Montegualandro Castle
Montegualandro Castle with its spectacular view really is one of my favourite secret places in Umbria.

Route: 15 min Footpath: 20 min

Introduction
Montegualandro Castle with its spectacular view really is one of my favourite secret places in Umbria
n the right place at the right time… When (once again…) strolling around the castle (gate always closed) and enjoying the stunning view from up here, a man accompanied by two friends showed up. He pulled a huge key out of his pocket and …yesss….he opened the iron gate of the castle. What a moment! How many times have I been standing before this gate wondering what was behind it! Believe it or not: The man started a little private guide tour for his friends and invited me to participate.


This is what I learned about and saw inside Castello di Montegualandro:
The castles´ history … a part of it…
The Etruscans were here between 600 and 700 BC, Hannibal in 217 BC and Charlemagne around 800 AD.
I had read that around the year 1000, for a long time, because of its strategic position, Castiglione del Lago and Lake Trasimeno with its little castles, were contended between the cities of Perugia, Arezzo and Siena. Later on these territories were eventually taken over by Perugia.
Here you can find some more information:
https://www.aboutumbriamagazine.it/en/2018/05/03/castiglione-del-lago/
Informations on the history during the Middle Ages can be found here:
https://www.italythisway.com/places/articles/castiglione-del-lago-history.php
The Emperor Frederick II
Around 1240, Emperor Frederick II (grandson of Barbarossa) moved into the castle.
The Umbrians around Perugia and Lake Trasimeno feared the new ruler.
Also the relation between Frederick II and Pope Innocent V was always bad and characterised by permanent tension. This might have been the reason why the Emperor decided to leave after a while. He died in 1250 not far from Castello Montegualandro, in Castel Fiorentino near Cortona.
Pope Innocent V
Now the Umbrians themselves besieged the castle, which greatly angered the Pope. To demonstrate his claims and show his power Innocent V sent his troops. He not only ordered the construction of the small church (which is still well preserved today), but also had a second wall built (the one you see today). This was only possible by heaping up countless amounts of earth. Only a small part of the original castle wall from before the time of this pope remains today, but it is underground and can no longer be seen.


It seems that the current Pope gave the castle to an important ‘cavaliere’ (knight) sometime later in history, his name, a date or any other information on this are not known.
My ‘guide’ told us that Castello Montegualandro was inhabited until 1952. These last inhabitants apparently did not take much care of the castle, and the lances still on display are not real and the preserved decorations are neither beautiful nor of any particular significance.


What else can be seen
As you walk up the driveway, there is a very well-preserved residential building with five apartments on the right, but we were unable to visit it. It must have been built by the last inhabitants of Castello Montegualandro.


Next to the apartments stands the little church. You can recognise the floor level of the castle at that time in one of its windows.


To the left of the driveway you can find an imposing, winding main building.


There is evidence that olive oil was produced and stored in one of its two cellars.


The harvesters lived outside the castle.
Thieves and those who refused to work were beheaded with a wooden axe. The square stone next to the entrance to the main building was used for this purpose.

There is a well with poor water quality not being in use today, but a second well, still in use today, is located outside of the castle walls.

Almost nothing is left of a former prison, and it is not certain when it was built. But you can still see the remains of a tower in front of it. Building a tower in the middle of a castle was common at the time. The inhabitants could retreat there as a last resort when danger threatened.

Note
The man who showed us around the castle explained that he was one of the eight members of a ‘co-operative’ which now looks after the maintenance of Castello Montegualandro. For them, there is no question of opening the castle to the public or even to private visitors or cultural events.

Conclusion
The history of this beautifil, little castle named ‘Castello Montegualandro’, situated on a hill near the village Tuoro Sul Trasimeno, is by no means complete. But perhaps you can imagine from the scant information and photos what life was like up here in some period of its history.

But… as I said before… even more beautiful than the history… is the incredible view especially in winter, when you can spot the snow-covered Monti Sibillini on the horizon.
