San Michele Arcangelo, church building in Busseto, Italy

San Michele Arcangelo is a baroque church in Roncole Verdi, a hamlet of Busseto, with a plastered facade rebuilt in 1610, a three-nave interior, and a 27-meter Romanesque bell tower. The polygonal apse and bell tower are in exposed brick. Inside, 16th-century frescoes emerged during the 1964 restorations, and two large oils hang on the counter-facade, including Pietro Balestra's 1787 Immacolata with the church in the background.

The church was built in 1004 by Marquis Adalberto Pallavicino and consecrated on 8 May 1094 as San Michele dei Ronchi. The apse was rebuilt in 1509, the Baroque facade in 1610, and the interior restored in 1964. A plaque at the bell tower's base recalls that in spring 1814 Luigia Uttini sheltered there with the infant Giuseppe Verdi from Russian and Austrian troops.

The church holds deep meaning for the community because of its link to Giuseppe Verdi, who learned music here as a boy and was baptized within its walls. This connection transforms the space into a symbol of local pride and cultural memory that residents continue to cherish today.

The church is located in the Roncole Verdi square, a peaceful area that is easy to reach on foot, and entry is free for all visitors. The interior allows you to move around at your own pace to view the artwork and historical objects without time pressure.

Each Good Friday a large canvas of the Calvary, painted by Girolamo Magnani in the 19th century, is raised behind the altar to span the whole apse arch. The same presbytery has housed since 2006 the old painted wooden high altar, removed in 1932 and fully restored.