CastelBrando, former Castrum Costae, is a medieval castle situated on a dolomite limestone rock at an elevation of

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

, overlooking the villages of Cison di Valmarino and Valmareno, Northern

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. The name ''CastelBrando'' stems from '' Brando I'' of the name '' Brandolini'', an ancient family from

Forlì Forlì ( ; ; ; ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) and city in Emilia-Romagna, Northern Italy, and is, together with Cesena, the capital of the Province of Forlì-Cesena.The city is situated along the Via Emilia, to the east of the Montone river, ...

, who were the Lords of the castle.

History

CastelBrando was originally built in the Roman age as a defensive fortress in order to protect the important lines of communication which connected

Northern Italy Northern Italy (, , ) is a geographical and cultural region in the northern part of Italy. The Italian National Institute of Statistics defines the region as encompassing the four Northwest Italy, northwestern Regions of Italy, regions of Piedmo ...

to the countries on the other side of the

Alps The Alps () are some of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. ...

. Originally there was a

garrison A garrison is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a military base or fortified military headquarters. A garrison is usually in a city ...

here protecting the territory between the Piave and the Livenza rivers in order to facilitate the safe construction of the pre-alpine part of the Via Claudia Augusta, an important

Roman road Roman roads ( ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Republic and the Roman Em ...

, which linked the valley of the

Po River The Po ( , ) is the longest river in Italy. It flows eastward across northern Italy, starting from the Cottian Alps. The river's length is , or if the Maira (river), Maira, a right bank tributary, is included. The headwaters of the Po are forme ...

with

Rhaetia Raetia or Rhaetia ( , ) was a Roman province, province of the Roman Empire named after the Rhaetian people. It bordered on the west with the country of the Helvetii, on the east with Noricum, on the north with Vindelicia, on the south-west wit ...

(modern Austria). Laura Colomban: 2009 The original

castrum ''Castra'' () is a Latin language, Latin term used during the Roman Republic and Roman Empire for a military 'camp', and ''castrum'' () for a 'Fortification, fort'. Either could refer to a building or plot of land, used as a fortified milita ...

, dating from 46 AD is still visible today. A recent

archaeological excavation In archaeology, excavation is the exposure, processing and recording of archaeological remains. An excavation site or "dig" is the area being studied. These locations range from one to several areas at a time during a project and can be condu ...

has uncovered a diameter bread-oven within the castrum, dating from the same period. The original

Roman baths In ancient Rome, (from Greek , "hot") and (from Greek ) were facilities for bathing. usually refers to the large Roman Empire, imperial public bath, bath complexes, while were smaller-scale facilities, public or private, that existed i ...

have also been excavated, as have the original pipes of the aqueduct which supplied water from three nearby natural springs. These springs still provide water for the castle today. During the European Migration Period the fortress became an important defensive position against barbarian invasions. Over the centuries the castle has been subject to numerous enlargements and renovations. During the 13th century the castle was substantially enlarged while under the ownership of the Da Camino family, who lived there from 1233 to 1335. Their architectural additions included surrounding the castle with imposing Guelph-Ghibelline style battlements and building a central tower. Gherardo III da Camino, the great Italian feudal lord and military leader was born in the castle in 1240. The Castle's ownership then passed over to the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice, officially the Most Serene Republic of Venice and traditionally known as La Serenissima, was a sovereign state and Maritime republics, maritime republic with its capital in Venice. Founded, according to tradition, in 697 ...

, which awarded the Castle's

fief A fief (; ) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal alle ...

dom first to Marin Faliero and then to the condottieri Giovanni Brandolino and Erasmo da Narni, better known as "Gattamelata". After the fall of Venetian Republic in 1797, it was passed down through the family of Giovanni Brandolino and became the property of the Brandolini Counts, an ancient family from

. In the first half of the 16th century Antonio Maria Brandolini (1476–1522), commissioned skilled engineers to enlarge the central part of the castle in Sansovino style, adding Venetian Gothic double and triple mullioned windows. In 1700 the Brandolini family commissioned Ottavio Scotti, architect and Count of

Treviso Treviso ( ; ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the Veneto region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Treviso and the municipality has 87.322 inhabitants (as of December 2024). Some 3,000 live within the Venetian wall ...

, to design and build an extension to the southern part of the castle. Part of these works included the building of a castle chapel, the Church of San Martino. The chapel was decorated internally with

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

es painted by Egidio Dall'Oglio (18th century). Merriman,Mira P: 1986, Page 181 During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the castle was invaded by Imperial Austrian forces and used as a

military hospital A military hospital is a hospital owned or operated by a military. They are often reserved for the use of military personnel and their dependents, but in some countries are made available to civilians as well. They may or may not be located on a m ...

. The Brandolini family abandoned their home and escaped to their Solighetto villa near Pieve di Soligo. After 10 years of restoration work, financed by Count Girolamo IV Brandolini (1870–1935), the castle was re-opened as a place of residence in 1929. In 1959 the castle was sold by the Brandolini family to the Salesian fathers, who altered its structure to use it as a

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

and as a centre for spiritual studies. In 1997 CastelBrando was purchased by Quaternary Investments SpA, who started an expansive renovation program in order to convert it into a hotel and museum.

Present day

CastelBrando has now been extensively restored and now houses a 4-star hotel, museum and a

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...

. Visitors can get up to the castle by

funicular railway A funicular ( ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to opposite ends ...

from the village. On 18–20 April 2009 CastelBrando hosted the first ever G8 Agriculture Ministers' Meeting organised by the Italian Minister of Agriculture, Luca Zaia.

Gallery

File:CastelBrando2.jpg, View of the battlements, in the direction of the village of Follina File:Castelbrando, Cison di Valmarino, Italy.jpg, CastelBrando at night File:Castelbrando Courtyard.jpg, Lower inner courtyard

References

Sources

* * * * * ;Attribution *

Notes

External links

Hotel CastelBrando
– includes visiting and museum information
online availability and rates
– icastelli.net

G8 Agriculture Ministers' Meeting
{{DEFAULTSORT:Castelbrando Castles in Veneto Protected areas of Italy Museums in Veneto History museums in Italy Carriage museums in Italy Buildings and structures in the Province of Treviso