In the Gran Sasso National Park, surrounded by breathtaking scenery, stands one of the most beautiful castles in the world: the ROCCA CALASCIO Castle. The ancient fortress is located on a mountain ridge 1,512 meters above sea level, in a very favorable defensive position. It was used as a military observation point in communication with other towers and castles nearby. It is one of the highest fortresses in Europe and the highest castle in Italy. Behind it you can see the Gran Sasso chain, with the Campo Imperatore plateau, while from the southeastern slope you can admire the Majella and the Sirente, a panorama, which leaves you breathless.
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The structure, made of square stone blocks, consists of a central, probably preexisting “keep,” a crenellated cobblestone wall circle, and four corner towers with a circular base that are strongly scarped. Access is through an opening on the eastern side about five meters above the ground, accessed through a wooden bridge, resting on stone brackets.
The foundation of the fortress dates back to the year 1000 although the earliest historical document attesting to its presence is dated 1380. The village, initially owned by Leonello Acclozamora of the barony of Carapelle, towards the end of the 15th century, was granted by King Ferdinand to Antonio Todeschini of the Piccolomini family, who strengthened the fortification by endowing it with a cobblestone wall circle and four cylindrical towers for military use. Then all around the dwellings: tower-houses with three or four floors that in their predominantly vertical development re-proposed the function of defense and sighting. During this period the fortress saw its economic weight grow, as it was placed to control the heads of sheep involved in transhumance. In 1579 the Medici family purchased the fortress for 106,000 ducats and the nearby village of Santo Stefano di Sessanio in order to extend their holdings to exploit the wool trade. The hamlet began to depopulate from the beginning of the 20th century, with a massive exodus since the late 1950s, although recently a few houses have been restored and in one of them we can now find a shelter-restaurant.
The castle, which was damaged in the 1703 earthquake and underwent a series of conservative restorations between 1986 and 1989 to restore the structure and enable its architectural-functional recovery, is now freely accessible.
Since the 1980s, the Gran Sasso area of L’Aquila and in particular the Calascio fortress have been used as a setting for numerous films. The first feature film shot was Lady Hawke (USA, 1985) in which the fortress (then not yet restored) was the refuge of the hermit played by Leo McKern. In 1986 it hosted the cast of The Name of the Rose, winner of numerous international awards. It was later set for The Journey of the Bride (ITA, 1997) and The Event Horizon (ITA, 2005). More recently it was the set for RAI’s Padre Pio series (ITA, 2000) with Michele Placido. The fortress can also be seen in some scenes of the film The American (USA, 2010) starring George Clooney, which was filmed entirely in the province of L’Aquila, particularly between Castel del Monte, Calascio and Castelvecchio Calvisio. For National Geographic it is among 15 most beautiful castles in the world.
RECOMMENDED ROUTE TO REACH THE CASTLE OF ROCCA CALASCIO from. Rome, from Teramo, from Pescara
