ROCCA ALBORNOZIANA

At 453 meters above sea level, at the top of the Sant'Elia hill, this majestic fortress-palace overlooks the entire city. It was built in the ^14th century by Cardinal Albornoz, on order of Pope Innocent VI before his return to Avignon. Both a military garrison and a papal residence, the Rocca, surrounded by high ramparts and six towers, housed duchy rectors, city governors and papal legates before becoming a prison in 1816 and until 1982. Today, the National Museum of the Duchy of Spoleto illustrates the history of Spoleto.