Country Information on Italy 

Terrain

Italy's diverse topography can be divided into three main areas (the Alps, the Po-Venetian Plain and the Apennine chain). Monte Bianco near Montblanc peak, Italy's highest peak, is part of the country's Alpine region in the north. The large Po-Venetian Plain, extending from the west to the east, separates the Apennines from the Alps. The Po River Valley is characterized by Italy's most fertile soils, at the same time it is the country's most heavily industrialized area. The north-eastern area of the Po River Valley merges with the Venetian Plain, the latter dominated by a coastal region that is low and sandy on the Romagna shore and ringed by lagoons on the Venetian shore. Italy's mountainous backbone is formed by the Apennines, extending from Genoa right down to Calabria and Sicily. The country's three active volcanoes - Stromboli in the Aeolian Islands, Vesuvius near Naples and Etna on Sicily, evidence underground rambunctiousness.

Climate

Given the country's distinctive extended geographical shape, climatic conditions differ greatly from north to south and from lowland (subtropical climate along the coastline of the Ligurian Sea and the southern parts of the peninsula) to mountain top (Alpine climate in the north and the Apennines). Winters are long and severe in the Alps, with snow falling as early as mid-September. The northern regions experience chilly winters and hot summers. Winters in the Po River Valley could be characterized as cold and snowy, whereas the coastal regions are dominated by Mediterranean climate, hot and dry summers and mild and humid winters. The sirocco, however, affects regions south of Rome, the hot and humid African winds producing at least a couple of stiflingly hot weeks in summer.

Fauna/Flora

In Alpine regions, fauna includes marmots, ibex and chamois, sometimes even brown bears, lynx, ermines and blue hares. Mountainous regions are abundant in vultures, buzzards, falcons and kites, whereas quails, woodcocks, partridges and a variety of birds of passage can be found in many Italian regions. Reptile species that are common in Italy comprise numerous lizards and snakes, even poisonous vipers, some areas show populations of scorpions. In the past, most of Italy was covered by trees, however, intense deforestation during centuries gone-by led to a significant reduction in woodland.

History/Politics

The first Roman Republic was founded in BC 509, setting in motion one of the largest empires the world has ever seen. The Republic's area covered Spain, Britain, North Africa and present-day Iraq. Meanwhile, relative peace at home enabled the infrastructure of civilisation to spread - roads, aqueducts, cites. A slave-driven lifestyle and economy triumphed over the concept of people power, and the reins of the Republic were increasingly in the hands of the military and, ultimately, dictators.

The Eastern Roman Empire prospered, until overrun by the Turks in 1453. The rise of cities and a merchant class led directly to cultural adulthood, culminating in the Renaissance of the 15th century. Painters, architects, poets, philosophers and sculptors produced unsurpassed works of genius, despite the turmoil of intercity warfare and invasion by countries to the north. First Spain and then Austria controlled the peninsula during the ensuing centuries, followed briefly by Napoleon's imperial flourish. The post-Napoleon shake-up led directly to the drive for unification of the 19th century, led by Garibaldi, Cavour and Mazzini. Eventually, the Kingdom of Italy was declared in 1861.

Following World War I, the country became riddled with unrest in the early 1920s, forcing the king to ask Benito Mussolini to take the reins of government under the auspices of his Fascist Party. His alliance with Hitler came to a close after the Allied invasion of Italy, culminating in his eventual fall in April 1945. The post-war years have been coloured by extreme economic crises, political unrest and corruption. The governments of the post-war years often changed at an enormous speed, consisting of different types of coalitions and heads of government. Given the introduction of the Euro in the near-future, the current Italian government has established an austerity budget programme.

Economy

Since World War II, the Italian economy has changed from one based on agriculture into a ranking industrial economy, with approximately the same total and per capita output as France and the UK. In the second half of 1992, Rome became unsettled by the prospect of not qualifying to participate in EU plans for economic and monetary union later in the decade. Subsequently, the government adopted fairly stringent budgets, abandoned its inflationary wage indexation system, and started to scale back its generous social welfare programs, including pension and health care benefits. Inflation rate in 1999 was 1.7%, unemployment rate 11.4%. Consumer price index increased from July 1999 (1.7%) to July 2000 (2.6%). Service industry was the main provider of value added in 1997 (416,693 billion lire), closely followed by the manufacturing sector (357,162 billion lire), Italy's gross domestic product amounted to 2,128,165 billion lire in 1999.

Culture

From the ancient world right up to the present, Italy has been playing an important role in world-wide arts and culture. Italians have produced unrivalled masterpieces in sculpture, architecture, painting, literature and music. Many of the outstanding Italian painters like Giotto, Fra Angelico, Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raffael, Tizian and Amedeo Modigliani and composers like Vivaldi, Donizetti, Puccini, Rossini and Verdi received world-wide appraise.