Former Battuti church

The 'Battuti' were the members of various secular brotherhoods that originated in the Middle Ages. Although some of them imposed on themselves as a rule the penance of flagellation, this custom soon fell into disuse and the name is therefore only to be understood more generically as 'afflicted' or 'penitents'.
Generally devoted to Our Lady (hence the various churches and hospitals of 'Santa Maria dei Battuti'), the 'Battuti' performed works of charity and assistance, mainly by running hospices and hospitals and assisting in religious rites. Such confraternities were usual throughout Italy with different charitable vocations: Celestines, Greens, Blacks, Reds, Bigi, Whites. The latter were present in Castagnole from the late Middle Ages under the name 'batù bianch,' and their church, built in 1688, was at the time the largest building in the village.
After the war and the dissolution of the brotherhood, the church was then abandoned and deconsecrated. The building was first converted into a parish hall and a cinema, after which, thanks to restoration work in 2007, it then regained its original beauty once again. With its sober and bright interiors, the building has now become the ideal space for important cultural events.