Maria Santissima dei Cipressi Patronal Feast

A patronal feast in the village of the Cipresseta

The Maria Santissima dei Cipressi Patronal Feast is the most anticipated event of the year in Fontegreca, a small town in the province of Caserta, Campania, nestled in the Matese Regional Park. The celebration is traditionally held on September 8th, the day of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and honors the Madonna venerated in the sanctuary located at the entrance to the famous Cipresseta, a rare cypress forest considered unique in Europe.

The sanctuary and popular devotion

The chapel of the Madonna dei Cipressi has ancient origins: according to tradition, it was built by a group of monks and, following the discovery of a sacred image in a cave by some shepherds, it became a destination for deep devotion. Rebuilt in the 17th century and restored several times, the small sanctuary houses beautiful majolica tiles and represents the spiritual heart of the Fontegreca community. The feast expresses the centuries-old bond between the village and its protector.

Religious rites and secular events

As is the tradition for patronal feasts in Southern Italy, the program combines the sacred and the secular:

• Solemn liturgical celebrations and a procession with the effigy of the Madonna;
• Concerts by the Gran Concerto Bandistico del Montemaggiore Città di Pietramelara;
• Evenings of folk music, entertainment, and stalls featuring local products;
• Secular initiatives organized by the new committee of young volunteers.

A young committee for a living tradition

For the 2026 edition, a group of young volunteers established the new Maria Santissima dei Cipressi Feast Committee, with the goal of revitalizing religious solemnities and proposing new secular initiatives. For the occasion, a hymn to Maria Santissima dei Cipressi for a brass band, composed by Maestro Giovanni De Robbio, was written and donated to the parish community and the Municipality of Fontegreca.

Fontegreca and the Matese

Visiting Fontegreca during the feast also means discovering one of the most evocative landscapes in the province of Caserta: the Cipresseta, the ancient water mill powered by the river, the Sava valley, and the healthy air of the Matese mountains. An opportunity to combine faith, popular tradition, and nature in an authentic village of inland Campania.