The historical roots of this suggestive place are all linked to the old village of Gabicce Monte, rising at 150 m above sea level, and whose original name Castrum Ligabicij o Ligabitii seems to derive from the Lord Ligabitio, the feudatory controlling its lots at the end of the 10th century. The name Gabicce could be traced back to the activity once carried out by the dwellers, mainly devoted to agriculture and breeding: from here comes “legabecchi”, billygoats breeders.
In 909 already, it is attested the existence of a parish community around the Church of S. Ermete, still now at the city gates. To the same age should date back the city walls, since in a papal bull dated 998, the place is called Castellum Ligabitii.