Bologna is one of the oldest cities in Italy. There are a large number of universities and 1/3 of the entire population of the city - visiting students from all over the world. Despite the ancient history of the city and its architecture, Bologna is the most "lively" city in the country, as it is the youth who sets the pace of life here.
Architectural features of Bologna
The city owes its rich and varied architecture to the sometimes ridiculous laws by which people lived on this territory centuries ago. For example, the famous arched galleries of the city arose thanks to a tax that was levied for every meter of a building standing on the ground. Thus, homeowners tried to increase the area of \u200b\u200btheir estates, while paying a minimum tax. The length of the arched galleries today is almost 40 km and thanks to them Bologna is called "a city without a sky".
Between the 12th and 13th centuries in Bologna, nobles began to use their wealth to build a personal tower. Each tower in Bologna served as a home, warehouse and was a demonstration of the owner's wealth and protection from ill-wishers. The higher the tower was, the correspondingly more influential and richer was its owner.
- There used to be 140 towers in Bologna, but today only 21 of them remain. Construction was carried out uncontrollably and in the end, basic technical safety measures were no longer observed during construction.
The towers have survived to this day
As a result, most of the towers began to collapse within 50 years after being built. Those towers that survived today represent an interesting feature of the architecture of Bologna. It is the towers that are the main and most popular sights of the city today.
"Two famous symbols of the city"
The "Two Towers" (the falling towers of Bologna), the traditional symbol of Bologna, were built on a strategic site for the military defense of the city. In the original plan, the towers were reinforced with wooden structures and there should be overhanging galleries around the base of the towers. Today they are located right in the Porta Ravegnana square. The "Two Towers" were built of stone, like all the other towers of Bologna.
The buildings are called Asinelli and Garisenda and have been a symbol of the city for many centuries. Over time, the Garisenda Tower leaned heavily and the locals named them falling. The second tower stands almost perfectly level to this day.
Asinelli
The Asinelli Tower was built in 1109-1919 by the Asinelli family, but already in the next century it was under the full control of the city authorities. The height of the building is 97.2 m, the thickness of the walls is about 2 meters. A staircase was built in the building, but it was completed only in 1684. In 1488, barracks were added to the tower to accommodate sentry soldiers. Today there are several souvenir shops and ateliers here, in memory of the great trade of the Middle Ages.
ticket costs \u003d 3 euros
- Tourists can get to the tower for only 3 euros. It is interesting that local students have a sign that they cannot go up here until after graduation. This is considered bad luck.
Garisenda
The Garisenda Tower was built almost simultaneously with its sister and was already much smaller from the beginning - 47 meters. Due to the subsidence of the soil, the foundation of the building began to sag and the building had to be shortened. The Garisenda Tower is exactly that inclined stump that stands with a tall, even neighbor. Throughout the history of the building, it was shortened 3 times.
Tower Prendiparte
The Prendiparte is the second tallest tower in Bologna today. Its height is 61 meters. It was built over 800 years ago. The walls here are 2.5 meters thick. Today, there is a hotel here, consisting of only one room. This hotel is one of the three most unusual hotels in the world.
The hotel room consists of 12 floors: on the first floor - an entrance hall and a bathroom; on the second - a bedroom; on the 3rd - kitchen and buffet: on the 4th - dining room; 5th - prison: 6th to 11th - technical floors and on the 12th - roof terrace.
- All other towers are privately owned. They are quite low and do not open a panoramic view from them. So they are not in demand among tourists.
Best time to visit Bologna
From spring to late autumn, the tourist season lasts in the Emilia-Romagna region, the capital of which is Bologna. This period is best suited for leisurely walks and excursions, including the falling towers.
Bologna's summers can be hot and humid, but winters are generally long and dark. Every season has its advantages: in December the city is immersed in the atmosphere of Christmas, and in January the season of sales in stores starts.
Bologna Towers August 19th, 2017
What do you see in this engraving or painting? It looks like some kind of area with skyscrapers like Manhattan or something in New York! Well, this is definitely some kind of urban area of \u200b\u200ba modern city.
Will it surprise you if I say that this is medieval Bologna of the 12th century. How did it happen?
Bologna is a city of towers. They are one of the main attractions of the city. Unfortunately, not so many towers have survived to this day. But in the Middle Ages, the city imagined a real forest of towers, and looked something like this:
The main heyday of the "Bolognese towers" came about the 12th - 13th centuries, when their number reached over 180. The reasons for the construction of such a large number of towers are still not clear. According to one version, wealthy families used them for attack / defense during the struggle for investiture.
Apart from the towers, one can also see the fortified gate (torresotti) corresponding to the 12th century fortress wall (Mura dei torresotti or Cerchia dei Mille), although the wall itself was almost completely destroyed.
In the 13th century, many of the towers were demolished, while others were simply destroyed. Several of the surviving towers have been used in different ways, serving as a prison, city tower, shop, or even a residential building. The last demolitions occurred in 1917, when two towers were torn down for an ambitious but unsuccessful plan for the city's redevelopment.
So the current landscape of Bologna looks completely different:
No more than 20 such towers remain in Bologna today. The most famous of these are Asinelli and Garisenda, whose iconic form is a famous symbol of the city. Both towers are named after the names of their owners. The Asinelli Tower is 97 m taller, but the Garisenda 48 m has a more visible slope with a deviation of 3 m. Both towers had an initial height of approximately 60-70 m, but when the Garisenda began to tilt, its height dropped. The Asinelli Tower, on the other hand, was raised in height in the fourteenth century, when it was converted into a city prison and housed a small citadel.
During this period, a wooden structure was added around the Tower at a height of 30 meters, with an aerial pedestrian bridge leading to the Garisenda Tower. The pedestrian bridge was destroyed in a fire in 1398.
You can even climb some of the towers to admire the panorama of the city, although most of them are still closed to tourists.
It must be said that for a medieval city with its limited resources, the construction of the towers was not an easy task. The construction of a 60-meter tower usually took 3 to 10 years. At the same time, slaves and prisoners of war were mainly involved in the construction. There is a version that the main towers of Bologna - "Two Towers" - from the very beginning they were built at an angle, therefore they are also called the falling towers. According to another version, this is still a construction defect. The towers were located in the very center of medieval Bologna, in the place where all the roads from the city gates intersected.
These towers were named after the main sponsors of the construction. The Asinelli Tower was often used by Italian scientists to carry out various kinds of experiments. During the Second World War, the tower was a civil defense post, whose task was to detect fires in Bologna during the bombing. After the war, a television antenna was installed at the top of the tower. We also add that "The Two Towers" were quoted several times by Dante in his "Divine Comedy".
Such houses were built in the form of a quadrangle - a truncated trapezoid. The base, extending 7-10 meters into the ground, consisted of selenite blocks, and the walls were double - and the inner wall was much more powerful than the first. The gap between the walls was filled with cement, as well as rubble or stones. The thickness of the walls sometimes reached 2 meters.
Unfortunately, not so many towers have survived to this day. But in the Middle Ages, the city imagined a real forest of towers, and looked something like this:
The main heyday of the "Bolognese towers" came about the 12th - 13th centuries, when their number reached over 180. The reasons for the construction of such a large number of towers are still not clear. One of the versions, rich families used them for attack / defense during the period of struggle for investiture.
In addition to the towers, you can also see the fortified gates ( torresotti) corresponding to the 12th century fortress wall ( Mura dei torresotti or Cerchia dei mille), although the wall itself was almost completely destroyed.
In the 13th century, many of the towers collapsed or were demolished. The rest have found practical use - in the form of a prison, a city tower, a shop or even a residential building. The last tower demolitions were in the 20th century: Artenisi and Riccadonna towers at the market Mercato di mezzo were demolished in 1917.
So the current landscape of Bologna looks completely different:
From the original towers, only about 20 have survived to this day. The most famous towers of Bologna are tower Azzoguidi, also called Altabella (61 m high), prendiparte toweralso called Coronata (60 m), scappi tower (39 m), uguzzoni tower (32 m), tower Guidozagni, galluzzi tower, and two twin towers: Asinelli (97 m) and Garisenda (48 m).
You can even climb some of the towers to admire the panorama of the city, although most of them are still closed to tourists.
Bologna Towers:
Two towers: Garisenda and degli Asinelli
Address: Piazza di Porta Ravegnana - 40126 Bologna
Opening hours: Tower Asinelli: in the summer 9 - 18 (last entrance 17.40); in winter 9 am - 5 pm (last entry 4:40 pm).
Garisenda Tower: Closed
Entrance: Asinelli Tower: € 3.00
Map
Clock tower
Address: Piazza Maggiore, 1 - 40124 Bologna
Map
Arengo Tower
Address: Piazza del Nettuno 1 - 40125 Bologna
The tower is closed to the public
Map
Prendiparte or Coronata Tower
Built in the 12th century for the Prendiparte family (hence the name) as the last stronghold against enemy attacks, the Prendiparti Tower is also known as Coronata. It reaches a height of 60 meters. It is the second tallest tower in Bologna (the first is the Asinelli tower). Initially, the tower was even higher, but for some reason it was shortened.
Address: Via Sant'Alo 7 - 40125 Bologna
Opening hours: in case of events and during guided tours.
Map
Galluzzi Tower
Address: Corte de 'Galluzzi 1 - 40124 Bologna
Opening hours: entrance from the library.
Map
Azzoguidi Tower
According to measurements from 1983, the tower is 54.8 meters high, not 60 - 61 meters, as previously thought. It was originally built higher.
Address: Via Altabella, 15 - 40126 Bologna
Opening hours: The tower is privately owned and closed to the public.
Map
Agresti tower
Address: Piazza Galileo 1 - 40123 Bologna
e-mail:
Map
Alberici Tower
Address: Via Santo Stefano, 4 - 40125 Bologna
Map
Carrari tower
Address: Via Marchesana, 12 - 40124 Bologna
Opening hours: the tower is privately owned and closed to the public.
Map
Guidozagni Tower
Address: Via Albiroli, 1 - 40126 Bologna
Opening hours: the tower is privately owned and closed to the public.
The ancient city of Bologna is located almost in the very center of Italy, in the region Emilia-Romagna... Bologna in its popularity among tourists is inferior to such Italian cities as, say, Venice or Florence, but in our opinion this is not entirely deserved. After all, Bologna has a glorious history, and the city itself is rich in historical and architectural monuments. One of the main symbols of the city are the famous bologna towers, which largely determine the appearance of the city and which will be discussed in this article.
Bologna Towers is a group of medieval buildings located in the heart of the city. There are many towers in Bologna, but the most famous are the Two Towers.
It should be noted that in the Middle Ages, especially in the 12th and 13th centuries, the construction of huge towers, not inferior in height to modern skyscrapers, was quite common. For example, in Bologna, the total number of towers in the Middle Ages reached two hundred. The figure is rather big.
History of the towers
The reasons for the construction of the towers are still unclear. But the most popular version is the one according to which the towers were built by wealthy and noble Italian families in order to protect themselves. Indeed, each of the towers of Bologna is a real fortress, which is not easy to get inside.
In the 14th century, many of Bologna's towers were destroyed or simply dismantled. Some of the towers changed their original purpose and began to serve as prisons, council buildings and even shops.
The greatest blow to the towers of Bologna was struck at the very beginning of the 20th century, when the city authorities began a general reconstruction of the historic center of Bologna. Fortunately, not all of the city's towers were destroyed, and today the towers of Bologna are one of the city's main historical monuments.
The most famous towers of the city are, the height of which reaches 61 meters, Prendipate Tower, 60 meters high, Scappi Tower, 39 meters high, Uguzzoni Tower, 32 meters high. And undoubtedly two symbols of Bologna - Asinelli Tower (97 meters) and Garisenda Tower (48 meters). The last two towers are called “Two Towers”.
It must be said that for a medieval city with its limited resources, the construction of the towers was not an easy task. The construction of a 60-meter tower usually took 3 to 10 years. At the same time, slaves and prisoners of war were mainly involved in the construction.
The main towers of Bologna - "Two towers" - notable also for the fact that from the very beginning they were built at an angle, therefore they are also called falling towers by the people. The towers were located in the very center of medieval Bologna, in the place where all the roads from the city gates intersected. These towers were built at the very beginning of the 12th century, and these towers were named after the main sponsors of the construction.
Tower Asinelli was often used by Italian scientists to conduct various kinds of experiments. During the Second World War, the tower was a civil defense post, whose task was to detect fires in Bologna during the bombing. After the war, a television antenna was installed at the top of the tower. We also add that "The Two Towers" were quoted several times by Dante in his "Divine Comedy".
"Two Towers" on the map
The Leaning Towers of Bologna (Italy) - description, history, location. Exact address, phone number, website. Reviews of tourists, photos and videos.
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The Leaning Towers of Bologna are not as widely known as the Leaning Towers, but they are also a symbol of the city in which they are located. The tallest, Asinelli, is not inclined as much as its neighbor, Garisenda, but it is much higher: the height of the Asinelli tower exceeds 97 m. This makes it the tallest historical building in Old Bologna and the tallest "falling" tower in the world.
The angle of inclination of the Asinelli tower from the vertical axis is 1.3 °. It would seem not so much, but with the height of the structure, this leads to a deviation of the upper part of the tower by more than 2 meters. Nevertheless, Azinelli is able to withstand even in this position, but her neighbor, Garisenda, was less fortunate: the deviation of that initially exceeded 3 m, and this seriously threatened both the building itself and those around it. Garisenda was shortened three times, and now its height is only 48 m. But it is she, and not the taller "sister", mentioned in Dante's Divine Comedy.
The height of the Asinelli tower exceeds 97 m. This makes it the tallest historical building in Old Bologna and the tallest "leaning" tower in the world.
Building towers was, in principle, fashionable among the Italian nobility in the Middle Ages. The towers served as living quarters and fortified citadels, and also demonstrated greatness and asserted the power of their master. In Bologna alone, today you can see about 20 towers, despite the fact that initially, in the 13th century, there were about one and a half hundred.
The design of the towers was more or less the same. Each had a foundation, reinforced by pillars driven into the ground and sprinkled with stone. The base was made of large stone blocks, and the walls became thinner the higher. Usually there were two walls: a thicker inner one and a thin outer one, and the gap between them was covered with rubble.
In the 18th century, Giovanni Guglielmo studied gravity by throwing objects from the Asinelli Tower.
Of course, many legends are associated with the erection of the "falling" towers, including the one that promises a loving young man the hand of a beauty only after the construction of the highest tower in the city. However, the historical truth is rather that the construction technology in those days left much to be desired. It took 3 to 10 years of work to erect a tower of a typical construction with a height of about 60 m. According to vague data, the Azinelli family of the same name began to build at the turn of the 12th and 13th centuries. Several centuries later, the city took over the tower, and a prison was established here. The neighboring towers were connected by a kind of wooden bridge, but it burned down during a city fire. During World War II, the Asinelli Tower was used as an observation post, and later as a TV tower.
Today, the Asinelli tower can be climbed by a spiral staircase that has almost 500 steps. The Garisenda is closed for viewing from the inside.
Other towers of Bologna that are worth paying attention to are Azzogildi, aka Altabella (61 m), Prendiparte, aka Coronata (60 m), Scappi (39 m), Uguzzoni (32 m), Gildozagni and Galuzzi.
The falling towers are located at the crossroads leading to the five gates of the old city wall, and it is impossible not to find them.
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