Church Sant'Ermete - Forte dei Marmi - Tuscany

Around 1870, according to Agostino Neri, an extension of the church took place, which according to Giorgio Giannelli must be understood as a total renovation.

The foundations of the bell tower were laid in 1885. After the first 4 m had been built, the work stopped because there was no money left to continue.

Construction of the bell tower resumed in 1890. The bell tower of the church is the oldest surviving bell tower in the western plain of Versilia, having been knocked down by the Germans in many villages in 1944.

On June 28, 1911, the Church of Sant'Ermete was elevated to "parish in itself under the title of S. Ermete martire" by Cardinal Pietro Maffi.

Under Don Raffaello Galleni, the construction of the two aisles began in 1916 and was completed around 1923.

In 1999, a new pipe organ was built by the Marin Brothers to replace the previous one, which dates from 1920; the instrument, with electronic transmission, has 56 registers on three manuals and pedal, and is divided into two bodies: the large one in the choir loft in the opposite facade; the choir organ on the floor in the ambulatory.

Willem Vandenameele