West Tower

West Tower

It has a circular plan like the other three corner towers of the fortress.

Together with the southern keep and the curtain joining them, formed the south-western front external to castle wall (the north-eastern tower is instead enclosed in the walls).

The escarpment run for a third of the tower's height, the same as in the other keeps. The tower was equipped in order to allow two different shooting strategies to be exercised. On the upper pit (bastion) the merlons were provided with loopholes for portable weapons while in the space between the merlons there could be placed heavier weapons such as muskets. Beside, from the machicolations open on the communication-trenches of the bastion they could throw heavy materials down onto the enemy or shoot with arquebus and cross-bows.

On the floor there were the embrasures where they placed small-calibre bombards with which they pounded on the enemy. Between the casemates housing the embrasures and the bastion there was an intermediate level, probably a deposit.

The other shooting strategy was exercised in the round-vaulted casemate. There were three embrasures on the tower. The first (next to the entrance tower) was meant to guard the western side of the castle wall which run into the entrance tower. The second embrasure was opposite to the first and guarded the south-western side of the fortress. The third pointed to the battle field and from there they could sight the enemy getting closer.

It must be said that the south-western escarp was erroneously rebuilt at the beginning of the present century (after the fortress was partially demolished to give place to the village), so that the embrasure was partially hidden by the new wall.

(Abstract from Maurizio Mauro, La Rocca di Urbisaglia, Adriapress ed. Ravenna).

Regione Marche

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