Soave Town Walls Historical Timeline

Origins

Soave was a fortified point on Verona's eastern frontier from at least the twelfth century, and earlier defences existed on the same line, though nothing substantial of them survives.

Turning points

In 1369 Cansignorio della Scala rebuilt the castle and threw a complete wall circuit around the town below it in a single campaign. This is the structure that stands today.

Influential people

The design belongs to the Scaligeri programme of frontier fortification that also produced the castles at Marostica, Villafranca and Valeggio -- a network rather than a set of individual works.

Cultural evolution

Under Venice from 1405 the walls lost all military purpose. Paradoxically that is why they survive: nobody modernised them for artillery, and nobody needed the land badly enough to pull them down.

Present-day significance

Restoration began in the twentieth century and continues. The circuit is now the town's defining asset and the image on a great many Soave wine labels.