– Castel Gandolfo and Pontifical Villas –
Just a few kilometers from Rome, on the shores of Lake Albano, there is Castel Gandolfo, one of the most beautiful villages in Italy and known for the splendid summer residences of nobles and popes. The garden of Villa Barberini, the green heart of the villas, and the Apostolic Palace open their gates to welcome visitors who have come to admire the beauties outside the Eternal City.
– Castel Gandolfo: history
The name derives from a castle built by the Roman Gandolfi family in the XII century. in the ancient village of Cuccuruttus, as the village was called in the Middle Ages. The ownership of the castle then passed to the Capizucchi and finally to the Savelli, from which the Apostolic Chamber purchased it in 1604. Urban VIII, in 1623, transformed the ancient Savelli residence into a Papal palace and in 1626 the Pope left for his first holiday in the new palace of Castel Gandolfo. In 1659 Gian Lorenzo Bernini was commissioned to fix the square with the fountain and to build the church of San Tommaso. Castel Gandolfo became a favorite destination for cardinals and a holiday resort for the Popes until 1870. The palace subsequently remained unused until 1929 when the Italian state returned it to the Vatican.
– The Pontifical Palace
The Papal Palace of 1628, designed by Carlo Maderno on the wishes of Pope Urban VIII, stands on the lines of the castle that belonged to the Gandolfi and Savelli families. With the latest renovations in the first half of the 1900s, a Private Chapel can now be admired with the image of the Madonna of the Częstochowa Sanctuary.
– The Pontifical Villa
The Pontifical Villa is divided into Pontifical Gardens and Villa Cybo. The gardens, designed at the time of Pope Urban VIII, are the ancient part of the complex at the rear of the building. The Villa, built at the behest of Cardinal Camillo Cybo, was connected to the rest of the complex with Pope Clement XIV, who bought it from the Duke of Modena at the end of the 1700s.
Do not miss the opportunity to spend a day among the historical-artistic and natural wonders of the summer residence of the Popes, where you can also appreciate the botanical amenities of the Papal Farms. Because Art & Tradition Tours wants to make your guided tour unique.
