Castello di Carsoli: Medieval Hilltop Castle in Italy
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 3.9
- Popularity
- Very Low
- Country
- Italy
- Primary era
- Medieval
- Eras represented
- Medieval
- Civilizations
- Holy Roman Empire, Kingdom of Naples
- Site type
- Military
- Remains
- Castle
On this page6 sections
History
Castello di Carsoli is a medieval hilltop castle ruin in Italy, above Carsoli in the Province of L’Aquila, established as a lookout tower between 996 and 1000. Count Rinaldo of the Counts of the Marsi created the first tower on Sant’Angelo Hill, and the site later developed into a fortified castle-enclosure, a layout in which defensive works surrounded the buildings within a continuous wall circuit.
Origins and medieval expansion
The medieval settlement of Carsoli formed as a group of houses around Santa Maria in Cellis, close to the remains of the Roman colony of Carsioli or Carseoli at Civita di Oricola. Muslim raiders, described in medieval European usage as Saracens, destroyed the settlement in the tenth century. Count Rinaldo later established the lookout tower on Sant’Angelo Hill and donated the territory of Carsoli and Santa Maria in Cellis to the monastery of Subiaco.
The castle grew through the addition of enclosing walls, creating the site’s castle-enclosure plan. The Angevins, the dynasty that ruled territories in southern and central Italy during the medieval period, carried out the last major renovation stated for the castle in 1293. The first church of Carsoli stood inside the castle’s original wall circuit and was dedicated to Saint Angelo.
Feudal rule and municipal ownership
Castello di Carsoli passed successively to the Counts of Albe, the Barons of Tagliacozzo, and the Orsini and Colonna families. The Orsini and Colonna were powerful Italian aristocratic houses that controlled extensive feudal territories. Their possession continued until 1806, when the abolition of feudalism ended the castle’s feudal status.
The ruin remained in the ownership of the De Leoni family until 2013, when it passed to the municipality of Carsoli. Renovation and safety works in 2021 affected parts of the castle, including the retaining wall of the embankment and the central tower.
Remains
Hilltop setting and enclosure
Known also as Forte de’ Leoni, the castle occupies the summit of Sant’Angelo Hill at the confluence of the Mura and Turano streams. Its elevated position overlooks the Piana del Cavaliere and the Castle of Oricola to the south, the Mura valley to the north, and the valley leading east toward the pass of Monte Bove. The ruin is built in rubble stone and has an inverted-L plan enclosed by defensive walls.
Towers and access ramp
The oldest surviving element is a tower at the angle where the two enclosing walls meet. Two further quadrangular or rectangular towers stand at the ends of the enclosure’s two arms. An access ramp is bordered by southeastern and northeastern walls, both largely collapsed. The castle is generally ruinous, while the ruins of the Church of Sant’Angelo lie near the fortified complex.
