Top 14 Castles around Guardea

Past the old monastery you will arrive at the old borgo. The elevated old village has been depopulated since the 19th century and has become a real ruin due to erosion and earthquakes. In 1951 it was completely abandoned. Only the old market square and the castle are accessible, the old houses are completely dilapidated and overgrown with plants over the years. The Orsini castle at the entrance of Celleno antico is the most beautiful building in the borgo. It has a large watchtower and the castle is surrounded by a deep moat. It was recently restored and inhabited by the artist Enrico Castellani. This artist was internationally known (he also studied in Brussels) and died on 1 December 2017. On the old market square you can see a beautiful rectangular bell tower, in 3 layers and made of tuff. Only the walls of the old church San Carlo (17th century), left of the castle, remain. Close to the market square is the church of San Donato from the year 1000 in Romanesque style, with a very beautiful portal in basalt stone.

Recent archaeological discoveries have confirmed the Etruscan origins (4th-3rd centuries BC) of Celleno Vecchio, a settlement that enjoyed a great position, i.e. the ancient communication route between Orvieto, Bagnoregio and Ferento. Ancient sources provide evidence that this medieval settlement is one of the fortified villages built by the Counts of Bagnoregio between the 10th and 11th centuries. At that time, the village must have consisted of a number of dwellings at the end of the tuff, protected by cliffs on three sides, surrounded by walls and a small fortress, which is now the Orsini Castle, to protect the only access route. At the end of the 12th century, after the destruction of Ferento, the municipality of Viterbo began a rapid expansion in the Tiber Valley, also acquiring Celleno, which in 1237 was one of the castles of the Viterbo area governed by a Podest (high official) appointed by the local government. At the end of the 14th century, the city center fell into the hands of the Gatti family, one of the most powerful families in Viterbo. During this period, the medieval fortress was completely renovated and converted into a fortified stately home that can still be seen today. The Gatti family ruled Celleno until the last heir, Giovanni Gatti, who was killed on the orders of Pope Alexander VI (Borgia) for refusing to return the castle. At the beginning of the 16th century, the municipality fell into the hands of the Orsini family. Interestingly, the castle still bears the name of this family. Only towards the end of the 16th century was the church able to incorporate Celleno into its possessions until the unification of Italy. In modern times, Celleno Vecchio was often affected by earthquakes and landslides, until it was finally abandoned in the 1930s. Today it is a small, charming and evocative ghost village, characterized by ruins and vegetation, with beautiful views of the surrounding landscape.

ocated on a hill overlooking the Tiber valley, Montecchio preserves the charm of the Middle Ages intact with its alleys, squares, the light tones of the stone and the mighty walls with defense towers. With a vaguely elliptical shape, the village is one of the best preserved in the valley. Soft hills of olive trees draw its territory. Dense woods make the landscape vivid and lush in the summer, while autumn paints the Mediterranean scrub in orange and red.

Villa built between 1147 and 1149. The proud and proud inhabitants called "Morruzzesi" badly tolerated the corvèes that the city of Todi on which they depended asked them. At the end of the fifteenth century. Altobello Chiaravalle committed violence and robbery, followed by soldiers of Charles VIII with the complacency of their partisan Atti Tuderti. In the seventeenth century. it became the property of the Paparini family, who enlarged the palace and founded the Oratory of S. Ambrogio. To visit the church of S. Giovanni with its baptismal font from 1500. Do not miss the immense view up to the Consolation of Todi which can be enjoyed from the town square.

Melezzole is a fraction of the municipality of Montecchio (TR), located on the Amerini mountains on the border with the Tuderte. It is located at a height of 611 m a.s.l.

The village of Montecchio has medieval origins. Built around the twelfth century. on Roman pre-existences, by the Chiaravalle di Todi family, it served as a fortified castle with two circles of walls, controlling the underlying Tiber valley. It is one of the best preserved medieval villages in the area and is today a lively town with various activities. It was ruled by several noble families, after the Chiaravalle, the Alviano, the Baschi and the Colonna, and then passed under the Acts.

Castle built in 1294 by Todi as an outpost to defend the territory. The current village retains only some original elements such as the medieval tower. The eagle is the symbol of the city of Todi. In the 80s of the last century, Castel dell'Aquila hosted one of the first Italian computer factories. It was called "Eagle" and had a good commercial success. Many workers were from the place and the expression of the workers (they were mainly women) who assembled the computers was handed down: "that you pass me the slots? ..". In the village there are bars, mini markets and other shops.

Village that develops around an ancient medieval castle (XIII century). On the top stands the bell tower of the church of San Biagio located in the central square, reachable through narrow stairways that break the concentric rings of the ancient walls, creating suggestive slits from which you can see the forest landscape below. Located at 610 meters high, it has a single main access through an ancient tower, well preserved, where the effigy of an eagle stands out to testify to the long dominion exercised on the village by nearby Todi. In the village there is a bar, a butcher (km0), a minimarket, an electrical and household items shop, a flower shop. There is a fountain for fresh water supplies right inside the tower.