Fortezza di Civitella del Tronto

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Fortress of Civitella del Tronto is a fortress in Civitella del Tronto, Teramo, Abruzzo.

abruzzo

The defensive settlement complex is an extraordinary feat of military architecture constructed on southern Italian soil and one of the most significant strongholds of the Kingdom of Naples during the Spanish Viceroyalty. Its structures cover a space of 25,000 m2 and have an average length of 500 meters and a width of 45. The location is most famous for being the final stronghold of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, which fell to the Piedmontese on March 20, 1861, just three days after Victor Emmanuel II of Italy was crowned.

Images of Fortezza di Civitella del Tronto

Siege of 1557

The castle in front of the fortress was subjected to a brutal siege that started on April 24, 1557 and ended on May 16, that same year, under the command of French troops led by Antonio Carafa, Marquis of Montebello, a nephew of Pope Paul IV, and the Duke of Guise Francis I of Lorraine, a general of Henry II and an ally of Pope Paul IV. The strategic significance of the location was underlined by this battle time incident. The fortification was strengthened so that it could defeat the assault.

Siege of 1798

The siege of 1798 came to an end over the course of the night of December 7–8, when military governor Giovanni Lacombe gave Frenchman Giovanni Battista Rusca command of the garrison.

Siege of 1806

The French troops once more besieged the castle on January 22, 1806. Matthew Wade, an Irish soldier in the army of the Kingdom of Naples, was in charge of the Civitella castle. The major was equipped with 323 troops, 19 guns, a mortar, and enough food to last for three months. He refused the calls for surrender made by the French generals, who on May 21 machine-gunned the fort and took it.

Siege of 1860-1861

Lieutenant Colonel Antonio Curci, who had 400 Garibaldi volunteers with him, and Navy Major Renzo Carozzi, who was in charge of another 400 troops, laid the siege in the years 1860–1861. With 430 troops, Major Luigi Ascione commanded the fort. The Bourbon militia put up a heroic fight but finally capitulated on March 20, 1861, three days after the announcement of Italy’s unification, ending the state of siege that lasted from October 26, 1860, to March 20, 1861.

Featured image: wikipedia

Last Updated on 2022/11/01

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