Aragonese Castle

The complex preserves traces of a very ancient stratification: under the Aragonese reconstruction, structures dating back to the Greek period have been identified, dating between the 4th and 3rd centuries BC. The reconstruction promoted by Ferdinando d’Aragona between 1487 and 1492 was a response to the rapid development of cannons and the need to strengthen the coastal defenses of the Kingdom of Naples, a need made evident by the Turkish conquest of Otranto in 1480. The project is traditionally attributed to Francesco di Giorgio Martini. Originally, the fortress had five round towers: San Cristoforo, San Lorenzo, Sant’Angelo, Annunziata, and Bandiera; the Sant’Angelo tower was demolished in 1883 to allow for the construction of the Girevole Bridge. The towers, low and massive, reached around 21 meters in height and had walls up to 8 meters thick; San Cristoforo was the largest. In 1491, a triangular pier facing the Mar Grande was added, considered an early example of a bastioned solution. After the transition to Spanish rule, the top platforms were expanded from 1502 and the galleries and casemates for artillery were reinforced. The fortress also repelled a Turkish assault in 1594, but later was progressively adapted for use as a prison and barracks. Among the most curious episodes is the detention of Alexandre Dumas father between 1799 and 1800, linked by tradition to the inspiration for The Count of Monte Cristo. Also noteworthy is the chapel of San Leonardo, associated according to tradition with the marriage between Maria d’Enghien and Ladislao di Durazzo. Since 2003, the Italian Navy has been conducting internal restorations to remove modern plaster, reopen passageways, and reveal original surfaces and artifacts uncovered with the collaboration of the University of Bari and the Superintendencies.