Rome is a city with an incredible history stretching back centuries.
The city had a chance to endure many events, cruel and majestic, endure difficult trials, be conquered and burned. All these events could not but leave their mark. It is not surprising that many places, streets and houses of Rome are considered the abode of ghosts, and various supernatural events often occur there.
There are many restless ghosts in Rome, who often just wander through its old narrow streets. One of these ghosts is considered the spirit of Beatrice Chenti, who lived from 1577 to 1599. Beatrice was the daughter of the powerful aristocrat Francesco Centi and belonged to one of the most powerful families in the city. She lived with her father and older brother Giacomo in the Regola area, where mostly wealthy citizens lived.
The girl's father was known as a hot-tempered man, mistreated his children. When Beatrice complained about this, she was sent to the family's castle. The family conspired against Francesco. In 1598, when he himself was in this castle, they killed him, first intoxicated, then thrust a blade into his head and threw him off the balcony to give the impression that he slipped or jumped off himself. But all this raised suspicion. Many involved in the crime, including Beatrice's lover, herself and the castle keeper, were tortured. They were sentenced to death.
The townspeople of Rome were unhappy, because they knew what kind of beast Francesco was. Yet the unfortunates were executed on the Sant'Angelo bridge in September 1599. It is on this bridge that the ghost of Beatrice appears every year on the day of her death. She holds her head in her hands and walks to the place where she grew up.
There is another persistent spirit in Rome - a woman named Olympia Maidalcini (1591-1657). The daughter-in-law of Pope Innocent X (Pamphilj) was an influential figure in the city. But the citizens of Rome did not like her. Among her misdeeds was the fact that she stole a cache of gold while the Pope was on his deathbed. She lost power and wealth when a new Pope, Alexander VII, took over in the Vatican, exiling Olympia to the tiny village of San Martino al Cimino, where she soon died of the plague. She is sometimes seen in a ghostly black carriage over the Sisto Bridge.
Also in Rome, the ghost of Empress Valeria Messalina, the wife of Emperor Claudius, is often seen. Messalina became famous for her unbridled sexuality. According to legend, she once challenged the most famous prostitute in Rome, wanting to find out which of them could satisfy more men in a night. Messalina won this dispute. In the end, her husband got tired of it all, and Messalina was executed after she fled with her lover Guy Silius. The ghost of Messalina roams the Piazza Navona, flirting with handsome young men and promising them frantic affection.
One of the most famous ghosts of Rome is the spirit of the emperor Nero. According to legend, his ashes were buried in his family's family crypt on a hill next to Porta del Popolo. This place has long been considered the burial place of murderers, prostitutes and other criminals who did not want to be buried on sacred ground. They say that after the ashes of Nero were here, crows, demons and witches began to be seen in the trees, to which the spirit of the emperor himself often joined. All this bothered the locals so much that in 1099 the trees were burned by order of Pope Paschal II, a chapel was built on this site, and Nero's grave was dug, everything in it was thrown into the Tiber River. And nevertheless, the ghost of Nero sometimes appears in the neighborhood.
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GUSAKOVA IRINA YURIEVNA
