The Ponte Vecchio: Florence's Medieval Bridge Through War and Flood

The Story of Italy: Rome, Renaissance, and the Birth of Modern Europe — Fexingo History · May 29, 2026 · 5m · transcript

Florence's Ponte Vecchio is the only bridge across the Arno to survive World War II, but its story stretches back to Roman times. This episode traces its journey from a Roman crossing to a medieval bridge lined with butchers' shops, then to a Renaissance corridor for the Medici. We explore the 1333 flood that destroyed the original, the Vasari Corridor built by Cosimo I to connect the Uffizi and Palazzo Pitti, and the peculiar 1939 decision by Mussolini to keep the bridge standing while every other Florentine bridge was mined. We also look at the 1966 flood that nearly destroyed it…