The Castle of Stilo or Norman Castle is a castle of the Norman period built at

Stilo , image_skyline = Stilo vecchio 2.jpg , imagesize = , image_alt = , image_caption = , image_shield = Stilo-Stemma.png , shield_alt = , image_map = , map_alt = , m ...

Calabria , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

in southern Italy by

Roger I of Sicily Roger I ( it, Ruggero I, Arabic: ''رُجار'', ''Rujār''; Maltese: ''Ruġġieru'', – 22 June 1101), nicknamed Roger Bosso and The Great, was a Norman nobleman who became the first Count of Sicily from 1071 to 1101. He was a member of the H ...

upon

Monte Consolino Monte Consolino is a mountain in the Serre Calabresi range, in the Vallata dello Stilaro of south-western Calabria, in southern Italy. Monte Consolino has an altitude of . At the foot of Monte Consolino feet is the town of Stilo. The town of P ...

in the 11th century.

History

The first reference to the Norman castle at Stilo is from May 7, 1093 in a concession act of the Great Count to Saint Bruno: "elegerunt itaque quondam solitudinis locum inter locum qui dicitur Arena et oppidum quod appelatur Stilum". In the 13th century, it was one of the seventeen castles in Calabria managed by Reale Curia during the reign of

Charles I of Naples Charles I (early 1226/12277 January 1285), commonly called Charles of Anjou, was a member of the royal Capetian dynasty and the founder of the second House of Anjou. He was Count of Provence (1246–85) and Forcalquier (1246–48, 1256–85) i ...

and it was also used as a prison. In that period, it was subjected to maintenance as written in folio 233 of 1281 of Regia Zecca Archive. In the registry of April 14, 1323, it was written that Duke of Calabria, son of King Robert give to Noble, Contestabile, Baron of Settingiano Marco the "Castellania of Stilo" (ruling the Castle of Stilo) to him and his descents.{{cite book , author= Luigi Cunsolo , title= La storia di Stilo e del suo regio demanio, publisher= Gangemi Editore, location= Roma, year= 1965 , isbn = 88-7448-185-3 , page = 59 Since 2009 the castle has been under restoration.

Paths

The castle is reachable by two main paths: from the panoramic and high slope path that start near

Cattolica Cattolica (; rgn, Catòlga) is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Rimini, Italy, with 16,233 inhabitants as of 2007. History Archaeological excavations show that the area was already settled in ancient Rome, Roman times. Cattolica rose a ...

church, and following the Stilo's

Via Crucis The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Way of Sorrows or the Via Crucis, refers to a series of images depicting Jesus Christ on the day of his crucifixion and accompanying prayers. The stations grew out of imitati ...

path composed by fourteen steps and three rest and panoramic area with benches, the second much larger and less sloped starts near Stilo Cemetery.

Legends about Norman Castle

The Norman castle is haunted by a ghostly drumming sound. It has been said that centuries ago, a drummer boy was sent through the castle cellar to follow a secret passage, while beating on his drum so others could follow the sound. But at the half-point, the drumming suddenly stopped and the drummer boy mysteriously vanished without a trace.

References

External links

handwriting of Castle of Stilo by Francesco Corni (''Bellitalia'' magazine - 1986)
Castles in Calabria Vallata dello Stilaro Stilo

History

Paths

Legends about Norman Castle

See also

References

External links