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| Where it is | Portoferraio |
|---|---|
| How to get there | You can reach the top of Monte Bello (also known as Monte Albero) in less than 20 minutes (less than 15 minnutes to come back down) by starting off from the track that is past a gate in Via Luigi Einaudi. The path is very easy to walk along and is well cared for.
How long it takes: 15-20 minutes Length: 444 metres Difference in level: 60 metres |
| Further information | If you decide to go and see the fort you must be very careful because there is no safety rail along the path and in some parts the ground is not smooth with a sheer drop down. There is also the risk that some rocks may fall on you. |
The Montebello Fort sits on a hill beween the beaches of Sottobomba and Prunini. It was built in 1802 by order of Napoleon, who after attacking Portoferraio, felt he wanted to increment the defense of the city. He decided to have the English Fort demolished, rebuilt and better armed, making it thus a key point in the strategic system of the defense of the town from outside Portoferraio, along with Monte delle Bombe, smaller than San Rocco, St. Cloud fortress then given the name of Montebello Fort.
The project was supposed to have five sleeping quarters connected by a corridor and also two wings on either side. The fort itself was low (less than 8-10 metres) and had an open air glacis covering an area of 45 x 26 metres. The five sleeping quarters had barrel vaults, slits for firing rifles from and also windows facing the sea. The corridor lead to four smaller quarters: storerooms, , the commander's quarters, the sentry post; entrance was over a drawbridge defended by a concrete pillbox full of slits. From the terrace they could control the both the sea and the land. The walls were made of felsite mixed with mortar and lime. The vaults were lined in red bricks which have since been removed. The entire building had lime and and felsite on the ceilings. Outside there was a dry ditch with riflemen all around.
In 1832 the Grand Duke ordered the Fort to be demolished using explosives that only partially managed to bring it down, and in fact traces of the holes made by the explosives can still be seen on the walls today, just like the fundamental basics: the sleeping quarters in a row, the corridor with its vaults, the upper glacis, the lower glacis, the surrounding walls, the ditch, the weapons and artillery room, where the riflemen stood so typical of the walls.
From the top of the mountain the view is breathtaking and looks on to the northern coast of Portoferraio, between Enfola and Bagnaia, as well as the harbour and the actual town of Portoferraio and the surrounding hills. In the distance you can see the coast of Tuscany from Piombino to the Apuane Hills while in the background you can see Corsica, Capraia and Gorgona.
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