The tour discovering the walled towns

Let us begin with LAZISE and PESCHIERA, both places are positioned within the Veronese territory of Lake Garda, and even though both places are so near to each other, they yet defer very much from each other. The first place, that is to say – Lazise has historical origins which date to the middle of the fourteenth century, when the Della Scala family from Verona – created a perfect example of fortified medieval architecture, which included defensive walls, its towers and internal walkways or Chemin de ronde and a castle. Whereas the second place – Peschiera del Garda has been constructed during the Renaissance times of the Cinquecento, the 16th century, under Venetian domain – recently receiving the title of World heritage of the Unesco as a splendid example of fortified Renaissance military architecture, having spear-shaped bastion ramparts, earthwork embankments and fortified city gates. 

Outside the Veneto region, in Lombard territory, at the borders between Mantua, Cremona and Parma, right smack in the foggy landscape of the Po-valley, one of the architectural icons of Lombardy’s fortified towns, is SABBIONETA, an old capital of the Duchy of Vespasiano Gonzaga, considered to be the ideal fortified town of Renaissance times. Since the year 2008 it has been taken up on the list of Unesco heritage as a perfect example of urban architecture. At the time, Vespasiano had first ordered the construction of a defensive wall around the town, followed by further constructions, such as a palace, a private theatre and churches.