BURONZO CONSORTIUM CASTLE

The Buronzo Consortium Castle is a rare example of a complex of fortified houses and towers in the heart of Baraggia. The castle began developing in the Middle Ages, clinging to one of the terraces of Baraggia, overlooking the Cervo stream. The oldest records of Castrum Burontii date back to the 11th-12th centuries, with the construction of the first fortification, which was later enlarged. In the 14th century, the castle already took the form of a complex of palaces surrounded by walls that originally opened with the crenellated tower-gate, which can still be admired today. It is the starting point for a visit to the innermost core of the fortified complex.

The existence of a ricetto, a collective fortification that probably served the entire Buronzo community, is documented in the 14th century. In the 15th century, however, the castle was enriched with buildings for production activities, and thus expanded occupying ever larger spaces, going through renovations and rebuilding, with the construction of buildings inhabited and used by the various branches of the family of the lords of Buronzo.

Today, a visit to the consortium castle can be organised in two stages. The first is a visit to the “communal castle” or “castellone” (the name by which it is referred to locally by popular tradition), which includes the oldest remains of the castle and the fortress, while the second is a walk through the alleys of the village to discover the fortified houses and buildings that were part of the complex.

In the past, the castle extended well beyond the part that can be visited today. Indeed, it occupied the entire terrace that today corresponds to the historic centre of the village. Some of the castle wings have been restructured over the centuries and transformed into palaces, such as Palazzo Doria Lamba and Palazzo Berzetti di Murazzano, or even the town hall itself, the Palazzo Comunale, obtained in 1863 from a wing of the castle that had fallen into ruin and was later renovated to provide Buronzo with a new town hall. Many of these palaces still preserve beautiful frescoes of that period. To get to know the whole castle, we recommend walking through the streets of the village of Buronzo, discovering the history of this unique complex.