Minucciano, Province of Lucca, Tuscany

Archaeological finds dating back to the Bronze Age, found near the hermitage of the Beata Vergine del Soccorso and today preserved in the Archaeological Museum of Equi Terme, testify to the ancient origins of an Apuan settlement. The name derives from the Roman consul Quintus Minucius Termus, who according to tradition in the 2nd century BC defeated the Apuans.

At the time of the barbarian invasions the territory of Minucciano became depopulated, then rose again in the early Middle Ages and became a fief of the Malaspinas, powerful lords of Lunigiana, until the 11th century. Subsequently it entered the possessions of Lucca, going through its phase of maximum splendor and also received the privilege of minting its money, the "barbone minuccianese".

Due to its strategic position on the border between Garfagnana and Lunigiana, Minucciano was long disputed between Pisa, Florence, the Visconti family of Milan and the Este family of Ferrara, and in 1447 finally it was annexed to the Republic of Lucca.

Between the end of the 15th century and the mid-19th century, Minucciano was an exclave of Lucca surrounded on all sides by communities belonging to the Este States, the Malaspinas or Tuscany. In 1847, with the Treaty of Florence, Minucciano was annexed to the Duchy of Modena and Reggio. In 1859, at the end of the second war of Italian Independence, it was included in the territory of the United Provinces of Central Italy, the following year it was officially annexed to the Kingdom of Sardinia and then to the Kingdom of Italy.

Minucciano was hit by two violent earthquakes in 1837 and 1920 from which it recovered with tenacity thanks to a solid economy and the strong character of the population.