This content was automatically translated. View the original text.
A Medieval Tower House (Casa Torre) in Campagnano: a 13th-Century Townhouse Still Standing in the Historic Centre
In the historic centre of Campagnano, between Via San Giovanni and Via del Duomo, this medieval tower house (casa torre) tells the story of what it meant to dwell and assert one’s rank in the 13th century. It is not a military fortress — or at least not only that. It is the tufa-brick symbol of a prosperous family that wished to stand apart from its neighbours: a vertical, self-sufficient building, with an internal well for rainwater, a waste chute (butto), storerooms and space for animals on the lower floors.
A building type found throughout medieval Lazio
Tower houses multiplied in the Campagnano area in the second half of the 13th century, following a model that in the previous century had characterised the whole Campagna Romana (the Roman countryside): isolated towers along the ancient consular roads, symbols of the territorial control exercised by local lords. Here the model adapted itself to the town: not a solitary tower, but a residential building with the character of a private stronghold. Autonomy not from the city, but from the neighbouring family. In this sense they anticipated the noble townhouses of the Renaissance: the same logic, more restrained forms.
What you can still see today
On the northern side of the building, a row of small decorative loggias can be seen along the cornice of the first floor: a detail typical of the 14th century, which distinguishes this tower house from the older ones. The rest has undergone alterations over time, as is the case with any house inhabited for some 700 years, and each era has left its mark.
