Sneak Preview

'Everything about Florence seems to be colored with a mild violet, like diluted wine' - Henry James

Firenze to its people, Florence is the stuff that dreams are made of. That in such a small expanse of land, exists such awesome beauty, is hard to fathom. But it exists. A sun - burnt orange glow on a towering dome is just a facet of this beauty. Once a trading town, today Florence is a centre of political activity and art. A flurry of Renaissance culture brought Florence to the present state of becoming the capital of art, architecture, commerce and political thought.

Florence then emerges as an interesting city. With graffiti on its walls, businessmen on vespas and children playing soccer, the cultural legacy of Florence peeps through a modern, fast paced city.

'All roads lead to Rome' is how the popular saying goes...but did you know that it was Florence and not Rome that got its first paved roads? Florence got it's paved roads in 1339, making it the first city with these roads not only in Italy, but in all of Europe.

In the middle ages people in Tuscany believed that the only cure for the flu was to drink from the same pail from which a horse had drunk. How that cured the flu is anybody’s guess!

Florence was the first city in Italy to mint its own gold coins in 1252.

Florence is known as the ‘art capital of Italy’ due to its long association with great painters and sculptors.

The official Florentine emblem has always been a red lily on a white background. However, the turmoil of the early Renaissance caused it to be reversed for some time (white lily on red). On the walls of the Palazzo Vecchio one can see both versions.

Historically Speaking

The city-state of Florence really came of age in the 12th century AD when attempts at expansion into the fertile Arno river basin began to pay off. Through the centuries the city prospered in trade and finance so much that the Florentine gold coin, the Florin, became the standard of exchange in Europe by the 16th century. Wool manufacturers and bankers in particular, thrived.

Florence’s history is punctuated with episodes of internal strife. In the 11th century the powerful families, nobles and intellectuals, formed the governing council of the republic. As interests became more polarized, a power struggle broke out among the leading families. In 1300 a civil war broke out between the Neri (Blacks) and the Bienchi (whites) with the Bienchi, Dante among them, losing. All the while that Florence’s industry, banking and trade flourished, fissures between the working classes and the wealthy continued to grow. Matters came to a head when in 1433 the ruling aristocratic party exiled Cosimo de’ Medici who had by now established himself as a leader of the common people. Cosimo de’ Medici came back in 1434 and overthrew his opponents.

The Medici family made their fortune in banking and dominated affairs of governance for three centuries, fiercely defending Florence’s independence and famously patronising the arts and learning. The Renaissance came into full bloom under the patronage of Lorenzo de’ Medici, grandson of Cosimo. In 1569 the title of Grand Duke of Tuscany was bestowed on the Medici.

The Medici line petered out in the first half of the 18th century. Florence then passed into the hands of the Austrian Hapsburg who were defeated in Italy’s war of independence, 1859. Before Rome, Florence was the capital of Italy under King Victor Emmanuel II.

Florence’s monuments survived World War II bombing, though its bridges didn’t. Far more devastating were the effects of the 1966 flood. Most of the damaged works of art have since been restored to former glory.

more

hide