Historical Routes of Pilgrims and Crusaders to Reach the Basilica of San Michele in Monte San'Angelo (Gargano, Apulia, Italy)

Summary Due to the use by pilgrims reaching places of faith, historical routes and trails were often strengthened over the time. Those paths happen to be more familiar to their visitors than to the native populations. As a result, the awareness towards those visitors - pilgrims or not –where they arrive and stay, is quite strong. Despite this, and particularly in the last fifty years, the urban and rural territories crossed didn’t perceive the importance of the pilgrimage phenomenon. Therefore, no care and caution measures regarding the transformation of landscape along those routes have been taken into considerations. The research, mainly related to the Adriatic ending stretch of the Via Francesca or Francigena (via Sacra Langobardorum), in Daunia and Gargano, aimed at the study of the landscape transformations in the areas located around the path. The goal is also related both to the identification of future intervention procedures and to the mitigation of the dissonant transformations occurred. Methods On the basis of the historical available documentation, the faith paths to Monte Sant’Angelo, reachable both by land, with access from the Apulian Tavoliere, and by sea, with access from Lesina and the north Gargano, will be reported in a georeferenced map. The study will then consist in defining the involved areas, recognizing the catchment areas of every path, on which a specific territorial in- vestigation related to the landscape changes occurred in the last fifty years will be carried out. By involving rural populations, there will be proceeded to the identification of the resources to protect, the enhancing action procedures and the method to mitigate those interventions in sharp contrast with the historical importance of the routes.