The history of Afragola covers a time span of several millennia. The exact place where the city arose, namely the Regi Lagni plain in ancient Campania Felix, was frequented/occupied between the Final Late Neolithic/Chalcolithic and the Early Bronze Age, evidenced by the discovery of the Early Bronze Age village of Afragola and various artifacts found during the construction of the Napoli Afragola station...
Origin of the name The first mention of the name (Afraore) dates back to the year 1131. Other variants in later charters are "Afragone," "Afraone," "Fragola," "Frabola," "Afraole," "Afraolla," "Fraolla," "Aufrangola," and "Afrangola.".
The medieval name of the casale is recorded in documents of the Angevin and Aragonese periods as "Villa Fragorum"; the toponym underwent, then, changes due to the vernacular spoken by the inhabitants until it became the present Afragola..
Foundation between history and legend
According to legend, Afragola was founded in 1140 by Roger II of Sicily, an event painted in 1886 by the painter Augusto Moriani, depicting Roger, surrounded by his soldiers and in the act of granting them land; Friar Domenico de Stelleopardis stated in his work Relatione historica della fondazione della chiesa di San Marco della selvetella, that ten families founded Afragola: Castaldo, Fusconi, Iovini, Muti, Tuccillo, Commeneboli, Fortini, del Furco, Cerbone, de Stelleopardis, of which only eight resided in the future city; the last two moved to Naples..
However, the event is considered false by historians, such as Castaldi, since Roger I of Sicily had already died in 1101, and Roger II in 1154, and, moreover, earlier settlements already existed; therefore, a foundation of the city by them seems unlikely.
Prehistory and protohistory
Neolithic period The area where Afragola stands today was inhabited as early as during the Final Late Neolithic/Chalcolithic and Bronze Age, where small villages sprang up, for example, the Early Bronze Age village of Afragola (where Mycenaean-age artifacts were found), which was destroyed by the eruption of the Avellino Pumices, whose volcanic material covered the area causing the villages to silt up and the ground to rise by more than a meter, which is why communities were forced to flee..
Ancient Era
Opici and Samnite settlements In the 7th century BC. the territory was inhabited by the Opici, attracted by the fertile vegetation, consisting of ferns, hollies, maples, elms, poplars, sycamores and pines, evidenced by a series of tomb finds at Arena and Camposantiello Vecchio and in 1882, during the construction of labor houses in Via Sicilia, the year in which excavations were made of the mother chapel of the present cemetery, as well as 4 Greek tombs, composed of large pieces of tuff, found in the Padula locality in the 19th century.
From the 4th century B.C., populations of Osco-Samnite background lived there, evidenced by the discovery in 1961 of several tombs dating to the 3rd century B.C, including a double-chest tomb found in the Cantariello locality, exhibited in room LXVII of the National Archaeological Museum of Naples and depicting two women, arranged facing each other; the woman on the left holds an oinochoe in one hand and a situla in the other, while the woman on the right holds a bread and a kantharos, and in the center is depicted a pomegranate, a symbol of death and life.
During preliminary investigations for the construction of the Porta station, on the railway line of the Napoli Afragola station, a fragment of bucchero (4.5 cm in length and 2.3 cm in height) was found, dating from the late 6th century BCE. B.C. and the early 5th century B.C. and part of a keeled basin and the wall of an open-form vessel, a chalice or kantharos, bearing on the final portion a 0.02-cm-high inscription in the Etruscan alphabet ([---]ias) and possibly part of a funerary equipment..
Romans
Between the 4th and 3rd centuries BC the territory was conquered by the Romans, evidenced by the discovery in 1929 of an Augustan altar, probably from the 1st century BC, consisting of a travertine capital with the carved dedication "AVG SACR" (Augustus Sacrum), which measured 1.17 m in height and 0.55 m in width, later used as a drinking trough and destroyed to obtain road metal for road reconstruction, two Roman villas between Caivano and Afragola, three Roman columns, a tomb, found in the Cantariello locality, several rustic villas, and remains of a branch of the Roman aqueduct of the Serino..
Objects of daily use were also found such as: a wine press, a small olpe, an Hadrianic coin, the Stone of St. Mark in Sylvis, remains of an altar, an amphora tomb, covered by layers of lapilli and found in Contrada Sarricchione during work for the construction of the Naples-Cancello railway line variant, probably part of a Christian necropolis datable between the fourth and seventh centuries AD. C. and of the pit or amphora type, in which the body of a woman with a broken neck was found (probably because the amphora was smaller and pressure was applied to allow the woman to enter), and, finally, an epigraph in the Salicelle area bearing the following text:
In about 133 B.C., during the time of the Gracchi, the territory was subjected to centuriation (Ager Campanus I), continued in the Augustan age with the Acerrae-Atella I centuriation, traces of which still remain in the present road layout, particularly of the former.
In addition, there was an epigraph, named after Clodius Celsinus Adelphius, set into a wall of the Church of St. John and bearing the following text:.
There was also an epigraph (dated 30 B.C.-20 A.D.), named after Aulus Vitellius and preserved in the National Archaeological Museum in Naples, and a tile with a vignette, found in 1983 near USL 25 on Highway 87 Sannitica, bearing the following text:.
Also, probably between Caivano and Afragola, a branch of the Pisonians settled, and in order to repopulate Atella, Augustus founded a colony.
Middle Ages
Early Middle Ages
Following the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the territory was gradually invaded by the Vandals, Visigoths, Ostrogoths, Lombards, and, finally, the Byzantines in the 9th century (Duchy of Naples), a period during which the conquered lands were entrusted to soldiers.
The territory was also part of the diocese of Atella, but with the arrival of the Lombards it then passed to the archdiocese of Naples.
Around 1000, the villages of Arcopinto, Cantarello, San Salvatore delle Monache (which took its name from the church of San Salvatore, dependent on the monastery of San Gregorio Maggiore), Salice, Arcora, Contrada Regina, San Marco and San Martino, as well as Casa aurea (Casoria) and Paternum ad sanctum Petrum (San Pietro a Patierno) developed, while nearby were located a forest, a swamp, the "campus" of San Severino and the remains of an old Roman aqueduct..
Among the first inhabitants of Arcopinto and Casoria were respectively two farmers, Cicino Russo del fu Palumbo and Gregorio Capuburria del fu Leone, Russo's brother-in-law, mentioned in a document of 1025.
Due to the overflow of the Clanio River, the territory became swampy and inhospitable.
Late Middle Ages
Norman and Swabian occupation
Between the 11th and 12th centuries the territory was conquered respectively by the Normans, following the Norman conquest of southern Italy completed by Roger II of Sicily, and then by the Swabians..
In a document of 1130/1131, written in Lombard characters, Afragola (Afraore) is mentioned for the first time, according to Bartolommeo Capasso, and in which various country estates are listed, granted to the abbot of the monastery of Saints Severino and Sossio, such as: Licignano, Sant'Arcangelo (near Caivano) and Cantarello etc.
A document from August 1143 mentions "Pagano, son of the late Nicola, de la Frahola" and his wife Mansa, who donated a plot of land of 22 quarts, in the district of Cupolo, while the Norman Diplomatic Codex of Alfonso Gallo also mentions Afragola.
The first inhabitants of Arco Pinto erected a small church dedicated to St. Martin, visited in 1619 by Cardinal Decio Carafa and destroyed in 1768 by order of the Governor of Afragola.
Angevin occupation
During the Angevin period, some documents report a "Villa Arcus pinti," of a "Casale Arcus pinti," "loco ubi dicitur Arcus pintus," and the village Canterello, and among the feudal lords are mentioned in the documents: Paolo Scotto, who owned a fief in the place called "a la Fracta," Pandolfo Gennaro, feudatory of Arcopinto, Ermigaldo de Lupian and Raimondo di Odiboni, physician of Charles II of Anjou and feudatory of the Cesine, sold to Giovanni Protomedico and, later, to Guglielmo de Brusato.
On Feb. 24, 1265 Afragola was visited by King Charles I of Anjou, on his way to Naples, who was welcomed by 18 knights and M. Francesco Loffredo, Elected of the Government, who presented the keys of the City to the king.
In 1284 the "barony" of Afragola was created, when the Curia invested Pierre de Lamanon with all rights over the city, with the exception of the lands already belonging to the archdiocese of Naples; the fief passed from hand to hand numerous times over the following centuries.
During the reign of Charles II of Naples and Robert of Anjou, many fiefs and lands in the city were owned by the archiepiscopal curia of Naples, particularly by Archbishop Bernardo Caracciolo, cultivated by vassals in the service of the same curia, including the Salerno man Tommaso Mansella and Robert of Capua, count of Altavilla.
In 1355 Louis of Durazzo camped there with Count Lando's German minions..
In July 1380, the city was involved in the clash between the Durazzeschi and Angevins, and Otto IV of Brunswick-Grubenhagen, husband of Joanna I of Naples, camped there. He ordered that "all farmsteads be evacuated and moved to the fort for the arrival of Sir Charles in the kingdom."
In 1385, Pope Urban VI, besieged by King Charles III of Naples in the castle of Nocera, asked for help from Raimondo Orsini del Balzo, who, accompanied by Francesco della Ratta, count of Caserta, Carlo d'Artus, count of Sant'Agata de' Goti, and 1,200 horsemen, took possession of Afragola, clashing with the enemy troops near Nocera in March of that year, suffering, however, a heavy defeat.
In 1386 Villanuccio di Brunforte camped there with his troops..
In January 1388, Domenico Ruffaldi of Siena encamped in Afragola with Berardo da Recanati and 500 horses, damaging the territory as far as Casalnuovo di Napoli; however, Francesco Della Ratta and his brother Sandolo, accompanied by Teutonic and Breton soldiers, clashed with Ruffaldi, forcing him to retreat..
In addition, on January 26, Queen Margaret of Durazzo's troops encamped near Carluccio Minutolo's tower in a vain attempt to besiege Naples.
However, in April 1389, Otto, in the service of Louis II of Anjou and in the company of Giovanni Acuto, clashed with enemy troops at Casalnuovo in an attempt to repel them, deciding, despite everything, to fall back between Aversa and Afragola..
In May 1392, Ruffaldi, accompanied by Giacomo Stendardo, count of Alife, again attacked Afragola and the aforementioned tower, raiding the territory.
Around 1398 and 1399 Alberico da Barbiano camped there to face the Angevin troops, besieging Naples and forcing the troops to surrender..
In 1423, a clash took place near the city between the troops of King Alfonso V of Aragon with those of Giacomo Sforza, captain of Queen Joanna II of Naples.
Aragonese and Spanish occupation
From 1442 Afragola was part of the Aragonese territories, and then passed to the Spanish during the Spanish viceroyalty of Naples..