The Castle of Segonzano was built in the 13th century on a rock spur, around 100 meters above the valley. The place where it's placed was probably the site of a prehistoric hillfort. Built by Rodolfo Scancio, on the authority of the Prince-Bishop of Trento, Federico Vanga, the castle served as an important fortified site guarding the trade route passing through the Adige Valley and across the Cantilaga bridge on the river Avisio.
The fortress became hugely important between the 14th and 15th centuries. In the 14th century it was owned by the Scancio, Rottenburg and Greifenstein families and then passed, in 1424, to the Dukes of Tyrol.
When German painter Albrecht Dürer passed here on his first journey to Venice in 1494, he was so impressed by the gloomy walls of the fortress, that he dedicated two celebrated watercolours to it. In 1971, Durer's historic visit to the site was commemorated by two porphyry pillars, at Faver and Piazzo di Segonzano, marking the locations from which he was inspired to paint the two views.
References:Trenčín Castle is relatively large renovated castle, towering on a steep limestone cliff directly above the city of Trenčín. It is a dominant feature not only of Trenčín, but also of the entire Považie region. The castle is a national monument.
History of the castle cliff dates back to the Roman Empire, what is proved by the inscription on the castle cliff proclaiming the victory of Roman legion against Germans in the year 179.
Today’s castle was probably built on the hill-fort. The first proven building on the hill was the Great Moravian rotunda from the 9th century and later there was a stone residential tower, which served to protect the Kingdom of Hungary and the western border. In the late 13th century the castle became a property of Palatine Matúš Csák, who became Mr. of Váh and Tatras.
Matúš Csák of Trenčín built a tower, still known as Matthew’s, which is a dominant determinant of the whole building.