The Forte Albertino (also ''Forte di Vinadio'') is an

alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National Pa ...

fortress in

Vinadio Vinadio ( oc, Vinai) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Cuneo in the Italian region of Piedmont, located about southwest of Turin and about southwest of Cuneo, on the border with France. It is located along the Stura di Demonte ri ...

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

, 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 ...

, located outside the town in the

Stura di Demonte Valley The Stura di Demonte Valley (in Italian ''Valle Stura di Demonte'') is a valley in south-west of Piedmont in the Province of Cuneo, Italy. Etymology The valley takes its name from the river Stura di Demonte, a left-hand tributary of the Tanaro wh ...

. It is now used as a museum.

History

Forte Albertino was commissioned in 1834 by

Charles Albert of Savoy Charles Albert (; 2 October 1798 – 28 July 1849) was the King of Sardinia from 27 April 1831 until 23 March 1849. His name is bound up with the first Italian constitution, the Albertine Statute, and with the First Italian War of Independen ...

and, following a brief reprieve between 1837 and 1839, finished in 1847. The fort is placed strategically close to the French border and the

Maddalena Pass The Maddalena Pass (Italian: ''Colle della Maddalena'' French: ''Col de Larche'', historically ''Col de l'Argentière'') (elevation 1996 m.) is a high mountain pass between the Cottian Alps and the Maritime Alps, located on the border between ...

, giving Italian troops control of who entered the country. An estimated 4,000 men helped erect the fort. Its walls have a length of about , with a total of internal paths on three levels: the Upper Front, the Attack Front, and the Lower Front. The Upper and Lower Fronts consist of casements while the Attack Front had a

ravelin A ravelin is a triangular fortification or detached outwork, located in front of the innerworks of a fortress (the curtain walls and bastions). Originally called a ''demi-lune'', after the ''lunette'', the ravelin is placed outside a castle ...

and was the only point of access for communication with the outside world. This included communication with the town, Porta Francia, and the Pass. The fort was never properly outfitted for war and was used as a prison for captured Garibaldini during the

Battle of Aspromonte The Battle of Aspromonte, also known as the Day of Aspromonte ( it, Giornata dell'Aspromonte), was a minor engagement that took place on 29 August 1862, and was an inconclusive episode of the Italian unification process. It is named after the ne ...

. After the dawn of the 20th century, Forte Albertino became a

barracks Barracks are usually a group of long buildings built to house military personnel or laborers. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word "barraca" ("soldier's tent"), but today barracks are u ...

, then an artillery warehouse. It was later bombed by the Allies during World War II and abandoned. It has since then been renovated and is now used as a museum.

Permanent exhibitions

* Montagna in Movimento: Multimedia installations allow visitors to see the development, natural and otherwise, that built up Alps civilizations. The strategic value of the fort's location as well as ongoing environmental conservation and biodiversity efforts are highlighted. * Messaggeri Alati: Located at Porta Neraissa, this exhibition details the history of the important military

dovecote A dovecote or dovecot , doocot ( Scots) or columbarium is a structure intended to house pigeons or doves. Dovecotes may be free-standing structures in a variety of shapes, or built into the end of a house or barn. They generally contain pige ...

, which remained until 1944. * Vinadio Virtual Reality: Introduced in 2017, the virtual reality exhibit gives visitors two options of fort exploration: the Vollo libero sul forte, a flight simulator, and Giallo Forte, a spy game. * Mammamia che Forte!: This exhibition has offered a wide range of children's programming since its introduction in 2019.

References

{{coord, 44.3062, N, 7.1725, E, source:wikidata, display=title Castles in Piedmont Vauban fortifications in Italy Museums in Piedmont Military and war museums in Italy Buildings and structures in the Province of Cuneo History of Piedmont Infrastructure completed in 1847