Welcome to ROTZO

On the western side of the Altopiano - literally 'High Valley' - the mountains slope gently down to form a habitable countryside overlooking the Val d'Astico. Here you'll find the oldest settlements, the three villages Castelletto, Rotzo and Albaredo which form the community of Rotzo, one of the 'Seven Communities of the Altopiano - in Italian: Altopiano dei Sette Communi.

From the two nearby mountain peaks, called Spitz and Altaburg, the slopes facing south are first quite steep. Further down they form a quite level but undulating area facing the narrow Val d'Assa. This valley swings north to cut the Altopiano in half. The bridge at Roana is the only connecting point to the eastern part of the Altipiano. First there are pine forests then meadows, where cattle can graze, followed by tilled fields. For centuries these fields provided the main food supply for the local population. To-day they're mainly exploited for 'green farming'. This is excellent potato growing land - potatoes are now the major arable 'export' to other parts of Italy. The rest of the fields provide winter food for the cattle and summer vegetables for the local land owners. It's a bewitching landscape that has preserved the best of the fascinating alpine ambiance. The main provincial road called 'la strada del Piovan' connects the three villages with the Val'd'Astico to the west and the rest of the Altopiano to the east. Here in the middle is Rotzo, the community 'capital' with the parish church, the bell tower still carrying the centuries old bells with their familiar peal, the cemetery. There are the monuments honoring our soldiers who have sacrificed their lives for our freedom and our land, the recently inaugurated monument recognizing the sufferings and contributions of our emigrants. Then the Town Hall and the majestic Municipal School from the glorious 1920s named after our best known citizen the Abbot Agostino Dal Pozzo (1732-1798) who wrote the fundamental work on the history of the Altopiano in his "Memorie Istoriche dei Sette Comuni Vicentini".

To the east you'll see Albaredo with its multi-colored houses - some closely tucked to the mountain side and others scattered on the slopes versus the valley. To the west lies Castelletto, a group of houses concentrated in a smiling valley followed by others spread out in the silence of the fertile flat land. Mid way between Rotzo and Castelletto you'll find the recently renovated church Santa Margherita, the oldest church on the Altopiano, originating in the 12th century. In the center of Castelletto stands the small church of San Rocco. To the south-west a hill called Bostel where the first inhabitants settled many thousand of years ago. They selected the place for its perfect situation to monitor the human activities deep down in the valley as well as for its natural defenses - a steep rock side and no roads - at that time. The name Castelletto is derived from the word Castello i.e. small fortress. To-day a safe, modern but narrow winding road - the continuation of 'la strada del Piovan' - takes you down the mountain side to the first village you'll encounter in the valley - Pedescala (literally the 'bottom of the stair case) in Val d'Astico. Above Castelletto the mountain peaks of Altaburg with its Christian Cross and Altar Knotto - an altar-like rock formation that was used to in pagan times for worship of the gods. This is our Land and our Home. It is a small part of our country but in our hearts and in the hearts of all our emigrants spread across the globe, this land occupies a large space.

Rotzo

Rotzo is the oldest of the communities of the Altopiano dei Sette Communi and it has the largest number of historical remains and other testimonials of the past from pagan, early christian and more recent times. At the beginning of the 20th century most locals still spoke a germanic dialect called 'cimbro'. This language quickly disappeared when Mussolini outlawed all 'non-italian' languages in the 1920s. Rotzo is probably derived from the cimbro word 'Rotts' for 'rock' or 'rock face' which alludes to the steep rocky faces of the Val d'Assa valley to the South. The Altopiano dei Sette Communi. is often called the 'Altopiano di Asiago' after the small 'capital' town where about one third of the population of the Altopiano lives. This beautiful mountain area is situated in the northern part of the Province of Vicenca which in turn is a part of the Region of Veneto. The Community of Rotzo covers an area of 1800 hectares (abt 4000 acres) with mostly forest covered mountains peaking at 2000 meters (abt 6500 ft) with the smaller habitated area and the village of Rotzo at 938 m (abt 2300 ft). To the north it borders the Community of Levico (Trento Region) to the east the Val Martello forms the border with Mezzaselva a village in the Community of Roana, and to the southwest lie the communities of Valdastico and Levico (Trento Region). Inside the community territory the natural water supply is limited, so water is piped from two sources: Val Renzola to the north east since 1914 and from the Asiago area via the "Acquedotto della Val Civetta", since the 1980s. It's a beautiful position fully exposed to the sun from dawn to dusk with mild summers and cold winters.

At a point half-way between Rotzo and Albaredo a local road takes you up the mountain side and connects to a vast road system that serves the forestry estates and 'wealth' of Rotzo. Most of the forest is owned by the community; its products still serve to cover many of the common expenses of its inhabitants. And ancient civic rights prevail for citizens' own free 'harvesting' of firewood, timber for their own home construction, wild berries and mushrooms. Hunting is also a free pastime outside a wild-life protection area - in season! In the last (1991) census there were 602 inhabitants living in the Community of Rotzo. These people make their living from agriculture, forestry, housing and infrastructure construction, retail and restaurant business. The State, Region, Province and Community are also important services employers in education and health as well as all other services provided by a well organised society.

The Altopiano has for the last two hundred years provided the outcome for a population of about 20.000 people. When the population increased beyond that number the 'excess' were forced to find their living elsewhere in Italy or abroad. At the end of the 19th century and after W.W.I, which destroyed most of the housing and infrastructure, people left for North and South America or became 'guest workers' in Germany and France. Later and after W.W.II the immigrants headed for greater opportunities in Australia and the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and Sweden. In the last thirty years Rotzo has together with the other communities of the Altopiano developed into a significant regional tourist center while conserving its peaceful character which is so much appreciated by people wanting to escape from the stress of city life.

Fragments from History

The Altopiano dei Sette Communi has over the last Millenium been governed by many feudal, family, political and administrative powers as follows:

917-1164 by the feudal Bishops of Padova
1164-1236 by the City of Vicenza
1236-1259 by the Ezzelini family
1259-1311 by the City of Padova
1311-1387 by the Scaligeri family of Verona
1387-1405 by the Visconti family of Milano
1405-1797 by the Republic of Venice
1797-1805 by the Austrian Empire
1805-1814 by the French Empire
1814-1866 by the Austrian Empire
1866-1946 by the Kingdom of Italy
1946- by the Republic of Italy

The Altopiano dei Sette Communi is characterized by its own peculiar history where the enclosed mountain area, the rough living conditions, the cimbro language and the specific culture of its inhabitants separated them from the people of the plains. In 1310/11 the inhabitants formed a Confederation with Asiago as its capital. Fourteen Deputies, two from each community, who were elected every second year among family representatives in publicly held meetings, would deal with matters of common interest. The Deputies nominated a Chancellor who in addition to leading their Assembly was responsible for the 'diplomatic' relations with their neighbours and trading partners. This Federation had lasted nearly 400 years when it was abolished by Napoleon I in 1807.

The earliest known document that mentions Rotzo is dated 1204. It's a map indicating the borders of the then Community of Castelletto. The Community territory has been significantly diminished over the centuries up to recent times. In 1300 Roana was separated from Rotzo to form its own Community. Later in the 14th century the Community of Cogollo seized a large part of the mountain area in the south of Val d'Assa and in 1478 the Community of Levico took ownership of the mountains of Vezzena and Manazzo. After W.W. II the inhabitants of Pedescala and Valdastico decided to go their own way which caused a long controversy over the distribution of the community forest land which since 1967 has been managed as a common syndicate.

What you see in this pages has been possible with the work and collaboration of Lars Gellerstad