Programme

The Kingdom of Italy from the mid-9th to the mid-11th century: Aristocratic Society and Power Structures.
The aim of the course is to examine the structures of the Kingdom of Italy starting from the late Carolingian period, in order to shed new light on the forms of royal power and the relationship between the kings and the society of the kingdom.

Core Documentation

G. Tabacco, Egemonie sociali e strutture del potere nel medioevo italiano, Torino, Einaudi, 1979 (english edition), chapters III, IV and V; G. Tabacco, Sperimentazioni del potere nell'alto medioevo, Torino, Einaudi, 1993, pp. 95-138; P. Cammarosano, Nobili e re. L'Italia politica dell'alto medioevo, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 1998, capitoli 9, 13 and pp. 200-202, 210-213, 223-226, 310; G. Sergi, I confini del potere. Marche e signorie fra due regni medievali, Torino, Einaudi, 1995, part I, chapters II, III, VIII; F. Bougard, Lo stato e le élites fra 888 e 962: il regno d'Italia a confronto (brevi considerazioni), in Italia, 888-962: una svolta, ed. by M. Valenti and Ch. Wickham, Turnhout, Brepols, 2013, pp. 77-84; G. Vignodelli, Berta e Adelaide. La politica di consolidamento del potere regio di Ugo di Arles, in "Reti Medievali Rivista", 13-2 (2012), pp. 247-294 (free download: http://www.serena.unina.it/index.php/rm/article/view/4794); a collection of Latin source texts, with translations, analyzed during class. Non-attending students must replace thethe collection of Latin source texts with Sergi, I confini del potere, Part I, Chapters IV and VI.

Attendance

Class attendance is not mandatory, but it is strongly recommended, given the seminar-style nature of the course.

Type of evaluation

The evaluation will take place orally during the exam.