Italian Unification and Contemporary Age

The political Italian Unification caused radical changes in the life of Abruzzi mountains. There was a serious crisis due to the following factors:

• After 1860 a fresh outbreak of brigandage;
   
• The decline of sheep farming activities;
   
• The departure of Middle-Class form these zones, which began to practice their professions in the big cities (Naples, Rome and Milan);
   
• The handicraft production loss of value due to the increase of industrial production;
   
• The unemployment of working-class, with the following emigration movement towards America between ’800 and 1913; the phenomenon repeated itself during the Second World War;
   
• The increasing attraction of big cities such as Sulmona, Chieti, L’Aquila and Pescara; this development was supported by the railway improvement;

This new structure caused the rising of some differences between plains and hills. Between 1880 and 1930 began the industrial improvement of Pescara riversides: from Bussi to Manoppello (bitumen mining) and the Aventino Valley (hydroelectric plants and mechanization of previous plants: pasta and tissues). In the same period occurred the decline of mountain centres. Especially the local building heritage suffered this impoverishment: the houses of rich and cultured class remained empty and this caused the urban alterations and the monuments defacement also because of the indiscrimate use of new technologies such as iron and cement.

Maiella preserves in its stone remarkable evidences of this situation suffered by the populations. In 1895 a shepherd called Gabriele Di Battista engraved, on a stone in “Scrima Cavallo”, his curse against the events that transformed Majella from "Kingdom of Flowers" into "Kingdom of Poverty". This cry was recovered, one century later, from another shepherd called Berardino di Felice, from San Vito di Valle Castellana: in 1953 he wished harm on "sfertuna" (bad luck) that banished him in this "questa discrata montagna" (this ungrateful mountain). Summing up, the negative factors were undermining the sociopolitical structure of this mountain system, while the positive ones were acting just on the surface. But from the ends of that century, two elements caused positive outcomes:

• Between 1894 and 1897 the boldest Italian railway was built: the trail line Sulmona-Isernia touched lightly the Maiella Western slope (the Rivisondoli-Pescocostanzo station is the highest one except of Brennero: m 1268,82) and represented a strong recall for the foreign travellers;
   
• In certain places the interest for the hiking and mountain tourism increased (in 1873 was carried out the first hike on Majella peak); in some centres took places activities related to the skiing and to the spa (Caramanico, 1901).

The introduction of cars opened new perspectives. In 1909, a group of journalists made a journey from Rome: "Discovering Abruzzo". Several Italian newspaper spoke about it, and it was also published a book, full of historical pictures, by Emidio Agostinoni in1912. The works by Gabriele D’Annunzio began its spreading: in 1882 with the Novel “Terra Vergine” (Virgin Soil), set in Tocco da Casauria and many others like “Il Trionfo della morte” (Death Triumph, 1892) set in Guardiagrele. Finally, his work “La Figlia di Iorio” (The Jorio’s Daughter) that created the myth of "Maiella Madre" (Mother Majella), basing on contemporary researches and studies and involving the art of painters and engravers. Amon them the creative Francesco Paolo Michetti (1851-1929, from Tocco da Casauria) and the Cascella Family (Its progenitor Basilio, 1860-1950, realized the Abruzzi Illustration).

The burial rite of Andrea Bafile, local heroe in the First World War, contributed to increase the value of “Mother Majella “ worship. He was buried inside the mountain, in Bocca di Valle.
There are many other interpreters of Abruzzi landscape and life. Teofilo Patini (1840-1906) from Castel di Sangro: with his realistic painting succeeded to spread the harsh nature and the humble and suffering faces of these people. Some dialectal poets like Ermindo Campana (1883-1940) from Palena and the very famous tailor-poet from Guardiagrele, Modesto Della Porta (1885-1938).

The contacts with the National culture caused the interest also for historical studies about the local traditions: Antonio De Nino (1833-1907) from Pratola, archaeologist and folklorist. Gennaro Finamore (1836-1923) from Gessopalena, folklorist and dialectologist: he wrote a first dictionary of Abruzzi dialects, published in 1880 and 1893. Nunzio Federigo Faraglia (1841-1920) from Pescocostanzo, paleographer and historian; Pietro Piccirilli (1849-1921) from Sulmona, art historian; Giovanni Pansa (1865-1929) from Sulmona, historian, philologist and folclorist. And finally, the figure of Benedetto Croce (1866-1952): born in Pescasseroli but his family came from Montenerodomo, to which the philosopher dedicated several historical studies.

Between the ‘800 and the ‘900 several personalities built the image of Abruzzo abroad. They were: travellers such as Ferdinando Gregorovius, jointly with the painter Karl Lindemann Frommel, Anne Macdonell and Estella Canziani; sketch writers like Primo Levi, author of book “Abruzzo forte e gentile” (Abruzzi Strong and Kind,1883); guidebook writers like Enrico Abbate, who wrote two books on Majella and Abruzzo (1890-1903) and journalists. There also were researchers like Leopold Gmelin from Germany and the French Emile Bertaux, who carried out important studies on Abruzzi art. Later, we have to mention the great work of Ignazio Carlo Gavini (nel 1927-28) about the architecture.

During the XXth Century, the history of several cities had a serious shock because of the Second World War. During the Conflict Maiella became part of Gustav Line, on which the allied forces fought the German ones. Nine months of struggles that caused the evacuation of several cities, the death of thousands civilians civili and the birth of a first partisan formation, the Maiella Brigade. The villages located along that line were completely destroyed (except of Pescocostanzo) and their restoration deleted the previous historical evidences.

During the Postwar period a new wave of emigration caused the empoverishment of mountain dwellings and enlarged the centrifugal movement towards industrial areas. In contemporary age, these zones developed especially thanks to small industrial activities and tourism. However they were threatened with Mass-Tourism phenomenon or territorial dispossession by outside subjects. The Foundation of Majella National Park was carried out concerning these problems.