CUCCARO VETERE

Cucculi, Cucclo, Cuccolo, Cucheri, Cucharo, Cuccaro, Cuccaro Vetere, name that derives from the Greek (: top, summit). One of the four «Norman Lands « that constituted the Barony of Novi, then «suffeudo» and autonomous feud. chief town of the « homonym state ». From Salerno km. 107.



The geographical position of Cuccaro, dominant a vast area, made of the place, before, a fortitude-shelter of Enotri, and then one of the defensive capisaldis of the Greek Velia. Cuccaro, continued subsequently to be a strengthened center, as it seems from the term ( castrates) and not castle of an unpublished donation of Cava.

Some news on the hamlet, however, come also from the Life of S. Nile and from the diploma of building of the italo-Greek monastery of S. Cecilia.

The monk Bartholomew speaks, in fact, of «earth » of «region», certainly one of the longobards «agenteses» that the « sacred palace » of Salerno had distributed in the territory for administrative demands, especially for the political control of the bordering with the theme of Calabria. To rising of the today's village there was an italo-Greek monastery with adjoining inhabited area and the church of S. Nicola of the Greek, originally entitled to the protecting virgin of the monks Greek, in the popular diction S. Maria of Greeks.

Some documents show that in 1308 and still in 1611 in this church it was celebrated with the Greek rite, with the Greek and Latin rite in the church of S. Michael Arcangelo, and perhaps actually in the church of Assunta. Certainly still in the second halves the '600 in Cuccaro, monk Bonito celebrated with that rite and it was ordered to burn the Menologis and the Byzantine icons that were especially in the church of S. Nicola. In the above-mentioned document of Cava is perhaps a sign on the existence in place of ancient fortifications. «Intus castrates de Cuccoli», in fact, in October of 1118, Altruda, the count's daughter Giovanni of Teano and widow of the second gentleman of Novi, Guglielmo de Magnia, gave monastery to the prior of Cilento. Michael Arcangelo «petia de terra est que in finibus castellis qui si dicitur de velle (Acquavella), proper ubi dicitur juncta (near of the Alento)».

Document is important, not only because indirectly it informs us about the passage of the dominion of Novi, deprived of legitimate heirs, to Guglielmo, son of Pandolfo of Capaccio and Corneto and nephew of Altruda and of the dead husband, but also for the other news that it hands down us.

It is presumable, therefore, that has been Altruda to build the castle, center of the «suffeudo» that Gisulfo (II) de Magnia granted to Arrabito, one of the believers «milites » of the curia of Novi, also mentioned in another document of Cava.

Just in the castle of Cuccaro, to the times of king Guglielmo, there was imprisoned the count Giovanni of Sinopoli, one of the protagonists of the rebellion against the archbishop of Palermo chancellor of the king.Antonini remembers that still to his times, in the castle, the room where the prisoners lived and died was designated as «the count's room ».

What the castle and the boundaries of Cuccaro be build before 1189 it is certain, otherwise would have been dejected in compliance to the note disposition to respect of Fred II, ii which raised that feud territory «suffeudo». Charles of Angiò in 1269 granted Cuccaro and Felitto (barony of Cuccaro and Felitto) to Guglielmo of S. Lupo. In the 1333 Maria and Laurìa, daughter of the known admiral Ruggero and wife of Henry Sanseverino, constable of the kingdom and gentleman of Cuccaro, founded the local monastery of S. Francis. In 1352, as it is learned by a parchment of Laurito, was still gentleman of the barony of Laurito and the lands of Cuccaro and S. Severino of Camerota another Tomaso Sanseverino, count of Marsico, that ordered to Andrew of Castelluccia, executioner and vicar of the barony to verify the value of halves the incomes of Laurito.

It is really to the times of the Queen Giovanna II d' Angiò some Hungarian ones, partisan of king Ludovico, it seems had been relegated to Cuccaro under the custody of Stephen Bringit, to which was given in possession castle and lands. In 1381 was gentleman of Cuccaro Francesco of Sanseverino count of Lauria. In 1415 the territory of Cuccaro was possessed by the prince of Lipari « for title of purchase served as the Regina Giovanna », while in 1438 it returned to the Sanseverinos, as it shows the aforesaid parchment from Roccaglioriosa and they still possessed it in 1454 (1 January, Padula), while a parchment from Cicerale shows that in 1509 (18 May) it was partly possessed by Sigismondo of Laurito.

In the 1436 Cuccaro from « Barnabà of Sanseverino count of Lauria », passed to Guglielmo « Caputatiis ». Cuccaro kept then on belonging to the Barony of Monteleone of Novi. In1547 Cuccaro, feudal center, was surrounded by boundaries and ancient towers from a castle set in the tallest part in the hamlet. Other sources inform that on July 22 1476 king Ferrante invested « in feudum immediate » Caesar Accrocciamuro, first-born of Rainaldo, « of the lands of Cuccaro, Caruso, Capograsso, Camella and Copersito.

In 1532 Camilla Accrocciamuro, to the death of his father Fred, asked the regular investiture of the aforesaid goods, passed then, to her death (she had married a Pignatelli) to the child Fred and from these to his child Charles Pignatelli. In the 1614 D. Giacomo Zattara, together with the others of the ancient barony, also purchased «Land of Cuccaro, with his hamlets » In 1636 was gentleman of Cuccaro D. Fabrizio Pignatelli and from 1639 to the 1658 D. Caesar Zattara and in the 1701 Domenico Troiano Pappacoda.

Toward the half of 700 it was possessed by the rider of the order of S. Gennaro and regent of the Big Court of the Vicaria, D. Joseph Pappacoda of the principles of Centola, whose heirs (the heiress princess of Centola had married the prince Doria of Angri) Cuccaros still possessed in 1806, when was bombed and almost destroyed from the Borbonic troops.

Feast of Saint Peter

29 june

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Feast of St. Therese

On the last sunday of september

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Palio of the Donkey

From 11 to 12 August

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Feast of “pastoirella” of cuccaro

From 29 to 30 October

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