Federico II Tower of San Miniato PI Tuscany Italy
A reconstruction to its original form of an old tower. It is rebuilt in 1956 after it was destructed during the war in 1944.
See the view from the top of this tower all over the Arno Valley and the rooftops of this little town.
Pablo Bisquera.
San Miniato (PI) Italy / Sky View from the Tower Federico II
See the view of this little town and over the lower valley of Arno.
Pablo Bisquera.
San Miniato
Tuscany is one of the most famous regions in Europe and has one of the richest histories. San Miniato, the XX mile City, has always been a part of this history.
This title comes from its special geographical position. San Miniato is located along the Via Francigena (The road from France) that connected northern Europe to Rome during the Middle Ages and it was travelled by an uninterrupted flow of men, armies, trade, ideas and culture. Situated along this route in the heart of the Arno River Valley, San Miniato was at the intersection of the roads between Florence and Pisa, Lucca and Siena. Pistoia, San Gimignano, Volterra and Vinci also lay within these twenty miles.
It is not surprising, therefore, that San Miniato was a favoured city of emperors like Fredrick II of Swabia and Popes such as Gregory V and Eugene IV. In 1533, for example, as Michelangelo wrote in one of his manuscripts, he met with Pope Clement VII in San Miniato where the pontiff commissioned him to paint the Sistine Chapel.
A few years later, Michel de Montaigne stopped there and recorded the visit in his work Travel to Italy. It may be that another great traveller, Wolfgang Goethe, whose journey between Florence and Siena was documented, stopped to visit San Miniato al Tedesco, the Rocca, the castle of his fellow countryman Frederick II and the sixteenth-century Accademia degli Affidati.
The entire history of Tuscany, from the Etruscans to the Grand Duchy of Hapsburg-Lorraine, found a meeting point in San Miniato.
La Toscana è una delle regioni più celebri d'Europa, e più ricche di storia. A questa storia ha da sempre partecipato San Miniato, la Città delle XX miglia.
Il titolo le deriva dalla sua particolare collocazione geografica. San Miniato è situato lungo la via Francigena, che collegava nel Medio Evo l'Europa settentrionale a Roma, flusso ininterrotto di uomini,eserciti, traffici, idee e culture. Su questa direttrice,San Miniato era all'incrocio,nel cuore della Valle dell'Arno, delle strade fra Firenze e Pisa,Lucca e Siena.Ed entro le venti miglia si collocavano anche Pistoia e San Gimignano,Volterra e Vinci.
Non stupisce così che San Miniato sia stato un luogo privilegiato da imperatori come Federico II di Svevia e di papi come Gregorio V e Eugenio IV. Nel 1533,ad esempio,come testimonia un manoscritto dello stesso Buonarroti,si incontrarono a San Miniato Michelangelo e Papa Clemente VII,che gli commissionò la Cappella Sistina.
E Michel de Montaigne,pochi anni dopo, vi si fermò, e annotò la visita nel suo viaggio in Italia.Non è escluso che un altro grande viaggiatore,Wolfgang Goethe,di cui è documentato il passaggio da Firenze a Siena sotto il colle,si sia fermato a visitare San Miniato al Tedesco,la Rocca,il Castello del suo Federico II e la cinquecentesca Accademia degli Affidati.
L'intera storia della Toscana ,dagli Etruschi al Granducato degli Asburgo - Lorena, trova in San Miniato un punto d'incontro.
San Miniato (PI) Italy / View of the Piazza della Repubblica
A very nice Square of the town.
Pablo Bisquera.
Tuscan Towns: San Miniato
an overview of one of the most famous medieval cities around Florence: San MIniato
San Miniato (PI) Tuscany Italy
A town of Arts and Culture in the province of Pisa in Tuscany Italy.
Pablo Bisquera.
San Miniato (PI) Tuscany Italy / Travel Slideshow
See this nice little town in Tuscany Italy. Beautiful Tuscan view around.
Pablo Bisquera.
Vista di San Miniato dalla Rocca
In un giorno di Primavera con nuvole e la pioggia, vista della città di San Miniato dalla vetta della Torre di Federico II ( La Rocca)
Dal cuore della Toscana.
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San Miniato a confronto
VIAGGIO DA OVEST VERSO EST
BALCONEVISI Frazione del Comune di San Miniato
BALCONEVISI VILLAGE OF SAN MINIATO PISA TOSCANA
Video of Balconevisi village of San Miniato in Pisa Tuscany | Visit
Europe 2007 Part 35 San Miniato
My journey to San Miniato and a visit to this medieval, hilltop village.
In medieval times, San Miniato was on the via Francigena, which was the main connecting route between northern Europe and Rome. It also sits at the intersection of the Florence-Pisa and the Lucca-Siena roads. Over the centuries San Miniato was therefore exposed to a constant flow of friendly and hostile armies, traders in all manner of goods and services, and other travelers from near and far.
Archaeological evidence indicates that the site of the city and surrounding area has been settled since at least the paleolithic era. It would have been well-known to the Etruscans, and certainly to the Romans, for whom it was a military post called Quarto.
The first mention in historical documents is of a small village organized around a chapel dedicated to San Miniato built by the Lombards in 783. By the end of the 10th century San Miniato boasted a sizeable population enclosed behind a moat and protected by a castle built by Otto I, from which an Imperial Vicar ruled all of Tuscany.
The first walls, with defensive towers, were thrown up in the 12th century during the time that Italy was dominated by Frederick Barbarossa. Under his grandson, Frederick II, the town was further fortified with expanded walls and other defensive works, including the Rocca and its tower.
During the latter years of the 13th century and the entire 14th century, San Miniato was drawn into the ongoing conflict between the Ghibelline and Guelph forces. Initially Ghibelline, it had become a Guelph city by 1291, allied with Florence and, in 1307, fought with other members of the Guelph league against the Ghibelline Arezzo.
By 1347 San Miniato was under Florentine control, where it remained, but for a brief period from 1367-1370 when, instigated by Pisa, it rebelled against Florence, and for another brief period between 1777 and 1779. It was still part of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany when the Duchy was absorbed into the newly-formed Kingdom of Italy in 1860.
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San Miniato innevata
Foto di San Miniato innevata di Daniele Alamia. Montaggio del video a cura di Niccolò Banti. Testi di Luciano Marrucci.
Alan's Italy Show # 109 - A Day Out in Tuscany, Part 2, San Miniato and Vinci
A tour of the two Tuscan towns of San Miniato and Vinci which is the boyhood home of one of the world's greatest minds, Leonardo.
San Miniato Collage
Collage di immagini della città di San Miniato (PI) - Photo by AmexDVS
Certaldo - Tuscany - I Like Italy
Certaldo is not far from Florence, in the middle of the valley of the Elsa river. Certaldo is the home town of Boccaccio, one of the greatest italian writer ever.
Certaldo means history, tradition and art, and it's a mandatory step for all the visitors of Tuscany.
Certaldo was founded in 1164, with the building of the old castle, when Federico Barbarossa gave the territory to the family of Conti Alberti. In XIII century Certaldo was conquered from Florence and from that century the history of Certaldo became strongly related to the Florence history.
The old castle is seat in the high part of the town, and nowadays it still preserves the medieval structures of the streets and buildings.
One of the main buildings is the Palazzo Pretorio, the symbol of Certaldo. It is the rest of the ancient castle of the Conti Alberti. Nowadays it's the seat of a gallery of modern art.
Close to the Palace there is the Church of Santi Jacopo e Filippo, in a perfect romanesque-style. It was builded in XIII century and nowadays it host the museum of Holy Art. Inside the old church there are the remains of Boccaccio.
The main street of the old town is Via Boccaccio, where we can find the house of the writer, completely re-builded after the second world war, and nowadays it's the seat of an important Library dedicated to Boccaccio.
In the old town there is also the palace Stiozzi Ridolfi, it was builded in XIV century. It is completely inside the old castle, with two towers and a big court.
Three gates still assure the access to the old castle: Porta al Sole, Porta Alberti and Porta del Rivellino.
The whole area of Certaldo is covered by history. In fact there are several outstanding buildings just outside the town, like the ruins of the Castle of Pogni.
The Castle of Pogni was one of the most powerful outpost of the Alberti dinasty. Now we can admire only a broken tower and some ruins of the old palace.
The Church of San Lazzaro a Lucardo was builded in X century. It's a classic example of romanesque-style church, with three naves and a basilica-like base. Maybe the most important romanesque-style building of the whole valley.
The Chapel of San Michele Arcangelo is close to Certaldo and it was builded in 1597, by Santi Tito. It's a perfect scale down (1:8) of the Florence Dome and nowadays it's the only remains of the old town of Semifonte.
The main yearly event of Certaldo is Mercantia, in july. A festival of street theatre and local craftsmanship. It's a very famous event, where it's possible to merge music, dance, theatre and cfraftsmanship, framed by the medieval old town.
Street artists from all the world are guests of the city for five days and the event involves hundreds of thousands of visitors every year.
For our journeys of the taste we'd like to underline one of the most famous high-quality product of Certaldo, the Bianchetto (little white) truffle.
The gathering of this kind of truffle is usually in march (for this reason it's called Marzoulo too)
This kind of truffle is not estemeed as the white truffle of San Miniato, gathered in november.
The size of the Marzuolo is usually smaller, with a strong good smell. It's a good ingredient for Tuscan recipes, because it's tasty but cheaper then the San Miniato's truffle.
Qik - San miniato pisa by valerio polidori
Streamed by valerio polidori in Italy. More at
LA FIERA DEL TARTUFO
Ogni anno, nel mese di Novembre, a San Miniato, storica cittadina in provincia di Pisa, si svolge la tradizionale Fiera del Tartufo
PARTE 01 - SAN MINIATO: ORIGINE E SVILUPPO DI UN CENTRO TOSCANO
Video della giornata di studi promossa dalla Fondazione Centro Studi sulla Civiltà del Tardo Medioevo di San Miniato. L'iniziativa si è tenuta venerdì 26 settembre 2014 presso Palazzo Grifoni.
PROGRAMMA DELLA MATTINA ore 10.00-13.00
Saluti delle autorità
GIORGIO CHITTOLINI
(Univ. Milano)
Le piccole città dell'Europa medievale
FEDERICO CANTINI
(Univ. Pisa)
Il borgo di San Genesio: origine e sviluppo
PAOLO TOMEI
(Univ. Pisa)
La nascita di San Miniato al Tedesco