Free civic museums in Florence for Electress Palatine anniversary

Florence will pay tribute on 18 February to Anna Maria Luisa de’ Medici, known as the Electress Palatine, on the anniversary of her death in 1743. The city’s civic museums will open free of charge, and a series of living history events will take place at Palazzo Vecchio.

Anna Maria Luisa was the last descendant of the Medici dynasty, the ruling family that shaped Florence’s political and cultural life for centuries. Her most significant legacy is the so-called Family Pact, a legal agreement signed in 1737 with Francis Stephen of Lorraine, future Grand Duke of Tuscany. Through this act, she ensured that the Medici art collections and treasures would remain in Florence and would not be removed from the Grand Duchy of Tuscany.

Thanks to that decision, much of the city’s artistic heritage — including works now housed in major museums — has remained in Florence to this day.

Living history at Palazzo Vecchio

To mark the anniversary, the Municipality of Florence will offer free admission to the Musei Civici Fiorentini (Florence’s civic museums). In addition, Fondazione Mus.e, which manages the city’s civic museum network, will stage a living history activity inside Palazzo Vecchio.

At 11 a.m., 12 p.m., 3 p.m., 4 p.m. and 5 p.m., visitors will be able to meet a historical interpreter portraying the Electress Palatine. The role will be performed by actress Giaele Monaci. The initiative (in Italian) is designed to help the public better understand the personality of Anna Maria Luisa and the historical reasons behind the Family Pact.

According to the city’s councillor for culture, the anniversary is an opportunity to recall the Electress Palatine’s decisive role in safeguarding Florence’s cultural identity and public heritage.

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