Rocca of Civitella Valdichiana

View of the Rocca from the town side.	The Keep.

Civitella in Val of Chiana crowns a hill of 523 meters watershed between the Valdambra (Ambra Valley) and the Valdichiana (Chiana Valley), in province of Arezzo. It is reachable from the exit 'Arezzo' of the motorway A1, from which is about 15 km far.

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The mighty rests of the Rocca of Civitella in Valdichiana dominate the underlying fortified suburb. Civitella, on one of the most elevated knolls situated between the Ambra Valley and the Chiana Valley, is one of the best preserved testimony of the many Longobard fortress born between the 6th and the 7th century strategically set to control the central Italy. The suburb still has in the layout of the town walls, almost intact, the  characteristic elittical form of the military installations of this type.

Immediately after its foundation Civitella was subdued to the bishops of Arezzo, so much that was known in the past as 'Civitella of the Bishop', and was the chief town of the district of the Ambra Valley. In 1289, after the battle of Campaldino, the country was occupied from the Florentine, to return few years after again to the bishops. During 13th century the castle, as so many others in this area, on the occasion of all the accords that deprived Arezzo for temporary periods of its independence, was delivered more times in the Florentine Republic until the 1384, when it remained definitely subject to the 'City of the Lily'. In 1554, during the 'war of Siena'  the castle withstand the siege of the Imperial troops, also thanks to the great works of strengthening which was been object. The state of downfall in which today lies the fortification is not owed to so remote war events, but to the destructions perpetuated by the German army during 1944, that for retaliation destroyed the whole country.

The suburb is contained in the almost intact medieval town walls, alternated by square towers and endowed with the mighty fortified gate called 'Aretina'. The wall circuit is, on the eastern vertex of the hill, connected to the Rocca, magnificent building of 13th century, erected by the aretine bishop Guglielmino degli Ubertini. The construction, gifted of  high external walled enclosure with a beautiful gate, is a classical example of medieval castle-fence of quadrangular form, with the mighty keep that rising up from the western angle. This, although in ruin, has still today strongly visible some decorative elements that do of it one of the maximum example of  Tuscan fortified architecture: the portal with gothic arc, windows to reduced arc, the quality of the worked stones and materials used, other technical particulars are not easily to be found in other constructions of that time.