ITALIA OUTDOORS

VICENZA Walking Tour 1

VICENZA Food and Wine

ROCK CLIMBING LUMIGNANO

ROCK CLIMBING IN THE VENETO

BIKING IN THE VENETO

VICENZA

Vicenza lies at the foot of the Berici Hills, at the confluence of the Retrone and the Bacchiglione. Universally acclaimed as "Palladio's town", an artistic gem of a town among the most important in the Veneto, Vicenza is enchanting in the nobility of its architectural forms and the harmony of its proportions. Of early Veneto origin, the town was declared a Roman "Municipium" in the year 49 B.C.; considerable traces of that time can still be seen (the Criptoportico, mosaic floors, bridges, the Lobia aqueduct, the Berga theatre).

Like other town in the Po Valley, Vicenza too underwent a series of invasions at the hands of the Eruli, Ostrogoths, Visigoths and later of the Longobards who chose the town as the headquarters of one of the 36 Duchies.

After the period of temporal power exerted in Vicenza by the count-bishops, the town became a free Commune in 1164; later it fell under the rule of the Da Carrara family of Padua, the La Scala family of Verona and the Visconti family of Milan, until it made the Act of Surrender to Venice (28 April 1404).

It was under the rule of the Serene Republic that Vicenza acquired that unmistakable appearance that was to earn it the name of "mainland Venice". Occupied by the French (1796), it was handed over to the Emperor of Austria under the Treaty of Campoformio (1797). From 1806 to 1813 Vicenza was part of the Italian Kingdom and returned to the Austrians after the fall of Bonaparte.

The people of Vicenza led a victorious uprising against Austrian rule in March 1848, proclaiming the Provisional Government and adhering to the Veneto Republic. The Austrian troops returned with reinforcements and attacked the town at dawn on 10 June 1848; fighting raged especially on Monte Berico for the whole day, but in the evening the townspeople surrendered. For the affairs of 1848 the town Banner was decorated with the gold medal by Victor Emmanuel II (18 November 1866) when the town was united with the Kingdom of Italy.

During the First World War the Headquarters of the First Army was stationed in Vicenza, while the province was the theatre of the "Strafe-Expedition" (punitive expedition) and of epic battles on Monte Grappa, the Pasubio and the Asiago Plateau.

During the second World War, after the terrible air raids, severe damage was done to the old town centre even the dome of the Basilica, the symbol of Vicenza, caught fire and collapsed. In the immediate post-war period the damaged monuments were accurately restored; further restoration work and renovation is again in progress in the old town centre, not only in its monumental buildings but also in the minor works of architecture that compose the true face of Vicenza.

As for art, Vicenza is one of the most important towns in the Veneto and Italy. It was founded in Roman times (Vicetia), you can find notes in history as early as 135 BC. Yet, Vicenza’s distinctive features were shaped by Andrea Palladio. Vicenza is a Palladian town, not only did the city welcome the artist, who was born in Padua, but it offered him the opportunity to receive a vocational training to become the century’s greatest architect.

Throughout the past century’s, Vicenza has conserved its character as an exquisite meeting place for all mankind in accordance to the Renaissance’s ideals of art. In Piazza dei Signori the Basilica Palladian, stands in solitary splendor. Originally and imposing medieval construction that Palladio restructured in the 16 th century, by realizing a double row of columns, a portico and loggia, with the typical Palladian motif: the Serlian window.There are many other buildings designed by the renowned architect. The Loggia del Capitanio, the Palazzo Barbaran da porto and the Palazo Chiericati (which today is the seat of the Municipal Museum). The elegant Loggetta Palladiana in the Salvi Gardens, erected in 1592, welcomes the visitor with the inscription “Hilariati ac genio dicata”, dedicated to laughter and mirth. The unsurpassed Teatro Olimpico designed by Palladio for the Accademia Olimpica, of which he was a member, that was actually later built by Vicenzao Scamozzi.Yet Vicenza has many different faces. The urbanite layout is marked by the towns Roman origins. Its old streets and bridges, its marvelous squares and its enormous artistic heritage emphasize the great cultural value of the city.The town is dominated by a hill not far from the center. On its summit the Basilica of Monte Berico was built in the 17 th century beside the original Gothic church. The surrounding areas of Vicenza deserve a longer sojourn, not only for its lovely countryside but also for its luxurious villas, residences of the Venetian noble families of the 15 th to 18 th century.