This journey (about 3 km walk) will show you the setting of the quick rise of the family Medici at the time of Cosimo il Vecchio and of the apotheosis of their last descendants, which magnificently culminated in the realization of the Princes' Chapel. At the same time you will get an idea of the prestige that Florence gained between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance by admiring the architectural magnificence of the buildings (both civil and religious) which date back to the time before the Medici Lordship.



As you come out of the Hotel, turn right into Via Nazionale and then left into Piazza Indipendenza. This square was originally called Orti di Barbano (Barbano's Gardens) because of the presence of cultivated land. It was later planned as a square and dedicated to Maria Antonia, Grand Duke Leopoldo's second wife. When Florence and Tuscany rose up in favour of their annexation to the Kingdom of Sardinia (on 27th April 1859), the Florentine people gathered here; the square was then named Piazza dell'Indipendenza .

Turn right now into Via XXVII Aprile (a wide street crossing the square, so named after the day of the famous insurrection) and continue on Via degli Arazzieri: you will reach Piazza San Marco. The square was enriched with gardens and with the statue of General Manfredo Fanti in 1873. The massive shape of the Basilica di San Marco overlooks it. The church was originally a monastery (it was assigned to Dominicans in 1300). Planned in the Gothic style with a late XVI-century façade, it holds several paintings and sculptures and a wonderful Crucifix by Beato Angelico. From the centre of the square you can admire other characteristic buildings: on the corner of Via degli Arazzieri you will note the so-called Casino della Livia a little building with garden which Grand Duke Leopoldo required as a residence for his lover, the dancer Livia Malfatti; opposite it, on the other side of the square, you will see the portico of the old Ospedale di San Matteo It marks the outline of the Galleria dell'Accademia delle Belle Arti, which was created as a meeting place for the members of the Associazione di San Luca in 1330. In 1784 on Pietro Leopoldo's initiative the Accademia moved into the rooms of the old Hospital. By going on Via Cesare Battisti you will reach Piazza S.S. Annunziata, where the Basilica of the same name is situated.

The church keeps a picture of the Virgin felt miraculous. Legend has it that an angel painted the Virgin's face. A small oratory was originally here; it was founded in 1250 by seven Florentine youths belonging to the Compagnia dei Servi di Maria (Mary's Servants). Since it later became a destination for pilgrimage, it was enlarged together with the opposite square and equipped with two side porticoes: the loggia belonging to the fifteenth-century Spedale degli Innocenti , realized by Brunelleschi, and the loggia dei Servi di Maria (XVI century), realized by Baccio d'Agnolo and Antonio da Sangallo il Vecchio . In the last decades of the sixteenth century an exterior portico was added opposite the façade of the Basilica; it was funded by the Pucci's family, whose emblem, the Moor's Head, appears on the floor and on the corner pillars .

The Giambologna's equestrian statue of Ferdinando I, Grand Duke of Tuscany, rises in the centre of the square , Two bronze fountains by Pietro Tacca have been placed sideways realized in 1629, they are considered masterpieces of Manneristic sculpture. The old entrance to the National Archeological Museum in Florence (holding valuable Roman and Etruscan finds) has reopened since November 2006. Via de' Servi links the square with the town centre: on the right hand there is Palazzo Budini Gattai, realized by Bartolomeo Ammannati between 1563 and 1574; on the left hand you can admire a XVIII-century villa. By entering Via de' Servi and turning left into Via degli Alfani you will go past the Opificio delle Pietre Dure (Semiprecious Stones' Factory), founded at the request of Ferdinando I de' Medici for the manufacture of semiprecious-stone ornaments. Actually it is an important school for the restoration of the objects produced in the course of its long history and of similar materials as well. Cross then Via Ricasoli: here is the entrance to the Museum of the Galleria dell'Accademia, well known to everybody for the presence of Michelangelo's David and other important works of art. If you are not going to visit Museum, keep straight on till you get to Via Cavour (once called Via Larga): here is a magnificent building in the Renaissance style, the Palazzo Medici Riccardi.

It was ordered by Cosimo il Vecchio when the economic growth of Florence and the importance the Medici were gaining in its political life made it necessary for them to come up to the city. Inside you can admire the Cappella dei Magi, where Benozzo Gozzoli represented the features of the members of the family in his frescoes. Continue on Via de' Martelli as far as Piazza Duomo. Here, in the heart of the city, you can admire the most important religious monuments in medieval and XV-century Florence: the Basilica Santa Maria del Fiore (the Duomo), Giotto's Belfry and the Baptistry. The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore was planned by Arnolfo di Cambio (1296) and built on the foundations of the old Church Santa Reparata. Work went on 160 years: Giotto and later Francesco Talenti carried on with Di Cambio's work. The façace was left unfinished until 1867, when the architect De Fabris was asked to cover it with valuable marbles. The inside of the Basilica consists of three aisles and holds several XV-century works, such as Domenico di Michelino's famous fresco Dante holding his Divine Comedy and illuminating Florence, which offers an interesting picture of the medieval view of cosmos, and the portraits of the mercenary leaders Giovanni Acuto (by Paolo Uccello) and Niccolò da Tolentino (by Andrea del Castagno). The second span leads to the remains of the old Church Santa Reparata, which were discovered below ground during the excavation works in 1996. By going up 463 steps you will reach the balcony and later, through the small entrance at the end of the right aisle, the basis of the lantern in the immense dome. You will see Giorgio Vasari's and Federico Zuccari's magnificent frescoes representing the Last Judgment (recently restored) close up.

Giotto's Belfry , square in shape and covered with polychrome marbles, was begun in 1334. Giotto only completed its base; on his death Andrea Pisano carried on with his work and modified the original plan by introducing some niches holding big statues. In 1350 Francesco Talenti took over Pisano's work: he lightened the belfry by means of mullioned windows and completed it in 1359. You can reach its top through 414 steps. The Baptistry was realized on a Roman-time building. In the Middle Ages it was considered an old temple dedicated to Mars; it was converted into a church before the construction of the old Cathedral Santa Reparata. Dante and other eminent personalities were baptized here. The Baptistery is famous for its doors (1425-1452): the east one in particular is considered Lorenzo Ghiberti's masterpiece and has been called the Paradise Door because of its beauty .

It is a bronze door coated with gold leaf and composed of ten tiles representing scenes from the Old Testament (the original ones are kept in the Duomo's Museo dell'Opera). By continuing on Piazza Duomo you will go past the building which puts up the Confraternita della Misericordia (Brotherhood of Mercy); you will also note the Palazzo dei Canonici, which dates back to the first half of XIX century, when a widening of the square was carried out. The building shows two niches with statues representing the architects of the Duomo: Arnolfo di Cambio and Filippo Brunelleschi by Luigi Pampaloni. Turn left now and start following Via del Proconsolo, so named after the head of the Guild of judges and notaries (and of all Guilds later, both major and minor), who had his residence here. At number 10 you can admire the magnificent Palazzo Pazzi, later named Quarantesi, attributed to Giuliano da Maiano (1458-1469), and at number 12 the Palazzo Non Finito (Unfinished Building), required by Alessandro Strozzi and begun in 1593, but never completed. Actually it holds the National Museum of Anthropology and Ethnology and keeps a wealth of documentation about people's customs all over the world. Other historical buildings look onto Via del Proconsolo: on the right hand the Badia Fiorentina, built in 980 and completely restored and enlarged by Arnolfo di Cambio in 1285. In 1333 the old round belfry was replaced with a hexagonal one. The inside is full of works of art, such as Filippino Lippi's Our Lady appearing before Saint Bernard. The massive shape of the Bargello rises almost opposite it This last is the oldest municipal building in Florence and symbolizes power and law. The "Capitano del Popolo" had his residence here; the same building acted as a prison and a place for executions. Nowadays it holds the National Museum of Bargello keeping Michelangelo's, Donatello's and other sculptors' works.

Just past the junction of Via del Proconsolo and Via della Vigna Vecchia there is Piazza San Firenze, where a flight of steps precedes the Church San Filippo Neri (with a magnificent paneled ceiling) and the XVII-century Palazzo di San Firenze holding the Tribunal. Turn right into Via della Condotta and continue on Via dei Magazzini and Via Dante Alighieri. The house at number 1 is built on the place where they presume Dante was born; it actually holds a Museum keeping documentation about XIII-century Florence and some editions of the Divine Comedy. By continuing on Via Santa Margherita you will note the small church of the same name (one of the oldest ones in Florence), where Beatrice Portinari went for prayer. Continue on Via del Corso and turn left and then right into Via Santa Elisabetta. Enter the small square with the same name: you will see an original round tower built between VI and VII century and called Torre della Pagliazza It once acted as a prison for women who, unlike men, had a straw bed at their disposal. As you leave the square, enter Via delle Oche and turn right into Via dei Calzaiuoli. You will be facing the XIV-century Torre degli Adimari .

By continuing on Via dei Calzaiuoli to the right you will return Piazza del Duomo. On the corner you will note the XIV-century Palazzetto del Bigallo: it was built to put up the Compagnia della Misericordia, but was later used by the Compagnia del Bigallo, a charitable institution founded in 1244 by Saint Peter the Martyr. In its loggia lost and abandoned children were once shown for identification. Continue towards Piazza San Giovanni (next to Piazza Duomo) and enter Borgo San Lorenzo: you will reach Piazza San Lorenzo. The Basilica di San Lorenzo is the most important church in Florence after the Duomo. Consecrated by Saint Ambrosius in 393, it was the main cathedral in Florence up to VIII century. Since 1418 the wealthiest families in the district undertook to rebuild it with the significant contribution of Cosimo il Vecchio's father and of Cosimo himself, who entrusted Filippo Brunelleschi with the task of its reconstruction. After Brunelleschi died, Antonio Manetti il Giovane carried on with his work and partly modified the original plan. The façade was however left unfinished and the later plans (among which the one worked out by Michelangelo) were never realized. The church became the mausoleum of the members of the family Medici, who are buried in the Sacrestia Vecchia, realized by Brunelleschi, and the Sacrestia Nuova, planned by Michelangelo. Inside the Basilica you can admire the Chiostri and the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, realized by Michelangelo and characterized by a triple flight of stone steps at the entrance and by a rich collection of illustrated codexes. In the streets adjacent to the church you will find the stalls of the local weekly Market where you can buy articles of clothing, bags and souvenirs at a good price. By continuing on the neighboring Via Canto de' Nelli you will reach Piazza Madonna degli Aldobrandini and the apsidal side of the church holding the Princes' Chapel.

The building is surmounted by a dome which recalls the one in Santa Maria del Fiore. It was conceived by Cosimo I de' Medici as a celebration of his own dynasty (after the defeat of Siena and the establishment of the Grand Dukedom of Tuscany) and was realized by Cosimo's son Ferdinando I, who entrusted the architect Rigetti with the task of planning this imposing work in the baroque style. The inside walls were covered with valuable marbles and semiprecious stones by the Opificio delle Pietre Dure, which was founded on this occasion (1558). From Piazza Madonna degli Aldobrandini turn into Via Faenza, cross the junction to Via Nazionale and keep straight on till you get to your Hotel.