Origins and History

The term Torraca probably comes from “Torre de Jaco” , a Lord lived in Torraca during the past centuries.

Probably its origins date back to the X century AD and are attributed to people of Greek matrix.

The more likely hypotheses is that the same inhabitants of the coast, far from the village about 10 km, were pushed by the devastation of the Saracens in 915 to take refuge in the hills and to establish the new town.

During the Vespro’s war between Angioini and Aragonesi (1285-1302), the ancient village constituted a major inland Angioini’s  fort .

The Cappelli writes that the Italian-Greek holy monk Fantino lived in Mercurium, but in the years 951 and 952 he moved to Torraca, where he died and probably here are preserved his remains.

In 1806 the country suffered the assault of French troupes, which fired the town and sacked the BaronaleCastle by taking away paintings, statues and other value items.

Carlo Pisacane in June 1857, after landing in Sapri, came to Torraca in the historic “Olmo” square and he held a famous speech encouraging the people to revolt, but nobody could follow him in his plan because on that day there was the  San Pietro Feast, the village’s patron. The inhabitants of Torraca however told him the road to get to Fortino without danger.