Italy And Its Invaders

From the earliest times, successive waves of foreign invaders have left their mark on Italy. Beginning with Germanic invasions that undermined the Roman Empire and culminating with the establishment of the modern nation, Girolamo Arnaldi explores the dynamic exchange between outsider and âeoenative,âe liberally illustrated with interpretations of the foreigners drawn from a range of sources. A despairing Saint Jerome wrote, of the Sack of Rome by the Visigoths in 410, âeoeMy sobs stop me from dictating these words. Behold, the city that conquered the world has been conquered in its turn.âe Other Christian authors, however, concluded that the sinning Romans had drawn the wrath of God upon them. Arnaldi traces the rise of Christianity, which in the transition from Roman to barbarian rule would provide a social bond that endured through centuries of foreign domination. Incursions cemented the separation between north and south: the Frankish conquerors held sway north of Rome, while the Normans settled in the south. In the ninth century, Sicily entered the orbit of the Muslim world when Arab and Berber forces invaded. During the Renaissance, flourishing cities were ravaged by foreign armiesâe"first the French, who during the siege of Naples introduced an epidemic of syphilis, then the Spanish, whose control preserved the countryâe(tm)s religious unity during the Counter-Reformation but also ensured that Italy would lag behind during the Enlightenment. Accessible and entertaining, this outside-in history of Italy is a telling reminder of the many interwoven strands that make up the fabric of modern Europe.

Italy and Her Invaders offers a comprehensive overview of the period of history in which various groups invaded and took control of Italy, starting in the 4th century CE. Thomas Hodgkin provides detailed accounts of each invasion, including the tactics and motivations of the invading groups, as well as the responses of the Italian people. This book offers a valuable resource for anyone interested in the history of Italy, as well as the broader story of the fall of the Roman Empire. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.