Menaggio

The area of current Menaggio was conquered by the Romans in 196 BC, and the Roman conquest culminated with the construction of a road called the Via Regina. Menaggio was a walled city and remnants of the wall are still evident today, and Menaggio has various other historical monuments which recall its importance throughout the ages. It was a town of note in ancient times because of its privileged geographical position, at the point where the Via Regina (road bordering the western side of the lake) met the road leading through the Val Menaggio to Lugano and the valley of Ticino. Take a walk from Piazza Garibaldi, and discover Menaggio’s deep history. The road leads up to Castello, the medieval part of the town, mainly along streets closed to traffic. Among many events which occur in the town every summer, the Menaggio Guitar Festival is definitely one to try to catch. Maybe you will be lucky and time it so that you are there when it is happening. Or vice-versa!

Verbania

Riding into the province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola in the Piedmont region of northwest Italy, you come across Verbania. This area has been inhabited since prehistoric times, and the oldest known people living in the area were the Lepontii. The area was added to the Roman Empire by Emperor Augustus in the first century AD. In the eleventh century the area was controlled by the bishops of Novara, then by the counts of Pombia. In 1152, Federico Barbarossa gave the area to the Castello family. After the death of Frederick Barbarossa, the territory was again controlled by Novara.

By the fourteenth century, the area had become part of the Duchy of Milan. In 1714, following the Treaty of Rastatt most of the lake areas came under the control of the Habsburgs. After the 1796 Napoleonic invasion the area was controlled by the French. By 1818 the House of Savoy had gained control of the area back from the French. With the edict of 10 October 1836, Pallanza and Ossola became part of the province of Novara. After the Second World War, the territory still remained part of the province of Novara. In 1976 the autonomous district of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola was established. Quite a rollercoaster.

The Piedmont shore of Lake Maggiore

The section of the Piedmont shore of Lake Maggiore contains a variety of places of artistic and cultural interest, for example, the Romanesque church of Santa Maria in Belgirate from the 12th century. Archaeological findings have shown that the area of what today is Arona was settled from the 18th–13th centuries BC. Prehistoric pile-dwellings have been found near the town and are part of the Prehistoric Pile dwellings around the Alps UNESCO World Heritage Site. Later it was a possession of the Celts, the Romans and the Lombards. In the 11th century the Benedictine abbey of Saints Gratianus and Felinus, Martyrs, was founded.

Later the town was a possession of the Torriani and (from 1277) of the Visconti families. In the early 14th century, the town became a free commune under the suzerainty of the abbey. In 1439 it was acquired by Vitaliano Borromeo and, as a result, the House of Borromeo. While you're here, check out Collegiata della Natività di Maria Vergine from 1482, La Rocca ('The Castle'), Santi Martiri, Sacro Monte di Arona and The Lungolago ('Lakeside').

Close to Arona along the Piedmontese shore is Castelletto Sopra Ticino (Torriani-Visconti Castle) a medieval fortress which belonged to the signoria of the Torriani and the Visconti families. Arona, the principal seat of the Borromeo family, which for centuries exerted a strong influence on the lake area. The giant statue of Cardinal San Carlo Borromeo (23.4 metres tall) stands above the town. You can climb up inside to see a breathtaking view of the Lombard and Piedmontese shores of the lakes.