Architettura militare e scene di guerra ai confini del Regnum all’epoca di Carlo I d’Angiò: il caso di Castel Manfrino

Military architecture and war scenes on the Regnum borders in the age of Charles I of Anjou: the case of Castel Manfrino (Teramo) This paper reconstructs, after closely examining written sources as well as data gathered from archaeological sites, the story of the Castel Manfrino fortification – identified by records as castrum Maccle – an impressive castle overlooking the Salinello ravines, near Teramo, at the border between the Abruzzi and Marches regions. Its particular position on the northern border of the Norman – later Swawbian and Angevin – kingdom made this castle a crucial junction in the kingdom’s defensive system. The fortification, placed on top of an early-medieval settlement (VI-VIII Centuries) formed by a small church, its adjoining baptistery and a watch tower, was built progressively from the XII Century, initially on part of the rocky spur it lays on, and later in the XIII Century on the whole area. In addition to the surrounding walls, the excavations have uncovered some rooms: a kitchen, a cellar and a chapel covered in frescoes. Sources from the Angevin period have accurately recorded a crucial historical event, when Charles I of Anjou laid a long siege to the castle (1272-1273) after an attempted revolt, which was followed by the last major works of restoration and strengthening of the structure, probably by the architect Pierre d’Angicourt.