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Late medeival Sicily is shown to have been neither underdeveloped nor dependent on foreign trade.
The growth of princely states in early Renaissance Italy brought a thorough renewal to the old seats of power. One of the most conspicuous outcomes of this process was the building or rebuilding of new court palaces, erected as prestigious residences in accord with the new ‘classical’ principles of Renaissance architecture. The novelties, however, went far beyond architectural forms: they involved the reorganisation of courtly interiors and their functions, new uses for the buildings, and the relationship between the palaces and their surroundings. The whole urban setting was affected by these processes, and therefore the social, residential and political customs of its inhabitants. This is the focus of A Renaissance Architecture of Power, which aims to analyse from a comparative perspective the evolution of Italian court palaces in the Renaissance in their entirety. Contributors are Silvia Beltramo, Flavia Cantatore, Bianca de Divitiis, Emanuela Ferretti, Marco Folin, Giulio Girondi, Andrea Longhi, Marco Rosario Nobile, Aurora Scotti, Elena Svalduz, and Stefano Zaggia.
The Normans have long been recognised as one of the most dynamic forces within medieval western Europe. With a reputation for aggression and conquest, they rapidly expanded their powerbase from Normandy, and by the end of the twelfth century had established themselves in positions of strength from England to Sicily, Antioch to Dublin. Yet, despite this success recent scholarship has begun to question the ’Norman Achievement’ and look again at the degree to which a single Norman cultural identity existed across so diverse a territory. To explore this idea further, all the essays in this volume look at questions of Norman traditions in some of the peripheral Norman dominions. In response t...
The Crown of Aragon. A Singular Mediterranean Empire recovers the history of an empire which was of great importance in the late medieval Mediterranean, but which has since been relegated almost to oblivion by the course of history. The Crown of Aragon was a Mediterranean crossroads: between west and east for the economy, and between north and south for culture and religion, drawing in many different peoples, covering Iberia to Greece. A new vision of the Crown of Aragon as a framework of overlapping identities facilitates its historiographical recovery, showcased in the chapters of this volume which analyse the economy, institutions, social evolution, political strategy and cultural expression in literature and art of the Crown of Aragon. Contributors are David Abulafia, Lola Badia, Xavier Barral-i-Altet, Pere Benito, Maria Bonet, Jesús Brufal, Alessandra Cioppi, Damien Coulon, Luciano Gallinari, Isabel Grifoll, Adam J. Kosto, Esther Martí-Setañés, Sebastiana Nocco, Antoni Riera, Flocel Sabaté and Antoni Simon.
The Companion to Medieval Palermo offers a panorama of the history of Medieval Palermo from the sixth to the fifteenth century. Often described by contrast with the communal reality of Medieval Italy as submitted to a royal (external) authority, the city is here given back its density and creativity. Important themes such as artistic and literary productions, religious changes or political autonomy are thus explored anew. Some fields recently investigated are the object of particular scrutiny: the history of the Jews, Byzantine or Islamic Palermo are among them. Contributors are Annliese Nef, Vivien Prigent, Alessandra Bagnera, Mirella Cassarino, Rosi Di Liberto, Elena Pezzini, Henri Bresc, Igor Mineo, Laura Sciascia, Gian Luca Borghese, Sulamith Brodbeck, Benoît Grévin, Giuseppe Mandalà, and Fabrizio Titone.
From the 12th century onwards merchants from the north Italian and southern French towns were able to take advantage of Christian conquests in southern Italy, Sicily and the Levant to penetrate and dominate the markets of these regions and of North Africa. The articles collected in this volume examine the economic, social and religious impact of this combination of trade and conquest . They include studies of the survival of Jews and Muslims in Sicily, of the debate about the 'under-development' of medieval southern Italy, Sicily and Sardinia, of relations between the rulers of those regions and the merchants, and of mercantile penetration into the kingdom of Jerusalem, Cyprus and Tunis in t...
This volume integrates the theme of Spain in Italy into a broad synthesis of late Renaissance and early modern Italy by restoring the contingency of events, local and imperial decision-making, and the distinct voices of individual Spaniards and Italians.
The first English-language survey of medieval and modern Sardinia, this volume offers access to long-awaited European scholarship on a critical missing link in the Mediterranean. Based on new archaeological fieldwork and current research from a variety of academic perspectives— architecture, colonialism, ecclesiastic history, cartography, demography, law, musicology, politics, trade, and urban planning—the authors provide the foundation to incorporate Sardinia into a broader European history. Among other contributions, archaeology adds critical insight into the relationship between Christian, Muslim, and Jewish inhabitants of Sardinia, through examinations of urban and rural settlement patterns. This volume aims to stimulate further analysis of the critical role Sardinia has played as one of the largest and most strategically located islands in the Mediterranean. Contributors are Laura Biccone, Nathalie Bouloux, Henri Bresc, Marco Cadinu, Roberto Coroneo, Laura Galoppini, Henrike Haug, Michelle Hobart, Rossana Martorelli, Giampaolo Mele, Marco Milanese, Giovanni Murgia, Gian Giacomo Ortu, Daniela Rovina, Olivetta Schena, Cecilia Tasca, Raimondo Turtas, and Corrado Zedda.
From Kehinde Wiley to W.E.B. Du Bois, from Nubia to Cuba, Willie Doherty's terror in ancient landscapes to the violence of institutional Neo-Gothic, Reagan's AIDS policies to Beowulf fanfiction, this richly diverse volume brings together art historians and literature scholars to articulate a more inclusive, intersectional medieval studies. It will be of interest to students working on the diaspora and migration, white settler colonialism and pogroms, Indigenous studies and decolonial methodology, slavery, genocide, and culturecide. The authors confront the often disturbing legacies of medieval studies and its current failures to own up to those, and also analyze fascist, nationalist, colonia...
Ten papers, on campaigns, biographies, military hardware, fortifications and interpreting medieval records. The second issue of this new undertaking broadens its geographical and practical range, widening its focus to draw in the amateur specialist in addition to military historians: the study of the origins of the crossbow industry inEngland is a case in point. Other papers include studies of campaigns (Henry II in Wales and Henry of Lancaster in France), articles on weaponry and Spanish fortifications in the Mediterranean, a brief life of the mercenary Armengol VI of Urgel, and case studies of the interpretation of chronicles in reconstructing battles and military action. Taken together, the articles reinforce the centrality of fighting and warfare in the middle ages, adding valuabledetail to an understanding of medieval society. Contributors: DAVID S. BACHRACH, ROBERT J. BURNS, KELLY DEVRIES, JOHN B. GILLINGHAM, JOHN HOSLER, DONALD KAGAY, BERNARD F. REILLY, CLIFFORD J. ROGERS, THERESA M. VANN, J.F.VERBRUGGEN.