Sant'Alessio Siculo Castle, Sant'Alessio Siculo, Italy

Sant'Alessio Siculo Castle was built by the Byzantine emperor Alexios I Comnenos in his war against the Normans and the Arabs, who also held it. It was extended during the Norman era in the 12th century. In 1535 it was are residence of King Charles V Habsburg during the Conquest of Tunis. The castle consists of two towers on different peaks.

User Reviews

ezio amadio (14 months ago)
A stone's throw from Taormina. The castle stands out from the top of its position .. clearly visible along the state road and especially when descending from Forza d’Agro.

Ale Esposito photo and video (14 months ago)
Very beautiful and suggestive

Maria De Domenico (15 months ago)
The Sant'Alessio Castle is closed, you can look only externally or from down from the beach, very beautiful and equipped with shower and descents for prams

Grazia Politi (16 months ago)
Suggestive the castle, show the surrounding landscape, clean sea and absolute tranquility

Sir User (2 years ago)
Expensive and boring

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright jl.cernadas

Historic Site of the week

Roman Walls of Lugo

Roman Walls of Lugo are an exceptional architectural, archaeological and constructive legacy of Roman engineering, dating from the 3rd and 4th centuries AD. The Walls are built of internal and external stone facings of slate with some granite, with a core filling of a conglomerate of slate slabs and worked stone pieces from Roman buildings, interlocked with lime mortar.

Their total length of 2117 m in the shape of an oblong rectangle occupies an area of 1.68 ha. Their height varies between 8 and 10 m, with a width of 4.2 m, reaching 7 m in some specific points. The walls still contain 85 external towers, 10 gates (five of which are original and five that were opened in modern times), four staircases and two ramps providing access to the walkway along the top of the walls, one of which is internal and the other external. Each tower contained access stairs leading from the intervallum to the wall walk of town wall, of which a total of 21 have been discovered to date.

The defences of Lugo are the most complete and best preserved example of Roman military architecture in the Western Roman Empire.

Despite the renovation work carried out, the walls conserve their original layout and the construction features associated with their defensive purpose, with walls, battlements, towers, fortifications, both modern and original gates and stairways, and a moat.

Since they were built, the walls have defined the layout and growth of the city, which was declared a Historical-Artistic Ensemble in 1973, forming a part of it and becoming an emblematic structure that can be freely accessed to walk along. The local inhabitants and visitors alike have used them as an area for enjoyment and as a part of urban life for centuries.

The fortifications were added to UNESCO"s World Heritage List in late 2000 and are a popular tourist attraction.

Do you know an ancient castle or magnificent church near you?

Why not share it with other people interested in history? You can add your own historic sites and attractions to SpottingHistory.com.

It's absolutely free, easy, and doesn't even need registration!

Upload data

Sant'Alessio Siculo Castle

Address

Details

More Information

Rating

Interesting Sites Nearby

User Reviews

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Rhodes, The Island of Knights

Great Spa Towns of Europe

History of Guernsey & Jersey

Historic Site of the week

Roman Walls of Lugo

Looks like you are a history fan!