Lands of the Montecuccoli

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Lands of the Montecuccoli

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Lands of the Montecuccoli

Guiglia Castello di Guiglia 1 ph Nacchio Brothers

The Montecuccoli are of very ancient origin, probably born as a consortium and not as a family unit, and their first official investiture took place in 1396 by Emperor Charles IV.

The Montecuccoli, however, had already ruled over much of Frignano territory for at least a century. Consolidation of power occurred in the 15th century with the defeat of their Montegarullo rivals and submission to the Este family. In 1435 Gaspare Montecuccoli obtained the investiture of a vast territory that included a large part of the Modenese mountains, which was to pass to his son Cesare. In 1506, Cesare's sons divided the territory into three parts: the Pavullo area, around the Castle of Montecuccolo, the Semese area and the Montese area. From this moment on, the branches of the family continued their events in parallel, seeking to retain command over the territory despite numerous interventions by the Este family to maintain a stable situation.

In 1536, the Semese branch became extinct and merged with the Montese branch and, in 1630, Francesco Montecuccoli decided to exchange the territory of Semese, returning it to the Este family to receive the marquisate of Guiglia and Marano in return. In 1637, he also acquired the territories of Montalbano, Montetortore and Ciano. He married Sigismonda Laderchi, with the marriage clause and the authorisation of the Duke of Este to transmit his maternal surname to his children and heirs. From this moment on, the branch of the Guiglia Montecuccoli would be the Montecuccoli Laderchi. Several generations succeeded one another until the death of Raimondo Montecuccoli Laderchi in 1873. As he had no children, the inheritance passed to a cadet branch: Alessandro Montecuccoli di Mitterau, still a minor, became the new Marquis with the obligation to move to Italy and marry an Italian woman in order to obtain the title and the estate. The bad management of Alessandro's mother dragged the family into enormous debts and the gradual abandonment of the estates in the area at the end of the 19th century.

Stages

Guiglia Castle
Before the current castle was built, there was a fortification in Guiglia in the area of Montevallaro: one of the hills outside the town centre. The castle of Montevallaro was built by the Da Guiglia lords who governed the entire territory from 1115 to 1405. This first fortification was completely razed to the ground in the bloody siege of Montevallaro in 1266. The Da Guiglia family then built a new defensive bulwark in the place where the Castle stands today, which we first learn about in 1309. After the fall of the Da Guiglia family, the Este entrusted the Guiglia territory to the Pio di Carpi family, then to various people with rather hapless fortunes. In 1630, Francesco I Montecuccoli was invested with the title of Marquis of Guiglia and Marano and it is to him that we owe the transformation of the previous fortification into a stately home, in particular the part of the entrance to the Palace built with a covered loggia and the presence of stuccoes depicting female figures (probably personifications of the virtues) supporting the Montecuccoli coat of arms. Francesco Montecuccoli's heirs continued with the extension, furnishing and decoration of the Palace (the ground floor also housed a small theatre), until the last heir, Alessandro Montecuccoli di Mitterau, sold the entire building at auction to settle the family debts. The Palace then passed under the ownership of the Swiss engineer Beusch, who turned it into a health resort and hotel, exploiting the alleged benefits of the ferruginous water spring found near the Castle. The palace was furnished and decorated again following the Art Nouveau fashion of the time and the 17th-century decorations desired by the Montecuccoli family were entirely covered over. The building changed its use numerous times during the last century, and was also a casino for a few months in 1946. A part of the luxurious gaming tables from the Ducrot furniture factory are today displayed in the rooms on the first floor.
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Oratory of the Blessed Virgin of San Luca in Guiglia
In 1690, Ottavia Caprara, the widowed wife of Giovan Battista Montecuccoli Laderchi, the second Marquis of Guiglia, found a devotional image painted on paper placed on a pillar at the Carmelite fathers' convent, just opposite the Castle. The Marquise then began the building of a small shrine that was completed in 1719 and owned by the Montecuccoli Laderchi family. The image of the Madonna and Child, considered as miraculous, recalls the image preserved in the Sanctuary dedicated to the Blessed Virgin of San Luca in Bologna, and the design of the building also explicitly recalls the shape of the Bolognese church. Ottavia Caprara was in fact from Bologna and this explains her architectural choice and devotion to the image. Tradition has it that in 1763, the image of the Madonna was carried in procession to the parish church with the intention of stopping the continuous rainfall that had been occurring for two months, and that the miracle, in fact, took place. In 1859, the building was converted into an aristocratic chapel and houses the tombs of Raimondo Montecuccoli Laderchi, the last Marquis belonging to the main branch of the family, and his parents Francesco Enea and Carlotta Franco, as also indicated by the plaque on the floor. The building has been restored and the exterior has been returned to its original colour obtained with yellow earth lime; inside, consisting of a single nave, it is possible to see part of the original 17th-century furnishings (the tabernacle, the frame that housed the original of the miraculous image and the frontal).
Colombarone in Marano
The building was constructed as a country residence by Giovan Battista Montecuccoli Laderchi in the lowlands: the plain formed between Vignola and Marano following the construction of the containment dykes installed to remedy a disastrous flood of the Panaro River in 1676. Documents tell us how the land where Colombarone stands was fertile and rich, particularly in Trebbiano grapes. The Colombarone comprises a manor house, the dovecote tower that would give its name to the entire complex, as well as workers' dwellings and large rooms for the cultivation of silkworms, the ‘bigatteria’. The entire complex was surrounded by an English-style park with even a riding track for horses. When the Guiglia Castle was sold, Alessandro Montecuccoli Laderchi and his mother were left with the Colombarone complex. The buildings had already been partially altered during the 19th century, as indicated by the mullioned windows in the medieval style particularly in vogue at the time. A bas-relief reproducing the family coat of arms is visible on the access staircase.
Marano Castle
The establishment of Marano has ancient origins, and in medieval times it is mentioned even before the year 1000 with references to the presence of a ‘castiglione’, a fortification. From the following century we find evidence of a local family governing the territory, the Da Marano family from Campiglio. During the wars between Bologna and Modena that marked the entire 13th century, Marano was disputed between the rival parties. We find it again in 1328 under the control of the Boschetti family, then as part of the Este possessions, entrusted to the Pico di Mirandola family and then to the Rangoni family. The Rangoni family, however, lost Marano in 1394: the inhabitants were in fact dissatisfied with the rule of the new Marquises and in the meantime the Pio di Carpi family occupied the fortress. From then on, Marano became part of the territory of Guiglia and, in 1630, passed to Francesco I Montecuccoli following the fortunes of the marquisate. Today, very few traces remain of the oldest and most fortified part of Marano: it was, in fact, located in the elevated part of the town and this area partially preserves the medieval layout around Via Castello. Here one can still see the building known as the Convent, probably at the base of the fortification walls, and the Oratory dedicated to St. Anthony of Padua, formerly dedicated to St. Lawrence, which was instead located outside the boundary wall. In the main square stands the ancient mill built in 1654 by the Montecuccoli family, used from 1907 until the 1970s for the production of electricity and today housing the Museum of Ecology and Natural History.