Italy in the Middle Ages

Paper Summary:

The paper describes how, following the Viking invasions of Europe in the 9th and 10th centuries A.D., significant changes were brought about in the political and social organization of Western Europe. In essence, Europeans during this time supported various types of leadership, but only if an effective means of defense could be maintained and controlled, such as in northern Italy with its urban bishops. The paper examines how Italy rose hard against all other Western European countries to become the crowning glory of western art and literature during the Renaissance era.

From the Paper:

"As the power of the Lombard courts diminished, the cities which they governed grew more and more independent and during the Hungarian and Saracen invasions, it was the cities of Italy under the leadership of their bishops that became the main centers of resistance. As a result, the Italian kings granted the urban bishops extensive powers and privileges, such as the right to construct walls and fortified towers and to collect tolls and public revenues in order to finance the building of these and other defensive structures. By the early 900's A.D., "the cities of Italy had been granted full exemption from the jurisdiction of the counts which in effect allowed the bishops to seize control of not only the defensive elements but also the revenues and courts of justice" (Wickham 156)."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Becker, Marvin B. Medieval Italy: Constraints and Creativity. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1981.
• Wickham, Christopher. Early Medieval Italy: Central Power and Local Society, 400 to 1000. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1989.

More papers on Italy in the Middle Ages:

• Term Paper # 69142 : "The City State of Genoa (900-1550 AD)"
• Analytical Essay # 67760 : "Carlo Ginzburg's "The Cheese and the Worms"
• Essay # 58800 : "The Renaissance"

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