Monterado Castle is situated on a typical Marche hill, with a pleasant view over the surrounding hills and the Cesano valley that rises from the edge of the Adriatic Sea towards the peaks of the Appenines.
Prince Massimiliano di Beauharnais, nephew of Giuseppina Bonaparte, wife of Napoleon I, chose to spend his honeymoon in this aristocratic residence after his marriage to the daughter of Tsar Alexander of Russia. It was in fact he that decided to richly decorate the inside of the building.
The castle’s bedrooms, all splendidly decorated with frescoes from the early 19th century and with every modern convenience, have suggestive panoramas crowned by the Italian garden and a vast wood with secular plants.
Seven hectares of park with charming shaded pathways allow guests to enjoy the tranquillity of the place, walking or sitting down in the serenity of a cheerful environment which encourages reflection and meditation, bringing perception of nature to life.
Numerous salons are at guests’ disposition, ready to let you take in the fascinating atmosphere of the Marche region’s authentic traditions, in a tranquil and serene environment.

The suites
The suites are reached through the gallery on the nobility floor, and are richly decorated by frescoes depicting mythological scenes, commissioned by August Maximilian, Prince of Leuchtemberg, son of the viceroy of Italy Eugène de Beauharnais, and attributed to the Marche painter Corrado Corradi.
At present there are four suites prepared for our guests, and others are being restored.
The castle welcomes guests to an exclusive setting with all the warmth of family management. Suite accommodation and breakfast. Each one different from the others as to history and decoration, offering ample, comfortable space, richly furnished with period furniture, for relaxation, reading or watching television, Internet connections available, in a calm charming atmosphere of days gone by.
Suite Athena: this was the private studio of prince August Maximilian de Beauharnaisthe patron behind the castle’s greatest works of art. In the centre of the bedroom ceiling there is a multitude of joyful nymphs and cherubs, surrounded by wonderful dancing girl motifs and floral friezes. The work is dominated by the image of Pallas Athena, goddess of Wisdom, holding the instruments of art and knowledge, bearing witness to the original purpose of the room. The frescoes in the lounge depict Eros and Psyche.
Suite degli sposi: the main bedroom was ordered by Maximilian de Beauharnais for his wedding with the daughter of Czar Alexander of Russia. The ceiling fresco reproduces a pavilion in which Mars and Venus are surrounded by blazing torches, arms and lunettes decorated with angels playing musical struments. The welcoming, spacious lounge is known as the ‘red room’ for the predominant colour of the frescoes on the ceiling, which develop around the splendid central figure of Apollo on his sun chariot. The suite leads on to a terrace from which you can enjoy a view over the historical hamlet of Monterado and the surrounding hills. The honeymoon suite also comprises a second, semicircular frescoed lounge, and a bathroom with a ceiling decorated with delicate floral motifs.
Suite Amorini: the warm and colourful 17th century frescoes depict playful cherubs
chasing each other across the bedroom ceiling. The oak wood floor also adds to the enveloping sensation of cosiness and serenity. The walls of the adjacent lounge are completely frescoed with classical scenes of buildings and ruins from the Roman era. The windows afford a splendid view over the woods and Italian gardens.
Suite Afrodite: the centre of the bedroom ceiling is decorated by a scene depicting the birth of Aphrodite from the sea. Rich decorations surround the frescoes of Nereids and Tritons in a complex but refined pattern of friezes, festoons, loops and medallions. The ceiling of the small studio is adorned with mythological figures surrounding Diana the huntress. Even the ceiling of the bathroom is frescoed.