OF THE DISCOURSES ON FORTIFICATIONS

BY CARLO THETI,

Book One.

Of diverse positions, & Sites of Fortresses. Chapter One.

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All good architects usually seek to establish their fortresses not just anywhere the site, as to its position, is known to be fit to be fortified, but only where necessity requires. This rule, even if it truly suffers no difficulty in itself, can nonetheless be problematic, as the place that necessarily must be fortified has plains, and mountains, and salt water, or stagnant water, or a river of one of these. And since the diversity of these sites has given cause for many to praise one place over another for this effect, I have thought, having to treat of Fortifications, that it would not be out of place, merely by way of discussion, and not to determine now which opinion I have judged to be the best, to speak first briefly of the many good and bad parts that can be considered in each site, so that by weighing one against the other, people of judgment, to whom alone I intend to speak, may easily learn to choose the best.

It is therefore to be known that whoever wishes to fortify in flat sites will, most of the time, be able to choose the figure for the enclosure of the fortress that he wishes. Hence, it happens that it can be made more perfect, both because with a smaller enclosure one can enclose more surface area of ground, and because those angles that might be involved could be formed better, or at least less poorly. From this, it follows that the fortress can be made more quickly and much better defended with a smaller quantity of men and of munitions. The plain also tends to be less subject to mines, both because if they were begun from nearby, they would be seen by the defenders, and if they began them from afar, they would involve much labor and time. Furthermore, with the ditches and counter-ditches that might be made around such fortresses, one usually finds water, of which the plain tends to be abundant, both from springs and from flowing water. And among the many uses and conveniences that could be had from such flowing water, it would be of no small importance to be able to divert it at the right time, both into the countryside and into the ditches. Add to this that in the plain, besides the fact that the soil tends to be fertile, it is good for constructing the repairs, for the convenience of the wagons that could be used there, and for the water that might flow there, should it be deep. One could easily transport the things necessary not only for the fortification but also for sustenance, and enemies, both in camping and in approaching, would have great trouble covering themselves, being able to be discovered from the fortress from very far away and from many sides.

As for the fortress on a plain (to treat of its defects), enemies can approach it, and especially since hoes and shovels can be used there. And therefore, since it can be battered and assaulted from all sides, it requires great expense, having need of large bastions, cavaliers elevated platforms for artillery, earthen ramparts, ditches, and counter-ditches, sally ports, fortite small fortifications/outworks, embankments, and many other necessary things, as well as artillery, many men to guard it, and not a little ammunition, besides the fact that enemies can, by using some of these things and others, also keep it under siege. Add to this that the fortress on a plain is also sometimes subject to mines and to ovens chambers used to hold explosives under a wall, which could perhaps facilitate assaults because the ground that is inside the fortress is not much higher than that which is found outside. Not only are there these considerations, but it is also necessary that it first encompass much land, so that within it, in every part, large squares can be made where the people can fight when deployed in battle, and if necessary, retreat. And among other things, it cannot be helped that at times it is subject to natural cavaliers high ground, as well as artificial ones. And the worst is that if, during the time of the siege, due to an abundance of rain or because it was poorly built in some part, it were to ruin of its own accord, it could not be rebuilt in a short time, because as those experienced in this art know, things of this kind are not restored without much expense and a great length of time.

Mountains, by their nature, tend in many parts not to be subject to batteries, and the greater part of them is secured by slopes and valleys, which bring harm and labor to those on the outside, not only because of the difficulties they might encounter in housing the army, in the approaches, in removing the defenses, in the batteries, and in the assaults, but because also they cannot, with horses, trenches, forts, and artillery, hold them most