Posted on 27.06.2013, 07.04.2014
At the time when was happening the action of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, Verona reached its maximum prosperity, under the rule of the Scaliger family and particularly under Cangrande I, who protected the exiled poet Dante. Situated at the foot of Monte Lessini on the River Adige, in northern Italy, the city became important because it was at the intersection of several roads. Founded by ancient tribes and became a Roman colony in the 1st century BCE, was occupied by the Ostrogoths, by the Lombards, and by Charlemagne (774). In the early 12th century, it became an independent commune, but it fell to Venice in 1405, was part of the Austrian Empire from 1797, and joined the Kingdom of Italy in 1866. Because is an outstanding example of a town that has developed progressively and uninterruptedly over 2,000 years, incorporating artistic elements of the highest quality from each succeeding period, was designated an UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000.
The core of the city consists of the Roman town, which includes the Porta Borsari, the Porta Leoni, the Arco dei Gavi, the Ponte Pietra, the Roman theatre (excavated in the mid-19th century and restored for use in spectacles), and the Amphitheatre Arena (the second-largest after the Colosseum in Rome). The Scaligers rebuilt the walls, embracing a much larger territory in the west and another vast area on the east bank of the river. The heart of Verona is the ensemble consisting of the Piazza delle Erbe (with its picturesque vegetable market) and the Piazza dei Signori, with their historic buildings, including the Palazzo del Comune, Palazzo del Governo, Loggia del Consiglio, Arche Scaligere and Domus Nova. The Piazza Bra has a number of classicist buildings.
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