The Procession of the Gonfalons

On the occasion of the Festa della Toscana, which wants to be a tribute to all those who recognize themselves in the values of peace, justice and freedom, the Society of St. John the Baptist, in collaboration with the Tuscany Region, the Municipality of Florence and the Historical Parade of the Florentine Republic, on November 30, organizes a procession of institutional Gonfaloni of the Tuscany Region, of the Municipality of Florence, of the Municipalities and Provinces of Tuscany and of the Associations of Historical Re-enactment that runs through the city streets in memory of the penal reform promulgated on this day in 1786, by Pietro Leopoldo di Lorena, Grand Duke of Tuscany. With this reform, which was the Grand Duke’s “monument and glory”, Tuscany became the first state in the world in which the death penalty was abolished.
The procession starting from the seat of the Regional Council reaches Piazza Signoria where a commemorative prolusion is held and the deposition of a wreath on the plaque placed in Palazzo Vecchio in perennial memory of the abolition of the death penalty in Tuscany.

The Fire of St. John

The Fire of St. John

The "Fochi", the fireworks display with which Florence celebrates its patron saint, has been held since the twelfth century, organized in ancient times by the Art of Calimala. Since 1796 it is the Society of St. John the Baptist Odv to organize for the City of...

The procession of gifts and the offering of candles

The procession of gifts and the offering of candles

In ancient times, all men over fifteen years had to bring a candle to the Baptistery and for the occasion they lavishly decorated houses, palaces, warehouses.At the time also Piazza del Duomo, between the church of Santa Reparata and the Baptistery, was covered with a...

The Crosses of St. John

The Crosses of St. John

In harmony with a centuries-old tradition that has made the moment of homage to the Signoria – and later to the Grand Dukes – and to the Cardinal of the city one of the salient phases of the feast of the Patron Saint, since 2004 the Society of St. John the Baptist has...

The coronation of the Marzocco

The coronation of the Marzocco

If St. John the Baptist has been the religious symbol par excellence for centuries, one of the most important pagan symbols for Florence is the Marzocco, a lion erected and represented for decades in sculpture, painting and reality as a symbol of popular power. The...

The Palio rowing

The Palio rowing

In the Florence of Dante Alighieri, in Grand Ducal Florence, in Florence Capital of Italy and in the still provincial Florence of the early twentieth century, how was the feast of the Patron Saint lived and felt? Rereading the old documents in the archive of the...

The “Il Bel San Giovanni” Award

The “Il Bel San Giovanni” Award

Every year on January 29, the Society of St. John the Baptist celebrates the anniversary of its foundation by awarding the "The Bel San Giovanni" Prize to:Personalities or institutions who, for the work carried out in the most diverse fields of thought and action,...

The newlyweds of St. John

The newlyweds of St. John

Since 1981 the Society of St. John the Baptist celebrates every year the Spouses of St. John, that is, those couples who decide to get married on June 24th.Every year between the spouses who have contracted the marriage on June 24 in the territory of the Municipality...

The first born named Giovanni or Giovanna

The first born named Giovanni or Giovanna

A special prize will be awarded to the infant who will be born first in the territory of the Municipality of Florence on June 24 of each year and to whom the name of "Giovanni" or "Giovanna" has been imposed. The birth certificate must be received by the Society of...