A small Medieval Village
In Filetto, the route takes us back to prehistoric times, when this area was a “sacred” forest for the local populations, who placed numerous stone idols here, the statue stele, most of which are now preserved in the Stele Statues Museum of Lunigiana in Pontremoli.
The first nucleus of the village was a fortification built by the Byzantines in the 5th-6th century during the struggles to reconquer the Peninsula after the fall of Rome. It was a quadrilateral structure with high walls defended by four towers, located where today’s “Piazza del Pozzo” stands, and where a first chapel and a cemetery were later built.
In the Middle Ages, the growing population led to the first expansion of the village, while the nearby forest began to give way to farmland and cultivated chestnut groves.
At the end of the 14th century, Filetto was almost destroyed by the troops of the Duchy of Milan: much of its walls and towers were torn down. The damage was only repaired by the inhabitants in the mid-15th century.
A possession of the Malaspina of Malgrate, Filetto attempted several uprisings against the marquises, one of them in 1490 to join the Florentine protectorates, but the ancient feudal family once again prevailed.
In the 16th century, the village began to take on its current appearance with an expansion on the eastern side, the internal road and the two entrances. In 1568, the gate facing Villafranca acquired its present monumental features.
The financial decline of the Malaspina led to the sale of the Malgrate fief in 1641 and Filetto also passed to the Ariberti family of Cremona.
The most significant historical traces in the village date back to the 16th and 17th centuries, starting with the convent of the Hospitaller Friars of St. John of God, founded in 1665 (which also included a hospital with six beds), and the Church of Saints Philip and James, a distant “heir” of the ancient chapel “de Felecto,” mentioned at the end of the 13th century in the oldest part of the village.
The building of the current parish church was constructed by the friars of the nearby convent between the 17th and 18th centuries: the Oratory of the Holy Trinity passed to the parish in 1861 and was expanded to its present form. Next to it stands the bell tower, erected within the volume of the first parish church dedicated to the two apostles, a more notable building with frescoed interiors, but which was abandoned when the previous oratory was acquired.
How to reach the Village of Filetto
From Villafranca in Lunigiana, take Viale Italia and follow the road to the end. You will find the entrance arch to the village right at the end of the road. On the right, there is a free parking area.
Nearby you can find
The Filetto Forest, the Village of Villafranca, Ethnographical Museum Of Lunigiana, the Village of Virgoletta, Chiesa dei Santi Gervasio e Protasio–Virgoletta, Malgrate Castle, Fornoli Birdge, Conca del Merizzo, Ciclovia dei Castelli – Villafranca in Lunigiana Route.
Lunigiana World thanks our friend Paolo Bissoli for the text about the village of Filetto.
