderà a chi vuole. Se però questa metà gli fosse richiesta dai frati, egli di preferenza dovrà venderla a loro e questi gliela pagheranno a scudi due e due giuli ogni mille pezzi di lavoro quadro, cioè di lavoro comune”. L’attività edilizia Se si metteva il naso fuori dalle mura, un aspetto colpiva l'occhio in quei primi anni del secolo: la periferia del paese costituiva un cantiere edilizio imponente e affaccendato. Erano in fase di realizzazione opere di grande mole come il tempio della Madonna della Reggia, la costruzione del convento di Santa Maria Nuova e il livellamento della piazza di San Francesco. Proseguivano, infatti, i lavori di costruzione della Chiesa della Madonna della Reggia diretti dall'architetto Mariotto da Cartona. Nel 1601 il capo mastro Vincentio aveva completato la scala “lumaca”, ossia la scala a chiocciola che dal piano terra saliva ai livelli superiori. La costruzione del monastero di Santa Maria Nuova iniziò nel 1604 e nel giro di tre anni fu completata da parte del costruttore Giovan Battista ser Migni (o Sermigni). Il 13 luglio 1608 un decreto del vescovo di Gubbio, monsignor Andrea Sorbolonghi, destinò l'edificio a convento femminile precisando che non poteva ospitare più di sedici suore. Il convento, oltre alla sua funzione specifica, rivestiva una importanza notevole ai fini della difesa perché chiudeva un tratto della sponda sinistra del Tevere, rendendo più sicure le vie della Piaggiola e del Boccaiolo. A pochi passi dal convento c'era la chiesa di Sant'Erasmo e la Piazza del Mercatale lambita dalla “forma” del mulino, cioè dal canale artificiale scoperto di adduzione dell'acqua della Carpina che alimentava il Mulinello e il Molinaccio, quest'ultimo proprio a ridosso delle mura castellane. Qualche anno dopo, proprio davanti al monastero delle monache, iniziarono i lavori del convento e della chiesa di Sant'Agostino. I padri Agostiniani in precedenza risiedevano presso la chiesa di Santa Croce in angusti locali e nel 1616 chiesero ed ottennero l'autorizzazione a costruire “un convento sopra le mura castellane e sul davanti la chiesa rispondente nella via di Castel Nuovo”. La chiesa aveva sull'altare maggiore una tavola rappresentante la Madonna del Soccorso, tanto che veniva chiamata anche Chiesa del Soccorso. Nell'altare di sinistra c'era uno stupendo dipinto di Bernardino Magi raffigurante la Vergine con i Santi Eremiti Paolo ed Antonio. Il convento ebbe una vita breve per la mancanza di fondi ed il 7 di agosto del 1656 il Papa Alessandro VII Ghigi lo soppresse. Nel 1613 presero il via i lavori della Piazza di San Francesco. Nella circostanza si verificò una convergenza di interessi tra la municipalità della Fratta e la Confraternita di San Bernardino (o del Confalone). La prima vedeva nell'opera non solo una bonifica urbanistica, ma un baluardo di sicurezza e di difesa a ridosso della sponda sinistra del Tevere. Il piano, infatti, prevedeva la costruzione di una grande porta sul lato sud della piazza (poi detta Porta del Borgo Inferiore, ancora esistente) in aderenza al vecchio mulino di Sant'Erasmo. Il Borgo Inferiore sarebbe stato così completamente chiuso alla penetrazione dall'esterno. La seconda, oltre al vantaggio di disporre di un comodo spazio pianeggiante davanti alla chiesa, avrebbe potuto costruire altri due edifici, di modeste dimensioni, per unire la porta agli altri fabbricati esistenti, proprio nell'angolo sud del lato della chiesa. I lavori furono avviati con rapidità e nello stesso anno erano finiti. A ricordo della costruzione della porta fu murato un mattone di laterizio con l'incisione: “S.F. 16XIII” (San Francesco 1613), visibile anche oggi sull'angolo destro in fondo alla piazza. Terminati i lavori in muratura, si doveva mettere mano a quelli di livellamento della piazza che degradava verso il Tevere e di conseguenza alla sistemazione dei fabbricati della scarpata per adattarli al nuovo livello. Ma non c'erano i soldi e bisognava aspettare tempi migliori, che non si fecero attendere. Successe, infatti, che nei primi giorni del 1614 morì donna Lavinia di Oratio, moglie di Giovan Battista Cherubini, che lasciò 100 fiorini (66 scudi romani) alla Compagnia di San Bernardino per la celebrazione di Messe in suffragio della sua anima, come si era soliti fare in quel tempo. Il marito di donna Lavinia, d'accordo con la Confraternita di San Bernardino che deliberò in merito il 17 gennaio 1614, decise di utilizzare la somma per l'edificazione del muro di sostegno sul lato del Tevere per consentire il contenimento dei materiali di riporto necessari al livellamento. I lavori furono eseguiti da un certo Giovanni di Matteo, del Colle di San Savino, sotto il controllo dei “soprastanti” Pietro Magi e Ludovico Tartaglia, nominati dalla Confraternita. L’atto notarile di Paolo Cibo, stipulato il 17 marzo dello stesso anno, formalizzò gli impegni e dette il via ai lavori. Una giornata di lavoro La popolazione locale è sempre stata intraprendente e laboriosa e le avverse vicende che si accanivano contro le prospettive di una vita tranquilla non furono mai causa di scoraggiamento. Il vero signore del secolo era la povertà, anzi la miseria, ma gli abitanti del castello strappavano la vita con dignità e tenacia, vivendo alla giornata perché non è possibile programmare il futuro quando si dipende totalmente dagli altri. Si vedevano persone impegnate nei lavori più umili, che andavano dalla raccolta dello stabbio nelle adiacenze del paese, al taglio dell'erba sulle greppe delle strade per rivendere fieno e concime a coloro che lo chiedevano. C'era chi si dedicava alla raccolta delle foglie di gelso nei mesi di maggio e di giugno per il piccolo allevamento di bachi da seta custodito gelosamente in cucina, e chi andava in campagna a ritirare i prodotti della terra per conto delle varie Confraternite del paese. Ma la prima metà del secolo offrì ulteriori risorse alla solita vita di sempre che incrementarono la possibilità di racimolare qualche baiocco per le famiglie locali. La Fratta era diventata un grande cantiere edile che fremeva di opere e di braccia con la ricostruzione del ponte sul Tevere, della cupola della Madonna della Reggia, del convento di Santa Maria Nuova, della chiesa di Santa Croce, dei lavori per il livellamento della Piazza di San Francesco, della costruzione del convento di Sant'Agostino, solo per ricordare le opere maggiori e più in vista. C'era bisogno di tante braccia e di una grande diversificazione dei ruoli. L’indotto che ruotava intorno a queste opere era davvero notevole e metteva in moto una buona serie di attività artigianali che raggiunsero una vivacità elevata. Il settore dei trasporti fu quello che ne beneficiò maggiormente perché il legname, i laterizi, le pietre, la calcina e tanti altri materiali necessari per i lavori edilizi dovevano essere trasportati con i mezzi del tempo, basati esclusivamente sulla trazione animale. La richiesta di facchinaggio era grande perché nei cantieri, ad eccezione dell'opera specializzata dei muratori, operava tutta manovalanza generica che eseguiva gli ordini impartiti dai vari mastri. Non era raro vedere i carri che andavano e venivano in continuazione trasportando il materiale necessario e scaricarlo con cura, mentre poco distante, il fabbro, con la forgia in piena efficienza modellava i ferri occorrenti vicino al sollecito manovale che, dentro una grande buca scavata per terra, “spegneva” la calce viva da impastare poi con il mucchio di rena lì accanto. La regola fondamentale era quella di fare economia di tutto e tra i beni personali da salvaguardare con cura, oltre ai vestiti “buoni”, c'erano le scarpe. Dovevano durare a lungo, soprattutto se avevano la suola di cuoio, e si usavano solo per le grandi occasioni. Negli altri casi, specie d'inverno, si mettevano gli zoccoli con il fondo di legno, imbottito di bullette di ferro perché l'attrito con il terreno non li deteriorasse tanto presto. Gli operai del cantiere viaggiavano così e i loro movimenti si avvertivano bene, perché quel tipo di suola cingolata faceva tanto rumore. Alla fine di maggio c'era chi prendeva la via della Maremma per i lavori della mietitura e della trebbiatura del grano. Si ritornava con qualche baiocco, ma più spesso con quella febbre che ti toglieva dal mondo. Caccia e pesca Oggi sono due attività del tempo libero che rivestono le caratteristiche di un piacevole svago. Nel secolo di cui stiamo parlando non era del tutto così, in particolare per una grande categoria di persone che vedeva nella loro pratica la possibilità di ricavare qualcosa di utile per lo stomaco. Un bando emanato dal Governatore di Perugia nel 1604, oltre al calendario venatorio, ci fornisce molte altre notizie relative alla caccia e il suo esame è interessante per ricostruire i comportamenti dei cacciatori e le tecniche per la cattura degli animali. Anche a quel tempo il cane era l'amico e il collaboratore indispensabile dell'uomo per le battute di caccia che volessero avere esiti positivi. Le razze più diffuse erano il bracco e il levriero. Negli inventari e nelle annotazioni del secolo sono ricorrenti le "catenelle" per queste due razze, mentre non vengono segnalati altri tipi di cani che certamente erano presenti, in particolare quelli da guardia. Si cacciava con lo “schioppo”, ma venivano usate spesso le “reti per lepori” (lepri) e le “cortinelle” per prendere le starne. Gli animali più diffusi, e pare ce ne fossero in abbondanza, erano “lepori, starne, fagiani, quaglie, coturnici, capri et porci”. Nella seconda metà del secolo fanno apparizione i “carnieri” per riporre la selvaggina cacciata (ma sicuramente c'erano anche prima) e le “borscette da migliarino”. Il migliarino è un uccello dell'ordine dei passeracei, lungo circa 16 centimetri, con un piumaggio bruno rugginoso nella parte superiore, bianco nel ventre macchiato di nero. È un volatile gregario e si associa ai fringuelli, insettivoro d'estate e granivoro d'inverno. In Italia si trova di passo da ottobre a marzo, ma può anche essere sedentario nelle zone paludose dove viene comunemente chiamato zigolo palustre. In data antecedente al bando del 1604 era stato emanato un editto (14 settembre 1602) che regolava il calendario venatorio e ribadiva il divieto di caccia dal primo di marzo alla fine di luglio con le solite sanzioni “... sotto la pena a chi contrafarà di tre tratti di corda e di 50 scudi da dividersi secondo il solito”. In caso di recidiva il contravventore veniva incatenato in una gabbia di legno e messo alla berlina di fronte alla gente. L’editto prevedeva addirittura la pena dell'esilio per i casi più gravi. Non si facciano turbare dalle contestazioni i responsabili del cosiddetto “sport” della caccia, fonte permanente di opposte vedute, perché il cardinale Bevilacqua era molto più severo di loro e per un uccello si rischiava l'esilio, in un periodo in cui la selvaggina abbondava. Anche la pesca si praticava abbastanza, considerato che il castello era da ogni parte circondato dall'acqua. Il tratto di fiume che andava dalla torre crollata nella piena del 1610 fino al ponte, era chiamato “la pescaia ” e anche alcuni poderi vicini ai corsi d'acqua disponevano di un piccolo bacino per la conservazione dei pesci. Ma a parte questo espediente, lungo il corso del Tevere, della Carpina, dell'Assino, della Reggia e del Niccone si pescava in diversi modi e con diversi sistemi un ottimo pesce, perché le acque non erano inquinate come adesso. Una buona raccolta si faceva presso i molini, con il sistema della “cannicciata”. Essa consisteva in una specie di trappola di canne, all'interno della quale il pesce entrava e non poteva più uscire. Nei canali artificiali di adduzione dell'acqua alla ruota del molino non era difficile organizzare un tranello simile. Il pesce pescato doveva essere abbondante se nei contratti di affitto di alcuni molini, tra gli obblighi dell'affittuario, spesso rientrava quello di dare al proprietario una certa quantità di libbre di pesce. Un altro sistema di pesca molto in voga era quello con il “ghiaccio”, storpiatura locale del “giacchio”. La notizia è riportata in un'annotazione del 1611 e Lorena Beneduce Filippini ci informa che il giacchio era “una rete circolare piombata tutta intorno alla circonferenza, che presentava al centro, dove convergevano le maglie, una cordicella che il pescatore al momento del lancio legava intorno al polso. Esso veniva sistemato sulla spalla a mo' di mantello e al momento opportuno veniva lanciato come un disco. La rete, dopo una breve traiettoria, ricadeva aperta ad ombrello sull'acqua. In virtù del peso dei piombi si chiudeva a campana, rinserrando il pesce. Il pescatore a questo punto si serviva della corda legata al polso per recuperare il giacchio con la preda”. Il metodo più comune, però, era quello del tramaglio, usato fino a pochi decenni fa. Disegno di Adriano Bottaccioli Foto: Archivio fotografico storico Comune di Umbertide Fonti: “Umbertide nel secolo XVII” di Renato Codovini e Roberto Sciurpa – Comune di Umbertide, 2004 Il servizio postale, la viabilità e la sanità Drawings by Adriano Bottaccioli Map of Fratta (Drawing by Adriano Bottaccioli) The door of San Francesco or della Caminella Drawings by Adriano Bottaccioli 1998. Aerial view of the Hermitage of Montecorona La rovinosa piena del Tevere del 1610 Le mura che circondano il castello di Fratta L'Abbondanza di Fratta Le fornaci, l'edilizia, la caccia e la pesca THE WAR OF THE GRAND DUKE OF TUSCANY Chronicle of the siege of the castle of Fratta from November 1643 to April 1644 The so-called "War of the Grand Duke of Tuscany" took place from 1642 to 1644 between Pope Urban VIII and the league formed by Duke Odoardo Farnese, lord of Parma and Piacenza, of which Ferdinand II Grand Duke of Tuscany (whose troops besieged the Fratta), Alfonso III Duke of Modena and the Republic of Venice. It broke out due to the occupation and destruction of the fortified place of Castro, near Rome, a fiefdom owned by Duke Odoardo Farnese for whom he had not paid taxes to the pope for years and refused annexation to the Papal State (as claimed by the pontiff ) despite the offer of these to buy it. It was in the autumn of 1643 that the war entered the upper Tiber valley and the Fratta territory. The war ended on April 1, 1644 and the peace between the league and the pope was signed on the following April 4. In 1642 the castle of Fratta began to be fortified In the first decades of the seventeenth century the fortress of Fratta was garrisoned by a corps of Corsican soldiers. In 1642 there were already so many "noises of war" that our magistracy began fortification works, starting with the preparation of the Porta Nuova fort, no longer used militarily for many years. After that, the parapet of the east curtain was rebuilt and then the bell door was worked on, replacing the old and now rusty hardware and equipping it with a "door". The gates of Castel Nuovo were completed, that is, that of the market (it overlooked the Mercatale di Sant'Erasmo and closed the entrance before the current mechanic) or of Sant'Antonio (from the name of the church that was located roughly behind the 'current pastry shop of Sandra) and that of half of the Boccaiolo, building large brick walls from the outside. Then the two drawbridges of the Rocca were rebuilt, the one that looked inside the town and the one outside, known as the "del Soccorso" gate. The passage of troops in the territory Throughout the summer of 1643 soldiers of all kinds passed towards Città di Castello, the northernmost stronghold, on the border with the enemy state of Tuscany. Once through Fratta 5,000 infantry and 500 horses passed with weapons in hand and ammunition for 150 some of dust, lead and fuses. A congregation for the defense of Fratta appointed The judiciary of Fratta, considering the pressing "rumors of war", appointed one who had to supervise any future war needs. The congregation members immediately got to work and first had the ditches around the walls cleared and the elm trees, pergolas, and reeds that had grown there over the years cut down. They rebuilt the parapet of the north curtain (between the Rocca and the Piaggiola) that passes behind the town hall, they repaired the tower on the side of the bell door and built a drawbridge at this door, on top of the Piaggiola. The Porta di Sotto, which leads to San Francesco, was walled up and embanked and a "gate" was placed on the front, as on the Tiber bridge, continuing with the walls of the "Madonna", probably the "Majesty" built at the beginning of the bridge on the Tiber. A third gate was placed in the middle of the Piaggiola, in front of the drawbridge. At the extreme west of the bridge over the Tiber they rebuilt the door to the tower called "Saracina" and fixed the old and rusty gate, so that it could be raised and lowered quickly, blocking the way to anyone who wanted to enter the bridge. The doors of the church of the Madonna della Reggia (Collegiata) were closed from the outside with a brick wall four feet wide. Parapets were built around the cornice under the dome and slits were made in the windows. The church, thus fortified, became a depot of food and ammunition, continuously manned by twelve soldiers. They kept six hundred pounds of gunpowder, two hundred of lead, one hundred feet of fuse and twelve muskets, to which the Cardinal Legate added a pack of powder, another of balls and one of fuse. Fratta was very keen on Rome and at the end of August Cardinal Francesco Barberini ordered the local magistracy to give a detailed account of the existing fortifications and trenches, of the provisions and ammunition that were in the fortress, of the number of garrison soldiers. Having received an answer that the commander was missing, Barberini appointed Giovan Battista Bono, a Piedmontese from Cuneo, with the title of "Governor of Arms". He also sent to Fratta, shortly after, a company of militias from Pesaro, made up of two hundred soldiers, followed by another, stationed in Fossato, made up of two hundred men. Giovan Battista Bono had a crescent-shaped trench erected with great speed in front of the "Saracina" of the bridge over the Tiber, which covered the whole view of the road to Città di Castello, completed on 30 August. The Florentine cavalry arrives from the Niccone valley On November 6, most of the Florentine cavalry left the Pierle valley and entered the Niccone valley. He then passed under Montalto avoiding the conflict with that garrison, almost ignoring it although he knew that it was devoid of artillery, and around noon he reached the vicinity of Fratta. Here they brought two squadrons, one directed towards Romeggio and the other to the "Palazzo della Tramontana", in the word "il Bagno". Seeing this, the governor Bono had the workers who worked in Prato withdraw, equipped the walls with soldiers, placed them at the gates and in the church of the Madonna della Reggia, distributed the necessary ammunition and waited for the coming of the enemies, to counteract them. fortified the place of Santa Maria degli Zoccolanti (Santa Maria della Pietà). The Florentines, in the meantime, after having demonstrated their presence and strength, went away passing through Polgeto and Montacuto, sacking the countryside as all the soldiers used to do, leaving the garrisons of dragons in the two castles (Polgeto and Montacuto). The bulk of the army, passing through Colle del Cardinale, returned to the Magione camp, where other forces were quartered. The next day, November 7, the soldiers in Fratta tried to recapture those two castles, but they only managed to overwhelm the Florentines barricaded in Montacuto and, at two in the morning, they took those prisoners to Fratta to the house of Governor Bono, who lived near the Rocca. , in the street that led from Porta della Campana to the Piazza del Comune (now Piazza Fortebracci). On the morning of the 8th, Tobia Pallavicino, field master, commander of the piazza in Città di Castello, arrived. He made an agreement with the enemy cavalry who went to help the few dragons left to garrison Polgeto: the siege ended and the Florentines returned to Magione to camp. Governor Bono did not like it as in Polgeto there was a Florentine officer who, together with the soldiers, awaited the arrival of the main army: the appointment was four days later to give the final assault on Fratta. Before evening, squadrons of enemy cavalry were seen on the hill of Romeggio, part of which had come from Magione by the Monestevole road and part from the Cardinal, the Nese and Montacuto hills. From Fratta you could hear the noise of the wagons driving twelve guns with the necessary baggage and the circumstance caused a lot of fear among the defenders, despite the fact that forty mules loaded with supplies had been stolen by the peasants who had attacked those baggage not defended by the soldiers. From Romeggio the bridge over the Tiber starts The following day, in Romeggio, other enemy cavalry stationed themselves under the castle tower with twelve flags spread to the wind, clearly visible from Fratta. From the castle to the church of San Pietro below one could see the infantry, another squadron of cavalry near Montalto and an infantry corps at the "Palazzo della Tramontana", not far from the "Bagno". The bulk of the Florentine army stopped at Romeggio and Polgeto where their commander, Prince Matthias dei Medici, and General Borra were. Part of the soldiers of Romeggio began to descend from the fields below San Pietro to the bridge over the Tiber, but the musketeers of the Fratta garrison, who were guarding it, shooting continuously, kept them at a distance, not allowing them to get close. While the battle was in progress, the soldiers of the bridge increased the defenses of the crescent trench made on the Prato. Two gates were placed alongside, so close that only one man could pass at a time. With a large amount of earth, the main door and the door made a short time earlier were earth-grounded, the gate placed about halfway across the bridge, at the height of the church of the Madonna del Carmelo (locked every evening). Even the small church of the Madonna del Ponte (built on the pylon downstream) had slits behind which soldiers could be stationed. The two villages were closed by building trenches, while the houses were equipped with slits. In San Francesco and in the convent there was no wall that did not have openings suitable for shooting. The doors that gave onto the garden of the convent, the walls of the houses and the church of San Bernardino, the Osteria della Corona, the blacksmith shops, the houses along the left bank of the Tiber and those where there were soldiers were embanked. on the alert, weapons in hand. That night between 8 and 9 November the plains and hills were illuminated by large and numerous fires: the enemy had lit them towards the Niccone valley, Monte Migiano, Romeggio and Polgeto; in the plain "di Sopra" the bonfires responded much bigger and more painful than the houses and haystacks that burned. The flood of the Tiber slows the attack At about 4 in the morning the alarm was given to keep weapons in hand because the enemies were seen approaching the bridge of the Tiber. It had rained a lot since the night before and the water continued to fall copiously and relentlessly. The Tiber began to swell. The flood prevented the Florentines from crossing the river and attacking the town from the other sides. They remained stationary in the places reached by the "squadron" army, as if the assault were to begin at any moment: they waited for the river to decrease its flow. The baggage, the wagons and all the booty they had made in Romeggio, Polgeto and Palazzo del Corvatto began to move towards the Niccone. The passage lasted three continuous hours, to the great amazement of our people and of the soldiers who, having been ordered to defend only the country, found it impossible to react to prevent the loss of so much livestock. The Florentine army, having brought their carriages and prey to the Niccone, waited for the waters to subside. In consideration of this, Tobia Pallavicino, commander of the Fratta soldiers, suddenly decided to set fire to the houses and shops of the Upper Borgo, including those of the market where the potters' workshops were. In the circumstance, for a trivial mistake, the church of Sant'Erasmo was also burned, but some soldiers put out the flames not before serious damage was produced. Snow also comes to the rescue of Fratta The night between 9 and 10 November was propitious for the town: an east wind from Grecale blew which brought cold and in the morning all the hills were covered with snow, with serious obstacles to the enemy. The general of the papal cavalry Cornelio Malvasìa came to help Fratta with two hundred knights and several loads of ammunition and sappers' tools: they immediately lined up in the Prato with unsheathed sabers to discourage the enemy from attacking plans. II Malvasìa also had a trench built in the field behind the Rocca and another in the middle of the market square, from the ditch to the church of Sant'Erasmo, to protect the retreat from the defenders of the outermost trenches. Faced with the impending dangers, the bishop of Gubbio decided to transfer the nuns of Santa Maria Nuova to his city, in a cloistered convent, until calm returned. On this day another reinforcement arrived, wanted by the commander of Perugia. He was the "Terzo" of Pier Francesco del Monte, who had better and better equipped soldiers with him than the other two "Terzi" who were in Fratta, so he was assigned to defend the convent of Santa Maria. Pier Francesco del Monte was very generous and very prudent in his decisions; he behaved like a gentleman and also the troops acted correctly, respecting the goods of the Fratigiani, not causing quarrels. In the night between 10 and 11 November the Florentine army was still stationed on the side hills of the Niccone valley, in Montecastelli, Civitella Guasta and al Bagno, and always kept the fires lit, waiting to cross over to the other side. Towards 2 in the morning, lights were seen moving towards the river and in Fratta the rumor spread that the enemy had managed to ford the Tiber. In the village they turned on lights in the windows and stood with weapons in hand; a small nucleus of cavalry verified at Faldo that the enemy had not crossed. This happened two days later: on the morning of November 13th. A team of five hundred horses, among the best, forded the Tiber above Fontesegale and pushed towards Montone and the Capuchin convent. It had begun to rain again and these knights, seeing that the rest of the army had not followed them, thought it best to turn back, worried by the risk that the waters, rising again, would isolate them from the rest. The capture of the commander Tobia Pallavicino On the morning of November 13 Tobia Pallavicino, after writing two letters to his superiors in Perugia, decided to go and check the defenses in Montone. He took a few men with him, thinking that the squadron of Florentines had returned to the other side. Instead, when he reached the Rio torrent he found him in front of him, he was surrounded and taken prisoner. He was then brought before Prince Matthias de 'Medici, who however treated him with kindness and humanity. The general command of Fratta passed to Cornelio Malvasìa. On the evening of November 12, the Florentines left the vicinity of Fratta taking to the valleys of Niccone and Nestore, due to the rain that bogged down the roads and swelled the rivers, of the goodness of the fortifications of Fratta (which they had seen closely) and the strong defense of numerous troops. The conquest of the castle of Montecastelli On November 18 there was an arms event in Montecastelli, where the Florentine army had left a garrison of sixty soldiers. In those days the commander in Fratta was Pier Francesco Bourbon of the Marchesi del Monte and he, wishing that the countryside was totally free, decided to conquer that castle, to secure the road to Città di Castello. He sent soldiers armed with muskets and "firecrackers" who arrived at dawn. After an hour they managed to break down a door and entered; the Florentines surrendered and were taken prisoners first to Fratta and then to Perugia. Subsequently new fortifications were made in Fratta; in January 1644 two burnt palaces of the Camaldolese fathers were razed to the ground and a third place in via Nuova, belonging to Cavalier Soli, to use the bricks to build fortifications at the Porta del Prato. On 12 January a new door was built opposite that of the market, from the canton of the church of Sant'Antonio to the house of the same. On February 15 the wooden door in the curtain of the Prato trench was rebuilt again. The end of the war On April 6, letters arrived communicating the re-establishment of peace between the Roman state of the pope and the Grand Duke of Tuscany. Sources: Historical calendar of Umbertide 2002 - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 2002 Drawing of the bridge over the Tiber with the church of Carmelo sul pilone (demolished in 1867) The coat of arms of the Grand Duchy Ferdinand II The map of the siege - drawing by Adriano Bottaccioli - From the Umbertide Calendar 2002 La guerra del Granduca di Toscana The new dome of the Collegiate and the church of Santa Croce The dome of the Madonna della Reggia The dome of the Madonna della Reggia that overlooked the massive and agile octagonal-based temple, after a few years of life got tired of its solitary splendor and its superb height that exceeded that fortress in front. Galeazzo Alessi and Giulio Danti had done everything to place her in a prestigious throne, but she soon began to give serious signs of instability, threatening to go down to see what the facade of the church it covered was like. It seems almost certain that he did not manage to collapse, only because the careful and scrupulous control of the cult officials intervened first, otherwise he would have produced incalculable damage to a monument that is rare in its characteristics and dear to the piety of the faithful. Thus in 1619 the dismantling work began, with the utmost respect for the underlying structure of recent construction (1). The original dome, completed under the technical direction of the Perugian Bino Sozi, who took over from Alessi and Danti who had died, had a lowered arch, of Romanesque inspiration, and departed from the official taste of a century that celebrated the triumphs of the Renaissance with its daring architectural thrusts reaching towards the sky. Externally it was lined with lead, malleable material but heavy, like all domes of that time. We do not know if for the weight excessive or due to structural defects load-bearing that supported it, it was necessary to proceed to his dismantling. But the memory and the image not they have been entirely lost. In a canvas attributed to Bernardino Magi , from 1602, which still does located in the church of San Bernardino although in a state pitiful, a landscape view is reproduced of the time Fratta. Among other interesting things about the document pictorial, the lead dome that rises high above each is clearly visible other urban structure. After the demolition work, the provisional roofing began of the temple, at least judging by the numerous material orders building that the time records show. In the meantime, yes he was working on the drafting of a new project that Rutilio presented in 1621. The works were not directed by the architect Rutilio who, delivered the design disappears from the management of the factory, but from Bernardino Sermigni della Fratta who made use of the work of a talented colleague such as Filippo Fracassini, fresh from the recent reconstruction of the two arches of bridge over the Tiber and engaged in the construction of the church of Santa Croce. The new dome, this time round-arched, was completed in 1641 with felice and pleasant technical insights, such as the internal colonnade that we do not know whether to attribute to Rutilio or Sermigni. The final touch of the lantern above the dome dates back a few years and is placed between 1646 and 1647, while the ball and the cross were raised in 1663 (2). The war of the Grand Duke, in progress at that time, had also slowed down the work of the church most dear to the people of Fratta. The ancient photos are taken from the historical photographic archive of the Municipality of Umbertide The history of the church of Santa Croce At the beginning of the century the church maintained its original appearance of a small parish church, set back from the square, on whose main altar the Deposition of Signorelli dominated, which had been placed there around 1516. It had two small chapels along the side walls, almost certainly the only ones. In one of these there was a picture of San Vincenzo, as it would seem to confirm a note attached to a notarial deed of 1605 with the inscription: “Giuseppe Laudati, a painter from Perugia, painted the picture of San Vincenzo in Santa Croce. He was a pupil of Carlo Maratta ”. The altar of the second chapel was adorned with the painting by Marino Sponta, della Fratta, which represented the Presentation in the Temple. The work dates back to around 1618, because in that year Sponta had eight scudi in advance for his work; another five he took on 21 December 1620, and on 19 January 1621 the final balance of nine scudi. The modesty of the figure is also recognized by Antonio Guerrini (3) with the remark that the Presentation in the Temple cost "the mere gratification of 22 scudi". Between 1614 and 1615, the two chapels, one of which was dedicated to San Francesco da Paola, were gilded (4). The work was carried out by Muzio Flori and Berardino Sermigni. But something must have gone wrong because in 1620 some unspecified works were commissioned: "Messer Berardino Sermigni is obliged to redo the two chapels ... for six shields". Also from the same period dates the masterpiece of the "great wooden exhibition" to embed the Deposition by Signorelli, hanging on the back wall, behind the main altar. The author was Pietro Lazzari, from Sant'Angelo in Vado. The exhibition was commissioned and ordered by the Confraternity to give a more worthy location to the work of the Cortonese artist and in the various existing annotations it is indicated with different expressions: "Mostra Lignea", "The Chapel", "The Ornament of the Altar Maggiore ”,“ The Chapel Ornament ”. On April 30, 16131a great work in walnut wood, costing 212 scudi, had to be finished and assembled because a payment note from Lazzari's collaborator says: "... and the more the said Giovanpiero baj fifty and a barrel of wine to put on the Ornament ". Where “putting on” should be synonymous with definitive editing. A few years later, in 1615, Flori and Sermigni, who had recently finished the work in the two chapels, gilded the Lazzari exhibition. It was a long and patient operation that ended in 1619 and cost 216 scudi. Despite the repeated interventions of enlargement and decoration of the church, the Confraternity of Santa Croce, the most active and economically more solid of the time, was not satisfied and was thinking of a bigger and more majestic temple. Thus began, between 1632 and 1634, the definitive works that gave the ancient chapel its present appearance. For this reason, the recently completed wooden exhibition was dismantled piece by piece and with its precious painting placed in a safe place: not only to protect it from the risk of damage, but also to allow the consolidation of the back wall on which it rested. Only when the work was completed did it resume its place. The design and construction were the work of the local architect Filippo Fracassini who “sacras aedes Sanctae Crucis a fundamentis erexit”. It was located on the same front line as the other two churches (San Francesco and San Bernardino) in the square of San Francesco, which had existed for some time. Filippo Fracassini, therefore, in the first half of the century, undertook to create three important works: the bridge over the Tiber, the dome of the Madonna della Reggia and the church of Santa Croce. Don Silvio Fidanza, parish priest of the villa of Monte Migiano and his contemporary, whom Antonio Guerrini defines as "very learned" (5), on the death of the self-taught architect in 1650, dedicated this epigraph to him: DEO CRUCI VIRGINI PHILIPPUS DE FRACASSINIS SINE LITERIS NUMERIS DISERTISSIMUS PONTEM INFECTUM ARTE REFECIT POST DILUVIUM TRIA MILIA NONGENTA DECEM PRIDIE NONAS SEPTEMBRIS SACRAS AEDES SANCTAE CRUCIS TO DEATH CHRISTS 1649 WORKS AT FUNDAMENTIS EREXIT SANCTAE MARIAE DE REGIA IN PARTU VIRGINIS INGENIOUS PERFECIT JUBILEE YEAR 1645 [ Honor to God, to the Cross and to the Virgin. Filippo Fracassini, very famous despite not having studied, reconstructed to perfection the bridge destroyed 3910 years after the universal flood, on September 4th (6). He built the church of Santa Croce from its foundations, dedicated to the death of Christ, in 1649. He completed the church of Santa Maria della Reggia, dedicated to the nativity of the Virgin, in 1645 with creative measures .] The new church, as mentioned, replaced the small and ancient chapel, officiated by the Augustinian Fathers, already dedicated to the cult and veneration of the Holy Cross, since before 1338 (7). The Compagnia dei Disciplinati (8) was erected in this small parish church which in 1556 took the name of Confraternity of Santa Croce. The church, vaguely inspired by Baroque according to the style of the time, rich in stuccos and decorations (now completely removed), is 23 meters long and 11 wide, with three altars for each lateral side, in addition to the elegant high altar. The works ended in 1649. Later, in 1677, two of the chapels were decorated with stuccoes by the master stucco artist Giovanni Fontana, from Foligno. Today the church, which the diocese of Gubbio has ceded to the Municipality of Umbertide, has been transformed into a Civic Museum and right on the main altar stands the beautiful table of the Deposition from the Cross by Luca Signorelli (fully restored), one of the most important works of artist from Cortona, painted in 1516. The Compagnia dei Disciplinati first, and the Confraternity of Santa Croce later, had a particular veneration for the Cross and the passion of Christ because their church was dedicated to them. It cannot therefore be ruled out that, when Luca Signorelli was commissioned the work in 1515 or in the early days of 1516, a trace of the work to be carried out was also indicated. The painting "on panel" was made quickly in the same year 1516 and this means that the artist had an organized workshop and valid collaborators. The main theme, highlighted in the work, is that of Christ being deposed from the Cross which stands out in all its dramatic plasticity in the foreground. But the painting, as a whole, has a broader scope and represents a synthesis of the salient moments of the Passion of Christ and an epic of the Cross, depicted in the three panels of the predella. The central scene, placed in the foreground, sees two followers, climbing stairs supported by Nicodemus and Joseph, intent on supporting, with white linen, the body of Jesus freed from the nails that hung him on the Cross. At his feet, a group of figures, in the center of which the Madonna appears, fainted and abandoned on the knees of a pious woman; further away, the Magdalene standing under the Cross, in the compassionate and symbolic gesture of collecting the blood of the Crucifix in her hands joined and open in the shape of a basin. There is also John, the beloved disciple, who could not miss in the moment of pain. With a notable historical leap, to connect the scenes represented in the predella below to the central theme, next to the Madonna stands the figure of Elena (the mother of Constantine), richly dressed, with her fingers intertwined and absorbed in meditation. But the cycle does not end here and we can see in the background, at the top left, the three crosses, symbol of the crucifixion, while on the right the transfer of the body into the sepulcher takes place. Below, in the three small panels of the predella, the legend of the discovery of the true Cross of Christ is entrusted to the colors, according to a very widespread tradition in the Middle Ages that had its roots in the “Golden Legend” of Iacopo da Varagine. The story begins with the queen of Sheba visiting Solomon (curiously reported on the center tablet) who, inspired from above, kneels to worship a large wooden trunk that served as a bridge over a small stream. Legend has it that this trunk became the Cross of Christ. The narrative cycle of the epic of the Cross continues with Constantine throwing havoc in the armies of Maxentius, unleashing a golden cross as he had been suggested in the dream (tablet on the left), and with his mother Helen who finds the true Cross on the Golgotha (central tablet). The tablet on the right takes a leap in time up to the 7th century, when the Persian king Chosroes, having conquered Jerusalem, took possession of the Cross and stolen it. The pictorial narration ends with the emperor Heraclius who, having recovered the cross, brings it triumphantly to Jerusalem. On the sides of the painting rise two columns from which the profiles of elegant candelabra bounce, finely worked and surmounted by the writing. “ Lucas Siquorellus de Cortona Pictor pingebat ”. Note: 1. See in this regard the valuable work by Pietro Vispi, The Collegiate Church of Santa Maria della Reggia, Ed. Scuola Radio Elettra & MSpa, Città di Castello, 2002. 2. See Umberto Pesci, History of Umbertide, p. 112, R. Fruttini Typography, Gualdo Tadino. 1932. 3. Op. Cit., P. 234. 4. Archive of Santa Croce, catalog no. 22, years 1609/1686, paper 32. 5. Op. Cit., P. 332. 6. It is an unusual and ingenious way to indicate the date of 4 September 1617, the day on which the reconstruction of the bridge was solemnly inaugurated. To understand this strange dating we must refer to the mentality and culture of the time, which saw in some biblical events, including the universal flood that regenerated corrupt humanity, the fundamental stages of human history. According to biblical chronology, which has no scientific basis, the flood occurred 1,657 years after the creation of Adam (see Genesis chapters 5, 6, 7 and 8) and the birth of Christ after 3,950 from the same creation. So we get: 3.950 - 1.657 = 2.293 years BC, which added to the 1.617 AD correspond to the 3.910 years of the epigraph. 7. Antonio Guerrini, Op. Cit., Pp. 221 et seq. / Umberto Pesci, Op. Cit., Pp. 115 et seq. 8. Francesco Mavarelli, “Historical News and Lauds of the Company of Disciplinates of Santa Maria Nuova and Santa Croce in the Land of Fratta”. It is found in "Umbertide, the work of Francesco Mavarelli", edited by Bruno Porrozzi, Tibergraph, Città di Castello, 1998. Sources: "Umbertide in the XVII century" by Renato Codovini and Roberto Sciurpa - Municipality of Umbertide, 2004 La nuova cupola della Collegiata e la chiesa di Santa Croce La storia della chiesa di Santa Croce La ceramica Martinelli - l'agricoltura, i vocaboli e gli animali del podere The ceramics of the Martinelli family - agriculture, the words and animals of the farm The pottery of the Martinellis The Martinelli family, along with that of the Burellis, is one of the oldest in Fratta and we have certain news that it practiced the figulina art since the beginning of the 16th century. He continued the activity until 1940, when he sold the factory to others, which stopped working in 1967. In this century he worked with scratching on cages, with a good manufacturing technique, and it is not to be excluded that some pieces that are preserved in museums in London and Paris and in some private collections come from their laboratory. On the other hand, he still did not use to stamp the brand on the articles produced and this makes the work of attribution of the works more difficult. Filippo Natali, who dealt with the problem with the expertise of the expert, observes: "... and I am not mistaken in saying that the scratching works that can be seen in some collections, from the 17th and 18th centuries, came out of the Martinelli factory, since even today objects are manufactured that have an archaic imprint, and if they are not engraved moreover, engobbing is used, as the ancients did, which instead of being manipulated with earth from Vicenza is now done with earth that comes from Trequanda in the province of Siena, which, due to its eminently plastic quality, also works to perform veggii (1) and other works that must resist the action of fire, also having the character of refractory earth. The hue of this land is straw yellow, and I believe that this engobing can be used in the products of the factories of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries since many of the works in the castellana style, with what name are distinguished the works of Fratta, which are seen in the collections, including the dishes considered to be of Palaia, and those of Padua, tend to yellowish ". The Martinelli factory was the most faithful in the use of the scratching and engobing technique which gave the product an archaic imprint both in the shapes and in the figures, even when in the surrounding areas (Deruta, Gubbio, Gualdo Tadino), it had been outdated and majolica or stannifera paint was used, now in common use. The only important element is given by the fact that to perform the engobbing, the white earth of the Vicenza area was replaced by the straw-colored earth of the Sienese which, coming from Trequanda, had a lower transport cost. The Martinellis had the house and the shop, where they sold the pieces of their production, along the Montonese road, in front of the mill, not far from their ceramic factory. On the facade was the family crest carved in relief on a block of pietra serena: a vase between two leafy branches. Although corroded by time, the relief is still visible, while the underlying inscription is illegible. A certain Antonio, descended from a branch of the Martinellis, in the 18th century left Fratta to go to work in Milan, in Felice Clerici's majolica workshop, with the qualification of "ceramic painter". The local coloring techniques, often secret, thus merged with those of Milan and made Antonio's fortune. The economic prospects offered, in fact, had to be very attractive to entice him to leave his native country, having a sought-after and well-paid professional competence in a region where the art of majolica was the most popular. Agriculture The most significant resources of the economy of the century came from an agriculture poor in means and ideas. The yield of land, even the best ones, was minimal due to the techniques of working and fertilizing the soil. The fields were plowed with rudimentary tools pulled by oxen plowers and the fertilizer used consisted exclusively of the animal pen. The need for more sophisticated technical expedients was joined by the myopia of many owners who, in order to obtain greater and more secure earnings, used to dismember the farm unit into small parts of no more than three mines each and rented the lots obtained in this way to different subjects. (2). Contracts of this type were very frequent at that time and the narrow view of a family economy as an end in itself was to the detriment of a longer-term agricultural business project. The only ones who, besides the land, possessed valid and innovative ideas on the management of the farm, were the Camaldolese Friars of Monte Corona who since then practiced the rotation of the sowing of agricultural products, planted vines and pergolas, improved the property by laying suitable trees the nature of the soil. The soils were indicated on the basis of their morphological characteristics, of the trees that grew on them, or of the crops to which they were most suitable. They were therefore classified into arable, arborate, buscati, canapinati, casteneati. cannetati, cerquati, populations, olive groves, pergolas, vineati, sodati, silvati, and so on. The world of the fields was in the hands of a few owners, counts or marquises, who had large estates. Followed by religious communities, brotherhoods, local nobles not noble, and parishes. Leaving aside the system of renting which, although widespread, still represented an exception, the rule remained that of sharecropping, with the farm managed by the peasant (worker) who divided the products of the soil in half (medietate) with the owner. . The atavistic uses and the clauses of the various contracts provided for substantial exceptions to the medietate, as was the case for grapes and olives that were subject to the "three to two" rule, i.e. 3/5 of the product to the owner (60%) and 12/5 to the farmer (40%). The farmhouse began to show those evolutionary signs that will become the building rule of the following century. The tower house was still in vogue and this structure will last for a long time for safety reasons. But they made the first appearances, especially in areas where the dangers of aggression by gangs of criminals were less, the first types of modern farmhouses, like those that became widespread later on. Meanwhile, the annex of the hut for the storage of agricultural tools was established, leaning against one side of the house, and therefore called "poggiata". Some farmhouses, located near rivers or streams, had the "weir", also known as "peschiera", very common in the Perugian countryside. Its function was to allow the capture of fish with little waste of time, in a peasant society that did not have much available. We do not have certain documents on this subject, but more than one farm, close to the course of the river, was indicated with this word and this legitimizes such a hypothesis. The layout reproduced in miniature the “weir” of Fratta north of the bridge over the Tiber, which also had recognition and protection in the Statutes of 1521. The cost of the land varied greatly in relation to its nature and location. And if an entire farm was the object of sale, the state and characteristics of the buildings above it (farmhouse and agricultural outbuildings) greatly affected the price. At the beginning of the century, just to get an idea of the market trend, a land mine (arable land, arborate, pergola, olive grove) in the word "Caldese" by Romeggio was worth 32 scudi; the same quantity and quality in San Giuliano delle Pignatte, 33 scudi; at “Seripole”, about one kilometer north of the Fratta, 32 scudi. In San Paterniano (Pierantonio), in the word "Campo Longo", a land mine cost 43 scudi and at Petrelle 88. the Faldo area, the Caminella area and the word Buoteni, south of the Caminella, had an almost triple value compared to the hilly ones. The words of the farms The vast countryside around the Fratta castle was divided into many localities, each with a specific toponym, and within it the individual farms were indicated with its own word. Locations, villas and words were important not only as geographical references for the locals, but they had also assumed a real legal value, so much so that they were the only recurring and certain indications in land purchase contracts. On the other hand, in the absence of a land registry based on more precise data, the physical description of the farm extension was the only way to indicate its identity and limits. Leaving aside the toponyms of the localities, many of which are also in use today, we will focus on the words of the farms, which have long since disappeared from current use. Some of them had distant roots and even dated back to the Lombard period; others were more recent and originated from nature or from the position of the land (the Lame, the Lamette, the Piano, the Colle); the presence of aquifers or springs (il Pozzo) or fishing facilities (la Pescaia); from a recent tillage of the soil (il Ranco, le Roncole); from the agricultural destinations of the fields (the Stoppiaccia); from the name of saints, celebrities and common people (Sant'Isidoro, Fortebraccio, Osteria di Piero Antonio). Given the origin of the words of the farms, we should not be surprised if some of them are repeated even in more than one locality. Calavanne, for example, is found both in the Villa of Sportacciano and in that of San Savino; Buzzacchero is present both in San Giuliano delle Pignette and in Colle San Savino; the Casella, both in Pieve di Cicaleto and in Monte Acuto; the Vaglie both in Monte Acuto and in Polgeto; Campo del Pozzo both in Migianella and in Polgeto; Chiusa del Molino both in San Giuliano delle Pignatte and in Romeggio. And the list goes on, but we prefer to stop so as not to bore the reader. For fans of this topic, in the attachment we report all the farm words that it was possible to find in the various notarial deeds stipulated in the century. The animals of the farm The products of the soil were subjected to the fixed rule of the medietate that characterized the sharecropping management, with rare exceptions such as grapes and olives in which a more disadvantageous distribution criterion was in force for the farmer, as we have seen above. There were no other exceptions to the division of products, unless, for very specific and contingent reasons, the contract provided for some. The relationships were more complex, however, for the division of profits and losses deriving from the marketing of the farm animals. For example, there is no precise information on the regime to which poultry animals were subjected (chickens, pigeons and geese; it may seem strange, but we never talk about ducks and rabbits). Were they jointly owned, or did they entirely belong to the peasant who governed them with his own feed, except for some spontaneous regalia or imposed on the master on the most solemn occasions? It is difficult to answer without reliable sources. The only certain elements are found in the records of the Confraternities which, despite having numerous farms, often record sums of money for the purchase of similar animals at the market, while there are no charges to the farmer in the same way. This would suggest that the small animals belonged to the farmer who sold them at the market after keeping those destined to end up in his poor table. The average livestock (pigs and sheep), born in the stable, followed the rule of sharecropping. But when it came to livestock, from medium to large, things could be more complex in relation to the shares of ownership owned. It could happen, in fact, that it was bought entirely, or for a majority share, by the owner. In this case, the purchase price was deducted from the sale, which went entirely to the owner, or divided according to the shares due, and the remaining income (or loss) was divided in half. Most of the time, however, the purchase of livestock took place in equal parts and then there were no problems on the distribution of profits or losses. As for the large cattle, which represented the real capital of the farm, this century does not offer variations to the practice followed in the following century, so we refer the reader to this chapter dealt with in the volume relating to 1700. Note: 1. Terracotta warmers 2. The extension of the land was indicated by the measures of capacity for arid: rubbio (4 mines), mina (2 stara), staro (8 cups), cup (4 bowls). In the notarial deeds of the time, the most used units were the mine and the table, a submultiple that was equivalent to 1/150 of a mine. The mine was equal to 160 Roman pounds, (pound = 333 grams; for which the ground of 1 mine, indicated an extension in which it was possible to sow 53.280 kg of wheat. Sources: "Umbertide in the XVII century" by Renato Codovini and Roberto Sciurpa - Municipality of Umbertide, 2004

THE HISTORY OF THE UMBERTIDE MUNICIPAL OFFICES Curated by Fabio Mariotti The ancient municipal offices of Fratta In 1189 Fratta was subjected to the jurisdiction of Perugia and had its own magistracies. The first seat of the Municipality, from the last years of the twelfth century until at least 1381, was at the end of the current Via Alberti, in the corner building between the door and the inner door of the Campana, at the top of the Piaggiola. Subsequently the town hall moved in front of the Rocca (now Piazza Fortebracci), in the building adjacent to the current theater, set back a few meters from today. In 1435, with the suppression of the monastery of the nuns of Santa Maria di Castelvecchio which had its seat there, the Municipality appropriated some rooms of the building of the present theater where the mayor's residence was also. In 1449 in the town hall there is a "lower room", used for prisons until 1815, when they will be moved to the Rocca. The municipal council met in the "upper room". The venue, in subsequent years, will also be granted for theatrical performances. After 1500 a large wooden drawbridge anchored to iron hooks was lowered in the town square, built in the rear (west) part of the Rocca. A large sundial was placed on the facade of the town hall. In 1760 the spaces used for municipal services began to prove insufficient, but only a few years later it was possible to find a suitable location. In 1787 Cardinal Angelelli suppressed the convent of Santa Maria Nuova, at the end of the Piaggiola, and the Municipality settled in those large rooms; at the beginning in the wing towards the Tiber, then the complex was renovated in the part along the road. The schools were also located on the first floor: they will remain there until the early decades of the twentieth century. The history of the current Palazzo Comunale At the end of the seventeenth century a disordered agglomeration of huts occupied the area where the Palazzo Comunale stands today. Today's Piazza Matteotti was only a small open space and did not symbolize the center of local power, which then gravitated around the Rocca. The Marquises of Sorbello had the buildings located in the area of the current municipal residence by way of emphyteusis "up to the third generation", on the basis of a contract with the Bishop's canteen of Gubbio, owner of the buildings. On the basis of this contract, the old huts were demolished and the construction of the building began which was completed on April 29, 1720. From this date the building took the name of "Palazzo Bourbon di Sorbello" and the square in front of "Piazza del Marquis ". It consisted of three levels in addition to the ground floor. On the first, the noble residence and the reception rooms with walls and vaults decorated with frescoes, the other two floors intended for accommodation. The palace, however, was inadequate to the needs of the Bourbon Marquises who, almost certainly, never became owners of the property. When the Municipality decided to occupy that seat, in the spring of 1841, it belonged, in fact, to Domenico Mavarelli who in the meantime had bought it from the Diocese of Gubbio. Mavarelli had held the position of First Prior of Fratta between 1832 and 1853. One of his relatives, Mauro, will be the first Mayor of united Italy, in 1861, and will remain at the center of city politics until 1887. The municipal residence had moved in 1787 outside the city walls, in the suppressed female convent of Santa Maria Nuova, located in the current Via Grilli, at the end of the Piaggiola. This was undoubtedly an inadequate and unfortunate location. The search for a more suitable and central location became urgent and on 17 December 1840 the City Council officially addressed the problem of moving to another location, proposing that of the "Palazzo del Marchese", now Mavarelli. The proposal, put to a vote, was approved by a majority. . The move took place in the following March and a perpetual long lease agreement was stipulated, upon payment of an annual fee of 75 scudi to Domenico Mavarelli. The works of arrangement of the building began immediately on the various floors and as they ended the various municipal activities moved there. The municipal archive was placed on the third floor in 1843. Since then, the ancient Bourbon palace of Sorbello has housed the Municipality. Under the papal dominion, it was reserved for the Governor and his family, for the “Civil and Criminal Chancellery Offices” and for the Magistrate. On the second floor were the public schools, on the third the archives. While the upper rooms have had different arrangements over the years, the noble floor has remained unchanged over time, with a few variations that concern only the destination of the rooms. The Mayor's office and the Town Council hall have always remained in place, while that of the Giunta, around 1990, occupied the space intended for the secretariat of the mayor, leaving the traditional and historic hall, which housed the executive of the Liberation and the birth of the Republic, for meetings of the council groups and press conferences. In 1923 some internal changes were made to the building and the wooden shed that cluttered the atrium was also removed. The paintings that recall ancient characters from Umberto were also restored and it was commissioned to prof. Frenguelli the execution of the two coats of arms in travertine, Italy and Umbertide, to be walled up between the central windows on the first floor. The aerial bombardment of April 25, 1944 and subsequent ones spared this construction, which however was seriously damaged in many parts by other war events. After the war, all the rooms were repaired and the frescoed vaults on the first floor were restored at a total cost of 1,500,000 lire. Due to its degraded and dangerous conditions, on 21 September 1981 the restoration and consolidation works began which were completed on 10 November 1984, with the addition of the premises built on the ancient alley of the "Scudellari", purchased to make way for the offices for the new competences of the municipal administration. The large atrium, where the information point is located and where the offices of the Mayor, the Deputy Mayor and the Town Council look out, has completely frescoed vaults and on the walls a gallery of paintings representing some historical figures from Umberto I. In the Mayor's office, whose windows overlook Piazza Matteotti, you can admire some important paintings for the history of the city: "The market square" by Ernesto Freguglia dating back to 1875; a canvas depicting "San Romualdo, the Magdalene and the Virgin and Child" by an unknown artist; a drawing of Fratta seen from the north by Giovanni Santini from the first half of the 19th century. In the Giunta room, with its completely frescoed vaults, the gallery of Umbertide historical characters continues and an ancient and precious artistic ceramic heater is housed. The hall of the council groups has completely frescoed walls and vaults and is one of the most beautiful rooms in the entire Palazzo Comunale. The Town Council Hall occupies what was once the party hall, where the ancient owners used to entertain their guests. On the wall behind the counter reserved for the council, a large fresco represents the municipal coat of arms. At the top, on the side walls, there are monumental terraces. The frescoes in the municipal halls were made in 1810 by the painter Montorsi of Perugia while Biagio Advantages of Gubbio created the sculptures on the main floor in 1842. In 2016, with the municipal council led by the mayor Marco Locchi, seismic improvement and efficiency works have been started building of the municipal building, works completed in 2021 by the municipal council led by the mayor Luca Carizia. The palace is was reopened to the usability of citizens, completely renovated, in July 2021. A Town Hall, that of Umbertide, which he knew then to preserve the best of its ancient and noble history by equipping however, over the years, their offices with the most modern tools IT systems to better respond to the legitimate needs of citizens users. Sources: Historical calendar of Umbertide 2009

Memorie di Bellarosa Villarini Anna Maria Memorie di Bellorosa, Villarini Anna Maria di anni 75 MARTEDÌ 25 APRILE 1944. BOMBARDAMENTO DI UMBERTIDE Umbertide comprendeva allora la parte vecchia (quella che oggi si chiama il "centro storico"), più via Roma, detta anche "le case nove", dove io abitavo al n.16, e che dal paese portava alla Pineta, meta di lunghe passeggiate. Era una strada costituita da due file di case parallele, una più corta che arrivava all'incrocio di via XX Settembre e conduceva alla stazione e l'altra più lunga, che terminava con la segheria che mio padre, Bellarosa Astorre falegname, aveva costruito con fatica insieme ad altri soci, ed infine con la "bettola" dei Gonfiacani. Avevo 14 anni e questo era il mio mondo, dove ci conoscevamo tutti ma non più in serenità, perché la guerra, che aveva portato al fronte molti giovani, ci aveva costretto alla fame e alla miseria. Frequentavo la terza media ma non più nell'edificio specifico, l'attuale scuola elementare di via Garibaldi, perché occupato da un comando tedesco, ma nella sede della Scuola di Avviamento Professionale (ora Centro socio-culturale San Francesco), facendo tempi alternati ed orario di lezioni ridotto. Avevo 14 anni e, malgrado tutto, vivevo la mia adolescenza spensierata con le mie amiche. Quella mattina ero andata da una di loro, che abitava all'inizio di via Roma, non mi ricordo per quale ragione, forse per un compito di scuola. Avevo suonato al portone e aspettavo che si affacciasse alla finestra, quando ho sentito e visto proprio sopra la strada un aereo volare basso e poi un boato. Era iniziato il bombardamento del nostro paese da parte dell'aviazione inglese. Spaventata, sono corsa verso casa mia mentre gli aerei continuavano a bombardare e colpivano la casa degli" Schiopetini", che era subito dietro la strada dove stavo correndo terrorizzata. Arrivai al mio portone e li trovai tutta la mia famiglia che mi aspettava. Insieme andammo per un vicolo che era sul retro della casa e attraverso gli orti verso la “Regghia". Fu allora che io, dimostrando una forma di egoismo che non mi conoscevo, attraversai il torrente e incurante della presenza o meno dei miei familiari (sapevo che mia madre non poteva camminare in fretta), mi sono messa a correre in mezzo a tante altre persone che conoscevo, ma tutte preoccupate solo di essere veloci. Intanto gli aerei continuavano a girarci sopra e avevano cominciato a mitragliare, forse un accampamento tedesco collocato nel “campo boario",nella zona dell' attuale piattaforma Ad un certo punto mi sono sentita afferrare da dietro: era mio padre, che giustamente mi ha dato un calcio nel sedere e mi ha riportato con mia madre Tecla e mia sorella Felicina. Fig. n. 2: Astorre Bellarosa, poi sindaco di Umbertide nel dopoguerra. Immagine da ASCU. Ci disperdemmo tutti nei campi vicini al paese, accucciati nell'erba, guardandoci l'un l'altro spaventati, senza quasi dirci una parola. Non sapevamo ancora l'orrendo massacro che era avvenuto in paese, dove il popolare rione San Giovanni era stato distrutto come altre case nei dintorni, con tante vittime. L'obiettivo del bombardamento era il ponte metallico della ferrovia sul fiume Tevere, che invece non era stato toccato e perciò, il pomeriggio dello stesso, giorno gli aerei sono tornati a compiere l'opera. Voci filtravano di tanti morti, intere famiglie, tutte composte nella chiesa della Collegiata. Si cercava fra le macerie, ma io di questa parte della tragedia non conosco nulla, solo, dopo lo spavento, i nomi, tutti conosciuti, delle vittime. E su tutto è caduto un velo nero. Per la notte abbiamo trovato rifugio, insieme ad altre persone, nel fienile di Violini, un contadino che abitava in un “toppo" sopra al paese, nella zona della Pineta, ora trasformato in una ricca villa con viale. MARTEDÌ 25 APRILE 1944. BOMBARDAMENTO DI UMBERTIDE SABATO 24 GIUGNO 1944. RAPPRESAGLIA NAZISTA A SERRA PARTUCCI DI UMBERTIDE. Dopo il bombardamento Umbertide si è svuotato.Tutti gli abitanti hanno cercato rifugio presso i contadini delle zone circostanti che, con vero senso di solidarietà, li hanno accolti nelle loro case. Erano case coloniche povere, senza bagno, senza acqua, spesso senza strada se non un sentiero scosceso e sassoso, ma ogni famiglia vi ha trovato la sua sistemazione, anche se precaria. Comunque ci sentivamo più sicuri e riparati dalla guerra che incombeva e precipitava nei suoi ultimi terribili sussulti. Mio padre Astorre, falegname, aveva come clienti molti contadini e fra questi si è messo d'accordo con uno che abitava alla Serra. Specificamente questa località si chiamava Serra Partucci ed era costituita da una collina con un vecchio castello medievale dove fu poi trasferito, in maniera molto disagevole, ma anche molto utile, l'Ospedale "Istituti Riuniti di Beneficenza", dove vennero ricoverati e curati anche i molti feriti del bombardamento. La famiglia dove noi ci sistemammo aveva per vocabolo, come si usava allora, “I Bianconi", (non ho mai conosciuto il loro cognome anagrafico) ed era composta dal contadino, la moglie, tre figli piccoli, la nonna, un fratello e una sorella, questi ultimi entrambi con problemi mentali che, per quanto loro possibile, aiutavano nel lavoro. In questa famiglia c'era un estraneo, un giovane slavo, un bel ragazzone robusto dal viso gioioso che si chiamava Cernic Domenico. Parlava bene lo slavo, che era la sua lingua, ma anche l'italiano e il tedesco. Fig. n. 3: Domenico Cernic. Foto da Fabio Mariotti. Era fuggito dall'esercito nel momento dell' armistizio ma, non potendo raggiungere la sua casa e la sua famiglia a Gorizia, si era ricordato di un amico commilitone che abitava in questa zona e vi aveva fatto riferimento. Mio padre si è ricordato poi che proprio a lui, che era fuori della sua segheria, quello stesso giovane aveva chiesto la strada per andare alla Serra, ed ora si erano fortunosamente rincontrati. ll contadino ci ha dato come camera un ambiente in casa sua e un capannone che alla meglio sistemammo come cucina. Voglio ricordare che i letti, le sedie, il tavolo e le varie suppellettili necessarie per sopravvivere le abbiamo velocemente caricate su un carro tirato da buoi con il quale "Bianconi" ci era venuto a prendere. Per me cominciò una vita tutta diversa: prima di tutto conobbi direttamente il valore dell'umanità e dell'amicizia, poi fui presa da quella vita e imparai a falciare, mietere, guidare la "treggia"con i buoi, (carro agricolo senza ruote idoneo a percorrere zone ripide e sassose anche con il fango profondo) con la quale andare a prendere l'acqua, che si trovava solo in una spianata sotto casa. Aiutavo anche la nonna in cucina perché spesso mangiavamo tutti assieme. Ma il centro della compagnia era sempre Domenico, divenuto indispensabile per il lavoro nei campi, ma anche per il lavoro di sarto, che era poi il suo mestiere. A me piaceva osservare i vari personaggi, e notavo l'andatura in avanti a gambe leggermente divaricate e piegate del contadino Pietro, abituato a lavorare e camminare in zone ripide, la moglie Rosa dal viso sorridente che correva sempre (aveva tanto da fare), molto gradita quando arrivava nei campi dove lavoravano, con una grande cesta in testa con torta, erba, talvolta prosciutto, vino e acqua, Berto, il fratello molto rallentato, che si dedicava soprattutto alle stalle, e Lalla, la sorella, che non riusciva nemmeno a parlare e faceva, a modo suo, le pulizie di casa, mentre la nonna Natalina si arrangiava in cucina. Poi c'era sempre Domenico che, oltre a lavorare molto, trovava anche il tempo di giocare con me e i tre bambini piccoli: facevamo le corse in una stradina in discesa che portava al piccolo cimitero, facevamo a gara nel salire sugli alberi, coglievamo le ciliege che, poi, ci rubavamo l'un l'altro. Da alcuni giorni erano arrivati anche due fratelli di Domenico, Daniele e Luigi che, saputo il luogo dove si era rifugiato, erano venuti per aiutarlo. Anche loro trovarono ospitalità, Daniele in casa di “Biancone", Luigi da un contadino vicino, in cambio della loro volonterosa prestazione di lavoro, sempre in attesa di una situazione che permettesse loro di tornare tutti a casa. Gli eventi poi precipitarono: ci furono due bombardamenti per colpire la ferrovia Appennino, il trenino che portava a Gubbio, durante i quali gli aerei facevano la "picchiata" partendo proprio dalla Serra (ne vedevamo i piloti dentro le cabine) per colpire anche la stazioncina, che noi dall'alto vedevamo come una piccola scatolina. Spaventati, costruimmo delle buche nelle greppate che ritenevamo più riparate, come rifugi. Cominciarono a transitare i tedeschi, che si appropriavano del bestiame (hanno costretto mio padre a scuoiare un vitello che loro avevano ammazzato) finché arrivò un comando che si insediò nel capannone da noi usato come cucina e noi fummo costretti a sloggiare. Ci trasferimmo nella casa del parroco Don Giuseppe Filippi, perché la chiesa era nello stesso spiazzo della casa dove noi stavamo. Qui ci ritrovammo in parecchie famiglie, forse una ventina di persone, perché i tedeschi stavano invadendo la zona. Eravamo tutti spaventati, ma riuscivamo a convivere nel ristretto spazio a disposizione. Mi ricordo che un giorno vennero, nella casa del prete dove alloggiavamo, un drappello di tedeschi, e poiché si sapeva di violenze e di stupri noi donne ci chiudemmo in un locale superiore. Ascoltavamo attente l'evolversi della situazione. Quel parlare duro e gutturale mi dava un'angoscia tremenda che involontariamente tutt'oggi provo quando sento parlare questa lingua. Poi sentimmo Natalino Villarini e Gaetano Fronduti, mariti e padri del nostro gruppo, che cantavano pezzi d'opera e i tedeschi che ridevano e applaudivano: cosi riuscirono a distrarli e rabbonirli. Non ricordo bene dove fossi di preciso il giorno sabato 24 giugno, ma solo che ho sentito per prima i tedeschi che erano entrati nella casa del prete e detti l'allarme. Non portai alcun aiuto perché in pochi secondi passarono tutti gli ambienti e ci costrinsero ad uscire nello spiazzo antistante. Ci hanno ammucchiato a ridosso del pozzo che era (ed è tutt'ora) in un lato ed eravamo tutti li, uomini, donne, bambini, anziani. C'erano anche due giovani contadini che tornando a casa nella vallata si sono trovati li per caso. I tedeschi avevano lasciato in casa del prete solo Emma, la moglie di Natalino, che era in gravidanza molto avanzata, e Natalina nella casa del contadino, perché molto vecchia. C'erano quattro piccole strade, meglio dire sentieri, che portavano allo spiazzo dove eravamo raggruppati e in ognuna di queste c'era piazzato un soldato con il mitra. In quel momento io non ebbi la piena consapevolezza di ciò che stava accadendo, sentivo però che eravamo in un grave, oscuro pericolo. Sul mezzo si mise un ufficiale con ai lati altri soldati con le armi in pugno. Aveva dei piccoli occhiali dorati, sguardo freddo, capelli biondi. Quel viso con la sua espressione gelida è incancellabile nella mia memoria fin nei minimi particolari. Cominciò a parlare in un italiano stentato. Capivo solo alcune parole, ma non il filo del discorso fino a che disse, e questo lo capii, che uno di noi doveva andare con loro. Passò con lo sguardo tutti noi quindi si fermò, alzò il braccio e con l'indice fece il cenno di richiamo. Io guardavo e ho visto mio padre, che era davanti a Domenico, fare un passo avanti chiedendo. "lo?". Domenico, che era intelligente e per di più conosceva bene i tedeschi e la loro lingua, gli mise una mano sulla spalla e con voce chiara che tutti abbiamo sentito, gli ha detto: " No Bellarosa, è per me". Certo che quelle SS naziste, la cui identità specifica a me era sconosciuta, (per me i tedeschi erano tutti ugualmente cattivi) avevano scelto nel mucchio il migliore come vittima privilegiata. Si sentiva un silenzio pesante composto dal terrore di ognuno di noi. Domenico era in maniche di camicia perché stava lavorando. Avanzò fino a giungere davanti all'ufficiale e gli chiese se poteva andare in casa a prendere la giacca. Gli fu consentito e sparì dalla nostra visuale perché la scala esterna era dall'altro lato. Dopo pochi secondi riapparve e con il braccio che infilava ancora la manica ci ha fatto un ampio gesto di saluto. Questa immagine è impressa nella mia memoria come l'istantanea di un fotogramma, precisa in ogni particolare e fissata per sempre. Spesso sono dovuta tornare sul posto e, malgrado la scena sia cambiata perché la casa colonica è in disfacimento e la chiesa chiusa e abbandonata, rivedo quel viso giovane e aperto che ci saluta. Lui sapeva quello che lo aspettava, perché quando è andato in casa a prendere la giacca, alla vecchia Natalina ha consegnato l'orologio da polso e il portafoglio dicendole di darli ai suoi fratelli Luigi e Daniele che erano rimasti insieme a noi nel gruppo. Alle rimostranze della donna che gli chiedeva il perché di quel gesto, rispose."Natalina addio. Mi ammazzano." Questo tragico particolare lo abbiamo saputo dopo che i tedeschi sono andati via, sparendo in una "greppata" proprio sotto il Castello e portandosi via Domenico. Per alcuni secondi rimanemmo tutti in silenzio, immobili. Poi cominciammo a parlare sottovoce dicendo frasi inutili e sconnesse per la paura, mentre i due fratelli si disperavano. Passarono solo pochi minuti, poi sentimmo il fragore di una mitragliata e capimmo subito ciò che era avvenuto. L'incognita del cosa, del come, del dove fosse stato fatto si espresse nei visi che si guardavano attoniti. Fig. n. 4: il video dei colpi della fucilazione impressi nel muro a Serra Partucci. Fu mio padre che per primo prese l'iniziativa di “andare a vedere", e chiese aiuto al parroco che per la sua missione accettò, mentre gli altri, spaventati, non fiatarono. Solo Gaetano si fece avanti, ma disse che era pericoloso e propose di chiedere aiuto al comando tedesco installato nel capannone vicino (che però durante l'operazione non si era visto per niente). Andarono e quando tornarono dissero che erano stati comprensivi e che avevano scritto un permesso di movimento, ma che avevano anche aggiunto fosse di poco valore di fronte a quel reparto speciale di SS, indipendente da ogni comando e libero di agire senza alcun condizionamento. Comunque andarono e dopo poco tempo tornarono inorriditi dicendo di aver trovato i corpi martoriati dai colpi di cinque giovani, fra cui Domenico, a ridosso di un piccolo capanno vicino alla casa colonica dei "Centovalle". Chiusi in casa, urlanti, avevano trovato tutta la famiglia, tra cui la moglie con due figlie piccole di uno degli uccisi. Mio padre ha detto che nel piccolo fossato che era proprio lungo quel muro maledetto scorreva copioso, come un piccolo ruscello, il sangue di quelle cinque giovani vittime innocenti. Particolare che dimostra la ferocia crudele e inumana di quei soldati è l'aver messo al muro due fratelli, di cui uno diciassettenne, della famiglia dei Radicchi, un giovane maestro del paese che conoscevo e che sfortunatamente si trovava per strada su un carro di buoi per trasferirsi dalla zona di Pierantonio, dove era sfollato con la sua famiglia, in una zona più sicura per salvarsi dai continui rastrellamenti, e due fratelli della famiglia dei"Centovalle". Secondo la loro macabra contabilità il conto era chiuso: cinque giovani italiani erano li pronti a pagare il ferimento di un soldato tedesco. Questa motivazione l'ho saputa dopo, ma l'ufficiale ce lo aveva già spiegato nel suo parlare iniziale ed era una regola applicata "normalmente" dalle SS: un morto tedesco valeva dieci vite italiane, un ferito valeva cinque vite italiane. Infatti tanti ne avevano messi al muro per un loro ferito, ma poi si accorsero che uno di questi, Quinto dei fratelli Centovalle, era senza una mano perché invalido per un incidente avuto con il trincia-erba e perciò non lo ritennero"abile" a far parte dei cinque. Comunque lo lasciarono li in fila, in attesa insieme agli altri, come riserva se non avessero trovato di meglio, mentre un drappello di loro venne a cercare il quinto “sano" e lo trovarono da noi, intero e robusto: Domenico. Quello che avvenne poi per me è solo un susseguirsi di fatti raccontati, non visti e poco ascoltati perché tutto di me, anima e corpo, rifiutava quella orribile realtà. So che gli uomini della nostra spaurita comunità andarono con una "treggia” tirata dai buoi e che con questa trasportarono i corpi nella chiesetta del piccolo cimitero li vicino. So che fecero cinque fosse e con delle protezioni di assi di legno (non so dove le abbiano potute trovare) li seppellirono, uguali nel destino, distinti solo dai nomi scritti su dei cartoncini. Era finita la mia innocente serenità di adolescente. Fig. n. 5: Anni '50 ad Umbertide. una "treggia" trainata dai buoi. Immagine da Fabio Mariotti "ASCU". Fig: n. 6: I visi delle 5 vittime della Rappresaglia, da Mario Tosti, "Cinque cipressi. 24 giugno 1944: rappresaglia a Serra Partucci"., edito da Gruppo Editoriale Locale, 2014. Desidero continuare per raccontare un ultimo episodio che segnò la mia famiglia. Mio padre quasi ogni settimana andava, logicamente a piedi, in paese per vedere la situazione e controllare ciò che rappresentava tutto ciò che avevamo: la sua segheria e la nostra casa. Un mattino guardavamo il paese dall'alto dove eravamo, e notammo un grande fumo che si alzava verso il cielo. Mio padre disse subito:"Brucia la mia segheria!" lo non riuscii a capire come avesse localizzato l'incendio da cosi lontano, ma era vero. Solo quella struttura fu bruciata completamente, con tutte le macchine che c'erano dentro, frutto del duro lavoro di mio padre e del socio Riego Maccarelli.(Ricordo che mio padre, stanco e coperto di segatura, dopo pranzato si sdraiava in cucina sopra una coperta, per terra e cosi riposava qualche minuto prima di tornare al lavoro). Ora si trovava senza più niente, e non aveva più l'età per ricominciare. Cosi sono stati colpiti intenzionalmente due antifascisti che avevano sempre lottato per la libertà malgrado i pestaggi, gli inseguimenti con colpi di rivoltella, il carcere e le torture cui li sottoposero i fascisti. … Continuarono fucilazioni di giovani, incendi di case con dentro intere famiglie, e violenze di ogni genere. Poi tutto ebbe fine. Ci fu la liberazione e tornammo in un paese desolato, distrutto, ciascuno con la propria tragedia. Noi lasciammo con amarezza i “Bianconi" e quel luogo cosi bello e cosi amico. Mia sorella Felicina pianse. Ma dovevamo andare avanti, malgrado tutto. E cosi fu. Raccontare questo tragico passato pensavo mi avrebbe dato angoscia, invece mi sono sentita sollevata perché le mie parole hanno fatto rivivere tante persone da non dimenticare. Alla mia età e con la mia esperienza credo fermamente che gli uomini, tutti gli uomini di ogni paese e di ogni razza, per progredire e distribuire equamente giustizia debbano fermare ogni tipo di guerra, che sempre uccide e distrugge, per creare un'unica, grande Pace che comprenda tutto il mondo e tutta I'umanità. E' un sogno, ma un sogno possibile. 15 maggio 2005 Fonti: - Testo autobiografico della direttrice Anna Maria Bellarosa Villarini, pubblicata con il permesso del figlio, il prof. Carlo Villarini. - Immagine di Anna Maria Bellarosa Villarini sul tetto del suo terrazzo in Via Roma all'Archivio della famiglia Villarini. - Immagini da Fabio Mariotti e A.S.C.U. (Archivio storico comunale di Umbertide). Qui la contestualizzazione dell'eccidio fatta da Fabio Mariotti con lo scenario del fronte sul nostro sito: https://umbertidestoria.net/i-percorsi-della-memoria#larappresagliadiserrapartucci - Immagine delle cinque vittime di Serra Partucci da Mario Tosti, "Cinque cipressi. 24 giugno 1944: rappresaglia a Serra Partucci"., edito da Gruppo editoriale locae, 2014. Questa opera presenta una ricostruzione degli eventi accurata e, all'interno sono presenti anche i ricordi di Anna Maria Bellarosa Villarini.

Arboreal archeology: the "married vine" Le viti maritate di Sagraia (video) La "vite maritata" nella storia La persistenza nel tempo Il perché della durata La "vite maritata" ad Umbertide La "vite maritata" negli archivi Approfondimento viticultura da Ottavi Ottavio - 1885 Aggiornamento presenza vite maritata nel 1920 Le viti maritate di Sagraia (video) La "vite maritata" nella storia La persistenza nel tempo Il perché della durata La "vite maritata" ad Umbertide La "vite maritata" negli archivi Approfondimento viticultura da Ottavi Ottavio - 1885 (edited by Francesco Deplanu) In the hilly area where the Etruscan tomb of Sagraia is located, between Preggio and Umbertide, there are still some examples of " Married vine" . Cultivation that for a very long time characterized the method of cultivation of the vine and determined the appearance of the landscape of our areas. Video : last married vines in Contini, San Bartolomeo dei Fossi (Umbertide). The married vine has a history of about 3000 years; the use of the vine with the field maple as a living tutor was functional to a subsistence economy, the only one possible in the pre-Roman world, but which in our areas continued to substantially dominate and merged, starting from the sixteenth century, with the system from indirect management of the land, later structured in sharecropping. The maple with the vine "married" to it was often arranged in series within the cultivated fields to constitute the "tree-lined", characterizing our rural world until after the Second World War. Agricultural system functional to an agriculture that was aimed more at self-consumption than at the market, for this reason the mixed use of fields, vines and arable land, and polyculture. Since the post-war period, the use of the hubby vine has disappeared and with it that characteristic ordered landscape of our rural landscape has vanished. The vine ( Vitis Vinifera L. ) Is a liana shrub which, to better cultivate it, was grown on a live support, has a very long history of use, therefore, which was interrupted only in the century. XX, in the face of a more profitable vision of economic exploitation of the land. In fact in Umbertide and in northern Umbria there were not even the arrival of the specific diseases of the vineyards of the '900, such as "phylloxera", or those of their supports, as for the elms of northern Italy, which managed to "eradicate" this type of cultivation. Most likely, in fact, the distance between the plants in the typical promiscuous culture also favored their protection from diseases or pests. Fig. 1: first married life identified in Contini locality, San Bartolomeo dei Fossi (Umbertide). Photo by Francesco Deplanu To lead to their removal or replacement with vineyards, or systems of other structures, were the needs, already visible at the beginning of the 1900s, for an improvement in production and use of agricultural land increasingly aimed at the market. The end of sharecropping, then, led to the definitive loss of this type of cultivation and almost of the very memory of the very long presence of the "married vine". Fig. 2: second located married life in Contini locality, San Bartolomeo dei Fossi (Umbertide). Photo by Francesco Deplanu There "married life" in history This type of cultivation concerned the territories formerly inhabited by the Etruscans or, further north, by the Celts. For this reason this method of cultivation, and culture, is also called "Etruscan vine" or "Etruscan-Celtic vine". It was found mainly in Liguria (where it seems to have started), Tuscany, Umbria, part of Campania, Emilia, Veneto; examples of similar cultivation, moreover, due to trying to give a solution to the same problem of grape ripeness and to the better resistance of the vine, are found in some parts of Europe. Over time, the association of the vine with a tree-lined support was named differently. In the Etruscan language it was called "àitason", "arbustum" in Latin, which was then distinguished in "arbustum gallicum" term to designate a connected series of married plants, later defined as "planted", and “Arbustum italicum” to indicate the isolated plant with the vine, an agricultural use subsequently defined by us as “tree-lined”. The terms "alberata" and "Piantata" came into vogue, however, in the mid-seventeenth century. with Vincenzo Tanara in the work " Economy of the citizen in the villa " of 1644. Fig. 3: third located married life in Contini locality, San Bartolomeo dei Fossi (Umbertide). Photo by Francesco Deplanu Starting from the 1st cent. Finally, also thanks to the poets Catullus and Ovid, the metaphor of love began using the image of the vine and its support, which led to the current definition of "married vine". Persistence over time Certainly in the Etruscan era the possibilities of agricultural techniques did not recommend a different method of cultivation in colder and humid climates compared to those further south, areas where the Greeks, on the other hand, had brought the method of cultivation of the vine to the ground. Emilio Sereni, in "History of the Italian agricultural landscape" (1961), was the first to explain, thanks also to the etymology, how it was the Etruscans who introduced the married vine into the Po valley and how the "roosters" learned its cultivation. Consistently with his hypothesis, the persistence of lives married to tall trees up to the Etruscan domination, that is to say in Campania, is also explained. The persistence of cultivation, however, continued for a long time over the centuries in many areas. In fact, this type of production continued both in the Roman period, although other techniques for viticulture reached a considerable evolution, and in the long medieval period, as well as in the period of sharecropping production. Marrying the vine to a living support, however, at a certain point, after tens of centuries, became not convenient. With a management of agriculture that was abandoning the sharecropping system, economically subsistence, to move to a market one, there was also the transition to methods of cultivation with fixed (or "dead") support, or to specialized crops, such as the vineyard, and no longer promiscuous. In addition to the production reason linked to the economic element, which led to the exit from subsistence agriculture, it should be pointed out that the married vine in modern times certainly had some disadvantages: you had to work much more for pruning than what could be done on the row system; the foliage of the brace made the grapes ripen later; finally, the inconvenience during harvesting was certainly greater, considering the height of the live brace. Fig. 4: fourth located married life in Contini locality, San Bartolomeo dei Fossi (Umbertide). Photo by Francesco Deplanu But why did this type of cultivation last so long? It should be remembered that although the crown of the stanchion tree slowed down ripening, at the same time it protected the fruits of the vine from bad weather. Its leaves served as fodder. On the branches of the maple, often pruned to "candlestick", to facilitate the subsequent harvest, it was also possible to preserve the material cut during pruning (see in this regard the photos of the "Museum of Wine" of the Lungarotti Foundation, cited in the sources ). In short, it was an example of a productive association. In addition to producing grapes, leaves were obtained to be used as fodder, firewood, material for tying vines and also for weaving baskets and then… bottles and demijohns. In fact, a survival crop, which characterized our areas for a very long time, preferred a mixed use of the land. Furthermore, it should be considered that once the “marriage” was built, for decades the aspect of caring for the vine and the guardian could be left in second order; this was precisely a characteristic favorable to the management of works in polyculture linked to sharecropping. With a suitable stake, such as our "field maple", this cultivation seemed the best, especially for hilly and low soil. The maple has a slow growth, and also has shallow roots and thus did not enter into competition with those of the vine. These elements allowed the success of this cultivation system. Fig. 5: Maples in Contini locality, San Bartolomeo dei Fossi (Umbertide). Photo by Francesco Deplanu In 1885 in a text on "viticulture" Ottavi Ottavi, professor of agricultural sciences, analyzed from a technical point of view how the "married vine" was still cultivated, indicating, however, at the same time the reason for its future disappearance. Ottavi was careful to specify how he, compared to the agronomists of his time who pushed for an exclusively specialized production of the vine, had "granted" a space in his "technical-practical" manual to this type of cultivation. This is because he recognized the numerous advantages of this method for certain types of areas: “ unlike other authors of viticulture, we dedicate a chapter to the cultivation of vines married to trees. We condemn the principle as they do; we admit, however, that in certain plains it can be tolerated, that in some cases the vines cannot be protected differently from freezing temperatures, and that there are some vines that do not tolerate the pruning of low-vine systems, [...] we finally admit that many for now they cannot or do not want to transform. Here are sufficient reasons why we have to deal with this theme, and to study ways of making the product of vines married to trees less intermittent, more abundant and more chosen. " Thus we learn, among the various live supports used, of the advantages of our “field maple”: “ We therefore think that those trees whose root system is very little extended and which can hardly exploit the soil seem rather advisable. In this condition we find the wild cherry and the maple which Gasparin called a living stake. The field maple (acer campestre) is much less developed in height than the others (acer pseudoplatanus and acer platanoides), has slow growth, is satisfied with arid soils and also comes up from the seed. With the exception of tuffaceous soils it thrives everywhere. The seedlings they are suitable to be planted after 4 or 5 years. The maple has short and shallow roots and easily lends itself to being pruned into different shapes. ". For those who are interested, we report an appendix at the bottom of the text which is more extensive than Ottavi's reflections and explanations relating to his chapter XXIV: “ The married lives and the pergolas ”. The " married vine " in Umbertide before his disappearance As mentioned, the last great examples of "Etruscan vine", or "married" remain visible in the hill above the tomb of Sagraia, but if you look carefully at the images that have come down to us from the 1900s of our city, you can see the Umbertide countryside with the dominant "tree-lined" structure right up to the houses. Image 4: Detail of an image from the Municipal Archive of Umbertide. Panorama of Umbertide in the 1930s from the former Convent. In the foreground there are plants arranged in an "alberata" manner, most likely field maples alternating with arable land. This cultivation is also visible in the images of the darkest period of our history, the bombing of 1944, where in the photos, which show the cloud of explosions in the center of the city, you can see both the trees and some festoons of connections between guardian trees as happened in the more structured "plantation", often present with trees but along the edges of the road so as not to hinder agricultural work in the fields. Image 5: Detail of an image taken immediately after the bombing of 25 April 1944, from “Mario Tosti:“ Our ordeal ”- Ed. Petruzzi - Città di Castello, 2005, p. 213. As you can see in the following shot, while the cloud moves carried by the wind, the dominant type of cultivation was still the vine married to the maple, but times had already changed and you can also see the coexistence of vines in linked rows to fixed and non-live supports. Image 6: Detail of an image taken immediately after the bombing of 25 April 1944, from “Mario Tosti:“ Our ordeal ”- Ed. Petruzzi - Città di Castello, 2005, p. 213. The photo was taken in the area of the current via Fratta at the intersection with via Martiri dei Lager. In the map of the Military Geographical Institute (IGM), made on the 1941 relief, Tablet of "Umbertide" (here linked to that of "Niccone", because the city was divided into two different "tablets", scale 1: 25,000) we have marked with an "X" the probable place of the shots, with the red arrow we have indicated the area of the San Giovanni district, which can still be seen in its entirety before the destruction due to the bombing; with the red circle, finally, we have highlighted the symbol of the cultivation of the vine, which when presented alternating with the symbol of the "circles" indicates the "promiscuous culture of the vine". Image 7: Extract of "Tablets" 1: 25.000 joined to present the city that was "cut" in two. 1) "Niccone", Sheet 122 I, NE 2) "Umbertide": Sheet 122 I, NE of the Italian Map (relief of 1941). The overlap was discarded, preferring to leave both representations in the margin area of the two "tablets". Also from the book by Mario Tosti, "Our ordeal" p. 260, you can see some details by enlarging the photos like this one in Coldipozzo where you can see the maple and the tied vine before the apparatus of the branches made to grow with the "candlestick" pruning. In the following photo shown in the book you can see the landscape of the trees in the background of a souvenir photo. In the same period of the photograph the promiscuous culture of the vine alternating with fields cultivated, is clearly visible in the locality of "Col di Pozzo": it is in fact reported in Tablet 1: 25.000 Sheet 122 I, NE of the Map of Italy, and is visible in the excerpt shown below (see image n. 10) in the upper right corner, even if in the excerpt shown the toponym “col di Poz…” is partially cut. Image 8: Detail in the background of a photo taken in Coldipozzo in 1944, from “Mario Tosti:“ Our ordeal ”- Ed. Petruzzi - Città di Castello, 2005, p. 260. The symbols of the mixed cultivation of the vine completely “embraced” the city, like all the plains of Umbria. Still in the 60s in the area north of Umbertide, under the current cemetery of the city, one could very well see an expanse of field maples, arranged in an "tree-lined" manner, characterizing the landscape. Image 9: Photo from the Guardabassi archive. March 1960. Even if it is not possible to see, due to the quality of the photo, the presence of the vine connected to the field maples, this can always be seen from the "tablets" of the IGM shown below, again relief 1941, which indicate the entire area below the cemetery ("Petrella above", "Petrella below", "Lame", "Fornace", "Molinello" and "CS Croce") cultivated with "mixed cultivation" of the vine. Finally, even admitting the possibility that at that moment, 20 years after the IGM survey, the cultivation of vines was no longer carried out, the field maples, arranged in a row, continued to completely characterize the agricultural landscape. In 1964 the “economic” end of sharecropping was sanctioned (here we can learn more) , the trees quickly disappeared even in the Umbertidese area, increasingly relegated to marginal, hilly and sloping areas. Image 10: Extract of "Tablets" 1: 25.000 joined to present the city that was "cut" in two. 1) "Niccone", Sheet 122 I, NE 2) "Umbertide": Sheet 122 I, NE of the Italian Map (relief of 1941). The overlap was discarded, preferring to leave both representations in the margin area of the two "tablets". Searching for news on the "married life" in the modern and contemporary age. Following the spread of the cultivation of the vine married to live supports in pre-Roman cultures, during the Roman period a specialization of the cultivation of the greater vine was added, in accordance with the mass use of the use of the drink. In the period following the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, the cultivation of the vine certainly retreated in quantity of cultivated land but remained very present, because it was the cornerstone of the Christian religious ritual. In the centuries following the fourteenth-century plague, with the increase of the population and the resumption of trade, a slow recovery of the production of the vine began which, above all for the mixed cultivation, "married" with the indirect management of the land, what became our "sharecropping". We know for the long period up to the modern age of its existence from archaeological remains of the arboreal type (seeds etc….) And above all from the literary and iconographic sources of Italian art that the “married vine” cultivation was recurrent in our peninsula. For example, already in the modern age, the vine is clearly visible in Jacopo Clementi's "Drunk Moses" made in the early 1600s. Here we can see the presence of the vine "clinging" to the living tutor in the background of the central theme. iconographic representations that can serve as historical sources, but if the information is sought more accurately, both for the quantity and for the place of use of this type of cultivation, various problems arise. Image 11: “Drunk Moses" by Jacopo Clementi. Image from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Drunkness_of_Noah_by_Jacopo_Chimenti.jpg In fact, how extensive was the cultivation of vines in promiscuous form in our areas? As for the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the written, archival sources known for our territory seem truly non-existent. Perhaps the problem, however, is only to return to the archives in search of specific indications, or to re-read the sources available for the Umbertide area in search of terms relating to the cultivation of the vine, paying attention to the 16th and 17th centuries, for example, rather than looking for the term "vinea", which indicates a vineyard, to those of "pergulae" or "pergola". These last terms certainly indicate the arable alternating with the cultivation of the vine. In fact, reading Anna Boldrini's thesis " Rural architecture in the Upper Tiber Valley: Umbertide XVI century " of 1991, it is found in an inventory of 1572 of the "Book where all the stable assets of the Abbey of San Salvatore are described and of the churches close to them "(note. 13, page 51) the reference to the mixed cultivation (" pergola ") of the vine appears in reference to two dovecote towers of particular shape, round, one of which in the locality of Colle San Savino, characterized as “a piece of land… working pergola with fruit trees serque and elms with a round diver… voc. the diving camp ". We also underline that the "vulgata" on the typology of dovecote towers in Umbria, relegated only the round-shaped dovecote towers to the Spoleto area. This reinforces our belief that studies on our territory in this vast area of the rural world are insufficient. At the end of the eighteenth century the terms to search for in search of the "married vine" are different. They can be found in what are the documents of the agricultural "companies" of the time, often of noble possessions, such as the "country brogliacci". Here it is " arativo pergola ", for example, which indicates a land with mixed cultivation of the vine alternating with arable land, which must be sought. Examples of how it is possible to find similar information on the culture of the vine can be found "looking" along the territory of one of the tributaries of the Tiber, on the left this time, just above Umbertide, or in the narrow valleys of the Carpina catchment area (Carpina and Carpinella). Precisely in the documents of the County of the Della Porta, a County that extended from the foot of Montone to Pietralunga. Here in the " Brogliardo di Campagna della Contea delle Carpine ", of 1782, it is often found, despite the increasing average altitude and the " gengato " soil ("genga" kept washed away from the ground where the underlying "marl and sandstone" emerge) the wording of the “ arativo pergola ” is not favorable to agriculture. Term that we can identify with the presence of married vine with live support. Note in the image the land (n.14 and following) near the famous "Tre ponti", under Montone, precisely in the Molinaccio area and nearby owned by Mr. Natal Migliorati: " arativo pergola " ... "a rative with pergolas "," Plowed part pergola ". Image 13: Details from “.SG, Fondo Della Porta, Title II, G 27/15. "Il Brogliardo di Campagna della Contea delle Carpine", 1782, in an unpublished degree thesis by F. Deplanu, "Evolution of a high hilly landscape of northern Umbria: the importance of the Della Porta company in the territory of the Carpini County since '700 to date ”, ay 2002/2003. At the beginning of the nineteenth century the sources began to become more structured and fortunately for us, too, more usable. In the Gregorian Cadastre of Fratta, present online, this time you can search for the term " arable land ", which differs from " arable land ", but also from the real vineyard which, most likely, is indicated with " vineyard " or " bushy vineyard "... with the addition of a characteristic of the cultivated variety:" sweet ". The Land Registry, built between 1815 and 1835, was equipped with a " Brogliardo " with indications of the owner, the place, the main characteristic and the extent and value of the land or property. Image 14: “Brogliardo di Fratta” of the “Gregorian Cadastre”: Fratta, 1915-35. Imago project: http://www.cflr.beniculturali.it/Gregoriano/mappe.php?fbclid=IwAR3SPsbhE0yDSOzPk5MrT3LVf77oKvYwwqFhUhZzDbdA4DHi4DWrz-9JHdA Here, for example, in parcels no. 700 and 701, 704, 705, 706, 708, 709, almost all owned by Domenico Bruni in “Pian di Bottine”, we have the news and, thanks to the Cadastre map, the "geometric-particle" representation of the real crops. The largest parcels were cultivated with "mixed cultivation", that is, with " arable land " and those closest to the banks of the Tiber, more productive but small and narrow, cultivated in a more specialized way with " sweet bushy vineyard ". Image 15: excerpt from the “Gregorian Cadastre”: Fratta, 1915-35. Imago project: http://www.cflr.beniculturali.it/Gregoriano/mappe.php?fbclid=IwAR3SPsbhE0yDSOzPk5MrT3LVf77oKvYwwqFhUhZzDbdA4DHi4DWrz-9JHdA Certainly the cultivation of "married vine" in the rest of our Umbria was already considerable. In various and precise studies of the agricultural world in the nearby Marche, a term often recurs to indicate a '"alberata" with the trees arranged in a checkerboard pattern in the field between the arable areas, or " alberata Folignata " to attest to the typical existence of this type of use of agricultural land in southern Umbria. We hope that this initial attempt at reconstruction that we have presented, may be useful to focus attention on the need for more in-depth research for all aspects of arboreal archeology or history of the productive structures of our territory. Aspects that have profoundly characterized ways of life and still the landscape that surrounds us. For this reason we add below, after the "Sources", a "chosen study" from the text by Ottavi Ottavio, "THEORETICAL-PRACTICAL VITICULTURE", CASALE, TIPOGRAFIA DI CARLO CASSONE, 1885 (pp. 750-760) on the specific mixed cultivation of the vine with that “living pole” which was the field maple, also typical of the Umbertidese area. Sources: Texts: - Carlo Vernelli, " The cultivation of vines in a sharecropping area" , in the magazine “Proposte e Ricerche”, nr. 60, 2008, pp. 153-174. - Unpublished degree thesis " Evolution of a high hilly landscape of northern Umbria: the importance of the Della Porta company in the territory of the Carpini County from the 1700s to today ", by Francesco Deplanu, Academic Year 2002/2003, University of Perugia. - Unpublished degree thesis " Rural architecture in the upper Tiber Valley: Umbertide in the XVI century " by Anna Maria Boldrini, Academic year 1990-91, University of Perugia. - Ottavi Ottavio, " THEORETICAL-PRACTICAL VITICULTURE ", CASALE, TYPOGRAPHY BY CARLO CASSONE, 1885. Cadastre and Brogliardi: - Gregorian Cadastre: "Fratta", in "Perugia" visible online: http://www.cflr.beniculturali.it/Gregoriano/mappe.php?fbclid=IwAR3SPsbhE0yDSOzPk5MrT3LVf77oKvYwwqFhUhZzDbdA4DHi4DWrz-9 - "Fratta", in "Perugia" visible online: http://www.cflr.beniculturali.it/Gregoriano/mappe.php?fbclid=IwAR3SPsbhE0yDSOzPk5MrT3LVf77oKvYwwqFhUhZzDbdA4DHi4DWrz-9JHdA - “ The Country Brogliardo of the County of the Carpine ”, 1782, ASG, Fondo Della Porta, Title II, G 27/15. Web Resources: - Maria Antonietta Aceto, “The representation of the married vine. Some recent identification ", in" Terra di Lavoro magazine ", year XI, n ° 1, April 2016 (also visible in: https://www.ascaserta.beniculturali.it/rivista-di-terra-di-lavoro/numeri -published / year-xi / year-xi-n1-April-2016 ) - https://www.beni-culturali.eu/opere_d_arte/scheda/-ebbrezza-di-noe-chimenti-jacopo-detto-empoli-1551-1640-09-00021770/400252 - http://www.biologiavegetale.unina.it/delpinoa_files/48_71-92.pdf - http://www.biologiavegetale.unina.it/delpinoa_files/44_53-63.pdf - https://www.guadoalmelo.it/il-vino-e-gli-etruschi-ii-la-vite-marita-tremila-e-piu-anni-di-viticoltura-ed-arte/ - http://www.rmoa.unina.it/2697/1/Gambari.pdf - https://ilvinoracconta.net/2017/01/08/la-vitivinicoltura-umbra-una-storia-appena-iniziata/ Images : - Details of images taken by Mario Tosti: “ Our ordeal ” - Ed. Petruzzi - Città di Castello, 2005 (pp. 213 and 260). - "Tablet" 1: 25.000 IGM, relief 1941, "Niccone", Sheet 122 I, NE of the Italian Charter - "Tavoletta" 1: 25.000, IGM, relief 1941, "Umbertide": Sheet 122 I, NE of the Charter of Italy - Historical photo images of Umbertide from a former convent: Historical Photographic Archive of the Municipality of Umbertide - Image "Drunk Moses": https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Drunkness_of_Noah_by_Jacopo_Chimenti.jpg - Video, photos not indicated otherwise and editing : Francesco Deplanu. Recommended insights of museum pages of the "rural" world in Umbria : - https://archeologiaarborea.com/ - https://www.muvit.it/viticoltura/ DEEPENING In-depth study taken from Ottavi Ottavio, " THEORETICAL-PRACTICAL VITICULTURE ", CASALE, TYPOGRAPHY BY CARLO CASSONE, 1885 (pp. 750-760). […] “ VINES MARITED TO TREES AND PERGOLATES There are therefore many inflexible supporters of specialization, who at any cost would like to separate the vine from every crop: on the contrary, there are others, which Marconi (2) calls opportunists, who they fight to the bitter end so that the union or consociation is maintained and extended. Among these we, although we feel that our sympathies are for specialists, we want to be conciliatory. For this purpose, unlike other authors of viticulture, we dedicate a chapter to the cultivation of the vine married to trees. We condemn the principle as they do; we admit, however, that in certain plains it can be tolerated, that in some cases the vines cannot be protected differently from freezing temperatures, and that there are some vines that do not tolerate the pruning of low-vine systems, as we have already warned on page. 616; finally, we admit that for now many cannot or do not want to transform. Here are sufficient reasons why we have to deal with this theme, and to study ways of making the product of vines married to trees less intermittent, more abundant and more chosen. CHAPTER XXIV The vines married to trees and pergolas, § 1. Choice of tree. - The trees that are used as living support for the vines are maple, walnut, cherry, ash, mulberry, poplar, olive and many others, fruit-bearing or not. Among these the least convenient are: walnut, because it casts too much shade, and in fact in the Veneto it is gradually being abandoned, whereas before it was very common; the elm which in compact, clayey lands replaces the poplar: but it has a root system that is too developed; ash and oak for the same reason. The olive tree has a wide branching, numerous and persistent leaves, and then requires care and nourishment, so while it would damage the vine it would suffer a lot on its part. In marshy soils some marry the vine to the poplar, the willow, the which plants can withstand moist soil; however, the vine cannot do this, and it soon saddens you. Fruit trees do not seem convenient to us, although recommended by the great Ridolfi in his Oral Lectures, because "they will produce little, he said, but it will be something, while the infertile supports do nothing but exhaust the earth uselessly. »Except that, with the exception of respect for the great master, we observe that our common fruit trees, pear, apple, plum and almond trees exhaust the soil too much, and being too leafy they would need strong and dangerous pruning. pp. 750-752 [...] Therefore, those trees whose root system is very little extended and which can hardly exploit the soil seem to us to be quite advisable. In this condition we find the wild cherry and the maple that was called by Gasparin a living stake. The field maple (acer campestre) is much less developed in height than the others (acer pseudoplatanus and acer platanoides), has slow growth, is satisfied with arid soils and also comes up from the seed. With the exception of tuffaceous soils it thrives everywhere. The seedlings are suitable to be planted after 4 or 5 years. The maple has short and shallow roots and easily lends itself to being pruned into different shapes. The field maple receives different names, according to the provinces in which it is grown as a live support for the vines: loppo, chioppo, fìstucchio, testucchio, stucchio and even poplar. The poplar of the Tuscan peasants is therefore not the common Populus, on the contrary it is known that in various parts of Tuscany the peasants usually give the name of poplar or chioppo to any living support of the vines. pp. 755 [...] § 4. Care in the early years. - We replace the trees and vines that the drought had already caused to succumb, we put some poles or branches around the vines themselves so that the new shoots can climb. If the planting was done with cuttings they, as soon as planted, are cut to 2 buds above the ground to have beautiful jets, and you must immediately begin to hoe the earth around them at least 2 times during the state. The trees are cleaned from the suckers that sprout on the trunk. This has been done since the 1st year. On the third the vines are pruned to two buds and the inter-row is spade and hoe, thus making the war against weeds. This inter-row, which in the Veneto region is called bina, wants to be absolutely clear so as not to bring a serious blow to the vitality of the vine from the early years. Leaving clear those two or three meters that form the inter-row you can have al fourth year the vines are already so robust that they can be propagated and pruned with a bud at least above ground, at a distance of half a meter from the tree. And so to the fifth one can come to possess branches of a decent length which are secured to the trunk of the tree (figure 280). In the meantime, the tree also needs care, as would be pruning, the peeling of the thin twigs, shortening even the gluttons, it is finally necessary to try to give all the branches the shape of a regular vase. The shape of a vase or glass, or basket as it is called in Tuscany, very open in the middle, is reached towards the sixth or seventh year. The trees must be cleaned annually from small useless jets, and since this rigorous cleaning causes the branches to acquire a lumpy shape, this is remedied "by leaving at the apex of each branch a couple of shoots, which attracting the activity of life towards them of the plant, in a certain way avoid the release of a greater number of buds on the branches, and maintain in milder proportions those lumpy forms on the branches themselves (1). " The vines are always pruned to two or three buds until they show that they have acquired a certain vigor, and give shoots at least one meter long. Don't be too quick to cut off all the side suckers that sprout on the vine over the course of the year. It is necessary that the juice of the vine does not go all to lengthen the shaft, but also reinforces it so that these suckers either respect each other or only sprout at four or five leaves. Once the vine has reached the height of the tree, it is arranged and arranged in the 1 'Emilia, 1' Umbria, the Terra di lavoro and the others that adopt this system of educating the vines. " Pp. 760 [...] § 7. Economy in the supports. - We must now mention to some economies that could be made in the various systems of educating the tall vine. It is well known that many also have willow, acacia and poplar poles as a subsidiary to living trees, to which the braids or garlands of the fruiting shoots are placed. In some systems (Mantovano, Bolognese) the rational distribution of these braids requires five, six often more than ten poles for each tree. Couldn't we now replace the very expensive poles with iron wire? Mr. YOU. freedmen in the Giornale d'Agricoltura, Industria e Commercio, declares from his own experience and following easy economic calculations that he is very much in favor of this modification. In addition to being cheaper, this gives rise to a perfect distribution of shoots, being able to tie along the wire all the isolated shoots and not wrapped in braids as is done in the case of the pole production. Finally, a more abundant vegetation would be obtained, because it is freer, more airy, more exposed to light and heat. Another modification is proposed by Prof. Viglietto, who hardly admits the vine married to trees and even in the conditions in which it is necessary to keep the vine very high he would like the number of living trees to be as small as possible. «A luxuriant fruit-bearing tree - he says - every 8 or 10 meters, and in between low-cost poles, linked by three or more iron wires longitudinally to the row, can generally replace the exorbitant number of living people with whom we afforest our vineyards. »And he concludes:« We therefore understand: exclusive vineyard and dry farming, or at least preponderance of this means of support. " Sources: Images from the original work (p. 755 and 757): https://archive.org/details/viticolturateori00unse/page/n3/mode/2up Full text, available online from the following address https://archive.org/stream/viticolturateori00unse/viticolturateori00unse_djvu.txt Aggiornamento agosto 2022 La vite maritata a Sagraia: nuove indicazioni di presenza nel tempo Come avviene nella ricerca storica, un approfondimento di diverso tipo può mettere in luce indicazioni per altri argomenti. E' il caso della presenza nel tempo della vite maritata a sostegno vivo nella zona della tomba di Sagraia. Sistemando il materiale edito per l'articolo "Amerigo Contini: l’aviazione nelle guerre mondiali e la scoperta della Tomba di Sagraia ", ci si è presentata una fonte iconografica significativa realizzata dallo stesso scopritore della tomba, un anno dopo, ovvero nel 1920, che ci indica la presenza della vite in loco (dove persiste tutt'ora anche se con esemplari abbandonati come si può vedere nel video iniziale): lo schizzo estratto da “Atti delle Reale Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei. Anno 1922, Serie V, Notizie degli scavi di antichità, Vol XIX, Roma, 1922. ". L'allora aviatore ed architetto (poi generale) Amerigo Contini disegna sopra la tomba una parte di terreno rappresentata con la coltura promiscua della vite, precisamente si vede bene l'inizio di quattro "filari" di vite maritata a supporto vivo. Immagine estratta da “Atti delle Reale Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei. Anno 1922, Serie V, Notizie degli scavi di antichità, Vol XIX, Roma, 1922. Pagina 110-116/532. La precisione e la cura di Amerigo Contini, proprietario dei terreni, mette in evidenza la presenza di questo tipo di coltivazione Fonti: “Atti delle Reale Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei. Anno 1922, Serie V, Notizie degli scavi di antichità, Vol XIX, Roma, 1922. Pagina 110-116/532 Aggiornamento presenza vite maritata nel 1920

Umbertide in the twentieth century (edited by Simona Bellucci) Umbertide yes opens the new century with an economy and a society that is not particularly dynamic, but not as static as it might seem at first sight. In fact, there are changes in the agricultural sector, the largely prevalent one, thanks to the introduction of tobacco, forage plants and mechanization. However, the agricultural system remains within the framework of the sharecropping contract, a contract seen as the peacemaker par excellence. For the rest, furnaces are the main economic activity not linked to agriculture. Piazza Matteotti 1905 In politics, the old liberal ruling class prevails, but from 1909 the Democrat-Republican Francesco Andreani won the elections and remained in power until 1919. Meanwhile, in 1915 World War I broke out, to whom Umbertide pays a very high price for a life, with as many as 268 dead at the front. War memorial: 1926 The immediate postwar period presents itself as a period full of tensions due to the economic crisis and consequent social conflicts. The peasant struggles resume, for the improvement of the sharecropping contract that had already characterized the Upper Tiber Valley at the beginning of the twentieth century and, among the political innovations, there is the victory in the municipal elections of the socialists in 1920, as had already happened to those policies the previous year. However, in 1921 the socialist administration, overwhelmed by a financial scandal, resigned. Meanwhile, even in Umbertide the fascist squadism rages, a starting from this period, hitting several left-wing politicians, some of whom took refuge in France, first of all the socialist Giuseppe Guardabassi. After the affirmation of fascism, the municipality is managed by an after all moderate mayor like Gualtiero Guardabassi, for the whole twenty years. He resigned in 1943 and was replaced by the prefectural commissioner Luigi Ramaccioni. In this time lapse, considerable changes take place in the economic life of the city, with two new production realities born in 1926 and 1927, namely the tobacco and ceramics factory, which mainly employ female labor. For the rest, as we know, the opposition is reduced to the margins. New early 20th century school building The Second World War hit Umbertide deeply, with 93 dead on the war fronts and the 70 victims of the aerial bombardment that destroyed Borgo S. Giovanni, as well as the victims for reprisals and others for various reasons. They remember, above all, the massacres of Serra Partucci and Penetola, where 5 and 12 civilians were killed respectively. The Umbertidese community reacted to the Nazi-Fascist occupation by participating in the Resistance with various partisan formations, the most important of which is the San Faustino Brigade and the Cremona and Legnano Combat Groups, where two Umbertidesi Quirino Pucci and Giuseppe Rosati in the first e Giuseppe Starnini in the second. Learn this period through memory with " Aristide and the twenty years ", " Lamberto and the Resistance ", " The voices of memory" and the bombing of 25 April 1944. The bombing will hit the parish priest's house next to the "Collegiate" which will not be rebuilt. The transition to democratic life registered a high adhesion to the republic in the referendum of 1946 and the victory of the communist and socialist left, who ruled at an administrative level until 2018, when for the first time the Municipality was conquered by the center-right. The first mayor of Umbertide was Astorre Bellarosa and, later, in the fifties Serafino Faloci, Umberto Cavalaglio in the sixties, Celestino Sonaglia in the seventies. Following this, Maurizio Rosi and Gianfranco Becchetti held the position until 2013 and Giampiero Giulietti. Meanwhile, after the war the economy changed rapidly with the sharecropping crisis and the consequent flight of farmers from the countryside. This determines very consistent migratory currents towards other regions. It was only in the sixties that the birth of the textile and mechanical industry constituted a brake on emigration. Meanwhile, the urban center was growing rapidly and, becoming a more complex reality, Umbertide also recorded a rapid growth in associations: AVIS, Teatro dei Riuniti, Basket Club Fratta and others. Since the eighties the textile industry has gone through a crisis which in the following years leads to the prevalence of the mechanical and metalworking industry. The period 1960-1990 it is crossed by a dynamic trade union movement that gives rise to numerous demands, especially in conjunction with the company crises. All this, however, in a context in which the Communist Party remains firmly in power, holding an absolute majority in the local government, in which there is almost always a coalition government with the socialists. Since the nineties, during the second republic, the political framework changes again, the Communist Party which has been transformed into the Democratic Party of the Left and then since 1998 into the Democrats of the Left, together with its allies keep winning the election and maintain hegemony over the common. Umbertide 2005 from Monteacuto Sources: - Simona Bellucci: Umbertide in the 20th century 1943-2000, Nuova Prhomos, 2018. - Photo: Francesco Deplanu - Photo: historical photos of Umbertide from the web and from various private archives to which we applied the " umbertidestoria " watermark in this way we try to avoid that the further disclosure on our part favors purposes not consonant with our intentions exclusively social and cultural. Help us remember umbertidestoria@gmail.com

Penetola THE MASSACRE OF PENETOLA We present here a reconstruction that the teacher and head teacher Paola Avorio has conducted over the years on one of the cruelest massacres that occurred with the passage of the front to Umbertide, precisely to the word Penetola di Niccone. Massacre that affected his family. His researches converged in the book "Tre Noci". He kindly grants us this long and accurate excerpt from his work. Photo: June 25, 2011. The presentation of the book "Tre Nuts" (Photo Fabio Mariotti). THE MASSACRE OF PENETOLA (edited by Paola Avorio) In the night between 27 and 28 June 1944, in the Umbrian high Tiber, in a farmhouse called Penetola di Niccone, 6 kilometers north-east of Umbertide, twelve people were brutally killed by soldiers belonging to the 305th engineers battalion of the German army stationed in the Niccone valley. The operational dynamics of the massacre are currently known to us, while strong doubts and perplexities remain about the causes and modalities of the massacre itself, in many respects atypical compared to the many others that the German army stained itself during the retreat towards the line. Gothic in the summer of 1944. One of the most atrocious episodes among those that occurred in Umbria during the Second World War took place in Penetola. As with many 'hidden' massacres (1) of the war on civilians (2) which broke out in Italy after 8 September 1943. [...] On the basis of the analysis of various experts consulted, that of Penetola appears what many have called a "retreat massacre", in which soldiers of the German regular army generally strike between 24/36 hours before the arrival of the allies and their consequent retreat towards the Gothic Line. Unfortunately, this rather usual dynamic is accompanied by completely anomalous behavior compared to the massacres carried out by the retreating German army. Like most of the farms of the time, in 1944 the word Penetola was inhabited and managed by sharecroppers who, in this case, worked on behalf of the landowner Giovanni Battista Gnoni, tenant of Montalto di Niccone, Umbertide, Perugia. The family of sharecroppers residing in Penetola consisted of 12 people: Mario Avorio, his wife Agata Orsini (called Dina), their five children Renato, Antonio, Carlo, Maria and Giuseppe, Mario Avorio's adoptive brother, Avellino Luchetti, his wife Rosalinda Caseti, their three children Guido, Remo and Vittorio . During the passage of the front, in June 1944 the family of Mario and Avellino's sister, Speranza Luchetti, her husband Andrea Capecci and their son Giuseppe had been hosted. The cottage is about 2 kilometers from the town of Niccone, which in June 1944 was occupied by German troops. The inhabitants of the Umbrian hamlet had taken refuge with relatives and friends in the farmhouses in the surrounding countryside, both to escape the Germans and to have food at hand. Having to leave their respective homes in Niccone, the Forni and Nencioni families, openly anti-fascists, had greater difficulties in finding shelter. They were hosted in the Penetola farmhouse by the Avorio and Luchetti families. The Nencioni family took refuge in Penetola: Ferruccio Nencioni, his wife Milena Ferrini, one of the two daughters, Giovanna (the other daughter, Gaetana, was with her maternal grandmother Settimia in another family), Ferruccio's mother, Erminia Renzini , Ferruccio's brother, Conforto Nencioni, Ferruccio's sister, Eufemia Nencioni, Conforto Nencioni, an employee of the APM of Milan, had been among the most active organizers of the Milanese tramway strike in March 1944. Denounced and sought after by the men of the fearful Muti, the Milanese fascist militia, escaped capture and took refuge in Niccone, at his birthplace. The members of the Forni family who took refuge in Penetola were: Canzio Forni, two of his three sons Ezio and Edoardo, his wife Rosa and their eldest son Ugo, were displaced by another family. On the night between 27 and 28 June 1944 these 24 people slept in Penetola, some in the rooms of the cottage, some in the nearby annex. Around one o'clock on June 28, 1944, armed German soldiers knocked on the door of the cottage and woke everyone up. Those who slept in the annex were awakened, their belongings robbed and brought into the house with the others. Everyone was locked up in the room facing the woods. The animals were brought out of the stables. The soldiers took the hay from the haystack and the lumber 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, they set a devastating fire. The fire broke out immediately. The room was soon filled with smoke and fire. The door to the room caught fire and many of the people tried to escape the flames by taking refuge in the farthest corners. They resisted the smoke fumes with the help of vinegar, contained in a small demijohn (caretello) that was in the kitchen. The eldest son of Mario and Dina Avorio, Renato, just fourteen years old, he was hit almost immediately by a grenade as he tried to look out the window of the room, completely losing his left arm. He tried to persuade his desperate mother to stop thinking about him bleeding to death, then tried to escape through the main door: his body torn apart by gunfire was found on the landing at the top of the access staircase. His two brothers, Carlo and Antonio, escaped the control of their parents, committed to helping their eldest son, and tried in vain to escape from the flames that enveloped them. Their bodies were found embraced, mostly charred, inside the house, in a corner of the large kitchen. The eighteen-year-old son of Avellino Luchetti, Guido, also tried to look out the window: he was hit by a rifle in the head and fell to the ground lifeless, one step away from his cousin Maria, whom he had protected until a moment before. to die holding her in his arms. Canzio, Edoardo and Ezio Forni alighted from a side window, inside the small pigsty, once on the ground they were all killed with close firearms. The body of Canzio was found on his back, the face partly consumed by the animals themselves, that of Edoardo sitting on the manger, Ezio not far away in the grass. The bodies of the spouses Milena Ferrini and Ferruccio Nencioni were found near the front door of the house, devastated by flames. Shortly before, Ferruccio had helped his brother Conforto to lower his family into the sheep shed through a hole in the floor that Conforto himself had managed to drill. Even today Giovanna Nencioni remembers perfectly the moment when her father lowered her from the hole, asking her to wait for him while he went back to pick up his mother and wife. Conforto, Erminia, Eufemia and Giovanna Nencioni, discovered by the soldiers in the sheep shed, were hit at close range with bursts of machine guns. The only survivor is little Giovanna who fell wounded to the ground and who later managed to escape to safety under a cart in the farmyard. Towards dawn the soldiers left. Dina Orsini counted eighteen who go off in single file along the path that runs along the wood, backpacks on their shoulders full of stolen objects. Shortly after, leaning out of one of the side windows, he saw the owner of the farm, Giovanni Battista Gnoni, on the hill towards the Castle of Montalto. He tried in vain to be seen. The access stairway to the house had collapsed. The survivors were trapped in the house. In the absence of help, they alighted from one of the side windows using two knotted sheets. Those who were able to do so fled across the fields. Mario and Dina, seriously injured following the explosion of the bomb that mutilated their eldest son, hid in the nearby moat. They were pulled out only after a few hours and by some German soldiers who took them to the distant hospital of Città di Castello, traveling 20 kilometers under the danger of Allied bombing. Only twelve of the twenty-four people locked up in the cottage survived: 11 survivors belong to the families of the Ivorio and Luchetti sharecroppers, no survivors between the two families of the displaced Nencioni and Forni except little Giovanna. The German soldiers stationed at the Castle of Montalto took Mario and Dina to the Seminary of Città di Castello, used as a hospital, where they arrived at 2.00 pm on June 28, 1944. The whole area was occupied by the troops of the German army, but the airspace above had long witnessed strong incursions by the allied air force, which hit relentlessly everything on the ground even vaguely resembled a target to be shot down. In fact, the next day, June 29, 1944, the whole town of Niccone was bombed by the allies. Inexplicable therefore, if you look at it with the eyes of those who study the Nazi massacres, the gesture of those two soldiers, clearly dictated by higher orders, who had to risk their lives to save that of Mario and Dina. The rector Mons. Beniamino Schivo (3) was at the Seminary of Città di Castello. On the day of the Penetola massacre, he turned 34. Also for this reason the date of Mario Dina's arrival is well remembered, which the two soldiers unloaded in front of the seminary door calling them 'banditen', partisans, found with weapons but, despite this, rescued, and at what risk! Germans like those responsible for the massacre. The nuns who ran the hospital drew up a timely register with the dates of admissions, treatments administered and discharge of the patients in which we find confirmation of the dates of entry and discharge of the two spouses. A few days after the massacre, German soldiers, accompanied by an interpreter, arrived at the Seminary of Città di Castello and questioned Mario and Dina. The latter recounted the episode in a testimony: “ The next day or a few days later, 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 on the part of any of us to unleash the violent reprisal. They listened to us and before leaving they said that the transport of the bodies to the cemetery had been authorized […]. We understood that the tragedy had not spared our creatures […]. A few days passed and the soldiers returned to question us again. 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 zone command ”(4). The transport of Penetola's victims to the Montemigiano cemetery did not happen without difficulty. The rescuers were the peasants and displaced people from the nearby farmhouses, who found themselves faced with gruesome scenes and the objective difficulty of transporting so many corpses, some of them charred. They also had to resist the authorities' initial proposal to bury the bodies in a common grave. Eventually they managed to get the authorization to transport the bodies to the nearby cemetery of Montemigiano. Given the condition of the bodies, the acquaintances and family members who took part in their transport and burial could not fail to have psycho-physical repercussions of various kinds, some even permanent. In the meantime, the other survivors were housed in the 'refuges' and in some farmhouses of friendly families. On 26 July Mario Avorio and Dina Orsini returned to Penetola. While waiting to rebuild the house, they were hosted in various places, including for a period in the gardener's house at the Montalto Castle.No report of damage to the Penetola cottage has ever been made by the owner, Giovanni Battista Gnoni or by his son, Antonio Gnoni, then in his twenties. Through the many direct testimonies, it was immediately ascertained that the group of German soldiers responsible for the massacre had left Casa Trinari, in La Dogana della Mita. Dino Trinari, then seventeen, has repeatedly stated that he had never been questioned about the incident either by the republican authorities or by the police. In the historical archive of the Municipality of Umbertide it is possible to consult some documents written personally by some family members of the Forni and Nencioni families, as well as other families and business owners in the town of Niccone During the allied bombing of 29 June 1944, the following day at the Penetola massacre, many houses and the few businesses in the town of Niccone were damaged. These documents present in the Umbertide Historical Archive and drawn up in September 1944 concern the request for compensation for such damages (5). It was not possible to find any document or news, even indirect, on the massacre or on damage to property and people present in Penetola, despite the survivors of the families of the victims having repeatedly declared that they had filed complaints or given testimony, even at the municipal offices . Immediately after the war, the municipal archive was damaged by a fire. Mario and Dina Avorio, Avellino Luchetti and Ugo Forni went several times to the municipal offices and to the Carabinieri of Umbertide. Of all the accesses, only two are documented. In both Mario and Dina Avorio have always claimed not to have found written what they had declared to the competent authorities and have never agreed with the inaccuracies that had instead been reported. The documents are: 1) report drawn up by Mr. Agostino Bernacchi on behalf of the Mayor of Umbertide Giuseppe Migliorati, in turn appointed by the Royal Deputation of Homeland History, provincial seat of Perugia (where the document, not present in the municipal archives, was found), to report on the events that occurred from 8 September 1943 to April 25, 1945. 2) minutes drawn up by the Marshal of the Carabinieri of Umbertide with the declarations of Mario and Dina (Agata signed) Avorio and Ugo Forni, issued on 27 November 1944; minutes forming part of a report requested by the Central Command of the Province of Perugia aimed at ascertaining all the facts committed during the period of the passage of the front (Document found at the Central State Archives in Rome and not present in copy in any Umbrian archive). The signatures affixed to these minutes by the declarants Mario Avorio and Agata Orsini do not correspond to those with which they signed all the documents of their life. They have always stated that they refused to sign the document because many of their verbal statements had been omitted. In an allied army document dated July 13, 1944 (6) you can read these few lines: “In the village of Niccone 13 people were locked up in a house and burned alive by the Germans. Reason: some shots had been directed from the hills towards some German soldiers ”. And this completes the inaccurate, approximate and often misleading Italian and allied documentation relating to the Penetola massacre. On the other hand, the annex to the war diary (KTB) of the General Command of the 76th Armored Corps of the German Army confirms the numerous oral testimonies regarding the presence of German soldiers in La Dogana di Mita, known at the time as the Trinari house. The same document leaves no doubts as to whether those soldiers belonged to the 305th Engineers Battalion of the Wehrmacht: General command of the LXXVI armored body Allocation to June 25, 1944 (Pages 65-67), point V: Pi. Btl 305 (Engineers Battalion 305) Use: Barrier in the sector of the main front line up to and including the Niccone valley 1. company: main front line up to Castel Rigone / San Giovanni 2. company: up to the Niccone valley included 3. company: retired, meets in the Niccone Valley to replace the blocking action of the 818 mountain engineers battalion Place of settlement: 1.5 km NW Mita, in the Niccone Valley Forces: Actual Forces 10/86/567 Combat Forces 6/36/238 (7) After September 8, 1943, the war was fought also for Italian civilians. To the bulletins from the front were added those from the Italian cities and countryside, a scenario of clashes between the different factions and violent aerial bombardments. On April 25, 1944, the center of Umbertide was heavily bombed by the Allies during the demolition of the bridge over the River Tiber. Seventy-four people lost their lives as a result of this 'successful' military operation which aimed to prevent the retreat of the German army through the main road and rail links, the 'Stassenmeldungen', as they are defined in the German military reports of the epoch. The road that also currently connects the towns of Niccone belonged to this category and Molino Vitelli at Lake Trasimeno and the retreating German army soldiers did not take long to arrive after the defeat of the Battle of Trasimeno, in the last days of June 1944. The military maps show meticulously, with directional arrows, every minimum movement of the troops. Many were drawn up on transparent paper because they were superimposed on geographical maps of the same scale, so that, looking at them together, they provided a detailed picture of the movements of the troops on the territory. The front line, on which the X army of the German army was positioned, was codenamed the “Albert” line and ran from Castiglione della Pescaia, on the Tyrrhenian Sea, to the Adriatic Sea, passing through Mount Amiata and Lake Trasimeno. As for the German troops, the paratroopers of the 'Hermann Göring' battalion operated in the Chiusi area, the 1st paratroop division was positioned in the center of the front line, while the infantry divisions 305 and 334 occupied the eastern side. Opposite were the allied troops of the 6th South African Division, the 4th British Infantry Division, the Canadian and New Zealand 1st Armored Brigade and a Moroccan Infantry Division. The preceding and following maps (8) show the position of the various divisions on June 26, 1944. In the top one, the demarcation and front line known as the “Albert line” is clearly visible. The positions of the allied troops are also reported in detail. Starting from the east we find the Indian, British, Canadian and New Zealand, South African and Moroccan troops. The card below focuses the same allocation of the German troops in the north-eastern area of the Albert Line, with the relative commands of the army and division corps represented respectively by the square and triangular flags In both cards and especially in the following detail, extracted from the second, it is clearly visible how the Niccone valley (highlighted by the arrowhead) is entirely occupied by the 305th Infantry Division. (With the lines, from top to bottom, the localities of Niccone, Montalto and the Dogana are highlighted) The battle of Trasimeno was a typical example of a slowdown battle, already experienced by the German army on the Russian front, through what the military define "active defense", characterized by small but very bloody clashes along the entire 'front' line. The purpose of the German army was mainly to contain the timing of the allied advance, with an orderly retreat towards the northernmost line of defense that had yet to be completed: the Gothic line. In the area directly behind the fighting line, the German troops assigned to the operational management of the retreat were allocated: stabilization of bridges, demining or placement of mines, inspections and inspections aimed at discouraging or combating any partisan formations, displacement of the civilian population from the places of military interest, or from which it was possible to obtain easy supplies for the troops or shelters for the same. In this sense, the whole Niccone valley became a settlement area for the German troops engaged in the battle of Trasimeno and, later, in the retreat to the north. There were various road bridges that were located on the main road that connects Lake Trasimeno to the state road towards Città di Castello. Absolutely a priority to protect them to allow the withdrawal of heavy vehicles and, subsequently, to undermine and destroy them, to prevent the advance of the allied troops. The map below is a section of a larger map (9) showing the situation as of July 1, 1944 of the communication routes and bridges mined or blown up. In the center of the map, with the number 133, the bridge near Penetola is clearly visible, on the provincial road that runs alongside the Niccone stream (the bridge and the town of Penetola are highlighted with arrows). Two German soldiers were constantly guarding this bridge. Dina he went there every morning to bring milk to the two sentries. Often he sent little Antonio to bring the milk to the soldiers, so much confidence had become that he did not fear any risk for his son just eleven years old. Dina remembered them as very young and very thin. One of the two sentries, seeing her emerge from the road after the stream, always went to meet her and repeated continuously the word 'mutti', a confidential term which in German means mother. It was not clear whether he wanted to thank her for that gesture or tell her about his own mother, but it is certain that Dina had the faces of those soldiers well sculpted in her mind and that none of them was neither wounded nor killed in the days preceding the Penetola massacre, like someone. he wanted the men of Molino Vitelli to believe two days earlier. With this justification, on June 27, 1944, the German soldiers stationed nearby locked up all the men of the town of Molino Vitelli in the nearby drying room, threatening to kill them because of the wounding of the sentry guarding the bridge on the road to Mercatale. Molino Vitelli is a small village located along the main road, two kilometers west of Niccone. Shortly after the inhabited area there is a farm, known at the time as Casa Trinari, from the name of the sharecropper who lived there, also known as La Dogana, precisely because an ancient connection road passed and still passes through it. between Umbria and Tuscany, known as 'via di Sant'Anna', from the name of the place of passage. This road is important because it connects the two roads, parallel to each other, which connect the city of Cortona with the SS 3bis state road in the two crucial points close to the towns and the streams of Niccone and Nestore. Two battalions of engineers had been placed to defend and block these two routes, respectively the 305th (Pi. Btl. 305) and the 818th mountain engineers battalion (818 Geb. Pi. Btl). (The arrow indicates the La Dogana locality. In evidence the main roads connecting Cortona and the SS 3 bis that connects Città di Castello and Umbertide. Between the two highlighted streets it is possible to see dozens of cross streets, which can be traveled by the troops of German engineers who moved mainly on foot). The Trinari farmhouse in La Dogana represented for the German military one of those strategic positions to control and garrison, while for the inhabitants it was an absolutely not very quiet area and therefore to be displaced. In fact it was one of the first houses to be occupied by the German troops who arrived in the valley. About twenty soldiers settled there. The names of these men and their commanders, material executors of the Penetola massacre and ferocious murderers of men, women and children, are written in the enrollment register of the second company of the 305th mountain engineers battalion of the German army stationed in central Italy. in the spring-summer of 1944. In a statement dated 26 June 1944 from the General Command of the LXXVI Armored Army Corps (10) it is established that the 305th Infantry Division will assume command of operations east of the Tiber starting at 12.00 on 27 June 1944. Al command of the 305th division is General Hauck. The most significant document regarding the ascertainment of the responsibilities of the 305th Engineers Battalion for the Penetola massacre dates back to the previous day, to 25 June 1944, and has already been reported at the end of the second chapter. In it, the exact reference to the location of the second company of the 305th Engineers Battalion is fundamental: 1.5 kilometers northwest of Mita, which corresponds exactly to the La Dogana locality, known at the time as 'Casa Trinari' and from where the soldiers responsible for the massacre left. Dino Trinari, then seventeen, had stayed with his father and uncle at La Dogana, because the fields and cattle could not be abandoned. The German soldiers occupied the habitable floor of the house and housed Dino and his family in the stables, calling them whenever they needed food or other things. Among the twenty or so soldiers present in the house, Dino remembers two in a particular way. A boy originally from Trieste, with whom he exchanged a few sentences from time to time, given his excellent knowledge of the Italian language, and another soldier, who also used to take care of the provision of the group, whose teeth could not be overlooked. metal teeth (11). The commanding officers were lodged not far away, at the Castle of Montalto, from where they gave the various orders going downhill from time to time by the troops. On June 26, 1944, Dino Trinari saw some officers arrive at the Customs in a car and talk to the soldiers. One of these told him that the officers came from the command of Montalto. On the morning of June 27, the soldiers stationed at the Trinari house locked up all the men they managed to capture in the area inside a tobacco dryer in Molino Vitelli. They claimed that one of the sentries guarding the bridge on the road to Mercatale had been injured and that people would be executed (12). The soldiers ordered Dino Trinari, his father and his uncle to be locked up in the stable, reassuring them that nothing would happen to them. Once all the men rounded up were locked up, Dino saw the officers from the day before arrive again, still aboard the same car. He saw them go up to the habitable floor of his house, followed by some local women, led by force under the threat of weapons. Later he learned that those women had been raped by the officers, while the soldiers kept their men locked up in the school of Molino Vitelli, unaware of everything and with the anguish of being executed for something they had not committed. The officers left the Trinari house around noon. Soon after the soldiers released the men locked up in the school claiming that the sentry was not in danger of death and that therefore no one would be killed in retaliation. No sentry appeared to have been injured or even killed. However, according to the measures of revenge established by Kesserling, the dreaded Sussmassnahmen contained in the infamous ordinance of June 16, 1944, even in the event of the wounding of soldiers, not only for their death, executions had to be carried out and therefore the 'lightning kidnapping' and the release of all the men in the area by the soldiers, without any reprisals, cannot be explained at all, despite the alleged wounding of the bridge sentry. The kidnapping, on the other hand, can be understood very well if it is placed in relation to the violence against women by the command officers. The same rape could have been an occasional event, unfortunately very frequent in the behavior of the soldiers of that period, since the visit of the officers was actually due to the need to give orders to the soldiers for the massacre of the following night. In fact, as soon as the officers were gone, one of the soldiers approached Dino Trinari holding a card with the farmhouses in the area listed on it. The soldier asked Dino to show him where the house already marked among others on the map was: it was the Penetola cottage and Dino unwittingly indicated the way to reach it to the soldier who, evidently, had already received very specific orders on what to do. That evening the soldiers dined outside in front of the Trinari house: they ate and drank heavily. The one who served as cook in the afternoon had been seen wandering around armed together to a fellow soldier, in the vicinity of the farmhouses in the area to collect, by removing it from the mouths of the peasants, all that could be used at the soldiers' banquet. The two had also fired several rifle shots aimed at threatening some peasants. They had also tried to rape women (13). Dino's uncle and father were seated at the table and forced to drink for the amusement of their guests. After having eaten and above all drunk in large quantities, the soldiers began to confuse inside and outside the house, throwing water, objects, destroying everything they could find at hand. As soon as midnight passed, they put their backpacks on their shoulders and walked towards Niccone, avoiding the main road, following the more hidden path at the edge of the wood that runs along the stream. Path that leads to the Penetola farmyard. It was about one o'clock when they reached the house. They woke the inhabitants, robbed them of all their belongings and locked them in a single room: 24 people including men, women and children. Dino Trinari, who just got ready to go to the fields, saw the 18 soldiers return along the stream and across the fields, their backpacks much more swollen than when they had left, some half-open they were so full of things stolen from the families of the settlers and of the evacuees of Penetola. One of them told him: "We burned three houses and killed 30 partisans". They went upstairs to sleep. At dusk on June 28, in total tranquility, they left telling Dino that they had to reach Florence. They took the direction towards S. Anna, crossing the hills, away from the main road. As proof of the veracity of this testimony, it is enough to observe the paper attached to the German document of 25 June 1944 previously cited: the soldiers stationed at La Dogana set out on the evening of 28 June 1944 towards the north through the road that from La Dogana, leads on the connecting road between Cortona and Città di Castello. The direction of travel and the date of the move are clearly evident on the map: bis 28. 6. (until June 28, ed). (the line indicates the locality La Dogana) In the night between 28 and 29 June 1944 the HuD division, already stationed at Umbertide, took the place of the 305th Infantry Division and related control of the area (14). The command of the HuD division takes office at the castle of Montalto in the late afternoon of June 30, 1944, as is clear from a document of the division itself (15). It was probably some officers of this division, already in place on the morning of June 28, who gave the order to take the wounded Mario and Dina Avorio to the Seminary of Città di Castello and to question them in the following days. The fact that during the interrogation the officers had declared to Mario and Dina that they had not heard of any retaliatory orders, reinforces the conviction that the soldiers responsible for the massacre did not respond to their division, but to the 305th Infantry Division, which had already evacuated the area. In the case of Penetola, two loud 'screeches' cannot be ignored with respect to the dynamics that precede and follow a Nazi massacre. The aid given by German soldiers to the victims of a massacre carried out by the German troops themselves is singular; aid given at the risk of one's life, covering a long journey and presenting the victims as 'banditen' (partisans) to the caregivers. Behavior that, as examined in many other massacres committed by the Germans, does not seem to have ever occurred as a result of a massacre order. Even more unusual was the double interrogation of Mario Avorio and Dina Orsini, hospitalized at the Seminary of Città di Castello, by German soldiers, who sought the reasons for it from the survivors of the Nazi massacre. Just 6 days after the Penetola massacre, on 6 July 1944, at 3.45 pm, the headquarters of the allied tactical command arrives at the Castle of Montalto, where on 9 July at 7.30 pm, the parish priest Don Ettore celebrates a mass together with the officers of the allied command (16). From the castle the latter certainly could not avoid observing the devastation of Penetola, nor did they miss the opportunity to inquire about the events, since they were in the house of the owner of the cottage, but everything was liquidated with a lapidary and imprecise account of three stripes. And for years everyone wanted to believe that in Penetola he had killed himself because "some shots had been directed from the hills towards some German soldiers", as the only mention of the story in the allied documents states (17). On June 28, 1974, thirty years after the massacre, a plaque and a monumental stone were placed respectively on the wall of the Penetola farmhouse and on the provincial road, near the path to reach it. I don't hate we ask who stays, only memory, so that others do not have to die by the murderous hand. The memorial stone in memory of the victims of Penetola on which these words are reported is placed on the side of the road, clearly visible even to the fast motorist. With its few but incisive verses it reminds all passers-by of the events narrated up to now and hands the memory over to future generations. The monuments in honor of victims and fallen are a bit like road signs of danger: they prevent those who are not aware or have no memory of the abyss from ending up in it. Our civil and moral responsibility towards future generations is to continue to make these 'signals', the verses and events that they pass on significant, and, if possible, to broaden their echo, with truth and justice, through written and oral testimonies. . Paola Ivory NOTE: 1. As regards the definition of 'hidden massacre', see the study by Mimmo Franzinelli, Le massacre hidden. The cabinet of shame: impunity and removal of Nazi-fascism war crimes 1943-2001, Mondatori, Le Scie, 2002. 2. The term 'war on civilians' is coined and amply illustrated by Battini and Pezzino in War on civilians, Venice, Marsilio 1997. 3. Monsignor Beniamino Schivo was born in Gallio (Vicenza) on June 28, 1910. After completing his studies in the seminaries of Città di Castello and Assisi, he was ordained a priest on June 24, 1933. He has held numerous and prestigious positions in the diocese of City of Castello. On June 16, 1983, Pope John Paul II appointed him apostolic protonotary. During the passage of the front through the Upper Tiber Valley in the summer of 1944, he remained in Città di Castello, helping wherever needed, including setting up a makeshift hospital on the premises of the Seminary. He managed to hide and save the family German Korn, of Jewish origin, interned in Città di Castello. He was awarded the recognition of 'Righteous among the Nations' by the Yad Vashem foundation of Jerusalem and the gold medal for civil valor by the President of the Italian Republic, on January 24, 2008. The motivation for this last honor reads: " Priest of high human and civil qualities, during the last world war, racial persecutions underway, with heroic courage and commendable self-denial, helped a German family of Jewish origin to escape from Città di Castello, where she had been interned , subsequently providing her with hiding places, food and clothing. A wonderful example of consistency and moral rigor based on the highest Christian values and human solidarity ". On 28 June 2010, Monsignor Beniamino Schivo turned one hundred years old. 4. G. Bottaccioli, “ Penetola. Not all the dead die. 6/28-1944 ", p. 26, (from Dina's story). 5. Historical Archive of Umbertide, Cat.2, Cl.4, Claims for damages following the aerial bombardment of the town of Niccone by the Allied Air Force on 29 June 1944, presented by Edgarda Forni, Aldo Forni, Medici Decio , Caprini Medici Adele, Pietro Giunti, and others, on 5 September 1944. 6. Psychological Warfare Branch Report - Allied Political Information and Propaganda Service, in Public Record Office (PRO) War Office (WO) 204/11008 8 Army reports: No29, 13-07-44 in Roger Absalom, (ed.) , Perugia freed. Anglo-American documents on the occupation of Perugia (1944-1945), Florence, Olschki editore, 2001 7. Military Archive of Freiburg, RH 24-76 / 13 Anlage zum KTB nr 2, rda 8. Military Archive of Freiburg, in RH 24-51 / 85. 9. Military Archive of Freiburg, in RH 10. Military Archive of Freiburg, RH 24-76 / 13 Anlage zum KTB nr 2 s. 51 11. Giovanni Bottaccioli is also well remembered of this soldier who in his writing "PENETOLA Not all the dead die" op. cit., which so reports “ 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 were made of steel teeth. Certain details are never forgotten ". 12. Giovanni Bottaccioli, op. cit. p.9. 13. See G. Bottaccioli, op. cit .. 14. Military Archive of Freiburg, RH 24.51 / 101 Anlage zum KTB nr 2. 15. Military Archive of Freiburg RH 26-44-60, s. 131. 16. The Allies in Umbria 1944-45, Proceedings of the Day of the Allies conference, Perugia, 12 January 1999, Uguccione Ranieri di Corbello Foundation, Perugia, 2000, p.71 et seq. 17. See note 9 in Chapter One "Three Crosses" of Paola Ivory.

THE PATHS OF MEMORY Curated by Fabio Mariotti 1944 is remembered in Umbertide as the most dramatic year in the history of the city. World War II brought with it a long trail of blood, destruction and despair due to the tragic events that preceded the liberation of the city on July 5th. The allied bombing of Borgo San Giovanni, in the heart of the city, with 70 dead; the retaliation of Serra Partucci, with 5 dead; the massacre of Penetola, with 12 deaths; the massacre of Monsiano, with 8 deaths. Another 6 civilians lost their lives between 3 and 15 July in the territory between Preggio, Monestevole and Montemigiano. Sigifrido Bartocci, killed by German soldiers on May 8 near Civitella Ranieri and then many other civilian victims of bombings, cannonades and the explosion of grenades in Umbertide and in the surrounding areas (for details see "the Atlas of Memory" by Alvaro Tacchini) . To all of them, involuntary heroes of human madness, and to their families, we dedicate these paths of memory, so as not to forget and to pass them on to new generations. The bombing of Borgo San Giovanni Twelve British Curtiss P - 40 Kittyhawk aircraft departed from the Cutella field airport in Puglia to destroy the road bridge over the Tiber and make it more difficult for the Germans to retreat. It was April 25, 1944. A date that the people of Umbria will not forget. Between 9 and 9.30 the allied squadron flew over the sky of Umbertide, with its load of two large-caliber bombs per plane (a total of about 4 tons of explosives). After several vaults above Romeggio, the planes headed towards Serra Partucci, in favor of the sun, from which they swooped down towards the bridge over the Tiber. But the bombs (as Roberto Sciurpa wrote in his volume “Umbertide in the 20th century 1900 - 1946) were not yet“ intelligent ”(if ever there will be intelligent bombs) and they often missed the target. This unfortunately also happened to Umbertide. The bombs, dropped at regular intervals of about 30 seconds between one couple and the other, instead of hitting the bridge, all but two ended up above the houses in the historic center. It was a massacre. 70 people, including 46 women, were buried under the rubble. The spectacle that presented itself to the first responders was tremendous. Hideously mutilated bodies lay on the square and the hamlet of San Giovanni was a heap of smoking rubble from which moans and invocations for help rose. Despite the fright and the risk of new bombings, the people did their utmost to help the wounded and extract the bodies of the fallen from the rubble, placing them temporarily around the Collegiate Church. It was a race against time because the bridge remained intact and the planes could reappear at any moment. This happened in the afternoon, at 4 pm, and this time the bombs spared the town but did not succeed in destroying the road bridge whose north arch was only destroyed on April 30th. So many deaths, so much pain, a devastated community, due to a military action which is probably useless and which has not even reached the set goal. This is war. These are what we now call "side effects" that always and inexorably affect civilians, the most defenseless people. To avoid these effects too, there is only one universal system, stop wars and always work for peace. The list of the 70 victims: Pupils Pierucci Antonio, Arrunategni Rivas Mario, Baiocco Giulia, Banelli Anna, Banelli Amleto, Barattini Scartocci Neodemia, Barbagianni Antonio, Bartoccioli Giulia, Bebi Ceccarelli Elda, Bebi Luciano, Bebi Fileni Maria Domenica, Bebi Banelli Tecla, Bendini Annunziata, Bernacchi Maria Anna, Bernacchi Benedetto, Bernacchi Raffaele, Bernacchi Valentino, Boldrini Cecilia, Boldrini Bellezzi Elisabetta, Boncristiani Tommasi Rosa, Borgarelli Armede Gina, Borgarelli Ester, Cambiotti Amalia, Caprini Selleri Assunta, Ceccarelli Marianella, Ceccarelli Rosanna, Ciocchetti Fausto, Ciocchetti Giuseppe, Cozzari Galmacci Veronica Cozzari Verginia, Donnini Domenico, Donnini Gianfranco, Fagioli Franca, Ferrari Alfonso, Galmacci Realino, Gambucci Ubaldo, Grandi Giuseppina, Leonessa Licinio, Bernacchi Marianna manuals, Anna Paola screeds, Mastriforti Cambiotti Marianna, Mazzanti Graziella, Merli Mazzanti Argentina, Mischianti Angelo, Mischianti Ida, Monfeli Galeno, Montanucci Fiorucci Felicia, Mortini Elvira, Orlandi Sonaglia Augusta, Palazzetti Bernacchi Angela, Palazzetti Assunta, Pambuffetti Giovanna, Perini Giuseppe, Pierotti Coletti Giulia, Porrini Elisei Assunta, Renato Simonucci Bergasina, Renga Rosalinda, Renzini Pazzi Maria, Romitelli Rina, Rondini Mischianti Luisa, Sabbiniani Santini Leopolda Batazzi Letizia, Scartocci Mario, Selleri Angelo, Selleri Giuseppe, Selleri Pasquale, Tognaccini Delma Beans, Tognaccini Barbagianni Zarelia, Violins Lina, Villarini Bruno. Sources: - Mario Tosti: "Beautiful works" - Ed. Municipality of Umbertide - 1995 - Mario Tosti: “Our ordeal” - Ed. Petruzzi - Città di Castello 2005 - Roberto Sciurpa: "Umbertide in the 20th century 1900 - 1946" - Ed. GESP - 2006 Photo by Roberto Balducci from the volume by Bruno Porrozzi "Umbertide in the pictures - from the 16th century to the present day - Pro loco Umbertide - 1977 The plaque commemorating the victims On the rubble in search of survivors On the right, the ruins of the hamlet of San Giovanni Right, below, via Cibo after the bombing Left, below. the ruins of the sacristy of the Collegiate La rappresaglia di Serra Partucci L'eccidio di Penetola Vittime civili ad Umbertide - A. Tacchini La strage di Monsiano (Preggio) Il bombardamento di Borgo San Giovanni Le battaglie prima della liberazione - A. Tacchini La Liberazione di Umbertide - A. Tacchini Partigiani di Umbertide Il Diaro di Rino Pucci La storia di Palazzoli Natalino di Massimo Pascolini La storia di Ciro Monsignori Atlante della Memoria di Alvaro Tacchini Il bombardamento di Borgo San Giovanni The retaliation of Serra Partucci June 24, 1944 was Saturday. In Serra Partucci, St. John the Baptist was celebrated and the day before, according to the ancient custom, the petals of the wildflowers were collected and soaked in a basin. With that scented water the next morning we washed. So did the inhabitants of the Serra who that Saturday had gathered in the small church for the mass celebrated by Don Giuseppe Filippi. Suddenly some Germans with their commander had entered the church and, screaming, they had made everyone go out into the open, arranging them in a row in front of the soldiers with their weapons drawn. The German officer, in broken Italian, explained what was happening. A German soldier on a motorcycle nearby had been injured on the road the day before. So, although he was not dead, the inhuman law of retaliation had taken place which provided for the shooting of 5 hostages for the wounded German (in case of death there would have been 10). Since four "banditen" had already been arrested, they had come to take the fifth. It must be said, to tell the truth, that the Germans had already arrested five hostages but one of these, Quinto Centovalli, was without a hand and the Germans had decided to exclude him from being shot. The choice among those present at the mass fell on Domenico Cernich , a young 26-year-old tailor from Gorizia who was in Umbertide, together with his brothers, awaiting the arrival of the allies. Domenico, together with Radicchi Mario (24 years - farmer), Radicchi Giuseppe (17 years - farmer), Centovalli Natale (20 years - student) and Ciribilli Domenico (26 years - tailor) were taken to the tobacco dryer and tricidated here. from a few bursts of machine gun. At eight in the morning, the five bodies were transported to the Serra cemetery on two oxen-drawn treks. A stele and a stone commemorate the terrible retaliation. In the memorial stone, built in the twentieth anniversary of the Resistance, these words are written: “Here the German barbarian left gruesome memories of unfair retaliation. Five innocent young people fell victim to his fury on June 24, 1944. Justice, prayer, peace invoke the missing from the survivors. " Domenico Cernic La rappresaglia di Serra Partucci The door of the church The wall of the shooting The massacre of Penetola What is exposed in these pages is the story of an Umbrian family and its tragic encounter with history. Aspects and circumstances will be common to many other Italians and the story is one that all those who lived in 1944 can bear witness. In recounting the particular experiences of some individuals unknown to them, I hope to pass on to my children and those of my peers a less sterile and more aware knowledge of the final stages of the Second World War and of the positive social and democratic transformations of Italian society. Because, even the humblest of Italian citizens, emerging from the war and the fascist dictatorship supported by the values of democracy and the Republican Constitution, were able to overcome grief and injustice, free themselves from medieval social practices and, in just two generations, provide children and grandchildren all the opportunities that only a free and democratic society can offer. The great story, the one known to all of us in broad or broad terms, is a set of small, sometimes very large, personal stories. They constitute the shared collective memory or, in other cases, divided, of a nation. Putting order and seeking the objective truth in each of these little stories will prevent anyone who has a petty interest in them from mystifying the irrefutable reality of events and, for the younger generations, from forgetting what has been, drawing the necessary teaching from it. In the night between 27 and 28 June 1944, in the Umbrian high Tiber, in a farmhouse called Penetola di Niccone, six kilometers north-east of Umbertide, twelve people were brutally killed by soldiers belonging to the 305th engineers battalion of the army. German stationed in the Niccone valley. The operational dynamics of the massacre are today to our knowledge, while strong doubts and perplexities remain about the causes and modalities of the massacre itself, in many respects atypical compared to the many others that the German army stained itself during the retreat towards the line. Gothic in the summer of 1944. One of the most atrocious episodes among those that occurred in Umbria during the Second World War took place in Penetola. As with many "hidden" massacres of the war on civilians that broke out in Italy after 8 September 1943, even in the survivors of the Penetola massacre the anger of not knowing the culprits burned and in that of their descendants, like me, the desire to appease that same anger which, after so many years, prevented the definitive overcoming of mourning. Never, not even for a moment, in the course of the search for truth, was I driven by a desire for revenge against the moral or material perpetrators of the massacre. I just wanted and had to replace those who should have investigated and have not done it, not knowing or not wanting to do it. The former also belonged to my family, who lacked the strength, the education, the boldness and the money to open doors that they should have found wide open. To the latter, to those who have preferred to remain silent, to those who have chosen not to choose, to those who have disinterested themselves by evading their duty, I can only say that they would have known and could have done better and more at the moment and in the right place. ............... (Introduction from the book "Tre Nuts" by Paola Avorio) Sources: - Paola Avorio: “Three walnuts” - Ed. Petruzzi - Città di Castello - 2011 - Giovanni Bottaccioli: "Penetola, not all the dead die" - Municipality of Umbertide, 2005 The victims: Ivory Antonio, by Mario, 11 years Ivory Carlo, by Mario, 8 years Ivory Renato, by Mario, 14 years Forni Canzio, by Edoardo, 58 years Forni Edoardo, from Canzio, 16 years Forni Ezio, from Canzio, 21 years Luchetti Guido, from Avellino, 18 years Nencioni Conforto, from Menotti, 36 years old Nencioni Eufemia, from Menotti, 44 years Nencioni Ferruccio, from Menotti, 46 years Ferrini Milena, wife of Ferruccio Nencioni, 41 years Renzini Erminia, widow of Menotti Nencioni, 68 years The cottage, the memorial stone and the plaque commemorating the massacre Paola Avorio during the presentation of her book On the right, the inscription on the memorial stone the massacre (1974) Below, two internal images of the farmhouse theater of the massacre L'eccidio di Penetola The massacre of Monsiano (Preggio) In 2015, on the occasion of the centenary of the beginning of the First World War, throughout Italy and also in Europe, the need was felt to witness the tragic events, especially those still unknown, of missing and forgotten innocent people. For this reason it was decided to commemorate with a plaque a little-known massacre that took place in our territory in Monsiano, not far from Preggio, on 4 July 1944, during the passage of the front and the retreat of the Germans to the north. A bombardment by the allied forces hit a cottage where a couple of fleeing Germans were hiding. The entire rural building, now rebuilt, was razed to the ground, exterminating an entire family, the spouses Gelindo Braconi and Isolina Bellezzi and their six children, Maria (4 years), Anna (8), Lorenzo (11), Francesco (14 ), Rina (16), Luigina (19). The plaque commemorating this terrible event was applied to a small rocky boulder, located at the intersection of the provincial road with the local road that leads to Monsiano. The Municipal Administration and the population of Preggio thus wanted to bear witness to all those who, by stopping in front of the plaque, will be able to learn about the history of this family from Preggio and its tragic destiny. The ceremony was attended by the mayor of Umbertide Marco Locchi, Alberto Bufali, president of the Pro loco di Preggio and promoter, together with the Municipality and the Città di Castello section of the national association for fallen and war missing families, of the commemoration, the regional president Rosanna Tonnetti, Gianfranco Braconi, family member of the victims of the massacre, Paola Milli and Pierino Monaldi from the “Venanzo Gabriotti” Institute of Political and Social History in Città di Castello, of the National Association of Families Fallen and Missing from War. The inauguration was accompanied by the blessing given by the parish priest of Preggio Don Francesco Bastianoni and by the deposition of a crown at the foot of the tombstone on the notes of the trumpet of the master Galliano Cerrini. During the ceremony, Mario Tosti and Alvaro Tacchini were also thanked for their valuable historical research on the events that occurred in Preggio on July 4th seventy-one years ago. Sources: Alvaro Tacchini: "Tiffernate history and more" website The memorial stone that commemorates the tragic event The manifesto for the inauguration of the cippus La strage di Monsiano (Preggio) LE BATTAGLIE A MONTE MURLO, MONTE ACUTO E MONTE CORONA (2-3 luglio 1944) Dal libro “Guerra e Resistenza nell’Alta Valle del Tevere (1943-44) di ALVARO TACCHINI, Petruzzi Editore, Città di Castello 2015 I combattimenti stavano per investire le montagne a meridione della valle. In seguito allo sfondamento della Linea Albert da parte degli Alleati, i tedeschi si ritirarono lungo la successiva linea difensiva Monte Murlo - Monte Acuto - Monte Corona - fiume Assino - Montelovesco. Nutrivano la convinzione di poter resistere accanitamente su quelle alture. In effetti l'attacco scatenato dalla 10ª e dalla 25ª brigata indiana nella notte tra il 2 e il 3 luglio ebbe un esito contraddittorio. Il battaglione gurkha della 10ª, appoggiato dall'artiglieria, da uno squadrone di carri armati degli Hussars e dalle mitragliatrici dei Northumberland Fusiliers, si mosse da Castel Rigone e riuscì a conquistare Monte Murlo difeso da una settantina di tedeschi, resistendo poi a un loro contrattacco. Invece i reparti garhwali e beluci delle due brigate non furono in grado di sopraffare le difese germaniche a Monte Acuto e Monte Corona. In particolare l'attacco dei beluci a Monte Acuto si risolse, per ammissione degli stessi britannici, in un "costoso insuccesso" (1) , con 32 perdite. Si resero così conto di aver sottovalutato, per errate informazioni, la forza dei tedeschi. Quanto a Monte Corona, quel 3 luglio un reparto attaccante dei garhwali fu inchiodato sulle sue posizioni dal fuoco di sbarramento tedesco per oltre nove ore. Fonti germaniche forniscono ulteriori dettagli sulla battaglia di Monte Acuto. Un reparto di 120 inglesi e indiani riuscì in un primo momento a occupare due basi del 132° reggimento della 44ª divisione presso il villaggio di Galera, a Monte Acuto. Ma la reazione tedesca fu immediata: "Visto il valore di queste posizioni in un territorio molto frammentato e molto difficile, il comandante del reggimento colonnello Hoffmann decise di fare subito un contrattacco. 35 uomini sotto la guida del tenente Zacke, sostenuti in modo eccellente dall'artiglieria del reggimento, riuscirono ad attaccare queste basi ai fianchi e riprenderne possesso. Il nemico ebbe 35 morti e feriti e 12 prigionieri. Il bottino: una mitragliatrice, un lanciagranate, 22 fucili, 8 machine-pistole e una grande radio-trasmittente" (2) . In un altro scontro gli uomini del sergente maggiore Eder respinsero l'assalto di una trentina di nemici, che ebbero 12 morti e un prigioniero. Qualche giorno dopo, poco più a nord, lo stesso Eder si sarebbe guadagnato la prestigiosa Croce Tedesca in Oro per il valore dimostrato in combattimento: "Nella lotta uomo a uomo, che fu molto feroce, il nemico patì perdite sanguinose, ma anche Eder subì una brutta ferita per un colpo ai reni; tuttavia continuò il contrattacco fin quando perse conoscenza". Il comandante generale del 51° corpo d'armata di montagna si compiacque per l’“eccellente comportamento” della 44ª divisione: “Granatieri! Voi avete lasciato, con la vostra gloriosa fermezza, una traccia nella storia della nostra divisione H.u.D. Le battaglie del 27 giugno, ad entrambi i lati del Tevere e l'assalto a Monte Murlo e Monte Acuto del 3 luglio 1944 sono degli esempi lampanti del vostro coraggio eroico” (3) . La tenace resistenza tedesca fu comunque vana. Soprattutto la caduta di Cortona il 3 luglio, sul fronte della Valdichiana, e i progressi degli Alleati nella pianura tiberina verso Pierantonio e lungo l'Appennino umbro-toscano verso Preggio rischiavano di mettere in trappola le truppe attestate sulle roccaforti di Monte Acuto e Monte Corona. Due brigate indiane supportate dai mezzi corazzati degli Hussars avevano cominciato a muoversi da Perugia lungo il Tevere verso nord il 30 giugno. L’indomani avevano raggiunto Colombella e Ramazzano senza incontrare resistenza. L'avanzata lungo le alture a oriente del Tevere stava invece richiedendo - e da allora divenne una mossa abituale in questo settore del fronte - manovre di aggiramento che disorientavano i tedeschi e provocavano il cedimento delle loro posizioni. Nelle prime ore del 2 luglio gli anglo-indiani erano a Civitella; al tramonto raggiungevano Solfagnano. Il 3 luglio, proprio mentre i combattimenti infuriavano su Monte Corona e Monte Acuto, potei-ano dunque attaccare Pierantonio, fortemente difeso dai tedeschi appostati sulle colline sovrastanti. Negli scontri che prelusero alla conquista del paese, il 4 luglio, rifulse il valore del soldato semplice A. J. Baldwin, del 1° battaglione del King's Own Royal Regiment. Mentre gli uomini del suo plotone erano bloccati dal fuoco nemico, riuscì a strisciare fino alla postazione della mitragliatrice nemica e a catturare i cinque tedeschi che si trovavano nella trincea (4) . Ma la conquista di Pierantonio costò un prezzo elevato ai fanti del Punjab e del King's Own, che ebbero 36 uomini uccisi, tra cui tre ufficiali (5) . A prendere Preggio, il 3 luglio, fu lo squadrone D del 1° reggimento del King's Dragoon Guards. I britannici definirono quella intorno al paese una “dura battaglia”. Aprì la strada verso la valle del Niccone, ma i carri armati ebbero a che fare con un percorso ostruito da crateri e con un intenso fuoco di sbarramento di artiglieria, mortai e mitragliatrici. Le prime pattuglie di fanti riuscirono a raggiungere il torrente Niccone il 4 luglio, “dopo aver trovato innumerevoli mine e demolizioni” (6) . Come di prassi nella loro ritirata, i guastatori germanici avevano reso inservibile la strada della valle del Niccone, da essi considerata una via di rilevanza strategica (7) . Proprio quel 4 luglio il passaggio del fronte seminò la morte per la prima volta in dimensioni drammatiche tra la popolazione civile. Avrebbe dovuto essere il giorno lieto della liberazione e della fine del conflitto per quanti erano asserragliati da giorni in ogni genere di rifugio. Non fu così per i Braconi di Monsiano, vicino a Preggio. Una granata centrò la casa dove vivevano e uccise otto componenti di questa famiglia contadina: insieme al padre Gelindo e alla madre Isolina, decedettero i sei figli, di età da 4 a 19 anni. Li seppellirono nel cimitero di Preggio, in tre bare: in una dovettero sistemarci tre bambini (8) . Altri quattro civili persero la vita per esplosioni di granate tra il 3 e il 6 luglio nel territorio che va da Montecastelli a Preggio: due donne a Monestevole e Montemigiano, un anziano arrotino a Montecastelli e un colono. Note: 1) The campaign in Italy 1943-45, Official history of the Indian Armed Forces in the Second World War 1939-45, edited by Bisheshwar Prasad, D. Litt., 1960, p. 266 (Traduzione dell’autore). L’attacco a Monte Acuto partì da Pantano. 2) Friedrich Dettmer – Otto Jaus – Helmut Tolkhitt, Die 44,. Infanterie-Division Reichsgrenadier Hoch-Und Deutschmeister, Wolfersheim Berstadt, Podzung Pallas Verlag, s. d., pp. 319-320. 3) Ibidem. 4) 1 Battalion, King’s Own Royal Regiment, The Campaign In Italy June 1944 – July 1944 (in http:/www.kingsownmuseum.plus.com/1koitaly01.htm). Cfr. anche The campaign in Italy 1943-45 cit., p. 266. 5) Claudio Biscarini, Il passaggio del fronte in Umbria (giugno-luglio 1944), Fondazione Ranieri di Sorbello, Perugia 2014, p. 313. 6) 1 The King’s Dragoon Guards (The Welsh Cavalry), in MBRS. 7) Avorio, Tre noci per la memoria cit., pp. 63-67 8) Testimonianza di Fortunato Rossi. Nel 71º anniversario della strage, per iniziativa della Pro Loco di Preggio, è stata posta a Monsiano una lapide commemorativa del tragico evento. Le battaglie prima della liberazione - A. Tacchini Titolo 6 Titolo 6 LA LIBERAZIONE DI UMBERTIDE (5 luglio 1944) Dal libro “Guerra e Resistenza nell’Alta Valle del Tevere (1943-44) di ALVARO TACCHINI, Petruzzi Editore, Città di Castello 2015. Teodorico Forconi scriveva nel suo diario il 3 luglio: Il rumore spaventoso della truppa in ritirata incute terrore. [...] Intanto saltano mine e ponti; colpi da ogni parte. [...] Sulla strada secondaria comincia il passaggio serale dei soldati e mezzi in ritirata". Quello stesso giorno, a Città di Castello, pochi chilometri a nord di Falerno, dove Forconi era sfollato, i guastatori germanici facevano saltare in aria la stazione ferroviaria e procedevano con l'opera demolitrice della linea. Dall'altra parte del Tevere, sul colle di Serra Partucci a oriente di Umbertide, i contadini recatisi di buon mattino a mietere il grano s'accorsero che il fronte bellico stava ormai incombendo: "Abbiamo dovuto abbandonare in fretta il lavoro, perché si sentivano i cannoni molto vicino; cadevano granate. Tornando a casa abbiamo cominciato a lavorare vicino a casa, ma presto anche da qui siamo dovuti fuggire. Sempre più forte sparavano con l'artiglieria: una vera offensiva". La notte dal 3 al 4 luglio nessuno riuscì a dormire: "Di notte ci ha svegliato un gran boato, tutta la casa tremava, ci siamo subito alzati, vestiti e usciti fuori. Abbiamo visto saltare in aria un ponte e poi anche altri ponti. Tutta la notte sparavano terribilmente" (1) . A crollare erano i ponti della valle dell'Assino, minati dai tedeschi. Le esplosioni si susseguivano da un lato all'altro della valle. Il 5 luglio il maestro Forconi annotava: "Un fortissimo rombo: cade il ponte che unisce Trestina a Cornetto. [...] Verso sera colpi di cannone tedesco sulla via di Montecastelli". Poco prima dell'alba di quel 5 luglio, senza incontrare particolare resistenza, la 25a brigata indiana entrò a Umbertide con il 1° battaglione del King's Own Royal Regiment e ne acquisì il pieno controllo a sera con i1 3° battaglione del 1° reggimento Punjab (2) . La notte stessa alcune pattuglie in avanscoperta entrarono in contatto con i tedeschi presso Montone. Costretti ad abbandonare Monte Acuto e Monte Corona, erano dunque retrocessi sulla linea di difesa Monte Bastiola - Montone – Carpini. Contemporaneamente gli anglo-indiani consolidavano le posizioni a ovest del Tevere, portando il quartiere generale tattico della l0a brigata a Polgeto, alle pendici di Monte Acuto. Un'annotazione nel “Diario di guerra” del 1° battaglione Durham rivela come, in una guerra che pure vedeva impiegati mezzi tecnici d'avanguardia, non si potesse ancora prescindere dall'apporto dei muli su un terreno montagnoso: "I muli sono arrivati al quartier generale tattico, in quanto è impossibile usare mezzi di trasporto" (3) . Questi umili quadrupedi si sarebbero mostrati ancora essenziali nel prosieguo della guerra sulle montagne altotiberine. Intanto, in Valdichiana, gli Alleati avevano raggiunto Castiglion Fiorentino e Monte San Savino. Invece, sul fianco destro della 10a divisione indiana, procedevano più lentamente. I mezzi corazzati del 12° Lancers stavano portando avanti un "pattugliamento aggressivo" in direzione di Gubbio, ma la conformazione del territorio permetteva ai tedeschi di tener bene sotto controllo la sola via di comunicazione attraverso i monti in quella zona: "La gola era profonda e le sue pareti ripide, così che con forze esigue si poteva controllare il passo indefinitamente. I tedeschi non subirono una dura pressione a Gubbio e difesero quel nodo viario per circa un mese dalle pattuglie del 12° Lancers" (4) . Mentre a Umbertide continuavano ad affluire truppe anglo-indiane, festosamente accolte dalla popolazione, il governatore alleato il 9 agosto nominava sindaco Mariano Migliorati, al quale sarebbe succeduto di lì a pochi giorni Giuseppe Migliorati (5) . Nella campagna umbertidese veniva rinvenuto il corpo di un carpentiere di 65 anni, Emilio Paoletti, ucciso a colpi d'arma da fuoco - presumibilmente da truppe tedesche - intorno a1 24 giugno. Note: 1) Testimonianza di Daniele Cernic, in Domenico e Daniele Cernic, “Due fratelli in un diario”. 2) Secondo Raffaele Mancini (Gruppo autonomo San Benedetto – Sue origini e attività svolte nel periodo settembre 1943-luglio 1944), il 5 luglio alcuni membri del gruppo partigiano umbertidese di San Benedetto scesero nella cittadina abbandonata dai tedeschi e non ancora liberata, costituendo “un nucleo armato per impedire furti nelle case abbandonate”; si incontrarono con gli anglo-indiani “nel pomeriggio dello stesso giorno in località Buzzacchero”. 3) Diario di guerra del 1º Battaglione Durham, 5 luglio 1944, in Tosti, “Belli lavori”; il 6 luglio il quartiere generale era avanzato al castello di Montalto. Cfr. anche “Il Passaggio del Fronte. Diario di guerra di un battaglione inglese. 1º giugno 1944-31 luglio 1944”, a cura di Mario Tosti, Rotary Club Città di Castello, per il 50º anniversario della Liberazione, Città di Castello 1994. 4) The campaign in Italy 1943-1945. 5) Entrarono a far parte della prima giunta amministrativa Nello Boldrini, Tramaglino Cerrini, Angelo Martinelli, Renato Ramaccioni, Giorgio Rappini, Aspromonte Rometti, Giuseppe Rondoni e Attilio Scannavin. La Liberazione di Umbertide - A. Tacchini LE VITTIME CIVILI DELLA GUERRA NEL TERRITORIO DI UMBERTIDE Nel 1944, con l’avvicinarsi del fronte, la guerra arrivò nel nostro territorio con il suo drammatico carico di distruzione e morte. Furono circa 130 le vittime civili che persero la vita nei mesi che precedettero la liberazione della città, a partire dalla terribile devastazione del centro storico di umbertide il 25 aprile con 70 morti. Poi la rappresaglia di Serra Partucci il 24 giugno (5 morti), l’eccidio di Penetola il 28 giugno (12 morti) e la strage di Monsiano il 4 luglio (8 morti). Oltre a questi, molti altri umbertidesi sono morti in conseguenza della guerra in modi diversi fino al 1946. Qui, vogliamo rendere omaggio alla loro memoria riportando le pagine che lo storico tifernate Alvaro Tacchini ha a loro dedicato nel suo bellissimo libro “Guerra e Resistenza nell'Alta Valle del Tevere 1943-1944”. Vittime di mine e residuati bellici nel 1944-1946 - Alunni Violini Marsilio, di Dario, nato a Umbertide il 3 marzo 1910, bracciante, coniugato con Antonia Contadini, deceduto il 13 marzo 1945 a Sant'Orfeto per scoppio di ordigno esplosivo. - Mannucci Letterio, di Annibale, nato a Montone il 22 dicembre 1912, residente a Santa Giuliana, bracciante, coniugato con Zaira Ceccagnoli, deceduto il 13 marzo 1945 a Sant'Orfeto per scoppio di ordigno esplosivo. - Pannacci Francesco, di Antonio, nato a Montone l'8 maggio 1915, residente a Umbertide, fabbro, deceduto il 13 marzo 1945 a Sant'Orfeto per scoppio di ordigno esplosivo. L'esplosione della mina che uccise Alunni Violini, Mannucci e Pannacci avvenne alle ore 11.30 presso il ponte sul torrente Mussino. - Arcelli Vittorio, di Luigi, nato a Perugia il 2 agosto 1887, residente a Pierantonio, coniugato con Cecilia Borchiellini, deceduto il 12 febbraio 1945 presso il ponte sul fiume Mussino di Pierantonio per scoppio di ordigno esplosivo. - Bacini Pietro, di Attilio, nato il 24 aprile 1930 a Umbertide, dove risiedeva, colono, deceduto il 6 maggio 1946 a Felceto (Città di Castello) per scoppio di residuato bellico. - Lisetti Vincenzo, di Leopoldo, di anni 19, colono, coniugato, deceduto il 13 marzo 1945 all'ospedale di Perugia forse per ferite da scoppio di ordigno bellico esploso a Romeggio. - Broncolo Lazzaro, di Filippo, nato il 28 febbraio 1874 a Umbertide, dove risiedeva, colono, vedovo di Clelia Mochi, deceduto il 29 luglio 1944 a San Bartolomeo, presso Preggio, per scoppio di ordigno esplosivo. - Iposolfito Margherita, nata il 7 marzo 1894 a Umbertide, dove risiedeva, casalinga, coniugata con Luigi Ambrosi, deceduta il 18 marzo 1944 a Romeggio per scoppio di ordigno esplosivo. - Moroni Renato, di Sante, nato a Umbertide il 25 ottobre 1924, residente a Racchiusole, colono, deceduto il 30 agosto 1945 a Lugo di Romagna per scoppio di ordigno esplosivo. - Picottini Amedeo, detto Vittorio, di Mariano, nato il 19 giugno 1915 a Umbertide, dove risiedeva, colono, coniugato con Ines Montanucci, deceduto il 12 dicembre 1944 a Camporeggiano (Gubbio) per esplosione di mina. Mitragliamento aereo di Montecastelli Il 28 maggio 1944 morì a Montecastelli per mitragliamento aereo Carlo Belardinelli , di Vincenzo, nato il 20 novembre 1909 a Umbertide, dove risiedeva, bracciante, coniugato con Iolanda Citti. Vittima di granata a Montemigiano - Baldoni Filomena, di Domenico, nata il 17 dicembre 1894 a Umbertide, dove risiedeva, casalinga, coniugata con Nazzareno Palazzetti, deceduta il 6 luglio 1944 a Montemigiano per scoppio di granata. Vittime di bombardamenti e cannoneggiamenti a Umbertide - Alunni Esposto Franco, di Luigi, nato a Umbertide il 5 maggio 1939, residente a Preggio, di famiglia colonica, deceduto il 26 luglio 1944 a Racchiusole, presso Preggio, per ferite da scheggia di granata. - Baffetti Domenico, di Andrea, nato a Lisciano Niccone il 16 novembre 1904, residente a Preggio, colono, coniugato con Concetta Tamagnini, deceduto il 6 luglio 1944 presso Preggio per scoppio di granata. - Belardinelli Ennio, di Giuseppe, nato il 19 maggio 1922 a Umbertide, dove risiedeva, insegnante elementare, deceduto il 7 luglio 1944 per le ferite provocate dallo scoppio di una granata presso Rocca d'Aries (Montone). - Bottaccioli Stefano, di Domenico, nato il 9 maggio 1867 a Umbertide, dove risiedeva, arrotino, coniugato con Clotilde Alunni, deceduto il 5 luglio 1944 a Montecastelli per ferite all'addome prodotte da scheggia di granata. - Marconi Giuseppe, di Antonio, nato il 24 settembre 1923 a Umbertide, dove risiedeva, colono, celibe, deceduto il 25 luglio 1944 a Preggio per ferite da schegge di granata. - Simoncelli Stefano, di Napoleone, nato a Umbertide il 26 dicembre 1912, residente a Montecastelli, colono, coniugato con Olga Bazzurri, deceduto il 15 luglio 1944 all'ospedale di Perugia in seguito a ferita da mitragliatrice (o scheggia di granata). - Trinari Ugo, di Angelo, nato a Umbertide il 9 giugno 1943, residente a Preggio, di famiglia colonica, deceduto il 14 luglio 1944 a Preggio per ferite da scheggia di granata. - Vagliani Rosa, di Leopoldo, nata a Cortona il 13 gennaio 1889, residente a Umbertide, casalinga, coniugata con Giuseppe Ferranti, deceduta il 3 luglio 1944 a Monestevole per ferite da scoppio di granata. Sono inoltre deceduti per la stessa causa a Umbertide i non residenti - Betti Angelo, di Vincenzo, nato e residente a Perugia, di anni 72, coniugato con Oliva Bistocchi, deceduto il 23 giugno 1944 all'ospedale di Umbertide per ferite all'addome da scheggia di granata. - Bistoni Achille, di Luigi, nato a Perugia nel 1867, residente a Perugia, colono, vedovo di Emilia Bottoni, deceduto il 29 giugno 1944 in voc. Sollicelli di Santa Giuliana in seguito a scoppio di granata. Vittime dell'artiglieria britannica a Monsiano (Preggio) 4 luglio 1944 - Braconi Gelindo, di Pietro, nato a Passignano il 16 marzo 1899, colono, coniugato con Isolina Bellezzi. - Bellezzi Isolina, di Francesco, nata a Passignano il 25 febbraio 1903, colona, coniugata con Gelindo Braconi, deceduta al Policlinico di - Perugia il 4 agosto 1944 in seguito alle ferite subite. - Braconi Anna, di Gelindo, nata a Umbertide il 17 giugno 1936. - Braconi Francesco, di Gelindo, nato a Umbertide il 24 agosto 1930. - Braconi Maria, di Gelindo, nata a Umbertide il 7 novembre 1940. - Braconi Luigina, di Gelindo, nata a Umbertide il 20 giugno 1925. - Braconi Lorenzo, di Gelindo, nato a Umbertide il 17 giugno 1933. - Braconi Rina, di Gelindo, nata a Lisciano Niccone il 30 gennaio 1928. Vittime di altri bombardamenti aerei oltre a quello del 25 aprile - 29-30 aprile 1944, Umbertide. Di nuovo preso di mira il ponte ferroviario sul Tevere. Il 30 aprile aerei in picchiata da Monte Acuto riuscirono a colpire l'arco a settentrione e a danneggiare la strada nazionale Tiberina 3Bis. - 6 maggio 1944, Pierantonio (Umbertide). È bombardata la zona della ferrovia. - 13 maggio 1944, Umbertide. Bombardata la zona della stazione. - 21 maggio 1944, Umbertide. Distrutto il ponte di Pian d'Assino; bombardati altri ponti e mitragliati i treni nella stazione ferroviaria. - 22 maggio 1944, Ranchi (Umbertide) e Promano (Città di Castello). Alle ore 14.50 mitragliamento del treno viaggiatori alla stazione di Ranchi e dell'abitato di Promano. Morirono due uomini; furono danneggiate tre vetture ferroviarie e incendiato un camion tedesco. La mattina, per un mitragliamento aereo della Ferrovia Appennino Centrale presso Torre dei Calzolari (Gubbio), persero la vita due umbertidesi. - 28 maggio 1944, Umbertide. Incursione di aerei P. 47D del 57° Fighter Group: colpiti il piazzale della stazione di Umbertide, con l'officina ferroviaria, e l'abitato di Montecastelli, dove si ebbe una vittima. - 31 maggio 1944, Umbertide. Incursione aerea contro la ferrovia. Altre vittime di bombardamenti e mitragliamenti aerei - Boriosi Roberto, di Giacomo, nato a Gubbio il 4 gennaio 1894, residente a Umbertide, commerciante in legna, coniugato con Alessandra - Bocci, deceduto il 22 maggio 1944 a Torre dei Calzolari (Gubbio) per mitragliamento aereo. - Boriosi Ruggero, di Fortunato, nato a Gubbio il 20 luglio 1903, residente a Umbertide, commerciante in legna, coniugato con Clarice Curina, deceduto il 22 maggio 1944 a Torre dei Calzolari (Gubbio) per mitragliamento aereo. - Bruni Giuseppe, di Luigi, nato l'8 dicembre 1891 a Umbertide, dove risiedeva, colono, coniugato con Filomena Bovari, deceduto il 27 giugno 1944 in frazione Badia per mitragliamento aereo. - Gattaponi Luigi, di Giuseppe, nato a Città di Castello l'8 aprile 1885, residente a Umbertide, colono, celibe, deceduto l'8 luglio 1944 presso Santa Giuliana per mitragliamento aereo. - Giombetti Antonio, di Giuseppe, nato a Fossato di Vico il 28 dicembre 1884, residente a Umbertide, ferroviere capotreno, coniugato con Anna Lena Baccellini, deceduto nell'incursione aerea su Ponte San Giovanni del 19 dicembre 1943. - Nanni Alfredo, di Luigi, nato a Montone il 5 maggio 1915, residente a Umbertide, manovale ferroviere, celibe, deceduto il 19 dicembre 1943 nell'incursione aerea su Ponte San Giovanni. Vittime di esecuzioni sommarie da parte dei tedeschi - Bartocci Sigifrido [sic], di Angelo, nato a Umbertide il 18 aprile 1927, dove risiedeva, ucciso da soldati tedeschi in rastrellamento l'8 maggio 1944 presso Civitella Ranieri. - Falcini Giuseppe, di Antonio, nato a Pietralunga il 30 ottobre 1913, residente a Umbertide, autista, coniugato con Rosina Vescarelli, ucciso il 7 maggio 1944 dai tedeschi in rastrellamento a Molino della Casella (Pietralunga). - Paoletti Emilio, di Eugenio, nato a Perugia il 28 marzo 1879, residente a Umbertide, carpentiere, coniugato con Alessandrina Paolucci, ucciso verosimilmente da soldati tedeschi intorno al 24 giugno 1944 a Sant'Orfeto (Perugia), presso Pierantonio. - Porrini Enrico, di Domenico, nato a Umbertide il 21 agosto 1883, impiegato, coniugato con Fidalma Gnagnetti, ucciso da soldati tedeschi intorno al 1° luglio 1944 a Badia di Montecorona. - Sonaglia Gaudenzio, di Sante, nato a Umbertide il 10 gennaio 1865, colono, vedovo di Concetta Veschi, ucciso dai soldati tedeschi il 28 giugno 1944 a Santa Giuliana. Vittima di militari alleati Gonfiacani Ettore, di Giosafat, nato a Perugia il 16 giugno 1866, residente a Umbertide, deceduto l'8 luglio 1944, “ucciso da soldati indiani”, a Sioli, loc. Vignola (Gubbio), dove era sfollato. Si annovera inoltre tra le vittime civili Palazzoli Natalino , di Giovan Battista, nato il 25 dicembre 1929 a Umbertide, residente in loc. Cioccolanti, investito e ucciso da un automezzo britannico il 15 agosto 1944 presso Montecastelli. Per il testo integrale con le note e i riferimenti iconografici, si veda il volume di Alvaro Tacchini “Guerra e Resistenza nell'Alta Valle del Tevere 1943-1944, Petruzzi Editore, 2016. Vittime civili ad Umbertide - A. Tacchini FOTO Partigiani di Umbertide PARTIGIANI DI UMBERTIDE NELL'APPENNINO UMBRO E ALL'ESTERO Partigiani di Umbertide e dintorni riconosciuti dalla Commissione umbra ed elencati nel Ruolino della “San Faustino” - Cecchetti Guido, di Vittorio, di Umbertide, 1913-1999; carrettiere; partigiano dall'11 febbraio 1944. - Loschi Francesco, di Nello, di Umbertide, 1926-1979; partigiano dal 1° maggio 1944; volontario nel Gruppo di Combattimento “Cremona”. - Loschi Luciano, di Nello, nato a Umbertide nel 1924; partigiano dal 1° febbraio 1944. Partigiani delle formazioni di Capelli e Montelovesco riconosciuti dalla Commissione umbra I nominativi in questo elenco, sebbene non compaiano nel Ruolino della “San Faustino” o in altri suoi elenchi, sono stati riconosciuti dalla Commissione partigiani combattenti della Brigata. La data di conclusione della loro attività partigiana è il 15 luglio 1944. - Baiocco Guido, di Luigi, di Umbertide, 1922-1981; partigiano dal 10 novembre 1943. - Bonucci Raoul, di Giulio, di Umbertide, 1923-1970; maestro; partigiano dal 25 settembre 1943. - Fiorucci Aurelio, di Luigi, Montone 1925 - Umbertide 2005; residente a San Faustino; colono; partigiano dal 10 settembre 1943. - Fiorucci Giulio, di Domenico, nato a Gubbio nel 1901, residente in loc. San Faustino (Pietralunga); colono; riconosciuto partigiano combattente dal 15 ottobre 1943. - Fiorucci Luigi, di Domenico, nato a Montone nel 1889, residente in loc. San Faustino (Pietralunga); colono; riconosciuto partigiano combattente dal 15 ottobre 1943. - Gennari Addo, di Valerio, di Umbertide, 1920-1997; partigiano dal 15 marzo 1944; volontario nel Gruppo di Combattimento “Cremona”. - Gennari Aspromonte, di Valerio, di Umbertide, 1917-1992; partigiano dal 15 marzo 1944. - Giubilei Aurelio, di Antonio, di Umbertide 1925-1980; partigiano dal 15 ottobre 1943. - Lazzarini Oscar, di Zino, di Umbertide, 1924-2005; studente; partigiano dal 1° dicembre 1943. - Mancini Raffaele, di Domenico, Montone 1923 - Gualdo Tadino 2008; partigiano dal 15 maggio 1944. - Migliorati Giuseppe, di Luigi, Città di Castello 1915 - Umbertide 1987; partigiano dal 10 novembre 1943. - Nanni Ramiro, di Silvio, di Umbertide, 1909-1985; meccanico; partigiano dal 15 novembre 1943. - Ramaccioni Renato, di Angelo, di Umbertide, 1919-1994; avvocato, partigiano dal 5 novembre 1943. - Simone Raffaele, di Ciro, nato a Manfredonia (FG) nel 1924, sfollato a Umbertide; partigiano dal 22 settembre 1943. - Taticchi Antonio, di Gaetano, di Umbertide, 1903-1977; barbiere; partigiano dal 1° ottobre 1943. - Urbanelli Pietro, di Giuseppe, Pietralunga 1909 - Umbertide 2001; colono; residente presso San Faustino di Bagnolo; partigiano dal 20 settembre 1943. Partigiani di Umbertide nella banda di Capanne - Feligioni Giovanni / Gianni, di Stefano, di Umbertide, 1924-1988; colono; partigiano dal 10 novembre 1943. - Feligioni Giuseppe, di Carlo, Umbertide 1924 - Perugia 2005; colono; partigiano dal 10 novembre 1943. Partigiani di Umbertide all'estero - Baldoni Torquato, di Agostino, Passignano 1919 - Perugia 1990, residente a Racchiusole; colono; “si aggrega ai partigiani albanesi il 12 settembre 1943, rimpatria a Bari il 29 giugno 1945”. - Brachelente Giuseppe, di Ginesio, di Umbertide, 1921-1991, residente a San Giuliano; colono; “si unisce con i ribelli greci il 13 settembre 1943”. - Giovannoni Antonio, di Domenico, Umbertide 1920 - Perugia 1992, residente a Case Sparse; colono; partigiano combattente nella 4a Brigata Jugoslava, rimpatriato il 9 luglio 1945. - Rometti Ugo, di Luigi, Umbertide 1918 - Perugia 1980, residente a Niccone; colono; partigiano nella Divisione “Garibaldi” in Jugoslavia dal 9 settembre 1943 all'aprile 1945. - Rosignoli Stefano, di Rinaldo, di Umbertide, 1922-2013, residente a San Giuliano; bracciante; “coi partigiani nel Montenegro il 16 settembre 1943, rimpatriato col Battaglione Matteotti a Udine il 22 giugno 1945”. - Valdambrini Arnaldo, di Giuseppe, di Umbertide, 1909-1999; barbiere; partigiano nella Divisione “Garibaldi” in Jugoslavia. Componenti della banda di San Benedetto che non chiesero il riconoscimento ufficiale da parte della Commissione umbra Beccafichi Aldo (1921), colono; Beccafichi Pio (1922), colono; Cuccarini Giuseppe (1905), colono; Fiorucci Anselmo (1902), colono; Fiorucci Guido; Floridi Giovanni (1925), coltivatore diretto; Floridi Ulisse (1925), coltivatore diretto; Fofi Antonio (1923), colono; Gianfranceschi Elio (1926), colono; Grassini Fernando (1923), colono; Grassini Giovanni (1923), colono; Grassini Terzilio (1926), colono; Moretti Corinto (1924), colono; Moretti Giuseppe (1921), colono; Pauselli Pasquale (1910), colono; Pauselli Pietro (1916), colono; Pedana Natale (1914), operaio; Vannini Marino (1924), colono (Tra parentesi è indicato l'anno di nascita). Per il testo integrale con le note e i riferimenti iconografici, si veda il volume di Alvaro Tacchini “Guerra e Resistenza nell'Alta Valle del Tevere 1943-1944, Petruzzi Editore, 2016. Galleria fotografica NB: Il "Diario" di Rino Pucci seguente è ricordato anche in "Ottant'anni", progetto di Mario Tosti per gli 80 anni del passaggio del fronte, nella pagina dedicata al "marzo 1945 ". IL DIARIO DI RINO PUCCI Da San Faustino a Po di Primaro Nel 1975, in occasione del 30º anniversario della Resistenza e della Liberazione dal nazi-fascismo, nei Quaderni della Regione Umbria è stato pubblicato “Il Diario di Rino Pucci”, testimonianza umana e storica di quel periodo tragico della nostra storia italiana e locale. Lo riproponiamo oggi, attraverso umbertidestoria.net, perché pensiamo che l’impegno e l’entusiasmo per la libertà di quei giovani, e il sacrificio di Rino, siano ancora un esempio per i giovani di oggi, in questo mondo che, nonostante il drammatico passato che si porta dietro, non è riuscito a bandire la guerra, a sconfiggere povertà e fame e a vivere in armonia con la natura e l’ambiente che ci circonda, sempre più fragile e minacciato. PRESENTAZIONE La Consulta Comunale di Umbertide per le celebrazioni del trentennale della Liberazione, nel proporre all'attenzione dei propri concittadini, dei giovani specialmente, il «DIARIO» di Quirino Pucci, non ha cercato un mezzo o un'occasione, se volete, per rinvangare a fini speculativi, agendo sul sentimento, uno dei periodi più tragici del nostro recente passato. No. Il nostro è ben altro obiettivo: noi vorremmo far conoscere, attraverso un comune episodio, uno dei tanti, come è nata la Resistenza. Rino non scrisse il suo «DIARIO» per la storia. Ma, senza volerlo, scrisse pagine di Storia, vera, immediata, vissuta. Rino scrive le proprie impressioni, analizza i propri stati d'animo, cerca di fermare alcuni aspetti d'una vita nuova che vive all'improvviso, con un gruppo d'amici. Perché scrive? Non certo per i posteri. Forse il suo intento sarà stato quello di poter rileggere un giorno, tanto tempo dopo, le pagine sbiadite di un diario sgualcito che ricordano l'episodio della montagna, per magari riderci sopra, con gli amici, con i familiari, con gli stessi protagonisti, come si ride di una storia di gioventù che, a pericolo scampato, assume il sapore di una allegra scampagnata. O, forse, per risognare con la sua «ELA» una gioventù ormai lontana, la loro gioventù difficile, ma pur sempre una gioventù intensamente vissuta. E invece quel «dopo» quel «domani» per il quale il «DIARIO» fu scritto, per Rino non venne. E non solo per Rino. Il nostro Paese fu spazzato da una ondata di terrore e di odio: lacrime e sangue scorsero ovunque. Per tanti, non venne il domani! E, per chi venne, non fu certamente quello sognato da Rino e dai suoi amici. Fu duro, doloroso, implacabile nello smorzare i sogni e le speranze nate sui monti di S. Faustino, sui monti d'Italia. Però non tutto il bagaglio ideale di quei giorni ormai lontani è andato perduto. Qualcosa è rimasto. E quando, come oggi, sentiamo risorgere intorno a noi le forze del male, quelle stesse forze che credevamo d'aver disperso per sempre allora, trenta anni fa, quando vediamo messe in forse quelle verità e minacciate quelle Istituzioni per le quali i migliori caddero, allora ci ritroviamo tutti insieme e riprendiamo il dialogo, per ritrovare quella forza, quella stessa forza, che allora ci mosse e ci guidò al sacrificio ed alla vittoria. Lo riprendiamo dalla casa di Anacleto, lo riprendiamo dalla vecchia pieve di San Faustino, famosa una volta per le sue campane dal canto d'argento, e oggi conosciuta anche per il nome dato alla formazione partigiana che operò in quella zona e nel pietralunghese, di cui, Tu, nel «DIARIO» fai già presagire la nascita. Lo riprendiamo con tutti gli amici che erano con te, con quelli che sono venuti dopo, con quelli che ti sono stati vicini nell'ora del sacrificio supremo. Lo riprendiamo con i giovani d'oggi, che non ti conoscono ancora, perché appunto imparino a conoscerti e, con Te, possano conoscere anche la Resistenza. Ecco perché sono state riaperte le pagine del tuo «DIARIO». Oggi sono parte di una storia più grande di quella che tu ci racconti: sono parte della storia del nostro popolo che allora lottò, vinse e riconquistò la libertà perduta, rischiando e morendo, pur amando tanto la vita. E perché da questa piccola finestra, aperta sul panorama della locale Resistenza, si possa più agevolmente guardare il panorama che offre, pensiamo giovi inquadrare gli avvenimenti nella cornice e nell'epoca in cui essi si svolsero. Umbertide 1943 Nel capoluogo vivono poco più di 3.000 persone, nelle campagne, ancora fortemente abitate, 14.000 circa. La guerra infuria da oltre tre anni. Prima lontana, ora vicina. Gli anglo-americani sbarcano in Sicilia. Il 25 aprile cade il fascismo. L'8 settembre il governo Badoglio firma la resa e scappa al Sud. L'esercito italiano, lasciato senza guida, sbanda. I tedeschi dilagano nel paese. Mussolini, liberato, costituisce la repubblica di Salò, serva dello straniero occupante. L'anello della catena nazi-fascista torna ben presto a saldarsi intorno al collo degli italiani. Tornano le «cartoline precetto». I giovani, smarriti in così rapidi avvenimenti contraddittori, devono decidere. Che fare ? Molti scelgono la via della montagna. E, tra questi, un gruppo di otto ragazzi, di diversa condizione sociale e di diversa formazione politica, di diversa cultura e di diversa educazione, la notte tra il 22 e il 23 settembre 1943, s'avvia verso i monti di San Faustino, «affratellati da un comune sentimento di libertà e di italianità». Di preciso non sanno cosa l'aspetta. La lotta partigiana non è ancora organizzata. Il loro è solamente un atto di ribellione, un anelito verso una vita migliore. Visto oggi, possiamo definirlo un atto fondamentale, grande e coraggioso, poiché con quello nasce nella nostra zona la prima Resistenza. Il «DIARIO» racconta la storia di quella fuga, dei primi giorni trascorsi in montagna. Una storia appassionata, vera, che contiene tutte le speranze e tutte le delusioni di quei giorni d'attesa sui monti. Una storia scritta in fretta, senza pretese, che scopre però l'impazienza propria dei giovani che vorrebbero passare subito all'azione. Azione che deve, invece essere organizzata, e che, per diverse ragioni tarda troppo a venire. Il gruppo di casa Anacleto lentamente si sfalda, scompare. Il «DIARIO», aperto sui monti di San Faustino, dall'ampio e libero orizzonte, si chiude nel campo di lavoro di Collestrada, «prigione senza sbarre», come la definisce il suo autore. Sembra il tramonto di ogni speranza. Ma non è così. Si chiude solo - e provvisoriamente - l'ultima pagina del «DIARIO». Non quella della Resistenza che è nata veramente, che vive, che cresce in fretta. Ben presto i giovani saranno di nuovo sui monti. In armi, questa volta. E' l'ora. La lotta armata inizia: tra difficoltà ed errori, ma inizia. I cento, i mille episodi che la compongono si snodano, si saldano insieme rapidamente. Alcuni di vasta portata e risonanza, i più silenziosi, modesti, oscuri, ma altrettanto importanti per la realizzazione dell'unico fine che la Resistenza s'è prefisso: liberare il nostro paese dallo straniero e dall'oppressore fascista. Gli «Anacleti» ora sono tanti perché tanti sono i giovani accorsi sui monti. L'ospitalità dei contadini è piena, completa. Anzi, è più che ospitalità. E' partecipazione diretta alla lotta: dei giovanissimi, degli anziani, delle donne. Quelle di Vallescura, ad esempio, non esitano ad accorrere a spegnere il fuoco che arde la casa dei partigiani, quando ancora fascisti e tedeschi sono così vicini che si sentono le loro rauche voci. Da San Faustino a Morena, da Montebello a Vialba, da Moravola a S. Leo, da Montone, a Pietralunga, a Gubbio, a Umbertide, è un fiorire di episodi grandi e piccoli, di atti di eroismo e di piccole azioni di disturbo, è un pungolo continuo che finisce per logorare i nervi ed il morale dell'esercito invasore che non si sente più sicuro sul suolo italiano. Cadono, intanto, intorno a noi le vittime della guerra. Alcune hanno un lungo passato di lotta al fascismo, come il tenente colonnello Venanzio Gabriotti , fucilato dai nazi-fascisti a Città di Castello, altre sono giovani reclute della Resistenza, come il tenente Aldo Bologni , caduto a Montone con le armi in pugno, altre ancora uccise mentre cercano di organizzare la resistenza e la lotta, come Ennio Belardinelli e Giuseppe Falcini , caduti a Rocca d'Aria e Colle di Vialba, come Giuseppe Bernardini trucidato a Montecastelli. Altre del tutto innocenti, travolte dalla furia cieca della guerra, come le 70 vittime del bombardamento di Umbertide, i cinque fucilati di Serra Partucci, i dodici bruciati vivi di Niccone, il giovanissimo Sigfrido Bartocci , assassinato dai tedeschi tra il grano verde dei campi di Civitella e gli anziani Enrico Porrini , Gaudenzio Sonaglia , Luigi Gattaponi , uccisi per rappresaglia, rispettivamente nei cascinali di Badia di M. Corona, di S. Giuliana e di S. Cassiano. Ed ultimi, in ordine di tempo, i volontari Giuseppe Starnini , morto a Firenze, e Giuseppe Rosati , caduto a fianco di Rino. Altri sono presi e rinchiusi nelle carceri fasciste, spesso torturati. Sono giovani ed anziani : è l'Italia tutta che si ribella e combatte. Tra questi, ricordiamo una delle maggiori figure di animatore della resistenza nel pietralunghese: Bonuccio Bonucci , alla cui casa di San Faustino tanti giovani accorsero per avere un consiglio nell'ora difficile ed oscura, come fece il tuo gruppo, Rino, in quel lontano settembre del '43, o per avere un'arma, dopo, quando la lotta divampò più cruenta, come facemmo noi, nel '44. Bonucci, per l'arresto del quale fascisti e tedeschi si scomodarono in forze finché non riuscirono nel loro turpe intento. E vicino a questo nome prestigioso, vogliamo ricordarne altri, più umili, che nessuno conosce, che solo pochi intimi ricordano: quello del colono Luigi Fiorucci , detto «Baldilino», arrestato durante un rastrellamento sui monti di S. Faustino, insieme ad un invalido della 1° guerra mondiale, Domenico Mancini , ed entrambi rinchiusi nelle carceri di Perugia, dove soffrono interrogati e maltrattamenti, ma non parlano. E, tra i più giovani, ricordiamo il M° Lamberto Beatini e Giuseppe Antonelli che, arrestati, rimangono per oltre sei mesi nelle carceri perugine, rei d'aver preferito la libertà e la lotta al servaggio fascista. Intanto gli anglo-americani avanzano, arrivano a Umbertide. Ma la guerra non è finita. C'è ancora bisogno di giovani gagliardi e generosi, disposti a combattere per la totale liberazione del Paese. Partono i 24 volontari umbertidesi della «Cremona». Il campo d'azione si sposta dalle nostre montagne alle vaste pianure del ravennate. Rino è tra loro. Dove c'è una causa giusta da difendere, Egli non può mancare. Il «DIARIO» riprende sotto forma di «BOLLETTINO». E' quello che per 18 giorni gli umbertidesi leggeranno in una bacheca della piazza Matteotti, ancora invasa di macerie. Lo spirito goliardico, apparentemente scanzonato, riappare, torna a pizzicare fraternamente amici e commilitoni. Ma il «BOLLETTINO» appare più impegnato, più ufficiale, diremmo. Il giovane che lo redige s'è maturato in brevissimo tempo: s'è fatto uomo. Rivelano questa maturità anche le poche lettere inviate dal fronte alla Madre. Rino è sempre il figlio affettuoso, ma più contento e laconico, quasi voglia nascondere alla madre il pericolo che incombe, quasi voglia rassicurarla che a difenderlo basterà la sua preghiera. E poi, Po di Primaro, 3 MARZO 1945. Una raffica di mitraglia stronca la Sua giovane vita. Rino tace per sempre. Ma non la sua voce del Suo spirito. Quella continua con noi il colloquio ideale che unisce i vivi con i morti. L'anno scorso, quando ci si chiese di indicare una breve epigrafe per il cippo commemorativo delle dodici vittime innocenti di Penetola, ci suggerì le parole del Tuo verso della «NOTTE» del «DIARIO»: ..... «Rino parlò: NON BISOGNA ODIARE» ..... Ed oggi, Rino, da un ruvido masso posto sul bordo della strada cortonese, i Martiri della Penetola ripetono il Tuo messaggio, parlano ai vivi con il Tuo cuore. Perché il cuore dei martiri è UNO. Uno solo. Ed ha un solo linguaggio. Universale. Come universale è la VERITA' per la quale siete caduti, per la quale vivete nell'animo nostro, per la quale vivrete nell'animo di coloro che verranno, per la quale ci ripetete: NON ODIO CHIEDIAMO A CHI RESTA SOLTANTO MEMORIA PERCHE' ALTRI NON DEBBAN MORIRE PER MANO ASSASSINA. Umbertide, 14 settembre 1975 Raffaele Mancini IL DIARIO DI RINO 22 settembre – NOTTE Nella notte stellata, ricamata da densi banchi di nubi, il silenzio assume un mistica religiosità, il viale bianco, fiancheggiato dai neri cipressi che maestosamente tentano scalare l'infinito, si distende, contorcendosi come un serpente, fra i campi verdeggianti, dove l'odore dei mosti novelli s'alza, fragrante di natura buona e generosa. II rumore degli scarponi ferrati che battono sicuri la terra dura rompe la calma serenità della notte. Da un cascinale giunge l'abbaiare affannoso di un cane, un gallo si sveglia e tenta uno stridulo acuto mentre altri cento piccoli insetti della notte tentano invano, di accordare le loro voci misteriose. Otto ragazzi marciano con giovanile baldanza verso la vita nuova, verso la libertà. Hanno lasciato dietro di loro una umanità falsa ed egoista, hanno disprezzato la bieca amicizia di uno straniero odiato, hanno abbandonato le care famiglie, gli agi, le persone che amano, hanno abbandonato tutto e tutti per vivere liberi, per sfuggire ad una odiosa schiavitù. Un giorno: quando nell'alba radiosa un sole più splendente e limpido saetterà i suoi raggi caldi di fuoco e di vita sulla terra italiana tornata libera e pacifica, essi ritorneranno, ricominceranno la solita vita e di questi giorni duri, ma intrisi di ore felici, serberanno un dolce, eterno ricordo. Siamo otto giovani, dai 18 ai 22 anni, alcuni studenti, altri operai, altri impiegati, affratellati da un comune sentimento di libertà e di italianità, pronti a dividere insieme rischi, pericoli, pane ed allegria. La strada è lunga e dura, ma noi non ce ne accorgiamo. C'è in noi la forza armoniosa della gioventù, quella forza che scaturisce dai cuori, che esala al di fuori di noi e colorisce tutte le cose intorno, anche le più inanimate, e le fa parlare e cantare di gioia. Claudio, come al solito, anima la compagnia con le sue ignobili freddure, Ruggero marcia silenzioso e si perde con la natura, Piero forse penserà al suo bianco lettino, Aurelio insegue colonne aride di numeri, Guido sogna una bruna bambina della laguna, Peppe intravvede tra le foglie degli alberi teste ispide e barba folte, Menco si perde tra una nuvola dì fogli stampati e spera di poter scrivere presto un manifesto: «L'ITALIA E' LIBERA ! ITALIANI TORNATE ALLE VOSTRE CASE, AI VOSTRI LAVORI; DIFENDETE LA VOSTRA ITALIA!». Io?... Un visetto pallido di bambina ed un turbine di capelli neri. E cammina e cammina, come nelle vecchie favole, i bravi ragazzi arrivano alla Torre..... E' la prima tappa, è il riposo agognato. La Torre : sono quattro mura disperse fra le piante di un boschetto, quattro mura diroccate, che un giorno videro le gesta eroiche di cavalieri erranti. Invano cerchiamo un ricovero nella torre: consigli, opinioni, ma si finisce per non capirci più niente. Stendiamo, infine, le coperte ai piedi di un muro che la patina del tempo ha tinto di colore grigiastro, ci accomodiamo alla meglio e, come Dio vuole, ci corichiamo. La terra è dura, non è un letto molto piacevole; il vento si insegue tra le fronde degli alberi che, con un brusio sordo, si sussurrano dolci ed intimi colloqui. Frizzi allegri e motti salaci percuotono le vecchie mura che ci guardano austere, quasi rimproverandoci di aver rotto la loro secolare severità. Poi tutto tace. lo non dormo, come forse non dormono gli altri ..... ognuno di noi insegue un fantasma che danza davanti ai nostri occhi : i ricordi battono alla porta dei nostri cuori con note dolci e tristi...... Piano, piano, gli occhi si chiudono nell'ultima visione ..... io..... Ela. 23 settembre Una pioggerella fitta che si schermiva con le fronde, ci ha svegliati. Ho fatto il segno della Croce... Qualche cosa d'arcano che nasceva tra gli alberi mi ha spinto a farlo. Era la luce nuova del nuovo giorno, era il miracolo divino che si ripeteva con veste e colori nuovi, che ha parlato al mio cuore. Avevo le ossa rotte, non sapevo se ero quadrato o rettangolare ; certamente ero una figura geometrica. Erano le sei. L'alba svegliava gli uomini e le loro case, accendeva sentimenti e passioni nuove, riscaldava negli animi odio e amore che la notte per un istante aveva sopiti. La valle sotto di noi sì velava di una scialba cortina di nebbia, cime di alti pini e di querce vetuste s'alzavano al di sopra di quel mare bianco e mite e sembravano oasi ridenti sorte per incanto pel tocco d'una bacchetta magica. I comignoli delle povere casette disperse fra le colline gentili ed i monti severi, mandavano con, torte spire di fuma : un fumo quasi timido di alzarsi verso il cielo, un fumo che ha l'odore di sudato lavoro e di serena gioia familiare. Gli uccelli cinguettano garruli per l'aria e le note tristi e gioconde s'incontrano in una gara di bellezza e di gentilezza.... Ho tardato ieri sera ad addormentarmi.... le stelle tremolanti mi sorridevano dall'alto, timide nel loro splendore ed io vedevo il volto d'una cara bambina che mi sorrideva con loro. Anche gli altri si svegliano: negli occhi ancor gonfi ognuno insegue l'ultima visione della notte..... Piero ha chiamato la mamma..... La mamma: Vangelo buono che veglia su noi, la dolce, cara, creatura che ci accompagna con le sue preghiere, che ci insegue con i suoi pacati ed affettuosi consigli, che riposa sui nostri cuori cullandoli ed accarezzandoli con quella voce dolce e cara che tante volte ci ha fatto dormire quando eravamo bambini, quando ancora la vita era una favola con le fate buone e gli orchi cattivi. Mammina cara, forse stanotte, nel sonno agitato, ti sei svegliata.... è stato l'orologio della torre a svegliarti con i suoi battiti lenti.... ti ha ripetuto il mio nome e ti ha fatto sussultare di paura per il tuo figliolo lontano... forse hai pianto e nella tua calda fantasia di madre mi hai visto camminare stanco..... fra uomini cattivi..... Allora dal cuore è nata una preghiera e gli angeli buoni sono scesi dal cielo, hanno preso la tua preghiera e l'hanno portata in cielo, al Signore..… Zaini in spalla e, avanti march! Riprendiamo il cammino. L'aria fresca e pungente del mattino penetra nelle membra e le filtra di umore e di forza nuova. Si marcia : prima in silenzio poi s'alza un canto leggero che via via si alza e rimbomba. Sorge dai nostri petti. Siamo liberi..... Sulla cima di una collina ci fermiamo e facciamo colazione. Sardine in scatola - Lo sapete - dice Claudio - perché le sardine si mettono sott'olio ? - Perché quando il mare è calmo..... è come un olio. Claudio è un gran bravo ragazzo, però sì rovina con le sue freddure che io.... boicotterò sempre, finché avrò un po' di fiato. E' un ragazzo intelligente, studia medicina, come me. Siamo compagni di scuola ed anche nella vita. Non è molto bello, ma si salva per via di un paio di baffi che fin'ora nessuno è riuscito a vedere. In fatto di donne, quando non ci sono io, ha abbastanza fortuna. Sa stare in compagnia.... ed anche in plotone. Il caro amico mi scuserà per questa piccola freddura. Chi va con lo zoppo - dice un proverbio - impara a zoppicare. La colazione mattutina è stata buona ed ha stretto ancor più i nostri legami. Il « Secco » - Giubilei Aurelio per chi non lo sapesse - nel frattempo era andato in perlustrazione e dopo mezz'ora circa è tornato con la buona novella: un contadino era disposto ad ospitarci. Ci siamo messi subito in marcia per l'ultima tappa. Siamo stati accolti nel cascinale dall'abbaiare del cane, lo starnazzare delle oche e il grugnito dei maiali. 23 settembre NOTTE Scendevan lievi l’ombre della sera: radunati pensavamo a ciò che era, guardavamo nell'intimo del cuore per cercarvi il conforto dell'amore. E il pensiero nostro era lontano, e a tratti parlavamo piano piano. Occhi tesi oltre i monti, in lontananza, volti tesi in una estrema desianza. Sembianza cara e triste, immagine dolce ad ombre miste.... Una dolcezza che moriva in pianto e un dolore forte, ... ma senza schianto. D'un tratto per togliere la pena sorse un'accorata cantilena: un lungo canto pieno dì ricordi che penetrava dentro nei precordi. Voci alterne che non erano canto, ma solo grida per fugare il pianto: voci e voci e ritmi più vari, motivi allegri, motivi amari..... RINO PARLO': - NON BISOGNA ODIARE, non lo sentite che bisogna amare ? un desiderio di volersi bene, di stringersi forte, affratellati insieme? Non lo sentite che la natura canta i suoi inni di gioia e di speranza? Non vedete dirlo anche alle stelle che brillano nel ciel come sorelle? E nel cuor c'è una voce che ci dice: - Vivi, ama, spera e sii felice! - Non lo sentite che lo parla al cuore questa silente notte di tepore? Nessun rispose alle sue parole, ciascuno chiuso in un dolor che duole... Solo Claudio guardò a lungo, pensoso, rincorrendo non so quale pensiero ansioso.... Guardai quei volti tristi ma speranti, con la tristezza propria degli amanti. Rino 24 Settembre II sole già filtrava attraverso le fragili pareti della capanna sul nostro giaciglio e il cielo si andava tingendo d'un azzurro chiaro. Quando ho aperto gli occhi, Piero e Claudio dormivano ancora. Ela mi è apparsa in sogno. Quanta gioia mi ha portato la sua visione... m'è sembrato che stesse vicino, che mi accarezzasse i capelli; il tocco delle sue mani era lieve e l'olezzo calda del fiato m'irrorava il viso scaldandolo di un dolce tepore. I suoi occhi, di quel colore che non ho mai conosciuto, mi sorridevano dolci o mi parlavano con il loro muto melanconico linguaggio. Ela... bambina mia cara, torna ogni notte a trovarmi, torna ad accarezzarmi, dimmi quelle affettuose parole che tanto mi fanno gioire, ripetimi ancora, piccola cara, il tuo amore, le tue speranze, ed i nostri sogni. Un destino cattivo ci tiene lontani, ma i nostri cuori sono vicini e sognano la casina di legno sulla montagna, il piccolo Mauro, e quegli istanti che traboccheranno di intensa felicità. Quando anche Piero e Claudio si svegliarono intonammo una canzone, ma la nostra voce era stanca ed i nostri pensieri erano lontani. Il buon Anacleto ci ha offerto il latte di capra, era fresco e dolce. Per sfuggire ad un eventuale pericolo ci siamo recati nel bosco . Abbiamo lavorato alacremente per costruire una capanna, si lavorava febbrilmente ed il lavoro era intercalato da canti e barzellette che Claudio coloriva meglio di me nella sua satira. Tutti sembrano contenti ma forse nei loro cuori c'è un dolce rimpianto, un desio che preme i cuori d'affanno e di tristezza. Ognuno di noi custodisce un segreto nel cuore, un segreto che ci fa sperare, che ci fa aspettare fidenti il domani. l'uomo è strano... non può vivere nel pericolo se non sogna una gioia futura e... basta! basta! Qualche cosa urge il mio cuore, qualche cosa che non conosco ma che scuote i miei pensieri, batte i miei sentimenti e mi fa oscillare fra una gioia che sta per sfuggire ed una pena che forse verrà. Claudio mi comprende... mi guarda e sorride, dice che sono un mascalzone, ma nel suo cuore pensa che sono un buon ragazzo, un po' troppo carico di fantasia e di idee qualche volta malsane. Con Claudio e Ruggero mi trovo molto bene, essi sono un po' come me, vivono in terra e sognano il cielo. Forse nei prossimi fogli tenterò dì parlare dei miei compagni, sarà un lavoro difficile, perché se facile è ritrarre le sembianze di un uomo, difficile è analizzare i suoi sentimenti. C'è Chiara che è una gran brava bambina, ha negli occhi una ingenuità infantile, hanno un riflesso azzurro e colpiscono profondamente. Ha un visetto piccolo e grazioso; i suoi lineamenti sono regolari e gentili, i capelli castani leggermente ondulati le scendono sul collo esile e bianco. Non so cosa pensi, perché anche i suoi pensieri sono leggeri e velati come la sua persona. Chiara mi piace. Quando sono con lei mi sento sereno ed una felicità infantile scende nell'anima mia. La vita corre con quella lenta monotonia che è il pane quotidiano di questa buona gente. Ieri sera, mentre ci ritiravamo per dormire abbiamo vista dei lumi a valle. Chi sono? Le supposizioni più strane e le deliberazioni più disparate. lo avevo proposto di fare una spedizione, ma poi siamo andati a dormire. E' la più bella cosa che abbiamo potuto fare. Prima di addormentarmi ho pregato, ora, prego tutte le sere, vi trovo una pace nuova, un conforto che mi fa tanto bene. Madonnina cara che sei nei cieli, guardaci dall'alto e posa la tua mano benigna sulle nostre teste, insegnaci tu la strada che conduce verso la vera felicità, quella felicità che gli uomini non conoscono, quella serena felicità che c'è soltanto nel tuo cielo, vieni dolce, cara e buona mamma da noi tutti e dacci la tua benedizione. 25 Settembre Mi sono svegliato molto nervoso. Questa vita calma e monotona mi esaspera... non so cosa mi succeda, il mio spirito è scosso ed il mio cervello va qualche minuto indietro. Strano ! Ho desiderato sempre la serena tranquillità della campagna ed ho sempre amato il profondo brusio dei boschi, e le valli che si distendono ai piedi dei monti, con i lunghi filari di viti, le stradette che si snodano fra le grigie casette dei contadini, i paesetti dagli alti campanili che si riposano sulla riva di un fiume o fra le gialle spighe del grano. Accade sempre così... desiderare una cosa, vivere per più giorni beandoci nel suo sogno e poi... quando viene già siamo stanchi. I giorni più o meno li trascorriamo sempre nello stesso tenore : si gioca, si canta, si va peregrinando pei boschi finché giunge la sera. La sera ognuno di noi ritrova se stesso. Sembra che le ombre oscure della mia grande amica scendendo dalle cime dei monti ci riportino le nostre spoglie mortali, che il giorno morente ci aveva strappato. Sera, ... istanti pieni d'incanto, voci divine che parlano con nostalgica tenerezza, momenti in cui l'anima esce dal corpo e s'alza verso il cielo : «Non senti, caro amico - par che per essa dica il corpo - l'usignol che canta, non odi tu le note armoniose con cui risponde l'amata? Ascolta: questo è il vento che schermisce le fronde, il suo soffio è più leggero e la carezza più lieve; egli scaccia le ultime luci del giorno e le tremule ombre presto saranno fra noi. Addio corpo, addio prati bruciati dal sole, addio lieto cinguettar d'uccelli, addio affannoso ansimare di macchine e braccia, anche a voi o buoi che poco fa sbuffavate sotto il pesante giogo o caprette belanti, anche a voi io dico addio, presto le sorelle stelle illumineranno la notte e la luna si poserà tra le fronde, presto la sera farà posto alla notte e la Pace alla fatica, io spazierò nel cielo e cercherò la tua stella. Addio». E quando la sera ha finalmente liberato le nostre anime, sentiamo un bisogno arcano di cantare, di far tremare nell'aria le nostre voci... io credo che questa sia una serenata che i nostri cuori facciano alla sera, forse una preghiera che essi vogliono innalzare all'amica nascosta, una preghiera che porta con sé il rammarico di un giorno di una speranza perduta, un sogno infranto, una felicità che non tornerà mai più. C’è negli occhi una lieta bontà, c'è nella voce un tremore che forse è triste, forse gioioso, c'è in tutti noi l'immagine dei cari lontani, delle case spogliate dei nostri trilli giovanili, c'è gioia e tristezza volontà e stanchezza pianto e sorriso e più ancora un gran desiderio di pace. 27 Settembre Ruggero e Claudio sono seduti dietro a me cantano. Già da venti minuti annoiando con le loro voci stonate... pur tuttavia non li maledico, il loro canto mi scioglie un po' di quella triste indefinibile malinconia che da qualche giorno mi opprime ad intervalli. Forse sono quegli istanti in cui mi assale il desiderio di Ela. Cosa farà la mia piccola in quest'istante? Mi sembra di vederla con il suo vestitino a fiori, seduta sul divano assorta e pensosa su un libro che non riesce a leggere... con lei c'è Rossella, la nostra cara bambina, che sorride e con la sua vocetta le domanda: «Mamma, dov'è il papà, quando ritorna?» Allora Ela comincia a raccontare: «Il papà, gioia mia, è andato sulle montagne per fuggire gli uomini cattivi che volevano fargli del male. Con il papà ci sono tanti altri giovani, essi dormono la notte nelle capanne ed il giorno vanno per i boschi. Presto saranno armati ed allora andranno a combattere gli uomini cattivi». Poi la sua voce si spegne e Rossella l'accarezza sulla guancia e le dice: «Perché piangi mammina?». Ieri sera abbiamo cambiato appartamento. Dormiamo tutti otto in una cucina inusata. Quando si va a dormire c'è un po' di allegria, si tarda a prendere sonno ed oscilliamo fra una freddura di Claudio ed un rumore di Piero. Ieri sera siamo stati a veglia da Anacleto, dove Guido si è arrabbiato perché il solito Claudio con le sue solite stolte freddure l'ha punto in un lato delicato della sua vita. Stamattino Pippo, Ferranti e Fiorucci son venuti a trovarci. C'è stato uno scambio di vedute e solidali accordi per il futuro. ... e la vita scorre, come il ruscello scende dal monte, limpida, monotona, sussurrante e calma. 30 Settembre Siamo stati da Bonucci. Tutte le sere andiamo da lui per conoscere le ultime notizie e per prendere accordi sulle nostre future azioni. Bonucci è un uomo molto in gamba, un uomo d'azione che ha promesso di farci fare qualche cosa. Questa vita sempre uguale e facile comincia a stancarci; siamo giovani, abbiamo i cuori bollenti e la testa piena di fantasie e vogliamo essere impiegati in qualche azione. Ruggero è molto triste: ricordi, speranze, sogni, chissà? Forse è la noia. Seguitiamo a giocare ed a scherzare, ma una triste malinconia ci opprime, grigia come queste giornate d'autunno senza sole, silenziosa come questi boschi che sanno solo tremare al vento. 4 Ottobre Cosa importano le date? Tutti i giorni sono uguali ogni ora la nostra vita si ripete grigia ed uniforme. Se il tempo non fosse segnato la nostra esistenza sarebbe più bella, non si distinguerebbe l'oggi dal domani, non ricorderesti il giorno che fosti felice ed il giorno che soffristi, ma la tua memoria si perderebbe nel tempo uguale, senza il battito dell'orologio che continuamente ti ripete la tua piccolezza e la brevità della tua esistenza. II giorno sarebbe diverso dalla notte soltanto per il buio e la felicità si separerebbe dalla noia per il tempo che passa. Oggi è il quattro ottobre e i minuti rincorrono le ore; presto sarà mezzogiorno e mangeremo, poi verrà la sera con la notte ed andremo a dormire e questa data avrà segnato un'altra tappa del nostro triste cammino. Ieri l'altro mentre io ero assente c'era stato un allarme. Erano un maresciallo ed un carabiniere che venivano a perlustrare questa zona. Si sono radunati una ventina d'uomini, fra i miei compagni ed altri contadini e sono corsi nella zona pericolosa per sventare qualsiasi tentativo di violenza. Ma i due gendarmi vista la male parata se ne sono andati ed è sfumata anche un'avventura che prometteva di distoglierci un poco da questa odiosa monotonia. Ieri, domenica, abbiamo fatto un po' di festa. Abbiamo mangiata e bevuto più del solito, abbiamo cercato di ridere e scherzare con più sincerità per allontanare la tristezza dai nostri cuori e per segnare in qualche modo una festa che nessuno di noi sentiva. Verso sera è venuta la signora Bonucci ed insieme a Claudio e Chiaretta abbiamo fatto una passeggiata. L'aria vespertina era calma, dal punto dove eravamo si vedevano i monti toccarsi, unirsi ed erigersi maestosi verso fitte cortine di nubi che il sole morente cercava invano di ferire. I nostri discorsi erano vuoti e la mia anima vagava con il vento che sfiorava le cime boscose dei monti, si perdeva con esso fra le foglie che cominciano a ingiallire, si perdeva con esso ovunque e come lui non aveva riposo. Quando siamo tornati alla cascina ho trovato una lettera di Ela. Sono diventato triste, un nodo di pianto mi stringeva la gola. Ma tu, mio caro diario, mi permetterai uno sfogo, tu ascolterai quello che il mio cuore non ha saputo confessare ad alcuno. Tu sei condiscendente e buono, tu ascolti le nostre gioie e le nostre pene e non parli, il tuo volto è sempre pallido ed uguale, tu non hai la voce per gridare, il cuore per amare e le mani per accarezzare, tu sei più felice di noi perché non soffri e non gioisci, ma ascolti e taci. Spesso nel tuo candore io cerco il volto di colei che tanto amo, di colei che vive dentro di me e palpita dei miei palpiti, lo cerco nelle tue righe e lo trovo sempre caro ed affettuoso, sorridente di quel sorriso che mi spinge a sognare ed a sperare che scende nell'animo mio come un balsamo rivivificatore, che riempie la mia solitudine di gioia e spesso, però anche di tristezza. Io ho quello che gli altri non hanno, io ho l'amore che mi distingue da Ruggero, da Claudio e dagli altri, io ho la fede in questo amore puro e sincero che fa della mia vita una missione, ho la certezza del bene di questo amore che mi salva dal male che con i suoi neri polipi avvolge tutta la terra e la stringe e la stringe nel suo dolore. Soltanto che quest'affetto così grande spesso mi opprime, specialmente nella solitudine e nella lontananza, con il ricordo delle ore felici con la paura che debba finire. E' la paura che un Dio geloso della mia felicità scenda dal suo trono di tiranno per carpirmi questo tesoro, per schiacciarmi come gli altri sotto i suoi piedi insanguinati dal sangue di migliaia di vittime innocenti che egli, superbo della sua grandezza e geloso della sua gloria prezzolata, ha costretto nel dolore e nella miseria. Ma l'amore ci salva, l'amore che ha creato l'Universo, l'amore che è in ogni creatura, pronto a scaturire fuori di fronte all'ira del tiranno, ci accoglie nelle sue braccia quando noi stiamo per soccombere; è soltanto nell'amore che ogni uomo deve credere e deve porre la sua fede, di lui dobbiamo fare la nostra religione, a lui affidare le nostre vite: l'amore è il ponte che ci lega all'infinito, l'amore è la forza che ci sorregge, davanti all'immensità dell'universo, è l'amore infine che stringe una catena fra la vita e la morte, Quando sono triste mi piace ubriacarmi. Ieri sera l'ho fatto. L'ebbrezza dell’alcool scioglie la nostra malinconia e ci fa sorridere. I miei compagni hanno tentato invano di conoscere il motivo: Claudio mi è venuto accanto e con parole amorevoli ha cercato di aiutarmi, capiva benissimo che la mia allegria era finta ed il mio sorriso era pianto. Ruggero ha cercato di imitarmi, ma non era ubriaco, forse pensava a quel detto che dice: «in due si soffre meglio». Stamattina stavo male ed ora cerco invano di cambiare la serenità con la tristezza. 7 Ottobre Menco è sul letto che legge, io scrivo sopra una cassapanca, gli altri sono in cucina che discorrono e scherzano con le donne..... fuori piove. E' l'autunno che pian piano, scacciando la calda e odorosa estate, si desta intorno a noi. Qualche foglia ingiallita già è caduta nel fango, le caprette s'indugiano sui fili verdi che presto appassiranno e moriranno. Da una grossa e fronduta quercia una piccola fogliolina gialla tentenna; la pioggia la scuote, ma essa vuol rimanere tra le sue compagne ancora verdi e vive. Una scossa di pioggia più forte la fa cadere.... vibra nell'aria, rotola, si rialza sospinta da un soffio dì vento, rotola ancora e poi dolcemente si posa in terra. La pioggia la percuote, l'affonda un po' nel fango, ma essa brilla sempre di quella sua luce gialla che annoia, di quel pallore, scialbo che precede la morte. Passa un pastorello col suo gregge e la colpisce col bastone ; tante zampette la calpestano, l'insudiciano e la ricoprono di terra... il gregge s'allontana belando, il pastorello fischietta ed agita il suo bastone, la piccola fogliolina gialla non si vede più. Piove! E' autunno!! Siamo rimasti in sei. Guido è andato da un altro contadino e credo si trovi bene, Ruggero è ritornato a Vialba, dove faceva scuola, per cercarvi un po' di allegria, per trovarvi qualche cosa che rompa il cerchio di tristezza che ci circonda un po' tutti. Ieri sono andato a trovarlo insieme a Menco; dovevano venire pure gli altri ma Aurelio, mentre sopra un olmo strecciava le viti e sorrideva al sorriso della Nella è caduto e, dice lui, si è fatto molto male. lo credo invece che sia caduto una sola volta, da piccolo. Già che siamo in discorso di Aurelio voglio parlare un po' di lui. L'abbiamo soprannominato, oltre al già famoso «secco», «affannatico» per la mania che ha di correre e di sbrigare tutte le cose in maniera celere e alquanto irregolare. Questo soprannome forse non va bene con l'impiego che occupa. Infatti lavora presso una banca del paese, a quanto dicono è un ragazzo ordinato, laborioso, che riscuote molta stima dai suoi superiori. E' snello alto, fronte spaziosa, occhi intelligenti e nobili, porta i capelli lisci e biondi all'indietro. A parte il suo affanno, e la sua proverbiale sfortuna in amore, è un gran bravo ragazzo. Forse, dico forse perché mi potrei sbagliare, sognerà un buon posto nella sua banca, una casetta linda, una graziosa mogliettina, dei bambini e desidererà una vita calma e serena, anche se fatta di molte somme e di molte sottrazioni. Ritornando al mancato intervento dei miei compagni alla gita di ieri, anche per Peppe si è trattato di una caduta; questa volta, però non c'era un olmo di mezzo, né un sorriso, bensì un cavallo. Claudio infine non è venuto perché sembra che una certa signorina Chiaretta glielo abbia proibito... punto e basta. Ho avuto ieri l'occasione di telefonare a Ela, ciò che ho provato è un dolce e caro segreto che voglio tenermi tutto per me. Ora, gli allarmi diventano più frequenti e credo che presto tuonerà e tuonerà... bene per noi e mal per chi è contro di noi. 12 Ottobre Nella nostra compagnia sono avvenuti molti cambiamenti. Siamo rimasti in cinque. Guido è andato da altri contadini più vicino e pare vi si trovi molto bene. Poi c'è con lui Gianni di Biretone, che è un contadino civilizzato dal servizio militare; sembra che un giorno questo tale si sia spacciato per ingegnere... quindi ha fatto molti progressi. Aurelio è ritornato a Umbertide per riprendere il lavoro in banca. Ruggero è tornato dove ha fatto scuola e sta con alcuni bravi contadini suoi conoscenti. Mentre ci è rimasta indifferente la partenza di Guido, sentiamo invece la lontananza di Aurelio e di Ruggero. Il primo ha prodotto un vuoto per la sua vivacità, il secondo per il suo pessimismo. Infatti senza Aurelio si procede con più calma ed anche a letto si dorme meglio, poiché non c'è più nessuno che tira le coperte, dà calci e mette la testa in bocca. Ruggero qualche volta, ci circondava della sua tristezza e rendeva impazienti pure noi di fronte al lento svolgersi degli avvenimenti. Noi rimasti siamo molto calmi e sappiamo sopportare con più abnegazione il monotono fluire dei giorni sempre uguali e tristi.... Domenica siamo stati alla messa a San Faustino con molta gioia del prete che per l'occasione ha sfoggiato una delle migliori prediche. Questo pretonzolo m'aveva minacciato giorni fa una campagna disfattista perché andavo in giro con i pantaloni corti. Con un buon bicchiere di vino santo che è il migliore dei Santi, abbiamo fatto la pace. Mi sono però convinto, dopo una lunga assenza che anche la messa non serve a niente; è un rito noioso, stupido e senza senso, che molte volte professiamo o per vedere una donna che ci interessa o per ammazzare il tempo o anche perché, ormai tanti prima di noi l'hanno fatto. Questi giorni ho avuto un bisticcio con Claudio e per un certo tempo siamo stati imbronciati poi tutto è passato. Per questa ragione il mio amico ha cancellato il suo diario satirico. Incomincia a far freddo ed il vento soffia senza riposo tirandosi dietro nuvoloni neri e spazzando le foglie che cadono dagli alberi. Stamane ho fatto le fotografie insieme a Piero. Mentre scendevo dal monte dove eravamo stati ad immortalarci, ho incontrato Loschi Mario e Nino Conti che venivano a cercarci. In un primo tempo non l'avevo riconosciuti ed avevo messo la mano sulla pistola spaventando con questo gesto i due compagni, che a loro volta, non avendomi conosciuto, si erano nascosti dietro ad un'altura prendendomi di mira con un vecchio archibugio, che, se avesse sparato, avrebbe fatto venire il terremoto. Nino è venuto da Napoli, sfuggendo ai tedeschi ed agli inglesi, è abbastanza sciupato e ne racconta delle belle. Si fermeranno con noi e così potremo ricostruire anche la compagnia. 13 Ottobre Questa notte abbiamo dormito sulla paglia nuova, regalataci da S. Pietro. S. Pietro non è quello che secondo la leggenda cristiana, guarda le porte del paradiso, ma un bravo contadino che abita vicino a noi. Il suo vero nome è Agostino, ma tutti lo chiamano S. Pietro. E' un ometto basso, gracile, con la testa pelata e due occhietti piccoli e infossati. Tutti i contadini della zona ci sono amici e ci aiutano, sia perché il nostro contadino è di natura generosa e buona e sia perché il nostro bravo Peppe ha aperto una barbieria detta «Barbieria di San Faustino», nel nostro piccolo appartamento. Giornalmente ed ancor più il sabato, arrivano i bravi coloni a farsi radere la barba e tagliare i capelli. Il novello Figaro non riceve alcuna ricompensa, ma accetta volentieri uova e pane. Peppe è uno dei ragazzi più seri e più laboriosi della nostra compagnia. Non molto alto, ha una bella testa di riccioli neri e due occhi grandi e buoni che guardano da una faccia larga che s'attacca al corpo massiccio con un bel collo taurino. Peppe è uno di quei ragazzi semplici e sinceri, che guardano con sicurezza la vita, senza grandi sogni o voli di fantasia. E' fidanzato con una bella ragazza che gli manda continuamente lettere, sigarette e marmellata. E' molto bravo nel suo mestiere e mi resta molto simpatico, anche perché non ha quella falsa petulanza e non sfoggia quelle ipocrite gentilezze e quella scienza barbosa che sono in genere le armi predilette di ogni barbiere. Canta anche abbastanza bene e la sua voce ha un bel timbro forte e caldo che spesso mi avvolge e mi aiuta a sognare. Ecco perché spesso lo esorto a cantare, quando sono triste. Io e lui siamo gli ultimi ad addormentarci ed i primi a svegliarci. Da questo ho potuto arguire che anche nel suo cuore dovrebbe esser celato un dolce segreto..... credo ch'egli, pur senza grandi slanci lirici, accarezzi un piccolo sogno: un bel negozio tutto suo, una bella casa con una bella mogliettina che ogni sera gli sfiori con una mano buona i riccioli neri e gli faccia dimenticare le teste dei clienti e le spazzole noiose e unte. Nino è rimasto con noi ed è già divenuto uno degli uomini più temuti del quadrigliato. Oggi sono tre settimane che siamo fuggiti; ne passeranno ancora prima che possiamo tornare alle nostre case ed alle persone che amiamo. * * * * * 31 Gennaio 1944 - ROCCA D'ARIA ..... e poi tornò a nascondersi nel bosco. Come i vecchi briganti che scendevano a valle per fare rapine e risalivano poi carichi di bottino a nascondersi nel bosco, così io dopo un periodo di tempo trascorso con la mia famiglia e la mia Ela, sono dovuto rifugiarmi nuovamente fra queste aspre montagne. Senza bottino e senza delitti sulla coscienza, colpevole solo di odiare la schiavitù tirannica ed un obbrobrioso lavoro mercenario. Questa volta sono capitato in un vecchio castello medioevale, situato su una collina aspra e scoscesa che domina una piccola valle segnata da un mormorante torrente e tante altre colline e piccole montagne cariche di pini e d'abeti e di querce vetuste e novelle. Occupo uno stanzone dove alla meglio ho arredato una camera che fa anche da sala e da cucina. Non è brutta, è assai carina ed ospitale, tanto più bella e gradita sarebbe se oltre me ospitasse la mia Ela. Saremmo tanto felici in questo stanzone che nasconderebbe tutto un mondo di piccole gioie e di dolci piaceri. Sono solo, senza compagno. La solitudine mi opprime ancora di più con i suoi sogni impazienti, con le sue ore cariche di malinconia e di tristezza. C'è Peppone e l'Ottavia, i contadini che dimorano qui, molto buoni e premurosi. C'è anche la maestra, una mia compagna, che abita il piano di sopra con due cognate ed una bambina. Manca il prete, per fortuna, a completare questo quadretto di vita rustica. Ho portato con me il grammofono ed alla sera si passa un po' di tempo a suonare, a giocare, o in lieta conversazione. Vengono altri contadini dei dintorni «a sentire ì soni» e con loro mi intrattengo affabilmente fino a tarda ora. Sono tutti brava gente, laboriosi e ingenuamente onesti e puri, che dal duro lavoro traggono ben poche e misere soddisfazioni. La mattina mi alzo verso le otto; pulisco la stanza, metto in ordine le mie robe e passo molto tempo leggendo e contemplando la natura, molto generosa di bellezze in questi luoghi. Questa mattina la maestra era occupata ed io ho fatto un po' di scuola per lei. Sono bambini piccoli, delle prime classi elementari, che vengono a scuola per imparare a leggere, a scrivere ed a fare un po' di conti. Dopo di che ritorneranno alla terra e con dura, assidua fatica cercheranno di strapparle i frutti della vita. Vengono da lontano, infreddoliti ma sorridenti, con gli zoccoli rumorosi, vestiti di poveri panni stracciati. Sillabano stentatamente ed ascoltano tante cose che paiono loro incomprensibili e lontane, guardano con timidezza e parlano piano, come per paura di essere ascoltati. Stamattina ho parlato di fate, di treni, di aereoplani e di avventure. M'ascoltavano seri e certamente non capivano molte cose. I treni che fumano e camminano, le automobili veloci, i cavalieri senza paura che puniscono la gente cattiva, dovevano suonare stranamente nelle loro anime. Avranno pensato per un istante ad un altro mondo: un mondo lontano, vietato, dove loro non riuscivano a rendersi conto che non vi potessero esistere buoi, tregge, maiali, pagliai e pecorelle belanti. Mi guardavano come un essere superiore che sa tante cose ed ha visto tanta «roba». Poveri piccoli! Le loro mani già portano il segno del lavoro, il loro sorriso si arresta davanti ad un treno che sbuffa ed il loro gioco si limita a piccoli scherzi con il cane o il gatto. Non hanno un'infanzia e non l'avranno mai ! Nascono già uomini per morire stanchi e vecchi. No, pensavo, non è giusto che tanti bambini piangano davanti ad un giocattolo vecchio che l'annoia, che abbiano istitutori o istitutrici a loro disposizione, che conoscano già fin d'allora tutte le gioie più belle della vita, mentre tante altre povere creature imparino fin dalla più tenera età i sacrifici, i dolori, le fatiche. L'infanzia è un dono troppo bello, caro, fuggevole, perché alcuni ne siano privati. E' l'età in cui il mondo ci si para d'innanzi pieno dì meraviglie, di sogni, di illusioni, è l'età in cui non si comprende la gravità della nostra esistenza, è l'età che dovrebbe riposare nel cuore di ognuno come il ricordo più dolce, più felice che tutti indistintamente dovrebbero gustare, con le gioie pure ed innocenti, l'affetto caldo e sincero dei genitori..... Ora li conosco quasi tutti per nome e mi vogliono molto bene. Ci sono tre bambine, la Carla, la Jole e la Miranda che sono proprio tre amori di bimbe, sembrano tre passerotti perduti in tre paia di grossi zoccoli. Ieri ho regalato loro delle paste; l'hanno prese dicendomi grazie e poi sono corse felici a mangiarle..… 25 Aprile 1944 Caro diario, questa è la volta di arrossire. Non per questo destino eri fatto, non per riportare le ore noiose che passo in questa prigione senza sbarre. Pensavo di poter narrare se non fatti di gloria, almeno episodi di lotta per la Patria e la libertà che tu, un giorno, avresti a tua volta, ricordato a me ed ai miei amici. Ma, come sempre, l'uomo propone e Dio dispone. Non sempre possiamo fare valere la nostra volontà, i nostri veri sentimenti. Tu, diario, eri stato creato nella rivolta dello spirito, quando la libertà s'affacciava con l'alba grigiastra dell'autunno, quando tutti erano pronti a difendere se stessi contro lo schiavismo del tiranno. (Per 20 minuti ho interrotto di scrivere causa un bombardamento). Ora all'aquilotto che tentava le vie spaziose dell'infinito hanno tarpato le ali: una gabbia lo racchiude ed invano forse logorerà ì suoi artigli contro le sbarre di duro ferro a vile prezzo acquistate. Nulla rimane ai mortali se non la speranza, «Spes ultima dea». Da otto giorni mi trovo insieme a Mario, Renato e Angiolino, a Collestrada, al servizio del lavoro. Lavoriamo per l'Italia Repubblichina Tedesca. Come diverso sarebbe il nostro lavoro se per una vera Italia si lavorasse! Quanta diversa la fede che l'alimenterebbe! lo faccio l'assistente medico e, passata la visita del mattino il mio lavoro si può dire terminato, a meno che non succedano infortuni durante la giornata. Renato e Mario stanno all'Ufficio contabilità assillati da un lavoro noioso, ma non gravoso. Angiolino, detto « Bellera », per le sue movenze agili e svelte, ha già cambiato due o tre uffici, fra i quali quello di capo-cucina e, per il momento, è disoccupato.. II nostro lavoro, dunque, non è per nulla faticoso, ma estremamente noioso. Siamo stati mandati qua per punizione, costretti ad una vita che non è la nostra, dall'odio settario di un gruppo di coscienti mascalzoni. Qui la vita scorre monotona ed ogni ora insegue l'altra in un giro di noia, d'attesa, di ricordi e di speranze. Ieri era il 24 aprile. Questa data ha per me un valore. Segnò l'inizio di un sogno che trascinandosi per due anni fra le spire di una falsa illusione si è infranto al primo affiorare della verità. E' bello, sublime, intendere la vita come una illusione continua, ma bisogna stare bene attenti a non diventare un illuso di questa illusione. ..... Tutto passa nella vita, come un'onda gigantesca il tempo travolge e cambia le cose..... ma come uno scoglio gigantesco, immobile, fisso per l'eternità, i ricordi s'ergono al di sopra dell'onda furiosa e ad ogni impeto rispondono con la carezza ed il profumo della loro purezza e della loro integrità...… * * * * * Zona di operazione - 31 Gennaio 1945 Cara mamma, siamo arrivati stanotte a Ravenna. Il viaggio è stato un po' duro sia per il caldo sia per la sua lunghezza. Siamo già vestiti..... se tu mi vedessi! Sembro un vero inglese. Il morale é alto e speriamo che sia sempre così. Domani partiamo subito per il fronte.... Ciò non ti deve impressionare perché tutto è calmo e poi dovremo fare sei giorni di istruzioni alle armi. Noi di Umbertide stiamo tutti insieme e questo è già molto. La maglia marrone la tengo indosso perché qui fa un freddo canissimo. Vi penso sempre. Tanti tanti baci a Cario, Bige, Matilde, Concetta, zii ed amici. La santa benedizione. Rino Giorno x Cari tutti, mi trovo al fronte e posso dire che non mi ci trovo molto male. Il vitto è ottimo e lo facciamo da noi. Durante il giorno si fanno le esercitazioni, brevi scappate in linea e siamo in attesa di stabilirci definitivamente in una postazione di prima linea. Speriamo tutti in un'avanzata perché i pericoli sono minori e finisce prima questa immane carneficina. La sera si canta, si suona cercando di soffocare il rombo del cannone e il gracidare delle mitraglie. Voglio sperare che la situazione di Bige vada migliorando. Sono soddisfatto del dovere che compio e nulla mi spaventa. Vi penso spesso, a Matilde do ragione: «C'è bisogno di fede quassù e di una protezione dall'alto». Tuttavia anche se qualche volta non ho dimostrato molta passione per la chiesa, non lo facevo di cuore. Vi bacio tutti tanto tanto. Rino Cara mamma, proprio ora ho saputo che fra tre giorni e precisamente il 15 andremo in prima linea. E' venuto l'ordine dal comando. Noi di Umbertide siamo tutti in un plotone aggregati alla 9a compagnia. La mia squadra di postazione è la seguente: Leonardi (Civetta) Trippelli, Ceccagnoli, Claudio e... cucina. Il nostro settore dice che non sia molto violento. Quindi mammina, il 15 avrò la prova del fuoco. Pregate per me. Farò il mio dovere senza slanci e senza vigliaccheria. State tranquilli, speriamo che tutto vada bene. Ho con me un'immagine di S. Rita che mi ha regalato una ragazza di Umbertide che io amo; mi aiuterà, tanti, tanti, tanti baci a voi tutti e zii; un bacione a Franco. Vi chiedo la Santa benedizione. vostro Rino Caro Alfredo, a te ed ai compagni un fervido saluto. Siamo in linea e si combatte. Il nostro ideale è il motore che anima e accalora. Io e Claudio stiamo bene e vi pensiamo spesso e con affetto. Speriamo di poterci rivedere presto e ricominciare il nostro lavoro. Qui dove siamo ora c'è abbastanza calma, ma abbiamo passato qualche giorno!.... Ancora c'è molto lavoro da fare, cari compagni; la massa è con noi ma la monarchia ha le sue pedine e le manovra bene. Lo spirito nuovo è qui quasi assente, c'è molta nostalgia del passato, si strombazza un po' di democrazia, ma in realtà è ancora come prima. Qui, noi e tanti altri compagni lavoriamo per il nostro domani e speriamo che il nostro sforzo non rimanga nullo. Saluti cari a Remigio, Ramiro, Ramnusia e Elsa. A tutti i giovani compagni un caro saluto. Rino Pucci Bollettino n. 21 Partenza. Sveglia alle 6 e preparativi. Addio ai compagni fiorentini che ci salutano comunisticamente al canto dell'Internazionale. Attraverso Ravenna, verso S. Alberto, le nostre voci svegliano i pigri ed incuriosiscono, entusiasmandoli, i passanti mattinieri. Tra due immense inondazioni le nostre macchine filano veloci verso la meta. Al comando della 9ª compagnia avviene lo smistamento dei vari plotoni; il tenente Ceccarelli comanda il 2° plotone, quasi tutti gli umbertidesi sono al 3° plotone. I compagni di Città di Castello, che sono davvero ottimi comunisti, sono stati assegnati al lº plotone. Il cap. Maggiore Ceccagnoli comanda l'8ª squadra del 3° plotone ed è tutto un poema. Il caporale Leonardi, vice comandante dell'8ª squadra ha stupito il folto pubblico e l'inclita guarnigione nella costruzione, sotto il fuoco nemico, di una postazione modello. Stanotte il battesimo del fuoco. I tedeschi si fanno sotto audacemente; noi con calma rispondiamo ad ogni provocazione. II fante Bargelli è stato il primo ad avvistare i nemici che sono chiamati familiarmente «Tognini». Ai primi razzi illuminanti la pattuglia sì è allontanata. Verso le cinque un altoparlante tedesco ci ha tenuti allegri con canzoni e fregnacce propagandistiche. Il freddo è intenso, nel cielo le stelle impallidiscono percettibilmente. Battendo i piedi intirizziti le sentinelle, nelle postazioni, mescolano i propri con i sogni dei dormienti nelle cuccette interrate. E' l'alba ed i tedeschi si sono ritirati al di là del Reno e tutto è tranquillo. Di tanto in tanto qualche mortaio si fa sentire, ma senza effetto alcuno. Domani 19 avremo una importantissima notizia, da quanto ci ha detto il Ten. Ceccarelli. Attendiamo impassibili, il nostro scopo è ormai raggiunto: i tedeschi hanno già sentito che il plotone «Umbertide» fa sul serio. Bollettino n. 26 Una giratina per S. Alberto non fa male, c'è qualche borghese c'è ...... beh ! ...... qualche borghesina. E' piacevole vedere i gagà con la piega ai pantaloni militari che segue una ipotetica linea retta, qualcuno è arrivato al punto di lucidare le fette. Regola è di radersi la battagliera barba. Il Capitano ordina l'adunata e incomincia la romanzina per il contegno, per la disciplina ..... Il rancio si fredda, c’é una scenata che non è possibile narrare per ragioni tattiche. Poi tutto torna calmo e tiriamo avanti. Le notizie sono vaghe e tendenziose. Il cap. Maggiore Ceccagnoli si dà un sacco di arie ed è stato proposto per la nomina a.... Generale. I fanti Confini, Pucci e Caprini sono stati proposti per la croce di guerra in seguito all'audace pattuglia fatta a casa Giazol. La notizia che sembra di maggiore attendibilità è la seguente: si attacca. In attesa di abbracciare qualche veneziana o qualche milanese puliamo le armi.... Rancio e silenzio. Un Sergente suona il clarino e ci fa sognare : ricordiamo l'orchestra del valoroso Maestro Caporali, Anima di Franceschini, dove sei tu? Dove sono Lazzarini, Filippi e Codovini? Nel sogno si balla una quadriglia vertiginosa. Bollettino n. 29 Il fante ................. (poi la morte) DALLA LETTERA DEL CAPITANO ALLA MADRE DI RINO Gentilissima Signora, ricevo una Sua lettera senza data che, dalle condizioni in cui mi è pervenuta, lascia comprendere di essere stata a lungo in circolazione. Ciò anche a causa dei miei continui spostamenti. Infatti, dopo reiterate, vane insistenze, ho finalmente ottenuto dal Comando del Gruppo «Cremona» di poter partecipare a tutto il ciclo offensivo, da Alfonsine al Brenta. A tale premessa, che spiega il ritardo di questa risposta, aggiungo l'espressione della mia viva solidarietà e della mia commossa partecipazione al Suo immenso dolore. Come ho già scritto il mese scorso al Sindaco di Umbertide, quando incontrai Lei a Perugia, verso il 20 marzo, ignoravo assolutamente la fine gloriosa di Suo Figlio ......... .... Nella fase degli arruolamenti, nessuno ha mai nascosto che «si andava a fare la guerra» e che «qualcuno poteva non tornare». Ogni conquista implica sacrifici e perdite; la Libertà in particolare ha sempre voluto i suoi martiri. E' la fatalità, Signora, che si abbatte su una persona, su una famiglia, su una città, piuttosto che su altre. E ne abbiamo qui una ennesima dimostrazione: la provincia di Perugia ha dato al «Cremona» circa 500 volontari. Di essi ne sono caduti 5, ossia l'uno per cento. Purtroppo di questi cinque ben due sono annoverati tra i 24 umbertidesi. La sorte ha voluto dalla già tanto provata Umbertide, questo nuovo rilevante contributo di sangue generoso per la completa liberazione d'Italia. Noi, risparmiati dalla fortuna non possiamo non inchinarci davanti al loro nobile sacrificio; dobbiamo coltivarne perenne la memoria, onorarli e glorificarli. Voglia, Signora, accettare le mie più sentite condoglianze ed i sensi del mio devoto ossequio. Capitano Nardi Dalla lettera del Cappellano Militare alla madre di Rino COMANDO 22° REGGIMENTO FANTERIA «CREMONA Ufficio del Cappellano Militare Posta Militare 64, 30 maggio 1945 ALLA SIGNORA PUCCI MARIANNA - UMBERTIDE (Perugia) Gentilissima Signora, da qualche giorno mi è pervenuta la Sua del 16 maggio c.a. e comprendo tutta l'amarezza del suo dolore di madre privata del suo unico figlio. In verità, a suo tempo, ricevetti pure altra Sua lettera, alla quale, per disposizioni ministeriali, non potei rispondere non essendo a conoscenza se il Ministero competente le avesse o meno annunziato ufficialmente il decesso di Suo figlio. Oggi che di questo sono certo, posso assicurarle che il suo ragazzo ha fatto il suo dovere fino all'ultimo, come in genere tutti i giovani di Perugia. Egli è stato ferito nell'attacco condotto dal suo Battaglione per la conquista di Po di Primaro. Lo ricordo sempre quel giorno quando giunse a noi pieno di sangue e gravemente ferito, nell'infermeria da campo di Casal Borsetti. Nonostante il grande dolore, non si lamentava molto, eppure le sue ferite erano gravissime; un ampio squarcio alla coscia sinistra ed al braccio sinistro facevano prevedere prossima la sua fine, almeno dal lato medico. Il grande coraggio dimostrato e la reazione ad un dolore prostrante ci dettero per un momento la speranza di poterlo togliere ad una morte quasi sicura. Le cure gli furono praticate con amorevolezza e fraterna carità, sia dal medico di battaglione, sia anche dal dirigente il servizio sanitario coadiuvato dall'opera del cappellano militare sottoscritto. Per non esporlo ad una inutile dispersione di sangue, subìta la prima medicazione, fu smistato, a mezzo ambulanza, alla 54ª sezione di sanità, da dove proseguì immediatamente per un ospedale canadese in Ravenna (9 Indian Ospitai CCS). Anche qui dopo trasfusioni di siero e di sangue, sì tentò di salvarlo; ma non fu possibile e dopo alcune ore, del fante Rino Pucci non rimaneva che un cadavere freddo e senza vita. Laggiù, prima dì spirare, ricevette i sacramenti e la benedizione apostolica dal cappellano cattolico inglese di quell'ospedale. Curammo poi di raccogliere pietosamente la sua salma e di trasportarla al cimitero di guerra di Camerlona (Ravenna) ove riposano anche tutti i suoi compagni della Divisione (fila 7ª - tomba n. 77). Tutto questo è quanto posso dirvi relativamente al suo decesso. La bontà di suo figlio non lo potrà far dimenticare a nessuno e molto meno ai suoi compagni del 3° Btg., essi più di ogni altro si recavano spesso a visitarne la tomba ripromettendosi, non appena possibile, di ricondurne le spoglie al cimitero di Umbertide.… IL CAPPELLANO MILITARE (Fanti P. Pietro) VIVI E MORTI ...... SOLTANTO CON LA ROCCIA DI QUESTO PATTO GIURATO FRA UOMINI LIBERI CHE VOLONTARI SI ADUNARONO PER DIGNITA' NON PER ODIO DECISI A RISCATTARE LA VERGOGNA ED IL TERRORE DEL MONDO SU QUESTE STRADE SE VORRAI TORNARE AI NOSTRI POSTI CI RITROVERAI MORTI E VIVI CON LO STESSO IMPEGNO POPOLO SERRATO INTORNO AL MONUMENTO CHE SI CHIAMA ORA E SEMPRE R E S I S T E N Z A (P. Calamandrei) Il Diaro di Rino Pucci GALLERIA FOTOGRAFICA La storia di Palazzoli Natalino di Massimo Pascolini La storia di Palazzoli Natalino, chiamato Silvano di Massimo Pascolini Morì a 15 anni, nell’agosto 1944, investito da un camion inglese nella zona tra Montecastelli e Niccone durante il passaggio del fronte. Una delle tante vittime civili nel nostro territorio nell’anno più drammatico della storia di Umbertide. Il tragico episodio è stato raccontato da Massimo Pascolini , in base a ricerche d’archivio e testimonianze, nel seguente articolo pubblicato sul numero di marzo 2023 di “Informazione Locale”. Il passaggio del fronte ad Umbertide nell'estate del 1944 è sicuramente ricordato come uno degli eventi più tragici nella storia della città. Oltre ai morti nel bombardamento del 25 aprile, alla strage di Penetola, ai fucilati di Serra Partucci, alla famiglia Braconi deceduta a Preggio a causa di un bombardamento, Umbertide registra la morte di altre persone, uccise per rappresaglia, a causa di mitragliamenti aerei, bombe e ordigni rimasti inesplosi nei campi. Oggi, grazie anche ad alcuni documenti ritrovati presso l'Archivio Storico del Comune di Umbertide, (anno 1944), vogliamo ricordare la morte di Palazzoli Natalino chiamato Silvano. Natalino nasce a Monte Castelli, da Giovan Battista e Mannarelli Maria il 25 dicembre 1929. Muore il 15 agosto 1944 dopo essere stato investito da un camion Inglese. La dinamica dell'incidente si può ricostruire attraverso il rapporto fatto dal comandante della stazione dei carabinieri di Umbertide, Brigadiere Rinaldi Giuseppe al Pretore di Città di Castello ed al Governatore di Umbertide. "Verso le ore 16 del giorno 15 corrente, lo scrivente veniva a conoscenza che in località Cioccolanti di Umbertide era morto un giovane in seguito ad incidente stradale. Il sottoscritto si recava immediatamente sul posto ed accertava quanto segue: “[...], percorreva la strada campestre, in bicicletta, che immetteva sulla strada statale Tiberina - Romagnola e all'altezza della villa di Santini Giorgio sita fra la frazione Niccone e la località Cioccolanti. Appena il giovane raggiungeva la strada statale e stava girando alla sua sinistra per dirigersi verso Cioccolanti, sopraggiungeva un camion delle forze armate inglesi che proveniente da Città di Castello si dirigeva verso Umbertide, tenendo regolarmente la sua destra, lo investiva in pieno nella parte anteriore della bicicletta, lo gettava violentemente al suolo e lo trascinava per circa 20 metri. Il giovane Palazzoli riportava ferite multiple lacero contuse del tronco, addome, regione scrotale e frattura del cranio, (Referto del Dottor Ennio Paci, medico condotto di Montecastelli, che visitò il cadavere nella sua abitazione). I militari inglesi, secondo la deposizione di Giunti Pietro di anni 61, nato a Città di Castello e residente a Niccone, meccanico, che accorse subito dopo l'incidente sul posto, fermarono il camion e trasportarono il cadavere nella sua abitazione in Cioccolanti, distante circa 400 metri dal luogo del sinistro. Un ufficiale inglese, sopraggiunto successivamente con altra macchina, si fermava sul luogo dell'incidente e tracciava uno schema dell'incidente indicando lo stato del luogo e gli estremi scritti in italiano ed inglese del camion e dell'autista. Schema poi consegnato a Gaggioli Ennio che lo ha recapitato al sottoscritto. [...]". Il “disegno” (un vero e proprio CID) dell'Ufficiale Inglese riporta un disegno dell'incidente ed i dati dei soggetti coinvolti. Il camion era un “TRUK da 3 tonnellate, targato 1-4723037”, guidato dal soldato “Turner W” mat. 7/269409. Nell'effettuare un sopralluogo sul posto, abbiamo intervistato il Sig. Biagini Nazzario, abitante del luogo che all'età dell'incidente aveva 6 anni e ricorda di essere stato sul posto subito dopo il fatto. Il Sig. Nazzario ci ha raccontato la dinamica dell'incidente. Il Palazzoli, assieme ad un coetaneo, tal Biagini Vittorio, di 17 anni, fratello dell'intervistato, stavano facendo una gara per chi arrivava prima al Niccone dietro la ricompensa, per chi fosse arrivato prima, di 5 lire, promesse da un anziano del posto. I due ragazzi erano partiti dalla casa posta in vocabolo “Ruffietto”, ed arrivati in prossimità della villa “Palazzetto” alla curva, giravano a destra. Il Palazzoli che si trovava davanti, andava a impattare contro la fiancata destra del camion. Negli anni successivi il padre del ragazzo ha scritto, con il supporto del Sindaco del Comune di Umbertide, diverse lettere a vari Enti nell'intento di veder riconosciuto un indennizzo per il tragico evento (scrive di aver speso per il funerale, cassa ed altro, Lire 23.000). Presso l'Archivio Storico del Comune di Umbertide (anno 1950), si trovano conservate varie lettere indirizzate al Prefetto di Perugia, al Ministero del Tesoro Ufficio Requisizioni Alleate, al Ministero Difesa - Esercito, al Comando Presidio Militare di Perugia. Vi si trova pure una lettera dell'Ambasciata Inglese a Roma del 4 giugno 1948, che risponde “di non essere competenti riguardo ai fatti accaduti e dice di rivolgersi al Ministero Difesa - Esercito”. In data 21 maggio 1948, l'Associazione Nazionale Vittime Civili di Guerra, Sezione di Perugia, comunica che i genitori non hanno più diritto a nessun indennizzo in quanto, questi, dovevano essere richiesti "finché in tempo" al locale Comando Militare Alleato. Attualmente la salma riposa presso il locale cimitero di Montecastelli, nella tomba di famiglia, assieme ai propri genitori. Pubblicato sul numero di Marzo 2023 del periodico “Informazione Locale” La storia di Ciro Monsignori Morto a 20 anni nel campo di deportazione nazista di Zeithain nel 1944 Il 14 gennaio 1992 sono state riportate in Italia le salme di sedici giovani soldati umbri, dei quali quattordici morti nei lager nazisti e due nei campi di prigionia russi. Questi ragazzi, strappati alle loro famiglie e mandati a combattere a vent'anni, non sono che alcune delle tantissime vittime della guerra scatenata dal nazifascismo, che ha insanguinato l'Europa con le sue atrocità. La cerimonia in onore dei caduti si è svolta a Perugia, alla presenza dei familiari commossi e di numerose autorità militari e civili. Le urne con i resti dei poveri giovani sono sfilate da Palazzo dei Priori alla Cattedrale di San Lorenzo, dove è stata celebrata una messa solenne dall'Arcivescovo di Perugia Mons. Antonelli. Tra queste la salma di un giovane di Umbertide, Ciro Monsignori di diciannove anni, ultimo di sette fratelli, partito per la guerra nel 1943, tre mesi prima dell'8 settembre. Ciro, che era arruolato in cavalleria, al sopraggiungere dell'armistizio e al conseguente sfaldamento dell'esercito italiano, rifiutandosi di collaborare con le truppe nazifasciste, scappò insieme ad altri soldati nel tentativo di tornare a casa. Purtroppo però, nei pressi di Firenze, fu catturato dai tedeschi che lo deportarono in Germania, dove fu internato nel Lager di Zeithain, nell'ex Repubblica Democratica Tedesca. Rimase prigioniero nel campo fino al 1944, anno del suo decesso, comune tragica sorte di tanti giovani, morti di stenti, nelle terribili condizioni in cui venivano tenuti. I familiari di Ciro appresero poco dopo la triste notizia da una lettera del cappellano militare padre Luca Airoldi, anche lui internato nel lager e che teneva un diario dei soldati, il quale li informava anche che il corpo del giovane era stato seppellito nel cimitero del campo. Finita la guerra la famiglia Monsignori iniziò una disperata ricerca della salma del proprio caro, ma ogni tentativo risultò vano perché le autorità della DDR rispondevano che il cimitero di Zeithain non esisteva più. Nemmeno le Associazioni dei Deportati nei Lager riuscirono ad avere notizie più precise fino a quando, con la caduta dei muri, è stato possibile scoprire il cimitero del campo e tra le tante tombe quella di Ciro. Di lui c'era anche una vecchia fotografia, trovata negli schedari del campo. Dopo cinquant'anni, finalmente, i familiari hanno potuto ricongiungersi al loro caro e nel dolore hanno avuto almeno la consolazione di una tomba sulla quale ricordare e pregare. Da “Umbertide Cronache n.1 1992” – Panorama di Vita Cittadina, a cura di Amedeo Massetti * * * * * Il lager di Zeithain Il campo di prigionia Reservelazarett Stalag IV B Zeithain era un campo distaccato dello Stalag IV-B di Muhlberg. Istituito nel 1941 sul campo di esercitazioni militari di Zeithain, a nord di Riesa, lo Stalag 304 (IV H), poi Stalag IV B, fu inizialmente destinato ad accogliere prigionieri di guerra sovietici. A partire dal 1943 fu adibito anche a lazzaretto di riserva per prigionieri di guerra di altre nazionalità, tra cui moltissimi Internati Militari Italiani (IMI) che dopo l'8 settembre 1943 avevano rifiutato di collaborare con il regime nazista. Condizioni disumane, mancanza di igiene, denutrizione, assistenza medica insufficiente e lavoro coatto facilitarono il diffondersi di epidemie e gravi malattie, soprattutto tubrcolosi, determinando la morte di decine di migliaia di prigionieri, tra cui 850 italiani, sepolti per la maggior parte nel cimitero militare italiano di Jacobsthal e in parte nel cimitero di Muhlberg e Neuburxdorf. Il campo fu liberato dall’Armata Rossa il 23 aprile 1945. Degli IMI superstiti, tra cui molti gravemente ammalati, alcuni morirono sulla via del rientro e furono sepolti a Praga. Dopo la fine della guerra, il territorio del lager e del cimitero italiano fu adibito a zona di esercitazioni militari sovietica e rimase per decenni inaccessibile. Grazie all'instancabile opera di ricerca di alcuni reduci di Zeithain, primi fra tutti Padre Luca M. Airoldi (m. 1985), ex cappellano del campo che aveva annotato nel suo diario tutti i nominativi e i dati degli IMI deceduti a Zeithain, e dell'ex Ten. Col. Leopoldo Teglia, attuale Presidente della Sezione A.N.E.I. (Associazione Nazionale Ex Internati) di Perugia, fu finalmente possibile nel 1991 localizzare il cimitero militare italiano, riesumare e rimpatriare le spoglie di quasi tutti i caduti italiani di Zeithain. Nove croci di legno al margine dell'ex cimitero militare italiano di Zeithain ricordano oggi i caduti italiani del Reservelazarett Stalag IV B. Dal sito Internet di Wikipedia La storia di Ciro Monsignori Atlante della Memoria di Alvaro Tacchini Atlante della memoria di Alvaro Tacchini Atlante della memoria: Alta Valle del Tevere 1943-1944 a cura di Fabio Mariotti Per chi vuole approfondire gli avvenimenti storici nell’Alta valle del Tevere nel periodo 1943-44 è di grande interesse un nuovo lavoro dello storico tifernate Alvaro Tacchini che si inserisce nel solco della ricerca svolta sul periodo bellico. Tacchini ha infatti inserito nel suo sito “Storia tifernate“ gran parte dei testi del volume “Guerra e Resistenza nell'Alta Valle del Tevere”. Inoltre, affinché gli eventi, le tragedie e la lotta per la libertà dell'ultimo conflitto possano essere meglio divulgati a livello popolare e didattico, ha realizzato una splendida mappa interattiva, dal titolo "Atlante della Memoria. Alta Valle del Tevere 1943-1944". Si tratta di una mappa on-line, costruita sulla fotografia satellitare dell'Alta Valle del Tevere. Individua con specifici simboli gli eventi principali di quel biennio, localizzando dettagliatamente i luoghi dove sono avvenuti. Inoltre rende possibile approfondirne i contenuti con link che si aprono su testi tratti dal suo libro su questo tema. Nella mappa sono inseriti con cura anche i principali avvenimenti della zona di Umbertide, così come gli elenchi delle vittime civili e dei partigiani. Qui sotto è il link per la home page del sito. Per accedere alla mappa interattiva basta cliccare sul riquadro in basso a sinistra. http://www.storiatifernate.it/index.php

THE STORY OF ALESSANDRO GRELLI Fallen in 1938 in the Spanish war From the book by Maria E. Menichetti Bianchi "Alessandro Grelli - An anti-fascist who fell in the Spanish war (1936 - 39)" Municipality of Umbertide - San Francesco Social Cultural Center Nuova PRHOMOS Editions - April 1990 THE FOUND SYMBOL Thanks to the National Literary Prize "Umbertide 25 aprile", another precious piece has been added this year to the history of our city and our people. In fact, a historical research on Alessandro Grelli, a Umbertidese of humble origins and noble sentiments, a volunteer of the International Brigades, who fell on the Ebro front in September 1938, while fighting against the threat of fascism which, within two years, would shock the whole world with the Second World War. We therefore believe, by publishing the research, that we are fulfilling a civic duty, which we perform with great pleasure and with legitimate pride, in order to draw greater attention to this writing which removes a name from a corner of the atrium of the town hall and finally gives it a face and a human dimension. The careful work of Prof. Maria Ernesta Menichetti Bianchi offers the opportunity to see the life and political path of our heroic and unknown fellow citizen reconstructed in a passionate and intelligent research punctually marked by references to interesting archive documents. While we take note, with great pleasure, of the positive evaluation given to this work by the Commission of the Award and of the equally authoritative judgment expressed by Prof. Luciana Brunelli of the Institute for the History of Umbria, we express our deepest appreciation and thanks to the Author. She has given back to the light of knowledge the civil and political figure of the peasant-shoemaker of Romeggio, whose supreme sacrifice had been relegated to the cold memory of a commemorative plaque. Alessandro Grelli, on the other hand, deserves to be remembered with warmer signs for the teaching he gave us with his short life, but no less rich in ideals. He represents the revolt of the poor. The revolt of emigrants for work reasons who, in contact with previously unknown realities, arrive through political convictions to the concept of freedom, for which they do not hesitate, if necessary, to sacrifice their own existence. The names of the Heroes are kept in the memory of their homelands to be pointed out, especially to young people who, opening up to life, need sure points of reference, witnessed truths, which enhance the spirit and make them aware of the priceless gift that Grelli, and many others like him have given us by bringing freedom back to our country. Freedom to love and to defend as the most expensive good that man can ever possess. Umbertide, April 1990 MAURIZIO ROSI Mayor of Umbertide RAFFAELE MANCINI President of the Socio-Cultural Center PRESENTATION If it is true, as Broué and Témine write, that "the intervention of foreign troops in favor of the Spanish republic, the aid brought in from abroad was, in the final analysis, only the sum of a series of individual contributions" , then this work by Nini Menichetti on Alessandro Grelli represents a precious contribution to the knowledge and reflection on that extraordinary political, social and cultural phenomenon that was the international volunteering in support of the Spanish republicans. The interest of local scholars had hitherto been mainly directed to the most well-known characters of Umbrian anti-fascism - Mario Angeloni, Armando Fedeli, Carlo Farini, Leonida Mastrodicasa -, men who had a prominent role in the Spanish civil war and who were subsequently protagonists ( Farini and Fedeli) of the Resistance and Umbrian political life. Turning attention to the "minor" figures of the voluntary sector - which were numerous, about 80 Umbrian militiamen -, the emphasis inevitably shifts from the political aspects of the civil war to the more specifically social ones, connected to the exile and emigration of the years twenty and thirty, to the life of emigrants abroad, especially in that triangle of land that goes from France to Belgium to Luxembourg. Still recently, historical and literary studies have underlined the importance of the 1930s in European political and cultural history, and in particular the originality of the French experience, a crossroads for masses of men, a melting pot of ideas and hopes during the exciting period of the Popular Front government chaired by Léon Blum. Alessandro Grelli was one of those men, whose life refers, as a prelude to his departure as a volunteer, to the great events and great movements within which motivations, ideas and ideals matured that brought thousands of men to fight and die in Spain. The patient and intelligent work of Nini Menichetti consists precisely in weaving with very thin threads the weft of a life apparently without history, marked almost only by the fact that it ended in September of '38 fighting on the Ebro in Spain. It was not an easy search, in the shortage of documents and testimonies, in the poverty and partisanship of official sources. Little or nothing is known about Alessandro, his relatives and the village hardly remember him, the files in his name at the Perugia Police Headquarters and at the Central Political Casellario are too poor in information, even the plaque in his memory is inaccurate. And then, in this situation, the author opens a dialogue, begins to question men and materials - the brothers, the papers, the photographs, the former Garibaldians - and finds a path, or rather many paths that from the sharecropping life of the Umbertidese in the 1920s they lead it to Alexander's death in Spain. Thus the research takes place along various paths - from the State Archives of Perugia to that of La Spezia to that of Salamanca - and, through forays into the lives of others, Grelli's life is also filled with events and characters. Characters who were protagonists of his "sentimental upbringing" - the landowner Ramaccioni, Aldina, the Communist Bertieri - or who shared emigration and the myth of Spain with him. The rich apparatus of notes to the text shows us the many directions in which the research has opened and the multiplicity of materials necessary to approach the story of Alexander. Even those who have not directly measured themselves with the difficulties of historical research on the Spanish war, will be able to appreciate the complexity of the work, deriving not only from the limits of the official sources but also from those particular historical circumstances that require listening to many materials, of many and different stories and memories. Grelli's life unfolds along a path that belonged to many of those who went to fight in Spain: the passage from the peasant condition to the hard experience of emigration, which was both defeat and emancipation, certainly was awareness, encounter, communication. , discovery. It must have been all this if - according to official papers -, emigrated in '30 with "attitudes in favor of the regime", in 1937 he had become "a dangerous Communist subversive". In Saint Laurent du Var in the Maritime Alps, a privileged destination for Umbrian emigration, Alessandro, together with the various fellow villagers who converged there, lived the decisive years of his training before leaving for Spain. Among the Umbrian antifascists who volunteered, the largest group is made up of men originating from the Umbertide-Città di Castello area, peasants who became cobblers, carpenters, bricklayers or even laborers in the gardens of southern France. The police reports themselves, through the dense network of informers of the regime, give us ample documentation of the solidarity towards the Spanish republicans which soon matured in emigration groups and in anti-fascist circles abroad. In following the history of these and Grelli, the work of Nini Menichetti, while also making us reflect on the different languages and the different attitudes that transpire from the official sources, fully gives us the sense of the drama and of the ideals that moved the men who, between '36 and '38, they went to fight and die in Spain. LUCIANA BRUNELLI Institute for the History of Umbria PREMISE The years of anti-fascism, before and after 1926, and beyond, and of the Resistance, before and after 1943, were objects of study in historical works of a general nature, and in local or regional works, the latter useful. to bring movements and ideas of the past closer to the reality of the present, since they give voice and face to characters, sometimes just mentioned in the first ones, whose memory could be lost in the historical consciousness of today and of the future. We have traced the story of ALESSANDRO GRELLI, precisely to save him from this fate. A "red militiaman" - nice qualification on the Franco side! - born in Umbertide in 1907, died in 1938, fighting on the Ebro. One of those anti-fascists who had volunteered to defend the young Spanish republic, having identified in Francisco Franco's plan the primary objective of defeating it, and the implicit purpose of launching an attack on anti-fascism, not only in Spain in the late 1930s. , but in the broader sphere of European and international politics. The difficulties encountered in our research are evident from the subtle web of news, documents, information, which we have been able to access, which we give, schematically, below: a - what memory of Alessandro Grelli are preserved in his hometown, his family, historical texts, the local press; b - what information we have drawn from other sources, some of which have been consulted to no avail; c - what news did the ex-Garibaldini of Spain, still alive, give us. a - The Municipality of Umbertide keeps in the Registry the certification relating to the birth, the military conscription and the presumed death certificate. But he did not register any repatriations from France, which there were. He entitled - we do not know on what date - in a suburban district, a street after his name, whose toponymic plaque does not offer the reader either a date or a historical reference. He posted, on behalf of some citizens residing abroad, - we do not know on what date - a plaque in the hall of the municipal residence, with the following dedication: To Alessandro Grelli fallen fighting for the freedom of the Spanish people The Umbertidesi democrats residing in Nice - Anti-Franco War 1936-1937 (1) The historical archive of Umbertide has a material, poured there from various and interesting parts, not cataloged. Two of Alessandro's brothers live in Umbertide, one of whom is just two years younger, Angelo born in 1926. They do not keep correspondence from France or Spain, which also came, at least from France, as is documented (2). They do not keep the memory of a name of one of those who temporarily repatriated brought them news, or of who brought them the saddest news. Among their scant and meager memories there are, however, some details that illuminated one or two points in Alessandro's life, up to 1933, the year of their mother's death. From that date on, the brothers have learned unpublished news and unknown to them, which we have gathered from the consultation of the file on the Grelli of the Perugia Police Headquarters and of the CPC file that the Ministry of the Interior has been forming, as soon as the political police realized that Alessandro was carrying out anti-fascist activities, and from the research we carried out, according to the itinerary of his stay abroad. Rometti Clotide's historical work (3) dates back to 1954, citing Grelli among the Umbrians who fell in the Spanish War. He mentions him as Achille Grelli, that is, the nickname he brought from home and town (4) and which appears in a single official document, long after his death. Among the memoirs written by veterans from Spain, only the exhaustive work of the Garibaldian Giacomo Calandrone (5) mentions the name of Alessandro Grelli among those who died in the bloody days of the offensive on the Ebro, in a very numerous list. The vintages of "The Claim", a large-format four-page weekly (6), founded by the socialists in 1902, in Città di Castello, suppressed by fascism in 1921, offered material for the reconstruction of the historical and political context of Upper Tiber Valley, where the birthplace of Grelli stands. b - The fundamental and irreplaceable source for our research is constituted by the archives, of which we give a list, which respects the significance, from a historical point of view, of the documents coming from them: - Central State Archives and State Archives of Perugia which preserve the first file of the Central Political Casellario on Alessandro Grelli and many of his friends and acquaintances (7), the second the file of the Perugia Police Headquarters; - State Archives of La Spezia which preserves the documentation of an exile from Sarzana whom Grelli met in France and whose political activity carried out even before emigration in La Spezia (8); - Current archives of the Provincial Directorate of the Treasury of Perugia, and of the Directorate General of the Treasury of Rome which have provided the complete dossier of the pension procedure authorized to Abramo Grelli for the death in combat of his son, which contains the exclusive documentation of the circumstances of the death of Alexander (9); - Archive of the AICVAS which does not have relevant historical and documentary material, as occurs for the Archive of the Regional Institute of the Resistance of Bologna (10), in which the former Garibaldi Brotherhood of Spain has poured its material, when it merged into AICVAS; - Archivo Historico Nacional, Seccion Guerra Civil, Salamanca wanted by Franco in the 40s, responds to the desire to document the participation of Spain in the defeat of the Republic with particular emphasis on high military ranks and exclusion of low military roles, and, obviously, neglecting the presence of those who were considered the "red killers". However, the material stored in Sect. of the Civil War is so large (n.5598 very consistent dossiers (carpetas)) and flanked by inventories that refer region by region to the places where the Francoist front was present and moved, that it would deserve a prolonged examination, not experienced by us, also a little discouraged by the assurances of the Archive staff, who have been helpful and generous with us, and whom we warmly thank here, in the people of Maria Pilar Raulì Lopez and Gregorio Redondo. They, while accompanying us in our research, told us "esto senor no tenemo nada" (11). We quote, in alphabetical order, the sources consulted to no avail: - ANPI, General Committee of Bologna (Archive); Current archives of the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Defense (12); - École Frangaise, Rome; - Mairie de Saint-Laurent du Var, Alpes Maritimes (France); c - We had the opportunity to meet the ex-Garibaldini of Spain still alive (13) by participating in "Jornades internacionales por la Pau y la Libertat y la Democracia, 1938-1988", organized by the Catalan Coordinadora d'associations de ex combatentes de la Repubblica and which took place in Barcelona on 28, 29, 30 October 1988. We asked many present, who were almost seven hundred, - French, Spanish, Americans, Belgians, Irish, English, Jews of various nationalities, etc. - news from Grelli. Nobody knew him, nobody remembers him. The Italian fighters on the Ebro do not remember him and neither does Ferrer Visentini who, in the form compiled by the former Garibaldini Brotherhood of Spain, is indicated as the one who "denounces" the death of Grelli, together with family members. From the years following the end of the war to 1942, the Ossuary Tower of Zaragoza-Casa degli Italiani collects the remains of all those who died in Spain. By virtue of this homologation between anti-Francoists and Francoists, on which we do not allow, there are the names of the fallen of the International Brigades, including that of Alessandro Grelli, who here has his plate marked with a lowercase BI (14). In the cemetery of Fuencarall, in Madrid, a large plaque, discovered only in 1986, commemorates the fallen anti-Francoists, with the following inscription: "Volunteers of the International Brigades, fallen as heroes, for the freedom of the Spanish people, the prosperity and well-being of 'Humanity". In October 1988, on the aforementioned occasion, the "David y Goliat" monument to the memory of the fallen belonging to the BI ranks was discovered in Barcelona in the presence of the BI volunteers, gathered from all the countries. The monument was donated by the SCWHS. We wait for the municipality of Umbertide to complete the toponymy plaque headed to Grelli, specifying: "Red militiaman, who fell as an anti-fascist on the Ebro front, September 1938", as a reminder to remember a protagonist of a historical period and an idea not to be archived. Note: (1) The only date indicated on the tombstone is wrong. In fact, the anti-Franco war ended in 1939. The dates of the death of the fallen and the posting of the plaque are missing, certainly after 2 June 1948, given the presence of the coat of arms of the Italian Republic that frames the plaque. (2) ASP, Inv. Quest. fasc. Grelli Alessandro. The CCRR of Città di Castello affirm this in 1938. (3) ROMETTI CLOTIDE, Sixty years of Socialism in Upper Umbria and Italy, Città di Castello, Il Solco, 1954, p. 132. (4) It was not the "battle name", but the nickname he bore from Romeggio, clearly remembered by his younger brother, Angelo, who still today speaks of his brother with the nickname "Achillino". (5) CALANDRONE GIACOMO, Spain burns, Garibaldi Chronicles, 1st Edition, 1962. Consulted in the AICVAS library. (6) BCC, "The Claim", 1906-1921. (7) The CPC dossier of Grelli Alessandro in ACS is the one formed by Sect. I of the Ministry of the Interior Div. PS Affari Gen. Ris. The one kept in ASP is formed by the Perugia police headquarters. The ACS dossier is more interesting, because it offers material that does not appear in the file of the Perugia Police Headquarters, relating to the date of Grelli's departure for Spain, and other details. (8) ASLS, Leva Office Fund of the Municipality of Sarzana for the year 1892, Bertieri Giovanni Tomaso Nello registration number, 1912; ibid., Fondo Prefettura de La Spezia, Cabinet Series, envelope 7 file 16 "Report dated 17/6/1921 by the Official Deputy Commissioner of PS di Sarzana regarding the events that occurred on 12, 13 June 1921, on the occasion of the raid fascist of Sarzana, upon notification of 13 June by the Mayor and the Councilors Calderini and Bertieri. (9) We thank the Provincial Directorate of the Treasury of Perugia and the Directorate General of the Treasury of Rome, and we are pleased to have arrived, just in time to consult very important documents, for the purposes of this biography, before the expiry of the current archives. (10) IRB, sheet by Grelli Alessandro (Achille). It contains an inaccuracy relating to the paternity of Grelli (of Alberto, but of Abraham), and of his residence abroad (Nice, but St. Laurent du Var). Participation in the II Garibaldi Battalion is not completed by the indication of the Company. The death - according to the file - "is reported by Visentini and his family". We interviewed Ferrer Visentini - author of a beautiful memoir on the war in Spain - who does not remember meeting Alessandro Grelli. The family members were unable to "report" the death of their relative for two reasons: because they were unaware of the fate of Alexander, and because it was the former Garibaldi Brotherhood of Spain that gave them the news. We will talk later about the photographs that remain of Grelli, but we want to immediately realize that the photograph stored in the file we are talking about does not appear in the files, neither in ASP nor in ACS CPC. It is a mugshot, according to the rules dictated by the Circ. of the File Service, namely: a face photograph, a profile photograph and a three-quarter profile photograph. In fact, Grelli is portrayed here in this last pose, in a tie, in hair, and shows an age that must have slightly preceded his departure for Spain, which took place, as we will say, in 1936, when he was 29 years old. (11) Ministerio de Cultura, Archivo Historico Nacional, Seccion «Guerra civil», 37001 Salamanca (E). We share the pessimism on Grelli, but not for a research on the presence of BI, supported by some titles, which were quickly glimpsed in Salamanca, such as: «Milicia POUM»; "Regiment Milicia popular"; "Prisioneros"; "Secret service"; "Milicia los Comuneros"; "Army rojo" ("el Campesino"), etc. Other archives can be consulted in Valencia, in Castellon and mainly the "Archivo Historico Militar" in Madrid, the material of which refers mainly to the personnel of the armed forces, police and carabinieri who remained framed in the republican area, for the purpose of recognition of their service. (12) The current archives of the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of the Interior should have kept the minutes of the "Interministerial Commission for the formation and reconstitution of death and birth certificates not drawn up or lost or destroyed by war ». It is this Commission that drew up the certificate of "presumed death" of Grelli, on 16 October 1957, deposited, according to the explicit declaration of the same Commission, in the aforementioned archives. All our research carried out through institutional and private channels was useless. (13) We interviewed Fucile Domenico, who is the only Umbrian Garibaldian still alive, on the verge of turning ninety. He remembers nothing of Grelli and the years of the Spanish War. He enjoys repetitively telling an anecdote, which refers to the circumstances of his enlistment. The Rifle, a little by convincing, a little by challenging, was able to encourage about forty men, Italian and French, to leave volunteers. Therefore the departure was commented, alluding to the surname of the leader, "The rifles are leaving"! (14) How aberrant this homologation was and still is, results from the thought of a visitor to the Torre Ossario in Zaragoza who "thanks the fallen for having given us forty years of happiness and peace, fighting Marxism". I. - THE LIFE OF ALESSANDRO GRELLI UNTIL THE EXPATRIATION Head of Alessandro Grelli's family was Abraham, born in Umbertide in 1878, where his parents had immigrated from Monte Tezio, married to Maria Ercolanelli, and died in 1957 (1). They had raised a large family, Maria and Abraham, an ordinary circumstance among the settlers, who thought of working arms rather than mouths to feed: Alessandro born on 27/10/1907 was the second child, preceded by Fenenne (1906) and followed by Giovanni (1909) and by Angelo (1921) living; followed by Adolfo (1923) and Gina (1926). Carlo and Sabina were born and died respectively in 1914 and 1919, the years of the Spanish. Abraham was a partial settler and went to work for the day, as a laborer, wherever he happened to be. He lived with his five brothers, who in turn, except one, had a wife and children, in the Parish of S. Giuliano di Umbertide, voc. Box no. 487, Frazione Romeggio, Villa Corradi, and subsequently, after the birth of Giovanni, he had moved to Villa Pantano, still in the same hamlet, where with the whole tribe, about thirty souls, he could enjoy a better income with a farm in thirty-five hectares, working and wooded altogether. These are not the data just mentioned, taken from the tax register, but learned from the brothers, Giovanni and Angelo, who gave us news, reported episodes and memories, which we will promptly report gradually. The Marquis Liborio Marignoli was the owner of those lands assigned to his ancestors, three centuries earlier, by the Spanish rulers, for military merits. Contact between the colonists and the marquis was neither direct nor frequent and everything was done by the farmer who demanded half of the harvest from the Grelli - wheat, maize, grapes, tobacco -. Furthermore, from the partial share of the settler, a percentage was removed for sowing, and for the fertilizer, estimated by Giovanni at around 30%, while the owner never punctually paid the money corresponding to half of the expenditure necessary for the threshing - wheat, corn, seeds - just as he never paid the money for verdigris and sulfur, in compensation for the manual labor that the settler took on. The master kept the animals, paid us the taxes, and the land taxes were his responsibility. Still in the 10s of the century, however, there was still discussion on the payment of cures for the diseases of animals and the serious dispute had not been concluded. According to Giovanni's estimate, the Romeggio farm produced 15 quintals of wheat per hectare, so he had 150 quintals left, enough for bread and cake, but the beans were necessary to supplement. The side dish - the pork belonged entirely to the owner - consisted of "cooked grass", cod, salty because it was cheaper, and herring. These foodstuffs, together with salt and sugar - oil was replaced by lard - were paid for in kind at the shop, mainly with eggs. In conclusion - Giovanni admits - we ate, but did not dress, evaluating the situation at the time with current parameters. The houses, even when they were discreet, were very bad - we read in the local newspapers of the time (2) - a bedroom, including that of the spouses, even housed four people, who, after the short vigils in front of the fire, stretched out on straw straws of maize leaves, placed on four wooden boards or on metal nets. In April 1911 the battle for the improvement of the Colonial Pacts, carried out by the League of Peasants, among which those of Lama had distinguished, still dealt with the "colonial accounts", which had been the banner of the historic strike of 1906 : that the accounts had to be cleared year by year; that "if the owner keeps part of the credit to secure the livestock" "the interest on the money withheld had to be paid to the farmer" (3). Abraham was illiterate, but he sent all his children to school, even the girls, up to the third grade, in the schools set up in the rural hamlets and then in Umbertide - an hour away, from the farm - where they could obtain the elementary school certificate (4 ). Alessandro, according to the personal data sheet (5), had done up to the third grade. However, the news provided by the Military District, that he had obtained the elementary license up to the 6th class, is reliable. In support of this, the testimony of his brother who says: "he was very good at school, he was a genius." At home - Giovanni continues - we never got a hint of what was being said outside or written in the newspapers; as, for example, we insinuate - that still in 1911 people were forced to become aware of their rights and not to follow the priest "the eternal enemy of those who work and produce", "who condemns the struggle of the peasants" and " it organizes the colonial circles "" to maintain the political dominion of the masters "(6). The Grellis had not listened to, and perhaps had not wanted to hear, these and other exhortations and had never been approached by the organizers of the Leagues and Cooperatives. They lived their lives with precise points of reference: work, necessary to live, and, at some time of the year, to survive; the call to arms, under the feared control of the Arma Station stationed in the village, the relations between the sexes, necessary to increase hands in the fields, for housekeeping, and, perhaps, for a wise and kind female presence; and, first of all, the parish priest, the church, of which the Grelli women, vestals of the most rigorous Catholic observance, - as John says - were devoted faithful. During his childhood, neither at home nor at school, he heard Alessandro talk about events and facts that will take weight in his adult life: some, such as the expulsion of Benito Mussolini, in 1914, from the Socialist Party, of which the local newspaper spoke. , they slip away because of his very tender age. But he was a little older when his father and his uncles Annibale and Natalino left for the war and he could have understood something about the dispute about the appropriateness of Italian intervention in the immense conflict, a dispute that, in reality, at home. Grelli, did not take place at all. Having become a teenager, he had no better opportunity to become aware of the news that reached Romeggio faded, on the occasion, for example, of the elections of 1921, preceded by an electoral campaign in which fascist violence had also been active in Umbria (7), or of serious events that took place in the nearby Perugia, so serious as to bring fascism to power. In 1924 he still did not have the right to vote, which he will never exercise, being that of 1924 the last electoral consultation authorized by the fascist dictatorship, which had it carried out under the surveillance of the MVSN soldiers, who presided over seats and favored fraud. For Alessandro, the days spent working in the fields and the winter evenings were endless. He could not be happy or satisfied with this life, with that "gang", "comrade", "cheerful", "expansive", "always in good humor, very healthy, very intelligent" temperament described by Angelo. He loved friends - Giovanni insists - he liked girls, he loved to dress well, but ... at least he never had a few cents in his pocket! Alessandro thought for himself to get out of this situation, giving proof of a transgressive will, this first time towards the owner, who, informed by the farmer, reluctantly saw Alessandro absent himself from the fields and go to the village to learn the trade of shoemaker in the shop of the "poor Giuliano", which he reached on foot in the suburb of Borgiacca on the outskirts of Umbertide. This first gesture of independence, very important in itself because it made him change his social status, will be followed by others, in Grelli's private and public life, around which we will have the opportunity to speak at length, and from which Alessandro is characterized as a nonconformist, a curious man eager for experience, courageous, even reckless. It will turn out that this is not a psychological interpretation of the character, but an evaluation of the character and his temperament, as transpired by events and concrete facts. The brothers tell us that, while working as a shoemaker, he had met Mr. Luigi Ramaccioni, owner of a large estate bordering that of the partial regime of the Grelli, older than twenty years, with whom he had formed a great friendship. Not an anti-fascist - Giovanni specifies - like those he will meet in France - we add - but a fascist, albeit a moderate one, neither relentless nor troubled. In our opinion, the passage of the biographical notes drawn up by the CCRR of Città di Castello, based on direct information from the Umbertide Station (8), derives from this friendship, which does not hide from anyone: "he did not have a PNF card, but showed attitudes in favor of the regime ”, referring to his political conduct before his expatriation. Without excluding the hypothesis, however fragile, that Alessandro simulated, it seems to us that the CCRR interpret a fact that refers to the late 1930s, with the experience and perspective of the year in which the biographical note was drafted, that is nine years later, expanding it enormously and coloring it with meanings suggested a posteriori. But there are other reasons for not agreeing with the carabinieri on a "pro-fascist phase" in Grelli's life, even if, if it were proved to be authentic, it would not constitute a fact to be scandalized, considering the uncertainty and even the confusion of the times, the subordination of the lower classes to intellectuals, and the inadequacy of their means of orientation and critical tools. The CCRR give the fact, which was certainly to their knowledge, a bureaucratic evaluation, without describing and circumscribing it: we try to highlight in Alessandro's frequentation with Mr. Ramaccioni not so much the political aspect, but the realization of a personal relationship, which came to the great advantage of Alessandro. The relationship between the young ex-peasant shoemaker and the rich and educated adult owner was not equal in many respects, almost all of which can be understood. But Alessandro could be led to nod and perhaps agree to things he had never heard before, which fascinated him, on topics that opened up horizons that were unexpected compared to the air he breathed at home. If Ramaccioni, without making rowdy propaganda, but persuasively, as Giovanni assures us, had spoken to his young shoemaker friend, for example, about the economic program of fascism which presented captivating aspects on the worker and peasant side - we mention the reduction of working hours in factory and the tax on the capital of the "medieval barons" - could Alexander have guessed the demagogic implications? (9) We would say no, at least in the days of Romeggio! Times in which Alexander absorbed information and news but had not yet made political ideas, as he did say the RACs. Who, making assessments of this kind, which are not infrequent, thought they were rendering a service to the filed for which a pro-fascist past could constitute a positive precedent and lightened, indeed canceled, any responsibility of their investigative role, for the time in which they had had it under their control. The period of Alessandro's military detention (10) then opens and he spends in Modena, in an environment that was perhaps not only dominated by the military bureaucracy. We say it was influenced by the passage in that military milieu of a Perugian who fell in Spain (11) and assuming that Grelli had already acquired some valid tool for looking around. We do not have any documents of the period and therefore we know nothing official, except that the Royal Quaestor of Perugia twice asked about the behavior of the infantryman Alessandro Grelli. We do not know if the Royal Quaestor had particular reasons for doing so and we believe that the failure to reply means that everything was regular, or simply a bureaucratic inefficiency. It appears, in fact, that Alexander regularly spent his months as a soldier, sixteen months, excluding the training period that preceded the "call to arms" (12). A postcard-size photograph of Alessandro in uniform is preserved in his file. We offered it in photocopy to the brothers who, not knowing it, received it with emotion, crying and kissing it (13). Alexander is portrayed in a soldier's uniform with the envelope on his head, in a "rest" position, with the right arm resting on a perforated wooden shelf that supports a vase of flowers, between the fingers of the hand the cigarette and the left arm on the side. It's the classic photo to send to his girlfriend, to whom to ask for the complicity of being considered not the freshman soldier, but a boy, indeed a man, easygoing, like they say all the details, scarcely martial - the cigarette, the hand on the hip, the body lithe, together with the flowers on the "good room" shelf -. The brothers reciprocate mine gift with a photograph received from France and which appears in the bulletin of the RF (14). Grelli is more years old, and a virile and determined expression, underlined by mature features of the face. In hair, and the shirt open on the chest, in the casual French fashion, denotes greater awareness, which is neither new nor in contradiction with the photography of Modena. A little more mature, in a tie, Grelli appears in a third photograph, as already mentioned (15). The bureaucratic, hasty and distracted description that the Regia Questura makes him at the moment of expatriation, in which the only particular apt it is the "bass". In fact, the Grelli was just one and a half centimeters higher than the minimum required to be "skilled enlisted". On the period of Alexander's life that elapses between the military leave - early days of September 1928 - and the date of expatriation, which is no earlier than the date of issue of the passport - October 1930 - a span of just over two years - sheds light on the testimony of John. Who says: «Before the official expatriation, Alessandro went to France clandestinely, reaching the Ventimiglia border by train, where he entrusted himself to expert people, indeed in charge of the need, who accompanied him, partly on foot and partly on mules along the paths and passes of the Maritime Alps, up to France. During this trip - continues Giovanni - he stopped in Florence in Via della Scala, at the Engineers Regiment, where I was a soldier ». The memory of Giovanni is reflected in his military registration number which shows that he arrived in Florence on 28/4/1930 (16). Therefore Alessandro's Florentine stage can be dated not before the end of April, but not after the end of October, the date of issue of the passport. Why was Alexander going so adventurously to France? Giovanni knows: it was a love escape! Alexander - as his temperament requires - went to join his girlfriend, Aldina, who was expatriated to France with her whole family (17). The motivation confided to his brother in Florence was verifiable in the real circumstance. Other reasons, in concurrence with the sentimental ones, had to be kept silent by him: he could not manifest his own, even generic desire to escape from the family; political motivations, unlikely at the moment, but not to be absolutely ruled out, it would have been better not to even talk in the air. He did not stay in France for long, not only because his love story did not lead to marriage - Alexander died celibate - but because his fellow countrymen, political emigrants, may have advised him not to stay one more day abroad, without documents. , where he would run a hundredfold risks compared to those, already very serious, that expatriates in good standing with their passport ran. And in fact, having completed his military service, in 1930 he obtained a passport valid for one year, and regularly expatriated "for work" for France. At this point, two periods in Alexander's biography open, the one relating to his stay in France, until 1936, and the dramatically shorter one of his enlistment in the red militias of the «Garibaldi» Brigade, in the Laroche Group. The one and the other period will be treated separately on the basis of the documentation obtained in the file in his name by the Regia Questura of Perugia and in the CPC file, of which the brothers do not even exist. Before becoming Giovanni and Angelo's informants, we want to report what they replied to us on issues concerning their brother, but also general aspects common to many emigrants: - what relations existed between the Grelli family and the Umbertide CCRR, considered as the first link in the chain of investigators; - what memories do the Grellis retain from the French period of their brother's emigration, and subsequently from Spain. The carabinieri of Umbertide, who depended directly on the Tenenza di Città di Castello, never showed up either to ask for news or to give it. The information could not have been obtained from the family, since - the carabinieri well knew - they were either liars, or reticent, unreliable and misleading, even in the face of a sincere "we know nothing". As we shall see, "confidential" or "trustworthy" information was important and fundamental. On the other hand, the carabinieri never said anything to the family. Yet they had learned some good things about him: "subversive anti-fascist", "communist to be arrested at the border", "red militiaman in the ranks of the army, in Spain", where there was a war, all the more serious and compromising, how much more unknown! But, did the Grellis ever know something that the CCRR did not know, and that not even the secret police would ever find out? At least in three cases: Alexander's first clandestine emigration; the trip of Abraham who had gone to visit his son in France, reporting excellent news about the Cordonnerie (18) the shoe shop he had opened, to the point that he urged his brothers to join him to collaborate with the four workers already hired; and, finally, the clandestine repatriation of Alexander due to the death of his mother (19), of a very short duration and of which we can establish the exact date (20). The brothers gladly return to 1933, when Alessandro, clandestinely crossing the Maritime Alps, had come to greet his sick mother and had arrived in time to see her dead, an extreme sign of the deep family bond that united the Grellis among them, for which, even Today Alexander is remembered by them with a fraternal affection that has priority over the pride and pride of a brother "who died as a hero for freedom". Since the death of their mother, the Grellis have not known anything about their brother: we anticipate them that there were political reasons that led Alessandro to silence, also belatedly discovered by the police. The family - not a suspect, but an intuition - was convinced that Alexander was in France exclusively for work, and did not ask too many questions about his expired passport or about other details they learned superficially and almost indistinctly. Grelli's life, not limited to his first period, which we have dealt with, but relative to his entire arc, together with the historical approach deserves an epic evocation. Instead we must conclude with the squalid episode of the "package" we learned in the conversation with the brothers. Says Angelo, the younger brother: after the war in Spain - the chronological confirmation does not emerge - we received a postcard from the Post Office of the Umbertide station to collect a package from France. Father and John went there - therefore before 1957, the date of Abraham's death -. They were told that the package had already been collected. They did not protest, they did not investigate, and perhaps, Angelo concludes, they did wrong! Giovanni nods and comments: «There was certainly no money in that package! Why go and steal it? It was someone who agreed with the Railways ». From that "someone", neither an indiscretion nor an allusion is derived. We insinuate that perhaps there were those in town who wanted them badly, and that perhaps it was the fascists who eliminated that one concrete sign of the past of their political adversary. John closes in a silence, from which we are able to understand a profound pain, resigned and powerless. Note: (1) MU, Registry Office, Abramo di Agostino and Bussotti Filomena was born in Umbertide on 6 / XII / 1878, married to Ercolanelli Maria in 1906 and widowed in 1933. (2) BCC, «The Claim», cit., Year 1907. (3) BCC, «The Claim», cit., Years 1906 and 1911. (4) BCC, "The Vindication", cit., Year 1913. It had been a successful campaign of the Socialist Party which had fought since the early years of the century for elementary education, for an adequate preparation of the teachers and for the establishment of school sponsorships. (5) MU, Matricular Role Register 62, Matric. 535, Alessandro Grelli. On 23/10/1926 there is the military visit: he is "skilled enlisted" he can read and write, 6th grade, "stature m. 57.50 ". Recalled to arms, arrived in Modena at the 36th Infantry Regiment on 30th - 4th - 1927, discharged by the same on 2/9/1928 - Ibid, Population Register, Grelli appears to have attended only up to the third grade. (6) BCC, «The Claim», cit., Year 1911. (7) BCC, «The Claim», cit., Year 1920. (8) ASP, Inv. Quest., Fasc. Grelli Alessandro cit. (9) BIANCHI ANTONIO, Social struggles and dictatorship, in historical Lunigiana and Versilia, (1919-1930), Florence, Leo S. Loschki, 1981. (10) See no. 5. (11) We refer to Mario Angeloni. (12) See no. 5. (13) ASP, Inv. Quest., Fasc. Grelli Alessandro. The photo was taken in Modena by Foto Insvardi Via S. Michele Modena -. It is therefore not the Grelli who supplied it to the CCRR, which perhaps managed to obtain it for other channels. The photo was very important for the registration in the BR. (14) ACS, Grelli Alessandro, CPC. The report in the BR is not contained in ASP, Inv. Quest., Grelli Alessandro, cit. (15) IRB, card by Alessandro Grelli, of which we mentioned in the Introduction. (16) MU, Registry Office, Register of Matricular Role Giovanni Grelli Matric. 10290 VII.mo Corps Engineers Regiment. Giovanni passed the visit at the end of 1928 and "called to arms" reached the VII.mo Genius on 24/4/1930. (17) Aldina's surname is uncertain and confused in Giovanni's memory. The records of the population of Umbertide from the 10th century have not given any confirmation following a search on the name «Aldina». It is clear that his family was not registered in the registry of Umbertide. (18) ASP, Inv. Quest., Fasc. Grelli Alessandro. The CCRR speak about the footwear industry installed in St. Laurent, providing the Police Headquarters with the address “Cordonnerie de Puget. St. Laurent du Var ”and the brothers told us that business was going well for Alexander. (19) MU, Population register 1933, Maria Ercolanelli died on 20/02/1933 in Umbertide. (20) Alexander immediately returned to France, after the funeral and therefore on February 22 or 23 he was traveling again. We deduce it from a curious tale by Angelo: when he returned here for the death of his mother Achillino - it was this, as we know, the nickname with which Alexander was usually called - he did not want to sleep the first evening under the same roof as the deceased, because he would be forced to sleep there for nine days. This is so as not to "disturb" the dead woman. Achillino-Alessandro slept in a neighbor's house and then left long before the nine days were up. Il simbolo ritrovato - I La vita di Grelli fino all'espatrio II - III Il fascicolo della Questura e Grelli in Francia IV - Grelli in Spagna Il simbolo ritrovato - I La vita di Grelli fino all'espatrio II. - THE FILE OF THE DIRECT QUESTURA DI PERUGIA HEADED TO GRELLI ALESSANDRO The file of the Perugia sul Grelli police headquarters contains five photographs (1) and forty-seven papers, from 1936 to 1951. Do not think, however, that the Regia Questura of Perugia and the other police bodies have dealt with Grelli for fifteen consecutive years. There are only nine years (2) that date ordinary certificates, forms, bulletins and printed matter of the File Service, and the various correspondence, letters, confidential and highly confidential, registered in double envelopes, service tickets, telegraphic circulars, telespress, etc. Only three years refer to Grelli still alive (1936, 1937, 1938). The following years (1939, 1940, 1941, 1942) attest to the useless search by the police, the town of birth and the carabinieri, about the fate of Grelli, while the last year revolves around the suspicion of the disappearance of Grelli, who however it is not officially documented. Grelli's dossier, already modest as a volume, is therefore chronologically reduced with respect to the emigration period (1930-1938), spent partly in France and partly in Spain, and is limited in content, as there is no living presence of the Grelli, what could it be, eg. a letter from him intercepted on departure or arrival. The dossier on Grelli, of which we give an analytical confirmation in the appendix (3), however, contains a precious indirect reference to a person whom he met in France, who, as we will say, illuminates his political story of Grelli. A copy of the Grelli dossier can also be consulted at the Central Archives of the Central Political State Records Office, Ministry of the Interior Division I CPC Service. It offers more detailed documentation about Grelli's departure for Spain and other substantial details that will be very useful to us. On the outer cover, in thin yellow-orange paper, common to all the files of the Perugia Police Headquarters, his name, surname and paternity stand out in calligraphy, and, in indelible ink, the wording "filed" stands out. Two essential notes follow: «Communist ex militiaman red», as a political qualification, and the indication of the inscription in BR, and in RF «for arrest», ordered by the Ministry of the Interior (4). In the month of July 1936 two letters, which follow one another after a single day, arrive, one to the Ministry in Rome and PC to the Royal Prefect of Perugia, and the other to the Royal Quaestor of Perugia. The sender of the first letter is the Royal Prefect of La Spezia; who writes to the Quaestor is the UPI of the Command of the 102nd Legion MVSN, stationed in Perugia (5). The subject of the two letters is identical: Grelli is a "subversive and anti-fascist" who works with a very dangerous individual from Sarzana - the reference to the latter is exclusive to the letter that arrives from La Spezia - and with three other Umbrians, the whose names are communicated by both letters. The senders declare that they have received Grelli's report from a "trust source", that is, from the secret police. Therefore, Grelli has been "discovered", and from this moment the formation of his dossier starts, and is "filed" in Cat. A / lett. 8 of the R. Questura of Perugia, which will keep the Public Security Division of the Ministry of the Interior informed step by step (6). Both the Prefect of La Spezia and the UPI of the MVSN are recommended that the four reported to be denied the "repatriation" permit and that investigations be carried out for their identification. From the first card, which is precisely the first letter mentioned above, to the last card, the dossier on Grelli becomes for us the testimony of the intertwining of investigations and searches of the police and his life as an emigrant, politically engaged; as a tacit challenge between the police and the anti-fascist, won, in the years preceding 1936, by Grelli. The sign is in this long news gap from about 1930 to 1936, a period in which he managed not to be discovered. The delay is not an exclusive detail of Grelli's biography: it was generally a few years before the police discovered anti-fascists abroad. But it also took a little luck and a lot of forethought to get away with spies, and Alessandro knew how to give himself the image of an individual on the margins of politics, fully occupied as was shown in the Cordennerie, from which perhaps he was making money for the cause as well. He was, in essence, a modest character, whose natural gifts, borrowed from his peasant origin, had been difficult to guess: to make it in spite of the master. We will see, however, that there is a document that illustrates the period that remained obscure for the investigators (7). Grelli's report is very serious and heavy, because it is circumstantial: he put up with a person in sight, emigrated for several years, a thoroughbred propagandist, well-known in his homeland and in France, head of a group that does "deleterious work" in against his compatriots, managing to win the fascists themselves against anti-fascism. Which, while wanting to "keep good Italians" - which means to remain fascist! - were influenced by the strength of his propaganda. There were three Umbrians in the group, as we have already said, two of whom were fellow villagers, natives of San Giustino, inhabitants of St. Laurent du Var, a bricklayer and a carpenter, and both Communists 8. The third Umbrian reported, who a handwritten note in the letter from the UPI of the Militia declares that he had been suspended since 1930, deserves a separate discussion (9). The immediate effect of the report was to be the obvious and somewhat obvious denial of the repatriation permit and mainly the initiation of the "identification" investigations. The commissioner, who does not know anything about it, consulted the CCRR of Città di Castello, who promptly transmit the information received from the Umbertide Arma Station. The content of the information is favorable to Grelli and the tone used by the informants is decidedly benevolent: Grelli has maintained good moral, political and civil conduct - note the exhaustive adjective of all, absolutely all, aspects of behavior; he has no criminal record and no ongoing pending with the carabinieri of Umbertide - in this matter it is always better to abound in the specification. However, as surprised by the anti-fascist report, they declare that Grelli, despite not being a member of the PNF, showed favorable sentiments. As for expatriation, he was regular "for work", with a passport issued by the commissioner himself. They attach the photograph and describe the features. It is not infrequent to find muted tones in the information of the carabinieri, while other police bodies often look for a way to slander the filed, with an apparently banal detail, sometimes with a real slander. The behavior of the Carabinieri of Città di Castello seems to conceal the concern of being held responsible for not having recognized Grelli as an anti-fascist, as was later "reported" in France. For this reason they accentuate and underline the positive things they can say about him, which is perhaps partly authentic, but a little ostentatious (10). We add that their benevolence results in other circumstances: they do not respond to the repeated requests of the commissioner who wants to know how Grelli behaved during his military service; they are careful not to fill in the finca prepared in the biographical form (1939) for the names of the officials or agents who had known him: yet, if they had known him! Finally, they close in silence when they are questioned (1949) by the commissioner on the advisability of revoking Grelli from the group of subversives of the province. We approve of them, adding that ten years after their death it seems unlikely that the police station still knows nothing! The information requested from the CCRR reaches Rome in the first days of January 1937 (1937). From this date, the file does not indicate a document, a form, or a letter. This was not due to bewilderment (11). At the beginning of the second half of the year a telegraphic circular arrives (1937) sent to the Royal Prefect of Perugia and to all the Prefects of the Kingdom, signed by Bocchini Fr. the Minister, with confidential news: Grelli enlisted in the Spanish red militias (12). The news is given in a spectacular way: the postal vehicle is not of ordinary administration; the secret police are present in the use of the conditional "would have enlisted"; the barrage of repressive measures against Grelli acquires drama in the long sequence: he is arrested "returning to the kingdom"; RF and BR be entered, with photograph; a reserved control of correspondence directed to family members is ordered "to ascertain remittances of money from red aid". This is, therefore, the year in which the police report a relative success with an explosive news on Grelli's account - we will see that the chronology is not exact - and in which the repression is relentless with the means that are their own. Ten letters and three modules, concentrated in just over a month - from 19 July to 14 August (1937) -. Seven times the commissioner is the sender and fulfills all the tasks entrusted by the minister. In less than a week he fills out the form for reporting a person to be searched, which should be accompanied by a photograph that the carabinieri sent him the year before. But the Royal Quaestor is lost, so he must have recourse to the Scientific Cabinet of the Terni Police Headquarters for reproduction, which, this time, has a large number of them done, now uselessly (1937). Inside the year there is even the ticket removed from the RF, where Grelli is described as a "dangerous communist", to be arrested. (1937). The year 1938, on the other hand, consists of a single card (1938), coming from the Quaestor's Cabinet: "The Grelli fighter or suspected fighter in the ranks of the Red Army" was inserted in October 1938 in the Cat. A / 9 , which is the category of the red militiamen. In accordance with the date that the card bears, 1938, we have placed it in its natural place, while in the file it has a location on card 1, that is, after the last documents of the file (1951). The silence of the investigators does not derive from their knowledge of what had happened and was happening in Spain, where Alexander had now fallen into the rage of the attack on the Ebro and for a few days he had missed the withdrawal of the Garibaldini - la despedida - episode painful, but not inglorious, also agreed with the consent of the republican government and the League of Nations. Rather, it must be linked to a crisis of consensus towards fascism. In fact, public opinion had come to acknowledge the warmongering and repressive aspect of the regime - War of Africa and racial laws - and the investigators themselves seem to suffer a decline in motivation in carrying out their tasks. We have already detected some stretch marks and we continue to note that the certificate of the Criminal Record was requested only in 1939 (1939). Furthermore, the delay in acquiring such a document denounces the gap between the regime police and the ordinary judiciary. And it is surprising that the Questura starts all over again with the request for the birth certificate (1939) and the address abroad, when this documentation had been acquired three years earlier (1936). The drafting of the biographical card which took place belatedly (1939) brings the news of the "emigration from red Spain" and of the "confinement". Emigration from Spain and confinement that do not find any confirmation in the history of Grelli, nor in archival documents. In the years 1940, 1941, and the first quarter of 1942, the commissioner is busy searching for Grelli and continues to send updates to the Ministry of the Interior of Grelli's residence abroad, which he takes for granted, asserting "nothing to report". Only once (1939) does he confess that "there is no news"; some doubts assailed him in 1941. Realizing, during the review of the Political Record, that Grelli is no longer reported, he asked the CCRR of Città di Castello for information on moral conduct, but "especially political" held "before today". He still asks for his address and the carabinieri (1939) reply that they do not know, because no more correspondence arrives either to friends or relatives "from here", that is to say from Umbertide. In this same circumstance the carabinieri choose not to pronounce themselves - as already mentioned - on the advisability of the revocation of Grelli from the list of subversives of the province. Completely insignificant is the duplication of the biographical card in 1942 (1942) which, moreover, does not have a comma more than the first edition (1939), if not the updates referred to in the years 1940, 1941 and 1942. We have reached the last two years of the dossier which refer to Grelli's death: in 1949 the Quaestor ordered the revocation of Grelli from the Bulletin of the Wanted "for ceased reasons", a ritual formula that foreshadows his death. In 1951 a letter from the Ministry of the Interior, due to the interest of the Ministry of the Treasury, was sent to the Questore of Perugia to give circus news about Alessandro's death, considering that his father had asked for his son's war pension. The most concrete answer comes from the carabinieri who assert without hesitation that the death of Grelli, which took place in combat in Spain on 12 September 1938, is in the registry office of the Municipality of Umbertide. But we have no declaration from the Municipality of Umbertide, which closes the history of Grelli with the Act of Presumed Death (13). Scrolling through the names of the senders of the various documentation contained in the Grelli file, it appears that at the peripheral level the CCRR and the Police Headquarters operated in correspondence with the Ministries of the Interior and Foreign Affairs who had various representations abroad, the embassies and consulates of His Majesty the King of Italy, closely linked to the police bodies, typical of the regime, such as the UPIs of the MVSN and the apparatus that the PNF had given itself abroad. But it was concretely efficient and capable of a penetrating investigation only by the police organization, hidden under the formula "trust source" or confidential source, that is, the secret political police. From it came the decisive information on the account of the files, following which the aforementioned peripheral and ministerial investigators were only a bureaucratic role. The analysis of Grelli's file leaves many problems unresolved: the chronological question relating to the dates indicated in the file, not the macroscopically incorrect ones because they go beyond death, but the date of his notification, which is certainly delayed compared to Grelli's political commitment , and the date of enrollment which is not - we have anticipated - that of the telegraphic circular of the Ministry of the Interior. Finally, there is the question of confinement and the emptiness of the circumstances of his death. The file offers - we repeat - indirect documentation, but decisive for tracing Grelli's political itinerary, in the period 1930-1936, the years he spent in France before his departure for Spain. From Grelli's meetings with prominent figures in the history of anti-fascist emigration, both in the political and ideological debate of anti-fascism, and in the concrete struggle against fascism, the precise outline of his political evolution emerges and it seems richer and more lively to us. general scenario of Umbrian political emigration. Note: (1) An original postcard size is the photograph in military uniform, produced on the cover, from which four card size copies were made. (2) These are the years 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1942; 1951. The term a quo coincides with the sixth year of Grelli's emigration, the ad quem with the thirteenth anniversary of his death. (3) The Grelli file is fully analyzed, in Appendix I, according to the following items: year, type of document or correspondence, date, sender, recipient and subject, In the text we put the year to which the document refers in parentheses of Appendix I. (4) ASP, Inv. Quest., Fasc. Grelli Alessandro, cit. Two entries appear on the cover: one that finds unique confirmation in the biographical card of Grelli 1939, reports that Grelli was "confined" to the date 12/6/1939. There we will deal with this detail elsewhere: The other reports that it was registered in the 1942 Statistical Register. The note is in pencil followed by a question mark and is not reflected in the file, nor has it archival evidence. On the cover are also the «Revisions». (5) ASP, Inv. Quest., Fasc. Grelli Alessandro, cit. Appendix II. (6) The Cat. A / lett. 8 corresponded to "subversive and anti-fascist"; «Subversive dated back to the Circ. Internal Min. 5343, 1 June 1896, instituting the Filing Cabinet, "anti-fascist" had been added in the fascist era. (7) This is what we will do in III. "Grelli in France". (8) ASP, Inv. Quest., Fasc. Gattini Goffredo di Gerasimo and was Corsini Giuseppa. Gattini was born in S. Giustino 4/8/1892, carpenter worker, anti-fascist. Ibid. Tarducci Ottavio was a communist Giuseppe, born in S. Giustino on 8/9/1898. (9) ACS, September Luigi Antonio CPC. The September was Giuseppe and it was Biondini Gelsomina, born in Todi on 16/9/1880 a shoemaker, a socialist who had been struck from the ranks of subversives there and 2/9/1930. September cannot be consulted in ASP because the files on the "Radiated" are not yet available and therefore we do not know the reason for the radiation. September is mentioned under different surnames: on the cover of the Grelli issue there is Settembrini Luigi and it is the only time that his paternity and maternity are not reported, data that are repeated and unchanged in other quotes. The place of birth is now indicated in Città di Castello, now in Todi. We found his birth certificate in the Todi registry office with the day, month and year that appear in his file in the Central State Archives. September has been living in Rome since 20/10/1930 where he had gone from France, from the Rome Population Register. (10) We have already dealt with the alleged "pro-fascist" phase of Grelli. (11) We exclude that it was a question of loss, because even among the papers in the CPC dossier on Grelli in ACS we found this void. (12) The date of Grelli's departure for Spain is therefore attributed to the year 1937. We will examine in IV Grelli in Spain the documents offered by the file on Grelli preserved in ACS, which anticipate it by a year. (13) MU, Death Certificate Register 1957, p. II, Series C. Sentence authorizing the transcription of the death certificate of Alessandro Grelli. The copy of the death certificate was provided to us by the Umbertide Registry Office, subject to authorization by the Court of Perugia, Attorney General. III. - GRELLI IN FRANCE If emigrants could feel almost at home at the first impact with an environment where, according to some testimonies (1), Italian was spoken more than French, as in St. Laurent du Var, in the Department of the Maritime Alps, an obligatory destination for Grelli for the well-known reasons of the heart, and fixed residence during his emigration (2), they could not rest assured among their compatriots, who were not all anti-fascists, many willing to denounce and inform, at the service of the secret political police, and some who had made or were making a fortune, "exploiting the fellow countryman." "It was full, full of spies," which created an atmosphere of distrust, suspicion, fear of everything and everyone around the emigrants. They felt and were, followed, spied on even in private life and always alert to the risk of having an infiltrator among their everyday friends - the most unthinkable and least suspicious person - by whom they could be branded as "anti-fascists" and as such files. There is no story of an emigrant-anti-fascist that does not begin with a report by a spy, worthy of absolute credit. Consequently, police measures were taken, or the Special Court was put into action, whose laws had reinstated the death penalty, not only for attacks on the king or the leader, but only for belonging to a dissolved party (3 ). If the spies understood that they had been identified, they ran away, but, not infrequently, they were trapped by our people, who knew how to transform themselves into "good policemen" (4), and to the infiltrators of the Avra they responded by dislocating "trusted, unknown" individuals, who did not attract attention, in the offices of the Dopolavoro, or in the sections of the PNF, places where they spoke of trade union problems and political issues to prepare the offensive strategy against the anti-fascists. The ordinary judiciary, the one established by the liberal state, had not been suppressed, but deprived of authority: bodies structurally unrelated to the role of police carried out investigative tasks. The Royal Consulates of Italy abroad, solicited by the Ministry of the Interior, or by the Ministry on which they depended, were very efficient, diligent and, to be honest, even precise, compared to the Royal Police Headquarters and Royal Prefectures. The Consul of His Majesty the King of Italy had a direct line with the trustee of the foreign sections of the PNF - the Case d'Italia or Case degli Italiani - which offered a recreational activity - radio, cards and conversation - to program , quietly, political action plans. On the occasion of the registration, a map of the "registered or not" was drawn up, with big problems for the latter (5). The UPIs of the MVSN, directly dependent on the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, had the means and men, belonging to bureaucratically autonomous roles. They were present in all situations, and spread the confidential news, which they received first. The local administrative authorities, for example the Mairies, were hostile to them and were prejudiced against them, like the government police. Relations with the French democrats were not easy; but we have the documentation of an "anti-Italian" - that is to say anti-fascist - demonstration in which our compatriots are associated in large numbers with the French and the naturalized in an armed attack on the House of Italians in St. Laurent, to demonstrate against the policy of their government, on the occasion of the call to arms of the reservists: an intertwining of ideological, political and claim reasons in military roles (6). They encountered no slight difficulties in looking for work, unless they resigned themselves to being peasants in the fields planted with vegetables and fruit in southern France, to harsh living conditions and wages, which Grelli was able to escape by putting to good use. his ability as a craftsman that benefited him, also as a social position. The salaried workers had to pay a tax of 25 francs, with which they obtained the "work card", indispensable for being hired; self-employed persons paid the "work card", 100 francs. Also this tax was an opportunity for the sections of the PNF abroad, in agreement with the French authorities, to implement discrimination and blackmail (7). The period initially spent by Grelli, immediately after his expatriation, is illustrated by the conversation with his brothers: the clandestine flight from Umbertide, followed by regular emigration "for work", frequent and reciprocal visits, an opportunity to urge the brothers to move to working in the shoe factory until 1933, the year of his mother's death. From this date Grelli never returns home, and he doesn't let anyone know anything about himself, either by oral messages or by letter, as the carabinieri also attest. It seems that his life has undergone a turning point and is taking place in a context that pushes him to estrange himself from his family and from any relationship with Umbertide. Detail of which the brothers complain and do not agree. Specific circumstances and precise reasons for justifying this behavior of Grelli can be seen in his meeting, already mentioned, with Giovanni Tomaso Nello, Bertieri who formed and directs a group for political propaganda. Grelli joins, together with other Umbrians - but they are not only Umbrians (8) - to be part of the group, he begins to military in the anti-fascist struggle with awareness and risk, which induce in him prudence, confidentiality, mainly towards the family who , in Umbertide, he could have undergone interrogations and searches. Grelli, who emigrated without political qualifications, became a communist at the Bertieri school who "worked" with his followers. The expression "work" used by the informant suggests the feverish propaganda activity, the meetings, the internal coordination, the new contacts and the constant displacements, as the surviving emigrants frequently report. In meeting with Bertieri, Grelli found the opportunity to enter politics and the instrument of his ideological maturation. Which evolved, first of all, with the assimilation of the meaning of the various experiences made by Bertieri before 1923 and subsequently on all the occasions in which he was involved in concrete initiatives, which were framed in the context of the ideological debate. Bertieri had been the witness and the protagonist of a central fact in the history of anti-fascism, which was the revolt of Sarzana in July 1921 against the aggression of the squads, the first and for a long time the only example of victory over fascism: "an event that became a sort of myth during the dark years of fascism, for the persecuted, for the exiles, for those who suffered in prison "(9). Before 1921, Bertieri had been the animator and promoter of all the demonstrations and of every strike, in a strip of land such as Lunigiana with a concentration of workers in the La Spezia shipyards, and a peasant in the vineyards of the Ligurian "bands". Sarzanesi. He was an assiduous reader and speaker of the left-wing press, but he had never been a contributor to the editorial staff of any newspaper, as claimed by the carabinieri who knew him. In the role of socialist councilor (10) of the municipal administration of Sarzana - a position he held from 1921 as a socialist, passed to communism after the Livorno Congress - he had proclaimed a state of siege in the municipal council in the face of squad aggression, and command of the proletarian defense committee of the Arditi del Popolo (11), which he himself organized, had determined the humiliating retreat of the fascists, at the end of a week of bloody clashes that had claimed many victims among the aggressors (12). From the clash between the fascists, financed by the agrarians and the industrialists and the proletarian opposition that tried to raise the conditions of the people, organizing leagues, cooperatives, unions and committees, as had happened in Sarzana, Grelli understood the political significance of the Italian situation . And he discovered a confirmation of this in his life in Romeggio, personally and by the family itself (13). After the events in Sarzana, to escape the arrest warrant, which had already hit some of his followers (14), Bertieri went into hiding and was eventually forced to emigrate illegally to France, reaching Marseille, where he did not stay long. . In fact, he continued his activity as a propagandist which led him to travel throughout France to hold meetings and rallies. The Socialist International chose him as the official speaker. We find him in this role in Marseille, in 1930, on the occasion of the great party of the proletariat of that time, which was May 1st (15). Oratory skills - "he speaks well" and is a "discreet comitiante" - even investigators are recognized. We endorse them, as they are also supported by the level of university studies he has reached (16). However Bertieri never exhibited the qualification of "student" and declined, without any exception, that of "worker" or "mechanic" who leads him - it was convenient for him to say - to work now in one place and now in another. In the end, even the police realized that this was an "excuse" for the political activity of Bertieri who "wandered a little here and a little there" "appeared and disappeared", because he was busy "working" at the " service of Italian-Franco-Russian subversivism "(17). On another occasion Bertieri amused himself by making fun of the police (18), confusing them for almost a year because of the nickname, Buccin or Bucin, with which he was also known in Sarzana and cheated them to the point that they were induced to provide personal data of a non-existent person. The political debate abroad and in Italy was animated by all the democratic forces in the field - we mention, without being complete, liberalism, republicans, socialists, communists, popular people and all the various associations that branched off from them. Differently articulated in terms of political content, they were aimed at forming an organism, as unitary as possible, to oppose fascism. We could give a historical account (19), but it seems significant to us to use the material contained in the CPC dossier on Bertieri, and to report on some initiatives and experiences of his group, which are the precise reflection of the ongoing debate, and in addition they open a glimpse into the political newspaper of our emigrants. He had contacts with Luigi Campolonghi (20), also from Lunigiana, older in age and in exile. It was Campolonghi who introduced him to the anti-fascist concentration (21) without pushing him to join it. But it helped him from the organizational and ideological point of view to found a section of the LIDU in St. Laurent du Var (22). Grelli had it at home, and he attended the weekly meetings in a local audience, called by Bertieri who had become its president. In front of a fairly large audience - by admission of the investigators themselves - Bertieri mainly gave political speeches "marked by anti-fascism" and oriented towards the social-communist currents, which would have given life to the French Popular Front. The headquarters held "conferences", that is, meetings with prominent figures - for example, Pacciardi, Campolonghi himself - who took stock of the situation and gave information on the work done by other sections. On the sidelines of the meetings, funds were raised by selling, for example, the folders of the «Loan of liberty», for L. 1000 each, with the fruit, to tell the truth, scarce, of L. 5000 francs. They organized the annual party of the Italian League of Human Rights, which took place on March 30 (23). As president of the LIDU of St. Laurent du Var Bertieri obtained a special "political refugee" card, a pass authorized by the League of Nations (24), well known to the investigators' controls. It will have been very useful to him on the occasion of his expulsion from Luxembourg, an episode in Bertieri's life, of which we do not know the reasons or the circumstances. But the political position naturaliter adhering to the "fervent gregarious of the French Popular Front", to the communist Bertieri, who had opened - it is important - a section of the communist party in St. Laurent (25) and consequently to his group was that of the FU, the Single Front, as the anti-fascist Single Front was identified in police jargon. On January 24, 1934, XII ff, a meeting of the FU took place in Nice at the Cafè de la Gare, present, among the many emigrants, Bertieri, who is cited in second place in the list (26). An infiltrator tells us how that meeting took place in a report drawn up for the General Management PS Division of General and Reserved Affairs Division I of the Ministry of the Interior. Much information relating to the composition, dissemination and organization of the FU, to the strategy of its political project, are true from the report of the infiltrator, as we will see below. However, aware that he is reporting burning, and perhaps alarming information, he takes care to minimize them - he considers them to be "of little importance and of little importance" - and evaluates the data and perspectives of the political work of the FU with skepticism and pessimism, such as those which are, at the base, tainted by the hegemony of the Communists. They want to "impart a too marked character to the movement" which is endemically - the infiltrator seems to think - on the verge of rupture. There are those who leave the FU (27), but must admit that there are also more definitive and concrete adhesions, the maximalists, for example (28). He informs us that the FU is widespread throughout France, in Paris, where the meetings are "repeated and numerous" in Cannes, Nice, Beausoleil and frequented by the LIDU, by republicans, by the maximalists, by the Mutual Society Brotherhood, by the reformists, by the socialists and, of course, the communists. The presence in the meeting of January 1934 of exponents of the French Communist Party and for the past of a prestigious figure such as Henri Barbusse was at that time an indication of success (29). The formation of the single body to oppose fascism according to the proposal of the maximalists, which is accepted, is to replace the enlarged single committee with many small neighborhood committees or sub-committees articulated on fragmented realities and situations, similar to communist cells. The economic claims of emigrant workers were for the FU a fundamental premise for a unitary action against fascism, according to the tradition of socialism of the years of the II and III Congress of the International, which inspired the FU. The problem at the moment was to defend the workforce and protect it against the French law on wages (30). Therefore - say the defendants - it is essential to have people infiltrate the sections of the Dopolavoro who collect the intentions and plans drawn up in this regard. Lastly, small work is not neglected, such as sending propaganda letters, circulars with a political content, and, with great precision, invitations to meetings so that it should not happen that someone is absent, just because they have not received the notice of convocation (31). When the propaganda for the recruitment of volunteers to defend the Spanish republic exploded in the early months of 1936, Grelli decided to go and fight. He abandons the group to the most discreet extent, as we shall see, and seals the meeting with Bertieri with an act of great political significance. A meeting in which the many differences and diversities between the two protagonists - age, education, political militancy, reason for expatriation, temperament and character - could have crushed the weak position of Grelli, who instead comes out strengthened in the bond of ideals and common intentions. "Among the subversives it should be noted a tall individual, thin, blond hair, about fifty, worker, ardeasiac eyes, red complexion ...", a description of Bertieri written by the political police that convinces us and almost excites us. Let's compare him with the Grelli, whom we know by photography: short - for only one and a half centimeters "skilled at the draft" - rough, with no particular characteristics, other than those inconspicuous and captivating ones of his face of a genuine Umbrian peasant. Taciturn, he listens to Bertieri's tales and speeches with fluent speech, made incisive by the melodious Ligurian-Tuscan cadence. The passionate strength and the ability to persuade are evident from the description of his temperament, drawn up by the Carabinieri of Sarzana: "ambitious" "overbearing", that is, with a will to be a boss, because he knew he could do it. The negative evaluations of "bad reputation" and "weak worker" are the result of the slanderous campaign that the fascists made to him after Sarzana and of the objective scarcity of the garages and bus services, of which he declared himself dependent. Alessandro's brothers have neither known nor heard of an Umbertidese family, the Broccolicchi who, after a failed internal emigration to Gubbio, had expatriated in 1902 in France, father and mother, almost fifty, with nine children, all between fifteen and five years (32). But Alessandro certainly knew and frequented them, because the second and third Broccolicchi generations were known and active in southern France, precisely in the period in which Grelli was there. Proof of this is that among uncles and nephews, living in the 1920s and 1930s, three of them are registered. They are Antonio meant Alfonso, Vittorio and Maria: we give a brief account of the files in the inventory of the Perugia Police Headquarters relating to Alfonso and Vittorio (33). The character we want to point out is Maria Broccolicchi, belonging to the third generation, daughter of Eugenio, listed as an anti-fascist - the "above-mentioned woman" specifies the PS official - because we understand the exceptional nature of the feminine anti-fascist (34). Maria worked closely with a cousin, Gino, for whom the police headquarters did not formalize the file, perhaps because he was assimilated to the nationality of his father, naturalized since 1928. Note: (1) We refer to the late Mariano Fulmini and Probo Martinelli, and to Italo Nicoletto, Vincent Tonelli among the many surviving former Garibaldini. The most incisive passages of their testimonies appear in quotation marks in the text. (2) The brothers of the Grelli refer only to the address of St. Laurent, like the carabinieri. Even the Consulate of Nice, in what can be defined, as we shall see, the last certain news on Grelli, before Spain, refers to the same town in the Department of the Maritime Alps. (3) AA.W. Lessons of anti-fascism, Bari, Laterza, 1962, p. 138 and ss. (4) One of our witnesses relates: "we managed to locate the home of a spy, we seized a letter from her, which contained very serious news: a communist had been murdered to avenge a fascist killed in Paris". Our witness gives the names of the protagonists of his story. (5) ASP, Inv. Quest. fasc. Goffredo kittens. Gattini, during his interrogation in confinement, says he asked the trustee of the St. Laurent section of the PNF for the card and obtained it. Unable to pay the outstanding annuities, he ended up arousing the suspicions of the trustee, who threatened him. telling him «I'll arrange it!». Gattini was terrified by the trustee and withdrew from frequenting the fascist section. Thus began - according to his version - his persecution as an anti-fascist. (6) ACS, Bertieri Giovanni Tomaso Nello, CPC. Twice a week, on Mondays and Thursdays, the House of Italians, at least that of St. Laurent, remains open to fellow countrymen to listen to "the radio, play cards, chat". But no meeting - the note continues - has the character of a "ceremony" or is marked by a political meeting. On the occasion of the declaration of war by France and England on Nazi Germany - we are in 1939 - the French reservists were recalled to arms, which constituted a reason for resentment for them. Therefore, an anti-fascist demonstration was organized on their part with a nocturnal aggression against the House of Italians, wanting to hit the policy of the regime allied to Nazism. (7) ASP, Inv. Quest., Fasc. Tarducci Ottavio. Tarducci, still in 1935, had not managed to obtain the "work card", even though he had even requested it from the Mairie of St. Laurent. Eventually he resorted to the local Casa degli Italiani and began to attend the section quietly and apparently convinced. of the PNF. Having obtained the employment card, Tarducci changes his behavior, begins to associate with extremist elements - as the investigators point out. For the humiliation suffered and the anger accumulated in the refusal of the Mairie he goes out in a sensational demonstration on the occasion of the feast of the patron saint of St. Laurent. In the midst of the festivities he sings the Internazionale - and it is immediately a choir. The Mayor invites him to stop and Tarducci responds with threats and insults and making him under with a clenched fist accuses him of not having wanted to help him for the "work card". (8) ACS, Bertieri Giovanni Tomaso Nello, CPC cit. More numerous than the Umbrians were the Ligurians - Sarzanese, communists, anarchists, republicans, all registered, whose residence abroad, profession or occupation is unknown. They are natives one of Arcola (La Spezia), one of La Spezia, two of Sarzana, one of Lerici, and a name that does not respond to an individual born or known in Sarzana - notes the investigator - who, like us, underlines the common geographical origin of Bertieri's followers. (9) Bianchi A., cit. Foreword by Giancarlo Pajetta. (10) ACS, Bertieri Giovanni Tomaso Nello, CPC. The biographical card only recognizes his election as Municipal Councilor; instead he was councilor in the year of the Sarzana events. After Bertieri was already expatriated for reasons of personal security, the fascists in 1926 denounced him for embezzlement, according to their classic public administrator-thief equivalence. The Court of La Spezia sentenced him to one year of imprisonment, a fine of L. 300 and one year of interdiction from public office. The sentence never reached him in France. From other convictions - a 1919 offense and simple bankruptcy - he was acquitted respectively by prescription and by amnesty in 1924. (11) Bianchi A., cit. It was a political formation in which anti-fascists from various sides had converged to face the violence of the squads. In the events of Sarzana they had had an important weight. Bertieri had set up a department in Sarzana with a contingent of 150 men, all workers and peasants. They had their own newspaper and, according to the work quoted by Bianchi, they also operated in Umbria. Of the fact, however, we do not find any reference in the newspaper The Claim, cit. (12) We have read two versions of the events in Sarzana, one historical (see Bianchi A., cit.), And the other ASLS Fondo Prefettura della Spezia, Report 12 and 13 June 1921 by the Deputy Commissioner PS, from Sarzana, to be sent to the Sub-prefect of La Spezia, upon notification by the Mayor of Sarzana, and by the councilors Calderini and Bertieri. The PS Commissioner presents them as "a fascist raid" in Sarzana, Bianchi as an attack by the terrorist squad against the Sarzanese population, with which the municipal administration of the city supported by the left-wing parties had sided. The first version presents the defeat of the fascists as a "retreat" to avoid police intervention; the historical testimony speaks of a vigorous response of the popular forces, peasants, workers and bourgeois, once in tune with the anti-fascist parties of Sarzana and all of Lunigiana. (13) Not Grelli personally, nor his family, but the democratic movement of the Upper Tiber Valley circulated a sheet "Umbrian Communist Union Committee - Nov. 1924 Appeal" denouncing the responsibility of the capitalists for the continuous increase in life and for the decrease in wages, cf. Appendix III. (14) Bianchi A., cit. We refer to Bocciardi Ugo, anarchist, blind, accused of murder, a character close to Bertieri in the Sarzana facts, who does not appear to be part of his group. (15) ACS, Bertieri Giovanni Tomaso Nello, cited CPC. (16) ASLS, Leverage Office Fund of 1892 - Municipality of Sarzana. Visit passed by Bertieri in 1922, that is, at the age of 22. He is a "student". In the biographical card of his CPC dossier it appears instead that he did "elementary courses" and that consequently his capacity as a propagandist due to lack of schooling must be considered scarce and not very effective. (17) ACS, Bertieri Giovanni Tomaso Nello, CPC cit. (18) ACS, Bertieri Giovanni Tomaso Nello, CPC cit. For at least a year, the correspondence relating to Bertieri is concerned with deciphering whether Bucin or Buccin was another Bertieri's person or not. The Municipality of Sarzana puts an end to the investigation. But the Royal Prefecture of La Spezia had mobilized, the Ministry which had issued a "circular for research" and the Division of the PP, of La Spezia had even provided the personal data of a non-existent Alfredo Bucino to whom the same activities were attributed that played the Bertieri. The whole investigation was complicated, in part, by the fact that Bertieri had managed to prevent the La Spezia police headquarters from coming into possession of a photograph of him. (19) Alatri Paolo, Italian Anti-Fascism, Ed. Riuniti, 1973. (20) Luigi Campolonghi had joined the anti-fascist Concentration, to which neither Justice and Freedom nor the Communists had joined. (21) The anti-fascist concentration established in France in 1927 substantially refers to the Aventinian position and included dissenting elements of the Italian League of Human Rights. It crumbled around 1934. (22) The LIDU is an association older than the anti-fascist Concentration and survived to it and still operating today in France and Algeria. It arose along the lines of the Ligue des Droits de l'homme whose origins date back to the Dreyfus affair. (23) ASP, Inv. Quest., Fasc. Marian lightning. (24) ACS, Bertieri Giovanni Tomaso Nello, CPC, cit. (25) ACS, Bertieri Giovanni Tomaso Nello, CPC, cit. The news is reported with the indication «sec. socialist "and corrected in" sect. communist »in pencil. The confusion arises from the fact that in the biographical notes he is described as "socialist" as he was before his accession to the Communist Party after the Livorno Congress. (26) ACS, Bertieri Giovanni Tomaso Nello, CPC, cit. Appendix IV. (27) ACS, Bertieri Giovanni Tomaso Nello, CPC, cit. While the Socialist Party is increasingly in favor of rupture, in Beausoleil, the Maximalists have even fully joined the FU, and perhaps even the Communist Party. (28) ACS, Bertieri Giovanni Tomaso Nello, CPC, cit. In addition to those present whose names are mentioned, our speaker refers to an unknown Communist who is the main "speaker". (29) Henri Barbusse was certainly not known to Grelli for his literary work but he became so on the occasion of the war in Spain when Barbusse organized the volunteers with a battalion of the BI, with his name. (30) In that precise historical context it was necessary to defend the Italian workforce abroad and protect it against the law on wages, which followed the Fascist law on the reduction of wages, aggravating it with quotas, i.e. reducing the amount of Italian workers that French employers could or had to hire. (31) ACS, Bertieri Giovanni Tomaso Nello, CPC, cit. It had happened to the Republicans. (32) MU, Registry. The emigrants of 1902 were called Celestino Broccolicchi and Stella Crispoltoni, born respectively in Umbertide and Città di Castello in 1852 and 1853. The children were all born in Umbertide, with the exception of two who were born in Gubbio. Once in France, they spent the first period occupied in cultivating the fields and with the large number of arms, all in the family, which they can employ, they draw good results, if, around the 1920s, Antonio intended Alfonso (born in 1874) the eldest son "is »Cultivate land« owned by him ». By decree of 1928 he became a French subject. Later he became the owner of a car service, like his brother Eugenio and also hired Bertieri Giovanni Tomaso Nello as a mechanic. (33) ASP, Inv. Quest., Fasc. Broccolicchi Antonio, Broccolicchi Antonio, understood as socialist Alfonso di Celestino, born in Umbertide 22/3/1874 - papers 34, 1934-1944. Antonio had become a socialist in France, having been expatriated at eighteen. "He made pomp of his principles"; he is mentioned among the participants in a conference held by R. Pacciardi in Nice in 1934, an event of primary political importance, which led the political police to draw up a list of participants, to be considered suspects. His brother Antonio, ten years younger (see ASP Inv. Quest. Fasc. Broccolicchi Vittorio di Celestino, anti-fascist born in Gubbio on 25/4/1895, papers 16 + 2 photos 1939-1944) is infamous by the police with every sort of accusations (exploiter of prostitution and keeper of houses of ill repute) that would have made him merit judicial charges on the French side. Of which we have no documentation, just as his alleged expulsion from French territory in 1936 is not documented. From the file it does not appear that poor Vittorio ever left France. (34) ASP, Inv. Quest., Fasc. Broccolicchi Maria, Maria Broccolicchi in Polidori, by Eugenio, antifascist, born in Gubbio 25/4/1895 - cards 16 + 2 photos 1939-1944 - Maria, daughter of Eugenio and wife of the red militiaman Polidori Francesco, di Domenico, is reported as "Very active anti-fascist propagandist and registered in the RF, with the specific purpose of subjecting her to a close interrogation on her political activity, and on that of her husband:" she is extensively questioned and reports on the merits ". According to her file, many important details of Maria's life had escaped the police: who had learned from her brothers-in-law in Città di Castello to use printed type and that she had emigrated with her son and her husband, persecuted for his ideas " anti-national and sympathy for subversive parties "in Nice where she was employed in the printing sector. To provide for her son and her husband, the latter unemployed, she had been helped by the "red aid" during the period in which Polidori had tried, twice, to go to fight or work in Spain. II - III Il fascicolo della Questura e Grelli in Francia IV. - GRELLI IN SPAIN The context in which Alessandro Grelli spends the last two years of his life is the Spanish Civil War, whose complex origin, internal to the country in which it broke out, would seem indispensable to discuss and indicate, moreover, why it inevitably became a European and international affair. , as soon as the contenders - the republicans in government and the revolting Francoists - quickly asked for military aid, receiving generous and ambiguous responses, almost always of common origin and of opposite sign towards the two sides, driven by interests that they went beyond the ideology of merit itself. It might seem indispensable to talk about the parallel civil war that took place, bloody and terrorist, behind the republican lines, between communists and anarchists, a sinister projection of Stalin's Bolshevism, and the massacre of a large number of Franco's political opponents, decimated by the platoon of execution ordered by him (1), a sinister prelude to the decline of the "liberal spirit" of Spain for long successive years. We want to place that dramatic event in the circumscribed reality of the anti-fascists, especially the exiles, to grasp the signs of the political passion of the few who voluntarily exposed their life for the ideal: what they thought about it, how their willingness to participate was organized, how the war changed individual and group attitudes. Circumstances that border on the human drama, barely guessed, that even Grelli lived. - We will tell of his death in combat through mean news, but enough to put him in a solitary, heroic position with respect to the group to which he belongs. The news of the Francoist military uprising of July 1936 spread rapidly throughout Europe, thanks to the radio stations, official or clandestine, especially the Catalan ones, which the technological renewal was making protagonists of mass information (2). The anti-fascists were "fascinated and magnetized" (3), and, having set aside the mulch reserves, they saw near the dream of a direct confrontation with fascism, established in their country: for freedom against tyranny. This is the interpretation that Carlo Rosselli promptly and clearly enunciated in a speech to Radio Barcellona, on November 13, 1936, addressing himself to "Compagni, Italian brothers": identity between Francoism and Mussolian fascism, identity of the struggle to defeat the one and the other. other (4). In the memoirs of the veterans of the Spanish War (5), written a few years after its conclusion, there are rare references to the pacciardana reading. The Rossellian thesis prevails with class variants - anti-capitalist war - and nationalist variants - war of support for a people threatened from the outside - with a clear rejection of the democracy-communism opposition, of which Franco managed to persuade some Italian diplomats. The reaction of the anti-fascists in Italy was prompt and worried following the speed with which the regime sent, as early as the end of July, to Morocco, contingents to reinforce the Francoists. They were not unaware that Mussolini's sympathies for Franco were joined by the long-standing links and affinities between the Savoy and Bourbon monarchies. In the various Italian cities there were no demonstrations of solidarity, repressed even before they exploded, while the regime intensified the arrests, and the Special Court the sentences. In France and Belgium and elsewhere in Europe, where anti-fascist Italians had emigrated, who in the years of exile had experienced the not only material importance of economic support, the first cure was the collection of funds for the Spanish people at war, and for the travel expenses of the volunteers (6). Political propaganda in favor of republican Spain took the form of conferences, meetings, circulars, leaflets, person-to-person meetings, or with groups. The work of the recruiters, organized in the ways that we will analyze later, was so intense and effective as to push Mussolini's government to decree, just six months after the start of the war, their detention, from one to three years (7) . Similarly, in the same period, the French Chamber, following the governmental orientation of "non-intervention" alongside England, had voted a decree to prevent the departure of the French for Spain (8). The long-standing anti-fascist organizations, the LIDU and the FU, found a unity of purpose they had never achieved in ideological discussion. Communists and Socialists, Liberal Party leaders and Republicans worked side by side in informing about the modalities of enlistment and travel. In the area of the Maritime Alps circulated a flyer reproduced in mimeograph style, and therefore of wide circulation, edited by "Fronte Unico Italiano of the Department of Launching" (9), which Grelli may have had on hand and discussed with his companions. On the merits we tend to believe that Grelli's decision was first of all temperamental, and, only in part, the result of a collective elaboration of the group. Within which the possibilities of influence were bypassed, and almost canceled, by the solicitations of the numerous committees, which had formed and were being formed, in favor of Spain, which feverishly multiplied the initiatives to organize recruitment and to inform about course of the war. Also in Ponte S. Luigi, on the border with Italy, a Section of the "Revolutionary Committee pro Spain" functioned, and in Nice a "Russian bureau" hired volunteers. The Spanish government itself had opened its own representation in France to promote the republican cause, and was authorized to circulate its own recruiting agents. The Consul of Spain in Marseille organized the transfer of volunteers to Barcelona, on Spanish ships, which departed twice a month, with a capacity of 450 militiamen at a time, and assured them of triumphal welcome upon arrival (10). The UPI of the MVSN, stationed in Marseille, managed to obtain the lists of transported persons, relative to the last quarter of 1936, for a total of one thousand names. It is obvious that the UPI sent the list to the Ministry of the Interior, which set in motion the bureaucratic process of identification, and subsequent phases, not different from that reserved for those registered. Grelli's name is not included in the lists, as we had hypothesized, knowing for sure that he had left Barcelona, but not taking into account that he had left, yes, from Barcelona, but with the Laroche group, which may have followed differently itinerary (11). - Aggregated with a group, which officially denounced the reasons for enlisting, Grelli did not have to invoke the justification "for work" (12) similar to that of the emigrants of the 1920s and 1930s who, even in the context of the war in Spain , found its objective justification in the contraction of the available manpower (13), as had happened for the emigrants of the 1920s. Nor did he head to sorting places where volunteers from France itself and from other places generally went (14). In these "bureaux" they could regularize the passport, if they were in possession of it, or were provided with special passes. Nor did he have to face the adventurous departure of those who left isolated and individually, as often happened in many parts (15). In this way those "non-party" volunteers crossed the border, statistically given the first place as a numerical participation (16), who ran many risks, even if the "Red Aid" had set up the "Red Help" service at the border. Red Guides "(17). In the land of Spain, the volunteers who arrived by sea were welcomed in the great infantry barracks of Pedralbes, those who arrived by land, crossing the Pyrenees, in Albacete (18). In these and other centers, Grelli also had to stop for training, that is, to follow a military training course, learn how to shoot, and other warfare techniques. At the end of the course he was enrolled in the official BI lists, with a registration number, which is the same as that of the "Carnet militar", the militiamen's identity card (19). Training was often limited to only one week, or even less, depending on the contingent requests coming from the front. In any case, the militiaman was included in the Spanish army, with the same military rank he had achieved in the Italian army, and at the initial rank, if, as could happen, he had not done military service (20). In gray-green, not with a soldier's uniform, but in overalls, the uniform of the worker, appropriate to a war, in which more than half of the fighters were made up of workers (21), on the head the bag with the star three-pointed, with his clenched fist raised at the height of the temple, in the Garibaldi salute, the militiaman appears portrayed in period photographs. In which, however, the black berets of the anarchists and the colonial helmets refer to the diversified political origins of the participants (22). There are two documents referring to Grelli's departure for Spain (23): the telegraphic circular from the Ministry of the Interior (1937) to the Royal Prefect of Perugia and to all the prefects of the kingdom, dated July 1937; the telespresso of the Royal Consulate General of Nice (1937) to the Minister of the Interior, dated June 3, 1937. The date of the first document is a few days after the date of the second, and does not suggest any particular observation other than that of detecting its coincidence. Substantial differences, however, exist between them, regarding the origin and structure of the news itself: the minister writes from Rome, a peripheral place with respect to Nice, from where the Royal Consul writes who had the opportunity to check, albeit indirect evidence of what he says, close as it is to the place where the events took place. The minister informs that Grelli "would have enrolled" uses the conditional, typical of the news of "trust source" - and does not specify any chronological reference; the consul writes that Grelli "left St. Laurent du Var in October 1936". The consul uses the mode of certainty for an event that happened under the eyes of all and that even the friends of Grelli, the companions of the group, may have confirmed, since, with this indication, they did not compromise either the friend or themselves. The motivation for the removal of Grelli is made explicit with the conditional and that is "he would have gone to Barcelona to fight in the international militias of the Laroche group". In conclusion, the minister gives the news for investigative purposes, which does not require chronological details; the consul communicates a date from which Grelli had not been seen again in St. Laurent du Var. Therefore, adding that some time passes from when a person moves away from a place until those of the place realize that he has moved away, we can establish the chronology of the departure of Grelli for Spain, in October 1936, which is in contrast with the date with which in the file of the Perugia Police Headquarters this important junction in Grelli's life is mentioned, as we have already observed. When to the Laroche group, we further specify that, in our opinion, it is a political group and not a military one, for which a different appellation - column, battalion or other - would have been used. In fact, the military group - company or battalion or brigade - was not known upon departure, but assigned, after training, when the soldiers were about to leave for the front, or perhaps the front itself. Grelli, dunqúe, was in Spain from the end of 1936 to September 1938. He spent about two years there, around which we have no documentation relating to the war fronts, in which he could have fought, nor to injuries, illnesses and hospital stays. , nor to probable licenses. Grelli was unable to leave us any news of him because he did not return to his homeland, as happened to the veteran militiamen, who during interrogations or at the border or at the police station, told the details of their Spanish experience. Many tell of moving from one front to another, many had been hospitalized for injuries or illnesses. There are those who can boast of having been fighting for twenty-two months, with only one interruption because they were hospitalized (24); there are those who, despite having returned to Spain twice, never reached the front for reasons beyond their control (25). We will see how the documentation, albeit poor and uncertain, on his death can authorize us to present him in two different phases of the Spanish war: the battle of Madrid at the end of 1936 and the first months of 1937, and the great battle of the Ebro, started in the second fortnight of May 1938, bloodyly culminating precisely in the days in which Grelli lost his life. The documents relating to the definition of the date, place, causes of Grelli's death and particular annexes relating to various circumstances, such as the fate, which moves us with pity, which touched his body, were not found in the archives, but in the current archives of the Ministry of the Treasury, War Pensions Office in the provincial and national headquarters. The Perugia office provided us with the pension application from Alessandro's father (26) which is confirmed by the documentation provided by the Rome office, with the complete documentation acquired to authorize Abramo Grelli's pension (27). Two documents emerge from this documentation, of which we will speak extensively - Notoriety Act of the Consul General of Italy in Nice and the letter from the secretary of the former Garibaldi Fighting Brotherhood in Spain - ten years after the death of Alexander, but absolutely the richer in data and, relatively, closer to the event. Documents of undisputed historical validity, especially with respect to the Death Act, twenty years later (28), which has an exclusively bureaucratic value and does not offer any documentation on the cause of Grelli's death, since it was not possible to find the minutes of the Commission that he drafted it, as we have already complained. As for the date of death, day, month and year, it coincides with the documents mentioned above, and in the Act of presumed death. But let's see what new elements the documents of the pension operation initiated by Abraham bring. They come from various sources: the oldest is drawn up by the Consul General of Italy in Nice, who, acting as a notary, certifies Grelli's death on the basis of "four known and suitable witnesses"; the second is drawn up by the secretariat of the ex-Garibaldi fighting brotherhood in Spain, which certifies the death on the basis of «the results of the documents in its possession». They coincide on the date - night 12-13 September 1938 - and on the cause of death - firearm, enemy machine gun -. But they differ on the toponym in which the event took place; "Arganda in the Ebro area" according to the witnesses summoned by the consul; "The Sierra Caballs on the Ebro" according to the data of the former Garibaldi Brotherhood fighting in Spain. The geographical and chronological error of the first is evident: Arganda, a few kilometers from the capital, is one of the places where the long battle of Madrid took place, which took place in the last months of 1936, until April 1937, that is a year and a half and more before Alexander's death; Sierra Caballs is the place where the battle of the Ebro was taking place in the days when the Grelli fell, from May 1938 to September 1938. The confusion in which the witnesses of the consul of Nice have incurred confirms the chronology indicated by us for the departure of Grelli for Spain, since the geographical error could document a possible participation in the battle of Madrid, in the first phase of his stay in Spain, which we have, in fact, placed in the last months of 1936. Therefore we define the data of Grelli's death, together with the details connected to them, as follows: - date: night between 12 and 13 September 1938; - place: front of the Ebro, Sierra Caballs; - cause: died on the spot following wounds sustained in combat from enemy machine gun bursts, firearms; - burial: the burial place is not known, because the body remained in enemy territory having prevented its recovery during the night; - military situation: soldier, volunteer enlisted in the IV Company, II Battalion "Garibaldi". The battle of the Ebro - July 26 - September 23, 1938 - stands out for its "terrible", compared to all previous military events, in a war that had lasted for two years. Historians tell (29): never seen such a bloody battle and such quantity of artillery, tanks and aviation concentrated on the Ebro. The republican army had crossed the river by order of the government, which was looking for a military success, temporarily achieved, but immediately blocked by the influx of Francoist reinforcements, exceptional and impressive, which determined tragic consequences. It was communicated several times that the "Garibaldi" brigade was in difficulty, in a compromised situation. But whenever the Fascists launched an attack, the Garibaldians emerged, as if by a miracle, from underground, from the semi-destroyed trenches, causing losses and suffering more serious ones, to the point that when the brigade was sent to reserve, only nine hundred fighters. The number of dead and wounded was so great that it could not be covered by the arrival of new volunteers, hindered, moreover, by the growing difficulties in crossing the borders, strictly controlled by the "commissions" set up by the non-intervention committee. The veteran Garibaldi's soldiers (30) tell us: «the armament superiority of the Francoists was crazy. We did not have tanks, we did not have aviation, and the two machine guns supplied were not usable due to lack of bullets. The shotgun with thirty rounds in the barrel and the only two hand grenades we had, did not put us in a position to defend ourselves, under a deluge of cannon fire that came at us, exposed as we were open-faced, without a shrub or a bush that sheltered, on bare and stony ground. We settle down on the ground, waiting for the blow to pass by. In a single day, twenty times, we withdrew from the heights of the sierra, and for as many times we regained them. There was no longer a porter service, there was no drink, there was no food. We went to get it, when it was possible, in the warehouses, which were increasingly lacking. Because the rear, if they could still be called that, had only one task, that of collecting the dead and helping the wounded ... In the evening the group was reconstituted, which diminished day by day: in a single day, - the memory he is very much alive - we had fifty left from the two hundred we were ». And, on the night of 12 to 13 September - we add - a "minus one" of those present was Alessandro Grelli. They saw him lifeless in the opposing field, where he had rashly pushed himself, without being able to escape the enemy fire, which also raged on the dead (31). The tragic situation lasted until 23 September, when the order of the "despedida" arrived, the withdrawal of the BI, made necessary under the pressure of the United Nations Society, to slow down the influx of external aid to Franco, and perhaps also to put an end to the massacre of the fighters of the two fronts. The anti-fascists, as the veterans testify, had not known anything in advance, but they realized that it would be absurd to continue this carnage. More than fifty years after that event we have caught in the stories of some veterans of the BI - not only of Italian origin - some shadow, almost like a regret, an afterthought, the questioning of their voluntary participation, so dramatically closed by order of the "despedida", as to make one lose the reasons. But those few add that in the current situation the struggle for freedom still has to continue. The detachment from his Spanish comrades is defined as "painful" by some Garibaldians and only partially alleviated by the preparation of the spectacular parade for the Barcelona Diagonal, which took place at the end of October. The veterans never saw any of the prisoners again, because they were all murdered by the fascists. For them, fate reserved internment in French concentration camps, determined by the complex and politically contradictory situation of relations between Spain and France. More than a hundred veterans managed to escape from Argèles or Vernet and among them some entered the resistance to the Vichy government; others entered to fight among the partisans in various countries of Northern Europe. Those of them who presented themselves, challenging fate, at the border of Ponte S. Luigi, were arrested and sent to police confinement, with destination, for the most part, Ventotene. In the interrogation reports that they underwent, it is noted that they never wanted to denounce anyone responsible for their decision to voluntarily participate in the war in Spain, and sometimes proudly declare that they are convinced "that they have done their duty". The rare times that they indicate persons or circumstances, they do so in a generic way, so as not to offer investigators a possible trail of research, which is difficult, however, to follow four or five years later. From confinement, Garibaldi's ex-combatants were freed in 1943 - 25 July 1943 - and in the following months they wanted to continue their political struggle by entering, as organizers, the partisan struggle. The members of the primitive nucleus of Bertieri's group conclude their history of political emigrants with a common characteristic, albeit in the specificity of personal situations, which can be interpreted as the signal of the crisis that the phenomenon of political emigration was going through, in the imminence of the outbreak of World War II, about three years before the fall of fascism: they all saved their lives and lived for a long time in republican Italy, which they had also contributed to building, at home, and this due to circumstances not lucky or fortuitous, but for voluntary, carefully calibrated political choices and decisions. September "disbarred" by repentance in 1930, he lived in Rome until 1950; Gattini lived in the country where he was born and escaped any sanction, because he had repeatedly and insistently denied the political faith he shared with Grelli and Bertieri and even their friendship, declaring that he hardly knew them, and that he was always been a fascist. Fascist and moreover persecuted by the trustee of the St. Laurent du Var beam, only because he had not been able to pay the arrears of the PNF card issued to him since 1934. Bertieri, the hero of Sarzanese anti-fascism, wrote in 1940, in his own hand, a question to Mussolini "Your Excellency the Head of the Government of Rome", in which he asks to "be able to freely and definitively return to his homeland", committing himself to " no longer dealing with politics "and" devoting oneself to family and work ". He was not answered. He insists with a second request addressed to the Delegation for repatriation and assistance, managed by the Italian Armistice Commission with France. The application was rejected "due to the poor political record" of the applicant, who "was still poorly remembered in the fascist circle of Sarzana". Bertieri does not give up and expatriates without authorization. On March 13, 1943, he was arrested at the Menton border and transferred to La Spezia, where the Court, by order of July 9, assigned him to police confinement for a period of three years in a small town near L'Aquila. It is likely that the ordinance has suffered some delay until it reaches the historic date of September 8th. Which certainly changed the fate of Bertieri. Finally, Tarducci presents a case in itself: we have not found the date of his death, not even in the country of his birth, nor the evolution of his political history. Let us suppose that by virtue of the years of emigration matured since 1926 he has naturalized and definitively integrated into French society. To unearth the story of Alessandro Grelli from oblivion - we stated it in the Introduction - we carried out this research. The silence of the living people of Umberto weighs on him who, despite having known him, remember him so vaguely that it seems they never knew him. We therefore want to suggest a further path of research that we have carried out, without any result: given that among the "Umbertidesi residing in Nice" signatories of the plaque located in the atrium of the municipal residence of Umbertide and three of the texts summoned by the Consul General of Nice for the Act of Notoriety who are, in fact, two natives of Umbertide, and one of Città di Castello, there is some probable identity, which would mean that living people, or their descendants, who have known Alexander, are traced, we hope that the search for others will have better luck (32). Note: (1) Silvestri M., The decline of Western Europe, Turin, Einaudi, 1954, III, p. 399. (2) Rosselli C., in «Justice and freedom», April 1937. They were called Radio Barcelona, Radio Valencia, Radio Madrid, Radio Toulouse. Others did not indicate their geographical origin in their denomination, such as Radio Verdad, a souped-up Spanish station that broadcast from Italian stations, renamed after the battle of Guadalajara in Radio Falsidad. Even in the silence of the ether - Rosselli observes - war was fought. (3) Silvestri M., cit., P. 360. (4) Rosselli C., Today in Spain, tomorrow in Italy, Turin, Einaudi, 1967. It is in one of the speeches contained in this pamphlet that was printed for the first time in Paris that Rosselli launches the appeal «Today here , tomorrow in Italy ", which in the following January will become" Today in Spain, tomorrow in Italy ", as already noted. (5) AA.W., The International Brigades, La Pietra, 1976, p. 83. The Czechoslovakian Communist Party, which was the most active force that rose to defend the Spanish anti-fascist fighters, also launched the slogan "In Madrid there is also a fight for Prague". (6) There was an important mobilization of intellectuals. In this regard, we cannot escape the suggestion of the verses of Pablo Neruda, who participated intensely in the aid and solidarity campaign for the cause of republican Spain: "I remember, years ago, in Paris, / one evening I spoke to the crowd / I came to ask aid for republican Spain / for the people in their struggle ... »Canto Generale XXXIX - 1945 - P. Neruda - Poesie, Florence, Hoepli, 1962. In which, a few years later, the poet gathers the heroes of the anti-Francoist war to the heroes of Latin America, on a memorable occasion in Brazilian history. (7) Silvestri M., cit., P. 271. The decree is published in the Official Gazette of 2/2/1937. Silvestri comments on this "... by punishing the recruiters, that is, the government itself." (8) ASP, Inv. Quest., Fasc. Zangarelli Emilio. The native Zangarelli of Pietralunga, enlisted in the Death Battalion stationed in Santa Perpetua di Moguda should have received a letter "in the Barracks 19 July of the Red Militias of Barcelona ”sent to him by his brother, intercepted and by the recipient never read. It is attached to his file and contains the news of the resolutions of the French Chamber. We add that Zangarelli, to justify and deny his participation in the war, claims that he went to Barcelona to visit it, since he worked in France in Perigueux, a town very close to the Spanish border. (9) ACS, DGPS Ministry, Volunteers enlisted in the Spanish War for the Red Army, Envelopes 62, 63, 64, Years 1937, 1938. These are three very bulky envelopes that contain unnumbered papers, also referring to 1936. the leaflet described is contained therein. (10) ACS, DGPS Ministry, cit. The ships were called "Villa de Madrid" and "Ciudad de Barcelona". (11) ACS, Grelli Alessandro, CPC. The news of Grelli's enrollment in the Laroche group can only be read in the papers of the CPC dossier in ACS. In this regard, we report that we have not found any news regarding the Laroche group, neither from the live information of our former Garibaldi friends, nor in the various CPC files consulted, nor in general information works, nor in specific works or in French and Spanish encyclopedias and Italian. However, we can make some hypotheses. If Laroche stands for Laroque, it could be connected with Pierre Laroque, a figure who in the 1930s took an active interest in the trade union problems of emigrants, recognizing their important role in replacing the shortage of French manpower. By his name it may have been called a group of volunteers, as has happened for other characters. Laroche can refer to a locality in the Loire - La Roche La Meuliere - where a chemical products factory worked, where many emigrants worked. We learned the news of the Laroche la Meuliere factory from the file of the Terni anarchist Conti Ardito, who started from this locality, but does not refer to a group with that name (see ASP, Inv. Quest., Conti fasc. Ardito). (12) ASP, Inv. Quest. fasc. by Baciotti Guido, Bernardini Vincenzo, Carnevali Settimio, Galli Guido, Giacometti Giuseppe, Zangarelli Emilio. They are all Umbrian militiamen, to whom we will refer for news about their transfer to Spain and the reasons for participating in the war. (13) ASP, Inv. Quest. fasc. Galli Guido. Galli tells us that the newspaper "Esclaireur de Nice et du Sud-Ouest" hosted, at the end of 1936, an advertisement from the Spanish government with a request for drivers and mechanics. There were those who "knew" that "work" meant enlistment and started out as a convinced volunteer. But there were those who were surprised by the trick and tried to escape. As for Galli, he uses the advertisement in the French newspaper to try to deny his participation in the war, which was instead effective in the role of driver of the republican army. (14) ACS, DGPS Ministry, cit. In Basel, Lugano and Zurich, those coming from Germany and all of Northern Europe were welcomed by special bureaux. In Genoa, volunteers from Southern and Northern Italy gathered at the famous "Bar della Borsa". Everyone passed through the Union Bridge, on the border with France, from where the last stage began. (15) ASP, Inv. Quest. fasc. Lightning Mariano, cit. Lightning says that in many French cities, especially in the North, the Spanish People's Relief Committee took care of isolated departures: it paid, for example, the train ticket from Paris to Perpignan to Italian and other nationals volunteers, and he gave them L. 50 - it was not cheap - for what they might need during the trip. At the border they were awaited by a Spanish border committee, which was responsible for accompanying volunteers to Spain. (16) AA.W., The International Brigades, cit., P. 180. He reports other data: about 5000 volunteers were Italian, of which 1822 were communists, 137 socialists, 124 anarchists, 55 militants of radical democratic parties. More than half of the volunteers were workers. The largest group of volunteers was the "non-party" group. (17) ASP, Inv. Quest. fasc. Lightning Mariano, cit. Speaking of the strong flow from Toulon to Perpignan, Fulmini observes that the volunteers formed groups of even a hundred at a time, anarchist exiles. and communists. Their departure - here is the interesting observation of Lightning, who was a character who was particularly attentive to things - was not hidden, on the contrary, in the days before the volunteers made farewell visits to friends, and in the local Chamber of Labor took place a farewell reception, of which Fulmini read the report in the local press. On the merits, the Consul of Italy complains that "the French local authorities ignore or pretend to ignore and every now and then they impose the" duty "to" stop " some volunteers about to leave, to announce it to the newspapers, to document French neutrality, but these were isolated cases ». The Lightning captures the shrewd objectivity of the consular authority. (18) AA.W., The International Brigades, cit. Albacete had been chosen by the Spanish government because it was far from the trajectory of military aviation. The BL was born in Albacete on October 14, 1936, after the arrival of the first five hundred volunteers, belonging to various nationalities, including Italians. In the same month, still in Albacete, the formation of the "Garibaldi" Battalion was decided, in which Italians from all the political components of the democratic movement converged. (19) The "Carnet Militar", of which we are in possession of a photocopy, given to us by the former Garibaldino Gaspare Francioli, whom we would like to thank warmly, bears the serial number, the photograph, the political party of the holder, the date of his entry into Spain, and the issue of the «Carnet», the military rank, the illnesses contracted, any injuries and consequent hospitalization, leave, services on the various fronts, the description of the military uniform supplied and its replacements. Finally it indicates the "pay" in the various periods. On the last page of the "Carnet" a long stamped mention, signed by the Head of the administrative service of the BL, authorizes the soldier to participate in the "retreat" - in Italian in the stamp - and recognizes him the merit of having fought for independence of the Spanish Republic. (20) Rosselli C., Today in Spain, tomorrow in Italy, cit. Rosselli does not have an exemplary memory of military training, he defines it as "summary": the rifle was delivered without cartridges, and then, "up there", at the front, the militiaman would have "the cartridges, the helmet, the bombs , shoes, socks, plates and spoons ». Instead, "up there" - Rosselli concludes - there will be nothing, or very little and "a column leaves as soon as a truck of rifles arrives". (21) See no. 16. (22) AA.W., The International Brigades, cit. From the frontispiece photo. (23) See Appendix I, Telegraphic Circular (1937) and Telespresso (1937) Appendix V. (24) This is the case of Garibaldino Mosca Giuseppe, a lieutenant, who rightly boasts of having been at the front for twenty-two months, for the same time that Grelli was in Spain, with the only interruption, however short, of a hospitalization due to illness in Benicasin, as we have seen from the lists of hospitalized patients also in Salamanca in AHNGC, where the Moscow whose nationality is not mentioned is, according to the spelling - moska josef - considered to come from the East. (25) ASP, Inv. Quest., Fasc. Polidori Francesco. Polidori spent the first period of his volunteer work in a Spanish hospital and was sent on leave shortly after because he was suffering from a serious illness. In Nice, at his home, he recovered discreetly, to the point that he returned to Spain, where he was immediately the victim of an airplane bomb, which did not injure him but, due to the great blast, caused him a concussion, later to which he was definitively repatriated. (26) The DL 19 March 1948, n. 249 with which "pensions and war checks are extended to Italian citizens, who, being part of anti-Francoist formations, have reported mutilations and disabilities as a result of their intervention in the Spanish Civil War, and to their families, in the event of death" is reported in its full text in Appendix VII. Abraham's pension application bears the date of January 2, 1949, with a delay, however granted, with respect to the terms of the Decree, due to the difficulties in finding the documents to be exhibited. (27) DGT, The War Pensions Office, requested by us, provided us with certified photocopies of the documents acquired, at the time of the pension procedure started by Grelli Abramo, Alessandro's father as reported in the introduction. They are: 1) Notoriety deed of the Consul General of Nice dated 3 November 1948 (Appendix VI); 2) Letter from the Promoting Committee of the former Garibaldi Brotherhood of Spain, dated May 12, 1949. We give a detailed description of each of them, which will make the explanation in the text clearer. 1) The Deed of Notoriety on headed paper, free consular mark, is drawn up in Nice, at the headquarters of the Consulate General of Italy: the Consul acting as Notary, at the request of the Mayor of Umbertide, with sheet no. 7302 of 21 September 1948 - letter not found in the offices of the Municipality of Umbertide a Protocol - summons four witnesses "all known and suitable", who consulted separately and jointly certify, under oath that "Mr. Alessandro Grelli, known as Achille, of Abraham and Maria Ercolanellí, born in Umbertide on October 27, 1907, volunteer in BI, died in combat and as a result of gunshot wounds in nucnN From Spain - Ebro front, in the night from 12 to 13 September 1938 ". The ritual formula follows: "We Consul General requested have drawn up the present deed that comes with us and with the Chancellor signed by the appearing parties". Signatures follow. 2) Letter from the Promoting Committee of the Ex-Garibaldi Brotherhood of Spain "Somo hermanos de Espana y Italia", dated from Bologna 12/5/1949: the secretariat of the Committee addresses the letter on headed paper to the Grelli Family, Umbertide, with the subject " declaration of death of the Garibaldian Alessandro Grelli ». The Brotherhood speaks explicitly of "documents in its possession". The declaration prompted us to search the Archive of the «Brotherhood ...» which today, having become extinct, the «Brotherhood» is transferred to the IRB. Here we have read the card headed to Grelli, which is not free from inaccuracies, already highlighted, and is weak in reporting the "documents in his possession". In fact, the death of Grelli is "reported" by Ferrer Visentini, who today does not remember anything, and by his family, who, as we know, were the least informed. On the other hand, the news that emerges from the rest of the letter is interesting: «during the fighting that took place in the Sierra Caballs in the night from 12 to 13 September, hit by bursts of enemy machine guns, he died on the spot. Therefore, since the body remained in enemy territory, the burial place is ignored ”. (28) Presidency of the Council, «Interministerial Commission for the formation and reconstitution of death or birth certificates not drawn up or lost or destroyed by war», in compliance with the Royal Decree Law of 18 October 1942, n. 1520 and Legislative Decree Lieutenancy April 5, 1946. The "Commission ..." on October 12, 1957 draws up the death certificate of Alessandro Grelli which, with the authorization of the Court of Perugia, is transcribed by the Municipality of Umbertide in the Registers of the Dead. We have already noted that the minutes of the "Commission ..." which drew up the act and which should contain the data validating the act itself has not been traced, despite careful and appropriate investigations. (29) There are detailed accounts of the battle of the Ebro, both from a strategic point of view and from the angle of the political situation that determined the "Plan of the Ebro". Fundamental is the typed report that can be read in the Appendix to Hugh Thomas, History of the Spanish Civil War, Einaudi 1963. Of which Nicoletto Italo also speaks in Years of my life, Micheletti, 1980. Other works, already cited, are: AA.W ., The international brigades, translated from Spanish, which has the merit of a work written by historians of various nationalities, all those represented in the ranks of the BI. An extensive bibliography - historical works in various languages, anonymous or collective works, novels, newspapers, magazines etc. - updated to 1977 can be found in Brouè Pierre and Emile Temine, The Revolution and the War of Spain, Mondadori, 1980. As regards the archives, the work of Hugh Thomas offers a complete indication. (30) The most exhaustive testimony was given to us by the Garibaldian of Spain Vincent Tonelli, today President of the Garibaldini of Toulouse, whom we warmly thank. (31) Calandrone G., cit. The battle of the Ebro is narrated by the Garibaldino in dramatic pages, day by day, from August to 23 September. We were struck by the observation relating to the heights of the Sierra Caballs which, precisely in the days in which our Alexander met his death, seemed "immense skimmers, they were so pitted". We have pointed out the Calandrone among the few official texts that speak of Grelli. We add, in this context of our narration, that, in relation to the date of Grelli's death, Calandrone reports it on a day following the night of 12-13 September, moreover without specifying it and without reconstructing the circumstance of the night, which prevented the recovery of the his body. (32) The names are Agabiti Luigi fu Felice, born in Umbertide, on 1st January 1898, industrialist, residing in Nice; Lucaccioni Angelo, was Achille, born in Umbertide on 18 October 1898, bricklayer residing in Nice; Bastianelli Angelo di Florio, born in Città di Castello on 1 June 1907, shoemaker, resident in Nice. IV - Grelli in Spagna

The Statutes of Fratta of 1521 The “Statuti della Fratta” are a parchment volume made up of 112 cards measuring cm. 23 x 33 and have 26 rows in two columns. They are divided into four parts by topics internally indicated by the presence of an illuminated "letter" represented (chap. 1-40; 41-61; 62 -110; 11.142). We have no news today of their "position" within the historical archive of the Municipality of Umbertide. They are a rewriting of the "Statutes of Fratta" of 1362 of which there is no archival trace but only a few fragmentary information. The date of the first "ghost statutes" is deduced from what is said in the Statutes of 1521, namely that the precedents were " disfigured and damaged by the ancient and long use of the fifties and nine ". The document is written in the vernacular as a consequence of the development of the medieval municipality, statutes that generally for more than a century were written in this language, Florence in 1335, Perugia in the mid-1300s, because now more and more layers of the population that does not speak in Latin it has assumed roles of economic and political importance in the inhabited areas. It will be in the sixteenth century that many Umbrian nuclei will endow themselves with statutes in the vernacular. So in 1521 Angelo di Antonio Cibo, Antonio di Giovanni Ser Ursino, Simone di Speranza and Bentevenga di Antonio Dell'Uomo appointed the notary Marino di Domenico di Marino Spunta to reform, renew and rewrite the "Statutes" ... on " MD XXJ in the ninth indictment reigning Pope Leo X adi XXIJ of the month of February ". Nel proemio interno al primo Libro possiamo leggere in maniera più estesa il motivo della stesura (ristesura) degli Statuti: “Cum cio sia cosa che el tempo devoratore de tutte le cose mundane per lo antiquo et longo usu de anni cento cinquanta et nove el laudabile honesto et virtuoso volume o vero libro delli sacri statuti del notabile castello della Fratta delli figluoli de Uberto contado di Perosa della porta de sancto Angelo quasi al tutto habbia deturpato et guasto Per il che meritamente si po iudicare epsso castello del principale et piu suo necessario membro in gravissimo disohonore danno et vilipendio non solum suo ma di tutti li habitanti essare mancho Et ancho perche la nova eta dalla antiqua in molte cose difforme et di continuo desidera promettere novo rito: El che vedendo considerando et per longa experientia provando li egregij homini Angelo de Antonio Cibbj : Antonio di Jovanni di ser Ursino: Simone de Speranza et Bentevenga di Antonio de Lhomo quattro al presente defensorj del ditto castello della Fratta cum comuni consenso et universal volunta de tutti li altri officiali et della generale adunantia et universita del ditto castello et quam maxime ad persuasione dello circumspecto homo ser Paulo de Cristofero Martinelli et molti altri homini virtuosi di epsso castello del bono honesto et pollitico vivere amatori li prefati statuti ad essare in melglo reformati innovati et rescriptti ad me Marino di Domenico di Marino Sponta del ditto castello della Fratta servulo minimo della comunita di epsso benche indengno et mediante el parere et I conselglo de epssi homini virtuosi hanno constituito […]… ”" All'interno del documento si possono trovare delle curiosità grafiche che gli estensori, o dopo di loro chi ne curava la consultazione, inseriremo nel testo come in questo passo “Del camerario et suo officio ", dove compare un volto nella frase "Con cio sia cosa che lo ufficio del camorlengo essere sia certo in lo ditto castello summamente utile et necessario... “ “Del Camerario et suo officio ” (particolare della pagina degli “Statuti di Fratta”, 19r). Si può vedere un volto stilizzato nelle "o " di "con ciò ". Per la precisione si può leggere a proposito del Camerario: "Con cio sia cosa che lo ufficio del camorlengo essere sia certo in lo ditto castello summamente utile et necessario... “. Immagine estratta da: https://www.sa-umbria.beniculturali.it/ricerche-online/inventari-online-1 "Che la peschaia del commune se riguardi "particolare della pagina degli “Statuti di Fratta”, 84r) Qua si può vedere il disegno, probabilmente successivo, per indicare un aspetto evidentemente significativo per la comunità, con una mano che indica la parte più significativa, immagini simili di una mano, spesso con il dito inalennato, si ritrovano più volte nel documento. Per la precisione a riguardo della "pescaia" si può leggere: "Accio che le cose del comuno sieno riguardate et piu habilmente ad li tempi se vendino et maxime dove che si pescha Statuimo adonqua et ordinamo che in el fiume del Tevere in quella parte dove si pesscha et che per lo comuno se riguarda: ad niuna persona sia lecito ne possa pesschare ne fare pesschare... " Immagine estratta da: https://www.sa-umbria.beniculturali.it/ricerche-online/inventari-online-1 Fortunately, in 1980, the then Pro Loco, edited a text thanks to the work of Prof. Bruno Porrozzi, to whom we owe a meritorious work of local historical research with the publication of numerous books. Within it, however, there are 4 images of the divisions internal, pp. 1, 41, 61 and 88 of the Statutes. The edition was probably made from the book previously published by the Municipality of Umbertide: " Statuti della Fratta of 1521, in the vernacular" . We "provide" them to you today complete and in version navigable thanks to the work of Cemir, Multimedia Information and Research Center of the Province of Perugia, which made them available to the public. The document can, in fact, be downloaded in .pdf from the Institute link. http://www.cemir.it/easyne2/Download.aspx?Code=CEMIR&filename=Archivi/CEMIR/PDF/0000/624.PDF Alternatively we thought, after downloading it, to make it available in the our window below which allows direct and interactive reading both from the web and from smartphones without downloading the document. Sources: http://www.cemir.it/easyne2/Download.aspx?Code=CEMIR&filename=Archivi/CEMIR/PDF/0000/624.PDF - "Bruno Porrozzi (edited by)," Statutes of Fratta of the sons of Uberto (Umbertide) of 1521, Pro-Loco Association - Umbertide, "The new Print " of Città di Castello, 1980. Help us remember umbertidestoria@gmail.com

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)