History of the villages
Villages
MONTECCHIO
Situated on a rise overlooking the Tiber valley, the town of Montecchio still retains intact the character of a medieval village with its small and curious alleys and mighty walls. The history of this territory, however, begins much farther back; already in pre-Roman times, in fact, the area was known and inhabited, as evidenced by the vast Necropolis of the Vallone di San Lorenzo, discovered in the mid-1800s by archaeologist Domenico Golini. The first written sources on Montecchio are dated 1154.
The original nucleus of the castle dates back to around 1165 by the Chiaravalle family of Todi, who retreated here following the struggles between the Guelphs and Ghibellines, while in 1190 the second fortified circle was built, both for greater defense of the village and for the increase in population; the expansions went on until the middle of the 13th century. On the possessions of the “Castrum Monticuli” there ruled the Chiaravalle, the Alviano, the Baschi and the Colonna; in the 16th century it was then the turn of the Atti family of Todi, as the names of some streets in the historic center still show. Beginning in 1607 it was under the control of the Corsini family. With the founding of the Kingdom of Italy in 1860 the territory of Montecchio passed under the jurisdiction of the municipality of Baschi and so it remained until 1948 when Montecchio became an autonomous municipality with the hamlets of Tenaglie and Melezzole.
GUARDEA
The first documented settlement was at Marruto, from where the inhabitants emigrated and founded the castle, called Castello del Poggio, around 1035. In the 12th century a descendant of a count of the Basques of Gascony founded, on the top of the hill overlooking the present village, a castle to guard the territory. The origin of the name, from the German “wart” (guardian), shows that Guardea was born as a “lookout post.”
In the 13th century the castle became the property of the family of the lords of Alviano, who held it until 1581 when Caterina Cervara, niece of Bartolomeo d'Alviano, brought it as dowry to her husband Ludovico di Marsciano. Later the inhabitants moved further downstream, giving rise to the birth of the current center of Guardea, which from that time was part of the Papal States until the annexation to the Kingdom of Italy (1860). The oldest traces of human presence in the territory date back to the Paleolithic, as evidenced by the tools and numerous flint flakes preserved in the headquarters of the Archaeological Group. The megalithic walls (Fossi locality), dating from the 3rd-2nd century B.C., are interesting: the imposing stretches of walls are the remains of a system that served to stem the waters of streams and the Tiber to preserve farmland.
On the hill behind the town stand the remains of the ancient castle of Guardea Vecchia: still visible in large part is the system of eight towers (six quadrangular and two semicircular) and the large central keep. Almost opposite Guardea Vecchia is the Castello del Poggio, the ancient defensive system that has remained unchanged over the centuries. At present, after careful restoration, it is the Italian headquarters of the Club of Budapest, an international body concerned with the development of universal civic consciousness. In the city, the elegant Panfili Square is overlooked by the 18th-century Church of St. Peter and St. Caesar, which houses the remains of Blessed Pascuccio, the city's patron saint. Next to the schools, in the center of a large, well-equipped park, stands the Arch of Planetary Consciousness in which stones sent by mayors from all over the world are set. Nearby, just outside Guardea, the remains of the church and the Hermitage of Sant'Illuminata (year 1007): not far away is the cave where St. Francis withdrew in prayer, sleeping on top of a travertine boulder that is still an object of worship.
AVIGLIANO UMBRO
SANTA RESTITUTA The small town retains the charm of ancient villages. The houses are lined up around a stepped road that climbs to the upper part of the village, once occupied by a castle that arose with functions of defense of the Byzantine corridor and was the protagonist of several historical events, including the presence in 1495, of the King of France Charles VII, with 3,000 Frenchmen, who set up his camps on the spot, also occupying Toscolano and demanding ransom from Todi. An interesting town-planning detail is the fact that the houses themselves, leaning against each other and reinforced by several towers, serve as the town walls. Access to the village is provided by four gates. The primitive fortified nucleus stood higher up on Mount Pianello, where some remains can still be traced.
In the parish church of Santa Restituta inside are frescoes and a wooden statue called the Madonna del Pero, a 15th-century work. Church of San Michele This is the church attached to the cemetery: it has a simple Romanesque setting. Paragnano. It was once a powerful fortified village with Fort Caesar and Civitella. Currently it is just a farmhouse near Santa Restituta. An important economic resource of Santa Restituta, as of Toscolano, is chestnuts, highly prized for their quality.
Grotta Bella. The Cave was discovered in 1902, but explored between 1971 and 1973. It opens on the side of Mount Aiola: access is partly covered by vegetation. From the initial opening - it measures about 9 meters - there is access to a large chamber rich in stalactitic and stalagmitic concretions. From here then branch off a series of smaller rooms where remarkable karst phenomena can be detected. They are connected by two tunnels, one of which has such a network of intersections that it gives rise to a real labyrinth. The cave, however, turned out to be a particularly interesting discovery for the knowledge of human history. It, in addition to its environmental values, has historical and archaeological significance since, in the cavity, ceramic materials from different periods were found, attesting to the presence of a settlement as early as the Neolithic period. The discovery of a votive stipe also shows that the cave, from the 6th century B.C. and up to the 1st century B.C., had become a place of worship. Probably, given the characteristics of the site, these were water-related deities-the natural cavities provided a direct link to the underground world-and agricultural-pastoral ones.
Beginning in the early 1700s, the surrounding mountains, which were particularly rich in forests that provided valuable wood and an abundance of chestnuts, were disputed by Guardea: the dispute was settled only after two centuries in favor of Santa Restituta. On Mount Pianicel Grande and Mount Aiola, in the area between the towns of Santa Restituta and Toscolano, chestnut groves prevail-but there is no shortage of oak and ilex groves-which are a fundamental part of the economy of these towns in terms of both chestnut and timber production. Widely practiced is hunting: that of palomba was so profitable that until the end of the 19th century the locals were able to pay emphyteusis taxes. On the elevations of Santa Restituta a tree has been found that is many hundreds of years old and therefore constitutes one of the oldest specimens in Europe. It is a maple commonly called “Acerone” because of its size.
TOSCOLANO
The place name derives from the gens Toscola. The medieval village is distributed on the slopes of Mount Croce di Serra, in a splendid panoramic position and is surrounded by thick chestnut woods. It has a circular urban layout, enclosed within solid walls with mighty towers that were restored in 1442. The houses, inside the village, lean against the walls, following their course. Already developed at the beginning of the 13th century, the castle guaranteed the defense of the border area with the nearby Melezzole and Santa Restituta. It was part of the territory of Todi, as evidenced by the coat of arms that stands above one of the gates to the castrum. The original site of the fortress can be identified in the ruins of Toscolano Vecchia.
Church of St. Apollinaris. The building dates from the 18th century. Inside are the following: Crucifixion between the Madonna and Saints Francis, Charles Borromeo and Martyr Bishop by Andrea Polinori (17th cent.); Madonna of the Rosary by Pietro Paolo Sensi da Todi (17th cent.); Madonna and Child with Saints, unattributed. A missal preserved in Toscolano in the church of Sant'Apollinare bears the signature of Charles VIII, King of France, who occupied the castle in 1495. Church of the Santissima Annunziata - Votive wayside shrine in Toscolano. The chapel, an ancient votive shrine, is located on the outskirts of Toscolano. It was discovered in 1985. In it, in addition to many votive offerings donated to the church following a plague, a large fresco, a “Majesty,” attributed by Federico Zeri to Piermatteo d'Amelia, is visible. The sky by Piermatteo d'Amelia (c. 1481 - 83). On the arch of the front is painted an Annunciation with the Angel on the left, the Madonna with open book in her hand on the right and, in the center above, the Eternal Father.
Wayside shrine. On the back wall is the Madonna Enthroned with Child, Saints Roch and Sebastian and Angels with signs of 18th-century repainting. This image mirrors the Madonna of Porchiano di Amelia and the Madonna of Berlin, also by Piermatteo d'Amelia. The vault depicts the four Evangelists. In the center of the vault is depicted the blessing Eternal Father. On the sides, on the walls, are remnants of frescoes of eight saints, including St. Francis, St. Catherine of Alexandria, St. Mary Magdalene, Saint Martyr, St. Anthony Abbot and St. Lucy. Fra Faostino (1595-Trevi 1679). A native of Toscolano, the friar traveled to the Holy Land. The account is found in his “Itinerary of the Holy Land” where he describes peoples, customs and traditions of Arab society. Mogol, the famous author of successful song lyrics, for a long time in association with the singer Lucio Battisti, created in Toscolano the City of Music : it is a real school for musicians, lyricists and singers from all over the world that aims at the knowledge and deepening of the basic instrumentality of music by combining it with the free expression and creativity of each person.
COMUNE DI BASCHI
Baschi, which rises on the left bank of the Tiber not far from the confluence with the Paglia, is the chief town of a large municipality that includes, in addition to its ancient territory, other villages and groupings of houses placed on the hills, toward Todi: Acqualoreto, Morre, Morruzze, Collelungo, Civitella del lago, Cerreto, Scoppieto and Vagli. Little or nothing is known about its history in pre-Roman times. It is, however, well documented in the Roman period: indeed, it was “the ancient city of Veascium, where, according to Diodorus of Sicily, the Gauls, led by Brennus, were beaten by Furio Camillus seven months after the battle of the river Allia, on July 16, 364 from the founding of Rome and 390 years before the birth of Christ” .
In Roman times the area was densely populated, and there are numerous archaeological finds. The (rural) commune was born and developed within a lordship that was one of the longest: a lordship that was known as the Basques. Proud and impetuous knights, the Basques (of almost certain Lombard origin) embraced the Ghibelline cause. We find them involved in major events in central Italy, such as the descent of Arrigo VII of Luxembourg, and Ludwig of Bavaria, and during struggles against their bitter Guelph enemies. Related to the major families (Aldobrandeschi, Farnese, Orsini, Baglioni, Caetani, Vitelleschi, Baglioni, etc.), in the 13th and 14th centuries they reached their greatest power, reaching 60 castles with estates extending into Umbria, Tuscany as far as the sea, and Marche as far as Camerino. Machiavelli in Book 2 of his History of Florence says that “from the year 1215 the Basques were among the noblest families in Florence”; and in Book 8 that “around the year 1478 the Basque family was for nobility and riches the most splendid in Florence without exception even for the Medici.”
The Basques developed into several branches that always remained united in “consorteria,” being in common rights in their castles, and for any undertaking they were in agreement and ready for action. “We often find the Basques of Montemarano, of Vitozzo (Tuscany), of the original branch and others engaged in the attempt, developed throughout the 14th century but not conducted to a good end, to create a territorially large and strong feud, replacing themselves in the Aldobrandesque dominion by then on the way to ruin (“Vitozza, an abandoned center, San Quirico, a new center”- Angelo Biondi-1988) However, there was no lack of infighting: it is enough to recall the massacre of Lady Bernardina and some of her children in the castle of Baschi, perpetrated by the Baschi relatives of Carnano (Montecchio) in 1553. The first Lord of Baschi of whom we have record is named Ugolino and lived in 1080. The most recurrent names of the lineage are Ugolino and Ranieri.
In 1809 Rome and the Papal States were annexed to France after Napoleon's occupation. Baschi was part of the Circondario di Todi together with Orvieto, Department of Trasimeno. In 1960 Baschi passed to the Italian government with Orvieto and Todi. In 1891 the Palazzo del Conte Ranuccio, now the seat of the Municipality, was divided into three parts, between the Banca Romana, Mr. Gaddi heir of the last Buccisanti in turn heir of the Mazzanti, and the Francisci family who sold their part to the Municipality, which established there the seat of the Municipal Administration. Descendants of Angelina dei Baschi still exist in Orvieto. The Baschi family also extended and branched out in France. In 1412 Guiscardo dei Baschi, lord of Vitozzo (diocese of Sovana), Morano and Latera, together with his wife Giacomina Farnese, daughter of Ranuccio Farnese, and their two children Bertoldo and Romana, followed Louis II of Anjou, king of Naples and count of Provence; the king had appointed him his Squire of Honor. He settled in the castle of Thoard (Basses Alpes); he later acquired the castles of Barras, Saint-Estève and Tournefort. Thoard always remained the “mother house” of the Basques of France, who developed into two main branches, Saint-Estève and Saint-Pierre, and other secondary branches. The Basques figure among the nobility of France, and many of them played important roles and held high positions in diplomacy, the army, and politics. Some have lived in close contact with kings, as Squires, “Maitres d'hotel,” “Gentilhommes ordinaires de la chambre du Roi,” advisers. Many were awarded the highest honors, such as “Knight of the Legion of Honor,” “Knight of St. Louis,” “Grand Cross of the Royal and Military Order of St. Louis,” and even “Peers of France.”
Let us recall very briefly Count François de Basques de Saint- Estève, who served for three years in the second company of the King's Musketeers, then was appointed Minister Plenipotentiary to the Elector of Bavaria (1748); in 1750 he was sent to Portugal as ambassador and in 1760 to Venice, again as ambassador. He married Charlotte Victoire le Normant, twenty years his junior, and became brother-in-law to Madame de Pompadour, Louis XV's favorite; he attended court with his wife and was awarded the highest honors, including “Peer of France.”
Proud of his Italian origins, he came to Umbria after 1749 to meet relatives from Baschi and Orvieto: Count Francesco Maria di Baschi, Angelina and her husband Count Mazzanti, establishing an interesting and affectionate correspondence with them. Also worth knowing is Charles de Baschi, Marquis of Aubais and Cayla (Languedoc): he, too, was a musketeer to the King before retiring to his southern possessions; much loved by his subjects, he devoted his life to letters, wrote “Pièces fugitives pour servir à l'histoire de France” and other works, always of historical research, but he was above all a great “rassembleur de livres.” every year he traveled to Paris with two carriages one of which was filled with books; he collected as many as 30. 000; to house them he had a wing added to his splendid castle (which counted as many windows as there were days in the year) at Aubais. The castle was burned down on April 1, 1792, and Thoard's was also massacred by the revolutionaries.
The last of the Basques of France was Achille Pierre Antoine de Baschi, Count of Cayla, senior officer, Knight of the Royal and Military Order of St. Louis, Peer of France, born in 1775 in Paris in the Palais Bourbon, died August 14, 1851. His wife, Zoé Talon de Baschi Countess of Cayla, became a favorite of King Louis XVIII, and then separated from him “de corps et de biens.” They had two children Ugolino who died before his parents (he was thus the last Basque generated) and Ugolina Valentina who married the Prince of Craon.