Larciano Castle

The castle of Larciano can be reached following the speedway FI-PI-LI up to the exit 'S.Miniato' continuing then toward Fucecchio and from here toward Pistoia/Cerreto Guidi. Reached S.Rocco of Larciano, the modern installation, a poster will point out the road that will conduct to the castle, around three kilometers far.

Larciano dominates the western slopes of the Albano mountain. The zone was a center of human habitation since the Roman age, as testified by numerous archaeological recoveries, and the same name of the castle is derived from 'Larcius', a Latin personal name. During the whole Middle Ages Larciano was the principal center of the area, first of all thanks to the link of the Road Francigena that from here went up the Albano mountain toward Serravalle. Certain sources name the castle as a possession of the counts of the Guidi family from the first half of the 10th century and subsequently this dominion was confirmed on the noble family from the emperors Arrigo VI and Federico II. In the year 1225 the castle was sold to the Commune of Pistoia and for its dominant position it became the fulcrum of the Pistoiesi defenses on this slope of the Albano mountain. In this period the castle and the walls of the country were strengthened.. In the year 1302 Larciano fell to a siege by Florentine troops, allied with those Lucchesi. To recover it Pistoia had to pay, in 1310, 10.000 gold florins. When, in 1391, a common danger - the possible descent on Tuscany by Gian Galeazzo Visconti - united Florentines and Pistoiesi, the castle became a base for the two armies. Few years after, in 1401, Pistoia was subdued by Florence and Larciano became the center of one of the Podesteries (territories administrate by a 'Podesta', italian medieval term for chief magistrate or governor) who divided this territory.

In the time of its greatest glory the castle was surrounded by a strengthened walled enclosure endowed with two gates, one called 'di Bagno' and the other 'S.Marco'. Crowning a rocky spur, the mighty fortress's battlements bristled from its high tower making it possible to dominate the whole Valdinievole. The complex was endowed with machicoulis and the town walls alternated from towers, that today are lost. The fortress is inserted on the perimeter of the city enclosure with a mighty curtain that closed the western angle of the same. Inside was the palace of the podestà (governor or high magistrate) but today all the inner dividing walls are gone, and only the beautiful windows which are now part of the external walls remain. At the center of the courtyard was the ancient cistern for the water. The whole complex is in good condition thanks to a recent restoration, but this cannot be said for the city walls, now partly lost. However, preserved intact are the two medieval gates. Inside the castle is found a small archaeological museum, visible for a fee.