VIA STOCKALPER - Stockalperweg

VIA STOCKALPER links Brig in the Canton of Valais (CH) with Domodossola (ITA) through the Simplon Valley: it is one of Switzerland’s 12 Cultural Routes of national interest, following in the footsteps of the trade route established by one of the key figures in the history of this region: Kaspar Jodok von Stockalper. 

A great 17th-century Valaisan businessman, entrepreneur and politician, Baron Stockalper spoke five languages fluently and owned pastures, mountain pastures and mines. From his palace in Brig, which he had transformed into a magnificent castle, he controlled trade with Antwerp, Paris and the Channel ports to the north, and with Milan to the south. It was he who restored the ancient route across the Alps, equipping it with bridges and shelters to allow caravans of goods to pass through even in winter, thus becoming one of Europe’s most important merchants.

Kaspar von Stockalper was born in Brig in 1609 into an already very wealthy family of probable Italian origin. His affluence enabled him to travel throughout Europe and thus begin to lay the foundations for his future trading ventures. His knowledge of languages was of great help in his dealings with the various European courts. His turnover in the five-year period 1665–1670 yielded an income four times that of the whole of Valais. His estate has been valued at around 450 million euros in today’s money; he owned all the mines in the Valais and employed a total of around 5,000 men. When, coming down from the Simplon Pass, one reaches Brig, it is impossible not to notice on the right a large grey building adorned with three tall towers of a vaguely oriental style: that was his habitual residence, as well as a warehouse and sorting centre for goods bound for Italy or Central Europe. His main source of income came from his monopoly on trade across the Simplon Pass. It was precisely thanks to the growth of this trade that the local population finally experienced a period of prosperity, so much so that, even in difficult times, Baron Stockalper was always recognised as a benefactor by the people of Valais. His continued successes aroused the envy of the Valaisan political nobility, who could no longer compete with his standard of living or his stature as a politician. Having branded him a traitor, they sentenced him to a hefty fine and the forfeiture of all his possessions. Stockalper went into voluntary exile in Domodossola, where he was received with full honours and had a house built on the Sacred Mount Calvario. Five years later, in 1685, following the death of one of his political opponents, he returned to his homeland to find his popularity undiminished. He died in 1691 at the age of 82; his remains rest in the church at Glis, near Brig.

VIA STOCKALPER route starts at Stockalper Castle (www.brig-simplon.ch/en/culture-city/stockalper-palace) in Brig (CH), climbs to the Simplon Pass (2,005 m above sea level) and descends to Simplon Dorf and then to Gondo. From here, the route to Domodossola begins, following the Via Stockalper Valle Bognanco variant along the “Via del Monscera”. 

It starts from Gondo, climbs through the Zwischbergental valley to the Monscera Pass (2,103 m above sea level) and then descends the Bognanco Valley until it reaches Domodossola, ideally ending at Sacro Monte Calvario, a UNESCO World Heritage Site (www.sacrimonti.org), where Baron Stockalper lived in exile.

The “Via del Monscera” was once a strategic route: from the Monscera Pass, troops from Valais stormed down and invaded the Ossola region on several occasions, but above all, it seems certain that a distinguished figure, Pope Gregory X, passed through here on his return from the Council of Lyon in the autumn of 1275: as a token of gratitude to the local population for their help in the difficult crossing of the pass, the Pope donated a parchment of great historical and religious value containing the bull “Transiturus” promulgated by Urban IV in 1264, which established the feast of Corpus Christi. This important document was rediscovered in the 1960s in the parish archives of the Church of San Lorenzo.

Thanks to works to be carried out as part of the Interreg “Via-Stockalper” VI-A Italy-Switzerland 2021–2027 project, the route will once again be fully connected along the Via Stockalper Valle Divedro, with a fascinating and scenic route linking Gondo (CH) to Paglino and Iselle (ITA), continuing towards Trasquera, Varzo, Crevoladossola and ending in Domodossola, linking the wonderful existing sections of the route. 

In the attached the trail description, maps and gpx track.

Credits: 
Distretto Turistico dei Laghi - ph. Marco Benedetto Cerini e Adriana Oberto
Brig Simplon Tourismus AG - ph. Pascal Gertschen