The best road cycling routes around Minerbio

You can pass through the garden only during the 5 Fossi Walk in Minerbio in November

Private castle, which can only be visited on the occasion of festivals and re-enactments. Well maintained and cared for.

16th century structure, used in the 18th century as a summer villa for the Bertuzzini lords, then also as a primary school in the kingdom of Italy

Fairy-tale castle in Soverzano. It was built by the Manzoli family, and is surrounded by a sparse wood. Despite being an aristocratic residence, it was built with military defensive details, such as walls, battlements and moats.

The parish of San Giovanni Battista in Montecalvo, one of the many hills near Bologna, has very ancient origins: the first attestation of a small church here dates back to 1235.

castle howled

The Church of Montecalvo Parish of San Giovanni Battista The denomination of Montecalvo probably derives from the fact that this is an area of calcareous soil, rich in quartz and selenite boulders that shine … like baldness; or, much more likely, it originates from scarce vegetation. The first news of a small church in Montecalvo is mentioned in a document of 1235... The church is dedicated to St. John the Baptist who has been its official patron since its inception. In 1846, S. Mamante, a martyr who died in 275, in the ferocious persecution of Aurelian in Cappadocia was also aggregated as co-patron. This decision was taken on the strength of a "vow" made by the parishioners, who disbanded on August 17, the liturgical feast of St. Mamante, to thank him for having freed them from a scourge that seriously damaged their countryside. (Source: https://www.parrocchiadimontecalvo.it/)

In the locality of Soverzano, near Minerbio, the castle of San Martino, also known as the Manzoli family, stands surrounded by a sparse grove. The structure saw its origins in the year 1411 when the Bolognese Knight Bartolomeo Manzoli wanted it to be built as an aristocratic residence around the ancient Ariosti tower, (which in turn had stood on the edge of the swamp since the thirteenth century). Although the manor was born as an aristocratic residence, it was equipped with military-type defenses, such as walls, battlements and moats. In fact, the castle has a rectangular plan with a spacious internal courtyard; at the four corners there are defensive towers and the defense aspect accentuated by the large moat that surrounds it, as well as by the drawbridges and the grandeur of the main tower. It served as a noble residence for a short time in 1500 (from 1514 to 1532) when Leo X granted Marchione Manzoli the jurisdiction of San Martino with the title of Count. The Castle was restored and decorated in the 1500s and 1600s, but the restoration work took place in 1883-85, when it was owned by the Cavazza Counts, by Alfonso Rubbiani and Tito Azzolini. The curtains and crenellated towers that characterize it give a decidedly fairytale aspect to the castle which is located in a centuries-old park.