SANT’AGATA DEI GOTI

A town perched on a tuff spur, with a history of several centuries and very interesting traditions behind it.The medieval village of Sant’Agata dei Goti is a tuff terrace suspended in time and surrounded by nature. Amidst destruction and occupation, over time the locality of Sannio has been able to resist various vicissitudes. The old village of Saticula was first occupied by the Romans, after an exhausting battle with the Samnites, and later conquered by the Lombards.

It was therefore the Romans who first camped on the fortress, initially only with some veteran soldiers, and later forming a colony of the Empire commissioned by Octavian Augustus.

In the Middle Ages Saticula then underwent a series of dominations: Lombards, Normans, Swabians and Angevins followed over time.

But it was in the sixth century that the ancient village changed its name in honor of Sant’Agata. Subsequently, according to one of the theories related to the name of the village, it becomes Sant’Agata dei Goti because for a long time the place was a fief of the French De Goth family.

Today the village of Sannio jealously guards the traces of its long past. The small streets, the houses, the characteristic tuff, the monuments of the historic center and the churches fully express the identity of this village in the mountains of Benevento.

The Cathedral of the Assumption
But the cult building and the most important of Sant’Agata dei Goti remains the Cathedral of the Assumption, in Piazza Sant’Alfonso.

Founded on a Roman temple, the Cathedral has been renovated several times. To welcome tourists a long portico with twelve columns, the Latin cross plan, the eighteenth-century side chapels and the marble altars.

The historic center is a crossroads of alleys and lanes, houses, old shops, ancient buildings and churches.

A large semicircle where time seems to have stopped, often the site of film sets.
Once in Sant’Agata dei Goti, a walk along the bridge over the Martorano must not be missing either, from here you can enjoy an enchanting view of the entire historic center.

In the evening, with the lights that illuminate the tuff spur and the houses of the village, the suggestion increases. The Palazzo Ducale, the ancient residence of several princes and many noble families, is also worth a visit.

It is an imposing structure in front of the church of San Menna, built by the Lombards and then restored by the Normans. Of the four old towers of the medieval palace, only one remains, in the past used as a prison.

Over the centuries, the building has been modified several times, according to the fashion of the time and the tastes of the owners.

Words by Napolike

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