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27-620: The mountain is located at the boundary between the provinces of Chieti , Pescara and L'Aquila . The highest peak is Monte Amaro at 2,793 m, the second-highest of the entire Apennine range. The massif is at the centre of the Maiella National Park . The Maiella is formed by a compact limestone massif, on which summit are the highest peaks in the group: Monte Amaro 2,793 m, Monte Acquaviva 2,737 m, Monte Focalone 2,676 m, Monte Rotondo 2,656 m, Monte Macellaro 2,646 m, Pesco Falcone 2,546 m, Cima delle Murelle 2,598 m. A further peak

54-585: A height of 25 metres. The massif was the site of the 1706 Abruzzo earthquake , which measured 6.8 M w  . It devastated many towns in Abruzzo. The area of the Montagna della Maiella has been subject to a major international geoscientific research Project, TaskForceMajella , from 1998 up to 2005. Along the northern slope of the mountain for thousands of years, hydrocarbon extraction has occurred from spontaneous seepages and shallow wells. The Maiella, particularly

81-795: A part of the Roman Empire i.e., the Byzantine Empire for several centuries, before it was annexed by the Kingdom of the Lombards . In 803 the Franks incorporated Ortona into the county of Chieti . From that date on, the town remained tied to Chieti and its territory. In 1258 the relics of the Apostle Thomas were brought to Ortona by the sailor Leone Acciaiuoli. In the first half of the 15th century its walls were built, and during this period Ortona fought with

108-557: A ridge a few miles inland and just south of the River Aterno-Pescara , which flows into the sea at nearby Pescara . There has been a movement by farmers away from the land and the area. The outflow has been greatest from the hilly and mountainous areas, where the holdings are small and worked by the families who own them. In the period 1951 to 1971, the number of people employed in agriculture in Chieti fell from over 80% to around 45%,

135-712: Is the Blockhaus (2,145m), which is sometimes used as the finish of a stage of the Giro d'Italia cycling race. Vast plateaus are present up to 2,500 m. The slopes are characterized by steep valleys and gorges, carved out by rivers such as the Orfento , the Foro and others. Nearby are the Monte Morrone , Monte Porrara and Monti Pizzi groups. The Maiella includes an iced waterfall, known as Il Principiante , located at 1,600 metres and having

162-413: Is the city Chieti , which has a population of 50,770 inhabitants. The province has a total population of 387,649 inhabitants as of 2017 and spans an area of 2,599.58 square kilometres (1,003.70 sq mi). The province contains 104 comuni ( sg. : comune ). Its provincial president is Mario Pupillo. Chieti's cathedral was first constructed during the 9th century but was reconstructed during

189-456: Is the most easternmost province in the region and is bounded to the northeast by the Adriatic Sea . The province of Pescara lies to the north and the province of L'Aquila to the northwest. To the south lies the province of Isernia and the province of Campobasso lies to the south east, both these provinces being part of the region of Molise . The provincial capital is Chieti , situated on

216-506: The House of Bourbon . The province of Chieti contains Ortona, a town founded by Fretani people for trading with the Greeks, which was the scene of a World War II battle between German and predominantly British and Canadian forces; over 2,000 civilians died and the town was largely destroyed. The province of Chieti is one of four provinces in the region of Abruzzo , on the eastern coast of Italy. It

243-691: The 13th century. The province contains the National Archaeology Museum of Abruzzo, in Italian the Museo Archeologico Nazionale d'Abruzzo , which contains items from the area prior to Roman rule. It was first settled by the Osci people near the Pescara River. In around 1000 BCE it was conquered by Marsi and Marrucini people. The city was also lived in by the Greeks, who named it Teate. It

270-697: The Allies a supply port on the Adriatic and was fiercely defended by the Germans attracted the attention of that the international press in the struggle between the German paratroopers and the 2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade. This led to this battle being known as "Little Stalingrad". The biggest church in Guardiagrele is Santa Maria Maggiore of which it has been written: The façade presents a splendid 14th-century gothic portal, among

297-634: The Baroque style and a shrine of the same period set off a 15th-century fresco representing the Madonna of the Milk. In addition to Santa Maria Maggiore, there are several other churches and palazzi or mansions of various ages which are of architectural interest, including S. Nicola di Bari (founded in the 4th century), the convent of the Chapuchins (1599), Palazzo De Lucia (16th century), Palazzo Elisii (15th-18th century),

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324-593: The Blockhaus on the Giro d'Italia was on 15 May 2022, when the stage was won by the Australian rider Jai Hindley . The Blockhaus climb will be used for the first time at the Giro d'Italia Women in the 2024 edition of the race. Province of Chieti The province of Chieti ( Italian : provincia di Chieti ; Abruzzese : pruvìngie de Chjìte ) is a province in the Abruzzo region of Italy . Its provincial capital

351-568: The Blockhaus peak, is a popular ride for amateur cyclists and is also sometimes used for a stage of the Giro d'Italia. The first use by the race was in 1967, when Eddy Merckx won the stage. Merckx subsequently went on to establish a cycle manufacturing company and named one of his cycles after the Blockhaus. Subsequent Blockhaus stage victors were Franco Bitossi (1968), José Manuel Fuente (1972), Moreno Argentin (1984), Ivan Basso (2006), Franco Pellizotti (2009, subsequently disqualified), and Nairo Quintana (2017). The most recent inclusion of

378-557: The cloister of the Palazzo Comunale Piazza San Francesco (17th century) and Palazzo Marini (1391). Museums include: The province of Chieti is twinned with: Italo-Normans The Italo-Normans ( Italian : Italo-Normanni ), or Siculo-Normans ( Siculo-Normanni ) when referring to Sicily and Southern Italy , are the Italian -born descendants of the first Norman conquerors to travel to Southern Italy in

405-523: The coast becomes rocky and features interesting pebble and stone beaches and coves, as well as the typical trabocchi , that are typical wooden fishing machines of the Southern Abruzzo coast. Amongst the most interesting natural areas, also featuring a number of sandy and rocky beaches, is the protected natural area of the Riserva Naturale di Punta Aderci, whose beaches were voted in 2014 3rd of

432-437: The early 21st century, new archeological excavations are under way on the site of the former Campo Sportivo. The old part of the town ( centro storico ) features a number of interesting buildings and churches dating from the 12th to the 18th century, including: Below the hill on which the town is located, the beach resort town of Marina di Vasto offers a large sandy beach and several hotels and other facilities. Further north

459-569: The first half of the eleventh century. While maintaining much of their distinctly Norman piety and customs of war, they were shaped by the diversity of Southern Italy, by the cultures and customs of the Greeks , Lombards , and Arabs in Sicily. Normans first arrived in Italy as pilgrims, probably on their way to or returning from either Rome or Jerusalem , or from visiting the shrine at Monte Gargano , during

486-651: The late tenth and early eleventh centuries. In 1017, the Lombard lords in Apulia recruited their assistance against the dwindling power of the Byzantine Catapanate of Italy . They soon established vassal states of their own and began to expand their conquests until they were encroaching on the Lombard principalities of Benevento and Capua , Saracen -controlled territories, as well as Greek, and territory under papal allegiance. Their conquest of Sicily, which began in 1061,

513-534: The most elegant in the Abruzzi Gothic style. The Coronation of the Virgin sculpture group in the portal lunette is also magnificent, attributed to the school of Nicola di Guardiagrele. Under the colonnaded portico, next to the lateral door, is the splendid fresco by Andrea De Litio (1473) portraying Saint Christopher. In the interior, completely rebuilt in the 18th century following an earthquake, crumbling stucco-work in

540-447: The nearby town of Lanciano in a fierce war that ended in 1427. On June 30, 1447, ships from Venice destroyed the port of Ortona; consequently the king of Sicily at that time commissioned the construction of a Castle to dominate the renovated port. In 1582 the town was acquired by Margaret of Parma , daughter of Emperor Charles V and Duchess of Parma . In 1584 Margaret decided to build a great mansion, known as Palazzo Farnese, which

567-437: The number employed in industry tripled to around 20% and the number employed in the service sector , tripled to around 30%. Under the church of SS. Pietro e Paolo and the adjoining houses are extensive substructures (in opus reticulatum and brickwork) of the 1st century CE, belonging to a building erected by M. Vectius Marcellus and Helvidia Priscilla. There are also remains of large reservoirs and of an ancient theatre. In

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594-559: The same rule for the first time since Justinian's brief reconquest of the peninsula as a whole. The Norman dynasty established by Roger II continued with William I , and then William II. After the latter's death without heirs in 1189, and following the brief reign of his illegitimate cousin Tancred of Lecce, the German Emperor Henry VI of Swabia (who had married Constance , aunt and legitimate successor of William II) conquered

621-578: The top 20 beaches in Italy. The origins of Ortona are uncertain. Presumably, it was first inhabited by the Frentani , an Italic population. In 2005, during works near the Castle, a Bronze Age settlement was discovered, and the Roman town largely coincided with this first settlement. Some sections of paved roads and urban walls, as well as some archaeological findings are the only remains of this period. Ortona remained

648-401: The whole of their conquests on the peninsula and the island. Between 1135 and 1155 Roger II also created an Italo-Norman Kingdom of Africa in coastal Tunisia and Tripolitania . He intended to unite this African kingdom with his Kingdom of Sicily, but his untimely death in 1154 put an end to these plans. When founded in 1130, this Italo-Norman kingdom united the whole of Southern Italy under

675-780: Was completed by 1091. Italo-Normans were the primary Norman mercenaries in the employ of the Byzantine emperors , and many found service in Rome under the pope. Some went to Spain to join the Reconquista , and in 1096 the Normans of Bohemond of Taranto joined the First Crusade and set up the principality of Antioch in the Levant . In 1130 under Roger II , they created the Kingdom of Sicily , encompassing

702-732: Was conquered by the Romans in 305 BCE but after the fall of Rome in 476 CE, Theodoric the Great gained ownership of the city and it was subsequently used as a Lombard fortress. The city was then owned by the Franks, the Normans , the Hohenstaufen , the Angevins and Aragonese rulers until strong control over the city was gained by Charles V of France . Chieti was made the capital of Abruzzo Citra under its period of rule by

729-424: Was never completed due to her death. After the establishment of the Kingdom of Italy in 1860, Ortona became one of the first sea resorts on the Adriatic Sea . On 9 September 1943, the royal family of the House of Savoy left German -occupied Italy from the port of Ortona. The defensive Gustav Line was established by the Germans at Ortona, extending towards Cassino on the opposite side of Italy. Ortona offered

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