|Official Name:||Comune di Firenze| |Area Total Km2:||102|
|Population As Of:||2006-06-02| |Population Density Km2:||3593|
|Saint:||St. John the Baptist| |Mayor:||Leonardo Domenici
(Democratic Party)| Florence (Italian: Firenze /fiˈrɛnʦe/, Old
Italian: Fiorenza, Latin: Florentia) is the capital city of the
Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is
the most populous city in Tuscany and has a population of
364,779 (696,767 in the urban area). The city lies on the River
Arno and is known for its history and its importance in the
Middle Ages and in the Renaissance, especially for its art and
architecture. A centre of medieval European trade and finance,
the city is often considered the birthplace of the Italian
Renaissance; in fact, it has been called the Athens of the
Middle Ages. It was long under the de facto rule of the Medici
family. From 1865 to 1870 the city was also the capital of the
Kingdom of Italy. See main article: History of Florence.
Florence was originally established by Jul