Once a strategic military outpost, today it is an environmental centre and the symbol of the link between the past and the future, with views over the turquoise hues of the sea. The town of Stagnali looks out over the beach of the same name on the south-western side of Caprera, the second largest island of the Maddalena archipelago. Its origins date to the early 20th century, when the then Ministry of War built a garrison with barracks, storerooms, offices and stalls there. The complex, known as the ‘baraccamenti militari’, was home to the 3rd Company of the Bersaglieri Battalion. Its task was to defend the archipelago against enemy landings on the numerous beaches of the island. Stagnali is no longer a military outpost and now enjoys a new and varied existence: it is the island’s only in habited town and home to several structures belonging to the National Park of the Maddalena Archipelago, which includes an environmental education centre run by the park.