La Rocca di Campiglia

The monumental complex of the “Rocca di Campiglia” (Campiglia fortress) was inaugurated on the 7th of June 2008 after careful and faithful restoration.
The Rocca has witnessed three different millennia of history: from the first settlement of swine-keepers huts (8th - 9th century), to the arrival of the powerful Pisan counts della Gherardesca and up to the present day.
The history of the castle begins much earlier than is suggested by the 1004 document, discovered in the Gherardesca archives, in which Campiglia was named for the first time in an act of donation to the Benedictine monastery of Santa Maria di Serena.
The archaeological investigations carried out since the nineties under the scientific direction of Prof Riccardo Francovich and co-ordinated by Prof. Giovanna Bianchi, lecturer in medieval archaeology at Siena University, have brought many interesting finds to light. These were first displayed in the Palazzo Pretorio museum and now find their natural place in the museum created in the old keep of the Rocca.

The Rocca of Campiglia represents an important historical link between the village of Campiglia and the San Silvestro Park. At the heart of the Park lies the medieval Rocca of the same name that was built to house the miners and smelters that worked for the Gherardesca counts.