Torra di Senetosa, Historical Genoese tower in Sartène, France
Torra di Senetosa is a coastal defense structure near Sartène built in the early modern period, featuring a circular design with thick stone walls. The structure stands about 12 meters high with a diameter of about 10 meters and is maintained today by the Conservatoire du littoral.
The structure was built in 1610 as part of a network of defenses the Republic of Genoa established to protect Corsican shores from pirates. These towers formed a system to defend against raids from the Mediterranean, which posed a constant threat to coastal communities.
The tower shapes the coastal landscape with its massive stone body and typical round form of a watchtower. Such structures long defined how people living along the Corsican shore looked after safety and organized their settlements.
The structure sits directly on the coast and can be reached while hiking along the Corsican coastal path. Visitors should bring sturdy footwear, as the trail crosses rocky and uneven ground.
Guards used a sophisticated system of fire signals to communicate with neighboring towers and give early warning of approaching danger. These visual messages spread quickly along the coast, long before written messages could travel.
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