Ferrara is a city and
comuneIn Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
in
Emilia-RomagnaEmilia–Romagna is an administrative region of Northern Italy comprising the two historic regions of Emilia and Romagna. The capital is Bologna; it has an area of and about 4.4 million inhabitants....
, northern Italy, capital city of the
Province of FerraraThe Province of Ferrara is a province in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Ferrara.It has an area of 2,632 km², about two thirds of the area of the U.S. State of Rhode Island, and a total population of about 350,000 . There are 26 comuni in the province , see...
. It is situated 50 km north-northeast of
BolognaBologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream of the
Po RiverThe Po |Ligurian]]: Bodincus or Bodencus) is a river that flows either or – considering the length of the Maira, a right bank tributary – eastward across northern Italy, from a spring seeping from a stony hillside at Pian del Re, a flat place at the head of the Val Po under the northwest face...
, located 5 km north. The town has broad streets and numerous palaces dating from the 14th century and 15th century, when it hosted the court of the House of Este. For its beauty and cultural importance it has been qualified by
UNESCOThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
as
World Heritage SiteA UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
.
Modern times have brought a renewal of industrial activity. Ferrara is on the main rail line from
BolognaBologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
to
PaduaPadua is a city and comune in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 . The city is sometimes included, with Venice and Treviso, in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, having...
and
VeniceVenice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, and has branches to
RavennaRavenna is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy and the second largest comune in Italy by land area, although, at , it is little more than half the size of the largest comune, Rome...
,
Poggio RuscoPoggio Rusco is a small town and comune in the Province of Mantua, whose inhabitants number 6,459 as of March 31, 2006. It is 42 km away from provincial capital....
(for
SuzzaraSuzzara is a comune in the Province of Mantua in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 130 km southeast of Milan and about 20 km south of Mantua...
) and
CodigoroCodigoro is a comune in the Province of Ferrara in the Italian region Emilia-Romagna, located about 70 km northeast of Bologna and about 40 km east of Ferrara.-Main sights:*Abbey of Pomposa...
.
In 2006, due to its important historical significance, Ferrara became the headquarters of the Italian
Hermitage MuseumThe State Hermitage is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia. One of the largest and oldest museums of the world, it was founded in 1764 by Catherine the Great and has been opened to the public since 1852. Its collections, of which only a small part is on permanent display,...
. It is the fifth city in the world to have been linked with the Russian museum. From this union was born the
HermitageThe State Hermitage is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia. One of the largest and oldest museums of the world, it was founded in 1764 by Catherine the Great and has been opened to the public since 1852. Its collections, of which only a small part is on permanent display,...
-Italy Foundation.
Middle Ages
The origin of Ferrara is uncertain, it was probably settled by the inhabitants of the
lagoonA lagoon is a body of shallow sea water or brackish water separated from the sea by some form of barrier. The EU's habitat directive defines lagoons as "expanses of shallow coastal salt water, of varying salinity or water volume, wholly or partially separated from the sea by sand banks or shingle,...
s at the mouth of
Po riverThe Po |Ligurian]]: Bodincus or Bodencus) is a river that flows either or – considering the length of the Maira, a right bank tributary – eastward across northern Italy, from a spring seeping from a stony hillside at Pian del Re, a flat place at the head of the Val Po under the northwest face...
; there are two early centers of settlement, one round the cathedral, the other, the
castrum bizantino, being the San Pietro district, on the opposite shore, where the Primaro empties into the Volano channel. Ferrara appears first in a document of the
LombardThe Lombards , also referred to as Longobards, were a Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin, who from 568 to 774 ruled a Kingdom in Italy...
king
DesideriusDesiderius was the last king of the Lombard Kingdom of northern Italy...
of 753 AD, as a city forming part of the
ExarchateThe Exarchate of Ravenna or of Italy was a centre of Byzantine power in Italy, from the end of the 6th century to 751, when the last exarch was put to death by the Lombards.-Introduction:...
of
RavennaRavenna is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy and the second largest comune in Italy by land area, although, at , it is little more than half the size of the largest comune, Rome...
. Desiderius pledged a Lombard
ducatus ferrariae ("Duchy of Ferrara") in 757 to Pope Stephen II. After 984 it was a
fiefFeudalism was a set of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries, which, broadly defined, was a system for ordering society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.Although derived from the...
of Tedaldo,
countA count or countess is an aristocratic nobleman in European countries. The word count came into English from the French comte, itself from Latin comes—in its accusative comitem—meaning "companion", and later "companion of the emperor, delegate of the emperor". The adjective form of the word is...
of
ModenaModena is a city and comune on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy....
and
CanossaCanossa is a comune and castle town in Emilia-Romagna, famous as the site where Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV did penance in 1077, standing three days bare-headed in the snow, in order to reverse his excommunication by Pope Gregory VII...
, nephew of the emperor
Otto IOtto I the Great , son of Henry I the Fowler and Matilda of Ringelheim, was Duke of Saxony, King of Germany, King of Italy, and "the first of the Germans to be called the emperor of Italy" according to Arnulf of Milan...
. It afterwards made itself independent, and in 1101 was taken by siege by the countess Matilda. At this time it was mainly dominated by several great families, among them the prominent Adelardi (or Aleardi) family.
In 1146, Guglielmo II of Adelardi, the last of the House of Adelardi, died, and his property passed, as the
dowryA dowry is the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings forth to the marriage. It contrasts with bride price, which is paid to the bride's parents, and dower, which is property settled on the bride herself by the groom at the time of marriage. The same culture may simultaneously practice both...
of his niece
the Marchesella, to Obizzo I of Este. There was considerable hostility between the newly entered family and the prominent Salinguerra family, but after considerable struggles Azzo VII of Este was nominated perpetual
podestàPodestà is the name given to certain high officials in many Italian cities, since the later Middle Ages, mainly as Chief magistrate of a city state , but also as a local administrator, the representative of the Emperor.The term derives from the Latin word potestas, meaning power...
in 1242; in 1259 he took Ezzelino of Verona prisoner in battle. His grandson,
Obizzo IIObizzo II d'Este was Marquis of Ferrara and the March of Ancona.-Biography:He was a bastard, the fruit of an illegitimate relation of Rinaldo I d'Este - the only son and heir of the Margrave Azzo VII d'Este - with a Neapolitan laundress...
(1264–1293), succeeded him, and he was made perpetual lord of the city by the population. The House of Este was from henceforth settled in Ferrara. In 1289 he was also chosen as lord of
ModenaModena is a city and comune on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy....
, one year later he was made lord of
ReggioReggio Emilia is an affluent city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has about 170,000 inhabitants and is the main comune of the Province of Reggio Emilia....
.
Niccolò IIINiccolò III d'Este was Marquess of Ferrara from 1393 until his death. He was also a condottiero.-Biography:...
(1393–1441) received several
popeThe Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
s with great magnificence, especially
Eugene IVPope Eugene IV , born Gabriele Condulmer, was pope from March 3, 1431, to his death.-Biography:He was born in Venice to a rich merchant family, a Correr on his mother's side. Condulmer entered the Order of Saint Augustine at the monastery of St. George in his native city...
, who held a council here in 1438. His son
Borsothumb|Borso d'Este, attributed to [[Vicino da Ferrara]], [[Pinacoteca]] of the [[Castello Sforzesco|Sforza Castle]] in [[Milan]], [[Italy]].Borso d'Este was the first Duke of Ferrara, which he ruled from 1450 until his death...
received the title of duke for the imperial fiefs of Modena and Reggio from Emperor
Frederick IIIFrederick the Peaceful KG was Duke of Austria as Frederick V from 1424, the successor of Albert II as German King as Frederick IV from 1440, and Holy Roman Emperor as Frederick III from 1452...
in 1452 (in which year
Girolamo SavonarolaGirolamo Savonarola was an Italian Dominican friar, Scholastic, and an influential contributor to the politics of Florence from 1494 until his execution in 1498. He was known for his book burning, destruction of what he considered immoral art, and what he thought the Renaissance—which began in his...
was born here), and in 1471 was made
duke of Ferrara by
Pope Paul IIPope Paul II , born Pietro Barbo, was pope from 1464 until his death in 1471.- Early life :He was born in Venice, and was a nephew of Pope Eugene IV , through his mother. His adoption of the spiritual career, after having been trained as a merchant, was prompted by his uncle's election as pope...
. Ercole I (1471–1505) carried on a war with
VeniceVenice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
and increased the magnificence of the city.
Renaissance
During the reign of
Ercole d'Este IErcole I d'Este was Duke of Ferrara from 1471 until 1505. He was a member of the house of Este. He was nicknamed North Wind and the Diamond.-Biography:...
, one of the most significant patrons of the arts in late 15th and early 16th century Italy after the
MediciThe House of Medici or Famiglia de' Medici was a political dynasty, banking family and later royal house that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici in the Republic of Florence during the late 14th century. The family originated in the Mugello region of the Tuscan countryside,...
, Ferrara grew into a cultural center, renowned for music as well as for visual arts. The painters established links with Flemish artists and their techniques, exchanging influences in the colors and composition choices. Composers came to Ferrara from many parts of Europe, especially France and
FlandersFlanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
;
Josquin Des PrezJosquin des Prez [Josquin Lebloitte dit Desprez] , often referred to simply as Josquin, was a Franco-Flemish composer of the Renaissance...
worked for Duke Ercole for a time (producing the
Missa Hercules dux Ferrariæ, which he wrote for him);
Jacob ObrechtJacob Obrecht was a Flemish composer of the Renaissance. He was the most famous composer of masses in Europe in the late 15th century, being eclipsed by only Josquin des Prez after his death.-Life:...
came to Ferrara twice (and died during an outbreak of
plagueThe Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. Of several competing theories, the dominant explanation for the Black Death is the plague theory, which attributes the outbreak to the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Thought to have...
there in 1505); and
Antoine BrumelAntoine Brumel was a French composer. He was one of the first renowned French members of the Franco-Flemish school of the Renaissance, and, after Josquin des Prez, was one of the most influential composers of his generation....
served as principal musician from 1505.
Alfonso IAlfonso d'Este was Duke of Ferrara during the time of the War of the League of Cambrai.-Biography:He was the son of Ercole I d'Este and Leonora of Naples....
, son of Ercole, was also an important patron; his preference for instrumental music resulted in Ferrara becoming an important center of composition for the
luteLute can refer generally to any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back, or more specifically to an instrument from the family of European lutes....
. The architecture of Ferrara benefitted from the genius of
Biagio RossettiBiagio Rossetti was an Italian architect and urbanist from Ferrara. A military engineer since 1483, and the ducal architect of Ercole I d'Este, in 1492 Rossetti was assigned the project of enlarging the city of Ferrara....
, who was asked in 1484 by Ercole I to redesign the plan of the city. The resulting "Addizione Erculea" is one of the most important and beautiful examples of renaissance city planning and contributed to the selection of Ferrara as
UNESCOThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
World Heritage SiteA UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
.
Alfonso married the notorious
Lucrezia BorgiaLucrezia Borgia [luˈkrɛtsia ˈbɔrʤa] was the illegitimate daughter of Rodrigo Borgia, the powerful Renaissance Valencian who later became Pope Alexander VI, and Vannozza dei Cattanei. Her brothers included Cesare Borgia, Giovanni Borgia, and Gioffre Borgia...
, and continued the war with Venice with success. In 1509 he was
excommunicatedExcommunication is a religious censure used to deprive, suspend or limit membership in a religious community. The word means putting [someone] out of communion. In some religions, excommunication includes spiritual condemnation of the member or group...
by
Pope Julius IIPope Julius II , nicknamed "The Fearsome Pope" and "The Warrior Pope" , born Giuliano della Rovere, was Pope from 1503 to 1513...
, and he overcame the pontifical army in 1512 defending
RavennaRavenna is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy and the second largest comune in Italy by land area, although, at , it is little more than half the size of the largest comune, Rome...
. Lucrezia, together with other members of the Este house, is buried in the convent of Corpus Domini.
Gaston de Foix fell in the battle, in which he was supporting Alfonso. With the succeeding popes he was able to make peace. He was the patron of Ariosto from 1518 onwards. His son
Ercole IIErcole II d'Este was Duke of Ferrara, Modena and Reggio from 1534 to 1559. He was a member of the house of Este and the eldest son of Alfonso I d'Este and Lucrezia Borgia....
married
Renée of FranceRenée de France was the younger daughter of Louis XII of France and Anne, Duchess of Brittany. Her elder sister was Queen Claude of France. She was the Duchess of Ferrara due to her marriage to Ercole II d'Este, grandson of Pope Alexander VI...
, daughter of
Louis XII of FranceLouis proved to be a popular king. At the end of his reign the crown deficit was no greater than it had been when he succeeded Charles VIII in 1498, despite several expensive military campaigns in Italy. His fiscal reforms of 1504 and 1508 tightened and improved procedures for the collection of taxes...
; he too embellished Ferrara during his reign (1534–1559).
His son Alfonso II married Lucrezia, daughter of grand-duke Cosimo I of Tuscany, then Barbara, sister of the emperor
Maximilian IIMaximilian II was king of Bohemia and king of the Romans from 1562, king of Hungary and Croatia from 1563, emperor of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation from 1564 until his death...
and finally
Margherita GonzagaMargherita Gonzaga d'Este, Duchess of Ferrara was an Italian noblewoman, the daughter of William I, Duke of Mantua and Eleonora of Austria, and the sister of Vincent I, Duke of Mantua and Anna Caterina Gonzaga. She was the wife of Alfonso II d'Este, Duke of Ferrara and Modena, whom she married...
, daughter of the
duke of MantuaThe Duchy of Mantua was a duchy in Lombardy, Northern Italy, subject to the Holy Roman Empire.-History:After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, Mantua was invaded by Byzantines, Longobards and Franks. In the 11th century it became a possession of Boniface of Canossa, marquis of Toscana...
. He raised the glory of Ferrara to its highest point, and was the patron of
TassoTorquato Tasso was an Italian poet of the 16th century, best known for his poem La Gerusalemme liberata , in which he depicts a highly imaginative version of the combats between Christians and Muslims at the end of the First Crusade, during the siege of Jerusalem...
,
GuariniGiovanni Battista Guarini was an Italian poet, dramatist, and diplomat.- Life :He was born in Ferrara, and spent his early life both in Padua and Ferrara, entering the service of Alfonso II d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, in 1567...
, and
CremoniniCesare Cremonini, sometimes Cesare Cremonino , was an Italian professor of natural philosophy, working rationalism and Aristotelian materialism inside scholasticism...
– favouring, as the princes of his house had always done, the arts and sciences. During the reign of Alfonso II, Ferrara once again developed an opulent court with an impressive musical establishment, rivaled in Italy only by the adjacent city of Venice, and the traditional musical centers such as Rome,
FlorenceFlorence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
and
MilanMilan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
. Composers such as
Luzzasco LuzzaschiLuzzasco Luzzaschi was an Italian composer, organist, and teacher of the late Renaissance. He was born and died in Ferrara, and despite evidence of travels to Rome it is assumed that Luzzaschi spent the majority of his life in his native city.As a pupil of Cipriano de Rore, Luzzaschi developed...
,
Lodovico AgostiniLodovico Agostini was an Italian composer, singer, priest, and scholar of the late Renaissance. He was a close associate of the Ferrara Estense court, and one of the most skilled representatives of the progressive secular style which developed there at the end of the 16th century.- Life :He was...
, and later
Carlo GesualdoCarlo Gesualdo, known as Gesualdo di Venosa or Gesualdo da Venosa , Prince of Venosa and Count of Conza, was an Italian nobleman, lutenist, composer, and murderer....
, represented the
avant-gardeAvant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
tendency of the composers there, writing for gifted virtuoso performers, including the famous
concerto di donne — the three virtuoso female singers
Laura PeveraraLaura Peverara or Peperara was an Italian virtuoso singer who was also a harpist and dancer; born and raised in Mantua. Her father, Vincenzo, was a merchant, an intellectual who tutored princes, leading to Laura being brought up in courtly society...
,
Anna GuariniAnna Guarini, Contessa Trotti, was an Italian virtuoso singer of the late Renaissance. She was one of the most renowned singers of the age, and was one of the four concerto di donne at the Ferrara court of the d'Este family, for whom many composers wrote in a progressive style.- Life and murder...
, and
Livia d'ArcoLivia d'Arco was an Italian singer in the court of Alfonso II d'Este in Ferrara. She was sent there with the household of Margherita Gonzaga d'Este at the time of Margherita's marriage to Alfonso in 1579, and was a young woman at the time, around fifteen...
.
Vincenzo GalileiVincenzo Galilei was an Italian lutenist, composer, and music theorist, and the father of the famous astronomer and physicist Galileo Galilei and of the lute virtuoso and composer Michelagnolo Galilei...
praised the work of Luzzaschi, and
Girolamo FrescobaldiGirolamo Frescobaldi was a musician from Ferrara, one of the most important composers of keyboard music in the late Renaissance and early Baroque periods. A child prodigy, Frescobaldi studied under Luzzasco Luzzaschi in Ferrara, but was influenced by a large number of composers, including Ascanio...
studied with him.
The city was much affected by the
1570 Ferrara earthquakeThe 1570 Ferrara earthquake was a major earthquake that struck the Italian city of Ferrara on November 16 and 17, 1570. After the initial shocks, an earthquake swarm continued for four years, with over 2000 aftershocks concentrated from November 1570 to February 1571.The disaster destroyed half the...
.
Alfonso had no legitimate male heir, and in 1597 Ferrara was claimed as a vacant fief by
Pope Clement VIIIPope Clement VIII , born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was Pope from 30 January 1592 to 3 March 1605.-Cardinal:...
, as was also
ComacchioComacchio is a town and comune of Emilia Romagna, Italy, in the province of Ferrara, 48 km from the provincial capital Ferrara.-Geography:...
.
Modern history
Ferrara remained a part of the
Papal StatesThe Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
from 1598 to 1859, when it became part of the Kingdom of Italy. A fortress was constructed by
Pope Paul V-Theology:Paul met with Galileo Galilei in 1616 after Cardinal Bellarmine had, on his orders, warned Galileo not to hold or defend the heliocentric ideas of Copernicus. Whether there was also an order not to teach those ideas in any way has been a matter for controversy...
on the site of the castle called "Castel Tedaldo", at the south-west angle of the town, that was occupied by an Austrian garrison from 1832 until 1859. All of the fortress was dismantled following the birth of the Kingdom of Italy and the bricks used for new constructions all over the town.
On August 23, 1944, the
Ferrara synthetic rubber plantThe Allied Oil Campaign of World War II was directed at facilities supplying Nazi Germany with petroleum, oil, and lubrication products...
was a target of
Strategic bombing during World War IIStrategic bombing during World War II is a term which refers to all aerial bombardment of a strategic nature between 1939 and 1945 involving any nations engaged in World War II...
.
Main sights
The town is still surrounded by more than 9 kilometres of ancient walls, mainly built in the 15th and 16th centuries. Together with those of
LuccaLucca is a city and comune in Tuscany, central Italy, situated on the river Serchio in a fertile plainnear the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Lucca...
, they are the best preserved Renaissance walls in Italy.
The most iconic building of the town is the imponent
Castello EstenseThe Castle Estense or Castle of Saint Michele is a moated medieval structure in the center of Ferrara, northern Italy. It is a large block with four corner towers.- History :...
: sited in the very centre of the town, it's a brick building surrounded by a
moatA moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that surrounds a castle, other building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive water defences, including natural or artificial lakes, dams and sluices...
, with four massive bastions. It was built starting in 1385 and partly restored in 1554; the pavilions on the top of the towers date from the latter year.
The ancient City Hall, renovated in the 18th century, was the earlier residence of the Este family. Close by it is the former Cathedral of Saint George, begun in 1135, when the
RomanesqueRomanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
lower part of the main
façadeA facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
and the side façades were completed. According to a now lost inscription the church was built in 1135 by Guglielmo I of Adelardi (d. 1146), who is buried in it. The sculpture of the main portal is the signed work of the "artifex" Nicholaus, mentioned in the lost inscription as the "architect" for the church. The upper part of the main façade, with arcades of pointed arches, dates from the 13th century, while the lower part of the protiro or projecting porch and the main portal are by Nicholaus. The recumbent lions guarding the entrance are replacements of the originals, now in the narthex of the church. The elaborate reflief sculptures depicting Last Judgement gracing the second story of the porch above date from the thirteenth century. The interior was restored in the
baroqueThe Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
style in 1712. The
campanileCampanile is an Italian word meaning "bell tower" . The term applies to bell towers which are either part of a larger building or free-standing, although in American English, the latter meaning has become prevalent.The most famous campanile is probably the Leaning Tower of Pisa...
, in the
RenaissanceThe Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
style, dates from 1451–1493, but the last storey was added at the end of the 16th century.
A little way off is the
universityThe University of Ferrara is the main university of the city of Ferrara in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. In the years prior to the First World War the University of Ferrara, with more than 500 students, was the best attended of the free universities in Italy...
, which has faculties of
lawLaw is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
,
architectureArchitecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
,
pharmacyPharmacy is the health profession that links the health sciences with the chemical sciences and it is charged with ensuring the safe and effective use of pharmaceutical drugs...
,
medicineMedicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
and
natural scienceThe natural sciences are branches of science that seek to elucidate the rules that govern the natural world by using empirical and scientific methods...
; the
libraryIn a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
has valuable
manuscriptA manuscript or handwrite is written information that has been manually created by someone or some people, such as a hand-written letter, as opposed to being printed or reproduced some other way...
s, including part of that of the
Orlando furiosoOrlando Furioso is an Italian epic poem by Ludovico Ariosto which has exerted a wide influence on later culture. The earliest version appeared in 1516, although the poem was not published in its complete form until 1532...
and letters by
TassoTorquato Tasso was an Italian poet of the 16th century, best known for his poem La Gerusalemme liberata , in which he depicts a highly imaginative version of the combats between Christians and Muslims at the end of the First Crusade, during the siege of Jerusalem...
. Its famous graduates include
Nicolaus CopernicusNicolaus Copernicus was a Renaissance astronomer and the first person to formulate a comprehensive heliocentric cosmology which displaced the Earth from the center of the universe....
(1503) and
ParacelsusParacelsus was a German-Swiss Renaissance physician, botanist, alchemist, astrologer, and general occultist....
. Near the main university facilities it raises the University of Ferrara Botanic Garden.
Ferrara has many early
RenaissanceThe Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
palaces, often retaining
terracotta decorations; few towns of Italy as small have so many, though most are comparatively small in size. Among them may be noted those in the north quarter (especially the four at the intersection of its two main streets), which was added by Ercole I in 1492–1505, from the plans of
Biagio RossettiBiagio Rossetti was an Italian architect and urbanist from Ferrara. A military engineer since 1483, and the ducal architect of Ercole I d'Este, in 1492 Rossetti was assigned the project of enlarging the city of Ferrara....
, and hence called the
Addizione Erculea.
Among the finest palaces is
Palazzo dei DiamantiPalazzo dei Diamanti is a palace located on Corso Ercole I d'Este 21 in Ferrara, northern Italy. It is one of the most famous palaces in Italy, as well one of the most influential examples of European Renaissance architecture.-History:...
(
Diamond Palace), named after the
diamondIn mineralogy, diamond is an allotrope of carbon, where the carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of the face-centered cubic crystal structure called a diamond lattice. Diamond is less stable than graphite, but the conversion rate from diamond to graphite is negligible at ambient conditions...
points into which the façade's stone blocks are cut. The
palazzo houses the National Picture Gallery, with a large collection of the school of Ferrara, which first rose to prominence in the latter half of the 15th century, with
Cosimo TuraCosimo Tura , also known as Il Cosmè or Cosmè Tura, was an Italian early-Renaissance painter and considered one of the founders of the School of Ferrara....
, Francesco Cossa and Ercole dei Roberti. Noted masters of the 16th century
School of Ferrara (Painting)The School of Ferrara was a group of painters which flourished in the Duchy of Ferrara during the Renaissance. Ferrara was ruled by the Este family, well known for its patronage of the arts. Patronage was extended with the ascent of Ercole d'Este I in 1470, and the family continued in power till...
include
Lorenzo CostaLorenzo Costa was an Italian painter of the Renaissance.-Biography:He was born at Ferrara, but moved to Bologna by the his early twenties, and would be more influential to the Bolognese school of painting. However, many artists worked in both nearby cities, and thus others consider him a product...
and
Dosso DossiDosso Dossi , real name Giovanni di Niccolò de Luteri, was an Italian Renaissance painter who belonged to the Ferrara School of Painting.-Biography:Dossi was born in San Giovanni del Dosso a village in the province of Mantua...
, the most eminent of all,
Girolamo da CarpiGirolamo Da Carpi was an Italian painter and decorator who worked at the Court of the House of Este in Ferrara. He began painting in Ferrara, by report apprenticing to Benvenuto Tisi ; but by age 20, he had moved to Bologna, and is considered a figure of Early Renaissance painting of the local...
and Benvenuto Tisi (il Garofalo).
The Casa Romei is the best preserved Renaissance building in Ferrara. It was the residence of Giovanni Romei, related to Este family by marriage to Polissena d'Este and likely the work of the court architect Pietro Bono Brasavola. It did not fall into decay because it was inherited by the nuns of the Corpus Domini order who lived there without making any changes to its structure. Much of the decoration in the inner rooms has been saved. There are fresco cycles in the Sala delle Sibille (Room of Sibyls), with its original
terracotta fireplace bearing the coat of arms of Giovanni Romei, in the adjoining Saletta dei Profeti (Room of the Prophets), depicting allegories from the Bible and in other rooms, some of which were commissioned by cardinal
Ippolito d'EsteIppolito d'Este was an Italian Roman Catholic cardinal, and Archbishop of Esztergom. He was a member of the House of Este.-Biography:...
and painted by the school of Camillo and Cesare Filippi (16th century).
The
Palazzo SchifanoiaPalazzo Schifanoia is a Renaissance palace in Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna built for the Este family. The name "Schifanoia" is thought to originate from "schivar la noia" meaning literally to "escape from boredom" which describes accurately the original intention of the palazzo and the other villas...
(
sans souci) was built in 1385 for Alberto V d'Este. The
palazzo includes frescoes depicting the life of
Borso d'Estethumb|Borso d'Este, attributed to [[Vicino da Ferrara]], [[Pinacoteca]] of the [[Castello Sforzesco|Sforza Castle]] in [[Milan]], [[Italy]].Borso d'Este was the first Duke of Ferrara, which he ruled from 1450 until his death...
, the signs of the
zodiacIn astronomy, the zodiac is a circle of twelve 30° divisions of celestial longitude which are centred upon the ecliptic: the apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year...
and
allegoricalAllegory is a demonstrative form of representation explaining meaning other than the words that are spoken. Allegory communicates its message by means of symbolic figures, actions or symbolic representation...
representations of the months. The
vestibuleA vestibule is a lobby, entrance hall, or passage between the entrance and the interior of a building.The same term can apply to structures in modern or ancient roman architecture. In modern architecture vestibule typically refers to a small room or hall between an entrance and the interior of...
was decorated with
stuccoStucco or render is a material made of an aggregate, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as decorative coating for walls and ceilings and as a sculptural and artistic material in architecture...
mouldings by Domenico di Paris. The building also contains fine choir-books with miniatures and a collection of coins and Renaissance medals.
The City Historical Archives contain a relevant amount of historical documents, starting from 15th century. The
Diocesan Historical Archive is more ancient, mentioned in documents in A.D. 955, and contains precious documents collected across the centuries by the clergy.
The Corpus Domini Monastery contains tombs of the House of Este, including
Alfonso IAlfonso d'Este was Duke of Ferrara during the time of the War of the League of Cambrai.-Biography:He was the son of Ercole I d'Este and Leonora of Naples....
,
Alfonso IIAlfonso II d'Este was duke of Ferrara from 1559 to 1597. He was a member of the house of Este.-Biography:...
,
Ercole IErcole I d'Este was Duke of Ferrara from 1471 until 1505. He was a member of the house of Este. He was nicknamed North Wind and the Diamond.-Biography:...
,
Ercole IIErcole II d'Este was Duke of Ferrara, Modena and Reggio from 1534 to 1559. He was a member of the house of Este and the eldest son of Alfonso I d'Este and Lucrezia Borgia....
, as well as
Lucrezia BorgiaLucrezia Borgia [luˈkrɛtsia ˈbɔrʤa] was the illegitimate daughter of Rodrigo Borgia, the powerful Renaissance Valencian who later became Pope Alexander VI, and Vannozza dei Cattanei. Her brothers included Cesare Borgia, Giovanni Borgia, and Gioffre Borgia...
,
Eleanor of AragonEleanor of Aragon was a daughter of King Peter IV of Aragon and his wife Eleanor of Sicily. She was a member of the House of Aragon and Queen consort of Castile by her marriage.-Family:...
, and many more.
The
Ferrara SynagogueThe Ferrara Synagogue is a synagogue located in Ferrara, Italy.The synagogue is the sole surviving synagogue is the only surviving representative of the several synagogues that once flourished in Ferrara. It is located in the historic Jewish community building of 1421 at 95 via Mazzini, which once...
and Jewish Museum are located in the heart of the mediæval centre, close to the cathedral and the Castello Estense. This street was part of the
Jewish QuarterIn the Jewish Diaspora, a Jewish quarter is the area of a city traditionally inhabited by Jews. Jewish quarters, like the Jewish ghettos in Europe, were often the outgrowths of segregated ghettos instituted by the surrounding Christian authorities. A Yiddish term for a Jewish quarter or...
in which the Jews were separated from the rest of the population of Ferrara from 1627 to 1859.
Other sites include:
- Piazza Ariostea
- The Communal Theatre
- The Certosa
- The church of Santa Maria in Vado
- The church of St. Luca
- The church of St. Benedict
- The church of St. Charles
- The church of St. Cristopher
- The church of St. Dominic
- The church of St. Francis
- The church of St. George
- The church of St. Paul
- The church of St. Roman
- The house of the poet Ludovico Ariosto
Ludovico Ariosto was an Italian poet. He is best known as the author of the romance epic Orlando Furioso . The poem, a continuation of Matteo Maria Boiardo's Orlando Innamorato, describes the adventures of Charlemagne, Orlando, and the Franks as they battle against the Saracens with diversions...
, erected by him after 1526 and in which he died in 1532.
- The Massari gardens
- The monastery of Sant'Antionio in Polesine
- The Palace of Ludovico il Moro
- The Palazzina di Marfisa d'Este
Demographics
In 2007, there were 133,591 people residing in Ferrara, of whom 46.8% were male and 53.2% were female. Minors (children ages 18 and younger) totalled 12.28 percent of the population compared to pensioners who number 26.41%. This compares with the Italian average of 18.06% (minors) and 19.94% (pensioners). The average age of Ferrara residents is 49 compared to the Italian average of 42. In the five years between 2002 and 2007, the population of Ferrara grew by 2.28%, while Italy as a whole grew by 3.85%. The current birth rate of Ferrara is 7.02 births per 1,000 inhabitants compared to the Italian average of 9.45 births. Ferrara is known as being the oldest city with a population over 100,000, as well the city with lowest birth rate.
As of 2006, 95.59% of the population was
ItalianThe Italian people are an ethnic group that share a common Italian culture, ancestry and speak the Italian language as a mother tongue. Within Italy, Italians are defined by citizenship, regardless of ancestry or country of residence , and are distinguished from people...
. The largest immigrant group was other European nations (mostly from the
UkraineUkraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, and
AlbaniaAlbania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
: 2.59%) North Africa: 0.51%, and
East AsiaEast Asia or Eastern Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either geographical or cultural terms...
: 0.39%. The city is predominantly Roman Catholic, with small Orthodox Christian adherents. The historical Jewish community is still surviving.
Jewish community
The Jewish community of Ferrara is the only one in Emilia Romagna with a continuous presence from the Middle Ages to the present day. It played an important role when Ferrara enjoyed its greatest splendor in the 15th and 16th century, with the duke Ercole I d'Este. The situation of the Jews deteriorated in 1598, when the Este dynasty moved to Modena and the city came under papal control. The Jewish settlement, located in three streets forming a triangle near the cathedral, became a
ghettoA ghetto is a section of a city predominantly occupied by a group who live there, especially because of social, economic, or legal issues.The term was originally used in Venice to describe the area where Jews were compelled to live. The term now refers to an overcrowded urban area often associated...
in 1627. Apart from a few years under Napoleon and during the 1848 revolution, the ghetto lasted until
Italian unificationItalian unification was the political and social movement that agglomerated different states of the Italian peninsula into the single state of Italy in the 19th century...
in 1859. After racial laws of 1938 segregation was reintroduced and lasted until the end of the Nazi occupation.
In 1799, the Jewish community saved the city from sacking by troops of the
Holy Roman EmpireThe Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
. During the spring of 1799, the city had fallen into the hands of the Republic of France, which established a small garrison there. On 15 April, Lieutenant Field Marshal
Johann von KlenauJohann von Klenau , also called Johann Josef Cajetan von Klenau und Janowitz, the son of a Bohemian noble, was a field marshal in the Habsburg army...
approached the fortress with a modest mixed force of Austrian cavalry, artillery and infantry augmented by Italian peasant rebels, commanded by Count Antonio Bardaniand and demanded its capitulation. The commander refused. Klenau blockaded the city, leaving a small group of artillery and troops to continue the siege. For the next three days, Klenau patrolled the countryside, capturing the surrounding strategic points of Lagoscuro,
BorgoforteBorgoforte is a comune in the Province of Mantua in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 130 km southeast of Milan and about 14 km southwest of Mantua....
and the
MirandolaMirandola is a city and comune of Emilia-Romagna, Italy, in the Province of Modena, 31 km northeast of the provincial capital by railway.- History :Mirandola originated as a Renaissance city-fortress...
fortress. The besieged garrison made several sorties from the Saint Paul's Gate, which were repulsed by the insurgent peasants. The French attempted two rescues of the beleaguered fortress: the first, on 24 April, when a force of 400 Modenese was repulsed at Mirandola. In the second, General
MontrichardMontrichard is a town and commune in the Loir-et-Cher département, in France.-Geography:The town lies on the north bank of the Cher river. south of Blois, west of Vierzon and east of Tours...
tried to raise the city-blockade by advancing with a force of 4,000. Finally, at the end of the month, a column led by
Pierre-Augustin HulinPierre-Augustin Hulin was a French general under Napoleon Bonaparte who took part in the storming of the Bastille, the trial of the Duke d'Enghien, and the foiling of the Malet coup.- Early life :...
reached and relieved the fortress.
Klenau took possession of the town on 21 May, and garrisoned it with a light battalion. The Jewish residents of Ferrara paid 30,000
ducatThe ducat is a gold coin that was used as a trade coin throughout Europe before World War I. Its weight is 3.4909 grams of .986 gold, which is 0.1107 troy ounce, actual gold weight...
s to prevent the pillage of the city by Klenau's forces; this was used to pay the wages of Gardani's troops. Although Klenau held the town, the French still possessed the town's fortress. After making the standard request for surrender at 0800, which was refused, Klenau ordered a barrage from his mortars and howitzers. After two
magazinesMagazine is the name for an item or place within which ammunition is stored. It is taken from the Arabic word "makahazin" meaning "warehouse".-Ammunition storage areas:...
caught fire, the commandant was summoned again to surrender; there was some delay, but a flag of truce was sent at 2100, and the capitulation was concluded at 0100 the next day. Upon taking possession of the fortress, Klenau found 75 new artillery pieces, plus ammunition and six months worth of provisions.
Literature
The Renaissance literary men and poets
Torquato TassoTorquato Tasso was an Italian poet of the 16th century, best known for his poem La Gerusalemme liberata , in which he depicts a highly imaginative version of the combats between Christians and Muslims at the end of the First Crusade, during the siege of Jerusalem...
(author of
Jerusalem DeliveredJerusalem Delivered is an epic poem by the Italian poet Torquato Tasso first published in 1581, which tells a largely mythified version of the First Crusade in which Catholic knights, led by Godfrey of Bouillon, battle Muslims in order to take Jerusalem...
),
Ludovico AriostoLudovico Ariosto was an Italian poet. He is best known as the author of the romance epic Orlando Furioso . The poem, a continuation of Matteo Maria Boiardo's Orlando Innamorato, describes the adventures of Charlemagne, Orlando, and the Franks as they battle against the Saracens with diversions...
(author of the romantic epic poem
Orlando FuriosoOrlando Furioso is an Italian epic poem by Ludovico Ariosto which has exerted a wide influence on later culture. The earliest version appeared in 1516, although the poem was not published in its complete form until 1532...
) and
Matteo Maria BoiardoMatteo Maria Boiardo was an Italian Renaissance poet.Boiardo was born at, or near, Scandiano ; the son of Giovanni di Feltrino and Lucia Strozzi, he was of noble lineage, ranking as Count of Scandiano, with seignorial power over Arceto, Casalgrande, Gesso, and Torricella...
(author of the grandiose poem of chivalry and romance
Orlando InnamoratoOrlando Innamorato is an epic poem written by the Italian Renaissance author Matteo Maria Boiardo. The poem is a romance concerning the heroic knight Orlando .-Composition and publication:...
), lived and worked at the court of Ferrara during the 14th and 15th century.
The
Ferrara BibleThe Ferrara Bible was a 1553 publication of the Ladino version of the Tanach used by Sephardi Jews. It was paid for and made by Yom-Tob ben Levi Athias and Abraham ben Salomon Usque , and was dedicated to Ercole II d'Este, Duke of Ferrara...
was a 1553 publication of the Ladino version of the Tanach used by
Sephardi JewsSephardi Jews is a general term referring to the descendants of the Jews who lived in the Iberian Peninsula before their expulsion in the Spanish Inquisition. It can also refer to those who use a Sephardic style of liturgy or would otherwise define themselves in terms of the Jewish customs and...
. It was paid for and made by Yom-Tob ben Levi Athias (the
SpanishSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
MarranoMarranos were Jews living in the Iberian peninsula who converted to Christianity rather than be expelled but continued to observe rabbinic Judaism in secret...
Jerónimo de Vargas, as typographer) and
Abraham ben Salomon UsqueAbraham ben Salomon Usque was a 16th century publisher. Usque was born in Portugal to a Jewish family and fled the Portuguese Inquisition for Ferrara, Italy, around 1543....
(the
PortuguesePortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
Jew
Duarte Pinhel, as translator), and was dedicated to
Ercole II d'EsteErcole II d'Este was Duke of Ferrara, Modena and Reggio from 1534 to 1559. He was a member of the house of Este and the eldest son of Alfonso I d'Este and Lucrezia Borgia....
. In the 20th century Ferrara was the home and workplace of writer
Giorgio BassaniGiorgio Bassani was an Italian novelist, poet, essayist, editor, and international intellectual.-Biography:Bassani was born in Bologna into a prosperous Jewish family of Ferrara, where he spent his childhood with his mother Dora, father Enrico , brother Paolo, and sister Jenny...
, well known for his novels that were often adapted for cinema (
The Garden of the Finzi-ContinisThe Garden of the Finzi-Continis is a historical novel by Giorgio Bassani, published in 1962. It chronicles the relationships between the narrator and the children of the Finzi-Contini family from the rise of Benito Mussolini until the start of World War II.-Background:The Garden of the...
,
Long Night in 1943Long Night in 1943, The Long Night of '43 or It Happened in '43 is an Italian film of 1960 set during the Allied invasion of Italy in 1943 during the Second World War. It was directed by Florestano Vancini and adapted by Vancini, Ennio De Concini and Pier Paolo Pasolini from a novel by Giorgio...
). In historical fiction, British author Sarah Dunant set her 2009 novel
Sacred Hearts in a convent in Ferrara.
Painting
During the Renaissance, the House of Este, well known for its partonage of the arts, wellcame a great number of artists, especially painters, that formed the so-called
School of FerraraThe School of Ferrara was a group of painters which flourished in the Duchy of Ferrara during the Renaissance. Ferrara was ruled by the Este family, well known for its patronage of the arts. Patronage was extended with the ascent of Ercole d'Este I in 1470, and the family continued in power till...
. The astounding list of painters and artists includes the names of
Andrea MantegnaAndrea Mantegna was an Italian painter, a student of Roman archeology, and son in law of Jacopo Bellini. Like other artists of the time, Mantegna experimented with perspective, e.g., by lowering the horizon in order to create a sense of greater monumentality...
,
Vicino da FerraraVicino da Ferrara was an Italian painter of the 15th-16th century.-Gallery:...
,
Giovanni BelliniGiovanni Bellini was an Italian Renaissance painter, probably the best known of the Bellini family of Venetian painters. His father was Jacopo Bellini, his brother was Gentile Bellini, and his brother-in-law was Andrea Mantegna. He is considered to have revolutionized Venetian painting, moving it...
, Leon Battista Alberti,
PisanelloPisanello , known professionally as Antonio di Puccio Pisano or Antonio di Puccio da Cereto, also erroneously called Vittore Pisano by Giorgio Vasari, was one of the most distinguished painters of the early Italian Renaissance and Quattrocento...
,
Piero della FrancescaPiero della Francesca was a painter of the Early Renaissance. As testified by Giorgio Vasari in his Lives of the Artists, to contemporaries he was also known as a mathematician and geometer. Nowadays Piero della Francesca is chiefly appreciated for his art. His painting was characterized by its...
,
Battista DossiBattista Dossi , also known as Battista de Luteri, was an Italian painter who belonged to the Ferrara School of Painting. He spent nearly his entire career in service of the Court of Ferrara, where he worked with his older brother Dosso Dossi . It is believed that Battista worked in the Rome...
,
Dosso DossiDosso Dossi , real name Giovanni di Niccolò de Luteri, was an Italian Renaissance painter who belonged to the Ferrara School of Painting.-Biography:Dossi was born in San Giovanni del Dosso a village in the province of Mantua...
, Cosmé Tura,
Francesco del CossaFrancesco del Cossa was an Italian early-Renaissance painter of the School of Ferrara.-Biography:...
and
Titian Tiziano Vecelli or Tiziano Vecellio Tiziano Vecelli or Tiziano Vecellio Tiziano Vecelli or Tiziano Vecellio (c. 1488/1490 – 27 August 1576 better known as Titian was an Italian painter, the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, near...
. During the 19th and 20th centuries, Ferrara hosted and inspired a number of important painters who grew fond of its eerie atmosphere: among them
Giovanni BoldiniGiovanni Boldini was an Italian genre and portrait painter. According to , he was known as the "Master of Swish" because of his flowing style of painting.-Early life:...
,
Filippo de PisisFilippo De Pisis was an Italian painter.-Biography:Filippo de Pisis was an Italian painter-poet who was born Luigi Filippo Tibertelli in Ferrara....
and
Giorgio de ChiricoGiorgio de Chirico was a pre-Surrealist and then Surrealist Italian painter born in Volos, Greece, to a Genovese mother and a Sicilian father. He founded the scuola metafisica art movement...
.
Religion
Ferrara gave birth to
Girolamo SavonarolaGirolamo Savonarola was an Italian Dominican friar, Scholastic, and an influential contributor to the politics of Florence from 1494 until his execution in 1498. He was known for his book burning, destruction of what he considered immoral art, and what he thought the Renaissance—which began in his...
, the famous medieval
DominicanThe Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
priest and leader of
FlorenceFlorence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
from 1494 until his execution in 1498. He was known for his
book burningBook burning, biblioclasm or libricide is the practice of destroying, often ceremoniously, books or other written material and media. In modern times, other forms of media, such as phonograph records, video tapes, and CDs have also been ceremoniously burned, torched, or shredded...
, destruction of what he considered immoral art, and hostility to the
RenaissanceThe Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
. He vehemently preached against the moral corruption of much of the clergy at the time, and his main opponent was
Pope Alexander VIPope Alexander VI , born Roderic Llançol i Borja was Pope from 1492 until his death on 18 August 1503. He is one of the most controversial of the Renaissance popes, and his Italianized surname—Borgia—became a byword for the debased standards of the Papacy of that era, most notoriously the Banquet...
(Rodrigo Borgia).
Music
The Ferrarese musician
Girolamo FrescobaldiGirolamo Frescobaldi was a musician from Ferrara, one of the most important composers of keyboard music in the late Renaissance and early Baroque periods. A child prodigy, Frescobaldi studied under Luzzasco Luzzaschi in Ferrara, but was influenced by a large number of composers, including Ascanio...
was one of the most important
composerA composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
s of
keyboardA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
music in the late
Renaissance Renaissance music is European music written during the Renaissance. Defining the beginning of the musical era is difficult, given that its defining characteristics were adopted only gradually; musicologists have placed its beginnings from as early as 1300 to as late as the 1470s.Literally meaning...
and early
BaroqueBaroque music describes a style of Western Classical music approximately extending from 1600 to 1760. This era follows the Renaissance and was followed in turn by the Classical era...
periods. His masterpiece
Fiori musicaliFiori musicali is a collection of liturgical organ music by Girolamo Frescobaldi, first published in 1635. It contains three organ masses and two secular capriccios. Generally acknowledged as one of Frescobaldi's best works, Fiori musicali influenced composers during at least two centuries...
(
Musical Flowers) is a collection of
liturgicalLiturgy is either the customary public worship done by a specific religious group, according to its particular traditions or a more precise term that distinguishes between those religious groups who believe their ritual requires the "people" to do the "work" of responding to the priest, and those...
organThe pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
music first published in 1635. It became the most famous of Frescobaldi's works and was studied centuries after his death by numerous composers, including
Johann Sebastian BachJohann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
Cinema
Ferrara is the birthplace and childhood home of the well-known Italian
film directorA film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
,
Michelangelo AntonioniMichelangelo Antonioni, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI was an Italian modernist film director, screenwriter, editor and short story writer.- Personal life :...
. The town of Ferrara was also the setting of the famous film
The Garden of the Finzi-ContinisThe Garden of the Finzi-Continis is a 1970 Italian film, directed by Vittorio de Sica. It stars Lino Capolicchio, Dominique Sanda and Helmut Berger. The film is based upon Giorgio Bassani's novel of the same name.-Plot:...
by
Vittorio De SicaVittorio De Sica was an Italian director and actor, a leading figure in the neorealist movement....
in (1970), that tells the vicissitudes of a rich Jewish family during the dictatorship of
Benito MussoliniBenito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
and
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Furthermore,
Wim WendersErnst Wilhelm "Wim" Wenders is a German film director, playwright, author, photographer and producer.-Early life:Wenders was born in Düsseldorf. He graduated from high school in Oberhausen in the Ruhr area. He then studied medicine and philosophy in Freiburg and Düsseldorf...
and
Michelangelo AntonioniMichelangelo Antonioni, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI was an Italian modernist film director, screenwriter, editor and short story writer.- Personal life :...
's
Beyond the CloudsBeyond the Clouds is a 1995 Italian-French-German film directed by Michelangelo Antonioni and Wim Wenders.- Plot :Four stories of love and illusion are told from the perspective of a wandering film director. In the first story, two beautiful young lovers are unable to consummate their passion...
in (1995) and
Ermanno OlmiErmanno Olmi is a renowned Italian film director.-Biography:Olmi was born in Bergamo, Lombardy. He is married to Loredana Detto, who played Antonietta Masetti in Il Posto....
's
The Profession of Arms in (2001), a film about the last days of
Giovanni dalle Bande NereLodovico de Medici also known as Giovanni dalle Bande Nere was an Italian condottiero.-Biography:Giovanni was born in the Northern Italian town of Forlì to Giovanni de' Medici and Caterina Sforza, one of the most famous women of the Italian Renaissance.From an early age, he demonstrated great...
, were also shot in Ferrara.
Festivals
The
PalioThe oldest extant palio is the Palio di Asti, but the Palio di Siena is better known internationally. There are many other palios that are held throughout the various regions of Italy. Here follows an incomplete list:-Tuscany:...
of St. George is a typical medieval festival held every last Sunday of May. The
BuskersStreet performance or busking is the practice of performing in public places, for gratuities, which are generally in the form of money and edibles...
Festival is a non-competitive parade of the best street musicians in the world. In terms of tradition and dimension it is the most important festival in the world of this kind. Additionally, Ferrara is becoming the Italian capital of hot air balloons, thanks to the ten-day-long
Ferrara Balloons FestivalFerrara Balloons Festival is a yearly hot air balloon festival that takes place in Ferrara, Italy and is considered to be one of the largest festivals of hot air ballooning in Europe, with numerous teams from Italy and other parts of the world bringing their traditional or uniquely shaped...
, the biggest celebration of balloons in Italy and one of the largest in Europe.
Sport
Ferrara's local football team,
Società Polisportiva Ars Et Labor 1907SPAL 1907 is an Italian football club, based in Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna. The club was founded in 1907 as Società Polisportiva Ars et Labor and was refounded in 2005....
is going to play in
Lega Pro Prima Divisione (former
Serie C1Lega Pro Prima Divisione is the name of the third highest football league in Italy. It consists of 36 teams, divided geographically into two divisions of 18 teams each. Until 2008 it was known as Serie C1....
), which is the third highest football league in Italy. The local basketball team,
Carife FerraraBasket Club Ferrara is an Italian professional basketball team from the town of Ferrara. The club was established in 1999. For past club sponsorship names, see the list below.-History:...
, have been doing considerably better; they won the 2007-08 title in the second-level
LegADueLegadue or Lega2 is the second-highest division of professional club basketball in Italy since 2001-2002 season...
, thereby earning promotion to
Serie ALega Basket Serie A is the highest level club competition in Italian professional basketball where play determines the national champion. The season consists of a home-and-away schedule of 30 games, followed by an eight-team playoff round. Quarterfinals and semifinals series are best-of-five, and...
. The city is hosting the
Ferrara MarathonThe Ferrara Marathon is an annual marathon competition hosted by the city of Ferrara, Italy. The inaugural year was 1979. The race was held in nearby Vigarano Mainarda for 1999 and earlier.-Past winners:Key:-References:...
since 1979.
Culinary tradition
The cooking tradition of the town is characterized by many typical dishes that can be traced back to the
Middle AgesThe Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
and reveals in some instances the influence of the important Jewish community. The signature first course are cappellacci di zucca, a kind of
ravioliRavioli are a traditional type of Italian filled pasta. They are composed of a filling sealed between two layers of thin egg pasta dough and are served either in broth or with a pasta sauce. The word ravioli is reminiscent of the Italian verb riavvolgere , though the two words are not...
with a filling of
butternut squashButternut squash , also known in Australia and New Zealand as butternut pumpkin, is a type of winter squash. It has a sweet, nutty taste similar to that of a pumpkin. It has yellow skin and orange fleshy pulp. When ripe, it turns increasingly deep orange, and becomes sweeter and richer. It grows on...
, Parmigiano-Reggiano and flavored with
nutmegThe nutmeg tree is any of several species of trees in genus Myristica. The most important commercial species is Myristica fragrans, an evergreen tree indigenous to the Banda Islands in the Moluccas of Indonesia...
. They are served with a sauce of
butterButter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...
and sage. The traditional
ChristmasChristmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
first dish are cappelletti, meat-filled ravioli served in chicken broth or with a white sauce made from
creamCream is a dairy product that is composed of the higher-butterfat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, over time, the lighter fat rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream this process is accelerated by using centrifuges called "separators"...
and, optionally, local
truffleA truffle is the fruiting body of an underground mushroom; spore dispersal is accomplished through fungivores, animals that eat fungi. Almost all truffles are ectomycorrhizal and are therefore usually found in close association with trees....
. A peculiar first dish is the pasticcio di maccheroni, a domed
macaroniMacaroni is a variety of moderately extended, machine-made, dry pasta made with durum wheat. Macaroni noodles do not contain eggs, and are normally cut in short, hollow shapes; however, the term refers not to the shape of the pasta, but to the kind of dough from which the noodle is made...
pie, consisting of a crust of sweet dough enclosing macaroni in a
Béchamel sauceBéchamel sauce , also known as white sauce, is one of the mother sauces of French cuisine and is used in many recipes of Italian cuisine, for example lasagne. It is used as the base for other sauces . It is traditionally made by whisking scalded milk gradually into a white roux...
, studded with porcini mushrooms and ragù bolognese. The second course that is a must of the Christmas table is the Salama da sugo, a one-year old dry
salamiSalami is cured sausage, fermented and air-dried meat, originating from one of a variety of animals. Historically, salami has been popular among Southern European peasants because it can be stored at room temperature for periods of up to 10 years, supplementing a possibly meager or inconsistent...
made from a special selection of pork meat, spices and red wine. Seafood is an important part of the town tradition, due to the vicinity to the sea and grilled or stewed
eelEels are an order of fish, which consists of four suborders, 20 families, 111 genera and approximately 800 species. Most eels are predators...
from the river Po delta is especially appreciated. In the Ferrara's pantry you can also find a kosher salami, made of goose meat stuffed in goose neck skin. The Christmas traditional dessert is a chocolat pie, the pampepato, and the
zuppa ingleseZuppa Inglese is an Italian custard-based dessert.-History:Recipes for this sweet first appeared in the towns of Parma, Bologna, Forlì, Ferrara and Reggio Emilia, all in the Emilia-Romagna region, in the late 19th century...
. The
clayClay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...
terroirTerroir comes from the word terre "land". It was originally a French term in wine, coffee and tea used to denote the special characteristics that the geography, geology and climate of a certain place bestowed upon particular varieties...
of the area, an
alluvial plainAn alluvial plain is a relatively flat landform created by the deposition of sediment over a long period of time by one or more rivers coming from highland regions, from which alluvial soil forms...
created by the river Po, is not ideal for wine, Notable exception are the Vini del Bosco Eliceo (
DOCDenominazione di origine controllata is a quality assurance label for food products, especially wines and various formaggi . It is modelled after the French AOC...
), made from grapes cultivated on the sandy coast line. The typical bread, called coppia ferrarese, has been awarded the IGP (
Protected Geographical StatusProtected Geographical Status is a legal framework defined in European Union law to protect the names of regional foods. Protected Designation of Origin , Protected Geographical Indication and Traditional Speciality Guaranteed are distinct regimes of geographical indications within the framework...
) label .
Transport
Ferrara railway stationFerrara railway station is the main station serving the city and comune of Ferrara, in the region of Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy. Opened in 1862, it forms part of the Padua–Bologna railway, and is also a terminus of three secondary railways, linking Modena with Ravenna and Rimini, Suzzara, and...
, opened in 1862, forms part of the Padua–Bologna railway. It is also a terminus of three secondary railways, linking Modena with Ravenna and Rimini, Suzzara, and Codigoro, respectively. The station is located at Piazzale della Stazione, at the northwestern edge of the city centre.
Twin towns — Sister cities
Ferrara is
twinnedTwin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with:
Highland ParkHighland Park is a suburban municipality in Lake County, Illinois, United States, about north of downtown Chicago. As of 2009, the population is 33,492. Highland Park is one of several municipalities located on the North Shore of the Chicago Metropolitan Area.-Overview:Highland Park was founded...
, United States KaufbeurenKaufbeuren is an independent city in the Regierungsbezirk of Schwaben, southern Bavaria. The city is completely enclaved within the district of Ostallgäu.- Culture and Objects of Interest :* Townhall * Crescentiakloster...
, Germany Koper, Slovenia KrasnodarKrasnodar is a city in Southern Russia, located on the Kuban River about northeast of the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk. It is the administrative center of Krasnodar Krai . Population: -Name:...
, Russia |
LleidaLleida is a city in the west of Catalonia, Spain. It is the capital city of the province of Lleida, as well as the largest city in the province and it had 137,387 inhabitants , including the contiguous municipalities of Raimat and Sucs. The metro area has about 250,000 inhabitants...
, Spain Saint-ÉtienneSaint-Étienne is a city in eastern central France. It is located in the Massif Central, southwest of Lyon in the Rhône-Alpes region, along the trunk road that connects Toulouse with Lyon...
, France SarajevoSarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
, Bosnia and Herzegovina, since 1964 SwanseaSwansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
, WalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
|
SzombathelySzombathely is the 10th largest city in Hungary. It is the administrative centre of Vas county in the west of the country, located near the border with Austria...
, Hungary KaunasKaunas is the second-largest city in Lithuania and has historically been a leading centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the biggest city and the center of a powiat in Trakai Voivodeship of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since 1413. During Russian Empire occupation...
, Lithuania TartuTartu is the second largest city of Estonia. In contrast to Estonia's political and financial capital Tallinn, Tartu is often considered the intellectual and cultural hub, especially since it is home to Estonia's oldest and most renowned university. Situated 186 km southeast of Tallinn, the...
, Estonia ŽilinaŽilina is a city in north-western Slovakia, around from the capital Bratislava, close to both the Czech and Polish borders. It is the fourth largest city of Slovakia with a population of approximately 85,000, an important industrial center, the largest city on the Váh river, and the seat of a...
, Slovakia |
Politics
The last municipal elections was held on June 21 and 22, 2009, resulting in the election of Tiziano Tagliani (
Democratic PartyThe Democratic Party is a social-democratic political party in Italy, that is the second-largest in the country. The party is led by Pier Luigi Bersani, who was elected in the 2009 leadership election....
) as Mayor of the city of Ferrara.
The division of the 40 seats in the city council is as followed:
- Democratic Party
The Democratic Party is a social-democratic political party in Italy, that is the second-largest in the country. The party is led by Pier Luigi Bersani, who was elected in the 2009 leadership election....
- 21
- The People of Freedom
The People of Freedom is a centre-right political party in Italy. With the Democratic Party, it is one of the two major parties of the current Italian party system....
- 8
- Lega Nord - 2
- Italy of Values
Italy of Values is a centrist, populist and anti-corruption political party in Italy. The party, which is affiliated to the European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party , is headed by former Mani pulite prosecutor Antonio Di Pietro, who entered politics in 1996.The party aims to gather and give...
- 1
- Laici Riformisti - 1
- Sinistra Aperta per Ferrara - 1
External links