A history of Medieval Italy
Lecturer: Dr Nick Gordon
Course Description
The centuries between the fall of Rome and the Renaissance in Italy have often been called a ‘Dark Age’, a phrase coined by the Tuscan poet Petrarch in the 1300s. The cultural monuments from this period, however, are testament to a different story: the brilliant mosaics of Ravenna and Norman Palermo, the marbled medieval churches of Rome, the intriguing tombs of the Lombards, or the cityscapes of hill towns such as Siena each spring to mind.
This course takes you into the world of medieval Italy, from the fall of Rome to the eve of the Renaissance. The story that unfolds lecture by lecture reveals the richness of the Middle Ages in Italy. Its a story of new peoples settling on the peninsula and the cultural interaction between them, of the rise and fall of duchies, kingdoms and empires, and ultimately the foundation of the modern Western world in trade, banking and self-governing states.
Course Content
Lecture 1: The fall of Rome
Lecture 2: The Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy and the Byzantines
Lecture 3: New peoples: The Lombards
Lecture 4: Southern Italy: Saracens, Greeks, Lombards and Latins
Lecture 5: Amalfi and the rise of Venice
Lecture 6: The maritime republics of Pisa and Genoa
Lecture 7: A new order: Charlemagne and the Holy Roman Empire
Lecture 8: The Normans and the Two Sicilies
Lecture 9: Matilda of Canossa and the rise of the Popes
Lecture 10: The Italian communes
Lecture 11: A new economy: Trade, banking and textiles in late medieval Italy
Lecture 12: Florence on the eve of the Renaissance
Lecturer
Dr Nick Gordon is a cultural historian and holds a PhD in history from the University of Sydney. His research into medieval and Renaissance Europe has won numerous academic awards and scholarships, including the University Medal in history from the University of Sydney, and has been published in prestigious peer-reviewed journals. Nick has over 15 years’ experience as a lecturer to university and public audiences.
Course Structure
12 x 1 hour illustrated lectures
The lectures are recorded in advance and will be available for streaming at your leisure. One lecture will become available each week, starting on 1 August. If you book after 1 August, you will have access to the previous lectures.
Course Dates
One lecture will become available each week, commencing on 1 August.
Price
A$160
REquirements
This course does not require any assumed knowledge, only a willingness to learn.
Streaming the lectures requires a computer, mobile phone or tablet with an internet connection.