Chiesanuova

Chiesanuova is the southernmost of San Marino's castelli, sitting on the Italian border where the republic ends, a small village with a parish church, a piazza and the ground falling away south into the Marche. It is the least visited part of the country. Paths run down toward the border and the Montefeltro hills roll away beyond it in every direction to the south. The territory, once the castle of Busignano, chose to join the republic in 1320, and the castello carried the old name Pennarossa into the twentieth century. It is the least populous of the nine after Montegiardino.

History

The medieval castle of Busignano stood here, and in 1320 its people chose to join San Marino. The name Chiesanuova, new church, goes back to the 16th-century rebuilding of the church of San Giovanni Battista in Curte, though the castello was known as Pennarossa until the reforms of 1943-1944, and its square was renewed to a design by the poet Tonino Guerra, finished in 2011 (Wikipedia, Chiesanuova).

What you'll find

• The southern edge - the point the republic ends at.
• The Marche view - the hills rolling away south beyond the border.
• The parish church - the building at the centre of the village.
• The quiet - the least visited part of a small country.

When to go

April to October is the mild season. The village is quiet year round. Its festa falls in the summer.

Before you go

There is very little in the village and almost nothing arranged for visitors. Facilities are minimal. It is a viewpoint and a village rather than a destination.

Nearby

Fiorentino is northeast, and Acquaviva is north.

Key facts