On October 8, 2023, the re-enactment of the siege of the castle will take place at the medieval village of Calenzano alto, a famous historical event that occurred on October 4-5, 1325, when the troops of the leader Castruccio Castracani tried to conquer the ancient village of the Florentine countryside. . What will be recreated during the day is a glimpse of the life of the castle in 1300 to make it possible for visitors to dive into the Middle Ages. The re-enactment is centered on a great attention to respect for the philology of costumes, shows and performances.
The re-enactment of the siege is an event that attracts tourists from all over the city with an important impact on all tourist activities in the area.
The event is organized by the municipal administration of Calenzano in collaboration with the Agresto Association and will be coordinated and directed by the artistic director Eraldo Ammannati, former director of numerous medieval festivals and historical re-enactments in many municipalities of the national territory.
The re-enactment will take place mainly in the courtyard of the Calenzano castle and in the north-east part of the Via del Castello for outdoor activities. The conferences and meetings will take place in the internal room of the keep. The event will start in the morning and will last until dinner (8 pm).
From the east walkway of the castle, the lookouts will warn the inside of the court that Castruccio’s militias are arriving. On the Via del Castello, north-east side, the army of the besiegers will be deployed. The defenders will allow the public to leave the east gate to watch the fight, then the defenders will come out and line up close to the walls. The opposing armies, in turn, will shoot three volley of arrows at the opponents, who will receive them by making the shield wall. Then the attackers will advance and impact the defenders, then retreat after a short fight.
After the third assault, the defenders will retreat and retreat into the court. The defenders will be lined up with their backs to the northwest wall, the besiegers with their backs to the south east wall, and the public with their backs to the southwest wall. The pattern already seen on the outside will be reproduced, only this time the final assault will be won by the defenders and the besiegers will be forced to flee but not before having started (through smoke bombs) the fire in the castle. After all the smoke bombs have been extinguished, the extras, who impersonate the Lucchesi, will return to the court. At this point all the actors will line up in front of the public, each company will greet, and then the traditional simulated charge against the public will be carried out which will close the reenactment.
Throughout the day, the followings will be set up:
-Medieval market: this is the reconstruction of a small medieval market, made up of several stalls of typical medieval crafts, such as the miller, the blacksmith, the carpenter, the potter, the armourer, etc. It is a space essentially intended for the little ones.
-Medieval camp: it is a medieval military camp, with tents, shields, weapons and all kinds of furnishings.
“Battle of the Audience” is entertainment intended to involve visitors first-hand.
-Reconstructions of medieval battles: this is a large model on which one of our historians recalls the deeds of the main medieval battles using a large number of toy soldiers, a group of drummers and flag-wavers will have considerable space within the re-enactment.
-Musicians, jesters and medieval dances: exhibition of street artists, such as medieval musicians and jugglers.
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