Pierle’s and Mercatale’s stories are indissolubly bound up and a number of famous personalities such as Henry VII of Luxembourg, Giovanni Visconti, Ladislao d’Angiò, king of Naples and Francesco dei Medici passed through the valley in times gone by.
The area was already inhabited in roman times as it’s witnessed by a number of finds made there and was subsequently deserted for centuries until the Benedictine monks of the Petroio abbey moved into the valley and that’s probably when the settlement of Mercatale was founded. The hamlet of Pierle, dominated by the ruins of its striking castle, originally built in the 10th century and later remodeled under the Casali seigniory, is the valley’s most charming sight. The hamlet’s simple and humble church is said to have been the birthplace of pope Leo the Great, who in 425 a.c. without troops, on the banks of the river Mincio, persuaded Attila the Hun (The Scourge of God) to turn back with his army. While Perle can offer visitors quiet and serenità, the town of Mercatale, immersed in a lush and verdant countryside, only one mile away, may also offer all necessary modern facilities such as two banks, a post office, two supermarkets, two butcher’s shops, a restaurant, two bars and one pub. In town you’ll also find a doctor’s surgery, a dentist and a pharmacy.
People here are hospitable and will welcome you with warmth and friendliness.