Copertino (; historical ; ), also known in English as Cupertino, is a town and comune in the province of Lecce in the Apulia region of south-east Italy.
History
Following Charles of Anjou's successful campaign in 1266, the
Hohenstaufen tower of Copertino was held first by the de Pratis family and then by Walter VI of Brienne, Duke of Athens, Count of Lecce and Grand Constable of France.
Copertino became the centre of a County under the Enghiens, who were sovereigns of the land of Galatone, Leverano and Veglie. With the marriage of Mary of Enghien, Countess of Lecce and Copertino (later Queen of Naples and titular Queen of Sicily, Jerusalem, and Hungary) to Raimondo del Balzo Orsini, the county became part of the principality of Taranto. The French knight Tristan Chiaromonte (de Clermont-Lodeve) led the development of the county capital, having assumed power over the territory on his marriage to Caterina, daughter of Mary of Enghien. Tristan's daughter Isabella of Clermont, heiress to the Brienne claim to the Kingdom of Jerusalem, married Ferdinand I of Naples. With the conquest of the Salento peninsula by the Aragonese dynasty, effected jointly by the Spanish army and knights from Albania, the county was gifted in 1498 to Alfonso Castriota Scanderbeg, in gratitude for military support.
The Prince Belmonte gained the Castle through the Squarciafico Counts of Copertino, to whom the fief passed from 1557.
Copertino DOC
The area around Copertino is permitted to make red and
rosé Italian DOC wine. The grapes are limited to a harvest of 14 tonnes/ha with the finished wines needing a minimum of 12% alcohol. The wines are predominantly
Negroamaro with no more than a 30% blend component of
Malvasia, Montepulciano and
Sangiovese (which is further limited to a maximum of 15%). Wines labeled
Riserva must be aged for a minimum of 2 years prior to release and have a minimum alcohol level of 12.5%.
[P. Saunders Wine Label Language pg 154 Firefly Books 2004 ]
Main sights
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Copertino Castle, built by architect Evangelista Menga in 1540 on a previous Norman and Angevin fortress, is one of the most massive fortifications in Apulia.
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Sanctuary of St. Joseph of Copertino
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Sanctuary and monastery of La Grottella
Twinnings
Notable people
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Joseph of Cupertino (1603–1663), Christian mystic and saint
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Cristina Conchiglia (1923-2013), trade unionist and politician, Mayor Emeritus of Copertino
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Giuliano Sangiorgi (born 1979), singer of Negramaro
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Graziano Pellè (born 1985), footballer
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Adriano Pappalardo (born 1945), singer
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Beatrice Rana (born 1993), pianist
