What castles are of the castell type. Castel del Monte: a mysterious castle. Apulia. Citadel of Arcane Knowledge

There are many beautiful places on the planet that enjoy the increased attention of tourists. The south of Italy is world famous for its outstanding architecture, and the eastern region of Puglia is no exception. Many buildings are of interest not only for their original designs. Buildings, the purpose of which remains a big mystery for posterity, become the subject of discussion among tourists and the object of many years of research by scientists.

Bari: sights of the Middle Ages

The capital of the region is famous for its religious monuments. Nicholas with the myrrh-streaming relics of Nicholas the Wonderworker, the Church of St. Sabin are the main attractions of the ancient city. Bari is surrounded by medieval historical monuments, which tourists from all over the world come to admire.

The most famous building is the Castell del Monte, called the most mysterious building in Europe. The correct octagon, literally saturated with symbolism, stirs the minds of specialists.

The conflicting identity of the castle owner

To understand the architectural features of a capital structure, it is necessary to get to know its owner - an ambiguous person who evokes different feelings among historians.

The controversial personality of Emperor Frederick II of Hohenstaufen caused a lot of controversy and opinion. It is known that his cruelty and thirst for power knew no bounds. For lack of religious feelings, he was excommunicated from the church, which did not prevent him from winning the Crusade.

The emperor who returned Jerusalem to the Christian world was considered a very educated person. The surviving old document describes the decree of Frederick II on the start of large-scale construction of the castle near the monastery of Santa Maria del Monte. Work began on the high hill at the beginning of 1240 and continued for about ten years.

The fate of the historical monument

It is believed that the emperor himself took part in the development of the grandiose project of Castel del Monte, but no documentary evidence of his residence in his brainchild was found. After the death of the crowned lady, the castle was inherited by the sons, but after some time it was abandoned and served as a shelter for local shepherds. After repeated acts of vandalism, in 1876 it was taken under state protection.

There is a legend saying that the imperious emperor did not die in 1250, but simply hid from the whole world, planning to reform the church and establish peace on earth.

Riddles that don't have answers yet

Not all scholars agree on the start date for the construction of Castel del Monte. Serious financial difficulties are known in 1239, due to which the construction of other fortresses in the empire was suspended. This is one of the first mysteries, on which specialists are still working.

The second, concerning the true purpose of the monumental structure, torments all historians. There is an official version according to which the building was originally built as a residence for the emperor who loves falconry. However, the spiral staircases inside the castle are twisted to the left, counterclockwise, in a completely different direction than was customary. In a huge room there is not even a hint of rooms for supplies, servants, stables, and the interior decoration is too luxurious for a hunting lodge.

Castle or something else?

Situated on a high hill, the octagon, on the corners of which there are towers, is not like other castles. It does not have the obligatory drawbridge, rampart and moat, and the main entrance is made in the form of a gothic temple portal facing east.

The architectural creation, which is a two-story structure with a flat roof, was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999.

The symbolism of the eight

The octagonal plan of the building, located in the city of Bari, whose sights are known throughout the world, made the building famous. Despite the fact that the building looks intimidating, it has never been a defensive structure. Eight trapezoidal rooms on the first floor, not intended for receiving guests, and the same number of rooms on the second floor, corner turrets with eight sides are full of surprises. The symbolic number is repeated in the architectural details a huge number of times.

The courtyard once housed a marble pool, symbolizing the Holy Grail. Needless to say, it also had an octagonal shape. And under it were water tanks, combined into a special hydraulic system - the oldest sewer of the Middle Ages.

The interior of Castel del Monte is surprising: all its details continue the theme of the figure eight - a symbolic figure of infinity, considered to be the transition from earth to sky.

Calendar and sundial

The main feature of the historical monument is its ability to show time. The first floor is a kind of calendar counting time. Direct sunlight penetrates into each room on the second floor twice a day throughout the year (for rooms on the first floor this is true only in summer), turning the building into a giant sundial.

At noon on the autumnal equinox, the massive walls of the castle cast a shadow that is equal to the length of the courtyard. Gradually, it lengthens until it "accommodates" the entire structure.

A place for occult rituals?

The realm of geometry, numerology, all kinds of secret signs, most likely served as a meeting place for communities that conducted occult rites, or an astronomical observatory in which they practiced alchemy. The retinue of Frederick II included the famous astrologer and magician Michele Scoto, whose name was mentioned by Dante in his work, describing the hell of sorcerers.

The construction of Castel del Monte was not without the influence of the Templars. The stone crown of Puglia, as the mysterious masterpiece of world architecture is also called, was the material embodiment of esoteric, astronomical and mathematical knowledge.

Citadel of Arcane Knowledge

The national monument is adored by tourists admiring the original stone work, which has no analogues. Travelers coming to the south of Italy will certainly visit the castle that has become legendary, the image of which is minted by the government of the country on small coins. The majestic building is in no hurry to give out all the secrets, but that makes it more interesting to look into the citadel of secret knowledge.

The castle is located in Puglia, not far from the city of Andria. According to assumptions, it was erected on the site of a destroyed fortress. True, no trace of her was ever found. In 1240, King Frederick II gave the order to build a castle on the site of the fortress. Construction lasted exactly ten years. After the construction is completed, the ruler suddenly dies. From that moment, all the secrets began. Until now, no one knows who built the castle, and how it was used in people's lives. It is known that Frederick was friends with the leader of the Teutonic Order. Some documents say that even the emperor himself was a member of the order and was one of the masters. The construction has no practical significance, it was built under the influence of the Templars. It is unlikely that practical minds will understand its essence, it is better to think philosophically here.

If you look closely at the structure, you can pay attention to the octagons located on the floors of the castle. The octagon is in an intermediate position between the square - the sign of the earth and the circle, personifying the sky. Such buildings were always built by the Templars. On the first and second floors there are eight rooms in the shape of a trapezoid. The towers can be reached by spiral staircases that rotate counterclockwise. This is contrary to all other buildings of past centuries, in which the stairs were wrapped in a clockwise direction. All rooms of the castle are built like a labyrinth, it is completely unclear which one you will find yourself in next time. It is also surprising that there is not a single living space in the castle, there are empty bare rooms around.

Inside the castle, in the courtyard, there is an octagon-shaped pool carved from a single piece of marble. It was used for the secret rite "tear of the Lord", conducted by members of the Knights Templar. Under the pool was a system of cisterns for rainwater. This is one of the first examples of ancient sewers that have survived to this day. The whole interior is simply crammed with objects resembling figure eights. Even in the stucco on the walls, there are a lot of references to the number eight. Why "8"? The thing is that this figure symbolizes infinity and connects heaven and earth.

If we consider the castle from the mystical side, then it was used as a secret temple, as a place that helps to get in touch with the heavenly forces. Even the entrance to the building is from the side of the rising sun. Judging by all the architecture and location, the sun plays one of the main roles. At noon, it casts a shadow in such a way that the outlines completely repeat the proportions of the castle. During the summer solstice, rectangular shadows appear, cast so that the castle is exactly in the middle. On the entrance columns are two lions, looking directly at the sunrise points.

If we consider the practical side of using the lock, then everything is simple. Scientists have found that Frederick II was very fond of hunting falcons. He even wrote a whole book about these birds with his own drawings. It is likely that Castel del Monte was used as a hunting castle or for important events.

Our time Castel del Monte

Castel del Monte, whose name translates as "castle on the mountain", stands in the city of Andria in the Italian region of Apulia. It once bore the name of Castrum Sancta Maria del Monte, as it was built on the site of the previously existing monastery of St. Mary on the Mountain. True, by the time the castle was erected in the middle of the 13th century, nothing remained of the monastery.

The construction of the castle was started by order of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II and lasted about ten years. Already in 1250, the powerful building was ready, although the interior decoration continued.

Having the shape of a regular octagon, Castel del Monte is located 16 km from the city of Andria, in a place called Terra di Bari - Land of Bari. The same octagonal towers were built in the corners. The height of the castle reaches 25 meters, the length of the walls is 16.5 meters, and the width of the walls of the towers is 3.1 meters. The main entrance is located on the east side, and there is a spare portal on the west side. An interesting feature of the castle is that the two sides of the side tower are in contact with one of the sides of the main building.

It must be said that the two-story Castel del Monte is not really a castle in the full sense of the word, since it does not have a moat, ramparts or a drawbridge. There are no storage rooms, stables and a separate kitchen. Therefore, the purpose of Castel del Monte is still controversial among scientists. The generally accepted version is that the castle was the hunting residence of Emperor Frederick II. True, the richly finished interiors make scientists argue further - this decoration was too lush and elegant for a hunting lodge.

Inside the castle consists of 16 rooms, eight on each floor. The corner towers are occupied by wardrobes, toilets and spiral staircases, the latter turning not to the right, but to the left. The location of the castle rooms is interesting: for example, two rooms on the first floor do not have access to the courtyard. Four rooms have only one door, and walk-through halls have 2-3 portals each. All rooms on the second floor are illuminated by sunlight twice a day throughout the year, while the rooms on the first floor are illuminated only in summer. Such a strange design suggests that Castel del Monte was a kind of astronomical instrument: its upper part is a giant sundial, and the first floor serves as a calendar, the spaces of which are evenly illuminated for the summer and winter solstice. And this is another unsolved mystery of the ancient castle, which the locals call the "Crown of Puglia".

Castle del Monte (Castel del Monte) rises alone on a secluded hill of the Western Murge in the desert area of ​​​​the city of Andria in the province of Bari, at an altitude of 560 meters above sea level. The castle complex received its modern name only at the end of the 15th century; the original name has not been preserved. The castle Castel del Monte was named after the ancient settlement of the same name at the foot of the hill, on which there was a small monastery of Santa Maria del Monte. Often the locals of Andria call it the "Crown of Puglia".

Historians believe that Castel del Monte was conceived as a hunting residence, but the interior decoration of the rooms was too richly decorated and furnished with luxurious furniture for such purposes.

Castel del Monte is a two-storey building with a flat roof. Externally, the palace is a regular octagon with a length of each side equal to 16.5 meters.

At each of the corners rises a magnificent octagonal tower. Exactly in the center of the height along the entire perimeter of the castle complex, a narrow cornice stretched, which serves as a visual division of the floors. The upper cornice separates the plinth of the palace and is located at a height of 2 meters.

The courtyard of the Castel del Monte castle is shaped according to the outlines of the building itself. The height of the structure from the inner side of the courtyard is 20.5 meters, only the corner towers proudly protrude upwards. On the roof of the castle, a neatly paved terrace is laid out in the form of a herringbone, which offers stunning panoramic views of the sea.

The facade of the main entrance faces the east side. There is a second emergency entrance on the western wall. The building is built of polished limestone, and only round columns, decorative window frames and facades are made of high-quality marble. Each of the outer walls has two windows, on the first one - single-arch, on the second - two-arch. A bright decoration of the north side on the second floor is a single window with three arches. The interior apartments are shaped like a regular trapezoid. There are only 16 full-fledged rooms in the castle - eight on each floor. Despite the fact that all apartments have a similar shape, they differ in the location of the doors. Two large halls of Castel del Monte have exits on both sides of the building and are connected to neighboring halls, while they do not have an entrance to the courtyard. In addition to passage rooms, there are also end rooms in the fortress with one door to the corridor. The most striking of these rooms is the Throne Room.

Corner towers serve as wardrobes, bathrooms and spiral staircases. Moreover, the arrangement of the latrines of Castel del Monte proves the high level of sanitary standards in a civilized society of the Middle Ages. All toilets were well ventilated through slots in the walls and flushed with water from tanks installed on the roof. An interesting fact is that the stairs do not traditionally twist to the right, but to the left, similar to the physiology of nature, as, for example, the shell of a snail twists to the right.

There is a legend that the romantic and mysterious Castel del Monte has a secret underground eighteen-kilometer tunnel to the Ducale di Andria castle, and a four-kilometer passage to the Castello di Canosa fortress.

Castel del Monte was built by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, who thought of a bright and original design for the fortress. Until now, historians are arguing about the timing of the construction of the complex. According to some documents, it becomes clear that the decree of Frederick II was issued in 1237 and states the construction of a new castle in Santa Maria di Monte.

From other documents it follows that the decree of the king dates back to 1240 and prompted the restoration of the fortress, previously built by the Lombard Robert Giscard and his son Roger Norman in 1073. In any case, Castel del Monte acquired a modern look under Frederick II and bears resemblance to other fortifications of this era, designed to protect against an external enemy, such as Barletta, Bari, Brindisi, Cosenza, Gioia del Colle, etc.

In 1266, in the war for dominance over the territories of Sicily and Naples, Frederick's son Manfred was defeated and killed. This ended the rule of the Swabian dynasty in Italy. The winner of the Battle of Benevento, Charles of Anjou, imprisoned the underage children of Manfred - Friedrich, Heinrich and Enzo, where they spent as much as 33 years. After that, Castel del Monte was used from time to time for wedding ceremonies.

In 1459, the fortress passed into the possession of the noble Italian family of Senor Ferrante of Aragon. And in 1656, the castle last served as a residence for the noble families of Italy fleeing the plague, which raged in the city of Andria. And after some time, Castel del Monte was empty and only in the 19th century turned into a house of shepherds, local robbers and marauders. During this period, the castle was plundered, precious marble materials were stripped from the walls, and rich sculptures were sold.

In 1876, the fortification passed into the possession of the noble Carafa family, who took up its restoration and reconstruction.

Currently, Castel del Monte is a monument of medieval architecture and is open to all tourists.

The cost of excursions (when buying a ticket on the spot): adults - €3; children under 18 years old, visitors over 65 years old and disabled people (upon presentation of an identity card) - free of charge; students from 18 to 25 years old - €1.5.

Tour time: ~ 30 min. Opening hours: March - September from 10.45 - 19.45; October - February 09.45 - 18.45, closed on Christmas and New Year.

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Castell del Monte is called the "Crown of Puglia" and is considered one of the most mysterious buildings not only in Italy, but throughout Europe. Amazing, mystical and, perhaps, terrible things happened in these walls 8 centuries ago, about which much is still unknown.

Castel del Monte (or castle on the mountain) is located in Italy, in the region of Apulia. Its construction was started by order of Frederick II, presumably in 1240. Interestingly, just a year before this, the financial condition of Spain was so deplorable that Frederick II stopped the construction of several military fortresses. But not Castel del Monte.

A bit of history

In the history of the castle, there is a lot of mysterious and unknown - and even has its own mystical number. The octagonal shape of the building and the pool, 8 towers at the edges, 8 halls on the lower floor and 8 on the upper. In the details of architecture, the number 8 can be found countless times: in the leaves on the columns, the pattern on the vaults. By the way, the magic of the number 8 also spread to the owner of the castle - Frederick II, however, after his death. When the tomb of a king who died in 1250 (add up the numbers) was opened for the restoration of the cathedral in Palermo, a mysterious emerald ring was found on his hand, surrounded by golden petals, of which there were ... of course, 8.

What to see

From afar, the Upland Castle seems round, but if you get closer, its unusual shape becomes visible. Castel del Monte is built in the form of a regular octagon with towers at the corners. In the inner courtyard there was a pool of the same shape, carved from a single piece of stone - a symbol of the Holy Grail.

Castel del Monte stands alone on a secluded hill, climbing to the roof, you can enjoy panoramic sea views from the stone terrace.

It is still not known for sure why this castle was built. Of course, there is an official version - Frederick II, who was fond of falconry, wanted to use it as a hunting lodge, but it is surprising that there are no servants' quarters, a separate kitchen, or stables in Castel del Monte. In a word, everything that exactly should be in the royal hunting residence.

But there are many fireplaces in the castle, too small in size for cooking on them, but suitable for alchemical experiments. Spiral staircases, twisted not to the right, as required by the tradition of that time, but to the left. Communicating doors that allow you to pass almost the entire castle unnoticed, moving from one room to another. There is also a legend about a secret tunnel, almost 18 km long, leading to the castle of Ducale di Andria.

Practical Information

Address: Apulia, Auto Strada Statale, 170 Dir. Website (in English).

You can get there by bus number 6 from Andria (only in the summer season from May to September) or by private car - there is a parking lot near the castle.

Opening hours: from October 1 to March 31 - from 9:00 to 18:30 (sale of tickets until 18:00), from April 1 to September 30 - from 10:15 to 19:45 (sales of tickets until 19:15) . From December 25 to January 2, the castle is closed. Opening hours for other public holidays will be posted on the website.

Excursion price: adults - 5 EUR, students (18-25 years old) - 2.50 EUR. Audio guide - 3.50 EUR.