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Situated on a hilltop 345 meters
above sea level, Castiglion Fiorentino affords splendid
panoramas of the Val di Chiana as well as the Pre-Apennines,
silvery, up to certain elevations, with beautiful
olive groves. With its natural beauty, long and
rich history, cultural traditions, art, activities,
and proximity to Florence, Rome, Perugia, and the
rest of Tuscany, Castiglioni is an ideal place for
vacation, for habitation, or for study. Within its
walls and in its territory it conserves the traces
of its history dating back to the Etruscans, who
followed by the Romans, the populations of the Middle
Ages, those of the epoch of the free communities,
of the Renaissance, and of more recent times, left
important signs of great historical and artistic
interest .
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Three
kilometres from Castiglion Fiorentino, on the way
to Cortona, stands the imposing medieval castle of
Montecchio. Built in the eleventh century, it underwent
successive transformations to attain its present appearance.
The English mercenary captain Sir John Hawkwood had
the use of it from the Florentines, in exchange for
his military services, until his dead in 1394. since
then., this evocative evidence of the medial epoch
has defied the centuries and the ups and downs of
local history, in which it was a protagonist of more
than a minor order.
Having won its battle against time, it has nevertheless
sustained serious damage, especially inside its mighty
walls.
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