La torre ducale di Mondragone. Analisi tipologica e vicende costruttive

The paper reports the results of an analysis on the ducal tower of Mondragone, in northern Campania. Attributable to building initiatives of the 16th century, the building is one of the most impressive turreted structures of the viceregal period.It has a truncated pyramidal shoe base surmounted by a parallelepiped structure, in turn surmounted by battlements. Its height and form allude to medieval defensive structures, rather than to Renaissance military architecture, less vulnerable to artillery: the tower, although far from the sea, represented a significant protection and lookout position for the internal areas.A further reason for inspiration from the constructions of the Middle Ages lies in the need of architects, in the peripheral territories of the Kingdom of Naples, to follow executive practices closer to their knowledge in the building field, the result of consolidated experiences.The tower, subject to protection restrictions after the Second World War, has a quadrangular plan and masonry made with regular tuff ashlars and split limestone elements.It is divided into three overlapping environments. The one on the first level allowed the storage of armaments, while the upper ones were intended for housing.The aforementioned rooms have various vaults’ kinds: at the first there are order barrels, at the second sail, at the third pseudo-cross. The roof is flat.In the thickness of the western wall runs a staircase that leads up to the battlements. Below, inside the wall, there is a tunnel that runs along its perimeter, in which slits open for defence and for spotting enemies.The tower is privately owned: today the ground floor is used as a warehouse and the upper floors are used as a residence. The adjacent structure is also residential and has, on the second level, a loggia with three arches.