Discount Hotels Florence
Historical interest: Florence
    
As you can imagine, Florence has a rich history. The city came under the control
of Cosimo de' Medici, a wealthy merchant and patron of the arts, in the 15th
century. Lorenzo de' Medici held power from 1469 to 1492; and under Lorenzo
and his successors, Florence was for two centuries a golden city, bursting with
intellectual and artistic life.
The list of artists working in the city included Michelangelo, Leonardo da
Vinci, Raphael and Donatello. There were also numerous poets and scholars active
in Florence, and the Accademia della Crusca was thus established (1582). A school
of music flourished in the city during the Renaissance, and the earliest operas,
Peri's Dafne (1594) and Euridice (1600), were performed there.
Political life was turbulent and the Medicis were expelled by a revolution
in 1494; the fiery religious reformer Savonarola briefly held power (1494-98)
and Machiavelli became a diplomatic representative of the republic. The revolt
against the Medicis was over by 1512, but another revolution (1527-30) established
a new republic, which was forced to surrender to Emperor Charles V after a heroic
defence.
Under the restored Medici rule, Florence went on expanding and controlled most
of Tuscany. In 1569, Cosimo I de' Medici was made grand duke and Florence became
the capital of the grand duchy of Tuscany. The grand duchy, ruled by the house
of Hapsburg-Lorraine after the extinction of the Medici line (1737), was annexed
to the kingdom of Sardinia in 1860. Florence was the capital of the newly founded
kingdom of Italy from 1865 to 1871.
Relatively few of the art treasures of Florence were harmed during the bombings
of World War II. However, the flooding of the Arno in November 1966 caused extensive
damage, which art experts have sought to repair, with considerable success.
Selection of hotels in this region:
Alamanni Hotel | | Hotel Londra | | Boscolo Hotel Astoria Florence | | Machiavelli Palace | | Meridiana Hotel | | Hotel Jane | | Hotel Ascot | | Hotel Atlantic Palace | | Grand Hotel Majestic | | Villa Sull'Arno | | Hotel Le Due Fontane | | Airone Hotel | | The Westin Excelsior | | Jolly Hotel Florence | | Bonciani Hotel | | Holiday Inn Florence North | | Starhotel Michelangelo Florence | | Starhotel Monginevro | | Hotel Ambasciatori | | Hotel Nord Florence | | Hotel Corona D'Italia | | Hotel Orcagna | | Hotel Bologna | |
Click below for a
full list of hotels and online booking
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