Circello ( Beneventan: ) is a ''

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces ('' province''). The can ...

'' (municipality) in the

Province of Benevento The Province of Benevento ( it, Provincia di Benevento) is a province in the Campania region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Benevento. Geography The province has an area of 2,071 km2, and, , a total population of 279,308. There are 78 ...

in the Italian region

Campania (man), it, Campana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demog ...

, located about northeast of

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

and about 25 km north of

Benevento Benevento (, , ; la, Beneventum) is a city and '' comune'' of Campania, Italy, capital of the province of Benevento, northeast of Naples. It is situated on a hill above sea level at the confluence of the Calore Irpino (or Beneventano) and t ...

and approximately above sea level. Circello borders the following municipalities: Campolattaro, Castelpagano, Colle Sannita, Fragneto l'Abate,

Morcone Morcone is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Benevento in the Italian region Campania, located about 70 km northeast of Naples and about 25 km northwest of Benevento. The villages (Contrade) of Morcone include: Canepino, C ...

, Reino,

Santa Croce del Sannio Santa Croce del Sannio is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Benevento in the Italian region Campania, located about 70 km northeast of Naples and about 30 km north of Benevento. Santa Croce del Sannio borders the follow ...

Geography

Climate

Circello has an mountainous climate with cold and snowy winters, sometimes exceeding 1 m of snow precipitation. Snowstorms are quite common during winter (with snow sometimes present for 30 days or more), while the summers are mild with temperatures that rarely exceed 35 degrees Celsius. The lowest temperature recorded in Circello was on 2 December 1985, at -21 degrees Celsius. Other low temperatures were -13 degrees Celsius in January 2003, and -15 degrees Celsius in December 2010. The highest temperature recorded was in August 2007, at 36 degrees Celsius.

History

Circello is a small rural center situated within the Province of Benevento. It sits upon a rocky outcropping between the vallies of the Torti and Tammarecchia rivers. In ancient times, Circello was a Samnite city. This zone, according to

Titus Livius Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in ...

, was called "Taurasia". The territories of Upper Samnium were conquered by the Romans following the

Samnite Wars The First, Second, and Third Samnite Wars (343–341 BC, 326–304 BC, and 298–290 BC) were fought between the Roman Republic and the Samnites, who lived on a stretch of the Apennine Mountains south of Rome and north of the Lucanian tribe. ...

, and the area around Circello became ''

Ager publicus The ''ager publicus'' (; "public land") is the Latin name for the public land of Ancient Rome. It was usually acquired via the means of expropriation from enemies of Rome. History In the earliest periods of Roman expansion in central Italy, th ...

'', that is public land belonging to the Roman people. Excavations in the area, in particular in the Macchia district, demonstrate the Roman presence in Circello. Just a few kilometers from the center of Circello, there is an archaeological site at what was once the capital of Ligures Baebiani, a population of Ligurians who were deported from their homeland in 181 BC under the orders of the Roman consul

Marcus Baebius Tamphilus Marcus Baebius Tamphilus was a consul of the Roman Republic in 181 BC along with P. Cornelius Cethegus. Baebius is credited with reform legislation pertaining to campaigns for political offices and electoral bribery (''ambitus''). The '' Lex Baeb ...

, from whom (following Roman custom) they took the name ''Baebiani''. In 1831, the ''Tabula Alimentaria Ligurum Baebianorum'' was found in the Macchia district of Circello; it is an artifact dating from the year 101 AD, which lists the names of local landowners who had committed to investing in a fund for needy children that was established by the emperor Trajan. According to the tablet, the interest rate was set at 2.5%. The tablet was found in 1831 by Giosuè De Agostini at his own farm, and it was transcribed for the first time in 1845 by Raffaele Garrucci. Today, it can be seen at the

Museo Nazionale Romano The National Roman Museum (Italian: ''Museo Nazionale Romano'') is a museum, with several branches in separate buildings throughout the city of Rome, Italy. It shows exhibits from the pre- and early history of Rome, with a focus on archaeological ...

in Rome. A castle was built here by the

Normans The Normans ( Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Franks and Gallo-Romans. T ...

in the 11th century. A tower was added in the 14th century under the Aragonese.

Main sights

* The Castle and Ducal palace * Chiesa dell'Annunziata * San Nicola * San Francesco *

San Rocco Roch (lived c. 1348 – 15/16 August 1376/79 (traditionally c. 1295 – 16 August 1327, also called Rock in English, is a Catholic saint, a confessor whose death is commemorated on 16 August and 9 September in Italy; he is especially invoked ...

* Torre di Sant'Angelo * Ruins of the city of Ligures Baebiani in contrada Macchia

People

* Antonio Ricci (1950), Italian author and television producer *

Loretta Goggi Loretta Goggi ( born 29 September 1950) is an Italians, Italian singer, actress, comedian and TV host. Goggi is also an acclaimed singer and her records have sometimes entered the Italian pop charts. She was the first runner-up at the 1981 ''Fe ...

(1950), Italian singer, actress, television hostess, showgirl, imitator

References

Cities and towns in Campania {{Campania-geo-stub