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Monte Sant'Angelo "La città di San Michele"

Monte Sant'Angelo

Monte Sant'Angelo (Foggia Mond in dialect) is an Italian town of 13,168 inhabitants in the province of Foggia, famous for the shrine of St. Michael the Archangel, what makes the pilgrimage town of Christians since the sixth century. On 25 June 2011 the Sanctuary of Monte Sant'Angelo Monte Sant'Angelo becomes UNESCO World Heritage site with the circuit serial "The Longobards in Italy, Places of Power, 568-774 AD", joining the ranks of the most authoritative Cultural Heritage of the world and that is in the world Heritage List, making the city a popular destination for tourism in the Puglia.
The city center is situated on a spur of the Gargano in a wooded area not far from the sea. The limestone soil is manifested in a number of karst phenomena, such as the famous cave of the archangel Michael.

One of the geographical particularities of Monte Sant'Angelo is that its territory includes, in addition to mountainous terrain, even flat land bordering the sea (Marina di Monte Sant'Angelo, first called Macchia).
Although the urban center was founded around the year 1000, the story of Monte Sant'Angelo is at least the previous five centuries. According to the hagiographic tradition, in fact, on May 8, 490 the Archangel Michael appeared to the holy bishop of Siponto and ordered him to dedicate the cave to the Christian faith in his name.
In the seventh century the Lombards, especially devotees of St. Michael, raised the cave to their national shrine.

Through the stretch of the Via Francigena that connected the town with the island of Mont Saint-Michel, on the English Channel, it developed an intense flow of pilgrims.
According to tradition, in 1656 during an outbreak of plague, the Archangel would manifest dispensing graces and healings.

The structure of the Sanctuary is constituted by a higher level and a lower. At the top level are the Romanesque portal and the bell tower. The bell tower is also known as the Angevin was built by Charles of Anjou as a thank you to St. Michael for the conquest of southern Italy and is modeled according to the scheme of the towers of Castel del Monte.
The lower level includes the cave, which is accessed directly from the steps of Anjou, the museum devotional and crypts.

Other buildings of interest are the "Tomb of Rotari", a baptistery in the Romanesque style, just a few meters from the Basilica of St. Michael the Archangel; the Abbey of Santa Maria di Siponto, located a few kilometers from the town with the many hermitages.

The castle of Monte Sant'Angelo can be described as a '' historical narrative '' centuries-old, who still today confirms its alternating dominations, populations and architectural styles.
The first fortification was built by the Lombards. The Normans were built the tower of the Giants and the '' tower Quadra '', while Frederick II of Swabia built the so-called '' treasure room ''. The current fortification mainly highlights the influence of the Aragonese who, to defend themselves from enemies, created the almond shaped keep and the moat before the portal of entry.

Strategically situated in the heart of Gargano, from the town of Monte Sant'Angelo is possbile to reach many of the favorite destinations for millions of tourists who annually visit our region, such as San Giovanni Rotondo, linked to the cult of St. Pio of Pietrelcina ; Umbra Forest, nature tourism destination Puglia and seaside towns of the Gargano coast, as Peschici, Vieste and morning.

Among the typical gastronomy garganica a place of honor is without a doubt the bread, with its long history, its many forms and its flavors. The bread of Monte Sant'Angelo has no equal, it can recognize the unique scent that flows from bakeries. The crust is soft and crunchy, the inside soft and compact. Formerly the loaves were hooked and hung outside the shops, they speak of forms very large, weighing 5 or 6 pounds, and with a diameter of 70-80 cm.