Cathars on lake Garda

The Cathars on lake Garda, in the thirteenth century, in the southern part of the Garda, the church was consolidated Catharist, a heretical movement imported from Toulouse; when in France there was the crusade against heretics, many followers fled to Italy and also on the Garda

Various historians tell of this movement linked to the Garda and Tullio Ferro makes a summary in its “Seen on Garda” telling that: “In some areas of southern Garda (Sirmione and Desenzano in particular), in the thirteenth century was to consolidate the church Catharist or patarina, … “and that” The <ecclesia di Desenzano>, whose bishop was a certain Giovanni Bello, was one of the more conspicuous. ” This spread of heretical church was possible by Ezzelino da Romano (1194-1259), who had conquered Verona in 1232 and was in direct conflict with the Pope, but things changed around 1275, when they were elected bishops of Verona and Trento two Franciscan friars with a past as inquisitors, respectively friar Temidio and Mantuan Filippo Bonaccolsi and so the latter writes Tullio Ferro, taking a text Emanuele Luciani: “Just the Bonaccolsi, together with Alberto della Scala, he went to Sirmione to capture a large group of heretics who, after being taken to Verona, were imprisoned (1276). ”

Depictions of Cathar, capture and burning