The imposing building of Guasco Castle has undergone extensions and renovations over the centuries.

It gained importance both because of frequent military events and because it was built on the borders of the Republic of Genoa with Piedmont and Lombardy.

The castle, home of the Spinola family of Arquata, saw within its walls the births and presence of illustrious men, namely, the direct descendants of Luchesio: Franco, Oberto and Tobia, men-at-arms and militia commanders who, in the name of Genoa, would have large offspring who would impart the lineage to the nobility beyond the Alps. Inside the manor was a prison, the Fornetto, used to lock up enemies or inconvenient characters.

If you leaf through Marcel Reney’s book Les amis des chats, you may come across the legend of the Sacred Cat of Burma. And reading carefully, one can notice a specific reference to Francavilla Castle and its noble owner, Countess Elisabetta Guasco Giriodi Panissera.

It seems, from eyewitness testimony, that the countess first came into possession of and began breeding 18 white Burmese cats, described as among the most beautiful in the world.

We have the earliest news dating back to the church on October 2, 1186, when the Bishop of Tortona makes a gift to the Abbey of Rivalta Scrivia of the church of Santa Maria di Bassignanella in Val Lemme, or Francavilla.

The building outwardly echoes the red exposed brick of the nearby castle. Of simple architecture, it has three naves and a frescoed apse.

The high altar encloses, inside a stylized white marble temple, the statue of Our Lady of Grace seated on a willow trunk, with the Baby Jesus resting on her knees. The presbyter’s Eucharistic table facing the assembly, on the other hand, was made of wood to guide a large shrine housing a precious wooden sculpture depicting the Last Supper by sculptors from Val Gardena.

Francavilla hosts Aeroturismo, a 100,000 sq. m. airfield with an approved runway 800 m. long by 66 m. wide.

The hangars used for aircraft shelter are 1,700 square meters in size, painted green to better blend into the surroundings.

The airfield is used for recreational aircraft and small powered aircraft.

The S.O.M.S. was founded in Francavilla Bisio in April 1905, thanks to the promotion of a group of men in solidarity with each other and eager to practice mutuality. The Society was given the name La Fratellanza and the flag bears in the center, embroidered in large relief, two vigorously intertwined hands.

The ground floor of the S.O.M.S. building has housed the Civic Library since 2004. Among the sections housed within the Library, significant is the Fossati donation: more than 400 volumes of American literature and history, among its a monographic section dedicated to John Fitzgerald Kennedy. Some of these bear the autographed dedication of the president killed in Dallas, others are limited edition

It is located in a well-preserved and highly visible building on the provincial road and has housed the Library inside since 2004 with works from the “Fossati donation.”

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