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Photo: Bearnaise, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
From the SW edge of the citadel, 187 steps lead down the cliffs (their diagonal notch is very visible from the sea) to the Cave of St Barthelemy's Well. This cave, which nowadays can't be entered, has a pool of fresh(-ish) water percolated down from the limestone above, so it was an important water supply for the city. A well was also drilled down directly from near the church of St Barthelemy on the headland. The steps are named for Alfonso V, King of Aragon, who was awarded control of Bonifacio in 1421 by the Genoans but the city held out against him. Fanciful legend has his men fighting up the stairs and being beaten back, but more likely he simply tried to block the water supply to force the city's surrender. He was unsuccessful and left. Reserve on line to get your ticket.
The King of Aragon's Staircase is a staircase carved into the limestone cliff off Bonifacio on the French island of Corsica. There are 189 steps and the staircase is at a 45-degree incline. The staircase was registered as a Monument historique in 1994 and 2023.
© OpenStreetMap contributors
Tuscan watchtower
The watchtower is the only citadel structure that remains from the original 9th-century Tuscan fortifications. It's been smashed down and rebuilt several times: the most recent destruction was in 1901 (as it gave enemy artillery too good a marker onto the town) and what you see now is a 1980 reconstruction.
A rare example of Gothic style in Corsica, this church dates from the 13th century. The bell-tower is of no known style: it starts square, turns octagonal, then tops out in battlements. Occasional concerts are held in the church.
St Dominique was built as a Dominican convent; all that remains is the church (listed above) and this Loggia, the former refectory. Its colonnaded square hosts a Farmers Market on Friday mornings.
Palazzu Publicu
Church of Ste Marie
This is the city's principal and oldest church, mostly Romanesque and probably built in the 12th century but much modified over time. It has a prominent bell-tower and three naves, with the central nave containing the relics of St Boniface. At the front, note the loggia, the covered walkway for medieval bigwigs to discuss city business. Beneath this is a large water cistern, fed from adjacent buildings by aqueduct-buttresses spanning the streets. In 1980 they tried to turn the cistern into a conference centre but, strange to say, it filled with water every time it rained.
This tiny chapel marks the spot where the last victim of the plague died in the outbreak of 1528. St Roch/Roque, a 14th-century Montpelier martyr, is particularly venerated for his intercessions against plague, and on behalf of bachelors, falsely accused people, and dogs. His Saint's Day is celebrated annually here on Aug 16.