It is the bastion located further south and was erected after the Feltrin Bastion. Along the Montagni bicycle and pedestrian path you can see the damage reported during the bombings of the Second World War which also demolished the ancient Hapsburg railway bridge. It is also possible to admire the old walkway for the surveillance of the Military Prison.
Source: Municipality of Peschiera
It is a natural area formed with the withdrawal of the Glacier during the last glaciation. For those who love birdwatching can admire a series of water birds, many of which use this area to nest. The dimensions of the lake basin are around 75/80 hectares, for a length of 770 m and a width of 380 m.
Source: Tarsì
The Church of San Martino Bishop is located in the historic center of the town and is one of the oldest places of worship in the Diocese of Verona. The first testimonies date back to 1008. In 1454 the church became parish church. Napoleon Bonaparte in 1812 required the church and transformed it into a military and hospital warehouse. It was demolished two years later, given the unstable and perilous conditions of the building. In its place, the present Church of St. Martin Bishop was raised in the 1920s.
Source: Tarsì
The high and imposing sixteenth-century walls in pentagonal shape, completely encloses the historic center, a true jewel of architecture, art and culture. Channels, bridges, wide sloping squares such as the big weapon Square, impressive military buildings, characterize the city by making it unique and offering the visitors an enchanting setting to discover angles and glimpses, colors and lights to capture with the camera.
Interesting in its uniqueness is the exterior of the Venetian wall. An enchanting game of water, lights and colors surrounds the city, among the high ramparts and the banks of the ramparts, inviting for walks and unforgettable hikes on foot, by boat or by canoe.
The five Bastions of Peschiera
The Bastion Cantarane of 1551 that rises on the Mincio waters can be seen from the car park of the sports field. Along street of the football camp we can admire the Bastion Feltrin which is the first to be raised, where the Austrian powder is settled. After crossing the bridge we can admire the Bastion Tognon of the 1552. The Bastions Tognon and Feltrin are connected by a rampart walk which will allow you to admire the fortress. The northern part presents the Bastions Querini of the 1552 near the port and a fixture time of the Navy and the Bastion San Marco of the 1553 just outside Porta Verona and it is the only one with still attendance of fortifiers items clay.
Source: Municipatity of Peschiera
Going in and then leaving towards the outside for about ten metres, looking at the impressive façade of the gate, we can see the place, in the centre of the gate, where there was the likeness of St. Mark’s Lion.
This effigy, a symbolic image of the Republic of Venice, was destroyed by Napoleon, as a sign of contempt, after the treaty of Campoformio in 1797.
A visual reconstruction of how the gate must have looked when it was intact can be seen at the start of the bridge.
Returning to the city through the gate, keeping to the right we can see the gardens of Parco Catullo, and the Francesco Primo Barracks of 1822, now the seat of the school of police.
Source: Municipality of Peschiera
The Ponte dei Voltoni, of which the characteristic five arches are easily recognized, was built in 1556. The Veneto governor, Iacobo Gauro, whose commemorative plaque, on the façade of the house in Via Dante can still be seen, directed the building works, immediately after the construction of the fortress.
Leaving the bridge, passing under the vault closest to Piazza Ferdinando di Savoia, there stood the fixed fishing station, called Pescarezzo. These fixed fishing stations were characteristic of Peschiera del Garda and were even mentioned in Roman times in the writings of Pliny the Elder.
Today, the last sign of these stations remains on Lake Garda. Recently restored, as a historical memory and museum, today it can be seen from Lungolago Bonomi or thanks to the guided boat tour service. The Ponte dei Voltoni is today one of the most characteristic images of Peschiera del Garda. Let’s cross the bridge to reach the former Hapsburg military quarter.
Source: Municipatity of Peschiera
The Bastione Querini was one of the two side of entrance from the lake, to the fortress.
It gave access to the boats and crafts when the twin bastion was present, before being demolished in 1906.
From this position you can continue along the port, and stop at the first station to visit the Shipyard.
Source: Municipality of Peschiera
The Sanctuary was built on September 10, 1511, to Captain Roberto Stuart presence, Commander of the French troops in Peschiera. The Sanctuary was the subject of frequent devastations and ruins. often Restored with love, to bring the splendor of the first '600. Inside a single aisle, enhanced by 8 side altars and 2 chapels.
In May of 1950 the Virgin Mary appeared to the peasant Bortolomeo Broglia. Inside, in addition to the miraculous statue of Our Lady, valuable works of Paul and Andrea Farinati Bertanza.
Source: Tarsì
On the western side of the park, it stands the Palace of the Fortified town of 1854 Command also called Historical house in which he held the Congress of 1917 in which Vittorio Emanuele III proclaimed the resistance on the Piave. Today it houses a museum housing documents and artifacts from World War I and are hosted throughout the year also art exhibitions.
Source: Municipatity of Peschiera
Austrian pallet is an important element of artillery of the Habsburg era. Inserted into the S.Marco bastion and the Voltoni root, it had the function of a pyrotechnic laboratory and the storage of cannon balls. His splendid recovery is due to the volunteers of the Alpini section of Peschiera d / G, who continue to keep it in good condition.
Source: Municipatity of Peschiera
Bomb Structure of the Habsburg Period (1865) that then became an Italian military prison and now is dismantled.
Source: Municipatity of Peschiera
In the Western part of the fortress, it was the first to be built. Slightly hidden from the city centre, it can be clearly seen from the bridge of Porta Brescia. You can see how part of the Bastion is missing. In 1935, part of the structure collapsed due to the maintenance work on the canal.
Restoration work was carried out as a consequence and the remaining wall was reinforced. The canal was emptied and restoration began. The restoration of the walls that had collapsed was very costly from the very beginning and so the decision was taken to reinforce the structure. The original wall was therefore not rebuilt.
Several terraces, obtained from the embankment around the collapsed walls, were built. In the Museum of Fishing and Local Traditions, you can see photos of before and after the collapse of the Bastion. The Bastione Feltrin is the last part of the guided tour.
Source: Municipality of Peschiera
The impressive Bastione Tognon of 1552, which still preserves the visible remains of St. Mark’s Lion partially destroyed by Napoleon, is the fifth bastion of the Venetian fortress.
A particularity of the last period of use of the bastion, by the Austrian Army, was the installation in a special building of the optical telegraph. This telegraph was important because it allowed communication between the fortress of Peschiera, with the fort of Pastrengo, and the centre of command in Verona.
This created a triangulation, necessary to bypass the hills which did not allow direct communication with Verona. In addition, the artillery system of Punta San Virgilio was also connected with Pastrengo, to block any possible naval incursions.
Sourece: Municipality of Peschiera
When you enter the courtyard, on the left, by a ramp, you can go up on to the wall of the Bastione San Marco. The Bastion, the second one built of the Venetian pentagonal walls of 1553, is still perfect today in its technical military structures. Walking along the edge of the bastion, you can go on to the walkway above Porta Verona, a strategic panoramic point to control the eastern front from the fortress.
Continuing walking along the wall, you can enjoy a panorama which lets you admire the southern side, the front of every siege of the Napoleonic wars and during the Risorgimento, suffered by Peschiera.
In front of us, we can now see the rebuilt bridge (after the bombings in 1944) which joins the stretch of the Milan Venicerailway. You can also notice the back of the Ponte dei Voltoni, and the wall of the Venetian fortress, up to the most distant side, where the Bastione Cantarane stands. You then leave the courtyard, and immediately on the right, we enter the opening of Porta Verona.
Source: Municipality of Peschiera
On the other side of the Ponte dei Voltoni, there are the former barracks of the artillery of the Hapsburg military quarter on the other bank of the Mincio.
We are about to enter that sector which was originally the Hapsburg military quarter, in the Venetian fortress; behind us, we can see the Palleria Austriaca, with its white marble courtyard, used by the Hapsburg army as a munitions store. In front of us, on the left of Parco Catullo, and behind it, you can see, respectively, the palace of the commander and the Francesco 1st Barracks.
Let’s now visit the Bastione San Marco, going into the courtyard of the artillery barracks, by a ramp, which is reached by walking towards Porta Verona.
Source: Municipatity of Peschiera
The Governor’s Palace stands in the old centre of the city next to the Canale di Mezzo.
The Veneto patricians, appointed by the Republic of Venice, exercised power in this palace, in their role as Governors of the Fortress. Later it became the town hall of Peschiera del Garda and the seat of the Revenue Police.
Facing the Palace, there is Piazzetta San Marco, which is embellished by two 16th century obelisks. These obelisks frame the small square opposite the Canale di Mezzo. After passing under the arch with the clock, and continuing straight ahead, we come to Piazza Ferdinando di Savoia.
Source: Municipatity of Peschiera
On your right, you can immediately see the façade of the Church of San Martin, the vestiges of which date back to the year 1000. The church stands on pre-existing ruins of the temple of Jupiter.
This theory is confirmed by the adjoining excavations, with the Roman remains of the ancient Peschiera. These ruins have been dated to between the first and third centuries AD.
On the southern side of the square, opposite you, there is the façade of the ancient complex of the Rocca, which, from the late Roman period, underwent various military interventions by the Scaligeri (from 1275 to 1385). It was renovated in the Veneto period (from 1550 to the 18th century), as Porto Arsenale.
The arsenal port was then covered over and the square was completed in the Hapsburg period, with the construction of the buildings which today look on to it From Piazza Ferdinando di Savoia we continue towards the left, until we reach the Canale di Mezzo.
Source: Municipality of Peschiera
Just before exiting Porta Verona to our left we see the imposing barracks Franciscus I, 1822, now houses the Police Academy, and dedicated to the Emperor Habsburg. At one time this building used to host the infantry that was to defend the city.
Source: Municipatity of Peschiera
