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History of Castelnuovo Berardenga - Tuscany Italy

The commune took its name from the noble descendants of Berardo, of Frankish lineage, who flourished during the second half of the 10th century and was a descendent of Guinigi, Count of Siena in the preceding century. By the beginning of the 13th century, the term Berardenga had been commonly accepted as a place name and has remained unaltered since then. At that time, Siena began to incorporate the villages and castles under the rule of the Berardenga family in its territory.

That process continued until the beginning of the 14th century when the Berardenga area became the seat of a vicariate. In 1366 the Siena city council approved the construction of a new castle at the center of the territory. Due to its proximately to Siena, the zone’s landscape is more “manicured” than the more distant areas of the Chianti district. That becomes more and more evident in approaching the city. The area contains numerous traces of the past. The parishes of Asciata, San Felice and Pacina perpetuate the memory of ancient religious entities. Medieval elements predominate in the rectory at Cerreto, the churches of Querciagrossa, Catignano and Guistrigona, and in the octagonal chapel of Sant’Ansano at Dofana.

In addition to the Abbey of Berardenga, there is another large and noteworthy monastic complex, the Charterhouse of Pontignano. The numerous castles include Arceno, Querciagrossa, Aiola, Selvole, Pievasciata and Cerreto, as well as Sesta and Cetamura (both in ruins), and San Gusmè, which developed extensively beyond its walls, which was also true of Vagliagli. Some castles survive only in documents, among them Calcinaia, Capratusa, Cerrogrosso and Chesamonti. Others, like Barbaione, Caspreno, Castell’in Villa, Dofana, Barca, Montapertaccio, Orgiale, Pancolaccio, Valcortese, Montalto and Vitignano were converted into villas.

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