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territory grand prix vintage car, countess matilde di canossa, canossa lands, historic car race, feudal state, The Canossa Lands
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The history of the Canossa Lands
In XII century, the lands of the feudal State of Countess Matilde di Canossa went from Brescia to Viterbo, including important cities such as Cremona, Mantova, Ferrara, Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, La Spezia, Pisa, Lucca, Firenze, Arezzo, Siena, Grosseto and Perugia.
A mighty fortified system protected the feudal State of the Canossa Lands that Countess Matilde ran between XI and XII century.
The origin of the castells goes back to the family Attonidi, from who Matilde descent; this family strengthened the northern border of his ownership, between Taro and Reno river. The defensive structures were a safety guarantee but were also the symbols of their authority. Probably Matilde’s castles were built to potentiate pre-existent structures.
The fortified lines (mostly in The Apenines near Reggio) went from east to west on different heights. Canossa, for instance, is located on a intermediate defensive line, while Bianello faced directly to the planes, to counteract enemies coming from the north. Matilde’s castles have been destroyed firstly from the intolerant Comuni and then during the “Signorie” period.
Matilde’s territory was characterized not only by castles and villages, but also by churches (pieve), representing his religious dimension. Those churches also played an assistance role to the population, that’s why they were located near the castles, and were important parts of the matildic Lands territory organization. Those churches were preserved and maintained thanks to the churchgoers offers.
Only few of this building maintains nowadays original architectonical elements since they were deeply modified during last centuries.
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