Quadrelle

The Municipality of Quadrelle is located in the area of Lower Irpinia. It's a town with 1,872 inhabitants, located 300 metres above sea level, at 23 km from Avellino. The territory extends for 6.93 sq km and the adjoining municipalities are: Mercogliano, Mugnano del Cardinale, Sirignano and Summonte.
The etymology of the name could derive from the Latin term quadra, or "square plots", or from the fact that the municipality is located in the area of the ancient Oppidum Quatrellarum, where the javelins with a quadrangular tip, the so-called "quatrelle", were made for the Roman soldiers. The inhabitants are called Quadrellesi and Saint John the Baptist is their patron saint.

PLACES OF INTEREST

Church of SS. Annunziata (Most Holy Annunciation) - Built in the 16th century it has a Baroque style of the late 18th century, with a typical bell tower
Church of SS. Assunta (Holy Mary of the Assumption) - Characteristic religious building with a narrow body, the clock located between the two windows and the two bells located at the top in the centre
Pagano garden - A beautiful green space that accompanies the homonymous palace
Casa Andrea Mattis - House where the patriot and writer Andrea Mattis (1806-1861), originally from Quadrelle, lived
Castle of the Litto - Remains of the fortress that dominates the inhabited centre below from a hill
Vallefredda - Refuge at the foot of Mount Partenio, surrounded by greenery
Acquaserta bridge - Built between the 19th and 20th centuries, it's a great example of modern naturalistic engineering and takes its name from the homonymous waterfall, very suggestive

EVENTS

Patronal Feast - Religious celebrations in honour of the patron saint, accompanied by the "Processione dei Battenti" (Procession of the Barefoot Confreres), scheduled for the month of August
Feast of the Maio - Traditional religious event in honour of Saint Anthony the Great, scheduled for January
ArtèNot - Event that was created to promote art and culture in all its forms, as well as to enhance the historic centre of the town

TYPICAL FOOD AND PRODUCTS

Cicoli PAT - Typical dish of the culinary tradition of Lower Irpinia, based on pork fat: they are often used as a reinforcement for pizzas and rustic pies
Black Truffle of Partenio - Precious product with scents of the undergrowth
Hazelnut - Strong presence of hazelnut cultivation, already existing in Campania in the Roman era
Chestnuts - Very characteristic production of the mountains that surround the village
Caciocavallo Silano PDO - Semi-hard cheese, with spun curd, produced with milk from different breeds of cows, including Podolica

FUN FACTS

Over the last fifty years, the population of Quadrelle has experienced a strong demographic increase, almost doubling the number of inhabitants in its municipal area: from 1,011 in 1971 to 1,872 today.

HISTORICAL NOTES

The first inhabitants of the Quadrelle territory date back to the Roman era, this is testified by a colony occupied in the manufacture of “quatrelle” (spears with a square point).
The real origins of the town, however, date back to around 1100, when the homonymous farmhouse arose near a castle built by the Swabians. Although there is no direct evidence in this regard, this fortress may coincide with the Swabian Castle of the Litto, belonging, at that time, to the territory of Mugnano del Cardinale, of which Quadrelle was a hamlet.
In the following centuries, the farmhouse was ceded to the Abbey of Montevergine; it therefore became a possession of Santa Casa dell'Annunziata in Naples. In the 18th century, it managed to win the title of "Terra di Quadrelle", becoming an independent municipality and, in 1861, it definitively passed to the province of Avellino.