Travelling friars,
golden letters,
and a Samurai.
Landing at Civitavecchia in 1615, the ambassador Hasekura Tsunenaga was received by Pope Paul V. An epic undertaking for its time: converted peoples, Japanese martyrs, palaces of power.
The Way retraces the last stretch of his journey: from Civitavecchia, past Santa Severa Castle, where the Samurai spent his first night, on to Rome by way of St Peter’s and the Vatican, arriving at the Quirinal.
The Credential
Your pilgrim passport
Numbered and personal. Each credential has a unique code: it is the proof that you walked the Way. At the end of the route, with your name and code, you unlock the official certificate.
Indicative prices · shipping throughout Italy · secure payment. The credential is personal: the code stays linked to your name.
Have you finished the Way?
Send your name, your credential code and a photo of your stamped credential: we will check the stages and send you the certificate.
If you would like to receive the certificate by post, there is a 5 € shipping supplement, to be paid by bank transfer to IBAN IT14O0501803200000017218363 in the name of Variante Cimina della via Francigena ETS. Please include your credential code in the payment reference.
Help us save the frescoes of Lucas Ryuzo Hasegawa
In the Church of the Holy Japanese Martyrs in Civitavecchia, where the Way begins, the paintings of Lucas Ryuzo Hasegawa (1897–1967) blend European painting with the Japanese tradition: the martyrdom of the twenty-six, the famous Madonna in a kimono. A unique work of sacred art, now threatened by detachments and cracks.
As promoters of the Way, we support the restoration. Every contribution helps to preserve the roots of this story.
