Ocre is a '' comune'' (municipality) and town in the province of L'Aquila in the

Abruzzo Abruzzo (, , ; nap, label=Neapolitan language, Abruzzese Neapolitan, Abbrùzze , ''Abbrìzze'' or ''Abbrèzze'' ; nap, label=Sabino dialect, Aquilano, Abbrùzzu; #History, historically Abruzzi) is a Regions of Italy, region of Southern Italy wi ...

region of southern Italy.

Description and history

Its approximate 1,000 inhabitants reside in several small villages scattered across the mid-to–low L’Aquila basin, about southeast of Abruzzo's regional capital. The town hall offices are located in San Panfilo d’Ocre. It belongs to the Amiternina mountain community and part of the territory lies in the Sirente Velino Regional Park. SanMartinoOcre

In the Middle Ages, the fortified village of San Panfilo controlled the lower L'Aquila valley, and the monasteries of the

Holy Spirit In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is the divine force, quality, and influence of God over the Universe or over his creatures. In Nicene Christianity, the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is the third person of the Trinity. In Islam, the Holy Spirit acts as ...

and Sant Angelo attracted many pilgrims. At that time, the

baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

s of Ocre also controlled the neighboring municipalities. Ocre's attractions include important historical landmarks as well as festivals like those of baked bread and

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 ...

. During the earthquake that hit L'Aquila on April 6, 2009, the town Ocre suffered substantial damage. The old castle of Ocre was almost completely ruined. Several buildings collapsed, and a number of houses in the old town remain uninhabitable.

Geography

The territory of the municipality is dominated by the Mount Ocre–Mount Cagno mountain range (), with the inhabited part set on its northeastern slopes and crossed by a Regional Road SR5 that rises from L'Aquila to the Rocche Plateau. File:Ocre (AQ) - Convento di Sant'Angelo 03.JPG, The Monastery of Sant'Angelo File:Monastero di Santo Spirito d'Ocre (AQ) 02.JPG, Monastery of the Holy Spirit

People

* Thomas of Ocre, Cardinal, Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church in 1294, secretary to Celestino V; beatified * Gualtieri of Ocre, chancellor to the

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...

Frederick II of Hohenstaufen and his son Conrad IV * Francesco Gualtieri of San Martino D'Ocre (1863–1943), Brigadier General, Commander, Livorno Brigade 1918

References

Ocre {{Abruzzo-geo-stub