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Solidly tied to the figure of Padre Pio, San Giovanni Rotondo actually has a history which is much older than that of the monk proclaimed a saint in 2002 with the name Saint Pius of Pietrelcina. The town, which extends in a valley in Gargano National Park, was officially founded in 1095, but its territory was the site of settlements as early as the Neolithic Age. Its name comes from the presence of an ancient round temple, dating from the 2^nd century BC, dedicated first to the pagan god Janus and then consecrated to Saint John the Baptist. A royal city under the Swabians, it suffered the dominations of the Angevins, Aragonese, Spaniards and Bourbons and was sacked various times primarily in the wars between the Spaniards and French. The figure of Padre Pio, the presence of his remains and the places where he lived and died, as well as the hospital complex Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza he wanted, currently permeate the entire life of the city, drawing crowds of pilgrims and visitors.