Bergamo is an Italian town of 119 476 inhabitants, the capital of
the province of the same name in Lombardy. The town of Bergamo is
divided into two distinct parts, the "Lower City" and the "Upper
City"; the latter is located at a higher altitude and hosts the
majority of the most significant monuments, while the Lower Town -
although it is also of ancient origin and retains its historic
nuclei - has been partly made more modern by some urbanization
interventions . The two portions of the town are separated by the
Venetian walls, which have been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage
Site since 2017.
Bergamo is nicknamed "the city of the
Thousand" because of the large number of volunteers from Bergamo -
about 180 - who took part in the expedition of the Thousand led by
Giuseppe Garibaldi, a crucial episode of the Risorgimento.
Bergamo Alta (also called "Città Alta", as opposed to the lower
"villages") is a medieval city, surrounded by ramparts erected in the
16th century, during the Venetian domination, which were added to the
pre-existing fortifications in order to make it an impregnable fortress.
The best known and most popular part of Upper Bergamo is Piazza
Vecchia, with the Contarini fountain, the Palazzo della Ragione, the
civic tower (called the Campanone), and other buildings that surround it
on all sides. Imposing, on the opposite side of the Palazzo della
Ragione, is the large white building of the Palazzo Nuovo, which houses
the Angelo Mai civic library.
You can go up to the Upper Town on
foot through the scorlazzini (stairways), by car (although it is
forbidden during the summer weekends and all year round on Sunday
afternoons), by funicular or by bus. For further information, contact
the tourist offices in Bergamo.
I.A.T. Lower Bergamo, Piazzale
Marconi, ☎ +39 035 210204, turismo1@comune.bg.it.
I.A.T. Upper
Bergamo, Via Gombito 13, ☎ +39 035 242226, turismo@comune.bg.it.
A tourist map of the city is available on the Bergamo tourism website.
Borgo Santa Caterina. It has been included among the most beautiful villages in Italy since 2019.
By plane
The closest airport to Bergamo is:
Bergamo-Orio al
Serio Airport (IATA: BGY) – Located in the municipality of Orio al
Serio, many low-cost flights operated by the Irish airline Ryanair are
available from this airport.
Milan-Malpensa (IATA: MXP) — About 50 km
north of Milan, in the province of Varese and near the city of
Gallarate. It is the second Italian hub after Rome Fiumicino.
Milan-Linate (IATA: LIN) — About 5 km east of the city center. It is 4th
in the Italian ranking in terms of traffic.
By car
Bergamo has
an exit from the A4 motorway. This exit connects the motorway with Orio
Al Serio Airport, approximately 2 km from the A4 exit.
Parking
lots
Piazza Libertà car park, ☎ +39 035 230648.
Centro car park,
Via Borfuro 4, ☎ +39 035 219716.
On the train
Bergamo station,
Piazza Guglielmo Marconi 7, ☎ +39 035 247950. From here it is possible
to reach Milan, Lecco and Brescia. For information on timetables and
prices, consult the Trenitalia website. To the left of the station exit
is the luggage storage.
Bergamo Hospital Station.
By bus
Bus station, Piazzale Marconi (100 meters from the train station).
For information on lines passing through Bergamo, consult the website
moving in Lombardy.
Alternatively, with Flixbus you can find
coaches with departures from all over Italy to Bergamo Center and the
Bergamo-Orio al Serio international airport.
It is possible to reach the Upper Town on foot via the "scorlazzini"
(stairways that connect it to the lower part of the city from several
points), by car (although it is prohibited during the summer weekends
and all year round on Sunday afternoons), by funicular, taxis or by bus,
perhaps the best way ever. To reach the hill of San Vigilio it is
possible to take the second line of the city funicular which from Porta
Sant'Alessandro leads to the ancient medieval castle. The fare to visit
the Upper and Lower Towns is €1.30 (Zone A-Centre). ATB tickets are
easily available at newsstands, funicular stations and tobacconists. To
move around the Lower Town, the most useful means is always the bus,
since its terminus is the TEB railway and tram station. To reach the
valleys, you can opt for the latter option by taking the T1 tramway line
that connects Bergamo to Albino, in the middle of the Seriana Valley,
with a journey of 12 km, covered in half an hour.
Lower town
funicular (Fun. line "c").
San Vigilio funicular (fsv line).
Taxi
taxi Radiotaxi Bergamo, ☎ +39 0350 4519090.
By bike
La
BiGi bike sharing cycle path (register on the Nextbike website and
download the nextbike app). 1 euro for the first 30 minutes of use, 1
euro for the following 30 minutes and 4 euro for the time after this
first hour.
On a scooter
Reby, parked throughout the city in
free floating (Download the Reby app in the Appstore or Playstore).
€0.95 to unlock, €0.14 per minute when traveling and €0.05 when pausing.
Scooter and bike rental. Service prohibited on the streets of the
historic center of Città Alta.
The historic center of Bergamo, still entirely surrounded by the
Venetian walls, looks like a medieval city. There are numerous monuments
of that era, among which the Civic Tower, the Palazzo della Ragione and
the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore stand out, a splendid example of
late Lombard Romanesque architecture. There are also notable testimonies
of later periods: the Gothic baptistery by Giovanni da Campione, the
Renaissance Cathedral of Bergamo and above all the fifteenth-century
Colleoni Chapel, by the architect Giovanni Antonio Amadeo. The numerous
historical-artistic testimonies combined with a scarcely altered urban
layout make Bergamo one of the main Lombard cities of art.
To
visit Borgo Santa Caterina, district of the city, among the most
beautiful villages in Italy since 2019.
Bergamo Alta is a medieval city, surrounded by ramparts erected in the 16th century, during the Venetian domination, which were added to the pre-existing fortifications in order to make it an impregnable fortress. The Upper Town is part of the Third District of the Municipality of Bergamo. The Third Circumscription, of which this quarter also belongs, includes the quartie
Porta Sant'Agostino - It is an entrance gate to the city; it is
located just after the top of a stairway that begins near the Accademia
Carrara. It is portrayed by a Lion holding the Gospel of San Marco in
his hand: it is a symbol that refers to the period of Venetian
domination.
Porta Sant'Alessandro - It is one of the four gates that
access the upper part of the city of Bergamo, and faces west; it took
its name from the basilica of Sant'Alessandro, destroyed for the
construction of the Venetian walls in 1561.
Porta San Giacomo -
Another gateway to the city, also depicted by the Lion of St. Mark.
Porta San Lorenzo - In ancient times called "Porta San Lorenzo", it was
made out to Garibaldi, who entered the city through this very gate.
The big bell (civic tower). April-October Saturdays and holidays
9.30-21.30, Tue-Ver 9.30-19, rest of the year Saturdays and holidays
9.30-16.30. Which still today at 10 pm strikes 100 shots - the ones that
in the past announced the night closing of the gates of the Venetian
walls.
Contarini Fountain. It was built by the podestà Alvise
Contarini in 1780 to decorate Piazza Vecchia, which is located between
the Palazzo della Ragione and the Palazzo Nuovo. It is in Zandobbio
marble, has an octagonal base and is surrounded by figures such as
sphinxes, snakes and lions.
Duomo (Cathedral of Sant'Alessandro). It
is one of two surviving cathedrals that once existed in the city,
dedicated to St. Alexander of Bergamo. This cathedral was originally
dedicated to St. Vincent, but once the Venetians demolished the original
St. Alexander Cathedral, the dioceses united under the name of St.
Alexander. The cathedral has a classic Latin cross plan and has
undergone numerous renovations and renovations, the latest of which is
the addition of the 19th-century neoclassical facade.
Basilica of
Santa Maria Maggiore, Piazza Duomo. Remembered for its beautiful north
and south side portals by Giovanni da Campione. Also noteworthy are the
inlays depicting biblical scenes made of wood of various colors, whose
designs are attributed to Lorenzo Lotto, and an imposing Baroque
confessional sculpted by Andrea Fantoni. The church houses the tomb of
the famous Bergamo composer Gaetano Donizetti (1797-1848).
Colleoni
Chapel, Piazza del Duomo. Free Entrance. March-October: 9.30-12.30 and
14.00-18.00. November-February: 9.30-12.30 and 14.00-16.30. Closed on
Mondays. Designed by the architect Giovanni Antonio Amadeo in the
Renaissance period, it contains the funeral monuments and the remains of
the leader Bartolomeo Colleoni and his daughter Medea, who died at the
age of 14 in 1470.
Palace of Reason. On the floor of the portico it
is possible to admire a marble sundial from 1798, which marked the time
based on the lighting.
Baptistery, Piazza Duomo. Built by Giovanni da
Campione in the 14th century.
Teatro Sociale, Via Colleoni 4.
Inaugurated on 26 December 1808 with the name of Teatro della Società,
it is the venue for important cultural events.
New Palace. Which
houses the vast Angelo Mai Library, which collects, in addition to
modern texts, several incunabula, sixteenth-century books and scores.
Sala Alfredo Piatti, Via S. Salvatore 11. It is a room named after the
famous cello virtuoso and composer from Bergamo, Alfredo Piatti
(1822-1901). It, full of frescoes on the ceiling, is the place of
various musical events.
Civic Archaeological Museum, Piazza Cittadella, 9. The museum was
founded in 1561 and housed in the loggia under the Palazzo della
Ragione. It consists of several sections: prehistoric, Egyptian, Roman,
early Christian and Lombard.
"Enrico Caffi" Museum of Natural
Sciences, Piazza Cittadella, 10. Admission free. It is a museum with
interactive sections, full of stuffed animals, fossil remains and much
more. Shortly after the entrance it is possible to observe the imposing
reconstruction of a mammoth.
Via Colleoni. Also known as Corsaröla, it connects Piazza Vecchia to
Piazza della Cittadella and is the heart of the upper town.
Fontana
del Lantro, Via Boccola, at the church of San Lorenzo, ☎ +39 035 242226.
open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 8:30 to 12:30, and from 14:30
to 18:30. It is also necessary to wear special non-slip footwear. Dating
back to around the year 1000, it consists of two tanks: the smaller one
in an elevated position, and the main one with a square base and a
capacity of 400 cubic metres.
Conservatorio di Studi Musicali Gaetano
Donizetti, Via Don Luigi Palazzolo, 88. It is the conservatory of
Bergamo, founded in the early years by the German musician Giovanni
Simone Mayr (1763-1845), to give charitable lessons. It was there that
Donizetti received his musical instruction from Mayr.
Church of San
Michele al Pozzo Bianco. It preserves the frescoes with Scenes from the
life of Maria by Lorenzo Lotto (1525).
Lorenzo Rota botanical garden,
via Colle Aperto. It is a peaceful corner surrounded by greenery where
you can go for walks. It is embellished by a pond with water lilies.
Church of Sant'Alessandro in Colonna, via S. Alessandro, 50. It was
built in very ancient times in the popular district of San Leonardo; in
the early eighteenth century it took on the form it has today. Tradition
has it that it was built near the place where the martyrdom took place.
It has a bell tower 80 meters high, built in recent times. Inside there
are numerous works of art, including a "Lamentation" by Lorenzo Lotto,
and a fine Serassi organ from the late eighteenth century, with 3800
pipes.
Birthplace of Gaetano Donizetti, via Borgo Canale, 14.
admission free. Concerts are occasionally held on the top floor.
Sculpture Park, Via Torquato Tasso, 8. Located in the garden of the
Palazzo della Provincia, it houses modern-style statues by the Bergamo
sculptor Giacomo Manzù (1908-1991) and other local artists.
Monument
to the Partisan, Viale Papa Giovanni XXIII° - Piazza Matteotti. Work by
Giacomo Manzù from 1977 which represents a woman mourning the corpse of
a partisan, hanging upside down. Its sublimity leads us to reflect on
the meaning of war.
Obelisk to Napoleon, Piazza Vittorio Veneto.
Initially dedicated to Alvise Contarini, after the passage of the
Napoleonic troops it was made out to Napoleon.
Tower of the Fallen.
It was built by Piacentini in 1924, in homage to those from Bergamo who
died in the First World War.
Church of San Bartolomeo (church of
Saints Bartolomeo and Stefano), Largo Bortolo Belotti. Inside it has the
famous Pala Martinengo by Lorenzo Lotto from around 1513, with the
curious rebus painted in the upper part, which the tourist is invited to
decipher.
Accademia Carrara, Piazza Giacomo Carrara, 82. The Accademia Carrara
preserves a rich heritage of works of art, especially paintings from the
Renaissance to the end of the 19th century.
GAMeC (Gallery of Modern
and Contemporary Art), Via San Tomaso, 53, ☎ +39 035 270272. The museum
collects sculptures, paintings and drawings by Italian and foreign
artists of the twentieth century.
Adriano Bernareggi Museum (Museo
Diocesano Adriano Bernareggi), Via Pignolo, 76, ☎ +39 035 278151. The
museum houses works of art from the Bernareggi collection and from the
diocesan heritage. Inside are the Trinity by Lorenzo Lotto and the
Baptism of Christ by Giovanni Battista Moroni.
Bergamo film meeting, Via Borgo Santa Caterina, 19, ☎ +39 035 363087,
info@bergamofilmmeeting.it. In March. Film festival with works in
competition and numerous collateral events.
BergamoScienza, Viale
Papa Giovanni XXIII 57, ☎ +39 035 19911516, info@bergamoscienza.it. in
October of each year. Scientific festival.
Stadio Atleti Azzurri d'Italia (Gewiss Stadium), Viale Giulio Cesare,
18. Since 1928, the stadium has hosted Atalanta's home matches.
Tourist trains for Lake Iseo. For railway enthusiasts, there are a few
steam train rides that depart from Bergamo station.
Parco dei Colli
di Bergamo, Via Valmarina 25, ☎ +39 035 4530401. Excursions on foot and
by mountain bike in the third regional park after those of Ticino and
Groane.
Via Gombito. It is located in the old city. A cozy street full of
shops selling cakes, sweets and souvenirs.
Via Colleoni. In the upper
town, shops with excellent Italian wines and cheeses.
Porta Nuova,
Largo Porta Nuova. A large commercial area in Bergamo with
internationally renowned shops.
Shows
Teatro Gaetano Donizetti, Piazza Cavour, 15. Inaugurated on
24 August 1791, it is dedicated to the great master from Bergamo.
Teatro Sociale, Via Colleoni 4. Inaugurated in 1808, after decades of
neglect, the theater was renovated in 2009 and reopened to the public.
Night clubs
Beer Garage, Via Borgo Santa Caterina 36, ☎ +39 349
7921314. Small pub dedicated to craft and quality beers.
Typical dishes of Bergamo cuisine: Polenta taragna, margottini,
casoncelli, foiade from Bergamo, scarpinocc, cassoeula, pork knuckle,
Taleggio cheese, Donizetti cake, polenta e osei (sweet).
Average
prices
In the Upper Town
1 Da Franco pizzeria restaurant, Via
Bartolomeo Colleoni, 8, ☎ +39 035 238565. Pleasant place, with well-made
traditional dishes from Bergamo; well-kept and quiet environment, in the
center of the upper city. Excellent value for money.
2 La Tana
Restaurant, Via San Lorenzo 25, ☎ +39 035 213137. Traditional restaurant
with a selected cellar.
3 Toasteria with kitchen Al Gombito, Via
Gombito, 8, ☎ +39 035 060 3672. Fast service, normal prices. Homemade
beers.
4 Trattoria Da Ornella, Via Gombito, 15, ☎ +39 035 232736.
Typical Bergamo products including polenta and casoncelli.
5 Al
Donizetti, Via Gombito, 17a, ☎ +39 035 242661. Tables located under a
large open-air kiosk in the historic centre. Good cuisine and excellent
wines.
6 Sant'Ambroeus, Piazza Vecchia, 2, ☎ +39 035 220545. Classic
dishes from Northern Italy and tasting menus of traditional dishes from
Bergamo.
7 Il Circolino, Vicolo S. Angata 19, ☎ +39 035 218568.
Historic restaurant located in an ancient convent. Restaurant and
pizzeria.
8 Da Mimmo, Via Colleoni 17, ☎ +39 035 218535. More than
just a pizzeria. Worth a visit for the quality of food and service.
In the Lower Town
9 Osteria Tre Gobbi, Via Broseta 20c (in the
pedestrian area), ☎ +39 035 243405. Excellent food and good service.
10 ARTI, Via A. Previtali 5/7, ☎ +39 035252020, info@ristorantearti.com.
Family-run restaurant with regional meat and fish dishes, impressive
wine list.
Modest prices
1 Bergamo Camper Area, Via Corridoni, 123, ☎ +39 035
342468, info@areacamperbergamo.it. Rest area equipped with services to
accommodate campers.
2 B&B Fragolino, Via B. Bono 25, ☎ +39 334
9038874. Modern and comfortable rooms, courtyard, Wi-Fi, flat screen and
Playstation.
Average prices
3 Il Sole Hotel Restaurant, Via
Colleoni 1 (in Città Alta, on the corner of Piazza Vecchia and Via
Colleoni), ☏ +39 035 218238, info@ilsolebergamo.com. Excellent value for
money.
4 TaiObe Romantic Chalet Relax, Via Belvedere 24 (20 minutes
from Orio al Serio), ☎ +39 335 5372827, info@taiobe.it. 40/70€.
Check-in: 16:00-23:00, check-out: 8:00-12:00. Comfortable independent
rustic two-room apartment, completely renovated, immersed in a
fairy-tale farmhouse hill, where silence and relaxation reign
undisturbed. Excellent on-site restaurant, close to renowned spa.
5
Casa Marianna, via Donizetti 21, ☎ +39 035 225375. Clean and cared for
by the owners.
High prices
6 Best Western Cappello D'Oro,
Viale Papa Giovanni XXIII 12, ☎ +39 035 4222711, fax: +39 035 248241.
Located in an excellent position. Good quality of services.
7 Mercure
Palazzo Dolci, Viale Papa Giovanni XXIII 100 (next to the station), ☎
+39 035 227411. Very welcoming hotel near the station. Good
international breakfast and large, clean rooms.
Fourth least safe city in Lombardy, below the national average (4,699
crimes per 100,000 inhabitants). Pay attention to the station area or in
via Quarenghi.
Single European emergency number, ☎ 112.
carabinieri 14 Carabinieri Città Alta, Piazza della Cittadella 2, ☎ +39
035 225669.
State Police, Via Noli 26, ☎ +39 035 276111.
Local
Police, Via Coghetti 10, ☎ + 39 035 399559.
Papa Giovanni XXIII
Hospital, Piazza OMS 1, ☎ +35 035 267111.
Piazzoli Pharmacy, Via
Gombito 10 (In the Upper Town), ☎ +39 035 210261.
Guidetti Pharmacy,
Via S. Giacomo, 2 (In the Upper Town), ☎ +39 035 237220.
Post
Post Office Bergamo Centro, Via Locatelli 11, ☎ +39 035
4532302, fax: +39 035 4532206.
Telephony
Since June 2022
Bergamo has the 5G of all Italian operators.
Internet
Bergamo
Wi-Fi. With 62 access points in the city.
Stay informed
If you
want to keep yourself informed about events in Bergamo and its
surroundings, you can consult this portal: Bergamo Events.
To be
informed about news in Bergamo and its surroundings: Eco di Bergamo or
Prima Bergamo.
You can also follow local radios via streaming such as
Radio Bergamo or Radio Alta.
Val Brembana - Alpine valley famous for the beauty of its landscapes
and for San Pellegrino Terme, a liberty-style town famous for the
production of the homonymous mineral water.
Val Vertova - It is
considered one of the most evocative and naturalistically significant
places in the entire Province of Bergamo.
Pontida
Endine lake.
Lake Iseo.
Crespi d'Adda, UNESCO heritage.
Bergamo is part of the Strada del Vino e dei Sapori della Valcalepio,
a route of food and wine tourism promotion, about 100 kilometers long
and recognized by the Lombardy Region, which winds through the province
of Bergamo over an area of 94 municipalities, touching among these:
Sotto il Monte Giovanni XXIII, Capriate San Gervasio, Pontida, Almenno
San Salvatore, Alzano Lombardo, Trescore Balneario, San Paolo d'Argon,
Grumello del Monte, Castelli Calepio and Sarnico.
Via Carolingia —
European itinerary that crosses the places traveled by the court of
Charlemagne between the eighth and ninth centuries to go from Aachen to
Rome, where Pope Leo III crowned the Carolingian sovereign emperor of
the Holy Roman Empire on Christmas night in the 19th century .
Foliage in Lombardy — In autumn, in search of the dazzling and
spectacular phenomenon of "foliage".
Via delle Sorelle — To further
enhance the cultural and naturalistic heritage of the territory and the
provinces of Brescia and Bergamo.
In classical Latin the toponym is attested as Bergomum, while in late
Latin Bergame. The toponym in the local Bergamo dialect of the Lombard
language is instead Bèrghem. There are various hypotheses put forward to
trace the origin of the name of the city.
The Bergamo historian
and politician Bortolo Belotti compared the toponym to previous Celtic
and pre-Celtic names, from which Bèrghem would derive, of which Bergomum
would then only be the Latinisation; the word berg in Celtic means a
protection, fortification or abode. In the writings of the Latinisation
period under Roman rule, the toponym Bergomum is explicitly associated
with Bergimus, the Celtic god of mountains or dwellings. The linguist
and historian from Bergamo Antonio Tiraboschi has instead supported a
derivation of the toponym from the Germanic. It should be noted that the
Bergamo toponym is similar to toponyms in various Germanic-speaking
countries, such as various localities called Berghem or Berchem in the
Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg, numerous localities called Bergheim
in Germany, Austria and Great East of France, and various Berg (h)em in
Scandinavia; in modern German Berg means "mountain", and Heim means
"dwelling", as well as in Swedish berg+hem, in English
berg(obsolete)+home, and so on in other Germanic languages. However, the
hypothesis of a Germanic derivation of "Bergamo" (which would therefore
derive from the Germanic *berga(z) "mount" and *haima(z), i.e.
"dwelling", "village" or "world") clashes with the 'absence of documents
regarding Germanic settlements in the area prior to the settlement of
the Lombards who settled in the northern part of the Italian peninsula
after the collapse of the Roman empire.
A more general but always
Indo-European origin of the name has also been proposed, comparing the
toponym to the Greek Πέργαμον (Pérgamon) "citadel, fortress" (in
reference to fortresses on top of a hill), but also to ancient Ligurian
names such as Bergima, localities in the surroundings of Marseilles,
always however deriving from a common Indo-European root *bherg, "high".
Bergamo is located in the foothills, where the high plain gives way to the last hills of the Bergamo pre-Alps, halfway between the Brembo and Serio rivers. The ancient core of the city was founded right on the hills. The seismic classification of the city is zone 3 (low seismicity).
The main
waterway of the city is the Morla stream which flows with a
sinusoidal trend and for long stretches buried under roads and
parking lots, following the imposing overbuilding work to which the
city was subjected in the second half of the 20th century. century.
Among its tributaries there is the Tremana, also almost totally
canalized, which arises from the Maresana and swells with water only
occasionally after heavy rains.
In addition, the city is
crossed longitudinally by a system of canals that carry the waters
of the river Serio for irrigation purposes and, once upon a time, to
operate mills and spinning wheels. Among the main ones are the
Roggia Serio and the Roggia Morlana, but noteworthy are the Roggia
Guidana, the Roggia Nuova, the Roggia Curna and the Roggia
Colleonesca.
The Canto Alto is the first mountain
of the Bergamasque Prealps that rises close to the city; it is
located in the Sorisole area, and was a safe haven for the
population during the world wars.
The Upper Town also rests
on a system of seven hills, extreme offshoots of the Orobie pre-Alps
themselves before the plain: Colle Aperto, Colle San Giovanni, Colle
San Salvatore, Colle di Rosate, Colle di Gromo, Colle Santa Eufemia
and Colle San Michele del Pozzo .
Bergamo,
according to the classification of the Köppen climates, enjoys a
typically temperate climate of the middle latitudes (Cfa), rainy or
generally humid in all seasons with very hot summers and severe
winters typical of the areas at the foot of the mountains. Its
proximity to Lake Iseo significantly affects winter temperatures
which are decidedly higher than the average of the Po Valley; these
factors also make it possible to avoid the persistent winter fog and
summer heat phenomena that characterize nearby Milan. The favorable
and rather mild climate has also positively influenced the
production of wine and oil, and the diffusion of some species
typical of the Mediterranean climate.
Average annual rainfall
is higher than 1 165 mm, distributed on average over 97 days and has
a summer and autumn peak and a relative minimum in winter. They are
concentrated in the periods between March and May and between
October and late November.
Winter is generally between
mid-November and mid-March, and is characterized by a very low
percentage of rainfall compared to the Italian average, while summer
is from the end of May to mid-September, and is characterized by
storm phenomena especially towards the end of season.
The
presence of snow is very discontinuous, generally arriving every
winter but in discrete quantities. The causes are of various types
such as the minimum too low or too high and rainfall that is usually
concentrated further north-west of the city.
On the basis of
the thirty-year average of reference 1981-2010, the average
temperature of the coldest month, January, is +3.1 ° C; that of the
hottest month, July, is +23.8 ° C.
The first occupation is that of the Ligurians and the Celts (Gauls),
more precisely the Orobi, followed by that of the Cenomani and Senoni.
In Latin it is the city known as Bergomum. Gallia Transpadana was then
annexed to the expanding Roman Republic, and from 49 B.C. Bergomum also
becomes a Roman municipality. The Romans rebuilt the center according to
the cardo-decumanus axes.
Following the fall of the Roman Empire,
Bergomum was repeatedly sacked, until the arrival of the Lombards in
569, who established a duchy there. Overthrown in 774 by the Franks with
the incorporation of the Lombard Kingdom into the Carolingian Empire,
the city was governed by a series of bishops-counts. In this period the
following powerful Lombard families flourished in Bergamo: Suardi,
Colleoni, Crotti, Rivola, Mozzi, Martinengo. In 904 King Arnolfo gave
Bishop Adalberto full political and civil jurisdiction over the city,
and these were years of improvements and renovations, but in 1098 the
bishop's jurisdiction was deposed after a controversy over the
investitures. Since 1098 Bergamo has been a free municipality, and after
a couple of wars against Brescia it joined the Lombard League against
the emperor Federico Barbarossa of the Holy Roman Empire of the Germans.
Starting from the 13th century, in the context of the struggles between
Guelphs and Ghibellines, Bergamo fell under the influence of the
Visconti of Milan, who fortified the Citadel.
From 1428 Bergamo
became part of the domains of the Republic of Venice. The Venetians
rebuild the old city, erecting mighty defensive walls. The Venetian
dominion continued until the Napoleonic era when, after the brief
experience of the Bergamo Republic, the Cisalpine Republic and the
Kingdom of Italy, with the Restoration Bergamo fell into the Austrian
sphere under the Lombardo-Veneto Kingdom. The Austrians are the
proponents of the first industrialization of the Bergamo area, with the
establishment of textile factories. Bergamo takes part in the
Risorgimento providing a good part of the Thousand. Giuseppe Garibaldi
himself enters the city, with his Cacciatori delle Alpi, on 8 June 1859.
Since 1860 Bergamo has been part of the Kingdom, and then of the Italian
Republic.
The city was spared from devastation during the Second
World War; it was lucky not to suffer any bombing (except in the nearby
industrial area of Dalmine).
In 1958 Cardinal Angelo Giuseppe
Roncalli, born in Sotto il Monte, was elected to the papal throne
assuming the name of Pope John XXIII.
Since 9 July 2017, the
Venetian walls of Bergamo have become part of UNESCO, as a World
Heritage Site, in the transnational serial site "Venetian defense works
between the 16th and 17th centuries: State from Earth-Western Sea
State". In October of the same year, the 43rd G7 summit on agriculture
was held in Bergamo as part of the larger international meeting
organized in Taormina. The "Bergamo Charter", an international
commitment signed during the summit, aims to reduce world hunger by
2030, strengthen cooperation for agricultural development in Africa and
ensure price transparency.
In 2020, during the first phase of the
COVID-19 pandemic, the city of Bergamo and its province sadly attracted
the attention of the world news as one of the Italian and European
territories epicenter of the contagion. Images of the long line of Army
trucks carrying the coffins of COVID-19 victims out of the city received
worldwide exposure.