Aragonese Castle

The Aragonese Castle of Le Castella stands in the town of the same name in Isola Capo Rizzuto, in the province of Crotone. The Aragonese Fortress of Le Castella is one of Calabria's most iconic buildings: it stands at the water's edge, reflected in the Isola Capo Rizzuto Marine Protected Area, on the beautiful Costa dei Saraceni, connected to the shore by a narrow strip of sand. This unique location and its unmistakable structure make the building one of the favourite film sets for directors from all over the world and film tourism enthusiasts who visit it all year round.

To learn about the fascinating history of the Aragonese Castle, we must go back to the 13th century, when the structure was built to control and defend the entire territory on the remains of an older kastron: the square limestone blocks dating back to the Greek period (6th century BC), laid in a “checkerboard” pattern, and traces of Roman masonry are still visible. The current building, as its name suggests, is an Aragonese work (15th century). The Aragonese Castle of Le Castella has an irregular layout, with a cylindrical watchtower from the Angevin period (14th century) featuring a splendid stone spiral staircase. It was Count Andrea Carafa, in the 16th century, who had the mighty quadrangular bastions erected.

The history of the Aragonese Castle is intertwined with that of the Turkish invasions of Calabria and the famous pirate Occhialì (Uluç Alì, Le Castella 1519 - Istanbul, 1587): born Giovanni Dionigi Galeni, he was captured on this beach by the Ottoman corsair Barbarossa in 1536 and raised as a “renegade”, eventually becoming a ruthless corsair himself, Governor of Algiers and the only survivor of the Battle of Lepanto. He is commemorated by a bust in the square in front of the castle (Piazza Uccialì).