- Guglionesi
Guglionesi (Campobassan dialect: Uinìš) is a small town in
Molise , SouthernItaly , about 50 kilometers’ distance fromCampobasso . Themunicipality of Guglionesi had a population of 5,272 inhabitants accordingly to the results of the recent nationalcensus . The town lies on Kmq. 100.73 and approximately 369 meters above sea level.History
The historical origins of Guglionesi go back to the
4th century BC. Inancient times, the name was "Uscosium" or "Usconium" and together with Pescara, Ortona, Lanciano, Vasto and Larino was one of the most important centers of theFrentani , aregion inhabited from allied Italic people of theSamnite s.Thanks to its strategic position along the "Via Frentana-Traiana", "Usconium" became, towards the end of the Republican Era, a Municipium, and according to historical documents, had nearly 25,000 inhabitants.
At the center of "Usconium", between "Monte Antico" and "Monte Capraro" there was "Pagus Of Collis Nisii" or "Collenisyus" (Hill of Bacchus) where the escaped from "Usconium" were sheltered after its destruction by the
Goths .In the
412 AD "Colleniso" became "New Usconium" and was encircled by protection walls in the period of Longobardo. After that, the most important fortification was raised in the NinthCentury , whenRobert Guiscard took hold of the city. In that period eighteenwatchtowers and two castles were erected. The first castle was located along "Via Capitano Verri", where its ruins can still be seen today. The secondcastle is in "Castellara". After the destruction of the second castle, upon what was left of the castle foundations, theConvent of the Cappuccini was constructed.In the
801 AD Colleniso was submitted to theDuke of Spoleto , and endured various incursions from part ofSaracen raiders. In the1137 A.D . it endured the pillage from Emperor Lothair II. In the1315 KingRobert of Anjou gave Collenisio to his brother Peter,Count ofGravina , and at his death, his daughter Agnese inherited the city. In1340 she founded theCertosa of Saint Giovanni Batiste, also known as "Porta Del Paradiso" ("The Heaven’s door") and as "The Heremo of Saint John". This was the time in which numerousinvasions occurred to the city, and in the mean time the city’s name was changed from "Colleniso" to "Guillonisi".In
1496 after the death ofRené of Anjou , his cousinCharles VIII of France descended toItaly with a large army and conqueredNaples . The French entered "Guillonisi" and plundered the entire village, demolished the two castles and the towers and killed most of the people. Another particularly invasion occurred in the 16th century by the Turks, who set afire, among the other things, the church of "Saint Maria Maggiore", and consequently the relics ofSt. Adam housed in the church were destroyed and lost.ister cities
ources
* [http://molise.indettaglio.it/eng/comuni/cb/guglionesi/guglionesi.html Guglionesi]
* [http://www.enit.it/comuniris.asp?Lang=UK&ID=11683&Luogo=GUGLIONESI Towns, Provinces and Regions]External links
* [http://www.guglionesi.com/ Guglionesi On The Web] (In Italian)
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