Via dei Monasteri Regi

The Via dei Monasteri Regi linked Benedictine foundations from the Po plain towards the Apennine passes. Castell'Arquato, a Lombard and medieval castrum, formed part of this historic corridor.

Why it matters

Its name recalls the chain of monastic foundations that shaped settlement and hospitality across the Piacenza hills.

What to notice

The corridor connected Fiorenzuola d'Arda and its monastic foundation with Castell'Arquato's hilltop castrum, then Lugagnano and Lavernasco, the older name of Vernasca, whose castle appears in a 1015 diploma addressed to Tolla monastery. Morfasso was associated with the abbey of San Salvatore e San Gallo di Tolla, now largely erased by landslides. Further along, Bardi belonged to Nonantola abbey; the corridor met the Via degli Abati from Bobbio and crossed the Apennines towards Pontremoli. Place names, parish churches and oratories preserve traces of this monastic landscape.

Context and history

The corridor belongs to the early medieval network of routes linking monasteries that provided hospitality. Religious houses and their castles and churches—including Lavernasco, Tolla and the Benedictine priory at Gravago—structured movement across the hills.