People and events, contemporary and historical, that have helped shape the culture and story of Italy.https://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.socialhttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mpe2tczqpc2i The Swiss-born architect who built Naples's Royal Palace. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/06/domenico-fontana-architect.html28 Jun 2026 13:19 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mpe2tczqpc2ihttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mnztjfnhx22iA major turning point in the battle for control of medieval Florence between the Guelphs and the Ghibellines - and in the life of the poet Dante. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/06/battle-of-campaldino-victory-of-guelphs.html11 Jun 2026 18:17 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mnztjfnhx22ihttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mmrgoicez22kA satirical poet who died in mysterious circumstances. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/05/francesco-berni-poet.html26 May 2026 16:40 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mmrgoicez22khttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mm5khq5k7c2vThe humble Sicilian roots of an American cinema legend. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/05/frank-capra-film-director.html18 May 2026 18:55 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mm5khq5k7c2vhttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mlbg5z3x622wThe brilliant violinist who influenced a young Mozart during his time in Florence.07 May 2026 14:23 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mlbg5z3x622whttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mkuk5jhzls25Sad to hear the news of the death of Alex Zanardi, the racing driver who defied horrific injuries to become a successful Paralympian, at the age of 59. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2018/10/alex-zanardi-racing-driver-Paralympian-gold-medals-crash-legs-amputated.html02 May 2026 11:30 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mkuk5jhzls25https://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mkghdkkdbs2fHow Sanremo win put 'Italy's Whitney Houston' on road to stardom. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/04/giorgia-singer-songwriter.html26 Apr 2026 21:03 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mkghdkkdbs2fhttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mk3jyrk4qc2dA Nobel Prize winner who defied Mussolini's cruel race laws to continue vital pioneering work. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/04/rita-levi-montalcini-neurobiologist.html22 Apr 2026 12:51 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mk3jyrk4qc2dhttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mjoxut362c2cHow the arrival of the age of the train helped put a grand Venetian restoration project on the map. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/04/giovanni-scalfarotto-architect.html17 Apr 2026 12:55 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjoxut362c2chttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mhijzxvdrk2fVenice's most famous bridge? The man who built it, just as it is now, 435 years ago. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/03/antonio-da-ponte-architect.html20 Mar 2026 12:41 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mhijzxvdrk2fhttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mhb7i6wqbc2wThe illiterate bricklayer who became Italy's greatest Wagnerian tenor. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/03/giuseppe-borgatti-tenor.html17 Mar 2026 14:43 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mhb7i6wqbc2whttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mgzyoettrs2uThe opera that was a prelude to Giuseppe Verdi making the step up to greatness. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/03/verdis-macbeths-premieres-in-florence.html14 Mar 2026 17:53 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mgzyoettrs2uhttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mgp3zyk7ic2xA brilliant sculptor whose extraordinary work in stucco adorns churches in Palermo. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/03/giacomo-serpotta-Sicilian-sculptor-stucco.html10 Mar 2026 09:54 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mgp3zyk7ic2xhttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mgfh447l422bBaroque master whose bold techniques brought new imagination to the architecture of Turin. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/03/guarino-guarini-architect.html06 Mar 2026 13:45 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mgfh447l422bhttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mg2z6iqfmk2aA 19th century opera and song composer whose work helped add to the identity of Venetian music. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/03/antonio-buzzolla-composer-choirmaster.html02 Mar 2026 10:09 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mg2z6iqfmk2ahttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mftjifmno225An 18th century composer and polymath whose music was never published yet is still performed today. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/02/pietro-gnocchi-composer.html27 Feb 2026 10:40 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mftjifmno225https://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mfmrifqyd22dHow a father's wish to make life more comfortable for his sick son led to the invention of the world's favourite luxury spa bath. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/02/candido-jacuzzi-inventor.html24 Feb 2026 18:14 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mfmrifqyd22dhttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mflxrpaql22wHow a father's wish to help his sick son led to the invention of the world's favourite luxury spa bath.24 Feb 2026 10:34 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mflxrpaql22whttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mfcdpvyrd22a Giovanni di Bicci de’ Medici, founder of the Medici Bank, and the wealth that helped the family rule Florence for the best part of 300 years. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/02/giovanni-di-bicci-de-medici-banker.html20 Feb 2026 14:41 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mfcdpvyrd22ahttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mf54jl2aps22Romance and revolution with Lord Byron in Ravenna. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/02/lord-byron-ravenna-revolutionary.html18 Feb 2026 12:49 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mf54jl2aps22https://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mew2qje4ik2nA racing driver and car maker whose vision changed the automobile industry. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/02/vincenzo-lancia-racing-driver-and.html15 Feb 2026 17:29 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mew2qje4ik2nhttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3melspskacs2vThe theatre and film director who sought to turn photography into a Futurist art form. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/02/anton-giulio-bragaglia-theatre-director.html11 Feb 2026 15:38 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3melspskacs2vhttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mecahoe4vs2hThe man from a valley in Lombardy who took calculated revenge on fellow villagers he blamed for his own failed business ventures. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/02/simone-pianetti-anarchist-and-mass.html07 Feb 2026 20:18 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mecahoe4vs2hhttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3me5agx4wjk27A cinema masterpiece; a great portrait painter; the head of football's Maldini dynasty; a poet whose most famous verses are set to music; Verdi's penultimate opera; the first woman in Italian football's hall of fame; and a celebrated Sicilian saint. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/02/5febbraio-nella-storia-ditalia.html05 Feb 2026 20:34 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3me5agx4wjk27https://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3me57ep5t522kLa dolce vita - the commentary on the decadence of 1950s Rome that saw Fellini hailed as a cinema genius. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2022/02/la-dolce-vita-cinematic-masterpiece.html05 Feb 2026 20:15 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3me57ep5t522khttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3me24jmx6sc2cA traitor in Austria, a national hero in Italy - the story of Cesare Battisti. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2018/02/cesare-battisti-Italian-patriot-and-irredentist.html04 Feb 2026 14:46 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3me24jmx6sc2chttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mdyakw3n7c2qA pre-WW1 teenage football sensation whose record as Italy's youngest international player is still intact after 116 years. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/02/renzo-de-vecchi-footballer.html03 Feb 2026 20:53 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mdyakw3n7c2qhttps://bsky.app/profile/italyonthisday.bsky.social/post/3mchsge2t4s22A ballet dancer who conquered the big screen and starred in musicals. https://www.italyonthisday.com/2026/01/delia-scala-ballerina-actress-and-tv.html15 Jan 2026 14:32 +0000at://did:plc:77zzkbarxf73bjpuo7kgkn2y/app.bsky.feed.post/3mchsge2t4s22