The area gained relevancy before and during the First World War, because a line of forts, bunkers and trenches, originally named the Great North Frontier, was built through the park area. The building of the North Frontier began in 1862. It aimed at protecting the Italian Kingdom and especially the cities of Milan, Turin, Brescia, and Genoa (the port of Genoa, along with these other cities, was the main focal point for the Italian commerce and economy) from possible Swiss, German and Austrian invasions. The name of the fortification derives from the army general Luigi Cadorna, who supported the need and followed its construction during World War 1. The main purpose of the Great North Frontier was defending the Italian territories from the attack of the Austrians, who had been in conflict with the northern Italian populations before, as in the Battle of Magenta. It involved a labor force of 40 thousand workers and hundreds of millions of old Italian Lira. None of these forts and war facilities were actually been involved in a battle until World war 2.