Architettura fortificata nei Presidios spagnoli: il caso dell'Isola d'Elba

Abstract

The island of Elba, under the historical and architectural aspect, is known for the affairs concerning the Grand Ducal fortified town of Cosmopoli (Portoferraio) and for the Napoleonic events. Less known, but of great historical importance, has been the presence of Spanish, during the Tuscan Presidios, between 1557 to 1708. The fortifications of San Giacomo and Focardo in Longone (Porto Azzurro) date back to this period. The article illustrates the latest studies of these two Spanish Seventeenth-Century military architectures: there are summarized below, briefly, the most interesting emerged results, based on documents and cartographies, as well as observing and studying directly the architectures. It concludes with a comparison between some contemporary examples, with the purpose of determining influences and the role of these structures had in development of fortified architecture of XVII century.