Guide Books to the Via Francigena

 

 

1.  Cicerone Guide to the Via Francigena - Part 1, Canterbury to the Grand St Bernard Pass

This is the guide written by Alison Raju and at time of writing (Apr 2011) is available on Amazon to pre-order although they are quoting a September delivery date- see link http://www.amazon.co.uk/Via-Francigena-Pilgrim-Trail-Canterbury/dp/1852844876

 

 

Alison Raju, Via Francigena, Pilgrim Trail Canterbury to Rome, 1: Canterbury to the Great Saint-Bernard Pass, Cicerone Press 2011, 236pp., £14.95, ISBN: 978-1-85284-487-5.

 

Part 1 of a 2 volume guide covering the full route this first part contains complete route-finding instructions, information on accommodation and services, places of historical, architectural and other interest along the way through Britain, France and Switzerland and an introduction providing background information to the history and development of this pilgrimage.  It contains sketch maps of the route, numerous colour photographs and Appendices containing suggestions for further reading, useful addresses and contacts, a summary of the route and indexes of maps and principal place names.  The Italian part of this pilgrim journey will be covered in Volume 2.

 

This is available from general bookstores such as Waterstones (in the UK), specialist walking bookshops, the Confraternity of St. James' secure onine bookshop (www.csj.org.uk/bookshop), Amazon etc.  Click here to order from Amazon

 

2.  CPR - Guide to Services & Accommodation on the Via Francigena

This has also been written by Alison Raju and is the 1st Edition or a series planned by The Confraternity of Pilgrims to Rome.  It is a guide to the accommodation and services on the route between Canterbury and the St Bernard Pass and will be updated every year on the basis of pilgrims' feedback, and re-issued each January.

 

The book contains details of accommodation and services on the traditional route in England, France and Switzerland.  This is not a guide with maps or route directions which will be necessary on this part of the Via Francigena. We would advise you to purchase the Lightfoot or Cicerone (see above when published) guides which contain much more detailed information on the route itself.

 

To order the guide by post (UK deliveries only) click here and a PDF order form will open that you can print off

 

In the near future you will be able to order it online directly from us but in the meantime it is available online from the CSJ.  Click the link      http://www.csj.org.uk/acatalog/_.html

 

3.  Rome: The Early Churches a Pilgrims Guide, by Howard Nelson, The Confraternity of Pilgrims to Rome, 2011, 60 pp, 1 map, £6.00, ISBN: 978-0-9568499-0-8.

This guide is based on a series of articles published by Howard Nelson in the Confraternity of Pilgrims to Rome Newsletter.  It is written for the pilgrim who has arrived in Rome and has allowed him or herself enough time to explore a little of its Christian history.  Rome unlike Santiago cannot be gdoneh in a couple of days and in a week or even a month you will only skim its surface.  This guide focuses on a tiny part of what there is to see in the Eternal City.

The book is split into 2 sections plus appendices.  Part 1 covers the Practicalities, how to obtain your Testimonium, what maps and guides to get, pilgrim accommodation, transport, worship in English, and how to get home.   Part 2 is the core and covers Peter and Paul, the early Christians and the catacombs, Constantine and churches founded in the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th centuries, up to the conversion of the first pagan temple (the Pantheon) to Christian use.  Appendices contain a reading list, Sigeric’s Churches, the Seven Churches of Rome and a list of the early churches not covered in the guide.  In order to keep it pocket sized there are no photos but if you read it while looking at the CPR Gallery you will find the photos there have been filed in line with the guide and there are many more than could ever fit in a guide book.

 

To order the guide by post (UK deliveries only) click here and a PDF order form will open that you can print off

 

In the near future you will be able to order it online directly from us.  It will also soon be available online from the CSJ.  Click the link      http://www.csj.org.uk/acatalog/_.html

 

4.  AIVF

Formerly the International Association of Via Francigena (AIVF) produced two 'Vademecums' covering the route (one from London to the Alps and the other the Alps to Rome). However due to a number of issues, the section covering France has now been withdrawn.  The AIVF Guides  provide details of cheap accommodation including religious houses, youth hostels hotels etc. And route directions albeit a little cryptic in places! They are very useful.

 

5.  Lightfoot Guides to the Via Francigena

A detailed multi-part guide in English covering the whole route from Canterbury to Rome.  It includes maps, elevation details,  accommodation lists, GPS waypoints and practical facilities such as doctors/vets, internet cafes and Tourist Offices.  At time of writing it is the only guide in English that covers the whole route from Canterbury to Rome.  It is available from Pilgrim Publications (see http://www.pilgrimagepublications.com/vfguides.html) or the CSJ  (see http://www.csj.org.uk/acatalog/_.html)

 

6.  Pisoni Guide

Luciano Pisoni & Aldo Galli, La Via Francigena.  Guida per il pellegrinaggio a piedi dal Gran San Bernardo a Roma, Padova: ADLE

Covers the route in Italy and has several different start points.  The main (Segeric) route is from the Grand St Bernard Pass to Rome.  The second route covered starts at Moncenisio and goes through the Susa valley then through Turin and joins the main route at Vercelli.  The third starts at Mongenevre and goes to Susa where you join the second variation.  There are two versions of the guide, one in Italian and one in French.  If you are starting north of the St Bernard Pass and do not fancy the idea of carrying them un-necessarily, they can be bought in a shop on the Italian side of the border at the Pass.  There is a book and a very good set of maps that can be carried separately from the book.

 

7.    Guida alla Via Francigena

Monica d’Atti & Franco Conti, Guida alla Via Francigena: 900 chilometri a piedi sulle strade del pellegrinaggio verso Roma Terre di Mezzo, Milan, 2006, pp. 203

In Italian, concise description of the section from the Great St. Bernard Pass to Rome, with details of accommodation and services.

 

8.  Italian Ministry of Culture Guide

This is stored on a website (see Links/About Routes) and has components which comprise downloadable pdf files of instructions and zip files of GPS points.  The route is from the Grand St Bernard Pass to Rome and is divided up into 5 sections which are then split into stages of between 15 and 34 kms in length.   A Google map is shown for each section as well as for the overall route.  Some of the stages have a photo gallery associated with them.  The pdfs contain instructions in Italian but with distances and arrows to show direction changes so are not too difficult to follow.  Also included are some photos as well as a large scale Garmin map of the stage with the route marked and numbers on the route corresponding to the instructions.  There is also an altitude chart .  Being stored this way means the instructions are easy to maintain so should be reasonably current.  The guide is purely to the route.  There is no information about where to eat or sleep.

 

9.  Rando Guide to the Via Francigena

This is in French and starts at Briançon and goes via Turin so does not follow the usual Via Francigena route.  The author has written several other guides - mainly to various Santiago Routes.

 

10.     The Red Velvet Turnshoe

This is not actually a guidebook but a novel by Cassandra Clarke set in 1383.  It is part of the Abbess of Meaux Medieval Mystery Series.  There are two stories intertwined, the first being the murder of a scribe and the hunt for the minstrel falsely accused. The second is about Hildegard’s mission to Rome to bring back the legendary Cross of Constantine as a relic for her Abbey in Yorkshire.