Italian Cultural Institute Via Francigena: the Pilgrim route from Canterbury to the South of Italy

The ancient Via Francigena is the pilgrim route from Canterbury to South of Italy, and in a sense is the 'mother road' for Christian pilgrims. For centuries, pilgrims coming from all over Europe used to trek across the Alps, using the famous Saint Bernard Pass, en route to the churches of Rome. During the Middle Ages, the Via Francigena was extended further south to the port of Bari, home of the remains of St. Nicholas and departure point for the Holy Land and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.

As Prof. Alberti and Prof. Havely will underline in their speeches, the Francigena was not only a pilgrimage route, but also a powerful instrument of transmitting culture. Famous cities along its path, like Lucca, Pisa, San Gimignano and Siena, grew richer thanks to the influence of the Francigena and became leaders and examples of civilization.

Today, the Via Francigena has a magnificent environmental heritage. It traverses several National Parks, with a great diversity of landscapes, which will be shown through images during the presentation. But its variety can be experienced especially with the wide range of flavours and fragrances that can be found along its path, of which we will also have a 'taste'.

Prof. Alberto Alberti is an expert on the Via Francigena and has organized for many years expeditions along historical pilgrimage ways in Italy. He is the president of the no profit association “Gruppo dei Dodici”, and vice president of the national association Rete dei Cammini.
Prof. Nick Havely is Emeritus Professor of English & Related Literature at the University of York, and has widely published on Chaucer and Boccaccio. He also has a strong interest on the Via Francigena.