Grosseto

Aerial view of Grosseto

Grosseto (help·info) is a city and comune in the central Italian region of Tuscany, the capital of the Province of Grosseto. The city lies 14 km from the Tyrrhenian Sea, in the Maremma, at the centre of an alluvial plain, on the Ombrone river.

It is the most populous city in Maremma, with 82,284 inhabitants. The comune of Grosseto includes the frazioni of Marina di Grosseto, the largest, Roselle, Principina a Mare, Principina Terra, Montepescali, Braccagni, Istia d'Ombrone, Batignano, Alberese and Rispescia.

The Cathedral of Grosseto.

Main sights

The Medicean WallsThe walls were begun by Francesco I de Medici in 1574, replacing those from the 12th-14th centuries, as part of his policy of making Grosseto a stronghold to protect his southern border. The design was by Baldassarre Lanci, and the construction took 19 years, being completed under Grand Duke Ferdinand I. Until 1757 the exterior was surrounded by a ditch with an earthen moat. There were two main gates: Porta Nuova on the North and Porta Reale (now Porta Vecchia) on the South.

The walls are now used as a public park and walking area.

Church of San Francesco

Religious architecture

The Romanesque cathedral, the main monument of the city, is named for its patron St. Lawrence, and was begun at the end of the 13th century, by architect Sozzo Rustichini of Siena. Erected over the earlier church of Santa Maria Assunta, it was only finished in the 15th century (mainly due to the continuing struggles against Siena).

Bell Tower of the Church of San Pietro

The façade of alternate layers of white and black marble is Romanesque in style, but is almost entirely the result of 16th century and 1816–1855 restorations: it retains decorative parts of the originary buildings, including Evangelists' symbols. The layout consists of a Latin cross, with transept and apse. The interior has a nave with two aisles, separated by cruciform pilasters. The main artworks are a wondrously carved baptismal font from 1470–1474 and the Madonna delle Grazie by Matteo di Giovanni (1470).

The campanile (bell tower) was finished in 1402, and restored in 1911

Palazzo Aldobrandeschi.

Churches in the city centre

l   Church of San Francesco. Situated in the omonym square, it was built in the Middle Ages, and it was an important Benedectine convent, before moving to the Franciscans. The complex has undergone several restorations in later times: the bell was rebuilt in the first half of twentieth century. Very characteristic is the wooden tabernacle that stands on the front and inside there are works of art from various historical periods. At the center of the cloister stands the characteristic Pozzo della Bufala (Well of the Buffalo) in travertine; another well is located in the square outside the church.

l   Convent of Clarisse. Located on strada Vinzaglio, the convent is annexed to the Church of Bigi. The convent of Clarisse and the church of Bigi are now desecrated. The entire complex is characterized by the probable medieval origins, which was followed by a series of restorations in Baroque style in the seventeenth century. Today the convent hosts the Museolab Città di Grosseto and the university.

Palazzo del Monte dei Paschi.

l   Church of San Pietro. The oldest religious building in Grosseto, it was built along the stretch of the Via Aurelia that crossed the center and was originally a plebeian and stational church along the old consular road.

l   Church of Misericordia (20th century). It belonged to various religious orders during the following centuries, before moving on brotherhood in the early decades of the nineteenth century. In the past, there were several well-preserved works of art currently on display in the section on Sacred Art of the Museum of Archeology and Art of Maremma.

Palazzo Tognetti.

Churches outside the city walls

l   Church of San Giovanni, built in the 12th century in the vicinity of the ancient salt mines in the Prile Lake.

l   Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, an imposing religious building built in a modern and functional style during the 20th century, it is located along via della Pace.

l   Church of Medaglia Miracolosa, built in the early 20th century behind the Palazzo delle Poste in a neo-Romanesque style. It has a bell tower.

l   Church of San Giuseppe, located in the western part of the urban area, it was built in the thirties of last century in neo-Romanesque style, divided into three naves. The capitals are adorned with very fine and decorative features.

Villino Panichi.

l   Church of San Giuseppe Benedetto Cottolengo, built on the eastern end of the urban area around the middle of last century, the style is neo-Romanesque, it is flanked by a bell tower and preceded by steps and a porch.

l   Church of Maria Santissima Addolorata, built in the 1970s in the neighbourhood of Gorarella.

l   Church of Santissimo Crocifisso, a modern church situated in an area called Cittadella dello Studente.

l   Church of Santa Lucia, a modern church situated in the neighbourhood of Barbanella.

l   Church of Mother Teresa, built in the 2000s and consacrated in 2006, it is situated in an area called Cittadella, on the northern part of the urban area.

Palace of Post and Telegraphs.

Abbeys

l   Abbey of San Rabano, at the southern end of the town of Grosseto in the heart of the Natural Park of Maremma. It was built in the Middle Ages as a Benedictine monastery, passed after the Order of the Knights of Jerusalem and it was finally abandoned in the 16th century.

l   Abbey of San Pancrazio al Fango, situated between Grosseto and Castiglione della Pescaia, in the heart of Nature Reserve Diaccia Botrona, not far from the Fattoria della Badiola. The church, which is in the form of ruins, was built in the Middle Ages on a slight hill overlooking the surrounding wetlands, once occupied by Prile Lake near a building from Roman times.

Teatro degli Industri.

Culture

Literature

Andrea da Grosseto was born in Grosseto in the first half of 1200. He is very important in Italian literature, because he is considered the first writer in the Italian language. Andrea da Grosseto translated from Latin the Moral Treaties of Albertano of Brescia, in 1268. His texts were written in the Italian language, without too many redundancies and constructions, words and typical ways of speech of the vernacular and the dialect. The writer intended to not utilise his own Grossetan dialect, but to use a general "Italian national language". In fact he twice refers to the vernacular which he uses defining it italico (Italic). So Andrea da Grosseto was the first to intend to use vernacular as a national unifying language from the North to the South of the entire Peninsula.

Cinema

Grosseto and Maremma have been settings for numerous works of fiction and movies, including the novels and associated films, such as The Easy Life (1962) with Vittorio Gassman; La vita agra (1964), from the omonym novel by Luciano Bianciardi, with Ugo Tognazzi; An Ideal Place To Kill (1969) directed by Umberto Lenzi; In viaggio con papà (1982), with Alberto Sordi; Nothing Left to Do But Cry (1984), with Massimo Troisi and Roberto Benigni; It's Happening Tomorrow (1988); Viola bacia tutti (1997) with Asia Argento; The Talented Mr. Ripley with Matt Damon and Jude Law; Emma sono io (2002); Roberto Benigni's Pinocchio; Manuale d'amore 3 (2011) with Robert De Niro and Monica Bellucci; Swiss movie Summer Games, and some Leonardo Pieraccioni's movies. Famous Italian actress Elsa Martinelli and actor Luigi Pistilli were both born in Grosseto. Actress Laura Morante was born in Santa Fiora, and director Umberto Lenzi in Massa Marittima, both in the province of Grosseto.

Cuisine

Schiaccia alla pala (oven-baked bread with oil) and Schiaccia con cipolle e acciughe (oven-baked bread with onions and European anchovy) are typical breads of the city of Grosseto. Acquacotta is typical of Mount Amiata: it is a poor soup, and the main ingredients are artichokes, broccoli, cabbage, beans, borage, pisciacane (dandelion) and similar vegetables. The Maremmana cattle is one of the two breeds used in the preparation of the florentine steak.

Transportation

Trains

The city is crossed by the railway Pisa-Livorno-Roma connecting Genoa to the capital and it is the point of arrival and departure of the branch line single track Grosseto-Monte Antico-Siena, where it continues north to Empoli, Florence, and east to Chiusi.

Here is the list of railway stations in the city of Grosseto:

l   Grosseto Station, situated along the railway Pisa-Livorno-Roma, it is the terminus of Monte Antico-Siena-Grosseto. It is the main railway station of the city, which serves the city center and the urban area.

l   Montepescali Station, located at the northern limits of the municipality, at the point of bifurcation between the Pisa-Livorno-Roma railway line and Siena-Monte Antico Grosseto.

l   Alberese Station, located along the railway Pisa-Livorno-Roma to the southern limits of the municipal area.

l   Rispescia Station, now disused, situated near the village of Rispescia and was a place of occasional stop for regional trains.

Buses

Local bus service in Grosseto is managed by Rama Mobilità. Intercity buses depart from the main bus station in Piazza Marconi. There are also several run bus services going from the city to Florence, Siena and other cities in Tuscany.

Port

The city has a modern tourist dock opened in 2004 in the seaside resort of Marina di Grosseto, at the mouth of the Canal St. Rocco. For passenger traffic in the medium range, the port reference is Porto Santo Stefano (40 km), with ferry only for the island of Giglio and Giannutri.

Airport

Grosseto and the Maremma are served by the Baccarini Airport, located midway between the capital and Marina di Grosseto. The infrastructure is a military airport which is also used as a commercial airport by civilian charter flights and private aircraft.

With regard to domestic and international flights, the airports of reference are the Airport of Florence, Pisa and Fiumicino. All three airports are located about 150 km from the capital of the Maremma.

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