The origins and history of Fucecchio are closely linked to the Via Francigena, which crosses the Arno here. Around the 10th century, the interests of the Cadolingi family, originating from Pistoia, shifted to the vicinity of this important crossroads, where they built the Castello di Salamarzana. After the end of the Cadolingi domination, Fucecchio, now a free municipality, began to grow from the 16th century onwards, when agriculture resumed, giving rise to some large Medici estates.…

In the historical center, the building complex of Palazzo Corsini marks the original center of the village. In the 10th century the Castello di Salamarzana was built, which the Florentines expanded into a fortress in the 14th century. After it lost its military importance, Giovanni di Cosimo dei Medici, father of Lorenzo il Magnifico, bought it and transformed it into an estate. In 1643 the whole estate went to the Corsini family, while since 1981 it has been owned by the Municipality, which has set up the Museo di Fucecchio, the Historical Archive and the Library.
In the upper part of Fucecchio there is the Abbazia di San Salvatore, worth seeing, founded in the 10th century by the Cadolingi and housing, besides a precious cross from the beginning of the 14th century, a beautiful Baroque organ and some paintings by the painters Empoli and Caccini. Not far away is also the collegiate church of San Giovanni Battista, which received its present form in 1780 and houses a beautiful painting of the enthroned Madonna with Child and Saints by Bartolomeo Ghetti (1526). However, Fucecchio"s most important cultural institution may be the historic Palazzo Montanelli Della Volta, home to the Fondazione Montanelli Bassi, established in 1987 by the famous journalist Indro Montanelli to preserve the cultural and historical heritage of his birthplace. The Palazzo also documents the work of Montanelli, whose workrooms were brought here in their entirety from Rome and Milan.