Built 1548-1549 Designated as world heritage site 8 March 1991 | Reference no. PA00099277 | |
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The Tour de Santa Maria della Chiappella (Corsican: Torra di Santa Maria Chjapella) is a ruined Genoese tower located in the commune of Rogliano (Corse-du-Sud) on the east coast of the French island of Corsica. Only part of the tower survives.
The tower was built between 1548 and 1549 for Giacomo Santo Da Mare. It was one of a series of coastal defences constructed by the Republic of Genoa between 1530 and 1620 to stem the attacks by Barbary pirates. The tower was partially destroyed in 1794 by British warships under the command of Horatio Nelson during the French Revolutionary Wars.
The tower is unusually tall and contained two internal room, one above the other, similar to the Tour de la Parata near Ajaccio. In 1991 it was listed as one of the official historical monuments of France. It is owned and maintained by the Collectivité Territoriale de Corse in an agreement with the French government agency, the Conservatoire du littoral. The agency plans to purchase 1,147 hectares (2,830 acres) of the surrounding coastline and as of 2017 had acquired 669 hectares (1,650 acres).