The original fort was supposedly built by the Lombards. Destroyed in 590 and later rebuilt after the Hungarian invasions, the castle became part of the large estates of the bishops of Verona. Between 1277 and 1387 it belonged to the Della Scala family, and up until 1403 it was owned by the Visconti family. From 1405 to 1797 - apart from the decade starting in 1506 - it belonged to the Venetian Republic.
The French owned the castle during the days of Napoleon. From 1798 to 1866 the Austrians took over the castle and also did extensive renovations. The castle of Malcesine was declared a national monument on August 22, 1902. Today it houses a small museum dedicated to the territory of Lake Garda.
It also is a favorite spot for marriages. At dinner the other night we met a young Irish woman and her grandmother who came to Malcesine for a cousin's marriage in the castle. Today we opted to visit the castle on our last day in Malcesine. Sure enough we ran into another wedding party. It was fun watching the photographer get the bride (in full gown and train) to climb a ladder to reach the area illustrated below. I'm sure that their photographs will be more spectacular than mine.
The castle is nicely preserved and affords 360 degree views of the area.
If you look at the right-hand corner of the parking lot and go straight up to the yellow house in the hill. That's it! But I'm sure you can't see it, so here is a closer shot.
Today, aside from the castle, we just had a late lunch and strolled along the streets. Here are my last photos for this area. Tomorrow we travel by car to Verona; train to Venice; and Vaporetta to our small palazzo on the Grand Canal. I'll take a break from blogging until Monday, so enjoy your weekend. Ciao!
Above are artists Gabrielle and her husband who run the Faust Art Gallery. We met Gabrielle on our first day when she met at and introduced us to the apartment.
1 comment:
I really enjoy your photos xo
antoinette
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