Bardi Castle (Italy)

At present it is not even the last of the old mountain people living in those real ghost town in our area - the villages around Bardi as Caneto and Agneto, desolate stone villages that survive inside a spooky abandoned - the name of 'Barrio' reflects this. However among the centuries old legends surrounding Bardi, one on elephant Hannibal (the last of the 37), who died in solitude on the banks of the river Ceno leaving behind a place of its own name, has been the most difficult to give in historical truth. And 'now it is known that the name Bardi dates back to 600 AD when a group of Lombards fighters, the Arimanni, camped under the color of blood cliffs, rocky promontory that dominates the area. Nearby was a forest and a river; that was enough to arouse the idea of ​​starting a village.
And the castle? He had to wait a couple of years to go and a big piece of the Middle Ages too. In the flatlands, they reigned barbarians, looting and violence were part of everyday life. An ill wind blowing for the venerable Evarardo, the bishop of Piacenza. What could be better than looking for escape in a perfectly new castle built by unstormable a steep, rocky cliff? And so it was. The terror of the ferocious Ungari raids caused the bishop to buy half of the Bardi fortress which then became the subject of several changes of ownership. Finally, in the mid-thirteenth century, the castle passed to the Landi family: from that moment on the historical and economic events, not to mention the fate of the manor, remained inextricably linked to this Piacenza who has created its own powerful center for 425 years. Was Ubertino Landi, a dark fighter, wild and untamed to purchase up to the castle, half destroyed by the raids of Pallavicino, Lord of Piacenza and turn it into a fortress.
In 1381 Gian Galeazzo Visconti gave recognition to the Lordship Landi and since 1415 has allowed them complete independence: from that year Bardi became the state capital Landi, including the territory of the Val Ceno and Val Taro. Then, in the sixteenth century, the imposing manor became the principality, because of the will of the Emperor Charles V. One of the oldest parts of the fortress is the 'Mastio', dating back to 1200, originally adapted to house and then turned into a prison. Under the care of the Landi, the castle was transformed from a military fortress to a noble residence, through the creation of stylish apartments, frescoes, gardens, fountains and a large library. Voices tell the story that the fortress has always been inhabited by a group of beautiful ghosts. Nor is the awful room of the missing torture, in which the Executioner ax was left in plain sight. Also, recently an ancient manuscript was found, which is evidence of the existence of a treasure buried in the castle.