The Castello di Santa Margherita Ligure is a 16th-century fortress in

Santa Margherita Ligure Santa Margherita Ligure ( lij, Santa Margaita) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Genoa in the Italian region Liguria, located about southeast of Genoa, in the area traditionally known as Tigullio. It has a port, used for b ...

, within the

Metropolitan City of Genoa The Metropolitan City of Genoa ( it, Città Metropolitana di Genova) is one of the fourteen Metropolitan cities of Italy, located in the region of Liguria. Its capital is the city of Genoa. It replaced the Province of Genoa. History It was first c ...

in Italy.

History

The fortress is located at the foot of a hill on which the now stands. It was built following a resolution by the Senate of the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( lij, Repúbrica de Zêna ; it, Repubblica di Genova; la, Res Publica Ianuensis) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the 11th century to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the Lat ...

in 1550, and it was meant to defend against raids from the

Barbary pirates The Barbary pirates, or Barbary corsairs or Ottoman corsairs, were Muslim pirates and privateers who operated from North Africa, based primarily in the ports of Salé, Rabat, Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli, Libya, Tripoli. This area was known i ...

. It was designed by Antonio de Càrabo, who was also responsible for the construction of the Construction began in 1550 and it was completed by September of the same year. Various structural interventions and armament upgrades took place until the early 17th century. After pirate attacks ceased in the 18th century, the fort lost its military importance and only some repair and maintenance works were undertaken. In the 19th century, there were plans to demolish the building twice: first to build a new municipal building after

Rapallo Rapallo ( , , ) is a municipality in the Metropolitan City of Genoa, located in the Liguria region of northern Italy. As of 2017 it had 29,778 inhabitants. It lies on the Ligurian Sea coast, on the Tigullio Gulf, between Portofino and Chiavar ...

was established as an independent municipality, and then to enlarge the adjacent ''Calata Vittorio Emanuele''. It was restored after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and it was dedicated in the memory of the fallen in that war.

Gallery

Santa Margherita Ligure-IMG 1044.JPG, Tower Santa Margherita Ligure-IMG 1037.JPG, Guerite Santa Margherita Ligure-IMG 1040.JPG, Interior Santa Margherita Ligure-IMG 1039.JPG, Plaque commemorating the fallen of World War I

Bibliography

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External links

*{{commons category inline, Castle of Santa Margherita Ligure Forts in Italy Buildings and structures in the Province of Genoa 16th-century fortifications Buildings and structures completed in 1550 1550 establishments in the Republic of Genoa 16th-century architecture in Italy