Province of Viterbo
—  Province  —
Map highlighting the location of the province of Viterbo in Italy
Country	Italy
Region	Lazio
Capital(s)	Viterbo
Comuni	60
Government
• President	Marcello Meroi
Area
• Total	3,612 km2 (1,395 sq mi)
Population (2011)
• Total	321,008
• Density	89/km2 (230/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	01100, 010xx
Telephone prefix	0761, 0763, 0766, 06
Vehicle registration	VT
ISTAT	056

The Province of Viterbo (Italian: Provincia di Viterbo) is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Viterbo. It is bordered to the north by the Province of Grosseto and Siena, by the north-east with the Province of Terni and Rieti, in the west by the Tyrrhenian Sea and south by the Province of Rome. This Province is often unofficially (but commonly) called "Tuscia", from the name of the larger roman region of Etruria.

It has an area of 3,612 km², and a total population of 299,830 (2005). There are 60 comuni (singular: comune) in the province, see Comuni of the Province of Viterbo. At May 31, 2005, the main comuni by population are:

Gallery[link]

• 

  Viterbo, the Palace of the Popes.

• 

  Panorama of the walls of Civita Castellana.

• 

  Tarquinia, wall painting in the Tomb of the Leopards

• 

  Vetralla.

• 

  Tuscania.

External links[link]

• Official website
• ViterboLive.it
• Culture Discovery Vacations A site that is focused on Soriano, which is in the Viterbo province, but is full of maps, day trips, festival information, etc. for towns throughout Viterbo.
• Tourist promotion Viterbo
• Tuscia 360, VR panoramas of the Viterbo province, events, hotels

v t e Lazio Provinces Frosinone Latina Rieti Rome Viterbo Lakes Lake Albano Lake Bolsena Lake Bracciano Lago di Canterno Lago di Caprolace Lago di Fondi Lago di Giulianello Lake Martignano Lake Mezzano Lago dei Monaci Lake Nemi Lago di Posta Fibreno Lago di Rascino Lago di Sabaudia Lago del Salto Lago del Turano Lake Vico Mountains Seven hills of Rome Alban Hills Aurunci Mountains Monti Ausoni Monte Cavo Cimini Hills Monti Ernici Monte Gorzano Monti della Laga Monti Lepini Monti della Meta Monte Petrella Monti Prenestini Monti Sabatini Monte Soratte Monte Terminillo Monti della Tolfa Monti Volsini Monte Cassino Monte Abate Monte Altino Monte Appiolo Maschio dell'Ariano Maschio di Lariano Monte Artemisio Monte Autore Monte Carbonaro Monte Cefalo Cima del Redentore (monti Aurunci) Circeo Monte Crispi Monte Dragone Monte Faggeto Monte Fammera Mont Fogliano Monte Fusco Monte Guadagnolo Monte Lauro in Gaeta Monte Lauzo Le Rave Fosche Monte Livata Mainarde Maschio delle Faete Meta (monte) Monna Monte Caira Monte Cervello Monte Revole Monte Sorgenze Monte Trina Monte Val de' Varri - Monte Faito - Monte San Nicola Monte di Cambio Monte le Pezze Parco regionale urbano Monte Orlando Monte Orso Monte Pizzuto Monte Ruazzo Geographic areas Castelli Romani Ciociaria Pontine marshes Roman Campagna Sabina Tiber Tuscia Politics and government Elections in Lazio List of Presidents of Lazio Ancient Lazio Etruscans Latium Latium adiectum Latial culture Latins (Italic tribe) Sabines Volsci Aequi

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Viterbo
—  Comune  —
Comune di Viterbo
Panorama of Viterbo
Coat of arms
Viterbo Location of Viterbo in Italy
Coordinates: 42°25′N 12°06′E / 42.417°N 12.1°E / 42.417; 12.1
Country	Italy
Region	Lazio
Province	Viterbo (VT)
Frazioni	Bagnaia, Fastello, Grotte Santo Stefano, La Quercia, Montanciano, Montecalvello, Monterazzano, Sant'Angelo, San Martino al Cimino, Vallebona
Government
• Mayor	Giulio Marini
Area
• Total	406.28 km2 (156.87 sq mi)
Elevation	326 m (1,070 ft)
Population (December 2010)
• Total	63,597
• Density	160/km2 (410/sq mi)
Demonym	Viterbesi
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	01100
Dialing code	0761
Patron saint	Saint Rose of Viterbo and St. Lawrence the Martyr
Saint day	September 4, August 10
Website	Official website

Viterbo  listen (help·info) is an ancient city and comune in the Lazio region of central Italy, the capital of the province of Viterbo. It is approximately 80 kilometers (50 mi) north of GRA (Rome) on the Via Cassia, and it is surrounded by the Monti Cimini and Monti Volsini. The historic center of the city is surrounded by medieval walls, still intact, built during the 11th and 12th centuries. Entrance to the walled center of the city is through ancient gates.

Apart from agriculture, the main resources of Viterbo's area are pottery, marble, and wood. The town also hosts the Italian gold reserves, an important Academy of Fine Arts, and the University of Tuscia, and is located in a wide thermal area, attracting many tourists from the whole of central Italy.

History[link]

The first report of the new city dates to the eighth century, when it is identified as Castrum Viterbii. It was fortified in 773 by the Lombard King Desiderius in his vain attempt to conquer Rome. When the popes switched to the Frankish support, Viterbo became part of the Papal States, but this status was to be highly contested by the emperors in the following centuries, until in 1095 it is known it was a free comune.

Etruscan warrior, found near Viterbo, dated circa 500 BCE.

In a period in which the popes had difficulties asserting their authority over Rome, Viterbo became their favourite residence, beginning with Pope Eugene III (1145–1146) who was besieged in vain in the city walls. In 1164, Frederick Barbarossa made Viterbo the seat of his antipope Paschal III. Three years later he gave it the title of "city" and used its militias against Rome. In 1172, Viterbo started its expansion, destroying the old city of Ferentum and conquering other lands. In this age it was a rich and prosperous comune, one of the most important of Central Italy, with a population of almost 60,000.

In 1207, Pope Innocent III held a council in the cathedral, but the city was later excommunicated as the favourite seat of the heretical Patarines and even defeated by the Romans. In 1210, however, Viterbo managed to defeat Emperor Otto IV and was again at war against Rome.

In the thirteenth century it was ruled alternately by the tyrants of the Gatti and Di Vico families. Frederick II drew Viterbo to the Ghibelline side in 1240, but when the citizens expelled his turbulent German troops in 1243 he returned and besieged the city, but in vain. From that point Viterbo was always a loyal Guelph city. Between 1257 and 1261 it was the seat of Pope Alexander IV, who also died there. His successor Urban IV was elected in Viterbo.

In 1266-1268, Clement IV chose Viterbo as the base of his ruthless fight against the Hohenstaufen. Here, from the loggia of the papal palace, he excommunicated the army of Conradin of Swabia which was passing on the Via Cassia, with the prophetical motto of the "lamb who is going to the sacrifice". Other popes elected in Viterbo were Gregory X (1271) and John XXI (1276) (who died in the papal palace when the ceiling of the recently-built library collapsed on him while he slept), Nicholas III and the French Martin IV. The Viterbese, who did not agree with the election of a foreigner directed by the King of Naples, Charles I of Anjou, invaded the cathedral where the conclave was held, arresting two of the cardinals. They were subsequently excommunicated, and the popes avoided Viterbo for 86 years.

Without the popes, the city fell into the hands of the Di Vicos. In the fourteenth century, Giovanni di Vico had created a seignory extending to Civitavecchia, Tarquinia, Bolsena, Orvieto, Todi, Narni and Amelia. His dominion was crushed by Cardinal Gil de Albornoz in 1354, sent by the Avignonese popes to recover the Papal States, who built the castle. In 1375, the city gave its keys to Francesco Di Vico, son of the previous tyrant, but thirteen years later the people killed him and assigned the city first to Pope Urban VI, and then to Giovanni di Sciarra di Vico, Francesco's cousin. But Pope Boniface IX's troops drove him away in 1396 and established a firm papal suzerainty over the city. The last Di Vico to hold power in Viterbo was Giacomo, who was defeated in 1431.

Thenceforth Viterbo became a city of secondary importance, following the vicissitudes of the Papal States. In the 16th century it was the birthplace of Latino Latini. It became part of Italy in 1871. In 2001, School Year Abroad's Italy program began a school for students of Latin in Viterbo.^[1]

Coat of arms[link]

Viterbo has two heraldic badges in its coat of arms (stemma), the Lion and the Palm Tree. The lion represents Hercules, one of the mythological founders of Viterbo. The palm tree was added sometime in the Dark Ages (4th-9th century CE) when Viterbo conquered and absorbed the neighboring town of Ferento. The letters FAUL, often surround the badges. It is unclear what they refer to. Some suggest the four legendary Etruscan nobles families, believed to be involved in the founding of the city, while others claim that they are in reference to the four hills of Viterbo.

Climate[link]

Viterbo experiences a Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification Csa).

Main sights[link]

The Palace of the Popes - In the background the bell-tower of the cathedral

Viterbo's historic center is one of the best preserved medieval towns of central Italy. Many of the older buildings (particularly churches) are built on top of ancient ruins, recognizable by their large stones, 50 centimeters to a side.

The main attraction of Viterbo is the papal palace, the (Palazzo dei Papi), that served as a country residence and a retreat in time of trouble in Rome. The columns of the palace are spolia from a Roman temple.

The second most important monument of the city is the Cathedral of S. Lorenzo. It was erected in Romanesque style by Lombard architects over a temple of Hercules. It was variously rebuilt from the sixteenth century on, and was heavily damaged in 1944 by Allied bombs. The notable Gothic belfry is from the first half of the fourteenth century, and shows influence of Sienese artists. The church houses the sarcophagus of Pope John XXI and the picture Christ Blessing by Gerolamo da Cremona (1472).

Other notable monuments are:

• The Palazzo Comunale (begun 1460), Palazzo del Podestà (1264) and Palazzo della Prefettura (rebuilt 1771) on the central square Piazza del Plebiscito. The Palazzo Comunale houses a series of sixteenth century and Baroque frescoes by Tarquinio Ligustri, Bartolomeo Cavarozzi and others.
• The small Gothic church of Santa Maria della Salute, which has a rich portal.
• The Romanesque Chiesa del Gesù (eleventh century). Here the sons of Simon de Montfort stabbed to death Henry of Almain, son of Richard of Cornwall.
• The Palazzo Farnese (fourteenth-fifteenth century), where Alessandro Farnese, the future Pope Paulus III, lived in his youth together with his beautiful sister, Giulia Farnese.
• The Rocca (castle).
• The Romanesque churches of Santa Maria Nuova (twelfth century), San Sisto (second half of the ninth century), and San Giovanni in Zoccoli (eleventh century).
• The Palazzo degli Alessandri in the old district, a typical patrician house of Middle Ages Viterbo.
• The Fontana Grande, begun in 1206.
• The Gothic church of San Francesco, built over a pre-existing Lombard fortress. It has a single nave with a Latin cross plan. It houses the sepulchre of Pope Adrian V, who died in Viterbo on August 17, 1276, considered the first monument by Arnolfo di Cambio.

St. Lawrence Cathedral and bell-tower

The Museo Civico (City Museum) houses many archeological specimens from the pre-historic to Roman times, plus a Pinacoteca (gallery) with paintings of Sebastiano del Piombo, Antoniazzo Romano, Salvator Rosa, Antiveduto Grammatica and others. The Orto Botanico dell'Università della Tuscia is a botanical garden operated by the university.

In the valley of the Arcione River just to the west of Viterbo are a number of springs celebrated for the healing qualities of their waters, and in use since Etruscan and Roman days. In fact, the imposing ruins of a great Roman bath are still to be seen and were drawn in plan and perspective by Renaissance masters, including Giuliano da Sangallo, Michelangelo, and Giorgio Vasari.^[3] One of most famous of these thermal springs was that known as the "Bulicame", or bubbling place, whose reputation had even reached the ears of the exiled poet Dante Aligheri. Canto 14 (lines 79-81) of Dante's Inferno describes how: <poem> In silence we had reached a place where flowed a slender watercourse out of the wood—a stream whose redness makes me shudder still. As from the Bulicame pours a brook whose waters are then shared by prostitutes, so did this stream run down across the sand.^[4] </poem>

Not far from the Bulicame whose waters, apparently, were always taken in the open, is the Bagno del Papa (Bath of the Pope). Almost totally concealed within the structure of a modern luxury spa hotel are the remains of a Renaissance bath palace that attracted the active attention of two popes.^[5] Actually, the origins of this bathing establishment go back to the Middle Ages when it was known as the Bagno della Crociata (so named either after a Crusader who supposedly discovered the spring or from a corruption of the Italian word for crutch). Early 15th-century documents provide a description of the medieval bath building that covered three distinct thermal springs all under one roof.^[6]

The Fontana Grande ("Grand Fountain") on the homonymous square.

This bath house was radically transformed by the first humanist pope of the Italian Renaissance, Nicholas V, who, c. 1454, ordered the construction of a bath palace to be built (according to Nicholas's biographer, Gianozzo Manetti) "with such magnificence and with such expense that it was not only deemed suitable for a stay and salutary for the sick but seemed an edifice destined to have rooms fit for princes and for living regally."^[6] A more precise description of just what Pope Nicholas ordered constructed is found in the writings of the Viterbese chronicler Nicola della Tuccia, who, in the 1470s, described the new Bagno del Papa as a battlemented building about 30 x 20 m in size with high towers at the corners of its southern facade. Its appearance would have been more fortress than watering place. Located outside Viterbo the thermal spa would have been an easy target for roving bands of bandits had the building not assumed a militant character, one which also affirmed papal authority in this region. Aside from the regal apartments described by Manedtti there were vaulted chambers at the lowest level to accommodate the patrons of the several thermal springs.^[6]

Manetti, followed by Vasari, named the Florentine architect and sculptor Bernardo Rossellino as the person responsible for a series of building projects carried out throughout the Papal States at the orders of Pope Nicholas and his name is usually associated with the project in Viterbo.^[7] There is, however, no reason, either through documentation or architectural style, to connect Rossellino directly with the construction of the Bagno del Papa. To the contrary, Vatican payment records from 1454, preserved in the state archives in Rome, identify a stonemason from Lombardy, named Stefano di Beltrame, as the builder who "had done or was doing in the house ordered by the pope at the bagni della Grotta and Crociata of Viterbo.".^[8]

Construction work at the Bagno del Papa was continued on through the reigns of several popes who followed Nicholas V. The Vatican account books make mention of payments "for building done at the bath palace of Viterbo" during the reigns of Calixtus III, Paul II, and Sixtus IV. There also is strong evidence that Pope Pius II was responsible for the addition of a western wing to the building.^[9]

Travelers' descriptions, etched views, and local guidebooks chronicle the fate of the Renaissance Bagno del Papa over the years and through several rebuildings resulting in a general assumption that most of the original 15th-century structure had vanished. A guide to Viterbo from 1911 does note that some remnants were still to be detected in basement piers and vaults. In operation as a thermal hospital in 1927, the building was blown up by retreating German forces in 1944.^[10]

Despite all the rebuildings, the demolition attempt, post-war reconstruction and the latest modification as a resort destination, much of the original Bagno del Papa of Popes Nicholas V and Pius II survives, including the corner towers and the vaulted chambers where Renaissance patrons once bathed.^[11]

The Villa Lante, an example of Mannerist gardening, is located in the frazione of Bagnaia.

Culture[link]

A recent Macchina design in 2007

Patron saints[link]

St. Rose is the patron saint of Viterbo. The legend of Santa Rosa is that she helped to eradicate those few who supported the emperors instead of the popes, around 1250. Saint Lawrence is the male patron saint.

[edit] Macchina di Santa Rosa

The transport of the Macchina di Santa Rosa takes place every year, on September 3, at 9 o'clock in the evening. The Macchina is an artistic illuminated bell-tower with an imposing height of 30 m. It weighs between 3.5 and 5 tonnes and is made of iron, wood and papier-mâché. At the top of the tower, the statue of the patron saint is enthusiastically acclaimed by the people in the streets of the town centre, where lights are turned off for the occasion. One hundred Viterbesi men (known as the Facchini) carry the Macchina from Porta Romana through each of the major streets of Viterbo to seven churches to be blessed, concluding with a strenuous ascension up to the Piazza di Santa Rosa, its final resting place. Each Macchina's lifespan differs, but contests for a new design are held every few years.

Tuscia Opera Festival[link]

During July and August the Tuscia Opera Festival is held in Viterbo. Directors Stefano Vignati and Claudio Ferri run the administrative side of the festival which consists of offering parts in the ensemble program and opera roles to Americans. Auditions are held in the winter and spring in places such as New York City, New York, and Washington, DC. There are American staff members including Cynthia Munzer, Lisa Kay Morton and other university teachers that collaborate with Italian teachers. American students participate in ensembles of operas, master classes and classes.

Transportation[link]

Porta Fiorentina is one of two train stations which serves Viterbo.

The Rome Viterbo Airport was opened in 1936 as part of Viterbo Air Force Base, located 3 km from the town. On November 26, 2007, Italian transport minister Alessandro Bianchi announced that Viterbo had been chosen as the site of the next airport in Lazio to serve Rome, over Latina, Frosinone, and Guidonia.^[12]

Notes[link]

Sources[link]

• Charles R. Mack, "The Bath Palace of Nicholas V at Viterbo", in An Archiectural Progress in the Renaissance and the Baroque: Sojourns In and Out of Italy, Papers in Art History VIII, Pennsylvania State University, Vol. I, 1992, 45-63.
• Charles R. Mack, "The Renaissance Spa: Testing the Architectural Waters", Southeastern College Art Conference Review, XI, 3, 1988, 193-200.
• Valtieri, Simonetta, "Rinascimento a Viterbo: Bernardo Rossellino", Architettura, croniche e storia, XVII, 1972, 686-94.

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Viterbo

• Official website, including a virtual tour of the city
• ViterboLive.it
• Tuscia 360 about Viterbo, including virtual tour featuring several VR panoramas
• Viterbo Tourist Promotion
• ViterboOnline.Com
• Festa delle Ciliegie (Cherry Festival and other information)
• SYA.Org (School Year Abroad, a high-school study abroad program established in 1964, hosts an American school in Viterbo that accepts 11th- and 12th-grade applicants for one academic year.)
• Viterbo on Wikitravel
• Basket in Tuscia Basketball in Viterbo area
• Viterbo Video Guide
• Museo del Colle del Duomo (Pope palace) Pope palace, Museo del Colle del Duomo

Beppe Grillo
Leader of the Five Star Movement
Incumbent
Assumed office October 4, 2009
Personal details
Born	(1948-07-21) 21 July 1948 (age 63) Genoa, Italy
Nationality	Italian
Political party	Five Star Movement
Relations	Married
Children	6
Occupation	Comedian, Activist, Politician
Religion	Roman Catholicism
Website	http://www.beppegrillo.it/

Giuseppe Piero Grillo, better known as Beppe Grillo (born 21 July 1948), is an Italian activist, blogger, comedian and actor. He has been involved in politics since 2009 as leader of the Five Star Movement.

Biography[link]

Grillo was born in Genoa, Liguria.

After receiving his degree as an accountant, Grillo became a comedian by chance, improvising a monologue in an audition. Two weeks later he was discovered and launched by Italian TV presenter Pippo Baudo. He subsequently participated in the variety show Secondo Voi for two years (1977–78). Later, in 1979, he participated in Luna Park by Enzo Trapani, and Fantastico.

In the 1980s his success rose further, thanks to shows like Te la do io l'America (1982, 4 episodes) and Te lo do io il Brasile (1984, six episodes). In these shows, he narrated his experiences of his visits to the United States and Brazil, with anecdotes and witticisms about the culture, lifestyle and beauty of these places.

As a result, his popularity grew more and more, and he became the protagonist of another show developed especially for him, called Grillometro (Grillometer). In 1986, he was the star of prize-winning advertisements for a brand of yogurt.

Soon after this, his performances began to be characterized by an increasing level of political satire, often expressed in such a direct way that he quickly offended a lot of Italian politicians. In 1987 during the Saturday night TV show Fantastico 7, he attacked the Italian Socialist Party and its leader Bettino Craxi, then Italy's Prime Minister, on the occasion of his visit in the People's Republic of China. Grillo said:

If the Chinese are all socialists, whom do they steal from?

The joke hinted at the totalitarianism of the PRC, but even more to the widespread corruption for which the Italian Socialist Party was known. As a consequence, Grillo was effectively and silently banished from publicly owned television; yet, he was vindicated a few years later when the Italian Socialist Party had to be disbanded in a welter of corruption scandals known as Tangentopoli, uncovered by the Mani pulite investigation. Craxi himself died in Tunisia, unable to return to Italy where he would have been jailed for several convictions.

Consequently, from the beginning of the 1990s his appearances on television became rare: according to many people, the reason for this is a silent ostracism by politicians offended by his revelations about their hidden financial activities, frauds and false claims. When one of his shows was finally allowed to be broadcast by RAI, in 1993, it obtained a record share of 16 million viewers. He was later banned definitively from Italian television.

He currently performs in theatres in Italy and abroad, often with outstanding success.^[1] Grillo's themes include energy usage, political and corporate corruption, finance, freedom of speech, child labour, globalization, and technology. Recently Grillo started to encourage the use of Wikipedia as the future of knowledge sharing, and generally he is a strong proponent of internet freedom.^[2]

Political activism[link]

Beppe Grillo in Bologna speaking at V-Day.

Grillo has spearheaded several national and international political campaigns. On Sept. 8, 2007, he organized a "V-Day Celebration" in Italy; the "V" stood for vendetta, vengeance, and vaffanculo ("fuck off"). During the rally, Grillo projected the names of two dozen Italian politicians who had been convicted of crimes ranging from corruption and tax evasion to abetting a murder. More than 2 million Italians participated in this rally.^[3] Grillo also used this rally to urge Italians to sign a petition calling for the introduction of a Bill of Popular Initiative to remove members of the Italian Parliament who have criminal convictions of any kind from their office.^[4] According to Internet scholars, V–day was the first case in Italian history of a political demonstration developed and promoted via word–of–mouth mobilization on the blogosphere and the social web.^[5]

This was followed by the second V-Day on 25 April 2008, in Turin, S.Carlo square. This V-Day was dedicated to the Italian press and its government financial support; Grillo heavily criticized the Italian press for the lack of freedom; Umberto Veronesi (about his support for incinerators); NATO bases in Italy, the politicians (Silvio Berlusconi had recently been re-elected) and Retequattro, still holding on to TV frequencies already assigned to Europa 7 [2].

Beppe Grillo in Turin during electoral campaign.

On 1 September 2005, thanks to contributions from readers of his blog, Grillo bought a full page advertisement in the Italian newspaper La Repubblica in which he called for the resignation of the Bank of Italy's (then) governor Antonio Fazio over the Antonveneta banking scandal. In October 2005, Time chose him as one of the "European Heroes 2005" for his constant battle against corruption and financial scandals.^[6]

On 22 November 2005 Grillo also bought a page in the International Herald Tribune, again claiming that members of the Italian Parliament ought not to represent citizens if they have ever been convicted in a court of law, even in the first degree of the three available in the Italian system.^[7] His blog now contains a regularly updated list of members of the Italian Parliament who have been convicted in all three degrees, in what he calls "operation Clean Parliament".^[8] Grillo claimed, in 2007, that data suggested that even Scampia, the most dangerous suburb of Naples and one of the areas with the highest crime rate in Europe, actually had a lower crime rate than the Italian parliament's membership.^[9]

On 26 July 2007 Grillo was permitted to speak to the members of the European Parliament in Brussels, where he drew attention to the dangerous, negative state of current Italian politics.^[10]

In August 2008, Grillo was the subject of a report on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's (ABC-TV) international affairs program "Foreign Correspondent". Titled "The Clown Prince" the report profiled Grillo's life, political activism, V Day campaign, and use of the internet as a political tool.^[11]

In 2010, he started a political movement called "Movimento 5 stelle" ("Movement five stars"), without the desire to be a leader and to be elected, but only to join, by the Internet, people who believe in ideals like honesty and direct democracy, and saying that politicians are only subordinates of the people and that they should work for the country only for a short time and only if they are not condemned for crimes, and thinking about the problems of their country without any other interest. The movement will be truly a party chance only from the next political round, when they will purpose their name not only in some regions but also in the political elections. The five stars represent the five basic points of the shared program: Water, Environment, Transport, Connectivity, Growth.

Beppegrillo.it[link]

Grillo maintains a blog (available in Italian, English and Japanese) at beppegrillo.it which is updated daily. Comments to posts regularly top the thousands (in the Italian version). According to Technorati, the blog is ranked among the 10 most visited blogs in the world. In 2008, The Guardian ranked Grillo's blog among the world's most powerful blogs.^[12]

Grillo often receives letters of appreciation and support from prominent figures, such as Antonio Di Pietro (former Italian Minister of Infrastructures), Fausto Bertinotti (former President of the Italian Chamber of Deputies), Renzo Piano, and even Nobel Prize Winners (like Dario Fo, Joseph E. Stiglitz, Dalai Lama, Muhammad Yunus).^[13]

Legal issues[link]

In 1980 he was found guilty of manslaughter for a car accident in which he was the driver; three passengers lost their lives.^[14]

During his shows Grillo never hesitates to name firms and personalities he considers corrupt, always supporting his views with data and documents^{[citation needed]}. For this reason he has been sued several times for libel by many people and organizations which he had exposed, such as Telecom Italia.

When Italian judges were investigating the Parmalat scandal, which was then the world's largest corporate bankruptcy scandal ever, Grillo was called to testify as he anticipated the imminent collapse of the dairy conglomerate in one of his shows. When he was asked by judges how he has been able to discover that, he simply said that Parmalat's financial holes were so evident that anybody who had enough ability to see them would see them, since the corporate accounting was easily accessible.^[15]

Criticism[link]

Grillo is often criticized for his lifestyle. In particular, critics blame him for owning a motor yacht and a Ferrari sports car, both being in contradiction with his well known ecologist stance. In his blog he admits that he did, in fact, acquire both but has since sold them.^[14]

Grillo is also criticized for taking advantage of the Condono Tombale, a fiscal amnesty granted by the first Berlusconi government in 2001, which Grillo publicly opposed.^[16] Grillo commented on this issue during the V-Day demonstration. He said that he had personally benefitted by only €500^{[citation needed]}.

Grillo has proposed that members of the Italian Parliament who have a criminal record should be barred from public office. As Grillo himself has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter caused by a car accident^[14] his critics^[who?] say he has no right to represent Italians either. Grillo has always stated that he is not interested in becoming a member of the Italian Parliament anyway.^[14] Despite this, in July 2009 he publicly expressed his intention to present himself as a candidate for the PD's primary elections^[17] which, however, does not imply automatic presence in the Italian parliament.

Another proposal of his is that members of Parliament be limited to two government terms of office after which they might not stand again. Detractors^[who?] argue that this would shorten the political life of competent and expert politicians, usually drawing Alcide De Gasperi, Aldo Moro and Enrico Berlinguer as examples of brilliant politicians who served more than two terms. Marco Travaglio replied that, for that sake, also the political life of much less popular Clemente Mastella would have suffered.^[18]

Grillo is criticized as being a mere demagogue who attacks politicians on superficial issues and their private lives while unable to provide a valid alternative. For instance, Daniele Luttazzi, famous Italian satirist, criticized Grillo in 2007 in an open letter published on the website of the news magazine Micromega. Luttazzi accused Grillo of being a "demagogue" and a "populist", suggesting Grillo to choose between satire and politics, asserting the two are incompatible.^[19]

In 2007 Grillo criticized the "Memorial Day of Foibe Massacres and Istrian-Dalmatian exodus" and the President of the Italian Repubblic Giorgio Napolitano^[20]

Filmography[link]

Grillo has appeared in three movies:

• Cercasi Gesù (1982)
• Scemo di Guerra (1985)
• Topo Galileo (1987)

In 2008, Grillo featured in the documentary, The Beppe Grillo Story, produced by Banyak Films for Al Jazeera English.

References[link]

External links[link]

Official websites[link]

• The English version of Beppe Grillo's personal blog
• Beppe Grillo's fans meeting map around the world

Other resources[link]

• 'Time' article about Grillo
• 'New York Times' video about Grillo
• 'New Yorker' Beppe’s Inferno

Matteo Renzi
Mayor of Florence
Incumbent
Assumed office June 22, 2009
Preceded by	Leonardo Domenici
President of Province of Florence
In office June 14, 2004 – June 9, 2009
Personal details
Born	(1975-01-11) January 11, 1975 (age 37) Florence, Italy
Nationality	Italian
Political party	Democratic Party

Matteo Renzi (born Florence, 11 January 1975) is an Italian politician. He was elected as Mayor of Florence on June 22, 2009 with 59.96% of the vote.^[1][2] In February 2011 he publicly called on all the Italian politicians of the Berlusconi era to retire, citing the fact that Berlusconi is only six years younger than Renzi's grandmother.^[3]

Biography[link]

Renzi was born in Florence in 1975. He studied in Florence, and then he graduated in law in Florence University. He joined the Italian People's Party in 1996, and became Provincial Secretary in 1999. He was President of the Province of Florence from 2004 to 2009, winning 58.8% of the ballots in the elections of 12 June 2004, representing a centre-left coalition.

On 9 June 2009 in the elections for the Mayor of Florence, Renzi (as a member of the Democratic Party) obtained 47.57% of the ballots, against 32% for Giovanni Galli, the candidate of the centre-right coalition headed by The People of Freedom party.^[4]

In 2010, while his popularity was increasing, he organised a meeting in Florence in Leopolda Station to discuss about Italian politic, after stating that a complete change was necessary also in his party. That is the reason why media gave him the name "scrapper".

In 2011 he organised again a meeting in Florence, where he met common people and tried to write down one hundred points to discuss.

He was strongly criticised by the members of his own party because of his idea that Italian politicians who have been in charge for more than 20 years should retire.

He is married to a teacher and has three sons.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Matteo Renzi election video

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