Palazzo Vecchio, Florence — Visitor Guide & Things to Do Nearby

Palazzo Vecchio is the fortress-like town hall of Florence, standing guard over Piazza della Signoria with its 94-metre tower of Arnolfo reaching into the Tuscan sky. It has been the seat of Florentine government since 1299 and remains the city's town hall today.

The building was designed for the Priors and Gonfaloniere, Florence's governing body, and was deliberately built on the ruins of the Uberti family palace, whose Ghibelline faction had been expelled from the city in 1266. Even the location was a political statement.

In the mid-16th century, Cosimo I de' Medici moved into the palace and hired Giorgio Vasari to transform it into a ducal residence. Vasari doubled the building's size and decorated the interior with elaborate frescoes. The Hall of the Five Hundred (Salone dei Cinquecento), originally designed for a 500-person council, became a grand reception room. Vasari's "Battle of Marciano" fresco on one wall has long been rumoured to conceal a lost Leonardo da Vinci painting beneath it.

The tower, the Torre di Arnolfo, offers 360-degree views of Florence from 95 metres up. The climb is steep but the panorama is worth every step.

When Cosimo moved to the Palazzo Pitti in 1549, this building became the "old palace" (Palazzo Vecchio), and the name stuck.

If you're on a Questo quest through Florence, Palazzo Vecchio is a stop where power, art, and political revenge have been playing out for over 700 years.