History

The word “Romitorio” derives from “romito” or hermit, a solitary person entirely dedicated to meditation and prayer. The Romitorio is ergo a place of silence, set apart, where one breathes peace and serenity. In medieval times in fact the “Romitorio di Serelle” was a historic refuge on the road to the benedictine monastery of Camaldoli and important as a welcoming place of rest for the voyaging pilgrims.The oldest part of the structure dates to the medieval period of roughly 1100, and was completed in 1400.The position of the hamlet was of great strategic importance as it is located near the border of the territories of Florence and Siena and in close proximity to the Via Francigena. In the 1300s the Romitorio enjoyed the political protection afforded by Florence but with the development of nearby Castellina the control of the monks slowly diminished.In the 1500s the hamlet was expanded and fortified in order to be able to resist the various companies of adventurers intruding into the area, but by the 1600s a slow decline had set in and the monks abandoned the hamlet/fort, already more or less squeezed out by the growth of small towns and cities.Since that time the hamlet has been the home to countless famiglie of tuscan farmers. In 1988 the family Folonari bought the farm Santedame and thus also the hamlet, which pertains to the lands of the estate.As of 1998 the Romitorio is property of the Banti family who began in 2001 to warmly welcome tourists from every part of the world.