…loco ubi dicitur castello. Montecastrese e l’incastellamento in Versilia

The archaeological excavation of the castle of Montecastrese is a good starting point for the study of Versilia region between the 7th and the beginning of the 16th century. Medieval Versilia region coincides with the territory defined in the agreement signed in 1219 between the lords of Vallecchia and Corvaia, and placed between the Apuan Alps to the East, the Ligurian Sea to the West, the Lake of Porta to the North and the Lake Massaciuccoli to the South. Between late Antiquity and the early Middle Ages, Versilia was first occupied by the Byzantine limes, then by Lombard’s fortified settlements positioned close to the main roads. Between the 9th and the first half of the 10th century, began a process of incastellamento that led to the predominance of the lords of Corvaia and Vallecchia, who managed to carve out a dominant position in the territory even against Lucca and Pisa. The first sought to dominate a territory rich in resources and landing places that enable it to carry out its trades independently by the second. In the first half of the 13th century, Lucca came out winning from this conflict: it founded the burgs of Pietrasanta and Camaiore, destroyed the neighboring towers and fortifications and neutralized the Versilia nobility. The castrum of Montecastrese stands behind Camaiore and overlooks its valley and the passes towards Garfagnana. The castle is mentioned for the first time in 1219, but perhaps it should be recognized in the “loco ubi dicitur castello" mentioned in a document dated 950. The castle covers an area of approximately 2 hectares, enclosed by a double curtain of walls: one surrounding the enceinte, with two square towers and what is believed to be a donjon, the other closes the village with a hundred houses and the church of St. Barbara. The archaeological excavation is still ongoing and has so far investigated 5 different areas. The area 2000, the subject of this paper, excavated in 2008/2010, has documented a 8th-10th century structure made of perishable material with a stone socle and rammed earth walls, part of a settlement surrounded by a double timber palisade; a stone fortification built between the 10th and 11th century, a square tower, surrounded by a square curtain wall with a gatehouse, built in the 12th century and demolished at the beginning of the 13th century as a result of Lucca conquest.