Castelli di Cannero (Rocca Vitaliana)

The Castelli di Cannero rise on two rocky islets in Lake Maggiore. Their principal fortress, known as the Rocca Vitaliana, and a smaller prison building preserve the remains of a defensive complex built on the water.

Why it matters

The fortress occupies two small islands off Cannero Riviera. After centuries of abandonment, the ruins were restored by Studio Simonetti Architettura as a multimedia museum that interprets the site through its own fabric. The site also marks a turning point in the history of the Borromeo family, whose influence shaped the lake's political landscape.

What to notice

The multimedia interpretation, developed with design studio Dotdotdot, combines location-based audio, augmented-reality installations and interactive content. The main rocca and lower prison building occupy nearly all of the islets' rock; their position commands the lake corridor between Piedmont and the Alps.

Context and history

At the end of the fourteenth century the Mazzarditi brothers from Ronco near Cannobio seized the rocky outcrop and used it as a base for years of raids across the Verbano, until in 1414 Duke Filippo Maria Visconti of Milan sent troops under Giovanni Lonati; after a short siege the stronghold was razed. In 1441 the fief passed to Vitaliano I Borromeo, and in 1519 Lodovico Borromeo raised the fortress called Vitaliana, honouring the family's Paduan ancestors — the origin of the name Rocca Vitaliana. Its position so near the shore made it hard to defend, and in 1523 and 1524 forces of Francesco II Sforza twice besieged the island castles with a naval flotilla without taking them. Declining military value soon told: the rocks later sheltered smugglers and fishermen, and the ruins passed into romantic legend. A systematic restoration preserved the remains.