The monumental complex of the Branciforti Castle is located at the highest point of the village of Raccuja to dominate the whole valley. It dates back to the Norman era, even if its origins are to be found between the Roman and the Arab ages. Over the centuries the Castle was subjected to numerous changes, the most important of which dates back to 1200s when the entire building passed under the ownership of Baron Orioles. Subsequently, in the 16th century, it was sold to the Banciforti family which carried out other alterations. Following their rule, immediately after the unification of Italy, the whole monumental complex became a judicial prison. Today the property has been carefully restored after a conservation campaign in the 90s and is home to the municipal library and a museum area.
References:Goryōkaku (五稜郭) (literally, 'five-point fort') is a star fort in the Japanese city of Hakodate on the island of Hokkaido. The fortress was completed in 1866. It was the main fortress of the short-lived Republic of Ezo.
Goryōkaku was designed in 1855 by Takeda Ayasaburō and Jules Brunet. Their plans was based on the work of the French architect Vauban. The fortress was completed in 1866, two years before the collapse of the Tokugawa Shogunate. It is shaped like a five-pointed star. This allowed for greater numbers of gun emplacements on its walls than a traditional Japanese fortress, and reduced the number of blind spots where a cannon could not fire.
The fort was built by the Tokugawa shogunate to protect the Tsugaru Strait against a possible invasion by the Meiji government.
Goryōkaku is famous as the site of the last battle of the Boshin War.