The 8th Criterion governing the structure of the Route establishes that: “The European Route is organized into four macro-areas, each corresponding to specific phases in the development of Longobard civilization.” These are:
- “Lands of the Elbe” Macro-area (Lower Saxony, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Schleswig-Holstein) / Proto-historic settlements; early archaeological and historiographical evidence; formation of the first ruling classes; evidence of forms of worship; emergence of the Gens Langobardorum / Period: 1st century BC – early 5th century AD.
- “Lands of the Kings” Macro-area (Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Hungary, Slovenia) / Second migration phase; emergence of Longobard military power; clearer evidence of royal lineages; international political relations; rapprochement with the Byzantine Empire; rapprochement with Arianism; development of material culture and artistic craftsmanship / Period: 5th–6th centuries AD.
- "Lands of the Kingdom" Macro-area / Third migration; conquest of Italy; rise, development, and fall of the Longobard Kingdom of Italy; rapprochement with Roman Catholicism; development of the cult of Saint Michael the Archangel; emergence of written law; political and economic development; art forms and the monumental expression of power and faith; definition of specific cult elements (saints and relics) / Period: 568–774
- "Lands of the Princes" Macro-area / Independent development of the Longobard Principalities of Benevento, Salerno, and Capua—heirs to the Kingdom; development of civic and religious architecture; completion of the adoption of Catholicism; peak interactions and conflicts with the Ottonian Empire, the Byzantine Empire, and emerging Saracen and Norman powers / End of Longobard rule / Period: 774–1077.