San Donato in Poggio 3316 - San Donato in Poggio

San Donato in Poggio

The town, founded in Roman times, was the principal fortification of the area, serving to defend the Roman road that led from Florence to Siena. The “castrum” (militaary fortress), which in the year 1033 belonged to the family of Count Guidi, became autonomous during the era of the communes. Lying between the cities of Florence and Siena, who were eternally vying for supremacy over the territory, San Donato was frequently the scene of important events, such as the gathering of the Florentine army in 1260, prior to the Battle of Montaperti against the Republic of Siena. The town was destroyed in 1289 by the Ghibellines of Arezzo and subsequently rebuilt with a typical protective wall encircling it.

Pieve

Portions of the outer wall surrounding the original town are still standing. Of particular interest are the Florentine Gate and the Sienese Gate, each with a scarp tower, as well as numerous turrets, including a bell tower and the so-called “little tower” which overlooks the valley. Within the oldest section of the inner town one can still admire the urban structure of the medieval burg, with narrow streets winding up and down among the thirteenth-century dwellings. Also in this central core of the town are the main town square, the public cistern, Palazzo Pretorio and the Romanesque church of Santa Maria della Neve.

Tower

Around the year 1000, outside the walls of San Donato, a parish church in the Tuscan Romanesque style was built, featuring three naves and three semicircular apses. The interior of the church is graced by a baptismal font in glazed terracotta, the work of Giovanni della Robbia (1513) and a crucifix attributed to Taddeo Gaddi.