Florence

Centrally located in Italy, the city of Florence serves as the administrative centre of the Tuscany region. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with 383,083 residents in 2016, and its metropolitan area has more than 1,520,000 people living in it altogether.

One of the most prosperous cities during that time period, Florence was an important hub for the commerce and banking of mediaeval Europe. As a result of its rise to prominence as an artistic, cultural, commercial, political, economic, and financial hub, it is widely acknowledged amongst scholars as the city where the Renaissance first began. In this time period, Florence ascended to a position of immense significance not just in Italy but also in Europe and the rest of the world. Its troubled political past is marked by various religious and republican uprisings, as well as periods of dominance by the strong Medici family. The city was the capital of the Kingdom of Italy from 1865 to 1871, when it was replaced by Rome (established in 1861). Due to the widespread influence of the literary works of Dante Alighieri, Petrarch, Giovanni Boccaccio, Niccol Machiavelli, and Francesco Guicciardini, the Florentine dialect serves as the foundation of Standard Italian. Additionally, the Florentine dialect is the language of culture throughout the entirety of Italy.

The city is visited by millions of people every year, and the historic centre of Florence was recognised as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in the year 1982. The city is famous for its monuments, Renaissance art and architecture, and cultural institutions that date back to the period. Additionally, the city is home to a plethora of museums and art galleries, such as the Uffizi Gallery and the Palazzo Pitti, and it continues to be a significant force in the realms of art, culture, and politics. Forbes magazine ranked Florence to be the most beautiful city in the world in 2010, and the reason for this was the city's rich cultural and architectural history.

The Global Language Monitor lists Florence as one of the top 15 fashion capitals of the world. In addition, Florence is a significant national economic centre, as well as a tourist and industrial hub. Florence plays an important role in the development of Italian fashion and is ranked among the top 15 fashion capitals of the world. After Milan, Florence has a Human Development Index (HDI) of 970, making it the second most developed city in Italy (after Milan) and one of the most developed in Europe.