Casaluce (''Homelight'' in English, ''Domus Lux'' in Latin) is a ''
comune
A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the City status in Italy, titl ...
'' (municipality) in the
Province of Caserta in the
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
region
Campania
Campania is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy located in Southern Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian Peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islan ...
, located about north of
Naples
Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
and about southwest of
Caserta
Caserta ( ; ) is the capital of the province of Caserta in the Campania region of Italy. An important agricultural, commercial, and industrial ''comune'' and city, Caserta is located 36 kilometres north of Naples on the edge of the Campanian p ...
.
Casaluce borders the following municipalities:
Aversa
Aversa () is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Caserta in Campania, southern Italy, about 24 km north of Naples. It is the centre of an agricultural district, the ''Agro Aversano'', producing wine and cheese (famous for the typical dome ...
,
Frignano,
San Tammaro,
Santa Maria Capua Vetere
Santa Maria Capua Vetere is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Caserta, in the region of Campania, in southern Italy.
Though it is not connected with the ''Civitas Capuana'', the town is a medieval place and its proximity to the Roman amphit ...
,
Teverola.
History
Most likely Casaluce originated on the ruins of late
Roman imperial ruins, a village being mentioned in the ''Cronaca Volturnese'' of 964 AD. In the early 11th century the first
Normans
The Normans (Norman language, Norman: ''Normaunds''; ; ) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norsemen, Norse Viking settlers and locals of West Francia. The Norse settlements in West Franc ...
immigrants had a base here. A castle was built by them in the place, in 1030 by
Robert Guiscard
Robert Guiscard ( , ; – 17 July 1085), also referred to as Robert de Hauteville, was a Normans, Norman adventurer remembered for his Norman conquest of southern Italy, conquest of southern Italy and Sicily in the 11th century.
Robert was born ...
, or 1060, by
Rainulf Drengot, depending from the sources.
The castle was destroyed by
Roger II of Sicily
Roger II or Roger the Great (, , Greek language, Greek: Ρογέριος; 22 December 1095 – 26 February 1154) was King of Kingdom of Sicily, Sicily and Kingdom of Africa, Africa, son of Roger I of Sicily and successor to his brother Simon, C ...
after his victory against Drengot's successor,
Richard II of Aversa. Roger later allowed a reconstruction of the structure, which was used as a military and tax-collection outpost under the
Hohenstaufen
The Hohenstaufen dynasty (, , ), also known as the Staufer, was a noble family of unclear origin that rose to rule the Duchy of Swabia from 1079, and to royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 until 1254. The dynast ...
dynasty, as a fief of the Casaluccia family. Later it was a possession of the del Balzo.
In 1360 the
Celestine monks acquired the castle, adding a Gothic church annexed to it which became a centre of veneration of an image of the Virgin.
References
External links
Sanctuary of Casaluce
Cities and towns in Campania
Castles in Italy
Benedictine monasteries in Italy
Monasteries in Campania
{{Campania-geo-stub