Tuscany and Umbria Tour in Assisi and Cortona

Cortona: The foundation of the city is characterized by many legends and is lost in the mists of time, but it is agreed that it was founded by the Umbrians, and then conquered by the Etruscans. During Etruscan times (IX-IVth Centuries BC) the city was one of the 12 lucumonies (city states) belonging to the league and then passed under the domain of Rome in 310 BC. During the Roman period the city went through a thriving and prosperous phase, even if it had to powerlessly assist in the massacre which occurred during the Battle of Lake Trasimeno, between the Carthaginian Hannibal and the Roman army. After a period of decline in the high middle age, the city reflourished during the municipal and renaissance period (XII-XVI Century). It was exactly during this time that Cortona was a free municipality with its own currency, and then became a “signoria” ruled by the Casali family, often found either fighting or allied with many of the nearby cities, such as Siena, Arezzo, Perugia and Florence. It is exactly in 1411 that Cortona came under the control of Florence, following its fate until 1861, the year in which it became part of the unification of Italy.

Do not miss! Etruscan Walls, MAEC (Museo dell’Accademia Etrusca), palazzo del Municipio, Via Nazionale (Corso).

Assisi: Of Umbrian origin, the city developed and grew during Roman times, becoming an important economic centre of the region. After dark centuries of high middle age, the city became a free municipality, and it is exactly this period that saw the birth of Saint Francis (1182) and of Saint Chiara. After the municipality autonomy was lost, the city came under the command of several different families, until the XVIth Century, when it became part of the Vatican state, and up to 1861, the year in which it united with the newborn nation of Italy. In 1986, 2002 and 2011, Assisi was the location of three great meetings held by representatives of religions from all over the world.

Do not miss! Saint Francis Basilica, Porziuncola, Saint Chiara Basilica, Piazza del Comune (Town Square).

Saint Francis: Born to a wealthy family in Assisi in 1182, and named Francesco, in honour of France, with whom his father had business dealings. He took part in the war between Assisi and Perugia, where he was captured and imprisoned. On becoming seriously ill, it was his father who paid for his release, and it was at this time, moved by the compassion towards the weak, the ill and the outcast, that his spiritual conversion took place. Stripped of his material belongings, he began a life of complete devotion to others, taking care of the poorest and needy, and preaching the word of God. Very soon other people joined him in ever growing numbers, and this led to the constitution of the Franciscan Order, and then approved by Pope Innocenzo III. He died in Assisi in 1226, and is today the patron saint of Italy. He is unanimously recognized as one of the most important and charismatic figures of humanity in its entirety.