The Castle of Monopoli, surrounded by the sea and located on a peninsula, was built first as a stronghold and later changed into noble house. It was originally built as part of coastal strongholds by Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II and later fortified by the Angevins. In 1552 it was once again reinforced by the viceroy Don Pedro de Toledo, at the behest of Charles V. Other important changes were made in 1660, by the Duke of Atri Giovanni Geronimo Acquaviva.
The present appearance dates back to 1660, when the huge cylindrical keep was added, from which it is possible to enter. On the upper part, there are large holes for the cannons, a sign of the original function to protect the town, while the right part, towards the town, appears to be more refined after the works of the 17th century, when it started to be used as house.The castle, reshaped several times over the centuries and used as prison during the first years of the 20th century, was restructured around 1976 and nowadays houses the Archaeological Museum of the Town.
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Visby Cathedral (also known as St. Mary’s Church) is the only survived medieval church in Visby. It was originally built for German merchants and inaugurated in 1225. Around the year 1350 the church was enlarged and converted into a basilica. The two-storey magazine was also added then above the nave as a warehouse for merchants.
Following the Reformation, the church was transformed into a parish church for the town of Visby. All other churches were abandoned. Shortly after the Reformation, in 1572, Gotland was made into its own Diocese, and the church designated its cathedral.
There is not much left of the original interior. The font is made of local red marble in the 13th century. The pulpit was made in Lübeck in 1684. There are 400 graves under the church floor.