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The Canterbury to Rome Road

The Via Francigena is so called as in medieval times it served as a main route from Rome to France and nort-western Europe, it was called the Via Romea by those travelling south. Its origins date back to before 1000 AD when it was a route of pilgrimage in evidence of the renewed Christian spirituality. In this sense, in medieval times, the Via Francigena represented a main artery for human movement, in particular for Christians searching for the roots of their faith..

In those times pilgrimage to Rome along the Via Francigena was the most important European route of the "Peregrinationes Maiores" (main pilgrimage routes) travelling to the most important destinations from the religious point of view such as Jerusalem, Rome and Santiago de Compostela. In this context, the Via Francigena represented the route where the other two converged and separated on the return, in fact in the Magra river valley, exactly between Caprigliola and Sarzana which could be reached from the way descending from Monte Bardone (by the Cisa Pass), passing Pontremoli and Aulla and descending to the plain via Caprigliola, Santo Stefano and Sarzana. alternatively Sarzana could be reached via the "terre alte" (highland) route, after Aulla, climbing along the road going to Bibola and returning to the valley towards Ponzano Superiore and Sarzana along the Amola stream.

The route passed the Brina castle, situated at the foot of the Falcinello hill on the right bank of the river, holding important powers of control and protection of the track and for collecting tolls, the motive for the outbreak of a war which brought death right across the whole of Lunigiana and bringing the marqueses of Malaspina into conflict with the bishop-count if Luni. Peace was brought after long negotiation which concluded with a memorable treaty which saw Dante Alighieri in the role of Malaspina's proxy.

Economical, cultural and artistic development within the Lunigiana area were, in large part, conditional on the development of the centres along the way chosen by the Christiam masses and in this sense Sarzana and the other centres along the Magra valley are certainly offspring of ancient Luni in that their growth was in consequence of decline of the ancient Roman city and therefore they have Luni to thank for their existence as centres along the route of the Via Francigena.