The fortified centre of Civitella, built to dominate the valleys of Ascoli and Aprutino, was already a strategic military point at the edge of the kingdom by the 12th and 13th centuries. The fort itself, on the top of a hill, extends over 500m along a rocky crest and covers an overall area of about 25,000 sqm. The structure visible today is that commissioned by the Hapsburg Philip II of Spain in the latter half of the 16th century to replace the original built by the Aragonese. Tactical adjustments in the 1800s made this the last fortification to hold out against the long siege by the Piedmont army in 1860-61. The Museum della Fortezza was inaugurated in 1988, it displays a collection of weapons and cannons dating from the Renaissance to the 19th century when they were used in the two great battles of 1806 and 1860.
Film Commission d'Abruzzo
Centro Regionale Beni Culturali - Sulmona
Phone: + 39 0864 576303
Email: crbc@regione.abruzzo.it
