The residential center of Palena presents itself in the medieval age, like a village surrounded by walls with access doors. The area between the castle and the church dedicated to saints Antonino and Falco, conserves in its urban surrounding and in the architecture, the memory of the past. Along the staircase going up to the castle a precious renaissance doorway in stone which follows the style of the boutiques. The vertical entrance is flanked by a window where products for sale were displayed, the whole thing is decorated with fine chisel workmanship. All around the castle stone houses proliferate with beautiful sculptured doorways, surviving the violence and devastation of the second world war which hit Palena with unhuman violence.
The proximity of the village to the so called Gustav line, which is in fact the fort boundary, elaborated by the German General Kesserling which went from the River Garigliano up to the coast of Ortona, crossing central Italy. Exposing this territory to the bitter effects of the conflict between the Germans and the Anglo Americans between 1943 and 1944. Particularly hit were the zones near the church of San Falco, the German command had set up base in the antique Croce Nanni residence near the bridge on the river Aventino. The area wasn't only damaged by bombs being launched but also by mines which the Germans used to destroy all the buildings and infrastructure so that they couldn't be used by the Anglo Americans.
The residential center of Palena presents itself in the medieval age, like a village surrounded by walls with access doors. The area between the castle and the church dedicated to saints Antonino and Falco, conserves in its urban surrounding and in the architecture, the memory of the past. Along the staircase going up to the castle a precious renaissance doorway in stone which follows the style of the boutiques. The vertical entrance is flanked by a window where products for sale were displayed, the whole thing is decorated with fine chisel workmanship. All around the castle stone houses proliferate with beautiful sculptured doorways, surviving the violence and devastation of the second world war which hit Palena with unhuman violence.
The proximity of the village to the so called Gustav line, which is in fact the fort boundary, elaborated by the German General Kesserling which went from the River Garigliano up to the coast of Ortona, crossing central Italy. Exposing this territory to the bitter effects of the conflict between the Germans and the Anglo Americans between 1943 and 1944. Particularly hit were the zones near the church of San Falco, the German command had set up base in the antique Croce Nanni residence near the bridge on the river Aventino. The area wasn't only damaged by bombs being launched but also by mines which the Germans used to destroy all the buildings and infrastructure so that they couldn't be used by the Anglo Americans.
