Santa Teresa Gallura, Longonsardo Tower

The fortress has the name of Longonsardo from the fourteenth-century castle of the same name, destroyed in 1422. After the founding of the town of Santa Teresa Gallura, in the first half of the 19th century, it also took the name of Torre di Santa Teresa.
The tower is located in the extreme N/E, between the bays of Santa Reparata and Porto Longone, and dominated the entire inlet, performing traffic control functions and guaranteeing defense against privateer assaults. At the same time, it represented a blockade of possible smuggling activities from Corsica.
The tower, made of granite, consists of a structure, which from the base to half the height has a truncated conical shape, while in the upper part it is cylindrical. It has a diameter of 19 m at the base of the shoe and 16.2 in the upper cylindrical body, with an average height of 11 m. The access to the main body is located 6 m from the ground and leads to the casamatta, the large bomb-proof dome; this room has a diameter of 10 m and is supported by a large central pillar. There is another opening mirrored at the entrance, while at the d. there is the staircase, inside the masonry, that leads to the parade ground.
A first surveillance system, to guard the port of Longonsardo against smuggling and barbarian excursions, was established in February 1556; after a short time, however, there was a need, for greater control of the area, to build a defensive structure. The tower was probably built by 1577, because it was mentioned in the Charter of Sardinia by the architect Rocco Capellino. Already at the end of the century, the fortress suffered the first attacks by Barbary pirates.
Prior to 1720, mediocre restorations were carried out, which subsequently required new repairs; only in 1777 was a general renovation carried out, designed by Captain Cochis.
The tower is defined by archival documents as 'de armas', that is, 'strong', of heavy defense; between 1767 and 1794, a 'warden' is attested, with an gunner and four soldiers.
In 1791, a crescent, shaped like a dome, was added to the square of arms, supported by a column and made of juniper beams. Inside this, with brick partitions, small rooms were created for the garrison, each equipped with a fireplace and slits for rifle fire. In addition, a protruding gate was added to the upper terrace. At the base of the tower, a small rivel was built in sector N, that is, a trapezoidal wall; inside it, a barracks for the dragons was built with living quarters, a bread oven and a wheat grinder.
In June 1802, the tower was stormed and conquered by Sardinian rioters and some from Corsica, commanded by the priest Sanna Corda; after a brief occupation, royal troops attacked the fortress and forced the conspirators to surrender, who were later sentenced to death.
In the first half of the nineteenth century, regular repairs were carried out, until in 1842 the Royal Administration of the Towers was suppressed. Four years later, the tower was decommissioned.
In the thirties of the twentieth century, the two guardhouses collapsed and, during the Second World War, the tower became the home of a paratrooper department, who built the external staircase. Currently, the crescent built in 1791 is no longer visible, while few traces of the Rivellino remain.

History of studies
The tower is included in the main works on coastal fortifications in Sardinia.

Bibliography
E. Pillosu, Le torri litoranee in Sardegna, Cagliari, Tipografia La Cartotecnica, 1957;
E. Pillosu, "Un inedito rapporto cinquecentesco sulla difesa costiera di Marco Antonio Camos", in Nuovo Bullettino Bibliografico Sardo e Archivio delle tradizioni popolari, V, 1959;
F. Fois, Torri spagnole e forti piemontesi in Sardegna, Cagliari, La Voce Sarda, 1981;
G. Montaldo, Le torri costiere in Sardegna, Sassari, Carlo Delfino, Sassari 1992;
F. Russo, La difesa costiera del Regno di Sardegna dal XVI al XIX secolo, Roma, Stato maggiore dell'Esercito, Ufficio storico, 1992;
G. Montaldo, "Forti e Torri Costiere", in Le Architetture fortificate della Sardegna centro-meridionale. Atti della Giornata di Studio, Cagliari 16 ottobre 1999;
M. Rassu, Guida alle torri e forti costieri, Cagliari, Artigianarte, Cagliari 2000.