The Gradara Castle is a medieval fortress that is located in the town of

Gradara Gradara is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino ( PU), in the region of Marche in central Italy. It is 6 km from Gabicce Mare and Cattolica, 25 km from Rimini, 15 km from Pesaro and 33 km from Urbino. The an ...

Marche Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...

, in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. It is protected by two walls, the outermost of which extends for almost 800 meters, making it the imposing structure. Particularly striking is the view of the fortress and the underlying historical village at night. The castle is one of the most visited monuments in the region and is the scene of museum events, musical and artistic. Gradara was, by geographical position, since ancient times a crossroads of traffic and people: during the Middle Ages the fortress was one of the main theaters of clashes between militias loyal to the papacy and the turbulent families

Romagna Romagna ( rgn, Rumâgna) is an Italian historical region that approximately corresponds to the south-eastern portion of present-day Emilia-Romagna, North Italy. Traditionally, it is limited by the Apennines to the south-west, the Adriatic to t ...

and

. Situated at 142 metres above sea level, with the Republic of

San Marino San Marino (, ), officially the Republic of San Marino ( it, Repubblica di San Marino; ), also known as the Most Serene Republic of San Marino ( it, Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino, links=no), is the fifth-smallest country in the world an ...

Rimini Rimini ( , ; rgn, Rémin; la, Ariminum) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It sprawls along the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia (the ancient ''Ariminu ...

and

Carpegna Carpegna is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino in the Italian region Marche, located about west of Ancona and about southwest of Pesaro. Carpegna borders the following municipalities: Belforte all'Isauro, Borgo P ...

in the background, Gradara represents an extraordinary urban and architectural combination. Legend has it that the castle was the scene of the famous and tragic love story of Paolo and Francesca, caught in each other's arms and killed by Gianciotto, Francesca's husband. This love story was immortalized by

Dante Dante Alighieri (; – 14 September 1321), probably baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri and often referred to as Dante (, ), was an Italian poet, writer and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called (modern Italian: '' ...

in his ''

Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' ( it, Divina Commedia ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun 1308 and completed in around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature and ...

''. The Gradara Castle dates back to the period between 11th and 15th centuries. Its history is inextricably linked with the infamous feuds between the

Malatesta Malatesta may refer to: People Given name * Malatesta (I) da Verucchio (1212–1312), founder of the powerful Italian Malatesta family and a famous condottiero *Malatesta IV Baglioni (1491–1531), Italian condottiero and lord of Perugia, Bettona, ...

and

Montefeltro Montefeltro is a historical and geographical region in Marche, which was historically part of Romagna. It gave its name to the House of Montefeltro, Montefeltro family, who ruled in the area during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Regions of I ...

families. This long-standing conflict came to a halt only after the control of the castle fell into the hands of the

Sforza The House of Sforza () was a ruling family of Renaissance Italy, based in Milan. They acquired the Duchy of Milan following the extinction of the Visconti family in the mid-15th century, Sforza rule ending in Milan with the death of the last mem ...

family. It was Dante, however, who intervened with his ''Divine Comedy'', making the castle the locale for the tale of Paolo and Francesca and thus turning the castle forever into a symbol of love. File:Gradara innevata 2.jpg, Gradara in winter File:Castello Gradara giu09 f09.jpg, One of towers File:Castello Gradara corte giu09 f08.jpg, A sculpture

References

{{authority control Castles in Marche National museums of Italy