The Aragonese arch
White marble triumph wedged between black towers โ early Renaissance in Gothic armour.
Adam Harangozรณ โ CC BY-SA 4.0 ยท Adam Harangozรณ โ CC BY-SA 4.0 ยท Loirelover โ CC BY-SA 4.0 ยท Loirelover โ CC BY-SA 4.0
In 1486 King Ferrante invited the barons conspiring against him to a reconciliation wedding in this hall โ when all had gathered, the doors closed and every one was arrested, many executed. The "barons' banquet" became Naples's byword for royal treachery, and the hall keeps the name.
Three castles, three jobs: this one for royal history and convenience โ already on your path; Sant'Elmo on the hill for the absolute view; the seafront Castel dell'Ovo free for a sunset stroll. Priority in that order; ample time takes all three.
An hour serves: arch, chapel, Hall of the Barons, ramparts โ then walk on; its greater neighbours wait minutes away.
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Castel Nuovo โ the "New Castle", now seven centuries old โ is Naples's sea gate and first icon before the port: five black cylindrical towers of volcanic stone, between which a startling white marble triumphal gateway โ the Aragonese arch of Alfonso, among early Renaissance's finest works โ sits wedged like a jewel in armour. The French kings of Anjou built it in the thirteenth century for their new capital; the Spanish kings of Aragon lived in it after โ and in its halls royalty received Petrarch, Giotto and Boccaccio. Inside is a quiet civic museum: a frescoed Franciscan chapel, Neapolitan paintings, and the famous Hall of the Barons under its star vault, where conspirators were arrested at a legendary treacherous banquet. Its ramparts look straight over the port to Vesuvius โ and its position opens the natural waterfront trio: castle, Piazza del Plebiscito, Royal Palace.
White marble triumph wedged between black towers โ early Renaissance in Gothic armour.
A star vault over the famously treacherous banquet hall.
Port and Vesuvius from volcanic-stone battlements.
Via Vittorio Emanuele III, 80133 Naples