The Guaita Tower is the largest of the current Three Towers of San Marino and is a concentric fortress built directly on to the mountain. An early 11th century fortification, it was reinforced and modified several times as military technology advanced, before becoming a prison.
Visiting Guaita Tower
Our visit to San Marino was as part of a longer road trip from Slovenia, through Croatia and into Italy, detailed in my blog here. We spent 2 nights in San Marino so didn’t have to worry about parking, which is a rare resource in the country. I’d suggest parking around Piazzale Campo della Fiera and taking the cable car up to the city as its far less stressful.
Guaita Tower is an easy walk, allowing for all the steps, from the centre of the old town. When we visited it was an EU Museums Weekend so entry was free but I think it’s normally about €6. Allow an hour to visit the tower and be aware that there are steep steps and it’s very high up!
My Experience
The first tower, Guaita, is the oldest and largest of the three. Built in the 11th century it was substantially reinforced in the fifteenth century due to San Marino’s war with the House of Malatesta, owners of San Leo where we were the day before.
Entry was free to all three towers today as it was European Heritage weekend so that was good timing. The first tower has a keep with a large courtyard, all built directly on to the rock and the overall shape and the design of the main keep was that of a diamond rather than being square. The tower was an interesting climbing with the last part being a very steep ladder and then iron handholds to pull yourself up and the views were certainly impressive! There were wooden covers over the windows with gun ports.
This fort had been used as a prison for hundreds of years and there were lots of graffiti/artwork preserved on the walls. There are plenty of information boards throughout the tower, in English.
Guaita Tower Photo Gallery
History
Built directly on the stone of the mountain without any foundations, the First Tower, with a pentagonal base, dates back to the XI century and is among the oldest fortresses in Italy. It is also called “Rocca” or “Guaita”, which in San Marino dialect means “to stand guard.”
Reinforced several times successively and rebuilt in the second half of the 15th century, it was covered with a sloping roof in the 16th century. Between its solid walls, protected by a double wall circle (the outer one with battlements and decapitated towers at the corners), sheltered the people during sieges. The central core was the guardhouse, and some rooms were used as a prison until October 1970 for those serving sentences not exceeding 6 months.
The baroque stone coat of arms that can be seen on the front door is that of the Republic and dates back to the 1600s; previously it stood on the old Palazzo Pubblico. The inner wall is limited by the Bell Tower and the Torre della Penna, built several centuries later. The innermost part, the Mastio, is the oldest and is the only one that has remained unchanged over time. The upper gate, which can be reached by means of a staircase, is defended by a bertesca from 1481. In the courtyard are some artillery pieces from the last war: two mortars, a gift from Victor Emmanuel II, two cannons (75 mm) used as blanks by the Guard of the Rock on holidays, a gift from Victor Emmanuel III. As soon as you enter on the right you will also find the Chapel of St. Barbara (patron saint of Artillerymen) built in 1960.
References
The San Marino tourist site here has excellent information on visiting the tower and a great 3D plan of it. The history above is copied form that site.
The fullsuitcase here has an indepth review of all three towers.
AtlasObscura here has some more information on the prisoner art of Guaita Tower.