Castello e Borgo San Castrese

The Castle and the adjacent Borgo St. Castrese, in the historic center of Castel Volturno, recline on the last bend of the Volturno river. The foundation of a first core dates from the late ninth century, when the Lombards from Capua wanted an outpost of defense against Saracen invasions. The first factory of the Castle and the walls of the village were built by Bishop Radiperto, on the ruins of the ancient Roman bridge built by the Emperor Domitian in 95: oblong, with adjacent tower, the Castle was developed towards the walled village of S. Castrese. Past repeatedly property, in 1206 the Castle was donated to the Archbishop of Capua by Emperor Frederick II, then to Alfonso I of Aragon (1435-1458) and King Ferdinand I of Naples (1459-1494). Castle and village have preserved over the centuries the city limits and the original urban system: part of the arch of the bridge Domitian and the large perimeter walls, built with large slabs of rock from ancient Domitian Way and blocks of travertine and tuff, and the system of perpendicular streets to the main square (Largo S. Castrese), a model of the Roman castra. To the first group were added double wall and several towers and guard posts (seventeenth century). The Castle retains the square shape of the seventeenth-century defensive towers (Viceroy period); the access ramp paved in opus spicatum; a courtyard housed in the walkway of the city walls, and some defensive elements (a barbican and two symmetrical narrow slits to the drawbridge). The current Clock Tower is not oldest than eighteenth century, and the facades of the houses inside the village date back to XVIII-XX century.