Monte Battaglia Fortress
On its slopes, between chestnut and beech trees, tourists ascend in search of memories and relaxation, along the easy but spectacular paths that allow them to see from the Appennine ridges to the Adriatic coast. On the summit are the ruins of an ancient watchtower, Monte Battaglia Fortress, and the monument to the resistance erected by the Municipality of Casola Valsenio, representing the struggle between David and Goliath.
If you are here on August 10th, do not miss the night concert, after which, lost in the silence of the rediscovered peace, you can search for your shooting star.
Monte Battaglia can be visited any time of year. Choose a clear day so you can make sure to see all the way to the sea.
Bits of history
For this summit beaten by the wind and storms, armies under many flags fought in the Tosco-Romagna Apennines between the valleys of the Senio and Santerno, medieval castrum and strategic point of the last war. In the first half of 500 A.D., the king of the Ostrogoths Totila and the generals of the Byzantine Empire were already battling for the area.
Throughout the Middle Ages, they fought for its conquest in Bologna, Imola, Faenza, Forlì, Ravenna. During the last world war, Monte Battaglia was the cornerstone of the Gothic line. Between September and October 1944, Germans and allies concentrated their fire and attacks to conquer its peak. About 2,000 partisans alternated with the allies in the violent attacks, in a tangle of confused struggles involving men of the Americans and British soldiers, patriots, Germans, brigades and republicans who clashed violently in the incessant rain, mud and fog. When the Germans finally left the battleground October 11th, the area was covered with weapons and corpses. “La piccola Cassino” it was called by the allied newspapers in those days.
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