Asti - Cattedrale di Asti

In 124 BC the Romans built a fortified camp here, which eventually evolved into a city named Hasta. Asti become an important city favored by its strategic position on the Via Fulvia, which linked Derthona (Tortona) to Augusta Taurinorum (Turin).

The city was crucial during the early stages of the "barbarian invasions". In early 402 the Visigoths had invaded northern Italy and were advancing on Mediolanum (modern Milan) which was the imperial capital at that time. When Honorius, the Roman emperor took refuge in Hasta, the Goths placed Hasta under siege until March when General Stilicho, bringing troops from the Rhine, fought and defeated the Romans at the Battle of Pollentia. From the 6th century, it was a seat for a Lombard duchy until it was conquered by the Franks in 774.

In the late Carolingian age, Asti was ruled directly by his bishops, who were the main landlords of the area. Asti was one of the first free communes of Italy, and in 1140 received the right to mint coins of its own from Conrad II. As the commune, however, entered conflicts with the bishops and local feudatories, Frederick Barbarossa, presented under the city walls with a huge army in February 1155. After a short siege. Asti was stormed and burnt. Asti recovered and the 13th century saw the peak of economic and cultural splendor. During the wars led by Emperor Frederick II in northern Italy, the city chose his side: Asti was defeated by the Guelphs of Alessandria, but thanks to Genoese help, it recovered easily. After Frederick's death, the struggle against Thomas II of Savoy became fierce: the Astigiani defeated him at the Battle of Montebruno (1255), but Thomas (who had been taken prisoner) replied ordering all traders from Asti to be arrested in Savoy and France. This led to the intervention of Charles I of Anjou, then King of Naples, but the Battle of Roccavione, ended Charles' attempt to expand in Piedmont. In the 1290s, after William VII had also been defeated, Asti was the most powerful city in Piedmont. However, internal struggles for the control of trading and banking enterprises soon divided the city into factions. The most prominent faction was the Solari family, who, in 1314, gave the city to king Robert of Naples. The free Republic of Asti ceased to exist.

The cathedral's first construction may have begun around the sixth century, and tradition has it that it replaced earlier buildings, including a primitive church built on the crypt of the martyred Saint Secundus of Asti. Around 1070 the cathedral collapsed, partly as a result of a fire started by Adelaide of Susa in a dispute with the bishops. In 1095 the rebuilt cathedral was consecrated by Pope Urban II, who was here to preach the First Crusade.

The Cathedral of Asti ("Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta e San Gottardo") that can be seen today is one of the largest churches in Piedmont. It was erected in the 13th/14th century. The tower is older and belonged to the previous Romanesque building.