What is Scurcola Marsicana known for?

Charles of Anjou defeated Conradin of Hohenstaufen on the Piani Palentini on 23 August 1268, a battle cited in Dante's Inferno. Cistercian abbey founded by Charles in 1274 and consecrated in 1278, built to commemorate the victory and house monks from Burgundy. Annual August procession reenacting the Madonna della Vittoria tradition that grew up around the medieval abbey.

Where is Scurcola Marsicana?

Scurcola Marsicana is a comune in the province of L'Aquila, Abruzzo region of Italy, about 99 kilometers from Roma.

Abruzzo · L'Aquila

Scurcola Marsicana

At 700 meters below Monte San Nicola on the Piani Palentini, the field where Charles of Anjou broke the Hohenstaufen in 1268.

700m

Elevation

99 km / 62 mi

Nearest hub (Roma)

2,670

Population

May–Oct

Best time to visit

Recognised as

Borghi Autentici

Why come

Scurcola Marsicana sits at 700 meters below Monte San Nicola, on the western rim of what was once the Fucine lake, looking out over the Piani Palentini. The earliest finds in the area date to the ninth and eighth centuries BC; the toponym is Lombard and shows up around 1150. The plain in front of the village is where Charles of Anjou destroyed Conradin of Hohenstaufen on 23 August 1268, ending Swabian power in southern Italy. Charles founded the abbey of Santa Maria della Vittoria here in 1274 to mark the victory; it was consecrated in 1278 and is cited in Dante's Inferno. The other layer of history is darker: after Italian unification in 1861, Piedmontese troops carried out a massacre of the local population. The commune has 2,670 residents today, and the Festone every August reenacts the Madonna della Vittoria tradition.

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Gallery

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Known for

Ex Abbazia di Santa Maria della Vittoria
Cistercian abbey founded by Charles of Anjou in 1274 to commemorate the Battle of Tagliacozzo, consecrated in 1278, now ruined but still readable.
Castello Orsini
Medieval fortress on the hill above the village, later passed to the Colonna family with the rest of the marquisate.
Piani Palentini
Wide plain in front of the village, the battlefield of 23 August 1268 between Charles of Anjou and Conradin of Hohenstaufen.
Monte San Nicola
Apennine peak of about 1,265 meters above Scurcola, with a marked trail leading from the village to the summit.

When to visit

Best months · May–Oct

Best
Hot or crowded
Quiet
Mostly closed

May through October is the working window on the Marsica plateau. The Piani Palentini and Monte San Nicola open to walkers, the August Festone fills the streets with the Madonna della Vittoria procession, and the air at 700 meters stays cool through summer. June and September are the cleanest months for the battlefield walk and the abbey ruins. July and August bring families up from Rome and the coast for the festa. November through April is quiet, with cold dry winds off the Apennines and many shutters closed.