Florence

Timeline

1. c. 1150–1300Florence · TuscanyThe Florentine commune developed the Calimala guild and textile industry on the wool resources of the Arno basin; families such as Bardi and Peruzzi built transnational banking networks, and the city's population and civic construction expanded rapidly, making it the political and economic center of Tuscany.
2. 1311–1320Florence civic district · TuscanyBetween 1311—1320, the Black Guelphs consolidated power with support from the pope and Naples' Angevin dynasty, expelled the White Guelphs in 1313 and drove Dante and others into exile; after the disastrous defeat at Montaperti in 1315, Florence fell into a political-financial crisis amid factional purges, heavier taxes, and war with Siena.
3. c. 1290–1348Florence Cathedral and Palazzo Vecchio · TuscanyGothic projects such as the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore and Orsanmichele continued, and the Palazzo Vecchio symbolized communal power; in the 1310s Florence's population reached about 100,000, making it one of the largest cities in Europe at the time.
4. 1348–1434Florence · TuscanyThe 1348 plague devastated the population and textile capacity, a wave of bank family bankruptcies intensified, and amid social unrest such as the Ciompi Revolt (1378) the republic gradually adjusted its guild-oligarchy governance structure.