Although we didn’t go inside here, we did stop outside for some photos.
It was originally built for Hadrian, the Roman Emperor, in the year 135, as a mausoleum for himself and his family. It was finished in the year 139. A short time later, it was used as a military building.
In the year 1277, a passageway was built underground connecting it to the Vatican, to allow the Pope to escape if he was ever in danger.
Pope Clement VII used the fortress as a refuge in 1527 during the sieges that occurred in Rome.
It is now a museum.
Legend says that on the night of 10th September, the ghost of Beatrice Cenci appears on the bridge leading to Castel San’Angelo. When the bells mark the stroke of midnight, a female figure walks along the bridge, holding a human head. It’s said that after facing the River Tiber, he disappears.
Growing up, Beatrice and his brother were subjected to abuse by their father, Fransesco Cinci. One day, they decided they had had enough, and killed their father, making it look like an accident, and tried to hide the body. However the guards found the body, and concluded it was no accident. After torturing Beatrice, he confessed to his fathers murder. Beatrice, his brother and mother were all sentenced to be executed. The people of Rome knew the family story, and tried to prevent the executions, and they were beheaded in front of Castel Sant’Angelo on September 11th 1599.
Since then, his spirit has been seen wandering the Church of San Clemente, as well as on the bridge.
Project Paranormal 