In northern and central Italy, travelers are often surprised by the slender towers built in medieval times, many around the 13th century. In cities like San Gimignano, it could, from a distance, look a lot like a modern vertical urban space, as if you’ve seen an out of place and ethereal Manhattan.
The history of medieval towers in Italy
After the attempts of the Franks, the Goths and the Lombards to conquer and unify post-Roman Italy, the collapse of state power and the relative peace of foreign invasion in the 10th to 14th centuries the Italian population doubled and a great expansion from both cities. size and mercantile capitalism.
The communes were associations of men who collectively held public authority and governed and administered their cities; Some elite families could control a city. But in the late 12th century, competitive rivalries between families began to turn deadly, and it became common to build defensive towers as fortresses and lookouts as members of the aristocracy withdrew to the safety of their clans.
The towers were erected as a symbol of the power and influence of a clan, the higher the tower, the more influential a clan was, but they also served as safe havens and observation points for a nervous aristocracy. The popular communes divided the cities into administrative districts, and some of these have remained to this day. You will see this, for example, in Siena, where members of various contradas, Italian districts , race for the Palio.
What to expect
The long period of independence of the Italian cities and regions gives each one a unique character. Traveling in Italy is like digging through a complex layered cake of historical artifacts united by a fierce adherence to local traditions.
The food of Italy, for example, is not Italian, it is regional, as are many of the architectural traditions and festivals. It is a delicious combination that delights the senses at every turn. Bring a fork and a camera.
Medieval towers that you can visit
You will see towers in the Centro Storico of many Italian cities. The city best known for its towers is San Gimignano, where 14 of its original 72 towers survive.
Perhaps the best-known tower you’ll see is the Torre degli Asinelli in Bologna, which extends 97.20 meters into the sky and leans two meters. It shares space in Bologna’s Piazza Maggiore with La Torre della Garisenda at 48.16 meters.
