Tortolì

Tortolì lies in Ogliastra on eastern Sardinia, where the coastal plain meets the island's rugged interior. After the fall of the Judicate of Cagliari in 1258, Tortolì came under Pisan control. A revenue register of 1316 records its name as Tortohelie. Following the Aragonese conquest, Ogliastra passed to the Carroz family, and a 1358 record lists taxes owed by Tortolì to Berengario Carroz.

The nearby coast at Arbatax linked the district to shipping. Under Spanish rule vessels used the harbour for traffic with Cagliari and the exchange of goods, including grain. A coastal tower at Arbatax, recorded as active in 1572, watched an area exposed to corsair raids. The obligations of inland communities and the defence of the shore were thus connected to the same regional lordship and maritime routes.