The existence of a castle in Gavi is documented as far back as 973. With an imperial diploma dated May 30, 1191, Henry VI, son of Frederick I Barbarossa, granted the castle and village as a fief to the Republic of Genoa. In 1418, following military events, the fief passed under the rule of the Visconti of Milan; after other ownership changes, in 1528 it returned to the Republic of Genoa, which held it until 1815, the year the ancient republic was annexed to the Kingdom of Sardinia.
Over the centuries, the castle assumed the appearance of a powerful fortress. The first radical interventions were carried out in 1540 by Giovanni Maria Olgiati, a military engineer in the service of the Republic of Genoa, who designed and completely rebuilt the defensive walls, creating new bastions and reinforcing the original structure.
In the 17th century, the fortress was further expanded with the involvement of the Dominican friar Vincenzo da Fiorenzuola, known as Gaspare Maculani. Famous for being the inquisitor in the trial against Galileo Galilei, he was, besides being a clergyman, a great expert in military architecture. The works to transform the building into a large fortress took place between 1626 and 1629, but other interventions continued until the early 19th century. On the eastern side, the Monte Moro “redoubt” was built, connected to the fortress by a gallery; inside, quarters for soldiers and officers, cisterns, powder magazines, guardhouses, and parade grounds were constructed, all with the help of the most renowned military engineers of the era, from Stefano Scaniglia to Domenico Orsolino, from Pietro Morettini to Pierre De Cotte.
In 1859, the ancient Genoese fortress was disarmed and stripped of its historical identity to be transformed into a civilian prison; during the First World War, it became a military prison. Between the two wars, experimental vineyards were planted on some of the fortress’s embankments by the Anti-phylloxera Consortium. During the Second World War, the fortress again became a detention site; in 1946, it was handed over to the Superintendency for Architectural Heritage of Piedmont, which since 1978 has undertaken constant and progressive restoration and preservation efforts for this rare example of military architecture.
Information on Gavi Fortress
Via al Forte, 14
15066 Gavi (Alessandria)
0143 643554
sbap-no.gavi@beniculturali.it
https://www.polomusealepiemonte.beniculturali.it
Source: MIBACT
