Bologna - Basilica di San Martino

Bologna is the capital of the Emilia-Romagna region. Founded by the Etruscans, the city has been an urban center for centuries, first under the Etruscans, then under the Celts, then under the Romans, and again in the Middle Ages.

In 728 Bologna was conquered by the Longobard king Liutprand and thus became part of the Longobard Empire.

In the 11th century the place grew again as a free commune. In 1088 the university was founded, today the oldest university in Europe. As the city continued to expand, it received a new ring of ramparts in the 12th century, and another was completed in the 14th century.

In 1164 Bologna joined the Lombard League against Frederick I Barbarossa, and in 1256 the city promulgated the "Legge del Paradiso", which abolished serfdom and slavery and freed the remaining slaves with public money. The city center was a forest of towers. It is estimated that around 100 family towers of the leading families, church towers and towers of public buildings defined the cityscape.

In 1272, King Enzio of Sardinia, an illegitimate son of the Hohenstaufen Emperor Frederick II, died in Bologna after more than 22 years of imprisonment.

The Gothic-style Basilica di San Martino was founded by the adjacent Carmelite monastery and built in 1217. The brick tracery vaults of the ceiling were added in 1457. The present facade was added in 1879, in a Gothic style.