Arielli - Italy

Arielli (CH)

Abruzzo (Italy)

Arielli is a municipality in the Province of Chieti, which stands on a pleasant hill hinterland Ortona, located between the Majella and the Adriatic Sea, featuring scroll below the upper part of the country's namesake river.
Since 2002 he is also joining the Union of Municipalities of Marrucina, which includes the municipalities of Arielli, Canosa Sannita, Fillet, and Orsogna Poggiofiorito.
The first huts raised on the hill seems to date from the period of the Second Punic war, when the Roman troops in Puglia across the road easier, the sheep-track, had to stop and spend the winter here.
From the name of their commander or Argelli Asgellio was named Argelli. This hypothesis seems confirmed by the discovery in the countryside, especially in the area Carloni, Roman coins of the time.
Yet on the Carolingian period, when Italy made its way into feudalism, which was enclosed within the walls Arielli safer by building a majestic castle style, architecture and usage can refer to the period between the ninth and eleventh century. d.C. (also for the similarity with the similar development of the French Loire).
To date, no one knows who did, however constructed. We have credible reports only on its owner in 1145, the Count of Manoppello Boamondo that, for the grant of the Crusades, for his fief Argelli was taxed a soldier on horseback, representing a consistency of about 24 families.
It is likely that in 1173 he was owner Loritello Norman and in 1395 the family of the lady of Ariello Welcome.
From 1401 to 1528 was granted to the town of Lanciano.
During that period are worthy of remembrance two dates are particularly important: the July 11, 1442 when he camped in Arielli King Alfonso V of Aragon in his march to Naples who won in November of that year, acquiring the name of Alfonso I of Naples and 1496 when Arielli, and his castle were looted and burned for having resisted the soldiers of the Orsini and Vitelleschi who passed these parts on their way to Apulia.
This episode was particularly bloody and painful enough to think that Arielli, already in 1145 there were 24 families in 1528, thirty-two years after the massacre, oats just 8 "fires".
After that the ownership of the fief in Arielli was removed in 1528 to the town of Lanciano followed each other owners.
Meanwhile in 1518 the church of San Nicola di Bari, already present in 1200, for the creation of the parish was elevated to a parish church and remained so until 1619, when that status was transferred to the church of St. John the Baptist, who had since been built and dedicated in 1579.
In 1671 the parish church of St. John the Baptist was dedicated to St. Michael the Archangel and that remains to this day.
In 1761, following a split in the parish of St. Michael the Archangel, was created in the territory of Villarielli, administratively linked to the University Arielli as they were called the Commons, the parish of St. Matthew the Apostle.
In 1799 and in 1814 Arielli participated in anti-French movement in 1860 and was a strong point of the movement restorer of the Bourbon monarchy, through its national, Nunziato Meholah of that self-proclaimed Army General Bourbon, from 1 December 1860 to January 6 1861 raged in the area giving setback Piedmontese troops until the end managed to get the better of the reactionaries.
In 1870, a division of the territory of the Municipality of Arielli, was created the City of Villarielli, now called Poggiofiorito.
In 1904 the castle Arielli, after two centuries of complete neglect (the last one that had a permanent home had been the duchess Angelica Monte, who died in 1720) collapsed and, after the common property to which it was donated by the heirs of Crognale , the last owner, they were removed the remains with the creation of today's Crognale Square and City Hall.
During the Second World War Arielli was reduced almost completely to rubble, but the hard work of Ariellesi got the better of all misfortune and Reconstruction was a miracle dell'alacre work of all the citizens who now can enjoy the satisfaction and live in a modern town and active, devoted not only to the agricultural world, through the production of fine wines and oils, including at trade and retail, through a huge production area developed along the main road Marrucina.
Important meeting place is the mid-nineties of the last century, the 4 Seasons Garden City, where you can enjoy the contact with nature, through a process called natural path by which physical activity is linked to love creation, the desire to meet for the largest and the possibility of leisure facilities for children with their adaptation.
Among the Church reminds the church of San Michele Arcangelo, which houses important sculptural works of prof. Tonino Santeusanio of Crecchio.
She, after the restoration works carried out between 1988 and 1992 by the then parish priest, Don Marino Gurin, was dedicated, with great participation of the faithful and civil authorities on 13 June 1992 by SE Archbishop Enzio D'Antonio, Archbishop of Lanciano - Ortona.
We suggest, then, visiting the branch church of the Madonna delle Grazie, which houses a terracotta statue in one piece date 1590-1600, and for its artistic importance and the great devotion of the faithful was solemnly crowned with papal decree, the 08 agosto 1909.
This statue represents the Virgin Mary bearing the infant Jesus on her lap, which was defined in one of the few statues in Abruzzo in Italy and all of a piece of pottery, such as to be inventoried by the Superintendent of Fine Arts of L'Aquila.
Historically, then, the devotion to Our Lady of Grace is very much enjoyed by Ariellesi that for the entire month of May and until the Second Sunday in August (the day dedicated to the great popular festival in his honor) every night they go to greet their heavenly protector.
Other secondary churches in the territory are the church of Santa Brigida and San Roman martyr.

The most important holidays and traditions during the year are:
- January 17, traveling from Lu representation letters;
- Sunday after Easter, the feast of San Romano Martyr homonymous district;
- Last Sunday of May, the feast of the patron San Mauro Abate;
- Second Sunday of August, feast of Our Lady of Grace;
- September 29, the patronal feast of St. Michael the Archangel;
- During the Christmas crib at the Downtown living traveling the country, organized by the parish.