Gradara
The fortress of Paolo and Francesca
Province
Province of Pesaro-Urbino
Altitude
142 m a.s.l.
Inhabitants
4.900
The Rocca di Gradara and its fortified Hamlet represent one of the best-preserved medieval structures in Italy, linked to the tragic love story of Paolo and Francesca narrated by Dante.
📜 History
The Mastio was built around 1150 by the De Griffo family, but it was the Malatesta who built the Fortress and the two city walls between the 13th and 14th centuries. The Malatesta dominion ended in 1463 when Federico da Montefeltro conquered the Rocca. It then passed to the Sforza, the Borgia, the Della Rovere and the Medici.
✨ Genius Loci
An ancient tradition says that within the walls of the Rocca the ferocious assassination of the lovers Paolo Malatesta and Francesca da Polenta took place, made immortal by Dante in Canto V of the Inferno. Gradara celebrates the myth of Francesca as a heroine of female emancipation, a symbol of passion that conquers all.
To See
- Rocca Malatestiana - one of the most imposing in Italy
- Ronda walkways on the walls
- Historical Museum at the foot of the Fortress
- Rubini Vesin Palace
- Bosco di Paolo e Francesca and Teatro dell'Aria
- Project 'Beyond the Walls' - Street Art
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