The idea of extensively fortifying Casale – which, like Alessandria, can be interpreted within the framework of preparing for the second war of independence – took shape within the military environment of the Regno di Sardegna, in the aftermath of the Piedmontese defeat in Novara in 1849, and the opposing resistance to the Austrian forces in Monferrato.
As a result, the task of fortifying Casale’s defences was assigned to the Major of Genio, Domenico Stalieno, who would direct the construction site until the project’s completion in 1859. From the beginning, the project focused on three points: the fortification of the bridgehead to protect the bridge over the River Po, which was hastily carried out between 1848 and 1849 and its coordination with the castle (to the west) and the fortification to be constructed to defend the grain warehouse (to the east); the construction of a structure to defend the southwest side of the city, in the area traditionally known as Orti; the recreation of the surviving structures of the southeastern forward bastions of the citadel, commissioned by Vincenzo I Gonzaga in 1590 and taken apart in 1695, so as to construct a second crown work; the construction of the Gaiona tower on Sant’Anna hill to the southwest of the city, along with the circular Nemour battery.
The changes implemented in 1853 in order to synchronise the defences with those obtained by Filippo Mellana from Parliament in the interim – the opportunity to expand the urban area in the region around the Orti structure and the construction of the Vercelli-Casale-Valenza railway line – did not substantially change the overall structure of the project; in any case, this structure did not play an active role when war broke out in 1859, but rather a dissuasive one.
OPERA CITTADELLA
Via Martiri di Nassiria
TORRE GAIONA (RESTI)
Via Bracco – Via Garoglio
