The construction of the Castle
The Castle is located on the Sant’Angelo hill
The construction of the Castle begins with the construction of the pentagonal tower in 882 parallel to the urban development of the city of Itri. Its construction aims to defend the territory against the attacks of the Saracens and other Arab populations who threatened the coasts and the hinterland.
The Castle is located on the highest point of the Sant’Angelo hill and was built in several phases:
– in 882 the pentagonal tower was erected (commissioned by Docibile I, a Byzantine ipata of the duchy of Gaeta);
– in 950 Marino I, Docibile’s nephew, strengthened the place by raising a second higher and more imposing tower, the square one called “male”;
– in 1250 a third circular tower was built to guard the Via Appia, at that time the only land route.
With the completion of the third tower, a patrol walkway was built that connected the towers and made it possible to control enemy attacks and to communicate promptly with the Castle of Gaeta for an immediate alert.