The castle was one of the properties of the House of Borromeo, being owned by a Count and his family. If the walls could talk, they would have told some fascinating stories.
We saw the bed that Napoleon's Bonaparte and his wife Josephine slept in 1797. They visited (almost unannounced) with a party of sixty guests, but their manners and cleanliness following their pheasant hunting trip to Isola Madre left a lot to be desired. Castle staff were glad when they left!
We walked through the room that Mussolini and the Allied Heads of State met in to condemn Hitler's policies.
We walked through, and Dad and Sebastian sat in, the ballroom where Prince Charles and Princess Diana danced in the 1980s.
The man-made grottoes were like nothing we'd seen before. These led out to the garden that was topped with a unicorn ridden by Love atop a beautiful fountain. There were pure white peacocks walking around and the flowers were really pretty.
The unicorn is part of the House of Borromeo emblem and has been since the Year 1445! It symbolizes honor, virtue and devotion. The motto “HUMILTAS” written in a black, gothic font appeared for the first time in 1445 and became the motto of San Carlo Borromeo, pointing out the humility you need to reach out God.
It was truly a beautiful island to visit.
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