Serravalle Langhe (Saraval in Piedmontese) is an Italian town of 303 inhabitants in the province of Cuneo, in Piedmont.
The peculiarity of this small town consists in the fact that it is surrounded by four valleys; in fact they almost “lock” today’s town center.
Of ancient origin, the settlement is listed among the possessions of Bonifacio del Vasto in 1142; it then passed into the hands of the Marquises of Monferrato and finally it was for a long time under the control of the del Carretto family.
Among the monuments there is a chapel, located in Castellera, named after S. Michele Arcangelo. The construction of this building seems to date back to the thirteenth century: the Romanesque apse, made entirely of stone and with typical decoration with hanging arches and fake single-lancet openings, is direct evidence of this. The façade, as well as the brick bell tower, has undergone later modifications (18th century): two pilasters and triangular tympanum, a small central portal with lobed frames and tympanum, simple rectangular windows and two shell-shaped niches.
Also worthy of interest is the Oratory of S. Michele, which dates back to 1200, in the main square of the village, with beautiful frescoes dating back to the 14th century from the school of Macrino d’Alba.
The town hall is located in one of the most important historical buildings: the seventeenth-century marquis palace, characterized by two small hanging towers at the corners of the facade.
The main village festival takes place on the second Sunday of June.
History
In Roman times the town was located lower down, scattered on the left bank of the Belbo.
Later the village was built in the current hamlet of Villa, where there was a castle destroyed by the French in the 17th century.
The construction by the Marquis Del Carretto of a new building favored the definitive movement of the town in its current position.
Serravalle had a certain notoriety at the time of the French Revolution, when the Jacobins raised the first tree of liberty on the town square.