Solza Castle probably dates back to the 10th or 11th century. Here was born the famous condottiere Bartolomeo Colleoni. According to tradition, when Bartolomeo Colleoni left Solza Castle, he was between 14 and 15 years old: little more than a boy, even for those times. No-one could have predicted then that he was destined to become one of the most famous condottieri of the fifteenth century.
Today the same castle appears rather insignificant with its modest fourteenth century plan, but it is still worth visiting the small village of Solza, near the river Adda, and use it as starting point for making a historical tour of the castles dotted over the Bergamo plain. Two great powers, the Duchy of Milan and the Republic of Venice, were long-term rivals in this border country.
References:The Church of St Donatus name refers to Donatus of Zadar, who began construction on this church in the 9th century and ended it on the northeastern part of the Roman forum. It is the largest Pre-Romanesque building in Croatia.
The beginning of the building of the church was placed to the second half of the 8th century, and it is supposed to have been completed in the 9th century. The Zadar bishop and diplomat Donat (8th and 9th centuries) is credited with the building of the church. He led the representations of the Dalmatian cities to Constantinople and Charles the Great, which is why this church bears slight resemblance to Charlemagne's court chapels, especially the one in Aachen, and also to the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. It belongs to the Pre-Romanesque architectural period.
The circular church, formerly domed, is 27 m high and is characterised by simplicity and technical primitivism.