Case della Confraternità di Maria Santissima dei Miracoli

The houses are among the oldest buildings outside the castle walls.
The Confraternity has been and still is very important for the religious and social life of the village. It was established in 1494 with only religious purposes, linked to the erection and operation of the Sanctuary, which was built with the money of private citizens, the offerings of pilgrims and other income such as indulgences. However, from 1531 it also assumed welfare and social purposes, linked to the management of the “hostel” of the poor (stage 13).

In the history of Castel Rigone, the Confraternity has also been very important in the social field in providing for the rights and needs of the poorest citizens, when the public bodies in charge did not yet exist. From about 1491 to 1870, the confraternity established a free school open to everyone by paying a teacher and hired a “spedaliero” that is a person dedicated to assisting the poor and the sick, to regularly distribute wine, flour, bread and cereals. We must think that once the main diseases were related to poor nutrition and cold, so this type of assistance was very important for the health of the poorest: it provided a dowry to the necessitous unmarried, but “deserving for the honesty of customs”, he built and established a kindergarten and a Schola Cantorum. Today, the confraternity still plays an important social role, renting 25 houses in downtown Castel Rigone and in the countryside at fair rents and helping to counteract the depopulation of small villages.