Mondragone
Encyclopedia
Mondragone is a comune
or municipality in the Province of Caserta
in the Italian
region of Campania
. It is located about 45 km northwest of Naples
and about 40 km west of Caserta
.
. In 375, during the late Roman Empire
, a village known as Petrinum was founded after an earthquake had destroyed the nearby town of Sinuessa
. In the Middle Ages, it was occupied by the Normans who built (or re-built) an important castle here.
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
or municipality in the Province of Caserta
Province of Caserta
The Province of Caserta is a province in the Campania region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Caserta. The former royal palace of Caserta is located near to the city.It has an area of 2,639 km², and a total population of 879,342...
in the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
region of Campania
Campania
Campania is a region in southern Italy. The region has a population of around 5.8 million people, making it the second-most-populous region of Italy; its total area of 13,590 km² makes it the most densely populated region in the country...
. It is located about 45 km northwest of Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
and about 40 km west of Caserta
Caserta
Caserta is the capital of the province of Caserta in the Campania region of Italy. It is an important agricultural, commercial and industrial comune and city. Caserta is located on the edge of the Campanian plain at the foot of the Campanian Subapennine mountain range...
.
History
The first historical population of the area was the AurunciAurunci
The Aurunci were an Italic population which lived in southern Italy from around the 1st millennium BC. Of Indo-European origin, their language belonged to the Oscan group...
. In 375, during the late Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
, a village known as Petrinum was founded after an earthquake had destroyed the nearby town of Sinuessa
Sinuessa
Sinuessa was a city of Latium, in the more extended sense of the name, situated on the Tyrrhenian Sea, about 10 km north of the mouth of the Volturno River . It was on the line of the Via Appia, and was the last place where that great highroad touched on the sea-coast...
. In the Middle Ages, it was occupied by the Normans who built (or re-built) an important castle here.
Main sights
- Ruins of Sinuessa
- Torre del Paladino, a 1st century BC mausoleum.
- Rocca or castle, built between the 8th and the 9th centuries. It was later modified by the AragoneseHouse of AragonThe House of Aragon is the name given several royal houses that ruled the County, the Kingdom or the Crown of Aragon.Some historiansGuillermo Fatás y Guillermo Redondo, Alberto Montaner Frutos, Faustino Menéndez Pidal de Navascués...
- Monastery of Sant'Anna al Monte
- Sanctuary of the Belvedere, c. 13th century