Articles

The entrance to the fortified village displays an arched doorway still bearing the lifting loops of the drawbridge. The 14th-century tower on the right side has recently been restored and is now the seat of the Monteveglio Castle Visitor Centre, accessible via a short stretch of the ancient walkway above the walls. Other noteworthy sights inside the village include the historic Casa di San Benedetto, former oratory and seat of the confraternity of Santa Maria delle Rondini, as well as the 17th-century belfry once used to summon the inhabitants.

A little further on is the small Oratory of Saints Rocco and Sebastian, erected by the community during the plague of 1631 and restored in the late 19th century. Towards the end of the village we reach the splendid abbey church of Santa Maria di Monteveglio, one of the oldest parish churches in the Bolognese diocese, as demonstrated by the columns in the crypt. The interior consists of a nave and two side aisles, with a raised presbytery overlooking a beautiful crypt with remains of frescoes on the walls. The church's current appearance dates back to the mid-12th century, when the canons regular of San Frediano of Lucca rebuilt the complex in the Romanesque style we see today. After a period of decline, Santa Maria flourished again in 1456 thanks to the Lateran Canons, who carried out various restorations and additions. In 1628 Pope Gregory XV bestowed the title of abbey on the community. The parish and the canons represented a religious, economic and administrative reference point for the park area over many centuries, until the Napoleonic troops took over and the numerous holdings managed by the abbey were dispersed and sold off.