Farnese, the future Pope Paul III.
Villa
Farnese
captivated
me much as
it captured
the
Brambillas,
a house they
inhabited in
imagination
and desire
for many
years...
The order to build a Farnese
fortification at Caprarola was
given during the same period that
the hegemony of the Church of
Rome was challenged, primarily in
northern Europe, by the turbulent
forces of the Reformation. Vast
swathes of the Continent north of
the barrier Alps abandoned Roman
papal authority. The great families
of Italy, supporters of the papacy,
feared an intrusion by these new
northern forces crossing the Alps,
threatening the seat of the papacy
in Rome.
I suspect the Farnese fortress
of Caprarola was purposely
conceived so that it could
function as a military diversion, a
military complex of questionable
impregnability, set in a difficult
location, designed to distract an
enemy en route to an assault on
Rome. A casual visitor to Caprarola
immediately recognizes that the
high ground adjacent to what
would have been the completed
fortress provides an assailant
easy positioning for cannon fire
and launching any number and
manner of military attack.
HYLAND
