P.za Castello, 4, 74123 Taranto TA
To reach the Aragonese Castle by car, take the A3 motorway from Piazza Giuseppe Garibaldi and Via Galileo Ferraris. Continue along the A3 and the A2/E45 until the SS 598 of Fondo Valle d'Agri, taking the exit for Atena Lucana from the A2/E45. Follow the SS 598 to Scanzano Jonico, where you connect to the Jonica State Road 106 (E90/SS106). Continue along the E90 for about 62 kilometers, then follow Via per Massafra to Corso Vittorio Emanuele II to reach the destination.
As in the previous case, several bus routes from Naples Central Station are available, operated by Trenitalia and FlixBus. Depending on the chosen service, the final destination may vary slightly, but all routes arrive in central Taranto, close to the castle.
You can reach the center of Taranto by train from Naples Central Station. Along the way, the train stops at Potenza station before ending its journey on the west side of Piazza della Libertà in Taranto. From there, a short bus ride is needed to reach the castle.
The Aragonese Castle of Taranto, also known as Castel Sant'Angelo, is located at the southern end of the island that houses the ancient village of the city. Its strategic position takes advantage of a natural depression in the rock bank, offering a privileged control point over the Mar Grande and the Mar Piccolo. The origins of the castle date back to the Byzantine period, around 780 AD, when a fortification called "Rocca" was built to defend the city from attacks by the Saracens and the Republic of Venice. Subsequently, during the Norman, Swabian and Angevin dominations, the structure underwent several modifications and expansions, taking on the typical characteristics of medieval castles, with tall and thin towers. In the 15th century, with the advent of firearms, medieval fortifications became obsolete. For this reason, between 1487 and 1492, the king of Naples Ferdinand I of Aragon commissioned a complete reconstruction of the castle. The project, attributed to the Sienese architect Francesco di Giorgio Martini, envisaged a lower and more massive structure, with circular towers suitable for resisting artillery fire.
