Piedmont is a region in northwestern Italy. The Piedmontese are
probably the most reserved of the Italians. Their industriousness was at
the basis of the industrial revolution in Italy starting from 1800; the
crisis of heavy industries has left its traces in the economy of
Piedmont, which is gradually adapting towards services and tourism,
thanks to the natural beauty of the region and the variety of its
landscapes.
The kingdom of Savoy has left traces throughout the
region, particularly in its architecture (18th - 19th century) and in
the vast nature reserves, deriving from the royal hunting reserves.
The numerous UNESCO sites, as well as a historical heritage dating
back to Roman times and distributed between large cities and small jewel
villages, are accompanied by the great variety of natural environments.
In Piedmont, a tourist can pass in a couple of hours from the Po Valley
to the highest peaks of the Alps, or cross the Unesco hills of Lower
Piedmont and reach the Ligurian coast in an hour, via the expressway of
the motorway, or dedicate half a day to exploring the most fascinating
mountain roads of the Apennines, to finally spot the sea 1000 meters
below your feet.
Geographic hints
It borders France to the
west (Auvergne-Rhône-Alps and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions), Valle
d'Aosta to the north-west, Switzerland to the north (Valais and Ticino
cantons), Lombardy to the east , to the southeast for a short stretch
with Emilia-Romagna and to the south with Liguria.
Piedmontese is spoken by around 2-3 million people throughout Piedmont. However, it is Italian that dominates in everyday communication. In 2004, the regional council recognized the Piedmontese language as the official language of the region, also protecting the Occitan, Franco-Provençal and Walser minorities.
Turin (Torino) — the first capital of the
Kingdom of Italy, today it is an exceptional cultural, historical,
artistic and industrial center. There is the majestic Mole Antonelliana,
the Egyptian Museum (second only to that of Cairo), the automobile
museum, the Savoy gallery, not to mention the splendid architectural
works that can be admired walking through the old centre, such as Piazza
Vittorio Veneto, the most arcaded square in the world.
Alessandria — The citadel, the Cathedral, the Marengo
Museum, the Palazzo Cuttica Museum, Piazza della Libertà are just some
of the most important monuments and architectural works that can be
admired in the splendid historic center built in an elegant Savoyard
style.
Asti — center of Piedmont's major wine
region, Monferrato, was an important medieval republic known as the city
of 100 towers, 15 of which can still be seen in the ancient walled city.
Cuneo — Wedged (as the name suggests) between the
Gesso and Stura rivers, the city still has a splendid fortified historic
center in which the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Bosco, the civic tower
and the spectacular Piazza Galimberti stand out.
Novara — The city preserves interesting artistic and
architectural treasures such as the daring dome of the Basilica of San
Gaudenzio, the very symbol of the city, and the early Christian
baptistery of the cathedral, one of the oldest religious buildings in
Piedmont.
Vercelli - A very important agricultural and commercial
centre, the largest producer of rice in Italy, it offers tourists an
enviable historical center dominated by the Abbey of Sant'Andrea, the
Cathedral and the splendid Torre dell'Angelo.
Verbania
- the largest city on the shores of Lake Maggiore. Intra and Pallanza
are the two historic cores that have been united to form this city.
However, two parts with a different nature remain: Pallanza, more
suggestive, with medieval atmospheres; Intra, more modern, with an
industrial past, an important stop on the lake.
Biella
- Located at the foot of the Biellese Alps, it is an ancient city that
gathers important historic buildings in its village, not to mention the
very important evidence of industrial archeology.
Bra
Carema
Domodossola
Ivrea
Moncalieri
Montalto Dora
Neive
Parella
Savigliano
Stresa
Residences of the Savoy royal family — Splendid villas, palaces and
luxurious castles remind us that Piedmont was for centuries the flagship
of all of Europe, during the reign of the House of Savoy.
Sacri Monti
di Piemonte e Lombardia — UNESCO World Heritage Sites, dot the rolling
valleys and lakesides of northeastern Piedmont.
Bossea Cave
Gran Paradiso National Park
Castello della Manta
Castle of Racconigi
Piedmontese Alpine arc - The western and northern borders of Piedmont
are entirely occupied by the Alps, which in the Piedmontese section are
divided, from South to North and in a clockwise direction, into the
Maritime, Cottian, Graian and Pennine Alps, up to the western coast of
the Lake Maggiore (shared with Lombardy to the east and Switzerland to
the north). The Piedmontese Alps have some of the most important Alpine
peaks, including Monte Rosa, Gran Paradiso (whose summit is, however, in
the Val d'Aosta) and Monviso, the source of the river Po. The interest
of the region for tourism winter is ensured by ski resorts of
international renown, many of which hosted the competitions of the Turin
2006 Winter Olympic Games. The naturalistic and historical-cultural
attractions are also of particular importance, making the alpine
environment a destination suitable for all seasons : the Piedmontese
Alpine arc hosts, among others, the Alpi Marittine Natural Park (Cuneo)
and the Gran Paradiso Park (Turin), as well as some of the most
important monuments in the history of art and architecture worldwide,
such as the Sacra di San Michele, overlooking the Val di Susa, and the
Sacro Monte di Varallo, not far from Lake Orta. The Piedmontese section
of the Alpine arch also hosts important passes and crossings towards
France, such as the E74 road of Col di Tenda and the E70 of Frejus, at
the bottom of the Val di Susa. The most important localities are Biella,
Sestriere, Macugnaga, Domodossola, Verbania, Stresa, Susa, and Ivrea. Of
important tourist interest are the towns on the shores of Lake Maggiore
which, on the Piedmontese shore, are Arona, Baveno, Verbania, Cannobio
and Dormelletto.
Piedmont hills — The area includes a large
section of southern Piedmont and extends from the eastern part of the
province of Cuneo to the north-eastern part of the province of
Alessandria. From west to east, the Piedmontese hilly area includes the
territories of the Langhe, Roero and Monferrato. The typicality of the
hilly landscapes of Lower Piedmont, characterized by a centuries-old
interaction between anthropic crops (first of all the vine), woods and
small villages rich in history, has recently allowed the Vineyard
Landscapes of Langhe-Roero and Monferrato to be recognized as a World
Heritage Site Humanity, by resolution of 22 June 2014, during the 38th
session of the Unesco committee in Doha. The main urban centers in the
area are Bra, Alba, Canelli, Nizza Monferrato and Asti. Also there are
several small villages such as Monforte d'Alba, Cella Monte, Neive,
Barolo, Barbaresco. In Roero the main localities besides Bra are also
Govone and Guarene.
Piedmontese Apennines — The Piedmontese
section of the Apennines extends in the southern area of the province of
Alessandria. The Erro and Scrivia valleys form its backbone. Acqui
Terme, Ovada and Tortona are the main access points to the region, which
borders the province of Genoa in its southern part.
Piedmontese
Po Valley — Novara and Vercelli north of the Po are the main cities of
the Piedmontese plain, located in a fertile plain where rice cultivation
has developed over the centuries.
To the west and north Piedmont is
surrounded by the Alps, to the south by the Apennines, to the east by
the Po valley.
By plane
Turin Caselle "Sandro Pertini" airport: it is the main
one in Piedmont. Located 16 km north of Turin, it is connected to the
city by the Turin-Caselle motorway junction and the provincial road 2
and is served by the public bus between Turin Porta Nuova and Caselle
Airport and by the Turin-Ceres railway.
Domestic flights: Alghero,
Bari, Brindisi, Cagliari, Catania, Lamezia Terme, Lampedusa, Naples,
Olbia, Palermo, Pescara, Reggio Calabria, Rome-Fiumicino, Trapani.
International flights: Barcelona, Brussels, Dublin, Dusseldorf,
Frankfurt am Main, Ibiza, Istanbul, Lisbon, London, Madrid, Malta,
Munich, Paris.
Cuneo International Airport: located 21 km north-east
of the city of Cuneo, it is connected to the Savigliano and Fossano
railway stations and can be reached by aerobus from Turin, Cuneo and
Fossano and via the Turin-Savona motorway.
Domestic flights: Alghero,
Cagliari, Elba Island, Rome-Ciampino, Trapani.
International flights:
Bacau, Bucharest-Otopeni, Casablanca, Hurghada, Marrakech, Satu Mare,
Tirana.
By car
From France:
Through the tunnels of Frejus
or Mont Blanc,
Through the Colle della Maddalena (Col du Larche),
Through Ventimiglia or Colle di Tenda.
From Switzerland: through the
Simplon or the Gran San Bernardo tunnel.
From Italy: via the A4 Turin
- Trieste, A21 Turin - Piacenza, A6 Turin - Savona, A5 Turin - Aosta -
Mont Blanc motorways; A7 Milan - Genoa; A32 Turin - Bardonecchia -
Frejus Tunnel; A33 Asti - Cuneo; A26 Genoa - Gravellona Toce.
On
the train
From France: directly to Turin from Lyon through the Frejus
Tunnel.
From Switzerland: through Domodossola.
By car
Below is a list of the Piedmontese state roads:
SS20:
Turin - Ventimiglia (IM).
SS21: Borgo San Dalmazzo (CN) - Colle della
Maddalena.
SS24: Turin - Montgenèvre/State border.
SS25: Turin -
Moncenisio/State border.
SS26: Chivasso (TO) - State border of the
Mont Blanc Tunnel (AO).
SS28: Genola (CN) - Imperia.
SS32: Novara
- Castelletto above Ticino (NO).
SS33: Milan - Sempione Pass state
border.
SS34: Gravellona Toce (VB) - State border of Cannobio (VB).
SS231: Asti - Cuneo
SS335: Oulx (TO) - Bardonecchia (TO).
SS336:
Gallarate (VA) - Varallo Pombia (NO).
SS337: Masera (VB) - State
border of Re (VB).
SS341: Novara - Varese.
SS490: Bagnasco (CN) -
Finale Ligure (SV).
SS659: Crevoladossola (VB) - Formazza (VB).
Roman period — Porta Palatina and via XX Settembre in Turin.
Excavations of Libarna near Serravalle Scrivia. Excavations of Augusta
Bagiennorum in the Cuneo area.
Romanesque art — Romanesque is well
documented in Piedmont. Cathedral of Casale Monferrato. Church of San
Giorgio in Valperga and those of San Bartolomeo and the Blessed Virgin
of the Assumption in Villadossola. In the Asti area, the abbey of
Vezzolano, Pieve di San Lorenzo in Montiglio Monferrato, the church of
Saints Nazario and Celso near Montechiaro and the church of San Secondo
in Cortazzone. The most evocative examples are the abbey of Saints
Nazario and Celso in the Novara area and the Basilica of San Giulio on
the homonymous island in Lake Orta. Sacra di San Michele in a
transitional style from Romanesque to Gothic and the same is true of the
Castle of Gabiano.
Gothic art Examples of Gothic are the Cathedral of
Asti, the basilica of Sant'Andrea in Vercelli, the cathedral of Chieri,
the church of San Giovanni in Saluzzo and those of San Marco and Santa
Maria delle Grazie in Varallo. The abbey of Sant'Antonio di Ranverso has
frescoes by Giacomo Jaquerio
XV - XVI centuries — Examples of
Renaissance architecture are the Castle of San Genuario in Crescentino
in the Vercelli area and the church of San Cristoforo in Vercelli
XVII - XVIII centuries — Palazzo Borromeo on Isola Bella (Lake
Maggiore). Examples of rococo are the palace of Venaria Reale.
19th -
20th centuries — The cathedrals of Novara and Alessandria are examples
of neoclassicism together with the Royal Castle of Racconigi.
A more
complete list of the main religious monuments of Piedmont can be found
in the relevant topic.
Piedmont has a varied tourist landscape, with a territory that
presents a great wealth of opportunities.
Lakes
The area of
the lakes on the eastern border of the Region (Lake Maggiore, Lake Orta
and Lake Viverone) is very popular in spring/summer, where there is an
established hotel district.
Winter and mountain sports
The
realm of winter sports is the area close to the western border, in the
Susa Valley and Val Chisone as well as some renowned ski resorts also in
the Cuneo area (Limone Piemonte, Artesina). All snow sports are
practiced here in winter, while in the summer season the ski lifts allow
easy access to alpine panoramas of remarkable beauty.
Food and
wine
Langhe, Monferrato and the Saluzzo area are instead the homeland
of the "sweetness of living", with numerous agritourisms that give the
opportunity to appreciate the great agricultural wealth of the Region.
Even the oldest touristic areas have equipped themselves to face a
growing demand for high quality food and wine. The regional capital,
Turin, is also becoming a showcase of the Piedmont area. Establishing
itself as the "capital of taste", it is enhancing the region's food and
wine heritage thanks to numerous professionals and the role played by
the Salone del Gusto and Terra Madre. It is no coincidence that the city
saw the opening of the first Eataly, but also of innovative initiatives
in the field of quick catering linked to local products.
Cultural
tourism
The city of Turin has stood out in recent years for the
rediscovery of a notable historical-artistic heritage due to its status
as a European court between the 1600s and 1800s. Distinguished in the
historic center by a very tidy and well-finished urban form from an
architectural point of view, similar to some cities in nearby France,
you can visit important museums born from the collections of the
reigning Savoy family, such as the Egizio, the Royal Armory, the Royal
Library and the Savoy Gallery, as well as palaces and historic homes.
The city is surrounded by a circle of Baroque royal residences built by
the Savoys between the 1600s and 1800s, today grouped in the tourist
circuit of the "Royal Residences". Also important are the vestiges of
the industrial past which have always made the city a place of
innovation, a pioneer in many fields. Witnesses of this are the National
Auto Museum, near the former Fiat Lingotto factory, and the National
Cinema Museum housed in the Mole Antonelliana. In the field of sport,
the Juventus Museum is enjoying considerable success. The Val di Susa
has a remarkable historical-artistic heritage due to the presence of the
Via Francigena, with four large medieval abbeys and a network of
artistic assets scattered in churches and chapels in the area, both in
the Lower and Upper Susa Valleys.
Hiking
There are many
opportunities for walks and hikes. Thanks to an early practice of alpine
tourism, almost all the mountains of Piedmont have not only a network of
paths and mule tracks, but also numerous refuges useful as stopping
points. The structures around Monviso, in Val di Susa, in the Valli di
Lanzo, in Ceresole, on the Piedmont side of the Gran Paradiso Park and
in the Monte Rosa area are very popular.
Via Francigena
The
Colle del Moncenisio, that of Monginevro and the valley floor of the Val
di Susa are places of transit for pilgrims of the Via Francigena of the
Valle di Susa, while Eporediese and Canavese host the itineraries of the
Valle d'Aosta section of the Via Francigena. Along the way you can
admire the many monuments of art and faith erected by pilgrims who have
passed through these areas over the centuries.
The peasant tradition has left its influence on Piedmontese cuisine.
Bollito Misto and Fritto Misto are traditional dishes of ancient
tradition. Bollito Misto is made up of various cuts of beef and pork,
boiled with vegetables and served with a choice of sauces (typically the
green sauce made with parsley and garlic). Fritto Misto is a mixture of
vegetables, meats and desserts, variously battered or breaded before
being fried (for example, sweet semolina). Another traditional dish is
the Bagna Cauda: it consists of a sauce made with garlic and anchovies,
cooked for a long time over a very low heat, which is served with a
variety of raw and cooked vegetables (e.g. raw cabbage, onion cooked
oven and seared peppers). A typical dish of the Vercelli area is the
Panissa, which is a type of risotto made up of rice of the Arborio,
Baldo or Maratelli variety, beans of the typical quality grown in
Saluggia, onion, Barbera red wine, lard, "salam d'la duja", salt and
pepper.
Turin has been the fulcrum of the diffusion of chocolate
throughout Europe; in its pastry shops you can find excellent chocolates
(for example the Gianduiotto, hazelnut chocolate, or the Grappino of
bitter chocolate filled with grappa). In Ivrea you can also find Torta
900, a dessert with a base of cocoa sponge cake, filled with a delicate
chocolate cream.
Drinks
Piedmont is famous for its full-bodied
red wines, Barolo and Barbaresco, but also Nebbiolo, Dolcetto, Arneis,
Freisa, Moscato d'Asti, Erbaluce di Caluso are rightly gaining the
appreciation of wine lovers. Certainly also the Gavi, one of the best
Italian whites, should be mentioned. Most of the vineyards are in the
provinces of Asti and Alessandria, but viticulture flourishes throughout
the region.
Piedmont does not present particular risks from the point of view of crime. Clearly in its capital, Turin, being a very populated city there is a risk (in any case very low compared to other areas of Italy) of being the victim of robberies or pickpocketing. In small mountain towns, on the other hand, you can rest easy if you exercise a minimum of common sense. However, the whole region is generally safe.
Initially the term Piedmont, which from the end of the 12th century appeared written on topographical maps in the Latin version Pedemontium or Pedemontis (meaning "at the foot of the mountains"), identified the possessions of the Savoys, limited to the stretches included in the vicinity of the Sangone, of the Dora Riparia and the Po. Subsequently the term was extended to indicate an increasingly large part of the plain on this side of the Alps, elevated to Principality in 1418, in conjunction with the Savoy conquests. The link with the alpine landscape is evident in the story. In the Susa Valley in the Novalesa area, located at the base of the Moncenisio Hill, which has a steep difference in height between the pass and the valley floor surrounded by high peaks, an ecclesiastical building located along the busy Via Francigena was already indicated between the 12th and 13th centuries as S Maria ad Pedem Montis Cenisii, or S. Maria de Pedemontio.
The territory of the region can be divided into three concentric
bands, of which the prevailing and most external one is the Alpine and
Apennine one (as much as 43% of the regional territory). Inside there is
the hilly area (31% of the territory), which encloses the flat area (26%
of the territory).
Many rivers and streams flow in the region, all
tributaries of the river Po which has its source in Pian del Re at the
foot of Monviso.
Orography
The mountain ranges affecting
Piedmont are the Alps and the Apennines, which surround the region on
three sides, without interruption, from North to South in an
anticlockwise direction.
In particular, the Alpine sectors that
cross the region are the Ligurian Alps, the Maritime Alps, the Cottian
Alps, the Graian Alps (Western Alps, on the border with France and the
Aosta Valley), the Pennine Alps and the Lepontine Alps (Central Alps, on
the border with Switzerland).
The Apennine sector that affects
Piedmont is instead the Ligurian Apennines (Northern Apennines), located
on the border with Liguria and Emilia-Romagna. The mountain ranges thus
form a natural border on three sides.
The Piedmontese mountains
have an imposing and harsh appearance: the summits above three thousand
meters descend rapidly towards the plain, characterizing the western
area of the region which, unlike all the other Alpine regions, does not
have the Pre-Alps. This phenomenon is particularly evident in the Susa
Valley, where for example in Susa the valley floor is at an altitude of
only 503 meters above sea level, while the peaks surrounding the town
exceed 3,000 meters and reach 3,538 meters above sea level. with
Rocciamelone. Below the rocks and pastures there are large extensions of
coniferous woods (Piedmont is the first Italian region for forest area,
with about one million hectares of woods[20]), among which fir trees are
less common than in other sections of the Alps; going down in altitude
they soon give way to beech and chestnut groves. In this band there are
the highest peaks of the region, which exceed 4000 m: Punta Nordend
(4609 m), the highest regional elevation as well as the second highest
peak of the Monte Rosa massif; and the Gran Paradiso massif, which
reaches an altitude of 4026 m with the Roc; then there are numerous
peaks that exceed 3000 m, including Monviso, Uia di Ciamarella,
Rocciamelone, Monte Leone and Argentera.
Human footprints are
evident in the valleys, represented by important international road and
railway communication routes. In the smaller valleys there are dams,
hydroelectric plants and tourist centres.
The main hilly areas
are Canavese to the north-west, the Langhe and Roero to the south,
Monferrato and the Po hills in the centre, the Novaresi and Vergante
hills to the north and the Tortona hills to the south-east.
The
southern hills of the Langhe and Monferrato are formed by ancient marine
sediments and are not very resistant to water, which digs a labyrinth of
furrows and valleys. The well-exposed slopes are cultivated with vines,
cereals and fodder but also with orchards and hazelnut groves, while
livestock farming, once very widespread, is now concentrated in the
southern plains. In 2014 the vineyard hills of the Langhe, Roero and
Monferrato were included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Between these hills and the Alps, a plateau full of water reaches as far
as Cuneo, at an altitude of over five hundred metres: here the fields
are mainly cultivated with fodder and cereals. The Po Valley begins
right in the region, which, especially in the provinces of Vercelli and
Novara, is widely cultivated with rice fields, thanks also to the large
amount of water available, both for resurgences and, above all, for
artificial canals, the most important of which is certainly the Canale
Cavour.
In the area around the big cities, in particular in Turin
and Novara, the typical landscape is that of anthropic development even
if less accentuated than in the rest of the Po valley, while in the rest
of the plain rice alternates with other cereals and fodder and the
plantations of poplars intersect the fields.
The Piedmontese territory is rich in watercourses, all tributaries of
the river Po, which entirely crosses the region from west to east. To be
mentioned, in addition to Po himself, are:
Tanaro, the main right
tributary, 276 km long with its main sub-tributaries, the Bormida and
the Stura di Demonte; it flows into the Po at Rivarone;
Maira, a
right tributary, approximately 111.1 km long, flows with its tributary
Grana - Mellea through the valleys of the same name, the Cuneo plain and
the Saviglianese area, to then flow into the Po at Lombriasco;
Varaita, the first tributary on the right, 75 km long, originates in the
homonymous valley near Bellino, passes between the Saluzzo and
Saviglianese areas and flows into the Po in the municipality of
Casalgrasso;
Pellice, the first tributary on the left, 60 km long,
with its main sub-tributary Chisone, runs through the Pinerolo valleys
and flows into the municipality of Villafranca Piemonte;
Sangone, a
left tributary, 47 km long, runs through the homonymous valley, flowing
between Moncalieri and Turin;
Dora Riparia, a left tributary, 125 km
long, runs entirely through the Val di Susa; it flows into the Po in
Turin;
Stura di Lanzo, left tributary, 65 km long, with its 3
branches runs through the Valli di Lanzo; it flows into the Po near
Turin;
Malone, a left tributary, 48 km long, whose course separates
the geographical Canavese from the Ciriacese; it flows into the Po
between Brandizzo and Chivasso;
Orco, a left tributary, about 100 km
long, originates from Lake Rosset (in the Gran Paradiso National Park),
runs through the valley of the same name and the Canavese from north to
south, flowing into the Po near Chivasso;
Dora Baltea, a left
tributary, 160 km long, after having entirely crossed the Valle d'Aosta,
bathes Ivrea and crosses the eastern part of the Canavese, flowing into
the Po near Crescentino;
Sesia, a left tributary, 141 km long,
crosses the Vercelli area and is one of the most important rivers in
eastern Piedmont; it flows into the Po near Candia Lomellina;
Cervo,
a left tributary, 65 km long, after having collected the waters of the
Elvo flows into the Sesia not far from Vercelli;
Agogna, a left
tributary, 140 km long, originates from Mount Mottarone and flows into
the Po in Lombardy. Near Novara the river gives rise to the ''Piana
dell'Agogna'';
Ticino, a left tributary, 248 km long, is the second
Italian river in terms of water flow, tributary and emissary of Lake
Maggiore, it flows entirely in Piedmont (province of Novara) for only a
few km and in the remainder it marks the border with the Lombardy;
Toce, 83 km long, the most important tributary of Lake Maggiore after
the Ticino into which it flows, flows entirely in the province of
Verbano-Cusio-Ossola;
Belbo, right tributary, 86 km long, the largest
watercourse that crosses the Langhe and then flows into the Tanaro;
Scrivia, a right tributary, 88 km long, flows almost completely in
Piedmont and then flows into the Po in Lombardy;
Curone, a right
tributary, 50 km long, flows in Piedmont and Lombardy and flows into the
Po near Ghiaie di Corana.
There are numerous alpine lakes of glacial and morainic origin in the
region. Lake Maggiore, which marks the eastern border with Lombardy,
together with its outlet, is one of the largest lakes in Italy, while
others, natural or artificial, do not exceed 2 km². Of all the lakes
present, the following are particularly noteworthy:
Lake Maggiore,
the largest lake in the region, located on the border with Lombardy and
Switzerland, between the provinces of Novara and Verbano-Cusio-Ossola,
has a surface area of 212 km² and a maximum depth of 372 m;
Lake
Orta, the second largest lake in the region, between the provinces of
Novara and Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, has a surface area of 18.2 km² and a
maximum depth of 143 m. Its peculiarity is to have the island of San
Giulio in the centre;
Lago di Viverone, the third largest lake
between the provinces of Turin and Biella, has a surface area of 6 km²
and a maximum depth of 50 m.
Among the decidedly smaller natural
lakes are Lake Mergozzo (1.85 km²), Lake Sirio (0.3 km²), Lake Candia
(1.52 km²) and the Lakes of Avigliana (0.9 and 0.61 km²).
Piedmont has a typically temperate continental climate, which in the
Alps becomes progressively temperate-cold and cold as you go up in
altitude. In the areas located at low altitudes, winters are relatively
cold but with little rain and often sunshine, with the possibility of
snowfalls, sometimes abundant, in the areas along the Po, on the hilly
areas such as the Langhe and Monferrato and in the foothills. Snowfalls
are instead less frequent and occasional in the north-eastern areas.
Summers, on the other hand, are hot and muggy with the local possibility
of heavy thunderstorms, especially in the areas north of the Po, while
in the areas south of the Po, summer rainfall represents the minimum
rainfall together with winter rainfall (the lower rainfall in summer is
due to the which are less exposed to Atlantic perturbations, which bring
rain and storms). The rains fall mainly in spring and autumn over most
of the territory, in summer in the higher alpine and inland areas: the
annual quantities are considerable on the mountain and foothill slopes
of the north of the region, while they are scarcer on the plains south
of the Po, especially in the province of Alessandria.
The
direction of origin of the air masses has a great influence on rainfall.
If they are humid and come from the south, south-east or east, the
Alpine chain blocks their way (it is the phenomenon called stau): in
this case the rainfall can also be very abundant, especially on the
first mountain slopes, sometimes causing floods. If, on the other hand,
the air currents come from the north, north-west or west, the humidity
is discharged on the western side of the Alps and therefore the air that
reaches the region is dry, being able to cause the absence of rainfall
even for weeks . Furthermore, foehn phenomena are becoming frequent in
the mountain and foothill areas, especially in the province of Turin
(see heat wave of January 2007). Snow in winter is a relatively frequent
meteor, given the basin effect of the Alps and the Apennines, greater in
the south-west, which makes air exchange difficult and in winter favors
the accumulation of a cushion of air cold on the ground.
On the
shores of Lake Maggiore there is a particular microclimate, with milder
winters than in the rest of the region and cooler and stormy summers.
Even in the valleys and hills facing south there are milder and sunnier
climates.
From a geological point of view, Piedmont is a region where there are
important mountain ranges, extensive hilly areas and a large plain. In
the Triassic (256 million years ago), while the Atlantic Ocean was
forming to the west of present-day Europe, a large gulf was present at
the latitude of Italy: it was what remained of the ancient ocean, called
Tethys: over time it began to dry up and its surface began to arch and
rise again due to a phenomenon of subduction, the surface warmed up also
due to the heat produced by the ascent of magma and extensive rocky
layers which formed part of the mantle, oceanic crust and of the
continental one were pushed to the surface overlapping each other.
20 million years ago the Alpine chain was now formed; in the
Mediterranean area there was a new rise of heat from the earth's mantle
which caused the arching and breaking of the European crust from which
the Sardinian-Corsican block detached. This micro-plate pivoted on the
Ligurian Gulf performing an anti-clockwise rotation of 50° and forming
the Ligurian Sea. The sea covered the hills of Turin, the Langhe, Roero,
Monferrato and the Po Valley.
The increase in water temperature
transformed the Mediterranean Sea into a shallow salt lake with many
dried up areas, a condition which lasted several hundred thousand years
and caused the deposit of saline-type sediments: the evaporites.
Subsequently the Mediterranean returned to communication with the
oceanic waters and the water began to circulate again, forming a
triangular gulf between the Alpine chain and the Apennine chain;
following the continuous upheavals of the Alpine and Apennine chains,
the sea withdrew from the gulf and the accumulation of sediments carried
by the rivers gave rise to an alluvial plain which corresponds to the
current Po valley. The marine deposits of this period are visible in the
current Asti area of Piedmont, but they are also present in the Biellese
area and at the mouth of Valsesia and Valsessera to testify that the sea
reached almost under the Alpine chain. Some islands emerged from the sea
that covered Piedmont, the current Turin hill and the Lower Monferrato.
From fossil remains we know that the climate of that period was
subtropical, and therefore hotter and more humid than the current one.
The streams carried their debris forming delta mouths [unclear] on which
herds of rhinoceros, elephants, deer and horses grazed. The water
courses with their erosive force removed the sediments of the previous
period, even hundreds of meters thick, covering the basin with
megaconoid fluvial deposits. A million years ago the climate underwent a
further change: rainfall increased and temperatures became colder. This
led to the birth of Alpine glaciers. The glacial tongues ran along the
valleys, deepening and widening them sometimes reaching the plain. The
dendritic material that came from the mountains built impressive
morainic amphitheatres, clearly visible at the mouth of the Dora Riparia
and Dora Baltea valleys and in the areas around Lake Maggiore and Orta.
In the region there are numerous protected areas, extended for more
than 193,000 hectares, equal to about 10% of the regional surface; among
these we find two national parks, Gran Paradiso and Val Grande, 56
regional parks and reserves and numerous provincial protected areas.
Based on the results of the XXI edition of Legambiente's Urban
Ecosystem (2014) and (2015), Piedmont manages to place the city of
Verbania in first place in the virtuous ranking in the environmental and
ecosystem field. Novara (18th place), Cuneo (13th), Asti (40th), Biella
(17th) are also in a good position. More distant Vercelli (64th),
Alessandria (77th) and Turin (84th).
Inhabited since the Paleolithic, after the melting of the ice in the
upper Po valley, in the 1st millennium BC. it was occupied by Celtic and
Ligurian populations, including the Taurini and Salassi, subsequently
subdued by the Romans, who founded colonies such as Eporedia (Ivrea) and
Augusta Taurinorum (Turin). In the first years following the fall of the
Western Roman Empire, Piedmont passed under the control of the Germanic
populations: first entering the domain of Odoacre, it was then conquered
by the Ostrogoths. In the mid-6th century, Italy was reconquered by the
Romans, only to fall into the hands of the Lombards in 568. In 774,
Charlemagne conquered the Lombard kingdom, including Piedmont. In the
9th and 10th centuries it suffered the new incursions of the Saracens
who destroyed, among other things, the Abbey of Novalesa in Val di Susa.
Compared to what happened in the rest of northern Italy, territorial
lordships developed preponderantly in Piedmont, such as that of the
Counts of Castello, who in 1291 sold Sempione and Gondo to the Bishop of
Sion Boniface de Challant. Administratively divided into counties and
marches, it was partially unified in the 11th century by Olderico
Manfredi II, who obtained the two important marches of Turin and Ivrea
and bequeathed them to his son-in-law Oddone di Savoia, son of Umberto I
Biancamano. The process of unification of Piedmont under the Savoy took
several centuries, first for the formation of autonomous municipalities,
such as Asti, Alessandria and Savigliano (12th century), and strong
marquisates, such as those of Saluzzo (11th century) and Monferrato
(12th century ); then due to the intervention of powerful external
lords, such as the Visconti (14th century); finally for the involvement
of the region in the struggles between the Habsburgs and the Valois for
hegemony in Italy and Europe (16th century). Only after the peace of
Cateau-Cambrésis (1559) Emanuele Filiberto and his successors were able
to start the process of definitive unification, completed in 1748 with
the treaty of Aachen.
After the interlude of Napoleonic
domination (1798-1814), Piedmont followed the destinies of the Kingdom
of Sardinia and played a central role in the Italian Risorgimento and in
the construction of the new unitary state (1861), which derived from it
the juridical and political structure (Statuto Albertino of 1848) and
the administrative staff, in that process which was defined as the
"Piedmontisation" of the state. In the most critical or transitional
moments of national history, Piedmont made important contributions as a
political and social "laboratory", with the workers' strikes in the
world wars (in 1917 and 1943), the Turin experiences of Gramsci and
Piero Gobetti (1920s ), the intense participation in the Resistance
(1943-1945), the innovative industrialism of Adriano Olivetti (1950s),
the season of struggles of the hot autumn (1969). The industrialization
of the region was impressive, which from the traditional agrarian
structure of the Savoy kingdom, founded on the hegemony of the
bureaucratic and military classes and the landed aristocracy, was able
to initiate, starting from the Cavourian age (1852-1861), a rapid
process of modernization until it became, at the beginning of the
twentieth century, a significant area of the industrial triangle that
drove the Italian economic take-off. In the rapid development, there was
no shortage of imbalances, above all territorial, between the Turin
area, the main seat of industrialisation, and the still predominantly
rural economy of the rest of the Cita homeland (just as the Turin author
Armando Mottura defined Piedmont in the famous and homonymous poem of
1959). In the 1950s and 1960s, the economic fabric in which FIAT had a
preponderant place attracted a large migratory flow from the Veneto and
the south, which brought about profound social and cultural
transformations.