History of Florence
Florence was founded in 59 B.C. by Julius Caesar as a permanent settlement for his veteran soldiers.
In the 3rd century B.C. , the emperor Diocletian made Florentia capital of the province of Tuscia.
St Minias was Florence's first martyr. He was beheaded by the Emperor Decius around year 250 AD, during the anti-Christian persecutions. The "Basilica di San Miniato al Monte" now stands near the spot.
After that period the city experienced turbulent periods of Ostrogothic rule, and was often troubled by warfare between the Ostrogoths and the Byzantines.
Peace returned under Lombard dominion in the 6th century. Conquered by Charlemagne in A.D. 774, Florence became part of the Duchy of Tuscany, with Lucca as its capital.
In the XI century, Margrave Hugo chose Florence as his residency instead of Lucca, this was the starting event of the Golden Age of Florentine art.
In 1013 construction works began on the Basilica di San Miniato al Monte. The exterior of the baptistry was reworked in Romanesque style between 1059 and 1128.
Cosimo de' Medici was the first Medici family member who in practice controlled the city from behind the scenes round and about the XIV century.
Although the city was technically a democracy of sorts, his power came from a vast network of patronage along with his alliance to the new immigrants, the "Gente Nuova" - new people. The fact that the Medici were the pope's bankers also contributed to their quick rise.
Cosimo was succeeded by his son Piero, who shortly afterwards in 1469was succeeded by Cosimo's grandson, Lorenzo. Lorenzo was the greatest patron of the arts in Florence, commissioning works to Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and Sandro Botticelli.
Lorenzo died in 1492 and was succeeded by his son Piero II. When the French king, Charles VIII invaded northern Italy, Piero II chose to resist his army but he soon realized that he had underestimated the size of the French army and he had to accept the humiliating conditions of the French king.
This made the Florentines rebel and they expelled Piero II. With his exile in 1494 the first period of Medici rule ended with the restoration of a republican government.
Restored to power twice with the support from both Emperor and Pope, the Medici became hereditary dukes of Florence in 1537, and in 1569 Grand Dukes of Tuscany, ruling for two centuries.
The extinction of the Medici line and the ascension to power in 1737 of Francis Stephen, Duke of Lorraine and husband of Maria Theresa of Austria, led to Tuscany's inclusion in the territories of the Austrian crown. Austrian rule was to end in defeat at the hands of France and the kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont in 1859, and Tuscany became a province of the united kingdom of Italy in 1861.
Florence replaced Turin as the Italian capital in 1865, housing the country's first parliament, but was superseded by Rome six years later following the latter's addition to the kingdom.
In 20th century Florence's population tripled with the growth of tourism, trade, financial services and industry. During World War II the city experienced a year-long German occupation (1943-1944).
During the German retreat Florence was declared an "open city" thus avoiding major war damage. The Allied soldiers who died driving the Germans out of Tuscany are buried in cemeteries outside the city.
On November 4, 1966 the Arno flooded parts of the city centre, killing many Florentines and damaging millions of art treasures and very rare books. Volunteers from all around the world came to help rescuing the books and art works. This effort inspired many new methods of art conservation.
Around the city there are tiny placards on the walls marking where the flood waters reached their highest level.
In 1982 the historic centre of Florence was declared a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO.
Today Florence is considered the city that inspired most of the Renaissance arts, including architecture, with its many historical buildings, museums with hundreds of paintings, statues, etc (like the "Galleria degli uffizi", the "Galleria Palatina", the "Bargello" and "Palazzo Pitti").
Name history
The Italian name, Firenze corresponds to the Renaissance name, Fiorenza, which replaced that of Florentia, which referred to a city founded by the Romans in 59 B.C.
It was first a settlement defending a bridge, then it became a city designed according to the Roman military engineering criteria: a
rectangular shape crossed by two perpendicular main streets (cardo & decumano).
It has been named Florentia because it was founded at the time of the Ludi florales, the Roman celebrations for the advent of the spring.
The red lily, symbol of Florence, derives from the white Florentine iris; the inversion of color dates back To 12 or 1300 when the red lily on a white background represented the Guelphs, who struggled for power with the Ghibellines, whose symbol was the white one on a red background .
The amazing heritage of art work decorating walls, streets, palaces and monuments tells about the history of the city.
The red lily is often an inspiring theme for many art works in Florence, including the floral decoration realized for past Christmas
celebrations and holidays.