Fighine Castle
From
Florence follow the Highway A1 toward Rome until the exit of Chiusi,
from here continue to Sarteano, then Cetona.
Follow the SS321 to Piazze. The indication to Palazzone can be followed
from here and from this little hamlet continue along the country road
that bring to Fighine. The same road can be taken on the opposite side
of the mount from S.Casciano dei Bagni.
The castle rises in an exceptional strategical position,
on the watershed between the valleys of the Paglia and the Chiana streams
at approximately 650 meters of altitude. Fighine was mentioned for the
first time in 1058 in relation to the Parish church of Santa Maria 'de
Fighine'. In the 12th century the castle was fief of the Visconti di
Campiglia d' Orcia, powerful family of this area, later feudatory also
on Chiusi,
S.Casciano (now S.Casciano dei Bagni) and Celle sul Rigo.
We find Fighine as fortified castle in the edict of
the 1266 with which the Emperor Frederick di Svevia granted to Tancredi,
Viscount
of Campiglia, the possession of Fighine and other castles. Also Ludovico
the Bavaro confirmed Fighine to the Viscount. The position made Fighine
object of disputes between Captains of mercenary troops and the local
nobility until it was occupied by the troops of Cortona and yielded
by
Paolo Orsini.
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Between the successive owners there was also the 'Condottiero'
Baldaccio d' Anghiari. At his dead, in 1441, the Sienese Republic
obtained the control of the castle. In 1446 were undertaken great works
of widening and strengthening of the fortified structures, but the reconstruction
was interrupted in 1451 due to the occupation of the castle by the troops
of the Pope. Devoto II give back Fighine to Siena after 12 years. After
the annexation of Siena to the Granduchy of Tuscany, Fighine passed under
the control of the Gran Duke Cosimo dei Medici. The castle has always
represented the most important center of power of this area, enough
to be compared to the municipalities of Orvieto and Caporsevoli.
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The structure of the great keep is very particular,
it conserves the original quadrangular shape with three angle-towers:
the
highest is the ancient nucleus of the fortification and called 'Torre
Vecchia' (Old Tower) with square form and rests of brackets in stone;
on the north-east angle there is another tower with octagonal shape and
the last rise on the north-west side, smaller and semi-octagonal. Attached
at this tower started the town walls, and the tower controlled also the
unique gate. The walls were of approximately 1.5 meters of thickness
and endowed
with small round towers. Nowadays the town walls, even though in great
part ruined, still encircle the village. One of the aforesaid towers
was
used like apse of the S.Michele Archangel Church. The portion of wall
were the gate is open seems to rise in its original height with
traces of the stone brackets that supported the hoarding. The central
body of the fortification, towers and constable's apartments, has strong
bastionated walls, united through a drip-stone to the vertical part and
crowned with brackets. Today, private owners who bought most of the property
have
restored this antique village and the castle is visible only from the
outside.
The S.Michele Archangel Church has the apse turned to
east, according to the ancient tradition, rectangular plant, wooden roof,
brickwork paving and two little lateral chapels. In origin it had five
altars, today only three. It contains five paintings with images of saints
of the 'Scuola Orvietana' and Florentine. Behind the greater altar catch
the eye the one of S.Michele Archangel, painted by Bonichi of Lucignano
in 1750
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