Saint Germain Castle, Montjovet, Italy

Saint Germain castle in Montjovet played an important part in the history of Val d’Aosta. Few traces remain of its original structure and its construction date is not known for certain. At the end of the 13th century, the Savoy became the owners, replacing the Montjovet family. As already happened in Bard, in this case too, the pretext was provided by the abuse of power that Feidino Montjovet acted on villagers and wayfarers. The castle was later sold to the Challant family but returned to the Savoy in 1438, when Amadeus VII installed a garrison there, which remained active until 1661, when it was transferred to the fortress in Bard, leaving Montjovet castle open to decay.

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Aosta Valley Tourism

User Reviews

Gianluca Talento (4 years ago)
The castle is wonderful, but it is temporarily closed. For a few centuries reduced to ruins, now owned by the Valle d'Aosta region. A nice restoration would be useful and the safety of such fascinating beauties full of history would be useful. Sometimes, without taking anything away from anyone, the "lesser" castles have much more to tell than the more famous "older brothers". Locals say that someone climbs to visit what's left: it is not recommended, but if you really don't want to do without it, watch where you put your feet and look under your head.

paolone39 (4 years ago)
Too bad it is poorly maintained .. The view is breathtaking!

Marco (4 years ago)
Locked down

Luca Tirnusciolo (5 years ago)
Situato a 656 m s.l.m., a picco sulla gola scavata dalla Dora Baltea, su uno sperone roccioso che in epoca romana venne definito Mons Jovis oggi costeggiato dalla Mongiovetta, tratto della Strada statale 26 della Valle d'Aosta scavato nella roccia, il castello di Saint-Germain è tra i castelli della regione più strategici, insieme al forte di Bard e al Châtel-Argent: la sua posizione permetteva facilmente di controllare e difendere il borgo posto ai piedi del mammellone roccioso e la vallata centrale della Valle d'Aosta. Situato a metà strada tra i comuni di Verrès e Saint-Vincent, in collegamento visivo con la Tour Chenal, il castello di Saint-Germain è raggiungibile solo dal lato nord del promontorio di Montjovet. Oggi è in rovina, e un cancello impedisce l'accesso all'area per pericolo di crolli.

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Sigmaringen Castle

Sigmaringen Castle was first mentioned in the year 1077 in the chronicles of Petershausen monastery. The oldest parts of the castle are concealed beneath the alterations made during the 17th and the 19th centuries. The secret of the earliest settlement built on this defendable rock will never be fully revealed: large-scale excavation work would be necessary, which the extensive land development renders impossible. Judging from the many Roman remains unearthed in the area around Sigmaringen, the 12th century keep known as the 'Roman Tower' could be traced back to a Roman predecessor.

The castle remains that have been preserved (gate, great hall and keep) date back to the Staufer period around 1200. The castle remains were integrated into subsequent buildings. The foundations of the castle buildings are to a large extent identical to the surrounding castle wall.

These remains give us a good idea of how the castle might have looked during the 12th century.

Saint Germain Castle

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