Fiefs, castles and towns
For more than eight centuries the Ruffo ruled lands in Calabria and Sicily. These are some of the places where their history can still be seen.
It stands on a rocky spur at the mouth of the Strait of Messina, in the setting of the Homeric myth of Scylla and Charybdis. Fortified since antiquity, it was bought in 1533 by Paolo Ruffo, Count of Sinopoli, and became the family's residence. In the early 19th century it was turned into a military fort. The Ruffo coat of arms can still be seen above the entrance gate. The castle is open to visitors today.
Capital of the county of Pietro I Ruffo, the first documented member of the house. The Counts of Catanzaro used the formula Dei gratia comes Catanzarii, «Count of Catanzaro by the grace of God».
Fief that gave its name to the branch of the Counts of Sinopoli, a title granted to Guglielmo Ruffo by Robert of Anjou in 1333–1334. From this line came the Princes of Scilla and Fulco's branch.
Capital of the Kingdom in which the Ruffo were among the seven most important families. Fulco was born here in 1884, and here, in 1799, Cardinal Fabrizio Ruffo's march came to an end.
