Sondrio, Masegra Castel

Due to its strategic positioning the area has been a natural location for attacking and defending since ancient times. Built on a defensive rocky spur, Castel Masegra dominates Sondrio from above. Due to its strategic position, the area has been a natural site of attack and defence since very ancient times and the town was built directly at the foot of the castle, where military musters were held on the Masegra hill.
As a result of its importance, the castle suffered countless destructions, reconstructions, enlargements and changes of use; but it is not very easy to unravel the dates that are found in the archive documents and make conclusions from looking at the structure of the masonry. The first nucleus was built in the medieval period on a pre-existing prehistoric site and on a very ancient plan.
As can be seen from the two towers to the north, the walls with battlements and the round communication trenches, the castle was a military base and Guelph fort from about the XV Century, when it acquired a residential appearance in line with the type of building in fashion in Milan. The eastern body thus took shape overlooking two courtyards each with a very different façade to the other. There is still a drawbridge system and unusual battlements on the front facing the western court, while the opposite one, which can be seen more easily, has a door with abraded coats-of-arms dated 1491 and graffito decorations. Inside there is a banqueting hall, a small frescoed hall and some drawing rooms with beautiful coffered wooden ceilings that make us regret what has been lost.