Back in the days, crossing the alps was hard. And a challenge only the most skilled could accomplish – successfully. One of those brave men was the Milanese Courier or Lindauer Bote or Corriere di Lindo. Their service possible began in 1322 (not unquestionably documented) and ended in either 1824 or 1826 (not unquestionably documented either). This was basically one of the first postal services or courier freight service provider. Check out the informative video below to learn more about this historical profession. However, they did not solely transport letters but additionally valuable goods such as money, silk products, southern exotic fruits and so on. They have been the initial FedEx and DHL, more or less.
Fun Fact: their services were not limited to the transport of goods, they have also guided humans across the alps. Most prominently, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe on this returning journey from his Italian travels from Milan to Lake Constance.
Route of the Milanese Courier
The vice-versa route of the Milanese courier, or Lindauer Bote, took the men from Lindau to Fussach by Boat, Lädine as the historic cargo ships on Lake Constance have been called. Next on land via Feldkirch, Liechtenstein, Chur and Splügen Pass toward Lake Como, crossing the Lake by boat, to cross the land again to eventually arrive in Milano in Lombardy. This journey took five full days and was accomplished on a weekly basis. Nowadays, you can cover this distance of around 320 km on motorways in about four and a half hours by motor vehicle.
