Cava de' Tirreni (; Cilentan: ''A Càva'') is a city and ''

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

'' in the region of

Campania (man), it, Campana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demog ...

, Italy, in the

province of Salerno The Province of Salerno ( it, Provincia di Salerno) is a province in the Campania region of Italy. __TOC__ Geography The largest towns in the province are: Salerno, the capital, which has a population of 131,950; Cava de' Tirreni, Battipagli ...

, northwest of the town of Salerno. It lies in a richly cultivated valley surrounded by wooded hills, and is a popular tourist resort. The abbey of

La Trinità della Cava La Trinità della Cava ( la, Abbatia Territorialis Sanctissimae Trinitatis Cavensis), commonly known as Badia di Cava, is a Benedictine territorial abbey located near Cava de' Tirreni, in the province of Salerno, southern Italy. It stands in a go ...

is located there.

Geography

Overview

Cava de' Tirreni lies among the hills close to the

Tyrrhenian Sea The Tyrrhenian Sea (; it, Mar Tirreno , french: Mer Tyrrhénienne , sc, Mare Tirrenu, co, Mari Tirrenu, scn, Mari Tirrenu, nap, Mare Tirreno) is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy. It is named for the Tyrrhenian pe ...

, north of the

Amalfi Coast The Amalfi Coast ( it, Costiera amalfitana) is a stretch of coastline in southern Italy overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea and the Gulf of Salerno. It is located south of the Sorrentine Peninsula and north of the Cilentan Coast. Celebrated worldw ...

and serving in practice as its northern gateway. The inhabited area is 198 m above sea level, in a valley situated between two mountain groups: the

Lattari Mountains The Monti Lattari (Lattari Mountains) are a mountain range in Campania, southern Italy, which constitutes the backbone of the Sorrentine peninsula and of the Amalfi Coast. Geography The Monti Lattari are the western extension of the Monti Picen ...

(which separate Cava from the Amalfi Coast) to the west and the

Picentini Mountains 300px, Rocky limestone landscape in the monti Picentini. The Monti Picentini is a mountain range and national park in southern Italy, part of the Apennines, traditionally part in the Campanian Apennines. They are included between the Monti Latt ...

to the east. Many of Cava's citizens reside in the hills surrounding the town. Cava is bordered to the north by

Nocera Superiore Nocera Superiore ( nap, Nucèrë or ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-western Italy. It was the core of the ancient city of ', later known as ', ' and then ' ( it, Nocera dei Pagani), which a ...

Roccapiemonte Roccapiemonte (Campanian: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-western Italy. Geography Located in the east of the Agro Nocerino Sarnese, it borders with the towns of Castel San Giorgio, Cava ...

and

Mercato San Severino Mercato San Severino ( Sanseverinese: ) is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-west Italy. Mercato San Severino shares borders with the municipalities of Baronissi, Bracigliano, Castel San Giorgio, ...

; to the east by

Baronissi Baronissi is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-western Italy. It is home to a campus of the University of Salerno. History The town develops from the original old area named ''Casali''. Geograp ...

, Pellezzano and Salerno; to the south by

Vietri sul Mare Vietri sul Mare ("Vietri on the Sea"; Campanian: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno, in the Campania region of southern Italy. It is situated just west of Salerno, separated from the Port of Salerno by only a harbour wall. The ...

and

Maiori Maiori (Campanian: ; originally ''Rheginna Maior'') is a town and ''comune'' on the Amalfi coast in the province of Salerno (Campania, Italy). It has been a popular tourist resort since Roman times, with the longest unbroken stretch of beach on ...

; and to the west by Tramonti. The town is a link between the geographical area of

Agro Nocerino Sarnese The Agro Nocerino Sarnese is a geographical region of the Province of Salerno, in Campania in southern Italy; the river Sarno flows through it. It is a low-lying area bounded to the south by the Monti Lattari, to the east and north-east by t ...

(flat, with an agricultural and industrial economy) and the

Sorrento Peninsula The Sorrento Peninsula or Sorrentine Peninsula is a peninsula located in southern Italy which separates the Gulf of Naples to the north from the Gulf of Salerno to the south. Geography Overview The peninsula is named after its main town, Sorr ...

(mountainous, with an economy based on tourism).

''Frazioni''

The it,

frazioni A ''frazione'' (plural: ) is a type of subdivision of a ''comune'' (municipality) in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist era (1922–1943) as a way to consolidate territ ...

of Cava are: Alessia, Annunziata, Arcara, Casaburi-Rotolo, Castagneto, Corpo di Cava, Croce, Dupino, Marini, Passiano, Pregiato, San Cesareo, San Pietro, Sant'Anna, Sant'Arcangelo, San Martino, Santa Lucia, Santa Maria del Rovo, Santi Quaranta.

History

The church and the greater part of the abbey buildings were entirely modernized in 1796. The old

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

cloisters are preserved. The church contains a fine organ and several ancient

sarcophagi A sarcophagus (plural sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a box-like funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Greek ...

. The archives, now national property, include fine '' incunabula'', documents and manuscripts of great value (including the ''Codex Legum Longobardorum'' of 1004 and the

La Cava Bible The La Cava Bible or ''Codex Cavensis'' (Cava de' Tirreni, Biblioteca statale del Monumento Nazionale Badia di Cava, Ms. memb. I) is a 9th-century Latin illuminated Bible, which was produced in Spain, probably in the Kingdom of Asturias during th ...

Main sights

Abbey of La Trinità della Cava An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The conc ...

, founded in 1011. Features include the

ambon Ambon may refer to: Places * Ambon Island, an island in Indonesia ** Ambon, Maluku, a city on Ambon Island, the capital of Maluku province ** Governorate of Ambon, a colony of the Dutch East India Company from 1605 to 1796 * Ambon, Morbihan, a c ...

with mosaics (12th century), the grotto of St. Alferius, the Romanesque

cloister A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against a ...

(13th century) and the large library, housing more than 50,000 volumes. *Cathedral (''Duomo''), begun in 1517 and opened in 1571. *Sanctuary of St. Francis and St. Anthony, an early 16th-century structure restored after the 1980 earthquake had damaged it. The façade is in

tuff Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock ...

and

travertine Travertine ( ) is a form of terrestrial limestone deposited around mineral springs, especially hot springs. It often has a fibrous or concentric appearance and exists in white, tan, cream-colored, and even rusty varieties. It is formed by a p ...

, with three large arches, the central one surmounted by a balcony. The main portal has a series of friezes sculpted in 1528 by local masters and containing scenes from the Gospels. The belltower, with three orders, was finished in 1584. The interior is on the

Latin Cross A Latin cross or ''crux immissa'' is a type of cross in which the vertical beam sticks above the crossbeam, with the three upper arms either equally long or with the vertical topmost arm shorter than the two horizontal arms, and always with a mu ...

plan, with some 16th-century frescoes by Belisario Corenzio in the sacristy.

Personalities

* Lucia Apicella (Mamma Lucia, philanthropist) * Ferrante I d'Aragona (Ferdinand I of Naples, King of Naples from 1458 to 1494) * Mario Avagliano (historian and journalist) * Tommaso Avagliano (writer and publisher) *

Ferdinando Baldi Ferdinando Baldi (19 May 1917 – 12 September 2007) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. Biography Baldi was born in Cava de' Tirreni, Salerno, on 19 May 1917. His early film work began in Italy in the early 1950s with films s ...

(film director, film producer and screenwriter) * Alfonso Balzico (sculptor and painter) *

Pope Boniface IX Pope Boniface IX ( la, Bonifatius IX; it, Bonifacio IX; c. 1350 – 1 October 1404, born Pietro Tomacelli) was head of the Catholic Church from 2 November 1389 to his death in October 1404. He was the second Roman pope of the Western Schism.Rich ...

Alda Borelli Alda Borelli (4 November 1879 - 25 May 1964) was an Italian stage and cinema actress. The sister of Lyda Borelli Lyda Cini, Countess of Monselice (née Borelli, 22 March 1884 – 2 June 1959) was an Italian actress of cinema and theatre. ...

, actress in theatre and

silent films A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, whe ...

* Donato Antonio Cafaro (16th century engineer) * Donato Antonio Cafaro (17th century royal engineer, probably descended from the previous) *

Giambattista Castaldo Giovanni Battista was a common Italian given name (see Battista for those with the surname) in the 16th-18th centuries. It refers to "John the Baptist" in English, the French equivalent is " Jean-Baptiste". Common nicknames include Giambattista, Gi ...

(16th century soldier) *

Giuliana De Sio Giuliana De Sio (born 2 April 1956) is an Italian actress, the younger sister of pop- folk singer Teresa De Sio. She won two David di Donatello for Best Actress and different Silver Ribbons for Best Actress. Biography and career Giuliana De ...

(actress) *

Teresa De Sio Teresa De Sio (born 3 November 1952) is an Italian pop-folk singer and songwriter. She is the elder sister of actress Giuliana De Sio. Biography and career Teresa De Sio was born in Naples and grew up in Cava de' Tirreni, where her family was ori ...

(singer) * Giovanni Vincenzo Della Monica (16th century engineer; collaborated with Giovan Battista Cavagna) * Raffaele Della Monica (cartoonist) *

Antonietta Di Martino Antonietta Di Martino (born 1 June 1978) is a retired Italian high jumper. She currently holds the Italian national women's high jump record at 2.03 metres for outdoor events and 2.04 metres for indoor events. She also currently holds the women ...

( high jumper, Italian indoor/outdoor champion) * Antonio Fiorentino della Cava (architect, designer of the cloisters of

Santa Caterina a Formiello Santa Caterina a Formiello is a church in Naples, in southern Italy, located at the extreme eastern end of the old historic center of the city, on Via Carbonara and Piazza Enrico de Nicola, near the gate called Porta Capuana. The term ''Formiello' ...

) *

Giulio Genoino Giulio Genoino (born c. 1565 in Cava de' Tirreni), the 'mind of Masaniello', was a key figure in the 7 July 1647 popular insurrection against Habsburg authority in the Kingdom of Naples. Biography A priest, lawyer, and academic, Genoino had ...

(Catholic priest; originator, with Masaniello, of the Neapolitan Revolt of 1647) * Costantino Grimaldi (philosopher, jurist, politician and noted anticurialist) * Simonetta Lamberti (10-year-old victim of a Camorra killing) *

Sabato Martelli Castaldi Sabato Martelli Castaldi (19 August 1896 – 24 March 1944) was an Italian Air Force general and a member of the Italian Resistance during World War II. He was executed during the Ardeatine massacre. Biography He participated as a volunte ...

(General of the Italian Air Force, partisan and martyr killed in the slaughter of the

Fosse Ardeatine massacre The Ardeatine massacre, or Fosse Ardeatine massacre ( it, Eccidio delle Fosse Ardeatine), was a mass killing of 335 civilians and political prisoners carried out in Rome on 24 March 1944 by German occupation troops during the Second World War ...

on 24 March 1944; posthumous

Gold Medal of Military Valor The Gold Medal of Military Valour ( it, Medaglia d'oro al valor militare) is an Italian medal established on 21 May 1793 by King Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia for deeds of outstanding gallantry in war by junior officers and soldiers. The fac ...

) *

Attilio Mellone Saint Attilio, one of the legendary martyrs of the Theban Legion, is venerated as a saint in the area of Trino Vercellese, in Piedmont, north-west Italy and commemorated on 28 June. However his Cult (religious practice), cult is no longer offici ...

(member of the

Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

order and man of letters) * Eduardo Migliaccio (actor and comedian) * Gino Palumbo (journalist) * Giampaolo Parisi (football player) *

Andrea Rispoli Andrea Rispoli (born 29 September 1988) is an Italian footballer who plays as a right-back for club Cosenza. Career Brescia Born in Cava de' Tirreni, Campania, Rispoli started his professional career at Brescia Calcio. Having played for the r ...

(football player) *

Fausto Salsano Fausto Salsano (born 19 December 1962) is an Italian association football, football manager and former player, who played as a midfielder. He most recently served as an assistant coach for the Italy national football team, Italy national team. ...

(football manager) *

Raffaele Schiavi Raffaele Schiavi (born 15 March 1986) is an Italian footballer who plays as a centre back for Maltese club Sliema Wanderers. Biography Schiavi's first club was Salernitana, but he only played eight times before joining Lecce in 2005. He had to ...

(football player) * Stefano Sorrentino (football player) *Federico Pisapia, Marco Senatore, Vincenzo Schiavo, Giuseppe Schiavo (First FLAGS artists in Cirque du Soliel 2011)

Twin towns – sister cities

Cava de' Tirreni is twinned with: * Gorzów Wielkopolski,

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

* Kaunas, Lithuania *

Pittsfield Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfield� ...

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

Schwerte Schwerte ( Westphalian: ''Schweierte'') is a town in the district of Unna, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Schwerte is situated in the Ruhr valley, at the south-east border of the Ruhr Area. South of Schwerte begins the mountainous ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Nesvizh Nesvizh, Niasviž ( be, Нясві́ж ; lt, Nesvyžius; pl, Nieśwież; russian: Не́свиж; yi, ניעסוויז; la, Nesvisium) is a city in Belarus. It is the administrative centre of the Nyasvizh District (''rajon'') of Minsk Region ...

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million p ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

References

External links

Tuttosucava.it – All about Cava
(click on union flag to see English translation)
Local Tourist Office of Cava de' Tirreni
(English version)
CampaniaMeteo: weather report and forecast

Archidiocese of Amalfi-Cava de' Tirreni

Photos of Cava de' Tirreni
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cava De' Tirreni Cities and towns in Campania