The neoclassical façade was added in the early 19th century, while the interior remains largely preserved in its original design.

Sant'Alessandro was built on the site of an Etruscan temple,[1] near the top of the highest point in Fiesole.

It was likely commissioned by King Theodoric the Great in the 6th century,[2] making it the oldest church in Fiesole.

[1] The church was originally named Santo Pietro in Gerusalemme (Saint Peter in Jerusalem), until the year 823,[2] when it was renamed for Saint Alessandro, a former Bishop of Fiesole, who was martyred in the River Reno near Bologna in AD 590.

[1] On the left side of the nave is a chapel decorated with Renaissance frescoes,[1] and a 16th century panel by Gerino di Pistoia.