The Siena Palio

Held in the Italian city of Siena on 2nd July and 16th August every year, the much-anticipated Palio di Siena has taken place since 1656.

Representatives from ten of the city’s seventeen wards, or contrade, take part in the race and are dressed in colourful costumes that represent their contrade.

They race on horseback around the Piazza del Campo to the cheers and encouragement of some 50,000 spectators, who often wear the colours of their contrada and sing their local anthems. The winner is the first horse across the finish line, whether or not its rider is still on it – it’s not uncommon for riders to fall from their horses during the 90 seconds that it takes to complete the course.

Preparations for the race are taken seriously and each contrada spends a lot of time and money trying to ensure that they will win. There is also considerable rivalry between the contrade and intense competition for who gets to ride in the race. On the evening before the race the contrade each hold big, outdoor banquets which are ‘rehearsals’ for their victory celebrations, and which are attended by about 25,000 people in total. Banquets are held after the race as well, whether the contrade won on not.

After the horses receive blessings at churches in their contrada, they and the crowds all converge on the Piazza del Campo for the 3 hour pre-race pageant, and the race itself. The pageant includes a parade with people dressed in brightly-coloured medieval costumes, floats, bands, horses and chariots. In the four months before the first Palio in July, each contrada puts on a parade to celebrate their patron saints, and the horses are chosen for the race.

Siena is beautiful, compact city in the hills of Tuscany in the north-west of Italy. The medieval centre of Siena with its many fine buildings and traffic-free winding lanes is a World Heritage Site. To the north of the city is the Chianti region with its spectacular views, vineyards and numerous historic towns, and to the west are nature reserves and the coast.

More about language courses in Siena