Tuscany

• 1. Triangular Hills And Sea

  ›

  Tuscany stretches across a landscape shaped like a rough triangle, bordered by Liguria to the northwest and Emilia-Romagna to the north. The region covers an area of approximately 22,993 square kilometers, with hills making up nearly two-thirds of its total landmass. These rolling slopes account for about 15,000 square kilometers of the territory, creating a terrain dominated by agricultural use rather than flat plains. Only 8.4% of the region consists of plains, mostly clustered around the valley of the Arno river. Major mountain chains cross through the area, including the Apennines which reach their highest points within Tuscan borders. A western coastline touches both the Ligurian Sea and the Tyrrhenian Sea, hosting the Tuscan Archipelago where Elba stands as the most significant island. The climate varies significantly between coastal areas and the interior, ranging from fairly mild conditions near the sea to harsher, rainy weather inland. This fluctuation creates a soil-building freeze-thaw cycle that once made Tuscany a key breadbasket for ancient Rome.

• 2. Etrusans And Roman Roads

  ›

  The Etruscans created the first major civilization in this region during the Iron Age, establishing a culture that grew to fill the space between the Arno and Tiber rivers from the tenth century BCE. Their society reached its peak during the seventh and sixth centuries B.C., before finally succumbing to Roman forces by the first century BCE. City-states developed in the late Villanovan period, paralleling developments seen in Greece and the Aegean Sea. One reason for the eventual demise of this civilization was the increasing absorption by surrounding cultures, particularly the adoption of the Etruscan upper class by the Romans. Soon after absorbing Etruria, Rome established cities like Lucca, Pisa, Siena, and Florence while introducing new technologies such as aqueducts and sewers. These developments included extensions of existing roads and the construction of many public and private buildings. However, many of these structures have been destroyed by erosion due to weather over the centuries. The Roman civilization in the West collapsed in the fifth century, leaving the region briefly to barbarians migrating through the Empire from Eastern Europe and Central Asia.

• 3. Guelphs Versus Ghibellines

  ›

  Pilgrims traveling along the Via Francigena between Rome and France brought wealth and development during the medieval period, fueling community growth around churches and taverns. The conflict between the Guelphs and Ghibellines split the Tuscan people into factions supporting either the Papacy or the Holy Roman Empire during the 12th and 13th centuries. This struggle gave rise to several powerful and rich medieval communes including Arezzo, Florence, Lucca, Pisa, and Siena. Balance between these communes was ensured by their specific assets: Pisa held a port, Siena controlled banking, and Lucca managed both banking and silk production. By the time of the Renaissance, Florence had become the cultural capital of Tuscany despite this earlier fragmentation. One family that benefited from Florence's growing wealth and power was the ruling Medici family, whose scion Lorenzo de' Medici remains one of the most famous figures in history. The Black Death epidemic hit Tuscany starting in 1348, eventually killing 70% of the Tuscan population according to historical records. Florence lost a third of its population in the first six months of the plague alone.

• 4. Medici Patronage And Birth

  ›

  Tuscany, especially Florence, is regarded as the birthplace of the Renaissance though it remained a linguistic and cultural conception rather than a political reality until later centuries. In the 15th century, Florence extended its dominion through the annexation of Arezzo in 1384 and the purchase of Pisa in 1405. From the leading city of Florence, the republic was dominated from 1434 onward by the increasingly monarchical Medici family who ruled without formal titles for decades. These rulers presided over the Florentine Renaissance while initially retaining republican forms under Cosimo, Piero the Gouty, and Lorenzo. There was a return to the republic from 1494 to 1512 when Girolamo Savonarola then Piero Soderini oversaw the state. Cardinal Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici retook the city with Spanish forces in 1512 before going to Rome to become Pope Leo X. The Sienese commune was not incorporated into Tuscany until 1555, enjoying a cultural 'Sienese Renaissance' with its own more conservative character during the 15th century.

• 5. Four Distinct Art Schools

  ›

  In the medieval period and the Renaissance, four main Tuscan art schools competed against each other: the Florentine School, the Sienese School, the Pisan School, and the Lucchese School. The Florentine School refers to artists influenced by the naturalistic style developed in the 14th century largely through efforts of Giotto di Bondone. Some of the best known artists of this school include Brunelleschi, Donatello, Michelangelo, Fra Angelico, Botticelli, Lippi, Masolino, and Masaccio. The Sienese School flourished in Siena between the 13th and 15th centuries though it rivaled Florence only for a time while being more conservative. Its most important representatives include Duccio whose work shows Byzantine influence, his pupil Simone Martini, and Pietro and Ambrogio Lorenzetti. Unlike the naturalistic Florentine art, there is a mystical streak in Sienese art characterized by dreamlike coloration and less attention to proportions. The Lucchese School flourished in the 11th and 12th centuries with an important center in Volterra, producing works remarkable for their monumentality.

• 6. Modern Economy And Tourism

  ›

  The gross domestic product of the region was 117.5 billion euros in 2018, accounting for 6.7% of Italy's economic output. Tuscany is the second-most-popular Italian region for travelers after Veneto, with Florence alone having over 5 million arrivals in 2018 making it the world's 51st most visited city. Castiglione della Pescaia serves as the most visited seaside destination where seaside tourism accounts for approximately 40% of tourist arrivals. Eight localities have been designated World Heritage Sites including the historic Centre of Florence from 1982 and the Cathedral square of Pisa from 1987. In 2019 municipalities like Florence, Pisa, Montecatini Terme, and San Vincenzo held relatively higher percentages of presences among visitors. Agriculture still contributes to the region's economy despite falling shares, growing cereals, potatoes, olives, and grapes in inland areas. One traditional foundation of the industrial sector is mining given the abundance of underground resources like iron ore and copper.