Battle of the Oranges — Storico Carnevale di Ivrea
Historical Carnival — Battle of Oranges · Ivrea, Piedmont, Italy
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The festival
A whole city declared war — with oranges. During the last three days of the Carnival, Ivrea replayed in real magnitude the medieval revolt against a tyrant: nine teams of "aranceri" on foot, the people in costumes, bombarded the guards of the tyrant, who were judged on tanks fired by horses, with oranges by hundreds of thousands. The founding legend tells the violetta miller, who killed the tyrannical Marquis and triggered the popular revolt.
About 5,000 participants take part in the fight, according to EverybodyLovesItalian — and the decomposed oranges end up in compost distributed to the public.
The battle is played on five squares of the historic center — piazza Ottinetti, piazza di Città, Borghetto, piazza del Rondolino and piazza Freguglia — and the official programme 2027 is already online on the site of the Fondazione: passage of powers to the General on Thursday 4 February, battle on Sunday 7, Monday 8 and Tuesday 9 February, then polenta and cod on Wednesday of the Ash in piazza Lamarmora. The advice of the Fondazione to all who enter the squares: wear the red phrygian hat, the "berretto frigio" — from Sunday it is "essential" to not become the target of a "kind and moderate orange jet". The official poster 2027, signed by illustrator Riccardo Guasco and presented on October 22, 2026, honours the horse — the animal of the jet tanks and the riders who accompany the procession all year round. And nothing is lost: the oranges of battle 2026 were transformed into compost, distributed free to the public in the autumn of 2026.
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The festival in images
Official photos of the festival, published on the official website of the Fondazione dello Storico Carnevale di Ivrea.
Good to know
Carnival in the "eight centuries of history" (formula of the official website); the battle in its codified form dates back to the 19th century. Organized by the Fondazione dello Storico Carnevale di Ivrea — "Programma 2027" and pre-inscriptions of the tanks opened on the official site. The TravelBeginsAt40 guide evokes about 100,000 visitors over the three days (guide figure, quoted as such). Photo credit: © Vfbia — CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Liens officiels
Official email from the Fondazione: [email protected] (published on the official website).
Video
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The Battaglia delle Arance
Source: Storico Carnevale di Ivrea (official YouTube channel)
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The Vezzosa Mugnaia
Source: Storico Carnevale di Ivrea (official YouTube channel)
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Storico Carnevale di Ivrea 2024
Source: Storico Carnevale di Ivrea (official YouTube channel)
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To see around the festival
Ivrea is not just about its battle: the city of Canavese is visited on foot, from the medieval center to the docks of the Dora Baltea.
- The castle of Ivrea, the "Three Tower Castle" — the red brick fortress raised from 1358 by Amédée VI de Savoie; its fourth tower was destroyed by an explosion in 1676, and its three tower profile still dominates the old town.
- The industrial city Olivetti, UNESCO World Heritage Site — along via Jervis, Olivetti's modernist buildings (ICO factories, housing, social services) tell the 20th century industrial city wanted by Adriano Olivetti, registered at UNESCO in 2018; the MAAM outdoors route and visitor reception centre are freely visited.
- Sirio Lake and the Five Lakes of Ivrea — at the exit of the city, in the Morainic amphitheatre: Lake Sirio, the largest of the five lakes (Sirio, San Michele, Pistono, Nero, Campagna), for a breath between two days of battle.