Bastione di Saint Remy (Saint Remy Bastion), Cagliari

Located in Piazza Costituzione, Bastione Saint Remy is considered the symbol of Cagliari and one of its most emblematic landmarks. The stronghold, named after the first Piedmont viceroy, was built in white limestone on top of the medieval defensive barriers at the end of the 19th century when Cagliari ceased to be a military fortress and the defense walls could be pulled down. The sight from Piazza Costituzione is a double staircase surmounted by a large, imposing arch. The Bastione has been closed now for years for renovation work. Now the works have been completed and everyone is expecting the Bastione to be reopened soon. Once it’s open, you can go up the stairs to reach the top and have a walk on the vast terrace to enjoy a beautiful view. If you feel tired, you can use the lift working 24/7 and free of charge which is about 100 meters further up along Viale Regina Elena. If you are on a date, you really don’t want to miss the romantic sunset before getting to dinner either in the area or in the Marina neighborhood where in summer restaurants place their table outside and the streets are a feast of colors, flavors, and intoxicating scents.

The San Remy bastion is a monumental bulwark forming part of the modern fortification protecting the Castle of Cagliari, an Italian walled city. Located between Via Mario De Candia and Piazza Constitution on the border with the Villanova district, it is named after Filippo Guglielmo Pallavicino delle Frabose, baron of Saint-Rhémy-en-Bosses, first viceroy Savoy of the Kingdom of Sardinia. It is considered one of the symbols of Cagliari. The building is tall24 m with a wide facade40 m, and is made of pietraforte extracted from the quarries of the Bonaria hill. It is composed of two staircases with 170 steps surmounted by a triumphal arch, on the top there is a large terrace. Built in neoclassical style, with columns of the Corinthian order, in the lower central part it has a niche with a diameter of6 m where the fountain was located in 1927. The gallery and terrace are named after Umberto I of Savoy. Also known as the covered walk, it is dug into the structure of the Zecca bastion and consists of three naves and is equipped with eleven windows and has a flat attic. The covered walk has been used variously. At first it was used as a banquet hall, then during the First World War it was used as an infirmary. In the 1930s, during the period of sanctions, the exhibition of autarchy was set up. After the Second World War it was the seat of the Ministry of the Treasury, and in 1948 it hosted the first Sardinian trade fair. After many years of abandonment, the promenade underwent a restoration in 2004 and was re-evaluated as a cultural space reserved in particular for artistic exhibitions. From the Umberto I gallery it is still possible to access the Sperone gallery, where there are part of the sixteenth-century wall structures created by Rocco Cappellino. The terrace above, extended for4 600 m² and located at56.54 m above sea level, offers an excellent view of the other districts of the historic center ( Villanova, Stampace and the Marina ) and allows you to appreciate the skyline of the capital with particular reference, from east to west: to the Cagliari pond and the Molentargius-Saline regional natural park, Poetto and Sella del Diavolo, and Monte Urpinu. In the background are appreciable, starting from Capo Carbonara to the east: the Sette Fratelli massif, the Serpeddì and Linas mountains and those of Sulcis, reaching up to Sarroch to the west. It incorporates the remains of the bastion of Santa Caterina. On 3 April 2003, a part of the bastion terrace was named after the British writer David Herbert Lawrence.

A striking, majestic building dating to the early XX century rises in the historic centre of Cagliari, one of the symbols of Sardinia’s capital city, one that has served a variety of functions over the decades. Gateway from the Villanova quarter to the fortifications of Castello in the heart of the old city, the bastion that owes its name to the Baron of San Remy, the first Viceroy of Piedmont, looks out over Piazza Costituzione where the two streets that have historically been havens of leisurely strolls and shopping, via Garibaldi and via Manno, come together. It is without doubt a symbol of Cagliari, one of its finest and most majestic monumental complexes, as well as its most prestigious exhibition space. The covered gallery and the marvellous Umberto I terrace were designed by Giuseppe Costa and Fulgenzio Setti based on an idea developed by the XIX-century architect Gaetano Cima. It was built in a Classic style between 1896 and 1902 on the old city’s medieval bastions. The San Remy Bastion is the result of the levelling and reuse of the old Sperone and Zecca bastions that had been built by the Spaniards in the late XVI century. ***PH***