San Miniato

The cars of the 40th historical re-enactment of the 1000 Miglia passed through San Miniato, which is located on a hill between Pisa and Florence. It is an important economic and industrial centre of the Leather District, but also a town of art, a slow food town and a place of excellence for white truffles.
Under Frederick II, San Miniato assumed a prominent role, becoming the seat of the imperial vicar in Tuscany, so much so that in the Middle Ages it was called “San Miniato al Tedesco”. In 1622, it became an episcopal see, detaching itself from the diocese of Lucca and building its own seminary not far from the cathedral, in the area then populated by houses and shops set against the walls.
The events of the Second World War left their mark on the town, causing the destruction of part of the medieval buildings (including the Rocca di Federico, later rebuilt); particularly painful was the episode of the Nazi massacre in the cathedral, from which the Taviani brothers took their cue for the film “La notte di San Lorenzo”.