Sondrio

Sondrio Sùndri (Lombard)
Comune
Città di Sondrio
Panoramic view Sondrio
Flag Coat of arms
Sondrio within the Province of Sondrio
Location of Sondrio
Sondrio Location of Sondrio in Italy Show map of Italy Sondrio Sondrio (Lombardy) Show map of Lombardy
Coordinates: 46°10′N 09°52′E
Country	Italy
Region	Lombardy
Province	Sondrio (SO)
Frazioni	Arquino, Colda, Gualtieri, Ligari, Moroni, Mossini, Ponchiera, Sant'Anna, Sassella, Triangia, Triasso
Government
• Mayor	Marco Scaramellini (Lega Nord)
Area [1]
• Total	20.88 km^2 (8.06 sq mi)
Elevation	360 m (1,180 ft)
Population  (30 September 2017)[2]
• Total	21,588
• Density	1,000/km^2 (2,700/sq mi)
Demonym	Sondriesi
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	23100
Dialing code	0342
Patron saint	Sts. Gervasius and Protasius
Saint day	June 19
Website	Official website

Sondrio (Italian: [ˈsondrjo] ^ⓘ; Lombard: Sùndri; Romansh: Sunder; archaic German: Sünders or Sonders; Latin: Sundrium) is an Italian city, comune and administrative centre for the province of Sondrio, located in the heart of the Valtellina. As of 2015^[update], Sondrio counted approximately 21,876 inhabitants. In 2007, Sondrio was named the Alpine Town of the Year.

History

Ligariana tower

The library of Villa Quadrio

Madonna della Sassella, a nearby sanctuary.

Formerly an Ancient Roman military camp, today's Sondrio was founded by the Lombards: in their language Sundrium meant "Exclusive property", referring to the status of free men (arimanni) of the holders of the city and the surrounding land.

After the fall of the Lombard Kingdom in Italy, Sondrio became part of the Holy Roman Empire. The Capitanei of Vizzola, who controlled much of the Valtellina, had it in 1040 from the emperor Henry II. From 1310 to 1335 the city was involved in the war between the Guelph and Ghibelline factions of the nearby Como, and its war against Milan. After having resisted several attacks by the Comaschi, in 1335 Sondrio and Valtellina became part of the Visconti Milanese dominions.

From the second half of the 16th century to the end of the 18th century, Sondrio was governed by the Tre Leghe Grigie ("Three Grey Leagues") of the Grisons, as the capital city of Valtellina. After the Reformation, Sondrio was the centre of heavy struggles between the Catholic Valtellinesi and the Protestant Grisons. In 1620 the citizens, led by Giacomo Robustelli, killed 180 Protestants and declared the independence of the Valtellina.

After the Napoleonic parenthesis, in which it became part of the Cisalpine Republic (later Kingdom of Italy), Sondrio with the Valtellina was annexed to the Austrian Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia, and fought gallantly for its independence.

Geography

The town is located in the middle of the province, and borders with the municipalities of Albosaggia, Caiolo, Castione Andevenno, Faedo Valtellino, Montagna in Valtellina, Spriana and Torre di Santa Maria. Its hamlets (frazioni) are Arquino, Colda, Gualtieri, Ligari, Moroni, Mossini, Ponchiera, Sant'Anna, Sassella, Triangia and Triasso.

Government

See also: List of mayors of Sondrio

Economy

The territory of Sondrio has numerous vineyards; wines produced include the Sassella and Grumello. Wine represents one of the main resources of this region, together with tourism, especially in winter.

Another important piece of Sondrio's economy is its banking industry, with the Banca Popolare di Sondrio^[3] and the Credito Valtellinese^[4] both headquartered in Sondrio and listed on the Milan Stock Exchange.

Main sights

The heart of Sondrio is its central Garibaldi Square. Not far from it is the Palazzo Sassi, home of the Art and History Museum of Valtellina. In a dominant position, near the ancient road to the Valmalenco, linking the town to Switzerland, stands the Masegra Castle, housing the Historical Museum of the Grisons Domination.

The church of Santi Gervasio e Protasio rebuilt in Neoclassical-style in 1838, was built in the 12th century as a Romanesque pieve and collegiate church. Other sights include the Torre Ligariana, once the collegiate's bell tower, and the Palazzo Pretorio, once the seat of the Grisons government.

Across the railway in direction of Milan there is the ancient Church of Maria della Sassella,^[5] which the local tradition dates back to the 10th century.^[6][7] In March 2021 the Roman Catholic Diocese of Como declared the church to be a diocesan Marian sanctuary.^[8]

People

• Giovanni Pietro Ligario (1686–1748), painter
• Antonio Caimi (1814–1878), painter
• Enrico Sertoli (1842–1910), physiologist and histologist
• Antonio Carini (1872–1950), physician, bacteriologist and professor
• Primo H. Zopatti (1878-1934), entrepreneur America, Zopatti Bros., Dorchester.
• Pier Luigi Nervi (1891–1979), engineer
• Valerio Ricetti (1898—1952), Italian-Australian hermit
• Gianni Celati (1937–2022), writer, translator and literary critic
• Sophia Zopatti Lewis (b.1941), Olympic dressage hunter/jumper Rome 1960
• Giulio Tremonti (b. 1947), politician
• Benedetto Della Vedova (b. 1962), politician
• Raffaella "Raffy" Rossi (b. 1974), ski mountaineer and skyrunner
• Luca Colombo (b. 1984), football player
• Matteo D'Alessandro (b. 1989), football player
• Robert Antonioli (b. 1990), ski mountaineer
• Michele Boscacci (b. 1990), ski mountaineer
• Arianna Fontana (b. 1990), short track speed skater
• Lorenzo Passerini (b. 1991), conductor

Twin towns – sister cities

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Italy

Sondrio is twinned with:^[9]

• Radovljica, Slovenia
• São Mateus, Brazil
• Sindelfingen, Germany

Sports

Sondrio Calcio is the football club of the city and currently plays in Serie D.

Climate

Climate data for Sondrio (1994–2017)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	6.1 (43.0)	9.8 (49.6)	15.8 (60.4)	19.4 (66.9)	23.2 (73.8)	27.4 (81.3)	29.2 (84.6)	28.4 (83.1)	23.5 (74.3)	17.7 (63.9)	11.0 (51.8)	5.9 (42.6)	18.1 (64.6)
Daily mean °C (°F)	2.3 (36.1)	5.0 (41.0)	10.3 (50.5)	13.6 (56.5)	17.4 (63.3)	21.4 (70.5)	22.8 (73.0)	22.4 (72.3)	18.1 (64.6)	13.1 (55.6)	7.1 (44.8)	2.5 (36.5)	13.0 (55.4)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	−1.5 (29.3)	0.3 (32.5)	4.2 (39.6)	7.8 (46.0)	11.5 (52.7)	15.4 (59.7)	16.4 (61.5)	16.4 (61.5)	12.7 (54.9)	8.5 (47.3)	3.3 (37.9)	−0.8 (30.6)	7.9 (46.1)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	47 (1.9)	42 (1.7)	57 (2.2)	63 (2.5)	81 (3.2)	97 (3.8)	93 (3.7)	107 (4.2)	92 (3.6)	107 (4.2)	98 (3.9)	50 (2.0)	934 (36.9)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm)	5	4	6	7	10	11	10	11	9	5	6	4	88
Source 1: Climi e viaggi[10]
Source 2: Istituto Superiore per la Protezione e la Ricerca Ambientale (precipitation 1951–1980)[11]

See also

• Sondrio railway station

References

1. "Superficie di Comuni Province e Regioni italiane al 9 ottobre 2011". Italian National Institute of Statistics. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
2. Population data from Istat
3. BPS – Banca Popolare di Sondrio
4. Gruppo bancario Credito Valtellinese
5. "Santuario della Beata Vergine della Sassella". lombardiabeniculturali.it (in Italian).
6. Bormetti, FRancesca. "Santuario della Madonna della Sassella a Sondrio" (in Italian). Retrieved May 15, 2021.
7. "Local tour of the Marian sancturary" (PDF) (in Italian). Archived (PDF) from the original on May 15, 2021 – via YouTube. {{cite web}}: External link in |via= (help)
8. "Il decreto di elevazione ed il testo dell'omelia. La chiesa di Santa Maria della Sassella a Sondrio elevata a Santuario diocesano" (in Italian). March 25, 2021.
9. "Città gemellate". comune.sondrio.it (in Italian). Sondrio. Retrieved 2020-11-18.
10. "Clima - Sondrio (Lombardia)". Climi e viaggi. Retrieved 28 November 2024.
11. "Valori climatici normali di temperatura e precipitazione in Italia" (PDF). Istituto Superiore per la Protezione e la Ricerca Ambientale. Retrieved 28 November 2024.

External links

Media related to Sondrio at Wikimedia Commons

• Official website (in Italian)
• Sondrio tourist website
• Sondrio weather website