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COLLEDIMACINE
IN THE AVENTINO VALLEY:
Historic-Geographic
Facts
Amelio
Pezzetta
Translated
to English by Anthony Falcone
At
768 meters above sea level and on a broad plateau bounded by the
streams of the Cupo and Torbido, both tributaries to the Aventino
River, are the dwellings that comprise the Commune of Colledimacine.
Its
territory extends approximately 11.4 Km² and for almost its
entirety, consists of agricultural terrain; which every so often
there are large rock outcroppings of various types. Within
this is a calcareous platform on which the town is built.
It seems that the various rock formations of the Colledimacine
territory, all of which are sedimentary in origin, were created
approximately 49-52 million years ago.
Observing
the plan of the town, it is easy to recognize that via Roma is
the principal street. It begins at the first houses and
ends at Piazza Barbolani, the principal square of the town.
From via Roma, almost at right angles depart other secondary streets
that lead to streets more or less parallel to the first or to
large open squares: Piazza Clemente di Leo, Piazza San Giovanni
and Piazza Belvedere.
Based
on existing documentation, only a partial reconstruction of the
local history is possible. The nature of the town's name
and the time of its coinage are unknown. In the "Catalogus
Baronum," catalogue of feudal lands from the Norman period,
there is reference to a community called "COLLE DE MAJO."
But it is unclear whether this refers to Colledimacine.
Several serendipitous discoveries suggest that prehistoric populations
lived within the territory of Colledimacine. At the beginning
of the 20th century in the Colle area, at the extreme south of
the town's land, the following discoveries were made: foundations
of straw huts, pottery shards, flagstones and remnants of pottery
in Neolithic colors. Additional shards from the prehistoric
and Roman periods have been discovered in the Pietra St. Angelo,
S. Maria della Tomba and Casaleni areas. These reports may
show that until the Roman period, there existed within the territory
in question a sparsely occupied settlement completely distinct
from the later town, a settlement that exploited the agricultural
and pastoral resources locally available.
At
some time during the Middle Ages it is supposed that, on the calcareous
platform of the actual center of town, a castle was founded (probably
over the present location of the Palazzo dei Conti Barbolani),
the church of S. Nicola and the first compact nucleus in the vicinity
of these two important edifices.
The
first historic documentation regarding Colledimacine during the
Middle Ages is from 1269, which lists the fiefdom of Colle delle
Macine under the ownership of Rainaldo Galgano, Gualtieri di Galgano,
Berardo d'Oderisio, Gentile d'Oderisio di Acciano and Andrea Cansano.
All together this fiefdom would give an annual rent of 19 onces
and 1 tali. From the entity of that rent, it is apparent
that 24 families were living in Colledimacine.
In
1316, according to Antinori, one-eighth of the fiefdom of Colle
delle Macine was owned by Ruggieri di Colledimacine while one
quarter of Ruggieri's part was owned by Gullermo di Torricella.
In a record book of the ***** due to the church collectors, for
the years of 1324-1325 the clerics of Colledimacine for those
***** paid the sum of 4 tari. At that period of time there
were three churches were in Colledimacine: S. Johannis, S. Nicolaj
e S. Maria di Colledimacines. If the clerics paid 4 tari,
it meant that the income of the local church during that time
amounted to 40 tarì or 1.3 once corresponding to approximately
33 grams of gold.
In
the census of 1447, ordered by the Aragonese, 30 families (207
individuals) lived in Colledimacine. During that time, the
more common surnames of the locale were: Amici, Antonjj, Bianczardi,
Cicharelli, Cicci, Ferrectus, Falcus, Giptius, Guillelmi, Joannis,
Leonardi, Messere, Masiarelli, Mancinus, Nicolaj, Parza, Rajnaldi,
Sacchecte, Sproveri.
During
that census, the local archpriest Giovanni cohabitated with a
woman whose name was Lella and two children ages 8 and 11.
During this time, each family paid a tax called the "focatico,"
during but the ecclesiastics were exempt from it. The archpriest
Giovanni cohabitating with Lella and the two children had to renounce
the exemption and pay the focatico for his cohabitation.
The
year 1499 is conspicuously carved into the stone sill of an apartment
window. On the same street are other edifices that are supposed
to be erected during the 16th century: another window and the
portal of the archpriest's house. Other 16th century items
that survived are conserved in the interior of the church of S.
Nicola: two holy water fountains sculpted from local stone, a
crucifix and the statue of the Madonna delle Grazie.
If
the 16th century encroached Colledimacine with new edifices and
works of art, at the same time the weight of feudal oppression
continued to persist. In fact, in 1546, the fiefdom of Colledimacine
was owned by Giovan Cantelmo d'Ugno e Ludovico Antonio Forte.
In 1612, the ownership of Colledimacine's lands was assigned to
Tiberio d'Ugno of Guardiagrele. In 1669 there was a new
shift of the feudal benefits in the favor of Nicol'Antonio Trasmondi,
marquis of Introdacqua, Laudonia e Francesco di Colledimacine.
The marquis Trasmondi had from Colledimacine various feudal benefits
some of which were jurisdiction of 1st and 2nd criminal cases.
From a notary act of November 7, 1672, it transpired that the
Abbot Don Valerio Ferdinando De Vega, resident of Naples, had
various benefits in the lands of Colledimacine. From the
cedolario between 1732 to 1766, a record book of the feudal possessions
that was held in Naples results that:
1.
10% of the fife of Colledimacine was registered to the name of
Camillo Sanità, heir of Eleonora Trasmondi
2.
20% and 3/7 of the same fife was registered to Domenico Trasmondi
3.
40% to Nicola Trasmondi junior
4.
another 20% to Angelo, Bartolomea, Marianna Trasmondi and others.
The
history of Colledimacine as a feudal vassal ended in 1806 when
it became a free commune under the authority of the crown and
his representative prefect.
The
local population in 1532 was 92 families (approximately 480 individuals).
In 1545 there were 102 families; in 1620, 131 families; in 1648,
120 families; in 1669, 39 families and in 1732 there were 160
families. One can observe that from 1648 to 1669, the town
experienced a decrease of 81 families corresponding to a 76.5
% loss in the local population. This is attributed to the
plague, which spread across the Kingdom of Naples during the middle
of the 17th century. The plague, beside killing entire communities,
forced the populace left or not contagious from the plague to
abandon whole villages (in some cases) where they were born, for
other locations thought more secure.
In
1860 after the dissolution of the Bourbon Reign, Colledimacine
was annexed into the rest of Italy. In 1861, the town's
population was 1496 individuals. The highest historical
population of 1657 individuals was in 1901. Emigration quickly
decreased this number during the subsequent years until 450.
Actually,
there is only one church left for the public's worshipping.
The archpriestal church of S. Nicola, of which as we have seen,
we have first knowledge of from the 16th century. It has
been reconstructed more than once and until 1806 was under the
feudal directive because the local feudalists nominated the archpriest.
In the past in Colledimacine, there were other edifices of worship
in various parts of the town: the churches of S. Rocco, S. Vito
and of S. Giovanni. The head of the local religious community
has always been the archpriest of the Church of S. Nicola.
Other edifices of historic/artistic interest other than churches
in Colledimacine are: the Palazzo dei Conti Barbolani, the Clock
Tower, founded in 1874, and the public fountain, made entirely
of stone, founded in 1893.
Outside
the town and still within the town's territory, one can see two
stone mills and historic stone houses that conserve the characteristics
of the local rustic architecture.
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