The Abbey of Monte Cassino, Frosinone

Posted on March 19, 2022 by La Ciociara

The Abbey of Monte Cassino, located on top of a very large hill in the town of Cassino in the province of Frosinone, was founded by St. Benedict in 528 AD and is home to his sacred relics, along with those of his sister, St. Scholastica. It is considered to be the birthplace of monasticism in Western Europe.

The abbey has been destroyed and rebuilt many times due to barbarian invasions and natural disasters, and was the site of a very important battle during WWII between Allied forces and German soldiers due to its strategic location. After being destroyed by the Allies during WWII, it was rebuilt and reconsecrated in 1964 by Pope Paul VI. Today it is a monastery and museum, and includes a large cemetery of Polish soldiers killed during WWII while trying to liberate Italy.

Monte Cassino Cemetary for Polish soldiers who died defending the abbey during WWII

Monks living in the monastery live by two basic principles: pray and work. All members of the monastery community have an important job to do. Their duties include receiving visitors, organizing events, maintaining the libraries and archives, binding books, growing herbs for their on-site pharmacy, and tending to its vineyard.

Vineyard

Was the destruction of the Abbey during WWII due to an error in translation?

According to an account by Colonel David Hunt found in the book With Alex at War, the autobiography of Sir Rupert Clarke, the bombardment of the Abbey by the Allies was due to a misinterpretation of an intercepted radio message by a British junior officer. The officer mistook the word “abbot” for a similar word in German meaning “bombardment”. By the time Colonel Hunt realized this error, it was too late and the American forces bombed the mountain top, something that both sides had promised the pope they would never do, killing hundreds of refugees that were taking shelter there. Miraculously, the abbot and monks were saved.

Monte Cassino after being destroyed during WWII

Monte Cassino Abbey Today

The monks that live in the abbey live each day according to St. Benedict’s Rule, regulations and guidelines written by him in the 6th century, which describes every aspect of monastic life and encourages love, prayer, work, respect, chastity, moderation, and community. The monks are known as cenobites, living in a religious community, rather than in isolation, under a leader, the abbot.

The cathedral that stands here today is actually the 4th church to be built on this site. What little was left of the cathedral before it was destroyed during WWII can be found incorporated in the structure and in its museums.

Courtyard with statue of St. Benedict receiving Holy Communion

Doorway of Peace (PAX)

Cloisters

One of the many chapels in the Abbey of Monte Cassino

View of Cassino from Monte Cassino

Fresco of St. Benedict

Latin Text

If you plan to visit during the warmer months, please be advised that, as with all churches, basilicas, etc., you will not be allowed in wearing shorts or sleeveless shirts.

To purchase tickets online, go to Abbazia di Montecassino.

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Top photo credit: William Piccolino

Monte Fammera

Posted on February 15, 2016 by La Ciociara

Monte Fammera is a very distinctly shaped mountain which overlooks the municipalities of Ausonia and Spigno Saturnia. It is part of the Aurunci Mountains in the Apennine Mountain range.

I’ve heard many stories regarding this mountain during World War II from family members. There is a cave somewhere in this mountain where the residents of Selvacava and the surrounding towns used to hide in during WWII. Since the mountain is at a higher level than the towns, it was a good vantage point for spotting invading soldiers not only on the ground, but also from the Tyrrhenian Sea in the distance.

Selvacava, with its many olive groves, looking toward the Tyrrhenian Sea

My father told of how Nazi soldiers tried to get him to fight with them and when he refused, he was shot in the leg while running to the mountain, and how they were so hungry while hiding out that they had to kill their donkey and eat it. In fact, I still have the horseshoe that my father saved.

My dad’s donkey’s horseshoe

My uncle also told me of how one day all the shooting and bombing had stopped. My great aunt decided to leave the cave to see why there was a great silence and when she peered over a small hill, she found herself with a submachine gun pointed at her face! It turned out that the war had ended and the French were looking for Nazis and she had spooked them.

When I was little and lived in the Bronx, my father belonged to a club of “paesans” from Selvacava. One time they had a Christmas party at the old Alex and Henry’s Catering Hall, where they usually had their parties, and hired this old guy as entertainment who told jokes and stories about WWII in Italy and did sound effects to go along with it. I remember feeling very uncomfortable watching the old Italians around me laughing at something I found so terrifying but then I realized that was how they dealt with what they had gone through, just like when I lived in Italy and my father and uncle would often break out their old record of war songs and play them. I didn’t know at the time that they were war songs until years later when I was watching the movie Moon Over Parador and heard one of the songs, “Lili Marlen” in one of the scenes and I looked it up.

For travel arrangements, go to Travel and Tourism.

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Ausonia, Frosinone

Posted on February 5, 2016 by La Ciociara

Ausonia is a medieval municipality of Lazio located in the Aurunci Mountains in the province of Frosinone. It includes the villages of Selvacava, Correano, Madonna del Piano, Pastena, Bastia di Selvacava, Case, Cavone, Corevento, Orfanotrofio, Pantana, Pantane, Pantanelle – Renchiuse, Ranella, Rotondoli, and Trifolle.

The name Ausonia comes from the legendary italic people called the Aurunci who inhabited the lands in this area before it was destroyed by the ancient Romans in the 4th century BC.

Places to Visit in Ausonia

The Church of Santa Maria di Correano, located in the village of Correano is an ancient Roman church. According to local stories, it is the first church that was built outside of Rome. It is said that Augustus Caesar himself loved vacationing here and would often visit. It is also believed that the wife of Emperor Nero was buried in the sarcophagus in front of the church.

Church of Santa Maria di Correano

The Sanctuary of the Madonna del Piano (Madonna of the Plain) is a Roman Catholic Church built during the 15th century in place of the original structure that existed here. According to tradition, the Virgin Mary appeared to a young shepherd girl and asked her to have an orphanage built here.

The Sanctuary of Madonna del Piano

The medieval castle of Ausonia was built in 1000 AD by the princes of Capua. It was used as a military fortress to guard the strategic road from Monte Cassino to Gaeta which cut through Ausonia.

The Castle of Ausonia with Monte Fammera in the background
Photo Credit: Man In The Maze @Flickr.com

Ausonia and the surrounding area suffered brutal battles during WWII. Many people emigrated from here after the war to the eastern United States.

Ausonia, Frosinone, May 14, 1944, during WWII

Ausonia, May 14, 1944, during WWII

Taking a drive through Ausonia.

For travel arrangements, go to Travel and Tourism.

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Formia, Latina

Posted on January 8, 2016 by La Ciociara

The charming city of Formia is located at the foot of the Aurunci Mountains in the province of Latina, along the Ulysses Riviera (la riviera di Ulisse), also known as the Gulf of Gaeta, where according to legend, Ulysses, or Odysseus in Greek mythology, came to meet the enchantress Circe on his way back from the Trojan War.

It has historical significance being situated on the famous Via Appia, which was built by the Roman Empire and much travelled by the ancient Romans. It is a resilient town, being destroyed in 842 by the Saracens, then again during World War II, and rebuilt to its current splendor.

The coastline is dotted with many beautiful beaches and resorts. The main street which is packed with people out for a stroll on a warm spring or summer night is filled with little shops and places to grab a pizza or gelato.

Aurunci Mountains overlooking Formia

Some of its popular attractions include the Tomb and Villa of Cicero (also known as Villa Rubino), the Tower of Mola (top photo), the Archeological Museum, and ruins of prehistoric megalithic walls.

Tomb of Cicero (Photo credit: pietroizzo via Foter.com / CC BY-NC-SA)

If you like visiting churches, not to be missed are Santa Maria di Castagneto, the oldest church in Formia, the church of San Giovanni Battista e Lorenzo, and of Sant’ Erasmo, one of the patron saints of Formia (along with San Giovanni).

Church of Santa Maria di Castagneto, Formia

Church of Santa Maria di Castagneto (Photo credit: Raffaele Vallefuoco Flickr.com)

Formia, seen from Gaeta

For travel arrangements go to Travel and Tourism.

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Selvacava, Frosinone, where time stands still

Posted on January 2, 2016 by La Ciociara

Selvacava is a small village in central Italy, in the municipality of Ausonia, which is in the province of Frosinone, in the Lazio region. It lies about halfway between Rome and Naples, and is where my father was born. It has a population of 335.

The village of Selvacava in the province of Frosinone, Italy

Selvacava, with Monte Fammera in the background

I love this charming village. It is the type of place where you can go to find tranquility and get lost in your thoughts.

One of the many alleyways in Selvacava

Not much has changed since the first time I went there when I was a child. There have been a few houses constructed, and there are now actually street lights and the streets are no longer dirt roads, but it still has that rustic charm with its fruit orchards, vineyards, and olive groves. Wine, cheese, and olive oil are still made by its residents. There is only one small grocery store within the village where you can get the bare necessities such as milk and bread, but there are larger stores in the surrounding towns and villages where you can get more.

Ancient fountain in Selvacava

Selvacava is surrounded by marble quarries which not only drive the economy of the surrounding areas but also make up somewhat of an open air museum where one can find many fossils of ancient sea creatures embedded in the stone from when this area was under water.

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This is the type of place where you need to have a car because even though there is bus service, it does not run frequently, and the nearest train station is in Formia.

The ever watchful Monte Fammera, where local residents hid during WWII

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Tag: Cassino