Forte San Mattia, Military fort on northern hills, Verona, Italy.

Forte San Mattia is a fort on the hilltop north of Verona, near the church of San Mattia, built to an irregular plan based on a lunette with a main front. Its walls are laid in polygonal tuff blocks; the main front holds a casemated redoubt rising one to three storeys, and a dry ditch with a central caponier separates it from the hillside.

Forte San Mattia was built between 1837 and 1843 as part of Verona's hill fort sector. Work was directed by Major General Franz von Scholl, head of the Imperial Royal Office of Fortifications, together with his pupil Michael von Maly. The fort formed the centre of the entrenched hill camp, its main guns covering the slope toward Avesa and crossing fire with the two nearest Massimiliane towers.

The fort reflects Austrian military design principles that work with the surrounding hills rather than against them. You can see how the builders adapted the structure to fit naturally into the landscape of Verona.

The fort sits on hills north of Verona and is best reached by car or on foot from the city. The elevated location means visitors should be ready for uneven ground and should plan time to explore the different levels of the structure.

The fort was equipped with rifled cannons, an advanced weapons technology for the 1840s that increased firing accuracy. A separate powder magazine on the grounds shows how carefully the ammunition supply was managed for security.