Castellaro Lagusello

The name of this fortified village includes the two elements that distinguish it: the castle (called at the time “Castlèr”) and the “lagusello”, or the heart-shaped lake for which Castellaro is famous. A hamlet of the Municipality of Monzambano, a small, quiet and intimate village, Castellaro Lagusello is included within the ancient city walls which is accessed via a large door equipped with a drawbridge until the eighteenth century and is reflected in an evocative morainic lake heart-shaped (the lagusello), now a protected natural reserve.
Since the Bronze Age man has settled this territory, now dominated by the fortress dating back to 1100-1200. The castle of Castellaro was built by the Scaligeri family but, due to its strategic position within the morainic amphitheatre, it ended up in the possession of the Viscontis, then the Gonzagas and finally the Serenissima Republic of Venice. Built on a natural hill north of a small heart-shaped lake, the castle was defended by crenellated walls and 10 towers. Of the ancient building, still almost intact, in addition to the walls of that ancient castle, four towers, some sections of the patrol walkway and two houses from the medieval period remain, in the southern area of the village.
The lower part, the one adjacent to the lake, was defended by this natural element and entrusted to the castellan, while the one towards the north required greater protection and was entrusted to a captain. On this side there was therefore the headquarters of the guardhouse (of which signs still remain today) and access to the village via the drawbridge, the structures of which are preserved.
The moat surrounding the Castle was in this case truly full of water (there being a small lake which could constantly supply it).
Proclaimed a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, the archaeological site near Castellaro Lagusello has yielded precious finds from the Bronze Age relating to pile-dwelling civilisations, today exhibited at the Archaeological Museum of Alto Mantovano in Cavriana. Castellaro Lagusello has obtained the recognition of the most beautiful village in Italy.

As soon as you enter the door, you come across the baroque church dedicated to San Nicola, which preserves a wooden Madonna of considerable value, a Via Crucis and a series of Mysteries of the Rosary, attributed to Ugolini. The Bell Tower, recently restored, can be visited from April to October during weekends and holidays: the best observation point to enjoy the panorama of the Morainic Hills and to photograph the famous heart-shaped lake of Castellaro. Walking along the alleys, paved in river stone, overlooked by houses built with exposed stones, you arrive at the final square where you can admire the ancient medieval castle, now Villa Arrighi.
It is possible to book at the Monzambano Infopoint for the guided tour of the village, the tower and the reserve
Cell. 345.6614141 | Email tourism@monzambano.gov.it