Antica Corte Pallavicina

The Marquis Pallavicino, a valiant leader, obtained the investiture of the territory of Polesine in 1249. Then, he built a fortification not only for defensive purposes but also for the control of trade on the Great River. Passage was allowed upon payment of a duty. Thus began the history of the Antica Corte Pallavicina which, during the fifteenth century, after centuries of neglect, assumed the characteristics of a residential residence. Presumably, it was the Marquis Galeazzo Pallavicino who commissioned the renovations to adapt the castle to the new needs of government in the territory. The large rooms with large fireplaces were frescoed with Renaissance paintings. Those of the cycle of the Zodiac and those of Olympus are among the most beautiful. The core of the Corte Pallavicina is the central hall, decorated with the noble coats of arms of the Pallavicino family and their wives. The Po River, on the other hand, becomes the protagonist of the rooms on the ground floor frescoed with scenes taken from peasant life. The cellars are the strong point of Corte Pallavicina. They were made in 1320 by the Pallavicino to mature the cured meats and cheeses with which they paid homage to the nobles of all Europe. The Sforza were great admirers of culatelli that the marquises never failed to send to the court of the Dukes of Milan.