Castel San Vincenzo - Castel San Vincenzo

Castel San Vincenzo is a center of the Molise.

To know

Until the fifteenth century it was an integral part of the Giustizierato d 'Abruzzo and of the Abruzzo Hither.

Geographical notes

Located on theMolise Apennines, inIsernino, is 26 km from Isernia and from Castel di Sangro, 31 from Venafro, 36 from Roccaraso, 54 from Cassino. .

Background

There are traces of a late Roman agricultural village and an oratory dedicated to San Vincenzo dating back to the period between the 5th and 6th centuries. At the beginning of the 8th century, the Benedictine monastery of San Vincenzo was built by three young nobles from Benevento, Paldo, Taso and Tato. In a few decades, thanks to land donations from the nobles of the area, the monastery became one of the most important and richest in Italy, extending its influence and creating a fiefdom, Terra Sancti Vincentii, with possessions in Campania, Abruzzo, Puglia is Basilicata. The abbey would have been visited by Charlemagne, while a violent earthquake devastated it in 847.

In 881 the Abbey of San Vincenzo al Volturno was sacked by an Arab-Berber band. This had penetrated into Campania and had found no defense in the principles of Salerno and accounts of Capua, indeed the Lombard feudal lords had allowed the passage by routing the Arabs towards the territories under the control of the Bishop of Rome. The Arab gang then destroyed the Abbey of San Vincenzo, like that of Montecassino. The few surviving monks of San Vincenzo abandoned the valley bottom to return there not before 914, with the consequent reconstruction of the monastery. There is debate as to whether the first settlement of what would become the villages of Castellone and San Vincenzo can be traced back to the Arab sack. and therefore at the end of the ninth century. The first document concerning Castel San Vincenzo is contained in Chronicon Vulturnense and it is dated 942. It is a level contract with the concession for 29 years of lands around the Castellum, a fortification near a low rocky spur not far from the Abbey. In the 11th century the village took the name of Castrum Samnie and became the most important village in the Terra Sancti Vincentii, therefore a fief of the Abbey. With the strengthening of the local feudal lordships, the two distinct villages of Castellone and San Vincenzo begin to get to know each other, as mentioned in the Chronicon as early as 1383.The castle therefore dates back to the socially unstable period between the end of the 11th and the beginning of the 12th . With the Norman invasion, in fact, the phenomenon of the creation of local fiefs is accentuated and the villages are therefore forced to move to the top of the hills for reasons of protection from the incursions of local lords of prey.

During the Bourbon domination, the district of Castellone was part of the Terra del Lavoro. Only on February 17, 1861 the district, together with Venafro, is detached from the Terra di Lavoro and becomes an administrative part of the new province of Campobasso. In the decade following the unification of Italy, the area of ​​the Mainarde chain and the Alto Volturno valley was affected by the actions of numerous bands of brigands. In fact, there is news of at least two attacks by brigands, one on 11 January 1861, and the other on 2 July 1861, when Captain Cremo of the military detachment of Venafro telegraphed his superiors to Caserta stating that Castellone was occupied by brigands. In 1884 the Volturno valley was plagued by a cholera epidemic.

The municipality was born from the merger, in 1928, of the previous municipalities of Castellone al Volturno and San Vincenzo al Volturno. The urban aspect dating back to the two separate municipalities is still visible today, as there are two main squares with two churches and two plaques for the fallen, one for each town. In the past, the municipality of Castellone was the seat of a prison and a district court, as well as the district capital, a local authority halfway between the municipality and the district, abolished together with the latter in 1927. In 1990 with Presidential Decree the territory of Castel San Vincenzo becomes part of the National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise.

How to orient yourself

Neighborhoods

Its municipal territory also includes the hamlet of Cartiera.

How to get

By plane

• Rome Fiumicino Airport (FCO), Via dell 'Fiumicino Airport, 320, ☎ 39 06 65951. 
• Naples Capodichino Airport (NAP), Viale F. Ruffo di Calabria, 80144 Naples NA, ☎ 39 081 7896111. 
• Pescara airport (Abruzzo International Airport), Via Tiburtina Km 229.100, ☎ 39 085 4324201. 

By car

• Adriatic Highway A14

• from the north: follow the direction of Rome, take the A 25 motorway, exit towards Bussi /Peoples, follow the signs for L'Aquila (A 24), continue on the SS 17, cross Popoli, SS 652 in the direction of Venafro, continue on the SS 158 in the direction of Castel San Vincenzo.
• from the south: follow the direction Pescara, continue on the A16 motorway, follow the direction Benevento, in Benevento continue on the SS 88, exit at Campobasso, take the SS 87 (state road Bifernina) in the direction of Campobasso/Isernia, continue on the SS 17, take the SS 85 in the direction of Venafro, continue on the SS 158 and follow signs for Castel San Vincenzo.

• Autostrada del Sole A1 Rome - Naples:

• from the north exit at San Vittore, follow the direction Venafro on the SS 6, in Venafro continue on the SS 85, follow the direction Montaquila/Roccaraso, turn onto the SS 158 in the direction of Castel San Vincenzo.
• from the south exit at Caianello, follow the signs for Isernia, SS 85, follow the direction Montaquila/Roccaraso, turn onto the SS 158 in the direction of Castel San Vincenzo.

• From Isernia take the SS 85, continue on the SS 158 following the signs for Castel San Vincenzo.
• From Campobasso take the SS 87 (state road Bifernina), continue on the SS 17, continue on the SS85 in the direction of Venafro, turn onto the SS 158 in the direction of Castel San Vincenzo.

On the train

• Isernia railway station (about 26 km away):

• Line Termoli - Campobasso - Isernia
• Line Rome- Isernia - Campobasso
• Line Naples- Isernia- Campobasso

By bus

• The main public transport companies operating in the Molise area are the following

• Lariviera bus lines [1]
• SATI bus lines [2]
• Molise Trasporti bus lines [3]
• Autoservizi F.lli Cerella: For connections from Rome and Naples with Isernia.

How to get around

What see

• 41.64995214.0878511 Cistercian Abbey of San Vincenzo al Volturno. It is a historic Benedictine abbey located in the territory of the municipalities of Castel San Vincenzo and of Rocchetta a Volturno.

The area on which the abbey was born had hosted a settlement from the late Roman era. Between the fifth and sixth centuries, a church and a funerary area were built between the buildings now in disuse.

According to the Chronicon Vulturnense, the monastery was born thanks to three nobles from Benevento, such Paldo, Tato and Taso in 731, who used all their rich heritage there. They, to undertake an ascetic life, reached the abbey of Farfa, Benedictine abbey in Sabina. Abbot Tommaso di Moriana suggested that they found an abbey near the Volturno river, where there was already an oratory dedicated to San Vincenzo. The foundation of this oratory is attributed to Constantine I the Great. The Chronicon's underlining the Beneventan origin of the three founders suggests that the institution was favored by seeking new prestige by the Lombard Gisulfo II, Duke of Benevento from 743 to 749.

With the arrival of the Franks from the north, the abbey found itself in a border area between the Franks and the Lombards. : In 774 the frank Ambrogio Autperto was abbot. In 782 the Lombard Potone became abbot: he was deposed for having left the choir during a praise sung to Charlemagne; only by swearing allegiance to the king of the Franks was he able to return to his posts. On 27 March 787 the same king of the Franks granted fiscal and jurisdictional privileges such as to equate the abbey to the major European ones. In the 9th century, with the abbots Giosuè, Talarico and Epifanio the abbey expanded into a small city, with 350 brothers and vast land holdings.

In 848 the abbey was damaged by an earthquake. Twelve years later she was blackmailed by Sawdān, Emir of Bari, to which a large tribute was paid to avoid being looted. In 881 some Saracens in the pay of Duke Atanasio II of Naples, thanks to the betrayal of the monks' servants, plundered and burned the monastery. The survivors fled to Capua; they returned to build the abbey in 914, succeeding only at the end of the century thanks to the direct support of the emperors Otto II and Otto III. The monks tried to build a podestà in the Upper Volturno Valley through the administration of justice and the collection of taxes.

At the end of the 11th century the monks, to defend themselves from a possible Norman attack, moved to a more defensible position; in 1115 Pope Pasquale II consecrated the new abbey church. In the twelfth century, the Norman conquest of the Abruzzi took place, which gradually led to the disintegration of the monastic lordship in the following centuries. In 1349 a new earthquake destroyed San Vincenzo al Volturno, leaving room for the political expansion of Montecassino. Occupied by an ever smaller number of brothers, from the 15th century the abbey began to be managed, both spiritually and economically, from the outside. In 1669 all the territories of the Volturnense abbey were assigned to the Cassinensi monks who administer it in all respects, a fact that definitively sanctioned the end of its autonomy.

Due to the bombing of the Second World War, some parts of the ruins of the abbey and a small subsequent church suffered heavy damage. Angelo Pantoni, a monk of Montecassino, has been involved in the installation of a new monastery for years. Thanks to him, since 1989 San Vincenzo al Volturno has once again hosted a community: the Benedictine women who came from the cenoby of Connecticut Regina Laudis.

The Chronicon Vulturnense

The first historical events relating to the ancient abbey are collected in the Chronicon Vulturnense, an illuminated manuscript. The monk Giovanni wrote this text in Beneventan script around 1130, drawing on sources from the 8th, 9th and early 10th centuries, but often tampering with information for hagiographic purposes. However, the Chronicon rearranged the memories of the monastery, at a time when central Italy was threatened by Norman expansion. Today the codex is kept in the Vatican Apostolic Library, BAV Barb. lat. 2724.

The exterior of the abbey it is marked by the boundaries drawn by the Roman settlement before its construction. There are traces of walls and a colonnade with pointed arches exactly in front of the building's garden.

The monastic complex consists of the church and a building for the monks, faithfully rebuilt after the Second World War, located to the right of the church facade. The body of the church has a rectangular basilica plan with a gabled façade. Important decorations are the rose window and the portico. On the left side there is an imposing bell tower with double bell arches on each side.

The Palazzetto dei monaci is composed of a house made of rectangular rough stone and a small church attached to it. Next to it is another building with a room used as a museum.

The interior it has three naves with various chapels placed alongside the apse. The remains of the frescoes still visible in situ today show the main scenes of the Gospel, but also of important historical events for the abbey such as the intercession by Justinian and Charlemagne.

The Frescoes they are an example of the Lombard pictorial movement of Benevento, the work of anonymous artists linked to the Benevento School of miniature, made in the second quarter of the 9th century.

Martyrdom of Saints Lorenzo and Stefano

The scene is divided into two episodes. In the first, San Lorenzo is immobilized on a grill above a furnace, and in the second Santo Stefano he is stuck on a wall while the crowd reaches him with stones in their hands. Lorenzo is lying on his stomach on the ground while the guards torment him with pitchforks.

Santo Stefano, on the other hand, is interpreted differently because the painting is mutilated. He is the protagonist of the scene, placed in the center, while he waves his arms and smiles, a sign that he is happy to die for Jesus.: From the right and left the enemies throw stones that are of various colors.

Group of frescoes in the crypt of Bishop Epifanio

The crypt is the most decorated part: scenes of the saint's conversion with baptism are shown; the Crucifixion at the high altar; Christ seated on the throne with the Gospel; the miracle of the archangel Raphael; always Raffaele who hovers in the sky framed in a purple-red circle; a portrait of Mary as Queen of Heaven who possesses the Gospel; of the Angels in prayer, which serve as a frame element. These are represented by wings of various colors: from red to yellow and from green to blue.

Other frescoes show an old man blessing (perhaps Peter the Apostle), two saints of the illustrious Roman families, and more important scenes from the Life of Jesus, taken from the Gospels. Among these stands the Nativity which shows the Madonna and Child surrounded by two shepherds in the act of covering and offering gifts to Jesus. There are also scenes from the life of Bishop Epiphanius. 

• Church of Santo Stefano. Dated between the 12th and 13th centuries. 
• Parish Church of Santa Maria delle Monache. 
• Archaeological Museum of Santa Maria delle Monache. 
• Museum of the Abbey of San Vincenzo. 

Sites of environmental interest

• Lake of San Vincenzo. It is an artificial reservoir built in the late 1950s for hydroelectric purposes. The lake occupies an area of ​​6,140 km² and has a useful capacity of 10 million cubic meters. The waters that feed the lake come mainly from the streams of the Spaccata mountain in the nearby municipalities of Alfedena is Barrea. The waters of these streams feed the Enel power plants in Pizzone, of Rocchetta a Volturno and of Hills in Volturno. Although artificial, the lake is well harmonized with the surrounding landscape of mountains and woods. The aquatic fauna consists mainly of salmonids. Near the lake, where you can go fishing and other water sports, there is an area equipped for camping and a riding stable. 
• "Oscar Caporaso" wildlife visitor center. 

Events and parties

What to do

Shopping

How to have fun

Where to eat

Average prices

• 41.64749714.054941 The Lantern on the Lake, Circumlago Road, 7, ☎ 39 0865 951448. 

Where stay

Average prices

• 41.64598914.0473461 Mainarde Oasis - Tourist park - camping, Circumlago road, ☎ 39 0865 1945794, fax: 39 0865 957329, @[email protected]. 

Safety

Pharmacy

• 41.65514.0613411 By Iorio, via Colle 36, ☎ 39 0865 951297. 

How to keep in touch

Post office

• 41.65505514.0618382 Italian post, Piazza Umberto, 1, ☎ 39 0865 951129. 

Around

• Castel di Sangro - It was a Roman city, then a fief of the Borrellos; the ruins of the medieval castle and the nearby megalithic walls testify to the past greatness of port of Abruzzo.
• Isernia - Among the first documented Paleolithic settlements in Europe, it was then a flourishing Samnite city, capital of the Italic League, later a Roman Municipium. Its millennial past has left it with an important monumental heritage that extends up to the pre-Roman era, as well as very important prehistoric finds.
• Cassino - For centuries the administrative center of the ancient Land of San Benedetto, the city develops at the foot of the hill on which stands the famous abbey of Montecassino, for which it is mainly known. However, it also boasts important evidence of its Roman past: amphitheater, theater, mausoleum, nymphaeum, urban walls of the archaeological park Casinum.
• Venafro - His long membership in the Campania. City of the Samnites, later a Roman colony, the vestiges of the empire flanked by an important medieval urban heritage, in which the numerous churches stand out, unfortunately in large numbers deteriorated.
• Roccaraso - Its ski facilities, belonging to the Alto Sangro ski area, make it one of the major mountain tourist resorts of the entire Apennines.

Itineraries

• Castles in the province of Isernia - There are numerous manors of theMolise Apennines in the countries ofUpper Molise, ofIsernino he was born in Venafrano. Some are in ruins due to war or earthquakes; others have been recovered; many have a military aspect, with little or no external architectural evolution of transformation into a stately home.

Other projects

• Wikipedia contains an entry concerning Castel San Vincenzo
• Commons contains images or other files on Castel San Vincenzo

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