Rocca di Castellina in Chianti

The Rocca di Castellina is located in Castellina in Chianti in the province of Siena and is located in the main square of the village.
History
This area of Chianti was inhabited since ancient times by a Etruscan settlement, hypothesis supported by the discovery of four underground tombs of the seventh-sixth century BC on the hill of Montecalvario. Later, the area was also home to a Roman center destroyed during the invasions of the Gauls. In the eleventh century Castellina was named as a settlement dependent on the nearby castle of Trebbio (corresponding to today’s town of Trebbia in the Commune of Radda in Chianti) under the control of the counts Guidi, to whom we owe the construction of the first fortifications. At that time the locality was known as Castellina de' Trebbiesi. In 1193 the castle, thanks to an agreement signed by the lords of Trebbio, was garrisoned by the Florentines. In the middle of 1200 Castellina became part of the Lega del Chianti. The territory of Chianti as known, was throughout the Middle Ages, the terrain of clashes and disputes between the powers of Florence and Siena. Castellina, dominated by the ridge road that connected the two cities, was one of the most advanced Florentine strongholds, therefore strategically very important. In 1397 the castle was destroyed by the troops of the Duke of Milan, allied with the Sienese. A few years later, in 1400, the Florentine Republic decided to strengthen its defenses with the construction of a wider and more massive wall, with an irregular hexagon shape, interspersed with numerous square towers, equipped with two gates, one towards Siena and the other towards Florence, and crowned, at the highest point of the town, by a powerful crenellated rectangular formwork with scarpered walls. In 1452 this series of powerful fortifications resisted for 44 days the siege of the Duke of Calabria. Nevertheless, in 1478 the castle was attacked by the Aragonese army and, like the neighbouring ones, it was sacked and partially destroyed. In 1483 Castellina finally returned to the Florentines. In 1774 the Chianti League was abolished but the territory of the new 'Community of Castellina', born from the reforms desired by the Grand Duke Peter Leopold.
What you can see today
Of the walls and towers remain large sections that still enclose the town (although in several places incorporated into the houses), the two gates are unfortunately no longer existing, the Florentine was destroyed during the last world war . The formwork, formed by two square buildings, with its high walls, is in perfect condition, thanks to a careful restoration work of the beginning of the century, today is the seat of the municipality.