Col Lacroix

In the Middle Ages, the upper Guil passes allowed numerous exchanges between the Queyras and Italy. The inhabitants of Queyras practised transhumance in the fall to Italy and took the opportunity to sell cheese and meat. In the 13th century, a French-Italian market existed in Abriès. Many Italian merchants came to trade there. In the 16th century, persecuted throughout the Italian Piedmont valleys, hundreds of Waldensians (Followers of the christian movement founded by Peter Waldo) travel these mountain passes to find refuge in the Queyras before having to migrate again a century later. They played an important role in the establishment of Protestantism in the Queyras.