The fortifications of Messina were a series of

defensive walls A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications with towers, bastions and gates ...

and other

fortification A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere' ...

s which surrounded the city of Messina,

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

. The first walls were built during the Middle Ages in around 1200. A system of bastioned fortifications was constructed around the city in the 1530s and 1540s. The fortifications were modified over the years, with the last major addition being the

Real Cittadella The Real Cittadella was a fort in Messina, Sicily. The Cittadella was built between 1680 and 1686 by the Spanish Empire, and it was considered to be one of the most important fortifications in the Mediterranean. Most of the fort was demolished in ...

, which was built in the 1680s. Most of the walls were demolished in the 19th and 20th centuries, but some parts of the walls still survive today.

History

Medieval walls

The first walls around Messina were built in around 1200.

Bastioned fortifications

In 1535, Emperor Charles V (who was also King of Sicily) ordered the strengthening of Messina's fortifications. A new defensive system of bastioned fortifications was built between 1536 and 1538, to a design of the military engineers Antonio Ferramolino and Francesco Maurolico. In the 1540s, a number of forts were built strengthening the walls: *

Forte Gonzaga Forte Gonzaga, also known as Castel Gonzaga, is a bastioned fort in Messina, Sicily. It was built in the mid-16th century, and it remained in use by the military until 1973. Today, the fort is in good condition. History In the 1540s, the fortifi ...

, to control the mountains to the west of the city * Castellaccio, to control the hillside of the city * Forte del Santissimo Salvatore, to control the entrance to the harbour In the 1680s, the

was built, and it was intended for both coastal defence and to establish a strong garrison in the city to prevent the population from revolting. The city of Messina and its fortifications changed hands a number of times in the first half of the 18th century during the

War of the Quadruple Alliance The War of the Quadruple Alliance (1718–1720) was caused by Spanish attempts to recover territories in Italy ceded in the 1713 Peace of Utrecht. Largely focused on Sicily, it included minor engagements in North America and Northern Europe as we ...

and the

War of the Polish Succession The War of the Polish Succession ( pl, Wojna o sukcesję polską; 1733–35) was a major European conflict sparked by a Polish civil war over the succession to Augustus II of Poland, which the other European powers widened in pursuit of thei ...

. During the Sicilian revolution of 1848, rebels managed to capture most of the fortifications, with the exception of the Real Cittadella and Forte del Santissimo Salvatore. The forts' defenders bombarded the city until a relief force crushed the revolution in 1849.

Demolition and recent history

The fortifications remained in active use until the 1850s, when the government of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies began dismantling some of the walls, including the city's main gates. Despite this, the Real Cittadella and some other forts remained in use, and saw action during Garibaldi's

Expedition of the Thousand The Expedition of the Thousand ( it, Spedizione dei Mille) was an event of the Italian Risorgimento that took place in 1860. A corps of volunteers led by Giuseppe Garibaldi sailed from Quarto, near Genoa (now Quarto dei Mille) and landed in Mars ...

in 1860–61, when they capitulated to Piedmontese forces after a siege. After the earthquake of 1908, parts of Forte del Santissimo Salvatore were demolished. Most of the Real Cittadella was also demolished in the 1920s.

References

{{Messina Messina Buildings and structures in Messina