Risalendo la strada che da Barolo porta a La Morra s'incontra un'antica roccaforte situata in una meravigliosa posizione panoramica, ma dallo sato di conservazione alquanto decadente.
L'edificio passò poi nelle mani della famiglia dei marchesi Falletti e trasformato in dimora residenziale. Qui la marchesa Giulia Colbert Falletti amava trascorrere periodi di relax passeggiando per le campagne circostanti, spesso in compagnia di Silvio Pellico.
Con la fine della dinastia dei Falletti il Castello della Volta venne abbandonato fino al 1895 quando fu acquistato da Pietro Abbona.
Durante la Seconda Guerra Mondiale subì ulteriori danni a causa delle cannonate tedesche.
Il Castello della Volta è ora di proprietà dell'azienda vinicola le Cantine Marchesi di Barolo, eredi di Abbona, ed è in fase di restauro.
Il complesso è il risultato della sovrapposizione di diverse fasi costruttive medievali e di tentativi di ristrutturazioni in epoca moderna.
La parte più antica è la torre cilindrica attorno alla quale sono sorti gli altri edifici sia rurali che residenziali.
L'ingresso era protetto da un fossato con ponte levatoio ora sostituito da un passaggio in muratura.
Come ogni castello che si rispetti anche sul Castello della Volta si raccontano molte leggende piuttosto cupe.
La più famosa, che spiega anche il significato del suo nome "della Volta", narra che durante una festa organizzata dai proprietari del Castello, noti per avere uno stile di vita smodato e poco timoroso di Dio, il banchetto si traformò in un'orgia talmente incontrollata che la volta del salone crollò seppellendo tutti gli ospiti che morirono schiacciati.
C'è chi vede in questo disastro l'intervento divino e chi invece pensa il crollo sia opera del diavolo con l'intento di impossessarsi di quelle anime peccaminose.
Fatto sta che, ancora oggi, pare si possano sentire gemiti e grida provenienti da sotto le vecchie mura e nelle notti di luna piena c'è chi giura di aver visto numerose ombre, illuminate da candele, aggirarsi nel castello.
Altre leggende sul Castello della Volta parlano di "masche" e di spiriti che vagano inquieti ed anche la torre cilindrica conserva un mistero: è chiusa ed inaccessibile da secoli; al piano terreno è completamente murata e nessuno è mai riuscito a trovarne l'ingresso.
Della Volta Castle - Barolo
Going up the road from Barolo to La Morra you come near an ancient stronghold situated in a marvelous panoramic position, but with a somewhat decadent conservation status.
This is the Della Volta Castle, built in the 12th century by Manfredo di Saluzzo.
The building later passed into the hands of the family of the Falletti Marquises and transformed into a residential residence. Here the Marchioness Giulia Colbert Falletti loved to spend relaxing moments walking through the surrounding countryside, often with the company of Silvio Pellico.
With the end of the Falletti dynasty the Della Volta Castle was abandoned until 1895 when it was bought by Pietro Abbona.
During the Second World War it suffered further damage due to German cannon fire.
The Della Volta Castle is now owned by
the Marchesi di Barolo winery, heirs of Abbona, and is being restored.
The complex is the result of the overlapping of different medieval construction phases and attempts at restructuring in the modern era.
The oldest part is the cylindrical tower around which other rural and residential buildings have risen.
The entrance was protected by a moat with a drawbridge now replaced by a masonry passage.
Like any self-respecting castle about the Della Volta Castle, many dark tales are told.
The most famous, which also explains the meaning of its name "della Volta", says that during a party organized by the owners of the Castle, known for having an immoderate and little fearful lifestyle, the banquet transformed into an orgy so uncontrolled that the vault of the hall collapsed burying all the guests who died crushed.
There are those who see the divine intervention in this disaster and those who think the collapse is the work of the devil with the intention of taking possession of those sinful souls.
The fact is that, still today, someone seems to hear moans and cries coming from under the old walls and on nights with a full moon there are those who swear to have seen numerous shadows, lit by candles, wandering around the castle.
Other legends about the Della Volta Castle speak of "masche" and spirits that roam restless and even the cylindrical tower preserves a mystery: it is closed and inaccessible for centuries; on the ground floor it is completely walled and no one has ever managed to find the entrance.
Going up the road from Barolo to La Morra you come near an ancient stronghold situated in a marvelous panoramic position, but with a somewhat decadent conservation status.
This is the Della Volta Castle, built in the 12th century by Manfredo di Saluzzo.
The building later passed into the hands of the family of the Falletti Marquises and transformed into a residential residence. Here the Marchioness Giulia Colbert Falletti loved to spend relaxing moments walking through the surrounding countryside, often with the company of Silvio Pellico.
With the end of the Falletti dynasty the Della Volta Castle was abandoned until 1895 when it was bought by Pietro Abbona.
During the Second World War it suffered further damage due to German cannon fire.
The Della Volta Castle is now owned by
the Marchesi di Barolo winery, heirs of Abbona, and is being restored.
The complex is the result of the overlapping of different medieval construction phases and attempts at restructuring in the modern era.
The oldest part is the cylindrical tower around which other rural and residential buildings have risen.
The entrance was protected by a moat with a drawbridge now replaced by a masonry passage.
Like any self-respecting castle about the Della Volta Castle, many dark tales are told.
The most famous, which also explains the meaning of its name "della Volta", says that during a party organized by the owners of the Castle, known for having an immoderate and little fearful lifestyle, the banquet transformed into an orgy so uncontrolled that the vault of the hall collapsed burying all the guests who died crushed.
There are those who see the divine intervention in this disaster and those who think the collapse is the work of the devil with the intention of taking possession of those sinful souls.
The fact is that, still today, someone seems to hear moans and cries coming from under the old walls and on nights with a full moon there are those who swear to have seen numerous shadows, lit by candles, wandering around the castle.
Other legends about the Della Volta Castle speak of "masche" and spirits that roam restless and even the cylindrical tower preserves a mystery: it is closed and inaccessible for centuries; on the ground floor it is completely walled and no one has ever managed to find the entrance.
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