The book traces the history of Florence in a synthetic and accessible way, starting from 59 BC, traditional date of the foundation of the Roman colony, until 1967, the year after the terrible flood of the Arno river. The main events, the historical places, the great characters remind us why Florence is considered to be not simply a city, but a real cultural model, the origin of the values of democracy and freedom, of rational thought and of modern scientific method, homeland of some of the greatest geniuses of humanity.