Dugenta

The Medieval Castle is located in the historical centre of Dugenta and it has been the scene of some war events which happen to be fundamental for the formation of the Neapolitan Reign. It was donated to Guglielmo di Belmonte from Carlo I d'Angiò in 1268 and was part of Caserta County. Later, it passed to Adam de Vasis and then to Roberto D'Erville, who owned it until 1282. For the following years it has had several owners and, in 1459, Ferdinando I of Naples gave it to Giovanni della Ratta, alongside with the manors of Caserta, Limatola, Dugenta, Frasso Telesino and Melizzano. The Medieval Castle of Dugenta therefore arose as defensive structure of Valle. It had to be connected with other castles in the area with which exchanged fire and smoke signals, especially for alarms. It has never been explored entirely and, according to the legend, it has underground paths which should connect it with the castles of Limatola and Maddaloni. Currently, as a consequence of an earthquake that took place in 1980, very little has remained of the Medieval Castle of Dugenta, except for the boundary walls, the high base and one of the four towers.

The building dates back to the late XVII century and until now it has undergone several restorations that have changed its structure. It consists of two floors whose partially modified openings has been recently modified and decorated by a series of spandrels enriched by fine decorations. A stone well is placed on the right facade of the atrium and the courtyard features a stairway that leads to the apartments of the main floor. Three caves, accessible from the same courtyard, were built to accommodate pig farming at disposal of the Royal Palace of Caserta and the palace wings also contain farmers' room indeed. Then, this structure was turned into stables and shelter for people during World War II; while in the '80s it was used as wineries. Currently, the palace is waiting to be reconstructed.

It is one of the oldest churches of the diocese and it has a very simple structure, composed of a single nave. On the outside, there is a beautiful bell tower rising from the centre of the village, which has a mural on it representing S. Andrea Apostolo. The church was consecrated between 1110 and 1112 and in 1932 a second mural (representing Risen Christ) was painted by Tagliatela in order to decorate the vault at the entrance. Along the right wall, there's a shell-shaped fount (acquasantiera) made of stone. The church is adorned with several statues among which those of S. Teresina de Lisieux and S. Agnese.