The Cagliari Presidio Military Library was founded in 1856 when Victor Emmanuel II, at the proposal of Minister of War General Alfonso della Marmora, officially sanctioned its construction. The library, the only one of its kind on the island, began its activities in the premises of the former Arsenal. After being temporarily housed in the Carlo Alberto Barracks, now the headquarters of the State Police on Viale Buon Cammino, it was moved to the Boyl barracks on Porcile Street, on the premises of the former Military Court.
Here on May 13, 1943, it suffered severe damage from an air raid: a bomb hit the premises flat, causing the loss of at least 5,000 volumes.
Reopened to the public in 1947, it was first moved to Viale Buon Cammino to the premises of the Fadda barracks, now the seat of the Military Judicial Offices, and since 1992 has been in its present location (formerly Fort S. Filippo, built in the years 1726/1733 to a design by military engineer De Vincenti and used, until the Arsenal closed, as a gunpowder laboratory. The library has about 12,000 volumes of which 113 are from the 1700s and about 1800 from the 1800s. Most of the ancient volumes are in French. There are also, among other things, more than 300 volumes on Sardinia, 1,500 properly military publications and the collection of Official Gazettes from 1948 to the present. Access is allowed not only to employees of the Ministry of Defense but also to the public upon request. For the latter, only internal consultation of the volumes is provided. Cataloging of publications is computerized: in fact, quick search by author, title, subject or subject is possible.
