The occasion for this article was provided by the reprinting (Rome Viella 2015), with a significant introduction by Massimo Firpo, of a book by Alessandro Pastore, Nella Valtellina del tardo Cinqucento. Fede, cultura, società, the first important work of this historian, originally published in 1975 (Milano Sugarco). The aim of this article is to place Pastore’s book in the context of its production. His research was influenced by the approach of the group working on the "Atlante Storico Italiano", directed by Marino Berengo, by suggestions taken from the studies of Delio Cantimori and Antonio Rotondò on religious dissent in the XVIth century and especially by the Braudelian model of social history. In addition, this article focuses on the reception of Pastore’s volume at the time of its original publication and outlines the subsequent research on the topic.
Keywords: Valtelline, XVIth century, Religious conflict and coexistence