PONTASSIEVE

'Pontassieve' is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Florence in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 14 km east of Florence, nearby Fiesole, at the confluence of the Arno and Sieve rivers. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 20,581 and an area of 114.4 km².^[1]
The territory of Pontassieve borders the following municipalities: Bagno a Ripoli, Borgo San Lorenzo, Dicomano, Fiesole, Pelago, Rignano sull'Arno, Rufina, Vicchio.

Contents

History

Economy

Demographic evolution

References

External links

History

The first dominators of the territory were the Quona nobles, whose Lordship is documented from the XI century. These, a branch of whom at a later date also appeared under the name of Filicaia, urbanised themselves in Firenze at the end of the XII century and in 1207 sold a large part of its territory of jurisdiction to the Fiorentino Episcopate.
The village of Pontassieve formed and consolidated under the Florentine domination. In 1375 Firenze decreed the erection of a castle for an essentially strategic use on the land of Pontassieve. First the town took the name of "Castel Sant’Angelo" (Saint Angel Castle) and then it took its actual name referring to the importance of the bridge on the river, that was the main way joining the Republic of Florence to the territories of the Mugello, Casentino and the city of Arezzo.
The first houses of the village had spontaneously built up around the bridge, which were then developed becoming a village which was situated lower in respect to the castle built by the Fiorentini. The population carried out just the cultivation of foods to supply itself because Pontassieve was considered by the Florentines just a military stronghold of the Republic, so that Florence did not promoted its economic growing.
At the end of the XVIII-th century the coming of the Lorena’s Dukes to the power gave a great impulse to the town economy. Thanks to the Ducal works for the reclamation of the territory and the opening of two new roads that joined Pontassieve to the Casentino and the Emilia Romagna, Pontassieve had a remarkable economic growing.
Under the Lorena’s domination Pontassieve reached a great importance so that the town was elevated to the rank of Vicarship’s Town Hall comprising part of the territories belonging to the Arno and Sieve valleys.
In 1859 the building of a railway that joined Florence to Rome gave an additional impulse to the economic growing. The construction of this important railway and later the contrution of also the Florence-Borgo San Lorenzo railway allowed the city to grow also as an industrial hub.
In 1861 Pontassieve was annexed to the Reign of Italy by the King Vittorio Emanuele II of Savoia.
During the second world war Pontassieve, for its importance as a rail junction, suffered substantial damage: the railways and the town itself were repeatedly bombed by Allied planes remaining destroyed almost entirely and its present day aspect is due, for the most part, to the post war reconstruction. Even though, the town has kept it's original medievil look in the city center.

Economy

The economy of the town is based on the industrial activities in the fields of food, mechanic and electronic industries, and on the manufacture of glass and pottery. Flourishing is also the artisan manufacture of leathers and remarkable are the productions of the "Vino Chianti Putto" and of a very valuable oil.
Among the several celebrations periodically taking place in Pontassieve we remind here the traditional "Toscanello d'oro" held yearly on May. The celebration consists of a show-market where it is possible to taste and buy valuable local wines and typical courses of Pontassieve.

Demographic evolution

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References

1. All demographics and other statistics: Italian statistical institute Istat.

External links

★ www.comune.pontassieve.fi.it/