SIENA CIVITAS

Siena has been selected by Roberto Amati in relation to the real history of european integration, then enlisted in the CITY OR CIVITAS category, accompanied by own fact SHEET useful to the comprehension, completed of historical MAPS AND IMAGES or with a direct linking to the related Blog contents dedicated to the the aeternitas and the future of Europe.

Siena is one of the most ancient cities of the history of European integration, signed in great part by Christianity. It was founded atop of an hill centuries B.C. by the Etruscans Saina tribe, whose name was used by Romans when they annexed it to the Roman Respublica in I century B.C. assigning the name of Colonia Saena inhabited by families of Latin veterans, which received large pieces of the public land (Ager Romanus) to share with the local people. The Civitas Siena was located on the ancient roman Cassia Way starting from Rome and passing through Florence before connecting with the Aurelia Way to reach the port of Genoa. Within the reform of Augustus (see Roman Empire), Siena was included in the Regio VII Etruria of the Italiae province and grew up as crucial important commercial centre of the whole regio controlling the vast hilly landscape. With the reform of Constantine I (see Christian Empire), Siena became part of the imperial Italiae Diocesis and was one of the most populated christian community active with the evangelization of the countryside.

After the Greek-Gothic War and the invasion of the Lombards, Siena was included in the Duchy of Tuscia, until it was conquered by Charlemagne and included into the Italy Regnum and the Mark of Tuscia assigned to the homonimous family. Then it was inherited by the Canossa family until the death of Matilda 'queen of Italy' in 1115 A.D.: at that point Siena became a free republic independent until 1555 A.D., major economic centre and among the most important cities in Europe, main political, economic and artistic rival of its neighboring Comune of Florence, that defeated and annexed Siena thanks to the alliance to to the Roman Church and the emperor Charles V. Since then the city followed the history and destiny of the Duchy of Tuscany. In 1240 A.D. Siena had founded the University 'Studium Senese', one of the oldest universities in Europe and for continuous operation in the world, and began the tradition of 'the Palius' horse riding hold twice a year in Piazza del Campo, the shell-shaped town square with red pavement hosting the Palazzo Pubblico and the Torre del Mangia surrounded by many lords palaces, a scenary famous all over the world together with the medieval cathedral in Romanesque and Gothic style rich of reinassance frescos.

Siena is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center since the XIII century A.D. and still seat of the oldest bank in the world, the Monte dei Paschi bank, which has been operating continuously since 1472 A.D.. Nowadays, Siena is one of the most tourists visited city of the world, thanks to unique architectural monuments and arts manufactured, the rich collections of Medieval and Reinassance pieces of art and the beauty of its cityscape and 'the historic centre of Siena' enlisted in the UNESCO World Heritage, as a medium size city of the Tuscany region within the Italian Republic, whose patron is St. Ansanus a martyr of the Anicia family executed by emperor Diocletian while in Siena was born the famous Saint Catherine.

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