Guide to Bergamo

See beautiful pictures of Bergamo and some very interesting places to stay in this Guide. Tours also. Submit your questions and they will send you an answer or any information on hotels, flights, etc.

Guide to Bergamo

Bergamo is a beautiful city, with a medieval hilltop old town. It is easily reached by Ryanair flights from Glasgow, London, Paris, Girona, Brussels, Frankfurt, Hamburg and Stockholm, making it an ideal short break destination. The airport is near the city and can be reached by regular buses, costing around one euro. The walled old town, reached by funicular, is well preserved.
The Academia Carrera is said to be one of the best collections of art in Italy. The surrounding countryside is very beautiful; there are churches in many small villages with medieval frescoes and paintings.

 

Nearby is Lake Iseo, which has the largest lake island in Europe. The famous Valpolcia and Franciacorta wines are produced locally. North of the city are the Pre Alps and the Valle Bremabana.

 

Bergamo is a real life tale of two cities: Bergamo Alta, the beautiful walled hilltop medieval city, and Bergamo Bassa, the lower city, built mainly at the beginning of the 20th century. Bergamo has long been acknowledged as a beautiful city. The 14th century Italian scholar, poet and humanist, Francesco Petrarca remarked, "I shall always remember the image of Bergamo, Italy's alpine town." This is praise indeed as Petrarch is regarded as one of Italy's great scholars and a leading contributor the in the development of the Renaissance.


Bargamo, originally known as Barra, is said to have founded by Cydno, the son of the founder of the Liguri family. The Etruscans turned the city into a fortress in the sixth century BC. Its location made it ideal as they could see right over the plains below and spot any advancing enemy. Later that century the city was taken over by the Cenomani Gauls, who renamed it Berghem ('city on the mountain'). The spread of the Roman Empire brought about a slight change in name to Bergomum and it was during this period that the first walls were built around the city. The city was dominated by the Longobaords and Franks before becoming a free town in the 12th century. However for several centuries from 1428 the Venetians dominated Bergamo. This was a long period of social, political and cultural wealth. The walls were rebuilt in the 16th century by the Republic of Venice. During the French Revolution Bergamo was part of the French Cisapine Republic. After the Congress of Vienna the Austrians ruled until the unification of Italy in 1859.

Piazza Vecchia

The heart of the old town is 15th century Piazza Vecchia. The main entrance is the Sant'Agostoa gate, the walls extend for more than five kilometres and there are four gates. The portico of the Palazzo della Ragione, which sits in Piazza Vecchia, dates from the 12th century. The potico leads in to the Piazza del Duomo. Here is the church of Santa Maria also dating from the 12th century. The church has an octagonal dome. There are still traces of the original frescoes depicting the "tree of life". The wooden confessional was produced in 1705 by Andrea Fontani. Bergamo's favourite musical son Donizetti's tomb is at the back of the church.

Gaetnao Donizetti was born in 1797 just outside the city walls, at the start of Borge Canale. He produced more then seventy compositions "Elisir d'Amore" (1832) "Lucia di Lammermoor" (1835). It is said that he was always emotionally attached to Bergamo. The Donizetti Theatre, named in his honour, co hosts "The International Piano Festival of Brescia and Bergmo" The festival takes place from April 23 to June 12 2005, at the Teatro Grance in Brescia and the Donizetti Theatre in Bergamo.

Colleoni Chapel is another fine example of Rennaisance architecture. Bartolomeo Colleoni, born in Bergamo, commissioned this as his tomb. The building was completed in 1476. Colleoni is portrayed on a golden horse. He is usually referred to as a "soldier of fortune", a less harsh description than mercenary. This may be because he was regarded as fairly respectable, as although he changed sides, he never committed any treacherous acts or rape and executions in the defeated territories. His father was attacked and murdered when Bartolomeo was young, by the Duke of Milan. He spent several years as a young man serving in various armies. At the age of 32 he joined the army of the Venetian Republic. He was also known for his work on agricultural improvements made to the land on the estates given to him as reward by the Venetians.

The Venetian Lorenzo Lotto worked here in 1525. Lotto's work encompassed the work of Bramante, Raffaello and Leonardi. Lorenzo Lotto spent 12 years working in Bergamo. Although originally from Venice, he considered Bergamo to be his spiritual home, appreciating its down to earth approach to religion and faith. In 1525 he worked on the Episode from the life of Mary in the Church San Michele al Pozzo Bianca. Several churches in Bergamo are adorned with his altarpieces. Itineraries on a Lotto theme can be found here.

Accademia Carrara is one of the most important galleries in Italy. It was founded in 1796 by Count Carrara. It now houses more than 18000 pieces, including pieces by Botticelli, Raffaello,Bellini and Donatella. There are also works by foreign artists such as Rubens and Clouet.

The Accademia is also the Bergamo Museum. There are paintings depicting the town from the 15th to the 19th century. The Gallery of Modern Art is nearby.

The Gruppo Guide Citta di Bergamo, tel 035 249553, offer half day and full day tours. They have English, German, Spanish and French guides.

Every Sundays from April onwards, you can take a guided tour of historic homes in Bergamo, the Tour Dimore Storiche. A ticket for all five residences cost 16 euros, for three residences the cost is 12 euros.