Barracks and Guelfa Tower are two buildings rich in history and very important for telling the story of the events that have characterized the territory that hosts them; the fourteenth-century tower is located in Port of Ascoli (fraction of the coastal city of San Benedetto del Tronto) a little higher up than State Road 16 Adriatica, which overlooks the Guelph Barracks, distinguished by a beautiful travertine portal. In fact, the Guelph Barracks and Tower they are part of cultural memory and identity of the city.
The Guelph Barracks
The Guelfa Barracks, also known as the "Pontifical Barracks," stands along the main street of Porto d'Ascoli and is a place of historical and architectural interest that should certainly not be ignored. In particular, it is a structure dating back to 1500 whose construction work lasted for over twenty years. And the expansion of the courtyard and the construction of the portico surmounted by the loggia with round arches, testified to a precise architectural project. quadrilateral construction, provided on the sides with corner towers, took the name of "Port Warehouse". In fact, the lower rooms were used for livestock, grain storage and for storing agricultural and maritime tools. Furthermore, it was the site of a very important papal customs house at the time of the dispute between Guelphs and Ghibellines.
The architecture of the barracks
As for its architecture, the building features a internal cloister double-order with round arches and an ancient stone entrance portal with coat of arms above of the city of Ascoli Piceno. The roof is made of wooden trusses with a covering of tiles. The structure, in recent times, has been partially transformed into a typical Marche restaurant where you can enjoy the best dishes of San Benedetto del Tronto in a rustic and charming setting. Specifically, the rooms that house the tables today were the old gendarmerieThe perimeter fence is currently shored up for safety. In fact, the Guelfa Barracks was partially damaged from 2016 earthquake.
Tower
Also of notable interest is the Guelph Tower which it stands next to the private villa of the Marquises Laureati. But it can be seen from the State Road 16. Specifically, it is what remains of a defense tower A square-based structure dating back to the 14th century. Built of dry stone with external and internal brick facings, it was part of a fortress consisting of two large towers, seven turrets with seventy battlements, rebuilt by the city of Ascoli after 1348 to defend San Benedetto del Tronto from the rival city of Fermo. As well as to secure access to the sea.
However, it was later damaged by Gentile da Mogliano, lord of Fermo, after a brutal siege. Unfortunately, today the tower is shrouded in thick woodland. Part of the private woods of the Laureati villa, it has been abandoned for decades. the area is quite wild. Even if the ecosystem has, despite everything, its own balance. But from its position the gaze extends towards the Bilge Nature Reserve, the city of San Benedetto del Tronto and the sea. Therefore, Caserma and Torre Guelfa are the sign of an ancient territory perpetually on the border, that between Ascoli Piceno and Fermo and, further back, between Pontifical State e Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
Thanks for the cover image: Patrizia Cicconi
