Torre dei Conti: A Family Fortress
Title
Torre dei Conti: A Family Fortress
Subject
Towers
Description
The Torre dei Conti dominates the landscape, just as it once surpassed any other Roman tower in height and width. Named after one of the most powerful families of medieval Rome, this tower stood in the middle of a violent conflict between the Conti family and another powerful family of Rome (the Orsini) at the beginning of the thirteenth century. This conflict was deeply rooted in economic and historical rivalry, which eventually led to a violent attack on the tower as the Orsini tried to turn the city against the Conti. The tower, however, was only one part of a complex Conti fortress created to protect them. Following a common trend in medieval architecture, this compound-tower apparatus once stood as the grand symbol of the Conti family.
A member of the Conti family, Pope Innocent III built the tower as a way to commemorate them. However, the tower represented another sort of conflict. Scholars have said that Innocent III took money illicitly from the church and gave it to his brother to build the tower. This controversy has led some to believe that the Ospedale di Santo Spirito was built as a way for Innocent to atone for his sin.
After an earthquake in the mid-fourteenth century, part of the tower was destroyed. Over time, the tower has undergone more weathering and destruction. However, the remaining base still stands tall among the modern city of Rome. With its own road (Via Torre dei Conti), the legacy of this tower certainly remains prominent across the city’s history.
A member of the Conti family, Pope Innocent III built the tower as a way to commemorate them. However, the tower represented another sort of conflict. Scholars have said that Innocent III took money illicitly from the church and gave it to his brother to build the tower. This controversy has led some to believe that the Ospedale di Santo Spirito was built as a way for Innocent to atone for his sin.
After an earthquake in the mid-fourteenth century, part of the tower was destroyed. Over time, the tower has undergone more weathering and destruction. However, the remaining base still stands tall among the modern city of Rome. With its own road (Via Torre dei Conti), the legacy of this tower certainly remains prominent across the city’s history.
Abstract
The Torre dei Conti dominates the landscape, just as it once surpassed any other Roman tower in height and width (Krautheimer 204). Named after one of the most powerful families of medieval Rome, this tower stood in the middle of a violent conflict between the Conti family and another powerful family of Rome (the Orsini) at the beginning of the thirteenth century (Brentano).
Creator
Madison McBride (2016)
Source
Brentano, Robert. Rome Before Avignon: A Social History of Thirteenth Century Rome. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1990.
Hart, Vaughan and Peter Hicks, trans. Palladio’s Rome. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2006.
Krautheimer, Richard. Rome: Profile of a City, 312-1308. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2000.
Hart, Vaughan and Peter Hicks, trans. Palladio’s Rome. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2006.
Krautheimer, Richard. Rome: Profile of a City, 312-1308. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2000.
Identifier
torreconti_2015
Coverage
Spatial Coverage
Torre dei Conti, 00184 Roma RM
Description
The Torre dei Conti dominates the landscape, just as it once surpassed any other Roman tower in height and width. Named after one of the most powerful families of medieval Rome, this tower stood in the middle of a violent conflict between the Conti family and another powerful family of Rome (the Orsini) at the beginning of the thirteenth century. This conflict was deeply rooted in economic and historical rivalry, which eventually led to a violent attack on the tower as the Orsini tried to turn the city against the Conti. The tower, however, was only one part of a complex Conti fortress created to protect them. Following a common trend in medieval architecture, this compound-tower apparatus once stood as the grand symbol of the Conti family.A member of the Conti family, Pope Innocent III built the tower as a way to commemorate them. However, the tower represented another sort of conflict. Scholars have said that Innocent III took money illicitly from the church and gave it to his brother to build the tower. This controversy has led some to believe that the Ospedale di Santo Spirito was built as a way for Innocent to atone for his sin.
After an earthquake in the mid-fourteenth century, part of the tower was destroyed. Over time, the tower has undergone more weathering and destruction. However, the remaining base still stands tall among the modern city of Rome. With its own road (Via Torre dei Conti), the legacy of this tower certainly remains prominent across the city’s history.
Creator
Madison McBride (2016)Coverage
1200sSource
Brentano, Robert. Rome Before Avignon: A Social History of Thirteenth Century Rome. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1990.Hart, Vaughan and Peter Hicks, trans. Palladio’s Rome. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2006.
Krautheimer, Richard. Rome: Profile of a City, 312-1308. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2000.