Cittadella
Cittadella Padua: A masterpiece of urban planning, made "to order" and well preserved in spite of the extensive changes dictated by the passing of time. These walls, that have seen legendary armies fighting each other in the past, today tell their story
Imagine a circle, almost perfect; a virtually intact powerful city wall, 13 metres high and about one and a half kilometres long, surrounded by a large moat - and the Venetian countryside all around it. This is the wall-town of Cittadella, one of the best-preserved samples of medieval military architecture to be found in Italy and Europe.
The town was the result of a plan: it was built by the rulers of Padua in 1220 to defend the most northern part of its territory, which bordered the commune of Treviso, and that is how Cittadella became an important strategic military and administrative centre opposing the fortified structure of Castelfranco.
The history of Cittadella has been marked by the many wars that took place in the region. From 1237 to 1256, it was conquered by Ezzelino III da Romano, who, in 1251, ordered the construction of the Tower of Malta, also recalled by Dante in the IXth canto of Paradise. Then it was the time of the rule of the Carraresi's, Cangrande della Scala and the Visconti's. The town was reseized by Padua until 1405, and finally passed under Venice. Once it lost its military function, Cittadella preserved its original urban structure and fortress system over the centuries.
Like most Venetian towns, Cittadella had its Romantic age in the eighteenth century: important buildings were destroyed and new ones were built in their place, to suit the fashion of the time. In the main square, Piazza Pierobon, lies the church of Saints Prosdocimo and Donato, built in the XIII century, which contains frescoes by Jacopo Bassano, including the Dinner in Emmaus. The influence of Venice is mostly visible in the loggia of the Town Hall, decorated with the Venetian lion and the coats of arms of ancient Podestà. The Palazzo Pretorio, once the residence of Roberto Sanseverino and then of Pandolfo Malatesta, is worthwhile visiting, together with the Podesteria di fuori, the site of the administrative and judicial power.
These are only some of the traces that Cittadella has been able to preserve over the centuries, which bear witness to its glorious past of rampart town built for the defence of the Padua territory. But if you want to listen to the whole story, approach the powerful walls and look up... among footpaths, crennelation and turrets.