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The town of Sassello

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Home page/Acqui Terme/In the countryside/The town of Sassello

THE TOWN OF SASSELLO

A visitor who goes to Sassello or who only observes a map will immediately notice that this small city is not in the province of Alessandria, but in the one of Savona: our choice to offer a short cut to Sassello derives in part from the economic links that the city has always had with Acqui and with the Erro Valley and in part from the beauty that this place suggests to the one who, coming from the city of the “Bollente”, decides to travel backwards along the torrent. Entirely located in the Appennine backland, at the shoulders of Genoa, Arenzano, Cogoleto and Varazze, Sassello lies down when the Faiallo and the Giovo passes and the Beigua mountain (m. 1280) go down and meet in the direction of the downstream Erro Valley.

The history of the city links it to Alessandria: after the Ligurian takeover, the Aleramo’s horseback led it under the dominion of the Monferrato marquises until, in 1293, it became a feud of the Doria dynasty and followed some alternate periods of fight and wealth. At the same time, the centre of the town was moved down from the castle to take advantage of the trading opportunities of the location, which put it to the center of the conflicts between the Savoia and Genoa: in 1672, with the occupation of Carlo Emanuele II, not a single house remained. The alternate vicissitudes of peace and war finished in 1797 when, under the wind of the French revolution and the successive wars, the glorious Republic of Genoa was abolished and its territory was annexed in 1814 to the Reign of the Savoias and then to Italy.

Sassello today represents the beauty of the Ligurian backland, with its colors, its images of wild vegetation and with its pleasant and colourful villages, with its ancient and unforgettable tastes. With the enchanting small squre, with the narrow streets and the washed-away colours of the houses. The province of Alessandria has in fact this gift, the one of being earth of encounter between Piemontese, Lombard, Ligurian and Emilian elements, melted together into a charming and always various pot.

The Erro Valley has sometimes wild and sometimes delicate features that let us discover the swift sliding down of the torrent and the forests of chestnut trees around, between roads and ups-and-downs while the Acquese hilltops yield to the Appennines. It has not only nature, though. The most ancient castle, said of Soprana, dates at the beginning of the XIV century and the location of its ruins are at the narrow confluence of the torrents Sasselletto and Sbruggia, making their encounter even more evocative and fascinating. On the hilltop there is also the ancient castle of Sottana, or at least what remains after having been destroyed by the Savoias.

Some attention must also be paid to the Castle of Melazzo, to the tower of Castelletto d' Erro and to the old villages of Montechiaro, Cartosio, Palo, Urbe and to the Beigua Mount where a wonderful panorama may be enjoyed: from the Ligurian coast, down in a breathtaking manner, and back to the Appennines, to the Padan Plain and to the Alps, that, like women of white snow, sing this melody of Liguria. The visitor should also not forget, while staying in the Erro Valley and in Sassello, the typical macaroons and the liqueurs, sweetly tasty.