Piazza dei Cavalieri

Piazza dei Cavalieri is defined by the heavy, elaborate Mannerist facade of the Palazzo della Carovana, which sits as the square's architectural centerpiece. Once the medieval political heart of the city known as the Piazza delle Sette Vie, the space was entirely redesigned in the sixteenth century by Giorgio Vasari. Commissioned by Grand Duke Cosimo the First de' Medici, this renovation transformed the area into the military headquarters for the Order of the Knights of Saint Stephen, a force tasked with defending the Mediterranean from pirates and the Ottoman fleet.