The Castle of Desenzano del Garda

The Castle was built in the Early Middle Ages and was probably built on the foundations of a Roman castrum. It was enlarged in the southern part, but never became a military fortress, even if the enlargement was made to accommodate a garrison. It continued to serve above all as a refuge for the population. Inside the castle there continued to be homes of private citizens ready to welcome, in case of danger, those who lived outside its walls. Subsequently, the castle gradually lost its function as a refuge, continuing to be inhabited by families, even if its deterioration continued to become increasingly serious for almost the entire nineteenth century.
In the castle there was also a church, the church of S. Ambrogio, which was used as a private house. The plan of the castle is that of an irregular rectangle, with the tower rising at the entrance, on the north side, to protect the drawbridge, of which the loopholes for the chains are preserved. It is a massive tower with windows only in the upper part. In 1882 the castle was used as a barracks, first home to an infantry garrison, then to the Bersaglieri and finally to the Alpine troops from the 1930s until 1943. The old castle, although devoid of particular architectural beauties, apart from the façade, is equipped with undoubted historical interest and scenic charm.
Some stretches of curtain walls remain of the ancient castle with crumbling battlements between the four truncated corner towers, with the exception of the one on the north-east corner which, until 1940, functioned as a specola. From its terrace you can enjoy one of the most beautiful views of Garda.