Review of History and Political Science

The Construction of the Urban Identity in Late Medieval Italy the Case of Tuscany (Thirteenth to Fourteenth Century)
Francesco Salvestrini

Abstract
The history of Tuscany during the Middle Ages has been a topic of great interest for many Italian and foreign scholars since at least the beginning of the nineteenth century. Research on the subject has thrived because of this Italian region’s exceptional dynamics and high level of urbanization during the XIIth to XIVth centuries, which are practically unique from the political and the economic standpoints, and because of its social structure and its cultural heritage. The paper tries to explain the reasons for the great demographic, economic and social development of Tuscan cities in the city-states age, comparing the situation of major agglomerations with the one of important towns. The text analyzes the massive increase in urban production, trade and banking at an international level, connected to the control of agricultural resources coming from cities’ countryside. Attention is also paid to the civic religion, to the historical culture and to political rules of the most important communities, to show the peculiarities of the region on the eve of the Renaissance.

Full Text: PDF     DOI: 10.15640/rhps.v3n1a5