Municipality in the province of Bologna, nearby to the regional capital, Anzola Emilia is located in an area rich in rivers, being crossed not only by the streams Samoggia and Lavinia, but also washed by the Ghironda and the Martignone and covered by a dense network of canals and ditches.
The name, appeared for the first time in a document dated 888 and probably derives from the antique rural distribution measurements in ounces or its fractions "onciola"; that over the centuries, subject to dialect amendments, has changed into its current name.
Recent excavations have unearthed artifacts from the Neolithic, Villanova and Etruscan periods. The Roman presence is evidenced not only by some findings, as its name is stated in documents composed by some famous Latin writers, such as: Pomponius Mela and Polybius. The town centre itself, however, was only founded in the early XIX century, when the territories were under the rule of Napoleon. The medieval history is marked by the clashes between the Guelphs and Ghibellines, and attempts of the powerful city of Bologna, to enclose the territory of Anzola within its domain.
Sites of Interest:
- the Tower of King Enzo, called so because in 1249 it was the obliged residence of King Enzo, son of Frederick II and King of Sardinia, a prisoner of Bologna;
- the Church of Saints Peter and Paul, of medieval origins, with a nice font and valuable paintings and Spisanelli and Guardassoni;
- the Abbey of Santa Maria in Strada, one of the oldest churches in the area, with over a thousand years of history;
- the Tomb of Bishop, a palace used as a Summer residence of the bishops in the XIV century.