The castle of Brina is located on the left slope of a hill in the lower Val di Magra, along the ridge between Falcinello and Ponzano Superiore, within the district of Sarzana and on the border with Santo Stefano di Magra. The original part of the castle could date back to the 11th century. It was first mentioned in a sales contract on May 25, 1055. The houses, the lands and the castle’s walls were mentioned in a sales document on June 14, 1078, in which Pellegrino de Bruciore sold all his belongings and the lands outside the walls of the defensive fortification of Brina to the bishop of Luni.
During the 14th century, the castle was torn down, not by war, but as a result of a systematic destruction. This is confirmed by the ruins of the buildings, which show signs of having been destroyed using picks. The tower was torn down through the mining technique, that is to say by substituting a line of rocks at the base of the building with wood and setting it on fire.
The castle is in ruins but it has been made safe and strengthened after a recent restoration.
References:Rosenborg Palace was built in the period 1606-34 as Christian IV’s summerhouse just outside the ramparts of Copenhagen. Christian IV was very fond of the palace and often stayed at the castle when he resided in Copenhagen, and it was here that he died in 1648. After his death, the palace passed to his son King Frederik III, who together with his queen, Sophie Amalie, carried out several types of modernisation.
The last king who used the place as a residence was Frederik IV, and around 1720, Rosenborg was abandoned in favor of Frederiksborg Palace.Through the 1700s, considerable art treasures were collected at Rosenborg Castle, among other things items from the estates of deceased royalty and from Christiansborg after the fire there in 1794.
Soon the idea of a museum arose, and that was realised in 1833, which is The Royal Danish Collection’s official year of establishment.