Palmanova

Venice laid the first stone of Palmanova on 7 October 1593, building a fortress town shaped like a nine-pointed star to guard its eastern border. Rings of bastions, moats and ravelins surround streets that radiate to the hexagonal Piazza Grande, and three monumental gates lead in. The fortifications have been part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2017.

Highlights

• Piazza Grande, a perfect hexagon lined with statues of eleven Venetian governors
• The Duomo, whose bell tower was kept low so enemies could not see it (IT)
• Porta Udine, Porta Cividale and Porta Aquileia, the three gates into town
• The civic museum, tracing the fortress from Venetian to Italian times
• The military museum inside Porta Cividale, with uniforms and relics since 1593

Summary based on Wikipedia and Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA), written with AI assistance.