The first mention of the Madrignano Castle dates back tothe imperial diploma of Frederick Barbarossa of 1162, where it was assigned to Obizzo Malaspina.
During the Middle Ages, the village of Madrignano was part of the fief of Caliceal Cornoviglio, until 1400. In 1416 it passed to the Genoese. In 1465, Madrignano and Calice were sold to Tommaso Campofregoso, who in turn sold them to the Marquis Azzone di Mulazzo. Shortly afterwards it passed again to the Republic of Genoa, in exchange for Castevoli. The Marquis of Mulazzo reconquered and kept it, but lost Calice. It was then contested again by the Genoese and the Marquis of Mulazzo, and finally thecastle was part of the territories belonging to the Malaspina for three centuries. It survived the battles that destroyed Lunigiana, but the castle was damaged by an assault between 1705 and 1706, during the battles between the French, the Spanish and the Austrians. The manor was occupied for ten days and its structure was badly damaged. From 1772 the area returned to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and followed the same destiny.
Even though the castle’s structure dates back a long time, its original architecture was destroyed by the Genoese in 1416, and it was then enlarged and modified. The only evidence of the structure, are the round corner tower and the impressive ruins.The building has recently been strengthened, restored and assigned to the Ligurian Super intendence of Fine Arts and Landscapes.
Today the castle is owned by the municipality and houses the Museum of Ancient Ligurians.
References:Saint-Georges de Boscherville Abbey is a former Benedictine abbey. It was founded in about 1113 by Guillaume de Tancarville on the site of an earlier establishment of secular canons and settled by monks from the Abbey of Saint-Evroul. The abbey church made of Caumont stone was erected from 1113 to 1140. The Norman builders aimed to have very well-lit naves and they did this by means of tall, large windows, initially made possible by a wooden ceiling, which prevented uplift, although this was replaced by a Gothic vault in the 13th century. The chapter room was built after the abbey church and dates from the last quarter of the 12th century.
The arrival of the Maurist monks in 1659, after the disasters of the Wars of Religion, helped to get the abbey back on a firmer spiritual, architectural and economic footing. They erected a large monastic building one wing of which fitted tightly around the chapter house (which was otherwise left as it was).