Step Back in Time: Caldarola, the Medieval Jewel of Marche
Today it is the tourists who lean out from the battlements of the castle, but many centuries ago there were the noble lords of the Marche. The panorama that they embraced with their gaze was similar, at least in part, to what can still be seen today: today you can recognize the profiles of cities and monuments, roads and modern buildings, but the landscape in the province of Macerata is dominated by rolling hills, vineyards, and centuries-old trees.
This is why visiting Caldarola is like diving back into the past, among works of art and structuring castles, in a fairy-tale setting with a clear medieval impact. Populated by less than two thousand inhabitants, distributed between 259 and 1,148 meters above sea level, Caldarola is an enchanting town in the Marche.
History
The highest peaks in the area – Poggio la Pagnotta and Poggio la Serra – watch over the village like ancient guardians, but most of the reliefs are soft and sinuous, sloping down towards the rivers. The countryside is dotted with farms: Caldarola too, originally, must have been little more than a peasant settlement, founded between the 9th and 10th centuries and becoming a fief of the Camerino State in the Middle Ages. Declaring independence in 1400, the village experienced its Golden Age towards the end of the 16th century, when Pope Sixtus V opted for a radical urban development. It was Evangelisto Pallotta, under the control of the pontiff, who embellished his city with a grand square and beautiful churches, and who entrusted De Magistris with painting the facades of the buildings.
What to see
In those years, the most beautiful buildings of Caldarola saw the light, such as the Church of San Martino, elevated to Collegiate in 1590 with a papal bull. The coat of arms of Sixtus V stands out on the façade, together with the symbol of Cardinal Pallotta. The Collegiate Church of St. Gegorio, probably built on the remains of the church of San Gregorio della Vigna, with a Latin cross plan and an elegant trussed ceiling. Finally, it is worth visiting the Sanctuary of the Most Holy Mary of the Mount, which dominates the southwestern wing of the square and occupies the space left by an ancient fifteenth-century church: designed by Augustoni, the sanctuary was consecrated for worship at the end of the eighteenth century.
Among the civil buildings, a trio of fascinating castles stands out, each more mysterious and imposing than the other. The first is the Croce Castle, which was supposed to protect the hill on the southern and eastern sides, characterized by a curtain wall of colossal dimensions and an imposing entrance door, with a pointed arch: from here, you enter a small courtyard with a cistern, while the southern area of the manor consists of a church. The Vestignano Castle is immersed in the woods, still surrounded by massive walls and equipped with a beautiful cylindrical tower, guardian of a fascinating network of streets and low houses. Finally, the Pallotta Castle stands on the top of the Colcù hill, overlooking the center of Caldarola since the ninth century, adopted as his summer residence by Cardinal Pallotta at the end of the sixteenth century. Famous and royal figures stayed here, such as Queen Christina of Sweden and Pope Clement VIII.
Events, festivals, and demonstrations
If it is true that Caldarola always seems immersed in the past, the fairytale atmosphere becomes even more intense during the reenactment of the Joust of the Castle, which takes place every year on the first and second Sunday of August. It begins with the solemn ritual of the Offerta del Doppiere, by the priors to the priest, for the solemn blessing: the ceremony, which is strictly performed in Renaissance clothes, is based on documents from 1586 that prescribed this rite in honor of the Virgin Mary. The Palio instead consists of a great challenge between knights, which still today, as in the seventeenth century, sees the various castles in the area challenge each other. Also not to be missed is the Bean Festival with Pork Rinds and Tagliatelle with Summer Truffle, which takes place at the end of July, and the splendid artistic nativity scene that celebrates the Advent of baby Jesus during the Christmas period.
Climate and when to go
The climate of the Marche hills, with continental and Mediterranean flavors, is pleasant and delicate, although winters are quite cold and rainy. The average temperatures in January, the coldest month, range from a minimum of 0°C to a maximum of 9°C, while in July and August they range from 15°C to 30°C. Summer is quite dry, while spring and autumn, with an average of nine days of bad weather per month, are the rainiest seasons.
How to get there
To reach Caldarola, you can consider several options. Those traveling by car should take the A14 motorway, proceeding towards Ancona if you are coming from the North, towards Naples if you are coming from the South, then exit at Civitanova Marche. At this point, you enter the SS77 towards Tolentino/Macerata and exit at Caldarola. The closest airport is Ancona, about 80 km away.
