Citadelle de Bonifacio / Bonifacio Fortress (Corsica)
N 41° 23.238 E 009° 09.613
32T E 513395 N 4581764
The Bonifacio Fortress (Citadelle de Bonifacio), situated on the chalk cliff above the Bonifacio harbor, was built in medieval era to protect south of island Corsica...
Waymark Code: WM83JW
Location: Corse, France
Date Posted: 01/21/2010
Views: 30
The Bonifacio Fortress (Citadelle de Bonifacio) can lay claim to being the first fortified town in Corsica. In the name of the Pope, in 828, the defence of Corsica was entrusted to Boniface II of Tuscany, who conducted a successful expedition against the Saracens and built the fortress later to bear his name (Bonifacio).
For the next century, Corsica was a part of the March of Tuscany. Fortress was later modified and enlarged to keep up with military technical advances. Situated to the west of the town Bonofacio (in district called "La Haute Ville" - "The Upper City"), high on a narrow plateau, the citadel was built to protect the southern coast from the incursions of the invaders. Bonifacio Fortress has been reconstructed and renovated many times since its construction and most recently was an administrative center for the French Foreign Legion. Today it is more of a museum.