Villages of Irpinia: the most fascinating to discover

Ancient hilltop villages on hills and mountains where it seems time has stood still.

This is the scenery of the green Irpinia, a mountainous and hilly area located in the heart of Campania that surprises with its lush nature.

From Summonte to Zungoli, passing through Gesualdo, Savignano Irpino, and Monteverde, here are the enchanting small towns of Irpinia, today listed among the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy.

Located about seven hundred meters above sea level, at the foot of Mount Vallatrone and completely surrounded by mountains rich in springs, lies Summonte, a small municipality in the province of Avellino, one of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy where one can stroll between the white stone and the green of the mountain.

Its name comes from the Latin sub monte, which means "at the foot of the mountain."

Registered in the Partenio Regional Park, this small Irpinia village, which was once an ancient military stronghold-first Norman, then Swabian, finally Angevin-still retains: an Angevin stone tower that dominates the ancient settlement; the medieval village with the Congregation of the Holy Rosary, dating back to the 1600s; the historic center; the Church of San Nicola di Bari and the Civic Museum of regional interest.

You can also visit the archaeological area where you can admire the ruins of the old settlement with a panoramic view, as well as the amphitheater that still hosts performances and concerts. For those who enjoy walking, there are many nature trails that connect Summonte to the plateau of Campo San Giovanni and to Montevergine.

Gesualdo is another of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy located in Irpinia.

Its name likely comes from that of a Longobard knight to whom Duke Romoaldo granted the lands later inherited by the Gesualdo family, probably in the 6th century, during the war with the Byzantines.

According to others, the medieval toponym, Gisivaldum, would derive from Gis-wald, meaning "Gis's wood," named after the knight. In any case, history tells us that it was a Longobard fief until the Norman conquest.

The Gesualdo were Normans who would later govern the castle: the first lord was Guglielmo d'Altavilla, but the most important of the family was Carlo Gesualdo.

Born in Venosa, in Basilicata, in 1566, and raised at the Neapolitan court frequented by the best musicians and the Neapolitan aristocracy, Carlo Gesualdo took refuge in this family estate after murdering his wife Maria d'Avalos and her lover Fabrizio Carafa in 1590, who were caught together in bed.

In the isolation of the village, the prince cultivated his passion for music, becoming one of the most important Italian composers of the late Renaissance. He is especially remembered for his madrigals, but he also composed sacred music.

The village, situated on a hill overlooking two valleys, is one of the most picturesque in Irpinia. One must visit the castle, founded in the 7th or 9th century, transformed into a late-Renaissance court by Carlo Gesualdo.

The Palaces Pisapia and Mattioli, with their large halls, arcades, and hanging gardens, testify to the taste of the local aristocracy of the 17th century. While walking through the village, you will encounter the fountains of Putti (1605), Alabaster (1688), the Canal, and the ancient wash house.

The main places of worship include: the Church of San Nicola, of medieval origin and rebuilt in 1760; the Church of the Rosary with the attached Dominican convent, begun by Carlo Gesualdo and completed by Nicolò Ludovisi in the early 1600s, rich in baroque marble altars; the Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, built along with the Capuchin monastery, in 1592, at the behest of the murderous prince; and finally, the Church of Santa Maria degli Afflitti, built in 1612. Lastly, the Cappellone is an impressive work built in the 17th century with a hemispherical dome, square base, and stone façade, known also as "the chapel of the Blessed Sacrament."

Savignano Irpino is a village perched on a saddle-shaped elevation, located on the right bank of the Cervaro River on two high hills, Tombola and Calvario.

Its origins are said to derive from a certain Nasellius Sabinus, a Roman soldier who lived in the 1st century, from whom the Fundus Sabinianus took its name and later the Castrum Sabinianum, or from the pre-Roman Italic populations, the Sabines, settled in central Italy.

Neolithic graffiti found in the cave of San Felice in the Ferrara area and prehistoric settlements in Ferrara, S. Angelo, and Sierro Palumbo testify to the ancient origins of the village.

It's worth seeing what remains of the Guevara Castle, founded in the Longobard era (7th-8th century) as a defensive structure and transformed into a fortress by the Normans in the 12th century, later converted into a noble palace during the Guevara domination.

The Porta Grande is the ancient gateway to the town, the Via Dei Finestroni is one of the oldest streets in the historic center. Visit the Chiesa Madre, of Romanesque origin, with a baptismal font dating back to 1514, but also the 19th-century and recently restored Church of Purgatory.

The Orsini Palace, built in 1727 at the behest of the man who later became Pope Benedict XIII. The Fontana Angelica, where the water from Mount S. Angelo flows and where in the past one would fetch household water. Finally, reach the Belvedere Tombola, the most panoramic point of the historic center from which to admire the Cervaro Valley.

Zungoli is nestled on a hill surrounded by the Molara, Monticelli, and Toppo dell'Anno mountains.

It was a crossroads between the ancient Roman roads, Appia and Traiana, a border land crossed by the Pescasseroli-Candela trail. The name Zungoli might come from Castrum Curuli, a Norman captain named Curulo who built the fortress to protect himself from the Byzantines, or from the surname Zùngolo of Greek-Byzantine origin widespread in Lucania, or also from Kurulos (little lord).

Today Zungoli is one of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy and also bears the Orange Flag of the Touring Club.

The Campanian village was formed around the year 1000 when the population scattered in the countryside concentrated in a walled settlement defended by a castle.

One must see the Norman castle built in the 11th century, later transformed by the Loffredo family in the 16th century into a noble residence, and in 1825 purchased by the Susanna family, Marquises of Sant'Eligio. At the foot of the inhabited area, outside the walls, stands the convent of San Francesco dei Frati minori riformati, built on the foundations of the church of S. Cataldo that collapsed after the earthquake of 1456 and largely rebuilt after the 1930 earthquake.

The small adjacent church, recently restored, with the Madonna dell'Incoronata, protector of shepherds and herdsmen, is also noteworthy.

Monteverde is situated on a hill in the upper Ofanto valley, between the valleys of the Ofanto River and the Osento, at the easternmost end of the province of Avellino.

The toponym Montis Viridis refers to the green of the woods that surrounded the mountain on which the castle was built.

Monteverde has a long history dating back to the 4th-3rd century BC, when there was a Samnite settlement. Today it is another of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy worth visiting. The historic center, nestled around the castle, retains the characteristics of the high Irpinian villages, with narrow cobblestone streets, stone houses, arches, and staircases.

The castle, built of local stone, was adapted and expanded in the 15th century by the Aragoneses on the tower raised by the Longobards to defend the borders of the Duchy of Benevento. The castle was then transformed from a fortress to a noble residence in 1744 by the Sangermano barons and was completely restored in 2006. At its base, you can still see some ruins of the pelasgic-Samnite walls (4th-3rd century BC). In the streets of the village, you will also see the Pelosi and Spirito palaces with their rich portals, which belonged to the 19th-century landowning bourgeoisie.

Among the places of worship, one must see: the former cathedral dedicated to Santa Maria di Nazareth, which retains paintings from the Neapolitan school of the 17th century; the parish church also dedicated to Santa Maria di Nazareth, rebuilt in 1728; the 18th-century Church of Santa Maria del Carmine, attached to the Carmelite convent suppressed in 1652; the Church of Sant'Antonio (17th century) and the rural chapel of San Rocco at the entrance of the village.