Bolzaneto – Wikipedia

Bolzaneto ( Bask [Argo] O Borsanaeo in Ligurian ^[first] ) is a Genoese neighborhood of the Val Polcevera, between the neighborhoods of Rivarolo in the south and Pontedecimo to the north and bordering the municipalities of Ceranesi to the north-west and Serra Riccò and Sant’Olcese to the north-east.
The territory of the former constituency also borders on the west, along the rinds of the mountains, with sestri west, but there are no direct connection roads with this neighborhood.

The former district of Bolzaneto is part together with Rivarolo and Pontedecimo of the Town Hall V Valpolcevera and includes the urban units “Bolzaneto” and “Morego”, who together have a population of 14 657 inhabitants (data updated at 31 December 2017) ^[2] .

The origins of the name
The name of Bolzaneto derives from the ancient Genoese term Bossonea , which indicated a place where brambles or similar thorny plants grew [3] .

The territory of the former district of Bolzaneto extends on both sides of the Polcevera. The main center (Bolzaneto) is located on the left of the stream, along the former state road 35 of the Giovi.

On the embankment that divides the inhabited area by the stream, built around the mid-nineteenth century, the oldest branch of the Genoa-Turin railway line runs, the one passing through Busalla.

Within the two urban units That form the district include the hamlets of Brazil, Cremeno and Geminiano, on the hill on the left side of the Val Polcevera, Murta, also on the hill but on the right side, Morego and Morigallo at the confluence between the dry and the Polcevera. The Valpolcevera landscape behind Bolzaneto, on the left side of the valley, is characterized by the presence of the strong diamond and minor brother, which constitute part of the ancient Genoese fortifications.

On the right side of Valpolcevera, on Mount Figogna (804 meters), stands the sanctuary of Our Lady of the Guard, from which you can enjoy a wide view over the whole valley. The sanctuary, located in the municipality of Ceranesi, can be reached with the provincial road 52 which begins in Bolzaneto.

From the origins to the eighteenth century [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The origins of Bolzaneto are to be found in the settlements developed on the hilly slopes, along the ancient communication routes from the coast to the hinterland and the Po Valley: Geminiano, Brazil and Cremeno on the left side of the Polcevera Val and Murta on the opposite side.
The valley floor, where today the most consistent part of the modern settlement is concentrated, was once largely occupied by the thrucevera’s thrrow, subject to sudden full and devastating and for this very feared and consequently almost completely depopulated. In the current area of ​​Bolzaneto the first settlements along the banks of the stream, due to military or religious reasons, were the Castle of Montebello (around the fourteenth century) and the convent of S. Francesco alla Chiappetta (late thirteenth century) , around which over time the two historical nuclei of the current neighborhood developed ^[4] .

Of the Borgo di Bolzaneto, consisting of a group of poor houses at the foot of the castle, to the left of the stream, near the point where this formed a large ansa, there is certain news starting from 1050. The town was a small fraction Subsequently to the civil and religious authority of Brazil and remained until the mid -nineteenth century, when the municipal office and the parish title were transferred to Bolzaneto. In the fourteenth century in the village a chapel entitled to Our Lady of the snow was built.

A short distance away, but at that time still on the right bank of the Polcevera, at the end of the thirteenth century the convent of S. Francesco alla Chiappetta was built.

In 1337 the village of Bolzaneto was devastated during the bloody faction struggles between Guelphs and Ghibellines; During these fights, the forticality built by the Adorno was destroyed, then reconstructed in 1380 by the Republic of Genoa.

Starting from the fifteenth century, a massive presence of the Genoese patrician families began, who built their holiday residences in the area, to which they were often associated with agricultural estates, which for several centuries have characterized the landscape of the valley, strictly linking the economy a that of the nearby city ^[4] .

The wars of 1746 and 1800 [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

In the eighteenth century the Republic of Genoa, an ally of France, found itself involved in the Austrian succession war. The Valpolcevera in 1746 was occupied by an Austro -Piedmontese army, under the command of General Botta Adorno, who reached Genoa, from where it was hunted following the popular insurrection of 5 – 10 December 1746, which started with the legendary episode del Balilla.

On April 11, 1747, another Austrian army, under the command of the Count of Schulenberg, considered to occupy Genoa again. The invaders, who got out of the north through the Apennine passes, occupied the whole Valpolcevera, bringing looting and destruction, and signed Genoa. Havepri fights between the Austrians on the one hand and volunteers from Valpolcevera (framed in companies divided by parishes) and regular troops of the Republic of Genoa on the other. On July 19, 1747 the Austrians abandoned Valpolcevera, leaving behind a trail of death and destruction and were definitively driven beyond the Apennines in February 1748.

The expenses of that sad period were mainly the hilly locations, both during the first advance of the Austrian armies in 1746, and during the long siege on the borders of the city in the first months of the following year. There are numerous reports on the violence and destruction perpetrated by the Austrian soldiers, thirsty for booty. The protests of the population made the parish priests spoke, whose churches had been plundered and seriously damaged.

The most affected centers were Brazil, Cremeno, Geminiano and above all Murta, where in the villa Bonarota (Villa Clorinda) General Schulemberg had placed his headquarters in April 1747, while waiting, which then proved to be vain, to be able to regain Genoa. Previously, in September 1746, the Austrians had destroyed the rectory and plundered the church. Another center that had undergone serious losses was creamy, where half of the approximately 500 inhabitants died, especially from miserable living conditions in those tragic months. Immediately after the war in all affected countries, the work of reconstruction of churches, houses, barrels and stables and the restoration of the cultivated fields began, sacked by the invaders ^[4] .

A few years later a considerable contribution to the economic development of the valley was given by the opening, in the seventies of the eighteenth century of the new road on the valley floor, called “Camblasia” because it was built at its own expense by the Doge of the Republic of Genoa Giovanni Battista Cambiaso, in return, in return of tax benefits (and also to make the path between Genoa and its villa of Cremeno easier).
The new artery created new job opportunities related to the services offered to travelers, in the field of catering, with the opening of numerous taverns and in the assistance services (repair of wagons, care of animals and goods warehouses), activities that supported the traditional agricultural economy of the area, which in turn benefited from new opportunities for sale of its products ^[4] .

In 1797 the descent in Liguria of the Napoleonic army decreed the end of the multi -culture Republic of Genoa which, renamed “Repubblica Ligure”, passed under French control; Also in this circumstance the PolceveraSchi valleys, wary of the revolutionary ideas of which the French were bearers and who questioned their consolidated attachment to traditions, attempted to resist, but nothing could be against the powerful French army. With the new French systems since 1798 the Municipality of Brazil was established, the capital of the VIII Canton within the Rivarolo district, in the Genoa department, with jurisdiction, as well as on the village of Bolzaneto also on the communities of Casanova and Cremeno.

In 1800, during the war between France and the European powers (Austria, England, Russia and Prussia), Genoa suffered a tough siege by sea and on the ground by Austrian and British and once again Valpolcevera became a battle theater ( Aspri clashes between the Austrian beams and the French took place in the area of ​​Brazil and Geminiano, without however involving local populations) until the provisional surrender of the General Massena of 4 June 1800.
Twenty days later, following the victory in the battle of Marengo, the French definitively repocked Liguria. Although not comparable with the suffering suffered during the 1747 war, the Polceveraschi suffered many inconvenience, especially due to the lack of food as a result of the Anglo-Austrian siege.

The nineteenth century [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The establishment of the Municipality [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

In 1805 the Ligurian Republic was annexed to the French Empire and with it all the countries of Valpolcevera.
In 1814, following the decisions of the Congress of Vienna, the former Napoleonic Ligurian Republic passed to the Kingdom of Sardinia, and therefore also the Municipality of Brazil, which in 1834 Casalis still described as a small municipality with mainly agricultural economy:

‘ Brazil , common in the Rivarolo prov. Dioc. and div. of Genoa. It depends on the Senate, I mean. gen. Prefett. Hypot. and Posta di Genova, Insin. of Rivarolo. Find in the Polcevera valley, three miles from Genoa. It is divided into three parishes, which are: Brazil leader, Cremeno and Casanuova. The royal road, in the direction from South to Tramontana, intersects the place of Bolzaneto subjected to the parish of Brazil. They make very copious recolles of cereals, grapes, fruit of various species, including fishing there is exquisite flavor. The trade in these products is made up to Genoa. The parish church of Brazil is dedicated to s. Happy Pope and martyr, that of Cremeno to the apostle s. Peter; that of Casanuova a s. Margherita Virgin and martyr. In the employee Borgo di Bolzaneto saw a church under the title of N. D. Della Neve. Cremeno and Casanuova, beyond their parish, have an oratory audience. In the church of s. Happy, which has eight centuries from its dation, the feast of s. Luigi Gonzaga. With a lot of pump, and eziandio with the intervention of many people, the feast of s. Pietro Apostolo, and in Casanuova that of s. Lorenzo Martire. Along the royal road at the Borgo di Bolzaneto subject, on the side of Tramontana, above a Rialto stands a small fort, which was probably one of the many, who, since the Muratori noted, were built in the Polcevera valley to heal the raids of the Lombards . The inhabitants are of robust complexion, and applied part to agriculture, part of traffic, and mechanical arts. Population 740. ”

( Goffredo Casalis, “Geographical, historical, statistical and commercial dictionary of the States of S.M. Il King of Sardinia”, 1834 )

The small municipality managed to carry out the essential tasks that were entrusted to him, despite many problems, such as the lack of a suitable location (the meetings were held in private homes or in the sacristy of the Church of S. Felice), the scarcity of resources e the difficulty in finding among the local population the skills necessary for the administration of the Municipality ^{[7] [4]} .

The construction of the railway and the building expansion [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The picture described by Casalis was destined to change quickly in the following decades, when those few employees to the mechanical arts fleetingly cited by the Piedmontese historian, they would have grown in number becoming the main workforce of the local economy. In fact, around 1850, with the opening of the railway line and the argument of the Polcevera, a radical urban transformation began accompanied by the progressive industrialization of the Bolzanetese territory. With the construction of the Genoa-Turin railway, inaugurated in 1853, it was necessary to rectify and stem the course of the Polcevera stream, eliminating the ANSA from this format. The construction of the elevated embankment on which the new railway line ran, which also constituted a solid argine to the waters of the stream, also came to definitively solve the problems created by the frequent overflows that periodically caused serious damage and sometimes even victims. The last serious episode had occurred on August 26, 1834, when the waters in full had flooded the area of ​​the Chiappetta and other areas in the valley floor.

For a stretch of about 500 m, a new stretch of riverbed was dug that cut the base of the Murta hill immediately upstream of the convent of San Francesco (which in this way passed from the right to the left of the stream) and built an embankment on the left side, on which the railway runs. ^[8] The stretch of Greto no longer traveled by the stream and the bridge that crossed it were buried and the acquitrinous areas of the bracts and rotten waters were reclaimed, preparing these areas for the future building expansion; At the same time the bridge named in S. Francesco was built to connect the new banks of the Polcevera ^{[4] [9] [ten]} .

To create the embankment and the new stretch of the Polcevera, some houses were demolished, including the Villa Mari-Debarbieri Villa, which was located where the S. Francesco bridge is now.

With a R.D. of January 26, 1854 the headquarters of the Municipality was transferred from Brazil to Bolzaneto, followed two years later also by that of the parish. The first municipal seat was a building, still existing, overlooking the current Piazza Francesco Bartolomeo Savi, which has always been the center of the town, then called “Piazza del Prione” ^[11] .

In the meantime, the first houses to host the expropriated inhabitants of their homes for the construction of the railway line were built on the flat lands obtained in the former river of the stream. Gradually. In the following years, the entire area between the Piazza del Prione and the Borgo della Chiappetta was built, going to constitute the current inhabited area of ​​Bolzaneto. The ancient village of the pronione lost its own and the center of the town was moved a little more downstream, in the areas of new construction, where the new municipal house was built, inaugurated in 1878.

The new center gravitated around the squares today called Livraghi (overlooking the convent of the Chiappetta, and which once constituted the extreme offshoot of the Murta hill), Rissotto (on the website of the ancient bridge for Murta, where in the early twentieth century it would be The new school building is built) and Rivmondo (where the tramway of the Val Polcevera was located and at the time called “Piazza delle Carrozze”, because the means of transport was headed by the direct transport to the hilly areas) ^[4] .

With the R.D. On September 26, 1869, the municipal territory expanded, incorporating (at the request of the inhabitants themselves) the hilly hamlet of Murta, on the right bank of the Polcevera, until then dependent on the municipality of Rivarolo ^[twelfth] .

The industry [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

In the second half of the nineteenth century, the area, already an agricultural and a holiday resort of rich Genoese families, like all Valpolcevera had an imposing industrial development, with the settlement of numerous companies; The most important were the Ferriere Bruzzo (built at the end of the eighties), the Italian steel mills, then merged into the Ilva consortium, which found a place in the area north of the castle, in the meantime converted into an elegant villa (and following the hospital) and Later the Saponificio Lo Loro di Morigallo.
Next to these several textile factories were opened, linked at first to the production of silk, which lived a period of popularity in Val Polcevera in the last decades of the nineteenth century, before succumbing to the competition of the Asian countries, and later on that of the cotton ^[4] .

Thanks to the building and industrial expansion, the 740 inhabitants indicated by Casalis in 1837 at the end of the nineteenth century had become over 6 000 (a further strong increase was recorded with the census of 1911, when almost 10 000 were).

The twentieth century [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The new century opened with the inauguration, on March 15, 1900, of the electric tramway which replaced the horse one, prolonged a few months later until Pontedecimo.

In 1913 the Gaslini Oleificio was opened, which was based at the Borgo Vecchio, in a large building now occupied by artisan companies, in which the administrative offices were also transferred from Milan since 1929. In the early decades of the twentieth century there was a strong expansion of all industrial companies; In particular, in the 1920s the industries of the steel sector, also favored by military orders during the First World War, came to have over 3 000 employees ^[4] .

With the Royal Decree-Law n. 74 of 14 January 1926, the Municipality of Genoa expanded by incorporating 19 municipalities in the Polcevera Val, Val Bisagno and the two riviere, in the east and west. ^[13] The Municipality of Bolzaneto was thus abolished and became part of the so -called great Genoa.

After the Second World War, the crisis of the steel industry led to a downsizing of the Ferriere Bruzzo (definitively closed in 1957) and on some areas of these the Sanac refractory factory was built (after the transfer of this company, on the same area it is The new fruit and vegetable market in Genoa was built, transferred here in October 2009 by the old headquarters in Corso Sardegna, to the San Fruttuoso district).

In the immediate post -war period, the political choice to assign the role of oil terminal to Genoa (with the construction of the Petroles port in the Multedo district) favored the settlement of industries linked to this sector ^[14] .
On the hill of S. Biagio in the 1950s, the Erg refinery was built, then closed in 1988, also following the growing attention of the population to the environmental aspects of the territory and the risks for the safety introduced by this type of companies; The “L’Aquilone” shopping center now arise on this area (including a hypermarket of Coop Liguria and numerous shops) and a new residential neighborhood.

Similarly to these other areas, abandoned from the 1960s due to the closure of many historical factories are now reused by craft and commercial companies.

Bolzaneto and the G8 of Genoa from 2001 [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

Near Bolzaneto, in an area mainly occupied by industrial and commercial settlements, at the foot of the Cremeno hill, there is a barracks in the mobile department of the State Police.

This settlement has become famous in the international chronicles for the abuses committed by some police officers against people stopped during the disorders that took place during the summit of the G8 in Genoa in 2001. As evidenced during the process , however, it is important to highlight that people brought and stop in Bolzaneto were very rarely isolated during disorders: More often they were brought to the barracks after the Diaz school massacre , or have been taken in totally harmless conditions for the maintenance of public order ^[15] . For these abuses in July 2008 15 of the 44 police officers involved were sentenced by the Court of Genoa ^[16] .

Brazil [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

Brazil , in Ligurian Braxya ( [braˈʒiː] ), which is located in the hill on the left side of Valpolcevera, until 1854 was an autonomous municipality, with jurisdiction on Bolzaneto and Cremeno.

The name of the country probably derives from the wood of the tropical plant called precisely Brazil (A generating legume Caesalpinia , from which a red coloring was obtained since the Middle Ages), and which gave its name to the country of the same name in South America; In a document dated 1139, among the goods sold by local operators, the “is mentioned bracile “, specifying it is a red coloring. This product is then mentioned also in documents in the following centuries, to testify the importance of this trade in the local economy ^[3] .

Brazil is a small hamlet, made up of a few houses scattered on the hill that culminates with the church of Our Lady of good advice.

Even in the past Brazil, despite the role of municipal capital, should not have been bigger than today, according to the historian Rivarolese Giovanni Cipollina who describes it as follows: The first church hidden among the chestnut trees, on the eyelash of the summit, which ends the northern coast of the twins (two brothers), has around a few scattered farmhouses and vineyards . But in the Middle Ages there were important personalities who had prominent roles in the government of the city of Genoa (Ansaldo di Brazil is remembered which was consul of Genoa from 1099 to 1102).

Its position not far from the Postumia via Postumia had in fact favored its economic development, thanks to the trade of agricultural products cultivated in the surroundings, also making one of the favorite residential centers by officials of the Republic of Genoa, traders and landowners.

While becoming at the beginning of the nineteenth century the municipal capital, with the movement of the traffic along the new roads of the valley floor, the country remained isolated and lost of importance, for the benefit of the hamlet of Bolzaneto, which in the mid -century became the headquarters of the municipal administration and also of the parish ^{[3] [17]} .

Cremeno [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

Cremeno , in Ligurian Cremene ( [‘the cream] ), is a town on the hill on the left side of the Sardorella stream, just before her confluence in the dryer. The name derives from that of the Carmandino family (in Ligurian Carmen , from which Cremene ) ^[3] , whose progenitor IDO (or Guido) Carmandino, governor of the Genoese Committee of the Marca Obertenga of the King of Italy Berengario II, settled in Cremeno in 952 with the title of Viscount. In the following centuries his descendants had important positions in the government of the Republic of Genoa. From the Carmandino, other important Genoese patrician families descended, including that of the Spinola ^{[18] [19]} .

Between the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, several noble or wealthy Genoese families built their summer residences on the Cremeno hill. Among these, the Pedesina (to which the renovation of the church of San Pietro in 1642) and above all the Cambiaso, which at the beginning of the eighteenth century had a luxurious residence build near the country and developed fruit growing, already practiced by remote periods, By making the country a renowned quality fruit and vegetables manufacturer.
Even the CamboSo, in the first half of the eighteenth century, contributed to a new renovation of the church and to the rise of the bell tower, making their private chapel available for religious functions during the execution of the works.

Geminian [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

Geminian , in Ligurian Zemignan ( [‘She: Mijan] ), is a town made up of houses scattered from the valley floor of the Goresina stream to Campora ^[20] , since remote times a place of transit along the ancient road that from Genoa to Costa di Monte led to Valpolcevera, as evidenced by the discovery of remains of ceramics dating back to the first century BC. ^[4]

The name derives from “Gemini” (“Gemelli” in Latin), an ancient name with which the mountains were indicated popularly called “the two brothers”, which stand behind the town ^[3] .

Morego is a morigallo [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

Morego , in Ligurian Eurguin ( [‘Mørega] ; in ancient times, and still locally, Meurg [Mø org] ), together with Morigallo, Serro and San Biagio, until 1926 was part of the suppressed municipality of San Quirico.

The country, in the medieval era called Castle Medola , is located on a hill in view of the confluence between Secca and Polcevera; In ancient times a look at the lookout and a place of transit on the street to the Alta Valpolcevera, it is today a residential area ,.

In a large building adjacent to the country, until the mid -nineties occupied by a computer center of the Revenue Agency, the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) has been based since 2005.

Near the confluence of the dry stream in the Polcevera, at the foot of the Morego hill, there is the town of Morigallo (in ancient times Murial), once cultivated with a orchard and today almost completely occupied by industrial and commercial settlements, present in particular in the ‘ Area of ​​the former Saponificio Lo Faro.
Of Morigallo, in Ligurian Moigu ( [‘Mui: Capacity] ), located at the Bridge on the dry, there is news since 1222, when there was a convent here with an attached hospitalization for the indigent and pilgrims, in which religious of various orders and a church operated, dedicated to S. Margherita, dating back to the early years of XII century, of which no traces remain today ^[3] .
The origin of the name Morigallo is uncertain, however, the hypothesis made by some historians of the past that could derive from a military defeat suffered by French troops would be excluded.

Myrtle [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

Myrtle , in Ligurian Roast ( [‘myrtle] ), whose name derives from the Mirto plant (which in Latin is called “Murta”), is a town on the hill on the right side of the Valpolcevera, including a central nucleus around the parish church dedicated to San Martino, cited by 1143, several Groups of rural houses and numerous villas scattered in the greenery on the hilly side that degrades towards the Polcevera.

Once the agricultural country and a holiday resort of rich Genoese families, in the second half of the nineteenth century it was chosen as a summer residence also by many wealthy bourgeois families, who made you build elegant villas. Today is a residential area.

Military architectures [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

Bolzaneto Castle [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The Bolzaneto Castle, originally military fort, is located a short distance from the Bolzaneto motorway exit. Several times destroyed, reconstructed and reworked, an elegant stately residence became at the beginning of the twentieth century, and is currently used as a healthcare facility. Originally in a strategic position for the control of the surrounding area, at the confluence of dry in the Polcevera it was built by the Adorno family at the beginning of the 14th century ^[4] . Destroyed between 1336 and 1337, in the clashes between Guelph and Ghibelline factions, it was reconstructed by the Republic of Genoa in 1380. In 1435, during the war between the Republic of Genoa and the Duchy of Milan, supported by the Ghibelline faction, fell into the hands Of the troops of Filippo Maria Visconti, who arrested themselves at the end of that same year, when a popular uprising shed the Visconti from Genoa. After that story, the fort was no longer found in the center of relevant weapons; During the war events of 1746-1747 and still in 1800 he was occupied by the Austrian troops, but there is no news of his involvement in armed clashes ^[21] .
Remained abandoned for a long time, at the beginning of the twentieth century it was transformed into a country villa and then into the hospital, active until the 1980s. Since 2002 it has been hosting a RSA and a “Hospice” for terminal patients managed by Gigi Ghirotti Onlus Genoa Association ^[22] .

Strong [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The mountains behind Bolzaneto are characterized by the presence of some fortifications built on the ridges north of the new walls between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries as a garrison in defense of the city of Genoa.

The two strong built on the peaks of the Monte called “Two brothers” were called, in reference to their position, “older brother” and “younger brother”. They were built by the Sabaudo government in the first half of the nineteenth century, immediately after the annexation of the Ligurian Republic (Napoleonic denomination of the former Republic of Genoa) to the Kingdom of Sardinia.

The first, in the shape of a simple tower, was demolished in the 1930s to create an anti -aircraft station, the second is still substantially intact and dominates the valley from Monte Spino ( 622 m s.l.m. ).

The “Forte Diamante”, located on the summit of the Monte omonimo, in the territory of the municipality of Sant’Olcese, stands more backward than the two brothers but is clearly visible from many parts of the Bolzanetese territory. Among the strong Genoese is one of the best preserved; It was built in the eighteenth century by the Republic of Genoa and then completed and expanded in the first half of the nineteenth century by the Sabaudo government.

These strong can be reached through short hiking routes (about an hour of walking), from Val Polcevera, starting from Begato or Geminiano, from Tensasco (hamlet of Sant’Olcese) or from Genoa, starting from Righi.

• 

  Overall view of the “two brothers”.

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  Strong said “younger brother”.

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  Remains of the contrasting stations built on the site on which the strong “older brother” stood.

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Civil architectures [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

Palaces of Villa [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

Of the numerous buildings of Villa belonged to rich Genoese families, built between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries, there are still numerous testimonies; Most of these buildings, although now surrounded by industrial and commercial settlements, adequately renovated, are used as schools, offices or elegant condominiums. Most of these villas stand on the Murta hill, but they also find them in other areas of the neighborhood. Among the most significant examples they can mention:

• Villa Ghersi-Carrega (17th century), is located along the “National Via” at the entrance of Bolzaneto coming from Rivarolo. During his stay in Genoa (1624-1627) the Flemish painter Antoon Van Dyck was hosted in the villa. Today is the home of the Town Hall V – Valpolcevera.
• Villa Clorinda, on the Murta hill, belonged to the Bonarota, Doria and Costa families. During the Austrian occupation, from April to July 1747, the occupants settled in it. Today it is transformed into a condominium.
• Villa Rivarola-Drago, stands on the eastern side of the Murta hill. Today it is transformed into a condominium.
• Palazzo Pareto (18th century), near Romairone, belonged to the Cicopero, Pareto and Pozzoni families; In the twentieth century there were various industrial settlements around it that led to a gradual decline. Today, although partially renovated, it is in a state of degradation and its future appears uncertain, finding himself a short distance from the route of the designer motorway eaves.
• Villa Cambiaso (eighteenth century), at the hamlet of Cremeno, was the summer residence of Giovanni Battista Cambistaso, doge from 1771 to 1773, known above all for having built the valley of the Val Polcevera at his own expense. Today it is transformed into a condominium.
• Villa Garibaldi (nineteenth century), near the historical nucleus of Bolzaneto, was built by Msgr. Pietro Antonio Garibaldi, then passing to his nephew Nicolò Garibaldi. In the second half of the nineteenth century he lost part of his park for the opening of via Pasquale Pastorino. Today is home to a nursery school.

The Castle of Bolzaneto, as already mentioned, was also transformed into a villa by Carlo Pastorino in the second half of the nineteenth century. Among the disappeared palaces, those already mentioned by the Durazzo family in Romairone, of which the noble chapel remains, and the Mari-Ebarbieri, which stood upstream of the convent of San Francesco, demolished for the excavation of the new Polcevera bed; The expropriated owners, the Debarbieri family, built, slightly more upstream (in correspondence with the recently built bridge named after the Cunense alpine division) a more modest but still elegant building, now the office of offices.

Religious architectures [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

In the Bolzaneto district there are six parish Catholic churches, which are part of the vicariate of Bolzaneto of the Archdiocese of Genoa ^[23] .

Church of Our Lady of the snow [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The church of Our Lady of the snow, erected in the parish in 1856 of the Archbishop of Genoa Andrea Charvaz, since 1890 is the seat of the vicariate of Bolzaneto of the Archdiocese of Genoa.

The original church of Our Lady of the snow was built in the fourteenth century as a branch of San Felice di Brazil, renovated in the seventeenth century and completely rebuilt in 1857, immediately after the transfer of the parish title from Brazil to Bolzaneto. Demolite in the 1950s was rebuilt on another site, not far from the original one, but closer to the modern center of the neighborhood.

The current church was consecrated by Cardinal Giuseppe Siri in 1960. The church, in a modern and much larger style than the previous one, has a single wide elliptical nave, preceded by an atrium. The Baroque -style altars and the furnishings of the old church have been integrated. The main altar is surmounted by a high modern invoice canopy. In the church there are two paintings by Paolo Gerolamo Piola ( Conversion of Saint Paul It is Abraham receiving the three angels ) it’s a Dead Christ , by Giulio Cesare Procaccini.

Church and convent of San Francesco alla Chiappetta [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The church of San Francesco alla Chiappetta, with the adjoining convent, was built at the end of the thirteenth century thanks to a donation of the Lercari nobles and consecrated in 1563.

In the second half of the seventeenth century the church and the convent were completely reworked; The cloister and interior of the church transformed into a Baroque style was built. In the church, formed by a single nave, a wooden Madonna of the Maragliano school and some remarkable paintings of the seventeenth century are preserved: Stigmata di San Francesco of the Emilian school, Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary by Pietro Paolo Raggi, Miracle of Sant’Antonio by Giuseppe Galeotti, Estasi of Santa Caterina Fieschi Adorno It is Immaculate Conception by Domenico Piola.

In 1798, following the laws of suppression of religious orders, the Franciscans left the convent and the Church was entrusted to the diocesan clergy until 1896, when the friars returned to you. Around the mid -nineteenth century the church and the convent, which were on the right bank of the Polcevera, following the construction of the new embankment, came to find themselves on the opposite bank. In 1961 the church was erected in the parish, with a decree of Cardinal Giuseppe Siri.

Church of San Martino di Murta [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The church of San Martino di Murta is cited for the first time in 1143 on the “Archbishop’s register” of the decime, as a chapel subject to the parish church of S. Maria di Rivarolo. It was erected in the parish since 1202.

The current church is the result of a reconstruction in the early eighteenth century.
During the war of 1747 he suffered very serious damage and the spoliation of all the furnishings.
The reconstruction was completed in 1777; The interior is in a baroque style, with frescoes and golden stuccos. Valuable canvases of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries adorn the apse and lateral altars.
Further restorations were performed between 1852 and 1860.
The most valuable painting preserved in the church is the Ancona of San Martino, attributed to the Flemish painter Antoon Van Dyck. The picture was saved from the looting of 1747, having been secure in Genoa.

Church of San Pietro di Cremeno [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The first news of the church of the hamlet of Cremeno dates back to 1254, but historians believe that there was already in the 11th century. Already a parish in 1277, in subsequent eras it was indicated as dependence before Sant’Andrea di Morego (1316) and subsequently of San Felice di Brazil (1400). Completely reconstructed in the seventeenth century by the will of the noble Agostino Pedesina, he was once again erected in the parish in 1642 by Archbishop Stefano Durazzo. Severely damaged during the war of 1746-1747, it was renovated in the second half of the eighteenth century with the contribution of the Cambiaso and therefore reconstructed again, expanding it, in 1805. Other restoration and expansion works were carried out in various shooting during the nineteenth century and again In 1927, when it was equipped with a new facade. In the church there is a wooden statue of the Madonna del Rosario, an eighteenth -century work of the Maragliano school.

Church of Sant’Andrea di Morego [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The first memory of the church of Sant’Andrea di Morego dates back to the “Archbishop’s register” of the decime of 1143 and over time was reconstructed three times; The current construction dates back to 1659; The building was expanded in 1904. In the seventies of the twentieth century it was damaged by alluvial events and remained closed to worship for three years; After the restoration interventions he was reopened to worship by Cardinal Siri on December 21, 1980.

Church of Santo Stefano in Geminiano [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

According to some historians, the first church of Geminiano was built first in the year 972 as a sepulchral chapel of the Campofregoso family, but like other churches of Valpolcevera it is mentioned for the first time in 1143 on the “Archbishop’s register” of the decime, as a chapel subject to the parish church of S. Maria di Rivarolo. Parish since the 16th century, the church was reconstructed around 1760, and expanded between the late nineteenth and 1904. At the end of these works it was consecrated on January 6, 1904 by Archbishop Edoardo Pulciano.
The interior has three naves with dome and four side altars. In the church there is a wooden deposition of the eighteenth century, the statue of the Madonna del Rosario di Domenico da Bissone and two paintings attributable to the school of Paolo Gerolamo Piola (“Christ appears to the Maddalena” and “Christ appears to St. Peter”) ^[14] .

Church of Our Lady of good advice [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

Of the church of Brazil (“The first church hidden among the chestnuts” cited by Cipollina), once a parish dedicated to San Felice Papa, there are the first documented news in the twelfth century, but some local historians trace it back to the 6th century. It had to be at that time of a modest chapel, subsequently expanded until it becomes a real church. On the “Archbishop’s register” of 1143 it is indicated as a chapel subject to the parish church of S. Maria di Rivarolo.

He was certainly parish in the 1400s, when he had the church of San Pietro di Cremeno as dependence, and remained continuously until 1856. After the damage suffered in the war of 1747 he was in precarious conditions, as reported by the parish priest of the time in a request for contributions for repairs sent to the Senate of the Republic.
In 1856 the parish was transferred to the church of N.S. of the snow, to which he was assigned as the title of San Felice compact; The church of Brazil has since been named after our lady of good advice. In the twenty of the twentieth century, the church is carried out and the installation of a new concert in Campania, inaugurated on August 16, 1930 of the Archbishop of Genoa Dalmazio Minotti ^[4] .

Roads [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

History [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

From the remote times, Valpolcevera was crossed by via Postumia, which led from Genoa to the Po Valley through the Bocchetta pass.

There are no more traces of this road in the Genoese area, and various hypotheses have been developed on the possible path; One of these is that he came out of Genoa towards Granarolo and crossing Begato, he passed through Campora di Geminiano and Cremeno, he went down to pass the dry to the bridge (or ford, before his construction) of “Muruallo”, today Morigallo, going up to Morego e San Cipriano, and then went down to Pontedecimo and finally go back to the Bocchetta pass, from where always for Costa di Monte reached Libarna (at the current Serravalle Scrivia). Updating this ancient route in 1585 the new road of the Bocchetta was traced, and in the seventies of the eighteenth century the new road on the Polcevera valley floor was built; Its construction was made possible with the personal contribution of the doge Giovanni Battista Cambitaso, in exchange for tax benefits (and also to make the path between Genoa and his villa of Cremeno easier). The opening of this new artery, the first built with modern criteria and, unlike the ancient hilly paths, suitable for the transit of wagons and not only of somoma animals, gave a first impulse to the development of the economy of the area.

The road (initially called “Camblasia”, and later, with the annexation of the Napoleonic Ligurian Republic to the Savoy State in 1814, “Royal Road” and then “Via Nazionale”) was modernized around 1820 and is still the main axis today Urban road of the valley. The road leaving behind the inhabited area of ​​Taglia (hamlet of the municipality of Rivarolo Ligure) entered the territory of Bolzaneto in correspondence with the Ansa of the Polcevera stream, traveling the left embankment, then consisting of the current streets of the wind and Bolzaneto (which The older Bolzanetesi still today call “Via Nazionale”). Before the crossing of the old village, a bridge over the Polcevera (which stood in correspondence with the current Rasseto square) led to the convent of San Francesco, from where the climb to Murta began. This topography was completely shocked by the riverbed works (1849-1853) for the construction of the railway line ^[4] .

Current situation [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The Bolzaneto district is connected to the other neighborhoods of the Val Polcevera by different urban roads. In addition to the former state road 35 of the Giovi, which crosses the center of the neighborhood, mostly following the old “National Via” have been opened in the last few years, two flowing roads along the banks of the Polcevera (the one on the right of the stream in the north direction -Sud and the one on the left in the opposite direction).

The neighborhood is also crossed by the A7 motorway, Genoa – Milan of which it houses an important exit box. The motorway, built in the 1930s and at the time called “Camiale” Genova-Serravalle, was doubled in the sixties.

From Bolzaneto also start several provincial roads that connect the valley floor with the municipalities of the Alta Val Polcevera (Ceranesi, Sant’Olcese and Serra Riccò).
Among these, as mentioned above, the provincial road 52 that leads to the Sanctuary of N.S. of the guard.

The nap of the west [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The solution identified by Autostrade per l’Italia at the end of the public debate organized by the Municipality of Genoa regarding the project of the west eaves to create the new connection between the A7, A10 and A12 motorways involves the area of ​​Bolzaneto, providing for a viaduct on Polcevera at the exit of the long gallery from Voltri, which would pass under the hill of Murta, and the fittings for the graft of the new artery in the A12, mainly in the gallery, in the Geminiano area ^[24] .
The project, today (February 2011) not yet officially formalized, sees a strong opposition by groups of citizens of the areas concerned, in particular Murta and Geminiano, which was established in “No Gronda” committees and determined to contrast the construction of the work ^[25] .

Railway [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

Bolzaneto is equipped with a railway station on the Giovi Genova Sampierdarena line (Pontedecimo) – Busalla – Ronco Scrivia. This line is crossed exclusively by regional trains, coming from Alessandria, Arquata Scrivia, Novi Ligure and Busalla, directed to Genoa Brignole, and vice versa.

The medium and long distance trains for Milan and Turin, on the other hand, are unrelated to the juocal line of the Giovi, which crosses longitudinally Bolzaneto, parallel to the goal of the Giovi.

Demographic evolution [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

Inhabitants surveyed

Sources:

• Istat for censuses from 1861 to 1961;
• G. Casalis, Geographical, historical, statistical, commercial dictionary of the States of S.M. the king of Sardinia, for data 1837 (Municipality of Brazil);
• Municipality of Genoa – Statistical Office, Demographic Atlas of the city, IX ed., July 2008, for data from 1971 to 2001;
• Statistical Newsletter of the Municipality of Genoa – Population trend as at 31 December 2006;
• Statistical Newsletter of the Municipality of Genoa – Population trend as at 31 December 2009;

Culture [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The Rina and Gilberto Govi ​​theater dedicated to the memory of the famous Genoese dialectal actor Gilberto Govi ​​and his wife Rina Gaioni ( official site ), inaugurated on February 17, 2007, following the renovation of the former cinema-theater “Verdi”.

Bodies and associations [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

In Bolzaneto there is a detachment of the firefighters; Born in 1913 as a body of firefighting volunteers, subsequently integrated into the municipal structure and therefore, following the Royal Decree Law of February 27, 1939, in the National Fire Brigade Corps.

The “Public Cross Assistance” was founded in 1908 with the support of the municipal administration, then lined up by the mayor G.B. Custo, alongside the other existing mutual aid associations: the “SMS Brotherhood” (of socialist inspiration) and the “Catholic worker company San Giuseppe” both founded in the decade 1880-1890.

The city band was founded in 1883 as a Philharmonic Section of the “San Giuseppe Catholic company”.

There are also the local sections of the National Alpine Association, active in the neighborhood in various voluntary activities and the Italian Alpine Club, which also deals with the enhancement and maintenance of various hiking courses in the Polcevera Val.

Events [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

• “Fiera di San Giuseppe”, on Sunday closest to March 19, the anniversary of the saint. It has been held since 1878 and takes place in the main city streets; In addition to various goods, plants and animals are also sold (today only small animals, while once also cattle and horses were also on sale).
• “Pumpkin exhibition”, in the hamlet of Murta, which is held for two consecutive weekend, on the occasion of the patronal feast of San Martino, around mid -November.

Sport [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

The Bolzanetese Amateur Sports Sports Football Team Virtus milita in the Ligurian Amateur Championship.

It also is located in via Bolzaneto, to the side of the church of Our Lady of the snow, the company Polisportiva Amateurista U.S. Virtus, the oldest in the neighborhood, participating in the Italian championships of their respective disciplines with good results at national level.

• Maurizio Lamponi, Valpolcevera, as we were , 1983.
• Maurizio Lamponi, Bolzaneto, yesterday, today and … , 2008, Riccardo Rossi Editore.
• Guide of Italy – Liguria , 2009, Touring Club Italiano.
• Corinna Praga, Genoa outside the walls , 2006, Fratelli Frilli Editori.
• Goffredo Casalis Geographical, historical, statistical, commercial dictionary of the States of S.M. The king of Sardinia , 1849.
• Filippo Pittaluga, Suppression and return to the convent , 1982.
• Greeting greed, Brazil in Valpolcevera , 1999, Focl Edizioni.
• Luigi Persoglio, Memoirs of the parish of Murta in Polcevera , 1873.
• Domenico Cambiaso, Cremeno and La Polcevera , Genoa, 1907.