The origins
Through Porta del Parco, the only one of the three original gates still existing, you enter the historic center, a clear example of a medieval village made up of narrow alleys, ancient stone houses, tiny squares, the large parish church of San Martino and the Palazzo Marchesale.
(The toponymy of the village actually refers to flowers at the behest of the Marquis De Rossi.)
The current town center is identified as "Colle Petroso," a name first found in a document dated May 9, 964, in which Prince Pandolfo Capodiferro assigned the boundaries of the County of Isernia and marked its eastern boundary at Colle Penoso.
This document demonstrates that at that time the castle, or "castrum," had not yet been built. The site was fortified later, again during the Lombard period, with the construction of the castle that took its name from the place. This is attested by a parchment kept in the Montecassino archives, dated 1011, which records the donation of two churches, San Cristoforo and San Salvatore, located in the territory of "Castrum Petrosum," to the Cassinese abbey by Bishop Leone di Bojano.
The origins of the Castrum Petrosum settlement date back to the year 1000, when the Lombards built a fortress with a square shape reminiscent of Norman buildings. Following the Angevin domination, the castle passed first into the hands of the d'Alneto family, then into the hands of the Counts of Isernia, the Pandone of Venafro, the Storrente of Gaeta, the Caracciolo, and the Paolucci, until finally arriving at the De Rossi family, formerly known as the de Rubeis, who ruled until the abolition of feudalism. It is believed that the walls that surrounded the entire town began from the castle.This document demonstrates that at that time the castle, or "castrum," had not yet been built. The site was fortified later, again during the Lombard period, with the construction of the castle that took its name from the place. This is attested by a parchment kept in the Montecassino archives, dated 1011, which records the donation of two churches, San Cristoforo and San Salvatore, located in the territory of "Castrum Petrosum," to the Cassinese abbey by Bishop Leone di Bojano.
The only evidence of the De Rossi family's presence in Castelpetroso is the family crest, a shield with a rampant lion, carved on the castle's portal, which was abandoned when the family retired to Naples.
After numerous sales, transfers, and donations, the palace was purchased by the Municipality in the early 20th century. The building now houses a small Museum of Rural Civilization, which traces the rural history of our ancestors back to its roots, the Artistic Molise Nativity Scene, whose elements hark back to local folklore, the Furnace, and the Blacksmith's Workshop.
CASTELPETROSO
NATURA
ARTE E CULTURA
OSPITALITA'
EVENTI
