Chiesetta degli Alpini

On the slopes above Breuil-Cervinia, the Chiesetta degli Alpini keeps the memory of the mountain troops of the Monte Cervino battalion. A spruce-and-fir cross and a bronze plaque commemorate Pope John Paul II's Mass there in 1991.

Why it matters

Breuil-Cervinia's religious sites mostly serve the living; this one serves the dead. The Chiesetta degli Alpini was built as a votive memorial to the fallen of the Monte Cervino alpine battalion, the ski troops raised from this valley, and it stands on the slope their home town looks up at. On 19 July 1991 Pope John Paul II celebrated Mass beside the chapel during his holiday in the Aosta Valley. The chapel remains a place of pilgrimage and annual commemoration for the Alpini, Italy's mountain infantry.

What to notice

The chapel is a small votive building on the slopes of the massif that gave the battalion its name. A spruce-and-fir cross stands beside it, with a bronze plaque set into nearby rock.

Context and history

The Monte Cervino battalion took its name from the massif above Breuil-Cervinia. The chapel was erected by the local community in memory of the battalion's fallen.