The name of Canon Michael Camper is almost unknown outside the South Tyrol. Yet the work of this priest, born in 1885 in Prissian, demonstrates how one man's stubborn attachment to his faith and his land can prevent the tide of history sweeping aside the identity of a people. His extraordinary battle in defence of the cultures and rights of minorities - not only ethnic and linguistic minorities - and his firm Christian opposition to the European totalitarianism of the 20th century make Canon Michael Gamper one of the founders of today's Europe, where the borders between states are little more than marks on a map. Telling the story of Michael Gamper means recounting half a century of the history of South Tyrol, the events, characters, ideas and the dynamics of a battle for the rights of a people.