1st Edition
Franks and Lombards in Italian Carolingian Texts Memories of the Vanquished
Franks and Lombards in Italian Carolingian Texts examines how historians of Carolingian Italy portrayed the history of the Lombards, Charlemagne’s conquest of the Lombard kingdom, and the presence of the Franks in the Italian Ppeninsula.
The different contexts and periods in which these writers composed their works allows readers to focus on various aspects of this period and to highlight the different ways the vanquished remembered Carolingian rule in Italy. The ‘"memories’" of these authors are organized by topic, ranging from the origin of the Lombards to the conflicts that broke out among the Carolingians after Louis II died in 875. Besides presenting the English translation and the original Latin text of the excerpts from the Italian Carolingian historical works, the volume also contains the English translations of the same events recorded in Frankish and papal narrative texts. In this way it is possible to compare different memories about the same episode or topic.
The book will appeal to scholars and students of the Lombards and Carolingians, as well as all those interested in medieval Europe.
Introduction
1. The Origin of the Lombards
2. The migrations and the settlement in Pannonia
3. The Lombard invasion of Italy
4. The rule of the Lombards in Italy until King Liudprand
5. The last Lombard kings
6. Charlemagne’s conquest of the Lombard kingdom
7. The revolt of north-east Italy’s Lombards
8. Opinions about Charlemagne
9. The imperial coronation of Charlemagne
10. The rule of Pippin
11. Pippin’s expedition against the Avars
12. The rule of Bernard
13. Louis the Pious and his sons
14. The Archbishop of Milan teaches Louis the Pious and Lothar a lesson
15. The death of Louis the Pious and the civil war among his sons
16. Disasters provoked by a Carolingian in Italy
17. Louis II punishes a rebel in Burgundy
18. Louis II’s expedition against the Muslims in Benevento
19. A campaign against the Muslims in Calabria
20. Holy war against the Muslims
21. The siege and conquest of Bari
22. Emperor Louis II’s captivity
23. The last years of Emperor Louis II and his death
24. The Conflicts for the acquisition of the Italian Kingdom
Biography
Luigi Andrea Berto is Professor of Medieval History at Western Michigan University, USA. His research focuses on Medieval Italy and the Mediterranean, with a special interest in the use of the past in the medieval and modern periods, and the relationships between Christians and Muslims.
