Category: History
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The Colossus of Barletta, echoes from the East
An imposing bronze statue seems to stare with icy eyes at the tourists walking along Corso Vittorio Emanuele in Barletta. It is a familiar figure to the locals, who call it Arè, short for Heraclius. Heraclius is about four and a half meters tall, and his appearance testifies to centuries of life, partially mysterious. This…
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What Florence was like in the early centuries
We can locate the first settlement of Florence along the Arno River, where the Etruscans had built a ford at the closest point between the river banks. This was probably a wooden footbridge, which rested on stone piers. The ford stood not far from today’s Ponte Vecchio and connected the city of Vipsul, the ancient…
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The Knights of the Tau Cross in Altopascio
Along the Tuscan stretch of the Via Francigena, the ancient route that led pilgrims from France to Jerusalem, lies the beautiful town of Altopascio. Here, before 1084, stood the Spedale “edificatus in locus et finibus ubi dicitur Teupascio“. Such was in fact the structure used for the sustenance and care of the wayfarers who traveled…
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The Templars: monks and soldiers, pilgrims and knights
The conquest of Jerusalem, at the end of the First Crusade, marked a watershed in the history of Medieval Europe. The city had to be defended and preserved, the holy places of Christianity protected by God’s will. Fighting to pray, this was the spirit that inspired the foundation of the Templars: monks and warriors, pilgrims…