Castello Normanno-Svevo (Sannicandro di Bari)
Encyclopedia
The ‘’’Norman-Swabian Castle’’’ of Sannicandro di Bari
is located in the medieval part of town, between the characteristics houses with external staircases, surrounded by the ancient Swabian moat, filled and turned into a street in 1836. It is composed of two distinct parts, put into each other, built in separate periods by the Byzantine
s and the Swabian
s. Its construction dates back to 916, the initiative of the Byzantine general Niccolo Piccingli, who had ordered the construction of a fortress for the defence of Apulia
by the Saracen
s. It was located north of the small township of Sannicandro that, just in a century and a half, developed at the edge of the ruins of the ancient castle Mezardo. The original core of the castle, of Byzantine origin, consists of a sturdy brick wall of stone that runs along the trapezoidal layout, equipped with six four-sided towers distributed in the four vertices and the midpoint of the two bases of the trapezoid.
fell into the hands of the Norman Robert Guiscard
, Duke of Apulia, and Sannicandro was proclaimed Barony and part of the County of Montescaglioso
. The Castle of Sannicandro was at this point completely restored with Norman architecture. The four corner towers were rebuilt on the Byzantine ruins and connected by a solid curtain to four central towers. Eastward a wide moat and a drawbridge were built alongside the main tower, isolating and protecting the castle. The baronial palace was built behind the north curtain, with a rescue tunnel leading to the church of S. John outside the walls, built by the Normans themselves. When, finally, in 1087, the sacred relics of St. Nicholas arrived in Bari, in the Castle was built a chapel dedicated to the saint.
The last Norman Baron was William De Tot, who ruled the fief of Sannicandro presumably between 1150 and 1170, after a brief period, between 1131 and 1134, during which the barony was held by Count Guido da Venosa.
domination is lacking. The policy of centralization of power begun by Emperor Frederick II
and his intolerance towards the barons suggest that in that period the house of Sannicandro was not granted to any feudal lord.
In 1242 the fort of Byzantine origin was completed by the Swabian emperor, who added the outside section in order to transform it into a fortified residential castle. An outer wall, 1.58 meters wide, surrounded, in fact, the perimeter of the manor, which was protected by a new moat. The north central Norman tower was demolished to allow the building of the great baronial palace, with three great mullioned windows, flanked and guarded by two massive towers. Into the wall, next to one of the towers, were hidden spaces for falconry, inaccessible and devoid of light, as the emperor had prescribed in the treatise "De arte venandi cum avibus
". It was finally built a rescue underground tunnel which came out in the open countryside to Bitetto
.
During the years of Swabian domination the castle consisted of nine towers.
domination was decisive for the history of the country. It is said that Prince Charles I of Anjou, imprisoned in Sicily
, had asked the protection of St. Nicholas of Bari, who, appearing, would have secured his release. Obtained its freedom and returned with the royal title in Naples
, Charles II of Anjou wanted to remunerate the shrine of the saint, whose intercession he attributed its salvation, with broad incomes and the richest gifts. In 1304, by permission of the Angevin kings, the fief of Sannicandro passed, therefore, to the Basilica of Saint Nicholas of Bari and began a period of relative stability.
In those years, the castle was never occupied by Prior-Baron because they resided at the Royal Court of Naples. Was therefore used as a seat for the farm administration of the Barony and in some ground floor rooms were planted a grain mill and an oil mill.
The authority of the Prior-Barons of the Chapter of St. Nicholas of Bari lasted five centuries, until 1806, when it was published in the law of King Joseph Bonaparte that abolished the feudal system.
The feud was, therefore, subject to a common private property and the Chapter of the Real Chapter of Saint Nicholas came in the role of a simple user of real property.
After a series of renovations, the castle is enjoyable in its splendour, for all those who wish to visit.
Sannicandro di Bari
Sannicandro di Bari is a town and comune in the province of Bari, Puglia, Italy.-Main sights:The main attraction of Sannicandro is the Hohenstaufen-Norman castle, located in the centre of the city. It is composed of two structures one within the other: the first one was built by the Byzantines in...
is located in the medieval part of town, between the characteristics houses with external staircases, surrounded by the ancient Swabian moat, filled and turned into a street in 1836. It is composed of two distinct parts, put into each other, built in separate periods by the Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
s and the Swabian
Swabian
Swabian may refer:* to the German region of Swabia ; or* to Swabian German, a dialect spoken in Baden-Württemberg in south-west Germany and adjoining areas See also:...
s. Its construction dates back to 916, the initiative of the Byzantine general Niccolo Piccingli, who had ordered the construction of a fortress for the defence of Apulia
Apulia
Apulia is a region in Southern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its most southern portion, known as Salento peninsula, forms a high heel on the "boot" of Italy. The region comprises , and...
by the Saracen
Saracen
Saracen was a term used by the ancient Romans to refer to a people who lived in desert areas in and around the Roman province of Arabia, and who were distinguished from Arabs. In Europe during the Middle Ages the term was expanded to include Arabs, and then all who professed the religion of Islam...
s. It was located north of the small township of Sannicandro that, just in a century and a half, developed at the edge of the ruins of the ancient castle Mezardo. The original core of the castle, of Byzantine origin, consists of a sturdy brick wall of stone that runs along the trapezoidal layout, equipped with six four-sided towers distributed in the four vertices and the midpoint of the two bases of the trapezoid.
Norman period
In 1071, after three years of siege, BariBari
Bari is the capital city of the province of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, in Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy after Naples, and is well known as a port and university city, as well as the city of Saint Nicholas...
fell into the hands of the Norman Robert Guiscard
Robert Guiscard
Robert d'Hauteville, known as Guiscard, Duke of Apulia and Calabria, from Latin Viscardus and Old French Viscart, often rendered the Resourceful, the Cunning, the Wily, the Fox, or the Weasel was a Norman adventurer conspicuous in the conquest of southern Italy and Sicily...
, Duke of Apulia, and Sannicandro was proclaimed Barony and part of the County of Montescaglioso
Montescaglioso
Montescaglioso is a town and comune in the Province of Matera, Basilicata, southern Italy.The economy is mostly based on agriculture, including production of renowned oil and wine, as well as traditional food....
. The Castle of Sannicandro was at this point completely restored with Norman architecture. The four corner towers were rebuilt on the Byzantine ruins and connected by a solid curtain to four central towers. Eastward a wide moat and a drawbridge were built alongside the main tower, isolating and protecting the castle. The baronial palace was built behind the north curtain, with a rescue tunnel leading to the church of S. John outside the walls, built by the Normans themselves. When, finally, in 1087, the sacred relics of St. Nicholas arrived in Bari, in the Castle was built a chapel dedicated to the saint.
The last Norman Baron was William De Tot, who ruled the fief of Sannicandro presumably between 1150 and 1170, after a brief period, between 1131 and 1134, during which the barony was held by Count Guido da Venosa.
Swabian Period
News about the events that took place during the years of SwabianSwabian
Swabian may refer:* to the German region of Swabia ; or* to Swabian German, a dialect spoken in Baden-Württemberg in south-west Germany and adjoining areas See also:...
domination is lacking. The policy of centralization of power begun by Emperor Frederick II
Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick II , was one of the most powerful Holy Roman Emperors of the Middle Ages and head of the House of Hohenstaufen. His political and cultural ambitions, based in Sicily and stretching through Italy to Germany, and even to Jerusalem, were enormous...
and his intolerance towards the barons suggest that in that period the house of Sannicandro was not granted to any feudal lord.
In 1242 the fort of Byzantine origin was completed by the Swabian emperor, who added the outside section in order to transform it into a fortified residential castle. An outer wall, 1.58 meters wide, surrounded, in fact, the perimeter of the manor, which was protected by a new moat. The north central Norman tower was demolished to allow the building of the great baronial palace, with three great mullioned windows, flanked and guarded by two massive towers. Into the wall, next to one of the towers, were hidden spaces for falconry, inaccessible and devoid of light, as the emperor had prescribed in the treatise "De arte venandi cum avibus
De arte venandi cum avibus
De Arte Venandi cum Avibus, literally "The Art of Hunting with Birds", is a Latin treatise on ornithology and Falconry written in the 1240s by Frederick II, and dedicated to his son Manfred....
". It was finally built a rescue underground tunnel which came out in the open countryside to Bitetto
Bitetto
-Main sights:The main attraction of Bitetto is the Cathedral, one of the main examples of Apulian Romanesque architecture, built in 1335. It has a sober façade divided by false columns with a big rose window...
.
During the years of Swabian domination the castle consisted of nine towers.
Angevin Period
The advent of the AngevinCapetian House of Anjou
The Capetian House of Anjou, also known as the House of Anjou-Sicily and House of Anjou-Naples, was a royal house and cadet branch of the direct House of Capet. Founded by Charles I of Sicily, a son of Louis VIII of France, the Capetian king first ruled the Kingdom of Sicily during the 13th century...
domination was decisive for the history of the country. It is said that Prince Charles I of Anjou, imprisoned in Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
, had asked the protection of St. Nicholas of Bari, who, appearing, would have secured his release. Obtained its freedom and returned with the royal title in Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
, Charles II of Anjou wanted to remunerate the shrine of the saint, whose intercession he attributed its salvation, with broad incomes and the richest gifts. In 1304, by permission of the Angevin kings, the fief of Sannicandro passed, therefore, to the Basilica of Saint Nicholas of Bari and began a period of relative stability.
In those years, the castle was never occupied by Prior-Baron because they resided at the Royal Court of Naples. Was therefore used as a seat for the farm administration of the Barony and in some ground floor rooms were planted a grain mill and an oil mill.
The authority of the Prior-Barons of the Chapter of St. Nicholas of Bari lasted five centuries, until 1806, when it was published in the law of King Joseph Bonaparte that abolished the feudal system.
The feud was, therefore, subject to a common private property and the Chapter of the Real Chapter of Saint Nicholas came in the role of a simple user of real property.
Recent Times
The castle, which during the years of Nicholean administration had maintained its original lines, between 1806 and 1875 was brutally ruined. In fact, it emerged the problem of filling the void produced by the loss of feudal rights, and finding new sources of revenue for the maintenance of the Basilica of San Nicola and the Chapter. Therefore, the outer ring was opened with more doors and gates to obtain windows to be used as workshops, houses, barns and shops that provide income to the Nicholas Chapter. The gap was bridged, the underground tunnel blocked, the mullioned windows were defaced and turned into balconies. In 1951, the title passed by from the Prior of St. Nicholas of Bari to the Archbishop of Bari, and, with a public act of the 12 December 1967, the Municipality of Sannicandro di Bari, in the person of Mayor Prof. Nicola Casamassima, bought the castle for the paltry sum of 10,500,000 lire.After a series of renovations, the castle is enjoyable in its splendour, for all those who wish to visit.