Forbidden Villa

Majestically situated on the shoreline beneath the cliff of Monte Luppia is Villa Canossa.  This beautiful south facing estate belies the story of a declining family the under name of Carlotti, who built and lived here for two centuries until the 1920’s.  With no heirs to continue, the property was passed to the Marquises Canossa until now.  The last owner Alessandra di Rudini was a courageous aristocrat and widow who had a ‘dangerous liaison’ with the poet Gabriele D’Annunzio.  The beautiful heiress was estranged from the family just as D’Annunzio left her.  She later became a nun at the age of 35 in France and passed away twenty years later in 1931.  Few holiday makers might know that the heroic setting of this villa belies a tragic love story.

This picture was taken in Lake Garda, Italy.