Crescentino Carnival is rooted in an episode that actually took place. In 1529, Count Riccardo IV Tizzoni, who had been bullying and harassing the population for quite some time, was killed by the mob. According to legend, one of the reasons that unleashed the wrath of the people of Crescentino was the imposition of the “ius primae noctis”. Apparently, it was the daughter of a miller, a newlywed bride who was in the Count's palace, who killed the tyrant, while the people began their uprising.
The event is remembered with a historical re-enactment in the streets of the town, involving numerous participants in period costumes. The other central moment of the carnival is the Corso Mascherato, which rings the old town three times. Numerous floats take part in the parade, chosen from among the finest papier-mâché works of Piedmont's main carnivals.
