Today, the celebrations of the Italian Republic were held in Rome: the day is a tribute to the creation of the Italian Republic in 1946. As per tradition, the President of the Italian Republic on board of the Presidential Lancia Flaminia opened the military parade.
Since 1961, the Presidential Lancia Flaminia has been the historical official car of the President of the Italian Republic and an ambassador of Italy in the world. Used on rare occasions like the June 2nd ceremony or the Presidential Inauguration at the Quirinale Palace, it has also escorted politicians, heads of state and sovereigns like Queen Elizabeth II and the President of the United States and France, John F. Kennedy and Charles de Gaulle.
Introduced at the 1957 Geneva Motor Show with a 2.5-liter V6 engine, the Lancia Flaminia had the tough task of replacing the Aurelia and it was soon produced in various special versions. One of these was produced in 1961 with a soft top by Pinin Farina and called “335”, a name which referred to the vehicle’s long-wheelbase in centimeters. The President of the Italian Republic of the time, Giovanni Gronchi, was the first to choose it as his official vehicle. Four other models were then made and, following a well-established tradition, each one with the name of a thoroughbred horse from the Scuderie del Quirinale (Quirinal Stables): Belfiore, Belmonte, Belvedere and Belsito.
Painted in midnight blue, all vehicles contain black Connolly leather seat covers, an intercom system to communicate with the driver, 5 rear seats with a rear bench seat and two additional fold-down seats.
