The Matese ( Italian: Monti del Matese or Massiccio del Matese) is a chain of mountains in southern

Apennines The Apennines or Apennine Mountains (; grc-gre, links=no, Ἀπέννινα ὄρη or Ἀπέννινον ὄρος; la, Appenninus or – a singular with plural meaning;''Apenninus'' (Greek or ) has the form of an adjective, which wou ...

southern Italy Southern Italy ( it, Sud Italia or ) also known as ''Meridione'' or ''Mezzogiorno'' (), is a macroregion of the Italian Republic consisting of its southern half. The term ''Mezzogiorno'' today refers to regions that are associated with the peop ...

Geography

The Matese mountains straddle two regions ( Molise and Campania) and four provinces ( Campobasso, Isernia,

Benevento Benevento (, , ; la, Beneventum) is a city and ''comune'' of Campania, Italy, capital of the province of Benevento, northeast of Naples. It is situated on a hill above sea level at the confluence of the Calore Irpino (or Beneventano) and the ...

and Caserta). The highest peak, on the boundary between Molise and Campania, is the Monte Miletto, at 2,050 m, followed by

La Gallinola La Gallinola is among the highest peaks of the Matese, the highest mountain in Campania. The environment is karst, with persistent grass and without large trees, as expected on the summit of a carbonate massif. Located on the Apennines ridge be ...

(1,923 m a.s.l.), Monte Mutria (1,823 m a.s.l.), Monte Monaco di Gioia and Monte Maio. Westwards, it faces the middle valley of the Volturno River towards the Monti Trebulani, while eastwards it faces the Molisan Pre-Apennines; northwards it is bounded by the Mainarde chain and, from the south, by the Camposauro and Taburno mountains. From north to south, the massif has an extension of some 60 km, while from east to west it measures some 25 km. They are included in the regional Park of the Matese, and include a lake of glacial origin (Lake Matese), two artificial lakes (lakes of Gallo Matese and Letino, formed by a dam on the Lete River), as well as the ski resorts of Bocca della Selva and Campitello Matese.

History

The area of the Matese was inhabited in historic times by the

Samnites The Samnites () were an ancient Italic people who lived in Samnium, which is located in modern inland Abruzzo, Molise, and Campania in south-central Italy. An Oscan-speaking people, who may have originated as an offshoot of the Sabines, they for ...

, who were conquered by the Romans in the 3rd-2nd centuries BC. Later it was a center of

monasticism Monasticism (from Ancient Greek , , from , , 'alone'), also referred to as monachism, or monkhood, is a religious way of life in which one renounces worldly pursuits to devote oneself fully to spiritual work. Monastic life plays an important role ...

. In the 7th century some villages in the area ( Gallo Matese, Sepino, Boiano) were settled by a small Bulgar horde led by Alcek. In the early 19th century it was a shelter for the anti-French partisans who were fighting against the French King of Naples, Joachim Murat. After the unification of Italy (1861), they became the base for anti-Piedmontese brigands, including both criminals and former

Neapolitan Neapolitan means of or pertaining to Naples, a city in Italy; or to: Geography and history * Province of Naples, a province in the Campania region of southern Italy that includes the city * Duchy of Naples, in existence during the Early and Hig ...

soldiers organized in bands counting up to 600 men. In the late 19th century, ''

La Banda del Matese The Banda del Matese was a group of Italian republicans affiliated with the Italian First International who plotted an insurgent rebellion in the Matese mountains in 1877. The group of 26 men included later anarchist leaders (Carlo Cafiero, Erri ...

'', a group of 26 anarchists and republicans from the Italian First International, waged an insurrectionary campaign to disrupt operations in the region and show their group's dedication to sociopolitical change.

Flora and fauna

Flora include

beech Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...

at middle altitudes and

fir Firs (''Abies'') are a genus of 48–56 species of evergreen coniferous trees in the family (biology), family Pinaceae. They are found on mountains throughout much of North America, North and Central America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa. The ...

at higher ones, while on lower altitudes it includes birch,

juniper Junipers are coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Juniperus'' () of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on the taxonomy, between 50 and 67 species of junipers are widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere, from the Arcti ...

, oak,

chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. The unrelat ...

and, more southwards, woods of

holm oak Holm oak may refer to: * '' Quercus ilex'', tree native to South and Southeast Europe and parts of France * '' Quercus rotundifolia'', tree native to the Iberian Peninsula and Northwest Africa * ''Quercus agrifolia ''Quercus agrifolia'', the Cal ...

. Wildlife includes several examples of

italian wolf The Italian wolf (''Canis lupus italicus'' or ''Canis lupus lupus''), also known as the Apennine wolf, is a subspecies of the grey wolf native to the Italian Peninsula. It inhabits the Apennine Mountains and the Western Alps, though it is under ...

, roe deer and eagle.

References

External links

Matese Regional Park

Active trekking tour
{{Authority control Apennine Mountains Mountains of Molise Mountains of Campania

Geography

History

Flora and fauna

See also

References

External links