Calvi

In 1628, the Genoese leader Giovaninello de Pietru all'Arretta was attacked by the Pisans and held out on a rocky promontory above Calvi. Afterwards, he decided to fortify the place. In 1453, the banking company Officio San Giorgio was given control of Corsica, and it hired the architect Cristoforo Gandino to strengthen the fortifications.

 Calvi citadel seen from the north-west.

Gandino built a bastioned citadel around the earlier fort built by Arretta, which became the governor's residence. The citadel was finished in 1492, and still survives today.
The southern wall of Calvi citadel. Calvi seen from the north-east.
View along the southern defences. General view of Calvi citadel.
Detail of the south-west bastion, which has its own powder magazine.
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