Delizia del Belriguardo

La Delizia del Belriguardo is one of the most representative Este residences. It was built at the behest of Niccolò D'Este in 1435 and, for centuries, remained among the most sumptuous and rich. It was a place of summer delight where the dukes loved to spend time with illustrious guests. The architecture that characterized it earned it the title of Versailles of the Este family. Frescoed halls, fountains and lush gardens were the setting for a carefree court life far from official state commitments. The castle of Belriguardo developed around two courts. The context was so suggestive as to make guests feel in a dimension suspended out of time and space. It is said that Ludovico il Moro invited his wife to join him from Venice to enjoy the wonders of the place with him. And again, that in the fishpond the lords organized naval battles for fun that could be watched from the top of the entrance tower of the castle. One of the environments that most contributed to making the place magical was the Sala della Vigna. The frescoes gave the optical illusion of being really under a pergola supported by rows of caryatids. The suggestion continued with the prospective realization of distant landscapes that peeped out between one vine branch and another. Unfortunately, in 1598 the Este family had to return the feud to Pope Clement VIII and the slow decline of the residence began.