The battle of Campaldino between some twenty thousand men – Ghibellines mostly from Arezzo and Guelphs from Florence – was fought right in front of the Conti Guidi Castle, also known as Poppi Castle, in the province of Arezzo.

On the Florentine side, a twenty-four-year-old Dante Alighieri served with his hometown's "feditori", an aristocratic corps who attacked the enemy with light weapons on horses, to overwhelm the opponents with a violent first strike.

Read more

Source: http://www.italianways.com/