Melfi, Medieval castle town in Basilicata, Italy
Melfi is a hillside town in the province of Potenza in the northern part of the Basilicata region, at an elevation of around 530 meters above sea level. The old town walls enclose narrow stone lanes that climb up toward the Norman castle, while newer neighborhoods spread below the historic center.
Norman conquerors built a fortress on the hill in the 11th century and turned the settlement into an important military stronghold in southern Italy. In 1231, Emperor Frederick II proclaimed a legal code here that shaped jurisprudence in the Kingdom of Sicily for centuries.
The castle now houses an archaeological museum displaying finds from Roman times and giving visitors insight into the region's ancient past. On weekends you can see families walking through the castle walls and enjoying the view, while school groups regularly come for educational trips.
The old town is easy to explore on foot, though the steep lanes require some stamina. For a visit to the castle you should plan at least two hours, and comfortable shoes are advisable because of the cobblestone paths.
In the 1990s a large automobile plant was built on the edge of town, creating thousands of jobs and fundamentally changing the region's economy. Today many workers commute here from surrounding villages, giving the medieval place a modern industrial dimension.
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