Description of the attraction
The fortress Maschio Angioino, otherwise called the New Castle (Castel Nuovo), stands on the coast of the Gulf of Naples, serving as a characteristic symbol of the city for travelers arriving from the sea. Forming an irregular trapezoid in plan, it is placed on high escarpments and reinforced along the perimeter with high cogged towers. The fortress received its unofficial name Maskio Angioino ("Angevin husband") in honor of Charles I of Anjou, who erected it in 1279-1282. Subsequently, under Alfonso I of Aragon, in 1443-1453. it was almost completely rebuilt by Tuscan and Catalan craftsmen.
The three towers of the main facade have the following names: Georgievskaya, Srednaya and Sentry. Between the last two towers is the famous Arc de Triomphe, one of the brilliant examples of Renaissance architecture, in this case following the ancient Roman artistic tradition. The arch was erected in honor of the accession of Alfonso I in Naples and consists of several tiers. The lower tier is decorated with Corinthian columns and a bas-relief "Alphonse and his suite"; the second - by the frieze "Alphonse's Triumphal Entry to Naples". The third is also equipped with an arch with Ionic columns, and the fourth has four niches with allegorical statues: Temperance, Strength, Justice and Mercy. The composition is crowned with a semicircular pediment with allegories of two rivers and, above it, a statue of the Archangel Michael, the patron saint of Christian sovereigns - warriors. A number of remarkable artists worked on this arch: Francesco Laurana, Domenico Gagini, Isaiah de Pisa and Pietro di Martino.
Behind the Arc de Triomphe, a spacious courtyard opens, from which you can get to the Barons' Hall, where meetings of the city council take place, as well as to the fortress chapels and dungeons. In the Hall of the Barons, Ferdinand I of Aragon brutally dealt with the instigators of the baronial uprising of 1486, which is why this hall got its name.
The castle served as a residence for the Anjou and Aragonese courts; among its eminent residents were Pope Celestine V, Giotto, Petrarch, Boccaccio, Charles V and others. In the 16th - 18th centuries, the castle was rebuilt more than once, and at the beginning of the 20th century, as a result of restoration, the appearance of the 15th century was returned to it.
