Castles of Sardinia
Pedres Castle - Olbia. Photo by: Valentino Selis / sardegnaturismo.it
Castles of Sardinia
Japanese version
Sardinia サルデーニャ州の城 日本語PDFダウンロードはこちらから
There were a hundred of them, carrying stories, legends, and mysteries from the Middle Ages. From promontories overlooking the sea, they looked down on heavenly beaches and from mountain ridges they dominated valleys, at their feet picturesque villages rose.
The Judicates castles, built between the 11th and 14th centuries, are tangible proof of an intense chapter of Sardinian history, straddling the Republics of Genoa and Pisa and the Aragonese dominations. They had a military function and they housed military garrisons, sometimes also serving as noble residencies. Throughout the centuries, as their defensive role ended, they were abandoned: many have been lost, others are now intriguing ruins immersed in the rugged Sardinian landscape, and many have come down to us almost intact. Some of them have become museums, such as Sanluri Castle, the only one still inhabited, and the Castelsardo one, currently hosting the Museum of Mediterranean Weaving. Marmilla Castle in Las Plassas is not a museum, nevertheless an exhibition space can be found at its feet.
Every castle has its own ever-present ghosts, controversial and compelling tales, fed by popular imagination and reworked across generations. Sometimes, these tales have been distorted over time, but all of them bear a grain of truth. Stories of bloody battles, unsolved 'mysteries', love affairs, prisons, kidnappings, torture, escapes and betrayals are told, stories that pervade the watchtowers, the underground passages, weapons rooms and the sumptuous dining rooms. Endless labyrinthine tunnels were the escape paths to elude sieges. The myth that brings castles together is the wealth stored in chests, hidden in rooms reachable through secret passages. Treasure hunting was always tricky.
A mysterious aura lingers in the alleged tangled tunnels underneath San Michele castle in Cagliari: it is unknown where they end. Moreover, the castle has been recently enhanced from a cultural and naturalistic perspective. It is said that the lord of Monreale castle in Sardara was a wicked man, aware of the hatred towards him, so he confined himself within the manor. At times, he would go to Oristano through an extended tunnel, which would still conceal a treasure kept in a barrel. Nobody searches for it, because it was placed next to another one full of muscas maceddas, giant, monstrous flies.
These more-or-less credible stories involve valiant men and noble houses, from Malaspina and Doria in the castles of the Judicate of Torres to Gallura Viscounts, owners of Pedres Castle at the gates of Olbia. However, women are often protagonists, sometimes mythical figures such as the janas. Some examples are Samugheo and Lotzorai castles, both named after Medusa, mythological figure in between a fairy and a witch. Sometimes they are extraordinary women, above all the Judge Eleonora d'Arborea. Adelasia, the last Judge of Torres, voluntarily retreated in Goceano castle in Burgos, while the beautiful princess Violante Carroz tried not to abandon the Quirra fortress until the very end. The name of ‘Castello della Fava’ has a peculiar origin: it is a legendary story, concerning Saracen pirates, villagers of Posada and… a pigeon.
Top experiences
- Castle of Serravalle or Malaspina, Bosa
From Serravalle hill it towered over Bosa: from here it surveyed the Temo valley, which runs all the way to the sea. Little has changed since the 12th century, when the castle was built: the structure is almost intact and the village retains the medieval charm of its history.
- Castle of the Doria House, Chiaramonti
Built during the Middle Ages as a 'sentinel' for the Genoese possessions in the region of Anglona, its ruins have been brought to a new life as a location for cultural events and jazz concerts under the moonlight.
- Castle of Pontes, Galtellì
Its name is inseparably linked to that of the Nobel prize in Literature winner Grazia Deledda, it is said that the ghosts of the noble lords who owned the castle still haunt it, and it's the perfect starting point to dig into the vibes of Grazia Deledda's masterpiece 'Reeds in the Wind'.
- Castle of Sanluri
It is a one-of-a-kind castle, camouflaged among the streets of a welcoming town in the Medio Campidano. It is also the only Sardinian castle still inhabited, by the last descendants of the noble family that converted some of its rooms into a museum.
- Castle of Acquafredda, Siliqua
Charm is its signature feature, whether it be its panoramic position over the valley or the gentle hiking trail to reach the top of the hill, itself a natural monument. Or maybe it's because of its Dantesque inhabitant: Count Ugolino, the castle's most famous owner.