Manerba is supposed to have gotten its name from a sanctuary of the goddess Minerva, but the only thing that indicates this is a stone with inscription. It was probably located at the location where the castle was built later on. The name Manerba can be found in a document that says that Charles the Great donates Manerba to the Monks of San Zeno from Verona, and it also contains mention of the castle.

We stumble upon various famous names in the history of Manerba, such as Barbarossa and Guiseppe Garibaldi. Like so many towns in this area, the owners often switched places, Verona, Venice, Austria.
The plague raged through Manerba in a terrible way in 1630. Of the 1550 inhabitants, only 703 survived.
Just a handful of remains remind of the castle. It was completely destroyed in 1575, because a notorious group of thieves, ‘the Zamari’ used it as headquarters and base for its raids. From the Rocca di Manerba, the location where the castle once was, one has a beautiful view of the bay that neighbors Manerba. The parish church, devoted to Santa Maria Assunta, is the oldest Roman monument in the area, but it was built on the remains of an even older church. There are beautiful frescos to be admired. In Solaro, the church is located that’s devoted to San Giovanni Decollato. It belonged to the Order of St. John and it was built in the 18th century in Baroque style. In Balbiana you’ll find the Santa Lucia church that dates back to the 15th century. Very beautiful frescos can be admired here, masterpieces from the 15th century.

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