{"id":68528,"date":"2015-02-24T21:19:00","date_gmt":"2015-02-24T20:19:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sicile-sicilia.net\/?p=68528"},"modified":"2026-10-14T11:08:21","modified_gmt":"2026-10-14T10:08:21","slug":"castiglione-di-sicilia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sicile-sicilia.net\/en\/castiglione-di-sicilia","title":{"rendered":"Castiglione di Sicilia"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

At the foot of the northern slope of Etna<\/a>, the village of Castiglione<\/strong> is perched on a hill reaching 620 metres that overlooks the unique Alcantara valley<\/a>. It is a village of medieval origin that has retained much of its authenticity, listed among the “most beautiful villages in Italy” (borghi pi\u00f9 belli d’Italia<\/a>), on one of the wine routes with its Etna Rosso terroir.<\/p>\n

Historical overview<\/h2>\n

The name Castrileonis, meaning “castle of the lions” (a royal attribute), is known from a mention in a document of Roger the Norman<\/strong> dated 1092.
Greeks are said to have settled here around the end of the 5th century BC, having been exiled from Naxos after their defeat against Dionysius of Syracuse.
After the Normans and the Swabians, Frederick III of Aragon, King of Sicily, took in 1301 this fief from Roger of Lauria, an admiral who served the Aragonese kings. The latter had fought for the Aragonese against the Angevins during the Sicilian Vespers, but supported King James of Aragon against his brother Frederick III, whereas the latter, unlike the King of Aragon, did not want to conclude peace.
Later the fief became a barony and marquisate of the Gioeni family.<\/p>\n\n\n