Brindisi

Brindisi stands around a deep natural harbour on the eastern Adriatic coast of Apulia, facing the sea towards Greece. Its sheltered inner waters made it a departure point for voyages across the sea, and the Roman Via Appia ended here. The city's columns, churches and fortifications recall a long history as a port connecting Italy with the eastern Mediterranean.

By the eighteenth century the passage into the inner harbour had become obstructed. King Ferdinand IV commissioned the engineer Andrea Pigonati to reopen it, and work began in 1776. The channel and accompanying works sought to restore access to the port and improve conditions around its shallow waters. Brindisi's fortunes remained tied to the maintenance of the entrance on which its sheltered harbour depended.