The Citadel of Parma (Italian: Cittadella di Parma) is a pentagonal fortress built in the Emilian city in the last years of the 16th century.
The structure was erected at the behest of the Duke of Parma and Piacenza Alessandro Farnese and entrusted to the engineers Giovanni Antonio Stirpio de' Brunelli and Genesio Bresciani with the collaboration of Smeraldo Smeraldi.. To build it, the Maggiore canal was diverted, whose course was joined with that of the Comune canal up to the Porta Nuova (today's Barriera Farini).
Created for defensive purposes, and for this reason equipped with ramparts and moats, it was later used as barracks, as a prison for political crimes and as a place for executions. Between the late 20th and early 21st centuries, the fortress, which retains its original pentagonal shape, was renovated and used as a public park, with spaces dedicated to sports and children's activities.
The structure has five bastions. The main entrance, characterized by a monumental facade in Angera stone, is to the north, while the other, the Porta del Soccorso, is to the south. The main entrance gate, designed by Simone Moschino and built by Giambattista Carra in 1596, has been preserved without later modifications.
History
Historical context and site selection Alessandro Farnese, who in his youth had the opportunity to learn from his father Ottavio the art of war and from the duchy's commissioner of war and artillery Francesco De Marchi (1504–1576) the principles of fortifications, decided in 1589 to build one in Parma,. even though he was convinced that "the loyalty of a city was obtained not by building citadels, but by pulling them down." It was the duke himself who drew the outline of the fortress, who drew inspiration for its design from the one built by Francesco Paciotto in Antwerp.. On whether he would have his plans followed to the letter, the duke was adamant, so much so that he prevented his son Ranuccio from intervening in its realization. The Citadel thus became a symbol of Parma's renewal, surpassing in prestige the Parco Ducale built by Ottavio Farnese precisely to give it greater dignity than other cities, including Piacenza.
However, upon the death of Pope Paul III, the Papal States abandoned their favorable attitude toward the construction of the Citadel.On November 20, 1589, Ranuccio wrote to his father to warn him of the situation, speaking of "some speeches that are being made in Parma on behalf of the new Castle that someone is putting into consideration that Your Highness cannot build the said Castle without license from the Pope...." On March 12, 1590 Alexander replied, "The Pope's inclination, tending more and more every day to show at our house the little will he holds, it seems to me that we should put our hand to it as soon as possible..." In Archivio di Stato di Parma (ASP), Governo Farnesiano, Fabbriche ducali e fortificazioni, busta n°3, Castello di Parma. The duke nevertheless decided to proceed with the construction, partly in light of the tension with neighboring states. and to resist possible invasions. Nonetheless, the Citadel was never used for defensive purposes and was soon converted into a prison, causing speculation that the duke had conceived it as a repressive tool.
In order to choose the site for the fortress, the conformation of the land was studied, looking for land that could provide materials to build it,Zorzi and Morosini drafted a report in October 1598 at the end of the inspection: "The quality of the soil is excellent, being very tenacious and chalky; which also brings great convenience, since the ditch itself comes to supply the material for making the stones..." In ASP, coll. cit., envelope no. 3. and the arrangement of the surrounding waterways, so as to facilitate the operation of the moats. The choice thus fell on the southern part of the city, between Porta Nuova and the Stradella rampart.
The Antwerp fortress was reproduced to scale, with a smaller size due to reasons probably related to limited financial resources or location. The fortress was thus leaned against the walls, causing work to begin close to the Renaissance perimeter of the city. To follow the project, however, the bastions of Stradella and Porta Nuova were torn down. The latter, commissioned by Ottavio Farnese in 1573, was rebuilt along the perimeter of the new walls.The "Note of the orders given to me Smeraldo by S.m Gio. Ant.o on September 30, 1591" read, "All the city walls, the Bastion of the Hermits, the platform of S. Cristoforo with all the wall up to the front of the castle gate should be repaired..." The indication, also reported in the "memorial" that Stirpio delivered to Smeraldi, was later declined in detail by the Deputies to the Reparation, who arranged to "have the bastion of the Stradella of this city destroyed for the benefit of the said building, and from the said Bastion all the following wall, beginning from the said bastion and coming up to half of the bastion of Porta Nova..." Letter dated October 17, 1591, Municipal Archives, envelope 754.
The long debate on the shape of the fortress
The choice of the pentagonal shape adopted for the citadel of Parma has its roots in the long debate that took place during the 15th and 16th centuries about what was the right number of bastions to give the structure for better defensibility for strategic purposes. The maintenance of a radiocentric shape, consistent with the Renaissance conception of the city, and the pursuit of features of extreme functionality of the complex were the two main causes that led to the choice of the pentagonal shape for the construction of citadels.. The study of fortifications, in which every single technical-geometric element is carefully dosed in order to achieve the most suitable shape and size, sees the maintenance of a physical centrality as a necessary element to be able to reconcile and mold the shape of the fortress with the characteristics of the surrounding territory. Hence the choice of a five-sided, elongated shape rather than an equilateral one. In the second half of the century, after several realizations, the pentagonal shape would be chosen, as in the Fortezza da Basso in Florence (1533) and the Cittadella Farnesiana in Piacenza (1547), designed by Antonio da Sangallo the Younger.
Sangallo's signature feature, found in the palace-fortress of Caprarola, lies in his ability to combine aesthetics and functionality, civil and military architecture. With the passage of time, it is possible to note the improvement of military town planning in the sixteenth century, as evidenced also by the outer wall of Castel Sant'Angelo, designed by Francesco Laparelli and begun in 1562. Moreover, although the search for precise geometries is noticeable, it is possible to observe a desire to abandon a certain formal closure in favor of a figurative openness toward the medieval structure and the study of urban structure marked by the presence of the river..
Construction of the Citadel and consequences The construction of the Citadel entailed several non-negligible consequences for the city of Parma, both environmentally, socially and economically. First of all, the enormous space required for the construction of the complex, together with the need to keep the outer perimeter of the structure (the so-called tagliate) free, so as not to leave any possible shelters for the enemy in case of siege, led to the demolition of numerous buildings, from the simple dwellings of the population to the highest level buildings up to even religious ones. The urban structure of the city was affected quite a bit, even in the following centuries; likewise, the very role of the city itself was also profoundly altered, with an anticipation of the city's later urban and economic decline, similar to what also happened in Antwerp, where the entrenchment of military units within the citadel caused such tension that it drove away trade, thus displacing markets and financial transfers, contributing therefore to the city's impoverishment..
The gates The citadel historically had only two entrances, located one in the northern part of the complex, facing the city, and the other in the southern part, facing what was then the countryside. The entrance facing the city was crowned by a gate of monumental character, while the one facing the outside was called the "Relief Gate." Consistent with what is reported in a notarial act of 1596, the design of the main gate was said to have been conceived by Simone Moschino, in line with the criteria for the construction of monumental entrances to cities or citadels in the 16th century.In Saccardi's deed of August 29, 1596, Carra "undertakes to give all the stones that will be needed, and to work according to the design made by Mr. Simone Moschino, consistent with the parts and measures below declared." In . The gate stands today without its original appearance being substantially affected, except for the upper part, made of brick, the only modification made over time. The construction time of this gate was rather long: when completed, it turned out to be divided into three bays communicating through a series of rooms intended for the guard and control units; on the upper floor, meanwhile, was located the castellan's dwelling, spaced from the facade by means of a corridor leading to the observation posts. The original plan also called for the installation of four embrasures, which were never really integrated into the structure. The "Relief Gate," by contrast, underwent substantial reconstruction in the aftermath of World War II, thus appearing much simpler and more approximate when compared to the original design, which saw it enriched by more refined and complex designs, with granite moldings and the two monumental cannons placed to the side of the entrance.
The works Work on the construction of the citadel began in 1591, under the supervision of the ducal engineer Giovanni Antonio Stirpio de' Brunelli.For more details see Prince Ranuccio, on the other hand, personally took care of the financial aspect, while Count Cosimo Tagliaferri, "doctor of laws," attended to the administrative part. However, since Duke Alessandro was in Flanders at the time of the construction, it is not certain whether or not Ranuccio faithfully followed the directives left to him by his father. On the other hand, some documents attest to the difficulties related to some problems that arose during the construction of the citadel, which prolonged the construction time beyond what was expected. First of all, already at the beginning of the works, a substantial disagreement emerged between Brunelli and the ducal officials, who imposed restrictions related to the construction time.In a letter dated 17 August 1590, the Duke ordered "that the work be begun as soon as possible and that it be carried out with such speed and order that it will be visible in the defences and that the guard and artillery will be in place in a few days, so that if anyone had thought of disturbing us, not only could they not do it, but they would not be able to do it in time [...]" In ASP, coll. cit., envelope no. 3. In addition, the meddling of Alessandro Farnese's administrators caused several problems in the technical sphere as well: this led to a long series of mutual accusations between those in charge of the project, as attested in the two letters sent by the ducal secretary Pico to Duke Alessandro in which, in addition to strongly expressing the intention of wanting to equip the fortress with guards and artillery, Brunelli is basically accused..