June
AN ITINERARY THROUGH THE ORISTANESE AREA
Marrubiu is named
after the “Marrubium Vulgare” plant, to be found in that area. It was founded
by the inhabitants of another village, Sarràdili or Zuradili, who settled in
th is inland plain around 1569 in order to escape the raids of Saracen pirates.
According to tradition, while escaping (because they had left behind a statuette
of the Virgin Mary), She appeared to them. Even today, every year on the eve
of May’s first Sunday, a procession of knights and “tracas” from Marrubiu carry
the simulacre of Our Lady to the country church of Santa Maria of Zuradili,
where a feast in honour of the Virgin is celebrated. The territory of Marrubiu,
whose economy is based on cattle-breeding and agriculture, also includes a vast
area belonging to Monte Arci. Its vegetation comprises holm-oaks, hollies, cork-oaks,
and the 
Mediterranean
maquis: cistus and lentisk. The fauna is well represented by fallow deer, deer,
mouflons, jays and birds of prey. The area has been inhabited since the Neolithic,
as proved by the archaeological sites of Roi e’ Muru, Is Carraxonis, the nuraghe
of Su Seddarexus and the megalithic complex of Sa Domu e’ s’Orcu. 
Inside
the village, the parish church of the Blessed Virgin of Monserrato is worth
visiting. As regards the local traditional cooking, let us mention “su pai e’
trigu” (= corn bread), a kind of “black” bread made from the corn of the previous
year, threshed by the trampling of oxen, and then milled.
Terralba, an important
agricultural village, was an archiepiscopal centre until 1503. In the pastime,
the territory included a vast marshland which was finally drained thanks to
the reclamation scheme of 1919. The reclamation allowed the exploitation of
the land. A region of the vast wet area has been spared from land drainage.
Here there is the pond of Marceddì, a halting-place for many species of migratory
birds and abounding in fish which can be relished during the much crowded “Sagra
del pesce” (the fish festival), organized by the fishermen of the 
village.
Evocative and heartfelt is the famous sea procession in honour of the Most Holy
Saint Bonaria, carried by sea and with a train of boats following the simulacrum.
Oristano is situated
south of the river Tirso, not far from the sea. It was founded by the inhabitants
of ancient Tharros, a Phoenician town ruled by Carthage and later by the Romans.
The
town reached its highest splendour under the reign of Mariano IV and Eleonora
of Arborea. In Via Vittorio Emanuele, a central street, you can admire the Palazzo
Arcivescovile (= Archbishop’s Palace) erected by the Piedmontese. Not far from
it, there is the Neoclassical church dedicated to Saint Francesco, dated 1250
and later restored by the Sardinian architect Gaetano Cima. In piazza Eleonora
of Arborea there is a statue, sculptured by Ulisse Carbi, representing the judge.
In the same square are also the XVII-cent. Town Hall dedicated to Lamarmora,
Saint Domenico’s and Saint Lucia’s churches, the former built in the XVII century.
From Corso Umberto you can reach Piazza Roma, whence the Torre Mariano II (XIII
cent.) towers above the square. Nearby, in Via Parpaglia, you can visit Eleonora
of Arborea’s house and Parpaglia Palace, seat of the Antiquarium Arborense which
hosts a rich collection of old handmade goods. From Piazza Manno through Via
Saint Martino you can reach the omonymous Gothic church. Every last Sunday of
Carnival, as well as every following Tuesday, there is the famous racing “Sa
Sartiglia”. The decision to celebrate it at Carnival has an historical reason:
it was a way of both recalling the glorious reign of Eleonora and of expressing
the Sardinians’ contempt for the Aragonese ruleship.
SANLURI
In 
the
spring of 1409 an Aragonese fleet made up of 150 vessels sailed from Barcelona
to reach the Sardinian coasts. The news about the occupation of the reign by
the rebellious and treacherous Sardinians, led by the Viscount of Narbona, drove
Martino il Giovane, king of Sicily and heir to the t
hrone
of Aragona, to embark. On his arrival, the king was informed of the 20.000 Sardinian
soldiers drawn up in the village of Sanluri. On the 26th June 1409 he moved
from Cagliari northward with an army counting 3.000 troopers and 8.000 foot-soldiers.
He passed through the “Caralibus Turren” (some traces of which are to be found
in the now-called “Bia Casteddu”) as far as it deviates from the course of the
river “Flumini Mannu”, and after a 3-day forced march he settled his camp two
leagues off Sanluri. His men were spurred by his 
confessor,
the religious Jonan Exemeno who, in accordance with Martino il Vecchio ’s military
policy, recommended them to be severe and firm in the condemnation of the viscount
and the chiefs of the revolt. However, he also asked them to be mild with the
civilians, though such indulgence should not be such as to permit the arousal
of a new rebellion. On 29th June, on a Sunday morning, Martino set up his division.
In the meanwhile, the Sardinians placed themselves on top of a hill behind Sanluri
(presently known as “Su Bruncu de sa Batalla”- the snout of the battle). On
the opposite side, up of a little hill, Pere de Torrelles, chief of a 1.000-soldier
division, stood on the front-line, whereas Martino, leading 4.000 foot-soldiers
and the whole cavalry, occupied a central position. The furious battle, the
longest as ever before, caused the death of hundreds of men. The Sardinians
came off worst; their array broke up, men started to lose control of the situation
and ran away. Many of them, by then reduced to extreme weakness, were killed
on top of a hill, whose name, “S’occidroxiu” (the slaughter house) still recalls
the memory of the massacre. The viscount of Narbona could hardly escape and
sought refuge in the Castle of Monreale. In the meanwhile, Sanluri was besieged
and sacked by the infantry. The small forts and the Castle of the village were
stormed, the wall look-outs exterminated. Martino went back to the battle camp
along with his herald. There he could recognize the noblemen who supported him
by the shields they were wearing in the battle. He ordered that they should
be buried under the church of Sanluri (San Pietro or San Lorenzo), while the
common people were probably buried in a common grave. Inside Sanluri about 300
soldiers and many civilians were slaughtered, about 4.000 were confined and
reduced to slavery. Women were taken to Cagliari. Among them was also the “bella
di Sanluri” (= the belle of Sanluri). According to a legend, she caused prince
Martino’s untimely death, because of the too many repeated sexual intercourses
that they had. But as a matter of fact, his death seems to have been caused
by t
he malarial
fevers he contracted when crossing the river “Fiume Mannu”, on the 25th July
of that 
year.
The Viscount of Narbona, who had come back to his French feuds to organize a
new defence, was induced by the news of Martino’s death to return and continue
the war. The bloody deeds that we know as “la Battaglia di Sanluri” (the Battle
of Sanluri) were reported by the winners (as it often happens in history) in
a not too reliable chronicle. All the events are in fact only based on Spanish
documents. They emphasize the heroism of the Aragonese and describe the Sardinians’
defeat in the least details, stressing how overwhelming the overthrow was: thousands
of Sardinians against few tens of Aragonese. However real or partial the chronicle
may be, it is a clear evidence of all the blood the Sardinians had to render
in tribute to their land. The price they had to pay was so high that those terrible
facts could hardly be forgotten. Nevertheless, they did not resign and soon
“learned to laugh again after weeping for so long a time”… Laughter and joke
were the only protest they could use against the arrogance of the many colonizers:
Pisans, Spanish, Piedmontese, and the House of Savoy; against taxation and the
feudal system as a whole. And this explains why the inhabitans of Sanluri are
now considered as some of the nicest and most cheerful people of Sardinia.
