Cercina

Cercina is a frazione (rural borough) of the municipality of Sesto Fiorentino, in the Metropolitan City of Florence, located in central Italy. It is located on the slopes of Mount Morello.

A view of the Pieve di Sant'Andrea from afar distance.

Sights

Cercina has some things to offer for sightseeing, which includes:

• Pieve di Sant'Andrea, a pieve or rural church constructed in the 11th century.
• Castle of Castiglione, a castle owned by the Catellini Castiglione family.
• Memorial to the Fallen by Radio CORA, a World War II memorial dedicated to Italian partisans Anna Maria Enriques Agnolette, captain Italo Picaggli, Fernando Panerai, Dante Romagnoli Fiorenzo Franco, and a unidentified man who were brought and shot here for fighting for the independence of Italy from German rule on 12 June 1944.

History

Cercina was once a colony of Ancient Rome, c. 103 BCE, and was probably one of the colonies owned by Gaius Marius. Marius' brother-in-law, Gaius Julius Caesar, a Roman senator who was the father of Roman dictator Julius Caesar, was once commissioner of the colony here in modern-day Cercina.

On 12 June 1944 during World War II, the Italian partisans Anna Maria Enriques Agnoletti, captain Italo Picaggli, Fernando Panerai, Pietro Ghergo, Dante Romagnoli Fiorenzo Franco were shot here in Cercina for fighting for the independence of Italy from German rule. A memorial was made and dedicated here in their honor.