Antrodoco is located along the Via Salaria, at the junction for the road to L'Aquila, and it is crossed by the river Velino. Its name means 'between the mountains' and it was a "mansio", a staging post along the Via Salaria, in the papers of Augustus in 14 BC.
The town centre was formed in the Middle Ages around a castle in the top of the village. Conquered by the Normans it became part of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies. In 1382 it was bought by Queen Giovanna I for 11,000 florins.
In 1529 it joined the Papal States and was given by Pope Paul III to Gian Battista Savelli, commander of the Pontifical Guard.
In 1821, in the gorges of Antrodoco was fought the first battle of the Risorgimento between the Austrian troops and the Neapolitan.
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