Montferrat

Montferrat
A landscape in Montferrat
Flag of Montferrat

Montferrat (in Piemontèis, Monfrà; in Italian, Monferrato) is part of the region of Piedmont in Northern Italy. It comprises roughly (and its extent has varied over time) the modern provinces of Alessandria and Asti. Montferrat is one of the most important wine districts of Italy. It also has a strong literary tradition, including the 18th century Asti-born poet and dramatist Vittorio Alfieri and the Alessandrian Umberto Eco.

The territory is cut in two by the river Tanaro. The northern part (the Basso Monferrato), which lies between that river and the Po, is an area of rolling hills and plains. The southern part (the Alto Monferrato) rises from the banks of the Tanaro into the mountains of the Apennines and the water divide between Piedmont and Liguria.

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History

Originally a county, it was elevated to a margravate of the Holy Roman Empire under Count Aleramo in 961, following the transition of power in Northern Italy from Berengar of Ivrea to Otto I of Germany. Its marchesi (marquesses) and their family members were related to the Kings of France and the Holy Roman Emperors. Members of the family participated frequently in the Crusades, and intermarried with the royal family of Jerusalem and the Byzantine Imperial families of Comnenus, Angelus and Palaeologus.

Montferrat was briefly controlled by Spain (1533–1536) before it passed to the Gonzaga Dukes of Mantua (1536–1708). In 1574, Montferrat was raised to a Duchy by Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor. With the War of the Mantuan Succession (1628–1631) a piece of the duchy passed to the Duchy of Savoy, the remainder passing to Savoy in 1708, as Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor gained possession of the Gonzaga territory.The next heir of the House of Gonzaga was later compensated by giving Duchy of Teschen in Silesia to them

The Duchy of Montferrat had an area of 2750 km², and consisted of two separate parts bordered by the Duchy of Savoy, the Duchy of Milan, and the Republic of Genoa. Moncalvo [1] (which was the very first capital) and Chivasso, along with Casale Monferrato are considered the historic capitals of March of Montferrat. Nowadays Asti is a major centre, being located at the core of Montferrat's geographic region.

Culture

Sacro Monte di Crea

The Sacred Mountain of Crea (Italian: Sacro Monte di Crea) is a Roman Catholic sanctuary in the comune of Serralunga di Crea (Montferrat), near Alessandria. It is one of the nine Sacri Monti of Piedmont and Lombardy, included in UNESCO World Heritage list.
Its construction was begun in 1589, around a former Sanctuary of St. Mary whose creation is traditionally attributed to St. Eusebius, around 350 AD.

See also

References

Sources

External links


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Montferrat — puede referirse a: Montferrat, comuna francesa en Isère. Montferrat, comuna francesa en Var. Esta página de desambiguación cataloga artículos relacionados con el mismo título. Si llegaste aquí a través de …   Wikipedia Español

  • Montferrat [1] — Montferrat (spr. Mongferraht), sonst Herzogthum zwischen Piemont, Mailand u. Genua; zog sich lang u. schmal von Norden nach Süden, war durch ein trennendes mailändisches Gebiet in zwei Stücken getheilt, bestand aus den Provinzen Acqui (südliches… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Montferrat [2] — Montferrat, piemontesische Weine geringerer Art …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Montferrat — (spr. mongferrá, ital. Monferrato), ital. Landschaft in Piemont, umfaßte ursprünglich nur das Gelände am rechten Ufer des Po zwischen Turin und Casale, erweiterte sich aber später nach S. über den Tanaro bis zum Ligurischen Apennin und zerfiel in …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Montferrat — (spr. mongfärah), ehemals Markgrafschaft, seit 1574 Herzogtum, zwischen Piemont, Mailand und Genua, seit 1703 zum Königr. Sardinien gehörig, 2750 qkm; Hauptstadt Casale; gehört jetzt zur Prov. Turin …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Montferrat [2] — Montferrat, Markgraf von, s. Bonifacius II …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Montferrat — Die Hügel des Montferrat Montferrat (italienisch Monferrato) war im Mittelalter eine Markgrafschaft im Piemont, zwischen Turin und Genua gelegen. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 Geschichte …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Montferrat —  Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents lieux partageant un même toponyme. Montferrat, commune française de l Isère Montferrat, commune française du Var Montferrat, lieu dit de la commune française de Saint Angel dans le Puy de… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Montferrat — 1 Original name in latin Montferrat Name in other language Montferra, Montferrat State code FR Continent/City Europe/Paris longitude 45.48591 latitude 5.59072 altitude 556 Population 1439 Date 2012 01 18 2 Original name in latin Montferrat Name… …   Cities with a population over 1000 database

  • Montferrat — Mont·fer·rat (mŏnt fə rätʹ) A historical region of northwest Italy south of the Po River. Claimed by a noble family of Mantua and the house of Savoy after 1612, it was finally awarded to Savoy by the Peace of Utrecht (1713). * * * ▪ historical… …   Universalium

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