Cassino is renowned for San Benedetto da Norcia, who founded here the Abbey of Montecassino in 529, and the bombings of 1944 by the Allied Forces.
During the Second World War, the town was crossed by the Gustav Line, a defensive border created by the Germans to stop the advance of the Allies, who were heading towards the north to free the territories occupied by the troops of the Reich. The Line crossed Abruzzo, Lazio, Molise and Campania, cutting the Italian country in two. Today, a cycle and pedestrian route runs through the places in Ciociaria, that were damaged by the war between the end of 1943 and the beginning of 1944. The Abbey of Montecassino, the focal point of the German resistance, was destroyed by the Allied Forces on February 15, 1944
Aerial view of the Abbey of Montecassino
Together with the other Benedictine Monasteries of Santa Scolastica, the Sacro Speco in Subiaco, and the Abbey of Farfa in Fara in Sabina, all in Lazio, the Abbey of Montecassino is today a candidate as UNESCO World Heritage Site “The cultural landscape of the Benedictine settlements in medieval Italy”.
San Benedetto built the first Cenobio of Cassino, where once a temple of Apollo stood, in correspondence to the current fourteenth and final stage of the Route of San Benedetto. The Abbey, where the Saint spent the last part of his life completing his Rule, hosts three large cloisters with the statues of San Benedetto and Santa Scholastica, three naves decorated with gilded stucco and polychrome marble, a wooden choir, and an organ with more than five thousand pipes.
The Library in the Montecassino Abbey – www.abbaziamontecassino.it
The Abbey Museum houses the sketches of the frescoes that once decorated the church, archaeological finds, and a Nativity Tondo by Botticelli. The ancient books have all been transcribed and now they are preserved in the Library, today a national monument.
Terra Sancti Benedicti – Facebook @corteostoricoterrasanctibenedictipaginaufficiale
The Abbey was destroyed four times: by the Lombards, the Saracens, a violent earthquake, and the bombings of 1944. It was then rebuilt, according to the original design, with materials recovered from the rubble. In 1994, on the 50th anniversary of the destruction and reconstruction of Montecassino and Cassino, “Terra Sancti Benedicti” was established, an historical parade with four hundred participants. It recalls the period from 1263, when Abbot Bernardo restored the Land after the Swabian domination, until 1349, when a violent earthquake destroyed the Abbey. The event is celebrated around March 21, the day of San Benedetto’s death, the patron of Europe.
The “Museo Archeologico Nazionale G. Carettoni” and the Archaeological Area of Cassino
Of great interest are, in Cassino, the “Museo Archeologico Nazionale G. Carettoni” and the Archaeological Area, which includes an Amphitheatre, a Theatre, the Via Latina, the Ponari Nymphaeum, and the Mausoleum of Ummidia Quadratilla, built in opus quadratum.
Rocca Janula – Facebook @laroccajanula
Rocca Janula was built in the tenth century by Abbot Aligerno, in order to defend Montecassino and San Germano, the current town of Cassino. Later, Abbot Mansone and Abbot Gerardo added a central tower and the chapel, destroyed by Frederick II, then rebuilt, and finally abandoned.
Rocca Janula
Seriously damaged by the bombings of 1944, the Monumental Complex of Rocca Janula is now included in the List of Lazio Historic Homes. It includes a large, accessible courtyard, a corner tower, a patrol walkway, a circular tower, and the Church of Santissima Maria dell’Annunziata, with its sacristy and basement.
A walk along the Garigliano River on the first stage of the Route
Cassino is also the starting point of the 120 km Route of San Filippo Neri, which leads to Gaeta. It retraces the Saint’s pilgrimage occurred between 1532 and 1534 through seven stages, where he dedicated himself foremostly to the children. The Route is waiting to officially enter the “Rete dei Cammini del Lazio”.
The” Bosco delle Favole” in the Terme Varroniane – www.boscodellefavole.it
The Terme Varroniane, the most abundant source of therapeutic water in Italy, were built on the ruins of Marco Terenzio Varrone’s Villa. In the heart of the baths, lies the 110,000 sq m.“Bosco delle Favole”, the largest fairy tale theme park in Italy.