Buco di Vela roadblock

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Buco di Vela before restoration
Buco di Vela after the restoration

The Buco di Vela road block was an isolated fortification of the Trento fortress, which until 1918 belonged to Austria-Hungary, and part of the Austrian fortifications on the border with Italy . The task of the plant was to seal off the Valle di Rio Vela, through which the road (today's Strada Statale SS 45 ) leads from Riva del Garda to Trento .

history

The (uncontested) facility was built in 1860–61 at the upper entrance of the valley (the term gorge would be more appropriate) and, due to the narrowness of the valley walls, it was completely sealed off.

Due to the early construction (in dolomite and limestone ) the work was already completely out of date at the beginning of the war and could only have withstood a surprise attack or attack by enemy infantry . According to the classification of the fortress command, the lock in 1914 was considered "field-gun safe, less storm-free", which meant that 15 cm howitzers would have been sufficient to deactivate the lock .

At the beginning of the war, the armament consisted of three 9 cm casemate cannons M75 / 96, which were later replaced by three 9 cm casemate cannons M4. There were also two M75 field cannons in the open position. A guardhouse was beyond the drive on the left. The blockade was covered by the Doss di Sponde battery , which is a short distance south on a hill above the road. Both works were connected by a postern .

The Buco di Vela roadblock (within Defense Section V of the Trento Fortress) was completely disarmed in the summer of 1915. The last 9 cm / M04 remaining in the old system in the middle casemate was dismantled and placed in the flank casemate of the Spazzadomeneghe cavern battery (original name according to the list of the security armoring of the Trento fortress: Soprassasso-West) on Monte Soprassasso. The annex battery, consisting of two 9 cm / M75 / 96 field cannons, had already been installed above on the artillery base Castellar della Groa in covered and semi-cavernated replacement positions. The two other casemate guns of the 9 cm / M04 type, which had already been dismantled, were brought into one of the numerous cavern batteries at the base and replacement plant at Monte Celva. The roadblock then only served as storage, accommodation and, if necessary, as a decoy target .

Until 2004, the busy state road led directly through the factory's archway, which led to damage to the structure. Since the completion of the road tunnel bored directly next to the plant in 2004, the facility has not been touched and has been asleep. In the following period the building was repaired by the Souvraintendenza, with the aim of restoring the original condition. Since 2011, the former roadblock maintained by the “Historical Museum of Trentino” foundation has been open to visitors. In the restored rooms one deals with the history of the Austro-Hungarian fortress construction, in particular with the Trento fortress.

In 2018 the Buco di Vela roadblock was awarded the European Heritage Label .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Information on opening times and admission in English , accessed on September 8, 2017.
  2. ^ Forte Cadine - Bus de Vela (Italian) accessed on December 17, 2018

literature

Web links

Commons : Buco di Vela roadblock  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 46 ° 5 ′ 0 ″  N , 11 ° 4 ′ 21 ″  E