The "State of the Presidia" was called a nucleus of territory of small size but of great military importance, created by the will of the King of Spain Philip II with territories previously belonging to the Republic of Siena after the annexation of the latter by the Grand Duchy of Tuscany in 1557. First included the promontory of Argentario in Tuscany with Orbetello, Porto Ercole and Porto Santo Stefano, Ansedonia and Talamone and, later, Porto Longone (now Porto Azzurro) on the Island of Elba. Thanks to these territories, even if limited in size, its rulers were able to control and influence the states and seas of Central Italy. The history of the State of the Presidium knew four periods: from 1557 to 1707 the government depended on the political and administrative directives of the Spanish viceroys of Naples; from 1707 to 1737 it was characterized by Austrian domination; between 1737 and 1800 the State was under the direct and personal control of the Bourbon kings of the two Sicilies. In 1801, following the second Napoleonic conquest of Italy, the State of the Presidia ended up being incorporated into the Kingdom of Etruria. With the restoration, this state became an integral part of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. The most important period was the first, when the king of Spain, Philip II, ally and friend of Cosimo I de Medici, ordered that the latter be obeyed by the Spanish commanders of Orbetello, talamone, Porto Ercole and the Presidium of Piombino. Cosimo I had the best military architects of the time and set up an increasingly impressive system of fortifications in the dominated territories. But that's not all. Several civil buildings date from this period (Orbetello, the capital of the state, also had a printing house capable of printing books): the Governor's Palace and the works for the enlargement and embellishment of the Cathedral of Orbetello date back to these years.