The Sforza Palace in Proceno stands on the main square of the village and was built in the mid 16th century at the behest of Cardinal Guido Ascanio Sforza, Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church and Governor of Proceno, whose coat of arms appears on the main door of the palace, with the lion rampant (the heraldic animal of the Sforza di Santa Fiora, his father’s family) and the lilies of the Farnese (the family to which his mother, Costanza, daughter of Pope Paul III, belonged). It seems – but it is not proven – that the palace was designed by Sangallo, but he certainly designed the portal.
After demolishing the old Palazzo Comunale to make room for the new building, work continued for about seven years on the project by architect Nanni di Baccio Bigio, also known as Giovanni Lippi, of Florentine origin who worked in Rome around the middle of the 16th century.
The palace, following the distribution of the estate of Cardinal Guido Ascanio, was assigned, together with the village and territory of Proceno, to his brother Paolo, who then became Marquis of Proceno.
It was Paolo I^ himself who completed the imposing building, also having a chapel, a “cantonata” and a loggia built overlooking the Paglia valley.
Unfortunately very little remains of this part of the palace after the collapse of 1873 and 1890.
Palazzo Sforza passed from the cardinal’s successors to the Mazzanti family in 1711. Later, in 1738, it was bought by Francesco Selvi of Sorano. It then passed to the Del Monte family and then to the Severi family, who were linked by marriage and descent to the Del Monte family.
In 1985, the Municipality of Proceno bought Palazzzo Sforza from the Severi family and began a series of consolidation and restoration works on the building. Today, the front part of the building is fully functional again, with the reconstruction of the wing overlooking Via della Pace, the installation of a staircase and lift to the upper floors and the consolidation and restoration of other parts.
Inside, the frescoed vaults, a courtyard with a travertine well, the frescoes and the coffered ceiling on the main floor of the building are still visible.
The palace is currently used for exhibitions, conferences and other cultural events. The basement rooms of the palace house the Museum of Rural Life.