Geography and the irregular modern fortress city (Girona 18th and 19th centuries)

Abstract

The regular modern fortress city of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries has been widely studied. However, the irregular modern fortress city, which adapts to the rugged geography of the site, has, to date, been scarcely analysed. In the case of the latter, the irregularities of the terrain force moulding, changing and introducing major changes to common, regular, symmetrical defences. In these cases, geography and construction complement each other unusually, enriching the freer, more functional layout of the bastions, curtain walls and complementary structures. The aim of these changes is both financial and defensive at the same time. The peculiar geography of the traditional city of Girona -Catalonia- is a magnificent example of an irregular defensive approach in modern European history