The Toblino Castle

It is one of the most photographed castles in Trentino. It owes its fame to its unique position and the beautiful environment that surrounds it. But also to the many dark legends that in that park and within those walls have found fertile ground on which to be born and develop. A romantic castle, built on a small arm of land that stretches into the heart of the lake, among the vineyards and ancient forests of Trentino. Castel Toblino is the ideal destination for a relaxing walk along the shores of the lake, followed by a candlelight dinner in the elegant restaurant, housed in the ancient rooms of the building. The origins of Castel Toblino date back to the eleventh century, when it played a military-strategic role along the road to the Giudicarie. The structure that we can admire today, however, is that of the sixteenth century, following the modernization work decided by the bishops of Trento Cles and Madruzzo. According to legend, however, this place, even before having a strategic role or representation, seems to have had a magical-religious function. You have to go back about 2000 years, when the level of the lake was about two meters higher and the strip of land, on which today stands the Toblino Castle, was an island in the middle of the lake. The ancient inhabitants of the place believed that this place was sacred. In the third century, in fact, a small temple was built there dedicated to the cult of the Fati, ancient Roman gods capable of predicting destiny. This is "certified" by a plaque walled in the portico of the castle, which the archaeologist Paolo Orsi defines as "unique in its kind in Roman epigraphy". The castle also tells another legend: that of the forbidden love between the influential bishop of Trento, Carlo Emanuele Madruzzo and Claudia Particella, which ended tragically.