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Campanile of the Duomo

HISTORY

A very short guide.

Florence (Firenze, earlier Firenza) is the leading city of the Italian region of Tuscany (Tuscana). It was founded as a Roman colonia (Florentia) around 59 BC, and its regional hegemony was confirmed with the conquest of Pisa in 1509 and Siena in 1555.

The history of Florence was dominated by the Medici family from 1434 to 1737, except for the republican period from 1494 to 1512. Nicolo Machiavelli was the last Republican chancellor.

Florence briefly served as the national capital during the struggle for Italian unification (Risorgimento) but this privilege passed to Rome in 1871 after control of it was wrested from the Papacy.

Florence's historical significance today, however, lies not in its political power but in its cultural importance as the cradle of the Italian, and ultimately European, Renaissance. The Medici were great patrons of the arts. Two of the most notable were Lorenzo de Medici, “Lorenzo the Magnificent”, (1449 - 1492) and Cosimo I (1519-1574).

Rik - 26 March 2003