The Castello di Carimate is a 14th-century castle located on Piazza Castello #1 in the town of

Carimate Carimate ( Brianzöö: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Como in the Italian region Lombardy, located about north of Milan and about south of Como. As of 01 January 2021, it had a population of 4,405 and an area of .All demogra ...

Province of Como The Province of Como ( it, Provincia di Como; german: Provinz Como; Comasco: ) is a province in the north of the Lombardy region of Italy and borders the Swiss cantons of Ticino and Grigioni to the North, the Italian provinces of Sondrio and Le ...

Lombardy Lombardy ( it, Lombardia, Lombard language, Lombard: ''Lombardia'' or ''Lumbardia' '') is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in the northern-central part of the country and has a population of about 10 ...

, Italy.

History

The first documents herald that

Luchino I Visconti Luchino Visconti (also spelled Lucchino, 1287 or 1292 – January 24, 1349) was lord of Milan from 1339 to 1349. He was also a condottiero, and lord of Pavia. Biography Ruler of Pavia from 1315, five years later he was ''podestà'' of Vigevano, ...

in 1345 reconstructed a citadel at the site, destroyed by prior conflicts between

Como Como (, ; lmo, Còmm, label=Comasco dialect, Comasco , or ; lat, Novum Comum; rm, Com; french: Côme) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy. It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como. Its proximity to Lake Como and ...

and Milan. By 1380, Bernabò Visconti sold the castle to his wife

Beatrice Regina della Scala Beatrice ''Regina'' della Scala (1331 – 18 June 1384) was Lady of Milan by marriage to Bernabò Visconti, Lord of Milan, and politically active as the adviser of her spouse.Tuchman, p.333 Life Beatrice Regina was born in Verona in 1331,Charle ...

. The castle passed through a few Visconti hands, and by 1415,

Filippo Maria Visconti Filippo Maria Visconti (3 September 1392 – 13 August 1447)

, granted the castle to a Domenico Aicardi, captain of his stable, as a reward for revealing the conspiracy of the Malatesta, Arcelli and Beccaria. In addition, he was granted the right to add the Visconti suffix to his name. After the transfer of power from the Visconti to the Sfroza, in 1477,

Galeazzo Maria Sforza Galeazzo Maria Sforza (24 January 1444 – 26 December 1476) was the fifth Duke of Milan from 1466 until his assassination a decade later. He was notorious for being lustful, cruel, and tyrannical. He was born to Francesco Sforza, a popula ...

reconfirmed the property as belonging to the heirs of Giorgio Scaramuzza Visconti Aicardi, which include a son Lancelotto Visconti, who in 1481 refurbished again the Castle. Among the famous guests was Bianca Maria Sforza, daughter of the Duke of Milan, being escorted in 1493 by a large cortege to Germany to become the bride of the

Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I (22 March 1459 – 12 January 1519) was King of the Romans from 1486 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1508 until his death. He was never crowned by the pope, as the journey to Rome was blocked by the Venetians. He proclaimed himself El ...

. In 1496 and 1499, the Maximilian himself stayed in the castle. In 1626, with the death of Annibale Visconti, last male descendant of Domenico Ajcardi, the castle becomes property ultimately to an Ottavio Visconti, whose family held the castle till 1795, when his last male descendant, Lodovico Visconti, died. In 1800, the castle was sold to the brothers Cristoforo and Carlo Arnaboldi of Como. In 1874, Bernardo Arnaboldi Gazzaniga, Count of Pirocco, performs another major refurbishment of the castle. Period photographs document how he displayed his large collection of paintings, tapestries, and other artworks in the dwelling. The large square block of a

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

-style building has a central courtyard. Traces of a

portcullis A portcullis (from Old French ''porte coleice'', "sliding gate") is a heavy vertically-closing gate typically found in medieval fortifications, consisting of a latticed grille made of wood, metal, or a combination of the two, which slides down gr ...

and drawbridge remain at the entrance, the former gatehouse. At the southwest corner is a tall brick tower, mainly separate from the main block. The entrance has a series of asymmetries to the structure. The peaked windows on the second floor are mullioned; the roofline crenellated, as are parts of the fences on the town-side. The northern side has an elevated terrace above the grounds. The castle, now only 30 minutes outside of Milan, is presently used as a 50-room hotel and spa, with access to the adjacent nearby golf-course, and on site restaurant. The interior decoration includes neo-gothic ribbing and ceiling decorations added in the 19th century.

Curiosity

Between 1977 and 1987 some rooms of the Castle were used as a recording studio with the name Stone Castle Studios. Artists like

Yes Yes or YES may refer to: * An affirmative particle in the English language; see yes and no Education * YES Prep Public Schools, Houston, Texas, US * YES (Your Extraordinary Saturday), a learning program from the Minnesota Institute for Talente ...

Fabrizio De Andrè Fabrizio is an Italian first name, from the Latin word "Faber" meaning "smith" and may refer to: * Fabrizio Barbazza (born 1963), Italian Formula One driver * Fabrizio Barca (born 1954), Italian politician * Fabrizio Brienza (born 1969), Italian mo ...

Mia Martini Mia Martini (; born Domenica Rita Adriana Bertè ; 20 September 1947 – 12 May 1995) was an Italian singer, songwriter and musician.James Christopher MongerMia Martini allmusic.com Pooh Winnie-the-Pooh, also called Pooh Bear and Pooh, is a fictional Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic teddy bear created by English author A. A. Milne and English illustrator E. H. Shepard. The first collection of stories about the character w ...

Lucio Dalla Lucio Dalla (; 4 March 1943 – 1 March 2012) was an Italian singer-songwriter, musician and actor. He also played clarinet and keyboards. Dalla was the composer of " Caruso" (1986), a song dedicated to Italian opera tenor Enrico Caruso, and ...

, Antonello Venditti,

Riccardo Cocciante Riccardo Cocciante (; born 20 February 1946), also known in French-speaking countries and the U.S. as Richard Cocciante (), is an Italian singer, composer, theatre man and musician. He acquired French citizenship. Personal life Cocciante was b ...

, Nena, Paul Young and Roberto Vecchioni, have recorded there.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carimate Castles in Lombardy Buildings and structures in the Province of Como Gothic architecture in Lombardy