Agrigento
Agrigento was reckoned among the Sicilian cities (muduns) by Al-Muqaddasi in 970 AD. In 1077 Count Roger Hauteville (d.1101) took the opportunity of moving against Castronovo which blocked his path southwards from Palermo
towards Agrigento. Despite this early success, it was only on 1
April 1086 that he began the siege of the city of Agrigento which fell
to him on 25 July 1086. After this Roger annexed 11 places in the
district. Not all are still identifiable, but those mentioned
include Platani - which was possibly Mussomeli lying some 2 miles east of Acquaviva Platani (Platanum), Masseria (Missar just west of Favara), Monte Guastanella (Guastaliella), Sutera, Raselbifar, Mocluse, Naro (Naru), Caltanissetta (Calatenixet), Casteltermini (Castrum foeminarum), Licata and Riesi? (Remunisse).
Sometime after this he founded Agrigento castle, which according to the
chronicler Malaterra, consisted of a curtain wall equipped with
towers. In 1154 Idrisi called it ‘an excellent and strong
fortress' as well as ‘one of the main castles suitable for
defence'. In 1201 it was recorded that Henry Cologne had been its
castellan.
In 1258 Agrigento castle is said to have become the caput of Henry Ventimiglia (d.1300/08), a blood relative of King Manfred (d.1266), when he became count of Geraci
on his marrying Isabella Ischia (d.1270+), the heiress of the
lordship. He allegedly held this district from 1252 until the
death of King Manfred in
1266. Later sources say that Henry fell with his lord, but more
contemporary sources say he escaped the battle and then, in August
1268, came to Sicily with a Pisan naval force while Conradin,
King Manfred's nephew, attacked southern Italy. Consequently
Count Henry Ventimiglia and Count Frederick Lancia landed their forces
at Milazzo and captured it. With the defeat and death of Conradin the Pisans returned home, but Henry probably entrenched himself in Geraci and Cefalu
while places as far apart as Agrigento, Augusta and Lentini castle fell
to Swabian supporters. Meantime an Angevin force of 1,700 knights
was sent against them. The subsequent French siege of Geraci
was broken by an epidemic amongst the attackers, although Henry himself
abandoned his lands and fled to the mainland, probably around 22
November 1270. The last rebel stronghold, Caltanissetta,
surrendered in January 1271 and in 1273 Agrigento castle was noted as
an Angevin stronghold whose custody was entrusted to a single squire by
1282. After the Sicilian Vespers, Matthew Scaletta was beheaded
at Agrigento 13 January 1284. He was brother to Machalda, the
wife of Alaimo Lentini of Nicosia, who was the hero of Messina
during this period. He had been loyal more to Sicily than the
Argonese and this led him to apparent treason. Henry Ventimiglia
appears to have only returned to Sicily in 1296 when Agrigento was
confirmed to him. It then passed down the Ventimiglia family for
generations.
In 1561 Don Garzia Toledo, the viceroy of Sicily, and Don Carlo of
Aragon, president of the Kingdom in 1576, jointly stated that holding
the mountain of Erice (San Giuliano) together with the cities of Syracuse, Messina
and Agrigento, was one of the keystones of the Spanish Viceroyalty of
Sicily. Today the castle and city are but a glimpse of their
military heyday.
Description
The medieval city lay on the hill of Girgenti while the suburbs
extended down to the Greek acropolis to the southeast. As is
often the case, castle and cathedral stood side by side, but unlike the
church, the castle has faded away and what little remained has been
further mutilated by a reservoir. All that can be seen is traces
of a ward with a strongly plinthed square tower at the northeastern end
of the crag next to the church of St Alfonso Maria of Liguori.
Why not join me at other Sicilian
castles? Information on this and other tours can be found at Scholarly
Sojourns.
Copyright©2023
Paul Martin Remfry