Castle Map

Fortress

Citadel of Bonifacio

France · 12th century

Founded
c. 1150
Heritage status
monument historique inscrit · classified historical monument
Location
Bonifacio
Coordinates
41.38778°, 9.15946°
Links
Wikimedia Commons
Open on the map →Wikipedia (FR) ↗
Citadel of Bonifacio in France
Photo: Stahlkocher · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Description

The citadel of Bonifacio is a military work built gradually from the 12th century to protect Bonifacio, an important stronghold of the Republic of Genoa for the security of its trade between Genoa, Liguria and Sardinia, and to control the Strait of Bonifacio.

Although strictly speaking this work is a presidio, it is referred to as the "citadel" of Bonifacio. A presidio is a fortified complex inhabited by a population responsible for defending the town and carrying out activities there. A citadel has a solely military function. Bonifacio is the first presidio built by the Genoese in Corsica, at the end of the 12th century.

Bonifacio is built on a limestone plateau with horizontal layers, presenting a high sea-facing cliff about 60 metres high.

Machine-translated from “Citadelle de Bonifacio” on the French Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

In the rankings

Citadel of Bonifacio ranks #7,265 of 9,902 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #688 of the 954 mapped in France. Founded c. 1150, it is older than 80% of the atlas's dated landmarks, one of 810 atlas entries founded in the 12th century. See how France compares in the castle statistics.

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