Torre avanzata della Lunetta

Torre avanzata della Lunetta

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The summit of Parlessi Mountain, at the foot of Mount Censo, was flattened, excavated, and modified under the plans of Napoleon Bonaparte’s Engineer of Engineers to make way for the unfinished fortress.

At the apex of this pyramid stands the tower, of the colour of the rock, with plumb lines that enemy cannons cannot reach and that could be mistaken for a peak. It acts as a sentinel to the valley and is, at the same time, a fearsome turret where cannons can be placed. Its two moats, controlled by casemates with direct fire against the rear, make it practically impregnable.

 

It is only accessible from a real small underground fortress that climbs up the mountainside, without giving any apparent external signal, which only a careful eye can notice.

Construction period:

1803-1805

Type of building:

Watchtower

Dimension:

35 mq

Altitude:

651m asl

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Mura Venete

Mura Venete

Progetto senza titolo (26) (1) (1)

The Rocca d’Anfo, defined by the Venetian senate as the gateway to the state, during the period of the Republic of the Serenissima was made up of a fortification that developed along the entire slope of the mountain and fulfilled two main tasks: the lower complex controlled the border and the road by means of two drawbridges, while the upper part had a defensive function. In order to reach the second block, it was necessary to overcome a certain difference in height with overhanging rocks, passing through a series of ladders that served as connecting routes.

 

This route defined, given its origin, Venetian Walls developed and still develops today, winding between the rocks along a line of double curtain walls with loopholes that almost creates a corridor of separation with the rest of the mountain slope.

Construction period:

1500-1600

Type of building:

Open-air connection

Dimension:

— mq

Altitude:

400m to 460m asl
460m to 490m asl
490m to 545m asl

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Lunetta a fuochi di rovescio dall’alto, Saliente della Lunetta e Casamatta del Saliente

Lunetta a fuochi di rovescio dall’alto, Saliente della Lunetta e Casamatta del Saliente

Progetto senza titolo (21) (1) (1) (1) (1)

These buildings, placed at the base of the advance tower of the Lunette, have the function of breaking the mountain and threatening the road. To defend them, the Redan and Fossi ditches were built, cutting into the rock face with the aid of explosives and pickaxes, and chiselling the stone following the veins in the rock.

They are protected by casemates that make the complex of the upper part of the Rocca d’Anfo essentially impregnable.

The Lunetta was connected to the Eridio (the ancient name of Lake Idro), before the Italian military built the present mule track, by means of temporary wooden steps and ramps that needed constant maintenance. Access was then gained to a small harbour where the rafts that the soldiers used to guard the lake were moored.

Construction period:

1803-1811

Type of building:

Barracks

Dimension:

140 mq

Altitude:

630m asl

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The fortress can be visited by taking part in a guided tour or independently upon reservation.

Caserma Zanardelli

Caserma Zanardelli

Progetto senza titolo

Within the area that delimited the site of the Rocca d’Anfo and more precisely about halfway between the Rocca Vecchia Battery and the Statuto Battery along the fortified line of the shore of Lake Idro, the Command Headquarters building, now called the Zanardelli Barracks, was built at the end of the 19th century.

This building stands longitudinally and parallel to the current state road running along the lake and is therefore easily identifiable. At one time, its premises were used for general management services, now, given its position, it is used as the entrance area of the Rocca d’Anfo.

Construction period:

circa 1870-1890

Type of building:

Barracks

Dimension:

1339 mq

Altitude:

400m asl

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Caserma della Gola o Grande e Piazza d’Armi

Caserma della Gola o Grande e Piazza d’Armi

Progetto senza titolo (25)

Napoleon Bonaparte mistrusted the attachment of urban fortifications, contrary to what had been demonstrated up to that time, and wanted to have in the Rocca d’Anfo and not Brescia a square that could be left to itself and could resist an artillery attack.

The Batteria della Gola or Grande Battery is positioned at the foot of the upper portion of the Rocca d’Anfo and develops horizontally, parallel to the shore and marking the profile of the lake. It was designed and built as if it were a Parisian residential palace and the soldiers’ quarters and rooms were located inside.

In the Report for the State of Defence of 8 September 1813, the completion and operation of this portion of the fortress, along with the structures that make up the upper part of the fortress, is highlighted.

 

Under the Piazza d’Armi there is a cistern that can hold two hundred and sixteen thousand litres of water.

Construction period:

1803-1811

Type of building:

Barrack

Dimension:

606 mq

Altitude:

570m asl

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The fortress can be visited by taking part in a guided tour or independently upon reservation.

Batteria Tirolo

Batteria Tirolo

Tirolo

The first trace of this battery, which forms the defensive line towards the Tyrol, dates back to 1803 when, according to the project commissioned by Napoleon Bonaparte, the space necessary for its foundations was carved out of the rock. However, the design of the Battery was only partially realised in 1814 and consisted of casemates of limited height with pitched roofs camouflaged in the morphology of the terrain to defend the road below.

Left in a state of neglect for several years, it was completely rebuilt in 1884 thanks to a large grant for the renovation, arming and modernisation of the entire fortress. The downsized volume, still visible today, has an outer cladding of granite blocks and the roof is rounded to deflect fired shots and hide in the mountain skyline.

Period of construction:

1800 circa 1800-1890

Type of building:

Battery

Dimension:

— mq

Altitude:

— m asl

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The fortress can be visited by taking part in a guided tour or independently upon reservation.

Batteria Statuto

Batteria Statuto

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At the end of the 19th century, during Giuseppe Zanardelli’s renovation of defence equipment, the Statuto Battery was built in the area overlooking Lake Idro, occupying the roadway as a barrage and having the same characteristics as the Rocca Vecchia Battery, including the drawbridges over the state road, whose road surfaces were not raised to match the iron gates, but were pushed by winches into special loculi (rooms) protected by iron gates. These two batteries made it possible to cover the entire lower area of Lake Idro, as far as the opposite shore, and the road in front of the fortress from the firing range. In addition, to connect the batteries, a low wall with loopholes was built on the lake shore, which made it possible to completely close off the defensive area of the Rocca.

 

During their retreat at the end of April 1945, the German troops attempted to demolish the battery with explosive charges, but this was only partially successful.

Construction period:

1870-1890. Partially destroyed by an explosion by retreating Germans in the last ten days of April 1945.

Type of buildings:

Battery

Dimension:

346 mq

Altitude:

380m asl

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The fortress can be visited by taking part in a guided tour or independently upon reservation.

Batteria Veneta

Batteria Veneta

Progetto senza titolo (26) (2)

Situated in a position to control Lake Idro and part of the valley, this structure dates back to the rule of the Serenissima Republic of Venice. From the Rocca Vecchia Battery to reach the second block, it was necessary to overcome a certain difference in height with overhanging rocks, passing through a series of ladders used as connecting paths. The buildings on the upper part were used for real defensive purposes, as well as barracks to house all the troops stationed there.

 

The Venetian Battery underwent various changes up to the Second World War. In fact, some documents state: The Venetian Battery has all the characteristics of the other batteries that can be armed, built in groups of granite, with large embrasures and with a rounded façade towards the lake. All that is special about this battery is the slender tower that stands beside it. It was built in the years immediately preceding the Second World War, with the only purpose of making it look like a bell tower to the layman, and the whole fortress complex like a magnificent abbey. With the same purpose, several fake tabernacles were built along the wall joining the Venetian Battery to the rocks above. These constructions testify to the great good faith of the planners, who were perhaps unaware that by this time the Rocca d’Anfo had been shot by countless lens from every nation who, undisturbed, had flown over it at very low altitude.

Construction period:

1500-1600 1805 circa 1870-1890

Type of building:

Battery

Dimension:

120 mq

Altitude:

460m asl

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The fortress can be visited by taking part in a guided tour or independently upon reservation.

Batteria Rolando

Batteria Rolando

Progetto senza titolo (23)

This battery constitutes, together with Tyrol and Belvedere Battery, the defensive line towards Tyrol. These buildings cannot be considered separately from a military point of view, as they have a main role in sighting and, at the same time, defending the territory.

The Rolando Battery is part of the large French renovation project, which was never actually completed. In 1814, it consisted of a small casemate and a small battery for the positioning of two cannons for the defence of the areas near the fort.

In 1884, after years of neglect, it underwent a major remodelling together with the entire fortress and a re-modernisation of the armaments sector, due to the historical events in the Valle Sabbia territory.

 

Inside are the men’s shelters, the officers’ quarters, the kitchen, the food storehouses, the reserves, the rooms for loading bullets, the rooms for packing charges and the latrines.

Construction period:

1800 circa 1880-1890

Type of buildings:

Ricoveri, alloggi per gli ufficiali,  magazzini

Dimension:

— mq

Altitude:

— m asl

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The fortress can be visited by taking part in a guided tour or independently upon reservation.

Batteria Rocca Vecchia, Corpo di Guardia e Deposito polveri

Batteria Rocca Vecchia, Corpo di Guardia e Deposito polveri

Rocca Vecchia

The entire block of these buildings, dating back to the period of the rule of the Republic of Venice, was distributed along the road and never assumed a purely military character.

The Rocca Vecchia battery (referred to several times in historical documents as Vecchia Rocca) was demolished in an accidental fire in 1924 and created, through its morphology, a gateway to the Tyrol. Some documents read: ‘The Rocca Vecchia battery, as mentioned, was the first to be found coming from Anfo, about 700 metres from the village. It was crossed by a wide 30-metre-long vaulted corridor, equipped at the sides with mighty iron gates, which were never closed because the corridor served the traffic of the upper Valle Sabbia and the Giudicarie. Outside the gates were the two iron drawbridges that functioned, once the banks were removed, by raising the road surface to match the gates by means of powerful chains. Above the gates, the Rocca Vecchia was adorned with large corbels perfectly carved from granite.

Construction period:

1500-1600 1805 circa 1870-1890

Type of buildings:

Guardhouse

Dimension:

500 mq

Altitude:

400m asl

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The fortress can be visited by taking part in a guided tour or independently upon reservation.