Castle Štafileo

About

Castle Rotondo is a fortress castle in Kaštel Štafilić, Croatia, on the Adriatic coast. It was fully constructed in 1508, on the order of Stefano Štafileo, a Trogirian nobleman, to protect his lands and the Kozjak's peasants from the Ottomans pillaging. It is situated by a beautiful sea cliff.

Parallel to the castle, there is a fortified renaissance house, where there is the Stafileo's family crest, engraved with a bunch of grapes. The grapes are a visual translation of the Štafileo name, which means bunch of grapes in Greek. The crest symbolizes wine making, and the future. There is also an inscription in Latin above the castle gate, which states the original purpose behind the Castle's construction. The southern residential wing of the house has a water gate that still exists today.

Origin of the name: Castle Rotondo is named after the noble family, 'Rotondo' that resided in it for over 400 years. Prior to this, it was 'Castle Štafileo'.

History: The first owner, and builder, Stefano Štafileo arrived from Crete, Greece, and married a woman from Trogir. He became a well-respected resident of Trogir with houses and residences all over town. Stefano's son Ivan Štafilić was...