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Thanks to its mild climate, availability of drinkable water and abundance of fruit, game and fish, it has been inhabited since the Palaeolithic period, as proved by the findings unearthed in the localities of Vallecoppe, Campi, Costella, Puntalunga, Macchione, Passo dell'Arciprete and Sfinalicchio, as well as by the remnants of tombs – dating back to the Iron Age – found near the Castle and St. Francis cape, and by the immense flintstone mine discovered in the Defensola district. Vieste, occupied by the Greeks, the Romans, the Byzantines, the Longobards, the Normans and the Suevians during different historical periods, enriched its culture while enjoying, like the nearby towns, growing economic and urban development. As a coastal town Vieste repeatedly endured looting and violence brought by the sea. Sadly memorable are the plundering raid carried out by the Venetians in 1239 and the bloody incursion by the Turks in 1554, during which thousands of Vieste’s inhabitants were beheaded; the “Chianca Amara” (the Bitter Rock) of the Cathedral still now brings back memories of this episode.
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