Cittadella

Cittadella is a city and municipality in the province of Padova, region Veneto, Italy. It was founded in the 13th century as a military outpost of Padua. The cityscape is dominated by the almost perfectly preserved, well- restored city wall that surrounds the historic center.

History

Evidence of human occupation of the area, was built in the Cittadella, dating back to the Bronze Age. In Roman times, the land was parceled out and let Roman veterans. 148 BC was built Postumia as Decumanus maximus.

From the 11th century a number of rural gentry came with small villages that were built around parish churches such as San Donato or to monasteries.

Cittadella, was founded in 1220 at the time of battles between the city-states, on the orders of the city of Padua as a fortified outpost for the defense of their territory. Immediately after the founding of the city became a reliable base for operations against the power of the rural nobility, such as the feudal aristocracy Onara and Fontaniva.

In the second half of the 13th century, Cittadella had largely developed and gained strategic significance in the surrounding area. For a short time the city of Ezzelino da Romano dominated. 1236 Padua granted her the right to own statutes. 1318 Cittadella fell to the dominion of Cangrande I della Scala, lord ( signore ) of Verona. Again get back to Padua, it was ruled by the Lord of the Carrara family. During the 14th century the importance of Cittadella continued to grow and the sphere of influence grew.

1405 Cittadella voluntarily asked to join the Republic of Venice. In return, they were allowed to keep their own statutes. From 1483 Venice, the City of Roberto Sanseverino, under whose successors they remained until 1499, and for one year ( 1503-1504 ) she was surrendered pursuant to a contract Pandolfo Malatesta.

As in 1508, the League of Cambrai was closed against the Venetian Republic, to hit Pandolfo Malatesta, the ruler Cittadellas, on the side of the enemy. Imperial troops attacked the city and sacked it. It was not until 1516 Peace with Venice was restored.

After these wars Cittadella enjoyed three centuries of peace, until 1797, French troops occupied the territory of the Republic of Venice. Ceded in the Treaty of Campo Formio on 17 October 1797 Austria, Veneto arrived in Pressburg Peace on December 26, 1805, founded by Napoleon Bonaparte Kingdom Italy. Cittadella came to the Department Bacchiglione and for a time even the province of Vicenza. The first Peace of Paris the 30th May 1814 brought Veneto as part of the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia indirectly to Austria back (his king was in personal union of the Emperor of Austria ). By the Peace of Vienna from October 3, 1866 Veneto and Cittadella thus finally came to the Kingdom of Italy.

The city walls

The city and its fortifications were built in the shape of a polygon, which is crossed by two mutually perpendicular intersecting axes, the running approximately north-south stretch of road Via Roma - Via Giuseppe Garibaldi and the east-west stretch of road Via Independenza - Via Giulielmo Marconi. The city wall has a circumference of 1,461 meters and a diameter of about 450 m. Access is possible through four gates, which correspond approximately to the four cardinal directions and are named after the larger towns, which can be reached through it: Porta Bassanese ( Bassano del Grappa ) in the north, Porta Trevisana (Treviso ) to the east, Porta Padovana ( Padua ) in the south and Porta Vicentina (Vicenza ) in the west.

The approximately 14 to 16 m high walls actually consist of two walls which were backfilled with a solid core of rock and hot slaked lime, and are approximately 2.10 m thick. The better defense served 32 larger and smaller integrated into the walls of towers, a protective moat and drawbridges in front of the four gates.

For a better defense, the walls at various levels were accessible by walkways that were partly built of masonry, but partly also of wood or simply running along the embankment that surrounds the entire wall.

Except for a piece that was destroyed in the 16th century in the course of the fighting with the League of Cambrai, the walls are completely intact. Are clearly to recognize the subtle details of the construction. Up to seven different construction techniques, recognizable by the change of the rows of brick and stone, were applied.

One of the places of the fixed facility where the defense function of the donjon and the entrance gates most clearly, is the Rocca (fortress) di Porta Bassano at the northern gate. Within the Rocca, the Casa del Capitano ( the commandant's house ). During restoration, old frescoes have been found from the period of the families Carraresi, Malatesta, Sanseverino and Borromeo, which give such a comprehensive report of events 1260-1600, that it almost can replace written documents.

The English poet Robert Browning said of Cittadella: "For these walls I would be all over London there."

Northeastern section of the city wall

Porta Vice Tina

Porta Trevisana

Restoration of the fortification

The conservation and repair work includes the repair of the battlements, which were most affected by the ravages of time, the restoration and protection of the running in the 14 m height tour, and additionally the creation of several additions through the establishment of stairs in the gap, the installation of a staircase and a glass elevator in Torre Porta Vicenza, the stairs, the wooden pier and the glazed roof of the entrance to Torresino Church as well as the construction of a connection between the Casa di Capitano and the Torre Porta Bassano. The visitor should be made possible as you desire unprecedented views of the walls and the city.

The walkway is now restored to about 75 % of its length and about three -quarters of them can be committed. After completion of the restoration works of the tour in its entirety will be available. The complete restoration of the fortifications of Cittadella will be completed in the next few years with the final renovation of the walls in the northwestern and northeastern sector and the completion of work on gates and towers.

Additional points of interest

Parish Church of San Donato

Chiesa del Torresino

Torre di Malta

Town hall

Praetorian Palace

Teatro Sociale

Teatro Sociale - Auditorium

Policy

Mayor of Cittadella is Massimo Bitonci ( Lega Nord).

Twin Cities

• Brazil Nova Prata, Brazil, since 2005
• United States Noblesville, Indiana, USA, since 2005
• Germany Guben, Germany

Sons and daughters

• Franco Frigo ( born 1950 ), Italian politician

Sports

The local football club is the AS Cittadella.