Torrione Apartment

The old city walls meet the bastion, or "fortino," at the start of Via Marina, where it once helped defend Giovinazzo's center from the sea. It joins the ancient walls along the medieval center's western side, with the Protontino Tower closing the far end. Built in the 15th century, probably by 1488 when the full city wall was finished, the bastion had both military and maritime uses. In the early 19th century the building became the telegraph office, as recorded in an 1871 city council resolution. Worth visiting. Hello from S. Anastasia (Naples), Roby and Lucy

Online information says the building was used as a telegraph office from the early 19th century, a role documented in a city council resolution dated 1871. Earlier, this bastion served both military and maritime purposes. It was built in the 15th century, likely by 1488, when the city's entire wall was completed. You can see it in the oldest topographical maps of Giovinazzo, including those drawn by military engineer Carlo Gambacorta in 1598 and Giambattista Pacichelli in 1703. Known as the "fortino," it stands at the beginning of Via Marina, links to the old walls protecting the medieval center's western side, and meets the Protontino Tower at the other end.

The Fort came to be known as "the Fort" in 1500, after it was strengthened during the Aragonese era to improve its defenses. It had originally been built for military use, with the first definite records of its existence dating to 1488. It formed part of the defensive wall protecting the small port and the whole village. The building appears clearly in early topographical maps, including the one by military engineer Carlo Gambacorta (1598) and the better-known map by Giambattista Pacichelli from 1703. It was renovated several times over the centuries, always for defense. From the early 19th century it served as a telegraph office, as noted in a municipal council resolution dated 1871. By the 1950s, it had fallen into disuse.

A one-of-a-kind, atmospheric structure. Worth a visit every now and then.