Rome-Naples June 2026

Rome – Etruscan Museum – Maxxi – St. Peter’s Square

Castel Sant`Angelo, also the Mausoleum of Hadrian, dates back to Emperor Hadrian (76-138 CE, reigned as emperor from 117 till 138), and was later used by the popes as a fortress and castle dedicated to Saint Michael the Archangel.
Hadrian`s other architectual achievements are the reconstruction of the Pantheon, the vast Temple of Venus and Roma in Rome, and Hadrian`s Wall in northern England.
The fortress is connected to St Peter’s Basilica by a covered fortified corridor called the Passetto di Borgo.. This is an elevated 800-metre long corridor, built inside an old city wall, to provide the Pope with an escape route from the Vatican – used twice. It was built in 1277, with further defensive feature added. It has two levels: a patrol walkway and a lower enclosed escape passage. Pope Alexander VI used it in 1494, to escape the troops of Charles VIII. Clement VII used it during the Sack of Rome in 1527. This is when the troops of the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, massacred most of the Swiss Guard on the steps of the St. Peter`s Basilica.

To see more of this trip on the Travelogue, click here: Rome-Naples June 2026