Arezzo

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Arezzo is an old city in central Italy, capital of the province of the same name, located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about 80 km (50 miles) south-east of Florence, at an elevation of 296 meters above sea level. In 2001 the population was about 91,600 people.

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Geography and statistical information

Arezzo is set on a steep hill rising from the floodplain of the Arno. In the upper part of the town are the Cathedral, the Town Hall and the Medici Fortress, from which the main streets branch off towards the lower part as far as the gates. The upper part of the town maintains its medieval aspect despite the addition of later structures.

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History

Arezzo may have been one of the twelve most important Etruscan cities, the so-called Dodecapolis; the famous Chimaera of Arezzo, now in Florence, was found here. Conquered by the Romans in the 3rd century BC, as Arretium the city flourished in the days of the Roman Empire, well-known in particular for its metalpottery manufactures, the characteristic Arezzo ware, bucchero-ware, and red-painted vases (the so called "coral" vases).

In the Christian age, Arezzo become an episcopal seat: it is one of the few cities whose succession of bishops are known by name without interruption to the present day, in part because they were the feudal lords of the city in the Middle Ages.

Many of Arezzo's earlier buildings was dismantled, as elsewhere throughout Europe, and the stones reused for fortifications.

From the 11th century to 1384, Arezzo was an independent city-state, generally Ghibelline in tendency, thus opposing the Guelph Florence. In 1252 the city founded its university, the Studium. After the rout of Campaldino (1289), which saw the death of Bishop Guglielmino Ubertini, the fortunes of Ghibelline Arezzo started to ebb, apart from a brief period under the Tarlati family, chief among them Guido Tarlati, who became bishop in 1312 and maintained good relations with the Ghibelline party. The Tarlati sought support in an alliance with Forlì and its overlords, the Ordelaffi, but unavailingly: Arezzo yielded to Florentine domination in 1384 and became part of the Medicean Grand Duchy of Tuscany. During this period Piero della Francesca worked in the church of St. Francis producing some splendid frescoes, but afterwards the city began an economical and cultural decay.

In the 18th century the neighbouring marshes of the Val di Chiana, south of Arezzo, were drained and the region became more pleasant. At the end of the century French troops led by Napoleon Bonaparte conquered Arezzo, but the city soon turned into a base of the resistance against the invaders with the movement of "Viva Maria": this gained the city the role of provincial capital. In 1860 Arezzo became part of the Italy. City buildings suffered heavy damage during World War II.

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Monuments and places of interest

  • Roman amphitheatre and museum
  • cathedral of S. Donato with good medieval stained glass and the Gothic tomb of Pope Gregory X (14th cent.)
  • church of S. Maria della Pieve (Romanesque) the apse of which you see above
  • church of S. Francesco with the History of the True Cross fresco cycle by Piero della Francesca in the Bacci Chapel
  • church of S. Domenico with crucifix by Cimabue (founded 1275 and completed in the early 14th century)
  • church of S. Michele
  • Piazza Grande with the Vasari Loggia
  • Medici Fortress (Fortezza Medicea)
  • SS. Flora e Lucilla in Badia ("la Badia")
  • House of Petrarch (Casa del Petrarca)
  • Vasari House (Casa Vasari)
  • Ivan Bruschi House and Museum (Casa-Museo "Ivan Bruschi")
  • Gaio Cilnio Mecenate Archeological Museum
  • Civic Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art
  • Diocesan Museum (Museo Diocesano)
  • State Museum of Medieval and Modern Art (Museum Statale d'Arte Medievale e Moderna)
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Festivals

  • Arezzo is home to an annual medieval festival called the Joust of the Saracens (Giostra del Saracino). In this, "knights" on horseback representing different areas of the town charge at a wooden target attached to a carving of a Saracen king and score points according to accuracy. Virtually all the town's people dress-up in medieval costume and enthusiastically cheer on the competitors.
  • Arezzo is also home to an annual popular music and culture festival, each July, called Arezzo Wave. Publicly funded, it attracts bands of high repute and attendees from all over Europe and North America. It also features literary and film expositions.
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Role in popular culture

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Notable people from Arezzo

Prominent people from Arezzo include the scholar Petrarch, painter and biographer Giorgio Vasari, botanist Andrea Cesalpino, poet Guittone d'Arezzo, Pope Julius II, and Guido of Arezzo, who developed the system for writing the musical scale. Arezzo also gave birth to Maecenas, who protected artists such as Virgil and Horace, and the satirical poet Pietro Aretino. Gianfrancesco, also known as Giovanni Francesco Poggio Bracciolini, a famous humanist of the Italian Renaissance, was born near Arezzo. Among modern celebrities born in Arezzo are the twin actors Cole Sprouse and Dylan Sprouse.

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Sports

  • Associazione Calcio Arezzo (A.C. Arezzo)
  • Vasari Rugby Arezzo
  • Club sommozzatori Calypso - Federazione Italiana Attività Subacquee - Sez.Terr. Arezzo (diving)
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Patron Saint

San Donato is the patron saint of Arezzo; his feast day is August 7.

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External links

es:Arezzo fr:Arezzo it:Arezzo nl:Arezzo ja:アレッツォ pl:Arezzo pt:Arezzo ro:Arezzo sv:Arezzo

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