This 1991 book portrays the life and institutions of a great medieval Italian city, Siena, through the surviving records and buildings of the period. Laws, council minutes, records of the commune's revenue and expenditure, wills and other charters from the thirteenth century are among the plentiful material which makes up the picture of the city republic's institutions and those who ran them. The main themes are the political institutions of the city, and the involvement of the citizens in them. The religion of the Sienese is also investigated. This is a portrait of a special, but not untypical, society which was engaged in an experiment in oligarchic self-government. Although the milieu was urban, Siena's bankers and tradesmen, craftsmen and those involved in transport and agricultural labour, were in many cases landowners: the city was dependent on and greatly involved with its rural environment. The precocity of the commune's governmental methods and the wealth of information that has survived mean that the medieval life of this famous and beautiful Tuscan city can be depicted in full and convincing detail.

Siena and the Sienese in the Thirteenth Century

History

Waley, Daniel Philip

Europe

Cambridge University Press

Dust jacket worn, bookseller's pencil marks, foxing to tanned page edges. Shipped from the U.K. All orders received before 3pm sent that weekday.

Italian City Republics, The

Waley

Travel

Longman Pub. Group

306p paperback, marginally a little dusty, text clean

Later medieval Europe: From Saint Louis to Luther (A Longman paperback)

Longman

The Italian city-republics (A Longman paperback)

The Italian City Republics

Daniel Waley and Trevor Dean illustrate how, from the eleventh century onwards, many dozens of Italian towns achieved independence as political entities, unhindered by any centralising power. Until the fourteenth century, when the regimes of individual ‘tyrants’ took over in most towns, these communes were the scene of a precocious, and very well-documented, experiment in republican self-government.  Focusing on the typical medium-sized towns rather than the better-known cities, the authors draw on a rich variety of contemporary material (both documentary and literary) to portray the world of the communes, illustrating the patriotism and public spirit as well as the equally characteristic factional strife which was to tear them apart. Discussion of the artistic and social lives of the inhabitants shows how these towns were the seed-bed of the cultural achievements of the early Renaissance.  In this fourth edition, Trevor Dean has expanded the book’s treatment of religion, women, housing, architecture and art, to take account of recent trends in the abundant historiography of these topics. A new selection of illuminating images has been included, and the bibliography brought up to date. Both students and the general reader interested in Italian history, literature and art will find this accessible book a rewarding and fascinating read.   

Dean, Trevor

Routledge

Daniel Waley and Trevor Dean illustrate how, from the eleventh century onwards, many dozens of Italian towns achieved independence as political entities, unhindered by any centralising power. Until the fourteenth century, when the regimes of individual ‘tyrants’ took over in most towns, these communes were the scene of a precocious, and very well-documented, experiment in republican self-government. Focusing on the typical medium-sized towns rather than the better-known cities, the authors draw on a rich variety of contemporary material (both documentary and literary) to portray the world of the communes, illustrating the patriotism and public spirit as well as the equally characteristic factional strife which was to tear them apart. Discussion of the artistic and social lives of the inhabitants shows how these towns were the seed-bed of the cultural achievements of the early Renaissance. In this fourth edition, Trevor Dean has expanded the book’s treatment of religion, women, housing, architecture and art, to take account of recent trends in the abundant historiography of these topics. A new selection of illuminating images has been included, and the bibliography brought up to date. Both students and the general reader interested in Italian history, literature and art will find this accessible book a rewarding and fascinating read.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Waley, Daniel Philip. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Waley, Daniel Philip

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Waley, Daniel Philip. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Siena and the Sienese in the Thirteenth Century

Siena and the Sienese in the Thirteenth Century

Italian City Republics, The

Later medieval Europe: From Saint Louis to Luther (A Longman paperback)

The Italian city-republics (A Longman paperback)

The Italian City Republics

The Italian City Republics