In this period of proximity tourism, I thought to rediscover the local beauties and one of these is Cittadella (PD).
Cittadella is very dear to me because I grew up there, between schools and friendships, you don’t need to go very far to discover beautiful villages near home.
This article is part of a multi-handed work with several Italian travel bloggers and is included in the guide Countries of Italy.
Moreover, to receive the complete guide or just the Cittadella pdf you can subscribe to the newsletter, scrolling at the end of the Call Me Claire home page, and I will send you this beautiful guide.
Historical destination
Cittadella was founded with its splendid walls in 1220 A.D. by the will of Padua. Since then it became famous and recognized for its ring of walls and its strategic position between Padua 33 km, Vicenza 26 km, Treviso 41 km and Bassano del Grappa 15 km. Since 1405 Cittadella voluntarily joined the Republic of Venice and this can be seen from the statue of the lion of Venice, brought back to the city, with its open book and raised tail, symbol of peaceful union. From 1797 it suffered the Napoleonic troops and later the Austrian Empire, finally joining the Kingdom of Italy in 1866.
Curiosity
The walled city walls surround the entire historic centre and are accessible from the four cardinal points, identified by the Bassano, Vicenza, Treviso and Padua Gates.
The latter is noteworthy for having been mentioned in the Divine Comedy. In fact, if you enter it, you can find the verses 52-54 of the IX Canto del Paradiso of Dante Alighieri where he mentions the “Torre di Malta” of Cittadella. So famous in Dante’s time for being a bloody prison where ferocious atrocities were consumed. It was built in 1251 by Ezzelino III da Romano, despotic ruler of the area. Cittadella is also the only walled city in Europe to have a medieval patrol walkway, elliptical in shape, completely passable and finished renovating in 2013 after twenty years.
“Piangerà Feltro ancora la difalta
de l’empio suo pastor, che sarà sconcia
sì, che per simil non s’entrò in malta.”
Divina Commedia, Paradiso, Canto IX, versi 52-54
How to get to Cittadella
CAR – Motorway A31, exit Vicenza Nord towards Treviso; A13 exit Padova Sud towards Bassano; from Treviso take the Treviso-Vicenza road.
TRAIN – Regional lines Padova-Bassano del Grappa and Vicenza-Treviso. The station is 800m from the centre (5 minutes walk).
BY PLANE – Treviso TSF Airport – 37 km; Venice VCE Airport – 70 km.
What to do in Cittadella
The main attraction are certainly the walls and its patrol walkway, unique in Europe, 1.5 km long and entirely passable. At 14 meters high, they allow you to admire the interior of the town from above and look in the distance at the plain of the upper Padua.
The tour starts from the Captain’s House at Porta Bassano (North) where there is also the Tourist Office, continuing to the highest point of the walls (30 m) to the famous Torre di Malta of Porta Padova and finishing the tour, at Porta Bassano, you can admire the most beautiful peaks of the mountains, including Cima Grappa, indicated by a map of the peaks. Inside the walls there are the Siege Museum and the Archaeological Museum with the finds of the medieval Citadel.
What to see
After seeing Cittadella from above, you can discover it from below in two ways.
The first is by renting a rowing boat from Porta Vicenza and sailing along the navigable moat that surrounds it. The route takes a total of 40 minutes.
Second way is on foot, walking through its lively old town centre which is not lacking in shops and clubs where you can entertain yourself. It is a very active town and on weekends you can always find organized events. For example, this year Cittadella celebrates the 800 years of the walls and for this reason it has organized a series of “Danteschi” meetings. Not to be forgotten is the Fiera Franca Cittadellese on the fourth Sunday in October, a regular event in the area from Saturday to Monday which ends with musical fireworks from the walls.
If you also know it, leave a comment with what you liked most about Cittadella.
