The road to Macchie starts just outside the city of Amelia, directly after the Roman bridge. Within a few kilometers this scenic road offers visitors a pleasant and relaxing view in close contact with nature. The altitude of the village is 552m above sea level; for this reason it appears like a characteristic mountainous settlement, where hunting and woodsmen’s traditions are still alive. As archive documents report, it was once known as the ancient “Castrum Machiae” (or “Maclis”), after the Italian word for the woodland (“Macchie”), growing thickly around the stronghold. Macchie’s history is bound up with that of Amelia and as part of its estate, provided important supplies of wood.

As it was situated on land bordering between the Todi territory and the Alviano estate (the feud of the noble family of Liviani, which had Longobard origins), Macchie was frequently destroyed, such as in 1405, when the Municipality of Amelia intervened to reinforce its defensive walls. During the 16th century the castle was newly attacked and devastated by Blaxino degli Atti of Montecampano and Aloisio Liviani from Alviano, brother of the much more famous leader and Captain of Fortune Bartolomeo da Alviano (Todi or Alviano 1455 – Ghedi/Brescia 1515). Legend has it that Emperor Frederick Redbeard stayed in these hills, cutting short his journey to Rome as the Plague had hit the city.

A few wall fragments, part of a turret and the arched doorway are all that survive of the ancient castle. The Parish Church of St. Nicholas of Bari was modernized in the 1930’s, radically altering former architectural structures. Near the village is the tiny Church called “Madonna del Colle”.