A small region in a large National Park
ABRUZZO
Known in early times as Samnium, became
part of the Kingdom of Southern Italy in the 12th century under the
reign of emperor Frederick the 1st. The region managed to maintain its
political entity until the Italian unification happened in 1860 thanks'
to Giuseppe Garibaldi's victorious campaign.Abruzzo region was merged to Molise into a single region until 1963 when they became two separate regions and Abruzzo was born.
Since the beginning of the 20th century the Italian government first under Mussolini drained the Lake Fucino creating 140 square kilometers of agricultural land. Afterwards new railways and highways were built and in 1923 the government established the Parco Nazionale degli Abruzzi (National Park of Abruzzi) where 400 square kilometers and thousands of animals and plants are protected and secure in their habitat. The National Park covers part of Abruzzo, Latium and Molise regions.
Another important step has been concentrate on the blooming tourism industry that, above all in the 70's has provided a more stable economy for the local population and has introduced the beauty of the Adriatic coasts to the whole world.