Amantea Caslte

About

The Amantea Castle (formerly Regio castello di Amantea) is located in the town of the same name, in the province of Cosenza, in the lower Tyrrhenian Sea of Cosenza. Dominating the coastal road and the road to Cosenza that runs along the Catocastro River valley, it was once an important stronghold under the Byzantines, Arabs, Normans, Swabians, Angevins and Aragonese. It was restored in the viceregal period and under the Bourbons, but suffered severe damage during the earthquakes of 1638 and 1783; it was left in a state of neglect after the disastrous 1806-1807 siege suffered by Napoleonic troops. Currently the castle is in ruins, and access to the remains on the hill overlooking the city is strenuous and dangerous. In 2008, ownership of the surrounding area was acquired by the City of Amantea.

In ancient times the city of Lampeteia or Clampetia, a probable Crotonian colony also inhabited by indigenous Bruttian people, stood in Amantean territory. This city, already decaying in the imperial age, was wiped out by the earthquake and tidal wave of 365: a new city, Nepetia ("new city" or "new camp" in Greek), arose in its vicinity...