TOUR ITINERARIES
Discoveryng The Castles Of Puglia
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GALLIPOLI

Driving along the highway num.174 first and num.101 then, for a total distance of
19 km, you get to Gallipoli, a refined town by the sea where there is a stately ancient
spanish castle.

It was built on the remains of the Angevin one, that had previously been built on the remains of a Byzantine fortress.Its most recent buildings dates back to the sixteenth century and it was made by the Spanish and the Aragoneses. This fortress, almost completely surrounded by the sea, was built to guard the old town centre and its rivellino, built in 1527, with the usual squared shape and with four towers at the corners, facing the Canneto basin, that is the ancient dock of Gallipoli.
The story of the castle is the same story of the town, that was continuously invaded by enemies: Venetians, French, English. The inhbitants of this town however, always
fought for their freedom with perseverance and pride. In 1623 the fortress was modified to adapt the inside to its new military use.

Later it became the dwelling of the Tomacello family first and of the Filomarino then, but in the end it became an estate of the D’Acquino family.

OTRANTO

Then we get to Otranto, a picturesque town 39 km far from Lecce, on the east coast of the Salentinian peninsula. This is an active fishing port and a developing tourist site. Otranto is also an important link of connection to Greece.

Its centre is where the ancient Hydrus was (or Hydruntum, a little river that flows into the sea). Hydrus was a greek town. During the Byzantine domination, Otranto grew in importantce thanks to the diffusion of the Oriental religion in the South of Italy. In the XI-XII centuries, after the Norman domination of Roberto il Guiscardo, it was a destination of some crusades and also an important commercial place for Jewish, Dalmatians, Levantines, and Venetians. Its period of luxury ended on july 1480, when the Turkish fleet besieged the town with the aim of create a union with Spanish Muslims, passing through Italy and France. After fifteen days and a strong resistance, a population of 800 refugees were beheaded (later they were proclaimed “Saint martyrs” by the church). They had refused to abjure their religious faith.Their bones are now in the cathedral. After about ten years under the rule of the Aragoneses, in 1495, Otranto was occupied by the Carlo VII and the French army . The old town centre, almost totally surrounded by Aragonese walls, is very characteristic because of its little white houses and its paved streets. You can get into it through Porta Terra, and then you see the wonderful Alfonsina Tower from the late fifteenth century. The Aragonese castle is definitely the most visited place by tourists. It was built by Fardinando d’Aragona after 1481 and it is inside the walls of the old town centre. It has a pentagonal plan with three circular towers and a lance bulkwark on the sea side.

ACAJA

Our itinerary discoverying the castles of Puglia finishes in the peculiar town of Acaja, a centre few kilometres far away from Lecce, surrounded by a squared wall.

On the South-West corner of the wall there is the big castle, whose most ancient residential complex was built in 1506 by the feudatory Alfonso Acaja. The name of the town comes from his son, Gian Giacomo. Before that moment it had been called Sègine. Gian Giacomo was an architect and he planned the fortification of the town. The plan of the castle is trapezoidal and on the two opposite corners on the noth-east side and the south-west one, there are two big circular towers. Both the towers and the curtains or the bastions are made of Lecce typical stone.

Texts: Italiainrete - Pictures: Database and web

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