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Tuscany

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition | Date: 2008

Tuscany , Ital. Toscana, region (1991 pop. 3,538,619), 8,876 sq mi (22,989 sq km), N central Italy, bordering on the Tyrrhenian Sea in the west and including the Tuscan Archipelago. Florence is the capital of the region, which is divided into the provinces of Arezzo, Florence, Grosseto, Livorno, Lucca, Massa-Carrara, Pisa, Pistoia, and Siena (named for their principal cities).

In the late Middle Ages and throughout the Renaissance, Tuscany was a center of the arts and of learning. The Tuscan spoken language became the literary language of Italy after Dante Alighieri, Petrarch, and Boccaccio used it. Notable schools of architecture, sculpture, and painting developed from the 11th cent. in many cities, particularly Florence, Pisa, Siena, and Arezzo. From the 16th cent., however, intellectual and artistic life was almost wholly concentrated in Florence. There are universities at Florence, Pisa, and Siena.

Physical Geography and Economy

This prosperous economic region is mostly hilly and mountainous. There is much fertile soil, especially in the Arno River valley and in the Maremma , a coastal strip. The Apennines are in northern and eastern Tuscany; in the northwest are the Alpi Apuane, where the famous Carrara marble is quarried; and there are also mountains in the south, where iron, magnesium, and quicksilver are produced. In addition, borax is produced in the Maremma, and iron is mined on Elba island. Along the northern coast, which is low and sandy, are fine pine woods. Farm products of the region include cereals, olives, tobacco, and grapes; sheep, goats, and hogs are widely raised. The wine produced in the Chianti district near Siena is world famous.

Tuscany has considerable industry, although farming is still an important chief occupation. Manufactures include cotton and woolen textiles, metal products, chemicals, machinery, motor vehicles, precision instruments, glass, refined petroleum, and fertilizer. The region is also well-known for its artisans, especially those in Florence, and tourism is an important industry.

History

Modern Tuscany corresponds to the larger part of ancient Etruria , and most of our knowledge of Etruscan civilization is derived from findings there. The Romans conquered the region in the mid-4th cent. BC After the fall of Rome, it was a Lombard duchy (6th-8th cent. AD), with Lucca as its capital, and later a powerful march under the Franks (8th-12th cent.). Matilda (d.1115), the last Frankish ruler, bequeathed her lands to the papacy, an act which long caused strife between popes and emperors.

In spite of the dual claims, most cities became (11th-12th cent.) free communes; some of them (Pisa, Lucca, Siena, and Florence) developed into strong republics. Commerce, industry, and the arts flourished. Guelph (pro-papal) and Ghibelline (pro-imperial) strife, however, was particularly violent in Tuscany, and there were strong rivalries both within and among cities. After a period of Pisan hegemony (12th-13th cent.), Florence gained control over most Tuscan cities in the 14th-15th cent.; Siena (1559) was the last city to fall under Florence's influence.

Under the Medici , the ruling family of Florence, Tuscany became (1569) a grand duchy, and thus again a political entity; only the republic of Lucca and the duchy of Massa and Carrara remained independent. After the extinction of the Medici line, Tuscany passed (1737) to ex-duke Francis of Lorraine (later Holy Roman Emperor Francis I ), who was succeeded by Grand Duke Leopold I (1765-90; later Emperor Leopold II ) and then by Ferdinand III (1790-1801; 1814-24). The French Revolutionary armies invaded Tuscany in 1799, and it was briefly included in the kingdom of Etruria (1801-7) and was ruled under the duchy of Parma, before it was annexed to France by Napoleon I.

In 1814, Tuscany again became a grand duchy, under the returning Ferdinand III and then under Leopold II (1824-59) and briefly under Ferdinand IV (1859-60). In 1848, Leopold was forced to grant a constitution, and in 1849 he had to leave Tuscany briefly when it was for a short time a republic. However, in 1852 he was able, with the help of Austria, to rescind the constitution. In 1860, Tuscany voted to unite with the kingdom of Sardinia .

Author not available, TUSCANY., The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition 2008

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Copyright 2008 Columbia University Press