Villa Vecchia is a patrician villa near Frascati

Frascati

Frascati is a town and comune in the province of Rome in the Lazio region of central Italy. It is located south-east of Rome, on the Alban Hills close to the ancient city of Tusculum. Frascati is closely associated with science, being the location of several international scientific...

, Italy, in the territory of the commune of Monte Porzio Catone

Monte Porzio Catone

Monte Porzio Catone is a comune in the Province of Rome in the Italian region Latium, located about 20 km southeast of Rome, on the Alban Hills....

. In the villa's garden there is a long stretch of a well kept Roman road

Roman road

The Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate. The Roman road system spanned more than 400,000 km...

.

"Villa Vecchia" was founded in 1560 by the cardinal Giovanni Ricci of Montepulciano.
In 1562 the villa sold to the Cardinal Ranuccio Farnese

Ranuccio Farnese (Cardinal)

Ranuccio Farnese was an Italian prelate, who was Cardinal of Santa Lucia in Messina, Sicily from 1545 to his death in 1565....

, it was the first residence in Frascati by the Farnese family, with the name Villa Tusculana, and was restored by Vignola

Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola

Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola was one of the great Italian architects of 16th century Mannerism. His two great masterpieces are the Villa Farnese at Caprarola and the Jesuits' Church of the Gesù in Rome...

 for the occasion. Pope Gregory XIII

Pope Gregory XIII

Pope Gregory XIII , born Ugo Boncompagni, was Pope from 1572 to 1585. He is best known for commissioning and being the namesake for the Gregorian calendar, which remains the internationally-accepted civil calendar to this date.-Youth:He was born the son of Cristoforo Boncompagni and wife Angela...

 used it as summer residence.

The villa was damaged by air attacks in the Second World War (1943-1944) because it was used as German military depot.

The villa now houses a hotel and restaurant.

Sources

• Wells Clara Louisa - The Alban Hills, Vol. I: Frascati - 1878 publisher: Barbera, Rome, Italy - OCLC 21996251