Orino Castle

Orino Castle, locally known as Rocca di Orino, lies east of the village of the same name, in the Varese province in the Lombardy region in Italy.

It is assumed that the castle was preceded by a Roman fortification, which might have been reused later by the Lombards. Orino Castle itself was first mentioned in 1176. The castle, situated on a hill overlooking the Valcuvia valley, was then owned by the Besozzi family, who controlled the whole valley through which passed an ancient route that descended from the Alpine passes towards the plains of the Po valley.

With the creation of the Duchy of Milan, at the end of the 14th century, which moved the borders to the Alpine watershed, the castle lost its strategic importance and fell into progressive decay.

In 1512 the Swiss descended from the Alps. They occupied the castle and until 1515 it was incorporated into the territory of Switzerland. After the Battle of Marignano that year, the Swiss were expelled from the valley by the troops of the Spanish general Cristóbal de Mondragón. Subsequently the castle was dismantled and was left a ruin.

At the beginning of the 20th century Orino Castle was rebuilt to its present appearance by its then private owner Mario Sangalli. How much of the present structure is still original can not be determined.

Presently, Orino Castle is still private property and as far as I know, can not be visited. Its exterior can freely be seen. To get to the castle, you will have to follow a forest road for about 15 minutes.

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