Situation
The provincial capital of Grosseto lies in the alluvial plain of the Ombrone in southern Tuscany, 12km/7.5mi from the sea.
History
Grosseto, now chief town of the province of the same name and the principal center in the Maremma, grew up in the Middle Ages around a
small fort guarding the Via Aurelia, the old Roman road from Rome to Pisa. When the drainage system of the Maremma fell into decay and the Etruscan town of Rusellae was destroyed by the Saracens the episcopal see was transferred from there to Grosseto in 935. During the Middle Ages the walled town of Grosseto, like other towns in Tuscany, frequently changed hands. Only under the Grand Duchy of Tuscany did the town achieve a modest growth in prosperity; but this was always dependent on the state of the drainage system and subject to the hazards of malaria. The town's development into a thriving agricultural center with some industry made little progress until after 1930, when the Maremma was completely drained. During the Second World War Grosseto suffered severe damage from Allied air raids.
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