History

A land nestled between the lake and the plains
 
Lonato del Garda is located in a big morenic area, on the southwest side of Lake Garda, in a wonderful position overlooking the lake and the plains of Brescia.
Between patches of greenery, ancient walls, quiet gardens protected by iron gates and half-closed doors, Lonato del Garda – amazing for its look of ancient town and its architectural beauty – has a rich variety of well-conserved monuments, first of all the properties owned by the Foundation Ugo Da Como.
Lonato del Garda is suitable as a tourist’s destination and as a reference point for the demanding visitiors in search of discoveries that astound them.
It offers unexpected answers to every hobbies, with its delightful and well- equipped beach by the lake (Lido di Lonato) and with a lot of opportunities for the leisure time: sport facilities, horse riding, cycling, walking through the hills or the alleys with pebbles of the Venetian “Cittadella” in the historic centre.
The cooking is excellent in the numerous agritourisms , in the local restaurants, in the pizzerias, besides the wine and food events organized in the hamlets of Campagna, Esenta, Sedena and Centenaro.
 
 
 
History
 
One can find traces of the presence of humans in the Lonato area starting from the Mesolithic Age that is around 10,000 years ago. It was the Bronze Age (Second Century B.C.), however, the one that left the most important testimony to the Prehistoric period. We only have to remember the stilt house settlement of Polada – discovered in the second half of the 1800’s – the importance which is shown in the fact that the Lonato area gave the name to a specific Prehistoric period developed in Northern Italy: the so called Culture of Polada.
 
In the 4th Century B.C., Celtic tribes coming from Central Europe settled permanently in the area and the name Lonato is most probably derived from a Celtic term, lona that means lake, marsh, humid area. The following Roman period is testified by the discovery of the remains of some important villas in the Lonato area. Near these, some Romanesque churches were built later, in the 11th and 12th centuries. These Churches are still in existence today: the small church of St. Martino, that of St. Cipriano and especially the parish church of San Zeno, around which the first nucleus of inhabitants of Lonato started to gather. Although the ancient people of Lonato had fortified their own village, this did not avoid its destruction by Lodrisio Visconti in 1339. In the meantime, some centuries before, another fortification (the one that later became La Rocca fortress) had sprung up, two kilometres to the South. Here, at its feet, another small habitation that corresponds to the present day Cittadella was constructed. This was the first inhabited settlement of today. The construction of the churches of Corlo and of St. Antonio is also supposed to date back to 1300, but the architectural structure we can see today is the result of later renovation. Some centuries before, at Maguzzano near the ancient Roman road, a small abbey had been founded, this was enlarged and completely rebuilt towards the end of the 15th Century.
 
The continued expansion of the habitation of Lonato made the construction of larger and safer city wall necessary. The fortification was realised starting from 1376 on the order of Regina Della Scala, wife of Bernabò Visconti, who had understood the strategic importance of Lonato. In the construction of these impressive works, which meant the expansion of the Rocca Fortress as well, the inhabitants of Calcinato were also involved in 1379. The domination of the Visconti over Lonato ceased in 1404, when the town, together with other territories, was given to the Gonzaga from Mantua. This dominion, however, did not last long, as in 1441 the Republic of Venice extended its sovereignty over our territory. Among other important projects, they arranged for the enlargement and fortification of the Serenissima was maintained for more than 350 years, except for a brief interruption from 1509 to 1516 that saw the temporary return of the Gonzaga. In the 16th Century Lonato was witness to some important events. In 1553, the English Cardinal Reginald Pole was given hospitality in the important religious and cultural centre of the Abbey of Maguzzano and stayed for some months. He was then entrusted with an important diplomatic mission in England by the Pope. In the meantime, the public administration undertook the realisation of an important monument, the Torre Civica (Municipal Tower), the construction of which started in 1555. In that same century, an illustrious Lonato citizen, Camillo Tarello, was born. He was a famous agronomist and he was one of the precursors of modern farming.
 
1600 starts with the foundation of a hospital for the sick and for pilgrims in Lonato. This initiative was promoted by the Confraternita dei Disciplini (Flagellants), based in the church of Corlo, which had been enlarger and endowed with valuable furnishings and works of art by them. Also the works for the enlargement and reorganisation of the new Municipio (Council office) were started, with the construction of a new council chamber and lobby on the first floor. Unfortunately, 1600 was also a century that saw some calamities: the devastating plague of 1630 reduced the population of Lonato to a third and also affected the economy of the town. In memory of this tragic event, in 1692 the Venetian artist Andrea Celesti produced at the bequest of the administration of Lonato, the great painting that adorns the council chamber of the council office. In 1675, the Sanctuary of S. Martino had been inaugurated, where works had started some decades before.
 
In 1705, during war of the Spanish succession, Lonato saw the two fighting armies, the Imperial and French-Spanish, near its wall. Fortunately the town was spared. In 1738, from the project of Paolo Soratini of Lonato, a Camaldolese friar and architect, the construction of the new and still existing chiesa parrocchiale (parish church) started. It was inaugurated in 1780. Inside one can admire important paintings and frescoes from the 16th and 17th centuries. A few years later, on 31st July 1796, Lonato was scene to a cruel battle between the French army, commanded by Napoleon Bonaparte, and the Austrian army. The fighting, which was then continued in Castiglione delle Stiviere, took place to the North of the town, on the slopes of Mount Rova. With the new century Lonato was given a new roadway through the demolition of a part of the Western wall and the construction of a long artificial embankment on which Viale Roma runs today. So, the old tracks that came into the town via the Regia Antica and the Corlo were abandoned. In 1854, the new railway that involved the territory to the South and East of the town was inaugurated. About sixty years after the battle of Napoleon, two armies faced each other again in our territory. This time, bearing arms for the independence of Italy. In fact, on the 24th June 1859 the French- Piedmontese troops clashed with the Austrians in the famous Battle of San Martino and Solferino. Lonato, which was involved with the battle in the Eastern part of its territory that is at Madonna della Scoperta was seat to the Piedmontese command, housed in Palazzo Zambelli. Here, the Commanders- in- Chief of the two armies, Vittorio Emanuele II and Napoleone II, held counsel for some hours.
 
In 1880 the copper cupola of the Torre municipale (the Municipal tower) was substituted with crenelation, as seen today. At the start of 1900, a lawyer and Senator from Brescia, Ugo Da Como, bought what remained of the old Casa del Podestà.  After a careful restoration, he made it as his dwelling. Today, both the house and the castle are managed by the Fondazione (Foundation) of the same name, willed and instituted by the same illustrious person. 1911 saw the inauguration of the Castiglione- Lonato- Desenzano steam tram. In our territory it started at Esenta, crossed Lonatino and going along via Montegrappa, where the station of Lonato was situated, entered the main road for Desenzano. It was closed in 1935.