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Il Medio Evo barbarico d'Italia (Italy's Barbarian Middle Ages) by Gabriele Pepe, published in 1941 by Giulio Einaudi Editore, is undoubtedly the longest selling Italian book about the Middle Ages. The goal of this article is to examine the reasons for this success, how the period in which the book was written influenced the depiction of the early medieval period in Italy, and how the volume was interpreted and used from the 1940s to the early 2000s in Italy and abroad. Challenging the conclusions of many scholars who have maintained that this work represents a "Fascist product," this essay also argues that several parts of this book can be interpreted as a criticism of the rise of the Nazis and of the alliance between Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By examining the first Venetian chronicle written after the Fourth Crusade, the Historia ducum Venetorum (1102–1229), this article shows how the Venetian ruling elites wanted to present their recent past. In particular, it proves that the author of that work and probably many of his fellow countrymen wished to point out that the Venetians gave fundamental support toward the defense and strengthening of the Kingdom of Jerusalem without expecting any material reward. Moreover, the Venetians had always been good friends and allies of the Byzantines, and the deterioration of this relationship and the conquest of Constantinople had to be attributed to the irresponsible behavior and ingratitude of the Byzantine emperors. By distorting or omitting a few events, they also wanted to demonstrate that Venice always enjoyed a perfect internal harmony and, therefore, represented an ideal society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of miracles, visions, predictions, and other supernatural phenomena has become important for understanding religious practices, mentalities, and the use of the past in the Middle Ages. In spite of the absence of local martyrs and saints and the small hagiographical production in Venice during the early Middle Ages, these phenomena were also relevant in this region. his article emphasizes both the unique aspects of the Venetian texts and their similarities with early medieval sources from the rest of Italy. In particular, it focuses on the ways Venetian authors employed miracles and divine interventions to shape a past that could be utilized for their present. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes how the neighbors of the Byzantines, the Lombards (who occupied a portion of southern Italy), and the Normans (who put an end to Byzantine rule in southern Italy in 1071), described their common adversary. The examination of the features that the chroniclers living in early medieval southern Italy attributed to the Byzantines demonstrates that, at least for this part of Europe, there is evidence of strong hostility to Byzantium before the twelfth century, a period traditionally perceived as crucial for the deterioration of relations between Westerners and Constantinople. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the end of the ninth century, the Cassinese monk Erchempert composed a chronicle (ca. 774-889) blaming the southern Italian Lombard leaders for recent Lombard defeats. Erchempert hoped that future generations might learn from their forebears' folly. This article analyzes the reasons why, in the wake of his monastery's destruction by Muslim raiders, Erchempert did not express a generalized criticism toward all the elites of his homeland. The article also demonstrates that Erchempert's attachment to his people and his pride in being Lombard sometimes led him to stray from his intended narrative of Lombard failures and catastrophes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]