Castello di Oliveto ("Castle of Oliveto" in English) is an ancient castle built in the

15th century The 15th century was the century which spans the Julian calendar dates from 1 January 1401 (represented by the Roman numerals MCDI) to 31 December 1500 (MD). In Europe, the 15th century includes parts of the Late Middle Ages, the Early Re ...

by the

Pucci family The Pucci family was a prominent noble family in Florence. History The Pucci family name comes from an ancestor named Jacopo, later shortened to Puccio, a wise figure known for settling disputes in the late 13th century. The family likely ori ...

. The castle is in

Castelfiorentino Castelfiorentino is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Florence, Tuscany, central-northern Italy, located between Florence (distance 30 km), Pisa (45 km) and Siena (55 km). The population numbers approxi ...

in the

province of Florence The province of Florence () was a Provinces of Italy, province in the northeast of Tuscany region of Italy. The city or ''comune'' of Florence was both the capital of the province of Florence, and of the Region of Tuscany. It had an area of and ...

Description

The castle of Oliveto was built in 1424 on the hills overlooking the valley and Elsa river, adjacent to the road that connects Castelfiorentino to

Certaldo Certaldo () is a town and (municipality) of Tuscany, Italy, in the Metropolitan City of Florence, located in the middle of Valdelsa. It is about southwest of the Florence Cathedral (50 minutes by rail and 35 minutes by car from the city), and 40 m ...

. It is a rectangular red brick construction with high walls and four corner towers crowned with battlements. It was built by Puccio Pucci, of the Florentine

as a country house. It is protected by moats, walls, and towers. The name derives from the olive groves that surround the hills. The castle has a marble coat of arms at the entrance and a main door that leads into an internal courtyard with a

loggia In architecture, a loggia ( , usually , ) is a covered exterior Long gallery, gallery or corridor, often on an upper level, sometimes on the ground level of a building. The corridor is open to the elements because its outer wall is only parti ...

with four arches and a chapel for religious functions. The castle is well preserved with fifteenth-century furniture, trophy weapons, and a collection of portraits executed from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century. There is a rainwater collection, which was originally a refuge and an underground exit from the castle. The history of the castle includes battles between

Siena Siena ( , ; traditionally spelled Sienna in English; ) is a city in Tuscany, in central Italy, and the capital of the province of Siena. It is the twelfth most populated city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 52,991 ...

and

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

, and famous guests like

Pope Leo X Pope Leo X (; born Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici, 11 December 14751 December 1521) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 March 1513 to his death in December 1521. Born into the prominent political and banking Med ...

Pope Clement VII Pope Clement VII (; ; born Giulio di Giuliano de' Medici; 26 May 1478 – 25 September 1534) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 November 1523 to his death on 25 September 1534. Deemed "the most unfortunate o ...

, and

Pope Paul III Pope Paul III (; ; born Alessandro Farnese; 29 February 1468 – 10 November 1549) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 October 1534 to his death, in November 1549. He came to the papal throne in an era follo ...

; the

Grand Duke of Tuscany Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor Places * Grand, Oklahoma, USA * Grand, Vosges, village and commune in France with Gallo-Roman amphitheatre * Grand County (disambiguation), se ...

, Ferdinand III, and the

King of Italy King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a constitutional monarch if his power is restrained by ...

Victor Emmanuel III of Italy Victor Emmanuel III (; 11 November 1869 – 28 December 1947) was King of Italy from 29 July 1900 until his abdication on 9 May 1946. A member of the House of Savoy, he also reigned as Emperor of Ethiopia from 1936 to 1941 and King of the Albania ...

. Around 1850, the property passed from the Pucci family to the Guicciardini family, an Italian noble family, which originated from Florence. Today, the castle is a modern farm with the production of wines and oil. It is rented out as a venue for wedding receptions, Tuscan dinners, and wine tasting.

In popular culture

In the third season of ''

Medici (TV Series) ''Medici'' () is a historical drama television series created by Frank Spotnitz and Nicholas Meyer. The series was produced by Italian companies Lux Vide and Rai Fiction, in collaboration with Spotnitz's Big light productions, Big Light Producti ...

'',

Girolamo Riario Girolamo Riario (1443 – 14 April 1488) was Lord of Imola (from 1473) and Count of Forlì (from 1480). He served as Captain General of the Church under his uncle Pope Sixtus IV. He was one of the organisers of the failed 1478 Pazzi conspiracy ag ...

's men seize Ferrara, 100 miles from Florence and takes their salt. The attack by Riario's men on Ferrara was filmed at Castle of Oliveto in Castelfiorentino.

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Buildings and structures in the Metropolitan City of Florence