Cava de' Tirreni

The appellation de' Tirreni ("of the Tyrrhenians") given to Cava is due to its identification, still unconfirmed, with the ancient Etruscan town of Marcina, mentioned by Strabo. The valley was certainly inhabited during the Roman Age: the discovery of several archeological relics dating back to that period stands as evidence.

At the beginning of the 11th century, a nucleus of hermit monks gathered at the foot of Monte Finestra, about 2 km (1 mi) southwest of Cava, where the village of Corpo di Cava is now located. They were attracted by the famed saintliness of the Lombard noble, Alferio Pappacarbone (St Alferius), who lived a life of contemplation and prayer there. Thus was the Benedictine abbey of La Trinità della Cava created in 1011. It became one of the most active religious and cultural centres in Southern Italy.

The church and the greater part of the abbey buildings were entirely modernized in 1796. The old Gothic cloisters are preserved. The church contains a fine organ and several ancient sarcophagi. The archives, now national property, include fine incunabula, documents and manuscripts of great value (including the Codex Legum Longobardorum of 1004[3] and the La Cava Bible).

The prestige of the holy men leading the abbey, together with the need for protection, gave rise to the birth of an early residential complex there. In time, thanks to continuous donations, the possessions of the abbey increased, while the relative tranquillity of the valley brought growth in handicrafts and commerce.

Progress to autonomy and freedom from domination by the abbey was slow, and there were moments of tension. In 1394, Pope Boniface IX raised the territory's status to that of a city, separating Cava from the Archdiocese of Salerno, setting it up as a diocese of Cava, reporting directly to the Holy See, and entrusting it to a bishop who would also have been the abbot. But the Cavesi, who objected to their feudal dependence on the abbey, attacked and devastated it several times between 1335 and 1508, claiming their right to autonomy. It was only in 1513 that Pope Leo X agreed to their claim, and with the Papal Bull "Sincere Devotionis" of March 22, 1513, Cava was created as an autonomous diocese.

Cava became a prosperous town thanks to the commercial acuity and industry of its inhabitants, who excelled in weaving and in building. Architects and engineers from Cava worked on the main public and private projects in Southern Italy. Gradually, the centre of the town moved from Corpo di Cava, the walled town close to the abbey, to Borgo Scacciaventi, known in dialect as lo commerzio (the commercial area). The pillars that can still be seen there date back to the early 15th century and are called portici (porticoes). They are still considered the centre of Cava de' Tirreni.

A large part of the population lived in the surrounding hamlets, some of them hard to reach, thus extending the territory as far as Cetara (which, together with Vietri sul Mare and other smaller hamlets, seceded from Cava in 1806). The people went to Borgo Scacciaventi for commerce and business, while the richest families started building their grand houses (palazzi) in the Borgo, and traders and artisans built their homes above their shops, which served, along with the porticoes in front, to protect their goods.

Cava was the scene of a major historical event of its time. King Ferdinand of Aragon, who ruled over the territories of Naples, was ambushed and surrounded by the Angevins at Foce near Sarno in 1460. He was saved by the intervention of soldiers from Cava, both salaried and conscripted. Led by Captains Joshua and Marino Longo, they came to the area of Foce di Sarno, descended from the mountain and attacked the Angevins. The Angevin army, surprised and unable to determine the extent of the attack, was forced to retire, allowing King Ferdinand to flee to Naples via Nola. Grateful for their courage and for the good turn, the King sent mayor Onofrio Scannapieco a blank parchment, on which the city could write any kind of request. The Cavesi declined to make any request, and the King then conferred upon the whole city the title of Fedelissima (most loyal). The document is still conserved in the Town Hall, blank as it was in 1460. Every year since then, on the first Sunday of July, about 1000 people in the costume of the period parade through the city in the Disfida dei Trombonieri (Challenge of the Trombonists), to the rhythms and music belonging to each district, thus re-invoking this page of their history .

• Abbey of La Trinità della Cava, founded in 1011. Features include the ambon with mosaics (12th century), the grotto of St. Alferius, the Romanesque cloister (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 and travertine, with three large arches, the central one surmounted by 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 plan, with some 16th century frescoes by Belisario Corenzio in the sacristy.

The main activity in Cava is commerce, as evidenced by the number and quality of the shops among the porticoes in the city centre.

In the outlying hamlets there are fields of fruit and tobacco, while in the industrial estate there are factories for food processing, mechanical work, textiles and furniture products.

The centre of the valley hosts the main city centre. Here is the ancient Borgo Scacciaventi, which represented the religious, administrative and commercial heart of the city in the Renaissance. Since the 1950s, it has expanded mainly northwards, extending to the industrial estate and the nearest hamlets (Passiano, Pregiato and S. Arcangelo). The other hamlets form a semicircle and remain slightly isolated, still retaining the outward characteristics of the ancient casali (hamlets).

Cava de' Tirreni panorama from Mount Saint Liberatore.

The local football team is Cavese 1919. It plays in the Stadio Simonetta Lamberti.

• In the 80s and 90s the city's stadium was the venue for several concerts by both Italian artists such as Vasco Rossi and Pino Daniele (who recorded his live album "E sona mo'" in 1994) and international ones such as Pink Floyd, The Clash, The Cure and many others. In 2018 the city attempted to return as an important city for live music with a Caparezza concert which was to be the first of a series of annual events in a festival called "Cavasound" but was not followed by subsequent editions.
• Cavacon Comics & Games: it is an event that has been held annually since 2010 in the local Mediateca Marte and on some occasions also in the Area Mercatale (Market Area). It is a fair dedicated to Nerd culture where there is a comic book exposition, concerts, the traditional "Gara Cosplay" (on the last day of the fair) and it sees the participation of various not for profit associations that create thematic areas inside of the event where they entertain the visitors. Among the musical guests, the event organized a concert by the Japanese band Versailles in 2011. In 2018, the fair agreement denounced the lack of support from the mayor, but the fair was held in both 2018 and 2019. In some years the fair takes place in January (winter edition) in conjunction with Epiphany and the white night while in others in June (summer edition) but in some years both editions have taken place.
• Millennial celebrations of the Benedictine Abbey Foundation of the S.S. Trinity. 1011-2011

Federico Pisapia, Marco Senatore, Vincenzo Schiavo, Giuseppe Schiavo (First FLAGS artists in Cirque du Soliel 2011)

• 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 (film director, film producer and screenwriter)
• Alfonso Balzico (sculptor and painter)
• Pope Boniface IX
• Alda Borelli, actress in theatre and silent films
• Donato Antonio Cafaro (16th century engineer)
• Donato Antonio Cafaro (17th century royal engineer, probably descended from the previous)
• Giambattista Castaldo (16th century soldier)
• Giuliana De Sio (actress)
• Teresa De Sio (singer)
• Giovanni Vincenzo Della Monica (16th century engineer; collaborated with Giovan Battista Cavagna)
• Raffaele Della Monica (cartoonist)
• Antonietta Di Martino (high jumper, Italian indoor/outdoor champion)
• Antonio Fiorentino della Cava (architect, designer of the cloisters of Santa Caterina a Formiello)
• Giulio Genoino (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 (General of the Italian Air Force, partisan and martyr killed in the slaughter of the Fosse Ardeatine massacre on 24 March 1944; posthumous Gold Medal of Military Valor)
• Attilio Mellone (member of the Franciscan order and man of letters)
• Eduardo Migliaccio (actor and comedian)
• Gino Palumbo (journalist)
• Giampaolo Parisi, football player
• Fausto Salsano (football manager)
• Raffaele Schiavi (football player)
• Stefano Sorrentino (football player)

Cava de' Tirreni is twinned with:

• Gorzów Wielkopolski, Poland
• Kaunas, Lithuania
• Pittsfield, USA
• Schwerte, Germany
• Nesvizh, Belarus
• Tbilisi, Georgia

• Roman Catholic Diocese of Cava
• La Trinità della Cava

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Cava de' Tirreni (category)

• 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 (in Italian)
• Archidiocese of Amalfi-Cava de' Tirreni (in Italian)
• Photos of Cava de' Tirreni (in Italian)