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Italy is the Italian Republic. history of italy

The city on seven hills, the eternal city, the mother of cities, the capital of the world - and all this is Rome - one of the oldest cities in the world, the ancient capital of the mighty Roman Empire. Here you can get in touch with the centuries-old past - from time immemorial to the present day.

Since 1871, Rome has been the capital of Italy, the administrative center of the province of Rome and the region of Lazio. It is not easy to understand the administrative division of Rome: its central part divided into 22 districts, the area around the historic center consists of 35 blocks, and the suburban area - from 6 administrative units. In modern Rome, there are about three million inhabitants, and this majestic city is spread over an area of ​​150 square meters. km. The city is built on a hilly terrain: it occupies 12 hills, on seven of which its historical centers are located: the Palatine (from which the construction of Rome began), the Capitol, Esquiline, Viminale, Aventina, Caelia and Quirina. The highest point of the city is Mario Hill (139 m). The Tiber River crosses Rome from north to south. Once it was full-flowing and suitable for navigation, and sometimes it could even overflow its banks, but today its obstinate temper has been tamed, "shackled" in stone parapets.

From the history of the city

Rome, or, as the ancient Latins called it, "caput mundi" - the Head of the World - has been the capital for 2000 years, the whole history of Rome has about three thousand years. As the main city of the Roman Empire, Rome ruled the world in ancient times. As a result of excavations, scientists have established that the first settlements on the territory of Rome appeared somewhere between the end of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age. But the birth of Rome as a city is considered to be April 21, 753 BC. According to legend, two twin brothers, Romulus and Remus, were left without parents and were fed by a she-wolf who lived on Capitoline Hill. Later they were found and brought up by shepherds - Faustul and his wife Akka Larentsia. Having matured, the brothers returned to King Numitor - their grandfather. According to his will, Romulus and Remus went to the Tiber to find a place to found a new city. Remus chose a place between two hills - Capitoline and Palatine, but Romulus wanted to build a city on the Palatine Hill by all means. Turning to signs and prophecies did not help, a quarrel broke out between the brothers, in the heat of which Romulus killed Remus. Repenting for the murder of his brother, he founded a city to which he gave his name (Roma), and became its king. It was on April 21, 753 BC that the first furrow was drawn around the Palatine Hill with a plow, outlining the construction site of the new city. Archaeological excavations confirm this date: the remains of the Etruscan culture of the Tarquinian period were found, dating back to 650-500 years. BC uh..

The era of kings (753-509 BC) begins with the reign of Romulus. The next rulers of Rome were Numa Pompilius and last king- Tarquin the Proud. Both of them were Etruscans - representatives of the people who, long before the Romans, created a developed civilization. In the X-IX centuries. BC. on the hills of Palantine, Quirinal, Esquiline and Viminal, the first settlements arose, which is confirmed by archaeologists. Gradually, the settlements grew, and later united - this is how the City on seven hills gradually arose.

After the expulsion of Tarquinius the Proud, a republic was proclaimed (510 BC). And by the middle of the third century BC. e. Rome turned into a large state - the whole territory of Italy was subordinate to it. Rome's attempts to establish control over the entire Mediterranean led to a conflict with another powerful maritime power - Carthage. Only in 146g. BC, after three Punic wars, Carthage was finally defeated and wiped off the face of the earth.
The next two centuries - 2nd and 1st centuries. BC. - were alarming for Rome: there were civil wars, inevitably accompanied by social upheavals. At 45 BC. Gaius Julius Caesar defeated Pompey, but fell victim to a conspiracy organized by Brutus and Cassius.

And again a long period of civil wars began, in which Caesar's adopted son, Octavian, managed to win the victory. At 27 BC. the senate awarded him the honorary title of Augustus - "Sacred". This moment is considered the beginning of the Roman Empire. Octavian Augustus built buildings of marble in Rome, and subsequent emperors erected majestic palaces, beautiful temples, arches and columns.

During the reign of Emperor Trojan (2nd century AD), the Roman Empire reached its maximum limits: it is hard to imagine, but this ancient state occupied almost the entire territory of Europe, Asia and North Africa, Iraq, Spain and Britain.
In 395 The Roman Empire was divided into Eastern and Western. But already in 476g. The last emperor of the Western Roman Empire, Romulus Augustulus, was deposed from the throne by Odoacer, the leader of the barbarians.

In the 12th century, large city-states arose in the north, supporting the Pope or the emperor. In the XV century, the Renaissance began - the heyday of Rome and all of Italy. It is to this period that famous works artists, architects, sculptors, poets and philosophers.
In 1861, the Kingdom of Italy was created. Its capital was originally Turin and then Florence. And only in July 1871, Rome acquired the status of the capital of Italy.

Treasury of culture and art

Rome was built for more than one day or even more than one century, and therefore, in order to get to know it, see all the sights, visit museums and admire the works of immortal masters, it will not be enough three lives. Rome rightfully enjoys the fame of one of the most beautiful cities in the world. During the Renaissance, Rome was decorated with their creations by the greatest Italian masters: Michelangelo, Raphael, Bernini, Bramante and many others. Perhaps there is no other city in the world that has preserved so many monuments of antiquity, renaissance, baroque and neoclassicism. The most ancient of them are more than two thousand years old, while others were created quite recently - in the 19th - early 20th centuries. Rome can rightly be called the world's treasury of culture and art. Historical monuments, ancient buildings and ruins, ancient squares, magnificent palaces and Gothic cathedrals, many Catholic churches and Christian churches- all this can be found in Rome at almost every step. Rome, the cradle of civilization and art, drew inspiration from poets and artists from early countries, including Stendhal, Goethe, and Henry James. The ancient ruins became the subject of admiration for famous English romantics - Byron, Shelley and Keats. Many Russian artists, writers and composers came here more than once.

Turgenev, Gogol, Pogodin, Batyushkov, Tchaikovsky, Herzen, Nekrasov - these and many other masters of Russian art, having visited Rome, were captivated by its grandeur and beauty. To our tourists who want to follow in their footsteps and want to know great city as best as possible, we can advise you to visit, first of all, its most famous places: the Colosseum, the Pantheon, the Roman Forum, the Baths of Caracala, the Troyan Column, the Theater of Marcellus. It is impossible to visit Rome and not visit the Cathedral of St. Petra is the largest cathedral in the world. the most famous masterpieces of art are kept here: one of the first works of Michelangelo - Pieta, a bronze statue of St. Peter, the papal throne by Bernini, as well as the tombs of popes. Be sure to visit the museums and galleries of the Vatican: the Pinakateku Art Gallery, the Etruscan Museum, see the collection of Greek and Roman sculpture, the Candelabra, Tapestries and Maps galleries, Raphael's Stations. It is impossible not to visit the Sistine Chapel, painted by great masters - Michelangelo, Botticelli, Perugino and Ghirlandaio. On the territory of Villa Borghese, one of the largest and most beautiful parks in Rome, is the Galleria Borghese. In its halls there are priceless exhibits - sculpture and painting from the collection of Cardinal Sapion-Borgese: paintings by famous masters Raphael, Durer, Pinturicchio, Cranach, Fra Bartolomeo, Correggio, G. Bellini, Caravaggio, Veronese, Rubens and Titian, beautiful sculptures by Bernini, famous "Paulina Bonaparte as Venus" by Canova.

A favorite place of youth recreation and mass pilgrimage of tourists is Plaza de España and the famous Spanish Steps. Walking around Rome, one cannot help but admire its numerous fountains. The real symbol of Rome was the Trevi Fountain, depicting Neptune's chariot led by Triton. Tourists from different countries have a belief: in order to return to Rome again, you need to throw a coin at it. Throw a penny into it and you, and perhaps soon you will return to this beautiful city with a thousand-year history and an eternally young soul.

Italy(Italian Italia), official name- The Italian Republic (Italian: Repubblica Italiana) is a state in southern Europe, in the center of the Mediterranean. The country is named after the ethnonym of the Italic tribe.

It borders with France in the northwest (border length - 488 km), with Switzerland (740 km) and Austria (430 km) - in the north and with Slovenia - in the northeast (232 km). It also has internal borders with the Vatican (3.2 km) and San Marino (39 km).

It occupies the Apennine Peninsula, the Padan Plain, the southern slopes of the Alps, the islands of Sicily, Sardinia and a number of small islands.

Italy is a member of the Schengen Agreement.

State symbols

Flag

For the first time, the Italian tricolor appeared on January 7, 1797 in Emilia as the flag of the republic proclaimed by Giuseppe Compagnoni. During the reign of Napoleon, the flag was also used as a symbol of the French Revolution.

After the Congress of Vienna and the Restoration, the tricolor remained a symbol of freedom and was used in the revolutionary movements of 1831 and 1848.

Article 12 of the Italian Constitution states that "the flag of Italy is the tricolor of green, white and red in the form of three equal vertical stripes."it:Bandiera italiana

National anthem

The Italian anthem, also known as "Brothers of Italy" and "Song of the Italians", has been unofficially the anthem of the Italian Republic since October 12, 1946. On November 17, 2005, the Senate passed the law on the official anthem in the first reading, but the law did not pass further and the anthem remained at the unofficial level. The text of the anthem was written in the autumn of 1847 by Goffredo Mameli, and the music, a little later, by the composer Michel Novaro. In the 80s of the XX century, an excerpt from Giuseppe Verdi's opera Nabucco was also widely circulated, which was performed as an anthem.

Coat of arms

The official emblem of the Italian Republic was promulgated by the Italian President Enrico de Nicola on May 5, 1948. The emblem was sketched by the artist Paolo Paschetto, who won the right in the 1946 and 1947 competitions among 500 other candidates and almost 800 sketches.

The emblem is a white star with five corners - the symbol of the Risorgimento, which is enclosed in a wreath of oak leaves, symbolizing the strength and dignity of the Italian people.

Administrative division

The capital of the state is Rome. The country is divided into 20 regions - Valle d'Aosta, Lombardy, Trentino-Alto Adige, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Piedmont, Liguria, Veneto, Tuscany, Umbria, Emilia-Romagna, Marche, Abruzzo, Lazio, Molise, Basilicata, Campania, Calabria , Apulia, Sardinia and Sicily, (of which 5 - Sicily, Sardinia, Trentino-Alto Adige, Valle d'Aosta and Friuli Venezia Giulia - have special status), including 110 provinces as an administrative-territorial unit. The provinces, in turn, are divided into communes, with a total of 8101 communes. The autonomous regions have their own parliaments - regional councils and governments - juntas, which have powers in matters of local self-government.

Political structure

The head of state is the President of Italy.

The executive branch and the Government are headed by the Prime Minister of Italy.

Legislative power - Bicameral Parliament of Italy elected for 5 years.
Chamber of Deputies of Italy - 630 members.
Senate of Italy - 315 members.

The leading political parties are the Left Democrats, the Democratic Union, the Italian People's Party, the United Christian Democrats, the "People of Freedom", the League of the North. The parties are united in coalitions - right (People of Freedom, CDA, League of the North), and left (DPLS, SP, People's Party, environmentalists).

International membership:
UN (1955)
NATO (1949)
SE (1949)
EU (1957)

Trade unions and other public organizations:

The General Italian Confederation of Labor (CGIL) was formed in 1906. It has 3.5 million members. It is a member of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC). The Italian Confederation of Workers' Trade Unions (ICPT) was created in 1948. The Italian Labor Union was formed in 1950.

In 1972, the General Italian Confederation of Labor, the Italian Confederation of Workers' Trade Unions, and the Italian Union of Labor merged into a federation.

The National League of Cooperatives was founded in 1886. It unites 7920 cooperatives. Member of the International Cooperative Alliance.

The Christian Association of Italian Workers is a Catholic semi-union type organization founded by the Vatican in 1945. It has 500,000 members.

Foreign policy of Italy

Until 1861, Italy was fragmented, therefore, numerous Italian states pursued their own foreign policy, focusing on neighboring powerful states.

Since 1861, the policy of a united Italy was aimed at annexing areas with Italians living there, namely the Papal States, Trentino, Istria, Dalmatia. Italy also sought to create its own colonial empire. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, Italy annexed the Papal States. Further, she was guided in foreign policy by Germany, as she wanted to gain a foothold in Tunisia, which France also claimed. However, due to the desire to annex Istria and Trentino, Italy entered into a confrontation with Austria-Hungary at the end of the 19th century. - early 20th century

Since 1914, Italy has been negotiating with the Entente, being in alliance with Germany, bargaining with them. As a result, in 1915, the Entente countries promised Italy the desired territories if she agreed to take the side of the Entente. And in 1915 Italy attacks Austria-Hungary. According to the results of the Paris Peace Conference in 1918, Italy received Istria, Trentino and a number of islands in the Adriatic Sea. After the First World War, Italy had a new rival - the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, which became Yugoslavia in 1929.

After the Nazis came to power foreign policy Italy becomes extremely radical. Conflicts with Yugoslavia become relevant until the end of World War II, as a result of which Italy returned Dalmatia, Istria to Yugoslavia, and granted independence to Albania. After the Second World War, Italy's policy was passive, the country followed in line with NATO and the United States in particular. The idea of ​​the role of Italy as the role of a "middle power" dominated in the country. In the late 80s, this ideology began to change in connection with the events in neighboring Yugoslavia. Italy began to pay more attention to the processes in the post-Yugoslav space and in general in the Mediterranean.

Italy took part in the NATO Balkan operation, in the Kosovo operation, and also sent its soldiers to Iraq and Afghanistan.

It was after the crisis in Kosovo that the idea of ​​a “middle power” was transformed into the idea of ​​a “world of protagonists”, that is, a world in which Italy was assigned an important place. Later, Italy declared the Balkans a zone of its "responsibility" within NATO.

Italy's foreign policy priorities include: the Mediterranean, the Balkan region, the United States, the European Union, the countries of Central and of Eastern Europe, Russia.

Etymology

The origin of the word Italia is not exactly known. According to the most common point of view, the term came from Greece and means "country of calves". The bull was a symbol of the peoples who inhabited southern Italy and was often depicted butting the Roman She-Wolf. Initially, the name Italia was applied only to that part of the territory that is now occupied by Southern Italy (the modern province of Calabria).

Ancient Rome

In the V-III centuries BC. e. the territory of Italy was the main part of the Roman state.

Middle Ages

A characteristic form of the Italian medieval state was city-states with a republican system. In the cities of Northern and Central Italy in the XIV- XVI centuries formed early capitalist relations. Thus, Venice was ruled by the doges, and in Genoa, Florence, Lucca and other cities a hereditary aristocratic system was formed (the Medici in Florence, etc.). By the end of the Middle Ages, Italy and Germany were the only countries Western Europe, remained fragmented.

Renaissance

In the 16th century, the rule of Spain was consolidated in a significant part of Italy, after the war of the Spanish Succession of 1701-1714 - the rule of the Austrian Habsburgs. From the end of the 18th century, a movement for national liberation and the elimination of territorial fragmentation (Risorgimento) unfolded in Italy. From the end of the 18th century to 1814, Italy was under French occupation; states dependent on Napoleonic France were created on its territory, which were ruled by relatives or henchmen of Napoleon. The Vienna Congress of 1814-1815 restored the feudal-absolutist monarchies in Italy.

new time.

The struggle for a united Italy was led by the Carbonari, Young Italy and other organizations, the key figures in which were Giuseppe Garibaldi and Giuseppe Mazzini. By the end of 1860, the territory of Italy was basically united around the Kingdom of Sardinia (since 1861, the Kingdom of Italy); in 1870, Rome was annexed to the Kingdom of Italy.

20th century

In 1922, after the Blackshirts marched on Rome and handed their demands to the king, the fascists came to power, establishing a dictatorship led by Benito Mussolini (1922-1943). In 1929, according to the Lateran Treaty, the sovereignty of the Vatican was guaranteed by Italy. Italy captured Ethiopia (1935-1936), Albania (1939). Having entered into a military alliance with Nazi Germany and Japan, Italy entered World War II in 1940. In 1945, the actions of the Resistance movement (the highest point - the April Uprising of 1945) and the Anglo-American troops in Italy overthrew the fascist regime.

In 1946 Italy became a parliamentary republic.

In November 1947, the Constitution of the Italian Republic was adopted, it officially entered into force on January 1, 1948. After the Second World War, the Christian Democratic Party of Italy (CDA) established itself in the political arena, which formed governments in 1945-1981 and in 1987-1992.

The sharp increase in corruption in all levels of government has led to a change electoral system. On August 4, 1993, a new law on parliamentary elections was approved.

XXI Century

The post-war history of Italy is characterized by frequent changes of governments. The government of Silvio Berlusconi, formed in April 2005, has already become the fifty-ninth in a row.

On April 9-10, 2006, elections were held for the Italian Chamber of Deputies. The center-left opposition led by Romano Prodi (Union bloc) won.

Romano Prodi won with a minimal margin - just over 25 thousand votes (49.81%). Silvio Berlusconi's "House of Freedoms" coalition received 49.74%. According to Italian law, a coalition that wins a relative majority in elections to the Chamber of Deputies automatically receives 54% of the seats in it. In the elections to the Senate, the opposition also won with a minimal advantage of one Senate seat.

Berlusconi, who came to power after the resignation of Giuliano Amato and the victory in the parliamentary elections of the Forza, Italia party on June 10, 2001, set a record for the length of his tenure as chairman of the Council of Ministers.

After the announcement of the election results, Silvio Berlusconi said that he did not intend to admit defeat, and demanded a recount. On April 20, Italy's highest court recognized the final victory of Romano Prodi.

On April 14, 2008, early parliamentary elections were held in Italy, and Silvio Berlusconi's center-right coalition, the People of Freedom, won both houses of parliament by about a ten percent margin over rivals. On May 8, the richest man in Italy, 71-year-old Silvio Berlusconi, headed the Italian government for the third time.

Has diplomatic relations with Russian Federation(established with the USSR on February 7, 1924, interrupted by Italy on June 22, 1941, restored on October 25, 1944).

Geography

Italy is predominantly a mountainous country.

In the north - the southern slopes of the Alps with the highest point of Western Europe, Mont Blanc (4808 m), to the south - the Padan Plain; on the peninsula - the mountains of the Apennines (the highest point is Mount Corno Grande, 2914 m). The Apennines are also divided into: Ligurian, Tuscany-Emilian, Umbro-Markan, Abruzzo, Campanian, Lucanian, Calabrian Apennines and the Sabini Mountains. Even in the eastern part of the peninsula is the Gargano peninsula, in the southeast and southwest of the Salentina and Calabria peninsulas, respectively. Active volcanoes - (Vesuvius, Etna); frequent earthquakes.

Washing seas - from the east, the Apennine Peninsula is washed by the Adriatic Sea with the Gulf of Venice in its northern part. The Strait of Otranto between Apulia and Albania connects the Adriatic Sea with the Ionian Sea. Between Puglia and Calabria, the Gulf of Taranto penetrates deeply into the land. The very narrow Strait of Messina separates Calabria from Sicily, and the Sicilian (or Tunisian) Strait, 135 km wide, separates Sicily from North Africa. The Tyrrhenian Sea is a triangular basin framed by Sardinia, Corsica, the Tuscan archipelago, the Apennine Peninsula and Sicily. To the north of Corsica is the Ligurian Sea with the Gulf of Genoa.

In the northeastern part of the island of Sicily are the Nebrodi mountains, and in the southwestern part of the island of Sardinia, the Campidano plain.

Most of the small islands are divided into archipelagos, such as the Tuscan archipelago, which includes the island of Elba, to which Napoleon Bonaparte was exiled.

The longest river in Italy is Po, its length is 682 km. The largest lake is Garda.

earthquakes

Italy is located in the area of ​​rock faults, so earthquakes are not uncommon. Most major earthquakes registered in the 20th and 21st centuries.

1908: earthquake in Reggio and the city of Messina
1915: Marsik earthquake
1929: Bologna earthquake
1932: Abruzzo earthquake
1972: Ancona earthquake
1976: Friuli earthquake
1990: Santa Lucia earthquake
1997: Umbria and Marche earthquake
2002: San Giuliano e Puglia earthquake
2009: L'Aquila earthquake

Volcanoes

Italy has both active and extinct volcanoes. Among them are the four largest:
1. Etna - the highest active volcano in Europe - 3340 m. It is located in the northeast of the island of Sicily, representing, together with other craters, a landscape of incredible beauty that opens from the coast of the Calabria region. The volcano is active.
2. Vesuvius - (1277 m) rises above Naples and the bay - this landscape is world famous. The most famous eruption of Vesuvius occurred in 79 AD. e., when Pompeii, Stabia, Herculaneum were almost completely under the lava and ash. Last time Vesuvius woke up in 1944, but experts say that in the future the volcano will be constantly active and very dangerous.
3. Stromboli - an active volcano, forms part of the Aeolian Islands in the Tyrrhenian Sea.
4. Vulcano - another volcano of the Aeolian Islands, located on the island with the same name.

Minerals

Italy has a wide variety of minerals. But the deposits of many of them are small in terms of reserves, dispersed throughout the country, and often lie inconveniently for development. So, in 1982, the country completely stopped production iron ore, including on the island of Elba, on which the Etruscans still mined iron.

Italy is much richer in lead-zinc ores with an admixture of silver and other metals. These deposits are located in Sardinia and the Eastern Alps. The region of Tuscany is rich in reserves of pyrites and mercury ore - cinnabar, in terms of which Italy ranks second in the world; antimony ores occur in the limestones of Sardinia. Sulfur deposits, known since ancient Rome, are concentrated mainly in the region of Caltanissetta on the island of Sicily. The bowels of Italy are rich in various building and finishing materials (marble, granite, tuff, etc.). Marble is quarried in a number of places, but especially in the Carrara area. In terms of reserves of other types of raw materials, the territory of Italy is poor. Anthracite is found in small quantities in the Valle d'Aosta region, colloidal lignites in Tuscany, peat and peaty lignites. There are small deposits of manganese in Central Italy and Liguria. Bauxites, long mined from the karst depressions of Puglia, are now almost exhausted. On the island of Sicily there are reserves of potash and rock salt, asphalt, bitumen.

Italy's energy resources meet the country's energy needs by only 15%. In Sardinia, Tuscany, Umbria, Calabria there are deposits of brown and low-quality coal. Limited oil reserves on the island of Sicily, the Podana Plain and on the east coast of Central Italy provide less than 2% of Italy's oil needs. The natural gas deposits of the Padana Plain and its underwater continuation, the continental shelf of the Adriatic Sea, are very important for the country's economy. Natural gas is found in the Northern, Central and Southern Apennines and in Sicily.

In the postwar years, quite significant (for Italy) oil resources were discovered - in the Padana lowland, in the Alpine foothills, and also on the island of Sicily. These are complemented by bituminous shales, on the island of Sicily in the Ragusa region, near San Valentino in the Abruzzo e Molise region, and also in the Frosinone region (Lazio).

Economy

Advantages: Competitive and rather creative middle class. Sets the fashion all over the world in the field of production and product design, clothing and household appliances. Leading firms include Fiat (automotive), Montedison (plastics), Olivetti (communications), Benetton (clothing). Highly productive agriculture and production for tourists, famous houses Maud.

Weaknesses: Government deficit and debt growth still high. Small growth of the economy, inefficient service sector, which is intensively privatized. Unequal distribution of wealth between the rich North and the poor South, where unemployment is 3 times higher. Insufficient tax discipline, improving in recent years. Relatively small, internationally competitive enterprises. Strong dependence on energy imports.

Italy is a highly developed industrial and agricultural country. Predominantly industrial and highly developed north and poor, agrarian south. Gross national product per capita $30,000 per year. Leading industries: mechanical engineering, metallurgy, chemical and petrochemical, light and food industries. Italy is one of the largest manufacturers and suppliers to the world market of cars, bicycles and mopeds, tractors, washing machines and refrigerators, typewriters and calculating machines, electronic products, industrial equipment, steel pipes, plastics and chemical fibers, car tires, as well as ready-made clothing. and leather shoes, macaroni, cheese, olive oil, wine, fruit and tomato preserves. Large-scale production of cement, natural essences and essential oils from flowers and fruits, art glass and faience products, jewelry. Mining of pyrites, mercury ores, natural gas, potassium salt, dolomites, asbestos.

Agriculture is dominated by crop production. The main crops are wheat, corn, rice (1st place in collection in Europe; over 1 million tons per year), sugar beet. Italy is one of the world's largest and Europe's leading producers of citrus fruits (over 3.3 million tons per year), tomatoes (over 5.5 million tons), grapes (about 10 million tons per year; over 90% is processed in wine), olives. Floriculture and poultry farming are developed.

Italy is the largest region international tourism(over 50 million people a year). Tourism in Italy is one of the leading sectors of the economy and accounts for 12% of GDP. Now anyone can buy tours to Italy. Italy accounts for 5.6% of the global tourism market. According to this indicator, the country ranks 3rd in the EU after France and Spain.

Monetary unit - euro.

Total economically active population: 24.86 million (as of 2007)

Agriculture - 4%, industry - 31%, tertiary sector - 65%.

Currently, the regional disproportions of Italy in the structure of employment are as follows:

1. Differences between the Northwestern and Northeastern regions remain insignificant. The percentage of employed in the industrial sector in these regions is exactly the same. Differences are observed only in the number of people employed in the tertiary sector and agriculture. The northwestern region is traditionally a more developed region, in which a powerful industry was formed earlier (the main industrial triangle of Italy, Milan-Turin-Genoa, is located here). The Northeast region acquired its industrial structure after the 1970s, when powerful enterprises of the aluminum industry, energy, oil refining and petrochemistry were built in it.

2. The center has traditionally been characterized by average indicators for the country, and this region was considered a transitional region between the industrial north and the agrarian south. At present, the Center has also retained these middle positions, but earlier the gap between the Northern regions and the Center was more significant than at present. It can be said that now the distribution of employed by sectors of the economy in the Northern and Central regions is almost the same. Only in terms of those employed in the tertiary sector, the Central District is significantly ahead of its northern neighbors (by 8-11%). This increase in employment in the tertiary sector comes at the expense of the Lazio region, which is a metropolitan area and naturally has the highest share of employment in the service sector in the country. In two areas of the Central Region (Tuscany and Umbria), the figures are still about the same as the national average, but this does not offset the too high figure in the tertiary sector of the Lazio area.

3. The southern part of Italy, which can be divided according to the physical and geographical principle into two regions (island and peninsular), is proposed to be divided somewhat differently. Analyzing employment in the sectors of the economy of southern Italy, we can conclude that here, by analogy with the northern part, the southwestern and southeastern regions can also be distinguished. Between the western and eastern regions of the south (unlike the northern ones) there is no such uniformity in the distribution of the number of employees by sectors of the economy. Thus, the South-Western region differs from the South-Eastern region by a more pronounced predominance of the tertiary sector of the economy in the employment structure, while the industrial sector is more developed in the South-Eastern region. And uniting the Southwestern and Southeastern regions is a very high rate of employment in the agricultural sector, 7% and 9%, respectively, which is about 2 times higher than the national average. It should be noted that the employment rate in the agricultural sector in 1995 was 11% in the Southwestern region, and 12% in the Southeastern region.

Thus, in terms of employment indicators in the sectors of the economy, the Center “pulled itself up” to the northern regions, and the south improved its employment structure by increasing the number of people employed in the tertiary and industrial sectors and, accordingly, reducing those employed in the agricultural sector. This gives grounds to single out a “dual” structure of employment in modern Italy. The regions of the North-West, North-East and Center can be attributed to the first part of this structure, and the regions of the South to the second.

Due to the small territory and high population density, the issue of waste recycling is acute in modern Italy (See Garbage Crisis in Italy).

Italy, in terms of its economic level, occupies an intermediate position between the most economically developed countries and countries with an average level of development productive forces. As in other highly developed countries, in Italy industry is the leading sector of the economy, although it employs a smaller part of the economically active population than in the rapidly and disproportionately growing service sector. The value of industrial output exceeds the value of agricultural output, in which less capital is annually invested than in industry. Industrial products also dominate Italian exports. A significant part of Italy's national wealth is in the hands of the monopolies, most of which are among the largest concerns in the capitalist world. They dominate the chemical and electrical industries (Montedison), the automotive industry (FIAT), and the rubber industry (Pirelli). At the same time, there are a great many medium, small and tiny firms in the country, mainly in light and Food Industry, as well as in the production of household electrical appliances, equipment for the processing of synthetic materials, in some sub-sectors of the machine tool industry. Since the 1970s, there has been a noticeable trend towards the reduction of large and the increase in the role of small and medium-sized firms and enterprises. The Italian state actively and in various forms intervenes in the country's economy: its specialized bodies participate in joint-stock companies as holders of a controlling stake, industrial enterprises are created in accordance with various government programs. The state became the largest entrepreneur in the country. Its positions are especially strong in power engineering, metallurgy, and shipbuilding. He also owns many light industry enterprises. The largest banks were also nationalized. The pace of development of the public sector surpasses the development of the Italian economy as a whole. In modern conditions, state intervention in the economy is not limited to helping individual monopoly associations develop the least profitable or those requiring especially large investments. The main goal of state intervention is to ensure the continuity of the reproduction process. New important feature development of state-monopoly capitalism in Italy was the national long-term programming of the economy, reflecting the increased degree of concentration and centralization of production and capital, increased monopolization and nationalization of the economy.

Population

By the end of 2008, the population of Italy exceeded 60 million people. At the moment, the country is in fourth place in terms of population among the countries of the European Union and in 23rd place among countries around the world. The population density is 199.2 people per sq. km. kilometer - the fifth place in the European Union. The highest density is in Northern Italy, where almost half of the country's total population lives. The most densely populated regions of Italy are the plains of Campania, Lombardy and Liguria, where one square. km has over 300 inhabitants. This is due to favorable conditions for the development of intensive agriculture, diverse industry, port activities and tourism. The province of Naples in Campania is especially crowded, where per 1 km². 2531 people are concentrated. The mountainous areas are much less populated. Here, the population density drops to 35 people per 1 km²., In the arid and economically underdeveloped areas of Sardinia and Basilicata, the population density is 60 people per 1 km².

After the Second World War, Italy experienced a prolonged economic boom that caused rural to urban migration and halted emigration, and made the country attractive to immigrants. Until the 1970s, the birth rate remained high, but soon fell below the replacement level. In 2008, one in five Italians was over 65 years old. Despite this, mainly due to mass immigration in the last two decades, the 2000s saw an increase in the birth rate (especially in the northern regions), for the first time in many years. The fertility rate also increased: in 2008 it was 1.41 against 1.32 in 2005.

Population:
1931 - 41.2 million people
1960 - 51.0 million people
1977 - 56.3 million people
2000 - 57.7 million people
2007 - 60.1 million people
2008 - 59.9 million people
2009 - 60.2 million people

Immigrants in Italy

According to the Italian government, as of January 2009, there were 3,891,295 foreign citizens registered in Italy, which is about 6.5% of the total population. About half a million immigrant children born in Italy play a significant role in the overall demographic picture. There is also a significant number of illegal immigrants living in the country. In May 2008, The Boston Globe estimated their number at 670,000.

With the expansion of the European Union, the latest wave of immigration has been from nearby countries, especially Eastern Europe and increasingly Asia, replacing North Africa as the main source of migrants. About 800,000 Romanians, of which about 10% are Roma, are officially registered as living in Italy, overtaking other ethnic minorities such as Albanians and Moroccans in this parameter. The number of unregistered Romanians is difficult to quantify, but in 2007 the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network estimated their number at around half a million or more.

As of 2009, the geography of origin of foreign-born Italians was as follows: Europe (53.5%), Africa (22.3%), Asia (15.8%), Americas (8.1%) and Oceania (0.06%). The distribution of the foreign population of Italy is uneven: 87.3% live in the most economically developed northern and central regions countries, while only 12.7% live in the agrarian southern part of the peninsula.

Language

The official language is Italian, which belongs to the Romance group of languages ​​of the Indo-European family. Also in Italy there are various dialects of Italian. It is customary to divide all dialects into dialects of the North, Center and South. Modern Italian can be called a dialect that has managed to "make a career", it is widely used in social and political life. At the same time, the Florentine dialect speaks more not about politics, but about culture, like the greatest artists born in Florence - Dante Alighieri, Giovanni Boccaccio.

German is officially recognized as an equal language with Italian in Bolzano and South Tyrol, Slovenian has a regional status in Gorizia and Trieste, and French in the Aosta Valley.

Military establishment

The armed forces of Italy include: army, navy, air force, carabinieri; Conscription age: 18 years old;

Service life: 10 months;

Combat-ready population (men): 15-49 years old - 14248674 in 2001;

Combat-ready population (men): correspond to military service 15-49 years old - 12244166 in 2001;

Military labor reserves (reach military age annually): 304,369 people in 2001;

Military spending: $20.7 billion, 1.7% of GDP.

Italy passed a law abolishing conscription and creating a professional army. Young people born after December 31, 1985 are no longer subject to military conscription. "An epochal event" - so emotionally, Italian Defense Minister Sergio Mattarella described the decision of the national parliament to abolish compulsory military service by 2007. However, the emotions here were quite appropriate. First of all, because at last a full-fledged professional army is being born in the Apennines, and millions of young Italians will no longer have to experience conflicting feelings when they receive the infamous summons to military service. Indeed, an entire era is coming to an end, the beginning of which was laid by Napoleon back in 1802. However, if desired, the idea of ​​​​forming an army on the principle of conscription can be considered an Italian invention, since three centuries before Napoleon, the wise Nicolo Machiavelli put forward it, not believing in the strength of the Florentine mercenaries.

Formally, in the new law we are talking only on the suspension of military service, since Article 52 of the Italian Constitution provides that "the defense of the Fatherland is the sacred duty of the citizen." Thus, in the event of a war or other extreme situation the practice of conscription for military service can be resumed. Nevertheless, it is clear that Rome has taken a course towards the creation of a professional army, the strength of which by the end of 2006 should reach 190,000, that is, it will be reduced by 80,000 servicemen. The law provides for a five-year service for soldiers with the possibility of renewing the contract twice for two years. It is also possible to conclude a contract for only one year. It is assumed that, having retired from the ranks of the armed forces, most of yesterday's servicemen will be accepted into the police, fire departments, and the civil defense service. Contract soldiers will be paid 2 million lire (about $1,000) a month, while now the privates receive only 180,000 lire. In addition, the reform opens up the possibility for women to hold almost any position in all branches of the armed forces.

Transport connection

Italy has a developed network of railways and roads. More than 90% of passengers and over 80% of cargo are transported by cars. Maritime transport dominates in external transportation.

The merchant fleet of Italy has 1.5 thousand ships - 10th in terms of total tonnage in the world.

In domestic transportation of goods and passengers leading role road transport plays, in second place - rail. In terms of railway electrification, the country occupies one of the first places in the world.

A dense network of modern highways and railways links the cities of Northern Italy. Due to the elongation of the country from north to south, its network of railways and roads developed mainly in the meridional direction. Latitudinal communications, with the exception of the Padana Plain, are not enough. Many roads and railways in Italy are laid on the steep slopes of mountains and therefore have many bridges and tunnels, which increases the cost of their operation. In Italy, the role of road transport is exceptionally great: it accounts for 3/4 of all land transport of goods. About half of the roads are in northern Italy, in the south of the country the density of the road network is much less. Railways are inferior in importance to automobile construction, but now more capital has been invested in railway construction than in motor transport. Some main lines stand out sharply in terms of technical equipment. As a result of such modernization, for example, on the Rome-Florence line, the train can reach speeds of up to 200 km/h. Maritime transport plays a very important role both in internal and external transportation of the country. This is due to the position of Italy on the Mediterranean waterway, the large length of the coastline, the presence of islands in the country. There are 144 ports on the coast of Italy. Port cargo turnover is dominated by oil and other minerals. The largest Italian port of Genoa is one of the most important in the entire Mediterranean. Genoa serves as a gateway to the outside world for the entire Northwest of Italy, as well as for Switzerland. Main rival and rival Genoa on the Adriatic - Trieste, the second in Italy in terms of cargo turnover and one of the most important oil ports in Europe. Through Trieste, Northeast Italy is connected with other countries of the Mediterranean, the Near and Middle East, East Africa and East Asia. The cargo turnover of the ports of Southern Italy (Augusta and Taranto) increased significantly, which is explained by the development of the oil refining and petrochemical industries. One of the country's largest passenger ports, Naples is the center of communications between the Apennine Peninsula and Sicily, Sardinia and other islands.

River transport in Italy is poorly developed due to the lack of large rivers. Italy's civil aviation is developing quite rapidly. Air lines support the connection of the largest cities in Italy with many cities in Europe, as well as other continents. The country's largest airports - Leonardo da Vinci near Rome, Malpensa and Linate near Milan - serve as important hubs for the international airline network. For economic development Italy's foreign economic relations are vital. Almost 15% of all imports are oil. Italy also imports raw materials for the metallurgical and other branches of industry—machine tools, industrial equipment, timber, paper, and various types of foodstuffs. The main export items are engineering products, mainly vehicles, various equipment, typewriters and calculating machines, agricultural and food products, especially fruits, vegetables, canned tomatoes, cheeses, ready-made clothes, shoes, chemical and petrochemical products. Trade is especially active with France and Germany. Italy is visited annually by 50 million foreign tourists, mainly from Germany, France, and the USA. In Italy, the material base for the reception of a large number tourists. In terms of the number of beds in hotels, it ranks first in foreign Europe.

Pipeline transport: length of pipelines: crude oil - 6503 km, refined petroleum products - 2148 km, natural gas - 19400 km.

Italian time differs downward from Moscow by 2 hours.

Religion

As of March 31, 2003, the number of parishioners of the Roman Catholic Church in Italy ranges from 57,610,000 to 55,752,000 people (about 96.77% of the Italian population), of which 33 to 38% are active parishioners; 10% of Catholics participate in various church services.

Among other Christian denominations, the largest are the Jehovah's Witnesses (430,890 parishioners, of which 237,738 are publishers (2008)), the Assemblies of God in Italy, Orthodoxy, the Federation of Evangelical Churches in Italy (Waldensians, Lutherans, Baptists, Pentecostals, Seventh-day Adventists).

culture

Holidays

1st of January - New Year(Il Capodanno);
January 6 - Epiphany (l'Epifania) or Befana (La Befana), Epiphany, Baptism of the Lord;
March 8 - International Women's Day (La Festa della Donna);
April 25 - Day of liberation from fascism and German occupation (La Liberazione);
May 1 - Labor Day (Labor Day) (La Festa del Lavoro);
June 2 - Proclamation Day of the Republic of Italy (La Festa della Repubblica);
August 15 - Ferragosto (Il Ferragosto) Assumption of the Virgin or Ascension (L'Assunzione);
November 2 - All Saints' Day, Memorial Day (Il giorno della Commemorazione dei Defunti);
November 4 - National Unity Day of Italy (La Festa delle Forze Armate);
December 25 - Christmas (Il Natale).

Italian Republic.

The country is named after the ethnonym of the Italic tribe.

Capital of Italy. Rome.

Italy Square. 301200 km2.

Population of Italy. 57680 thousand people

Location of Italy. Italy is a maritime and mountainous country located in the south from the Alps to the Mediterranean Sea, it occupies the Apennine Peninsula, the islands of Sicily, Sardinia, etc. In the northwest, Italy borders on, in the north - with and, and in the northeast - with Slovenia. It is washed in the east by the Adriatic Sea, in the west by the Ligurian and Tyrrhenian Seas, in the south by the Ionian and Mediterranean Seas. Within Italy are tiny states and the Vatican.

Administrative divisions of Italy. Italy is divided into 20 regions comprising 94 provinces. Areas: Abruzzo, Basilica, Vale d'Aosta, Veneto, Calabria, Campania, Lazio, Liguria, Lombardy, Marche, Molise, Puglia, Piedmont, Sardinia, Sicily, Tuscany, Trentino Alto Adige, Umbria, Friuli Venice Giulia, Emilia Romagna.

Italy's form of government. Republic.

Head of State of Italy. President elected for a term of 7 years.

Italy's highest legislature. Bicameral Parliament (Senate of the Republic and Chamber of Deputies), term of office - 5 years.

Italy's highest executive body. Government.

Major cities in Italy. Milan, Naples, Turin, Genoa, Palermo, Bologna, Florence, Bari, Catania, Venice.

State language of Italy. Italian.

Religion in Italy. 99% are Catholics.

Ethnic composition of Italy. 98% - Italians, 2% - Germans, Greeks, French.

Currency of Italy. Euro = 100 cents.

Useful information for tourists

In Italy, there is a state monopoly on the sale of tobacco products - you can buy them at kiosks with a special emblem. It is forbidden to smoke in public transport, in taxis, in most theaters and cinemas, as well as in some shops.

Too frivolous clothes such as shorts and T-shirts are not welcome in Rome. In this form, they may not be allowed to enter not only museums and cathedrals, but also shops. Shorts are not allowed in and in St. Peter's Cathedral, very short skirts for women. Shoulders should not be open.

Florence is famous for leather goods and gold, Venice - for carnival masks and products from the famous Venetian glass made on the island of Murano. Bring from Italy an Italian straw hat, a T-shirt from one of the many Italian football clubs and a bottle of world famous wine - Chianti. When using Italian transport, remember:

Tickets must be purchased in advance at tobacconists or bars. It must be validated at the bus stop or in the cabin, after which it will be valid for 75 minutes. For all types of transport - tickets of a single sample.

Size, population and capital of Italy. Brief description of the country, the most significant cities, major attractions. The minimum information that should help the tourist make a choice: is it worth going, where and what to see?

Where is Italy located?

The Italian Republic is located in Europe, it occupies the entire Apennine Peninsula, because of its shape it is often also called the “Italian boot”. The country includes the Podan Plain located outside the peninsula itself and adjacent to the Alps. As well as the islands in the Mediterranean: Sicily and Sardinia, Elba, Capri, Ischia, a number of smaller ones.

Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean and the largest region of Italy (25,830 km2). The iconic landmark of Sicily is the largest active volcano in Europe, Mount Etna. As well as the cities of Palermo and Messina, the resort of Taormina.

is the second largest island in the country. It is popular as a resort destination. Mass of sandy beaches, luxurious southern nature and that's why it's expensive! Rest here can afford at least middle-income people.

Countries bordering Italy

Italy is east of France, south of Switzerland and Austria, west of Slovenia. The narrow Strait of Sicily, 160 km wide, separates Italy from the coast of Africa.

The country is separated from the Balkan Peninsula by the Adriatic Sea. The minimum distance (Strait of Otranto) is 71 km. With Croatia, Albania, Greece, Italy is connected by ferries.

The coast of the country is washed by the waters of the four inland seas of the Mediterranean: the Ligurian, Tyrrhenian, Adriatic and Ionian and the Mediterranean Sea itself (the islands of Sicily and Sardinia).

Population and capital

In 2018, 60.5 million people lived in Italy. High urbanization: 20% prefer to live in the agglomerates of four large cities: Rome, Milan, Naples and Turin and do not want to go to the outback to any.

Ethnically the population is homogeneous: over 90% are Italians. About 83% profess christian religion(the vast majority are Catholics), about 10-12% consider themselves atheists. In recent years, the country has been increasingly flooded with migrants from Africa: on the streets of Italian cities, you can now often meet people from the "Black Continent".

  • Capital of Italy -

Italy - characteristics of the country

  • Total area of ​​the territory: 301 338 km2
  • Population: over 60 million people
  • Official language: Italian. In a number of northern provinces (for example, Bolzano), German is officially recognized as the second official language.
  • Official currency: Euro
  • Phone country code: +39

Compound

Geographically, Italy consists of 20 historical regions. If you move from west to east and from north to south, then their list will look like this: Valle d'Aosta, Piedmont, Lombardy, Trentino-Alto Adige, Veneto, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Liguria, Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany, Umbria , Marche, Lazio, Abruzzo, Molise, Campania, Apulia, Basilicata, Calabria and Sicily.

The region and the island of Sardinia is located to the west of the Apennine Peninsula.

  • All the above areas are made up of provinces (total 110)

Region map

President and Parliament

Italy is a democratic, parliamentary republic. The head of state is the president, elected for a 7-year term by the Italian parliament.

  • The presidency is nominal and purely representative. Real executive power in the country is in the hands of the Cabinet of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister

The post of prime minister is held by the leader of the party that won the parliamentary elections. Or, in the event of an emergency change of prime minister (as happened with Berlusconi), a person whose candidacy is being agreed upon in the leading parliamentary parties.

Parliament in Italy is bicameral (the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic). The term of office of its members is 5 years.

Economy

Italy has one of the most developed economies in the world. In terms of Gross Domestic Product ($2,055 trillion in 2010), it ranks 8th in the world and 4th in the European Union. The situation is also not bad with GDP per capita ($ 35,435).

The lion's share of income is provided by the service sector (73%), in particular, tourism. In terms of the number of foreign tourists received (43-44 million per year), Italy occupies one of the leading places in the world (5). Yielding perhaps to its neighbors: France and Spain.

Industry specializes in the production of high-tech products such as cars (Fiat) or ships (Fincantieri). The products of the Italian light industry are also in great demand: the country habitually occupies a leading position in the production of clothing, including haute couture.

It is not for nothing that sales in Italy, when designer clothes are sold for 50-70% of the standard price, are in such demand.

The country's agriculture, over 90% of which is provided by small family businesses, supplies the world market with excellent wine (the first or second place in the world is France - the main competitor) and olive oil.

Wine brands such as Chianti, Valpolicella, Barollo or Asti are widely known outside the country. Local cheeses are also popular: mozzarella, gorgonzola, parmesan, mascarpone, gran padano…

Big cities

The capital and most populated city of the country is Rome. It is home to 2.7 million people.

The capital of the northern region of Italy, Lombardy, Milan. The inhabitants of this city, the economic and financial capital, are about 1.3 million people. If you count together with the near and far suburbs, it turns out that the region is in greatest demand among Italians: in total, 4.3 million people live here.

The rest of the cities do not reach a million inhabitants. In the largest locality the southern part of the country, Naples, is home to about 975 thousand inhabitants, and in the Sicilian Palermo - about 660 thousand.

Turin in the Piedmont region counts 910 thousand people among its population. But Venice was not able to keep even 200 thousand - the real estate here is too expensive and the place for infrastructure is too limited - the same shops.

However, the "City on the Water" more than compensates for the lack of local visiting tourists: every year it is visited by over 3 million guests annually.

About 600,000 people live in Genoa, the capital of the Liguria region. And the population of Florence, also a popular tourist center, today does not even reach 600 thousand. That does not prevent it from being the birthplace of the Renaissance and simply a dazzlingly beautiful city.

Attractions

Unlike the same Great Britain, where, probably, 80 percent of all the most interesting things for travelers are concentrated in London and its environs, Italy is not so obsessed with Rome. That is, the sights of this city, one of the most ancient in Europe, of course, are considered symbols of the country.

Both left over from Roman times (the Roman Forum and the Colosseum, the Pantheon), and introduced by subsequent generations (Castle of the Holy Angel, St. Peter's Basilica, the Vatican, the grandiose Spanish Steps, Vittorio Emmanuel's monument, churches, palaces, gardens). They are undeniable treasures, monuments of world culture.

But almost a dozen other Italian cities are ready to compete with the capital in terms of the number of cultural and historical heritage sites.

The grandiose Palace of Caserta and luxuriously beautiful southern resorts(the islands of Capri and Ischia, Amalfi and its coast, Sorrento) in the immediate vicinity of Naples are the glory of Italy.

History lovers will be interested in visiting the ruins of Pompeii, Herculaneum and Stabia near Naples, destroyed by the grandiose eruption of Vesuvius on August 24, 79 AD.

Extreme lovers can climb the Sicilian Etna, the largest and still active volcano in Europe.

Its potential power is estimated at approximately 2.5 Vesuvius, so if it wakes up at the wrong moment, then ... it won’t seem enough. But let's not talk about sad things! It is better to note that today the climb to Mount Etna is not particularly difficult - even a child can master it.

The northern metropolis of Milan, the legislator of Italian (and European!) fashion, was once the residence of the powerful Sforza. Subtly sybarite Florence with its Medici legacy (Uffizi and Palazzo Pitti).

Still remembering the magnificent times of the trading republic of Genoa, standing in the middle of the Italian Riviera, which is so popular among vacationers.

Looking into the mirror of its lagoon, beautiful Venice and its islands. Verona, glorious for the house of Juliet and for its immense dimensions for the ancient forum/

Bologna with the University of the XI century and a mass of medieval towers, arcade passages on the first floors of buildings.

Piedmontese Turin, the capital of the Savoy dynasty and the place where one of the relics of Christianity is kept - the Shroud of Turin.

Ancient Rimini on the Adriatic coast, today - the most popular seaside resort in the country.

Siena - once the capital of a large trading republic, one of the most beautiful cities in Tuscany

And many others: smaller, but no less beautiful! Well, suppose Pisa - after all, everyone has heard about the "falling". But how many saw her, the cathedral and the bapsistery with him with their own eyes?

Naturally, in Italy you can just relax, just basking in the rays of the bright local sun. Moreover, it does not matter where: in the north or south.

On the alpine lakes: Lago Maggiore or Garde, or maybe Como?

On the Italian Riviera in Liguria, near Rome in the town of Terracina, in Rimini, Pesaro or Lido di Jesolo on the Adriatic.

Or in the south of the country: in Amalfi, Capri or Ischia, in the cozy Sicilian Taormina - the one with a view of Etna!

winter, that is ski vacation, the country is also well represented: the same Bormio in Lombardy, Sestriere in Piedmont or Cortina d'Ampezzo in Veneto are world famous.

But that's not all: only in the Dolomites there are at least a dozen absolutely amazing places for skiing, just skiing, cycling and hiking.

The history of Italy helps tourists to more fully understand its sights. The masterpieces of its great masters are a separate story, but they cannot be appreciated without understanding how art is inseparable from the way of life of the peoples who inhabited the Apennine Peninsula.

Italy is the name of the southern lands of the small ancient people of the Italians or Italians, which are mentioned in ancient writings as “Vitellium”, “ιταλοί”, “vituli”, etc. The local tribes at war with each other claimed their piece of fertile land, and this did not contribute unification into a single state. with its imperial history and culture - a separate page.

As one art historian aptly put it, the history of Italy is a whole library that can be studied for centuries. But our goal is a brief digression into the depths of the centuries of this European treasury.

The climatic conditions of the Apennine Peninsula were more severe than in the Middle East and in North Africa, but this land has given the world several civilizations. Some left behind amazing fortifications, others - magnificent architecture in the form of palazzos (palaces) and temples with sculptures. Much later, during the Renaissance, unsurpassed masterpieces of painting and arts and crafts appeared here.

The building of the first large cities in Italy dates back no earlier than 1000 BC. Small and well-fortified round-shaped settlements or chaotic buildings were built here on the edge of impregnable cliffs. Some of them have survived to this day, but historians are sometimes at a loss to guess who they belonged to.

It is known that the territory of the peninsula has been inhabited by Neanderthals since the Paleolithic. Since the Neolithic era, 10,000 years ago, when active settlement of the territory began, artifacts, buildings and ruins have been left by ancient cultures - Terramare, Camuna, Canegrate, Vilanova and Remedello. Due to frequent volcanic eruptions, solid buildings ancient world and castle monuments are worse preserved than in the heyday of other civilizations.

If you look at the ancient maps of Italy, they seem to be wrong, but the ancient geographers were accurate. It's just that the Apennine Peninsula goes far into the stormy Mediterranean Sea, earthquakes and geological processes “shake” it, changing its shape.

During the ice age, the peninsula was connected to nearby islands. The plains were flooded due to climate change, prompting the tribes to move. The fertile land and relatively warm climate contributed to the development of agriculture, the development of agriculture, which prompted the ancient hunters to settle down.

In Northern Italy, peoples moved until the Late Middle Ages. The ancient Greeks and Romans gave different names northern and southern lands. In the descriptions one can find "Έσπερία", "Αύσονία", "Οινώτρία". The lands south of the Alps became part of Italy under the emperor Diocletian, and 3 new regions added to a dozen scattered sections of the peninsula.

Italy is the cradle of many civilizations

In southern Italy, agriculture developed, fishing villages were settled in coastal areas, but many mountainous regions were empty. Due to earthquakes, local peoples learned to build houses on stilts and deep stone foundations. New cultures and civilizations developed:

  • The Etruscans, who gave the Italians the alphabet, lived in the north and in the central part;
  • The Veneti settled the northeast;
  • The Ligures explored the coast of northwestern Italy;
  • Siculi and Sicani came to Sicily;
  • The Yapigs have gone to the southeast;
  • After the raids, militant Gauls settled in the river valley.

In Tuscany (then Eturia), the Etruscans built cities, many of which still exist today - Perugia and Arezzo. A developed economy and culture contributed to the flourishing of the peoples living here. The Phoenicians and Hellenes with their antiquity, who actively settled the coast in the 7th-5th centuries, contributed a lot to the cultural exchange. BC.

Ancient Roman period

The future cradle of civilizations was built on scattered hills, and gradually the settlements of the warring owners were united into, thanks to the construction. Year 754 BC is considered the date of its foundation by the Latins.

The politics and way of life of a warlike people are strife between patricians and plebeians, the conquest of neighboring lands, real triumphs and dubious successes. Roman soldiers in 290 BC conquered the lands of Central Italy."Pyrrhic victory" over the Greek commander Pyrrhus in 265 BC (with the loss of a large army of the Romans) - the time of the conquest of the southern lands.

The sculpted busts of most of the emperors and conquerors have been preserved - they are exhibited in the museums of Rome.

Rome is known for endless military conflicts and the cruelty of its tyrants - emperors and generals. It's amazing, when did they have time to build their amazing masterpieces of architecture, such as the Colosseum (completed under Domitian in 96), in order to go there to demand "bread and circuses"?

Then there were the Punic Wars with Carthage (from 264 to 146 BC), the conquest of Corsica, Sicily and Sardinia, the expansion of the Roman Empire to the west and east, which led to the formation of a major power in the Mediterranean.

Many pages of history have been deposited for everyone from school:

  • The slave system and the uprising led by Spartacus (from 73 to 71 BC);
  • Generation of part of the lands of modern Italy and France (58-51 BC), up to Britain (43);
  • Annexation of Egypt to the Roman Empire (30 BC);
  • The conquest of Judea and Palestine with the destruction of Jerusalem (the beginning of the 1st century, part of the events is described in the Bible);
  • The development of the economy, the construction of roads throughout Europe and to Jerusalem, the introduction of a common monetary system and the active construction of new cities.

The crisis and fall of the Roman Empire begins in the III century due to the loss of real power by frequently changing emperors and their palace intrigues. After that, the Visigoths (barbarians) captured and plundered its capital - Rome fell in 455. Many works of art have been irretrievably lost, temples and palaces of noble Romans have been destroyed, and many prosperous cities have been wiped off the face of the earth. The destructive work was completed by the Goths, Ostrogoths and Lombards.

Middle Ages and the period of papal power

Historians claim that the power of the church is strengthened in different countries during periods of devastation or before the beginning of any reformation. Cause – the peoples have no other support in society, so it was in Catholic Italy after the fall of Rome, and the papacy received unlimited power. This is the period of the Holy Roman Empire - new form authorities. But over time, the unlimited power and luxury of the papacy led to a conflict between ecclesiastical and secular authorities.

A new redistribution of territories, with the decline of the once prosperous state, led to the development of feudalism and primitive economic relations- natural exchange of goods. Nobody restored the ruins of the once majestic cities, the fortified buildings were adapted for monasteries. The churchmen taxed the poor population of Italy with cunning taxes and sold them indulgences.

The papal region was isolated in 756 in the basin of the Tiber and Ravenna. The period of the dark Middle Ages with its Inquisition and Gothic art has come.

Gradually, Italy turns into an "apple of discord" for the stronger European states that claimed dominance. New wars and conflicts have led to the fact that the map of Italy is constantly being redrawn. This territory is not just one and a half dozen regions, but the patrimony of several empires!

During the Renaissance, separate regions and fortified cities developed -,. They form their own culture and even build colonies elsewhere in the Mediterranean. A developed economy and a strong fleet of the republics contribute to the strengthening of external economic ties and opposition to the power of the Ottoman Empire in the XV-XVI centuries. Military conflicts and conquests did not stop, and later Napoleon's troops invaded Italy in 1796-1814.

Art of Italy during the Renaissance

Examining the masterpieces of Italian masters of the Renaissance in the museums of Rome, tourists are surprised at how such works of art could be created! The term (Renaissance or "Renaissance") originated in the 16th century - the period of the spiritual Reformation, which came with the Protestant movement of the German monk Martin Luther. Suppressed by the religious oppression of the inquisitors, medieval Europe began to awaken. Timid steps began to be taken by progressive medicine, science and art.

This period is described in detail in the writings of Giorgio Vasari (painter, historian and biographer of several artists, his contemporaries). Many creations of this period are well known to the world:

  • "Venus" by Giorgione;
  • "David";
  • "Leda and the Swan";
  • The Last Judgment by Michelangelo;

  • "Fortuneteller";
  • "Allegory of love and time" Agnola Bronzino;
  • "Sistine Madonna" and other works.

All these authors left a noticeable mark in art. The Reformation brought a lively spirit to art - dynamic lines, natural proportions, vivid emotions on the faces of the characters, more colors in the illuminated silhouettes. Religious circles of the Middle Ages considered such images unacceptable. Before that, Biblical stories dominated art, and now illustrations for legends and myths, secular stories and genre sketches have come. Fruits, colors and game appeared on the canvases - this is how the still life appeared. Portrait painting received a new round of development, but it was still ordered by poor masters from rich nobles.

Art historians singled out the periods of the Italian Renaissance separately:

  1. Proto-Renaissance (XIII century - early XIV century, Nicolo Pisano, Cimabue, Giotto de Bondone);
  2. Early Renaissance (XIV century - early XV century, Sandro Botticelli, Donatello Masaccio, Gentile da Fabriano, Filippo Lippi, Andrea Mantegna, Luca Signorelli, Carlo Criveli, Giovani Bellini);
  3. High Renaissance (XV and XVI centuries, Bramante, Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Giorgione, Jacopo Sansovino, Titian);
  4. Late Renaissance (2nd half of the 16th - 17th centuries, Paolo Veronese, Jacopo Pontormo, Benvenuto Cellini, Agnolo Bronzino, Parmigianino Tintoretto, Andrea Palladio).

From the Reformation to the present day

Luther's Reformation and the Protestant movement in Europe in the XIV-XV centuries noticeably weakened papal power, Italy also rose and developed., Florentine painting. Skillful tapestries and frescoes, sculptural and pictorial masterpieces adorned the basilicas and cathedrals under construction.

Talented sculptors and artists flock to Rome, willingly fulfilling orders for rich nobles for generous fees. Against the backdrop of the flourishing of baroque art, the general poverty of the bulk of the population is leveled. But the fragmentation of the North and South of Italy is becoming more and more noticeable. In 1860-1866, he liberated Italy from the Ostrians with the troops for the sake of its unification.

Rome was finally liberated in 1870, becoming the capital of a united country. Around the same time, papal power was abolished and separated from the state. - all that was left to them from numerous lands. Monarch Umberto I of Italy goes to an agreement with Austria-Hungary and Germany through the Triple Alliance.

Upheavals and wars of the twentieth century

In the First World War (since 1915), the Italians are fighting on the side of the Entente, and the signed peace treaty of Saint-Germain annexes Trieste, South Tyrol and Istria, separated from Austria. The economy of the northern territories of the country is being strengthened.

Since 1922, power has led to the development of fascism in Italy, and in World War II it becomes an ally of the Third Reich. The charismatic Italian "leader" is supported by the people, who are unaware of the general catastrophe that is coming in Europe. The fate and outcome of the war for Italy was deplorable. The people rose from the "dust and ashes" for a long time, having survived several economic and political crises within the country and in foreign policy.

Despite everything, Italy is rapidly rising - it is one of the most influential and economically developed countries in the European Union.

- "Mecca" for tourists and connoisseurs of art, - the world capital of fashion and shopping lovers. It hosts international festivals of opera and classical music. Largest cities Italy - treasuries of ancient artifacts and masterpieces of the Great Masters.

The capital of Italy is the cradle of several civilizations. A trip to Rome is an opportunity to immerse yourself in world history, from the depths of centuries to our time.

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