Download Judy Canton’s entire history of Borgo Finocchieto, which delves into great detail about the historical documents, families and events surrounding the property.

Here is a summary of Ms. Canton's work, outlining the major moments in Borgo history.

Borgo Finocchieto was a farming village passed between wealthy Tuscan families for centuries, populated by sharecroppers who worked the surrounding farmland for their livelihood.

The agricultural extension of the more gentrified property at La Torre, the castle that sits behind it, Borgo Finocchieto is first mentioned in a tax and land audit from 1318, which listed it as a possession of the Giulieschi family, at the time owners of the greater Bibbiano area.

This pattern of noble land ownership and resident sharecroppers continued for centuries until the 16th century to the middle of the 17th century, when the noble Manor House or casa padronale, which we now call Finocchieto, appears to have been built during a brief period when it was used as a country retreat for a noble family.

Most likely, the Manor house was constructed by the Borghesi (later to become the famous Borghese family of Rome), when together with La Torre, Finocchieto appears to have remained their last land possession in the area. Alternatively it may have happened when the Mignanelli family sold La Torre, creating the need for newer, more grandiose country quarters.

The architecture of the manor appears to be in line with the Sienese trend of rebuilding and refurbishing properties in the medieval style, incorporating  crenellations and older stone windows for dramatic effect -- a forceful nod back to the 13th and 14th centuries, when the power of the city and the region was at its height.

After the Borgo was abandoned as a noble country retreat, it returned to its previous incarnation as an agricultural center for as long as the sharecropping system in Tuscany survived, well into the twentieth century. During this time the property underwent numerous adaptations as residents made the most of the structures they had available to them.

As late as the 1960’s, dozens of people were still living in the Borgo’s houses in a tightly-knit community, struggling to eke out an existence in agriculture and  animal husbandry. However, one by one the residents of Finocchieto left for new opportunities in local industry and the comforts of modern living. The last holdout, an elderly man with his dogs, left Finocchieto in the 1980’s, leaving it empty until it was purchased by John Phillips in 2001.

Under the care of Mr. Phillips, the entire property was rebuilt using as much of the original layout and materials, such as, bricks, wooden beams, decorative details and colors, as possible. Rebuilt with respect for the past, it has been given a new future. While it is no longer the base for farming, it has once again become a luxurious home, given all the modern comforts just as perhaps the Borghese or Mignanelli might have centuries ago.

Some of the last residents of the Borgo are still alive today, and came to visit on a beautiful fall day in 2007. Bringing their families, children and grandchildren who had no doubt grown up hearing about the old days of Finocchieto, they came to see the Borgo rebuilt and to be reunited with one another. Some had tried to visit before, but found it too painful to face the abandoned heap of rubble that it had become.

Finocchieto now has a new lease on life and will hopefully continue to be a part of local history for centuries to come.

Download Judy Canton’s entire history of Borgo Finocchieto.