Rocca Calascio is a small town in the Province of L'Aquila City, between the villages of Santo
Stefano di Sessanio and Castel del Monte. Behind it,
you can admire the beautiful landscape of the Campo Imperatore's Upland and in front of it, you can admire the wonders of
the Majella and Sirente
Mountains.
On the top of the mountain, at an altitude
of 1.460 meters
above the sea, Rocca Calascio is the highest town of Central Italy.
Under the ancient Rocca Calascio town, at
the feet of the mountain, there is the new Calascio town with 165 citizens. Both
of the towns are part of the Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga National Park.
Rocca Calascio and it’s Castle were film
sets of many famous movies, like Ladyhawke (with Roger Hauer and
Michelle Pfeiffer) and The Name of the Rose (with Sean Connery). Some
sequences of The American (with George Clooney) were also played here.
THE HISTORY OF ROCCA CALASCIO
Rocca Calascio was founded during the Roman
Age, when the Romans built a sighting turret on the top of the mountain
(where the Castle is today), to control their land possessions. In this way, the Romans could
guarantee security and tranquility to population.
During the Medieval Age, the people
built their houses closeby, near the top of the mountain, as a large defensive
wall, and the Castle was erected on the top.
The first attestation of Rocca Calascio is
in a document from 1380. With this document, Charles III from Durazzo
assigned the towns of Baronage of Carapelle (Santo Stefano di Sessanio,
Castelvecchio, Rocca Calascio villages) to Peter from Celano.
In 1418, the Baronage of
Carapelle was a Iacovella property. She was Count Nicola's daughter and
Leonello Accolmazora's wife. When Leonello died, his son Ruggero imprisoned his
mother Lacovella and seized Rocca Calascio. Rocca Calascio and the Baronage
of Carapelle were liberated by the Pope Pio II's (Enea Piccolomini) army
and were assigned to Antonio Piccolomini, Pope Pio II's nephew.
Antonio built defensive walls around the
small town of Rocca Calascio
and built four circular turrets around its Castle. In this way, the Castle
became as impressive and spectacular as you can admire it today.
In 1579, the Baronage of
Carapelle (as well as Rocca Calascio) was bought by an other Tuscany family, the
Medicis. In this way, the Medicis bought the most important lands for wool
commerce. Rocca Calascio and the Baronage of Carapelle supplied the wool for
the markets of L'Aquila and Florence.
In 1703, an earthquake destroyed a
part of Rocca Calascio and the people left the town to live in the city or in
other more accessible places, like lower Calascio town. And this way Rocca
Calascio was left behind.
Today, Rocca Calascio
is a famous tourism destination. Many tourists come here, in this beautiful
town, to smell the atmosphere of Medieval Age, quiet and peaceful, somewhere
between reality and fantasy, which movies, like Ladyhawke, has created.
WHAT TO VISIT IN ROCCA CALASCIO
Walking through the town of Rocca Caascio is like walking
through the Medieval Ages, that is easy to imagine.
The town is curled on the slope of a
mountain, so that on one side it enjoys the sun light all day.
The houses create a defensive wall and, if
you see them from below, they seem high and impressive. Over them, on the top
of the mountain, the shadow of the fabulous Castle watches the tranquilly over
of the citizens who live in Rocca Calascio, and guard the silence of this place,
where Art and Nature cooperate to create a great masterpiece.
In Rocca Calascio, there are many churches
that are important for their historic value: the Saint Nicola from Bari Church
(XVI century), the small and ancient Saint Leonard's
Church (1293), the Saint Mary of Graces
Church (1594), the
Saint's Francis Church.
But the jewels of Rocca Calascio, which
inflames fantasy and imagination, are the Castle and the small Saint Mary of
Piety's Church.
The Castle of Ladyhawke
The Castle of Rocca Calascio
became famous for the movies of Ladyhawke and The Name of
the Rose because there were filmed there.
With the town being at an altitude of 1.500 metres, it makes
the Castle of Rocca
Calascio the highest castle of Italy.
It was built completely of stone and has a
square core, that was built in XI century, and four circular turrets that were built
by Antonio Piccolomini.
The Castle seems to camouflage with the stones
which surround it, as a natural creation of the mountain. This high location
allows one to admire the breathtaking landscapes and to feel the extraordinary
feelings, which ignite the imagination and lead back to an ancient time, to an
uncontaminated and exclusive nature, like that of the Gran Sasso Mountain.
The
Castle is open and the visit is free.
The Saint Mary of Piety's Church
The other jewel of Rocca Calascio is the
small church which looks like the Saint John's
Baptistry in Florence.
The Church has an octagonal form, with a
rectangular sacristy on one side and a eight-slice cupola.
The Church was built between the XVI and
XVII centuries, when Rocca Calascio was the property of the Medicis.
The Saint Mary of Piety's Church is close
to the Castle, on the way to Santo Stefano di Sessanio town. The small temple
was built in the place where the inhabitants of Rocca Calascio defeated a gang
of bandits who plundered their goods. Before that there was a Renaissance
aedicule.
Where to sleep in Rocca Calascio: Hotels, B&B, Farm Hotel
- Hotel Il Rifugio della Rocca: Calascio - Località Rocca Calascio Tel. +39 338 8059430 - +39 340 4696928
- Hotel Da Clara: Calascio-Loc.Rocca Calascio,Via della Playa Tel. +39 0862/930365 - +39 331 4869548
- Acca' Lascio (B&B): Calascio - Preta Jerta Street,10 Tel. +39 0862/195174 - +39 328 0828539
- Case Antiche (Case Vacanze): Calascio - Località Rocca Calascio Tel. +39 338 8059430
- Agriturismo Il Sentiero delle Volpi: Calascio - Castelvecchio Street, 1 Tel. +39 0862/930104
Where to eat in Rocca Calascio: Restaurants, Trattorias, Farm Restaurants
- Restaurant Da Clara: Calascio-Loc.Rocca Calascio,Via della Playa Tel. +39 0862/930365 - +39 331 4869548
- Restaurant Rifugio della Rocca: Calascio -Località Rocca Calascio Tel. +39 338 8059430 - +39 340 4696928
- Trattoria Da Maria: Calascio - Via della Sposa Tel. +39 346 5223144
- Farm Restaurant Il Sentiero delle Volpi: Calascio - Via Castelvecchio, 1 Tel. +39 0862/930104
HOW TO GET TO ROCCA CALASCIO
- By car from Rome: Take the A24 Highway to East L'Aquila; then take the SS17 Street in the direction of Pescara and take the Barisciano exit. Drive on SP Street in the direction of Castel del Monte and turn to Calascio.
- By car from Pescara: Take the A25 Highway in the direction of Rome; exit the Highway through Bussi exit; continue driving on SS153 Street in the direction of L'Aquila and turn to Ofena; then, turn to Calascio, on the left.
- By bus from Rome: Catch a bus from Rome, Tiburtina Station, to L'Aquila City; catch a bus from L'Aquila, Bus Station, to Barisciano (in the direction of Sulmona); in Barisciano, catch a bus to Calascio.
- By bus from Pescara: Catch a bus from Pescara Bus Station to Barisciano (in the direction of L'Aquila); in Barisciano, catch a bus to Calascio.
- By train: catch the train from Rome or from Pescara to Bussi sul Tirino. From Bussi sul Tirino, catch a bus to Barisciano; from Barisciano, catch a bus to Castel del Monte and get off in Rocca Calascio.
Map of Rocca Calascio
