Northern Tower

The Northern Tower

This tower accomplished very delicate tasks.

As it was enclosed inside the castle wall like its opposite tower it exercized a double function: that of defending the north-western front of the fortress in case the enemy had passed the castle wall and had spread inside.

Secondly, it watched over the surrounding area included the entrance to the fortress. Actually this must have been its primary role: the defence of the entrance tower by directly shooting to the enemy who might have attempted to climb the tower to enter into the fortress.

Infact, the first of the three embrasures of which the tower is provided had the task to control the brief section of wall linking the northern tower to the entrance tower, but overall it had to watch over the entrance gate placed on a gradient.

From the other two embrasures the could fire either against the one placed inside the castle or against the one on the right. They could defend the north-eastern wall and sight the attackers to the eastern tower.

The three embrasures are all of a mixed sort, that to say with the adding of arquebus loopholes. The vault covering the tower does not exist anylonger and the tower is today open.

(abstract from Maurizio Mauro, La Rocca di Urbisaglia, Adriapress Ravenna)

Regione Marche

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