A small trip down the three towers of San Marino, Guaita, Cesta and Montale.

This time we speak about the Three Towers of San Marino a group of towers, located on the three peaks of Monte Titano and depicted on both the national flag and coat of arms.
The first Tower, the Guaita, is the first Tower built in San Marino and the most famous, and dates back to the 11th century. Over the years it was enlarged and rebuilt numerous times, and achieved utmost splendour in the XV century during the war that San Marino fought and win against the Malatesta Family from Rimini, thanks to the support of the dukes of Urbino and the Papal States (1463). Officially chosen as the seat of the Guardia di Rocca in 1754, it had previously been used as a prison until 1975.

The Cesta is the second Tower built in San Marino, is located on the highest of Monte Titano’s summits, at 750 metres above sea level and offers a spectacular view over the underlying landscape. It was built over the remains of an ancient Roman fortress and was subsequently added into the impressive city walls in the XVI century. It is now the seat of a Museum to honour Saint Marinus, created in 1956, the. Museum of Ancient Weapons, which contains over 1,550 precious hoplological finds which date back from the Medieval Era to the modern day.

The third tower, Montale, is located on the smallest of Monte Titano’s summits. Unlike the other towers, this one is not open to the public. It was constructed in the beginning of 14th century. Opinions differ when it comes to the use of this Tower, it is assumed that the fortification was meant to allow inspection of the erstwhile, no longer existing trenches carved into the rock. It is thought also to have been constructed to give protection against the increasing power of the Malatesta family in that region. It was also used as a prison, and accordingly, the only entrance to the tower is a door situated at a height of about seven metres from ground level, which was common for architecture of the prisons of the time. After having been abandoned for centuries, the Montale wasn’t restored until 1935.