Florence marks the 60th anniversary of the devastating November 4, 1966 flood today, with the President of the Italian Republic Sergio Mattarella joining a series of commemorative events that bring together the city’s memories of the disaster. His visit coincides with Italy’s National Unity and Armed Forces Day), giving this year’s November 4 commemorations added significance.
The anniversary recalls the night the Arno burst its banks, inundating Florence and surrounding areas. The disaster claimed lives and caused widespread destruction, devastating homes and businesses, and inflicting severe damage on the city’s cultural heritage. Sixty years later, the events of 1966 remain deeply embedded in Florence’s collective memory, as does the international solidarity that followed, with thousands of volunteers, later known as the Angeli del fango (Mud Angels), travelling from across Italy and abroad to help rescue artworks, books and buildings from the mud.
The day’s programme began at 9am with a commemorative Mass at the Basilica of Santa Croce, celebrated by Cardinal Gualtiero Bassetti in memory of the victims. At 10.15am, a procession made its way to Ponte alle Grazie, where a wreath was cast into the waters of the Arno in tribute to those who lost their lives.
The focus shifted to piazzale Michelangelo, where Mattarella attended the official Armed Forces Day ceremony alongside defence minister Guido Crosetto, Tuscany regional president Eugenio Giani and other institutional representatives. Schoolchildren carrying Italian flags joined the crowds gathered at the panoramic square to mark the national occasion. The ceremony featured a parachute display by a member of the Folgore Brigade, carrying the Italian flag, followed by a flypast by the Frecce Tricolori, the Italian Air Force’s national aerobatic team. Following the ceremony, Mattarella visited the Military Geographical Institute in Florence before heading to the Prefecture.
The central moment of the flood anniversary commemorations is scheduled for 4.30pm in the Salone dei Cinquecento at Palazzo Vecchio, where the President will attend an official ceremony dedicated to the 1966 Florence flood and the city’s recovery. The anniversary programme will continue at 6pm with the inauguration of Firenze per il mondo, il mondo per Firenze (Florence for the World, the World for Florence), an exhibition in the Sala d’Arme at Palazzo Vecchio. The exhibition pays tribute to the international response to the flood and the extraordinary network of solidarity that helped Florence recover.
Mattarella’s presence brings together two important strands of November 4: the national commemoration of Italy’s Armed Forces and the remembrance of one of the darkest chapters in Florence’s recent history.
