Sovicille is a comune (municipality) in the Province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 60 kilometres (37 mi) south of Florence and about 10 kilometres (6 mi) southwest of Siena.

Sovicille borders the comuni of Casole d'Elsa, Chiusdino, Monteriggioni, Monteroni d'Arbia, Monticiano, Murlo, Siena. Frazioni or fractions are Rosia, San Rocco a Pilli, Stigliano, Torri and Volte Basse.

History

The name Sovicille is documented as far back as 1004,[2] but the origins of the place probably go back much further. (In 2002 a mosaic from the Roman period was uncovered in the Church of St John the Baptist, and there is no shortage of Etruscan relics in the immediate area.)

During the Middle Ages the region found itself on the borders between Siena and Volterra: The Abbey of Serena, some 30 kilometers to the west, was under the control of Volterra, and the land around Sovicille was included as property of the abbey around the year 1000.

A written record of the place survives from 23 April 1123, in which the (by origin Senese) Pope Alexander III identifies it as Sufficille. The name is thought to derive from the Latin words "sub" (under) and "ficinulae/ficus" (small fig tree").

The municipal statutes date right back to the thirteenth century. In the thirteenth century the by now democratically administered Republic of Siena allowed several municipalities, including Sovicille, their own municipal statutes in 1238 (modified in 1293 and then reconfigured, to the format that survives today, in 1303),[3] which included the right to make their own laws.

In 1260 Sovicille was occupied by Florence, but in that year the Florentine armies were defeated at the Battle of Montaperti, whereupon Sovicille reverted to Siena.

In 1333 Sovicille was overrun and burned down by Pisa.

The Medici family purchased the lands of Siena from the Emperor for two million ducats in 1557: this was followed by the abolition of democratic institutions and a return to feudalism. Sovicille became a fief of the Medici and was transformed into an imposing fortress, defending an access point to their newly expanded territories.

After the death of the last of the Medici rulers, power transferred to the Dukes of Lorraine who remained in control till the end of the eighteenth century when the entire region was invaded by Napoleon Bonaparte.

The French remained in charge till 1814 when, under the terms agreed at Vienna, Sovicille was annexed to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. In 1859 it came under the control of the short-lived United Provinces of Central Italy, which was effectively a transitional entity leading to incorporation in 1861 within the new Kingdom of Italy.

Main sights

One of the main monuments of the Sovicille area is the Chiesa della Compagnia della Madonna in the località (district) of Ponte allo Spino. The church was built at the beginning of the 17th century at the will of the later Pope Alexander VII.

The Chiesa di San Bartolomeo ad Ancaiano contains the work Martirio di san Bartolomeo (1644) by Astolfo Petrazzi.
Astolfo Petrazzi (1583-1653 or 1665) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, active mainly in his hometown of Siena, but also Spoleto and Rome. He was a pupil of mainly Francesco Vanni, but also worked under Ventura Salimbeni and Pietro Sorri.[2] He died in Siena.

Monastero della Santissima Trinità e Santa Mustiola a Torri, already mentioned in 1070.

Oratorio della Madonna delle Grazie, Oratorium aus dem 16. Jahrhundert nahe Malignano.

Pieve dei San Giusto e Clemente a Balli, bereits 1078 erwähnte Pieve.

Pieve di San Giovanni Battista a Molli, bereits im 11. Jahrhundert erwähnte Pieve, die im 18. Jahrhundert umfangreich erneuert wurde.

Pieve di San Giovanni Battista a Pernina, bereits 1078 dokumentierte Pieve, enthielt das Werk Madonna col Bambino von Luca di Tommè, welches sich heute im Museo civico e d’arte sacra in Colle di Val d’Elsa befindet.

Pieve di San Giovanni Battista a Ponte allo Spino, bereits 1189 erwähnte Pieve, enthält das Werk Madonna col Bambino, angeli, santi e un vescovo von Bartolomeo Neroni.

Pieve di San Giovanni Battista a Rosia im Ortsteil Rosia.

Pieve di San Lorenzo, Kirche im Hauptort, enthält das Werk Madonna col Bambino e i Santi Giovanni Evangelista, Michele Arcangelo, Caterina d’Alessandria, Agata, Lorenzo e Pietro von Alessandro Casolani.

Ponte della Pia, mittelalterliche Brücke über den Fluss Rosia, benannt nach Pia de’ Tolomei.

Villa Cetinale, von 1676 bis 1678 im Auftrage Flavio Chigis von Carlo Fontana erbaut. 1688 wurde der Giardino formale, auch Giardino degli agrumi genannt, fertiggestellt, 1705 der Parco della Tebaide (Thebais-Park).

Offizielle Webseite der Gemeinde Sovicille | Comune Sovicille