{"id":1833,"date":"2026-03-20T12:04:56","date_gmt":"2026-03-20T16:04:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/romeguide.hcc-nd.edu\/?page_id=1833"},"modified":"2026-07-11T11:24:28","modified_gmt":"2026-07-11T15:24:28","slug":"castel-santangelo","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/romeguide.hcc-nd.edu\/?page_id=1833","title":{"rendered":"Castel\u00a0Sant\u2019Angelo"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Fortresses abounded in the\u00a0City\u00a0during the Middle Ages,\u00a0almost as\u00a0much\u00a0as\u00a0churches,\u00a0over\u00a0300\u00a0in\u00a0the\u00a012th<\/sup>\u00a0century.\u00a0Wealthy\u00a0and\u00a0powerful\u00a0aristocratic families fought among themselves and carved out domains of influence throughout. These they defended with fortifications created independently\u00a0(Torre delle\u00a0Milizie<\/span>)\u00a0<\/strong>by the Conti) or carved out of the ruins of ancient roman structures. The best-known monuments serving these purposes include the Colosseum and Arches of Titus and Septimius Severus (Frangipani); the Mausoleum of Augustus (Colonna); the Theater of Marcellus (Savelli); the Theater of Pompey (Orsini).\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The\u00a0most\u00a0prominent\u00a0castle\u00a0of\u00a0them\u00a0all,\u00a0now\u00a0and\u00a0then,\u00a0stands\u00a0out,\u00a0the great\u00a0papal\u00a0fortress,\u00a0Hadrian\u2019s\u00a0Mausoleum<\/span><\/strong>.\u00a0It\u00a0remains\u00a0one\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0City\u2019s most visible and unique monuments.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

While many important Roman structures have fallen into ruins, the Mausoleum still survives much intact two millennia later. In the ancient world mausoleums served as large burial monuments usually made of stone, entombing\u00a0remains\u00a0of the powerful and wealthy. The term itself derives from the name Mausolus, a 4th<\/sup>\u00a0century BC ruler from Anatolia who constructed a funeral monument for his wife. Such was its grandeur that the ancients regarded it as one of the Seven Great Wonders of the World.\u00a0Hadrian\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>constructed\u00a0the\u00a0mausoleum\u00a0for\u00a0himself\u00a0and\u00a0his\u00a0family\u00a0(Sabina,\u00a0his wife, and Aelius Caesar, his adopted son) around 125 A.D. It was not finished at the time of his death in 138 A.D., but his successor Emperor Antoninus Pius placed his ashes in the tomb a year later. The mausoleum became the tomb for many emperors and family members from Hadrian (Aelian family) to Septimius Severus and Caracalla in the\u00a0early 3rd<\/sup>\u00a0century.\u00a0Over the centuries it has performed diverse functions: fortress, prison, barracks, and\u00a0museum.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Hadrian\u00a0built\u00a0his\u00a0Mausoleum\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>in\u00a0the\u00a0former\u00a0Gardens\u00a0of\u00a0Domitian\u00a0a half\u00a0mile away\u00a0from\u00a0that\u00a0of\u00a0Augustus,\u00a0almost\u00a0a\u00a0stone\u2019s\u00a0throw away.\u00a0On\u00a0his\u00a0deathbed at Puzzuoli near Naples, he composed an epitaph, a farewell to life, in the\u00a0form\u00a0of\u00a0a\u00a0poem\u00a0about\u00a0his\u00a0soul,\u00a0his\u00a0body\u2019s\u00a0friend\u00a0and\u00a0companion\u00a0(Animula,\u00a0vagula,\u00a0blandula,\u00a0Hospes\u00a0comesque\u00a0corporis …).<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Hadrian\u2019s ordered his architect,\u00a0Demetrianus, to construct the mausoleum on the right bank of the Tiber.<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>The similarity of Hadrian\u2019s Mausoleum to the older tombs of Cecelia Metella on the Via Appia and Augustus\u2019\u00a0on\u00a0the\u00a0left\u00a0bank\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0Tiber\u00a0is\u00a0not\u00a0accidental,\u00a0nor\u00a0its\u00a0comparative\u00a0immensity.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

At the summit sat an earthen tumulus adorned with cypress trees, an altar (replaced now with the St. Michael statue), bronze sculptures of Hadrian driving a quadriga, and a decorative, bronze, pinecone displayed now inthe Belvedere Courtyard of the Vatican Museum. Some of these appointments disappeared in the sixth century when employed as weapons against besieging Ostrogoths. Marble inscriptions bearing the names of those interred within its walls stood in place until the 16th<\/sup> century when Pope Gregory XIII expropriated them as spolia for the internal space of St. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peter\u2019s.\u00a0Inside\u00a0the\u00a0structure,\u00a0a\u00a0spiral\u00a0ramp<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>leads\u00a0to\u00a0a\u00a0straight\u00a0passageway leading to the\u00a0cella, the place of the Imperial tomb.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Hadrian also built the triumphal\u00a0Pons Aelius<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>(Aelian Bridge\/Castel Sant\u2019Angelo Bridge) facing straight onto the mausoleum.\u00a0The bridge, whose\u00a0three\u00a0central\u00a0arches\u00a0are\u00a0original, led\u00a0to\u00a0a\u00a0main\u00a0thoroughfare,\u00a0the\u00a0Via Aurelia, out to the\u00a0City\u00a0to the west and northward along the Mediterranean\u00a0coast.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In the mid-3rd<\/sup>\u00a0century, the emperor\u00a0Aurelian\u00a0enclosed the castle and incorporated it into his wall. During the papacy of\u00a0Gregory\u00a0I (Great), the plague of 509 ravaged the\u00a0City. The pope organized a penitential procession through the\u00a0City\u00a0seeking God\u2019s intervention to end the\u00a0epidemic. As the procession passed by the\u00a0Mausoleum\u00a0the archangel Michael appeared at its pinnacle sheathing his sword. The plague\u00a0vanished\u00a0and its surviving victims were miraculously cured<\/strong>. Gregory ordered an angel statue placed now where St. Michael appeared. In his\u00a0honor\u00a0the Mausoleum gradually\u00a0acquired\u00a0its current name, Castel Sant\u2019Angelo.\u00a0The\u00a0Flemish\u00a0sculptor,\u00a0Peter\u00a0Anton\u00a0von\u00a0Verschaffelt<\/strong>,\u00a0created the present\u00a0St. Michael statue<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>in 1753.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Its\u00a0predecessor\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>by\u00a0Raffaello\u00a0da\u00a0Montelupo\u00a0<\/strong>lies\u00a0on\u00a0the\u00a0floor\u00a0in\u00a0an\u00a0open court in the Castle.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In the Middle Ages the mausoleum became a fortified castle (Orsini) and popes, anti-popes and other warring factions fought with each other to gain control of it. In 1084 Robert Guiscard rescued Pope Gregory VII from it during a siege by troops of the German Emperor, Henry IV. From here, Cola di Rienzo fled to Bohemia in 1347 at the end of his first dictatorship. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many\u00a0illustrious\u00a0people\u00a0were\u00a0imprisoned\u00a0here\u00a0in\u00a0its\u00a0cells<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>(Pope\u00a0John\u00a0XII, Cesare Borgia, Benvenuto Cellini, Cagliostro, Beatrice Cenci<\/strong>) and some executed (Popes John XI, Benedict\u00a0VI\u00a0and John XIV<\/strong>).\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In\u00a0the\u00a013th<\/sup>\u00a0century\u00a0Pope\u00a0Nicholas\u00a0III\u00a0connected\u00a0the\u00a0castle\u00a0at\u00a0the\u00a0point\u00a0of\u00a0the Leonine Wall to the Papal Palace by a covered fortified corridor, the\u00a0Passetto<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>visible from\u00a0the Borgo\u00a0today. It\u00a0contains\u00a0two corridors atop one another:\u00a0the\u00a0upper\u00a0has\u00a0no\u00a0roof\u00a0and\u00a0a\u00a0lower,\u00a0covered\u00a0one\u00a0(created\u00a0in\u00a01492 by\u00a0Pope\u00a0Alexander\u00a0VI),\u00a0underneath\u00a0with small\u00a0circular\u00a0holes in its\u00a0walls\u00a0to provide illumination.\u00a0Small bunkers buried under the ground\u00a0<\/strong>of the\u00a0Passetto\u00a0near the Castel saved the life of Pope Clement VII during the 1527 Sack of the City by soldiers of Emperor Charles V.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Adjacent to\u00a0the bastion of St. Luke stands the Chapel of the Crucifix (Clement XII) where condemned criminals attended Mass before their execution. The compound also included an elevator\u00a0operated\u00a0by hand. Its shaft is visible still beyond the main entryway near the base of the\u00a0spiral\u00a0ramp<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>leading\u00a0to\u00a0the\u00a0upper\u00a0floors.\u00a0The\u00a0thirty\u00a0foot\u00a0ramp\u00a0led\u00a0to\u00a0the\u00a0burial\u00a0cella\u00a0housing the ashes of Hadrian and wide enough to allow passage to it by way of horse chariot.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Regarded\u00a0as\u00a0a\u00a0wonder\u00a0of\u00a0Roman\u00a0architecture,\u00a0it\u00a0later\u00a0inspired Donato\u00a0Bramante\u2019s 16th<\/sup>\u00a0century\u00a0design for\u00a0the spiral staircase<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>now in\u00a0the Vatican Belvedere Palace.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A\u00a0more\u00a0modern,\u00a020th<\/sup>\u00a0century\u00a0version\u00a0<\/strong>of\u00a0it,\u00a0the\u00a0double\u00a0spiral\u00a0stairs<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>designed by\u00a0Giuseppe Momo<\/strong>, sits at the entrance of the Vatican\u00a0Museums.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A delegation of Roman nobles who greeted Pope Gregory XI upon his return\u00a0to\u00a0the\u00a0City\u00a0in\u00a01377\u00a0enthusiastically\u00a0handed\u00a0him\u00a0the\u00a0keys\u00a0of\u00a0Castle\u00a0on a silver\u00a0platter. At the end\u00a0of\u00a0the 15th<\/sup>\u00a0century Pope\u00a0Nicholas\u00a0commissioned the construction of the\u00a0four bastions\u00a0<\/strong>at the corners of the structure by which the castle could withstand a three-year siege.\u00a0Rossellino, Sangallo and Bramante, among the most notable architects of the\u00a0City, added the\u00a0arcaded ramparts<\/span><\/strong>. These connect to the bastions dedicated to the four Evangelists, each of which marked by a plaque. A covered passageway, the\u00a0Passetto,\u00a0located\u00a0close\u00a0to\u00a0the\u00a0bastion\u00a0of St.\u00a0Mark<\/strong>,\u00a0connects\u00a0the\u00a0castle to the Papal Palace.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On the second story lies an open spaced\u00a0Courtyard of the Angel\u00a0<\/strong>named after the angel sculpture which once stood there.\u00a0Michelangelo<\/strong>\u2019s first architectural\u00a0project\u00a0in\u00a0the\u00a0City\u00a0sits\u00a0at\u00a0one\u00a0end,\u00a0the\u00a0window\u00a0aedicule\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0Chapel of the of Pope Leo X<\/span><\/strong>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A second open space lies on the second story, the larger\u00a0Cortile\u00a0<\/strong>(Courtyard) of Pope Alexander VI<\/strong><\/span>.\u00a0<\/strong>It houses a wellhead and\u00a0served\u00a0as the\u00a0site of theatrical\u00a0performances staged during\u00a0the\u00a0reigns of Popes Leo X and Pius IV. On one side at the lower level remain a line of prison cells (prigioni\u00a0storiche) which once housed notable prisoners such as Giordano Bruno, Beatrice Cenci and her stepmother, and Benvenuto Cellini whose charcoal\u00a0drawing\u00a0of\u00a0God\u00a0the\u00a0Father\u00a0and\u00a0Christ, it\u00a0is said,\u00a0was\u00a0etched\u00a0on\u00a0the walls of the last cell.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Stairs\u00a0ascend\u00a0to\u00a0the\u00a0bathroom\u00a0of\u00a0Pope\u00a0Clement\u00a0VII<\/span><\/strong>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Popes\u00a0constructed\u00a0lavish\u00a0papal\u00a0apartments<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>on\u00a0the\u00a0third\u00a0story\u00a0and\u00a0some claim that\u00a0Raphael\u00a0<\/strong>decorated one of its bedrooms.\u00a0Pope Leo X built the chapel around 1520.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In\u00a01527\u00a0Pope\u00a0Clement\u00a0VII\u00a0and\u00a0his\u00a0retinue\u00a0of\u00a0over\u00a01000\u00a0took\u00a0refuge\u00a0here\u00a0in 1527 from the troops of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and soon after, Pope Paul III\u00a0built another sumptuous<\/strong>\u00a0papal apartment <\/strong><\/span>as a contingency measure against future assaults on the Vatican palace.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The space also included a separate\u00a0treasury room<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>where 16th<\/sup>\u00a0century popes\u00a0installed\u00a0large\u00a0cabinets\u00a0for\u00a0preserving\u00a0archive\u00a0material\u00a0and\u00a0secure chests for safeguarding gold and silver.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Pope\u00a0Paul\u00a0III\u00a0also\u00a0added\u00a0the\u00a0loggia<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>on\u00a0the\u00a0north\u00a0side\u00a0and\u00a0decorated\u00a0it\u00a0with frescoes. Three decades later Pope Pius IV added the outer defensive. At least five popes\u00a0have\u00a0resided\u00a0here:\u00a0Alexander\u00a0VI,\u00a0Julius\u00a0II, Leo\u00a0X,\u00a0Clement VII, and Paul III.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Pope\u00a0Urban\u00a0VIII\u00a0commissioned\u00a0Bernini\u00a0in\u00a0the\u00a017th<\/sup>\u00a0century\u00a0to\u00a0redesign\u00a0the external defenses.\u00a0Bernini\u00a0<\/strong>utilized bronze removed from\u00a0ceiling\u00a0of the Pantheon\u2019s portico to fashion\u00a0cannons\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>for the castle.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

From 1849\u00a0to\u00a01870\u00a0French\u00a0troops\u00a0occupied\u00a0the\u00a0castle and\u00a0defaced\u00a0the\u00a0St. Michael statues with red, white, and blue paint, the colors of the French tricolor. When in 1870 Rome became the capital of the new Italian state, the Castle housed a barracks and prison. In 1901 work to restore the structure began and in 1933 the Castle was opened to the public as a\u00a0military history museum<\/span><\/strong>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Fortresses abounded in the\u00a0City\u00a0during the Middle Ages,\u00a0almost as\u00a0much\u00a0as\u00a0churches,\u00a0over\u00a0300\u00a0in\u00a0the\u00a012th\u00a0century.\u00a0Wealthy\u00a0and\u00a0powerful\u00a0aristocratic families fought among themselves and carved out domains of influence throughout. These they defended with fortifications created independently\u00a0(Torre delle\u00a0Milizie)\u00a0by the Conti) or carved out of the ruins of ancient roman structures. The best-known monuments serving these purposes include the Colosseum and Arches of Titus and Septimius Severus…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1833","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/romeguide.hcc-nd.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1833","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/romeguide.hcc-nd.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/romeguide.hcc-nd.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/romeguide.hcc-nd.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/romeguide.hcc-nd.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1833"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/romeguide.hcc-nd.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1833\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/romeguide.hcc-nd.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1833"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}