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Florence stands on the banks of the Arno River, in a hollow surrounded by the first Chianti hills to the south and the Fiesole hills to the north; these hills are green and undulating dotted with small towns and isolated home- steads. As city of art and culture, Florence is the destination of a high pro- portion of international tourism. Originally a Roman centre (Florentia), it began
to acquire a certain importance under the Carolingians but its fortunes date from the time (1115) of its constitution as a Republic. In the 13th- beginning 14th centuries, aided by increasing economic importance it starts
a policy of expansion directed at the largest Tuscan towns. In 1406, once Pisa had fallen, only Siena and Lucca remained free of Florentine rule. Shortly after (1434), the Republic became a Signoria under the Medici family.
Under this Signoria the town gained great masterpieces by the foremost artists of the time (Brunelleschi, Donatello, Botticelli, Masaccio, etc.) becoming the most important European centre of Renaissance culture. When the Medici family died out, the Lorenas gained power in 1737 and, apart from the Napoleonic period (1800-1815), governed Florence and the region until 1859, the year in which Duke Leopold II was expelled and Tuscany became part of the Kingdom of Italy. |
Piazza del Duomo is the site of the principal palaces of religious interest: the Baptistry, a Romanesque building (11th-12th century), with beautiful bronze doors (14th-15th century by A. Pisano and
L. Ghiberti) and mosaics; the Giotto campanile (14th century) and the Duomo, in Gothic style (14th-15th century), surmounted by the famous Brunelleschi cupola (15th century). In Piazza della Signoria stand the Loggia della
Signoria (14th century), decorated with 16th century statues, and Palazzo Vecchio (early 14th century), dominated by the Torre d'Arnolfo (94 m.), with an interesting Renaissance interior. |
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Other monuments include: Palazzo Medici-Riccardi (15th century), Palazzo Pitti (15th century, to a design by Brunelleschi), Palazzo Strozzi (15th - early 16th centuries), Palazzo Rucellai (15th century),
Palazzo Davanzati (14th century). Churches include: S. Lorenzo (15th century) with the Sagrestia Vecchia (by Brunelleschi, decorated by Donatello) and the Sagrestia Nuova, housing the Medici family tombs sculpted by Michelangelo, S. Spirito (15th century), S. Maria Novella (Gothic, with façade by L. B. Alberti), Orsanmichele (15th century), Santa Croce (13th century, Gothic), containing the tombs of Michelangelo, Galilei, Alfieri, Machiavelli, Foscolo and other great men, with the adjacent Cappella dei Pazzi, a Brunelleschi creation (15th century); S. Miniato al Monte (Romanesque, with rich interior). Further attractions are the stupendous Italian gardens at Boboli, created in the 16th and 17th centuries, and the inspiring Ponte Vecchio (14th century).
Very interesting is also the market around the church San Lorenzo, and in this area you can find a lot of small but excellent restaurants too. One of the best Pizzerie is "I Ghibellini" in Via Matteo Palmieri and two
really good Irish Pubs you will find in Piazza Santa Maria Novella e in Via Pellicceria. |
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