General & History

The first stones of this historic castle were laid a millennium back, on the site of a Roman settlement and with a ring-side perspective of the site of Hannibal’s crushing victory over the Romans in 217BC. Its first role was as a military look-out tower, and during the following few centuries its passages and drawbridges rattled and clanked with military personnel in full armour battling on behalf on one of the legendary Italian renaissance families, fighting to preserve their economic, military and even religious power-base. It was not until the 18th century that its owners spotted the fact that it had an uncommonly fabulous position and view, and set about exploiting crenellated turrets and moats for their magic and mystery  rather than their martial superiority. The castle became a military objective once again during the second world war, finally settling into a romantic peacetime persona and throwing its doors open to those wishing to holiday in the very heart of Italy’s history.  Ten centuries of warfare have left no ghosts to disturb the sweet sounds of chirruping birds and crickets in what is now a peaceful refuge.