Sicilian King William II, was nicknamed William the good because of his policies of
leniency and justice towards the towns and barons in contradiction to his father in 1267.
According to legend, one day while William the good was out hunting along the
countryside he fell asleep under a carob tree. While William was sleeping the Holy
Virgin appeared to him in a dream, and she suggested to him that he should build a
church here in place of the carob tree. After removing the tree, a treasure was found
entangled in the roots, golden coins that that would fund the construction of the church.
