PREACHING ORDERS OF FLORENCE TOUR Humility, vows of poverty, manual labor, preaching, and begging were the basic ideas behind the Franciscan and Dominican orders.Their roles in Florence started to change over the course of the thirteen hundreds as the population of the city grew. During this time the flourishing textile and banking trades brought wealth to the city. The Franciscans buid their big, hall church and piazza in the wool workers neighborhood of the city known as Santa Croce. Not exactly the result of humble vows of poverty and manual labor, the tall church of Santa Croce becomes a famous place of learning (Dante studied there), and wealthy patrons pay large sums of money to decorate the interior. On the opposite side of the city, the Dominicans buy cultivated land and also build a large Hall Church called Santa Maria Novella, with cloisters and a piazza. The Dominicans, unlike the Franciscans, were a militant clerical order. Their name derives from the words "Hounds of the Lord".They would lead street fights against unbelievers. Both orders have huge piazzas for preaching to the masses. As a result of the wealth, Santa Croce and Santa Maria Novella have some of the finest masterpieces of art to be seen in Florence. After all, what better way to appease the conscience than by donating money to decorate your own private chapel in a church ? In Santa Croce: Giotto, Donatello, Brunelleschi. In Santa Maria Novella: Giotto, Masaccio, Ghirlandaio, Filippo Lippi, Alberti. were laid to rest. On this facsinating tour you'll enjoy in-depth discussions on works by some of the greatest artists of the Renaissance, while learning about these two very diverse religious orders and the role of religion during this epic time of Florence's history. | 
