Landscape Influence on the Development of the Medieval-Early Reinaissance City states of Pisa, Florence and Siena, Italy

The development of the three city-states of Pisa, Florence, and Siena in the Middle Ages-early Renaissance is closely interwoven, complex, and primarily determined by socio-political and socio-economical conditions. Those were difficult times and each society strived to emerge or to survive, as the case might have been, with variable fortune associated to factors such enterprising citizens, tbe selection and loss of powerfuI allies, the continuous strife of internaI discord and external wars, and the scourge of soldiers of fortune that from time to time pillaged the territori es. Beyond this socio-political morass there were a150 environmental and sanitary factors that greatly contributed to the diverse success ofthe three societies. Some factors, such as the great scourge of tbe Black Plague starting in 1347-1348, affected ali equally, albeit with different results commensurate to tbe size of tbe populations. Florence had the largest population at tbat time and altbough drastically reduced, it could rebound more readily. Other factors were tied to tbe settings (landscape) of the three citi es; one of these related to the viability by water and overland. Pisa was never an industriaI power, nor did it produce great quantities offoodstufffrom its vast, partially wet plain. Pisa, though, was located near tbe sea on a river that was navigable for much of tbe early part of medieval times, and could utilize good sea harbors, such as the ~Portus Pisanus', for large ships. Pisa catered to sea transport and travels thorough the Mediterranean including servicing the tirst Crusades and in doing so its society thrived. Pisa was also a bottleneck far landlocked towns such as Florence that had to lise it for it5 commerce, for materials needed far its industry, and for importing foodstuff during recurring periods of famine. lt was therefore a prize to be obtained and eventualIy it fell detinitively under FIorentine rule in 1509. Florence in the early part of the thirteenth century was surrolUlded by powerful towns arnong which were Pisa and Siena. The city was excluded from the benefits derived from major transport routes and apparently had limited prospects of successo It did not have access to the sea, the river was difficult to navigate (and only with small crafts), it was far from the principal pilgrimage routes, and it did not bave primary resources. Even some of the wool and dies for the cloth industry had to be imported through the harbor of the often antagonistic Pisa. In spite of all, within a few decades it succeeded in reversing the situation. A major communication route shifted from the old Via Francigena to one crossing Florence (the ancient Roman via Cassia, Fig.13.15b). Powerful new alliances were struck, particularly with the Vatican and other states. The city started to use profitably the great hydraulic resources of the Amo River, increasing greatly the productivity ofits cloth and later its silk industries. In 1252 il coined the 'Fiorino', golden coin that overtook the coinage of Siena slowly depreciating as less and less silver was used to mint il. Florence grew to reach about 100,000 inhabitants by the end of the thirteenth century. Nevertheless the subsequent development of Florence to major power status was not a linear one. It suffered strong setbacks such as during the 1333 large flood and crop failure, and its weakening continued reaching bottom during the plague of 1347-1348 and subsequent Black Death bouts. Florence, though, weathered the difficulties better than others in part because ofthe benefits it derived from the fertile lands of its territory and hydropower it had. As industry evolved and grew, the commerce expanded and competitive practices were implemented such as flooding the markets with less expensive goods. Siena and other societies of Tuscany could not keep pace. Siena is located on a hilly COlUltry away from water courses. Albeit distant, it had an opening to the sea with a small harbor (Talamone) in centrai south Tuscany, the Maremma. More importantly, during the religious fervour that brought thousands of pilgrirns to Rome during the early High Middle Ages, Siena fOlUld itself located on one of the preferred pilgrirnage route (Via Francigena) because safer and healthier than those of the adjacent bottom valleys locally inlUldated by wetlands infested by biting insects. The city catered well to the pilgrirns offering some degree of security, hospitality, health support, and, most of all, money exchange and banking facilities. This eventually led to the temporary dominance of the Sienese silver coin and to expansion of its commerce throughout Europe. However Siena had strong landscape limitations that impeded its competiveness in expanded markets and industriai development of wool-cloth manufacturing. It had enough space and water in its major, bottomvalley, industriai area ofFontebranda to remain competitive with others during the early part of the High Middle Ages, but it simply did not have enough natural resources to compete later ono Siena Iike most of Tuscany becarne subservient to Florence by the mid sixteenth century. As a whole, the three cities and their territori es provide abundant examples of the ways in which humanity is an integrai component of landscape, with two-way traffic between the two. The constraints laid upon human development by the landscape, and our attempls lo minimize those constraints by the invention of appropriate technologies produce possibilities of complex feedback at ali stages. Generally, our victories are short lived, and we are forced to devise new strategies on a continuing basis. We cali this progress, far want of a more honesl label.