La Spezia's position, sandwiched between the hills and the sea, proved an early attraction to conquerors, with its strategic importance reflected in the number of Genoese castles that stud the hills. These were the town's first fortifications, yet it took Napoleon to capitalize on what is one of Europe's finest natural harbours and construct a naval and military complex at La Spezia early in the nineteenth century. The naval presence made the town a prime target in World War II and most of the centre had to be rebuilt following Allied bombing ; it's now characterized by rather drab buildings lining a regular grid of streets behind the palm-fringed harbourfront promenade of Viale Mazzini . At the eastern end, opposite the Porto Mercantile, sits the 1970s Cattedrale Cristo Re , overlooking Piazza Europa and distinguished by a boldly minimalist white tower curving against a hilly backdrop. At the western end are some lovely public gardens , a short distance from Piazza Chiodo and La Spezia's raison d'etre - the vast naval Arsenale , which was rebuilt after destruction in World War II. There's no public admittance to the complex itself, but just to the left of the entrance is the engaging Museo Tecnico Navale (Mon & Fri 2-6pm, Tues-Thurs & Sat 9am-noon & 2-6pm, Sun 8.30am-1.15pm; L3000/€1.55), which contains battle relics and models.

From the public gardens it's a short stroll inland on Via Prione to Piazza Beverini and the striped Duomo of Santa Maria Assunta housing a polychrome terracotta by Andrea della Robbia. Behind the church is the lively marketplace of Piazza Cavour , from where the Museo Amedeo Lia is 100m east at Via Prione 234 (Tues-Sun: mid-June to Aug 10am-1pm & 5-8pm; rest of year 10am-6pm; L12,000/€6.20; www.castagna.it/mal). This impressive place occupies a seventeenth-century former Franciscan convent that has undergone careful and intelligent renovation. It was opened in December 1996 following the donation of more than a thousand artworks to the city by Lia, a private collector. Pricey it may be, but you can go in and out as many times as you like during the day with the same ticket.. Highlights include a lovely Madonna with Child by Giampietrino that launches the small but exceptionally high-quality sixteenth-century collection in Rooms VI and VII, which also takes in Pontormo's sharp-eyed Self-Portrait , a supremely self-assured Portrait of a Gentleman by Titian, and Bellini's Portrait of an Attorney . Upstairs in room XI are bronzes by Giambologna and Ammannati. Room XII houses the museum's most celebrated item, the famous Addolorata , a half-statue of a sorrowful Madonna made by Benedetto da Maiano in polychrome terracotta in the fifteenth century.