Overlooking the central Via dei Tribunali, behind Porta Capuana, access to the road connecting with the ancient Capua, Castel Capuano, apart from the evocative name of its original function, is commonly assimilated to one of the several palaces of the historic centre of Naples, courthouse of the city. This explains the reason why it has been the city’s courthouse for centuries.
But in its previous “life”, it had also been a fortress, the oldest in Naples with Castel dell’Ovo. A protected and safe royal residence, thanks to the impressive fortifications, the work of the Normans at the time of William I the Bad. It remained so until the construction of the new castle on the sea, the Maschio Angioino (“the Angevine Keep”), which in fact the contemporaries called Castel Nuovo (“New Castle”), where the kings and the court moved. But even during Angevine times, the “old” castle, rebuilt several times, continues to have an important role in Naples history. Certainly, among the several personalities who stayed there, there was also Francesco Petrarca in 1370. There, Charles of Durazzo’s wedding was celebrated, about which the chronicles of the time spoke so much. There, in August 1433, Johana II had Sergianni Caracciolo assassinated. He was her former favorite and right arm. After all, the queen took refuge in the oldest castle, saving her life during the dispute with Alphonse V of Aragon, who had settled in Castel Nuovo and had besieged Castel Capuano, without, however, succeeding in conquering it. It was there that, in 1517, Bona Sforza married the king of Poland Sigismondo I. And also in Castel Capuano, the Emperor Charles V was welcomed in 1535, who then gave it to his loyal Philippe de Lannoy, prince of Sulmona, for his marriage to Isabella Colonna.
With the advent of the viceroyalty the intended use of the military structure changed, which was used as a courthouse and prison. Viceroy Don Pedro da Toledo transferred in the new seat all the organs and the activities related to the justice administration: the Sacro Regio Collegio, la Regia Camera della Sommaria, la Gran Corte Civile and Criminale della Vicaria and the Tribunale della Zecca. And in order to make the structure functional to the new needs, in 1537 it was subjected to a radical restoration, which eliminated the parts related to the previous military functions. On that occasion, the basement was transformed into a prison with annexed torture chambers.
Currently, it is possible to visit different areas of the castle which were once: the historic hall which houses the Court of Appeal with the eighteenth-century frescoes by Antonio Cacciapuoto and other artists of the eighteenth century; the Sala dei Busti, with the busts of the most illustrious lawyers of the forum of Naples, from where you can access the sixteenth-century Chapel of the Sommaria. At the back of the building, there is the Formiello Fountain, which used to be a drinking through for horses, and was then transformed into a fountain in 1583.
Information
The admission to the public is free from Monday to Friday from 9 am to 6 pm.
