Cuneo
Cuneo (; ; ; ) is a city and "comune" in Piedmont, Northern Italy, the capital of the province of Cuneo, the fourth largest of Italy’s provinces by area. It is located at 550 metres (1,804 ft) in the south-west of Piedmont, at the confluence of the rivers Stura and Gesso. Cuneo is bounded by the municipalities of Beinette, Borgo San Dalmazzo, Boves, Busca, Caraglio, Castelletto Stura, Centallo, Cervasca, Morozzo, Peveragno, Tarantasca and Vignolo. It is located near six mountain passes: History. Cuneo was founded in 1198 by the local population, who declared it an independent commune, freeing themselves from the  authority of the bishops of Asti and the marquisses of Montferrat and Saluzzo. In 1210, the latter occupied it, and in 1231 the "Cuneesi" rebelled. In 1238, they were recognized as a free commune by Emperor Frederick II. In 1259, the independence of Cuneo ceased forever, as it gave itself, also to take protection against its more powerful neighbours, to Charles I of Anjou, who was then King of Naples and Count of Provence. Together with Alba, it was the main Angevine possession in Northern Italy; Angevine rule interrupted by periods under the control of Saluzzo, Savoy, and the Visconti  of Milan was ended in 1382 when Cuneo was acquired by the Duchy of Savoy. Cuneo became an important stronghold of the expanding Savoy state. The city was thus besieged several times by France: first in 1515 by Swiss troops of Francis I of France, then again in 1542, 1557, 1639, 1641, 1691 and, during the War of the Austrian Succession, in 1741. Cuneo resisted each siege successfully. The city was taken by France only during the Napoleonic Wars and was made the capital of the Stura department. After the restoration of the Kingdom of Sardinia, and the unification of  Italy, Cuneo became the capital of its namesake province in 1859. During World War II, from 1943 to 1945, it was one of the main centres of partisan resistance against the German occupation of Italy. In 1943, Cuneo's Jewish citizens were briefly arrested and imprisoned at the nearby Borgo San Dalmazzo concentration camp by the order of Minister of the Interior Guido Buffarini Guidi. They were freed before the Minister's orders came into effect and most community members fled Cuneo into hiding. However, on December 9, 1944, the Cuneo Police Department reopened the camp and imprisoned the remaining  Jewish residents of Cuneo most of whom were then deported to Auschwitz. Few survived according to reports. Italian partisans liberated Cuneo from the German and Italian fascist occupation on April 25, 1945. The retreating fascist forces murdered the remaining six Jewish prisoners being held at Cuneo's local prison. Subdivisions. Most important and populated: Centro storico, Cuneo centro, Cuneo nuova, San Paolo, Donatello, Gramsci, San Rocco, Cerialdo, Confreria and Borgo San Giuseppe. Climate. Cuneo has a temperate sub-continental climate, with cold winters and hot, dry summers. However, it is situated more than above sea level, which helps to make  summers more bearable: the hottest month, July, has an average temperature of . The coldest, January, averages . Annual precipitation is about , distributed over 81 days. The rainfall pattern is similar to that of Turin, with two maxima—one primary and one secondary (spring and autumn) and two minima (summer and winter). The driest month is July, . Snowfalls are frequent owing to high elevation and wind patterns. Cuisine and food. Cuneo's specialty is "Cuneesi al rhum", small meringues with dark chocolate coating and a rum-based chocolate filling. They are a creation of Andrea Arione (1923), who also registered the name , and sold them in the bar still located in the central square, Piazza Galimberti; another claim makes them a creation of pastry chef Pietro Galletti from Dronero. Another specialty is "raviolini al plin", a small ravioli pasta made with meat and vegetables. The most famous brand there is Pastificio Boetti, also located close to the central square. Sport. Volleyball. There is an important volleyball club, Piemonte Volley who won 1 Italian Volleyball League, 3 CEV Cup, 2 CEV SuperCup, 4 Italian Volleyball Cup and 3 Italian Volleyball SuperCup. Football. Associazione Calcio Cuneo 1905 (A.C. Cuneo 1905) who plays in the  3rd level of Italian football. Cycling. Many times stage of Giro d'Italia. In 2016, for the first time in the Giro history, the race arrived in Sant'Anna di Vinadio sanctuary, the highest sanctuary in Europe, 2035 m, and the day after, on May 29, the race started from Cuneo. Since 1987 Cuneo has been the start and arrival point of the amateur international race "La Fausto Coppi". Twin towns - sister cities. Cuneo is twinned with: