The Sangro is a

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the ...

in eastern central

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, known in ancient times as Sagrus from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

''Sagros'' or ''Isagros'', ''Ισαγρος''. It rises in the middle of Abruzzo National Park near Pescasseroli in the

Apennine Mountains The Apennines or Apennine Mountains (; grc-gre, links=no, Ἀπέννινα ὄρη or Ἀπέννινον ὄρος; la, Appenninus or – a singular with plural meaning;''Apenninus'' (Greek or ) has the form of an adjective, which wou ...

. It flows southeast past Pescasseroli, Opi and Villetta Barrea and flows into the artificial lake

Lago di Barrea Lake Barrea, is an artificial lake in the Province of L'Aquila, Abruzzo, Italy. It is located within the National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise. The Sangro is its inflow and outflow. To its northwest is Villetta Barrea and to its southeast i ...

. It then flows northeast through

Alfedena Alfedena ( la, Aufidena or Aufidenia, Abruzzese: ') is a ''comune'' in the province of L'Aquila of the Abruzzo region of central Italy. It is located in the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park in the upper Sangro valley, near the Monti dell ...

Castel di Sangro Castel di Sangro (locally ''Caštiéllë'') is a city and ''comune'' of 6,461 people (as of 2013) in the Province of L'Aquila, in Abruzzo, Central Italy. It is the main city of the Alto Sangro e Altopiano delle Cinque Miglia area. Geography Castel ...

, Ateleta,

Quadri Quadri is a ''comune'' and town in the province of Chieti in the Abruzzo region of Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of th ...

, and Villa Santa Maria, before flowing into the Lago di Bomba. From there it flows northeast , it is joined by the

Aventino The Aventine Hill (; la, Collis Aventinus; it, Aventino ) is one of the Seven Hills on which ancient Rome was built. It belongs to Ripa, the modern twelfth ''rione'', or ward, of Rome. Location and boundaries The Aventine Hill is the sou ...

, and thence it flows into the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) ...

south of Punta Cavalluccio. German prisoners being escorted by Indian troops after the Battle of the Sangro 1943

During World War II, the mouth of the Sangro was part of the series of German military fortifications known as the

Gustav Line The Winter Line was a series of German and Italian military fortifications in Italy, constructed during World War II by Organisation Todt and commanded by Albert Kesselring. The series of three lines was designed to defend a western section ...

. The Eighth Army crossed the Sangro on 23 November 1943. This crossing was the beginning of the Allied offensive on the Winter Line defenses east of the Apennines, which petered out in mid-December having failed to secure vital cities such as Orsogna.

See also