The Occitans in Guardia Piemontese

The Occitans come from southern France and spoke the d’oc language as described by Dante Alighieri. Over the time, they have expanded and reached the border in Italy, settling in Piedmont: precisely in Bobbio Pellice. So how did they arrive in Calabria? This occitan community believed in the cult of Waldensian, for obvious reasons not much loved by the Catholic Church, and condemnded as heretic in 1215, for this reason, many from the small community moved further south in Calabria.

A considerable group of Occitans from Piedmont, chose Calabria (in the hills of Western Cosenza) because it had fertile earth, mountains to hide in and a good view to see potential enemies arriving. Guardia Piemontese and the other settlements gave the Waldensians the opportunity to build their own community according to their traditions, maintaining their customs and pray in their own faith.

Unfortunately the Waldensians in Guardia Piemontese, and those who stayed in Piedmont were attacked by the order of Pope Pio V. On June 1561 the Catholic Church unleashed in the occitan village a terrible slaughter on the majority of the population, including children, women and elders.

It is said that the blood went down through the roads of the village, coming to the main entrance door that became named ‘door of blood‘ (see image on the right). It is not known how many people have been killed, but according to some sources, a lot of bodies were hung to poles from Guardia Piemontese up to the border with Campania; to show what would happen if you were to profess the Waldensian faith. The very few survivors had to abandon their religion, and convert to Catholicism. The Waldensian faith has returned recently in Guardia Piemontese after 460 years with two new members welcomed: Gabriella Sconosciuto and Francesco Treviso.

 

Guardia Piemontese today:

Today Guardia Piemontese can be considered a touristic village, with a lot of activities that reflect the Occitan culture and traditions thanks to the Gian Luigi Pascale Cultural Centre (co-ordinated by Gabriella Sconosciuto). You can visit the Waldensian museum, that tells the story of how the Waldensians arrived all the way in Calabria. With objects like the door with the spyhole used after the massacre of 1561, agricultural tools and above all the Tramontana: the traditional dress of Guardia Piemontese, made with a particular yarn of broom. To find out more about the Waldensian museum and the sewing workshop, you can take a virtual tour by clicking here!

The ancient trails of the Calabrian Waldensians can be visited through an excursion that the Gian Luigi Pascale Cultural Centre offers. These trails connect the main historic places where the old occitan communities have settles. There are four different trails with different heights that connected the Waldensian community in Guardia Piemontese to the other communitie (Waldensian and non) that are present on the coast and the Calabrian hinterland. Today these fascinating paths, wich in the middle ages and Renaissance saw passing by: nobles, ecclesiastics, itinerant preachers and merchants. These are the subject of renewed attention as they immerge in a geographical area rich of biodiversit and very interesting from a geological point of view.

 

Music

The anthem of Guardia Piemontese and all Occitan countries is called se chanto:

 

The Hurdy-Gurdy is a french instrument with medieval origins. In the Occitan valleys in Italy, the hurdy-gurdy was the traveling companion of buskers. The hurdy-gurdy in Guardia Piemontese is known as the ‘Viola’. The young player Carmelo Avolio (in the photo) has learned to play it from the teacher Sergio Berardo (in the video below) who is part in a well known Occitan musical band ‘Lou Dalfin’. Here is the experience of Carmelo: “We stopped just for lunch and dinner. I have absorbed all the precious advice  that has given me this exceptional artist that I thank to be so generous with me. He has passed a legacy to me and i am honoured”

 

 

 

 

The hurdy-gurdy built by Jean Claude Boudet, heir to the centuries-old tradition of violin making, in the small town of Auvergne, in the far north of Occitan lands

 

 

Music in Guardia Piemontese also has Calabrian characteristics, such as the use of the organetto (accordion). This video shows a typical Guardia Piemontese song, “La pióu e la fai solelh” – It rains and the sun comes out.