Trento
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The township of Trento is geographically very large and encompasses the town center as well as many suburbs of extremely varied geographical and population conditions (from the industrial suburb of Gardolo, just north of the city, to tiny mountain hamlets on the Monte Bondone). Various distinctive suburbs still maintain their traditional identity of rural or mountain villages. The town proper only has 55,197 inhabitants (October 2004). The 2004 population of the entire township is 110,142.
Geography
Trento lies in a wide glacial valley, where the Fersina and Avisio rivers join the Adige (the second longest river in Italy). The city is surrounded by mountains, including the Vigolana (2,150 m), the Monte Bondone (2,181 m), the Paganella (2,124 m), the Marzola (1,747 m) and the Monte Calisio (1,096 m). Nearby lakes include the Lago di Caldonazzo, Lago di Levico, Lago di Garda and Lago di Toblino.
History
The origins of the city are controversial. Some scholars mantains it a was Rhaetian settlement: the Adige area was however influenced by neighbouring populations, including the (Adriatic) Veneti, the Etruscans, the Cimbri, and the Gauls (a Celtic people). According to other theories, therefore, the latter did instead found the city during the 4th century BC.
Trento was conquered by the Romans in the late 1st century BC, after several clashes with the Raetian tribes. The Romans gave their settlement the name Tridentum, because of the three hills that surround the city: the Doss Trent, Sant'Agata and San Rocco. The Latin name is the source of the adjective Tridentine. On the old townhall a Latin inscription is still visible: Montes argentum mihi dant nomenque Tridentum ("Mountains give me silver and the name of Trento"), attributed to Fra' Bartolomeo da Trento (died in 1251).
After the fall of the Roman Empire, Trento was ruled by the Goths, Lombards and Franks, finally becoming part of the Holy Roman Empire. In 1027, Emperor Conrad II created the Prince-Bishop of Trento, who wielded both temporal and religious powers; but in the following centuries the sovereignty was divided between the prince-bishop and the county of Tyrol (from 1363 part of the Habsburg monarchy). Around 1200, Trento became a minerary production center of some significance (silver was mined from the Monte Calisio - Khalisperg), and Prince-Bishop Federico Wanga issued the first mining code of the alpine region. A dark episode in the history of Trento involved the alleged disappearance of a three year old boy known as Simon of Trent (S.Simonino) in 1475, which was blamed on the local Jewish community and resulted in a series of executions.
In the 16th century Trento became famous for the Council of Trent (1545-1563) which gave rise to the Counter-Reformation. The adjective Tridentine (as in "Tridentine Mass") literally means pertaining to Trento, but, because of the Tridentine Council, can also refer to this specific event. Among the famous prince bishops of this time were Bernardo Clesio (who ruled the city 1514-1539, and managed to steer the Council to Trento) and Cristoforo Madruzzo (who ruled 1539-1567, during the Council), both able European politicians and Renaissance humanists, who greatly expanded and embellished the city. Prince bishops ruled Trento until Napoleon conquered the city in 1801. In 1814, Trento was finally annexed by the Habsburg Empire.
In the next decades Trento experienced a modernization of administration and economy with the first railroad in the Adige valley opening in 1859. During the late 19th Century, Trento and Trieste, Italian cities still belonging to the Austrians, became icons of the national unification movement. Benito Mussolini briefly joined the staff of a local newspaper in 1908. The nationalist cause led Italy into World War I. Damiano Chiesa and Cesare Battisti were two well-known local irredentists who had joined the Italian army to fight against Austria-Hungary with the aim of bringing the territory of Trento into the new Kingdom of Italy. The two men were taken prisoners at the nearby southern front. They were put on trial for high treason and executed in the courtyard of Castello del Buonconsiglio (Cesare Battisti had served in the Austrian army). Their death caused an emotional outcry and was later used by the Italian government to celebrate the "liberation of Trento." The region was greatly affected during the war, and some of its fiercest battles were fought on the surrounding mountains.
After World War I Trento, and its Italian-speaking province, along with Bozen-Bolzano and the part of Tyrol that stretched south of the Alpine watershed (which was German speaking) were annexed by Italy.
In 1943, Mussolini was deposed and Italy surrendered to the Allies, who had invaded southern Italy via Sicily. German troops promptly invaded northern Italy and the provinces of Trento, Belluno and South Tyrol became part of the "Operationszone Alpenvorland", annexed to the Greater German Reich. Many German-speaking South Tyroleans wanted revenge upon Italians living in the area but were mostly prevented by the occupying Nazis, who still considered Mussolini head of the Repubblica di Salò and wanted to preserve good relations with the Fascists. From November, 1944 to April, 1945 Trento was bombed as part of the so-called "Battle of the Brenner." War supplies from Germany to support the Gothic Line were for the most part routed through the rail line through the Brenner pass. Over 6,849 sorties were flown over targets from Verona to the Brenner Pass with 10,267 tons of bombs dropped. Parts of the city were hit by the Allied bombings, including the church of S. Maria Maggiore, the Church of the Annunciation and several bridges over the Adige river. In spite of the bombings, most of the medieval and renaissance town center was spared.
Starting from the 1950s the region has enjoyed prosperous growth, thanks in part to its special autonomy from the central Italian government.
See also
Society and economy
Eight centuries of Prince-Bishop rulers, relative independence from the rest of Europe, the Austrian domination and a strong sense of communal fate left a distinctive mark on the city's culture, which is dominated by a fairly progressive Social-Catholic political orientation (in fact, Trento is one of the few cities in Italy where left-leaning Catholics form the majority party). The city is considered to be well-administered and enjoys the benefits of special autonomy from the central Italian government. Trento ranks high in Italian quality-of-life statistics.
The city owes much of its unique history to its position along the main communication route between Italy and Northern Europe and to the Adige river which prior to its diversion in the 19th century ran through the center of the city. The Adige river was formerly a navigable river and one of the main commercial routes in the Alps. The original course of the river is now covered by the Via Torre Vanga, Via Torre Verde and the Via Alessandro Manzoni.
Today Trento thrives on commerce, services, tourism, high-quality agriculture and food industry (including wine, fruit), as a research and conference center thanks to a small but renowned university and research centers such as ITC/IRST, and [ECT*], and as logistics and transportation throughfare. The manufacturing industry installed in the post-war period has been mostly dismantled.
Valued pink and white porphyry is still excavated from some surrounding areas (Pila). This stone can be seen in many of Trento's buildings, both new and old.
Politics
The administrative elections of May 8, 2005 were won by a Center-Left coalition. Results are the following (only parties with more than 5% are listed):
- Margherita (Left-Centre Catholics): 28.7%
- Olive Tree (Social Democrats, including Democrats of the Left): 17.7%
- Forza Italia (Center-Right): 11.6%
- Communist Refoundation Party: 5.7%
- Lega Nord (Northern Separatists): 5.2%
Main sights
Although off the beaten path of mass tourism, Trento offers rather interesting monuments. Its architecture has a unique feel, with both Italian Renaissance and Germanic influences. The city center is small, and most Late-Medieval and Renaissance buildings have been restored to their original pastel colours and wooden balconies. Part of the medieval city walls is still visible in Piazza Fiera, along with a circular tower. Once, these walls encircled the whole town and were connected to the Castello del Buonconsiglio.
The main monuments of the city include:
- the Duomo (Cathedral of Saint Vigilio), a Romanesque-Gothic cathedral of the twelfth-thirteenth century, built on top of a late-Roman basilica (viewable in an underground crypt),
- piazza Duomo, on the side of the Cathedral, with frescoed Renaissance buildings and a neoclassic fountain of the Neptune,
- the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore (1520), site of the preparatory congregations of the Third Council of Trent (April 1562 – December 1563),
- the Castello del Buonconsiglio, which includes a museum and the famous Torre dell'Aquila, with a cycle of fine gothic frescoes depicting the months, commissioned by the prince-bishop Georg von Lichtenstein,
- Torre Verde, along the former transit path of the Adige river, is said to be where persons executed in the name of the Prince-Bishop were deposited in the river,
- the Palazzo delle Albere, a Renaissance villa next to the Adige river, now hosting a modern art museum,
- the Palazzo Pretorio, next to the Duomo, of the twelfth century, with a bell tower (Torre Civica) of the thirteenth century (it now hosts a collection of baroque paintings of religious themes),
- various underground remains of the streets and villas of the Roman city (in Via Prepositura and Piazza Cesare Battisti).
An important museum of modern art ([Museo d'Arte di Trento e Rovereto]) is located in the nearby town of Rovereto.
Trento's surroundings are known for the beautiful mountain landscapes, and are the destination of both summer and winter tourism. The [Alpine Botanical Garden], located on Monte Bondone in Le Viotte was founded in 1938 and is therefore probably the first such garden in Italy.
Trento is also the venue of a popular [Mountain Film Festival]
Famous natives of Trento
In addition to the aforementioned Bernardo Clesio and Cristoforo Madruzzo, Giacomo Aconzio was born in Trento. Kurt von Schuschnigg was born in Riva del Garda, in the Trentino region. Other famous natives of Trento include:
- Paolo Oss Mazzurana, Trento's most famous mayor. His tenure is characterized by progressive economic policies that impacted Trento's commercial sector and its eventual independence.
- Fortunato Depero, futurist artist and one of the founders of the futurist movement in Italy, was born in Fondo in 1892, close to Trento.
- Giovanni Segantini, Italian Art Nouveau painter, was born in Arco in 1858.
- Alcide De Gasperi, politician in Austria-Hungary, politicar leader and post-war premier in Italy and one of the founding fathers of the European Union, was born in Pieve Tesino, in the province of Trento.
- Ernst von Koerber, prominent politician of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
- Lorenzo Bernardi, volleyball player for the Italian national team who was declared "Player of the century" by an international jury.
- Alessandro Vittoria, mannerist sculptor.
- Andrea Pozzo, baroque painter and architect.
- Antonio Rosmini-Serbati, philosopher, born in Rovereto, 1797.
- Gianni Caproni, aeronautical engineer, born in Massone d'Arco 1886.
- Giovanni Antonio Scopoli, naturalist and physician, born in Cavalese.
- Francesco Antonio Bonporti, composer.
- Riccardo Zandonai, opera composer.
- Giovanni Prati, poet and politician.
- Luigi Negrelli, engineer.
Communications
Highway A22-E45 to Verona and to Bozen-Bolzano, Innsbruck and Munich. Railway (main connection between Italy and Germany; direct train to Venice). Bus or train service to the main surrounding valleys: Fassa, Fiemme, Gudicarie, Non, Primiero, Rendena, Sole, Tesino, Valsugana.
Fractions
Povo, Villazzano, Gardolo, Roncafort, Mattarello, Martignano, Cognola, Ravina, Romagnano, Montevaccino, Vela, Meano, Sopramonte, Vigo Meano, Gazzadina, Candriai, Vaneze, Cadine, Vigolo BaselgaExternal links
- [Official homepage of Trento]
- [Azienda per il Turismo Trento e Monte Bondone]
- [Flak Guns In The Brenner Pass]
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