Livorno Fortress

The Old Fortress is undoubtedly the most important monument of Livorno. It is the result of renovations and reconstructions over the centuries and contains the ...
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The Old Fortress is undoubtedly the most important monument of Livorno. It is the result of renovations and reconstructions over the centuries and contains the entire history of the city, from its origins to the present day. It is an imposing 16th-century fortification that, with its red bricks, stands beside the Medici Port, immersed in the sea and surrounded by pleasure boats and fishing boats. It was built between 1521 and 1534 by Antonio da Sangallo on behalf of Cardinal Giulio de’ Medici (later Pope Clement VII), incorporating the existing fortifications: a massive keep, built by the Marquises of Tuscany in the 9th century, called the Mastio di Matilde, and the fortress that surrounds it, called Quadratura dei Pisani (built in 1377 by Puccio di Landuccio for the Pisan republic). The imposing size of the fortress has an asymmetrical perimeter of half a kilometer and features three bastions and the two original entrances.
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