Patron saint festival In 89 days
Saint Leucius of Alexandria in winter
📅 Every year, on 11 January
San Leucio del Sannio celebrates Saint Leucius of Alexandria on 11 January, with a second observance on 10 August.
San Leucio del Sannio has 3,238 inhabitants on a green hill between the valley of the Sabato and that of the Serretelle, a few kilometres from Benevento. Originally it was called Casale de' Collinari; then it took its name from the church of Saint Leucius the bishop, which appears in a document of 1158 and stands on the highest point of the village — the houses grew around it, and the hamlets down the slopes.
From 1077 to 1861 San Leucio was a casale of Benevento, and therefore territory of the Papal State: almost eight centuries as a papal enclave in the middle of the Kingdom of Naples. At the beginning of the seventeenth century there was even a border dispute over a district, the Esquito, which the viceroy of Naples claimed as his, attached to Ceppaloni: the Holy See won. The future Leo XIII used to come here on holiday when he was apostolic delegate at Benevento, and here cardinal Stefano Borgia wrote his history of Benevento. Palazzo Zamparelli, built in 1761 by a jurist who was counsellor to Charles III of Spain, played host to both of them.
The San Leucio del Sannio guide
🎉 Festivals and feasts in San Leucio del Sannio 2
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Patron saint festival In 300 days
Saint Leucius of Alexandria in summer
📅 Every year, on 10 August
San Leucio del Sannio celebrates Saint Leucius of Alexandria a second time on 10 August, alongside the 11 January observance.
Straight-line distances from the town centre. Tap a point to open its page.
Near San Leucio del Sannio
The closest destinations covered by our editors, with straight-line distance.
Places to see within 25 km
Outside San Leucio del Sannio, but an easy day trip away.
Castellana Caves 📍 Castellana Grotte · 1.8 km A 3,348-meter karst cave system mapped in 1938, noted for its 60-meter-deep skylight and dazzling white formations. Santuario di Maria Santissima Regina del Mondo 📍 Monopoli · 6.4 km The sanctuary in the Antonelli district of Monopoli, rebuilt as a vow for the town's safety and consecrated in 1950. Rione Monti 📍 Alberobello · 13 km The 1,030 trulli of Alberobello's larger quarter, laid dry-stone to dodge a tax. Trullo Sovrano 📍 Alberobello · 12 km With walls reaching 2.70 metres in thickness, the Trullo Sovrano is the supreme example of dry-stone architecture. Fondazione Museo Pino Pascali 📍 Polignano a Mare · 13 km Puglia's only permanent contemporary art museum, set in a former slaughterhouse overlooking the sea in Polignano. Chiesa di Sant'Antonio Abate 📍 Fasano · 17 km The Observant friars' church in Fasano, with its dome, onion-spired bell tower and frescoed 1600s cloister.