After the fall of Western Roman Empire (476 d.C.), Ostrogoths occupied the town called Molpa. The Eastern emperor Giustiniano wanted to send away this barbaric population, so he sent in Italy the general Belisario. He arrived in 547 to turn out Ostrogoths but he sacked the town and burnt it, destroying everything and making the inhabitants escape. One hundred inhabitants arrived to the hills and settled at the feet of Fontanelle mountain, in a safe place, called Vallone. The place was called Centula, because the founders were one hundred (cento).

Centola was dominated by Longobards, Normans, Svevians, Angevins, Aragons, Bourbon family.
During Longobard period Centola developed.

Around 1250, during Svevian period, Centola became a Universitas, that is a Municipality.
In 1828 the inhabitants of Centola took part to the rebellion of Cilento of 27th /28th June 1828.
The rebels went to Palinuro because they knew they would have found 1500 guns, 12 cannons and munitions. But Bourbons had been alerted about their arrival and the rebels didn't find anything in the arsenal. The rebels read “Il Proclama di Palinuro”, a manifesto in which they asked for a constitution that would give freedom and social justice to everyone.

The rebellion didn’t succeed, it was violently repressed by Marshal Del Carretto, sent by King Francesco I.

Text by StarNetwork srl