Chieri

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Comune di Chieri
Municipal coat of arms
Country	Italy
Region	Piedmont
Province	Turin
Mayor	Agostino Gay

Elevation	305 m
Area	54.3 km²
Population
- Total (as of Dec. 2004)	34,312
- Density	632/km²
Time zone	CET, UTC+1
Coordinates	45°1′N, 7°49′E
Gentilic	Chieresi
Dialing code	011
Postal code	10023
Frazioni	Pessione, Madonna della Scala
Patron	Santa Maria delle Grazie
- Day	September 12
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Website: www.comune.chieri.to.it

Chieri is a town in the province of Turin, Piedmont (Italy), located about 11 km southeast of Turin (15 km by rail and 13 km by road).

Chieri borders the following municipalities: Baldissero Torinese, Pavarolo, Montaldo Torinese, Pino Torinese, Arignano, Andezeno, Pecetto Torinese, Riva presso Chieri, Cambiano, Santena, Poirino.

1 History
2 Main sights
3 Twin cities
4 References
5 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Roman

The city was founded around the 1st or 2nd Century AD as the Roman settlement of Carreum Potentia, which was sited nearby a prominent hill which later became known as San Giorgio and which grew to be the geographical focus of the city centre.

Roman historian Pliny the Elder made reference to "Carreum quod Potentia cognominatur" in his work Naturalis Historia, within his list of fortified settlements which then abounded in the section of Cisalpine Gaul located between the River Po and the Ligurian Apennines.
The portrait he painted therein was of the city as a prosperous Roman walled city, surrounded by cultivated farmlands and scattered agricultural settlements.

The city underwent conversion to Christianity sometime in the 5th century, as recorded on a funeral slab dated from 488 AD.

[edit] Early Medieval

No further historical records exist regarding Chieri until the 10th century, when it came under feudal subjection to the Bishop of Turin. During the first half of the 11th century the city had an encircling defensive wall erected around the San Giorgio Hill ( known as the Castrum Sancti Georgi, which still constitutes the city nucleus ), under direction of Bishop Landolfo: these long-demolished Mura Landolfiane still clearly trace the outline of the pattern of narrow streets around the hill ( known as the Chiocciola, "snail" ). The work included a strengthening of the fortifications and tower atop the hill, now incorporated into the Church of San Giorgio which occupies the hilltop and overlooks the city.

Outside the walls, on the plains surrounding the city, a church was erected dedicated to Santa Maria (Virgin Mary): this site was likely that of an earlier and more primitive Church dating from the 4th century, which had itself replaced an earlier Roman Temple to the goddess Minerva which originally occupied the same site.

This period also experienced the construction of numerous quadrilateral towers, inside the perimeter of the walls, by the powerful families of the city, hence it became known as Cittá delle Cento Torri ("city of one hundred towers"): a handful of these Towers still survive to this day.

During the 12th century the city allied itself with the more powerful city of Asti in fighting against the marquis William V of Montferrat, himself allied to Emperor Frederick Barbarossa: in revenge for this rebel alliance, Barbarossa besieged the city and in January 1155 conquered it, decimating its towers and fortifications, as well as massacring a significant portion of the population.

Popular legend has it that its present-day name was given by Barbarossa who, upon departing the city after ransacking it, looked back upon its ruins and asked Ma tu, chi eri? (Italian for "And you, who were you?") - although this story is most likely apocryphal.

Over the remainder of the 12th century, the city gradually gained independence from the rule and authority of the Bishop of Turin, and this resulted in the emergence of the free Republic of Chieri, which grew to have its own autonomous judicial and administrative institutions, similar to the numerous other Free Republic cities which existed in Italy during this period.

[edit] Late Medieval

In the course of the 13th century, the Republic of Chieri experienced a period of substantial prosperity, and at that time was comparable in splendor and importance to the great medieval cities of Genoa, Asti and Pisa.

In 1238 the Republic was granted the status of camera speciale (Italian: "special chamber") by Emperor Frederick, which meant that the only authority the Republic would be subject to was that of the (very remote) Emperor.

Following growing violent internecine struggles between city factions to the end of that century, the Republic of Chieri, despite asserting its dominion over adjacent lands and castles and constructing a secondary ring of city walls, decreased in power and autonomy to the point that in 1339 the city made itself subject to Robert of Anjou, King of Naples: in doing so, it granted half of its lands and territories as feudal possession to Prince Iacopo of the house of Savoy-Acaia. The city eventually passed in its entirety to the House of Savoy, when the line of Acaia died out.

[edit] Renaissance

The 15th century brought Chieri a period of economic prosperity and a flourishing of the Arts with, among other endeavours, the rebuilding of the Church of Santa Maria into its present form as the Duomo. During this time the hill-top church of San Giorgio was also rebuilt into its current incarnation, and several works of Flemish art were brought into the area by rich city merchants.

The 16th century covered a period of succeeding plagues, epidemics, and wars, and (from 1551 to 1562) also brought French domination. During this period some of its citizens became followers of the Protestant Reformation started by Martin Luther, but this was quashed by strong opposition from Duke Emanuele Filiberto: it was in order to honour him, along with Charles Emmanuel I of Savoy, that the city towards the end of this century constructed a Triumphal Arch, still present on the main street (currently Via Vittorio Emanuele II).

The year 1630 saw a terrible outbreak of the Bubonic Plague, which is still commemorated in the ceremony of the Madonna Delle Grazie, occurring every year on September 12. Despite this, the remainder of the 17th century also covered a fluorishing of artistic achievement, with the building of several churches and chapels in the Baroque style of architecture, as well as numerous paintings and sculptures.

[edit] Modern era

In 1785 Chieri became a Principality under the control of the duke of Aosta. The latter 18th century again brought French domination, this time under the conquests of Napoleon Bonaparte; but this period also witnessed the establishment of a major Textile mill, which consolidated and built upon the city's base as a medieval centre for Textile trade and manufacture.

Numerous other textile factories followed in the late 19th century, with textile manufacture originating from Chieri playing a prominent role even in international Textile Fairs. The year 1850 saw the demolition of the old medieval city gates and the privatisation of the city walls, which at that time still demarcated the limits of the entire city.

In 1871 a railroad link was constructed to the city, partly due to contributions from the municipality and from wealthy citizens, in the form of the Chieri-Trofarello branch line: this was to serve the now very significant Textile industry of the city, with the building of the railway station also serving to initiate in the surrounding area the erection of the first city quarter built outside its walls.

The early 20th century brought the electrification of the Textile industries (1909), but also the rise of Fascism in Italy. World War II caused no direct bombardments to the city despite the relocation, from the nearby major industrial centre of Turin, of numerous factories and heavy industry manufacture; German occupation of the city followed the fall of Benito Mussolini in 1943, until its liberation by American forces.

[edit] Today

The post-war period experienced a huge increase in Chieri's population, as massive migration occurred between the 1950s and 1970s from the Veneto region and from Southern Italy (Italian: "Il Mezzogiorno"), to the major industrial centres of Northern Italy such as Milan and Turin and adjacent areas: this resulted in a population boom from approximately 14,000 immediately after the War, to 30,000 inhabitants in just under three decades.

The later years of the 20th century also witnessed the decline of Textile industry in the city, as numerous Factories were forced to close from competitive pressure from the cheaper manufacturing centres of the Indian Subcontinent and the Far East. This is being counteracted by the establishment of a new industrial area outside the city, and also by a rediscovering and redeveloping of Chieri's significant cultural and historical heritage.

Today Chieri is a growing center for the provision of a varied portfolio of commercial, retail, financial, and tertiary services.

[edit] Demographic evolution

[edit] Main sights

The Gothic Duomo (cathedral), founded in 1037 and reconstructed in 1405, is the largest in Piedmont, and has a 13th century octagonal Baptistery which includes a fine collection of 13th century frescoes.
The hill-top Chiesa di San Giorgio, dominating the historical centre and offering commanding views of the entire city.
The Chiesa di San Filippo, on the principal Via Vittorio Emanuele, boasting a noteworthy example of Italian Baroque-style face-brick church façade.
The Arco - the Triumphal Arch dedicated to Carlo Emanuele I and Emanuele Filiberto of the House of Savoy.