Castle of Ameglia, Medieval castle in Ameglia, Italy

The Castle of Ameglia, anciently castrum de Ameliae, stands in Piazza Sforza in the historic centre of Ameglia. Its rectangular two-storey building is enclosed by a trapezoidal curtain wall, and its tower has a circular plan. It housed the town hall until 31 March 2008.

The castrum de Ameliae was first recorded in 963, when an imperial diploma of Otto I listed the village among the possessions of the bishops of Luni; the date of construction is uncertain. In 1174 the inhabitants of Pietracoperta took refuge here after Genoa destroyed their town. In the 13th century Sarzana occupied it, then Genoa; in 1371 it belonged to Castruccio Castracani, and by the mid-15th century the Visconti had ceded it to the Banco di San Giorgio.

The name castrum de Ameliae survives from the 963 diploma of Otto I, and the castle stood in Piazza Sforza, where it housed the town hall until 31 March 2008. Residents of Pietracoperta took refuge here in 1174 after Genoa destroyed their village.

The castle stands in Piazza Sforza in Ameglia's historic centre, where the surrounding lanes lead to the entrance. The building housed the town hall until 31 March 2008, when the offices moved to the new municipal building in the modern part of Ameglia.

From the fortification you can see both the Apuan Alps and the Magra River valley, which marks the historical boundary separating Tuscany and Liguria. This location explains why controlling this spot mattered so much to different powers throughout the centuries.