Eremo di Montepaolo

St Anthony of Padua, the saint of miracles, was Portuguese. In 1221, after the Chapter of the Franciscan friars in Assisi, he asked to be sent to a place of prayer and was sent to this small hermitage in the hills of Dovadola, seven kilometres from the village.

Here he lived for about a year in silence, praying in a cave in the woods and serving his fellow friars in the humblest tasks. No one knew of his learning until, in 1222, in Forlì, during an ordination ceremony, he was suddenly asked to preach: his words left everyone speechless and from that day his mission began.

The Eremo di Montepaolo is today the most important Antonine shrine in Emilia-Romagna. You can visit the church, the cloister, the saint's cave and the woods with the chapels; the place is accessible to all, without architectural barriers.

It is also the first stage of the Way of St Anthony to Padua. Even if you are not a pilgrim, the silence of the woods and the view over the hills are worth the journey.