Pinerolo
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| Comune di Pinerolo | |
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 Municipal coat of arms |
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| Country |  Italy |
| Region | Piedmont |
| Province | Turin (TO) |
| Mayor | Paolo Covato |
| Elevation | 376 m (1,234 ft) |
| Area | 50 km² (19 sq mi) |
| Population (as of December 31, 2004) | |
| - Total | 34,264 |
| - Density | 685/km² (1,774/sq mi) |
| Time zone | CET, UTC+1 |
| Coordinates | |
| Gentilic | Pinerolesi |
| Dialing code | 0121 |
| Postal code | 10064 |
| Frazioni | Abbadia Alpina, Baudenasca, Riva di Pinerolo, Talucco |
| Patron | San Donato |
| - Day | Monday after last Sunday of August |
| Website: www.comune.pinerolo.to.it | |
Pinerolo is a town and commune in north-western Italy, 40 kilometres southwest of Turin on the river Chisone.
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[edit] History
In the Middle Ages, the town of Pinerolo was one of the main crossroads in Italy, and was therefore one of the principal fortresses of the dukes of Savoy. Its military importance was the origin of the well-known military school that still exists today. The fortress of Fenestrelle is nearby.
The earliest mention of Pinerolo is in the tenth century, when it belonged to the March of Turin and was governed by the abbot nullius of Pinerolo who ran the abbey of Abbadia Alpina , even after the city had established itself as a municipality (1247) under the government of Thomas Savoy.
From 1235, Amadeus IV of Savoy exercised over the town a kind of protectorate which became absolute in 1243, and was continued thereafter either by the house of Savoy, or of Savoy-Acaia.
When French troops invaded Piedmont (1536), Pinerolo was conquered and it remained under their control until 1574.
With the treaty of Cherasco it again fell to France (1631), and it remained under French rule until restored to the house of Savoy by the treaty of Turin, at the same time withdrawing from the league against Louis XIV.
[edit] Main sights
- the Cathedral dates from the 9th century, and has an attractive bell tower
- church of San Maurizio, in Gothic style.
[edit] Notable Pinerolesi
People born in Pinerolo include:
- Lidia Poët (born 1855), the first Italian female lawyer and an important figure in female emancipation
- Luigi Facta (1861 – 1930), politician, journalist and last Prime Minister of Italy before the dictatorship of Benito Mussolini
- Ferruccio Parri (1890 – 1981), partisan and politician who served as Prime Minister of Italy for several months in 1945
[edit] Trivia
- It hosted Curling events at the 2006 Winter Olympics.
- The "Man in the Iron Mask" was imprisoned in Pinerolo.
- The Montevideo football team Peñarol takes its name from this town.
- The Marquis of Belle-Ile was imprisoned in Pinerol.
[edit] Twin cities
Gap, France, since 1963
Traunstein, Germany, since 1986
San Francisco, Argentina, since 1996
Derventa, Bosnia and Herzegovina, since 2005
[edit] See also
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