User:InflatableSupertrooper/Lombards
Kingdom of the Lombards Regnum Langobardorum Regnum totius Italiae | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 568–774 | |||||||||||||
 The Lombard Kingdom (blue) at its greatest extent, under King Aistulf (749–756) | |||||||||||||
| Capital | Pavia | ||||||||||||
| Common languages | Vulgar Latin | ||||||||||||
| Religion | Paganism Christianity
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Frankish invasion | June 774 | ||||||||||||
| Currency | Tremissis | ||||||||||||
| ISO 3166 code | IT | ||||||||||||
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The Kingdom of the Lombards (
The Lombard invasion of Italy was opposed by the
Over time, the Lombards gradually adopted Roman titles, names and traditions. By the time
A reduced
History
6th century
The founding of the kingdom
In the 6th century
Although an invasion attempt by the Franks, then allies of the Ostrogoths, late in the war was successfully repelled, a large migration by the Lombards, a Germanic people that had been previously allied with the Byzantine Empire, ensued. In the spring of 568 the Lombards, led by King Alboin, moved from Pannonia and quickly overwhelmed the small Byzantine army left by Narses to guard Italy.
The Lombard arrival broke the political unity of the Italian Peninsula for the first time since the Roman conquest (between the 3rd and 2nd century BC). The peninsula was now torn between territories ruled by the Lombards and the Byzantines, with boundaries which changed over time.
The newcoming Lombards were divided into two main areas in Italy: the
Arriving in Italy, King Alboin gave control of the
Over time, other Lombard Duchies were created in major cities of the kingdom. This was dictated primarily by immediate military needs as Dukes were primarily military commanders, tasked to secure control of territory and guard it against possible counter-attacks. However, the resulting collection of duchies also contributed to political fragmentation and sowed the seeds of the structural weakness of the Lombard royal power.[3]
In 572, after the capitulation of
Cleph and the Rule of the Dukes
Later in 572, the thirty-five Lombard dukes assembled in Pavia pledged allegiance to the new King
Following Cleph's assassination, another king was not appointed for the following decade (or for 12 years, according to some sources).
Following the collapse of the Roman political administration, the Lombards imposed themselves at first as the dominant
The final settlement: Authari, Agilulf and Theodelinda
In 574 and 575 the Lombards invaded
movement by the Franks and Byzantines, and realising the need for a stronger centralised monarchy, agreed to crown a new king.In 584 the dukes elected Cleph's son,
Authari was then able to engage in the reorganisation of the Lombards and their settlements in more fixed form throughout Italy. He assumed, like the
From a military point of view, Authari was successful in defeating both the Byzantines and Franks and breaking their coalition, thereby fulfilling the mandate which the dukes had entrusted him at the time of his election. In 585 he drove the Franks into modern Piedmont in northwestern Italy and forced the Byzantines to request a truce, for the first time since the Lombard invasion. Finally, he occupied the last Byzantine stronghold in northern Italy, Isola Comacina, a small island in Lake Como.
To ensure a stable peace with the Franks, Authari attempted to marry a Frankish princess, but the proposal failed. Then the king, in a move that would influence the fate of the kingdom for the following century, turned to the traditional enemies of the Franks, the
The alliance with the Bavarii led to a rapprochement between Franks and Byzantines, but Authari managed (in 588, and again, despite some early setbacks, in 590) to repel Frankish attacks. The rule of Authari marked, according to Paul the Deacon, the first period of internal stability in the Lombard kingdom:
Erat hoc mirabile in regno Langobardorum: nulla erat violentia, nullae struebantur insidiae; nemo aliquem iniuste angariabat, nemo spoliabat; non erant furta, non latrocinia; unusquisque quo libebat securus sine timore
There was a miracle in the kingdom of the Lombards: there was no violence, no insidious plot; no others unjustly oppressed, no depredations; there were no thefts, there were no robberies, where everyone went where they wanted, safely and without fear
—Historia Langobardorum, III, 16
Authari died in Pavia in 590, probably by poison in a palace
After a rebellion among some dukes in 594 was nipped in the bud, Agilulf and Theodelinda developed a policy of strengthening their hold of Italian territory, while securing their borders through peace treaties with France and the
, extending the Lombards' domains.The strengthening of royal powers, started by Authari and continued by Agilulf, also marked the transition to a new concept based on stable territorial division of the kingdom into duchies. Each duchy was led by a Duke, this time not just as the head of an aristocratic estate but also a royal official and holder of public powers. The locations of the duchies were established in strategically important centers, thus furthering the development of many urban centers placed along the main communication routes of the time (Cividale del Friuli, Treviso, Trento, Turin, Verona, Bergamo, Brescia, Ivrea, Lucca, etc.). In managing public administration dukes were joined by minor officials, called sculdahis and the gastalds.
The new organization of power, less linked to race and clan relations and more to land management, marked a milestone in the consolidation of the Lombard kingdom in Italy, allowing it to gradually lose its military occupation character and approach a more conventional state model.[10] The inclusion of those defeated in the battlefield (the Romans) was an inevitable step in consolidating the kingdom, and Agilulf made some symbolic choices aimed at strengthening his power and crediting it with selected people of Latin descent. The ceremony of accession to the throne of Agilulf and Theodelinda's son, Adaloald, in 604, followed a Byzantine rite; the royal capital was moved from Pavia to the ancient Roman city of Milan (with Monza used as the royal summer residence). Agilulf also identified himself, in a votive crown, as Gratia Dei Rex totius Italiae ("By the grace of God king of all Italy", marking a departure from the title of Langobardorum Rex, "King of the Lombards").[11]
These moves also contributed to the strong pressure, particularly from Theodelinda, to the conversion of the Lombards to
Even art flourished under Agilulf and Theodelinda. In architecture Theodelinda founded the Basilica of St. John the Baptist and the Royal Palace in
7th century
The revival of the Arians: Arioald, Rothari
After the death of
The
The rule of Arioald (626–636), who moved the capital back to Pavia, was troubled by these conflicts, as well as by external threats; the king was able to withstand an attack of the Avars in Friuli, but failed to limit the growing influence of the Franks in the kingdom. According to legend, following his death in 626, Queen Gundeperga was given the same privilege to choose her new husband and king as Queen Theodelinda had before her.[14] Gundeperga chose Rothari, the Duke of Brescia and an Arianist.
Rothari reigned from 636 to 652 and led numerous military campaigns, which brought almost all of northern Italy under the rule of the Lombard kingdom. He conquered Liguria in 643, including the major port city of
The legacy of Rothari is linked to the famous
The Bavarian dynasty
After the short reign of Rothari's son, Rodoald (652–653), the dukes elected king Aripert I, the Duke of Asti and grandson of Theodolinda, which marked the return to the throne of the Bavarian dynasty. Aripert's ascent to the throne was a sign of the increasing dominance of the Catholic faction over the Arianists and his rule came to be known for the heavy repression of Arianism. At his death in 661 Aripert’s testament divided the kingdom between his two sons, Perctarit (a Catholic) and Godepert (an Arian). Although this procedure was common among the Franks, it remained a unique case among the Lombards.[16] Perhaps because of the partition, the kingdom immediately entered a political crisis: a conflict broke out between Perctarit, based in Milan, and Godepert, who remained in Pavia, which also involved the Duke of Benevento, Grimoald. Grimoald intervened with substantial military force to support Godepert, but as soon as he arrived in Pavia, he killed the king and took his place in 662. Perctarit, clearly defeated both politically and militarily, fled to the Avars.
Although Grimoald obtained the formal investiture of the Lombard nobles, he still had to deal with the legitimist faction which formed international alliances to bring Perctarit back to the throne. Perctarit's wife, Rodelinde, and their son
Grimoald, who in 663 had defeated an attempt to reconquer Italy by the
In 671, Perctarit returned from exile and reclaimed his realm, which was for a short period ruled on behalf of Grimoald's son
Alahis again rose up, joining with the political opponents of the pro-Catholic Bavarian policy, at Perctarit's death in 688. His son and successor Cunipert was initially defeated and forced to take refuge on the Isola Comacina. In 689 he managed to crush the rebellion, defeating and killing Alahis in the Battle of Coronate at the Adda river.[21]
The divergence between the two regions of Langobardia Maior caused a political crisis: the western region, also known as
8th century
The dynastic crisis
Ansprand and Rotarit reacted immediately and imprisoned Aripert II, returning the throne to Liutpert. Aripert II, in turn, managed to escape, and in 702 he defeated them in Pavia. Aripert II now imprisoned Liutpert and occupied the throne. Shortly after, he finally defeated his opposition: he killed Rotarit, suppressed his duchy and drowned Liutpert. Only Ansprand managed to escape, taking refuge in
In 712 Ansprand returned to Italy with an army raised in Bavaria, and clashed with Aripert; in the battle, the king was abandoned by his supporters.[22] He died while trying to escape to the realm of the Franks, and drowned in the Ticino river, where he sank due to the weight of gold that he brought with him .[22] With his death the presence of the Bavarian dynasty on the throne of the Lombards ended.
Liutprand: the apogee of the reign
Ansprand died in 712 after only three months on the throne, leaving it to his son Liutprand. His 32 year reign, from 712 to 744, was the longest of all Lombard kings, and was characterised by the almost religious admiration that was expressed to the king by his people, who recognized in him boldness, courage and political vision;[23] Thanks to these qualities Liutprand survived two attempts on his life.
On two occasions, in
In the following years, Liutprand entered into an alliance with the Exarch against the Pope, without giving up the old one with the Pope against the Exarch; he crowned this classic double play with an offensive that led to the duchies of Spoleto and Benevento under his authority, eventually arriving to negotiate a peace between the pope and Exarch beneficial for the Lombards. No Lombard king ever had obtained similar results in wars with other powers on the Italian territory. In 732 his nephew Hildeprand succeeded him on the throne.
Liutprand was the last of the Lombard king to count on the unity of his kingdom; after him no king was able to eliminate the opposition and to reign supreme, and indeed many dukes’ defections and the constant betrayals would lead to the kingdom's ultimate defeat. The strength of his power was based not only on personal charisma, but also on the reorganisation of the kingdom which he had undertaken since the early years of his reign. He strengthened the
Already in the 7th century, the socio-economic structure of the kingdom had been progressively changing. Population growth led to fragmentation of finances, which increased the number of Lombards who fell below the poverty line, as evidenced by the laws aimed to alleviate their difficulties. By contrast, some Romans began to ascend the social ladder, becoming rich through
The last kings
Ratchis was a weak ruler: on one side he had to concede greater freedom of action to the other dukes, on the other extreme he had to take care not to exacerbate the Franks and, above all, the mayor of the palace and de facto king Pepin the Short, the adopted son of the king that had dethroned his nephew. Not being able to trust the traditional structures of support for the Lombard monarchy, he sought support among the gasindii, namely the gentry bound to the king by treaties of protection [28] and especially among the Romans, the non-Lombard subjects.
These innovations of ancient costumes, along with public pro-Latin attitudes (he married a Roman woman, Tassia, and with Roman rite; adopted the title of
Aistulf
Aistulf was the political expression of the more aggressive stance of the dukes, who refused an active component of the Roman population. For his expansionist policy, however, he had to reorganize the army to include, albeit in a subordinate position of light infantry, all ethnic groups in the kingdom. To be subject to military obligations were all free men of the kingdom, both those of Roman and Lombard origin; the military standards promulgated by Aistulf mention several times the merchants, a sign of how the class had now become relevant.[29]
Initially Aistulf achieved some notable successes, culminating in the conquest of
His campaigns led the Lombards to a near complete domination of Italy, with the occupation (750-751) also of Istria, Ferrara, Comacchio, and all territories south of Ravenna up to Perugia. With the occupation of the stronghold of Ceccano he was putting further pressure on the territories controlled by Pope Stephen II, while in Langobardia Minor he was able to impose his power on Spoleto and, indirectly, on Benevento.
Just when it seemed Aistulf was now up and running to defeat all opposition on Italian soil, in
Because of the threat that this move was for the new king of the
Defeated again, Aistulf had to accept much harsher conditions: Ravenna was returned not to the Byzantines, but to the pope, increasing the core area of the Patrimony of St. Peter; Aistulf had to accept a sort of Frankish protectorate, the loss of territorial continuity of his domains and payment of substantial compensation. The duchies of Spoleto and Benevento were quick to ally themselves with the victors. Aistulf died shortly after this severe humiliation, in 756.
Aistulf's brother Ratchis left the monastery and attempted, initially with some success, to return to the throne. He opposed Desiderius, who was put in charge of the Duchy of Tuscia by Aistulf and based in Lucca; he did not belong to the dynasty of Friuli, frowned upon by the pope and the Franks, and managed to get their support. The Lombards surrendered to him to avoid another descent of the Franks and Rachis was persuaded by the Pope to return to Monte Cassino.
Desiderius with a clever and discreet policy gradually reasserted Lombard control over the territory by leveraging on the Romans again, creating a network of monasteries ruled by Lombard aristocrats (his daughter Anselperga was created abbess of
Despite the changing fortunes of central political power, the 8th century represented the apogee of the reign, also a period of economic prosperity. The ancient society of warriors and subjects had been transformed into a vivid articulation of classes with landowners, artisans, farmers, merchants, lawyers; the era saw great development, including economic,
The fall of the kingdom
Just when, in 771, Desiderius was about to reap the fruits of his skillful policy by managing to convince the new pope, Stephen II, to accept his protection, the death of Carloman left freehanded Charlemagne, now firmly on the throne, which repudiated the daughter of Desiderius. The following year a new pope, Adrian I, of the opposite party of Desiderius, reversed the delicate game of alliances, demanding the surrender of the area never ceded by Desiderius and thus bring him to resume the war against the cities of Romagna.[32]
Charlemagne, though he had just begun his campaign against the Saxons, came to the aid of the pope, fearing the capture of Rome by the Lombards and the consequent loss of prestige. Between 773 and 774 he invaded Italy - once again the defence of the Locks was ineffective, the fault on the divisions among the Lombards[32] - and, having prevailed against a tough resistance, captured the capital of the kingdom, Pavia.
The son of Desiderius,
Thus ended Lombard Italy, and nobody can say whether it was, for our country, a fortune or a misfortune. Alboin and his successors were awkward masters, more awkward than Theodoric, until they had been barbarians camped on a conquest territory. But now they were assimilating with Italy and could turn it into a Nation, as the Franks were doing in France.
But in France there wasn't the Pope. In Italy, there was.— Indro Montanelli - Roberto Gervaso, L'Italia dei secoli bui
After the Frankish conquest of Langobardia Maior, only the Southern Lombard Kingdom was called Langbarðaland (Land of the Lombards), as attested in the Norse Runestones.[33]
Administration
The earliest Lombard law code, the
List of monarchs
Historiographical views
The age of the Lombard kingdom was, especially in Italy, devalued as a long reign of barbarism[35] in the midst of the "dark ages". A period of confusion and dispersion, marked by the abandoned ruins of a glorious past and still in search of new identity; see, for example, the verses of Manzoni's Adelchi:
From the mossy atria, from the crumbling Fora,
from the woods, from the flaming strident forges,
from the furrows wet with slave sweat,
a dispersed mob suddenly awoke.
Dagli atri muscosi, dai Fori cadenti,
dai boschi, dall'arse fucine stridenti,
dai solchi bagnati di servo sudor,
un volgo disperso repente si desta.—Adelchi, Choir Third Act.
Sergio Rovagnati defines the continuing negative prejudice against the Lombards "a sort of
The historical bipartition of Italy that has, for centuries, directed the North towards the Central-Western Europe and the south, instead, to the Mediterranean area dates back to the separation between Langobardia Major and Langobardia Minor, while
Regarding the role played by the Lombards within the emerging Europe, Jarnut[38] shows that, after the decline of the kingdom of the Visigoths and during the period of weakness of the kingdom of the Franks in the Merovingian era, Pavia was about to take a guiding role for the West after determining, by tearing a large part of Italy from the dominance of the Basileus, the final boundary line between the Latin-German West and the Greek-Byzantine East.
Breaking sharply the rise of the Lombards in Europe intervened, however, the strengthening of the Frankish kingdom under Charlemagne, who inflicted decisive defeats on the last kings of the Lombards. The military defeat, however, did not correspond to a disappearance of the Lombard element: Claudio Azzara states that "the same Carolingian Italy is configured, in fact, as a Lombard Italy, in the constituent elements of society and culture".[39]
Depictions of Lombard kingdom
In literature
The persistent injury historiography on the "dark ages" has long cast shadows on the Lombard kingdom, averting the interest of writers from that period. Few literary works have so been set in Italy between the 6th and 8th centuries; between them, relevant exceptions are those of Giulio Cesare Croce and Alessandro Manzoni. More recently the Friulian writer Marco Salvador has devoted a trilogy fiction to the Lombard kingdom.
- Berthold
The figure of Bertoldo/Berthold, a humble and clever farmer from
In 1620 the abbot Adriano Banchieri, poet and composer, produced a further follow-up: Novella di Cacasenno, figliuolo del semplice Bertoldino ("News of Cacasenno, son of simple Little Berthold"). Since then, the three works are usually published in one volume under the title of Bertoldo, Bertoldino e Cacasenno.
- Adelchi
Set during the extreme end of the Lombard kingdom, the Manzonian tragedy
In cinema
Three films were inspired by stories of Croce and Banchieri and set in the initial period of the Lombard kingdom (very freely played):
- Bertoldo, Bertoldino e Cacasenno (1936), directed by Giorgio Simonelli;
- Bertoldo, Bertoldino e Cacasenno (1954), directed by Mario Amendola and Ruggero Maccari;
- Bertoldo, Bertoldino e... Cacasenno (1984), directed by Mario Monicelli.
By far the most famous is the last of the three films, which boasted a cast composed of, among others, Ugo Tognazzi (Berthold), Maurizio Nichetti (Little Berthold), Alberto Sordi (fra Cipolla) and Lello Arena (king Alboin).
See also
References
- ^ "The New Cambridge Medieval History: c. 500-c. 700" by Paul Fouracre and Rosamond McKitterick (page 8)
- ^ cf. Paolo Diacono, Historia Langobardorum, IV, 37; VI, 24-26 e 52.
- ^ Jarnut (2002), pp. 48–50
- Origo gentis Langobardorum and Chronicle of Fredegar.
- ^ Jarnut (2002), pp. 46–48
- ^ Jarnut (2002), p. 37
- ^ Paolo Diacono, Historia Langobardorum, III, 16.
- ^ "German Tribes org Lombard Kings". GermanTribes.org. Archived from the original on 2010-07-18. Retrieved 2010-07-18.
- ^ Paolo Diacono, III, 35.
- ^ a b Jarnut (2002), p. 44
- ^ Jarnut (2002), p. 43
- ^ Paolo Diacono, Historia Langobardorum, IV, 41.
- ^ Jarnut (2002), p. 61
- ^ Jarnut (2002), p. 56
- ^ Paolo Diacono, Historia Langobardorum, IV, 45.
- (future Charlemagne), and the division prepared by Charlemagne himself in favour of the three heirs.
- ^ "German Tribes org Lombard Kings". GermanTribes.org. Archived from the original on 2010-07-18. Retrieved 2010-07-18.
- ^ Jarnut (2002), p. 59
- ^ Paolo Diacono, Historia Langobardorum, IV, 46.
- ^ Brown, T. S. The New Cambridge Medieval History: II. c. 700 - c. 900. p. 321.
- ^ a b Franco Cardini e Marina Montesano, Storia medievale, pag. 86.
- ^ a b Paolo Diacono, VI, 35.
- ^ Jarnut (2002), p. 97
- ^ Jarnut (2002), p. 82
- ^ Sergio Rovagnati, I Longobardi, pp. 75-76.
- ^ Jarnut (2002), pp. 98–101
- ^ Paul Deacon, Historia Langobardorum, VI, 55.
- Leges Langobardorum, Ratchis Leges, 14, 1-3.
- ^ Jarnut (2002), p. 101
- ^ Jarnut (2002), p. 112
- ^ Jarnut (2002), p. 102
- ^ a b Jarnut (2002), p. 125
- ^ 2. Runriket - Täby Kyrka, an online article at Stockholm County Museum, retrieved July 1, 2007.
- ^ N. Everett (2003), Literacy in Lombard Italy, c. 568–744 (Cambridge), 170.
- ^ cf. Azzara (2002), p. 135
- ^ Rovagnati (2003), p. 1
- ^ Jarnut (2002), pp. 135–136
- ^ Jarnut (2002), pp. 136–137
- ^ Azzara (2002), p. 138
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Chronicle of Fredegar, Pseudo-Fredegarii scholastici Chronicarum libri IV cum continuationibus in Monumenta Germaniae Historica SS rer. Mer. II, Hanover 1888
- Gregory of Tours, Gregorii episcopi Turonensis Libri historiarum X (Historia Francorum) in Monumenta Germaniae Historica SS rer. Mer. I 1, Hanover 1951
- Leges Langobardorum(643-866), ed. F. Beyerle, Witzenhausen 1962
- Marius Aventicensis, Chronica a. CCCCLV-DLXXXI. edied Theodor Mommsen in Monumenta Germaniae Historica AA, XI, Berlin 1894
- Origo gentis Langobardorum, ed. G. Waitz in Monumenta Germaniae Historica SS rer. Lang.
- Historia Langobardorum(Storia dei Longobardi, Lorenzo Valla/Mondadori, Milan 1992)
Historiographical literature
- Chris Wickham (1981). Early Medieval Italy: Central Power and Local Society, 400–1000. MacMillan Press.
- Azzara, Claudio; Stefano Gasparri (2005). Le leggi dei Longobardi, storia, memoria e diritto di un popolo germanico (in Italian). Roma: Viella. ISBN 88-8334-099-X.
- Azzara, Claudio (2002). L'Italia dei barbari (in Italian). Bologna: Il Mulino. ISBN 88-15-08812-1.
- Paolo Delogu. Longobardi e Bizantini in Storia d'Italia, Torino, UTET, 1980. ISBN 88-02-03510-5.
- Bandera, Sandrina (2004). Declino ed eredità dai Longobardi ai Carolingi. Lettura e interpretazione dell'altare di S. Ambrogio (in Italian). Morimondo: Fondazione Abbatia Sancte Marie de Morimundo.
- Bertelli, Carlo; Gian Pietro Broglio (2000). Il futuro dei Longobardi. L'Italia e la costruzione dell'Europa di Carlo Magno (in Italian) (Skira ed.). Milano. ISBN 88-8118-798-1.)
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link - Bertolini, Ottorino (1972). Roma e i Longobardi (in Italian). Roma: Istituto di studi romani. BNI 7214344.
- Bognetti, Gian Piero (1957). L'Editto di Rotari come espediente politico di una monarchia barbarica (in Italian). Milano: Giuffre.
- ISBN 88-00-20474-0.
- Gasparri, Stefano (1978). I duchi longobardi (in Italian). Roma: La Sapienza.
- ISBN 88-464-4085-4.
- Montanelli, Indro; Roberto Gervaso (1965). L'Italia dei secoli bui (in Italian). Milano: Rizzoli.
- Mor, Carlo Guido (1930). "Contributi alla storia dei rapporti fra Stato e Chiesa al tempo dei Longobardi. La politica ecclesiastica di Autari e di Agigulfo". Rivista di storia del diritto italiano (Estratto).
- Neil, Christie. I Longobardi. Storia e archeologia di un popolo (in Italian). Genova: ECIG. ISBN 88-7545-735-2.
- Possenti, Paolo (2001). Le radici degli italiani. Vol. II: Romania e Longobardia (in Italian). Milano: Effedieffe. ISBN 88-85223-27-3.
- Rovagnati, Sergio (2003). I Longobardi (in Italian). Milano: Xenia. ISBN 88-7273-484-3.
- Tagliaferri, Amelio (1965). I Longobardi nella civiltà e nell'economia italiana del primo Medioevo (in Italian). Milano: Giuffrè. BNI 6513907.
- Tabacco, Giovanni (1974). Storia d'Italia. Vol. I: Dal tramonto dell'Impero fino alle prime formazioni di Stati regionali (in Italian). Torino: Einaudi.
- Tabacco, Giovanni (1999). Egemonie sociali e strutture del potere nel medioevo italiano (in Italian). Torino: Einaudi. ISBN 88-06-49460-0.