LIVORNO: THE IDEALTOWN OF THE ITALIAN RENIASSANCE
To most outsiders, Livorno is famous for two things: football striker Cristiano Lucarelli and Leghorn chicken. However, Livorno also has a lot of other things to offer a visitor. This port city on the Tyrrhenian Sea on the western edge of Tuscany, Italy is the capital of the province of Livorno and the third-largest port on the western coast of Italy, with a population of over 170,000. Livorno was described as an “ideal town” during the Renaissance, and even today, you can see its history in its canals, fortified town walls, and quaint streets, principally in the Venice district.
The “Leggi Livornine”, laws that came into force between 1590 and 1603, helped trade, provided freedom of religion, and amnesty for certain offences. Thanks to them, Livorno became home to plenty of foreigners, including Hebrews, Armenians, Greeks, the Dutch, and the English. The cosmopolitan nature of the city went a long way toward making it one of the most important ports of the Mediterranean.
Today, Livorno’s Venice district preserves most of its original town planning and architectural features such as bridges, narrow lanes, aristocrats’ residences and a network of canals that linked the port to storehouses. Livorno reached its peak in the 18th and 19th centuries, as neo-classical buildings thronged the city, museums and cultural institutions came up, and rich traders built Liberty villas with sea views. However, during the Napoleonic Wars, trade with England was banned and Livorno’s economy slumped. In 1868, after Livorno officially became part of Italy, its importance as a trading centre decreased.
Thanks to tourism, however, Livorno is once again on the international map, and visitors are invariably impressed with Livorno’s accommodation facilities, places of interest, and hospitality. The Museo Mascagnano, for instance, houses memorabilia, documents and operas by legendary composer Pietro Mascagni. Then there is the Sanctuary of Montenero, dedicated to Our Lady of the Graces, the patron saint of Tuscany. It is famed for its adjacent gallery, decorated with iconic representations telling stories of miraculous rescues at sea.
Also of great interest is the Monumento dei Quattro Mori (Monument of the Four Turks), dedicated to Grand Duke Ferdinando II de Medici. The Piazza della Republica contains a few important monuments, and is also a bridge (the largest in Europe), under which is an old canal. Also do not miss the old fortress, made with red bricks and built to defend the city from pirates at the time of the Medici. It has three bastions named Capitana, Ampolletta and Canaviglia.
So contact us today as you begin planning your Livorno trip. We have the best hotels and deals (www.yourwaytotuscany.com/Livorno.htm) and can guarantee you a memorable stay in Italy’s ideal Renaissance city!
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