. The Rocca Ubaldinesca or Castle of the Ubaldini is a relatively small

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

-style castle located in the town of

Sassocorvaro Auditore Sassocorvaro Auditore is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Italian region of Marche. It was established on 1 January 2019 with the merger of the municipalities of Sassocorvaro and Auditore. Sassocorvaro bor ...

, province of Pesaro, region of

Marche Marche ( ; ), in English sometimes referred to as the Marches ( ) from the Italian name of the region (Le Marche), is one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. The region is located in the Central Italy, central area of the country, ...

, Italy. The castle, located on a hill overlooking the river

Foglia The Foglia (also called Isauro, e.g. in Belforte all'Isauro) is the northernmost river of the Marche region of Italy. In ancient times it was known as ''Pisaurus'', as it debouched into the Adriatic Sea at ''Pisaurum'' (modern Pesaro). It was al ...

, is peculiar for it turtle-like layout.

History

The present structure was commissioned by Federico da Montefeltro, Duke of Urbino to his architect

Francesco di Giorgio Martini Francesco di Giorgio Martini (1439–1501) was an Italian architect, engineer, painter, sculptor, and writer. As a painter, he belonged to the Sienese School. He was considered a visionary architectural theorist—in Nikolaus Pevsner's terms ...

: the castle was built as a compact brick and stone building with tall sloping walls. The fort passed on to Ottaviano degli Ubaldini della Carda, brother of Duke Federico. The heraldic symbols in the castle belong to Ottaviano. The castle then passed to the

Doria family The House of Doria ( ) originally ''de Auria'' (from ''de filiis Auriae''), meaning "the sons of Auria", and then ''de Oria'' or ''d'Oria'', is an old and extremely wealthy Genoese family who played a major role in the history of the Republic o ...

Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...

, who after 1511, became counts of Sassocorvaro. The Counts of Sassocorvo died out in 1626, and the territory entered the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; ; ), officially the State of the Church, were a conglomeration of territories on the Italian peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope from 756 to 1870. They were among the major states of Italy from the 8th c ...

. In 1706 the property was granted to Giovanni Cristoforo Battelli, Archbishop of

Amasia Amasia may refer: * Amasya, a city in Northern Turkey ** Amasya Province, which contains the city ** Amasea (titular see), the former Metropolitan Archbishopric with see there, now a Latin Catholic titular see * Amasia, Shirak, a town in Armenia ...

, librarian and counselor to

Pope Clement XI Pope Clement XI (; ; ; 23 July 1649 – 19 March 1721), born Giovanni Francesco Albani, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 23 November 1700 to his death in March 1721. Clement XI was a patron of the arts an ...

Albani. Monsignor Battelli restored the castle, rebuilding a chapel and created a library. To the latter have been added papers and volumes from the Archbishopric. In the late 19th-century, the interiors were refurbished, creating a large hall, theater, and the interiors were decorated in 1895 by Enrico Mancini in a neoclassical style. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the castle was used by Pasquale Rotondi to hide many works being targeted for looting by the Fascist armies. The castle now serves as the museum of the commune and includes an early 16th-century altarpiece depicting the ''Madonna and Child with Saints Sebastian, Roch and Nicolò'' by

Evangelista da Pian di Meleto Evangelista da Pian di Meleto (circa 1460 – 1549) was an Italian painter of the Renaissance period. He was born in Piandimeleto in Umbria. In 1488, he was working along with Giovanni Santi, the father of Raphael, in Piandimeleto. Along with ...

as well as Baroque paintings. It contains designs and works by Enrico Mancini (1867-1913), who also decorated the 19th-century Teatrino built into what was once the main hall of the fort.Rocca Ubaldinesca
official site.

References

External links

Official website
Ubaldinesca Ubaldinesca Buildings and structures in the Province of Pesaro and Urbino Museums in Marche {{italy-museum-stub