Doria Castle of Dolceacqua

The ruins of the Doria Castle in Dolceacqua of the Genoese doges dominate the delightful medieval village of Dolceacqua (Imperia - Liguria), offering a suggestive location for your conferences and receptions.

The first document mentioning Dolceacqua dates back to 1151; in fact it was precisely in the 12th century that the counts of Ventimiglia had the first nucleus of the castle built. The castle underwent several transformations.

The primitive feudal structure, defended at the end of the thirteenth century by the circular tower, was enlarged and included in a larger city wall in the fourteenth century.

At the end of the Renaissance age the castrum became a grandiose fortified noble residence, with imposing defensive structures.

After having resisted numerous sieges, it was however unable to oppose the Franco-Spanish heavy artillery, which partially destroyed it on 27 July 1744 during an episode of the War of the Austrian Succession.

No longer inhabited by the family of the Doria marquises, who moved into the sixteenth-century palace adjacent to the parish church, it suffered the last indignities of the earthquake of 1887.

Recently restored, the castle is a unique setting for hosting receptions and cocktails both indoors, in the room surrounded by crystal walls, and outdoors, in the castle courtyard.

The history of the castle and the entire village of Val Nervia has ancient origins, the first documents that talk about it date back to 1177, but only later, in 1270 did it become the property of the Doria family.

The castle dominates the town below and over the centuries has always been the home of the lords reigning in the area.