History

According to some scholars, Pietradefusi lies on the site of the ancient Fusolae, a town cited by Livy

Livy

Titus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...

 as an allied of Hannibal during the Punic Wars

Punic Wars

The Punic Wars were a series of three wars fought between Rome and Carthage from 264 B.C.E. to 146 B.C.E. At the time, they were probably the largest wars that had ever taken place...

, and which was later destroyed by the Romans.

The origins of the town are medieval (cited first from 1298) and it was fiefdom of many noble families such as the De Souzi, the De Tocco and the Acquaviva

Acquaviva

-Places:Italy:*Acquaviva Collecroce, in the province of Campobasso*Acquaviva delle Fonti, in the province of Bari*Acquaviva d'Isernia, in the province of Isernia*Acquaviva Picena, in the province of Ascoli Piceno...

, but was also governed a long time by the Santa Casa dell'Annunziata of Naples. The Jesuits remember the town because one of their generals Claudio of Aragona, was born here in the times of Francesco Borgia.

Cardinal Niccolò Coscia

Niccolò Coscia

Niccolò Coscia was an Italian Roman Catholic cardinal.He was born at Pietradefusi, near Avellino. In 1725 he was appointed as Cardinal of Santa Maria in Domnica by Pope Benedict XIII, whose secretary he had been when the future pope was Archbishop of Benevento.Coscia held the effective government...

 was born here.

Main sights and cultural events

• The Medieval Tower, located in the highest point of the town, was built in 1431 by Giacomo de Tocco. Around the Tower around the first dwellings rose.
• The church of Collegiata (1700). The facade is from 1596. Ruined during the French occupation in 1799, it was rebuilt in 1827.
• The church of St. Paulus (1800) situated in the center of Dentecane.

According to the tradition, the church of S. Apollinare and S. Spirito (no more existing) housed frescoes by Giotto.

Pietradefusi hosts is a Cinema Festival in September.