The Castle of Gallese is located in the province of Viterbo, in Lazio. It is a renovation of the original medieval fortress, as it is easy to guess from the quadrangular plan and the still visible towers. Situated on a tuff spur, the building is located on the east side of the historic village of Gallese. Perhaps already in the Faliscan period there were fortifications in this place.
Already known in the Lombard period and in the seventh century it was occupied by Trasimondo, Duke of Spoleto and was a military fortress. Over time, the fortification grows to become a medieval castle. Various properties follow one another 'The counts of Sutri, the Normans, the Borgias and in the fifteenth century it became the subject of disputes between the powerful rival families of the Orsini and Colonna, Della Rovere, Carafa, Madruzzo and finally the Altemps (1579) who with Roberto son of Cardinal Marco Sittico Altemps started on a project by Carlo Fontana substantial interventions of arrangement and then transformed the castle into a palace, based on a design by Vignola.
After them it becomes property of the Hardouin of Gallese, a family to which Maria Hardouin of Gallese belongs, wife of the writer and poet Gabriele D 'Annunzio. The monumental entrance with the double staircase designed by Vignola embellishes the courtyard and goes up to the loggia, where a large collection of ancient marbles is kept.
The restructuring is due to the projects of Giacomo della Porta, a pupil of Vignola. Most of the finishings of the building are the work of the architect Carlo Fontana. Even though it still has the typical medieval structure, the Palace has all the architectural gentleness of Mannerism.
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