Attractions and Places To See around Calice Al Cornoviglio - Top 20

The Torre del Castello Malaspina in the municipality of Villafranca in Lunigiana mainly refers to the imposing and famous cylindrical structure of the Castello Malaspina di Malgrate, although in the municipal capital there are also the ruins of the Castello di Malnido, the historic Dantesque residence of the Malaspina marquises, which was also originally equipped with a control tower. The best-preserved and famous fortification with its slender tower is located precisely in the hamlet of Malgrate. The cylindrical keep towers over the valley and is an unmistakable symbol of the Lunigiana landscape.

The famous South Gate of the fortified village of Filetto (located in Villafranca in Lunigiana, Massa-Carrara), an imposing monumental stone arch that welcomes visitors to the medieval village. In the second case, in construction, it refers to the creation of a structural or decorative arch using bricks arranged "a filetto" (on edge or end), a laying technique widely used to give a rustic and elegant feel to entrances, corridors, or kitchens.

We parked there for a mountain bike ride. It's very picturesque, and there are even some picnic tables.

Aula is a fundamental hub of the Via Francigena, it was tormented by the bombings of the Second World War, causing the almost total destruction of its historic center, of which very few vestiges remain. It is located a few kilometers from the border with Liguria, on a narrow strip of land at the confluence of the Magra river and the Aulella stream, a decisive place for the civil and religious life of the entire area before the year 1000. Aulla in that period was already a small village and its importance was linked precisely to its central position along the Via Francigena, both as a pilgrimage road and as a commercial artery. The center of the town had an important role in defending the roads that led from the Lucca area and Liguria towards the Cisa Pass.

The Brunella Fortress owes its name to the hill on which it was built in the mid-16th century. The fort is a typical example of Renaissance military architecture, designed to defend against firearm attacks. It is an almost square construction with large polygonal struts. What is certain is that the complex represents the most powerful military work in Lunigiana and its strategic position allowed it, in the past, to control all the main routes in the area and the arrivals from the Apennine passes.

probably the best known of the many well-preserved medieval villages that you come across along the route, which reveals its Byzantine origins both in its name and in its shapes: the term “Filetto”, in fact, derives from the Greek Fulacterion, which means “fortified village”. The town still retains the quadrangular shape typical of the villages of foundation and late ancient camps, with perpendicular streets and central squares. To the oldest part, characterized by narrow alleys such as the Jewish village and a large market square, is added a late Renaissance “addition”, the fascinating Borgo degli Ariberti. The Ariberti family enlarged the village by building a wide central street, a square and a stately building adjacent to the church of Saints Jacopo and Antonio and the Fatebenefratelli Convent. The addition is linked to the village in an elegant way, with suspension bridges and arches that overlook the entrance gates to the town and that connect the main buildings.

Ruins of the Malnido Castle, with the square dedicated to Dante Alighieri, ancient guest of the Malaspina, and the remains of the church of San Nicolò, the medieval road leads to the parish church of San Giovanni

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