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History
History is the foundation that makes everything else make sense. These essays cover the political, social, and urban histories that explain why art looks the way it does, why cities developed as they did, and why the decisions made by medieval and Renaissance rulers still echo in the places we visit. From Roman Florence to the mendicant friars of Edinburgh, the goal is always the same: to understand what actually happened, and why it matters.
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History of Florence, Part 3: Renaissance Florence and the Rise of the Medici
This essay explores Florence during the fifteenth century, when the city became a major centre of humanist learning, artistic innovation,…
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History of Florence, Part 2: High Medieval History
Part 2 turns to Florence’s emergence as a powerful commune and rising commercial centre during the High Middle Ages. It…
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History of Florence, Part 1: Antiquity and Early Middle Ages
This opening essay explores the earliest phases of Florentine history, beginning with the Etruscan and Roman background of the region…
For people who want to understand history, not just know it.
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