Whereas it is true that we still have a rather blurred knowledge of the history of the Tuscan town before the year one thousand (archaeological digs have however brought to light some Roman villas in Pisa), it is also true that between the 11th and 13th centuries Pisa reached the peak of its glory.

In that period Pisa was an important Maritime Republic (together with Amalfi, Genoa and Venice) and arrived to dominate the Tyrrhenian coast from Portovenere, in Liguria, to Civitavecchia, in Latium, and part of Sardinia and Corsica.

Its rich merchants traded with the Greeks, the Turks and the Egyptians.

But its dreams of grandeur evaporated due to the pressure exerted by Genoa and Florence.

Following to the defeat in the battle of Meloria (1284) by the Genoese fleet, Pisa lost its supremacy in the Western Mediterranean; then, in 1406 the town definitely capitulated after a long siege by the Florentine army.

The uprising in the early 16th century, during the turbulent period of the Italian Wars, was a failure. In 1509 Pisa was again defeated by the Florentine army.

However, remains of the republican dockyards, where the ships that were to sail the seas were built, are still to be seen in the area called Terzana (or Tersana).

And every four years the palaces and the villas along the lungarni in Pisa act as a background to the spectacular Regatta of the Ancient Maritime Republics (for more information read the chapter of this tourist guide dedicated to the event).