Cava de' Tirreni

Infobox CityIT
img_coa = CavadeTirreni-Stemma.gif
official_name = Comune di Cava de’ Tirreni
name = Cava de’Tirreni
mapx=40.7
mapy=14.7
region = Campania
province = Salerno (SA)
elevation_m = 180
area_total_km2 = 36.46
population_as_of = 2007
population_total = 53314
population_density_km2 = 1442
timezone = CET, UTC+1
coordinates = coord|40|42|N|14|42|E
frazioni = see list
telephone = 089
postalcode = 84013
gentilic = Cavesi
saint = Santa Maria Incoronata dell’Olmo
day = September 8
mayor =
website = [http://www.comune.cava-de-tirreni.sa.it www.comune.cava-de-tirreni.sa.it]

Cava de’Tirreni is a town and commune of Campania, Italy, in the province of Salerno, 10 kilometers NW by rail from the town of Salerno. It lies in a richly cultivated valley, surrounded by wooded hills, and is a favourite tourist resort.

Geography

Cava de' Tirreni is placed very near to the Tyrrhenian Sea, 5 km in the inland at behind the Amalfi Coast, being in practice its north gate. The central built-up area is developed in the valley shaped by the Lattari Mountains (which separates Cava from the Amalfi Coast) at West and by the Picentini Mountains at East. Beisdes, the hills, which surround Cava in every direction, are pleasant residences for a lor of inhabitants.

Cava borders northwards with Nocera Superiore, Roccapiemonte and Mercato San Severino, eastwards with Baronissi, Pellezzano and Salerno, southwards with Vietri sul Mare and Maiori, westwards with Tramonti. The town is a link between the Agro Nocerino Sarnese area (level morphology and agricultural and industrial economy) and the Sorrento and Amalfi Peninsulas (mountainous morphology and economy based on tourism).

Main sights

About two kilometers to the south-west is the village of Corpo di Cava, with the Benedictineabbey of La Trinità della Cava, founded in 1025 by St Alferius.The church and the greater part of the 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 documents andMSS. of great value (e.g. the "Codex Legum Longobardorum" of 1004, and the La Cava Bible) and fine "incunabula".

The appellative "de' Tirreni" given to Cava is due to the identification, still uncertain, of the territory with the ancient Etruscan town called "Marcina" mentioned by Strabo. The valley was surely inhabited during the Roman Age: the discovery of several archeological relics dating back to that period is an evidence.

At the beginning of the 11th century, an early group of monks got together at the foot of Monte Finestra, attracted by the fame of saintliness of a Longobard noble, Alferio Pappacarbone, who lived there collecting his thoughts in contemplation and prayer. So the Benedictine Abbey of the Holy Trinity was born in 1011 and it became one of the most vivid religious and cultural centres of the South of Italy.The prestige of the saintly men leading the Abbey, together with the need of finding protection, caused the birth of an early residential complex around. In time, thanks to the continuous donations, the possessions of the Abbey increased, while the relative tranquillity of the valley brought to a growth in handicraft and commerce.

The autonomy from abbatial domination was a slow conquest, not free from moments of tension. In 1394, the Pope Boniface IX raised the territory's status to that of a "City", separating Cava from the archdiocese of Salerno and setting it up as diocese directly depending on the Holy See, and entrusted a bishop (that would have been also abbey) with the new diocese. But the Cavesi, who could nt bear the feudal dependence of the Abbey, attacked and devastated it several times between 1335 and 1508, claiming their authonomy. Pope Leo X agreed to their claim and with the Bull "Sincere Devotionis" of the March 22 1513 set up Cava as autonomous diocese.

Cava had became a prosperous town thanks to the commerce and the industriousness of its inhabitants, who excelled in weaving and in building art. Architects and engineers from Cava worked on the main public and private projects in the South of Italy. Gradually, the centre of the town moved from "Corpo di Cava", walled town close to the Abbey, to "Borgo Scacciaventi", also called "lo commerzio" ("the commerce", in dialect): the pillars that we can still see date back to the beginnings of 1400 and are called "Portici" (porticoes). They still represent the centre of Cava de' Tirreni.

A lot of the population lived in the hamlets, some of them hard to reach, and the territory arrived at Cetara (Vietri sul Mare, Cetara and other smaller hamlets seceded from Cava in 1806). People went to Borgo Scacciaventi for commerce and business. The most rich families started building at the Borgo their palaces, traders and artisans built houses on their shops, that grew ahead with the porticoes, in order to protect the goods.

Formerly known as "Città de La Cava", it was theatre of a very important historical event for that time. King Ferdinand of Aragon, who ruled on Naples' territories, felt into an ambush of the Angevins nearby Sarno about in 1460. Cavesi, leaded by the captains Giosuè and Marino Longo, armed themselves with breathless haste at best, with forks, other improvised items and weapons, and attacked Angevins who, astonished by the event and unable to assess the entity of the attack, were forced to pull back, giving the possibility to King Ferdinand of Aragon to create an escape route to Naples.Grateful for the shown courage and the good turn, the King sent to the mayor Onofrio Scannapieco a Blank Parchment, on which the city could have ask every requirement. The Parchment remained blank and the King conferred upon the whole city the title of "Fedelissima" ("The Most Loyal"). It is still conserved, untouched and blank as in 1460, in the town hall, and it is the desired price of the annual folk event called "Disfida dei Trombonieri".

Economy

The main activity in Cava is the commerce, and it is testified by the lot of quality shops present along the porticoes of the city centre.

In the hamlets, fields under cultivation of fruit and tobacco are present, while, in the industrial estate, you can see factories of food, mechanical, textile and furniture products.

City planning

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 mainly grew northwards, joining the industrial estate and the nearest hamlets (Passiano, Pregiato and S. Arcangelo). The other hamlets create a half ring and they still keep the features of the ancient "Casali" (Hamlets), living in a slight isolation.

Image gallery

Transportation

Roads and motorways

Cava is crossed by the A3 Motorway Naples-Salerno, belonging to the European route E45.
As regards the national roads, Cava is crossed by the National Road 18 "Lower Thyrrenian" (Strada Statale 18 "Tirrena Inferiore")

Railways

The railway station of Cava de' Tirreni is placed along the Naples-Salerno line, more precisely along the branch that leads to Salerno from Nocera Inferiore and vice versa. This route was used by all the trains before the opening of the new "Santa Lucia gallery", so now the branch is used only by the trains that performs travel service. It allows to reach Salerno in 10-15 minutes, giving the possibility to the travellers of seeing a wonderful panorama of the Cava's valley and of the first kilometres of the Amalfi Coast, thanks to the overhead position of the railway.

The freight yard is nowadays unused, but it still reminds the long industrial tradition of Cava.All regional trains stops in the station, while buses to Amalfi Coast, Salerno, Sarno, Pompeii, Naples and University of Salerno starts from the square opposite the station.

Urban transport

Public urban and sub-urban transport is performed by CSTP (Consorzio Salernitano Trasporti Pubblici - Salerno Public Transport Association), that links Cava to all the adjoining cities, besides linking it to the several hamlets.Long distance public transport, like the 50 km that separate Cava from Naples and the 25 km that separate it from Amalfi, are performed by SITA.Both SITA and CSTP belong to the "Consorzio Unicocampania", formed of 13 railway and road public transport companies, which serves all the Campania Region with integrated fares.

Great public works

A vehicular underpass is under construcion to ease the congestion of the urban tract of the SS18 with the building of an alternative car route for people whose aim is not stop in Cava, but who are only passing through Cava bound for north and south, so that they will not increase the urban traffic.

port

The local soccer team is S.S. Cavese 1919.

"Frazioni"

Annunziata, Alessia, Badia di Cava, Castagneto, Dupino, Maddalena, Marini, Li Curti, Passiano, Pianesi, Pregiato, Rotolo, S.Anna, Sant'Arcangelo, San Cesareo, San Lorenzo, Santa Lucia, San Nicola, Santa Maria del Rovo, San Pietro, Santi Quaranta.

Twin towns

*flagicon|Poland Gorzów, Poland
*flagicon|USA Pittsfield, USA
*flagicon|Germany Schwerte, Germany

References

*1911

External links

The town
* [http://www.tuttosucava.it "Tuttosucava.it" - All about Cava]
* [http://www.tuttocava.it Tuttocava.it]
* [http://www.porticando.it "Porticando"]
* [http://www.cavaturismo.it Local Tourist Office of Cava de' Tirreni - "Azienda Autonoma Soggiorno e Turismo di Cava de' Tirreni"]

News
* [http://www.ilportico.it "Il Portico"]
* [http://www.cavanotizie.it "CavaNotizie"]
* [http://www.cavaexplorer.it "Cavaexplorer" - The portal of Cava de' Tirreni]
* [http://www.panoramatirreno.it "Panorama Tirreno"]
* [http://www.ilgiornaledicava.it "Il Giornale di Cava"]
* [http://www.ilmattino.it "Il Mattino"]

Blog
* [http://www.imillepiedi.it Imillepiedi.it Il PortalBlog di Cava]
* [http://www.cavese.blogspot.com Cavese Blog]
* [http://www.cavaisthecity.blogspot.com/ Cava de' Tirreni di notte e non solo]

Events
* [http://www.cavacultura.it/ CavaCultura - Culture, Entertainment and Tourism Quality Department of Cava Town Council]
* [http://www.cavafumetti.it Annual Balloon Exhibition of Cava]
* [http://www.disfida2003.it Disfida dei Trombonieri 2003]
* [http://www.festivaldelletorri.it "Festival delle Torri"]
* [http://www.pistonierisantamariadelrovo.it/ "Pistonieri Santa Maria del Rovo"]
* [http://www.sbandieratori-cavensi.com "Associazione Sbandieratori Cavensi"]
* [http://www.coralemetelliana.it/ "Corale Polifonica Metelliana" - Polyphonic Chorale of Cava]
* [http://www.mymovies.it/cinema/salerno/cavadetirreni/ Cinema schedule]

Weather
* [http://www.campaniameteo.it/stazionemeteocava.asp "CampaniaMeteo"]

Religion
* [http://www.diocesiamalficava.it/ Archdiocese Amalfi-Cava de' Tirreni]