250px, Fort of Exilles.
The Exilles Fort (pronounced : egzil - Italian: ''Forte di Exilles'' French: ''Fort d'Exilles'') is a fortified complex in the
Susa Valley
The Susa Valley ( it, Val di Susa; pms, Valsusa; french: Val de Suse; oc, Val d'Ors) is a valley in the Metropolitan City of Turin, Piedmont region of northern Italy, located between the Graian Alps in the north and the Cottian Alps in the sou ...
,
Metropolitan City of Turin
The Metropolitan City of Turin ( it, Città metropolitana di Torino, Piedmontese: ''Sità metropolitan-a 'd Turin'') is a metropolitan city in the Piedmont region, Italy. Its capital is the city of Turin. It replaced the Province of Turin and co ...
,
Piedmont
it, Piemontese
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, northern
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
. Together with the nearby
Fort of Fenestrelle
The Fenestrelle Fortress, better known as the Fenestrelle Fort is a fortress overlooking Fenestrelle. It is the symbol of the Metropolitan City of Turin, Piedmont, northern Italy. It is the biggest alpine fortification in Europe, having a surfac ...
and the
Forte Albertino
The Forte Albertino (also ''Forte di Vinadio'') is an alpine fortress in Vinadio, Piedmont, northern Italy, located outside the town in the Stura di Demonte Valley. It is now used as a museum.
History
Forte Albertino was commissioned in 1834 by ...
(at Vinadio, in the
province of Cuneo
Cuneo (Italian), or Coni (Piedmontese), is a province in the southwest of the Piedmont region of Italy. To the west it borders on the French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur ( departments of Alpes-Maritimes, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence and Haut ...
) it was part of the defensive line between the
House of Savoy
The House of Savoy ( it, Casa Savoia) was a royal dynasty that was established in 1003 in the historical Savoy region. Through gradual expansion, the family grew in power from ruling a small Alpine county north-west of Italy to absolute rule of ...
lands (later of the
Kingdom of Italy
The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to ...
) and
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
: both these states held it in different phases depending on the outcome of the various wars. It is located on a spur commanding one of the narrowest sections of the Susa Valley, along the main road connecting
Turin
Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...
to France.
History
The first mention of a fortified structure in the place dates from the 7th century, when a chronicler of the
Abbey of Novalesa wrote of a fortification on the spur overlooking Exilles, perhaps destroyed by the
Franks
The Franks ( la, Franci or ) were a group of Germanic peoples whose name was first mentioned in 3rd-century Roman sources, and associated with tribes between the Lower Rhine and the Ems River, on the edge of the Roman Empire.H. Schutz: Tools, ...
. Starting from 1155, the fort was held by the Bermond family of
Besançon
Besançon (, , , ; archaic german: Bisanz; la, Vesontio) is the prefecture of the department of Doubs in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. The city is located in Eastern France, close to the Jura Mountains and the border with Switzerl ...
,
counts of Albon
The counts of Albon (''comtes d'Albon'') were members of the medieval nobility in what is now south-eastern France.
Guigues IV, Count of Albon (d. 1142) was nicknamed ''le Dauphin'' or ''the Dolphin''. His nickname morphed into a title among ...
, who owned the road passing near it and leading to the
Monginevro Pass.
The first description of the castle dates from 1339: it had a quadrangular plan with more towers, quite different from the massive structure visible today. Between 1494-1496 it was used as an ammunition depot by
Charles VIII of France
Charles VIII, called the Affable (french: l'Affable; 30 June 1470 – 7 April 1498), was King of France from 1483 to his death in 1498. He succeeded his father Louis XI at the age of 13.Paul Murray Kendall, ''Louis XI: The Universal Spider'' (Ne ...
, who enlarged the main entrance and enrolled peasants of the area to defend it. In the 16th century it was further reinforced with more towers under
Charles II of Savoy
Charles II or Charles John Amadeus (''Carlo Giovanni Amedeo'' in Italian) (23 June 1489, Turin, Piedmont – 16 April 1496), was the Duke of Savoy from 1490 to 1496 but his mother Blanche of Montferrat (1472–1519) was the actual ruler as ...
. In 1541 it was again under French rule, though, according to the
Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis
A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal perso ...
(1559), it was reacquired by
Emmanuel Philibert of Savoy. In 1591 it was recaptured by the French after a short siege, but two years later
Charles Emmanuel I of Savoy
Charles Emmanuel I ( it, Carlo Emanuele di Savoia; 12 January 1562 – 26 July 1630), known as the Great, was the Duke of Savoy from 1580 to 1630. He was nicknamed (, in context "the Hot-Headed") for his rashness and military aggression.
Bein ...
took it back and strengthened it, in particular on the side facing the upper Susa Valley.
In 1595, after a month-long siege, it was again in French hands. The Savoyards would receive it back only in 1708, after the
War of the Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...
. In this century the French strongly rebuilt the fort. In 1720 the Piedmontese revised it under the direction of military engineer
Ignazio Bertola
Giuseppe Francesco Ignazio Bertola born Roveda was an Italian military architect.
Biography
Born in 1676 in Tortona, Ignazio was the adopted son of the architect Antonio Bertola and followed in his footsteps as a military engineer. . In 1745, during the
War of the Austrian Succession
The War of the Austrian Succession () was a European conflict that took place between 1740 and 1748. Fought primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italy, the Atlantic and Mediterranean, related conflicts included King George's W ...
, the French attacked the fort, but were pushed back.
When
Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
conquered Italy in the early 19th century, the fort was demolished. It was rebuilt in 1818-1829, updating the pre-existing architecture to more modern military concepts. The fort belonged to the
Italian Army
"The safeguard of the republic shall be the supreme law"
, colors =
, colors_labels =
, march = ''Parata d'Eroi'' ("Heroes's parade") by Francesco Pellegrino, ''4 Maggio'' (May 4) ...
until 1943, after which it was abandoned. In 1978 the
Piedmont
it, Piemontese
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ese Regional Authority acquired it and launched a restoration program. The fort was opened to the public in 2000, housing the
Museo Nazionale della Montagna Museo may refer to:
* Museo, 2018 Mexican drama heist film
*Museo (Naples Metro)
Museo is a station on line 1 of the Naples Metro. It was opened on 5 April 2001 as the eastern terminus of the section of the line between Vanvitelli and Museo. ...
(National Mountain Museum) and occasional exhibitions.
Thé famous historical character known as L'homme au masque de fer (The Man in the iron mask) spent some years captive in the fortress jail.
See also
*
Man in the Iron Mask
The Man in the Iron Mask (French ; died 19 November 1703) was an unidentified prisoner of state during the reign of King Louis XIV of France (1643–1715). Warranted for arrest on 28 July 1669 under the pseudonym of "Eustache Dauger", he wa ...
References
Sources
*
*
External links
Official website
{{Authority control
Castles in Piedmont
Museums in Piedmont
Buildings and structures in the Metropolitan City of Turin
Metropolitan City of Turin