Castle of Ventimiglia

The castle of Ventimiglia is an ancient four towers castle which was built at the end of the 14th century by the Ventimiglia family on the top of Mount Bonifato near Alcamo.

Enrico Ventimiglia, the son of Guarnieri Ventimiglia whom he succeeded to, declared that he had this castle built on Mount Bonifato as a protection from possible attacks. According to different interpretations, the castle, instead, would date back to an anterior period.

The castle was destroyed in 1243 by order of Frederick II; it was rebuilt by the Ventimglia family before 1391 at her own expense. 

Originally the castle had four towers and a rectangular trapezoid plan. The only remaining tower is the donjon or 'Torre maestram', that initially had three floors: you could enter it through a wooden ladder at the first floor. This tower is located on the north-west and had a rectangular plan with walls 2.2 m thick. It was the most important in the castle because, thanks to its impressiveness and position, this was a point of strategic sighting as they could check the road leading to the castle, as far as the entrance door, situated on the south-west side.

References:

• Wikipedia

Address

Unnamed Road, Alcamo, Italy

Details

Founded: 14th century
Category: Castles and fortifications in Italy