Memories of a troubled past

     Walking around Cagli brings constant reminders of the city's history, especially its connections to the middle ages. Three of them are pictured here. Two are the north and south gates to the city. They are just about all of the walls that once defended the city, towering more than two stories high and built of the same granite that makes up so much of the city. The walls were torn down during the 20th century, but, thankfully, the city's gates were preserved.

     The third is the fortress (above), built in 1481, and considered by military architect Francesco di Giorgio Martini, its designer, as the finest among the six fortresses he considered outstanding.  One of its attractions was a secret passageway to the city's major fortress, which is long gone.  At the time di Giorgio Martini was attempting to design structures that would withstand the problems posed by new developments in artillery.