Assergi

History

The area around Assergi was settled by the Vestini, a local tribe. These origins are evident in the ruins of the town of Prifernum, situated near the current site of Assergi. Likely abandoned by the second century BC, it was reestablished in Roman times as the small village of Castrum Asserici, to provide accommodation to workers of nearby mines. The center developed further in the Middle Ages around the Benedictine monastery of Santa Maria ad silicem. The town was completely fortified at the time, and the city walls and gates on the eastern and southern sides are still standing. In the 13th century, Assergi and 98 other local villages participated in the founding of L'Aquila. As the countryside of L'Aquila dissolved, the Spaniards offered the remaining pieces for sale. Assergi was purchased between 1530 and 1540 by Cristoforo Cenci, whose family remained in the area until the land was lost in events related to Beatrice Cenci after 1586. It was then passed to the Caffarelli family, who held the area as a duke, along with neighboring Aragno, Camarda e Filetto. Despite being on the main route from L'Aquila to Campo Imperatore, the town of Assergi gradually declined in importance. In the 18th century, it joined the district of Paganica, and it later joined the municipality of Camarda until after the unification of Italy. In 1927, several municipalities were forcefully dissolved and merged to form the Grande Aquila, in order to increase the importance of L'Aquila in the region. The fascist government strongly supported the development of mountain sports and tourism in the area. In 1934, the town of Fonte Cerreto was built slightly above the center of Assergi around the base of the Funivia del Gran Sasso d'Italia, a cable car leading to the Campo Imperatore. Since 1979,…