The walkway above the northern wall of Diocletian’s Palace was completed in the mid-15th century. The ancient fortifications were repaired and reinforced under a rector from the Barbaro family, whose coat of arms was placed in several locations within the Palace during the works.
During this phase of construction, the walls and towers, still functioning as defensive structures, were fitted with battlements built from small, roughly hewn stones. On the exterior, corbels were added at the top to support a wooden plank that could be raised or lowered to allow for firing and to shield the defenders on the walkway. On the interior, city-facing side, a wooden railing was installed, anchored into two stone corbels. Access to the walkway was provided by a staircase within the city, the remains of which are still visible today. These modifications are also depicted in three miniatures from the 1403 Missal of Hrvoje, Duke of Split, where scenes from the life of Christ are set against the backdrop of Diocletian’s Palace walls.
The advent of firearms brought significant changes to the Palace’s defensive walls: towers along the outer perimeter were demolished and replaced with new sections of wall equipped with gunports. Of the original sixteen towers, only three corner towers remain, including the north-eastern tower, also known as St Peter’s Tower, which formed part of the defensive walkway.
By the 17th century, with the construction of bastions and the reduced risk of attack, the medieval military walkway above the northern wall of Diocletian’s Palace had ceased to serve its original purpose.