One of the largest fortresses in Europe, the last Bourbon stronghold
On a long rocky ridge at about 600 metres, overlooking the valley of the Salinello and, in the distance, the Adriatic, near the border between Abruzzo and the Marche, stands the Fortezza di Civitella del Tronto, one of the largest and most impressive military fortresses in Europe, about 500 metres long and covering some 25,000 square metres. It was rebuilt in its present form in the second half of the sixteenth century by the Spanish, under Philip II, on the site of an earlier medieval fortification, to defend the northern border of the Kingdom of Naples, which ran right here along the river Tronto, against the Papal State. Its position made it practically impregnable, and over the centuries it withstood several sieges.
The fortress is famous above all for being the last stronghold of the Bourbons: after the fall of Gaeta and the end of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, its garrison continued to resist the Piedmontese army, surrendering only on 20 March 1861, three days after the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy. Today the fortress, restored, can be visited along its walls, squares, cisterns, barracks and the ruins of the governor's palace, with a museum of weapons and documents, and from its ramparts the view is magnificent. Below the fortress lies the village of Civitella del Tronto, one of the "Borghi più belli d'Italia", with stone houses and lanes, including the "Ruetta", considered one of the narrowest streets in Italy, about 40 centimetres wide.
Tip: walk the entire length of the fortress walls; try to squeeze through the Ruetta in the village below.
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