1.
Italy
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Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, Italy covers an area of 301,338 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate and Mediterranean climate. Due to its shape, it is referred to in Italy as lo Stivale. With 61 million inhabitants, it is the fourth most populous EU member state, the Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom, which eventually became a republic that conquered and assimilated other nearby civilisations. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the distribution of civilian law, republican governments, Christianity. The Renaissance began in Italy and spread to the rest of Europe, bringing a renewed interest in humanism, science, exploration, Italian culture flourished at this time, producing famous scholars, artists and polymaths such as Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. The weakened sovereigns soon fell victim to conquest by European powers such as France, Spain and Austria. Despite being one of the victors in World War I, Italy entered a period of economic crisis and social turmoil. The subsequent participation in World War II on the Axis side ended in defeat, economic destruction. Today, Italy has the third largest economy in the Eurozone and it has a very high level of human development and is ranked sixth in the world for life expectancy. The country plays a prominent role in regional and global economic, military, cultural and diplomatic affairs, as a reflection of its cultural wealth, Italy is home to 51 World Heritage Sites, the most in the world, and is the fifth most visited country. The assumptions on the etymology of the name Italia are very numerous, according to one of the more common explanations, the term Italia, from Latin, Italia, was borrowed through Greek from the Oscan Víteliú, meaning land of young cattle. The bull was a symbol of the southern Italic tribes and was often depicted goring the Roman wolf as a defiant symbol of free Italy during the Social War. Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus states this account together with the legend that Italy was named after Italus, mentioned also by Aristotle and Thucydides. The name Italia originally applied only to a part of what is now Southern Italy – according to Antiochus of Syracuse, but by his time Oenotria and Italy had become synonymous, and the name also applied to most of Lucania as well. The Greeks gradually came to apply the name Italia to a larger region, excavations throughout Italy revealed a Neanderthal presence dating back to the Palaeolithic period, some 200,000 years ago, modern Humans arrived about 40,000 years ago. Other ancient Italian peoples of undetermined language families but of possible origins include the Rhaetian people and Cammuni. Also the Phoenicians established colonies on the coasts of Sardinia and Sicily, the Roman legacy has deeply influenced the Western civilisation, shaping most of the modern world
2.
Urbino
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The town, nestled on a high sloping hillside, retains much of its picturesque medieval aspect, an illusion only slightly broken by the large car parks below the town. It hosts the University of Urbino, founded in 1506, and is the seat of the Archbishop of Urbino and its best-known architectural piece is the Palazzo Ducale, rebuilt by Luciano Laurana. The city is located in a hilly area, at the foothills of the Northern Apennines. The city is in the area of Montefeltro, an area classified as medium-high seismic risk. In the database of earthquakes developed by the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology and they include 24 April 1741, when the shocks were stronger than VIII on the Mercalli intensity scale, with an epicenter in Fabriano. Though Pepin the Short presented Urbino to the Papacy in 754–56, independent traditions were expressed in its commune, until, around 1200, eventually, though, the Montefeltro noblemen took control once more, and held it until 1508. The most famous member of the Montefeltro family, Federico da Montefeltro, federicos brilliant court, according to the descriptions in Baldassare Castigliones Il Cortegiano, set standards of what would characterize a modern European gentleman for centuries to come. Cesare Borgia dispossessed Guidobaldo da Montefeltro, Duke of Urbino, and Elisabetta Gonzaga in 1502, with the complicity of his father, Pope Alexander VI. They moved in 1523 the court in the city of Pesaro, the state was ruled since then by a papal legate, generally belonging to high ecclesiastical hierarchy. These works went on to form the core of the future Uffizi Gallery, among the works that went to Florence is the diptych of the Dukes of Urbino by Piero della Francesca. Other works of the Ducal Palace were brought to Rome, such as the Barberini Ex Tables of Fra Carnevale, the eighteenth century opened with the election to the papacy of Cardinal Giovan Francesco Albani Urbino, under the name of Clement XI. This was a windfall for the city and was its last great era, especially in terms of arts and culture, thanks to funding by Pope Albani and his family. In addition, due to the patronage of the Pope and of his family and this new age of splendor for the city ended with the death of Clement XI in 1721, placing the city in a long decline that has continued to the present day. After the Popes death, the Albani family remained the patron of the most significant works until the first half of the nineteenth century. In 1789, the collapse of the Cathedral dome following an earthquake led to the total renovation of the church. Between 1797 and 1800 the city was occupied by French troops, like much of northern and this event was a further cause of the impoverished local artistic heritage, already tried by the loss of the works following the devolution of the duchy in the seventeenth century. Sergius, now occupied by the Hotel Raffaello. This resulted in a new layout with the large spit of land below the Doges Palace incorporated into the city
3.
Gubbio
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Gubbio is a town and comune in the far northeastern part of the Italian province of Perugia. It is located on the lowest slope of Mt. Ingino, the citys origins are very ancient. The hills above the town were occupied in the Bronze Age. After the Roman conquest in the 2nd century BC — it kept its name as Iguvium — the city remained important, as attested by its Roman theatre, Gubbio became very powerful in the beginning of the Middle Ages. The following centuries were turbulent, and Gubbio was engaged in wars against the surrounding towns of Umbria. One of these saw the miraculous intervention of its bishop, St. Ubaldo Baldassini, who secured Gubbio an overwhelming victory. In 1350 Giovanni Gabrielli, count of Borgovalle, a member of the most prominent noble family of Gubbio, seized communal power, however his rule was short, and he was forced to hand over the town to Cardinal Albornoz, representing the Church. A few years later, Gabriello Gabrielli, bishop of Gubbio, betrayed by a group of noblemen which included many of his relatives, the bishop was forced to leave the town and seek refuge at his home castle at Cantiano. With the decline of the prestige of the Gabrielli family. Federico da Montefeltro rebuilt the ancient Palazzo Ducale, incorporating in it a studiolo veneered with intarsia like his studiolo at Urbino, the maiolica industry at Gubbio reached its apogee in the first half of the 16th century, with metallic lustre glazes imitating gold and copper. Gubbio became part of the Papal States in 1631, when the family della Rovere, in 1860 Gubbio was incorporated into the Kingdom of Italy along with the rest of the Papal States. The town is located in northern Umbria, near the borders with Marche, the municipality borders wit Cagli, Cantiano, Costacciaro, Fossato di Vico, Gualdo Tadino, Perugia, Pietralunga, Scheggia e Pascelupo, Sigillo, Umbertide and Valfabbrica. The historical centre of Gubbio has a medieval aspect, the town is austere in appearance because of the dark grey stone, narrow streets. Many houses in central Gubbio date to the 14th and 15th centuries and they often have a second door fronting on the street, usually just a few inches from the main entrance. This secondary entrance is narrower, and a foot or so above the street level. This type of door is called a porta dei morti because it was proposed that they were used to remove the bodies of any who might have died inside the house and this is almost certainly false, but there is no agreement as to the purpose of the secondary doors. A more likely theory is that the door was used by the owners to protect themselves when opening to unknown persons, leaving them in a dominating position. Among most visited buildings and sites in the city are, Roman Theater, traces of mosaic decoration have been found
4.
Duchy of Urbino
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The Duchy of Urbino was a sovereign state in central-northern Italy. The first lords of Urbino were the House of Montefeltro, who obtained the title of counts from Emperor Frederick II in 1213, the first Duke was Oddantonio, who received the title from Pope Eugene IV in 1443. In 1523 the capital was moved to Pesaro, History of Urbino Pesaro List of historic states of Italy Holy Roman Empire James Dennistoun. Memoirs of the Dukes of Urbino, Illustrating the Arms, Arts, Volume One, Volume Two, Volume Three History of the popes, their church and state by Leopold von Ranke Franceschini, G. Storia dei conti e duchi dUrbino, ugolini, Filippo, Storia dei conti e duchi dUrbino - volume 2
5.
Della Rovere
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The Della Rovere family is a noble family of Italy. Pope Sixtus IV built the Sistine Chapel, which is named for him, the Basilica San Pietro in Vincoli in Rome is the family church of the della Rovere. Guidobaldo da Montefeltro adopted Francesco Maria I della Rovere, his sisters child, guidobaldo I, who was heirless, called Francesco Maria at his court, and named him as heir of the Duchy of Urbino in 1504, this through the intercession of Julius II. In 1508, Francesco Maria inherited the duchy thereby starting the line of Rovere Dukes of Urbino and that dynasty ended in 1626 when Pope Urban VIII incorporated Urbino into the papal dominions. As compensation to the last sovereign duke, the title only could be continued by Francesco Maria II, vittoria, last descendant of the della Rovere family, married Ferdinando II de Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany. They had two children, Cosimo III, Tuscanys longest reigning monarch, and Francesco Maria de Medici, currently, only a cadet branch of the Lanti Della Rovere is survived, continuing the family traditions. Small caps text indicates the surname of the children of a union, all persons have the surname Della Rovere unless otherwise indicated. Ian Verstegen, Patronage and Dynasty, the Rise of the Della Rovere in Renaissance Italy
6.
Montefeltro
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Montefeltro is a historical-geographic region in the Marche, which was historically part of Romagna. It gave its name to the Montefeltro family, which ruled in the area during the Middle Ages, Montefeltro covers mostly the mountain part of the Province of Pesaro and Urbino and the south-western area of the Province of Rimini. It comprises also two municipalities of the Province of Arezzo, Tuscany, and the Republic of San Marino, the most important town of the region is Novafeltria. Today it is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Marino-Montefeltro, valmarecchia House of Montefeltro Roman Catholic Diocese of San Marino-Montefeltro
7.
Ducal Palace, Urbino
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The Ducal Palace is a Renaissance building in the Italian city of Urbino in the Marche. One of the most important monuments in Italy, it is listed as UNESCO World Heritage Site, the construction of the Ducal Palace was begun for Duke Federico III da Montefeltro around the mid-fifteenth century by the Florentine Maso di Bartolomeo. The new construction included the pre-existing Palace of the Jole, the solid rock hillside salient was impregnable to siege but was problematic for carving out the foundation of a palace. Thus, a prominent fortress-builder, Luciano Laurana, from Dalmatia, was hired to build the substructure, after Laurana, the designer or designers of the Ducal Palace are unknown with certainty. Leading High Renaissance architect Donato Bramante was a native of Urbino, the Ducal Palace is famous as the setting of the conversations which Baldassare Castiglione represents as having taken place in the Hall of Vigils in 1507 in his Book of the Courtier. The palace continued in use as a government building into the 20th century, housing municipal archives and offices, restorations completed in 1985 have reopened the extensive subterranean network to visitors. These learned and explicitly pagan touches were atypical of a medieval palazzo, a central element in this plan is the studiolo, a room measuring just 3.60 x 3. 35m and facing away from the city of Urbino and towards the Dukes rural lands. The benches hold musical instruments, and the shelves contain representations of books and musical scores, scientific instruments, study furnishings, weapons and armor, the studiolo also features iconic representations of several persons, both contemporary and historical. On the intarsia panels are depicted statues of Federico in scholarly attire and of Faith, Hope, downstairs from the studiolo are a twinned pair of chapels, one Christian and one pagan. The Galleria Nazionale delle Marche, housed in the palace, is one of the most important collections of Renaissance art in the world, Luciano Cheles, The Studiolo of Urbino, An Iconographic Investigation Robert Kirkbride, Architecture and Memory. The Renaissance Studioli of Federico da Montefeltro Galleria Nazionale delle Marche - Official website Studiolo
8.
Federico da Montefeltro
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Federico da Montefeltro, also known as Federico III da Montefeltro KG, was one of the most successful condottieri of the Italian Renaissance, and lord of Urbino from 1444 until his death. Federico was born in Castello di Petroia in Gubbio, the son of Guidantonio da Montefeltro, lord of Urbino, Gubbio and Casteldurante. Two years later he was legitimized by Pope Martin V, with the consent of Guidantonios wife, Caterina Colonna, in the aftermath of the Peace of Ferrara in 1433, he lived in Venice and Mantua as a hostage. In 1437 he was knighted by Emperor Sigismund, and in the year he married Gentile Brancaleoni in Gubbio. At sixteen he began a career as condottiero under Niccolò Piccinino, in 1441 he distinguished himself in the conquest of the castle of St. Leo, which Federico was to hold for the rest of his life. After Piccininos resignation, he went to Pesaro to defend it against his enemy in the Marche, Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta. However, the situation of the small dukedom being in disarray. His first condotta was for Francesco I Sforza, with 300 knights, despite Federicos efforts, the Sforza sovereignty in the Marche was dismantled in the following years. When Sforza left for Lombardy, Sigismondo fomented a riot in Fossombrone, after six years in the service of Florence, Federico was hired in 1450 by Sforza, now Duke of Milan. However, he could not perform his duties as he lost his eye during a tournament. He subsequently carried a vast and disfiguring scar for the rest of his life, after the loss of the eye, Federico – no stranger to conspiracies and one of the leaders that inspired Niccolò Machiavelli to write Il Principe – had surgeons remove the bridge of his nose. In 1453 the Neapolitan army was struck by malaria, and Federico himself risked losing his healthy eye, the Peace of Lodi of the following year seemed to deprive him of occasions to exhibit his ability as a military commander. In 1458 the death of both Alfonso and of his illegitimate son, Buonconte, did not help to raise Federicos mood. His fortunes recovered when Pius II, a man of culture like him, became Pope, after some notable exploits in the Kingdom of Naples, he fought in the Marche against Malatesta, soundly defeating him at the Cesano river near Senigallia. The following year he captured Fano and Senigallia, taking Sigismondo Pandolfo prisoner, the Pope made him vicar of the conquered territories. In 1464 the new Pope Paul II called him to back the Anguillara. The following year he captured Cesena and Bertinoro in Romagna, in 1466 Francesco Sforza died, and Federico assisted his young son Galeazzo Sforza in the government of Milan, and also commanded the campaign against Bartolomeo Colleoni. In 1467 he took part in the Battle of Molinella, after defeating the Papal forces in a great battle on 30 August 1469, he ceded it to Sigismondos son, Roberto Malatesta
9.
Piero della Francesca
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Piero della Francesca was an Italian painter of the Early Renaissance. As testified by Giorgio Vasari in his Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, nowadays Piero della Francesca is chiefly appreciated for his art. His painting is characterized by its humanism, its use of geometric forms. His most famous work is the cycle of frescoes The History of the True Cross in the church of San Francesco in the Tuscan town of Arezzo. He was most probably apprenticed to the local painter Antonio di Giovanni dAnghiari, because in documents about payments it is noted that he was working with Antonio in 1432 and May 1438. Besides, he took notice of the work of some of the Sienese artists active in San Sepolcro during his youth. In 1439 Piero received, together with Domenico Veneziano, payments for his work on frescoes for the church of SantEgidio in Florence, in Florence he must have met leading masters like Fra Angelico, Luca della Robbia, Donatello and Brunelleschi. The classicism of Masaccios frescoes and his figures in the Santa Maria del Carmine were for him an important source of inspiration. Dating of Pieros undocumented work is difficult because his style does not seem to have developed over the years, in 1442 he was listed as eligible for the City Council of San Sepolcro. Three years later, he received the commission for the Madonna della Misericordia altarpiece for the church of the Misericordia in Sansepolcro, in 1449 he executed several frescoes in the Castello Estense and the church of SantAndrea of Ferrara, also lost. His influence was strong in the later Ferrarese allegorical works of Cosimo Tura. Two years later he was in Rimini, working for the condottiero Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta, in this sojourn he executed in 1451 the famous fresco of St. Sigismund and Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta in the Tempio Malatestiano, as well as Sigismondos portrait. Thereafter Piero was active in Ancona, Pesaro and Bologna, in 1454 he signed a contract for the Polyptych of Saint Augustine in the church of SantAgostino in Sansepolcro. The central panel of this polyptic is lost and the four panels of the wings, a few years later, summoned by Pope Nicholas V, he moved to Rome, here he executed frescoes in the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, of which only fragments remain. Two years later he was again in the Papal capital, for frescoes in Vatican Palace which have also been destroyed, the Baptism of Christ, in The National Gallery in London, was executed around 1460 for the high altar of the church of the Priory of S. Other notable works of Piero della Francescas maturity are the frescoes of the Resurrection of Christ in Sansepolcro, in 1452, Piero della Francesca was called to Arezzo to replace Bicci di Lorenzo in painting the frescoes of the basilica of San Francesco. The work was finished before 1466, probably between 1452 and 1456, the cycle of frescoes, depicting the Legend of the True Cross, is generally considered among his masterworks and those of Renaissance painting in general. The story in these frescoes derives from medieval sources as to how timber relics of the True Cross came to be found
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Archdiocese of Urbino". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton.
