Antica Locanda "La Pietra" - Il Paese di Roccalbegna

Roccalbegna: the small Siena

History talks of a certain event: a privilege of Ludovico Il Pio certifies that in
the year of Grace 817, the “Cella Sancti Miniati” existed at Fonte del Fabbro, where
the Montagna road descends towards the stream. Here, there were buildings to accommodate the brothers and to offer hospitality to pilgrims, for conserving produce from the land, plus a chapel dedicated to San Miniato.This presence was fundamental for the future development
of the hamlet. It was the Aldobrandeschi who transformed the ancient
shepherds’ village under the rock of Cassero into a castle fortified with
walls and a gate: the initial nucleus clung to the “Rocca dei Signori”
the “Poggiolo” and the “Balza”,
with the Parish church of
San Giovanni, the
current oratorio of
the Crucifix, the
Cemetery, the Town
Hall building, the
Court Building,
the Hospital called
the “Palazzaccio”,
the “Casa della
Lana” (Wool House),
bakery, tavern and the
wretched homes of the poor shepherds and farmers.
A fortalice was constructed on the Pietra. Rocca Albigna was
the name under which the hamlet entered into history
(document of 1216). In 1274 in the new division of the landed
estate into the County of Sovana and into the County of S.Fiora
“Rocca Albinea” was inserted into the “Barony” of Sovana.
After 1264 the gentlemen of Roccalbegna seemed to swing
between loyalty to the Count and submission to the
Republic of Siena which attempted to occupy its Amiatino
and Maremma territory. Next, in 1293 Rinaldo with son Soarzino,
Fazino and Pepo, Vencio and Ugolino III with respective wives
Necca and Aghina, were collectively forced to sell their share of
powers over the RoccaCastle to repay debts. We come to the year
of Grace 1296: on 12 December Roccalbegna became “Castello Senese” by deed of
Matteo di Bonico drawn up in the fortalice of the Pietra. Perhaps the Hamlet of Roccalbegna
was part of the ambitious Siena design on Talamone which Dante mocked through the mouth of Sapia: “……those vain people / who hope in Talamone…..” (Purgatory, XIII, 151-154).
In this way, we can understand why after getting its hands on Borgo di Roccalbegna, Siena did not limit itself to using it as an encampment for its military; instead, it also wanted to create a decorous town for accommodating travellers, who knows, merchants and bankers on their journeys from Siena to Talamone. On 8 April, 1296, the “Consiglio Senese dei Nove” (Siena Council) decided to transform the small hamlet into a town.
In the territory between the old hamlet and the Pietra, a grid of parallel and streets was drawn up square to Via Maestra, the hinge of the Roman plan, linking the two gates: to the south the Maremma gate, popularly known as the “Porta di Sotto” or “Porta della Madonna”; to the north, the Montagna gate, also called “Porta di Sopra” or “Porta dell’Abate” in remote times.

At the centre of the town composition there was the “Chiesa Maggiore dei SS. Pietro e Paolo”, with its handsome portal and short bell tower gable. Mills, bakeries, public water troughs, etc. were planned…
This is how a town with a typically medieval character was born with its lean and essential structure: stairways and alleys rise through the slopes interrupting the terraced houses; “balzali” and arches enliven the roads; towers and walls unexpectedly adorn.
At Roccalbegna, time has stopped in the middle ages. In 1455 Siena modified the fortifications, but this only partially stopped the involution process of the area. With the defeat of the Republic of Siena, half way through the XVI century Roccalbegna passed into the “Granducato” governed by Cosimo I dei Medici, but already in1560 it was given in fiefdom to cardinal Antonio Sforza. It remained a fee of the grand duchy until 1751.
The town of Roccalbegna is situated in the upper valley of the Albegna river, in a zone of medium mountain height of rare beauty on the southern part of Monte Labro. It occupies a special topographical position, immediately perceptible. The medieval appearance of the town is characterised and qualified by the “Pietra”, a natural rocky tower in which predator birds nest; a panorama of the entire inhabited area can be enjoyed from the top – the dwellings squeezed between the “sasso” and the “rocca”, the other rocky feature from which the remains of the Aldobrandeschi fortifications and the “cassero senese” emerge.

In the field of art, the town does not just enjoy absolute pre-eminence in this part of GrossetoProvince, it is also considered to be one of the most important centres of the whole of Tuscany; the town’s works of art mainly belong to the medieval culture and that of Siena. The “Chiesa Maggiore dei Santi Pietro e Paolo” dating back to the XIII century, is in Romanic style and conserves an altar piece considered to be one of the most significant masterpieces of Ambrogio Lorenzetti.

Then, there are works on canvas by del Tommè and de Salimbeni. The Portal of the Chiesa Maggiore is its most interesting element; the architrave considerably lowered towards the right reveals the yielding the building suffered on that side just a few centuries after its erection.
One item of notable importance is a standard from 1799 of the “Viva Maria” bands which opposed the French occupation after the Revolution.

The standard of Roccalbegna bears the embroidered inscription “Roccalbegna di’ Viva Maria e chi la creò” witnessing that the populace rebelled against the nth foreign domination which in the name of Reason and Right, stole, massacred and also tried to cancel the faith, the sole wealth of those poor peasant shepherds and mountain men.

Art returns to Roccalbegna
Every summer in Chiesa Maggiore square Angelo Buscema’s colourful art boutique opens, a place of pleasant meetings and conversations about art. Today, the Municipal Library of Roccalbegna in the Palazzo dell’Orologio, houses a collection of“Ex - Libris” created using the graphic art techniques – water colour, wood cuts , lithographs, punching, lino cuts…. In 1997 the 101 artists, of a good twenty two nationalities participating in the “Concorso Internazionale per l’Ex - Libris Pro Loco di Roccalbegna” (International Competition for Ex - Libris Pro Loco di Roccalbegna”) admirably interpreted the nature, culture and soul of this unknown medieval town.
For this homage to Roccalbegna we must thank Lawyer Luigi Bardi who, as President of the Italian Ex Libris Association A.I.E. dedicated the International Competition to the town, arranged the exhibitions and granted the collection to the Municipal Library. The “Toricelle”, once military towers, will become the custodians of the Ex Libris.