History of Tortoreto

Tortoreto in its Latin translation “ Turturetum ” means “place with many turtledoves”, in fact due to its mild and temperate climate it has always been the favorite area for the nesting of turtledoves.

For history lovers, Tortoreto is the ideal place to spend a holiday dedicated to culture . Rich in history and in the past, in the course of time Eneolithic stations have been discovered in this area, that is the first forms of settlement by tribes, tools and bottoms of huts dating back to more than 6000 years ago. One of the oldest historical artifacts found here in Tortoreto in the Fortellezza, was an Elephans Meridionais, that is a mammoth, of which only the femur more than 2 meters long has been preserved. There is very little left of physical evidence of the Etruscan civilization, only a few sculptures. Important is the testimony of great historians such as Pliny the Elder, who described the area between Pescara and the Salinello, dividing it into three “Agri”. According to Pliny the Elder, Ager Palmensis included the territory of Palma from Salinello to Vibrata, that is, our Tortoreto. In 1981, the first olive stones (Olea Europea), dating back to the second millennium BC, were found by students and teachers of the University of Naples in the Salinello plain.

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historic seaside villages

In the Middle Ages Tortoreto consisted of a part called Terravecchia with the church of S. Eufemia, and Terranova with the church of S. Nicola, in addition it was characterized by the presence of two castles: De Lauro and De Palma.

During the Second World War, the German occupation began in Abruzzo giving way to the Battle of Bosco Martese, which lasted from 24 to 25 September 1943. Many were the killings, the losses of animals, and the reduction of agricultural heritage and zoological of the place was inevitable. But there was a very important event that managed to revive the spirits, especially in those areas such as the Tortoreto station where the damage was considerable due to the bombings, the first post-war motorcycle race.

In 1956 the territory was divided, and the current Alba Adriatica and the hamlet of Tortoreto Lido were born.