Castellammare di Stabia

Castellammare di Stabia (Italian: [kaˌstɛllamˈmaːre di ˈstaːbja]; Neapolitan: Castiellammare 'e Stabbia) is a city and comune (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Naples in the region of Campania in southern Italy. It is situated on the Bay of Naples about 30 km (19 mi) southeast of Naples, on the route to Sorrento. It has 61,937 inhabitants.

History

Antiquity

Castellammare di Stabia lies next to the ancient Roman city of Stabiae, which functioned as a seaport for the inland city of Nuceria. The city's importance was diminished after it was razed in 90 BC during the Social War, a setback from which it never fully recovered. Nevertheless, it remained inhabited, with a center with a rectangular grid plan, shops, and a temple precinct that was active until the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD.

During the late 1st century BC, the surrounding escarpment attracted the construction of luxurious villas, which were expanded and elaborated upon in subsequent years. The villas were damaged in an earthquake in 62–63 AD. While many of these structures were still in the process of being rebuilt, they were ultimately buried under several meters of pumice during the eruption of 79 AD. The same eruption also killed the prominent Roman military commander and writer Pliny the Elder, who died at a local villa after succumbing to poisonous fumes.

Middle Ages

The castle, from which the modern city takes its name, was erected around the 9th century on a hill commanding the southern side of the Gulf of Naples. It was restored during the reign of Frederick II of Hohenstaufen and enlarged by King Charles I of Anjou.

The Castle After the destruction of Stabiae by Vesuvius, some local inhabitants who had survived the eruption returned to their old, now destroyed homes to recover objects and money.