The story I am going to tell you this week is the tale of two
different women. They didn't just live in different times, but they also
had different characters and stories. Nevertheless, one thing bounds
them together, and it is not only the fact that they lived in the same
castle, but their destinies were bounded by love, one of the most
dangerous feelings.
As first let me introduce a bit of the history
of the castle, which is located in Fosdinovo in the northern part of
Tuscany close to the sea. The castle location was extremely strategic as
it could control the outlet to the sea of the valley. As usual, there
is not an exact date for the building of the castle, but there is a
document from the year 1084 that tells about a castle in the region of
Fosdinovo. This first castle was acquired by the marquise Spinetta
Malaspina in the year 1300 and the fortress walls to defend the castle
were then erected.
After a short period, the feud was conquered
by Castruccio Castrocane, Lord of Lucca, but his fortune didn't last
long, and by the year 1334, the fortress returned definitely in
possession of the Marquise of Malaspina, who enlarged the structure.
But
let's go back to the stories of the two ghosts who seem to haunt the
castle, the first one is the Countess Cristina Pallavicino, widow of
Ippolito Malaspina, who was assassinated by his brother who wanted to
get hold of the rich feud.
The countess is recalled as an extremely beautiful
but ruthless woman. She used her beauty to entice her lovers in her
bedroom to satisfy her sexual appetites. However, after she got what she
was looking for, she used to kill her lovers by letting them fall on a
well placed just in front of her bed. Some say it is just a legend other
confirm this as the real fact. Truth is that the well is still present
in the bedroom, although it has been recently sealed to avoid accidents.
It seems like her ghost s still wandering in the castle, perhaps
searching for new lovers, or to tell her version of the story. We will
never know.
The other story belongs to a young woman Bianca Maria
Aloisia Malaspina, who lived in the middle of the XVI century. Legend
tells that she was betrothed to a noble gentleman, but at the age of 15
she fell in love with the stable boy and refused to marry.
The
parents, disappointed by her behavior and not seeing any chance to
divide the two lovers, decide to close her in a monastery and forget
about her. We all know that love knows no boundaries, and she escaped
the monastery to reach her beloved.
Blinded by rage and shame she
was bringing to the family, his father decided to kill her lover and
condemn her daughter to a terrible death. She was walled alive in one of
the rooms in the cellar together with a dog, symbol of her loyal love
and a boar, symbol of rebellion to the family. I know that is just
insane, and even more crazy is how a family could do this to their
beloved daughter (or any other human being, not to count the animals).
No wonder that her ghost is still haunting the place seeking revenge, or to find back her lost lover.
So
here we have two very different stories, where love and death are the
major players, a pair you should never bring together...
I
leave you with some thoughts for this day, hoping you enjoyed the story
and the castle, which is a great sight and deserves to be visited over
and over.
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