The Cittadella Nuova (New Citadel), now called the Giardino di Scotto or Giardino Scotto (Scotto's Garden) is an old

fortress A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from L ...

Pisa Pisa ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Tuscany, Central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for the Leaning Tow ...

History

The citadel was called "''nuova''" (new) to distinguish it from the older Cittadella Vecchia on the seaward side of the city. The Cittadella Nuova is located on the extreme opposite side of the

city walls A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications such as curtain walls with to ...

of Pisa in Lungarno

Fibonacci Leonardo Bonacci ( – ), commonly known as Fibonacci, was an Italians, Italian mathematician from the Republic of Pisa, considered to be "the most talented Western mathematician of the Middle Ages". The name he is commonly called, ''Fibonacci ...

, on the south bank of the river

Arno The Arno is a river in the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the most important river of central Italy after the Tiber. Source and route The river originates on Monte Falterona in the Casentino area of the Apennines, and initially takes a sou ...

between the Ponte della Vittoria and the Ponte della Fortezza. Construction began in 1440 during the first period of Florentine rule. In the course of the Pisan revolt and battles which led to the Florentine reconquest of the city, the fortress was damaged and had to be restored by architect

Giuliano da Sangallo Giuliano da Sangallo (c. 1445 – 1516) was an Italian sculptor, architect and military engineer active during the Italian Renaissance. He is known primarily for being the favored architect of Lorenzo de' Medici, his patron. In this role, Giuli ...

. This new reconstruction was designed to stand against forces using

cannon A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder during th ...

- one of the first fortresses in Italy to do so. Inside the fortifications of the Cittadella Nuova, there is an extensive garden created at the beginning of the nineteenth century by architect Giovanni Caluri for the Livornese shipping-magnate, Domenico Scotto. The Scotto brother had acquired the fortress in 1798 when grand-duke Leopold I of Tuscany put it up for sale and quickly began work on the construction of a palace with a vast green space. Legend has it that the enormous plane tree which rises in the middle of the garden, was planted during a theatrical performance by

Carlo Goldoni Carlo Osvaldo Goldoni (, also , ; 25 February 1707 – 6 February 1793) was an Italian playwright and librettist from the Republic of Venice. His works include some of Italy's most famous and best-loved plays. Audiences have admired the plays ...

, but in reality he died before the Scotto family acquired the garden. In the 1930s, the area became a public garden and was used for shows, theatrical performances, concerts and as an open-air cinema in summer - a role which it retains to this day. The Scotto family's palace was largely destroyed during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and the garden grew ever more degraded until 2008 when it was largely reconstructed and refitted.

Other images

Image:Giardino di Scotto bastione (cittadella nuova).JPG, Bastion Image:Giardino di Scotto 03.JPG, Garden Image:Giardino di Scotto 04.JPG, Natural amphitheatre Image:Giardino di Scotto 11.JPG, Stairway Image:Giardino di Scotto 06.JPG, Restored portion of the garden (April 2008) Image:Giardino di Scotto torretta.JPG, Turret Image:Giardino di Scotto, galleria 05.JPG, Interior of the

chemin de ronde A ''chemin de ronde'' ( French, "round path"' or "patrol path"; ), also called an allure, alure or, more prosaically, a wall-walk, is a raised protected walkway behind a castle battlement. In early fortifications, high castle walls were difficu ...

Image:Giardino di Scotto, passaggio 03.JPG, Arched passageway to the riverside {{Authority control Buildings and structures in Pisa Forts in Italy Military history of Pisa