bastione

Bastione is the Italian term for a bastion, a projecting element of a fortification. It forms a salient angle at the junction of two curtain walls and is designed to provide flanking fire along the adjacent ramparts while offering cover to defenders. Bastions are typically polygonal, often wedge- or pentagonal in plan, and are connected to the rest of the fortress by flanks and shoulders, creating a covered way and enabling enfilading fire.

Historically, the bastion emerged with the early modern fortification style known as the trace italienne in response to artillery. Its projecting form distributes outward resistance and creates interlocking lines of fire, reducing the effectiveness of sapping and mining. The system spread across Europe from the 16th to 18th centuries and became a defining feature of star forts and other bastioned works. Many Italian and European towns retain bastion projections in their old walls, even when the fortifications are no longer in military use.

Etymology and usage: The word bastione comes from Italian and designates these projecting elements; in other languages the term bastion is used for the corresponding structure, often via French or English sources. While the term retains historical meaning, modern fortification rarely employs bastions as functional defensive elements, though some coastal or border defenses preserve their outlines as monuments or urban features. See also: Bastion.