The Castles Italian Institute, is a no-profit cultural organization founded by Piero Gazzola in 1964. The

institute has a legal status since 1991, registered at the National Audit Office in 16.04.1991. It is

associated to the Internationales Burgen Institut, then Europa Nostra, the European organization under

the patronage of UNESCO and of the European Council.

The four pillars of the Institute's action are:

1. Historical, archaeological and artistic study of castles and fortified sites.

This activity aims at enhancing knowledge of fortified architecture and includes census, cataloguing,

recording, inquiries and archaeological research.

2. Safeguard and conservation

The institute operates directly on the protection of

fortified architecture through the study and

development of juridical tools aiming at the

safeguard of fortified heritage, as well as to enhance

their social, cultural and legal context. Particularly

important is the study and the proposal of legal and

fiscal tools useful for the active and passive

conservation of castles.

3. Enhancing presence of fortified architecture in contemporary life

The institute aims at the fruition of fortified architecture by the community, in a wide and respectful

way. To do so, the Institute fosters its restoration, with a proper, updated methodological approach, as

well as encourages the research of appropriate tools for its reuse.

4. Raising scientific and touristic

awareness.

The Institute conducts an intense social action and

promotion, aiming at increasing public and private

participation both in terms of quality and quantity.

It also seeks to widen the knowledge, the

appreciation and the will to preserve of fortified

architecture.

The objectives of the Institute are the knowledge,

the safeguard and the enhancement of fortified

architecture.

The Institute aims at preserving any construction -

towers, castles, fortified settlements, strongholds,

forts, fortified monasteries, walls and so on- which

was conceived as a defence tool.

These constructions are exposed to high risks, since all of them have lost the original function. By a

mater of fact a church or a palace, though belonging to the past, can still be reused and adapted

accordingly to the function for which they were designed. A fortified architecture, indeed, which was

designed five or six centuries ago cannot be reused for military purpose today. To guarantee their material

conservation, needed because of the historical, archaeological or artistic value, it is necessary to give a

new function, different from the original, nevertheless compatible with the preservation of their structural

and architectural integrity, in order to guarantee the recovery of the building to present life.

These buildings must thus be given back to life: an essential action to have all the interventions and

maintenance needed to survive. The Institute is organized in regional sections, with independent action

within its own territory, however submitted to the guidelines given by the Board. The study and research

on fortified heritage is coordinated by the Scientific Council.

Scientific Activity

The institute has been carrying out the census and

the cataloguing of fortified architecture in Italy for

many years. This documentation has merged into a

database, to create a GIS. This will be a powerful

tool to programme interventions in the territory as

well as for the safeguard and enhancement of the

buildings. The GIS will be useful to the public

administration, to access information necessary to

plan interventions and actions on fortified

architecture.

Publications

The institute publishes two periodicals: Cronache Castellane (Castle chronicle), which is a social bulletin

with information on books, events, initiatives related to fortified architecture, and Castella, a series of

monographies dedicated to military architecture (buildings, authors, a topic within a geographical,

typological or chronological context).

Some sections of the Institute print "Quaderni " (Papers) or other publications with regional interest, as for

instance Castella Marchiae for the Marche Region or AF - Architettura Fortificata in Campania for the

Campania Region.

Initiatives of the Institute

The institute promotes various initiatives meant to

increase knowledge and enhance fortified

architecture, as well as to prize those who have

accomplished valuable studies, safeguard and

enhancement of monuments and sites.

Highlighting plaques

The Institute and its scientific council assigns

plaques meant to highlight the achievement of

exemplary restoration and enhancement projects on

fortified architecture.

Study Tours

The Institute organizes various study visits meant to

explore the most important and important

fortifications in Italy and abroad, as well as

fortified mansions still in use.

National Prize to graduation thesis on

Fortified architecture

The institute announces yearly an award dedicated to

graduation thesis on fortified architecture, which

includes a monetary recognition. The award is

opened to all students who have graduated in Italian

Universities. The awarded thesis are exposed along

the award ceremony.

National Days of Castles

Every year the Institute organizes in Italy

a Day dedicated to Castles, under the

moral patronage of the Italian Ministry

of Culture. On that occasion selected

castles which are not opened to public

can be visited, expositions and

conferences and round tables are

organized.

The Castles Narrate

This is a national historical-photographic-

graphic competition for high schools. It aims at

stimulating creativity and fantasy of students on

topics of castles as well as to attract interest and

knowledge of the Italian country and its history

through the study of a fortification in their

region. It also aims at rising awareness on the

safeguard of artistic heritage.