The small town that inspired the poet Shelley
The historic town of Este in the province of Padua, with its varied and interesting architecture, is an excellent choice for a day trip from Padua as it takes under an hour by train and about 40 minutes by car.
You can
walk into the centre of the town from the station in a few minutes, arriving in
Piazza Maggiore, Este’s main square, in time for a drink before lunch.
The remains of the castle surrounded by gardens |
To
understand its 3000 year history, during which it has been ruled by Romans,
Barbarians, important families during the medieval period, the Venetians, the
French and the Austrians, you could not do much better than visit Este’s highly
regarded Museo Nazionale Atestino. Right in the centre of the town, the museum
is housed in Palazzo Mocenigo, a 16th century palace that incorporates part of
the walls of the castle into its façade. There are said to be 65,000 items of
historical significance in the museum’s collection.
Este’s
castle was built in the 11th century by the Este family, who eventually moved
on to Ferrara, where they built another, perhaps more famous, castle.
Este’s
original castle was destroyed in the 14th century and then rebuilt by Ubertino
da Carrara, Lord of Padova. He used it as a defensive outpost against the
ruling families of Verona and Milan.
After
Este and Padua were taken over by the Venetians, the castle was partially
demolished and a wall and towers are all that remain today of the 14th century
structure. Inside the walls, there is a beautiful garden, which is open to the
public and is a lovely place to sit and rest, particularly when the rose garden
is in full bloom.
Piazza Maggiore is in the centre of town |
While in
Este you can also see the Villa Kunkler, which was rented by the English poet,
Lord Byron, in the early years of the nineteenth century. He allowed his fellow
poet and friend, Percy Shelley, to live there with his family between 1817 and
1818. Shelley was so inspired by the natural beauty of his surroundings he
wrote some of his best poetry there, including Lines Written Among the Euganean
Hills. Inspired by Este he wrote:
‘Of old forests echoing round
And the light and smell divine
Of all
flowers that breathe and shine:
We may
live so happy there,
That the
Spirits of the Air
Envying
us, may even entice
To our
healing paradise
The
polluting multitude:
But their
rage would be subdu’d
By that
clime divine and calm,
And the
winds whose wings rain balm
On the
uplifted soul, and leaves
Under
which the bright sea heaves;’