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Cittadella of Alessandria, Italy
Cittadella of Alessandria, Italy. 
The Cittadella of Alessandria (Italian: Cittadella di Alessandria) is a star fort and citadel in the city of Alessandria, Italy. It was built in the 18th century by the Kingdom of Sardinia, and today it is one of the best preserved fortifications of that era. It is one of the few fortifications in Europe still in their original environment, since there are no buildings blocking the views of the ramparts, or a road that surrounds the ditches.
On 10 March 1821, during the Piedmont insurrection, the blue, red and black tricolour of the Carbonari was raised on the Cittadella's bastions by Colonel Ansaldi. This was the first use of a tricolour flag in the history of Italy.
The fortress lies across the river Tanaro in the north-west side of the city of Alessandria. The site is one of the lowest in the Piedmont region with an altitude of about 90 metres (300 ft) above sea-level.
The Citadel plan was commissioned by King Vittorio Amedeo II and effectively built, in 1732, by King Charles Emmanuel III. The project's architect was Ignazio Bertola. The fortress is a six-star hexagon shaped structure.
Cittadella of Alessandria - La Salle d'Artifice (Armeria).
The Citadel was built entirely at the expense of the ancient quarter of Borgoglio (or Bergoglio) provoking strong urban revolution. It was completed in its main components in the forties of the 18th century while inside the fortified hexagon the buildings of the civilians were gradually demolished to make way for new military quarters and the inhabitants were forced to relocate, replaced by a garrison ever more numerous.
The result is an immense fortress which extends over 74 hectares (180 acres) whose longer side is parallel to the axis of the river. The Citadel is a perfect example of modern fortress composed of six bastioned fronts supplied with cavalieri crossed by tunnels and casemates.
The fortress is surrounded by a wide moat, in connection with the Tanaro river through flooding tunnels, scheduled to be flooded by the waters of the river, and protected by tenaglioni, ravelins, counterguards and ridottes.
The entrance is by a long stone bridge that leads to a large area surrounded by multi-storey buildings arranged along the axis of the ancient quarter, all protected by resistant embankments constructed between 1749 and 1831.
Cittadella of Alessandria - Main gate or Porta Reale.
The Cittadella was officially decommissioned in 2007, when the Ministry of Defence handed it over to the Italian Public Property Agency.
On 18 June 2010, a permanent exhibition of about 1500 uniforms, weapons and memorabilia of the Royal Italian Army was established within the fort.
In 2014, the Cittadella was listed as one of "The 7 Most Endangered" sites by Europa Nostra, mainly due to the spread of weeds which threatens the fortification.
Source
• www.wikipedia.org
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