Italy in the Middle Ages
Deposition of the Last Western Roman Emperor and Ostrogothic Invasion of Italy
History of medieval Italy begins in 476 when the last Western Roman Emperor, Romulus Augustulus was deposed by the Germanic chieftain Odoacer who proclaimed himself King of Italy. The Byzantine Emperor Zeno (reigned 474-475 and 476-491) disliked Odoacer’s action because he considered himself an heir to the Western Roman Empire but he recognized Odoacer’s authority in Italy. However, the Byzantine Emperor eventually started to feel threatened by the first non-Roman ruler of Italy and commissioned Theodoric the Great, King of the Ostrogoths in 488 to capture Italy from Odoacer. Theodoric invaded Italy one year later and killed Odoacer in 493 during a celebration of an agreement that made the two kings co-rulers. Theodoric the Great became sole king of Italy but like his predecessor, he nominally ruled Italy under Byzantine suzerainty until his death in 526.
Collapse of the Ostrogothic Kingdom and Arrival of the Lombards
The Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy was invaded by the Byzantines under the command of Belisarius in 535 and the Italian peninsula came under the Byzantine rule by 540. Belisarius’ departure in the same year, however, was taken advantage by the Ostrogoths who recaptured most of the lost territory by 542. Belisarius returned to Italy but his second campaign was unsuccessful. He was replaced by Narzes who decisively defeated the last Ostrogothic king, Teias at the Battle of Mons Lactarius in 553 and returned Italy under the Byzantine rule. However, the Byzantine domination over Italy came to an end in 568 when the peninsula was invaded by the Lombards led by their king Alboin.
Kingdom of the Lombards at Its Height and the Donation of Sutri
The Lombards captured a large part of the Italian peninsula from the Byzantines and established the Lombard Kingdom which reached its height during the reign of Liutprand (ruled 712-744) who captured the Duchy of Pentapolis on the Adriatic coast and the Exarchate of Ravenna from the Byzantine Empire. In 728, Liutprand reached an agreement with Pope Gregory II (715-731) known as the Donation of Sutri by which the Papacy was granted the city of Sutri and some hill towns in Latium resulting in the first expansion of Papal territory outside the Duchy of Rome.
Donation of Pepin and Establishment of the Papal States
Pope Stephen II (752-757), feeling threatened by the Lombard expansion turned to the King of the Franks, Pepin the Short (ruled 751-768) for military assistance. Pepin responded to the Pope’s appeal, invaded Italy and defeated the Lombard king Aistulf (reigned 749-756). The territory that was lost to the Lombards was returned to the Papacy in 754 with the so-called Donation of Pepin which provided the legal basis for establishment of the Papal States encompassing the former Exarchate of Ravenna, the Pentapolis, parts of the Lombard duchies of Spoleto and Benevento in central and southern Italy, and part of Romagna (roughly corresponding to the south-eastern part of the present-day Emilia-Romagna).
Deposition of the Last Lombard King and the Papal Temporal Rule in Central Italy
Pepin’s successor Charlemagne (ruled 768-814) deposed the last King of the Lombards, Desiderius in 774 and incorporated the Lombard Kingdom in northern Italy into the Frankish Kingdom. He confirmed the Donation of Pepin to the Holy See which also legitimized its temporal rule with the forged Donation of Constantine. According to the document that is believed to be created in the mid-8th century, the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great (ruled 306-337) transfered authority over Rome and the western half of the Roman Empire to Pope Sylvester I (314-335) and his successors. The Popes, however, established direct control over Rome and their territories in central Italy only in the 15th century.
Political Fragmentation of Italy in the 9th Century
Italy was fragmented into several political units by the early 9th century. The Papal States covered a large part of central Italy, the Lombard Kingdom in the north was an integral part of the Carolingian Empire, the Lombard duchies of Spoleto and Benevento only formally accepted Charlemagne’s suzerainty, while the Byzantine Empire controlled Sicily, parts of southern Italy and several coastal cities including Venice. However, the Byzantines lost Sicily to the Saracens in the mid-9th century, while the Lombard Kingdom which came to be known as Kingdom of Italy became a source of dispute between East Francia (precursor of the Kingdom of France) and West Francia (precursor of the Holy Roman Empire) after the disintegration of the Carolingian Empire in mid-9th century. In 962, the Kingdom of Italy became a constituent kingdom of the Holy Roman Empire but the Imperial authority was virtually nonexistent there which enabled the northern Italian cities to achieve de facto independence by the end of the 10th century.
Italian City-States and the Peace of Constance
Northern Italy in the 11th century was marked by the rise of the city-states. They had a unique form of government and established themselves as the centers of trade, manufacturing and later also banking. Many of them extended their influence and wealth in the 12th century also due to their role in the Crusades and repulsed the attempt of the Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick I Barbarossa (reigned 1155-1190) to assert his authority in Italy. The Holy Roman Emperor was defeated by the Lombard League, an alliance of the northern Italian cities which forced him to recognize independence of the Lombard cities under his nominal suzerainty with the Peace of Constance in 1183.
Rivalry between the Italian City-States and the Emergence of Venice as the Dominant Sea Power in Europe
The northern Italian cities renewed their alliance against the Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick II (ruled 1220-1250) when he tried to assert his authority in northern Italy in the early 13th century. As soon as the external threat was gone, the Italian city-states focused on extension of their influence and power which resulted in a rivalry for supremacy in the Mediterranean. Pisa was about to rise as one of the leading sea powers after capturing Sardinia and Corsica from the Saracens in the 11th century but it was virtually eliminated from the competition for supremacy in the Mediterranean after the defeat against Genoa in 1284. The latter, however, was decisively defeated by Venice which reached its height after the Fourth Crusade (1202-1204) and established itself as the dominant sea power in Europe by the end of the 14th century.
Florence under the Medici Family
Other Italian city-states, in the first place Lucca, Siena, Milan and Florence played an important role in history of Italy in the Middle Ages as well. The cradle of the Renaissance as Florence is often referred to reached its golden age under the Medici family, especially Lorenzo de’ Medici (ruled 1469-1494), also known as Lorenzo the Magnificent who made the city the cultural center of Italy. He also played the key role in maintenance of peace and creation of balance among the Italian states which collapsed shortly after his death and turned Italy into a battlefield.
Collapse of Byzantine Rule in Sicily and Muslim Conquests in Southern Italy
History of southern and central Italy in the Middle Ages was very different to that of northern Italy. Sicily and parts of southern Italy were captured by the Saracens in the mid-9th century who presented a constant threat to the central Italy as well. They penetrated deep into central Italy and the Popes were forced to pay tribute after failing to organize a military campaign to expel the Saracens. The Byzantine Empire under the Macedonian dynasty which came to power in 867 managed to recover some of the lost territories in southern Italy but Sicily was permanently lost in 902 when it was transformed into the Emirate of Sicily.
Norman Conquest of Sicily and Southern Italy and the Hohenstaufen Rule
Both the Saracens and Byzantines were ousted from Sicily and southern Italy, respectively, by the Normans led by the brothers Roger and Robert Guiscard by the end of the 11th century. Roger’s son, Roger II united the Norman conquests in Sicily and southern Italy and proclaimed himself King of Sicily in 1130. In 1194, the Kingdom of Sicily was acquired by the Hohenstaufen dynasty whose rule was marked by a constant conflict with the Papacy which was a major contributor to the dynasty’s downfall. Pope Urban IV (1261-1264) proclaimed the Kingdom of Sicily a Papal possession in 1262 and offered the crown to Charles of Anjou. The latter accepted the Pope’s offer, invaded Sicily and deposed Manfred, the last Hohenstaufen King of Sicily in 1266.
War of the Sicilian Vespers and Division of the Kingdom of Sicily into the Island-Based Kingdom and the Kingdom of Naples
Angevin rule in Sicily did not last long. A rebellion, known as the War of the Sicilian Vespers broke out in 1282, while the crown was offered to Peter III of Aragon. The latter invaded the island and was crowned King of Sicily in 1282 but he failed to establish his authority in southern Italy where Charles of Anjou established an independent Kingdom of Naples. The war for the island of Sicily continued until 1302 when the former Kingdom of Sicily was split into the island-based and mainland kingdoms. The Kingdom of Naples was ruled by the Angevin dynasty until 1443 when Rene of Anjou was was forced to leave over Naples to Alfonso V of Aragon.
Angevin Claim to the Kingdom of Naples and the Outbreak of the Italian Wars
Sicily came under direct rule of the Aragonese kings in 1409 and was reunited with the mainland kingdom in 1443 when Alfonso V of Aragon entered the city of Naples. However, the two kingdoms split apart again after Alfonso’s death in 1448. The Kingdom of Naples went to his illegitimate son Ferdinand I (reigned 1448-1494) whose rule was troubled by Angevin claims to the throne of Naples. After his death in 1494, Italy was invaded by Charles VIII of France (reigned 1483-1498), an Angevin through his grandmother to assert his claim to the Kingdom of Naples. Charles’ invasion of Italy marked the beginning of the Italian Wars that ended in 1559 with foreign domination of the Italian Peninsula except for the Republic of Venice and the Duchy of Savoy that retained their independence and central Italy which remained under the control of the Papal States.
