Lusernetta 1615

Alarmed by a possible rapprochement between France and Spain, Carlo Emanuele turned to the French, while Spain was trying to bring the Duchy back into its orbit. After long negotiations between Carlo Emanuele and the envoys of Henry IV, a treaty was signed providing for a dual agreement: a marriage alliance between the Duchy of Savoy and France with an anti-Spanish outlook, with a planned marriage between Carlo Emanuele I’s son, Vittorio Amedeo, and Elizabeth, daughter of Henry IV, and an alliance for the conquest of the Duchy of Milan by the Savoys in case of victory in a potential war against Spain (Treaty of Bruzolo, April 25, 1610). The assassination of the King of France threw everything into question: Marie de' Medici, widow of Henry IV and regent for the Dauphin Louis XIII, still a minor, refused to recognize the treaty, and Carlo Emanuele found himself isolated, at the mercy of the Spaniards. At this point, the King of Spain demanded public apologies, during a humiliating ceremony held that same year in Madrid, where the Duke of Savoy's son, Emanuele Filiberto, knelt before King Philip III and read a request for forgiveness. Tensions seemed to ease for a time, but the sudden death of Carlo Emanuele’s son-in-law, Francesco IV Gonzaga, Duke of Mantova, disrupted the situation once again. Francesco had a daughter, Maria, and a son who had died shortly before him, from his marriage to Margherita of Savoy. His brother Ferdinando Gonzaga succeeded him at the head of Mantova, renouncing the cardinal's purple for the duchy. Carlo Emanuele, claiming to defend the rights of his niece Maria and the enforcement of the agreements made at the time of the marriage, went to war, occupying Trino, Moncalvo, and Alba in April 1613. Other powers rose up, and there were constant shifts in the battles, which moved through the territories of the involved duchies, in a diplomatic crisis that turned into a broader conflict involving Spain and France, who, for different reasons, supported the Gonzagas against the Savoyard claims, while fighting each other on the ground. And it is in this climate of tensions that you, Gentlemen, find yourselves as the protagonists of these events, among the lands of Luserna, where the city of San Giovanni is gradually becoming a predominantly Reformed town, with the Waldensian Church now the religious center of the territory. The Duke of Savoy does not view this favorably, but even more, the city has attracted the attention of the Spanish and the Papacy, who, taking advantage of the ongoing battles with the Savoyards for the Duchy of Mantova, have sent men to the nearby mountain, above the village of Lusernetta, to a small rural village overlooking the valley. The French did not delay in moving in the same direction, though no one knows their intentions. The forces involved are fighting a political and religious battle, which has led to the deployment of military forces, increasing tensions in what seems like an insignificant place, but one that could play an important strategic role in a war that could shape the future of the duchies, the supremacy of the kingdoms, and the lives of the families of the Lords of Luserna and the Protestants who inhabit it.

Lusernetta 1615

Allarmato da un possibile riavvicinamento tra Francia e Spagna, Carlo Emanuele si rivolse ai francesi, mentre proprio la Spagna tentava di riportare nella sua orbita il Ducato. Dopo lunghe trattative fra Carlo Emanuele e gli emissari di Enrico IV, si giunse ad un trattato che prevedeva un duplice accordo; un'alleanza matrimoniale fra il Ducato di Savoia e la Francia in chiave antispagnola, con il matrimonio previsto fra il figlio di Carlo Emanuele I, Vittorio Amedeo, con Elisabetta, figlia di Enrico IV, ed un'alleanza per la conquista del Ducato di Milano da parte dei Savoia in caso di vittoria in un'eventuale guerra contro la Spagna (Trattato di Bruzolo, 25 aprile 1610). L'assassinio del re di Francia rimette tutto in discussione: Maria de’ Medici, vedova di Enrico IV e reggente in nome del Delfino Luigi XIII non ancora adulto, rifiuta di riconoscere il trattato e Carlo Emanuele si trova isolato e alla mercé degli spagnoli. A questo punto il re di Spagna pretende pubbliche scuse, nel corso di un'umiliante cerimonia tenutasi lo stesso anno a Madrid, dove il figlio del duca di Savoia, Emanuele Filiberto, s’inocchia di fronte al re Filippo III e legge la richiesta di perdono. Gli animi sembravano al momento placati, ma la morte improvvisa del genero di Carlo Emanuele, Francesco IV Gonzaga Duca di Mantova, scompigliò nuovamente la situazione. Francesco aveva avuto da Margherita di Savoia una figlia, Maria, ed un figlio maschio morto poco prima del padre. Subentra quindi a Francesco il fratello Ferdinando Gonzaga, alla guida di Mantova, che rinuncia alla porpora cardinalizia per il ducato. Carlo Emanuele, sostenendo di voler difendere i diritti della nipote Maria e l'applicazione degli accordi stipulati al tempo del matrimonio, entra in armi occupando nell'aprile 1613 Trino, Moncalvo e Alba. Insorgono le altre potenze, vi sono vari rovesciamenti di fronte, la battaglia si sposta di continuo nei territori dei ducati coinvolti, in una crisi diplomatica dove la realtà vede un conflitto più ampio che coinvolge Spagna e Francia, le quali, per motivi diversi, appoggiano il Gonzaga contro le pretese savoiarde, pur combattendosi sul campo. Ed è proprio in questo clima di tensioni che Voi, Signori, vi trovate ad essere protagonisti di queste vicende, tra le terre dei Luserna dove ormai la città di San Giovanni sta diventando giorno dopo giorno un paese a maggioranza riformata, con la chiesa Valdese ormai divenuta fulcro religioso del territorio. Il Duca di Savoia non vede la cosa di buon occhio, ma ancor più la città ha attirato l’attenzione degli spagnoli e del papato, che sfruttando le battaglie in corso con i savoiardi per il Ducato di Mantova hanno inviato uomini sulla vicina montagna, sopra il borgo di Lusernetta, in un piccolo villaggio rurale che domina la valle. I francesi non si sono fatti attendere ed hanno mosso nella stessa direzione, nessuno sa con quali intenti. Le forze in campo combattono una battaglia politica e religiosa, che ha portato allo spiegamento di forze militari, aumentando le tensioni in un luogo apparentemente di poco conto, ma che potrebbe giocare un importante ruolo strategico, in una guerra che può segnare le sorti dei ducati, la supremazia dei regni e la vita delle famiglie dei Signori di Luserna e dei protestanti che la abitano.

The Live Living History was born from the merger of various activities with the intent of creating an experience of life of great emotional involvement, which frees the mind and lightens the heart, in an important comparison with oneself and with others.

Larp, Meta-Teatro, Outdoor Training and Living History, they are just some of the activities that merge in this event conceived to make a complete immersive reality live to those who participate, using a cross-section of another life of another as a metaphorTime, in which everyone will choose "who to be" totally immersing themselves in the atmospheres of the time.

preference must not be dictated by pure fantasy, but by his own abilities and the will to test himself, all accompanied by an equipment that reflects the character in which he chose to identify himself (a nobleman cannot be badDressed, a knight will have to have the right armament, etc ...).

The scenarios can be different: a banquet, an evening in the tavern, a tournament, a siege, a battle, etc ... during the events everyone is free to live more or less actively the situation (formally called "scene"), as if we were talking about protagonists and extras of a show without script.A cardinal principle of the activity is that each action must be truly accomplished, without any fiction;The only limits are linked to some combat and physical comparison dynamics to preserve the safety of the participants.

Everyone is free to bring their knowledge and ability into life within the scene, but it is not possible to pretend to have them by pure interpretation: it is useless to imagine a blacksmith, if you do not have the skills to support the choice, butYou can decide to want to acquire them, for example becoming the apprentice of a true craftsman during an event!

growth takes place through the activity, which is at the same time a vehicle for expression of one's talents and the possibility of expanding one's skills and knowledge.

The limits to the immense are therefore cars imposed by the interpretative choice, by the consciousness of itself and in part by the historical period.

We just have to prepare ourselves, wear the right dress, leave every link with the twenty -first century and ... that the adventure begins.

                                                                                                                                                “in Scena!“