CORNELL 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 GIFT OF 
 
 J. P. Bretz 
 
Oante Alighieri, his life and worl<s, by Pa 
 
 3 1924 011 900 267 
 
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 DEC 2 
 
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 PRINTED INU. a. A. 
 
Cornell University 
 Library 
 
 The original of tliis book is in 
 tine Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31 92401 1 900267 
 
DANTE ALIGHIERI 
 
 ' Dietro alle poste delle care piante." 
 
 Inf. xxiii. 148 
 
BRONZE BUST OF DANTE 
 In the possession of Whitwonh IVallis, Esq., Rzrmi}igha 
 
PANTE ALIGHIERI 
 
 HIS LIFE AND WORKS 
 
 BT 
 
 PAGET TOYNBEE 
 
 M.A., D.UTT. ««0N. 
 
 WITH BIXTEBM ILLC8TBATI0HS 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 
 
 1910 
 
DANTE ALIGHIERI 
 
 HIS LIFE AND WORKS 
 
 BY 
 
 PAGET TOYNBEE 
 
 M.A., D.HTT. OXON. 
 
 WITH SIXTEEN ILLU8TBAT10N8 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 THE MAGMILLAN COMPANY 
 
 1910 
 

 
 
 
 £90 
 
PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION 
 
 THIS little book lays no claim to originality, and 
 makes no pretence to learning or research. It is 
 addressed rather to the so-called general reader than to 
 the serious Dante student. The narrative is taken largely 
 from the pages of Villani, Boccaccio, and from other 
 similar sources. The reader will find fiction (at any rate 
 from the critic's point of view) as well as fact in these 
 pages, but he will, I hope, be at no loss to distinguish 
 between the two. The legends and traditions which 
 hang around the name of a great personality are a not 
 unimportant element in his biography, and may some- 
 times serve to place him as well as, if not better than, 
 the more sober estimates of the serious historian. I 
 have not, therefore, thought it outside the scope of this 
 sketch of Pante's life to include some of the anecdotes 
 which at an early date began to be associated with his 
 name, though certain of them demonstrably belong to a 
 far earlier period. 
 
 Again, when a thing has been well said by a previous 
 writer, I have been content to let him speak, instead of 
 saying the same thing less well in my own words. 
 
 The translations for the most part are my own. I- 
 
vi DANTE ALIGHIERI 
 
 have, however, been indebted for an occasional turn or 
 phrase to Selfe and Wicksteed's Selections from Villani, 
 and to the latter's versions of the Early Lives of Dante. 
 
 The illustrations are reproduced, by permission, from 
 photographs by Messrs. Alinari and Messrs. Brogi of 
 Florence. 
 
 May, 1900 
 
 PREFACE TO FOURTH EDITION 
 
 A FOURTH edition of this book (the third edition of 
 which has lately been translated into Italian by 
 Professor Balsamo-Crivelli, of Turin) having been called 
 For, I have, at the suggestion of the publishers, availed 
 myself of the opportunity to make considerable additions 
 to it (as well as to rectify sundry mistakes and omissions), 
 ivhich will, I trust, increase its value to students, without 
 it the same time diminishing its interest for the general 
 reader. 
 
 The present edition differs from its predecessors chiefly 
 in respect of the much fuller treatment (in Part V) of 
 Dante's works, of which brief analyses have now been 
 supplied, together with information as to MSS. and 
 critical editions, and, in the case of the Divina Commedia 
 commentaries, as well as data, of special interest to the 
 English reader, as to the various editions and translations 
 of each work published in this country. Many additional 
 
PREFACE TO FOURTH EDITION vii 
 
 details will also be found in some of the other sections, 
 especially in the more strictly biographical portions of 
 the work. 
 
 Further, in the present edition I have made a point of 
 supplying copious references to authorities (generally at 
 the foot of the page), which will serve at once as an 
 acknowledgment of my own obligations, and as a means 
 whereby the reader may, if desired, check the information 
 fumished in the text. 
 
 The bibliographical and biographical notes in the 
 original Appendix have been considerably amplified, and 
 four Appendices have been added. The first of these 
 consists of a Genealogical Table of the family of Dante, 
 with references to Dante's own allusions to members of 
 his family. The others contain respectively, a translation 
 of the letter of Frate Ilario to Uguccione della Faggiuola, 
 to which renewed attention has been directed of late ; 
 extracts from some interesting letters of Seymour Kirkup 
 to Gabriele Rossetti concerning the discovery of the 
 Giotto portrait of Dante in the Bargello, and Kirkup's 
 drawing from it (further information about which, supplied 
 by Kirkup himself to the late owner of the original 
 sketch, will be found in the body of the book) ; and, 
 lastly, a Chronological List of early (cent, xiv-xvi) com- 
 mentaries on the Divina Commedia. 
 
 The index, which of necessity has been entirely recast, 
 has been made as full as possible in order to render 
 the varied contents of the book easily accessible to the 
 student for purposes of reference, and dates have been 
 inserted as a convenient means of "orientation ". 
 
 Sundry illustrations have been added, among them 
 
viii DANTE ALIGHIERI 
 
 one of a fine bronze bust of Dante (supposed to be 
 the work of a French artist at the beginning of the 
 seventeenth century) in the possession of Mr. Whitworth 
 Wallis, Director of the Birmingham Museum and Art 
 Gallery, who kindly supplied a photograph (hitherto un- 
 published) for the purpose of reproduction in this book. 
 
 PAGET TOYNBEE 
 
 20 January, 1910 
 
 {fhe 5goth anniversary of the disputation 
 " De Aqua et Terra" at Verona) 
 
 *^* In the numbering of the poems in the Canzoniere, and the line 
 references in the prose works, the arrangement of the Oxford Dante has 
 been followed. 
 
 " Se Dio ti lasci, Lettor, prender frutto 
 Di tua lezion." 
 
 Inf. XX. 19 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 PART I 
 
 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 CHAPTER I (1215-1250) 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Origin of the names — Distinguishing principles of the two parties 
 in Italy — Introduction of the parties into Florence — The Ghibel- 
 lines with the aid of Frederick II expel the Guelfs from Florence — 
 Return of the Guefe after the Emperor's death, and pacification 
 between the two 'parties 1-13 
 
 CHAPTER II (1Z51-1260) 
 Renewed hostilities — Adoption of distinctive banners by the two 
 parties in Florence — The Ghibellines intrigue with Manfred and 
 are forced to leave Florence — They retire to Siena and persuade 
 Manfred to send them help — Great Ghibelline victory at Monta- 
 perti . 14-25 
 
 CHAPTER III (1261-1267) 
 Flight of the Guelfs from Florence — Farinata degli Uberti saves 
 Florence from destruction — The Ghibellines supreme in Tuscany 
 —Defeat of Manfred at Benevento by Charles of Anjou — Flight of 
 Guido Novello and the Ghibelline allies from Florence — Guy de 
 Montfort arrives in Florence as Charles's vicar — Guelf supremacy 
 finally re-established 26-35 
 
 PART II 
 
 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 CHAPTER I (1265-1290) 
 Dante's birth and ancestry — His father and mother — Cacciaguida 
 — Geri del Bello — Beatrice Portinari — Episodes in the Vita Nuova 
 — Folco Portinari — Death of Beatrice— rPoetical correspondence 
 with Cino da Pistoja, Guido Cavalcanti, and Forese Donati 36-52: 
 
X DANTE ALIGHIERl 
 
 CHAPTER II {1289-1290) 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Military service— War with Arezzo — Battle of Campaldino — 
 Victory of Florentine Guelfs— Buonconte da Montefeltro — Siege of 
 Caprona — " Quomodo sedet sola civitas I" . . . . 53-63 
 
 CHAPTER III {1291-1300) 
 Early studies — Brunetto Latino — Classical acquirements — 
 Marriage — Gemma Donati — Children — Public life — Embassy to 
 San Gemignano — Priorate 64-74 
 
 CHAPTER IV (1300- 1302) 
 Blacks and Whites in Pistoja— In Florence— Cerchi and Donati 
 — May Day, 1300 — Dante in office — Embassy to Rome — Charles of 
 Valois in Florence — Triumph of the Blacks — Condemnation and 
 exile of Dante — His possessions and debts .... 75-87 
 
 PART III 
 
 DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 CHAPTER I (1302-1321) 
 Wanderings — Dante's fellow-exiles — Henry VII in Italy — His 
 'death — Fresh sentence against Dante — His retirement to Ravenna 
 — Alleged visits to Mantua, Verona, and Piacenza — Reputed a 
 «orcerer — Death and burial — His tomb and epitaphs — Elegies 88-108 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 Boccaccio's rebuke to the Florentines — Efforts of Florence to get 
 possession of Dante's remains — Leo X grants permission for their 
 removal — Disappearance of the remains — Their accidental discovery 
 during the commemoration of the sixth centenary of Dante's birth — 
 Public exhibition of them at Ravenna, and subsequent re-inter- 
 ment 109-118 
 
 PART IV 
 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 Boccaccio's account of Dante's person and character- — His love 
 of fame — His failings — Account of him by his contemporary, Gio- 
 -vanni Villani .... . . . . iig-127 
 
CONTENTS xi 
 
 CHAPTER II PAGE 
 
 Portraits of Dante — The Giotto portrait in the Bargello — 
 Norton's account of the Bargello portrait — Its disappearance and 
 re-discovery — The death-mask — Its relation to the portrait — The 
 Naples Bronze — Portrait by Taddeo Gaddi — The Riccardi portrait 
 — The picture by Domenico di Michelino .... 128-14J 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 Anecdotes of Dante — Dante and Can Grande della Scala — 
 Belacqua and Dante — Sacchetti's stories — Dante and the blacksmith 
 — Dante and the donkey-driver — Dante's creed — Dante and King 
 Robert of Naples — Dante's reply to the bore — Dante and the Doge 
 of Venice — Dante a kleptomaniac — Dante and Cecco d' Ascoli 144-157 
 
 PART V 
 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 Italian Works — Lyrical Poems — The Vita Ntiova — The Convivio 158-192 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 The Divina Commedia — Its origin, subject, and aim — Date of 
 composition — Scheme of the poem — Boccaccio's story of the lost 
 cantos — Why it was vnritten in Italian — Dante and his rhymes — 
 Manuscripts and printed editions — English editions and transla- 
 tions — Commentaries 193-230 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 Latin Works — The De Monarchia — The De Vulgari Eloquentia 
 — The Letters — The Eclogues — The Quaestio de Aqua et Terra — 
 Apocryphal Works . 231-261 
 
 Appendix A — Genealogical Table of the Family of Dante 
 Appendix B — Letter of Frate Ilario to Uguccione della Faggiuola 263 
 Appendix C — Extracts from letters from Seymour Kirkup to 
 Gabriele Rossetti concerning the discovery of the Giotto portrait of 
 Dante in the Bargello, and Kirkup's drawing from it . . . 267 
 
 Appendix D — Chronological List of early (cent, xiv-xvi) com- 
 mentaries on the Divina Commedia, with titles of printed editions . 271 
 
 Appendix E — Bibliographical Note of the Earliest Biographies 
 and Biographical Notices of Dante 275 
 
 Index 283 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 1. Bronze bust of Dante Frontispiece 
 
 PACING PAGE 
 
 2. Florence and the Arno i 
 
 3. The city of Florence . 13 
 
 4. Farinata degli Uberti {from the painting by Andrea del 
 
 Castagno, in the Museo Nazionale at Florence) ... 27 
 
 5. Dante's house in Florence -37 
 
 6. The Baptistery of San Giovanni at Florence .... 42 
 
 7. San Gemignano . 73 
 
 8. Cast of Dante's face taken after death 88 
 
 g. Dante's tomb at Ravenna 107 
 
 10. Chest in which Dante's remains were found at Ravenna in 1865 115 
 
 11. Portrait of Dante (from Codex 1040 in the Riccardi Library 
 
 at Florence) iig 
 
 12. Portrait of Dante by Giotto in the Bargello at Florence (from a 
 
 drawing by Seymour Kirkup) . . ... 128 
 
 13. Mask of Dante in the Ufifizi at Florence (formerly in the 
 
 possession of the Marchese Torrigiani) ..... 137 
 
 14. Bronze bust of Dante at Naples 141 
 
 15. Dante and his book (from the picture by Domenico di Michelino, 
 
 in the Duomo at Florence) 193 
 
 16. Dante Alighieri (from the painting by Andrea del Castagno, 
 
 in the Museo Nazionale at Florence) 231 
 
Thou know'st perchance how Phoebus' self did guide 
 Our Tuscan Dante up the lofty side 
 Of snow-clad Cyrrha ; how our Poet won 
 Parnassus' peak, and founts of Helicon ; 
 How with Apollo, ranging wide, he sped 
 Through Nature's whole domain, and visited 
 Imperial Rome, and Paris, and so passed 
 O'er seas to Britain's distant shores at last. 
 
 (Boccaccio to Petrarch) 
 
 " the grete poete ol Ytaille 
 That highte Dant." 
 
 Chaucer, Monk's Tale 
 
PART I 
 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 '^' CHAPTER I 
 
 1215-1250 
 
 Oiigin of the names — Distinguishing principles of the two parties in 
 Italy — Introduction of the parties into Florence — The Ghibellines with 
 the aid of Frederick II expel the Guelfs from Florence — Return of the 
 Guelfs after the Emperor's death, and pacification between the two 
 parties. 
 
 NORTHERN ITALY in the middle of the thirteenth 
 century, at the time of Dante's birth,^ was divided 
 into two great political parties, of which the one, known 
 by the name of Guelfs, looked to the Pope as their head, 
 while the others, the Ghibellines, looked to the Emperor. 
 The distinctive titles of these two parties were of German 
 origin, being merely Italianized forms (Guelfo and Ghi- 
 bellino) of the two German names Wei/and Weiblingen. 
 The former of these was the name of an illustrious family, 
 several members of which had successively been Dukes of 
 Bavaria in the teatli- and elev^iHi centuries. The heiress 
 of the last of these intermarried with a younger son of 
 the house of Este ; and from them sprang a second line 
 of Guelfs, from whom the royal house of Bmnswkk is 
 descended. -■f^v^.'jy-ey- 
 
 ' May, 1265. 
 
2 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 Weiblingen was the name of a castle in Franconia, be- 
 longing to Conrad the Salic, who was Emperor from 1024 
 to 1039, ^^^ '^^^ ^^^ progenitor, through the female line, 
 of the Swabian emperors. By the election of Lothair in 
 1 125 in succession to Henry V (Emperor from 11 06 to 
 1 125) the Swabian family were ousted from what they 
 had come to regard almost as an hereditary possession ; 
 and at this time a hostility appears to have commenced 
 between them and the house of Welf, who were nearly 
 related to Lothair. In 107 1 the Emperor Henry IV had 
 conferred the Duchy of Bavaria upon the Welfs ; and in 
 1080 the Duchy of Swabia had been conferred upon the 
 Counts of Hohenstaufen, who represented the Franconian 
 line. 
 
 The accession in 1138 of Conrad HI of Swabia to the 
 Imperial throne, and the rebellion of Henry the Proud, 
 the Welf Duke of Bavaria, gave rise to a bloody struggle 
 between the two houses ; and at the battle of Weinsberg, 
 fought on 21 December, 1140, in which the Welf Duke 
 was defeated by Conrad, the names Welf and Weiblingen 
 were for the first time, it is said, adopted as war- 
 cries. 
 
 These names, which in Germany, as we have seen, dis- 
 tinguished the two sides in the conflict between the Welfs 
 and the Imperial Swabian or Hohenstaufen line, in Italy 
 acquired a different meaning, and became identified re- 
 spectively with the supporters of the Church and the 
 supporters of the Empire. Their first appearance in 
 Italy seenis to have been quite at the beginning of the 
 thirteenth century, when they were adopted by the two 
 leading parties which divided the towns of Lombardy 
 during the struggle for the Imperial throne between 
 Philip, Duke of Swabia (brother of the Emperor Henry 
 VI), and the Welf Otto of Brunswick, many important 
 
DISTINGUISHING PRINCIPLES 3 
 
 Italian towns sympathizing with the latter, who after his 
 rival's death in 1208 became Emperor as Otto IV. 
 
 The division between the opposing factions rapidly 
 deepened, till not only rival towns, but also the leading 
 families within the towns themselves, became involved in 
 party strife, the citizens ranging themselves, ostensibly at 
 least, under the chiefs on either side. 
 
 The main outlines of the principles which actuated the 
 two parties in Italy, during the period covered by this 
 book, have been ably sketched by the late Dean Church. 
 " The names of Guelf and Ghibelline," he writes, " were 
 the inheritance of a contest which, in its original meaning, 
 had been long over. The old struggle between the priest- 
 hood and the Empire was still kept up traditionally, but 
 its ideas and interests were changed. It had passed over 
 from the mixed region of the spiritual and temporal into 
 the purely political. The cause of the Popes was that of 
 the independence of Italy — the freedom and alliance of 
 th6 great cities of the north, and the dependence of the 
 centre and south on the Roman See, To keep the Em- 
 peror out of Italy, to create a barrier of powerful cities 
 against him south of the Alps, to form behind themselves 
 a compact territory, rich, removed from the first burst of 
 invasion, and maintaining a strong body of interested 
 feudatories, had now become the great object of the 
 Popes. The two parties did not care to keep in view 
 principles which their chiefs had lost sight of. The Em- 
 peror and the Pope were both real powers, able to protect 
 and assist ; and they divided between them those who re- 
 quired protection and assistance. Geographical position, 
 the rivalry of neighbourhood, family tradition, private 
 feuds, and above all private interest, were the main causes 
 which assigned cities, families, and individuals to the 
 Ghibelline or Guelf party. One party called themselves 
 
4 GUELFS AND GHIBELJLlJNJtb 
 
 the Emperor's liegemen, and their watchword was authority 
 and law; the other side were the liegemen of Holy 
 Church, and their cry was liberty ; and the distinction as 
 a broad one is true. But a democracy would become 
 Ghibelline, without scruple, if its neighbour town was 
 Guelf; and among the Guelf liegemen of the Church and 
 liberty the pride of blood and love of power were not a 
 whit inferior to that of their opponents. 
 
 "The Ghibellines as a body reflected the worldliness, 
 the licence, the irreligion, the reckless selfishness, the 
 daring insolence, and at the same time the gaiety and 
 pomp, the princely magnificence and generosity and large- 
 ness of mind of the house of Swabia ; they were the men 
 of the court and camp, imperious and haughty from an- 
 cient lineage, or the Imperial cause, yet not wanting in the 
 frankness and courtesy of nobility; careless of public 
 opinion and public rights, but not dead to the grandeur 
 of public objects and public services. The Guelfs, on the 
 other hand, were the party of the middle classes; they 
 rose out of and held to the people; they were strong by 
 their compactness, their organization in cities, their com- 
 mercial relations and interests, their command of money. 
 Further, they were professedly the party of strictness and 
 religion, a profession which fettered them as little as their 
 opponents were fettered by the respect they claimed for 
 Imperial law. But though by personal unscrupulousness 
 and selfishness, and in instances of public vengeance, they 
 sinned as deeply as the Ghibellines, they stood far more 
 committed as a party to a public meaning and purpose — 
 to improvement in law and the condition of the poor, to 
 a protest against the insolence of the strong, to the en- 
 couragement of industry. The genuine Guelf spirit was 
 austere, frugal, independent, earnest, religious, fond of its 
 home and Church, and of those celebrations which bound 
 
THE PARTIES IN FLORENCE 5 
 
 together Church and home ; but withal vety proud, very 
 intolerant ; in its higher form intolerant of evil, but intol- 
 erant always to whatever displeased it." ^ 
 
 " Speaking generally," as another writer ^ puts it, " the 
 Ghibellines were the party of the Emperor, and the Guelfs 
 the party of the Pope : the Ghibellines were on the side 
 of authority, or sometimes of oppression ; the Guelfs were 
 on the side of liberty and self-government. Again, the 
 Ghibellines were the supporters of a universal Empire, of 
 which Italy was to be the head ; the Guelfs were on the 
 side of national life and national individuality." 
 
 The introduction of the Guelf and Ghibelline factions 
 into Florence is said by the old Florentine chroniclers to 
 have taken place in the year 12 15, on the occasion of a 
 blood-feud which arose out of the murder of one of the 
 Buondelmonti by one of the Amidei, both of them noble 
 Florentine families, on Easter Sunday in that year. The 
 story of this murder, and of the incident which led to it, is 
 related as follows by Giovanni Villani in his New 
 Chronicle of the City of Florence, which he began to 
 write in 1 300, the year of the first Jubilee of the Roman 
 Church. 
 
 "In the year of Christ 1215," he says, "Messer Gher- 
 ardo Orlandi being Podesti of Florence,^ one Messer 
 Buondelmonte dei Buondelmonti, a noble citizen of Flor- 
 ence, having promised to take to wife a damsel of the 
 house of the Amidei, honourable and noble citizens; as 
 the said M. Buondelmonte, who was a very handsome and 
 
 '^Bante : An Essay. By R. W. Church. 
 
 'O. Browning, in Guelfs and Ghibellines. 
 
 'The Podesta was the chief magistrate of the city, who was appointed 
 for one year. With a view to securing impartiality in the administration 
 of justice the office of Podesti was always held by a stranger — never by a 
 native of Florence. 
 
6 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 fine cavalier, was riding through the city, a lady of the 
 house of ihe Donati called to him, and found fault with 
 him on account of the lady to whom he had betrothed 
 himself, as being neither fair enough nor a fitting match 
 for him, and saying: I had kept my daughter here for 
 you — whom she showed to him, and she was very beauti- 
 ful. And he straightway, at the prompting of the Evil 
 One, becoming enamoured of her, was betrothed to her 
 and took her to wife ; for which cause the kinsfolk of the 
 lady to whom he was first betrothed, being assembled to- 
 gether and smarting under the shame which M. Buondel- 
 monte had put upon them, were filled with the accursed 
 rage, whereby the city of Florence was laid waste and 
 divided against herself; for many families of the nobles 
 swore together to put shame on the said M. Buondelmonte 
 in revenge for these wrongs. And as they were in council 
 among themselves as to how they should retaliate on him, 
 either by beating him or by stabbing him, Mosca de' Lam- 
 bjerti spoke the evil word : A thing done ha"s an end — tfiaf ' 
 i^that he should be slain. And so it was done ; for on 
 the morning of Easter Day they assembled in the house 
 of the Amidei of Santo Stefano, and M. Buondelmonte 
 coming from beyond Arno, bravely arrayed in new gar- 
 ments all white, and on a white palfrey, when he reached 
 the foot of the Ponte Vecchio on this side, just at the foot 
 of the pillar where stood the statue of Mars, the said M. 
 Buondelmonte was thrown from his horse on to the ground 
 by Schiatta degli Uberti, and set on and stabbed by Mosca 
 Lamberti and Lambertuccio degli Amidei, and his throat 
 cut by Oderigo Fifanti, and an end made of him ; and 
 with them was one of the Counts of Gangalandi. On these 
 doings the city rushed to arms in tumult ; and this death 
 of M. Buondelmonte was the cause and beginning of the 
 accursed Guelf and Ghibelline parties in Florence, albeit 
 
THE PARTIES IN FLORENCE 7 
 
 that before this time there had been many factions among 
 the nobles of the city, and parties as aforesaid, by reason 
 of the quarrels and disputes between the Church and the 
 Empire; but on account of the death of the said M. 
 Buondelmonte all the families of the nobles and other 
 citizens of Florence took sides, and some held with the 
 B uondelmo nti, who joined the Guelf party and became its 
 leaders, and some with the Uberti, who became the leaders 
 of the Ghibellines. And from this followed great evil and 
 ruin to our city, which is like never to have an end, unless 
 God bring it to an end." ^ 
 
 Villani then proceeds to give a list of the noble families 
 in Florence who joined either side, the Guelfs, as he has 
 already explained, under the leadefship of the Buondel- 
 monti, and the Ghibellines under that of the Uberti. 
 "And this," he repeats, "is how these accursed parties 
 took their origin in Florence, albeit at first not very openly, 
 there being division among the nobles of the city, in that 
 some loved the rule of the Church, and some that of the 
 Empire, nevertheless as to the good estate and well-being 
 of the commonwealth all were at one." 
 
 The conflict between the Guelfs and Ghibellines in 
 Florence, thus commenced by the murder of Buondel- 
 monte, continued, with varying fortune to either side, for a 
 period of fifty-two years, from 121 5 to 1267, when the 
 Guelf party finally remained masters of the situation. In 
 1248 the Emperor Frederick II, wishing to retaliate upon 
 the Papacy for the unjust sentence of deposition pronounced 
 against him by Innocent IV three years before at the 
 Council of Lyons, and anxious to weaken the Church party, 
 made offers to the Uberti, the leaders of the Florentine 
 Ghibellines, to- help them to expel from their city his 
 enemies and their own. His offer being accepted, he des- 
 
 1 Villani, bk. v. ch. 38. 
 
8 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 patched a force of German horsemen under his son, 
 Frederick of Antioch, by whose aid, after a fierce struggle, 
 the Guelfs were driven out. 
 
 Villani gives a vivid account of the street-fighting which 
 took place on this occasion. Being a Guelf, he naturally 
 has no sympathy with Frederick and his allies. " In these 
 times," he writes, " Frederick being in Lombardy, after his 
 deposition from the title of Emperor by Pope Innocent, 
 set himself, so far as he was able, to destroy in Tuscany 
 and Lombardy the faithful sons of Holy Church in every 
 city where he had power. And inasmuch as our city of 
 Florence was not among the least notable and powerful of 
 Italy, he desired to pour out his venom upon her, and to 
 breed further strife between the accursed parties of the 
 Guelfs and Ghibellines, which had begun some time before 
 through the murder of Buondelmonte, and even earlier, as 
 we have already related. But although since then the 
 said parties had continued among the nobles of Florence, 
 and they had at sundry times been at war among them- 
 selves on account of their private enmities, and were 
 divided by reason of the said parties and held to their 
 several sides,- those who were called Guelfs preferring the 
 government of the Pope and Holy Church, and those who 
 were called Ghibellines favouring the Emperor and his 
 following, nevertheless the people and commonwealth of 
 Florence were steadfast in unity, to the well-being and 
 honour and good estate of the republic. 
 
 " But now the Emperor sending letters and ambassadors 
 to the family of the Uberti, who were the heads of his 
 party, and to their following who called themselves Ghibel- 
 lines, invited them to drive from the cities their enemies 
 the Guelfs, offering some of his horsemen to help them. 
 And thus he caused the Uberti to begin dissension and 
 civil warfare in Florence, whereby the city fell into great 
 
PARTY STRIFE IN FLORENCE 9 
 
 disorder, and the nobles and all the people were divided, 
 some holding to one side and some to the other ; and in 
 several quarters of the city there was fighting for a long 
 time. The chief of it was among the houses of the Uberti, 
 where the great palace of the people now stands ; there 
 they gathered with their followers and fought against the 
 Guelfs of San Piero Scheraggio; and the Guelfs from 
 beyond Amo crossed over by the river dams and came 
 and helped to fight the Uberti. The next place was in 
 Porte San Piero, where the Tedaldini were the chief Ghi- 
 bellines, as having the strongest buildings, palaces, and 
 towers ; and they and their allies fought against the Donati, 
 the Adimari, and others. And the third fight took place 
 in Porte del Duomo, by the tower of Messer Lancia de' 
 Cattani of Castiglione, with the Brunelleschi and other 
 Ghibelline leaders, and many of the populace on the same 
 side, against the Tosinghi and others. And another was 
 in San Brancazio, where the Lamberti were the Ghibelline 
 leaders, with many of the people on their side, against the 
 Guelfs of that quarter. And the Ghibellines in San 
 Brancazio made their stand at the tower of the Soldanieri, 
 where a bolt from the tower struck the Guelf standard- 
 bearer (their standard being a crimson lily on a white 
 field) in the face, so that he died. And on the day the 
 Guelfs were driven out they came in arms and buried him 
 in San Lorenzo ; and when they were gone the canons of 
 San Lorenzo removed the body, for fear the Ghibellines 
 should dig it up and do it violence, inasmuch as this M. 
 Rustico Marignolli was a great captain among the Guelfs. 
 And the Ghibellines made another attack in the Borgo, 
 where the Soldanieri and Guidi were their leaders, against 
 the Buondelmonti, Cavalcanti, and others. And there was 
 fighting between the two sides beyond Amo as well, but 
 here it was chiefly among the populace. 
 
lo GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 " So it came about that this warfare went on for some 
 time, as they fought at the barriers or barricades, from one 
 quarter to another, and from one tower to another (for 
 there were many towers in Florence in those days, a hun- 
 dred cubits and more in height), and they used mangonels 
 and other engines of war, and kept up the fighting day and 
 night. In the midst of the struggle the Emperor sent his 
 bastard son Frederick to Florence, with sixteen hundred 
 of his German horsemen. And when the Ghibellines 
 heard that they were at hand, they took heart and fought 
 more stoutly and with greater boldness against the Guelfs, 
 who had no other help, and looked for none, seeing that 
 the Pope was at Lyons on Rhone, beyond the mountains, 
 and that the power of Frederick was far too great in every 
 part of Italy. And at this time the Ghibellines made use 
 of a device of war, for they collected the greater part of 
 their force at the house of the Uberti, and when the fight- 
 ing began in the quarters named above, they went in a 
 body to oppose the Guelfs, and by this means overpowered 
 them in nearly every part of the city, save in their own 
 quarter, against the barricade of the Guidalotti and Bagnesi, 
 who held out for a time ; and to that place the Guelfs re- 
 paired, and the whole force of the Ghibellines against 
 them. At last the Guelfs, finding themselves hard pressed, 
 and learning that the Emperor's horsemen were already 
 in Florence (King Frederick having arrived with his men 
 on the Sunday morning), after holding out until the 
 Wednesday, abandoned the defence, the force of the 
 Ghibellines being too strong for them, and fled from the 
 city on Candlemas night (2 February), in the year 1248."! 
 
 Villani goes on to describe how the Ghibellines made use 
 of their victory, ruthlessly destroying their enemies' pro- 
 perty, and even attempting to wreck the beautiful Bap- 
 
 ' Villani, bk. vi. ch. 33. 
 
PARTY STRIFE IN FLORENCE ii 
 
 tistery of San Giovanni, which the Guelfs used as a meeting 
 place, by throwing down upon it the neighbouring Tower 
 of the " Guardamorto," — so called because, the bodies of 
 those taken to be buried in San Giovanni rested there. 
 In this attempt fortunately they failed, and the Baptistery, 
 which before the erection of the present Duomo served as 
 the Cathedral of Florence, stands to this day. 
 
 " The Ghibellines, who now remained masters of Flor- 
 ence," continues the chronicler, " set to work to refashion 
 the city after their own manner, razing to the ground 
 thirty-six strongholds of the Guelfs, both palaces and great 
 towers, among them being the noble residence of the 
 Tosinghi in the old Market Place, known as the Palace, 
 which was ninety cubits high, built with marble columns, 
 and had a tower above of a hundred and thirty cubits. 
 And still greater wickedness were the Ghibellines guilty 
 of; for inasmuch as the Guelfs used to come together often 
 to the Church of San Giovanni, and all the good people 
 went there every Sunday morning, and were married 
 there, when the Ghibellines came to destroy the towers of 
 the Guelfs, among the rest was a very tall and beautiful 
 one, which stood upon the Piazza of San Giovanni, at the 
 entrance of the Corso degli Adimari, and it was called the 
 ' Torre del Guardamorto,' because anciently all the good 
 folk who died were buried in San Giovanni, and the foot 
 of this tower the Ghibellines caused to be cut away, and 
 props to be inserted in such wise that when fire was set to 
 the props, the tower might fall upon the Church of San 
 Giovanni.^ And this was done ; but as it pleased God, 
 
 'According to Vasari, this method of throwing down high towers, 
 which is employed to this day for the demolition of disused factory- 
 chimneys, was invented by the famous architect, Niccola Pisano. He is 
 said to have contrived it on this very occasion of the destruction of the 
 Guardamorto tower, which he was commissioned to carry out. There is 
 
12 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 by a miracle of the blessed St. John, when the tower, which 
 was a hundred and twenty cubits high, began to fall, it 
 appeared clearly that it would miss the church, and turn- 
 ing round it fell right across the Piazza, whereat all the 
 Florentines marvelled greatly, and the people were much 
 rejoiced. Now mark this," concludes the indignant Villani, 
 "that from the day Florence was rebuilt there had not 
 been a single house destroyed, and this accursed wicked- 
 ness of destruction was first begun by the Ghibellines at 
 this time." 
 
 When later on the turn of the Guelfs came, they retal- 
 iated on their foes by building the walls of the city with 
 the stones of Ghibelline palaces.^ Such was their hatred 
 of the Uberti, the Ghibelline leaders, that it was decreed 
 that the site on which their houses had stood should never 
 again be built on, and it remains to this day the Great 
 Square (Piazza della Signoria) of Florence. When in 
 1298 the architect Arnolfo di Lapo was commissioned to 
 build the Palazzo della Signoria (now known as the Pal- 
 azzo Vecchio), he was obliged to sacrifice the symmetry of 
 his plans, and place it awry, the Guelfs insisting in spite of 
 his repealed protests, that not a stone of the foundations 
 should rest on the accursed ground once occupied by the 
 Uberti.2 
 
 On the death of the Emperor Frederick (13 December, 
 1250) the Guelfs were allowed to return to Florence, and 
 a pacification between the two parties took place. 
 
 " On the very night," says Villani, " that the Emperor 
 died, the Podesta who held for him in Florence, as he was 
 
 a tradition that what Villani attributes to a miracle was in reality due to 
 design on the part of Niccola, who, wishing to spare the Baptistery, pur- 
 posely contrived that the tower should fall wide of it. 
 
 ' Villani, bk. vi. ch. 65 . 
 
 2 Villani, hk. viii. oh. 26; Vasari, Vita di Arnolfo di Lapo. 
 
TEMPORARY PACIFICATION 13 
 
 sleeping in his bed in the house of the Abati, was killed 
 by the fall of the vaulting of his chamber. And this was 
 a sure sign that the Emperor's power was to come to an 
 end in Florence ; and so it came to pass very soon, for 
 there being a rising among the people by reason of the 
 violence and excesses of the Ghibelline nobles, and the 
 news of the Emperor's death reaching Florence, a few days 
 afterwards the people recalled and restored the Guelfs who 
 had been driven out, and made them make their peace 
 with the Ghibellines. And this took place on the seventh 
 day of January, in the year of Christ 1250." ^ , . ,-, 
 
 »Villani, bk. vi. ch. 42. ^ ,^^,ai^ ^.3-8. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 1251-1260 
 
 Renewed hostilities — Adoption of distinctive banners by the two parties 
 in Florence — The Ghibellines intrigue with Manfred and are forced to 
 leave Florence — They retire to Siena and persuade Manfred to send them 
 help — Great Ghibelline victory at Montaperti. 
 
 THE peace concluded between the Guelfs and Ghibel- 
 lines in Florence after the Emperor Frederick's 
 death was not fated to be of long duration. Already in 
 the very next year several prominent Ghibelline families 
 were expelled from the city on account of their opposition 
 to a Florentine expedition against the neighbouring Ghi- 
 belline stronghold of Pistoja. The Pistojans were defeated, 
 and on their return the Florentines, flushed with victory, 
 turned upon their factious opponents at home, and drove 
 them into banishment (July, 125 1). It was at this time 
 that the two parties definitely adopted distinctive stand- 
 ards, and thus openly ranged themselves in opposite 
 camps, as Villani relates. 
 
 " After the banishment of the Ghibelline leaders, the 
 people and the Guelfs who remained masters of Florence 
 changed the arms of the commonwealth of Florence ; and 
 whereas of old they bore a white lily on a red field, they 
 now reversed them, making the field white and the lily 
 red ; and the Ghibellines retained the former ensign. 
 But the ancient ensign of the commonwealth, half white, 
 
 14 
 
RENEWED HOSTILITIES IN FLORENCE 15 
 
 half red, that is the standard which went to battle on the 
 Carroccio/ was never changed." ^ 
 
 Six or seven years later than this (in 1258) the Floren- 
 tines found it necessary to expel the rest of the important 
 Ghibelline families, in consequence of their having entered 
 into a conspiracy, at the head of which were the Uberti, 
 the Ghibelline leaders, with the aid of Manfred, son of the 
 Emperor Frederick, to break up the popular government 
 of Florence, which was essentially Guelf. 
 
 "When this plot was discovered," writes the Florentine 
 chronicler, "the Uberti and their Ghibelline following 
 were summoned to appear before the magistrates, but they 
 refused to obey, and violently assaulted and wounded the 
 retinue of the Podesta ; for which cause the people rose in 
 arms and in fury made for the houses of the Uberti, where 
 is now the Piazza of the Palace of the People and of the 
 Priors, and slew there one of the Uberti family and several 
 of their retainers ; and another of the Uberti and one of the 
 Infangati were taken and, after they had confessed as to 
 the conspiracy, were beheaded in Orto San Michele. And 
 the rest of the Uberti, together with the leading Ghibelline 
 families, fled from Florence, and went to Siena, which was 
 under a Ghibelline Government, and was hostile to 
 Florence ; and their palaces and towers, which were many 
 in number, were destroyed, and with the stones were 
 built the walls of San Giorgio beyond Arno, which were 
 begun at this time on account of war with Siena."' 
 
 In illustration of the temper of the Government at 
 this time, and of their loyalty and uprightness towards the 
 
 ^ The Cairoccio was a large waggon drawn by oxen which carried the 
 standard of the Florentines, and usually accompanied them on the field. 
 See Villani's description given below (pp. 17-18J, 
 
 'Villani, bk. vi. ch. 45. 
 
 'Villani, bk. vi. ch. 65. 
 
1 6 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 commonwealth, Villani relates how one of their number, 
 who appropriated and sent to his country house a grating 
 which had belonged to the lion's den, and was lying in the 
 mud in the Piazzi of San Giovanni, was fined a thousand 
 lire, as having defrauded the State.^ 
 
 The exiled Ghibellines, who had taken refuge in Siena, 
 without loss of time made preparations for an attempt to 
 win their way back to Florence. Failing to obtain the 
 necessary support from the Sienese, they determined to 
 apply for help to Manfred, who was now King of Sicily, 
 and they sent envoys to the king in Apulia for that pur- 
 pose. " And when the envoys arrived, being the best 
 captains and leaders among them, there was a long delay, 
 for Manfred neither despatched the business, nor gave 
 audience to their request, on account of the many affairs 
 he had on hand. At last when, being anxious to depart, 
 they took leave of him very ill-content, Manfred promised 
 to furnish them a hundred German horsemen for their aid. 
 The envoys, much disturbed at this offer, withdrew to take 
 counsel as to their answer, being minded to refuse such a 
 sorry aid, and ashamed to return to Siena, for they had 
 hoped that Manfred would give them a force of at least 
 fifteen hundred horsemen. rBut Farinata degli Uberti 
 said : Be not dismayed, let us not refuse his aid in any 
 wise, be it never so little ; but let us beg as a favour that 
 he send with them his standard, and when they are come 
 to Siena we will set it in such a place that he will needs 
 have to send us more men. And so it came to pass that 
 following Farinata's wise counsel they accepted Manfred's 
 offer, and prayed him as a favonr to send his standard to 
 be at their head ; and he did so. And when they returned 
 to Siena with this scanty force, there was great scorn among 
 the Sienese, and great dismay among the Florentine exiles, 
 
 ' Villani, bk. vi. ch. 65. 
 
THE FLORENTINE CARROCCIO 17 
 
 who had looked for much greater help and support from 
 King Manfred." 1 
 
 An opportunity for carrying out Farinata's scheme soon 
 offered itself, for in May, 1 260, the Florentines fitted out a 
 great host and advanced against Siena, with their standard 
 flying from the Carroccio, and their great war-bell tolling. 
 Villani takes occasion in his account of this expedition 
 to give a full description of the pomp observed by the 
 Florentines when they went to war in those days. 
 
 "The people and commons of Florence gathered a 
 general host against the city of Siena, and led out the 
 Carroccio. And you must know that the Carroccio which 
 the Florentines led out to war was a car upon four wheels 
 all painted red, and on it were raised two great masts also 
 red, upon which was spread to the wind the great standard 
 with the arms of the commonwealth, half white and half 
 red, as is to be seen to this day in San Giovanni ; and it 
 was drawn by a pair of oxen of great size, covered with 
 cloth of red, which were kept solely for this purpose, and 
 the driver was a freeman of the commonwealth. This 
 Carroccio was used by our forefathers in triumphal proces- 
 sions and on high occasions ; and when it went out with 
 the host, the lords and counts of the country round, and 
 the noble knights of the city, fetched it from its quarters 
 in San Giovanni, and brought it on to the Piazza of the 
 Mercato Nuovo ; and having stationed it beside a boundary- 
 stone, carved like the Carroccio, which is still there, they 
 handed it over to the keeping of the people. And it was 
 escorted to the field of battle by the best and bravest and 
 strongest of the foot-soldiers of the people of the city, who 
 were chosen to guard it, and round it was mustered the 
 whole force of the people. And when war was declared, 
 a month before they were to set out, a bell was hung on 
 
 ' Villani, bk. vi. ch. 74. 
 
1 8 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 the archway of the gate of Santa Maria, which was at the 
 end of the Mercato Nuovo, and it was rung without ceas- 
 ing night and day; and this was done out of pride, in 
 order that the enemy against whom war was declared 
 might have time to prepare himself. And this bell was 
 called by some the Martinella, and by others the Asses' 
 Bell.i And when the Florentine host set out, the bell was 
 taken down from the archway and was hung in a wooden 
 tower on a waggon, and the toll of it guided the host on 
 its march. And by this pomp of the Carroccio and the 
 bell was maintained the masterful pride of the people of 
 old and of our forefathers when they went to battle. 
 
 " And now we will leave that matter and will return to 
 the Florentines and their expedition against Siena. After 
 they had taken three castles of the Sienese, they sat down 
 before the city, hard by the entrance-gate to the monas- 
 tery of Santa Petronella, and there on a high mound which 
 could be seen from the city they erected a tower, wherein 
 they kept their bell. And in contempt of the Sienese, and 
 as a record of victory, they filled it with earth, and planted 
 an olive tree in it, which was still there down to our 
 days." 2 
 
 It was in the course of these operations before Siena 
 that Farinata's scheme for forcing Manfred to send further 
 assistance to the Ghibelline exiles was put into execution. 
 
 " It came to pass during the siege of Siena that one day 
 the exiled Florentines gave a feast to King Manfred's 
 German horsemen, and having plied them well with wine 
 till they were drunk, they raised a shout and instantly 
 urged them to arm and get to horse and attack the Flor- 
 
 ' This bell was afterwards hung in the campanile of the Palazzo della 
 Signoiia, and was used to summon the magistrates and people to 
 meetings. 
 
 ' Villani, bk. vi. ch. 75. 
 
MANFRED AND THE GHIBELLINES 19 
 
 entine host, promising them large gifts and double pay ; 
 and this was craftily devised in accordance with the 
 counsel given by M. Farinata degli Uberti when in Apulia. 
 The Germans, flushed with wine and excitement, sallied 
 out from Siena, and made a vigorous attack on the camp 
 of the Florentines, who were unprepared, and had only a 
 small guard, as they made little account of the enemy's 
 forces ; and the Germans, though they were only ■ few in 
 number, in their sudden assault wrought great havoc 
 among the Florentines, numbers of whom, both horse and 
 foot, behaved very ill, and fled in a panic, supposing their 
 assailants to be in much greater force. But presently, 
 seeing their mistake, they took to their arms, and made a 
 stand against the Germans, and of all who came out from 
 Siena not a single one escaped alive, for they overpowered 
 and slew them every one ; and King Manfred's standard 
 was captured and dragged through the camp, and taken 
 to Florence ; and shortly afterwards the Florentine host 
 returned to Florence." ^ 
 
 The Ghibellines lost no time in sending the news to 
 Manfred of how his Germans had nearly put to flight the 
 whole Florentine army, and they represented that if there 
 had been more of them they would undoubtedly have 
 been victorious; owing, however, to their small number 
 they had all been left dead upon the field, and the royal 
 standard had been captured, and insulted, and dragged in 
 the mire through the Florentine camp, and afterwards in 
 the streets of Florence. In this manner they used the 
 arguments which they knew would most strongly appeal 
 to Manfred, who, now that his honour was involved, en- 
 gaged to send into Tuscany, under the command of Count 
 Giordano, 800 more of his German horsemen, their services 
 to be at the disposal of the Ghibellines for the space of 
 
 'Villani, bk. vi. ch. 75. 
 
20 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 three months, the cost being borne half by Manfred and 
 half by the Sienese and their allies. This force reached 
 Siena at the end of July, 1260, and was welcomed with 
 great rejoicings not only by the Sienese and the Florentine 
 exiles, but by the whole of the Ghibellines throughout 
 Tuscany. " And when they were come to Siena, im- 
 mediately the Sienese sent out an expedition against the 
 castle of Montalcino, which was subject to the common- 
 wealth of Florence, and they sent fon aid to the Pisans 
 and to all the Ghibellines of Tuscany, so that what with 
 the horsemen of Siena, and the exiles from Florence, to- 
 gether with the Germans, and their other allies, they had 
 eighteen hundred horsemen in Siena, of whom the Germans 
 were the best part." ^ 
 
 The great anxiety of the Sienese and their allies now 
 was to draw the Florentines into the field, before the three 
 months expired during which the services of King Man- 
 fred's Germans were at their disposal. Farinata degli 
 Uberti, therefore, with the connivance of the Sienese, 
 entered into secret negotiations with the Florentines, pre- 
 tending that the exiled Ghibellines were dissatisfied with 
 the Sienese, and longed for peace, and that many of the 
 Sienese themselves were anxious to shake off the govern- 
 ment of their arrogant leader, Provenzano Salvani. He 
 consequently proposed to the Florentines that, under pre- 
 text of relieving Montalcino, which was being besieged by 
 the Sienese, they should despatch a strong force to the 
 Arbia, in readiness for an attack on Siena, one of the 
 gates of which he promised should be opened to them. 
 The majority of the Florentines, completely deceived, 
 were for accepting Farinata's proposal, and acting on it 
 without delay. But the wiser heads among them were 
 not so sanguine. The great Guelf nobles, with the re- 
 
 'Villani, bk, vi. ch, 76. 
 
BATTLE OF MONTAPERTI 21 
 
 nowned Guido Guerra ' at their head, and with Tegghiaio 
 Aldobrandi^ as their spokesman, knowing more of the 
 conditions of warfare, and being aware that their enemies 
 had been reinforced by a body of German mercenaries, 
 looked upon the undertaking with grave misgivings, and 
 counselled delay, until the Germans, whose term of three 
 months had already half expired, should be disbanded. 
 But the minds of the others were made up, and they ob- 
 stinately refused to listen to reason — one of them even 
 going so far as to taunt Tegghiaio, who was acknowledged 
 as a brave and valiant knight, with cowardice, to which he 
 replied by challenging his opponent to adventure himself 
 on the day of battle wherever he himself should go. 
 
 " And so, through the proud and headstrong people, the 
 worse counsel prevailed, namely, that the host should set 
 forth immediately and without delay. And the people of 
 Florence having taken the ill resolve to send the expedi- 
 tion, asked their allies for help ; and there came foot and 
 horse from Lucca, and Bologna, and Pistoja, and Prato, 
 and Volterra, and San Miniato, and San Gemignano, and 
 from Colle in the Valdelsa, all of which were in league 
 with the commonwealth and people of Florence ; and in 
 Florence there were eight hundred horsemen belonging to 
 the city, and more than five hundred mercenaries. And 
 when all these were assembled in Florence, the host set out 
 at the end of August, with the Carroccio and the bell called 
 Martinella, and with them went out nearly all the people, 
 with the banners of the guilds, and there was scarce a house 
 or a family in Florence which did not send, on foot or 
 mounted, at least one, or two, or more, according as they 
 were able. 
 
 " And when they arrived in the Sienese territory, at the 
 
 1 Inferno, xvi. 38. 
 '^'tnfirm,yi. 79 ; xvi. 41-2. 
 
22 GUELFS AND GHIBELLIJNES 
 
 place agreed upon on the Arbia, called Montaperti,^ 
 together with the men of Perugia and of Orvieto, who 
 there joined the Florentines, there were in all assembled 
 more than three thousand horsemen, and more than thirty 
 thousand foot. 
 
 " And while the Florentine host was thus making ready, 
 the Ghibelline conspirators in Siena, to make sure of the 
 success of their plot, sent other messengers to Florence to 
 concert treason with certain of the Ghibellines who had 
 not been exiled from Florence, and who were obliged to 
 join in the common muster of the Florentines. With 
 these it was agreed that, when they were drawn up for 
 battle, they should desert from their companies in every 
 quarter, and come over to the other side, so as to throw 
 the Florentines into a panic ; for to the Ghibellines their 
 own force appeared to be small compared with that of the 
 Florentines. And this was agreed upon. Meanwhile the 
 Florentine host was on the hills of Montaperti, and the 
 leaders who had entered into the secret negotiations with 
 M. Farinata degli Uberti, as has already been told, were 
 waiting for the traitors within Siena to open one of the 
 gates to them, as had been promised. 
 
 "And one of the Ghibellines in the Florentine host, 
 named Razzante, having got wind of what the Florentines 
 were waiting for, with the consent of the Ghibellines in 
 the camp who were meditating treason, galloped out from 
 the camp into Siena, in order to make known to the 
 Florentine exiles how the city of Siena was to be betrayed, 
 and how the Florentine host was well equipped, with 
 great force of horse and foot, and to urge those inside not 
 to hazard battle. And when he was come into Siena and 
 had laid these things before M. Farinata and the others 
 who were in the secret, they said to him : It will be the 
 
 ' Inferno, x. 85-6 ; xxxii. 81, 
 
BATTLE OF MONTAPERTI 23 
 
 death of us if you spread this news abroad in Siena, inas- 
 much as every one will be panic-struck ; but do you say 
 the contrary, for if we do not fight while we have these 
 Germans, we are all dead men, and shall never see Flor- 
 ence again ; death and defeat would be better for us, than 
 to go moping about the world any longer. And they de- 
 cided to adventure the fortune of battle. 
 
 " So Razzante, being primed by them, promised to 
 speak after their mind ; and with a garland on his head, 
 and with great show of joy, accompanied on horseback by 
 M. Farinata and M. Gherardo de' Lamberti, he came to 
 the assembly in the palace where were all the people of 
 Siena, with the Germans, and their other allies. And 
 here, with a joyful countenance, he told great news from 
 the Ghibellines and traitors in the enemy's camp, how the 
 Florentine host was ill-ordered, and badly led, and dis- 
 united ; and how, if they were boldly attacked, they would 
 of a certainty be routed. Having heard this false account 
 from Razzante, at the cry of the people they all rushed to 
 arms, shouting : To battle, to battle. And the Germans 
 demanded a promise of double pay, which was granted ; 
 and their troop led the way to the attack by the gate of 
 San Vito, which was to have been given over to the 
 Florentines ; and the rest of the horse and foot marched 
 out behind them. 
 
 "When those among the Florentine host who were 
 waiting for the gate to be opened to them, saw the 
 Germans and the rest of the horse and foot coming out 
 from Siena against them, as for battle, they wondered 
 greatly, and were in no small alarm, at the sight of their 
 sudden advance and unexpected attack ; and they were 
 still further dismayed, when a number of the Ghibellines 
 who were in their camp, both on horse and on foot, seeing 
 the enemy's troops advance, treacherously deserted to the 
 
24 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 other side, as had been previously arranged. Neverthe- 
 less the Florentines and their allies did not neglect to 
 draw up their ranks and await the onset. 
 
 " And as the troop of Germans charged headlong into 
 the body of Florentine horsemen, where was the standard 
 of the commonwealth cavalry, which was carried by M. 
 Jacopo del Nacca of the Pazzi family of Florence, a man 
 of great valour, the traitor, M. Bocca degli Abati,^ who 
 was in his troop and close to him, struck M. Jacopo with 
 his sword, and cut off the hand with which he was holding 
 the standard. And when this was done, both horse and 
 foot, seeing the standard down, and finding that there 
 were traitors among them, and that they were being 
 furiously attacked by the Germans, very soon turned and 
 fled. But owing to the Florentine horsemen being the 
 first to discover the treachery, there were but thirty-six 
 men of note among them taken or killed. The greatest 
 number of killed and prisoners was among the Florentine 
 foot, and those of Lucca and of Orvieto, inasmuch as they 
 shut themselves up in the castle of Montaperti, and were 
 all taken ; but more than two thousand five hundred of 
 them were left dead on the field, and more than fifteen 
 hundred were taken prisoners of the flower of the people 
 of Florence, of every family, and of Lucca, and of the rest 
 of the allies who took part in the battle. 
 
 " And thus was abased the arrogance of the ungrateful 
 and overbearing people of Florence. And this took place 
 on Tuesday, the fourth of September, in the year of Christ 
 1260. And there was taken the Carroccio,^ and the Mar- 
 tinella, and an immense booty, of the baggage of the Flor- 
 entines and their allies. And on this day was broken and 
 
 ^Inferno, xxxii. 78-111. 
 
 2 Two flagstaffs, said to be those of the Florentine Carroccio captured 
 at Montaperti, are preserved in the Cathedral of Siena. 
 
DEFEAT OF THE FLORENTINES 25 
 
 destroyed the ancient people of Florence, which had con- 
 tinued in so great power and estate, and with so great 
 victories, for the space of ten years." ^ 
 
 The victorious Sienese returned into their city "with 
 great triumph and glory, to the utter shame and disgrace 
 and confusion of the dogs of Florentines," the procession 
 being headed by the Florentine envoy seated on an ciss, 
 with his face to its tail, which he held as a bridle, and 
 dragging behind him in the mud the standard of the 
 commonwealth of Florence.^ 
 
 ^Villani, bk. vi. ch. 78. 
 
 2 From a contemporary account by a Sienese chronicler. 
 
CHAPTER III 
 1261-1267 
 
 Flight of the Guelfs from Florence — Farinata degli Uberti saves 
 Florence from destruction — The Ghibellines supreme in Tuscany — De- 
 feat of Manfred at Benevento by Charles of Anjou — Flight of Guido 
 Novello and the Ghibelline allies from Florence — Guy de Montfort arrives 
 in Florence as Charles' vicar — Guelf supremacy finally re-established. 
 
 THE news of the terrible disaster at Montaperti was re- 
 ceived in Florence with the utmost consternation, 
 " and there arose so great a lamentation both of men and 
 women that it reached to the heavens, inasmuch as there 
 was not a house in the city that had not one killed or a 
 prisoner".! Xhe Guelfs did not wait to be driven out, but 
 hastily fled with their families to Lucca, abandoning the 
 city of Florence to its fate. " And for this desertion the 
 Guelfs were greatly to be blamed, seeing that the city of 
 Florence was strongly fortified with walls and with moats 
 full of water, and might well have been defended and held. 
 But the judgment of God must needs run its course with- 
 out let in the punishment of wickedness ; and to whom 
 God intends ill, him He deprives of wisdom and fore- 
 thought. And the Guelfs having departed on the Thurs- 
 day, on the Sunday following, being the sixteenth day of 
 September, the exiles from Florence who had taken part 
 in the battle at Montaperti, together with Count Giordano 
 and his German troops, and the other soldiers of the 
 
 1 Villani, bk. vi. ch. 79. 
 26 
 
FARINATA DEGLl UBERTI 
 Frojn the faivti*!}; by Andrea del Caslngiio, in the Museo Kazionale af Florenci 
 
FARINATA SAVES FLORENCE 27 
 
 Tuscan Ghibellines, laden with the spoils of the Florentines 
 and other Guelfs of Tuscany, entered into the city of 
 Florence without hindrance of any kind; and immedi- 
 ately they appointed Guido Novello, of the Counts Guidi, 
 Podest^ of Florence for King Manfred, for the term of two 
 years from the following January." ^ 
 
 The whole of Tuscany, with the exception of Lucca, 
 was now in the hands of the Ghibellines, who proceeded 
 to hold a great council of their party at Empoli, about 
 twenty miles from Florence, for the purpose of establishing 
 a Ghibelline league. At this council it was proposed by 
 the deputies from Siena and Pisa, the two most bitter 
 enemies of Florence, that in order effectually to secure the 
 ascendancy of the Ghibelline party, and to put an end 
 once and for all to the power of the Florentines, the city 
 of Florence should be razed to the ground. To this 
 savage proposal, which was approved by the majority of 
 the assembly, Farinata degli Uberti offered the most 
 determined opposition, declaring that he would defend his 
 native city with his own sword as long as he had breath in 
 his body, even though he should have to do it single- 
 handed.^ In consequence of this vehement protest the 
 proposal was abandoned. Count Giordano fearing lest 
 Farinata and his following should withdraw from the 
 league and so lead to the break up of the Ghibelline party 
 in Tuscany. " And thus by one good man and citizen," 
 says Villani, " our city of Florence escaped so great fury, 
 and destruction, and ruin." ^ 
 
 After their great victory at Montaperti the Ghibellines 
 remained in undisputed possession of Florence, and of all 
 
 ' Villani, bk. vi. ch. 79. 
 
 * Villani, bk. vi. ch. 81 ; Inferno, a. gi-3. 
 
 8 Villani, bk. vi. ch. 81. 
 
28 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 the other cities of Tuscany, save Lucca alone, which now 
 became the stronghold of the exiled Guelfs. The latter, 
 however, were hot allowed to remain long in their place of 
 refuge. The Florentine Ghibellines, finding them trouble- 
 some neighbours, and learning that they were intriguing 
 with the young Conradin, King Manfred's nephew, sent 
 two successive expeditions with the forces of the Tuscan 
 league, under Count Guido Novello, against Lucca, and 
 forced the Lucchese to expel the refugees from their city 
 (1263). The unhappy Guelfs, deprived of their last foot- 
 hold in Tuscany, fled across the Apennines to Bologna, 
 and with their departure " there remained neither town 
 nor castle, little or great, throughout Tuscany but was sub- 
 ject to the Ghibellines "} 
 
 The period of Ghibelline ascendancy, however, was 
 not destined to be a long one. Within a few years the 
 tide of fortune had once more turned against them. Their 
 champion and protector. King Manfred, to whose assistance 
 they owed their triumph at Montaperti, while at the height 
 of his power was suddenly overthrown, and the Ghibelline 
 party was involved in his ruin. 
 
 In the spring of 1265 Charles of Anjou, brother of the 
 French king, entered Italy at the invitation of the Pope 
 (Clement IV), as the champion of Holy jChurch and of 
 the Guelf cause, to take possession of the kingdom of 
 Sicily, which the Pope declared to have been forfeited by 
 Manfred. Having collected a large force, Charles in the 
 following January was crowned King of Sicily and Apulia 
 at Rome, and immediately afterwards set out to invade 
 Manfred's dominions. Manfred was prepared to make a 
 stubborn resistance, and on 26 February, 1266,^ the two 
 
 1 Villani, bk. vi. ch. 83. 
 
 "According to the reckoning of the Florentines, whose year began on 
 25 March, this was 26 February, 1265. See p. 36, note 3. 
 
BATTLE OF BENEVENTO 29 
 
 armies met at Benevento, about thirty miles north-east 
 from Naples. Manfred's force was in three divisions, 
 consisting of his Saracen archers, German cavalry, and a 
 reserve of Apulian barons. The French army was in four 
 divisions, one of which was composed of the Guelf exiles 
 from Florence and other Tuscan cities, under the leader- 
 ship of Guido Guerra. At the sight of these last Manfred 
 is said to have exclaimed bitterly : Where are the 
 Ghibellines for whom I have done so much ? " His Ger- 
 mans and Saracens fought with desperate valour, but were 
 outnumbered by the French. Manfred accordingly or- 
 dered the Apulian barons to charge, but they, either 
 through cowardice or treachery, instead of obeying, turned 
 and fled from the field. With a handful of troops who 
 still remained faithful, Manfred resolved to die rather than 
 seek safety in flight, and plunging into the thickest of the 
 fight, he fell dead in the midst of the enemy.^ 
 
 The defeat and death of Manfred was a crushing blow 
 to the Ghibelline cause, and the eff"ects of it soon began 
 to be felt throughout Tuscany, and in Florence in partic- 
 ular. " When the news came to Florence and the rest of 
 Tuscany of the discomfiture of Manfred, the Ghibellines 
 began to lose heart and to be afraid in every part. And 
 the Guelf exiles from Florence, who were outlawed, 
 everywhere began to grow stronger and to take heart and 
 courage ; and they drew close to the city, and, in concert 
 with their friends inside who had an understanding with 
 them, they made plots for a change and for a new state of 
 affairs within the city, for they had hopes from the Guelfs 
 who had taken part in King Charles' victory, whom they 
 looked for to come to their aid together with some of the 
 French. Wherefore the people of Florence, who were at 
 heart more Guelf than Ghibelline, by reason of the losses 
 
 'Villani, bk. vii. ch. g. 
 
30 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 they had received, one of his father, another of his son, 
 and another of his brothers, at the defeat at Montaperti, 
 likewise began to take courage ; and they murmured and 
 complained throughout the city of the expenses and heavy 
 burdens which were laid on them by Count Guido Novello 
 and by the others who were ruling the city. 
 
 " Seeing this, and hearing the tumult and murmuring 
 throughout the city, the rulers, for fear the people should 
 rise against them, in order to content them and by way 
 of compromise elected two knights of the Jovial Friars of 
 Bologna to hold the office of Podestel in Florence,^ one of 
 whom was a Guelf, and the other a Ghibelline. And they 
 ordained thirty-six good men, merchants and handicrafts- 
 men of the greatest and best in the city, the which were 
 to give counsel to the said two, and were to make provision 
 for the expenses of the commonwealth; and, of this 
 number were both Guelfs and Ghibellines, both of the 
 people and of the trusty nobles, such as had remained 
 in Florence when the Guelfs were driven out. And the 
 said thirty-six met together every day to take counsel for 
 the good estate and common weal of the city ; and they 
 made many good ordinances for the welfare of the 
 commonwealth, among the which they ordained that each 
 of the seven greater Arts ^ in Florence should have a col- 
 lege and consuls, and that each should have its own 
 banner and ensign, in order that, if there were any rising 
 in the city with force of arms, they might assemble under 
 their banners for the defence of the people and of the 
 commonwealth. 
 
 ' Hitherto the ofSce had always been filled by a single individual. The 
 names of the two were Catalano de' Malavolti and Loderingo degli Andalo, 
 the former a Guelf, the latter a Ghibelline. Cf. Inferno, xxiii. 103-8. 
 
 " These were, the judges and notaries ; the merchants of Calimala, i.e. 
 of French cloths ; the money-changers ; the wool-workers ; the physicians 
 and apothecaries ; the silk-workers and mercers ; and the furriers. 
 
DISSENSIONS IN FLORENCE 31 
 
 " Now by reason of these changes which were made in 
 the city of Florence by the two Podesta and the said 
 thirty-six, the noble Ghibelline houses of Florence, to wit 
 the Uberti, and the Lamberti, and the rest of the Ghibel- 
 line nobles, began to fear for their party ; for it seemed to 
 them that the thirty-six supported and favoured the 
 Guelfs of the people who had remained in Florence, and 
 that every change was against the Ghibelline party. By 
 reason of this fear, and because of the news of the victory 
 of King Charles, Count Guido Novello sent for help to all 
 their allies near at hand, namely to Pisa, and Siena, and 
 Arezzo, and Pistoja, and Prato, and Volterra, and Colle, 
 and San Gemignano, so that, together with six hundred 
 Germans, they mustered in Florence fifteen hundred horse- 
 men in all. And it came to pass that in order to pay the 
 German troops which were with Count Guido Novello, as 
 captain of the league, he demanded that a levy should be 
 made of ten per cent. ; but the thirty-six looked for some 
 other means of finding the money, which should be less 
 of a burden to the people. For this cause, when they had 
 delayed some days longer than seemed good to the Count 
 and the other Ghibelline nobles of Florence, by reason of 
 the suspicion they felt concerning the ordinances made by 
 the people, the said nobles determined to raise a tumult 
 in the city, and to do away the office of the thirty-six, 
 with the help of the great body of horsemen which the 
 Count had in Florence. 
 
 " And when they had taken arms, the first who began 
 were the Lamberti, who with their men-at-arms came 
 out from their houses in the Calimala ^ shouting : Where 
 are the thirty-six, the robbers, that we may cut them all 
 in pieces ? And the said thirty-six were at that time in 
 
 ' The Calimala was the street which connected the Mercato Vecchio 
 with the Mercato Nuovo. In it were located the cloth-merchants. 
 
32 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 council in the warehouse where the consuls of the Calimala 
 administered justice, below the house of the Cavalcanti in 
 the Mercato Nuovo ; and hearing this they broke up the 
 council, and in a moment the whole city was in a tumult, 
 and the shops were shut, and every one rushed to arms. 
 The people all assembled together in the wide street of 
 Santa Trinita, in very great numbers, and they took their 
 stand by the house of the Soldanieri, and put up barricades 
 at the foot of the tower the Girolami. Count Guido Novello, 
 with all the horsemen, and the Ghibelline nobles of Flor- 
 ence, was in arms and mounted in the Piazza of San 
 Giovanni; and they moved out against the people, and 
 drew up in front of the barricade and made some show 
 and attempt at fighting, but the people held their ground, 
 defending themselves with crossbows, and shooting from 
 the towers and houses. And Count Guido, seeing that 
 they could not dislodge the people, gave the signal to retire, 
 and went back with all the horsemen to the Piazza of San 
 Giovanni ; and from there he went to the palace of the 
 Podesti and demanded the keys of the city-gates in order 
 that they might get out of the city. And the two Podest^ 
 cried out from the palace to those who were with the Count 
 that he should return to his house and not depart from the 
 city, and that they would quiet the people and would see 
 that the soldiers were paid. But the Count, being in great 
 dread and suspicion of the people, would not listen, but 
 would have only the keys of the gates. And this was a 
 proof that it was the work of God, and no other cause ; 
 for this great and powerful body of horsemen had not been 
 attacked, nor driven out, nor disbanded, nor was there any 
 force to oppose them ; for although the people were armed 
 and collected together, this was more from fear than to 
 attack the Count and his horsemen, and they would soon 
 have been quieted, and would have returned to their homes 
 
FLIGHT OF GUIDO NOVELLO 33 
 
 and have laid down their arms. But when the judgment 
 of God is ripe, the occasion is ever at hand. And after 
 the Count had received the keys, he went out with all 
 his horsemen by the old ox-gate, and made for Prato, 
 where they came in the evening; and this was on St. 
 Martin's Day, the eleventh of November, in the year of 
 Christ 1266." 1 
 
 When Count Guido and his forces were safe in Prato 
 they began to realize that they had committed an act of 
 folly in leaving Florence without striking a blow, and they 
 determined to return the next day. But the Florentines 
 were in no mood to throw away their advantages and risk 
 exposing themselves once more to the Count's vengeance ; 
 so that when he and his horsemen presented themselves in 
 the morning at the gate of the Carraja bridge, and de- 
 manded admission to the city, they were met with a refusal ; 
 and when they made an attempt to force the gate they 
 were shot at and many of them wounded ; and at last, 
 neither threats nor persuasions being of any avail, they 
 were obliged to retreat. " And when they reached Prato 
 they bitterly reproached one another ; but after a thing 
 ill-advised and worse done, repentance is in vain." ' 
 
 The Florentines now dismissed the two Bolognese from 
 the office of Podesti, and sent to Orvieto for a Podesta 
 and Captain of the People, who arrived with a guard of a 
 hundred horsemen for the protection of the city. " And 
 by a treaty of peace in the following January both 
 Guelfs and Ghibellines were restored to Florence, and 
 many marriages and alliances were made between them, 
 among which these were the chief : Bonaccorso Bellincioni 
 degli Adimari igave for wife to M. Forese, his son, the 
 daughter of Count Guido Novello; and M. Bindo, his 
 brother, took one of the Ubaldini ; and M. Cavalcante de' 
 
 1 Villani, bk. vii. ch. 13-14. ^ Villani, bk. vii, ch, 15, 
 
 3 
 
34 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 
 
 Cavalcanti gave for wife to Guido, his son, the daughter of 
 M. Farinata degli Uberti ; ^ and M. Simone Donati gave 
 his daughter to M. AzzoHno, son of M. Farinata degli 
 Uberti. 
 
 " But by reason of these alliances the other Guelfs of 
 Florence held all these as doubtful members of the party ; 
 wherefore this peace lasted but a short time, for when the 
 Guelfs had returned to Florence, feeling themselves 
 powerful, and emboldened by the victory which they and 
 King Charles had gained over Manfred, they sent secretly 
 into Apulia to the said King Charles for troops and for a 
 captain. And the king sent Count Guy of Montfort, with 
 eight hundred French horsemen, who arrived in Florence 
 on Easter Day in the year of Christ 1267. And when 
 the Ghibellines heard of his coming, the night before, 
 they departed out of Florence without stroke of sword, 
 and went, some to Siena, some to Pisa, and some to other 
 places. And the Florentine Guelfs gave the lordship of 
 their city to King Charles for ten years ; and he accepted 
 it ; and for the exercise thereof he sent year by year his 
 vicars, that together with twelve good men, citizens of 
 Florence, his vicar should govern the city. And be it 
 noted that the expulsion of the Ghibellines at this time 
 was on the same day, namely Easter Day, whereon they 
 had committed the murder of M. Buondelmonte dei 
 Buondelmonti, from which arose the factions of the Guelfs 
 and Ghibellines in Florence, and laid waste the city ; and 
 it seemed to be a judgment from God, for never more did 
 the Ghibellines return to power in Florence." ^ 
 
 1 Farinata had died in Florence about two years before. The name of 
 his daughter was Beatrice; the actual date of her marriage to Guido 
 Cavalcanti, by which they had two children, is unknown. Guido at the 
 time of the betrothal cannot have be?n m(jre than seventeen, at the outside. 
 
 2 Villani, bk. vii. ch. i|. 
 
GUELF SUPREMACY IN TUSCANY 35 
 
 " And at the same time that the city of Florence came 
 into the hands of the Guelfs, and the Ghibellines were 
 driven out, and King Charles' vicar came into Tuscany, 
 many of the cities of Tuscany likewise returned to the 
 Guelf party and drove out the Ghibellines, namely, the 
 cities of Lucca, and of Pistoja, and Volterra, and Prato, 
 and San Gemignano, and Colle ; and they made a league 
 with the Florentines, whereof the head was King Charles' 
 vicar, with eight hundred French horsemen ; and there 
 remained to the Ghibelline party only the cities of Pisa 
 and of Siena. And in so short space of time, by reason 
 of the defeat of King Manfred and of the victory of King 
 Charles, was the state of affairs changed in Tuscany and 
 in many cities of Lombardy, which from being on the side 
 of the Ghibellines and of the Empire passed over to the 
 side of the Guelfs and of the Church." ^ 
 
 ^Villani, bk. vii. ch. 20. 
 
PART II 
 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 I 265- I 290 
 
 Dante's birth and ancestry— His father and mother — Cacciaguida — 
 Geri del Bello — Beatrice Portinari — Episodes in the Vita Nuova — 
 Folco Portinari — Death of Beatrice — Poetical correspondence with Cino 
 da Pistoja, Guido Cavalcanti, and Forese Donati. 
 
 DANTE ALIGHIERIi ^^s bom in Florence in 
 May, ^ 1265, a few months before, and, according 
 to the Florentine reckoning,' in the same year as, the 
 great victory of Charles of Anjou over King Manfred at 
 Benevento, which ruined the Ghibelline cause, and once 
 more restored the Guelf supremacy in Florence and 
 throughout Tuscany. Dante's family were Guelfs.* This 
 
 ' See Genealogical Table at end of volume (Appendix A). 
 
 2 From the reference in Paradiso, xxii. no ff. it follows that Dante 
 must have been born towards the end of the month, at any rate later than 
 the 2ist (see Casini, in loc). 
 
 5 The battle of Benevento, according to our reckoning, was fought on 
 26 February, 1266 ; but as the Florentine year began on 25 March, ac- 
 cording to their reckoning it was fought on 26 February, 1265. The date 
 according to both styles is indicated by writing 26 February, I26f , where 
 the lower figure represents the modern, and the upper figure the old, method 
 of reckoning. 
 
 ^ It may be noted that Dante's intimacies were for the most part among 
 the Guelfs : his mentor, Brunetto Latino, was a Guelf; his friend, Guido 
 
 36 
 
DANTE S HOUSE IN FLORENCE 
 
ANCESTRY OF DANTE 37 
 
 he himself tells us in the Divina Commedia, in his ac- 
 count of his conversation with the Ghibelline Farinata 
 degli Uberti in Hell. Dante having answered Farinata's 
 question as to who were his forefathers, Farinata says : 
 "They were fierce foes of me and of my fathers and of 
 my party, so that twice we scattered them" (i.e. in 1248 
 and 1260). To which Dante retorts: " If my side were 
 driven out twice from Florence both times they returned 
 (i.e. in 1251 and 1266), which your side have not been 
 able to do "} 
 
 Dante's father, whose name was Alighiero, lived in the 
 quarter of San Martino del Vescovo ; ^ he was the son of 
 Bellincione degli Alighieri, and was descended, as is sup- 
 posed, from the ancient and noble family of the Elisei, 
 who lived in the Sesto di Porta San Piero in Florence. 
 Boccaccio goes so far as to trace Dante's descent from the 
 noble Frangipani family of Rome, but of this connection 
 
 Cavalcanti, was a Guelf; his wife, Gemma Donati, was a Guelf ; and his 
 uncle Burnetto fought on the Guelf side at the battle of Montaperti. 
 Further, according to Filippo Villani (in the preface to his Latin com- 
 mentary on the first canto of the Inferno, cap. xxii.), Dante was inti- 
 mate with Filippo's uncle, Giovanni Villani, the chronicler, who was a 
 staunch Guelf: " Patruus meus Johannes Villani hystoricus . . . Danti 
 fuit amicus et sotius." On the other hand, his mother is conjectured to 
 have belonged to the Ghibelline family of the Abati ; while his stepmother 
 was one of the Guelf Cialuffi. 
 
 ' Inferno, x. 42-51. 
 
 ^See p. 38, note 3. The house in which Dante is supposed to have 
 been born is still preserved. It is situated in what is now known as the 
 Via Dante Alighieri, a continuation of the Via Tavolini, which starts from 
 the Via Calzaioli, a little above Or San Michele, and leads at right angles 
 into the Via de' Cerchi, on the opposite side of which begins the Via 
 Dante. Doubts have been raised of late as to whether this could be the 
 house in which Dante was born. M. Barbi, however, shows that the 
 " case degli AUghieri " were certainly situated on the spot indicated, and 
 he holds that the traditional site of the actual house of Dante may be ac- 
 cepted as practically correct (see BuHeitino della Societd Dantesca 
 Italiana, N.S. (1904), xi. 258-60 ; and (1905), xii. 314-20). 
 
38 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 we have no evidence. His connection with the Elisei, on 
 the other hand, seems ftiardlj^ doubtful. Several names 
 occur among Dante's ancestry which are common among 
 the Elisei, and one of his ancestors, who is mentioned in 
 the Divina Commedia, actually bore the name of Eliseo.^ 
 The name of Dante's mother was Bella, but it is not 
 known for certain to what family she belonged. There are 
 grounds for believing that she was the daughter of 
 Durante, son of Scolaio degli Abati (a Ghibelline family.) ; 
 in which case there can be little doubt that Dante's 
 Christian name (a contraction of Durante) was derived 
 from his maternal grandfather. Dante's father was a 
 notary.^ He was twice married, and died when his son 
 was about eighteen.^ Bella, who died in or before 1278, 
 was Alighiero's first wife, and Dante was their only child. 
 By his second wife, Lapa, daughter of Chiarissimo Cialuffi,* 
 Alighiero had three children, a son Francesco,^ who sur- 
 vived his half-brother Dante more than twenty years, a 
 daughter Tana (i.e. Gaetana),® and another daughter,'^ 
 
 ^ Paradiso, xv. 136. Eliseo was the brother of Dante's great-grea t- 
 grandfather, Cacciaguida, who had another brother called Moronto, one 
 of the Elisei names. 
 
 2 His name occurs at the foot of three documents, one dated 1239, the 
 other two 1256, as " Alagerius ymperiali auctoritate index atque 
 notarius " (see Scherillo, Alcuni Cafitoli delta Biografia di Dante, 
 p. II). 
 
 * Dante is mentioned in a document dated 1283 as "the heir of his 
 father, the late Alighieri" ("Dante del gi^ Alighieri del popolo di S. 
 Martino del Vescovo, come herede del padre, vende," etc.) (see Bul- 
 lettino delta Society Dantesca Italiana, No. 5-6 (i8gi), p. 40). 
 
 '' Both Lapa and Bella are mentioned in a document relating to the 
 Alighieri family, dated 16 May, 1332, at which date Lapa was still alive 
 (see Scherillo, Alcuni Capitoti delta Biografia di Dante, p. 29). 
 
 ^See p. 39, note 2. ^ See p. 39, note 2. 
 
 'This half-sister of Dante's is supposed to be the " donna giovane e 
 gentile, la quale era meco di propinquissima sanguinita congiunta" of 
 Vita Nuova, § 23, 11. 86, 95-6. 
 
THE ALIGHIERI FAMILY 39 
 
 name unknown, who married one Leon Poggi. A son of 
 this Leon Poggi, called Andrea, was an intimate friend of 
 Boccaccio, who says that he bore a remarkable resem- 
 blance to his uncle Dante both in face and figure. From 
 Andrea Poggi Boccaccio learned many details ahout 
 Dante's habits and manner of life. 
 
 Dante's father can hardly have been a person of much 
 consequence in Florence ; Otherwise, as a Guelf, he would 
 have shared the exile of his party after the disastrous de- 
 feat of the Florentine Guelfs at Montaperti (4 September, 
 1260), which, from the fact that Dante was born in 
 Florence in 1265, it would appear that he did not do. At 
 any rate if he did leave Florence on that occasion he must 
 have returned before the rest of his party, since the re- 
 storation of the Guelfs did not take place, as has been re- 
 lated in a former chapter, until January, 1267.^ The only 
 contemporary references to Alighiero occur in a poetical 
 (and not very edifying) correspondence (or tenzone) ^ be- 
 tween Dante and his friend Forese Donati, from whose 
 expressions it is difficult to avoid the conclusion that 
 Dante's father was either a personal coward or of little 
 moral worth. 
 
 Judging from the position of their house in the heart of 
 the city, and from Dante's own allusions in the Divina 
 Commedia^ the Alighieri would seem to have been a 
 noble family, as nobility went in those days. The fact 
 that they are not mentioned by Giovanni Villani in his 
 several lists of the important Guelf families of Florence * 
 
 1 Villani, bk. vii. ch. 15. See above, p. 33. 
 
 "Dante's half-brother and sister, Francesco and Tana, are also 
 mentioned by Forese in this tenzone, which is printed in the third edition 
 of the Oxford Dante (1904), pp. 179-80. 
 
 2 Paradiso, xv. 40-5 ; Inferno, xv. 74-8. 
 
 * Villani, bk. v. ch. 39; bk. vi. ch. 33, 79. 
 
40 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 may be accounted for on the ground that though of 
 "ancient and honourable lineage,"^ they were neither 
 wealthy nor numerous. 
 
 Nothing is known for certain of any of Dante's ancestors 
 further back than his great-great-grandfather, Cacciaguida, 
 whose existence is attested by a document dated 9 De- 
 cember, 1 189, in which his two sons, Preitenitto and Ali- 
 ghiero,^ bind themselves to remove a fig tree growing 
 against the wall of the Church of San Martino. In another 
 document recently discovered, and dated 28 April, 1 1 3 1 , 
 appears the name of a Cacciaguida, son of Adamo,^ who 
 on plausible grounds has been identified with Dante's 
 ancestor ; in which case our knowledge of Dante's ancestry 
 goes back one generation further. Cacciaguida's history, 
 in so far as we are acquainted with it, is related in the 
 Divina Corn-media,*' where we are told that he was born 
 in Florence in the Sesto di Porta San Piero about the year 
 1090 if that he belonged (as is supposed) to the Elisei, 
 one of the old Florentine families which boasted Roman 
 descent) that he was baptized in the Baptistery of San 
 Giovanni in Florence ; that he had two brothers, Moronto 
 and Eliseo ; that his wife came from the valley of the Po 
 ^probably from Ferraraj, and that from her, through his 
 son, Dante got his surname of Alighieri ; [that he followed 
 the Emperor Conrad III on the Second Crusade] and 
 was knighted by him; and finally that he fell fighting 
 against the infidel fabout the year 1147) Cacciaguida in- 
 dicates ^ the situation of the house in which he and his 
 ancestors lived in Florence as being " in the place where 
 
 ^Villani, bk. ix. ch. 136. 
 
 2 " Preitenittus et Alaghieri fratres, filii olim Cacciaguide " (see E. 
 Frullani e G. Gargani, Delia Casa di Dante, p. 29). 
 
 ^"Cacciaguide filii Adami" (see Davidsohn, Geschichte von Florenz, 
 i. 440 n.). 
 
 *Paradiso, xv. ig-xvi. 45. ^ Paradiso, xvi. 40-2. 
 
CACCIAGUIDA'S DESCENDANTS 41 
 
 the last sextary is first attained by him who runs in the 
 yearly horse-race," i.e. on the boundary of the district 
 known later as the Sesto di Porta San Piero.^ 
 
 By his wife, Alighiera degli Alighieri, Cacciaguida had 
 two sons, already mentioned, namely, Preitenitto and 
 Alighiero. The latter (who it seems, according to Pietro 
 di Dante,^ Dante's eldest son, married a sister of "la 
 buona Gualdrada" of Inferno, xvi. 37, and daughter 
 of Bellincion Berti of Paradiso, xv. 112; xvi. 99) in 
 his turn had two sons, one of whom, Bellincione, was 
 Dante's grandfather ; while the other, Bello (i.e. Gabriello), 
 was the father of the Geri del Bello, in connection with 
 whom Dante alludes in the Divina Commedia^ to a 
 piece of family history, which shows that the Vendetta 
 was a recognized institution in Florence in those days, 
 and moreover that it was approved by Dante. It appears 
 that Geri was a turbulent and quarrelsome person, and had 
 
 ^ The house of the Elisei stood not far from the junction of the Mer- 
 cato Vecchio and the Corso, apparently just at the angle formed on the 
 north side of the present Via de' Speziali by its intersection with the Via 
 Calzaioli. The Sesto di Porta San Piero appears to have been the last 
 of the city divisions to be traversed by the competitors in the yearly horse- 
 race, who entered the city probably at the Porta San Pancrazio, close to 
 where the Palazzo Strozzi now stands, crossed the Mercato Vecchio, and 
 finished in the Corso, which was thence so called. 
 
 ^ In the later recension of his commentary on the Commedia in a 
 note on Paradiso, xvi. 97-9, he writes: " de quibus Ravegnanis 
 descenderunt, scilicet de dicto domino Bellincione de dicta domo, comites 
 Guidones, ... ex domina Gualdrada ejus filia ; cujus tres alie filie nupte 
 sunt una in domo illorum de Donatis, alia in domo illorum de Adimaribus, 
 alia in domo hujus auctoris, scilicet illorum de Alagheriis. Que tres domus 
 jam multos habuerunt a dicto domino Bellincione nominatos Bellintiones " 
 (see L. Rocca : Del commento di Pietro di Dante alia D. C. contenuto 
 nel codice Ashburnham 841, in Giornale Storico delta letteratura italiana, 
 vii. 366-85). Pietro's statement is confirmed by the fact that one of 
 Alighiero's sons, Dante's grandfather, was named Bellincione (see 
 Table in Appendix A). 
 
 ^Inferno, xxix. 3-36. 
 
42 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 stirred up bad blood among certain members of the Sac- 
 chetti family of Florence, one of whom retaliated by killing 
 him. His murder had not been avenged at the time 
 Dante wrote, and consequently Dante represents him as 
 regarding himself, when they met in Hell, with a threaten- 
 ing and indignant mien because of this neglect on the part 
 of his kindred. Subsequently, more than thirty years 
 after the event, and quite possibly as a result of Dante's 
 allusion to the incident, Geri's death was avenged by his 
 nephews, who murdered one of the Sacchetti in his own 
 house. This blood-feud between the Alighieri and the 
 Sacchetti lasted till 1 342, when an act of reconciliation ^ 
 was entered into between the two families at the instance 
 of the Duke of Athens, the guarantor on the part of the 
 Alighieri being Dante's half-brother, Francesco, who ap- 
 peared on behalf of himself, and his two nephews, Dante's 
 two sons, Pietro and Jacopo. 
 
 Bellincione, the son of Alighiero, had four sons, of 
 whom the eldest, Alighiero, was Dante's father; the 
 youngest, Brunetto, took part in the battle of Montaperti, 
 where he was in charge of the Florentine Carroccio. 
 
 That Dante was born in Florence we know from his 
 own statements several times repeated in his works, the 
 most explicit of which occurs in the Divina Comviedia ^ 
 where he says : " I was born and bred up in the great city 
 on the fair river Arno ". We know from himself too that, 
 like his ancestor Cacciaguida, he was baptized in the 
 ancient Baptistery of San Giovanni.* Years afterwards, 
 he tells us,* he was instrumental in breaking tlie-fe»t for 
 
 ' The record of this act is still preserved (see Dante Dictionary , 
 s.v. Bello, Geri del). 
 
 ^Inferno, xxiii. 94-5. In the Convivio (i. 3, 11. 21-5), he speaks 
 of " that most beautiful and most famous daughter of Rome, Florence, 
 where I was born and bred up until the climax of my life "- 
 
 ' Paradiso, xxv. 8-g. * Inferno, xix. 17-21. 
 
BAPTISTERY OF SAN GIOVANNI AT FLORENCE 
 
BEATRICE PORTINARI 43 
 
 the purpose of rescuing from suffocation a small boy ^ who 
 had fallen into one of the circular spaces at the side, where 
 the officiating priest stood during baptisms in order to 
 escape the pressure of the crowd. ^ 
 
 Of the history of Dante's early years we know little be- 
 yond the episode of his love for Beatrice, which is narrated 
 in the Vita Nuova. Dante says that he first saw 
 Beatrice when she was at the beginning of her ninth year, 
 and he had nearly completed his ninth year, that is to say 
 in the spring of 1274. "Her dress on that day," he 
 narrates,' "was of a most noble colour, a subdued and 
 goodly crimson, girdled and adorned in such sort as 
 best suited her very tender age." At the moment when 
 he saw her Dante's heart was possessed by a passionate 
 love for her, which from that time forward, he declares, 
 completely mastered his soul. Boccaccio, who probably 
 had the information from one of the Portinari family,* 
 and (quite independently) Dante's own son, Pietro, tell us 
 that this Beatrice was the daughter of Folco Portinari, a 
 highly respected and influential citizen of Florence. Boc- 
 caccio gives the following description of the scene of their 
 
 1 The name of the boy is given by one of the early commentators as 
 Antonio di Baldinaccio de' Cavicciuli, a member of a branch of the 
 Adimari family which was especially hostile to Dante. The font which 
 Dante broke is said to have been removed in 1576, by the Grand Duke 
 Francesco I de' Medici, on the occasion of the baptism of his son Philip. 
 The present font was placed where it stands in 1658, but it is the work of 
 an earlier period. 
 
 ^ As baptisms used to take place only on two days in the year, on the 
 eves of Easter and Pentecost, and in the Baptistery alone, the crowd on 
 these occasions must have been very great. Villani, Dante's contemporary, 
 says (bk. xi, ch. 94) that in his time the yearly baptisms averaged between 
 five and six thousand ; the numbers were checked by means of beans — a 
 black one for every male, a white one for every female. 
 
 ^ Vita Nuova, § 2, II. 15-18. 
 
 * See Del Lungo, Beatrice nella Vita e nella Poesia del Secolo xiii, 
 pp. 49-52. 
 
44 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 first meeting, as he, with his intimate knowledge of 
 Florence and of Florentine ways, imagines it to have 
 taken place : — 
 
 " In that season of the year when the tender heavens 
 clothe the earth once more with its adornments, and make 
 it everywhere smile with many-coloured flowers mingled 
 with green leaves, it was the custom in our city for the 
 men and women of the several districts to hold festival 
 together in companies, each in his own.^ Wherefore it 
 came to pass that, among the rest, Folco Portinari, a man 
 much in honour at that time among his fellow-citizens, had 
 on the first of May assembled his neighbours for a festival 
 at his own house. Among the company was the Alighiero 
 of whom we have spoken, attended (as children are wont 
 to attend their parents, especially on festal occasions) by 
 Dante, who had not yet completed his ninth year. And 
 it befell that mingling here with the others of his own age, 
 both boys and girls, of whom there were many in the 
 house of the giver of the feast, after the first course had 
 been served, in childish fashion he began to play with the 
 others in such wise as befitted his tender years. Among 
 the crowd of children was a daughter of the aforesaid 
 Folco, whose name was Bice (although Dante always 
 called her by her full name Beatrice), and who was then 
 about eight years old. She was very graceful and pretty 
 in her girlish way, and very gende and pleasing in her 
 manners, and more grave and modest in her demeanour 
 and speech than might have been expected of her years. 
 Besides this the features of her face were very delicate 
 and regular, and full not only of beauty but of such come- 
 liness and charm that by many she was held to be little 
 short of an angel. She then, such as I describe her, or, 
 it may be, far more beautiful, appeared at this feast, not as 
 
 ' Cf. Villani, bk. vii. ch. 132 (ad fin.). 
 
DANTE AND BEATRICE 45 
 
 I suppose for the first time, but for the, first time with the 
 power to kindle love, before the eyes of our Dante, who, 
 though still a boy, received into his heart the beauteous 
 image of her with so great affection that from that day 
 forward, so long as he lived, it never departed from him." ^ 
 Nine years later, when they were both in their eighteenth 
 year, that is to say in 1283, Dante saw Beatrice dressed 
 all in pure white, walking in the street between two ladies 
 older than herself On this occasion she turned her eyes 
 upon Dante, and saluted him. After this greeting, which; 
 he says, seemed to reveal to him the utmost limits of happi- 
 ness, Dante retired to the solitude of his own chamber and 
 sat himself down to think of Beatrice. And as he sat 
 thinking he fell asleep, and had a marvellous vision, 
 whereon he composed a sonnet beginning 
 
 " To every captive soul, and gentle heart," ^ 
 
 which is his earliest known composition. This sonnet he 
 sent to various famous poets of the day, and among those 
 from whom he received replies was Guido Cavalcanti, who 
 from this time became Dante's most intimate friend.' 
 
 Later on, Dante meanwhile, in order to conceal his love for 
 Beatrice, having paid attentions to another lady, Beatrice 
 denied him her salutation, which plunged him into the deep- 
 est grief.* The next time he saw her was at a wedding- 
 feast, whither he had been taken by a friend, and on this 
 occasion his emotion so overcame him that his confusion 
 was remarked, and the ladies, including Beatrice herself, 
 whispered and mocked at him, whereupon his friend, 
 
 ' Vita di Dante, ed. Macri-Leone, § 3, pp. 13-15. This work was 
 probably written between 1357 and 1362 (see O. Hecker, Boccaccio- 
 Funde, p. 154 ».). 
 
 ^ " A ciascun' alma presa e gentil core." 
 
 ' Vita Nuova, § 3. •* Vita Nuova, § 10. 
 
46 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 perceiving his distress, led him from the house.^ This 
 episode may perhaps be connected with the marriage of 
 Beatrice Portinari, to which Dante never directly refers in 
 the Vita Nuova, but which is known to have taken 
 place before the year 1288, her husband being Simone de' 
 Bardi,^ a member of one of the great banking-houses of 
 Florence.* 
 
 Not long after this Dante learned of the death of 
 Beatrice's father, Folco Portinari, whom he describes as a 
 man " of exceeding goodness," * and who was a personage 
 of no little importance in Florence, for he had held high 
 office in the city, and had several times served as Prior.* 
 
 ' Vita Nuova, § 14. 
 
 2 This marriage (which Del Lungo thinks took place as early as 1283), 
 like many others of that period, was probably political, that is to say, it 
 was a " matrimonial alliance," not in any sense a marriage of affection 
 (see Del Lungo, op. cit. pp. 13-14, 66-7). 
 
 ^ The Bardi, who were Guelfs, were of European celebrity as bankers. 
 They had extensive relations with Edward III, through whose default 
 they failed, together with several other important Florentine houses, in 
 1345, twenty-four years after Dante's death. Edward's debt to the Bardi 
 amounted to nearly a million gold florins. 
 
 ^ Vita Nuova, § 22, 11. 1-18. 
 
 ^ Folco Portinari had been one of the fourteen " Buonomini " instituted 
 in 1281 by Cardinal Latino ; and he subsequently three tiipes (in 1282, 
 1285, and 1287) held the office of Prior. He died on 31 December, 1289, 
 and was buried in the chapel of the hospital founded by himself, his 
 funeral being honoured by the official attendance of the Signoria of Flor- 
 ence. The monument erected over his tomb is still preserved, though not 
 in its original site. The inscription oniit runs as follows: — 
 
 " Hie iacet Fulchus de Portinariis qui fuit fundator et edificator uius 
 ecclesie et ospitalis S. Marie Nove et decessit anno MCCLXXXIX die 
 XXXI decembris. Cuius anima pro Dei misericordia requiescat in pace " 
 (Del Lungo, op. cit. pp. 8-g). 
 
 Folco married Cilia di Gherardo de' Caponsacchi of Florence, and had 
 by her ten children (five sons and five daughters) besides Beatrice, who are 
 all mentioned by name in his will (dated is January, I28f). To the four 
 unmarried daughters, Vanna, Fia, Margarita, and Castoria, he left eighty 
 Florentine pounds each for a dowry. To the son of his daughter Ravig- 
 
DEATH OF BEATRICE 47 
 
 He was also a great public benefactor, for in June, 1288, 
 the same year in which he made his will, he had founded 
 the well-known hospital of Santa Maria Nuova in Flor- 
 ence.' Folco's death, and the grief of Beatrice for him, 
 brought into Dante's mind the thought that one day 
 Beatrice herself too must die ; and in a very short time 
 his forebodings were realised. Beatrice died, within six 
 months of her father, in June, 1290, just on the completion 
 of her twenty-fourth year.^ Dante was for a time over- 
 
 nana, wife of Bandino Falconieri, he left fifty Florentine pounds; and he 
 left the like sum to "mistress Bice, his daughter, the wife of Simone de' 
 Bardi " {Item dotnine Bid etiam filie sue, et uxoH domini Simonis de 
 Bardis, legavit de bonis suis libras L adflorenos). His five sons, Manetto, 
 Ricovero, Pigello, Gherardo, and Jacopo (of whom the last three were 
 minors) were named as residuary legatees. Manetto (d. 1334), Beatrice's 
 eldest brother, was most probably the near relation of Beatrice who is 
 mentioned by Dante in the Vita Nuova as being his dearest friend after 
 Guido Cavalcanti (Vita Nuova, § 33, 11. 2-7 : " Si venne a me uno, il quali, 
 secondo li gradi dell' amistade, e amico a me immediatamente dopo il 
 primo : e questi fu tanto distretto di sanguiniti con questa gloriosa, che 
 nuUo piu presso 1' era "). Manetto, it appears, was also a friend of Guido's, 
 who addressed a sonnet to him, which has been preserved among Guido's 
 poems (see Ercole, Guido Cavalcanti e le sue Rime, pp. 145-6, 353, 355). 
 
 1 The endowment of this hospital is said to have been suggested to 
 Folco by the then Bishop of Florence, Andrea de' Mozzi (whose name 
 appears in the deed of foundation) — the same Bishop who is branded by 
 Dante in the Inferno (xv. 112-14) as an unclean liver. The deed of 
 foundation is printed by L. Passerini in Storia degli Stabilimenti di 
 Beneficenza . . . della Cittct di Firenze (1853), pp. 835-9. 
 
 *The exact date on which Beatrice died was 8 June, as follows from 
 what Dante says in § 30 of the Vita Nuova. His aim is to prove that 
 the number nine was intimately connected with the day, the month, and 
 the year of Beatrice's death. As regards the year his statement (11. 7-13) 
 presents no difficulty — she died in 1290. In order to bring in the number 
 nine in the case of the month and the day Dante has recourse to the 
 Syrian and Arabian calendars (" io dico che, secondo 1' usanza d' Arabia, 
 r anima sua nobilissima si parti nella prima ora del nono giorno del mese ; 
 e secondo 1' usanza di Siria, ella si parti nel nono mese dell' anno ; perch! 
 il primo mese h ivi Tisrin primo, il quale a noi e Ottobre "). He says 
 Beatrice died in the ninth month according to the Syrian reckoning, which 
 
48 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 whelmed with grief,^ but after a while he devoted himself 
 to the study of philosophy, and having thereby regained 
 his peace of mind, he made the resolve, which is recorded 
 at the conclusion of the Vita Nuova, that, should his 
 life be spared, he would write of Beatrice what had never 
 yet been written of any woman, a resolve which was 
 carried into execution in the Divina Commedia. 
 
 A beautiful canzone on the death of Beatrice was ad- 
 dressed to Dante by his friend Cino da Pistoja,^ one of the 
 
 (as he learned from Alfraganus, his astronomical authority) corresponds 
 to our sixth month, namely June. The difficulty, therefore, as to her 
 having died in June, the sixth month according to our reckoning, is got 
 over by saying that she died in the ninth month according to the Syrian 
 reckoning. As regards the day, Dante says that she died in the first hour 
 of the ninth day of the month, according to Arabian usage. Now Alfra- 
 ganus explains that according to the Arabian usage the day begins, not 
 at sunrise, as with the Romans and others, but at sunset. If, then, Dante, 
 in order to get the required connexion between the number nine and the 
 day of the month on which Beatrice died, was obliged to have recourse to 
 the Arabian usage, in the same way as he fell back upon the Syrian usage 
 in the case of the month itself, we are forced to the conclusion that the 
 actual date of Beatrice's death was not, as has been too hastily assumed, 
 the ninth of the month, but the evening of the eighth, which according to 
 the Arabian reckoning would be the beginning of the ninth day (see 
 Paget Toynbee, Dante Studies and Researches, pp. 61-4). 
 
 1 Perhaps it was at this period that Dante, if the tradition mentioned by 
 Buti (in his comment on Inf. xvi. 106, and Purg. xxx. 42) is to be 
 accepted, joined for a time the Franciscan Order. This tradition is held 
 by some to be confirmed by Dante's reference in the Inferno (xvi. 106-8) 
 to the cord with which he was girt, the cord being one of the distinctive 
 marks of the Franciscans, who were hence known as Cordeliers. Some 
 see a fijrther confirmation of the tradition in the facts that Dante speaks 
 of the Sun as the "image of God" (Convivio, iii. 12, 1. 54) as did St. 
 Francis; and that Statius, on meeting Dante and Virgil in Purgatory, 
 gives them the Franciscan salutation, to which Virgil returns the recog- 
 nized countersign (Purg. xxi. 12-15). It has also been suggested in 
 the same connexion that Dante derived his explanation of the fall of the 
 rocks in Hell (Inf. xii. 1-45 ; xxi. 112-14) from the Franciscan legend, 
 that the chaotic rocks of La Vemia, where St. Francis received the stig- 
 mata, were upheaved by the earthquake at the Crucifixion. 
 
 '' Born in 1270 at Pistoja, where he died in 1336 or 1337, 
 
CINO DA PISTOJA ON BEATRICE 49 
 
 " famosi trovatori," to whom Dante had sent his earliest 
 sonnet. "^ In this canzone, from which it appears that 
 Dante in his despair had been tempted to seek death, 
 Cino strives to console him with the thought that Beatrice 
 is glorified in heaven, where she watches over him and 
 recalls his devotion to her on earth : — 
 
 How ever shouldst thou see the lovely face 
 If any desperate death should once be thine ? 
 
 From justice so condign 
 Withdraw thyself even now : that in the end 
 Thy heart may not offend 
 Against thy soul, which in the holy place, 
 In Heaven, still hopes to see her and to be 
 Within her arms. Let this hope comfort thee. 
 
 Look thou into the pleasure wherein dwells 
 
 Thy lovely lady who is in Heaven crown'd, 
 
 Who is herself thy hope in Heaven, the while 
 To make thy memory hallowed she avails ; 
 
 Being a soul within the deep Heaven bound, 
 A face on thy heart painted, to beguile 
 Thy heart of grief, which else should turn it vile. 
 
 Even as she seemed a wonder here below. 
 
 On high she seemeth so, — 
 Yea, better known, is there more wondrous yet. 
 
 And evert as she was met 
 First by the angels with sweet song and smile, 
 Thy spirit bears her back upon the wing. 
 Which often in those ways is journeying. 
 
 Of thee she entertains the blessed throngs, 
 
 And says to them ; " While yet my body thrave 
 On earth, I gat much honour which he gave, 
 
 Commending me in his commended songs " 
 Also she asks alway of God our Lord 
 To give thee peace according to His word.' 
 
 1 See pp. 45, 159. 
 
 ^ The whole canzone is translated by D, G. Rossetti in Dante and his 
 Circle (pp. 184-6), whose version of the concluding portion is printed 
 above. The original is printed by Carducci in Rime di M. Cino da 
 Pistoja, Florence, 1862 (pp. 9-12). 
 
50 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 Cino, who subsequently wrote a canzone on the death of 
 Dante himself/ was one of several friends of his youth 
 with whom Dante held a poetical correspondence. As in 
 the case of Guido Cavalcanti,^ this friendship doubtless 
 owed its origin to the fact of Dante's having sent to him 
 the sonnet referred to above, the iirst in the Vita 
 Nuova, to which Cino returned a sonnet in reply.' At 
 least five other sonnets addressed by Cino to Dante have 
 been preserved/ and two of Dante's to him/ besides a 
 Latin letter on a subject connected with love.^ 
 
 Guido Cavalcanti/ one of the most distinguished poets of 
 the day, and Dante's earliest friend, addressed five sonnets 
 to Dante* (including his reply to Dante's first sonnet), 
 mostly on the subject of love; but one of them contains 
 a severe reproof to Dante for falling away from his former 
 high standard of life : — 
 
 I come to thee by daytime constantly, 
 
 But in thy thoughts too much of baseness find : 
 Greatly it grieves me for thy gentle mind, 
 
 And for thy many virtues gone from thee. 
 
 It was thy wont to shun much company, 
 Unto all sorry concourse ill inclin'd : 
 And still thy speech of me, heartfelt and kind, 
 
 Had made me treasure up thy poetry. 
 
 But novjr I dare not, for thine abject life. 
 
 Make manifest that I approve thy rhymes ; 
 
 Nor come I in such sort that thou raayst know. 
 Ah I prythee read this sonnet many times : 
 
 So shall that evil one who bred this strife 
 
 Be thrust from thy dishonoured soul and go.' 
 
 ' See below, p. 107. ''See above, p. 45. 
 
 ^ Printed by Carducci, op. cit. pp. 4-5; translated by Rossetti, op.cit. p. 183. 
 
 *See Carducci, oj>. cit. pp. 103, 106, 108, 116, 117. 
 
 ' Sonnets xxxiv, xlvi, in the Oxford Dante. 
 
 * Epist. iv. (see below, p. 248). ' C. 1255-1300. 
 
 " See P. Ercole ; Guido Cavalcanti e le sue Rime, Livorno, 1885 
 (pp. 313. 318, 319-20, 322. 324-5). 
 
 ' Translated by Rossetti, op. cit. p. 161. For the original, see Ercole, 
 op. cit. pp. 324-5. 
 
DANTE AND FORESE DONATI 51 
 
 It is supposed that Guido is here referring to some 
 moral lapse on Dante's part, consequent on his alleged 
 faithlessness to the memory of Beatrice ; ^ but it is possible 
 that what Guido had in mind was Dante's degrading 
 intercourse with such company as Forese Donati,^ his 
 poetical correspondence with whom (written probably 
 within a year or two of the death of Beatrice) has been 
 already mentioned.^ The tone of this correspondence, the 
 authenticity of which has been questioned, but which in 
 the face of the evidence it is difficult not to accept,* gives 
 an unpleasing impression both of Forese and of Dante, 
 teeming as it does with personalities and abusive recrimin- 
 ations. In after years, we gather, Dante recalled this 
 episode of his early career with bitter shame. " If thou 
 bring back to mind," he says to Forese when they meet 
 in Purgatory, 
 
 " If thou bring back to mind 
 
 What thou wast once with me, and I with thee, 
 
 The recollection will be grievous yet." " 
 
 It was to Guido Cavalcanti, while Beatrice was yet alive, 
 that Dante addressed that charming sonnet (known to 
 English readers as " The Boat of Love ") ® in which he 
 imagines Guido, Lapo Gianni, and himself wafted overseas 
 in a boat with their respective ladies : — 
 
 Guido, I wish that Lapo, thou, and I, 
 
 Could be by spells conveyed, as it were now. 
 Upon a barque, with all the winds that blow 
 
 Across all seas at our good will to hie. 
 
 So no mischance nor temper of the sky 
 
 1 See below, p. 71. ^ Forese died in July, 1296. ' See above, p. 35. 
 
 *0n this tenzone, which is printed in the third edition (1904) of the 
 Oxford Dante (pp. 179-80), see Del Lungo, Dante ne' tempi di Dante, 
 pp. 437 ff. A translation of four sonnets of the tenzone is given by Ros- 
 setti, op. cit, pp. 243-5. 
 
 ' Purgatorio, xidn, 115-17. 
 
 * From the title of D. G. Rossetti's picture of the subject. 
 
52 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 Should mar our course with spite or cruel slip ; 
 But we, observing old companionship, 
 To be companions still should long thereby. 
 And Lady Joan, and Lady Beatrice, 
 
 And her the thirtieth on my roll with us 
 
 Should our good wizard set, o'er seas to move 
 And not to talk of anything but love ; 
 And they three ever to be well at ease 
 
 As we should be, I think, if it were thus.^ 
 
 ' Son. xxxii. ; translated by Rossetti, op. cit. p. 143. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 1 289-1 290 
 
 Military service — War with Arezzo — Battle of Campaldino — Victory 
 of Florentine Guelfs — Buonconte da Montefeltro— Siege of Caprona — 
 " Quomodo sedet sola civitas ! " 
 
 OF Dante's life outside the limits of the Vita Nuova, 
 during his first twenty-five years, we get occasional 
 glimpses, which show that, however deeply absorbed he 
 may have been in his devotion to Beatrice, he was yet no 
 "love-sick idler". We find him taking his share in the 
 active duties of family life, and as a patriotic citizen bear- 
 ing the burden of military service in the field on behalf of 
 the State. In a document dated 1283 (the same year in 
 which he records his first public salutation from Beatrice) 
 his name appears, as the representative of the Alighieri 
 family, in a matter of business which had been left un- 
 settled at the death of his father.^ Dante at this time 
 was eighteen, and, both his father and mother being dead, 
 according to Florentine usage was of age. Six years 
 later, we are told, he took part in the war which had broken 
 out in 1287 between Florence and Arezzo, and was pre- 
 sent, fighting on the side of the Florentine Guelfs, at their 
 great victory over the Aretines at Campaldino on 1 1 June, 
 1289. If we are to accept as authentic the fragment of a 
 
 ' See Bullettino delta Societd Dantesca Italiana, No. 5-6 (1891), pp. 
 39-45- 
 
 53 
 
54 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 letter preserved by one of his biographers,^ this was not 
 Dante's first experience in the field ; he confesses, never- 
 theless, that he was at first greatly afraid, but at the end 
 felt the greatest elation, according to the shifting fortunes 
 of the day. 
 
 This battle of Campaldino was an event of no little im- 
 portance in the history of Florence. If the Aretines had 
 been victorious the position of the Florentine Guelfs would 
 have been seriously endangered. As it was, the result 
 was a crushing blow to the Ghibellines of Tuscany, who 
 had made Arezzo their headquarters, whence during the 
 past few years they had repeatedly raided the Florentine 
 territory. In June, 1 287, the Aretines, with the help of 
 the exiled Ghibellines from Florence, expelled the Guelfs 
 from their city, whereupon the Florentines, in alliance with 
 the other Guelfs of Tuscany, declared war against Arezzo, 
 and in June of the following year sent a strong expedition 
 into their territory, which ravaged the country right up to 
 the city walls. The Sienese contingent of this expedition, 
 however, rashly allowed themselves to be intercepted by 
 the Aretines, who surprised them and cut them to pieces, 
 the Sienese losing more than 300 killed and wounded. 
 This success greatly elated the Aretines, and proportion- 
 ately discouraged the Florentine Guelfs and their allies, 
 
 1 Leonardo Bruni of Arezzo, who was secretary of the Florentine Re- 
 public from 1427 till his death in 1444. In his Vita di Dante he claims 
 to have seen several letters of Dante in the poet's own handwriting, which 
 he describes as being "fine and slender and very accurate" ("era la 
 lettera sua magra e lunga e molto corretta, secondo io ho veduto in alcune 
 epistole di sua mano propria scritte " ; — elsewhere, in his Dialogus ad 
 Petrum Histrum, speaking of Dante, he says : " Legi nuper quasdam 
 eius litteras, quas ille videbatur peraccurate scripsisse : erant enim propria 
 manu atque eius sigillo obsignatae" — quoted by Bartoli, Storia delta 
 Letteratura Italiana, v. 8g). In this letter Dante is represented as saying 
 that at the battle of Campaldino he was present " not as a child in arms " 
 (" non fanciuUo nell' armi "). 
 
WAR BETWEEN FLORENCE AND AREZZO 55 
 
 who were still further discomfited by the news of the ex- 
 pulsion of the Guelfs from Pisa, and of the imprisonment 
 of the Guelf leader, Ugolino della Gherardesca, who in 
 the following March (i28|) was put to death in the Tower 
 of Famine.^ Not long after this (at the beginning of May) 
 Charles II of Anjou passed through Florence on his way 
 to Rome to be crowned King of Naples in succession to 
 his father. After spending three days in Florence, amid 
 great rejoicings, he set out to continue his journey to- 
 wards "Siena. " And when he was departed news came to 
 Florence that the Aretine forces were making ready to 
 enter the Sienese territory in order either to intercept or 
 to bring shame upon Prince Charles, who had only a small 
 escort of men-at-arms. Immediately the Florentines sent 
 out their cavalry, consisting of the flower of the citizens 
 of Florence and of the mercenaries who were in the city, 
 to the number of eight hundred horsemen, together with 
 three thousand foot, to escort the said Prince ; and when 
 the Aretines heard of it they did not dare to go against 
 them. And the Florentines asked the Prince to appoint 
 them a captain of war, and to allow them to carry the 
 royal standard to battle, and the Prince granted it, and he 
 knighted Aimeri of Narbonne, a man very noble and brave, 
 and cunning in war, and gave him to them for their captain. 
 And Aimeri, with his troop of about one hundred horse- 
 men, returned to Florence together with the Florentine 
 force." 2 
 
 No sooner were the Florentines returned home than it 
 was decided without loss of time to send a strong force to 
 attack the Aretines, in order to exact retribution for their 
 continued ravages in the territories of Florence and of the 
 allied Guelfs. On 2 June, 1289, the host marched out, 
 
 •Villani, bk. vii. ch. 128; Inferno, xxxiii. 
 2 Villani, bk. vii. ch. 130. 
 
56 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 with the Guelf banners and the royal standard of King 
 Charles flying, and the bells sounding ; " and there were 
 assembled sixteen hundred horsemen and ten thousand 
 foot, whereof six hundred horsemen were citizens of 
 Florence, the best armed and the best mounted that ever 
 went out even from Florence, and four hundred mercenaries 
 together with the men-at-arms of the captain, M. Aimeri, 
 in the pay of the Florentines ; and from Lucca there were 
 an hundred and fifty horsemen ; and from Prato forty horse 
 and foot ; from Pistoja sixty horse and foot ; and from 
 Siena an hundred and twenty horsemen ; and from Vol- 
 terra forty horsemen ; and from Bologna their envoys with 
 their men-at-arms ; and from San Miniato and from San 
 Gemignano, and from CoUe, there came horse and foot 
 from each place; and Maghinardo of Susinana,^ a good 
 and wise-captain of war, came with his men from Romagna. 
 And the said host being assembled, they descended into 
 the plain of Casentino, laying waste the lands of Count 
 Guido Novello, who was Podesta of Arezzo. And when 
 the Bishop of Arezzo heard of this, he and the other 
 Ghibelline captains, among whom were many of renown, 
 determined to come with all their force to Bibbiena to pre- 
 vent its being laid waste ; and they were eight hundred 
 horsemen and eight thousand foot, all picked men; and 
 among them were many wise captains of war, the flower 
 of the Ghibellines of Tuscany, and of the March,^ and of 
 the Duchy,' and of Romagna, all of them experienced in 
 arms and warfare. And they challenged the Florentines 
 to battle, having no fear, although the Florentines had 
 twice as many horsemen as they, but they despised them, 
 
 1 Maghinardo, though a Ghibelline by birth, supported the Florentine 
 Guelfs. His political inconsistency is alluded to by Dante, Inferno, 
 xxvii. 51. 
 
 2 Of Ancona. « Of Spoleto. 
 
BATTLE OF CAMPALDINO S7 
 
 saying that they tricked themselves out and combed their 
 tresses like women, laughing at them and holding them 
 of no account. And the Florentines having joyfully ac- 
 cepted the gage of battle, the two hosts by common con- 
 sent drew up their ranks and faced each other in battle 
 array, more perfectly ordered on both sides than ever were 
 hosts in Italy before this time ; and the field of battle was 
 on the plain at the foot of Poppi, in the district called 
 Certomondo, for so the place is named, and a church of the 
 Franciscans which is close by, and the plain is called Cam - 
 paldi no. And this was Saturday morning, the eleventh of 
 June, on the day of St. Barnabas the Apostle." i 
 
 Among the Florentine horsemen, according to the ac- 
 count of Leonardi Bruni,^ was Dante, " who fought vigor- 
 ously on horseback in the front rank, where he was ex- 
 posed to very grave danger ; for the first shock of battle 
 was between the opposing troops of horse, in which the 
 Aretine cavalry charged the Florentine horsemen with 
 such fury, that they were borne down, broken and routed, 
 and driven back upon the foot-soldiers." This rout of 
 the Florentine cavalry was the cause of the defeat of the 
 Aretines, whose victorious horsemen pursued the fugitives 
 so far that their own foot-soldiers were left unsupported ; 
 consequently the Florentines, having rallied their horse, 
 were enabled to crush first the Aretine cavalry and then 
 their foot. Villani gives a detailed account of this im- 
 portant battle — important to us, owing to Dante's presence, 
 in a manner in which no one at that time could have fore- 
 seen — and of the miraculous way in which the tidings of 
 the victory were brought to Florence. 
 
 'Villani, bk. vii. ch. 131. 
 
 ^ Bruni says that Dante in his letter gave an account of the battle, to- 
 gether with a plan : " Questa battaglia racconta Dante in una sua epistola, 
 e dice esservi stato a combattere, e disegna la forma delta battaglia," 
 Vita di Dante, ed. Brunone Bianchi, 1883, p. xv. 
 
58 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 " M, Aimeri and the other captains of the Florentines 
 drew up their troops in good order, setting an hundred 
 and fifty of the best in the host to fight in the front.^ oi 
 whom twenty were new-made knights, dubbed on the 
 field. And M. Vieri de' Cerchi being one of the captains, 
 and being lame of his leg, he would not on that accouni 
 be excused from fighting in the front : and it falling tc 
 him to make the choice for his Sesto,^ he would not lay 
 this burden on any who did not desire it of his own free 
 will, but chose himself and his son and his nephews. And 
 this thing was counted to him as of great merit ; and aftei 
 his good example, and for very shame, many other noble 
 citizens set themselves in the fore-front of the host Anc 
 when this was done they flanked each wing with light- 
 armed infantry, and crossbow-men, and foot-soldiers Witt 
 long lances ; and the main body to the rear of the fore- 
 front was also flanked by foot-soldiers ; and in the rear o1 
 all was the baggage drawn up so as to support the mair 
 body, outside of which were stationed two hundred horse 
 and foot of the Lucchese and the Pistojans and othei 
 allies ; the captain of these was M. Corso Donati, at thai 
 time Podesti of Pistoja, whose orders were, if needful, tc 
 take the enemy in flank. 
 
 " The Aretines on their side ordered their troops skilfully 
 inasmuch as they had, as we have said, good captains o 
 war among them ; and they set a strong body to figh 
 in the front, to the number of three hundred, among whon 
 were chosen twelve of the chief leaders, whom they style( 
 the twelve paladins.^ And each side having adoptee 
 
 ^ It is probable from what Leonardo Bruni says that Dante was amon 
 these. 
 
 ' One of the six divisions into which the city of Florence was at thi 
 time divided. 
 
 ' Doubtless in allusion to the fact that they were opposed to Aimeri d 
 Narbonne, a name familiar in the old Chansons de Geste as at one time 
 foe of Charlemagne and afterwards as one of his doughtiest warriors. 
 
BATTLE OF CAMPALDINO 59 
 
 their war-cry, the Florentines ' Nerbona ' and the Are- 
 tines ' San Donato,' the fore-front of the Aretine horse- 
 men advanced with great daring at full speed to charge 
 the host of the Florentines, and their remaining ranks 
 followed close behind, except that Count Guido Novello, 
 who was in command of a troop of an hundred and fifty 
 horse for a flank attack, did not venture to join battle, but 
 stood his ground, and then took to flight to his own terri- 
 tory.^ And the charge and attack of the Aretines 
 against the Florentines was to the end that, being con- 
 fident in their prowess, they might by their bold stroke 
 break the Florentines at the first onset, and put them to 
 flight. So great was the shock that the most part of the 
 Florentine fore-front were unhorsed, and the main body 
 was thrust back some way across the field, but for all that 
 they were not dismayed nor thrown into confusion, but 
 received the enemy steadily and bravely ; and with the 
 foot-soldiers drawn up on either flank they closed in on 
 the enemy, fighting desperately for a good while. And 
 M. Corso Donati, who was in charge of the reserve of 
 Lucchese and Pistojans, and had been ordered to stand fast, 
 and not to attack, under pain of death, when he saw the 
 battle begun, said like a brave man : If we lose, I will 
 die in the battle with my fellow-citizens ; and if we win, 
 let him come who will to Pistoja and exact the penalty ; 
 and he boldly moved out his troop, and took the enemy - 
 in flank, and was the main cause of their rout. 
 
 " After this, as it pleased God, the Florentines had the 
 victory, and the Aretines were routed and defeated ; and 
 there were killed more than seventeen hundred, horse and 
 foot, and more than two thousand taken prisoners, whereof 
 many of the best were got away secretly, some by their 
 
 ' This was the second time that Guido Novello distinguished himself 
 by running away. The first occasion was when he abandoned Florence 
 after the defeat of Manfred at Benevento (see above, pp. 32-3). 
 
6(y DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 friends, and others for ransom ; but seven hundred and 
 forty of them were brought into Florence in bonds. 
 Among the slain was M. Guglielmino degli Ubertini, 
 Bishop of Arezzo, who was a great warrior, and M. 
 Guglielmo de' Pazzi of Valdarno and his nephews, who 
 was the best and most crafty captain of war of his time in 
 Italy ; and there was killed too Buonconte, son of Guido 
 da Montefeltro, and three of the Uberti, and one of the 
 Abati, and many other exiles from Florence. On the 
 side of the Florentines scarce one man of note was slain, 
 but many both of the Florentines and of their allies were 
 wounded. 
 
 " The news of this victory came to Florence that very 
 day, at the very hour it took place ; for the Priors being 
 gone to sleep and rest after their meal, by reason of their 
 anxiety and watching the night before, suddenly there 
 was a knocking on the door of their chamber, with the 
 cry : Arise, for the Aretines are defeated ; and having 
 risen and opened the door, they found no one, and their 
 servants outside had heard nothing, wherefore it was held 
 to be a great and notable wonder, inasmuch as it was the 
 hour of vespers before any one came from the host with 
 the news. And this was the truth, for I heard it and saw 
 it; and all the Florentines marvelled whence this could 
 have come, and waited in suspense. But when the 
 messengers from the host were come, and brought back 
 the news to Florence, there was great gladness and rejoic- 
 ing ; as well there might be, for at this defeat were left 
 dead many captains and brave men of the Ghibelline party, 
 enemies of the commonwealth of Florence, and the arro- 
 gance and pride, not of the Aretines only, was brought 
 down, but of the whole Ghibelline party and of the 
 Empire." ^ 
 
 'Villani, bk. vii. ch. 131. 
 
BUONCONTE DA MONTEFELTRO 6i 
 
 Of those who fought on the same side as Dante in this 
 battle two, Vieri de' Cerchi and the impetuous Corso 
 Donati, were destined to play an important part in the 
 fortunes of Florence, and incidentally in those of Dante 
 himself. 
 
 One of the leaders on the opposite side, the Ghibelline 
 Buonconte da Montefeltro, forms the subject of one of 
 the most beautiful episodes in the Divina Commedia. 
 Buonconte's body, it seems, was never found after the 
 battle, and Dante, when he meets him in the confines of 
 Purgatory, asks him : " What violence, or what chance, 
 carried thee so far astray from Campaldino, that thy 
 burial-place was never known ? " Buonconte replies : 
 " At the foot of the Casentino crosses a stream, named 
 the Archiano ; at the place where its name becomes void 
 (i.e. at its junction with the Arno) I arrived, pierced in 
 the throat, flying on foot, and staining the plain with 
 blood. There I lost my sight, and my speech finished 
 with the name of Mary, and there I fell, and my flesh re- 
 mained alone. I will tell the truth, and do thou repeat 
 it among the living. The Angel of God took me, and he 
 of Hell cried out : ' O thou from heaven, why dost thou 
 rob me ? Thou bearest away for thyself the eternal part 
 of this one, for one little tear which takes him from me ; 
 but of the other part I will make other governance.' Then, 
 when the day was spent, he covered the valley with cloud, 
 from Pratomagno to the great ridge (of the Apennine), 
 and made overcast the heaven above, so that the teeming 
 air was turned to water. The rain fell, and to the trenches 
 came so much of it as the earth did not endure ; and as 
 it gathered in great streams it rushed so swiftly towards 
 the royal river that nothing held it back. The swollen 
 Archiano found my body, cold, near its outlet, and thrust 
 it into the Arno, and loosed on my breast the cross which 
 
62 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 I made of myself when the pain overcame me. It rolled 
 me along its banks, and along the bottom, then with its 
 spoil it covered me and girt me." ^ 
 
 Dante's military experiences did not end, as probably 
 they did not begin, with the battle of Campaldino. In 
 the following August, in consequence of the death of the 
 unhappy Count Ugolino, and of the expulsion of the Guelfs 
 from Pisa, the Tuscan Guelfs, headed by the Florentines 
 and Lucchese, invaded the Pisan territory, and ravaged it 
 for the space of twenty-five days. During this time they 
 laid siege to the castle of Caprona, about five miles from 
 Pisa, which after eight days capitulated. By the terms of 
 the surrender the garrison were allowed to march out under 
 a safe-conduct from the besieging force. Dante tells us 
 in the Divina Commedia that he was present on this 
 occasion, and witnessed the alarm of the beleagured foot- 
 soldiers, as they filed out between their enemies, lest the 
 latter should not keep their compact.^ 
 
 There are other reminiscences in the Commedia of 
 Dante's campaigning days. One of these passages, in 
 which he speaks of how " at times a horseman goes out at 
 a gallop from his troop during the charge and seeks to 
 win the honour of the first assault," ^ is pretty certainly a 
 recollection of what took place at the beginning of the 
 battle of Campaldino. In another passage he gives a 
 vivid picture of the various scenes he must have witnessed 
 during the hostilities between Florence and Arezzo, in- 
 cluding the running of the horse-races under the enemy's 
 walls, as the Florentines did before Arezzo the year before 
 Campaldino : * — " I have seen ere now horsemen change 
 their ground, and set out to charge, and make their muster, 
 and sometimes fall back in their retreat ; I have seen 
 
 ' Purgatorio, v. gi-izg. « Inferno, xxi. 93-6. 
 
 3 Purgatorio, xxiv. 94-6. * Villani, bk. vii. ch. 120. 
 
"QUOMODO SEDET SOLA CI VITAS ! " 63 
 
 skirmishers overrun your land, men of Arezzo, and I have 
 seen raiders go out, tourneys held, and jousts run, now 
 with trumpets, now with bells, and with drums and with 
 signals from castle-walls ".^ And elsewhere he describes 
 a troop of soldiers manoeuvring on the field, how they 
 wheel with the banner at their head, as they change front 
 under cover of their shields.^ 
 
 All these are indications that Dante's military experi- 
 ences were a very real part of his life, even though they 
 occurred at the very time when, as we know from his own 
 confession in the Vtia Nuova, his mind was most deeply 
 occupied with the thought of Beatrice and of his love for 
 her. In less than a year after the triumphant return from 
 Campaldino the loss of " his most gentle lady " was to turn 
 gladness into mourning, so that, while all the world in 
 Florence was feasting and rejoicing, to Dante, as he sat 
 weeping in his chamber, the city was desolate — "How 
 doth the city sit solitary," he cries with Jeremiah, - " she 
 that was full of people ! how is she become a widow, she 
 that was great among the nations ! " ^ 
 
 ^Inferno, xxii. i-8. ' Purgatorio, xxxii. 19-24. 
 
 ' Vita Nuova, §§ 29, 31 ; Lamentations, i. i. 
 
CHAPTER III 
 1291-1300 
 
 Early studies — ^Brunetto Latino — Classical acquirements — Marriage — 
 Gemma Donati — Children — Public life — Embassy to San Gemignano — 
 Priorate. 
 
 OF Dante's studies during his eariy years we know but 
 little for certain. From a misunderstanding of an 
 expression in the Divina Commedia ^ it has been assumed 
 that he was a pupil of Brunetto Latino, a Florentine notary 
 and statesman, who was the author of a book called the 
 Trisor, a sort of encyclopaedia of the knowledge of the 
 day, written in French. Brunetto could hardly have been 
 Dante's master, in the ordinary acceptation of the term, 
 inasmuch as he was about fifty-five when Dante was bom ; 
 besides which he was too constantly occupied with the 
 affairs of the commonwealth to allow of his having leisure 
 for teaching during the years of Dante's boyhood. 
 
 Already, when he was only eighteen, Dante had acquired 
 the art of versifying, as he tells us in the Vita Nuova.'^ 
 
 1 When he meets Brunetto in Hell Dante says to him : " In my mind 
 is fixed the dear and kind fatherly image of you, when in the world you 
 from time to time taught me how man becomes eternal " (Inferno, xv. 
 82-s). This probably means nothing more than that Dante learned much 
 from Brunette's Tresor, and especially from the compendium of the Ethics 
 of Aristotle which it contains. 
 
 s Vita Nuova, § 3, 11. 69-71 : " I had already learned of myself the art 
 of setting words in rime ". 
 
 64 
 
EARLY STUDIES 65 
 
 And from the same source we know that he was to some 
 extent practised in drawing, for he relates how on the first 
 anniversary of Beatrice's death, " remembering me of her 
 as I sat alone, I betook myself to draw the resemblance 
 of an angel upon certain tablets. And while I did thus, 
 chancing to turn my head, I perceived that some were 
 standing beside me to whom I should have given courteous 
 welcome, and that they were observing what I did : also I 
 learned afterwards that they had been there a while before 
 I perceived them. Perceiving whom, I arose for salutation, 
 and said : Another was with me. Afterwards, when they 
 had left me, I set myself again to mine occupation, to wit, 
 to the drawing figures of angels." ^ 
 
 In letters also, as may be gathered from the Convivio, 
 Dante was largely his own instructor. After the death of 
 Beatrice, he says, " I remained so overwhelmed with grief 
 that no comfort availed me. Howbeit, after some time, 
 my mind, which was striving to regain its health, resolved 
 (since neither mine own nor others' consolation was of any 
 avail) to have recourse to the plan which a certain other 
 disconsolate one had adopted for his consolation. And I 
 set myself to read that book of Boethius,^ whose contents 
 are known but to few, wherewith, when a prisoner and in 
 exile, he had consoled himself And hearing also that 
 Cicero too had written a book, in which, treating of friend- 
 ship, he had spoken of the consolation of Laelius, that 
 most excellent man, on the death of his friend Scipio, I 
 set myself to read that' And although at first it was 
 hard for me to understand the meaning of them, yet at 
 length I succeeded so far as such knowledge of Latin as I 
 possessed, and somewhat of understanding on my part, 
 enabled me to do. And as it befalls that a man who is in 
 
 ' Vita Nuova, § 35, IK 4-15 (trans, by Rossetti). 
 
 2 The De Consolatione Philosophiae. ' The De Amicitia. 
 
 5 
 
66 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 search of silver sometimes, not without divine ordinance, 
 finds gold beyond his expectations, so I, who sought for 
 consolation, found not only healing for my grief, but in- 
 struction in the terms used by authors in science and other 
 books." 1 
 
 At the time referred to in this passage Dante was past 
 his twenty-fifth year. It is evident, therefore, that in his 
 early manhood he was by no means far advanced in his 
 classical studies. With Provencal literature, on the other 
 hand, it is probable that he was early familiar, not only 
 from the references in the Vita Nuova, but from the fact 
 that the work itself was composed more or less after a 
 Provencal model. From the authors quoted in the Vita 
 Nuova (which was written between 1292 and 1295, at any 
 rate when Dante was not more than thirty) it is possible 
 to form a pretty accurate estimate of the extent of his 
 classical acquirements at that period. He shows some 
 familiarity with the Ethics and Metaphysics of Aristotle 
 (not of course in the original Greek — a language he never 
 knew — but through the medium of Latin translations), 
 and quotes Homer twice, once from the Ethics of Aristotle, 
 and once from the Ars Poetica of Horace. Ovid, Lucan, 
 Horace, and Virgil are all quoted directly/ the last several 
 time^ but there is not much trace of intimate acquaintance 
 with any one of them. Dante also displays a certain 
 knowledge of astronomy in the Vita Nuova, Ptolemy 
 being quoted by name, while to the Arabian astronomer, 
 
 ^ConvMo, ii. 13, U. 5-36. The"scuole de' religiosi," which Dante 
 further on in this same passage (11. 47-8) says he attended at this time, 
 were doubtless those of the Dominicans of Santa Maria Novella, to which 
 laymen were admitted. Here Dante would have received instruction in 
 the seven liberal arts of the Trivium (grammar, logic, rhetoric) and 
 Quadrivium (music, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy), and in natural and 
 moral philosophy (see G. Salvadori , Sulla Vita Giovanile di Dante, 
 pp. 106 ff.). " 
 
MARRIAGE 6^ 
 
 Alfraganus, he was certainly indebted for some of his data 
 as to the motions of the heavens, and for his details as to 
 the Syrian and Arabian calendars. If we add to these 
 authors the Bible, which is quoted four or five times, and 
 the works of Cicero and Boethius already mentioned, we 
 have practically the range of his reading up to about his 
 thirtieth year, at any rate so far as may be gathered from 
 his writings, which in Dante's case is a fairly safe criterion. 
 
 Some of his biographers state that Dante during his 
 early manhood studied at the universities of Bologna and 
 Padua, but there is no evidence to support this statement, 
 which is probably little more than a conjecture. 
 
 Within a few years of the death of Beatrice, certainly 
 not later than 1298, Dante married. His wife, whose 
 name was Gemma,^ was the daughter of Manetto and 
 Maria Donati, of the same ancient and noble Guelf family 
 to which belonged Dante's friend Forese,^ and the im- 
 petuous Corso Donati, who, as we have seen,^ distinguished 
 himself at the battle of Campaldino. Boccaccio states 
 that Dante's marriage was brought about by his relations 
 in order to console him for the loss of Beatrice, and he 
 further draws a melancholy picture of what he supposes 
 Dante's married life to have been. 
 
 " Dante," he says, " formerly had been used to spend 
 his time over his precious studies whenever he was inclined, 
 and would converse with kings and princes, dispute with 
 philosophers, and, frequent the company of poets, the 
 burden of whose griefs he would share, and thus solace 
 his own. Now, whenever it pleased his new mistress, he 
 
 ^Some think that Gemma Donati is the "donna gentile" of the con- 
 cluding chapters of the Vita Nuova (§§ 36-9). See, for instance, Fraticelli, 
 Vita di Dante, cap. 5, where, in reference to the appearance of the lady 
 at a window (Vita Nuova, § 36), he points out that the houses of the 
 Donati and of the Alighieri were opposite to each other, back to back. 
 
 2 See above, pp. 39, 51. * See above, pp. 58-g. 
 
68 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 must at her bidding quit this distinguished company, and 
 bear with the talk of women, and to avoid a worse vexa- 
 tion must not only assent to their opinions, but against 
 his inclination must even approve them. He who, when- 
 ever the presence of the vulgar herd annoyed him, had 
 been accustomed to retire to some solitary spot, and there 
 to speculate on the motions of the heavens, or the source 
 of animal life, or the beginnings of created things, or, may 
 be, to indulge some strange fancy, or to compose some- 
 what which after his death should make his name live into 
 future ages — he now, as often as the whim took his new 
 mistress, must abandon all such sweet contemplation, and 
 go in company with those who had little mind for such 
 things. He who had been used to laugh or to weep, to 
 sing or to sigh, according as pleasing or painful thoughts 
 prompted him, now must not dare, or, should he venture, 
 must account to his mistress for every emotion, nay, even 
 for every little sigh. Oh ! what unspeakable weariness to 
 have to live day by day, and at last to grow old and die, 
 in the company of such a suspicious being ! " ' 
 
 In spite of Boccaccio's express avowal that he cannot 
 positively assert the truth of all this,^ nevertheless his picture 
 has been accepted seriously by many writers as an accurate 
 representation of Dante's married life. As a matter of 
 fact there is very little real ground for supposing that 
 Dante lived unhappily with Gemma. The arguments ad- 
 duced in support of the contention are as follows : that 
 men of genius are notoriously " gey ill to live with," and 
 consequently, even if Gemma was not the shrew painted 
 by Boccaccio, Dante no doubt was an unbearable com- 
 panion, wherefore they must have been unhappy together ; 
 
 ' Vita di Dante, ed. Macri-Leone, § 3, pp. 20-1. 
 
 2 " Certo io non affermo queste cose a Dante essere awenute ; ch& nol 
 so " (ed. cit, p. 23). 
 
DANTE AND GEMMA 69 
 
 again, that Dante nowhere in his works makes any refer- 
 ence to his wife ; and lastly, that when Dante was exiled 
 from Florence he left Gemma behind him, and, so far as is 
 known, never saw her again. Only one of these arguments 
 has any real weight. The first is based on a pure assump- 
 tion. If the absence of any reference to Gemma in 
 Dante's works necessarily implies that they lived on bad 
 terms, the same must be assumed in the case of Dante's 
 parents, to whom his references are of the vaguest, ^ and of 
 his children. On the other hand, the fact that Gemma 
 did not subsequently live with Dante, so far as our in- 
 formation goes, when he settled at Ravenna with two of 
 his children, lends some colour to the supposition that the 
 affection between them was not of the strongest. Boc- 
 caccio makes the most of this circumstance. He concludes 
 his account of this ill-assorted match, as at any rate he 
 supposed it to have been, with the following words : 
 " Certainly I do not affirm that these things happened in 
 Dante's case, for I do not know. But, at any rate, whether 
 that be the truth or not, once Dante was separated from 
 her who had been given to console him in his grief, he 
 never would come where she was, nor would he ever allow 
 her to come to him." ^ 
 
 This is an explicit statement, and it is probable that 
 Boccaccio, who was in communication with members of 
 Dante's family, did not make it without some authority. 
 At any rate, whatever the domestic relations between 
 Dante and Gemma may have been, it is certain that they 
 had a family of four children, all of whom were bom in 
 Florence before the year 1302. These children were two 
 
 ' His father and mother are referred to as " i miei generanti " in the 
 Convivio (i. 13, 1. 31); and his mother is referred to in the Inferno (viii. 
 45). 
 
 ^ Vita di Dante, ed. Macri-Leone, § 3, p. 23. 
 
70 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 sons, Pietro and Jacopo, and two daughters, Antonia and 
 Beatrice. Pietro, the eldest son, who was the author of a 
 commentary on the Divina Commedia} became a lawyer, 
 and died in Treviso in 1364.^ Jacopo, who also wrote a 
 commentary on the Commedia (or at any rate on the In- 
 ferno)^ and a didactic poem called // Dottrinale, entered 
 the Church, became a canon in the diocese of Verona, and 
 died before 1349. Of Antonia it is only known that she 
 was still alive in 1332, Beatrice became a nun in the Con- 
 
 1 Pietro's commentary, which was published by Lord Vernon at Florence 
 in 1845, was written (in Latin) between 1340 and 1341. (See L. Rocca, II 
 Commento di Pietro A lighieri, in Di Alcuni Commenti della D.C. composti 
 neifrimi vent' anni dopo la morte di Dante, 1891, pp. 343-425). 
 
 "Dante's biographer, Leonardo Bruni (1369-1444), says of Pietro: 
 " Dante, among otlier children, had a son Pietro, who studied law, and 
 became distinguished. By his own gifts, and as being his father's son, he 
 attained a great position and considerable means, and settled at Verona in 
 very good circumstances. This Messer Pietro had a son called Dante, 
 and to this Dante was born a son Leonardo, who is still living and has 
 several children. Not long ago this Leonardo came to Florence, with 
 other young men of Verona, well-to-do and much respected, and came to 
 visit me as a friend to the memory of his great-grandfather Dante. And 
 I showed him the house of Dante and of his ancestors, and gave him in- 
 formation about many things of which he was ignorant, owing to the fact 
 that, he and his family had been estranged from the home of their 
 fathers ". (Vita di Dante, ad fin.). 
 
 Dante, the father of this Leonardo, died in 1428. Leonardo had a son 
 Pietro (d. 1476), who had a son Dante (d. 1515), who had three sons, the 
 youngest of whom, Francesco, died 12 August, 1563, and was buried at 
 Verona. With Francesco the male descendants of Dante Alighieri came 
 to an end (see Genealogical Table, in G. L. Passerini, La Famiglia 
 Alighieri). 
 
 ' Jacopo's commentary (in Italian) on the Inferno, which was published 
 by Lord Vernon at Florence in 1848, was written certainly before 1333, 
 and probably before 1325 (see L. Rocca, Chiose attribuite a jacopo di 
 Dante, in op. cit. pp. 1-42). On the question as to whether Jacopo wrote 
 a commentary on the whole poem, see F. P. Luiso, Chiose di Dante le 
 qualifeceelfigluolo co le sue mani, 1904; and Tra Chiose e Commenti 
 Antichi alia D.C, 1903. Jacopo also wrote (in 1322) a Capitoh (a sum- 
 mary) in terza rima On the Commedia (see Rocca, op. cit. p. 33 ff.). 
 
ALLEGED AMOURS 71 
 
 vent of Santo Stefano dell' Uliva at Ravenna, where in 
 1 3 50 she was presented by Boccaccio with the sum of ten 
 gold florins on behalf of the Capitani di Or San Michele 
 of Florence.^ She died before 1370, in which year there 
 is a record of the payment of a bequest of hers of three 
 gold ducats to the convent where she had passed her days.^ 
 Three of Dante's children, Pietro, Jacopo, and Beatrice, 
 lived with him during the last three or four years of his 
 life at Ravenna. Gemma, who, as we have seen, is sup- 
 posed never to have rejoined Dante after his exile from 
 Florence, was still living in 1332, eleven years after Dante's 
 death. 
 
 At some period not long after the death of Beatrice 
 Portinari, Dante appears to have been entangled in an 
 amour of a more or less discreditable nature. It seems 
 clear from the language used to Dante by Beatrice in the 
 Divina Commedia that this must have been the case. She 
 says that as soon as she was dead and gone, Dante became 
 unfaithful to her, and " gave himself to another," whereby 
 " he fell so low '' that she despaired of his salvation.^ The 
 names of several ladies which occur in Dante's lyrical 
 poems have been connected with this charge ; and there 
 can be little doubt that some similar entanglement took 
 place at Lucca after his exile, as appears from the account 
 of Dante's meeting with the Lucchese poet, Bonagiunta, 
 in Purgatory.* 
 
 In 1295 or 1296, whether before or after his marriage 
 we have no means of ascertaining, Dante, in order to 
 
 ' See Del Lungo, VielV Esilio di Dante, pp. i8, 161-2. 
 
 *See Giornale Dantesco, vii. 339-40. It has been conjectured, with 
 not much plausibility, that Beatrice may have been identical with Antonia, 
 who may have taken the name of Beatrice on becoming a nun (see 
 Giornale Dantesco, viii. 470-1). 
 
 ' Purgatorio, xxx. 127-38. 
 
 * Purgatorio, xxiv. 37-45 (see below, p. 97). 
 
72 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 qualify himself for the higher offices in the government of 
 Florence, enrolled himself in the Guild of Physicians and 
 Apothecaries,^ he having now reached the age at which, 
 by the Florentine law, he was entitled to exercise the full 
 rights of citizenship. This was Dante's first step in his 
 political career, which was destined within a few years to 
 lead him into lifelong exile from his native city. The 
 Guild selected by Dante was one of the wealthiest and 
 most important in Florence, concerned as it was with the 
 costly products of the East, in which were included not 
 only spices and drugs, but also pearls, precious stones, and 
 other valuables. Dante's choice of this particular Guild, 
 however, may perhaps be explained by the fact that in 
 those days books also were included among the wares 
 deaflt in by apothecaries ; and further, to this Guild were 
 attached those who practised the art of painting, an art 
 which, it may be gathered, had special attractions for 
 Dante,^nd in which, as we have already seen,^ he was to 
 some extent a proficientj 
 
 A few details of Dante's public life in Florence have 
 been preserved in various documents in the Florentine 
 archives.^ It is recorded * that on 6 July, 1295, he gave 
 his opinion in favour of certain proposed modifications of 
 the " Ordinamenti di Giustizia," ordinances against the 
 power of the nobles in Florence, which had been enacted 
 a couple of years before. On 14 December of the same 
 year he took part in the bi-monthly election of Priors ; and 
 on 5 June, 1296, he spoke in the Council of the Hundred 
 
 ^See Fraticelli, Vita di Dante, pp. 112-13. 
 
 ' See above, p. 65. 
 
 ^ See D' Ancona e Bacci, Manuals delta Letteratura Italiana, I. 185 fif, 
 
 * Or supposed to be recorded, for M. Barbi has shown that the . . . 
 herii in the torn document, hitherto conjectured to represent Dante Alag- 
 herii, must almost certainly refer to some other Alighieri (see Bulletfino 
 della Societd Dantesca Italiana, N.S. (1899), vi, 225 iT., 237). 
 
PUBLIC LIFE 73 
 
 (" Consiglio dei Cento "). In the spring of 1 300 he went 
 as ambassador to San Gemignano, a town about ten miles 
 from Siena, to announce that an assembly was to be held 
 for the purpose of electing a new captain of the Guelf 
 League of Tuscany, ' and to invite the citizens of San 
 Gemignano to send representatives. The room in the 
 Palazzo of San Gemignano, where Dante was received as 
 ambassador to Florence, and where he spoke in discharge 
 of his office six hundred years ago, is still preserved in 
 much the same condition in which it was on that occasion. 
 
 The contemporary record 1 of the event, which, like all 
 similar records of that time, is in Latin, tells how " on 
 8 May the General Council of the commonwealth and 
 people of San Gemignano having been convoked and 
 assembled in the palace of the said commonwealth by the 
 sounding of a bell and by the voice of the crier, according 
 to custom, at the summons of the noble and valiant knight, 
 Messer Mino de' Tolomei of Siena, the honourable 
 Podesta of the commonwealth and people of the said city 
 of San Gemignano, . . . the noble Dante Alighieri, am- 
 bassador of the commonwealth of Florence, explained to 
 the assembled Council on behalf of the said commonwealth 
 how it was expedient at that time for all the cities of 
 the Tuscan League to hold a parliament and discussion in 
 a certain place for the election and confirmation of a new 
 Captain, and how further it was expedient that the ap- 
 pointed syndics and ambassadors of the said cities should 
 assemble themselves together for the despatch of the said 
 business ". It appears that Dante's mission was successful, 
 for the record goes on to state that the proposition of the 
 Florentine ambassador, having been debated, was approved 
 and ratified by the Council. 
 
 A few weeks after his return from San Gemignano 
 
 ^ The original is printed by Fraticelli, Vita di Dante, pp. 138-9. 
 
74 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 Dante was elected to serve as one of the six Priors, for 
 the two months from 1 5 June to 1 5 August, this being 
 the highest office in the Republic of Florence.^ " From 
 this priorate," says Leonardi Bruni, " sprang Dante's exile 
 from Florence, and all the adverse fortunes of his life as 
 he himself writes in one of his letters, the words of which 
 are as follows : ' All my woes and all my misfortunes had 
 their origin and commencement with my unlucky election 
 to the priorate ; of which priorate, although I was not 
 worthy in respect of worldly wisdom, yet in respect of 
 loyalty and of years I was not unworthy of it ; inasmuch 
 as ten years had passed since the battle of Campaldino, 
 where the Ghibelline party was almost entirely broken 
 and brought to an end, on which occasion I was present, 
 not inexperienced in arms, and was in great fear, and after- 
 wards greatly exultant, by reason of the varying fortunes 
 of that battle.' These are his words." ^ 
 
 ^ The only extant document relating to Dante's priorate is the record of 
 the confirmation on 15 June, 1300, of a sentence against three Florentines, 
 who were the creatures of Boniface VIII. (see Del Lungo, Dal Secolo e 
 dal Poetna di Dante, pp. 371-3). 
 
 " Vita di Dante, ed. Brunone Bianchi, 1883, p. xvii. 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 1 300-1 302 
 
 Blacks and Whites in Pistoja — In Florence — Cerchi and Donati — May 
 Day, 1300 — Dante in office — Embassy to Rome — Charles of Valois in 
 Florence — Triumph of the Blacks — Condemnation and Exile of Dante — 
 His Possessions and Debts. 
 
 FLORENCE at the time of Dante's election to the 
 priorate was hi a dangerous state of ferment owing 
 to the recent introduction from Pistoja of the factions of 
 the Blacks and the Whites, which divided the Guelf party 
 in Florence into two opposite camps, and were the occasion 
 of frequent brawls and bloodshed in the streets. 
 
 These factions, according to the old chroniclers, 
 originated in Pistoja in a feud between two branches of 
 the Cancellieri, a Guelf family of that city, who were de- 
 scended from the same sire, one Ser Cancelliere, but by 
 different mothers. These two branches adopted distinc- 
 tive names, the one being known as the Cancellieri 
 Bianchi, or White Cancellieri, as being descended from 
 Cancelliere's wife Bianca, the other as the Cancellieri Neri, 
 or Black Cancellieri." A strong feeling of rivalry existed 
 between the two branches, which at last, as the story is 
 told, on the occasion of a trifling quarrel, broke out into 
 actual hostilities. 
 
 It appears that one day the father of a certain Focaccia, 
 who belonged to the White Cancellieri, chastised one of 
 his nephews for assaulting another boy with a snowball. 
 
 7'? 
 
^e DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 The nephew in revenge a few days after struck his uncle, 
 for which he was sent by his father to receive such punish- 
 ment as the uncle should see fit to administer. The latter, 
 however, laughed the matter off, and sent the boy away 
 with a kiss. But Focaccia, catching his cousin as he came 
 out of the house, dragged him into the stable and cut off 
 his hand on the manger, and then, not content with this, 
 sought out the boy's father, his own uncle, and murdered 
 him. This atrocious crime naturally led to reprisals, and 
 in a short time the whole city was in an uproar. One half 
 the citizens sided with the Whites, the other half with the 
 Blacks, so that Pistoja was reduced to a state of civil war. 
 To put an end to this state of things the Florentines in- 
 tervened ; and in the hope of extinguishing the feud they 
 secured the leaders of both factions, and imprisoned them 
 in Florence. Unhappily this measure only led to the in- 
 troduction of the feud among the Florentines themselves. 
 In Florence also there happened to be two rival families — 
 the Donati, who were of ancient lineage, but in reduced 
 circumstances, and the Cerchi, who were wealthy upstarts. 
 The former, headed by the brave Corso Donati, one of the 
 Guelf leaders at the battle of Campaldino, took the part 
 of the Black Cancellieri, while the Cerchi, headed by 
 Vieri de' Cerchi, who had also distinguished himself on 
 the Guelf side at Campaldino,^ took the part of the White 
 Cancellieri. Thus it came about that through the private 
 enmities of two Pistojan and two Florentine houses, 
 Florence, which was ostensibly Guelf at the time, became 
 divided into Black Guelfs and White Guelfs. These two 
 divisions, which had originally been wholly unpolitical, by 
 degrees became respectively pure Guelfs and disaffected 
 Guelfs, the latter, the White Guelfs, eventually throwing 
 in their lot with the Ghibellines. 
 
 'See above, pp. 58, 61. 
 
BLACKS AND WHITES 77 
 
 " When the city of Pistoja," says Leonardo Bruni, " was 
 divided into factions by reason of this wicked quarrel, it 
 seemed good to the Florentines, in order to put an pnd 
 to the trouble, to summon the leaders of both factions to 
 Florence, so that they might not create any further dis- 
 turbance in Pistoja. But this remedy was of such sort 
 that it did more harm to the Florentines by drawing the 
 plague upon themselves, than good to the Pistojans by 
 ridding them of the ringleaders in the mischief. For, in- 
 asmuch as the latter had many friends and relations in 
 Florence, through their partisanship the conflagration 
 immediately burst out with greater fury in this city 
 than it had done in Pistoja before they quitted it. And 
 as the matter came to be discussed everywhere, in public 
 and in private, the ill seed wondrous quickly took root, 
 and the whole city was divided, so that there was hardly 
 a family, noble or plebeian, but was divided against itself; 
 nor was there a private individual of any consequence who 
 did not join one side or the other. And the division 
 spread even between own brothers, one holding with one 
 faction, and one with the other. And after the dispute 
 had lasted for several months, and disagreements became 
 more frequent, not only in words but also in angry and 
 harsh deeds, at first between young men, and afterwards 
 between their elders, the city of Florence at last was 
 everywhere in a state of ferment and disturbance."^ 
 
 The degree of jealousy and suspicion with which the 
 Cerchi and Donati, the respective champions of the 
 Whites and Blacks in Florence, regarded each other may 
 be gathered from the following incident related by a con- 
 temporary chronicler : ^ — 
 
 " It happened that there was a family who called them- 
 
 1 Vita, di Dante, ed. cit. pp. xvii-xviii. 
 ' Dino Compagni, bk. i, ch. 2o, 
 
78 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 selves Cerchi, men of low estate, but good merchants and 
 of great wealth; and they dressed richly, and kept many 
 servants and horses, and made a fine show ; and some of 
 them bought the palace of the Conti Guidi, which was 
 close to the houses of the Donati, who were more ancient 
 of blood but not so rich ; wherefore seeing the Cerchi rise 
 to great position, and that they had walled and enlarged 
 the Palace, and kept great state, the Donati began to 
 have a great hatred against them. Wherefrom great 
 scandal and peril ensued to private persons and to the 
 city at large. 
 
 " Now it came to pass one day that many people of the 
 city were gathered together, for the burying of a dead lady, 
 on the Piazza de' Frescobaldi ; and it being the custom 
 of the city that at such gatherings the citizens should 
 sit below on rush-bottomed stools, and the knights and 
 doctors above upon benches, the Donati and the Cerchi, 
 such of them as were not knights, being seated on the 
 ground, opposite to each other, one of them, either for the 
 purpose of adjusting his dress, or for some other reason, 
 rose to his feet. Whereupon those of the opposite party 
 likewise rose up, suspecting somewhat, and laid their 
 hands on their swords ; and the others doing the same, 
 they began to make a brawl. But the rest of those who 
 were present interfered between them, and would not let 
 them come to blows. The disturbance, however, was not 
 so completely quelled but that a large crowd collected at 
 the residence of the Cerchi, and straightway at a word 
 would have made for the Donati, had not some of the 
 Cerchi forbidden it." 
 
 The commencement of actual hostilities in Florence be- 
 tween the Blacks and the Whites was due to a street 
 brawl on the evening of May Day in the year 1 300 — the 
 year of Dante's priorate — between some of these same 
 
CERCHI AND DON ATI yg 
 
 Cerchi and Donati on the occasion of a dance in the 
 Piazza of Santa Trinita. Two parties of young men on 
 horseback belonging to either side, while looking on, 
 began hustling each other. This soon led to serious 
 fighting, during which one of the Cerchi had his nose cut 
 off. 
 
 " At this time (in the year of Christ 1300)," says Villani, 
 " our city of Florence was in the greatest and happiest 
 state it had ever been in since it was rebuilt, or even be- 
 fore, as well in size and power as in the number of her 
 people, for there were more than thirty thousand citizens 
 in the city, and more than seventy thousand fit to bear 
 arms in the districts belonging to her territory ; and by 
 reason of the nobility of her brave knights and of her free 
 people, as well of her great riches, she was mistress of 
 almost the whole of Tuscany. 
 
 " But the sin of ingratitude, with the help of the enemy 
 of the human race, out of this prosperity brought forth 
 pride and corruption, whereby the feasting and rejoicings 
 of the Florentines were brought to an end. For up to 
 this time they had been living in peace, in great luxury 
 and delicacy, and with continual banquets; and every 
 year on May Day, through nearly the whole of the city, 
 there were gatherings and companies of men and women, 
 with entertainments and dancing. But now it came about 
 that through envy there arose divisions among the citizens ; 
 and the chief and greatest of these began in that quarter 
 of strife, the quarter of Porte San Piero, between those 
 belonging to the house of the Cerchi and those of the 
 Donati, on the one side through envy, on the other through 
 rudeness and ungraciousness. 
 
 " The head of the house of the Cerchi was M. Vieri de' 
 Cerchi, and he and his house were men of great conse- 
 quence, and powerful, with great connections, and very 
 
8o DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 wealthy merchants, for their company was one of the 
 largest in the world ; and they were touchy and uncouth, 
 rude in their manners and harsh, after the manner of 
 those who have risen in a short time to great power and 
 estate. The head of the house of the Donati was M. Corso 
 Donati, and he and his house were of gentle birth, and 
 men of war, with no great wealth. 
 
 " And the Cerchi and Donati were neighbours in Flor- 
 ence and in the country, and what with the boorish temper 
 of the one house and the jealousy of the other, there 
 sprang up between them a bitter scorn, which was greatly 
 inflamed by the ill seed of the Black and White parties 
 introduced from Pistoja, for the Cerchi were the heads of 
 the Whites in Florence, and the Donati were the heads of 
 the Blacks. And by the said two parties all the city of 
 Florence and her territory was divided and infected. For 
 which cause the Guelf party, fearing lest these divisions 
 should turn to the advantage of the Ghibellines, sent to 
 Pope Boniface to ask him to heal them. Wherefore the 
 Pope sent for M. Vieri de' Cerchi, and when he was come 
 into his presence, besought him to make peace with M. 
 Corso Donati and his party, and to submit their differences 
 to him, promising to advance him and his friends to a 
 great position, and offering him any spiritual favours he 
 might ask. M. Vieri, although in other matters he was a 
 prudent knight, in this matter showed little wisdom, but 
 was obstinate and touchy, and would do nothing of what 
 the Pope asked, saying that he had no quarrel with any 
 man ; and so he returned to Florence, and left the Pope 
 very wrathful against him and his party. 
 
 " Not long after this it happened that certain of each 
 party were riding on horseback through the city, armed 
 and on the alert, young men of the Cerchi, with some of 
 the Adimari, and others, to the number of more than 
 
DANTE IN OFFICE 8i 
 
 thirty horsemen, and young men of the Donati, with some 
 of the Pazzi, and others of their following ; and it being 
 the evening of May Day in this year 1300, as they were 
 looking on at a dance of ladies which was being held in 
 the Piazza of Santa Trinita, one party began to provoke 
 the other, and to push their horses one against the other, 
 whence there arose a great scuffle and uproar, and several 
 were wounded, and by ill-luck Ricoverino, son of M. Rico- 
 vero de' Cerchi, had his nose cut from off his face ; and 
 by reason of the scuffle that evening the whole city was 
 in alarm and under arms. 
 
 "And this was the beginning of the dissensions and 
 divisions in the city of Florence and in the Guelf party, 
 wherefrom ensued much evil and great danger to the 
 Guelf party and to the Ghibellines, and to all the city of 
 Florence, and to the whole of Italy also. And in like 
 manner as the death of M. Buondelmonte was the begin- 
 ning of the Guelf and Ghibelline parties in Florence, so 
 was this the beginning of the great ruin of the Guelf party 
 and of our city." 1 
 
 In consequence of the repeated disturbances caused by 
 the quarrels between the Blacks and the Whites, during 
 Dante's priorate it was decided to banish from Florence the 
 leaders of both parties, in the hope of restoring the city to 
 peace and quiet, f Among the leaders of the Whites was 
 the poet, Guido Cavalcanti, Dante's eariiest friend. It thus 
 came about that in the impartial exercise of his office Dante 
 was instrumental in sending his dearest friend into exile, 
 and, as it proved, to his death ; for, though the exiles were 
 recalled after a few weeks, Guido never recovered from 
 the effects of the malarious climate of Sarzana in 
 Lunigiana, to which he had been banished, and died in 
 
 > Villani, bk, viii. ch. 39. 
 
82 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 Florence at the end of August in the same year 
 (1300).! 
 
 The feuds between the two factions now reached such 
 a height that, as we have seen, the interference of Pope 
 Boniface was invoked, and at this time the Blacks were 
 clamouring for Charles of Valois, brother of the King of 
 France, to come to Florence as the Pope's representative. 
 \ The Whites, on the other hand, to which faction Dante 
 himself belonged, were bitterly opposed both to Boniface 
 and to Charles of Valois. 
 
 In April of the next year (1301), in the midst of these 
 troubles, Dante was entrusted with the charge of super- 
 intending the works on the street of San Procolo, which 
 were intended to facilitate the bringing of troops from 
 the outside districts into the city.^ On 19 June in this 
 year Dante voted in the Council of the Hundred against 
 the proposal to supply a contingent of a hundred soldiers 
 to serve with the Papal forces, on the requisition of Pope 
 Boniface ; — " Dante Alighieri," the record runs, " advised 
 that in the matter of furnishing assistance to the Pope, 
 nothing should be done ". He recorded his vote on various 
 
 1 From Guide's last poem, written at Sarzana during his exile, it is evi- 
 dent that he never expected to return. If certain expressions in this poem 
 are to be taken literally, it would appear that Guido already felt the hand 
 of death upon him : — 
 
 " Perch' i' no spero di tornar giammai, 
 Ballatetta, in Toscana, 
 Va tu, leggera e plana 
 Dritt' a la Donna mia . . . 
 • * # 
 
 Tu senti, ballatetta, che la raorte 
 Mi stringe si che vita m' abbandona." 
 
 {Rime, ed. Ercole, pp. 406-8). 
 ^ The documents relating to this matter and to Dante's votes in the 
 " Consiglio dei Cento " are printed in Annual Report of the Cambridge 
 (U.S.A.) Dante Society for i8gi (pp. 36-47). 
 
SENTENCE OF EXILE 83 
 
 matters several times in one or other of the Councils 
 during the month of September, the last of which mention 
 is preserved being on 28 September. In the following 
 October, in order to protest against the Papal policy, 
 which aimed at the virtual subjection of Florence, and if 
 possible to avert the coming of Charles of Valois, the 
 Whites sent an embassy to Rome, of which Dante was a 
 member. But while Dante was still absent at Rome, the 
 Pope's " peacemaker " Charles arrived in Florence, which 
 he entered on All Saints' Day (i November, 1301), his 
 entrance having been unopposed, on the faith of his 
 promise to hold the balance between the two parties, and 
 to maintain peace. No sooner, however, had he obtained 
 command of the city, than he treacherously espoused the 
 cause of the Blacks, armed his followers, and threw the 
 whole of Florence into confusion. In the midst of the 
 panic Corso Donati, one of the exiled leaders of the Blacks, 
 made his way into the city, broke open the prisons and 
 released the prisoners, who, together with his own adherents, 
 attacked and pillaged the houses of the Whites during five 
 days, Charles of Valois meanwhile, in spite of his promises, 
 making no attempt to interfere. 
 
 The Blacks, having thus gained the upper hand in Flor- 
 ence, began without delay to strengthen themselves by 
 getting rid of their opponents. On 27 January, 1 302, the 
 Podesti, Cante de' Gabrielli of Gubbio, pronounced a 
 sentence against Dante and four other Whites, who had 
 been summoned before the Podesta and had failed to 
 appear. The charge against them was the infamous one 
 of " barratry," that is, of fraud and corrupt practices in 
 office, including the extortion of money and the making 
 of illicit gains. They were further charged with having 
 conspired against the Pope, against the admission into the 
 city of his representative, Charles of Valois, and against the 
 
84 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 peace of the city of Florence and of the Guelf party. The 
 penalty was a fine of five thousand florins, and the 
 restitution of the sums illegally exacted ; payment was to 
 be made within three days of the promulgation of the 
 sentence, in default of which all their goods were to be 
 forfeited 1 and destroyed. In addition to the fine, the 
 delinquents were sentenced to banishment from Tuscany 
 for two years, and to perpetual deprivation from ofifice in 
 the commonwealth of Florence, their names to that end 
 being recorded in the book of the Statutes of the People, 
 as peculators and malversators in office. 
 
 This sentence having been disregarded, on lo March in 
 the same year a second severer sentence ^ was pronounced 
 against Dante and the others (with whom ten more were 
 now included), condemning them to be burned alive ^ 
 should they ever be caught : " if any of the aforesaid at 
 any time should come into the hands of the said Common- 
 wealth, such an one shall be burned with fire so that he 
 die". 
 
 That Dante was entirely innocent of the charge of cor- 
 ruption brought against him there can hardly be the 
 
 1 That this was no empty threat is proved by the mention in a document 
 (dated 14 August, 1305) of a levy in Florence " in bonis Dantis de AUa- 
 ghieris et Francischi eius fratris rebellium et condempnatorum comunis 
 Florentie" (see BulUttino delta Societd Dantesca Italiana, N.S. (1907), 
 xiv. 125) ; and by the deed of restitution (dated 9 January, 1343) to Dante's 
 son Jacopoof his father's confiscated property (see Del Lungo,Z)e//' Esilio 
 di Dante, pp. 158-60). 
 
 ^ The text of both sentences is printed by Del Lungo in DelV Esilio 
 di Dante, pp. 97-106. 
 
 ' That burning alive was no uncommon punishment in those days, as 
 in later times, is evident from the fact that in an old Sienese inventory 
 occurs the entry " due pezzi di catene da ardere huomini ". Maestro 
 Adamo of Brescia was burned alive in 1281 for coining counterfeit gold 
 florins (Inf. xxx. log-io) ; and Dante himself refers in the Purgatorio 
 (xxvii. 17-18) to his having seen men burned alive ; cf. also Inferno xxix. 
 no. 
 
POSSESSIONS AND DEBTS 85 
 
 smallest doubt. It was merely a base device on the part 
 of his enemies within the city to disqualify him and the 
 rest of the Whites from taking any further part in the 
 government of Florence. None of his early biographers 
 believes in his guilt, while his contemporary and fellow- 
 citizen, the chronicler, Giovanni Villani, who belonged to 
 the opposite party, states frankly that he was driven into 
 exile for no other fault than that of being an adherent of 
 the Whites. " The said Dante," he says, " was one of the 
 chief magistrates of our city, and was of the White party, 
 and a Guelf withal ; and on that account, without any 
 other fault, with the said White party he was driven out 
 and banished from Florence." ^ 
 
 Dante's private property, which, as stated above, was 
 condemned to be confiscated at the time of his exile, was, 
 it may be gathered, not inconsiderable. Boccaccio states 
 that his father's fortune at the time of his birth was abund- 
 ant, abundant at any rate for those days ; ^ and Leonardo 
 Bruni tells us that before his exile, though not very 
 wealthy, he was by no means a poor man, but had a 
 sufficient patrimony to enable him to live comfortably.^ 
 Bruni adds that, besides house property in Florence, he 
 owned land in the neighbourhood of the city, which is 
 known from other sources to have consisted of farms, vine- 
 yards, oliveyards, and plantations.* He also says, on 
 
 1 Villani, bk. ix. ch. 136. 
 
 ' " Nacque questo singulare splendore italico nella nostra citta . . . 
 ricevuto nella paterna casa da assai lieta foituna: lieta dico, secondo la 
 qualita del mondo che allora correva ' {Vita di Dante, ed. Macri-Leone, 
 § 2, p. II). 
 
 ^ " Dante innanzi la cacciata sua di Firenze, contuttoche di grandissima 
 ricchezza non fusse, nientedimeno non fu povero, ma ebbe patrimonio 
 mediocre e sufficiente al vivere onoratamente " (Vita di Dante, ed. Bru- 
 none Bianchi, 1883, p. xxii). 
 
 * See Zingarelli, Dante, p. 31. The information is derived from a docu- 
 ment (dated 15 May, 1332) relating to the division of the family property 
 
86 DANTE IN FLORENCE 
 
 Dante's own authority, that he possessed a quantity of 
 valuable furniture.^ It might be supposed consequently 
 that Dante was possessed of ample means ; but it appears, 
 not only from certain allusions in a sonnet addressed to 
 him by Forese Donati,^ but also from documentary evid- 
 ence, that even before his exile he was in embarrassed cir- 
 cumstances, and was obliged to borrow considerable sums of 
 money. Thus, on ii April, 1297, he and his half-brother, 
 Francesco, borrowed 277 J gold florins ("fiorini di buon 
 peso d' oro di Firenze ") from Andrea di Guido de' Ricci f 
 on 23 December, of the same year they borrowed 480 
 florins from Jacopo di Lotto and Pannochia di Ricco- 
 manno ; Dante further borrowed ninety florins from Perso 
 Ubaldino, and forty-six florins from Filippo di Lapo Bonac- 
 colti; these three last sums on the security of Manetto 
 Donati, Dante's father-in-law, as we learn from the will of 
 his widow, Maria, dated 17 February, 131 5.* Again, on 
 14 March, 1299, Dante borrowed 125 florins from his half- 
 brother, Francesco ; and another ninety florins from the 
 same on 1 1 June of the following year, four days before 
 he entered on his office as Prior.^ 
 
 between Dante's half-brother, Francesco, and Dante's two sons, Pietro and 
 Jacopo, which is printed by Imbriani in his Studi DantesM, pp. 86 ff. 
 
 ^ " Case in Firenze ebbe assai decenti, congiunte con le case di Gieri di 
 messer Bello suo consorto ; possession! in Camerata e nella Piacentina e in 
 piano di Ripoli ; suppellettile abbondante e preziosa, secondo egli scrive " 
 (op. oit, p. xxii). It is supposed that the letter here referred to was the 
 " epistola assai lunga," beginning " Popule mee, quid feci tibi," mentioned 
 by Bruni elsewhere as having been written by Dante to the people of Flor- 
 ence after his exile (see below, p. gi). 
 
 2 Son. liii*. in the Oxford Dante. 
 
 ^This document is printed by M. Barbi, in Bullettino della SocietA 
 Dantesca Italiana, No. 8 {1892), p 11. 
 
 * Printed by Imbriani, Studi Danteschi, pp. 406 ff. 
 
 " See Bullettino della Society Dantesca Italiana, No. 8 (1892), p. 9, 
 where Barbi prints an extract from the document already mentioned relat- 
 ing to the division of the Alighieri family property in 1332 (printed in full 
 by Imbriani, Studi Danteschi, pp. 86 ff.). 
 
DISCHARGE OF DEBTS 87 
 
 For what purpose these debts, amounting in all to more 
 than 1000 florins, were contracted there is nothing to show. 
 From the facts that in several of the loans Dante was as- 
 sociated with his half-brother, and that his father-in-law 
 was security, it may be inferred that they were incurred 
 in the family interest. At any rate, to whatever cause 
 they may have been due, they were all punctiliously dis- 
 charged after Dante's death by his half-brother, Francesco, 
 and his sons, Pietro and Jacopo, who sold sundry parcels 
 of land for the purpose, as is recorded in various docu- 
 ments still preserved in the Florentine archives.^ 
 
 ' The documents are printed by Barbi, op. cit. pp. ii ff. 
 
DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 I 302-1 32 I 
 
 Wanderings — Dante's fellow-exiles — Henry VII in Italy — His death — 
 Fresh sentence against Dante — His retirement to Ravenna — Alleged visits 
 to Mantua, Verona, and Piacenza — Reputed a Sorcerer — Death and burial 
 — His tomb and epitaphs — Elegies. 
 
 NEVER again after the sentence of banishment pro- 
 nounced against him by Cante de' Gabrielli did 
 Dante set foot within the walls of his native city. The 
 rest of his life, nearly twenty years, was spent in exile, 
 and for the most part in poverty, such as is foretold to 
 him by his ancestor Cacciaguida in the Heaven of Mars : 
 " Thou shalt leave every thing beloved most dearly ; and 
 this is the shaft which the bow of exile first lets fly. 
 Thou shalt prove how salt the taste is of another's bread, 
 and how hard a path it is to go up and down another's 
 stairs." ' 
 
 In a passage at the beginning of the Convivio Dante 
 gives a pathetic account of the miseries and mortifications 
 
 ^ Paradiso, xvii. 55-60. It is most natural to suppose that among the 
 " things beloved most dearly " left behind in Florence Dante intended to 
 include his wife. But this is not admitted by those who hold that Dante's 
 marriage was an unhappy one. 
 
 88 
 
WANDERINGS 89 
 
 he endured during his wanderings as an exile. " Alas," 
 he says, " would it had pleased the Dispenser of the Uni- 
 verse that I should never have had to make excuses for 
 myself; that neither others had sinned against me, nor I 
 had suffered this punishment unjustly, the punishment I 
 say of exile and of poverty ! Since it was the pleasure of the 
 citizens of the fairest and most renowned daughter of 
 Rome, Florence, to cast me out from her most sweet bosom 
 (wherein I was born and brought up to the climax of my 
 life, and wherein I long with all my heart, with their good 
 leave, to repose my wearied spirit, and to end the days 
 allotted to me), wandering as a stranger through almost 
 every region to which our language reaches, I have gone 
 about as a beggar, showing against my will the wound of 
 fortune, which is often wont to be imputed unjustly to the 
 fault of him who is stricken, Verily I have been as a ship 
 without sails and without rudder, driven to various harbours 
 and shores by the parching wind which blows from pinching 
 poverty. And I have appeared vile in the eyes of many, 
 who, perhaps from some report of me, had imagined me 
 in a different guise." ^ 
 
 Elsewhere, in another of his works, he expresses his pity 
 for those who, like himself, languish in exile, and revisit 
 their home only in their dreams.^ 
 
 Of Dante's movements from the time of his banishment 
 very little is known for certain. Leonardo Bruni says 
 that when the tidings of his ruin reached him at Rome, 
 he hastened back to Tuscany and went to Siena, where 
 he learned further particulars of his sentence, and conse- 
 quently determined to make common cause with the other 
 exiles. He certainly appears at first to have thrown in his 
 lot with the rest, and to have looked, like them, to a return 
 
 ' Convivio, i. 3, 11. 15-40. 
 
 ^ De Vulgari Eloqnentia, ii. 6, II. 36-g. 
 
90 DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 to Florence by forcible means. To this end they assembled 
 at Gargonza, a castle of the Ubertini between Arezzo and 
 Siena, and decided to enter into an alliance with the 
 Ghibellines of Tuscany and Romagna, fixing their head- 
 quarters at Arezzo, where they remained until 1304. 
 Dante, at any rate, was present at a meeting of the exiles, 
 held on 8 June, 1 302, in the church of San Godenzo, in 
 the Tuscan Apennines, about twenty miles from Florence, 
 when a convention was entered into with the Ubaldini, 
 the ancient enemies of Florence. 
 
 In the prophecy of Cacciaguida, already referred to, 
 Dante is warned that what should gall him most would 
 be the folly and wickedness of the company into which he 
 should be thrown; and it is foretold to him that he 
 should after a while dissociate himself from the rest of 
 the exiles, and make a party for himself.^ At what 
 particular juncture Dante did dissociate himself from his 
 fellow-exiles we cannot tell. It was probably before the 
 summer of 1304, for in July of that year the exiles, dis- 
 appointed in their expectations of a peaceable return to 
 Florence through the mediation of Cardinal Niccolo da 
 Prato, the legate of Benedict XI (who had recently suc- 
 ceeded Boniface VIII), made an abortive attempt from 
 Lastra, in concert with the Pistojans, to effect an entry 
 into the city — an attempt from which Dante appears to 
 have held aloof. 
 
 There is evidence of his having been at Forli in 1 303,^ 
 and it was doubtless about this time that he separated 
 himself from "the worthless and vile company" of his 
 fellow-exiles ; not long after which he took refuge with 
 
 1 Paradiso, xvii. 61-9. 
 
 ^ This is supplied by Flavio Biondo in his Historiae ah inclinato 
 Romano Imperio (see BuUettino delta Society Dantesca Italiana, No. 8 
 (1892), pp. 21-8, where the evidence is discussed by M. Barbi). 
 
AT VERONA AND SARZANA 91 
 
 one of the Scaliger family, most probably Bartolommeo 
 della Scala, at Verona, which Cacciaguida foretells to him 
 as his "first refugej".^ "Here," writes Leonardo Bruni, 
 "he was very courteously received, and remained some 
 time, being now become very humble and seeking by 
 good deeds and good behaviour to win back the favour 
 of being allowed to return to Florence by a spontaneous 
 recall from the Government of the city. To this end he 
 laboured much, and wrote many times, not only to indivi- 
 dual members of the Government, but also to the people ; 
 and amongst the rest was a long letter beginning, ' My 
 people, what have I done to you ? ' " ^ 
 
 How long Dante remained at Verona is not known. It 
 is impossible, for lack of information, to follow him with 
 any certainty in his wanderings, which, as he records in 
 the above-quoted passage of the Convivio, took him into 
 nearly every part of Italy, It is presumed, from a legal 
 document ' still in existence, that he was at Padua on 27 
 August, 1306; and from others* it is known that he was 
 shortly after (on 6 October in the same year) at Sarzana 
 in Lunigiana as agent for the Malaspini, where he was the 
 guest of Franceschino Malaspina. This visit to the Mala- 
 spini, " the honoured race which ceaises not to be adorned 
 with the glory of the purse and of the sword," is foretold to 
 Dante by Currado Malaspina, Franceschino's first cousin, 
 
 ^Paradiso, xvii. 70-2. 
 
 ^ Vita di Dante, ed. cit. pp. xx.-xxxi. No other trace of this letter has 
 been preserved. 
 
 ' See Imbriani, Studi Danteschi, pp. 383-8. There is, however, grave 
 reason to doubt whether the " Dantinus quondam Alligerii de Florentia " 
 mentioned in this document can be Dante, since a " Dantinus " (presum- 
 ably the same) is mentioned again several times in Paduan documents 
 many years after Dante's death, e.g. in 1339, 1345, 1348, and 1350 (see 
 Zingarelli, Dante, p. 214). 
 
 ^See Annual Report of the Cambridge (U.S.A.) Dante Society for 
 1892 (pp. 15-24). 
 
92 DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 whom he meets in Purgatory.^ Dante on this occasion 
 acted as procurator for the Malaspini family in their nego- 
 tiations for peace with their neighbour, the Bishop of Luni, 
 which by Dante's means was successfully concluded. The 
 duration of his stay in Lunigiana is uncertain, but it prob- 
 ably did not last beyond the summer of 1 307. 
 
 His movements during the next few years are largely 
 a matter of conjecture. Some of his biographers state 
 that he went from Lunigiana to the Casentino (the upper 
 valley of the Arno above Florence) and to Forli ^ again, 
 and returned once more to Lunigiana ^ on his way to 
 * Paris. That Dante visited Paris during his exile is stated 
 both by Boccaccio and by Villani in his chronicle,* but at 
 what precise period this visit took place it is impossible to 
 say. Some are inclined to believe, from a phrase in a Latin 
 poem addressed to Petrarch by Boccaccio, that Dante 
 
 ^ Purgatorio, Viii. 118-34. 
 
 " See BuUettino delta SocietcL Dantesca Italiana, No. 8 (1892), p. 27. 
 
 ^ To this period (about 1308) is usually assigned Dante's supposed visit 
 to the Camaldolese Monastery of Santa Croce del Corvo in Lunigiana, an 
 account of which is given in a letter (of doubtful authenticity) from Frate 
 Ilario, one of the monks, to the Ghibelline leader, Uguccione della Faggi- 
 uola. According to the writer, Dante presented himself at the monastery, 
 and, being asked what he sought, answered " Peace ". The monk then 
 entered into conversation with Dante, who presently produced a book 
 (the Inferno) from his bosom, and gave it to him with a request that he 
 would forward it to Uguccione, adding that if Uguccione desired to see 
 the other two parts of the poem, he would find them in the hands of the 
 Marquis Moroello Malaspina and King Frederick of Sicily (to whom re- 
 spectively the Purgatorio and Paradise are said to have been dedicated). 
 This letter has long been regarded as a forgery, possibly from the hand 
 of Boccaccio. But recent investigations have proved that at any rate 
 Boccaccio cannot have forged it, and there is now a tendency to accept it 
 as genuine (see Wicksteed and Gardner, Dante and Giovanni del Virgilio, 
 igo2, pp. 326-34 ; and Rajna, La Lettera di Frate Ilario, Perugia, 1904;. 
 A translation of this letter, which was written in Latin, is given in Ap. 
 ' idix B. 
 
 * Bk. ix. ch. 136. 
 
IN TUSCANY 93 
 
 came to England ; ^ and it is even stated by Giovanni da 
 Serravalle, a fifteenth-century writer, that he studied in 
 the University of Oxford,^ but this is extremely doubtful. 
 
 There seems little doubt that Dante was in Italy between 
 September, 1310, and January, 131 1, when he addressed a 
 letter to the Princes and Peoples of Italy on the advent of 
 the Emperor Henry VII into Italy, — the Emperor through 
 whose means Dante hoped to be restored to Florence. 
 "Lo! now is the acceptable time," he writes, "wherein 
 arise the signs of consolation and peace. For a new day 
 is beginning to break, showing forth the dawn, which even 
 now is dispersing the darkness of our long night of tribula- 
 tion ; already the breezes from the East are springing up, 
 the face of the heavens grows rosy, and confirms the hopes 
 of the peoples with a peaceful calm. And we too, who 
 have long kept vigil through the night in the desert, we too 
 shall behold the looked-for joy." ' 
 
 He was certainly in Tuscany (probably as the guest of 
 Guido Novello of Battifolle^t-the-castle-ef-^eppilin the 
 Casentino) when he wrote his terrible letter to the Floren- 
 tines, dated "from the springs of the Arno," 31 March, 
 131 1, after he learned that they were preparing to resist 
 the Emperor by force. In this letter,* which is headed 
 " Dante Alighieri, a Florentine and undeservedly an exile, 
 to the most iniquitous Florentines within the city," he 
 uses no measured terms, and does not hesitate to threaten 
 
 . ' " Novisti forsan et ipse 
 
 Traxerit ut juvenem * Phcebus per celsa nivosi 
 Cyrrheos, mediosque sinus tacitosque recessus 
 Naturae, coelique vias terraeque marisque, 
 Aonios fontes, Farnasi culmen, et antra 
 Julia, Pariseos dudum serusque Britannos." 
 ^ " Dilexit theologiam sacram, in qua diu studuit tam in Oxoniis in regno 
 Angliae, quam Parisiis in regno Franciae." 
 
 ^ Epistola V. § I. * Epistola vi. 
 
 * I.e. Dantem. 
 
94 DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 the Florentines with the direct vengeance of the Emperor. 
 " You," he thunders, " you, who transgress every law of 
 God and man, and whom the insatiable maw of avarice 
 urges headlong into every crime, does not the dread of the 
 second death haunt you, seeing that you first and you 
 alone, refusing the yoke of liberty, have set yourselves 
 against the glory of the Roman Emperor, the king of the 
 earth, and the servant of God ? The hope which you 
 vainly cherish in your madness will not be furthered by 
 this rebellion of yours, but by your resistance the just 
 wrath of the king at his coming will be but the more in- 
 flamed against you. If my prophetic spirit be not deceived, 
 your city, worn out with long sufferings, shall be delivered 
 at the last into the hands of the stranger, after the greatest 
 part of you has been destroyed in death or in captivity, 
 and the few that shall be left to endure exile shall witness 
 her downfall with weeping and lamentation." ^ 
 
 From the same place a few weeks later (on i6 April), 
 Dante addressed a letter to the Emperor himself, who was 
 at that time besieging Cremona, urging him to lay every- 
 thing else aside, and to come and crush without further 
 delay the viper Florence, as the most obstinate and 
 dangerous rebel against the Imperial authority. From 
 this letter it appears that Dante had been present at the 
 coronation of Henry with the iron crown at Milan, on 
 the day of Epiphany (6 January, 131 1), when ambas- 
 sadors were sent from nearly every city of Italy, except 
 Florence and her allies. " I too, who write for myself as 
 well as for others, have beheld thee most gracious, as be- 
 seems Imperial Majesty, and have heard thee most 
 clement, when my hands touched thy feet, and my lips 
 paid their tribute." ^ 
 
 On 2 September of this same year (1311) was issued at 
 ^Epistola vi. §§ 2, 3, 4. " Epistola vii. § 2. 
 
HENRY VII. IN ITALY 95 
 
 Florence a proclamation ^ (known as the " Riforma di 
 Messer Baldo d' Aguglione," from the name of the Prior 
 who was responsible for it), offering pardon to a portion of 
 the Florentine exiles, but expressly excepting certain 
 others by name. Among these names was that of Dante 
 Alighieri, whose exclusion was no doubt largely due to 
 the letters mentioned above, and to his active sympathy 
 with the Imperial cause. To this proclamation the Em- 
 peror issued a counterblast in the following December 
 from Genoa, in the shape of an edict declaring Florence to 
 be outside the pale of the Empire, which was followed by 
 another from Poggibonsi in February, 1 3 1 3, containing the 
 names of more than 600 Florentine citizens and subjects, 
 who were branded as rebels. 
 
 Nothing is known of Dante's whereabouts during these 
 years of deferred hopes and disappointments. Leonardo 
 Bruni states,^ apparently on the authority of a letter of 
 Dante's which has not been preserved, that when the 
 Emperor advanced against Florence and laid siege to the 
 city (in the autumn of 13 12), Dante out of reverence for 
 his native place would not accompany him, although he 
 had urged him to the attack. Dante had scoffed at the 
 idea that the Florentines could stand up against the 
 Imperial host. " Do you trust," he had written in the 
 letter already quoted,^ " do you tnist in your defence, 
 because you are girt by a contemptible rampart ? What 
 shall it avail you to have girt you with a rampart, and to have 
 
 ' The text is printed by Del Lungo in Dell' Esilio di Daftte, pp. 
 107 ff. 
 
 'Vita di Dante, ed. cit. p. xxi: "II tenne tanto la riverenza della 
 patria, che, venendo 1' imperadore contro a Firenze e ponendosi a campo 
 presso alia porta, non vi voile essere, secondo lui scrive, contuttoche 
 confortatore fusse stato di sua venuta " 
 
 ^Epistola vi. § 3. 
 
96 DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 fortified yourselves with bulwarks and with battlements,^ 
 when, terrible in gold, the eagle shall swoop down upon 
 you, which, soaring now over the Pyrenees, now over 
 Caucasus, now over Atlas, borne up by the breath of the 
 soldiery of heaven, gazed down of old upon the vast 
 expanse of ocean in its flight ? " 
 
 But the Imperial eagle was obliged to retire baffled, 
 leaving the viper uncrushed ; and in the following year, 
 while the Emperor was marching southward against 
 Naples, he was suddenly seized with sickness at Buon- 
 convento near Siena, where he died on 24 August, 13 13. 
 The news of his death was received with savage exultation 
 by the Florentines.^ To Dante it meant the final aban- 
 
 1 " The Florentines,'' says Villani, " fearing the coming of the Emperor, 
 resolved to enclose the city with moats from the Porta San Gallo to the 
 Porta Santo Ambrogio, and thence to the Arno ; and then from the Porta 
 San Gallo to. the Porta dal Prato d' Ognissanti, where the walls were 
 already begun, they had them raised eight cubits. And this work was 
 done at once and very quickly ; and it was without doubt the salvation ol 
 the city, for it had been all open, the old walls having been in great part 
 pulled down, and the materials sold" (bk. ix. ch. lo). 
 
 ^ A few days after the event the following letter was addressed by the 
 Signoria of Florence to their allies announcing the news : " To you our 
 faithful brethren, with the greatest rejoicing in the world we announce by 
 these presents the blessed news, which our Lord Jesus Christ, looking down 
 from on high' as well to the necessities of ourselves, and other true and 
 faithful Christians, the devoted servants of Holy Mother Church, as to 
 those of His own cause, has vouchsafed to us. To wit, that the most 
 savage tyrant, Henry, late Count of Luxemburg, whom the rebellious 
 persecutors from old time of said Mother Church, namely the Ghibellines, 
 the treacherous foes of you and of ourselves, called King of the Romans, 
 and Emperor of Germany, and who under cover of the Empire had already 
 consumed and laid waste no small part of the Provinces of Lombardy and 
 Tuscany, ended his life on Friday last, the twenty-fourth day of this 
 month of August, in the territory of Buonconvento. Know further, that 
 the Aretines and the Ghibelline Conti Guidi have retired themselves 
 towards Arezzo, and the Pisans and Germans towards Pisa taking his 
 body, and all the Ghibellines who were with him have taken refuge in 
 the strongholds of their allies in the neighbourhood. . . . We beseech 
 
LETTER TO THE ITALIAN CARDINALS 97 
 
 donment of any hope of a return to Florence. " On the 
 Emperor Henry's death," writes Bruni, "every hope of 
 Dante's was utterly destroyed ; for he had himself closed 
 up the way to forgiveness by his abusive writings against 
 the government of the commonwealth ; and there was no 
 longer any hope of return by force.'' 
 
 Where Dante was when the fatal news reached him, and 
 what his movements were at this time, is not known. 
 After the death of Clement V, on 20 April, 13 14, Dante 
 addressed a letter ^ to the Italian cardinals in conclave at 
 Carpentras, rebuking them for their backslidings and cor- 
 ruption, and calling upon them to make amends by electing 
 an Italian Pope, who should restore the Papal See to Rome. 
 At some date subsequent to 14 June of that year, when 
 Lucca fell into the hands of the Ghibelline captain, Uguc- 
 cione della Faggiuola, Dante appears to have been in that 
 city ; and it has been conjectured that it may have been 
 during this stay that he formed the attachment for a 
 Lucchese lady named Gentucca, which is supposed to be 
 alluded to by Bonagiunta in Purgatory.^ What was the 
 real nature of his relations with this lady, who has been 
 identified with a certain Gentucca Morla,' wife of Cosciorino 
 Fondora of Lucca, we have no means of ascertaining. 
 
 you, therefore, dear brethren, to rejoice with ourselves over so great and 
 fortunate accidents." 
 
 (The original Latin text of this letter is printed by F. Bonaini, in Acta 
 Henrici VII Romanorum Imperatoris et Monumenta qucedam alia 
 suorum temporum historiam illustrantia, 1877, vol. ii. p. ccclxv; an 
 Italian translation is given by Del Lungo, in Dino Comfagni e la sua 
 Cronica, 1880, vol. i. pp. 637-8. 
 
 ' Epistola viii. 
 
 'Purgatorio, xxiv. 37, 43-5. 
 
 ' This Gentucca was the daughter of Ciucchino di Guglielmo di Morla of 
 
 Lucca. Her husband, Buonaccorso di Lazzaro di Fondora (familiarly 
 
 knovm as Coscio or Cosciorino Fondora) several times mentions her in 
 
 his will (dated 15 December, 13 17). Dante's (jentVicga is identified with 
 
 7 
 
98 DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 In August, 1 3 1 5, the Ghibellines under the leadership of 
 Uguccione della Faggiuola, completely defeated the Flor- 
 entines and Tuscan Guelfs at Monte Catini, between Lucca 
 and Pistoja. This event was followed by a fresh sentence 
 from Florence against the exiled Whites. In this sent- 
 ence,i which is dated 6 November, 131 5, Dante and those 
 named with him, including Dante's sons this time, were 
 branded as Ghibellines and rebels, and condemned, if 
 captured, " to be taken to the place of justice (i.e. the 
 place of public execution), and there to have their heads 
 struck from their shoulders, so that they die outright." 
 On 2 June in the next year, however, an amnesty was 
 proclaimed by the Florentine chief magistrate, Lando of 
 Gubbio,^ and permission was granted to the majority of the 
 exiles to return to Florence, under certain degrading con- 
 ditions, including the payment of a fine and the perform- 
 ance of penance in the Baptistery. From this amnesty 
 all the exiles who had been originally condemned by the 
 Podesta, Cante de' Gabrielli, among whom of course was 
 Dante, were expressly excluded. Many of the exiles ap- 
 pear to have accepted the terms ; but Dante, who seems 
 at first to have been unaware of his exclusion, scornfully 
 rejected them. 
 
 " Is this, then," he writes to a friend in Florence, " is 
 this the generous recall of Dante Alighieri to his native 
 
 this lady on the strength of the statement of an early commentary on the 
 Divina Commedia (as yet unpublished), confirmed by documentary evidence 
 (see C. Minutoli, Gentucca e gli altri Lucchesi nominati nella D. C, in 
 Dante e il suo Secolo, pp. 221-31). 
 
 ' The text is printed by Del Lungo in Dell' Esilio di Dante, pp. 148 ff. 
 
 » This man, who bore the title of " bargello " is described by Villani (bk. 
 ix. ch. 76) as " uomo carnefice e crudele "- He was appointed chief magis- 
 trate in May, 1316, but was displaced in the following October by Count 
 Guido of BattifoUe, who was appointed Vipar iri Flprence by King Robert 
 of Naples, 
 
LETTER TO A FLORENTINE FRIEND 99 
 
 city, after the miseries of nearly fifteen years of exile ? Is 
 this the reward of innocence manifest to all the world, of 
 unceasing sweat and toil in study ? Far be it from the 
 friend of philosophy, so senseless a degradation, befitting 
 only a soul of clay, as to submit himself to be paraded like 
 a prisoner, as some infamous wretches have done ! Far 
 be it from the advocate of justice, after being wronged, to 
 pay tribute to them that wronged him, as though they had 
 deserved well of him ! No ! this is not the way for me 
 to return to my country. If another can be found which 
 does not derogate from the fame and honour of Dante, 
 that will I take with no lagging steps. But if by no such 
 way Florence may be entered, then will il re-enter Flor- 
 ence never. What ! can I not everywhere gaze upon the 
 sun and the stars ? can I not under any sky meditate on 
 the most precious truths, without first rendering myself 
 inglorious, nay ignominious, in the eyes of the people and 
 city of Florence ? Nay, bread will not fail me ! " ^ 
 
 After again seeking shelter with the Scaligers at Verona, 
 this time as the guest of Can Grande della Scala, Dante, 
 on the invitation of Guido Novello da Polenta, went to 
 Ravenna (probably in 13 17 or 1318), " where," says Boc- 
 caccio, " he was honourably received by the lord of that 
 city, who revived his fallen hopes with kindly encourage- 
 ment, and, giving him abundantly such things as he 
 needed, kept him there at his court for many years, nay, 
 even to the end of his days ".^ At Ravenna, his last re- 
 fuge, where his sons Pietro and Jacopo and his daughter 
 Beatrice resided with him, Dante appears to have lived in 
 
 1 Epistola ix. §§ 3, 4. A critical text of this letter is printed in the 
 Bullettino della Societa Dantesca Italiana, N.S. (1905), xii. 122-3, by A. 
 della Torre, who points out that the correct reading at the beginning of 
 § 3 is not, as hitherto usually printed, reuocatio gloriosa, but reiiocntig 
 generosa, 
 
 ^ Vita di Dante, ei, Ma?rs-Leone, § 5, p. 30. 
 
loo DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 congenial company ; ^ and here he put the finishing touches 
 to his " sacred poem," the Divina Commedia, his work upon 
 which he tells us " had made him lean for many years ".^ 
 
 Boccaccio states that at Ravenna many scholars came 
 to Dante for instruction in the poetic art, especially in ver- 
 nacular poetry, which he first brought into repute among 
 Italians.^ While he was here, after the Inferno and Pur- 
 gatorio had been completed and made public, Dante was 
 invited by a poet and professor of Bologna, Giovanni del 
 Virgilio, in a Latin poem,* to come and receive the laurel 
 crown at Bologna. To this suggestion Dante sent a reply 
 in the form of a Latin eclogue ^ declining the invitation, 
 the laurel having no attraction for him unless conferred 
 by his own fellow-citizens in the same Baptistery where as 
 a child he had received the name which he was to make 
 so famous. 
 
 At the end of 13 19 or beginning of 1320 Dante appears 
 to have paid a visit to Mantua, on which occasion a dis- 
 
 1 Among Dante's friends and acquaintances at Ravenna the names have 
 been preserved of Dino Perini, a young notary of Florence (see Ricci, 
 L' Ultimo Rifugio di Dante, pp. gg ff.), and Fiduccio de' Milotti, a 
 physician of Certaldo (see Ricci, op. cit. pp. 100 ff.), who figure respectively 
 as Meliboeus and Alphesiboeus in Dante's Latin eclogues (see below, 
 pp. 254-6). Another friend was Menghino Mezzano, a notary (and, 
 apparently, later an ecclesiastic) of Ravenna, who wrote an epitaph on 
 Dante, and whose intimacy with the poet is attested by Coluccio Salutati 
 (see below, p. 105 ; and Ricci, op. cit, pp. 218 ff.). Yet another ac- 
 quaintance is said to have been Bernardo Canaccio, of Bologna, the 
 author of the epitaph inscribed on Dante's tomb (" Jura Monarchiae," 
 etc.) (see below, p. 105 ; and Ricci, op, cit. pp. 237 ff.). Besides these, 
 Boccaccio mentions Piero di Giardino (see below, pp. 103, 119; and 
 Ricci, op. cit. pp. 209 ff.). 
 
 ^ Paradiso, xxv. 1-3. 
 
 ' Vita di Dante, ed. cit. § 6, p. 31. 
 
 ^ Printed in the Oxford Dante, pp. 185-6. 
 
 * Printed in the Oxford Dante, pp. 186-7. As to the genuineness of this 
 poetical correspondence between Giovanni del Virgilio and Dante, see be- 
 low p. 252. 
 
DANTE REPUTED A SORCERER loi 
 
 cussion was started as to the relative levels of land and 
 water on the surface of the globe. Dante subsequently 
 wrote a treatise on the subject (if we may trust the evi- 
 dence of the treatise De Aqua et Terra ^ traditionally as- 
 cribed to him), which was delivered as a public dissertation 
 at Verona, on 20 January, 1320. 
 
 From the mention of Dante's name in a document 
 lately discovered in the Vatican ^ it has been inferred^ that 
 Dante was at Piacenza some time in 13 19 or 1320. The 
 document in question, which is incomplete, contains the 
 account of a process instituted at the Papal Court at Avig- 
 non against Matteo Visconti of Milan, and his son Gale- 
 azzo,' for an attempt upon the life of Pope John XXII by 
 means of sorcery. The story of the episode, which is an 
 exceedingly curious one, as showing that in his own life- 
 time Dante had the reputation of a sorcerer, is briefly as 
 follows. In October, 13 19, Matteo Visconti sent for a 
 certain Bartolommeo Canolati who was reputed to be an 
 adept in the black art, and showed him a small silver figure 
 of a man, on the forehead of which was written " Jacobus * 
 papa Johannes". He then explained to Bartolommeo 
 that he wanted him to apply to this image ^ the requisite 
 " fumigations " and incantations to ensure the death of the 
 
 1 See below, pp. 256 ff. 
 
 ^See Giornale Dantesco, iv. 126-30. 
 
 ^ This is the Galeazzo who is referred to by Dante in Purgatorio, viii. 
 79-81, in connection with his marriage to Beatrice of Este, the widow of 
 Nino Visconti of Pisa. 
 
 * The Pope's name was Jacques D' Euse. 
 
 ° Dante refers in the Divina Commedia to the practice of witchcraft 
 upon people by means of images made in their likeness. Speaking of the 
 witches in Malebolge, he says " Fecer malie con erbe e con imago " (Inf. 
 XX. 123) ; upon which the Anonimo Fiorentino comments : " Puossi fare 
 malie per virtii di certe erbe medianti alcune parole, o per imagini di cera 
 d' altro fatte in certi punti et per certo modo che, tenendo queste imagini 
 al fuoco o ficcando loro spilletti nel capo, cosi pare che senta colui a cui 
 imagine elle son fatte, come la imagine che si strugga al fuoco," 
 
102 DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 Pope, who was his bitter enemy.^ Bartolommeo declared 
 that he did not know how to do anything of the sort, but 
 being taxed with having in his possession a powerful drug 
 adapted for the purpose, he admitted that he had once had 
 it, but protested that at the bidding of a friar he had 
 thrown it all away. Matteo thereupon dismissed him 
 with an injunction to hold his tongue, on pain of death. 
 Bartolommeo, however, divulged what he had seen, and 
 the matter came to the ears of the Pope, who summoned 
 him to Avignon, where he was examined before three 
 cardinals, one of whom was Bertrand du Pouget, the same 
 who subsequently condemned Dante's De Monarchia to the 
 flames.^ As the result of this inquisition, in the following 
 February proceedings were initiated against the Visconti 
 for conspiring against the life of the Pope. Meanwhile 
 another sorcerer whom Matteo had employed having failed 
 to produce any effect by his incantations, Galeazzo sent 
 for Bartolommeo to Piacenza, and repeated the proposal 
 that he should practise on the image. By way of putting 
 him on his mettle Galeazzo told him that he had sent for 
 Maestro Dante Alighieri of Florence to perform the task, 
 but that he had far rather that Bartolommeo should under- 
 take it, as he had no wish to let Dante have any hand in 
 the matter.^ The record states that Bartolommeo said 
 
 i"Vide Bartholomee, ecce istara ymaginem quam feci fieri ad de- 
 structioneAi istius pape qui me persequitui, et est necessarium quod sub- 
 fumigetur, et quia tu scis facere subfumigationem in talibus, volo quod 
 tu facias subfumigationes isti ymagini cum solemnitatibus convenientibus." 
 
 ^See below, p. 232. 
 
 ' " Galeas dixit eidem Bartholomeo ; Scias quod ego feci venire ad 
 me magistrum Dante Alegriro {sic) de Florencia pro isto eodem negocio 
 pro quo rogo te. Cui Bartholomeus dixit: Sciatis quod multum placet 
 michi quod ille faciat ea que petitis. Cui Bartholomeo dictus Galeas dixit : 
 Scias Bartholomee quod pro aliqua re de mundo ego non sustinerem quod 
 dictus Dante Alegiro (sic) in predictas poneret manum suam vel aliquid 
 faceret nee revelarem sibi istud negocium qui daret michi mille floreni [sic) 
 auri, quia volo quod tu facias, quia de te multum confido." 
 
DEATH AT RAVENNA 103 
 
 he would think the matter over — but the sequel to the_ 
 story is lost. If Galeazzo's statement about Dante is^ 
 be taken literally it would appear that Dante was in Pia- 
 cenza somewhere about the date of this transaction, towards 
 the end of 13 19 or the beginning of 1320. 
 
 In the summer of 1321, a difference having arisen be- 
 tween Ravenna and Venice, on account of an affray in 
 which several Venetian sailors were killed, Guido da Pol- 
 enta sent an embassy to the Doge of Venice, of which 
 Dante was a member. The ambassadors were ill received 
 by the Venetians, who, it is said, refused them permission 
 to return by sea, and obliged them to make the journey 
 overland along the malarious seaboard. The consequences 
 to Dante were fatal, for he contracted a fever (as is sup- 
 posed) on the way, and, growing worse after his return to 
 Ravenna, died in that city on 14 September, 1321, aged 
 fifty-six years and four months.^ At Ravenna Dante was 
 buried, and there, " by the upbraiding shore," his remains 
 still rest, in spite of repeated efforts on the part of Florence 
 
 ' Boccaccio in his comment on the opening line of the Commedia, has 
 an interesting note as to Dante's age at the time of his death, which 
 proves incidentally how carefully Boccaccio made his inquiries with re- 
 gard to the details of Dante's life. " That Dante was thirty-five," he says, 
 " at the time when he first awakened to the error of his ways is confirmed 
 by what was told me by a worthy man, named Ser Piero, son of M. Giar- 
 dino of Ravenna, who was one of Dante's most intimate friends and ser- 
 vants at Ravenna. He affirmed that he had it from Dante, while he was 
 lying sick of the illness of which he died, that he had passed his fifty-sixth 
 year by as many months as from the previous May to that day. And it 
 is well known that Dante died on the fourteenth day of September in the 
 year 1321 " {Comento, i. 104-5). Inasmuch as Giovanni del Virgilio and 
 Menghino Mezzano in their epitaphs on Dante speak of his death as hav- 
 ing taken place " septembris idibus," some suppose that he actually died 
 on the evening of 13 September (see Corrado Ricci, L' Ultimo Rifugio di 
 Dante, pp. 157-8). It is probable, however, that the exigencies of metre 
 had more weight with these writers than considerations of scrupulous ac- 
 curacy. 
 
I04 DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 to secure possession of " the metaphorical ashes of the man 
 of whom they had threatened to make literal cinders if 
 they could catch him alive "} 
 
 " The noble knight, Guido da Polenta," writes Boccac- 
 cio, " placed the dead body of Dante, adorned with the 
 insignia of a poet,^ upon a funeral bier, and caused it to be 
 borne upon the shoulders of his most reverend citizens to 
 the place of the Minor Friars in Ravenna, with such 
 honour as he deemed worthy of the illustrious dead. And 
 having followed him to this place, in the midst of a public 
 lamentation, Guido had the body laid in a sarcophagus of 
 stone, wherein it reposes to this day. Afterwards return- 
 ing to the house where Dante had formerly lived, accord- 
 ing to the custom of Ravenna, Guido himself pronounced 
 a long and ornate discourse, as well in commendation of 
 the great learning and virtue of the dead man, as for the 
 consolation of his friends whom he had left to mourn him 
 in bitter sorrow. And Guido purposed, had his estate 
 and life endured, to honour Dante with so splendid a tomb, 
 that if no other merit of his had kept his name alive 
 among future generations, this memorial alone would have 
 preserved it. This laudable purpose was in a brief space 
 made known to certain who at that time were the most 
 renowned poets in Romagna ; so that each, not only to 
 exhibit his own powers, but also to testify to the love he 
 bore toward the dead poet, and to win ithe grace and 
 favour of the lord Guido, who they were aware had this 
 at his heart — each, I say, composed an epitaph in verse 
 for inscription on the tomb that was to be, which with 
 fitting praise should make known to posterity what 
 
 1 J. R. Lowell. 
 
 2 The remains of laurel leaves, no doubt the relics of the poet's wreath, 
 were found in the tomb when it was opened at the beginning of the six- 
 teenth century, and again in 1865 (see below, pp. 113, 117). 
 
DANTE'S TOMB AT RAVENNA 105 
 
 manner of man he was who lay within. And these verses 
 they sent to the illustrious lord, who through the evil stroke 
 of Fortune not long after lost his estate and died at 
 Bologna; on which account the making of the tomb 
 and the inscription of the verses thereon was left un- 
 done." ^ 
 
 Boccaccio goes on to say that many years afterwards 
 he was shown some of t^ie verses which had been com- 
 posed for Dante's epitaph, but that he did not consider 
 any of them worthy of preservation, saving only fourteen 
 lines by Giovanni del Virgilio of Bologna, which he trans- 
 scribes.^ The sarcophagus (no doubt an ancient one) in 
 which Dante's remains were deposited by Guido da 
 Polenta was apparently left without any inscription until 
 late in the fourteenth century. It is known, from the re- 
 cord of an eye-witness, that in the year 1378 there were 
 two epitaphs inscribed upon the tomb.* One of these, 
 consisting of six hexameters,* was by Menghino Mezzano 
 of Ravenna, a contemporary and frierid of Dante ; ^ the 
 other, consisting of three rhyming hexameter couplets, was 
 by a certain Bernardo Canaccio, who is conjectured also 
 to have been personally acquainted with Dante. This 
 second epitaph, which runs as follows : — 
 
 1 Vita di Dante, ed. Macri-Leone, § 6, pp. 32-3. 
 
 ^ It was long supposed that these lines (Latin elegiacs, beginning : 
 " Theologus Dantes, nuUius dogmatis expers ") were inscribed on Dante's 
 tomb, but Corrado Ricci has shown that this was not the case (see 
 L' Ultimo Rifugio di Dante, pp. 252 ff.). 
 
 ' See Ricci, op. cit. p. 259. 
 
 ■* Beginning : " Inclita fama cuius universum penetrat orbem ". 
 
 ' Coluccio Salutati, in a letter written from Florence on 2 October, 
 I399i speaks of him as " notus quondam familiaris et socius Dantis nostri," 
 and says that he was a close student of the Divina Commedia, on which 
 he believed him to have written a commentary (see F. Novati, Epistolario 
 di Coluccio Salutati, vol. iii. p. 374). 
 
io6 DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 Jura Monarchiae superos Phlegetonta lacusque 
 Lustrando cecini voluerunt fata quousque ; 
 Sed quia pars cessit melioribus hospita castris 
 Actoremque suum petiit felicior astris, 
 Hie claudor Dantes patriis extorris ab oris 
 Quem genuit parvi Florentia mater amoris.i — 
 
 was till comparatively recently supposed to have been 
 written by Dante himself. The real author, however, was 
 established to be Bernardo Canaccio by the discovery 
 about fifty years ago of a passage in a fourteenth century 
 manuscript of the Commedia, in the Bodleian Library at 
 Oxford, in which the lines are ascribed to him by name.^ 
 Dante's burial-place, left incomplete, as Boccaccio re- 
 cords, owing to the misfortunes which overtook Guido da 
 Polenta, appears to have been neglected and to have gradu- 
 ally fallen into decay. The tomb was restored in 1483 
 by Bernardo Bembo (father of the celebrated cardinal, 
 Pietro Bembo), who was at that -time Praetor , of the 
 Venetian Republic in Ravenna. He entrusted the work 
 to the Venetian sculptor and architect, Pietro Lombardi, 
 who, among other things, recarved the face of the sarco- 
 phagus, and inscribed upon it the epitaph of Canaccio 
 mentioned above, to which the letters S. V. F.' were pre- 
 fixed, evidently under the impression that the author of 
 
 ' Englished as follows by the English traveller, Fynes Moryson, when 
 he was at Ravenna in 1594 : — 
 
 The Monarchies, Gods, Lakes, and Phlegeton, 
 
 I searcht and sung, while my Fates did permit ; 
 
 But since my better part to heaven is gone, 
 
 And with his Maker mongst the starres doth sit, 
 
 I Dantes a poore banished man lie here, 
 
 Whom Florence Mother of scant Love did beare. 
 
 For " scant " in the last line Moryson (or his printers) substituted 
 " sweet " (see Itinerary, ed. 1617, part i. p. 95). 
 
 2 See Ricci, op. cit. p. 264. 
 
 3 That is, " Sibi Vivens Fecit ". 
 
DANTE S TOMB AT RAVENNA 
 
ELEGIES ON DANTE'S DEATH 107 
 
 the lines was Dante himself; while the epitaph of 
 Menghino Mezzano was omitted. 
 
 Much of the work executed by Lombardi under Bembo's 
 directions, including the inscribed epitaph, and the marble 
 relief of Dante reading at a desk, remains to this day.-' 
 
 The tomb was a second time restored, more than two 
 hundred years later (in 1692) by Cardinal Domenico 
 Maria Corsi, the Papal Legate ^ ; and a third time, in 
 1780, by Cardinal Luigi Valenti Gonzaga, who erected 
 the mausoleum, surmounted by a dome, as it now stands. 
 
 Not only was the death of Dante recorded as an event 
 of importance by his fellow-citizen, Giovanni Villani, in 
 his Florentine chronicle,^ but numerous elegies were 
 written on the occasion by friends and contemporaries 
 of the poet in various parts of Italy. Among these were 
 poems by Cino da Pistoja, and Giovanni Quirini of 
 Venice, with both of whom Dante had exchanged sonnets in 
 his lifetime.* Cino, who thirty years before had addressed 
 a canzone to Dante on the death of Beatrice,^ now wrote 
 a canzone on Dante's own death, addressed to Love, whose 
 
 ^ See plate opposite. Bembo commemorated his restoration of the tomb 
 in. a Latin inscription (beginning : " Exigua tumuli Dantes hie sorte 
 jacebas "), which was affixed to the wall at the left side of the tomb, and 
 in which he states that before his restoration the tomb was almost un- 
 recognisable. This inscription, which is still preserved, though in a 
 different situation, was transcribed by Fynes Moryson in 1594. 
 
 2 An interesting engraving of the tomb, as it appeared after this second 
 restoration, is inserted in the first volume of the edition of Dante's works 
 published by Antonio Zatta at Venice in 1757. 
 
 3 " Nel anno 1321, del mese di Luglio,* mori Dante Alighieri di Firenze 
 nella citta di Ravenna in Romagna . . . e in Ravenna dinanzi alia porta 
 della chiesa maggiore fu seppellito a grande onore, in abito di poeta e di 
 grande filosafo" (bk. ix. ch. 136). 
 
 ^See above, p. 50; see also Zingarelli's Dante, pp. 318-20. A sonnet 
 of Dante to Quirini (Son. xxxvii.) is translated by Rossetti in Dante and his 
 Circle, p. 240. 
 
 ' See above, p. 49. 
 
 * Villani's mistake for September. 
 
io8 DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 ardent and faithful votary Dante had ever been ; after be- 
 wailing the bitter loss sustained by all lovers of the Italian 
 tongue, of which Dante had been, as it were, the fount and 
 source, he turns to Florence and points to the fulfilment 
 of Dante's own prophecy in the Inferno (xv. 72) that 
 however much his native city might desire to have him 
 back her wish would be unavailing; he concludes with 
 congratulations to Ravenna on being deservedly in posses- 
 sion of the great treasure which Florence had cast out.^ 
 Quirini, besides a lament on Dante's death, wrote a sonnet 
 in defence of his friend's memory against the imputations 
 of Cecco d' Ascoli, and he addressed another to Can 
 Grande della Scala, urging him to give to the world with- 
 out delay the cantos of the Paradiso which had not yet 
 been made public.^ Quirini's lament, which is an eloquent 
 testimony to the estimation in which Dante was held by 
 his contemporaries, is as follows : — 
 
 If it hath happed for any mortal man 
 
 That sun or moon was darkened, or on high 
 Comet appeared, portending sudden change, 
 
 Reverse of fortune, and disaster dire ; 
 
 A greater portent should we look for now, 
 
 And signs more strange than e'er were seen before, 
 Since death relentless, black and bitter death. 
 
 Hath quenched the brilliant and resplendent rays 
 
 That beamed from out the noble breast of him. 
 Our sacred bard, the father of our tongue. 
 
 Who glowed with radiance as of one divine. 
 
 Alas I the Muses now are sunken low. 
 
 The poet's art hath fallen on evil days. 
 
 Which erst was held in worship and renown. 
 
 The whole world weeps the glorious Dante dead — 
 Him thou, Ravenna, heldest dear in life. 
 
 And boldest now, and hence are held more dear.^ 
 
 1 The original is printed in Rime diM. Cino da Pistoja, ordinate da G. 
 Carducci, Firenze, 1862, pp. 136-7. 
 
 * See Zingarelli, op. cit. pp. 326, 330-1. 
 
 ' The original is printed by Zingarelli, op. cit, p. 348. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 Boccaccio's rebuke to the Florentines — Efforts of Florence to get pos- 
 session of Dante's remains — Leo X grants permission for their removal — 
 Disappearance of the remains — Their accidental discovery during the 
 commemoration of the sixth centenary of Dante's birth — Public exhibition 
 of them at Ravenna, and subsequent re-interment. 
 
 THE history of Dante's remains from the time of their 
 burial by Guido da Polenta in 1321 is a most 
 curious one, and shows how jealously the people of 
 Ravenna guarded the treasure which had been deposited 
 in their keeping. Boccaccio, in a chapter of his Life of 
 Dante, headed " A Rebuke to the Florentines," ^ reproaches 
 them with their treatment of Dante, and urges them at 
 least to recall his dead body from exile, adding, however, 
 that he feels sure their request for his remains would be 
 refused. 
 
 " Oh ! ungrateful country," he exclaims, " what madness, 
 what blindness possessed you to drive out your most 
 valued citizen, your chiefest benefactor, your one poet, 
 with such unheard-of cruelty, and to keep him in exile ? 
 If perchance you excuse yourself on the ground of the 
 common fury of that time, why, when your anger was ap- 
 peased and your passion abated, and you repented you of 
 your act, why did you not recall him ? Alas ! your Dante 
 Alighieri died in that exile to which you, envious of his 
 merit, unjustly sent him. Oh ! unspeakable shame, that 
 
 ' Viia di Dante, ed. Macri-Leone, § 7, pp. 35-42. 
 109 
 
no DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 a mother should regard with jealousy the virtues of her 
 own son ! Now you are freed from that disquietude, now 
 he is dead you live secure amid your own imperfections, 
 and can put an end to your long and unjust persecutions. 
 He cannot in death do to you what he never in life would 
 have done ; he lies beneath another sky than yours, nor 
 do you ever expect to behold him again, save on that day 
 when you shall see once more all your citizens, whose 
 iniquities by the just Judge shall be visited and rewarded. 
 If then, as we believe, all hatred, and anger, and enmity 
 cease at the death of whoso dies, do you now begin to 
 return to your old self, and to your right mind ; begin to 
 think with shame of how you acted contrary to your ancient 
 humanity ; prove yourself now a mother, and no longer 
 a foe, and grant to your son the tears that are his due, 
 and show to him the love of a mother ; seek at least to 
 regain him in death, whom when alive you rejected, nay 
 drove out as a malefactor, and restore to his memory the 
 citizenship, the welcome, the grace you denied to himself. 
 Of a truth, although you were wayward and ungrateful to 
 him, he always revered you as a mother, and, though you 
 deprived him of your citizenship, yet did he never seek 
 to deprive you of the glory which from his works must 
 ensue to you. A Florentine always, in spite of his long 
 exile, he called himself, and would be called, always pre- 
 ferring you and loving you. What then will you do? 
 Will you for ever remain stiff-necked in your injustice ? 
 Will you show less humanity than the pagans, who, we 
 read, not only begged back the bodies of their dead, but 
 were ever ready to meet death like heroes in order to get 
 them back ? Who doubts that the Mantuans, who to this 
 day reverence the poor hut and the fields that once were 
 Virgil's, would have bestowed on him honourable burial 
 had not the Emperor Augustus transported his bones 
 
BOCCACCIO'S REBUKE TO FLORENCE in 
 
 from Brundusium to Naples, and ordained that city as 
 their last resting-place ? 
 
 " Do you then seek to be the guardian of your Dante. 
 Ask for him back again, making a show of this humanity, 
 even if you do not desire to have him back ; with this pre- 
 tence at least you will rid yourself of a part of the reproach 
 you have so justly incurred. Ask for him back again ! I 
 am certain he will never be given back to you, and thus you 
 will at once have made a show of compassion, and, being 
 refused, may yet indulge your natural cruelty ! 
 
 " But to what do I urge you ? Hardly do I believe, if 
 dead bodies have any feeling, that Dante's body would 
 remove from where it now lies, in order to return to you. 
 He lies in company more honourable than any you can 
 offer him. He lies in Ravenna, a city by far more venerable 
 in years than yourself ; and though in her old age she shows 
 somewhat of decay, yet in her youth she was by far more 
 flourishing than you are now. She is, as it were, a vast 
 sepulchre of holy bodies, so that no foot can an3^where 
 press her soil, without treading above the most sacred 
 ashes. Who then would wish to return to you and be laid 
 amongst your dead, who, one must believe, still retain the 
 evil passions they cherished in their lifetime, and fly one 
 from the other, carrying their enmities into the grave ? 
 
 " Ravenna, bathed as she is in the most precious blood 
 of numberless martyrs, whose remains she to this day pre- 
 serves with the greatest reverence, as she does the bodies 
 of many high and mighty emperors and other men of high 
 renown, either for their long ancestry or for their noble 
 deeds, Ravenna, I say, rejoices not a little that it has been 
 granted to her of God, in addition to her other privileges, 
 to be the perpetual guardian of so great a treasure as the 
 body of him whose works are the admiration of the whole 
 world, him of whom you knew not how to be worthy. 
 
112 DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 But of a surety, her pride in possessing Dante is not so 
 great as her envy of you by whose name he called himself; 
 for she grieves that she will be remembered only on ac- 
 count of his last day, while you will be famous on account 
 of his first. Persist then in your ingratitude, while Ra- 
 venna, decked with your honours, shall boast herself to the 
 generations to come ! " 
 
 Boccaccio was a true prophet. Five times the Floren- 
 tines begged Ravenna to return to his native city the 
 ashes of their great poet, each time in vain. 
 
 The first request was made in 1 396, three-quarters of a 
 century after Dante's death. On this occasion it was pro- 
 posed to erect monuments in the Cathedral of Santa Maria 
 del Fiore to five illustrious citizens of Florence, viz. Ac- 
 cursius the great legist, Dante, Petrarch, Zanobi da Strada, 
 and Boccaccio (the names being mentioned in that order 
 in the official document),^ and it was resolved to secure if 
 possible their mortal remains, doubtless for honourable 
 interment at the same time. The petition for Dante's 
 remains was refused by the Polenta family, the then lords 
 of Ravenna; and a second request, preferred on similar 
 grounds some thirty years later (1430), was likewise 
 refused.^ 
 
 A third attemfft appears to have been made in 1476, 
 when interest was made with the Venetian ambassador 
 (presumably Bernardo Bembo) by Lorenzo de' Medici ; ^ 
 but, though the ambassador promised compliance, nothing 
 was done, and the hopes of Florence were once more dis- 
 appointed. 
 
 At the beginning of the sixteenth- century a fourth and 
 most determined attempt was made by the Florentines to 
 
 'The text is printed by Del Lungo in DeW Esilio di Dante, pp. 170-5, 
 "See Del Lungo, op. cit. pp. 176-7. 
 3 Se? Del Lungo, 0^. cit. pp. 178-9. 
 
FATE OF DANTE'S REMAINS 113 
 
 get possession of Dante's remains, an attempt which had 
 very remarkable consequences. From a letter written to 
 Pietro Bembo, secretary to Leo X, in June, 1 5 1 5, it appears 
 that Leo, who belonged to the Medici family of Florence 
 (he was the son of Lorenzo), and was also by virtue of the 
 league of Cambrai (1509) lord of Ravenna, had granted or 
 promised to the Florentines permission to remove the 
 poet's remains from Ravenna. Four years later (in i S 19) 
 a formal memorial ^ was presented to Leo by the Medicean 
 Academy, urging that the removal should be carried out, 
 among the signatories being one of the Portinari, a de- 
 scendant of the family to which Beatrice belonged. This 
 memorial was endorsed by the great sculptor, Michel 
 Angelo, who expressed his willingness to design and him- 
 self execute a fitting sepulchre. Leo granted the request 
 of the Academicians, and forthwith a mission was des- 
 patched to Ravenna to bring back' Dante's bones to Flor- 
 ence. But meanwhile the custodians of the poet's re- 
 mains had taken the alarm, and when the tomb was 
 opened by the Florentine envoys nothing was to be seen 
 but some fragments of bone and a few withered laurel 
 leaves, the relics no doubt of the poet's crown which was 
 laid upon the bier at the time of burial. In an account 
 of the proceedings submitted to Leo the following " ex- 
 planation" was offered ofthe disappearance of the remains : 
 " The much wished-for translation of Dante's remains did 
 not take place, inasmuch as the two delegates of the 
 Academy who were sent for the purpose found Dante 
 neither in soul nor in body ; and it is supposed that, as in 
 his lifetime he journeyed in soul and in body through Hell, 
 Purgatory, and Paradise, so in death he must have been 
 received, body and soul, into one of those realms "? 
 
 ' The text is printed by Del Lungo, op. cit. pp. 183-8. 
 2 See Corrado Ricci, V Ultimo Rifugio di Dante, p. 339. 
 8 
 
114 DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 There is little doubt that Dante's bones, which were 
 still intact in 1483 when Bernardo Bembo restored the 
 tomb, were secretly removed by the Franciscans in charge, 
 between 15 15 and 15 19, the period when the question of 
 their translation to Florence was being agitated by the 
 Medicean Academy, armed with the permission of Leo X. 
 
 The secret of their disappearance was well kept in 
 Ravenna. Two hundred and sixty years later (in 1780) 
 the tomb was once more restored, and, at the inauguration 
 by Cardinal Valenti Gonzaga, it was opened for the pur- 
 pose of verifying the remains. The official account of the 
 proceeding was couched in vague terms, which were ob 
 viously intended to conceal the fact that the tomb was 
 found to be empty. An unofficial account, however, in 
 the shape of an entry by one of the Franciscan monks in 
 his missal, which has been preserved at Ravenna, contains 
 the bald statement that " Dante's sarcophagus was opened 
 and nothing was found inside, whereupon it was sealed up 
 again with the Cardinal's seal, and silence was observed as 
 to the whole matter, thus leaving the old opinion (as to 
 the presence of the remains) undisturbed "} 
 
 The secret of the removal of the remains was still pre- 
 served from the public, but that it was known to a select 
 few is evident from the fact that sixty years after the 
 above incident Filippo Mordani, in his memoir of Dionigi 
 Strocchi, records that the latter said to him on i July, 
 1 84 1: "I wish to tell you something, now that we are 
 alone. The tomb of Dante is empty; the bones are no 
 longer there. This was told me by your Archbishop, Mgr. 
 Codronchi. But I pray you not to breathe a word of it, 
 for it must remain a secret." ^ 
 
 At last, when preparations were being made throughout 
 Italy for the celebration of the sixth centenary of Dante's 
 ' See Ricci, op. cit. p. 346. " See Ricci, op, cit. p. 347. 
 
DISCOVERY OF DANTE'S REMAINS 115 
 
 birth, in 1865, the Florentines once more petitioned for 
 the return of Dante's remains to his native city. For the 
 fifth and last time the request was refused, the Municipality 
 of Ravenna claiming in their reply " that the deposit of the 
 sacred bones of Dante Alighieri in Ravenna could no 
 longer, in view of the happily changed conditions of Italy, 
 be regarded as a perpetuation of his exile, inasmuch as all 
 the cities of Italy were now united together by a lasting 
 bond under one and the same government "?■ 
 
 Whether the Municipality, when they returned this 
 answer, were aware that " the sacred bones "' of Dante no 
 longer reposed in the tomb which was supposed to contain 
 them, does not appear. At any rate the secret of the 
 empty tomb could not much longer be kept from the 
 world at large, for the opening of the tomb and the iden- 
 tification of the poet's remains was part of the programme 
 of the sexcentenary celebration. Preparations for this 
 ceremony were already in progress when the startling an- 
 nouncement was made that a wooden coffin containing 
 the actual bones of Dante had been accidentally discovered 
 bricked up in a cavity in a neighbouring wall. 
 
 The story of this remarkable discovery is as follows. 
 In the course of some operations in the Braccioforte Chapel, 
 adjoining the tomb, in connection with the coming celebra- 
 tion, it became necessary to introduce a pump for the pur- 
 pose of drawing off an accumulation of water. In order 
 to give room for the pump-handle to work, it was decided 
 to make a cavity in an old wall at the spot where the pump 
 was to be fixed. While the mason was at work with his 
 pick removing the stones, he suddenly struck upon some- 
 thing wooden, which gave back a hollow sound. Curious 
 to find out what this might be, he carefully removed the 
 remaining stones, and to his great surprise came upon a 
 
 ' The correspondence is printed by Del Lungo, op. cit, pp. 195-200. 
 
ii6 DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 wooden chest or coffin. On lifting the chest one of the 
 planks fell out and revealed a human skeleton, which on a 
 closer inspection proved to be that of Dante, the identity 
 of the remains being established beyond doubt by the 
 discovery of two inscriptions on the chest. One of these, 
 written in ink on the bottom plank, was: Dantis ossa 
 denuper revisa die 3 Junii 1677.-' The other, written on 
 the lid of the chest, ran : Dantis ossa a me Fre Antonio 
 Santi hie posita Ana 1677 die 18 Octobris.^ 
 
 The precious relics were at once carefully removed and 
 deposited in the adjoining mausoleum; The news of the 
 discovery meanwhile spread rapidly through the city. The 
 authorities, accompanied by notaries, arrived in haste, and 
 in their presence an official account was drawn up, record- 
 ing the facts of the discovery, and the result of a' pro- 
 fessional examination of the skeleton, which, with the 
 exception of a few missing bones, was found to be intact: 
 
 The excitement amongst the populace was intense, and 
 the crowd could with difficulty be prevented from breaking 
 in. After this discovery the next step, in order to remove 
 all possible doubt, was to open the sarcophagus in which 
 Dante's remains had originally been deposited by Guido 
 da Polenta in 1321, and in which they were supposed by 
 all, except the few who had been in the secret, to have 
 been left undisturbed ever since. It was an anxious 
 moment for the authorities, who would have been terribly 
 embarrassed if a second skeleton had been discovered — 
 Dante could not have had two skeletons ! An account of 
 the proceedings, furnished by an eye-witness, was given by 
 Dr. Moore in the English Historical Review in October, 
 1888. 
 
 ' " Dante's bones revisited anew on 3 June, 1677." 
 2"D'ante's bones, placed here by me, Friar Antonio Santi, on 18 
 October 1677 " (see Ricci, op. cit. pp. 348-9). 
 
DISCOVERY OF DANTE'S REMAINS 117 
 
 " The writer," he says, " met, a few years ago, one who 
 was present on this most interesting occasion, and who had 
 carried away, and still preserved as a relic, a small portion 
 of the precious dust which was found at the bottom of the 
 tomb. This examination took place on 7 June, 1865, and 
 the tomb was then found to be empty, with the exception 
 of a little earthy or dusty substance, and a few bones cor- 
 responding with most of those missing in the chest recently 
 discovered, and these were certified by the surgeon present 
 to belong undoubtedly to the same skeleton. There were 
 found in it, also, a few withered laurel leaves, which possess 
 a special interest in reference to the description of Dante's 
 burial.^ ... It contained, further, some broken fragments 
 of Greek marble, of the same material as the sarcophagus 
 itself. These were soon found to proceed from a rude hole 
 which had been knocked through the sarcophagus itself at 
 the back, precisely at the part accessible only from the in- 
 side of the monastery, through which, beyond all doubt, the 
 removal of the bones had been effected. This hole had 
 been stopped up with bricks and cement, and then plastered 
 over outside so as to leave no mark." 
 
 The reason for the violation of Dante's tomb and for the 
 secret removal of his remains by the Franciscans of the 
 adjoining monastery was, it can hardly be doubted, the 
 alarm created by the news that permission had . been 
 granted for the transference of the remains to Florence by 
 Pope Leo X in 1515. The precious relics must have been 
 secreted in the monastery for a hundred and fifty years and 
 more before they were deposited in the cavity where they 
 were found in 1865. 
 
 ' It is evident from this account that the contents of the sarcophagus 
 had not been disturbed since it was opened, three hundred and fifty years 
 before, by the envoys of the Medicean Academy, who found that Dante's 
 remains had been removed. See above, p. 113. 
 
ii8 DANTE IN EXILE 
 
 Having thus been satisfactorily verified, Dante's skeleton 
 was put together and laid on white velvet under a glass 
 case, which was exhibited during the three days of 24, 25, 
 and 26 June, in the Braccioforte Chapel. Here the re- 
 mains were reverently visited by thousands of visitors from 
 every part of Italy. " The old and the infirm were sup- 
 ported through the crowd, and children, too young to be 
 conscious of what they saw, were taken up to the crystal 
 coffin, in order that in after years they might say that they 
 also had gazed on Dante." ^ 
 
 On 26 June the bones were enclosed in a double coffin 
 of walnut and lead, and then solemnly consigned once 
 more to the original sarcophagus, in which they had first 
 been laid at the time of the poet's death, and there 
 they now rest, safe in the custody of the faithful citizens 
 of Ravenna, who have been true to their charge for 
 nearly 600 years. ^ 
 
 ^ Dante at Ravenna, by C. M, Phillimore, whose v/ork is more or less 
 of a compilation from L' Ultimo Rifugio di Dante Alighieri (Milano, 
 i8gi) by Corrado Ricci. From the latter is derived for the most part the 
 information given above as to the fate of Dante's remains. 
 
 ^ A cast of the skeleton as it lay in state, and the wooden coffin in 
 which the remains were placed in 1677, and in which they were discovered 
 in 1865, are preserved in the Biblioteca Nazionale at Ravenna. 
 

 
 PORTRAIT OF DANTE 
 From Codex 1040 in the Riccasdi Library at Florence 
 
PART IV 
 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 Boccaccio's account of Dante's person and character — His love of fame 
 — His failings — Account of him by his contemporary, Giovanni Villani. 
 
 IN his Life of Dante Boccaccio gives the following des- 
 cription of Dante's person and character, which was 
 derived no doubt in part from the recollections of those 
 who had been personally acquainted with the poet at 
 Ravenna. Boccaccio paid several visits to Ravenna, the 
 first of which took place in 1346, just five-and-twenty 
 years after Dante's death, when there can have been little 
 difficulty in collecting information from contemporaries 
 of Dante who had frequented his society, chief among 
 whom was Piero di Giardino, who, as we have already 
 seen, conversed with Dante on his deathbed.^ 
 
 " Our poet," says Boccaccio, " was of middle height, and 
 after he had reached mature years he walked with some- 
 what of a stoop ; his gait was grave and sedate ; and he 
 was ever clothed in most seemly garments, his dress 
 being suited to the ripeness of his years. His face was 
 long, his nose aquiline, his eyes rather large than small, 
 his jaws heavy, with the under lip projecting beyond the 
 upper. His complexion was dark, and his hair and beard 
 
 ' See above, p. 103 note. 
 119 
 
I20 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 thick, black, and crisp ; and his countenance always sad 
 and thoughtful. Whence it happened one day in Verona 
 (the fame of his writings having by that time been spread 
 abroad everywhere, and especially of that part of his 
 Commedia to which he gave the title of Hell, and he him- 
 self being known by sight to many men and women), that 
 as he passed before a doorway where several women were 
 sitting, one of them said to the others in a low voice, but 
 not so low but that she was plainly heard by him and by 
 those with him, ' Do you see the man who goes down to 
 Hell, and returns at his pleasure, and brings back news 
 of those who are below ? ' To which one of the others 
 answered in all simplicity : ' Indeed, what you say must 
 be true ; don't you see how his beard is crisped and his 
 colour darkened by the heat and smoke down below?' 
 Dante, hearing these words behind him, and perceiving 
 that they were spoken by the \yomen in perfect good 
 faith, was not ill pleased that they should have such an 
 opinion of him, and smiling a little passed on his way. 
 
 "In his manners, whether in public or in private, he was 
 wonderfully composed and restrained, and in all his ways 
 he was more courteous and civil than any one else. In 
 food and drink he was very moderate, both in partaking 
 of them at the regular hours,^ and in never indulging to 
 excess; nor did he ever particularly care for one thing 
 more than for another. He commended delicate dishes, 
 but for the most part lived on plain fare ; condemning in 
 no measured terms those who study much to have choice 
 dainties, and to have them prepared with all possible care, 
 — declaring that such people do not eat in order to live, 
 but live in order to eat. 
 
 " No man was more wakeful than he, whether in his 
 studies or in anything which gave him anxious thought, 
 to such an extent that many a time his household and his 
 
BOCCACCIO'S ACCOUNT OF DANTE 121 
 
 wife used to be vexed at it, until, growing accustomed to 
 his ways, they came to take no notice of it. He rarely 
 spoke, save when spoken to, and that with deliberation 
 and in tones suited to the subject of his discourse. Never- 
 theless, when occasion demanded, he was most eloquent 
 and fluent, with an excellent and ready delivery. 
 
 " In his youth he took the greatest pleasure in music 
 and singing, and was on friendly and familiar terms with 
 all the best singers and musicians of the time. And his 
 love for music led him to compose many things, which he 
 had set by them to pleasing and masterly accompaniments. 
 How ardently he was devoted to love has already been 
 shown ; and it is firmly believed by all that it was this love 
 which moved his genius to composition in the vulgar tongue, 
 at first in the way of imitation ; afterwards through his 
 desire to express his emotions in more permanent shape, 
 and for the sake of renown, he assiduously practised him- 
 self therein, and not only surpassed all his contemporaries, 
 but also so illustrated and beautified the language that he 
 made many then, and will make many others hereafter, 
 eager to become skilled in their own tongue. 
 
 " He delighted also in solitude, holding himself aloof 
 from other people, in order that his meditations might not 
 be interrupted; and if while he was in company any 
 thought occurred to him which pleased him well, however 
 much he might be questioned about any other matter, he 
 would make no reply to his questioner until he had either 
 made sure of his idea or had rejected it — a thing which 
 happened to him many a time when questions were put to 
 him at table, or by his companions on a journey, or else- 
 where. 
 
 " In his studies he was most diligent, and while he was 
 occupied with them no news that he might chance to hear 
 could take him away from them. And it is related by 
 
122 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 certain credible witnesses, with regard to his giving him- 
 self up wholly to what pleased him, that on one of the 
 occasions when he was in Siena, he chanced to be at an 
 apothecary's shop, where a book was brought to him which 
 had been previously promised him, this book being one 
 of much reputation among persons of worth, and having 
 never yet been seen by him. As he happened to be un- 
 able to take it elsewhere, he leant over on to the bench 
 in front of the apothecary's shop, and there, placing the 
 book before him, began most eagerly to examine it. Soon 
 afterwards, in that same quarter, close to where he was, 
 on the occasion of some general festival a great tourna- 
 ment took place among the noble youths of Siena, ac- 
 companied, as is usually the case on such occasions, with 
 a great deal of noise caused by the various instruments 
 and shouts of applause from the bystanders ; yet, in spite 
 of all this, and of many other things likely to attract the 
 attention, such as fair ladies dancing, and youths' sports 
 of all kinds, he was never seen to stir from his place, nor 
 so much as to raise his eyes from his book. Indeed, 
 although it was about noon when he took his stand there, 
 it was not until past the hour of vespers when, having 
 examined the book thoroughly and taken a general 
 survey of its contents, he got up to leave it. He after- 
 wards declared to several persons, who asked him how he 
 could refrain from looking on at such a splendid festival 
 as had taken place in his presence, that he had been 
 wholly unaware of it — an answer which made his 
 questioners wonder even more than they had done at 
 first. 
 
 " Dante, moreover, was of marvellous capacity, with a 
 most retentive memory, and keen intellect, insomuch that 
 when he was in Paris, and in a disputation held in the 
 theological schools, fourteen questions had been pro- 
 
BOCCACCIO'S ACCOUNT OF DANTE 123 
 
 pounded by divers scholars on divers subjects, he without 
 hesitation took them up and went over them in the order 
 in which they had been given, together with the argu- 
 ments for and against, adduced by the opponents ; and 
 then, preserving the same order, he subtly replied to and 
 refuted the arguments on the other side — which thing was 
 regarded as little short of a miracle by those who were 
 present. 
 
 " He was likewise of the most lofty genius and of subtle 
 invention, as is made manifest by his works, to such as 
 understand, far more clearly than my writing could ex- 
 press. He was very greedy of honour and glory, more 
 so perhaps than beseemed his fame and virtue. Yet, 
 what life is so humble as not to be touched by the sweet- 
 ness of glory? And it was by reason of this desire, I 
 think, that he loved poetry more than any other pursuit, 
 perceiving that although philosophy surpasses all things 
 else in nobility, yet her excellence can be communicated 
 only to the few, and those who win fame thereby in the 
 world are many ; whereas poetry is less abstruse and more 
 pleasing to every one, and poets are exceeding few. 
 Therefore, hoping by her means to attain to the unusual 
 and glorious honour of the laurel crown, he devoted him- 
 self wholly to the study and composition of poetry. And 
 of a surety his desire would have been fulfilled had For- 
 tune favoured him so far as to allow him ever to return to 
 Florence, where alone at the font of San Giovanni, he 
 was willing to receive the crown ; to the end that in the 
 same place where he had received his first name in 
 baptism, there too he might receive the second by being 
 crowned. But it so came about that although his suffici- 
 ency was great, and such that wherever he had chosen 
 he might have received the laurel, yet, in expectation of 
 that return which was destined never to take place, he 
 
124 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 would not consent to accept it anywhere else than in 
 Florence; and so he died without the much coveted 
 honour. . , . 
 
 " Our poet, further, was of a very lofty and scornful 
 disposition, insomuch that when a certain friend of his, in 
 answer to his entreaties to that effect, sought to bring 
 about his return to Florence, which he most ardently 
 longed for above all things else, and could find no other 
 way with those who then had the government of the 
 Republic in their hands, save this one only : that he 
 should be kept in prison for a certain space, and afterwards 
 on some solemn public occasion should be presented, as 
 an act of mercy, in our principal church, being thereby 
 restored to liberty and released from every sentence 
 previously passed upon him — such a thing, in his opinion, 
 being fitting to be practised only in the case of abject and 
 infamous men and of no others, he, notwithstanding his 
 great longing, chose rather to remain in exile than by such 
 means to return to his home. 
 
 " Likewise Dante thought no little of himself, rating his 
 own worth no less highly, according to the reports of his 
 contemporaries, than was his actual due. Which thing 
 was apparent on one occasion among others to a remark- 
 able degree at the time when he and his party were at the 
 head of affairs in the Republic ; for, inasmuch as those 
 who were out of power had, through the mediation of 
 Pope Boniface VIII, invited a brother or relation of 
 Philip, the then King of France, whose name was Charles, 
 to come and set to rights the affairs of our city, all the 
 chiefs of the party with which Dante was allied, met 
 together in council to make provision concerning this 
 matter ; and there among other things they resolved to 
 send an embassy to the Pope, who was then at Rome, in 
 order to induce the Pope to oppose the coming of the 
 
BOCCACCIO'S ACCOUNT OF DANTE 125 
 
 said Charles, or to arrange for him to come in agreement 
 with the said party which was in power. And when it 
 came to be debated who should be at the head of the pro- 
 posed embassy, it was agreed by all that it should be 
 Dante. To which request Dante, after a brief hesitation, 
 said : ' If I go, who remains ? If I remain, who goes ? ' * 
 As though he alone of them all was of any consequence, 
 or gave any consequence to the rest. This saying was 
 understood and taken note of. 
 
 " But, apart from all this, this worthy man in all his ad- 
 versities showed the greatest fortitude. Only in one thing 
 he was, I know not whether I should say impatient or pas- 
 sionate, namely, he was more given to faction after his 
 exile than wa.s becoming to a man of his parts, and more 
 than he would have had it believed of him by others. 
 And what I most blush for on account of his memory is 
 that in Romagna it is perfectly notorious to every one 
 that any feeble woman or little child who had spoken on 
 party matters, and found fault with the Ghibelline party 
 to which he belonged, would have stirred him to such a 
 pitch of madness that he would have thrown stones at 
 them if they had not held their peace ; and this passion he 
 retained to the day of his death. And assuredly I blush 
 to be obliged to blot the fame of so great a man with any 
 defect ; but the manner in which I ordered my matter at 
 the outset in some sort demands it, for if I were to be 
 
 ' This anecdote was quoted in a letter written in 1624 by Lord Keeper 
 Williams to the Duke of Buckingham, in which he tried to persuade the 
 Duke to accept the office of Lord Steward. " I will trouble your grace," 
 he writes, " with a tale of Dante, the first Italian Poet of Note : who, 
 being a great and wealthy Man in Florence, and his Opinion demanded 
 who should be sent Embassador to the Pope ? made this Answer, that he 
 knew not who ; Si jo vo, chi sta, si j'o sto, chi va ; If I go, I know not who 
 shall stay at Home ; If I stay, I know not who can perform this Employ- 
 ment " (see Paget Toynbee, Dante in English Literature, vol. i. p. 117). 
 
126 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 silent regarding things not to his credit, I should shake 
 the faith of my readers in the things already related 
 which are to his credit. Therefore to him himself I make 
 my excuse, who maybe from some lofty region of heaven 
 looks down with scornful eye upon me as I write. 
 
 " Amid all the virtue and all the learning which has 
 been shown above to have been possessed by this won- 
 drous poet, the vice of lustfulness found no small place, 
 and that not only in the years of his youth, but also in 
 the years of his maturity ; ^ the which vice, though it be 
 natural and common, yet cannot be worthily excused. 
 Nevertheless bearing in mind what is written of David, 
 and Solomon, and of many others, our poet may be al- 
 lowed to pass by, not excused, but accused with less sever- 
 ity than if he had been alone in this failing." ^ 
 
 With this account of Dante by Boccaccio it is interest- 
 ing to compare the brief description of his personal char- 
 acteristics furnished by his contemporary and neighbour 
 in Florence, the chronicler Giovanni Villani, who, if his 
 nephew Filippo is to be believed, was also a personal friend 
 of Dante.^ 
 
 " This Dante," he says, " was an honourable and ancient 
 citizen of Florence, belonging to the Porta San Piero, and 
 our neighbour. . . . This man was a great scholar in 
 almost every branch of learning, although he was a lay- 
 man : he was a great poet and philosopher, and a perfect 
 rhetorician both in prose and verse, and in public debate 
 he was a very noble speaker ; in rime he was supreme, 
 with the most polished and beautiful style that ever had 
 been in our language, up to his time and since. . . . 
 
 * There are several passages in the Divina Commedia which seem to 
 hint at Dante's consciousness of this failing (see above, p. 71). 
 "^ Vita di Dante, ed. Macri-Leone, §§ 8, 12, pp. 43-7, 59-62. 
 s See above, p. 37 note. 
 
VILLANFS ACCOUNT OF DANTE 127 
 
 This Dante, on account of his great learning, was some- 
 what haughty and reserved and scornful, and after the 
 manner of a philosopher little gracious, not adapting him- 
 self to the conversation of the unlearned. But on account 
 of his other virtues and knowledge and worth, it seems 
 right to perpetuate the memory of so great a citizen in 
 this our chronicle, albeit that his noble works left to us in 
 writing are the true testimony to his fame and a lasting 
 honour to our city." ^ 
 
 > Bk. ix. ch. 136. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 Portraits of Dante — The Giotto portrait in the Bargello — Norton's ac- 
 count of the Bargello portrait — Its disappearance and rediscovery — The 
 death-mask — Its relation to the portrait — The Naples bronze — Portrait by 
 Taddeo Gaddi — The Riccardi portrait — The picture by Domenico di 
 Michel ino. 
 
 FROM the written descriptions ofDante the transition 
 is natural to the subject of the actual representa- 
 tion of the poet's face, depicted during his lifetime. 
 
 Of portraits from the life, so far as is known, there is 
 one only, that most beautiful of all the portraits of Dante, 
 painted by Giotto, the great Florentine artist, whose fame 
 is inseparably connected with that of the great Florentine 
 poet. An interesting account of this portrait, of its disap- 
 pearance and rediscovery, together with a comparison of 
 it with the mask supposed to have been modelled from 
 Dante's face after death, is given by Professor Charles Eliot 
 Norton, in his work On the Original Portraits of Dante, 
 which was published in 1865 in honour of the six- 
 hundredth anniversary of the poet's birth. After quoting 
 Boccaccio's description of Dante's physiognomy, which has 
 already been given above, Professor Norton writes : — 
 
 " Such, was Dante as he appeared in his later years to 
 those from whose recollections of him Boccaccio drew 
 this description. But Boccaccio, had he chosen so to 
 do, might have drawn another portrait of Dante, not the 
 author of the Divine Comedy, but the author of the New 
 Life. The likeness of the youthful Dante was familiar 
 
 ia8 
 
PORTRAIT OF DANTE BY GIOTTO IN THE BARGELLO AT FLORENCE 
 Front a drawing by Seymour ICirkup. 
 
GIOTTO'S PORTRAIT OF DANTE 129 
 
 to those Florentines who had never looked on the presence 
 of their greatest citizen. 
 
 " On the altar-wall of the chapel of the Palace of the 
 Podesta (now the Bargello) Giotto painted a grand re- 
 ligious composition, in which, after the fashion of the times, 
 he exalted the glory of Florence by the introduction of 
 some of her most famous citizens into the assembly of the 
 blessed in Paradise. ' The head of Christ, full of dignity, 
 appears above, and lower down, the escutcheon of Florence, 
 supported by angels, with two rows of saints, male and 
 female, attendant to the right and left, in front of whom 
 stand a company of the magnates of the pity, headed by 
 two crowned personages, close to one of whom, to the 
 right, stands Dante, a pomegranate in his hand, and wear- 
 ing the graceful falling cap of the day.' ^ The date when 
 this picture was painted is uncertain, but Giotto repre- 
 sented his friend in it as a youth, such as he may have 
 been in the first flush of early fame,fat the season of the 
 beginning of their memorable friendship) 
 
 " Of all the portraits of the revival of Art, there is none 
 comparable in interest to this likeness of the supreme poet 
 by the supreme artist of mediaeval Europe. It was due 
 to no accident of fortune that these men were contempo- 
 raries and of the same country ; but it was a fortunate 
 and delightful incident, that they were so brought together 
 by sympathy of genius and by favouring circumstances 
 as to become friends, to love and honour each other in 
 life, and to celebrate each other through all time in their 
 respective works.^ The story of their friendship is known 
 only in its outline, but that it began when they were young 
 
 ^ Lord Lindsay's History of Christian Art, vol. ii. p. 174. 
 
 ''Dante mentions Giotto in the Commedia : " Cimabue thougiit to hold 
 the field in painting, and now Giotto has the cry, so thst the fame of the 
 other is obscured " (Purg. xi. 94-6), 
 
 Q 
 
130 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 is certain, and that it lasted till death divided them is a 
 tradition which finds ready acceptance. 
 
 " It was probably between 1290 and 1300, when Giotto 
 was just rising to unrivalled fame, that this painting was 
 executed. 1 There is no contemporary record of it, the 
 earliest known reference to it being that by Filippo 
 Villani,^ who died about 1404. Giannozzo Manetti, who 
 
 ' Lord Lindsay says : " There can be little doubt, from the prominent 
 position assigned Dante in this composition, as well as from his personal 
 appearance, that this fresco was painted in, or immediately after, the year 
 1300, when he was one of the Priors of the Republic, and in the thirty- 
 fifth year of his age ". There is, however, a difficulty in accepting this 
 early date for Giotto's portrait of Dante, in that in 1332 the Palazzo del 
 Podesta was seriously damaged by fire, and had to be partially rebuilt, as 
 is recorded by Villani : " a di 28 di Febbraio s' apprese fuoco nel palagio del 
 comune ova abita la podesta, e arse tutto il tetto del vecchio palazzo e le 
 due parti del nuovo dalle prime volte in su. Per la qual cosa s' ordino per 
 lo comune che si rifacesse tutto in volte infino a' tetti." (bk. x. ch. 182). It 
 is urged, therefore, that even if the fire did not destroy the fresco, it would 
 almost certainly have left traces of damage. Consequently some recent 
 critics have argued that Giotto must have painted the fresco later than 
 1331, after the building had been repaired. In this case the portraits of 
 Dante and of those associated with him in the fresco must have been 
 painted from memory. But it is quite possible that the fresco may have 
 been painted in 1300 and that any damage caused by the fire of 1332 may 
 have been repaired either by Giotto himself or by one of his pupils. 
 
 " In the notice of Giotto in his Liber de Civitatis Florentiae Famosis 
 Civibus : " Pinxit speculorum suffragio semetipsum, sibique contempor- 
 aneum Dantem, in tabula altaris Capellae Palatii Potestatis". A still 
 earlier reference, however, occurs (as is supposed) in the following poem 
 of Antonio Pucci, the author of the Centiloquio, who died c. 1390 : — 
 
 Questi che veste di color sanguigno, 
 
 Posto seguente alle merite sante, 
 
 Dipinse Giotto in figura di Dante, 
 Che di parole fe' si bell' ordigno. 
 E come par nell' abito benigno, 
 
 Cosi nel mondo fu con tutte quante 
 
 Quelle virtu ch' onoran chi davant? 
 Le porta con effetto nello scrigno, 
 Diritto paragon fu di sentenze : 
 
GIOTTO'S PORTRAIT OF DANTE 131 
 
 died in 1459, also mentions it ; ^ and Vasari, in his Life 
 of Giotto, publislied in 1550, says that Giotto 'became so 
 good an imitator of nature, that he altogether discarded 
 the stiff Greek manner, and revived the modern and good 
 art of painting, introducing exact drawing from nature of 
 living persons, which for more than two hundred years 
 had not been practised, or if indeed any one had tried it, 
 he had not succeeded very happily, nor anything like so 
 well as Giotto. And he portrayed among other persons, 
 as may even now be seen, in the chapel of the Palace of 
 the Podesta in Florence, Dante Alighieri, his contemporary 
 and greatest friend, who was not less famous a poet than 
 Giotto was painter in those days. ... In the same chapel 
 is the portrait by the same hand of Ser Brunetto Latini, 
 the master of Dante, and of Messer Corso Donati, a great 
 citizen of those times.' 
 
 " One might have supposed that such a picture as this 
 would have been among the most carefully protected and 
 jealously prized treasures of Florence. But such was not 
 the case. The shameful neglect of many of the best and 
 most interesting works of the earlier period of Art, which 
 accompanied and was one of the symptoms of the moral 
 
 Col braccio manco awinchia la Scrittura, 
 Perche signoreggio molte scienze. 
 
 E '1 suo parlar fu con tanta misura, 
 Che 'ncorono la cittsl di Firenze 
 Di pregio, ond' ancor fama le dura. 
 Perfetto di fattezze e qui dipinto, 
 Com' a sua vita fu di came cinto. 
 (Rime di Treceniisti Minori, a. cura di G. Volpi, 1907, pp. 105-6.) 
 ' In his Vita Dantis : " Ejus effigies in Basilica Sanctae Crucis, et in 
 Capella Praetoris Urbani utrobique in parietibus extat ea forma, qua 
 revera in vita fuit a Giotto quodam Optimo ejus temporis pictore egregie 
 depicta "- The portrait is mentioned also by Landino in the Vita di Dante 
 prefixed to his commentary on the Divina Commedia (1481) : " La sua 
 effigie resta ancora di mano di Giotto in Santa Ctoce, c nella capella del 
 Podesta". 
 
133 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 and political decline of Italy during the sixteenth and 
 seventeenth centuries, extended to this as to other of the 
 noblest paintings of Giotto. Florence, in losing conscious- 
 ness of present worth, lost care for the memorials of her 
 past honour, dignity, and distinction. The Palace of the 
 Podesta, no longer needed for the dwelling of the chief 
 magistrate of a free city, was turned into a jail for common 
 criminals, and what had once been its beautiful and sacred 
 chapel was occupied as a larder or storeroom.^ The walls, 
 adorned with paintings more precious than gold, were 
 covered with whitewash, and the fresco of Giotto was 
 swept over by the brush of the plasterer. It was not only 
 thus hidden from the sight of those unworthy indeed to 
 behold it, but it almost disappeared from memory also ; 
 and from the time of Vasari down to that of Moreni, a 
 Florentine antiquary, in the early part of the present cen- 
 tury,^ hardly a mention of it occurs. In a note found 
 among his papers, Moreni laments that he had spent two 
 years of his life in unavailing efforts to recover the por- 
 trait of Dante, and the other portions of the fresco of 
 Giotto in the Bargello, mentioned by Vasari ; that others 
 before him had made a like effort, and had failed in like 
 manner ; and that he hoped that better times would come, 
 in which this painting, of such historic and artistic interest, 
 would again be sought for, and at length recovered. 
 Stimulated by these words, three gentlemen, one an 
 American, Mr. Richard Henry Wilde, one an Englishman, 
 Mr. Seymour Kirkup, and one an Italian, Signor G. 
 Aubrey Bezzi, all scholars devoted to the study of Dante, 
 
 1 F. J. Bunbury, writing in 1852, says : " The Bargello of Florence, 
 which at present contains the prisons, and some public offices of the 
 Government, was once the Palace of the Podesta, . . , but for centuries 
 the chamber [in which was the portrait of Dante] had been coated with 
 white-wash, divided into two storeys, and partitioned for prisoners' cells." 
 The whole Bargello building is now used as a museum. 
 
 ' Norton was writing in 1865. 
 
GIOTTO'S PORTRAIT OF DANTE 133 
 
 undertook new researches, in 1 840, and, after many hin- 
 drances on the part of the Government,^ which were at 
 length successfully overcome, the work of removing the 
 crust of plaster from the walls of the ancient chapel was 
 entrusted to the Florentine painter, Marini. This new 
 and well-directed search did not fail. After some months' 
 labour the fresco was found,^ almost uninjured, under the 
 whitewash that had protected while concealing it, and at 
 length the likeness of Dante was uncovered.* 
 
 " ' But,' says Mr. Kirkup, in a letter * published in the 
 Spectator (London), 11 May, 1850, 'the eye of the 
 beautiful profile was wanting. There was a hole an 
 inch deep, or an inch and a half Marini said it was a 
 nail. It did seem precisely the damage of a nail drawn 
 out. Afterwards . . . Marini filled the hole and made a 
 new eye, too little and ill designed, and then he retouched 
 the whole face and clothes, to the great damage of the 
 expression and character.* The likeness of the face,^ and 
 the three colours in which Dante was dressed, the same 
 with those of Beatrice, those of young Italy, white, green, 
 and red, stand no more ; the green is turned to chocolate 
 colour ; moreover, the form of the cap is lost and con- 
 founded. 
 
 1 Of the Grand Duke. "21 July, 1840. 
 
 *"The enthusiasm of the Florentines," says Lord Lindsay, "on the 
 announcement of the discovery, resembled that of their ancestors when 
 Borgo AUegri received its name from their rejoicings in sympathy with 
 Cimabue. ' L' abbiamo il nostro poeta I ' was the universal cry, and for 
 days afterwards the Bargello was thronged with a continuous succession 
 of pilgrim visitors." 
 
 * This letter was written originally by Kirkup in Italian — it was a (not 
 very accurate) translation which was published in the Spectator. G. B. 
 Cavalcaselle printed a corrected translation in the same paper, on 13 July. 
 
 ^ In Cavalcaselle's version : " to the great damage of the expression as 
 well as the character and costume". 
 
 ' Cavalcaselle : " The likeness of the face w changed ; and the three 
 colours . . . are no longer there ' '. 
 
134 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 " ' I desired to make a drawing. ... It was denied to 
 me. , . . But I obtained the means to be shut up in the 
 prison for a morning ; and not only did I make a drawing,^ 
 but a tracing also, and with the two I then made a fac- 
 simile sufficiently careful. Luckily it was before the 
 rifacimento' 
 
 "This facsimile afterwards passed into the hands of 
 Lord Vernon, well known for his interest in all Dantesque 
 studies, and by his permission it has been admirably re- 
 produced in chromo-lithography under the auspices of the 
 Arundel Society.^ The reproduction is entirely satisfactory 
 
 ' The original drawing, made on the inside of the vellum cover of a copy of 
 the 1531 edition of the Convivio, was acquired by Colonel W. J. Gillum, at 
 the sale of Kirkup's library at Sotheby's in December, 1871, and was recently 
 (April, igo8) presented by him to the Museo Nazionale (in the Bargello) 
 at Florence. Kirkup gave the following interesting account to a friend 
 (Mrs. Gillum, by whom it was kindly communicated to the writer), in 
 Florence in 1873 of how he managed to get the drawing made. " I went 
 to the Bargello Chapel, along with others of the public, and I had that 
 book (the Convivio) and some colours in my pocket. For a while I man- 
 aged to draw, holding the book within my wide 'felt hat, but by and by 
 the man in charge of the rooni came up to me and said : ' You know. 
 Signer Barone, the Grand Duke does not allow any copying '. I answered : 
 ' I am making some notes,' and went on with the work. After a time the 
 man came again, and said : ' It is late. Signer Barone, time for me to 
 lock up and go to my dinner. Every one but yourself is gone.' — ' You 
 can go. You may lock me in to finish my notes.' As soon as I was alone, 
 I wheeled up the stage which had been left by the workmen who removed 
 the plaster, mounted it, and took a tracing on thin paper, so as to obtain 
 the exact outline and precise size. I then replaced the stage, and took 
 up my drawing again quite comfortably. So my ' notes ' were finished 
 before my gaoler returned from dinner." [Kirkup's description of himself 
 as "Barone" in 1840 is an anachronism. He assumed the title (through 
 a misunderstanding) after being created by King Victor Emmanuel, on the 
 restoration of the Italian kingdom, a "Cavaliere di SS. Maurizio e 
 Lazzaro".] 
 
 2 The tracing which Kirkup made at the same time as the drawing was 
 given by him to his friend Gabriele Rossetti, who handed it on to his son, 
 Dante Gabriel Rossetti. It was sold after the death of the latter in 1882. 
 
DEATH-MASK OF DANTE 135 
 
 as a presentation of the authentic portrait of the youthful 
 Dante, in the state in which it was when Mr. Kirkup was 
 so fortunate as to gain admission to it.' 
 
 " This portrait by Giotto is the only likeness of Dante 
 known to have been made of the poet during his life, and 
 is of inestimable value on this account. But there exists 
 also a mask, concerning which there is a tradition that it 
 was taken from the face of the dead poet, and which, if its 
 genuineness could be established, would not be of inferior 
 interest to the early portrait. But there is no trustworthy 
 historic testimony concerning it, and its authority as a 
 likeness depends upon the evidence of truth which its own 
 character affords. On the very threshold of the inquiry 
 concerning it, we are met with the doubt whether the art 
 of taking casts was practised at the time of Dante's death. 
 In his Life of Andrea del Verrocchio, Vasari says that this 
 art began to come into use in his time, that is, about the 
 middle of the fifteenth century ; and Bottari refers to the 
 likeness of Brunelleschi, who died in 1446, which was 
 taken in this manner, and was preserved in the Office of 
 the Works of the Cathedral at Florence. It is not impos- 
 sible that so simple an art may have been sometimes 
 practised at an earlier period ; ^ and if so, there is no in- 
 herent improbability in the supposition that Guido Novello, 
 
 1 Interesting details of the discovery of the fresco and of the making of 
 the drawing of the portrait of Dante are given in three letters from Kirkup 
 to Gabriele Rossetti, which are printed in Gabriele Rossetti ; A Versified 
 Autobiography, edited by W. M. Rossetti, igoi. (See Appendix C.) 
 
 ' As a matter of fact the art of taking casts firom the human face was 
 known to the ancients. It was at least 300 years old in the days of Pliny, 
 by whom reference is made to it in his Historia Naturalis : " Hominis 
 imaginem gypso e facie ipsa primus omnium expressit, ceraque in earn for- 
 mam gypsi infusa emendare instituit Lysistratus Sicyonius " ; i.e. Lysis- 
 tratus of Sicyon {c. 320 B.C.) was the first who took a cast of the human 
 face in plaster, and produced copies from this mould by pouring into it 
 melted wax (xxxv. § 44). 
 
136 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 the friend and protector of Dante at Ravenna, may, at the 
 time of the poet's death, have had a mask taken to serve 
 as a model for the head of a statue intended to form part 
 of the monument which he proposed to erect in honour of 
 Dante. And it may further be supposed that, this design 
 failing, owing to the fall of Guido from power before its 
 accomplishment, the mask may have been preserved at 
 Ravenna, till we first catch a trace of it nearly three cen- 
 turies later. 
 
 " There is in the Magliabecchiana Library at Florence 
 an autograph manuscript by Giovanni Cinelli, a Floren- 
 tine antiquary who died in 1706, entitled La Toscana 
 letterata, ovvero Istoria degli Scrittori Fiorentini, which 
 contains a life of Dante. In the course of the biography ^ 
 Cinelli states that the Archbishop of Ravenna caused the 
 head of the poet which had adorned his sepulchre to be 
 taken therefrom, and that it came into the possession of 
 the famous sculptor, Gian Bologna, who left it at his death, 
 in 1608, to his pupil Pietro Tacca. ' One day Tacca 
 showed it, with other curiosities, to the Duchess Sforza, 
 who, having wrapped it in a scarf of green cloth, carried 
 it away, and God knows into whose hands the precious 
 object has fallen, or where it is to be found. . . . On ac- 
 count of its singular beauty, it had often been drawn by 
 the scholars of Tacca.' It has been supposed that this 
 head was the original mask from which the casts now 
 existing are derived. Mr. Seymour Kirkup, in a note on 
 this passage from Cinelli, says that ' there are three masks 
 of Dante at Florence, all of which have been judged by 
 the first Roman and Florentine sculptors to have been 
 taken from life [that is, from the face after death] — the 
 
 ^ An extract from this biography, along with some interesting remarks 
 by Kirkup, is given in a letter from the latter to Charles Lyell from Flor- 
 ence, 27 February, 1842 (printed in The Poems of the Vita Nuova and 
 CoHvito of Dante, translated by Charles Lyell, 1842, pp. xvii-xix). 
 
MASK OF DANTE IN THE UFFIZI AT FLOKENCE 
 Formerly in po^seisio'i of the Marchese Torrigiani 
 
DEATH-MASK OF DANTE 137 
 
 slight differences noticeable between them being such as 
 might occur in casts made from the original mask '. One 
 of these casts was given to Mr. Kirkup by the sculptor 
 Bartolini, another belonged to the late sculptor, Professor 
 Ricci,^ and the third is in the possession of the Marchese 
 Torrigiani.^ 
 
 " In the absence of historical evidence in regard to this 
 mask, some support is given to the belief in its genuine- 
 ness by the fact that it appears to be the type of the 
 greater number of the portraits of Dante executed from 
 the fourteenth to the sixteenth century, and was adopted 
 by Raffaelle as the original from which he drew the like- 
 ness which has done most to make the features of the 
 poet familiar to the world. 
 
 " The character of the mask itself affords, however, the 
 only really satisfactory ground for confidence in the truth 
 of the tradition concerning it. It was plainly taken as a 
 cast from a face after death.^ It has none of the charac- 
 teristics which a fictitious and imaginative representation 
 of the sort would be likely to present. It bears no trace 
 of being a work of skilful and deceptive art.* The dif- 
 ference between the sides of the face, the slight deflection 
 in the line of the nose,* the droop of the corners of the 
 
 ^The mask possessed by Ricci, who made use of it for the purposes of 
 his statue of Dante in Santa Croce in Florence, eventually also passed 
 into the hands of Kirkup, by whom it was presented to the Oxford Dante 
 Society. 
 
 2 This last is now in the Uffizi Gallery at Florence. (See plate opposite.) 
 
 ^ This was the opinion also of the eminent surgeon, the late Sir 
 James Paget. 
 
 * Corrado Ricci, on the other iiand, who persistently denies the 
 genuineness of the death-mask, does not hesitate to declare that the trace 
 of the sculptor's tool is everywhere evident I (see L' Ultimo Rifugio di 
 Dante, p. 279). 
 
 ^ Sir James Paget pointed out that this depression of the tip of the 
 nose, which one is accustomed to regard as characteristic of Dante's face, 
 was just such as would have been produced by the weight of the plaster 
 in taking the cast. 
 
138 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 mouth, and other delicate, but none the less convincing 
 indications, combine to show that it was in all probability- 
 taken from nature. The countenance, moreover, and ex- 
 pression, are worthy of Dante ; no ideal forms could so 
 answer to the face of him who had led a life apart from 
 the world in ,which he dwelt, and had been conducted by 
 love and faith along hard, painful, and solitary ways, to 
 behold 
 
 ' L' alto trionfo del regno verace '.' 
 
 "The mask conforms entirely to the description by 
 Boccaccio of the poet's countenance, save that it is beard- 
 less, and this difference is to be accounted for by the fact 
 that to obtain the cast the beard must have been removed.^ 
 
 "The face is one of the most pathetic upon which 
 human eyes ever looked, for it exhibits in its expression 
 the conflict between the strong nature of the man and the 
 hard dealings of fortune, — between the idea of his life and 
 its practical experience. Strength is the most striking 
 attribute of the countenance, displayed alike in the broad 
 forehead, the masculine nose, the firm lips, the heavy jaw 
 and wide chin ; and this strength, resulting from the main 
 forms of the features, is enforced by the strength of the 
 lines of expression. The look is grave and stem almost 
 to grimness ; there is a scornful lift to the eyebrow, and a 
 contraction of the forehead as from painful thought ; but 
 obscured under this look, yet not lost, are the marks of 
 tenderness, refinement, and self-mastery, which, in com- 
 bination with more obvious characteristics, give to the 
 countenance of the dead poet an ineffable dignity and 
 melancholy. There is neither weakness nor failure here. 
 It is the image of the strong fortress of a strong soul ' but- 
 tressed on conscience and impregnable will,' battered by 
 
 1 " The high triumph of the true kingdom " {Par. xxx. g8). 
 
 ' That Dante had a beard we know from himself (Purg. xxxi. 68). 
 
DEATH-MASK OF DANTE 139 
 
 the blows of enemies without and within, bearing upon its 
 walls the dints of many a siege, but standing firm and un- 
 shaken against all attacks until the warfare was at an end. 
 
 " The intrinsic evidence for the truth of this likeness, 
 from its correspondence, not only with the description of 
 the poet, but with the imagination that we form of him 
 from his life and works, is strongly confirmed by a com- 
 parison of the mask with the portrait by Giotto. So far 
 as I am aware, this comparison has not hitherto been made 
 in a manner to exhibit effectively the resemblance between 
 the two. A direct comparison between the painting and 
 the mask, owing to the difficulty of reducing the forms of 
 the latter to a plain surface of light and shade, is unsatis- 
 factory. But by taking a photograph from the mask,' in 
 the same position as that in which the face is painted by 
 Giotto, and placing it alongside of the facsimile from the 
 painting,^ a very remarkable similarity becomes at once 
 apparent. In the two accompanying photographs the 
 striking resemblance between them is not to be mistaken. 
 The differences are only such as must exist between the 
 portrait of a man in the freshness of a happy youth, and 
 the portrait of him in his age, after much experience and 
 many trials. Dante was fifty-six years old at the time of 
 his death, when the mask was taken; the portrait by 
 Giotto represents him as not much past twenty. There 
 is an interval of at least thirty years between the two. 
 And what years they had been for him ! 
 
 " The interest of this comparison lies not only in the 
 mutual support which the portraits afford each other, in 
 the assurance each gives that the other is genuine, but 
 also in their joint illustration of the life and character 
 
 ' A representation of the mask, in two positions, is given on plate op- 
 posite p. 88. 
 
 ^ See plate, opposite p. 128. 
 
140 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 of Dante. As Giotto painted him, he is the lover of 
 Beatrice, the gay companion of princes,^ the friend of 
 poets, and himself already the most famous writer of love 
 verses in Italy. There is an almost feminine softness in 
 the lines of the face, with a sweet and serious tenderness 
 well befitting the lover, and the author of the sonnets and 
 canzoni which were in a few years to be gathered into the 
 incomparable record of his New Life. It is the face of 
 Dante in the May-time of youthful hope, in that serene 
 season of promise and of joy, which was so soon to reach 
 its foreordained close in the death of her who had made 
 life new and beautiful for him, and to the love and honour 
 of whom he dedicated his soul and gave all his future 
 years. It is the same face with that of the mask ; but the 
 one is the face of a youth, ' with all triumphant splendour 
 on his brow,' the other of a man, burdened with ' the dust 
 and injury of age'. The forms and features are alike, 
 but as to the later face, 
 
 ' That time of year thou mayst in it behold 
 When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang 
 Upon those boughs which shake against the cold. 
 Bare ruined choirs, where late the sweet birds sang.' 
 
 The face of the youth is grave, as with the shadow of dis- 
 tant sorrow ; the face of the man is solemn, as of one who 
 had gone 
 
 ' Per tutti i cerchi del dolente regno \^ 
 
 The one is the young poet of Florence, the other the 
 supreme poet of the world — 
 
 ' Che al divino dall' umano. 
 Air eterno dal tempo era venuto '." ^ 
 
 * Compare the reference to Charles Martel of Hungary, Paradiso, viii. 
 
 55-7- 
 
 2 " Through all the circles of the woeful kingdom " {Purg. vii. 22). 
 
 ' " Who was come from the human to the divine, from time to eternity " 
 (Par. xxxi. 37-8). 
 
PORTRAIT BY TADDEO GADDI 141 
 
 From the death-mask described above appears to have 
 been modelled the famous bronze bust of Dante, now in 
 the National Museum at Naples.^ 
 
 Another contemporary artist, besides Giotto, is known 
 to have painted Dante's portrait, but this unfortunately 
 has perished. In his Life of Dante, Leonardo Bruni says : 
 " His exact likeness, most excellently drawn from the life, 
 by an accomplished painter of those times, is to be seen 
 in the Church of Santa Croce, about half way up the church 
 on the left side as you go towards the high altar ". ^ The 
 painter of this portrait was Taddeo Gaddi,^ as we learn 
 from Vasari, who in his Life of Taddeo Gaddi, speaking 
 of Santa Croce, says : " Below the partition which divides 
 the church, on the left, above the crucifix of Donatello, 
 Taddeo painted in fresco a miracle of St. Francis, how, 
 appearing in the air, he restored to life a child who had been 
 killed by falling from a loggia. In this fresco Taddeo 
 introduced the portraits of his master Giotto, of the poet 
 Dante, and of Guido Cavalcanti, or, as some assert, of 
 himself." * This fresco was destroyed by Vasari himself 
 when, in 1 566, by order of Cosimo I, he removed the 
 partition on which it was painted.^ 
 
 ' See plate opposite. 
 
 * " L' effige sua propria si vede nella chiesa di Santa Croce, quasi al 
 mezzo chiesa dalla mano sinistra andando verso 1' altare maggiore, e ritratta 
 al naturale ottimamente per dipintore perfetto di quel tempo" (Vita di 
 Dante, ed. Brunone Bianchi, 1883, p. xxii). This portrait cannot have been 
 painted " from the life " in Florence, since Dante left Florence never to 
 return within a year or two of Taddeo Gaddi's birth, who was little more 
 than twenty when Dante died. 
 
 ^ c. 1300- 1366. 
 
 ^ " Sotto il tramezzo che divide la chiesa, a man sinistra sopra il Crocifisso 
 di Donato, dipinse a fresco una storia di San Francesco, d' un miracolo 
 che fece nel risuscitar un putto che era morto cadendo da un verone coll' 
 apparire in aria. Ed in questa storia ritrasse Giotto suo maestro, Dante 
 poeta e Guido Cavalcanti ; altri dicono sS stesso " (Opere di Vasari, ed. 
 Milanesi, 1878, vol. i. pp. 573-4). 
 
 ^ See Opere di Vasari, ed. cit., vol. i. p. 374 «., vol. vii. p. 711 ». 
 
142 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 So-called portraits of Dante in various frescoes and il- 
 luminated manuscripts are numerous. The best known 
 of the latter is the one prefixed to Codex 1040 in the 
 Riccardi Library in Florence, which was pronounced by 
 the commission appointed to examine into the question 
 in 1864 to be the most authentic portrait of Dante in 
 existence.^ This opinion, however, which was disputed 
 at the time, has not by any means met with general ac- 
 ceptance.^ 
 
 ' See plate, opposite p. 119. 
 
 2 In 1864, in view of the approaching celebration in Florence of the 
 sixth centenary of Dante's birth, the Minister of Public Instruction com- 
 missioned Gaetano Milanesi and Luigi Passerini to report upon the 
 most authentic portrait of the poet, as it was proposed to have a medallion 
 executed in commemoration of the centenary. Milanesi and Passerini 
 communicated the results of their invistigations to the Minister in a letter 
 which was published in the Giornale del Centenario for 20 July, 1864. 
 After stating their doubts -with regard to the Bargello portrait, and dispos- 
 ing of the claims of two other portraits contained in MSS. preserved in 
 Florence, they go on to say : " Very precious on the other hand is the 
 portrait prefixed to Codex 1040 in the Riccardi Library, which contains 
 the minor poems of Dante, together with those of Messer Bindi Bonichi, 
 and which appears from the arms and initials to have belonged to Paolo 
 di Jacopo Giannotti, who was born in 1430. This portrait, which is about 
 half the size of life, is in water-colour, and represents the poet with his 
 characteristic features at the age of rather more than forty. It is free from 
 the exaggeration of later artists, who, by giving undue prominence to the 
 nose and under-lip and chin, make Dante's profile resemble that of a 
 hideous old woman. In our opinion this portrait is to be preferred to any 
 other, especially for the purposes of a medallion." 
 
 Cavalcaselle, among other authorities, declined to accept these con- 
 clusions.* Checcacci, on the contrary, who carefully compared the Ric- 
 cardi portrait with a very exact copy of that in the Bargello, asserted that 
 if the difference of age be taken into consideration, the two resemble each 
 other " like two drops of water " : — " The Bargello portrait lacks the 
 wrinkles of the other, while the colouring is more fresh, and the promin- 
 ence of the lower lip is less marked, but the nose, which does not 
 change with advancing years, is identical, as are the shape and colour of 
 the eyes, and the shape of the skull, which may be distinguished in both 
 portraits ". He added further that the sculptor Dupr^ was greatly struck 
 
 * See Giornale del Centenario for 20 August, 1864, 
 
PICTURE BY DOMENICO DI MICHELINO 143 
 
 A very interesting representation of Dante, with his 
 book (the Divina Commedia) in his hand, and in the back- 
 ground a view of Florence on one side, and of the three 
 kingdoms of the other world on the other, is placed over - 
 the north door in the Cathedral of Florence. This picture 
 was painted in 1466, about 150 years after Dante's death, 
 by Domenico di Michelino, a pupil of Fra Angelico ; and 
 though it cannot in any sense claim to be a portrait of 
 Dante it has great value as a characteristic representation 
 of the poet, in the Florentine costume of the day, and 
 crowned with the poet's crown of laurel.^ 
 
 with the Riccardi portrait, which he considered might be the work of 
 Giotto himself, and that he availed himself of it for the medallion which 
 he was commissioned to execute in commemoration of the centenary. 
 (See Giornale del Centenario for lo Sept., 1864.) 
 
 ' See plate, opposite p. 193. This picture was for a long time attributed 
 to Orcagna, until the discovery of documentary evidence in Florence es- 
 tablished the fact that it was the work of Domenico di Michelino (1417- 
 1491) (see Of ere di Vasari, ed. Milanesi, 1878, vol. i. p. 607 n,, vol. ii. 
 p. 85 «.). The picture attracted the attention of most English travellers 
 in Florence. The first notice of it by an Englishman occurs in the Epi- 
 taphia et Inscriptiones Lugubres (published in 1554), of William Barker, the 
 translator of Gelli's Capricci del Bottaio, who transcribed the Latin inscrip- 
 tion (' Qui caelum cecinit, mediumque imumque tribunal,' etc.), on the 
 ftame, which was Englished 200 years later (in 1730) by Edward Wright, 
 another English traveller, as follows : — 
 
 " Behold the poet, who in lofty verse 
 
 Heav'n, hell, and purgatory did rehearse ; 
 
 The learned Dante ! whose capacious soul 
 
 Survey'd the universe, and knew the whole. 
 
 To his own Florence he a father prov'd, 
 
 Honour'd for counsel, for religion lov'd. 
 
 Death will not hurt so great a bard as he. 
 
 Who lives in virtue, verse, and effigy." 
 (See Dante in English Literature, vol. i. pp. 41, 216, and index). An- 
 other picture of Dante worthy of mention here is the painting by Andrea 
 del Castagno {c. 1390-1457) of the poet in a red robe, and red hood bor- 
 dered with fur, with his book in his right hand, which (now in the Museo rL 
 ^feizioiM^ at Florence) originally formed one of a series of portraits 
 (including Farinata degli Uberti, Petrarch, and Boccaccio) executed for 
 the Villa di Legnaia dei Pandolfini (see Opere di Vasari, ed. cit., vol. ii, 
 P- 
 
CHAPTER III 
 
 Anecdotes of Dante — Dante and Can Grande della Scala — Belacqua 
 and Dante — Sacchetti's stories — Dante and the blacksmith — Dante and 
 the donkey-driver — Dante's creed — Dante and King Robert of Naples — 
 Dante's reply to the bore — Dante and the Doge of Venice — Dante a klep- 
 tomaniac — Dante and Cecco d' Ascoli. 
 
 MANY anecdotes and traditions concerning Dante 
 have been preserved by various Italian writers, the 
 majority of which are undoubtedly apocryphal. Some of 
 them, however, are worth recording, as representing the 
 popular conception of what Dante was like in ordinary 
 life. 
 
 One of the earliest is that told by Petrarch^ of Dante 
 at the court of Can Grande della Scala at Verona, after 
 he had been exiled from Florence : — 
 
 " Dante Alighieri, erewhile my fellow-citizen, was a man 
 greatly accomplished in the vulgar tongue ; but on account 
 of his pride he was somewhat more free in his manners 
 and speech than was acceptable to the sensitive eyes and 
 ears of the noble princes of our country. Thus, when he 
 was exiled from his native city, and was a guest at the 
 court of Can Grande, at that time the refuge and resort of 
 all who were in misfortune, he was at first held in high 
 honour; but afterwards by degrees he began to lose 
 favour, and day by day became less pleasing to his host. 
 Among the guests at the same time were, according to 
 the custom of those days, mimics and buffoons of every 
 
 ^ In bk. ii. of the Res Memorandae. 
 144 
 
DANTE AND CAN GRANDE 145 
 
 description, one of whom, an impudent rascal, by means 
 of his coarse remarks and broad jests made himself a uni- 
 versal favourite and a person of considerable influence. 
 Can Grande, suspecting that this was a cause of vexation 
 to Dante, sent for the buff'oon, and, after lavishing praise 
 upon him, turned to Dante and said : ' I wonder how it 
 is that this man, fool though he be, understands how to 
 please us all, and is petted by every one ; while you, for 
 all your reputed wisdom, can do nothing of the kind ! ' 
 Dante replied : ' You would hardly wonder at that, if you 
 remembered that like manners and like minds are the real 
 causes of friendship '." ^ 
 
 A similar anecdote is told by Michele Savonarola, the 
 grandfather of the famous Florentine preacher and reformer, 
 Girolamo Savonarola : " I will tell you the answer made 
 by Dante to a buffoon at the court of the Lord della Scala 
 of Verona, who, having received from his master a fine 
 coat as a reward for some piece of buffoonery, showed it to 
 Dante, and said : ' You with all your letters, and sonnets, 
 and books, have never received a present like this'. To 
 which Dante answered : ' What you say is true ; and this 
 has fallen to you and not to me, because you have found 
 your likes, and I have not yet found mine. There, you 
 understand that ! '" ^ 
 
 John Gower introduces a story of Dante and a flatterer 
 into the Confessio Amantis (c. 1390) : — 
 
 " How Dante the poete answerde 
 To a flatour, the tale I herde. 
 Upon a strif bitwen hem tuo 
 He seide him, ' Ther ben many mo 
 Of thy servantes than of myne. 
 
 ^ Or, as we should say, " birds of a feather flock together ". 
 2 Quoted by Papanti in Dante secondo la tradicione e i novellatoH, 
 p. 94. 
 10 
 
146 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 For the poete of his covyne 
 
 Hath non that wol him clothe and fede, 
 
 But a fiatour may reule and lede 
 
 A king with al his lond aboute ' ". 
 
 (Bk. vii. 11. 2329*-37*.) ^ 
 
 Another story of Dante and Can Grande turns on his 
 host's name, Cane (" dog ") :— " Once when Dante was at 
 his table Cane della Scala, who was a very gracious lord, 
 wishing to have a joke with the poet and to incite him to 
 some smart saying, ordered his servants to collect all the 
 bones from the repast and to put them privily at Dante's 
 feet. When the tables were removed, and the company 
 saw the pile of bones at Dante's feet, they all began to 
 laugh, and asked him if he were a bone-merchant. Where- 
 upon Dante quickly replied : 'It is no wonder if the dogs 
 have eaten all their bones ; but I am not a dog, and so 
 I could not eat mine '. And he said this because his host 
 was called Cane ('dog')." ^ 
 
 The author of an old commentary on the Divina Corn- 
 media, written probably not many years after Dante's 
 death, relates Dante's retort to the musical-instrument 
 maker of Florence, whom the poet has placed among the 
 negligent in his Ante-Purgatory : * " Belacqua was a 
 citizen of Florence, who made the necks of lutes and 
 guitars, and he was the laziest man that ever was known. 
 It was said that he used to come in the morning to his 
 shop and sit himself down, and never stir again except to 
 go to dinner or to his siesta. Now Dante was a familiar 
 acquaintance of his, and often rebuked him for his lazi- 
 ness ; whereupon one day when he was scolding him, 
 Belacqua answered him with the words of Aristotle : ' By 
 
 1 In the margin Gower has put " Nota exemplum cujusdam poete de 
 Ytalia, qui Dantes vocabatur ". The above passage was omitted by Gower 
 from the latest recension of his poem. 
 
 2 Quoted by Papanti, op. cit,, pp. go-i. 
 8 Purgatorio, iv. 106-27. 
 
ANECDOTES OF DANTE BY SACCHETTI 14; 
 
 repose and quiet the mind attains to wisdom '. To which 
 Dante retorted : ' Certainly if repose will make a man wise, 
 you ought to be the wisest man on earth ' ." ^ 
 
 Benvenuto da Imola, another commentator on the Corn- 
 media, says that besides being a maker of musical instru- 
 ments, this Belacqua was also something of a musician, 
 and he explains that it was on this account that Dante, 
 who was a lover of music, became intimate with him. 
 
 The following two stories of Dante in Florence are told 
 by Franco Sacchetti, the Florentine writer of tales, who 
 was born within twenty years of Dante's death, and be- 
 longed to a family which had a long-standing blood-feud 
 with Dante's family, Geri del Bello, the first cousin of the 
 poet's father, having been killed by one of the Sacchetti.^ 
 The first story contains also a characteristic anecdote of 
 Dante's uncompromising ways, which according to Sac- 
 chetti largely contributed to bring about his exile. 
 
 " That most excellent poet in the vulgar tongue, whos'e 
 fame will never die, Dante Alighieri of Florence, lived in 
 Florence not far from the Adimari family, one of whom, 
 a young man, got into trouble through some misdoing or 
 other, and was like to be sentenced to punishment by one 
 of the magistrates. As the magistrate was a friend of 
 Dante's, the young man begged the latter to intercede in 
 his favour, which Dante readily consented to do. After 
 dinner, Dante went out from his house, and started on his 
 way to fulfil his promise. As he passed by the Porta San 
 Piero, a blacksmith was hammering iron on his anvil, and 
 at the same time bawling out some of Dante's verses, leav- 
 ing out lines here and there, and putting in others of his 
 own, which seemed to Dante a most monstrous outrage. 
 Without saying a word he went up to the blacksmith's 
 forge, where were kept all the tools he used to ply his 
 
 1 Anonimo Fiorentino, * See above, p. 42. 
 
148 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 trade, and seizing the hammer flung it into the street ; then 
 he took the tongs and flung them after the hammer, and 
 the scales after the tongs ; and he did the same with a 
 number of the other tools. The blacksmith, turning round 
 to him with a coarse gesture, said : ' What the devil are 
 you doing ? are you mad ? ' Dante replied : ' What are 
 you doing ? ' 'I am about my business,' said the smith, 
 ' and you are spoiling my tools by throwing them into the 
 street.' Dante retorted : ' If you do not want me to spoil 
 your things, do not you spoil mine '. The smith replied : 
 ' And what of yours am I spoiling ? ' Dante said : ' You 
 sing out of my book, and do not give the words as I 
 wrote them. That is my business, and you are spoiling 
 it for me.' The blacksmith, bursting with rage, but not 
 knowing what to answer, picked up his things and went 
 back to his work. And the next time he wanted to sing, 
 he sang of Tristram and Lancelot, and let Dante's book 
 alone. 
 
 " Dante meanwhile pursued his way to the magistrate ; 
 and when he was come to his house, and bethought him- 
 self that this Adimari was a haughty young man, and 
 behaved with scant courtesy when he went about in the 
 city, especially when he was on horseback (for he used to 
 ride with his legs so wide apart that if the street happened 
 to be narrow he took up the whole of it, forcing every 
 passer-by to brush against the points of his boots — a 
 manner of behaviour which greatly displeased Dante, who 
 was very observant), Dante said to the magistrate : ' You 
 have before your court such a young man for such an of- 
 fence ; I recommend him to your favour, though his be- 
 haviour is such that he deserves to be the more severely 
 punished, for to my mind usurping the property of the 
 commonwealth is a very serious crime '. Dante did not 
 speak to deaf ears. The magistrate asked what property 
 
ANECDOTES OF DANTE BY SACCHETTI 149 
 
 of the commonwealth the young man had usurped. 
 Dante answered : ' When he rides through the city he 
 sits on his horse with his legs so wide apart that whoever 
 meets him is obliged to turn back, and is prevented from 
 going on his way '. The magistrate said : ' Do you regard 
 this as a joke ? it is a more serious offence than the other ! ' 
 Dante replied : ' Well, you see, I am his neighbour, and 
 recommend him to you'. And he returned to his house, 
 where the young man asked him how the matter stood. 
 Dante said : ' He gave me a favourable answer '. A few 
 days afterwards the young man was summoned before 
 the court to answer the charge against him. After the 
 first charge had been read, the judge had the second read 
 also, as to his riding with his legs wide-spread. The 
 young man, perceiving that his penalty would be doubled, 
 said to himself : ' I have made a fine bargain ! instead of 
 being let off through the intervention of Dante, I shall 
 now be sentenced on two counts '. So returning home he 
 went to Dante and said : ' Upon my word, you have 
 served me well ! Before you went to the magistrate he 
 had a mind to sentence me on one count ; since you 
 went he is like to sentence me on two,' — and in a great 
 fury he turned to Dante and said : ' If I am sentenced I 
 shall be able to pay, and sooner or later I will pay out 
 the person who got me sentenced '. Dante replied : ' I 
 did my best for you, and could not have done more if you 
 had been my own son. It is not my fault if the magis- 
 trate does not do as you wish.' The young man, shaking 
 his head, returned home ; and a few days afterwards was 
 fined a thousand lire for the first offence, and another 
 thousand for riding with his legs wide-spread — a thing he 
 never ceased to resent, both he and all the rest of the 
 Adimari. And this was the principal reason why not 
 long after Dante was expelled from Florence as a member 
 
ISO CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 of the White party, and eventually died in exile at Ra- 
 venna, to the lasting shame of his native city." ^ 
 
 This story, Sacchetti informs his readers, reminded him 
 of another one about Dante, which he thought too good to 
 be omitted from his collection. It runs as follows : — 
 
 " On another occasion as Dante was walking through the 
 streets of Florence on no particular errand, and, according 
 to the custom of the day, was wearing a gorget and arm- 
 piece, he met a donkey-driver whose donkeys were loaded 
 with refuse. As he walked behind the donkeys the 
 driver sang some of Dante's verses, and after every two or 
 three lines he would beat one of the donkeys, and cry 
 out: Arril'^ Dante going up to him gave him a great 
 thump on the back with his arm-piece, and said : ' That 
 A rri ! was not put in by me '. The driver not knowing who 
 Dante was, nor why he had struck him, only beat his 
 donkeys the more, and again cried out : Arri ! But when 
 he had got a little way off, he ttirned round and put out 
 his tongue at Dante, and made an indecent gesture, say- 
 ing : ' Take that ! ' Dante, seeing this, said to him : ' I 
 would not give one word of mine for a hundred of yours '. 
 Oh ! gentle words, worthy of a philosopher ! Most 
 people would have run after the donkey-driver with 
 threats and abuse ; or would have thrown stones at him. 
 But the wise poet confounded the donkey-driver, and at 
 the same time won the commendation of every one who 
 had witnessed what took place." ' 
 
 The following story professes to account for the poetical 
 version of the Creed in terza rima, which is often included 
 among Dante's works, together with a similar version of 
 the seven penitential Psalms.* 
 
 " At the time when Dante was writing his book (the 
 
 ^ Novella, cxiv. ^ Equivalent to our " Gee up I " 
 
 ^Novella cxv. ^See pp. 193-202 of the Oxford Dante. 
 
DANTE AND THE INQUISITOR 151 
 
 Divina Commedia) many people who could not understand 
 it said that it was contrary to the Christian faith. And it 
 came about that Dante was exiled from Florence, and 
 forbidden to come within a certain distance of the city, 
 which prohibition being disregarded, he was proclaimed 
 by the Florentines as a rebel. After wandering about 
 for some time in many countries he at last came to Ra- 
 venna, an ancient city of Romagna, and settled down at 
 the court of Guido Novello, who was at that time lord of 
 Ravenna ; and here he died, in the year 1321, on the four- 
 teenth day of September, that is on the day of the Exal- 
 tation of the Holy Cross, and Wcis buried with great 
 honour by the lord of the city. Now at Ravenna there 
 was a learned Franciscan friar, who was an inquisitor. 
 This man, having heard of Dante's fame, became desirous 
 of making his acquaintance, with the intention of finding 
 out whether he were a heretic or no. And one morning, 
 as Dante was in church, the inquisitor entered, and Dante 
 being pointed out to him, he sent for him. Dante rever- 
 entially went to him, and was asked by the inquisitor if 
 he were the Dante who claimed to have visited Hell, 
 Purgatory, and Paradise. Dante replied : ' I am Dante 
 AHghieri of Florence '. Whereupon the inquisitor angrily 
 said : ' You go writing canzoni, and sonnets, and idle tales, 
 when you would have done much better to write a learned 
 work, resting on the foundations of the Church of God, 
 instead of giving your time to such like rubbish, which 
 may one of these days serve you out as you deserve'. 
 When Dante wished to reply to the inquisitor, the latter 
 said : ' This is not the time ; but on such a day I will see 
 you again, and I will inquire into this matter'. Dante 
 thereupon answered that he should be well pleased for 
 this to be done ; and taking leave of the inquisitor, he 
 went home to his own room, and there and then wrote 
 
152 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 out the composition known as the 'Little Creed,' the 
 which creed is an affirmation of the whole Christian faith. 
 On the appointed day he went in quest of the inquisitor, 
 and, having found him, put into his hands this composition, 
 which the inquisitor read ; and having read it he thought 
 it a remarkable work, insomuch that he was at a loss to 
 know what to say to Dante. And while the inquisitor 
 was thus confounded, Dante took his leave, and so came 
 off safe and sound. And from that day forward Dante 
 and the inquisitor became great friends. And that is how 
 it came about that Dante wrote his Creed." ^ 
 
 Giovanni Sercambi, the Lucchese novelist, tells several 
 stories of Dante, in one of which he relates how Dante 
 turned the tables on King Robert of Naples, the Guelf 
 champion, who was the bitter opponent of Dante's ideal 
 Emperor, Henry of Luxemburg. 
 
 " In the days when King Robert of Naples was still 
 alive, Dante, the poet of Florence, having been forbidden 
 to live in his native city or anywhere within the States of 
 the Church, took refuge sometimes with the Delia Scala 
 family at Verona, and sometimes with the lord of Mantua, 
 but oftenest with the Duke of Lucca, namely, Messer 
 Castruccio Castracani. And inasmuch as the fame of the 
 said Dante's wisdom had been noised abroad. King 
 Robert was desirous of having him at his court, in order 
 that he might judge of his wisdom and virtue ; wherefore 
 he sent letters to the Duke, and likewise to Dante, begging 
 him to consent to come. And Dante having decided to 
 go to King Robert's court, set out from Lucca and made 
 his way to Naples, where he arrived, dressed, as poets 
 mostly are, in somewhat shabby garments. When his 
 arrival was announced to King Robert, he was sent for to 
 the King ; and it was just the hour of dinner as Dante 
 ' Quoted by Papanti, op. cit. pp. 47-9. 
 
DANTE AND KING ROBERT OF NAPLES 153 
 
 entered the room where the King was. After hands had 
 been washed and places taken at table, the King sitting 
 at his own table, and the barons at theirs, at the last 
 Dante was placed at the lowest seat of all. Dante, being 
 a wise man, saw at once how little sense the King showed. 
 Nevertheless, being hungry, he ate, and after he had eaten, 
 he, without waiting, took his departure, and set out to- 
 wards Ancona on his way back to Tuscany. When King 
 Robert had dined, and rested somewhat, he inquired what 
 had become of Dante, and was informed that he had left 
 and was on his way towards Ancona. The King, knowing 
 that he had not paid Dante the honour which was his 
 due, supposed that he was indignant on that account, and 
 said to himself: ' I have done wrong ; after sending for 
 him, I ought to have done him honour, and then I should 
 have learned from him what I wanted'. He therefore 
 without delay sent some of his own servants after him, 
 who caught him up before he reached Ancona. Having 
 received the King's letter Dante turned round and went 
 back to Naples ; and dressing himself in a very handsome 
 garment presented himself before King Robert. At 
 dinner the King placed him at the head of the first table, 
 which was alongside of his own ; and Dante finding him- 
 self at the head of the table, resolved to make the King 
 understand what he had done. Accordingly, when the 
 meat and wine were served, Dante took the meat and 
 smeared it over the breast of his dress, and the wine he 
 smeared over his clothes in like manner. King Robert 
 and the barons who were present, seeing this, said : ' This 
 man must be a good-for-nothing ; what does he mean by 
 smearing the wine and gravy over his clothes ? ' Dante 
 heard how they were abusing him, but held his peace. 
 Then the King, who had observed all that passed, turned 
 to Dante and said : ' What is this that I have seen you 
 
154 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 doing? How can you, who are reputed to be so wise, 
 indulge in such nasty habits?' Dante, who had hoped 
 for some remark of this kind, replied : ' Your majesty, I 
 know that this great honour which you now show me, is 
 paid not to me but to my clothes ; consequently I thought 
 that my clothes ought to partake of the good things you 
 provided. You must see that what I say is the case ; for 
 I am just as wise now, I suppose, as when I was set at 
 the bottom of the table, because of my shabby clothes ; 
 and now I have come back, neither more nor less wise 
 than before, because I am well dressed, you place me at 
 the head of the table.' King Robert, recognising that 
 Dante had rebuked him justly, and had spoken the truth, 
 ordered fresh clothes to be brought for him, and Dante 
 after changing his dress ate his dinner, delighted at having 
 made the King see his own folly. When dinner was over, 
 the King took Dante aside, and, making proof of his 
 wisdom, found him to be even wiser than he had been 
 told ; wherefore King Robert paid Dante great honour 
 and kept him at his court, in order that he might have 
 further experience of his wisdom and virtue." 
 
 The famous Florentine story-teller, Francesco Poggio 
 Bracciolini, more commonly known as Poggio, besides 
 the two anecdotes of Dante and Can Grande which have 
 already been given, relates the following of how Dante 
 disposed of a bore : — 
 
 " At the time when our poet Dante was in exile at Siena, 
 as he was standing one day deep in thought, with his elbow 
 on one of the altars in the Church of the Minor Friars, as 
 though he were revolving in his mind some very abstruse 
 matter, some busybody went up to him, and disturbed him 
 by speaking to him. Dante turned to him and said : 
 ' What is the biggest beast in the world ? ' ' The elephant,' 
 was the reply. Then said Dante : ' Oh ! elephant, leave 
 
DANTE AND THE DOGE OF VENICE 155 
 
 me alone in peace, for I am pondering weightier matters 
 than your silly chatter '." ^ 
 
 Another version of this story is included among The 
 Most Elegant and Witty Epigrams (first published in 
 161 5) of Sir John Harington. It is entitled 
 
 A good answere of the Poet Dant to an Atheist. 
 
 The pleasant learn'd Italian Poet Dant, 
 Hearing an Atheist at the Scriptures jest, 
 Askt him in jest, which was the greatest beast ? 
 He simply said ; he thought an Elephant. 
 Then Elephant (quoth Dant) it were commodious, 
 That thou wouldst hold thy peace, or get thee hence, 
 Breeding our Conscience scandal and offence 
 With thy prophan'd speech^ most vile and odious. 
 Oh Italy, thou breedst but few such Dants, 
 I would our England bred no Elephants.^ 
 
 The following anecdote of Dante and the Doge of 
 Venice belongs to quite the end of Dante's life, the occa- 
 sion in question being when he was in Venice on his 
 embassy from Guido da Polenta in the summer of 1321, 
 a few months before his death : — 
 
 " Dante of Florence being once on a mission in Venice, 
 was invited to dinner by the Doge on a fast-day. In front 
 of the envoys of the other princes who were of greater 
 account than the Polenta lord of Ravenna, and were served 
 before Dante, were placed the largest fish ; while in front 
 of Dante were placed the smallest. This difference of 
 treatment nettled Dante, who took up one of the little fish 
 in his hand, and held it to his ear, as though expecting it 
 to say something. The Doge, observing this, asked him 
 what this strange behaviour meant. To which Dante 
 replied : ' As I knew that the father of this fish met his 
 
 ^Facezie di Poggio fiorentino. No. Ixvi. 
 
 '^ Book iv. No. 17 (see Paget Toynbee, Dante in English Literature, 
 vol. i. p. 84). 
 
IS6 CHARACTERISTICS OF DANTE 
 
 death in these waters, I was asking him news of his father '. 
 ' Well,' said the Doge, ' and what did he answer ? ' Dante 
 replied : ' He told me that he and his companions were 
 too little to remember much about him ; but that I might 
 learn what I wanted from the older fish, who would be 
 able to give me the news I asked for '. Thereupon the 
 Doge at once ordered Dante to be served with a fine large 
 fish." 1 
 
 An English traveller in Italy at the beginning of the 
 eighteenth century picked up in Florence the following 
 curious story about Dante :■ — 
 
 " This great man, we are told, had a most unhappy itch 
 of pilfering ; not for lucre (for it was generally of mere 
 trifles), but it was what he could not help ; so that the 
 friends whose houses he frequented, would put in his way 
 rags of cloth, bits of glass, and the like, to save things 
 of more value (for he could not go away without some- 
 thing) ; and of such as these, at his death, a whole room 
 full was found filled." ^ 
 
 Another anecdote is given by Isaac D'Israeli in his 
 Curiosities of Literature : — 
 
 " A story is recorded of Cecco d' Ascoli and of Dante, 
 on the subject of natural and acquired genius. Cecco 
 maintained that nature was more potent than art, while 
 Dante asserted the contrary. To prove his principle, the 
 great Italian bard referred to his cat, which, by repeated 
 practice, he had taught to hold a candle in its paw, while 
 he supped or read. Cecco desired to witness the experi- 
 ment, and came not unprepared for the purpose ; when 
 Dante's cat was performing its part, Cecco, lifting up the lid 
 
 • Quoted by Papanti, op. cit. p. 157. 
 
 ^ Edward Wright, Some Observations made in Travelling through 
 France, Italy, etc. in the Years MDCCXX, MDCCXXI,andMDCC^XII 
 (London, 1730), ed. 1764, p. 395 (see Dante in English Literature, vol i. 
 pp. 216-17). 
 
DANTE AND CECCO D' ASCOLI 157 
 
 of a pot which he had filled with mice, the creature of art 
 instantly showed the weakness of a talent merely acquired, 
 and dropping the candle flew on the mice with all its in- 
 stinctive propensity. Dante was himself disconcerted, 
 and it was adjudged that the advocate for the occult 
 principle of native faculties had gained his cause." ^ 
 
 Many of these stories are obviously much older than 
 the time of Dante, and have been told of various famous 
 persons at different periods. Their association, however, 
 with Dante's name is sufficient proof of the estimation in 
 which he was held within a few years after his death, and 
 of the way in which his fame as a poet impressed the 
 popular imagination in Italy. 
 
 ' Ed. 1866, vol. ii. {Anecdotes of the Fairfax Family), p. 464 (see 
 Dante in English Literature, vol. i. p. 508, and Papanti, of. cit. p. 197). 
 
PART V 
 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 Italian Works — Lyrical Poems — The Vita Nuova — The Csiivivio. 
 
 DANTE'S earliest known composition is the sonnet 
 beginning 
 
 " A ciascun' alma presa e gentil core," ' 
 
 which, as he tells us in the Vita Nuova, he wrote after 
 seeing the marvellous vision which followed on the episode 
 of his being publicly saluted by Beatrice for the first time 
 in the streets of Florence, when they were both in their 
 eighteenth year (i.e. in the year 1283). This sonnet, he 
 further tells us, he sent to many famous poets of the day, 
 
 1 " To every captive soul and gentle heart 
 
 Unto whose ken these present words shall come, 
 
 That they may write me back their thoughts thereon, 
 Be greeting in their Lord's name, that is Love. 
 A third part well-nigh of those hours had passed 
 
 Wherein shines brightly every star on high, 
 
 When on a sudden Love appeared to me ; 
 And still I shudder when I think on him. 
 Methought Love stood all joyful as he held 
 
 My heart within his hand, and in his arms 
 My Lady bore enshrouded and asleep. 
 
 Whom then he waked, and of this flaming heart 
 Humbly did make her eat, she sore afraid — 
 
 Then, as I looked, he wept and went his way." 
 158 
 
CANZONIERE 159 
 
 from whom he received sonnets in reply. Among those 
 to whom he sent were his first friend, Guide Cavalcanti, 
 Cino da Pistoja, and Dante da Majano, whose replies have 
 been preserved.^ 
 
 Cansoniere. — This sonnet and thirty other poems 
 (twenty-four sonnets, five canzoni, and one ballata) are 
 grouped together in a symmetrical arrangement in the 
 Vita Nuova (or New Life), the prose text of which is a 
 vehicle for the introduction and interpretation of the 
 poems. Others of Dante's lyrical poems are introduced 
 in his Convivio (or Banquet), which contains three canzoni, 
 and in his Latin work on the vulgar tongue {De Vulgari 
 Eloquentia), which contains quotations from nine poems, 
 canzoni and sestine. In addition to these there is a col- 
 lection of between ninety and a hundred lyrical poems 
 attributed to Dante, some of which are almost certainly 
 not his.^ Such of the poems of the Canzoniere as do not 
 belong to the Vita Nuova and Convivio appear to have 
 been composed at various times as independent pieces, 
 though attempts have been made to distinguish one or 
 more definite groups. Both Villani and Boccaccio make 
 mention of Dante's lyrical poems. The former says : ^ 
 " When he was in exile he wrote about twenty very excel- 
 lent canzoni, both moral and on the subject of love". 
 Boccaccio says : * " He composed numerous lengthy can- 
 zoni, and sonnets, and sundry ballate, both amorous and 
 moral, besides those which are included in the Vita 
 
 ^ Translations of these three sonnets in reply (which are in the same 
 rimes as Dante's sonnet) are given by D. G. Rossetti in Dante and his 
 Circle (ed. 1874), pp. 131, 183, ig8. 
 
 'See Dante Dictionary, s.v. C0n,zoniere ; and The Vita Nuova and 
 Canzoniere of Dante, by T. Okey and P. H. Wicksteed (1906), pp. 155- 
 
 357- 
 
 s Bk. ix. ch. 136. 
 
 * Vita di Dante, ed. Macri-Leone, § 16, p. 74. 
 
i6o DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 Nuova"} The earliest printed collection of Dante's 
 lyrical poems is that included in Sonetti e Canzoni di 
 diversi antichi Autori Toscani in died libri raccolte (Flor- 
 ence, 1527), the first four books of which contain forty- 
 five sonnets, nineteen canzoni, eleven ballate, and one 
 sestina, attributed to Dante. A few, however, of the 
 canzoni and madrigali (as they are described) had been 
 printed at Venice in 15 18, and reprinted at Milan in the 
 same year, in a collection entitled Canzoni di Dante. 
 Madrigali del detto. Madrigali di M. Cino et di M. 
 Girardo Novello. Fifteen canzoni of Dante are printed 
 at the end of the editio princeps of the Vita Nuova (Flor- 
 ence, 1576). 
 
 Vita Nuova. — Dante's Vita Nuova or New Life (i.e. 
 according to some, his " young life," but more probably 
 his " life made new " by his love for Beatrice), the first 
 autobiographical work in modern literature, as it has been 
 described, was written probably between i292_and__i2Q5j_ 
 when Dante was under thirty, and some seven or eight 
 years before his exile from Florence. The poems were 
 obviously written before the prose text, which was neces- 
 sarily composed later than the death of Beatrice in 1290. 
 
 The following positive dates are supplied by Dante in 
 the course of the narrative of the Vita Nuova, viz. that 
 he first saw Beatrice in the spring of 1 274, when he had 
 nearly completed his ninth year (§ 2, 11. 1-5, 15), and she 
 
 •There are three English translations of the Canzoniere, viz. by 
 Charles Lyell (in unrimed verse, in the metres of the original) in 
 The Canzoniere of Dante, including the poems of the Vita Nuova and 
 Convito (183s, 1840, 1845 ; a revised version of The Poems of the Vita 
 Nuova and Convito was issued, with other matter, in 1842) ; by Dean 
 Plumptre (in rimed verse) in The Commedia and Canzoniere of Dante, 
 vol. ii. pp. 199-317 (1887) ; by P. H. Wicksteed (in prose) in The Convivio 
 of Dante (1903), and in The Vita Nuova and Canzoniere of Dante, pp. 
 156-357 (1906). 
 
VITA NUOVA i6i 
 
 was at the beginning of her ninth year (§ 2, 11. 9- 1 S) ; that 
 Beatrice saluted him for the first time nine years later, in 
 the spring of 1283 (§ 3, 11. i-iS), when he wrote the sonnet, 
 "A ciascun' alma presa e gentil core' {Son. i.), his earliest 
 known composition ; that Beatrice died on the evening of 
 8 June, 1290^ (§ 30, 11. 1-13); that on the first anniversary 
 of her death (8 June, 1291) he wrote the sonnet, " Era ven- 
 uta nella mente mia" {Son. xviii.), in commemoration 
 of her (§ 35, 11. 1-20); that not long after (i.e. probably"" 
 as appears from Convivio, ii. 2, 11. i-io, in September,^j 
 1291),^ he saw for the first tim6 the "donna gentile" 
 (whom some have identified with Gemma Donati) * (§ 36, 
 11. 1-13). To these, if the identity of Beatrice with Bea- 
 trice Portinari be accepted, may be added the date of the 
 death of Folco Portinari,* viz. 31 December, 1289 (§ 22, 
 11. 1-7). 
 
 Boccaccio, \^o asserts that in later life Dante was 
 ash amed of this work of his youth,^ gives the following 
 account of the Vita Nuova : — 
 
 " This glorious poet composed several works in his time, 
 of which I think it fitting to make mention in order, lest 
 any work of his be claimed by another, or the works of 
 others be perchance attributed to him. 
 
 " He, first of all, while his tears for the death of Bea- 
 trice were yet fresh, when he was nigh upon his twenty- 
 
 ' See note on p. 47. 
 
 ^See G. R. Carpenter, The Episode of the Donna Pietesa, in Annual 
 Report of the Cambridge (U.S.A.) Dante Society for i88g, p. 60. 
 
 ^ See note on p. 67. * See above pp. 46-7. 
 
 ' This is not borne out by what Dante himself says of it at the begin- 
 ning of the Convivio : " E se nella presente opera, la quale e Convivio 
 nominata e vo' Che sia, piu virilmente s! trattasse che nella Vita Nuova, 
 non intendo pero a quella in parte alcuna derogare, ma maggiormente 
 giovare per questa quella ; veggendo siccome ragionevolmente quella fer- 
 vida e passionata, questa temperata e virile essere conviene. Ch6 altro si 
 conviene e dire e operare a una etade, che ad altra" (i. i, 11. ni-2o). 
 II 
 
1 62 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 sixth year, collected together in a little volume, to which 
 he gave the title of Vita Nuova, certain small works, such 
 as sonnets and canzoni, composed by him in rime at 
 divers times before, and of marvellous beauty. Above 
 each of these, severally and in order, he wrote the occa- 
 sions which had moved him to compose them ; and be- 
 . low he added the divisions of each poem. And although 
 \ in his riper years he was much ashamed of having written 
 (this little book, yet, if his age be considered, it is very 
 '(beautiful and delightful, especially_ to ynlearned, folk." ^ 
 ' "The New Life" writes Professor Norton,^ "is the 
 proper introduction to the Divine Comedy. I t is the story 
 of the beginning of the love through which, even in Dante's 
 youth, heavenly things were revealed to him, and which 
 in the bitterest trials of life — in disappointment, poverty, 
 and exile — kept his heart fresh with springs of perpetual 
 solace. It was this love which led him through the hard 
 paths of Philosophy and up the steep ascents of Faith, 
 out of Hell and through Purgatory, to the glories of Para- 
 dise and the fulfilment of Hope. 
 
 " The narrative of the New Life is quaint, embroidered 
 with conceits, deficient in artistic completeness, but it has 
 the simplicity of youth, the charm of sincerity, the freedom 
 of personal confidence ; and so long as there are lovers in 
 the world, and so long as lovers are poets, this first and 
 tenderest love-story of modern literature will be read with 
 appreciation and responsive sympathy. 
 
 " It is the earliest of Dante's writings, and the most 
 autobiographic of them in fprmand intentiojo. In it we 
 are brought into intimatepersonal relations with the poet 
 He trusts himself to us with full and free confidence,;, but 
 there is no derogation from becoming manliness in his 
 
 ' Vita di Dante, ed. cit., § 13, p. 63. 
 
 ' The New Life of Dante Alighieri, pp. 93 ff. 
 
VITA NUOVA 163 
 
 confessions. He draw s the picture of^a gortion of his 
 y£uth, and displays its secret emotions ; but he does so 
 with no morbid self-consciousness and with no affectation. 
 Part of this simplicity is due, undoubtedly, to the char- 
 acter of the times, part to his own youthfulness, part to 
 downright faith in his own genius. It was the fashion for 
 poets to tell of their loves ; in following this fashion, he 
 not only gave utterance to genuine feeling, and claimed 
 his rank among the poets, but also fixed a standard by 
 which the ideal expression of love was thereafter to be 
 measured. 
 
 " This first essay of his poetic powers rests on the founda- 
 tion upon which his later life was built. The figure of 
 Beatrice, which appears veiled under the symbolism, and 
 indistinct in the bright halo of the allegory of the Divine 
 Comedy, takes its place in life and on the earth through the 
 New Life as definitely as that of Dante himself. She is 
 no allegor ized piece of humanity, no impersonation of at- 
 tributes, but an actual woman, — -beautiful, modest, gentle, 
 with companions only less beautiful than herself,— -the most 
 deligh tful personage in the daily picturesque life of Flor- 
 jence. She is seen smiling and weeping, walking with 
 other f air maidens in the stree t, praying at _the church, 
 nierry at festivalsj^ mourning at funerals; and her smiles 
 and tears, her gentleness, her reserve, all the sweet 
 qualities of her life, and the peace of her death, are told 
 of with such tenderness, and purity, and passion, as well 
 as with such truth of poetic imagination, that .she remains, 
 and will always remain, the loveliest and most womanly 
 w;oman of the Middle Ages, — at once absolutely real and 
 truly ideal. 
 
 " The meaning of the name La Vita Nuova has been 
 the subject of animated discussion. Literally The New 
 Life, it has been questioned whether this phrase meant 
 
1 64 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 i simply early life, or life made new by the first experience 
 and lasting influence of love. The latter interpretation 
 seems the most appropriate to Dante's turn of mind and 
 to his condition of feeling at the time when the little book 
 appeared. To him it was the record of that life which 
 the presence of Beatrice had made new." 
 
 Xhe Vita Nuova,w\ach. was dedicated to Dante's earliest 
 friend Guido Cavalcanti (^~3iv iU-aa^^X TO5sists_o£jthree 
 distinct elements, viz. lhe_goenis, rtie narrative of Jhe 
 events which gave rise to the poems, and the expositions 
 of the stru ctural divisions of the poems . Two distinctive 
 features of the work are the frequency with which Dante, 
 in accordance with the literary traditions of the day,^ 
 introduces the expe dient of visions, ofjvhich there areJlQ 
 less than seven in the book (§§ 3, 9, 12^ 23, 24, 40, 43) ; 
 and the^ important part played by t he number nine, in 
 connection with the hour, day, month, and year of the 
 various events related concerning Beatrice. Thus Dante 
 first sees Beatrice when they were both in their ninth year 
 (" quasi dal principio del suo nono anno apparve a me, ed 
 io la vidi quasi alia fine del mio nono," § 2, 11. 13-15 ; cf. 
 § 2, 11. 1-8 : " Nave fiate gia," etc.) ; he sees her again nine 
 years later (" appunto erano compiuti li nove anni appresso 
 r apparimento soprascritto," § 3, 11. 2-3) ; and receives her 
 first greeting at the ninth hour of the day (" 1' ora, che lo 
 suo dolcissimo salutare mi giunse, era fermamente nona di 
 quel giorno," § 3, 11. 16-18); his subsequent vision takes 
 place during the first of the last nine hours of the night 
 (" fu la prima ora delle nove ultime ore della notte," § 3, 
 11. 63-5). When he was minded to write a poem contain- 
 ing the names of the sixty fairest ladies of Florence, the 
 name of Beatrice would stand nowhere save in the ninth 
 place (" in alcuno altro numero non sofferse il nome della 
 ^ See A. Bartoli, Storia della Letteraiura Italiana, vol, iv. p. 173. 
 
VITA NUOVA 165 
 
 mia donna stare, se non in sul nove, tra' nomi di queste 
 donne," § 6, 11. 14-17). The third vision takes place at 
 the ninth hour of the day ("trovai che questa visione 
 m' era apparita nella nona ora del dl," § 12, 11. 74-5). The 
 vision in which he has a presentiment of the approaching 
 death of Beatrice, when he is laid low with sickness, occurs 
 on the ninth day of his illness (" nel nono giorno sentendomi 
 dolore quasi intollerabile, giunsemi un pensiero, il quale 
 era della mia donna ...,"§ 23, 11. 8-10). In the sonnet, 
 " lo mi sentii svegliar dentro alio core " {Son. xiv.), in which 
 Beatrice is mentioned, her name occurs in the ninth line ^ 
 (§ 24, 1. 58). In the date of her death the number nine 
 comes in with special significance, in connection with the 
 day, the month, and the year, which are computed for the 
 purpose according to the Arabian, Syrian, and Roman 
 calendars respectively^ ("secondo 1' usanza d' Arabia, 
 r anima sua nobilissima si parti nella prima ora del nono 
 giorno del mese ; e secondo 1' usanza di Siria, ella si parti 
 nel nono mese dell' anno ; . . . e secondo 1' usanza nostra, 
 ella si parti in quelle anno della nostra indizione, cio^ degli 
 anni Domini, in cui il perfetto numero nove volte era com- 
 piuto in quel centinaio nel quale in questo mondo ella fu 
 posta," § 30, 11. I-I2). Finally, his last vision of Beatrice, 
 when she appeared to him as she was when he first saw 
 her, took place just on the hour of nones (" si lev6 un dl, 
 quasi nell' ora di nona, una forte immaginazione in me," etc., 
 § 40, 11. 1-3). Dante himself draws particular attention to 
 the fact of this connection of the number nine with Beatrice, 
 and promises to explain the reason of it (§ 29, 11. 29-38), 
 which he subsequently does in detail (§ 30, 11. 13-32), his 
 
 ^ This might be used as an argument in favour of the reading " Bice " 
 instead of " Lagia " in the sonnet, " Guido, vorrei che tu e Lapo ed io " 
 (Son. xxxii.), where the name occurs in the ninth line. 
 
 2 On this point see above, p. 47, note. 
 
1 66 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 conclusion being that she was " a nine, that is to say a 
 miracle, whose root is no other than the marvellous Trinity" 
 (" questa donna fu accompagnata dal numero del nove a 
 dare ad intendere, che ella era un nove, ciofe un miracolo, la 
 cui radice h solamente la mirabile Trinitade," § 30, 11. 37-41). 
 The fo rm "of the composition of the F?V«iV«oz;fl, partly 
 in prose, partly in verse (as in the famous De Consolatione 
 Philosophiae of Boethius, with which Dante was intimately 
 acquainted, and the early French " chantefable," Aucassin 
 et Nkolete), was_ no doubt borrowed J^rom a Provencal 
 model , the prose text being a vehicle for the introduction and 
 interpretation of the poems. The latter, which are thirty- 
 one in number, consisting oftwenty-fiye sonnets (including 
 two which are irregular), five canzoni (two of which are 
 imperfect), and one ballata, are symmetrically arranged 
 in groups around the three principal canzoni, the central 
 poem of all being the canzone, " Donna pietosa e di novella 
 etate '' {Canz. ii.).^ 
 
 The work falls' naturally into two main divisions, viz. 
 the period before the death of Beatrice (1274- 1290), and 
 the period after her death (1290-^.1295). Taken in more 
 I detail it may conveniently be divided into five parts,^ viz. 
 I (§§ 1-17) Dante's youthful love for Beatrice, and his£Qerns 
 \ in praise of her physical beauty; (§§ i8-28)jhis_praisesjof 
 fjthe s_piritual beaut^Mjf Be atric e ; (§§ 29-3S%the_death of 
 j Beatrice and the poems of lamentation ; (§§ 36-3iQ.)'I)ante's 
 ! Tovefor the " donna gentile," and the poems about her; 
 ' (§§ 40-43) Dante's return to his love for Beatrice, and 
 ! reverence for her memory. 
 
 The division into numbered chapters was not made by 
 Dante himself, and does not appear in any of the MSS., 
 
 1 See C. E. Norton, The New Life of Dante (1892), pp. 129-34. Norton's 
 views, however, are contested by M. Scherillo, in La Forma Architettonica 
 delta Vita Nuova, in GiornaU Dantesco, ix. (1901). 
 
 "^ See T. Casini, La vkta Nuova (1891), p. xxiii. 
 
V/TA NUOVA 167 
 
 nor even in the printed editions before the middle of the 
 nineteenth century.'- It is, however, convenient for refer- 
 ence, and is now generally adopted in modern editions.^ 
 
 Analysis of the Vita Nuova : — 
 
 Part I. §§ I -17. — § I. ("Proemio") Introductory, ex- 
 plaining the title of the book (" Incipit Vita Nova "), and 
 the author's purpose. — § 2. First meeting of Dante with 
 Beatrice (in the spring of 1274), he being nearly nine 
 years old, and she not yet nine. — § 3. Nine years later 
 (in the spring of 1283), at the ninth hour of the day, 
 Dante for the first time receives a greeting from Bea- 
 trice ; his first vision (Love appears to him holding a lady 
 asleep in his arms, and in his hand Dante's heart in flames, 
 of which he gives the lady to eat, and then disappears, 
 bearing her away with him) ; he describes the vision in 
 the sonnet : " A ciascun' alma presa, e gentil core " {Son. 
 i.), which he sends to the most famous poets of the day 
 for interpretation ; he receives a reply among others from 
 Guido Cavalcanti. — § 4. Dante falls ill through the in- 
 tensity of his passion for Beatrice ; questioned as to the 
 object of his passion he refuses to reply. — § 5. He dis- 
 sembles his love for Beatrice under pretence of devotion to 
 another lady.— § 6. He composes a serventese containing 
 the names of the sixty fairest ladies in Florence, among 
 
 ' It was first introduced in the edition of A. Torri, Livorno, 1843. 
 
 2 Unfortunately all editors have not adopted the same numeration. 
 Witte (Leipzig, 1876) and Casini, for example, do not number the opening 
 paragraph, which Dante himself refers to as " il proemio che precede questo 
 libello " (§ 29, 11. 17-18) ; while Torri, the Oxford Dante, and others 
 count it as § i. Again, Torri's § 3 is divided by Witte and Casini into two 
 (§§ 2, 3) ; while, on the other hand, Torri's and Witte's §§ 26, 27, are run 
 by Casini into one (§ 26). In the critical edition recently published by M. 
 Barbi (Florence, 1907) for the Societd Dantesca Italiana the chapter 
 divisions differ from those of all previous editions ; and in the Oxford 
 Dante, the arrangement of which is followed in this book, yet another 
 system is adopted. 
 
1 68 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 which that of Beatrice will stand in no other than the 
 ninth place. — § 7. The lady of his pretended devotion 
 leaves Florence ; he laments her departure in a sonnet : 
 " O voi, che per la via d' Amor passate " {Son. ii.). — § 8. 
 He writes two sonnets on the death of a beautiful damsel, 
 a friend of Beatrice : " Piangete, amanti, poich^ piange 
 Amore" {Son. in.); "Morte villana, di pieta nemica" 
 {Son. iv.). — § g. He is obliged to take a journey out of 
 Florence in the direction taken by the lady of his- pre- 
 tended devotion ; his second vision (Love appears to him 
 in the guise of a pilgrim of sorrowful aspect, who calls to 
 him and tells him that he brings back his heart from the 
 keeping of the lady who had possessed it awhile, in order 
 that it may be at the service of another lady ; whereafter 
 he vanishes) ; which he describes in the sonnet : " Caval- 
 cando 1' altr' ier per un cammino " {Son. v.). — § i o. Dante's 
 devotion to the second lady occasions remark, and causes 
 Beatrice to deny him her salutation. — § 11. He describes 
 the marvellous effects on himself of the salutation of 
 Beatrice. — § 12. Dante's distress at Beatrice's denial to 
 him of her salutation ; his third vision, which takes place 
 at the ninth hour of the day (Love appears to him in his 
 sleep, sitting at his bedside, and weeping piteously; 
 Dante questions him as to why Beatrice had denied him 
 her salutation ; Love explains and bids him write a poem 
 which shall make manifest to Beatrice his faithful and un- 
 altered devotion to her; he then disappears and Dante 
 awakes) ; he composes the ballata : " Ballata io vo' che 
 tu ritrovi Amore " {Ball. i.). — § 13. Dante is assailed by 
 doubts as to whether the lordship of Love is a good thing 
 or the reverse ; he describes his doubts in the sonnet : 
 " Tutti li miei pensier parlan d' Amore " {Son. vi.). — § 14. 
 He is conducted by a friend to a marriage-feast where he 
 finds himself in the presence of Beatrice ; he is so over- 
 
VITA NUOVA 169 
 
 come by emotion that his confusion is remarked, and the 
 ladies, including Beatrice herself, whisper and mock at 
 him, whereupon his friend, perceiving his distress, leads 
 him away ; on his return home he addresses to Beatrice 
 the sonnet : " Coll' altre donne mia vista gabbate " {Son. 
 vii.). — § 15. He is torn between his longing to be in the 
 presence of Beatrice, and his dread of appearing contempt- 
 ible in her eyes ; he addresses to her the sonnet : " Cib 
 che m' incontra, nella mente mora" {^Son. viii.). — § 16. 
 He speaks of the pitiable condition to which he is reduced 
 by the thought of his love ; and describes how, though 
 he longs for the sight of Beatrice, he is utterly overcome 
 in her presence ; he addresses to her the sonnet : " Spesse 
 fiate vengonmi alia mente" {Son. ix.). — § 17. Having 
 disburdened his heart in the three preceding sonnets, 
 Dante determines to speak of a new matter. 
 
 Part n. §§ 18-28. — § 18. He discourses with certain 
 ladies of his love for Beatrice, and resolves henceforth to 
 devote himself to the theme of her praises. — § 19. After 
 a period of hesitation, at last one day, while walking be- 
 side a stream, his thoughts take shape, and on his return 
 home he composes the canzone : " Donne, ch' avete 1' intel- 
 letto d' amore " {Canz. i.). — § 20. One of his friends, having 
 become acquainted with the canzone, desires him to ex- 
 pound the nature of love, whereon he composes the 
 sonnet : " Amore e '1 cor gentil sono una cosa " {^Son. x.). — 
 § 21. He describes in the sonnet, "Negli occhi porta la 
 mia donna Amore" {^Son. xi.), the effect produced on 
 others by Beatrice. — § 22. Folco Portinari, the father of 
 Beatrice, dies (31 December, 1289); Dante composes two 
 sonnets : " Voi, che portate la sembianza umile " {Son. 
 xii.), and, " Se' tu colui, c' hai trattato sovente " {Son. xiii.), 
 treating of the discourse of certain ladies on the subject of 
 Beatrice's grief, and of his grief for her. — § 23. Dante 
 
I70 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 falls ill ; he has presentiments of the death of Beatrice, 
 and on the ninth day of his illness he has a fourth vision 
 (he dreams that Beatrice is dead, and that he is taken to 
 see her as she lies on her death-bed) ^ ; on coming to him- 
 self again he relates his vision to certain ladies who were 
 at his bedside, and afterwards writes a description of it in 
 the canzone : " Donna pietosa e di novella etate " {Canz. 
 ,ii.). — § 24. He has a fifth vision (Love comes to him from 
 the dwelling-place of his lady, and bids him bless the day 
 whereon he was possessed by Love ; shortly after Beatrice 
 herself appears to him, preceded by Giovanna, the lady of 
 his friend Guido Cavalcanti), which he describes in the 
 sonnet: " lo mi sentii svegliar dentro alio core" {^Son. 
 xiv.). — § 25. Dante explains his use of figurative language, 
 which is conceded to poets. — § 26. Beatrice considered 
 a marvel by all who beheld her ; Dante's sonnet on the 
 subject : " Tanto gentile e tanto onesta pare " {^Son. xv.). — 
 § 27. The praise and honour of Beatrice.is reflected on the 
 ladies about her ; as is set forth by Dante in the sonnet : 
 " Vede perfettamente ogni salute" {Son. xvL). — § 28. The 
 effects upon him of his devotion to Beatrice intended to 
 be described in a canzone : " SI lungamente m' ha tenuto 
 Amore" {Canz. iii.), which was left unfinished. 
 
 Part III. §§ 29-35. — § 29. The composition of Dante's 
 projected canzone {Canz. iii.) interrupted by the death of 
 Beatrice ; of the part played by the number nine in con- 
 nection with her death. — § 30. Of the date of the death 
 of Beatrice, which befell on the ninth day, of the ninth 
 month, of the year in which the perfect number (ten) was 
 completed for the ninth time in the century in which she 
 lived, (i.e. 8 June, 1290), according to the Arabian, Syrian 
 and Italian reckonings respectively ; of the significance of 
 
 1 This is the subject of D. G. Rossetti's famous picture " Dante's 
 Dream," now in the Walker Art Gallery at Liverpool. 
 
VITA NUOVA 171 
 
 the number nine, and of its intimate association with 
 Beatrice. — § 31. Dante in his desolation addresses a letter, 
 beginning " Quomodo sedet sola civitas," to the chief per- 
 sonages of the city ; his reasons for not transcribing the 
 letter. — § 32. He vents his grief in a canzone : " Gli occhi 
 dolenti per pieti del core" {Canz. iv.).— § 33. At the re- 
 quest of a brother of Beatrice, Dante writes the sonnet : 
 "Venite a intender li sospirimiei" {Son. xvii.) on her 
 death. — § 34. Dissatisfied with the sonnet, he composes 
 two stanzas of a canzone : " Quantunque volte lasso 1 mi 
 rimembra" {Cam. v.), on the same subject, which he gives 
 with the sonnet to Beatrice's brother. — § 35. On the first 
 anniversary of Beatrice's death, while drawing an angel, 
 he is interrupted by visitors, to whom he addresses a 
 sonnet, to which he made two beginnings : " Era venuta 
 nella mente mia" {Son. xviii.). 
 
 Part IV. §§ 36-39. — § 36. Dante in deep distress at the 
 thought of the past, beholds a beautiful young lady (" una 
 gentil donna giovane ebella") regarding him with com- 
 passion from a window ; he addresses her in a sonnet : 
 " Videro gli occhi miei quanta pietate " {Son. xix.). — § 37. 
 The "donna gentile" continues to show compassion for 
 him ; he addresses a second sonnet to her : " Color d' 
 amore, e di pieti sembianti" {Son. xx.). — § 38. He begins 
 to take delight in the sight of the " donna gentile," and 
 reproaches himself for his inconstancy ; he composes a 
 sonnet on the state of his feelings : " L' amaro lagrimar 
 che voi faceste" {Son. xxi.). — § 39. In another sonnet he 
 describes the struggle between his heart and his soul as 
 to this new love: "Gentil pensiero, che parla di vui" 
 {Son. xxii.). 
 
 PartY. §§40-43. — § 40. While engaged in this struggle 
 Dante has a vision (the sixth) of Beatrice, youthful and 
 clothed in crimson, as when he first saw her, whereon he 
 
172 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 repents of his inconstancy and devotes himself solely to 
 the thought of her ; he records the reconquest of himself, 
 and the effects of the violence of his weeping at the 
 recollection of his past unworthy passion, in a sonnet : 
 "Lasso! per forza de' molti sospiri" {Son. xxiii.). — § 41 ■ 
 He addresses a sonnet to certain pilgrims on their way 
 through Florence to visit the Veronica at Rome, whom 
 he assumes to be from a far country, as they show no sign 
 of grief in passing through the grieving city : " Deh pere- 
 grini, che pensosi andate " {Son. xxiv.). — § 42. In re- 
 sponse to a request from two ladies for verses of his, he 
 composes a sonnet describing his condition : " Oltre la 
 spera, che piii larga gira " {Son. xxv.), which he sends to 
 them, together with the preceding : " Deh peregrini " {Son. 
 xxiv.), and another: " Venite a intender " (5o;«. xvii.). — 
 § 43. After composing this sonnet he has a last vision 
 (the seventh), which makes him resolve to speak no more 
 of Beatrice until he shall be able to say of her what was 
 never said of any woman ; he concludes with the prayer 
 that his soul may then be permitted to behold the glory 
 of Beatrice in the presence of the Everlasting God. 
 
 With the exception of the Latin Eclogues and Letters, 
 the Vita Nuova was the last of Dante's works to be 
 printed. The editio princeps, which was printed at 
 Florence, together with fifteen of Dante's canzoni, and 
 Boccaccio's Vita di Dante, did not appear until 1576, more 
 than a hundred years later than the first edition of the 
 Divina Commedia. It was not reprinted for a hundred 
 and fifty years, when it was included by Anton Maria 
 Biscioni, together with the Convivio, in his Prose di Dante 
 Alighieri e di Messer Gio. Boccacci, published at Florence 
 in 1723. Since that date there have been some five-and- 
 twenty other editions, exclusive of mere reprints. The 
 
CON VI VI O 173 
 
 editio princeps, which was issued with the imprimatur oi^o. 
 Inquisition, contains a mutilated text, many passages or 
 phrases, which were considered offensive to the Church or 
 to religion, having been altered or suppressed.^ A critical 
 edition was published at Florence by Michele Barbi, under 
 the auspices of the Sodetd, Dantesca Italiana, in 1 907. 
 
 Forty manuscripts of the Vita Nuova are known to 
 exist, including three which are incomplete. Of these, 
 eight belong to the fourteenth century, sixteen to the 
 fifteenth, and sixteen to the sixteenth. None of these was 
 executed in Dante's lifetime, the earliest being assigned to 
 about the year 1 350, that is about thirty years after Dante's 
 death.2 
 
 Convivio. — Besides the Vita Nuova Dante wrote in 
 Italian prose the philosophical treatise to which he gave 
 the name of Convivio ^ or Banquet. This work consists 
 of a philosophical commentary, which Dante left incom- 
 plete, on three of his canzoni. According to the original 
 scheme it was to have been a commentary on fourteen 
 canzoni,* and would have consisted of fifteen books, the 
 first being introductory. 
 
 1 See Paget Toynbee, The Inquisition and the Editio Princeps of the 
 Vita Nuova, in Modern Language Review, April, igo8, vol. iii. pp. 228-31. 
 
 2 See the introduction (pp. xvii. ff.) to Barbi's critical edition. There 
 are eight English translations of the Vita Nuova, of which the first, by 
 Joseph Garrow, was published at Florence in 1846. Of the others the 
 best known are those by D. G. Rossetti (1862), Theodore Martin (1862), 
 and C. E. Norton (1867). The latest is that by Thomas Okey (igo6). 
 
 ^This is the form of the title in the MSS., almost without ex- 
 ception, and in the editio princeps (1490) ; in the three sixteenth-century 
 editions {1521, 1529, 1531) the title is V amoroso Convivio. The title 
 Convito appears for the first time in the edition published by Biscioni (in 
 Prose di Dante Alighieri e di Messer Gio. Boccacci) at Florence in 1723. 
 The correct title Convivio was restored by Witte in 1879, and is now 
 almost universally adopted (see Witte, Dante-Forschungen, vol. ii. pp. 
 574-80). 
 
 * See Convivio, i. i, 11. 102-5. " 
 
174 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 Three of these projected books are specifically referred 
 to by Dante, viz. the seventh, in which he was to have 
 treated of temperance ^ ; the fourteenth, in which he pro- 
 posed to treat of justice ^ and allegory ^ ; and the fifteenth, 
 in which liberality was to have been treated of.* 
 
 Various attempts have been made to identify the 
 remaining eleven canzoni, which were to have been the 
 subject of commentary in the unwritten books, but none 
 of these is wholly satisfactory.* 
 
 In its unfinished state the Convivio consists of four 
 books, which show a tendency to become more and more 
 prolix as the work proceeds, the fourth book containing 
 thirty chapters, while the first, second, and third contain 
 respectively thirteen, sixteen, and fifteen. The division 
 of the books into chapters was made by Dante himself." 
 
 Giovanni Villani in his Florentine chronicle says of this 
 book : — 
 
 " Dante commenced a commentary on fourteen of his 
 moral canzoni in the vulgar tongue, which is incomplete, 
 save as regards three of them, in consequence of his death. 
 This commentary, to judge by what we have of it, would 
 have been a lofty, beautiful, subtle, and very great work, 
 inasmuch as it is adorned by lofty style, and fine 
 philosophical and astrological discussions." ^ 
 
 Boccaccio says : — 
 
 " Dante also composed a commentary in prose in the 
 Florentine vulgar tongue on three of his canzoni at full 
 length ; he appears to have intended, when he began, to 
 
 ^ Conv. iv, 26, 11. 66-7. ^ Conv. i. 12, 11. 86-8 ; iv. 27, 11. 100-2. 
 
 5 Conv. ii. 1, 11. 34-6. ^ Conv. i. 8, 11. 130-2 ; iii. 15, 1. 144. 
 
 'See Antonio Santi, II Canzoniere di Dante Alighieri, vol. ii. pp. 
 13 ff. (Roma, 1907). 
 
 " See Conv. i. 4, 1. 4 ; ii. 7, 1. i ; iii. 6, 1. i ; iv. 2, 1. 77 ; etc. etc. 
 
 ' Bk. ix. ch. 136. This passage is omitted from some MSS. of the 
 Cronica. 
 
C ON VI VI O 175 
 
 write a commentary upon all of them, but whether he 
 afterwards changed his mind, or never had time to carry out 
 his intention, at any rate he did not write the commentary 
 on more than these three. This book, which he entitled 
 Convivio, is a very beautiful and praiseworthy little work." ^ 
 
 The Convivio was written some time after the Vita 
 Nuova, but before the Divina Commedia, in which Dante 
 sometimes corrects opinions he had expressed in the Con- 
 vivio, such as his theories as to the spots on the moon,^ 
 and the arrangement of the celestial hierarchies.^ From 
 the references to the Emperor Albert I (iv. 3, 1. 42) and 
 to Gherardo da Cammino (iv. 14, 11. 114 fif.) it would ap- 
 pear to have been composed (perhaps at Bologna) between 
 April, 1306 (Gherardo having died on 26 March, 1306) 
 and I May, 1308 (the date of Albert's death).* It was 
 certainly written after Dante's exile from Florence, as 
 at the beginning of the work there is a most pathetic 
 reference to the miseries he endured during his wanderings 
 as an outcast from his native city.^ 
 
 Dante explains in the first book, which is intro- 
 ductory, the meaning of the title, the aim of the work, 
 and the difference between it and the Vita Nuova ; 
 he himself, he says, as the author, represents the 
 servants at an actual banquet {convivio) ; he then points 
 out that the book is of the nature of a commentary, 
 and is written in a lofty style in order to give it an 
 air of gravity and authority, and to counterbalance the 
 objection of its being in Italian ; he next gives his reasons 
 for writing it in the vulgar tongue instead of in Latin, in 
 which respect it differs from other commentaries ; he 
 
 1 Vita di Dante, ed. cit. § 16, p. 74. 
 
 ^ Conv. ii. 14, U. 69 ff. ; Par. ii. 49-148 ; xxii. 139-41. 
 
 ' Conv. ii. 6, 11. 39 ff. ; Par. xxviii. 40-139. 
 
 * See Zingarelli, Vita di Dante (1905), pp. 45, 52. 
 
 ^ Conv. i. 3, 11. 20 if, ; see the passage quoted above, pp. 88-g. 
 
176 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 further explains that the commentary stands in the same 
 relation to the canzoni as a servant does to his master ; 
 and he concludes by declaring that in this work is made 
 manifest the great excellence of the Italian language — 
 that language which he was destined to bring to the 
 highest degree of perfection in the Divina Commedia. 
 
 Analysis of the Convivio ^ ; — 
 
 Book I. — Chap. I. Introductory. The work under- 
 taken in order to justify the universal desire for know- 
 ledge spoken of by Aristotle. Causes whereby men may 
 be prevented from acquiring the highest knowledge. 
 Happy those who sit at the table where the bread of 
 angels is eaten. Dante himself sits not at the table, but 
 gathers up the fragments which fall from it. Moved with 
 pity for his kind, he reserves a part of his store, both 
 bread and meat, to make a feast {convivio') for them. 
 The meat will be served in fourteen canzoni, the bread 
 will be served in the commentary which will give first 
 the literal, then the allegorical interpretation of the can- 
 zoni. The author explains the reason for the difference 
 in style between the present work and the Vita Nuova. — 
 Chap. 2. As bread served at a banquet is freed from 
 impurity by the servants, so must the commentary be freed 
 from objection. Two objections may be urged, viz. that 
 the author has to speak of himself, and that the commen- 
 tary is difficult to understand. Teachers of rhetoric forbid 
 a man to speak of himself, but it is allowable in excep- 
 tional cases, as in self-defence, and for the edification of 
 others. Dante pleads both these reasons in the present 
 instance : he wishes to defend himself from the charge of 
 having yielded to passion in his canzoni, and to instruct 
 
 'Adapted, by kind permission of the author, from the "Summary of 
 Contents" prefixed to each book in the translation of the Co«i;i»Jo by 
 the Rector of Exeter College, Dr. W. W. Jackson (Oxford, 1909). 
 
CONVIVIO 177 
 
 others in the writing and understanding of allegory. — 
 Chap. 3. As to the difficulty of the commentary, this is 
 intentional, in order to counteract certain disadvantages 
 under which the author labours. He has been exiled 
 from his beloved Florence, and has wandered in poverty 
 all over Italy, thus becoming known and despised in 
 every quarter. Report magnifies, and personal knowledge 
 diminishes, a man's good and evil qualities. Good re- 
 port is magnified as it passes from one to another ; so too is 
 evil report. — Chap. 4. On the other hand a man's presence 
 diminishes his apparent worth for three reasons : viz. the 
 proneness of men, like children, to judge by the outside ; 
 their envy, which makes them blind to the truth ; and 
 the natural imperfection of the person judged. Wherefore 
 a prophet is without honour in his own country. As 
 Dante's presence has become familiar throughout Italy 
 during his wanderings as an exile, he wishes to counter- 
 act the effect of this familiarity by the adoption of a 
 somewhat lofty style for his commentary ; hence its diffi- 
 culty. — Chap. 5. The commentary has been freed from 
 accidental flaws, but one defect is inherent in it, viz. that 
 it is written in Italian, not in Latin. Three reasons for 
 the choice of the vernacular, viz. to avoid disorder, for the 
 sake of liberality, and from natural affection for the 
 mother-tongue. As to the first reason : the best results 
 are obtained when the qualities of the agent are adapted 
 for the end in view. The qualities of a good servant are 
 subjection, intimate acquaintance with his master, and 
 obedience. Latin is devoid of all these qualities. Firstly, 
 it is not subject, but by nature sovereign. — Chap. 6. 
 Secondly, Latin has not the intimate acquaintance with 
 Italian which is needed for a commentary on the canzoni ; 
 it has only a general knowledge of Italian, and has no in- 
 timacy with its friends ; whereas a good servant should 
 
178 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 have an intimate knowledge both of his master and of his 
 master's friends. — Chap. 7. Thirdly, Latin could not be 
 obedient. Perfect obedience should be free from bitter- 
 ness ; it should result from a command, not from choice ; 
 and it should be duly measured. Latin could not fulfil these 
 conditions. Remarks on the inadequacy of translation. — 
 Chap. 8. The second reason for choosing Italian is its 
 liberality. Perfect liberality gives to many ; its gifts are 
 useful; and it gives without being asked. Explanation 
 of these characteristics, which are shown to be essential. — 
 Chap. 9. In the case of Latin, the liberality would not 
 have been perfect, for it does not possess these char- 
 acteristics. It would not have served many, for it 
 would not have been uriderstood, inasmuch as nobody 
 learns Latin except for gain. It would not have been 
 useful, iox few would have used it. It would not have 
 given itself unasked, for every one demands that commen- 
 taries should be in Latin. — Chap. 10. The third reason for 
 choosing Italian is the natural affection which a man feels 
 for his mother-tongue. Natural affection prompts a man 
 to magnify its object, to be jealous for it, and to defend 
 it. Dante displays his love for Italian in all these three 
 ways. He magnifies it by displaying it in act, not merely 
 in potentiality. His jealousy for it moved him to write 
 his commentary in Italian, lest if he wrote it in Latin some 
 bungler hereafter should translate it into Italian. He is 
 anxious to defend his mother-tongue against those who 
 disparage it, in favour of Provencal, for instance, and to 
 exhibit it in its native beauty. This is best displayed in 
 prose, as a woman's beauty is seen best when unadorned. — 
 Chap. II. Five detestable causes move men to disparage 
 their mother-tongue, viz. lack of discernment, deceitful 
 excuses, love of vainglory, the prompting of envy, and 
 faint-heartedness. As to the first, those who lack dis- 
 
CONVIVIO 179 
 
 cernment are like blind men, or senseless sheep. As to 
 the second, the bad workman blames his tools or his 
 materials, not himself. Those who are unskilled in the 
 use of Italian lay the blame on it, and exalt another 
 tongue at its expense. As to the third, vainglory impels 
 a man to seek praise for mastering a tongue other than 
 his own. As to the fourth, those who cannot use Italian 
 envy those who can, and therefore decry it. As to the 
 fifth, a faint-hearted man always thinks meanly of himself 
 and his belongings, and therefore despises his mother- 
 tongue. — Chap. 12. Dante's affection for his mother-tongue 
 incontestable. Affection is inspired by propinquity and 
 goodness, and increased by benefits conferred, and by 
 common aims and intercourse. A man's mother-tongue 
 is nearest to him. Also, it displays the characteristic ex- 
 cellence of language, in that it best enables a man to 
 express his meaning. — Chap. 13. The conditions which in- 
 crease affection are also present. If existence is the 
 greatest boon, then a man's mother-tongue is to be loved 
 as having given him existence, by bringing his parents 
 together. Further, it led Dante into the way of know- 
 ledge by enabling him to learn Latin. The vernacular, 
 moreover, if it could have a conscious aim, would 
 seek to preserve itself by assuming the most durable 
 shape, namely the poetic. It has been Dante's aim to give 
 it this shape. All his life he has also had the most familiar 
 intercourse with his mother-tongue. Dante may thus 
 claim to have purged his Italian commentary from all 
 stain, so that the meat may now be served up with this 
 bread, and may be partaken of by the multitude. 
 
 Book II. — Canzone: "Voi ch' intendendo il terzo ciel 
 movete". — Chap. i. The commentary on the canzoni 
 will explain both the literal and allegorical sense. Four 
 senses of writings to be distinguished, viz. the literal, 
 
1 80 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 which lies on the surface ; the allegorical, which is the truth 
 underlying the literal ; the moral, which conveys a lesson 
 of life and conduct ; and the anagogical, or spiritual, 
 which refers to heavenly things. Reasons why the literal 
 sense must first be determined. — Chap. 2. The first can- 
 zone says, literally, that Venus had completed two revolu- 
 tions when a gentle lady appeared to the poet in company 
 with Love. The victory of the new thought, concerning 
 this lady, over the former thought, concerning Beatrice, 
 impels him to address the heavenly powers whence the 
 new thought derived its strength. Division of the canzone 
 into three principal parts. — Chap. 3. To make the literal 
 sense of the first part clear, Dante explains who they are 
 whom he addresses, and what is the third heaven which 
 they move. Discussion of the number of the heavens ; 
 eight enumerated by Aristotle; a ninth recognized by 
 Ptolemy. — Chap. 4. The order of the first eight heavens, 
 which are those of the Moon, Mercury, Venus, the Sun, 
 Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and the Fixed Stars. Beyond 
 these is the Crystalline Heaven or Primuni Mobile. Out- 
 side of this again is situated, according to the teaching of 
 the Church, the Empyrean, which is the abode of the 
 Deity and of Blessed Spirits, and which exists not in space 
 but only in the Primal Mind. Description of the con- 
 struction of the heavens, each of which has two poles and 
 an equator. Of the epicycle of Venus. — Chap. 5. The 
 beings who move the heavens explained to be angelic 
 Intelligences. Opinions of Aristotle, Plato, and others on 
 the subject. Of the active, and contemplative, life. The 
 latter the most appropriate to Angels, as being the highest. 
 The motion of the heavens due to the thought of certain 
 of these Angels. These beings created by the Deity in 
 infinite numbers, as even the intellect of man, who sees 
 but darkly, can conceive. — Chap. 6. Of Angels according 
 
CON VI VI i8i 
 
 to the Scriptures. Their division into three hierarchies, 
 each consisting of three orders. Distribution of the nine 
 orders among the various heavens. The manner of their 
 contemplation determined by the nature of the Trinity. 
 The Thrones assigned to the third heaven, that of Venus. 
 Virgil, Ovid, and Alfraganus, cited as to the function, and 
 threefold motion, of this heaven, the movers of which are 
 those to whom Dante addresses himself. — Chap. 7. The 
 meaning of his prayer for audience, his reasons for address- 
 ing the movers of the third heaven, and the inducement 
 offered to them. Explanation of certain terms used in the 
 canzone. — Chap. 8. Literal sense of the second part of the 
 canzone, which has two subdivisions. Of the two contend- 
 ing thoughts mentioned above. Further explanations of 
 terms employed. — Chap. 9. Solution of difficulty as to 
 the inspiration of Dante's new thought by the same Intelli- 
 gences which inspired the old. Digression on the immor- 
 tality of the soul. Agreement of pagan and Christian 
 teaching on the subject. — Chap. 10. Further explanation 
 of expressions used in the canzone. Incidental statement 
 as to how impressions enter the eye, and become stamped 
 on the imagination. — Chap. 1 1. Consideration of the 
 reasons alleged by the Spirit of Love in favour of the 
 second lady, especially the qualities of pity and courtesy. 
 Of the relation between " piety " and " pity ". Definition 
 of " courtesy," which if named from the courts of that day, 
 especially in Italy, would mean baseness. — Chap. 12. 
 Having dealt with the literal meaning of the part of the 
 canzone addressed to the Intelligences of the third heaven, 
 Dante now deals with the last part, the tornata, which is 
 addressed to the canzone itself Explanation of the term. 
 Of the beauty and goodness of the canzone. — Chap. 1 3. 
 The literal sense being disposed of, Dante now passes 
 to the allegorical meaning. How, in his desire to find 
 
1 82 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 consolation for the loss of his soul's first delight, he turned 
 to the study of Boethius' De Consolatione Philosophiae, and 
 to Cicero's De Amidtia, and was thereby led on to the 
 study of philosophy, which in time banished all other 
 thoughts. His canzone in praise of philosophy written 
 in the vulgar tongue ostensibly about a lady, since philo- 
 sophy /erj^ was too exalted to be praised in the verna- 
 cular, and further, men would more readily credit him 
 with love for a lady than for philosophy. The canzone 
 thus being an allegory of philosophy, the third heaven 
 and its movers must also receive an allegorical inter- 
 pretation. — Chap. 14. Heaven allegorically interpreted 
 signifies scientific knowledge, and the heavens signify 
 the sciences. Three points of resemblance between the 
 heavens and the sciences. Correspondence of the first 
 seven heavens with the seven sciences of the Trivium and 
 Quadrivium, of the eighth with physics and metaphysics, 
 of the ninth with moral science, and of the tenth with 
 divine science, or theology. Detailed statement of points 
 of comparison between the seven sciences and the first 
 seven heavens. — Chap. 15. Points of comparison between 
 physics and metaphysics and the eighth heaven, between 
 moral philosophy and the ninth heaven, between theology 
 and the tenth heaven. Incidental discussion of the vari- 
 ous opinions as to the nature of the Galaxy. The third 
 heaven shown to represent rhetoric. — Chap. 16. The 
 movers of the third heaven represent rhetoricians, such as 
 Boethius and Cicero above mentioned. The lady of the 
 canzone thus shown to be philosophy, and her eyes the 
 demonstrations of philosophy. 
 
 Book HI. — Canzone: "Amor, che nella mente mi 
 ragiona". — Chap. i. Three reasons which impelled Dante 
 to give expression to his passion for the gentle lady, viz. 
 the desire of gaining honour for himself through his friend- 
 
CON VI VI O 183 
 
 ship with her, the desire that this friendship should be 
 lasting, and the desire to avoid reproach by stating who 
 the lady was. Division of the canzone into three principal 
 parts. — Chap. 2. Explanation of the first part. Love de- 
 fined as the spiritual union of the soul with the object 
 loved. Of all things the human soul has most affinity 
 with God, and consequently is most closely united with 
 whatever most nearly resembles God. The love of which 
 Dante speaks is the union of his soul with the gentle lady. 
 The place where love discourses is the mind, or thinking 
 faculty, which is the highest of the three faculties of the 
 soul, and which belongs only .to man and to divine sub- 
 stances. — Ckap. 3. Man, though his essence be one, is 
 capable of feeling every sort of love, such as is felt by 
 simple and composite bodies, by plants, and by animals. 
 The love which is the poet's theme is the highest of all ; 
 he can neither fully apprehend it nor express it. — Chap. 4. 
 Explanation of this incapacity of mind and speech, for 
 which Dante is not to be blamed, since blame attaches to 
 want of will, not to want of power. — Chap, 5. Discussion 
 of the second stanza of the canzone, in which the lady 
 is praised as a whole, both in soul and body. Long 
 digression explaining and illustrating the revolution of the 
 Sun round the Earth. — Chap. 6. Explanation of the mean- 
 ing of " temporal " and "equal " hours. The Intelligences 
 on high gaze on his lady, as a thought existing in the 
 divine mind. She is beloved by God as being endowed 
 with a special portion of the divine nature, and admired 
 by man inasmuch as her soul dignifies the body, which is 
 the actuality of the soul. — Chap. 7. Praise of the lady as 
 regards her soul. The goodness of God is diffused over 
 all things, but enters into various substances, as light does, 
 in proportion to their receptivity. In the intellectual 
 order are infinite gradations, hence it .may be assumed 
 
184 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 that some human being is little lower than the angels. 
 Such is this lady. Her speech and acts afford an example 
 to others, and are an aid to the faith of all mankind, 
 whereby they gain everlasting life. — Chap. 8. Praise of 
 the lady in respect of her body, especially of those parts 
 in which the soul chiefly operates, viz. the eyes and mouth. 
 Explanation of sundry expressions in the fourth stanza of 
 the canzone. Distinction between innate and habitual 
 vices. Definition of the end and source of this lady's 
 beauty. — Chap. g. Discussion of third division of the can- 
 zone. Explanation why the lady, who was forhierly 
 called proud and disdainful, is now called humble. Illus- 
 tration drawn from the sky, which always has the quality 
 of brightness, but does not always appear bright. State- 
 ment of the theory of vision. Reference to Dante's own 
 weakness of sight. — Chap. lO. Of judgment by outward 
 appearance at the prompting of desire; and of the 
 rhetorical figure known as dissimulation. — Chap. ii. Alle- 
 gorical meaning of the canzone discussed. Origin of the 
 terms " philosophy" and " philosopher," i.e. lover of wisdom. 
 Of the nature of friendship. The name of philosophy given 
 to the sciences, natural, moral, and metaphysical, above 
 all to the last, which is called philosophy /ar excellence. — 
 Chap. 12. Of two kinds of devotion {studio). Reasons 
 why the Sun is worthy to be a type of God. As the Sun 
 illumines first itself, and then all other sensible objects, so 
 God illumines first Himself, and then all other intellectual 
 beings. As injury done by the Sun is not intentional but 
 accidental, so badness in things which partake of intellectual 
 light, as in bad angels, is not designed but accidental. 
 Philosophy part of the divine essence, and as it were the 
 bride, the sister, and daughter of the Emperor of heaven. 
 — Chap. 13. Philosophy resides also in the celestial 
 Intelligences. Her highest gifts enjoyable only in use, 
 
CONVIVIO 185 
 
 not merely in possession, though he who only possesses 
 her is still a philosopher, for philosophy is always trans- 
 cendent. — Chap. 14. The allegorical interpretation, follow- 
 ing the literal, passes from general commendation of the 
 lady to particular. Discussion and explanation of various 
 expressions in the third stanza of the canzone. Of the 
 distinction between "light" and "splendour''. The 
 ancient philosophers indifferent to all things save wisdom. 
 Of the effect of philosophy on the soul, especially in aiding 
 faith. — Chap. 15. Discussion of the fourth stanza. The 
 eyes of philosophy explained to be her demonstrations, 
 and her smiles her persuasions. The difficulty of under- 
 standing her obliges man sometimes, to be content with 
 negations ; but the desire of wisdom is not futile in man 
 or angels, because it is always proportionate to their nature. 
 The beauty of wisdom signifies the moral virtues, which 
 are impaired by vanity and pride; hence she teaches 
 humility. Her highest praise is that she is mother of 
 first principles, hence she was the partner of God in the 
 creation of the world. Passing to the tornata, Dante 
 explains why at first he called philosophy fierce and 
 disdainful. 
 
 Book IV. — Canzone: "Le dolci rime d' amor, ch' io 
 soUa". — Chap. i. Dante's love for philosophy makes him 
 love truth and hate falsehood. Hence his desire to lead 
 men to entertain true and reject false opinions with regard 
 to human goodness, or nobility. Nobility the theme of 
 the third canzone ; consequently the exposition will not 
 be concerned with allegory, but will give a fuller treat- 
 ment of the literal meaning. — Chap. 2. Division of the 
 canzone into two principal parts, the preface, and the main 
 argument. The preface subdivided into three parts. Im- 
 portance of choosing the right time, as well for the speaker 
 as for the hearer. Dante's object both to refute what is 
 
1 86 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 false, and, more especially, to emphasise the truth. — Chaf. 
 3. Subdivision of the main argument [trattatd) of the 
 canzone into three parts, the first of which is again sub- 
 divided into two. Nobility defined by the Emperor 
 Frederick II as ancestral wealth and fine manners. — 
 Chap. 4. Mention of the Emperor leads Dante to consider 
 at length the nature of the Imperial authority, its origin, 
 and necessity. The Roman Empire shown to be the seat 
 of this authority. — Chap. 5. The working of divine Pro- 
 vidence demonstrated in the rise and progress of the 
 Roman Empire, and in the noble deeds of her sons. — 
 Chap. 6. Discussion of the derivation and meaning of the 
 word " authority ". Aristotle, the master and leader of 
 human reason, declared to be the highest authority. His 
 opinion, and that of other philosophers as to the " end of 
 human life" examined. Aristotle's opinion shown not to 
 conflict with the Imperial authority ; both philosopher and 
 emperor needed to constitute the highest authority. — 
 Chap. 7. Of the danger of allowing a wrong opinion to 
 prevail unchecked. The defects of popular opinion due 
 to disregard of proper guidance. Those who go astray 
 for this reason the vilest of all, just as he is least excusable 
 who strays from the path with the footprints of others to 
 guide him. Such an one, in the words of the canzone, 
 " is dead while he liveth". — Chap. 8. Of discernment, and 
 of reverence, one of its fairest fruits. In rejecting common 
 opinion Dante appeals from the judgment of sense to that 
 of reason ; and in rejecting the opinion of the Emperor, he 
 is not irreverent, since Imperial authority does not extend 
 to the domain of reason. — Chap. 9. Imperial authority has 
 jurisdiction over all human activities, but these are limited, 
 some being purely natural, while others are subject to reason 
 and will. Activities with which reason is concerned are 
 of four kinds. That activity which derives its character 
 
CONVIVIO 187 
 
 solely from the act of the will is most completely under our 
 control ; and, generally speaking, responsibility is propor- 
 tionate to the power exercised by the will. Law intended 
 to be a guide to the will. Action may be compared with 
 art, that is, production. Many processes of production 
 are purely technical, and here art is supreme ; but in 
 others art is limited by the laws of its subject-matter. 
 Similarly the Emperor's authority is limited by the law 
 of reason and of nature. The definition of nobility 
 therefore does not come within his scope. — Chap. 10. 
 Criticism of previous opinions. In so far as definitions 
 of nobility make fine manners essential to it they are 
 right, though defective. But in introducing the notion of 
 time, or of wealth, they are erroneous . Philosophical argu- 
 ments against making nobility dependent on wealth. — 
 Chap. 1 1 . The inferiority of wealth attributable to three 
 special imperfections, viz. lack of discrimination in its ad- 
 vent, dangers attendant upon its increase, and disasters 
 consequent on its possession. Consideration of the first 
 of these imperfections. Of that most noble exchange, 
 made, alas ! by so few, of riches for the hearts of men. 
 Instances of munificence. — Chap. 12. Increase of wealth 
 shown to be evil, inasmuch as it brings the torment of 
 boundless and therefore futile desire. Those who would 
 apply this same argument in the case of knowledge, ig- 
 nore the essential difference between the two kinds of de- 
 sire. — Chap. 13. The desire of riches is uniform and keeps 
 growing, and is therefore never consummated ; while the 
 desire of knowledge is a succession of desires, each of 
 which is consummated in turn. Consideration of the 
 disasters consequent on the possession of wealth, which 
 not only inflicts positive evil on its possessor, but also de- 
 prives him of good. — Chap. 14. Refutation of the error 
 which makes nobility depend oh time, by defining it as 
 
1 88 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 consisting in ancestral wealth. The opinion that no one 
 who begins by being a clown can ever become a gentle- 
 man, and vice versa, antagonistic to the claim that time is 
 requisite for nobility. The contention that nobility begins 
 when low birth is forgotten, shown to be absurd on four 
 grounds. Firstly, a feeble memory, which is a bad thing, 
 would be the cause of nobility, which is a good thing, and 
 the shorter men's memories the quicker would nobility be 
 engendered. Secondly, the distinction between mean 
 and noble would not be applicable to anything but man, 
 whereas we often speak of a noble or mean horse, falcon, 
 pearl, etc. Thirdly, the thing engendered (nobility) 
 would often be in existence before its cause (oblivion) 
 came into operation. Fourthly, some would be considered 
 noble after death who were not noble during life. — 
 Chap. 15. Again, if a man cannot change from simple to 
 gentle, and vice versa, one of two absurdities must follow : 
 either nobility does not exist at all, or the world must 
 always have had more than one man in it, which is contrary 
 to both Christian and pagan belief. The error in question 
 is manifest to sound minds. Minds are sound when not 
 hampered by evil dispositions, three kinds of which are 
 specified, viz. boastfulness, dejection of mind, and levity 
 of nature. — Ckap. 16. Dante now passes to the examina- 
 tion of the true definition of nobility, " Nobility " signifies 
 in each thing the perfection of the nature peculiar to it. 
 The word derived not from nosco, as some suppose, but 
 from non vile. The quality will be defined by its fruits, 
 viz. the moral and intellectual virtues. — Chap. 17. The 
 moral virtues peculiarly our own fruits, as being wholly in 
 our own power. Aristotle's classification of these virtues. 
 His definition of happiness. We have two kinds of happi- 
 ness, according as we follow the active or the contem- 
 plative life, of which the latter is the higher, as Christ 
 
CON VI VI 189 
 
 teaches with reference to Martha in the Gospel of Luke. — 
 Chap. 18. Every moral virtue springs from right choice. 
 Right choice is also characteristic of nobility. One of 
 these (virtue or nobility) therefore must come from the 
 other, or both from a third. The more comprehensive of 
 the two terms (nobility) must be taken as the original 
 source of the characteristic. — Chap. ig. Nobility shown to 
 be a wider term than virtue, as including divers other 
 kinds of excellence, as well bodily as mental ; it even ex- 
 tends to regions where virtue is not found, as in the quali- 
 ties of woman and of the young. — Chap. 20. Thus 
 nobility enters into the conception of virtue, and is some- 
 thing divine. But the gift is bestowed only on the soul 
 adapted for its reception. Hence nobility is a seed of 
 blessedness placed by God in the soul fitted to receive 
 it. — Chap. 21. Of the agencies, natural and spiiitual, by 
 which nobility descends into men. Theories of the 
 ancients as to the nature and origin of the soul. Natural 
 agencies, including the influences of the generating soul, 
 of the heaven, and of the " complexion " of the material, 
 prepare the material to receive the formative virtue which 
 proceeds from the generating soul; the formative virtue 
 in turn prepares it for the heavenly virtue from which life 
 comes. The potential intellect, in which exist potentially 
 the universal forms derived from the primal Intelligence, 
 is imparted by the mover of the heaven. The purity of 
 the soul is in proportion to the goodness of the various 
 agencies ; and in proportion to its purity the divine ex- 
 cellence multiplies in the intellectual virtue, and becomes 
 the seed of happiness. Divine agencies impart the seven- 
 fold gift of the Spirit, but man is responsible for the cul- 
 tivation of the seed. — Chap. 22. Of natural appetite, 
 which at first is without discrimination, but afterwards be- 
 comes discriminated. Rational desire belonging to the 
 
190 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 mind, i.e. the will and intellect, is the highest and brings 
 the highest happiness. Such as have not this desire im- 
 planted in them by nature, may get it ingrafted in them. 
 Of the higher blessedness of the contemplative over the 
 active life. — Chap. 23. Discussion of the seventh stanza 
 of the canzone. Dante shows how nobility is displayed 
 in the different stages of life. The life of man likened to 
 an arch rising to its highest point (at the thirty-fifth year) 
 and declining. Illustration from the life of the Saviour. 
 Correspondence between the four ag€s in man (adolescence, 
 youth, old age, decline) and the four divisions of the 
 year (the seasons) and of the day (the canonical tierce, 
 none, sext, and vespers, of which an explanation is 
 given), — Chap. 24. Of the duration of the four ages of 
 human life. Adolescence lasts till the twenty-fifth year ; 
 youth to the forty-fifth ; old age to the seventieth ; after 
 which begins decline. Adolescence naturally endowed 
 with four things, obedience, suavity, sense of shame, and 
 comeliness. Of obedience. — Ckap.2i,. Of suavity in adoles- 
 cence. Of the sense of shame, which consists in awe, 
 modesty, shamefacedness. These three qualities illus- 
 trated from the history of Adrastus in the Thebaid of 
 Statins. Of bodily comeliness. — Chap. 26. Five char- 
 acteristics of youth, to be temperate, brave, full of love, 
 courteous, and loyal. Temperance and courage respec- 
 tively the bridle and spur of desire, as exemplified by 
 Virgil in the history of Aeneas in the Aeneid, whence also 
 illustrations of the other three qualities are drawn. — 
 Chap. 27. Of the four virtues most suitable to old age, viz. 
 to be prudent, just, bountiful, and fairspoken {affabile). 
 Illustrations of these qualities drawn from the history of 
 Cephalus and Aeacus in the Metamorphoses of Ovid. — 
 Chap. 28. Of the two qualities most proper to the fourth 
 stage of life (decline)j resignation of the soul to God, and 
 
CON VI VI 191 
 
 thankfulness for the journey ended. Illustrations from 
 the history of Marcia and Cato in Lucan's Pharsalia. — 
 Chap. 29. Of those who believe themselves noble because 
 they are of noble lineage. A family may be called noble 
 if the majority of its members are truly noble, but a 
 worthless member of it is not entitled to claim nobility on 
 that score. Illustration from a heap of grain. — Chap. 30. 
 Discussion of the tornata of the canzone. Its title {Contra 
 gli erranti) imitated from that of Aquinas' book Contra 
 Gentiles. The canzone bidden to address herself only to 
 such as have some love for the gentle lady, philosophy. 
 The friend of philosophy, mentioned in the last line, ex- 
 plained to be nobility, there being ever the deepest love 
 and admiration between these two. 
 
 The first printed edition of the Convivio was issued at 
 Florence in 1490, eighteen years later than the editio 
 princeps of the Divina Commedia. The treatise was three 
 times reprinted at Venice in the sixteenth century (1521, 
 1529, 1531)- No edition of it was published in the seven- 
 teenth century. The fifth edition did not appear until 
 1723, when the work was printed by Anton Maria Bis- 
 cioni (under the title of Convito)} together with the Vita 
 Nuova, in his Prose di Dante Alighieri e di Messer Gio. 
 Boccacci, published at Florence in that year. Critical edi- 
 tions, with a more or less improved text, were published 
 at Milan in 1826 (reprinted at Padua in the following year), 
 and at Modena in 1831 ; but the first really critical text, 
 based on the authority of all the available manuscripts, 
 was that of Dr. Moore, which was first printed in the Ox- 
 ford Dante in 1894, and was reprinted in an amended 
 form in the third edition of that work in 1904. 
 
 Thirty-three manuscripts of the Convivio are known, of 
 
 lAs to this form of the title of the treatise, see above, p. 173, note 3. 
 
192 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 which three are in England.^ No critical account nor 
 classification of these manuscripts has yet been published, 
 but at least six of them belong to the fourteenth century.^ 
 
 ^ One in the Canonici collection in the Bodleian Library at Oxford ; 
 one in the Earl of Leicester's collection at Holkham ; and one in the 
 possession of Dr. Edward Moore at Canterbury. TheFe are four English 
 translations of the Convivio, viz. by Elizabeth Sayer (1887), Katharine 
 Hillard (1889), P. H. Wicksteed (1903), and W. W. Jackson (1909). 
 
 ' See Zingarelli, Dante, p. 389. 
 
DANTE AND HIS BOOK 
 Front the ficture by Doinemco di Michelino, in the Duonto at Florence 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 The Divina Commedia — Its origin, subject, and aim — Date of com- 
 position — Scheme of the fJoem — Boccaccio's story of the lost cantos — 
 Why it was written in Italian — Dante and his rimes — Manuscripts and 
 printed editions — English editions and translations — Commentaries. 
 
 r\IVINA COMMEDIA.— M. the close of the Vita 
 "^ Nuova Dante says that " a wonderful vision ap- 
 peared to me, in which I saw things which made me re- 
 solve to speak no more of this blessed one,^ until I could 
 more worthily treat of her. And to attain to this, I study 
 to the utmost of my power, as she truly knows. So that, 
 if it shall please Him through whom all things live, that 
 my life be prolonged for some years, I hope to say of her 
 what was never said of any woman." This promise to say 
 of Beatrice what had been said of no other woman Dante 
 fulfilled in the Divina Commedia, the central figure of 
 which is Beatrice glorified. 
 
 " Several years after the composition of the Vita 
 Nuova" says Boccaccio, " Dahte, as he looked down from 
 the high places of the government of the commonwealth 
 of Florence wherein he was stationed, and observed over 
 a wide prospect, such as is visible from such elevated 
 places, what was the life of men, and what the errors of 
 the common herd, and how few, and how greatly worthy 
 of honour, were those who departed therefrom, and how 
 greatly deserving of confusion those who sided with it, he, 
 condemning the pursuits of such as these and commending 
 
 'i.e. Beatrice. 
 13 193 
 
194 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 his own far above theirs, conceived in his mind a lofty 
 thought, whereby at one and the same time, that is in one 
 and the same work, he purposed, while giving proof of his 
 own powers, to pursue with the heaviest penalties the 
 wicked and vicious, and to honour with the highest rewards 
 the virtuous and worthy, and to lay up eternal glory for 
 himself. And inasmuch as he had preferred poetry to 
 every other pursuit, he resolved to compose a poetical 
 work ; and after long meditation beforehand upon what 
 he should write, in his thirty-fifth year he began to devote 
 himself to carrying into effect that upon which he had 
 been meditating, namely, to rebuke and to glorify the lives 
 of men according to their different deserts. And inas- 
 much as jie p erceived that the J^gg^jj^jm^^^w^r^oX three 
 kinds— namel^"tne^Ia^ life, the- ljfe a,bandon ing vices 
 / and making for virtue, and the virtuous life — he divided 
 his work [n wonderful wi^e, iqt,a three books comprised in 
 one volume, beginning with the punishment of wickedness 
 and ending with the reward of virtue ; and he gave to it 
 the title of Commedia. Each of these three books he 
 divided into cantos, and the cantos into stanzas. And he 
 composed this work in rime in the vulgar tongue with so 
 great art, and with such wondrous and beautiful ordering, 
 that never yet has any one been able with justice to find 
 fault with it in any respect. How subtly he exercised the 
 poet's art in this work may be perceived by all such as 
 have been endowed with sufficient understanding for the 
 comprehension of it. But inasmuch as we know that great 
 things cannot be accomplished in a brief space of time, so 
 must we understand that so lofty, so great, and so deeply 
 thought out an undertaking as was this of describing 
 in verses in the vulgar tongue all the various actions of 
 mankind and their deserts, could not possibly have been 
 brought to completion in a short time, especially by a man 
 
DIVINA COMMEDIA 195 
 
 who was the sport of so many and various chances of 
 fortune, all of them full of anguish and envenomed with 
 bitterness, as we have seen Dante was ; he, therefore, from 
 the hour when he first set himself to this lofty enterprise 
 down to the last day of his life (notwithstanding that 
 meanwhile he composed several other works) continually 
 laboured upon it." ^ 
 
 Villani, whose chronicle repeatedly echoes the Corn- 
 media, gives the following account of the poem : — 
 
 " Dante also wrote the Commedia, in which in polished 
 rime, treating of grave and subtle questions of moral and 
 natural philosophy, astrology, and theology, with beauti- 
 ful and wonderful figures, similes, and poetical devices, he 
 discoursed in a hundred capitoli or cantos of the nature 
 and condition of Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise, in as lofty 
 a style as language will allow, as may be gathered from 
 the poem itself by any one who has sufficient understand- 
 ing. Albeit in the Commedia he took delight in scolding 
 and crying out, after the fashion of poets, perhaps some- 
 what more than is altogether seemly ; but maybe his 
 exile was the cause of this." ^ 
 
 In his letter to Can Grande, in which he dedicates to 
 him the Paradiso, Uante gives his own explanation of 
 the subject and aim of the poem, and of the reasons why 
 he called it a comedy. 
 
 " The subject of this work," he writes, "must be under- 
 stood as taken according to the letter, and then as inter- 
 preted according to the allegorical meaning. The subject, 
 then, of the whole work, taken according to the letter 
 alone, is simply a consideration of the state of souls after 
 death ; for from and around this the action of the whole 
 work turns. But if the work is considered according 
 
 ' Vita di Dante, ed. Macri-Leone, § 13, pp. 63-4. 
 « Bk. ix. ch. 136. 
 
196 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 to its allegorical meaning, the subject is man, liable to 
 the reward or punishment of justice, according as through 
 the freedom of the will he is deserving or undeserv- 
 , ing. . . . The aim of the work is to remove those living 
 in this life from a state of misery and to guide them to a 
 state of happiness. . . . The title of the book is ' Here 
 beginneth the Comedy ^ of Dante Alighieri, a Florentine 
 by birth, but not by character '. And for the comprehen- 
 sion of this it must be understood that . . . comedy is a 
 certain kind of poetical narrative which differs from all 
 others. It differs from tragedy in its subject matter, — in 
 this way, that tragedy in its beginning is admirable and 
 quiet, in its ending or catastrophe foul and horrible. . . , 
 Comedy, on the other hand, begins with adverse ci rcum- 
 stances, but its theme has a happy termination. . . . Like- 
 wise they differ in their style of language, for tr^edy is 
 lofty and sublime, comed y lowly an d h umb le. . . . From 
 ^js it is_eyident why the present work is called a c omed y. 
 For if we consider the theme, in its beginning it is horrible 
 and foul, because it is Hell; in its ending fortunate, de- 
 sixable, and joyful, because it is Paradise; and if we con- 
 sider the style of language, the style is lowly a nd humble, 
 because it is the vulgar tongue, in which even housewives 
 hold converse." ^ 
 
 ^ The title Divina Comtnedia, as appears from this statement, was not 
 Dante's own. It probably had its origin in Dante's own description of the 
 poem as " lo sacrato poema " {Par. xxiii. 62) and " il poema sacro " [Par. 
 XXV. i). It occurs in some of the oldest manuscripts of the poem, and in 
 Boccaccio's Life of Dante {§ 14). The first printed edition bearing this title 
 is the Venice one of 1555 ; in a previous edition, with the commentary of 
 Landino (Florence, 1481), the epithet " divine" is applied to Dante him- 
 self, but not to the poem ; which, however, had been styled " opus divinis- 
 simum"bythe Florentine Coluccio Salutati eighty years before (see F. 
 Novati, Epistolario di Coluccio Salutati, vol. iii. p. 371). In the earliest 
 printed editions the title is simply " La Coramedia di Dante Alighieri ". 
 
 » Trans, by Laiham (with modifications). 
 
DIVINA CO MM EDI A 197 
 
 The form of JDante^s poem (or vision, as he claims it to 
 have been) is triple, the three divisions corresponding 
 with the three kingdoms of the next world, Hell, Purgatory, 
 and Paradise. Each division or candca contains thjrtjr- 
 three cantos (with an introductory one to the first cantica). 
 The opening canto j)f_the Inferno forms an introduction 
 to_ the whole poem, which thus contains a hundred 
 cantos, the square of the perfect number ten.^ These 
 contain jn^ all, 14,2^.^ lines, namely, 4,720 in the Inferno, 
 4,755 in the Purgatorio, and 4,758 in the Paradiso. 
 
 Dante places the date of the action of the poem in the 
 Jubilee year 1300.^ Thus he describes his vision as having 
 taken place "midway upon the pathway of our life" 
 {Inferno, i. i), that is, in his thirty-fifth year, the days of 
 our life, according to the Psalmist, being " three-score years 
 and ten," and Dante having been born in 1265, 
 
 As regards the duration of the action of the poem there 
 is considerable difference of opinion. The most probable 
 estimate, on the whole, seems to be that which puts it at 
 ^vendays. Of these, twenty-four hours would be oc- 
 fSP^^n traversing Hell (i.e. from nightfall on the even- 
 ing of Good Friday, 8 April, 1300, until shortly after 
 sunset on Easter-eve) ; four days in traversing Purgatory 
 (i.e. one day in Ante-Purgatory, two days in Purgatory 
 proper, and one day in the Earthly Paradise at the summit 
 of the mountain of Purgatory) ; and one day in traversing 
 
 ' Cf. Vita Nuova, § 30, 11. g-io ; Convivio, ii. 15, 11. 30-6. 
 
 2 This date has been disputed by some authorities in favour of the year 
 1301, on the ground that Dante in Purg. i. 19-21 makes Venus a morning 
 star at Easter, which she was in 1301, whereas actually at Easter in 1300 
 she was an evening star. This argument, however, has now been dis- 
 posed of, for it has recently been discovered that in the almanack which 
 there is every reason to believe Dante made use of, by a curious mistake, 
 Venus is shown as a morning star at Easter in 1300 (see Boffito e Melzi 
 d' Eril, Almanack Dantis Aligherii, Florence, igo8, pp. xiv-xv; and 
 E. Moore, Studies in Dante, iii. 172-5). 
 
198 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 Paradise; the remaining time being occupied by the 
 passage from Hell to Purgatory, and from Purgatory to 
 Paradise.* 
 
 The dates of the completion of the several parts of the 
 poem have not been fixed with any certainty, but the 
 following limitations may be accepted: — The Inferno 
 must have been completed after 20 April, 13 14, the date 
 of the death of Pope Clement V, because of the allusion 
 to that event in the nineteenth canto (11. 76-87) ; and not 
 later than 13 19, since it is referred to as finished in a Latin 
 poem addressed to Dante in that year by a Bplognese 
 professor, Giovanni del Virgilio, as well as in Dante's 
 poem in reply. ^ The Purgatorio must have been completed 
 not later than 13 19, since it is alluded to as finished in the 
 same poems. The Paradiso must have been completed 
 after 7 August, 13 16, the date of the accession of Pope 
 John XXII, since that Pope is alluded to in the twenty- 
 seventh canto (11. 58-59) ; its latest limit is fixed by the 
 date of Dante's death, 14 September, 1321. 
 
 The scheme of the Commedia is briefly as follows : — 
 Inferno. The Hell of Dante consists of nine concentric 
 circles, of which the first and uppermost is co-extensive 
 with the hemisphere of the Earth, which forms, as it were, 
 a cover to it. The remaining circles successively diminish 
 in circumference, forming roughly a sort of immense in- 
 verted cone or funnel, the lowest point of which is the 
 centre of the Earth and of the Universe (Inf. xxxii. 73-4 ; 
 Kxxiv. iio-ii). Each of the nine circles is presided over 
 jy one or more demons or evil spirits, and in each a dis- 
 tinct class of sinners is punished. Hell, as a whole, may 
 
 1 For details of the chronology of the poem, see E. Moore, Time-Refer- 
 ences in the Divina Commedia (though the conclusions there arrived at 
 are not by any means universally accepted). 
 
 " See below, p. 253. 
 
INFERNO 199 
 
 be divided into two principal parts, which comprise four 
 regions. Of these two parts, the first, in which sins of 
 incontinence are punished, forming what may be described 
 as Upper Hell, lies outside the City of Dis, which begins 
 at the sixth circle; the other, or Lower Hell, in which 
 sins of malice are punished, is situated within the City 
 of Dis. 
 
 Upper Hell consists of the first five circles, which are 
 contiguous. These are arranged as follows : — On the 
 upper confines of the abyss, above the first circle, is a 
 region which forms, as it were, an Ante-hell, where are 
 placed those who did neither good nor evil, the neutrals, 
 who were not "worthy" to enter Hell proper (iii. 16-69). 
 In the first circle, or Limbo (under the guardianship of 
 Charon, the ferryman, who conveys the souls of the 
 damned across the river Acheron), are placed unbaptized 
 infants, and the good men and women of antiquity ; these 
 are free from torture (iii. 70-iv. 151). At the entrance to 
 the second circle (where the lustful are punished) is 
 stationed Minos, the judge, who assigns to each soul its 
 station and punishment ; here begin the torments of Hell 
 (v. 1-142). Circles two to five are appropriated to sins 
 of incontinence ; viz. gluttony in circle three (presided 
 over by Cerberus) (vi. i-ii i) ; avarice and prodigality in 
 circle four (presided over by Pluto or Plutus) (vii. i -66) ; 
 wrath in circle five (under the guardianship of Phlegyas, 
 ferryman of Styx) (vii. 100-63). Then come the walls of 
 the City of Dis, which form the division between Upper 
 and Lower Hell (viii. 67-ix. 105). Within these walls 
 (guarded by the Furies) lies the sixth circle, where heretics 
 are punished (ix. io6-xi. 9). After this circle comes a 
 deep descent (xii. 10), and the second region is reached, 
 which contains the three rounds of the seventh circle 
 (under the guardianship of the Minotaur), appropriated to 
 
200 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 three classes of violence, viz. against God, Nature, or art, 
 (e.g. blasphemers, sodomites, usurers), against self or one's 
 possessions (e.g. suicides, spendthrifts), against one's 
 neighbour or his possessions (e.g. tyrants, murderers, rob- 
 bers) (xii. ii-xvii. ^8). After a still more precipitous 
 descent (xvi. 114), comes the third region, comprising the 
 ten pits of the eighth circle, called Malebolge (under the 
 guardianship of Geryon), appropriated to ten classes of 
 fraud, viz. seducers and panders, flatterers, simoniacs, 
 soothsayers, barrators, hypocrites, thieves and robbers, 
 evil counsellors, schismatics, and, lastly, falsifiers (com- 
 prising alchemists, personators, coiners, liars) (xviii. i-xxx. 
 /1 48) ; these pits lie concentrically one below another on a 
 slope, like the rows of an amphitheatre, and are divided 
 from each other by banks, crossed at right-angles by radial 
 bridges of rock, resembling the transverse gangways of a 
 ,theatre. Below Malebolge is a third abyss (xxxi. 32), at 
 me bottom of which lies the fourth or frozen region, con- 
 sisting of an immense lake of ice formed by the frozen 
 waters of the river Cocytus, and comprising the four di- 
 visions of the ninth circle (under the guardianship of the 
 Giants), appropriated to four classes of traitors, and named 
 respectively Caina (after Cain), where are those who have 
 betrayed their kindred ; Antenora (after Antenor of Troy), 
 where are those who have betrayed their country ; Tolomea 
 (after Ptolemy of Jericho), where are those who have be- 
 trayed their guests and companions ; and Giudecca (after 
 Judas Iscariot), where are those who have betrayed their 
 benefactors (xxxi. ii-xxxiv. 69). In the last of these, in 
 the nethermost pit of Hell, is fixed Lucifer (xxxiv. 20-67). 
 Down through Hell, from end to end, flows the infernal 
 stream, under the various names of Acheron, Styx, Phlege- 
 thon, and Cocytus. 
 
 Purgatorio. Purgatory, the place of purgation and 
 
 \ 
 
PURGATOKW 201 
 
 of preparation for the life of eternal blessedness {Purg. 
 i. 4-6), according to Dante's conception, consists of an 
 isla nd-mountain, f ormed jjv tihn fiartbi"'^'^'^^^ ''filTg''^''^ be- 
 fore Xucifer as he fell from , Hea y.eiiiat&-tfaeab¥SfcofJBEell 
 {Inf. xxxiv. 122-6). This mountain, which has the form of 
 an immense truncated cone, rises out of the ocean in the 
 centre of the southern hemisphere, where, according to 
 the Ptolemaic system of cosnjography followed by Dante, 
 there was nothing (except of course, in Dante's view, the 
 mountain of Purgatory) save a vast expanse of water. 
 The mountain is the exact antipodes of Jerusalem {Purg. 
 ii. 3 ; iv. 68 ; xxvii. 2), the central point of the northern 
 hemisphere {Inf. xxxiv. 1 14) where Christ suffered for the 
 sin of Adam {Purg. xxvii. 2), committed in the Garden of 
 Eden (i.e. the Terrestrial Paradise at the summit of the 
 mountain). The lower part of the mountain is not a de- 
 partment of Purgatory proper, but forms an Ante-purga- 
 tory, where are located the spirits of those who died without 
 having availed themselves of the means of penitence of- 
 fered by the Church. These are divided into four classes, 
 viz. those who died in contumacy of the Church, and only 
 repented at the last moment ; those who in indolence and 
 indifference put off their repentance until just before their 
 death ; those who died a violent death, without absolution, 
 but repented at the last moment ; and, lastly, kings and 
 princes who deferred their repentance owing to the pres- 
 sure of temporal interests, these last being placed in a 
 valley full of flowers {Purg. ii. i-viii, 139). Purgatory 
 proper, which is entered by a gate guarded by an angel, 
 consists of seven concentric terraces, each about seventeen 
 feet wide (x. 22-4 ; xiii. 4-5), which rise in succession with 
 diminished circuit (xiii. 4-6) as they approach the summit, 
 where is situated the Terrestrial Paradise. The ascent to 
 the gate of Purgatory is by three steps of diverse colours. 
 
202 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 the first being of polished white marble ; the second of 
 rock, almost black, rough and burnt as with fire, and 
 marked across its length and breadth, in the shape of a 
 cross ; the third and topmost of porphyry of a bright 
 blood-red colour.^ The threshold of the gate, whereon is 
 seated the guardian angel, is of adamantine rock (ix. "jG- 
 105). The terraces within the gate are connected by 
 steep and narrow stairways, the steps of which become 
 successively less steep as each terrace is surmounted. 
 Each of the seven terraces or circles corresponds to one of 
 the seven deadly sins, from the traces of which the soul 
 is there purged. The seven terraces, together with Ante- 
 purgatoty and the Terrestrial Paradise, fiorxn iM«e«dM§rorisi ~ 
 thus corresponding to the nine circles of Hell, and then W 
 Spheres of Paradise. 
 
 At the foot of the mountain is stationed Cato of Utica 
 as guardian (i. 31); at the entrance to Purgatory proper, 
 and at the approach to each of the terraces, stands an 
 angel, who chants one of the Beatitudes to comfort those 
 who are purging them of their sins. In the first circle, 
 where the sin of pride is purged, the angel of humil- 
 ity sings -5£«^//a?<!/er«i' j/z'n'/?/; (xii. no). In the second 
 circle, where the sin of envy is purged, the angel of 
 charity sings Beati misericordes (xv. 38). In the third 
 circle, where the sin of wrath is purged, the angel of peace 
 sings Beati pacifici (xvii. 68). In the fourth circle, where 
 the sin of sloth is purged, the angel of the love of God 
 sings Beati qui lugent (xix. 50). In the fifth circle, where 
 the sin of avarice is purged, the angel of justice sings 
 
 ' These three steps are symbolical of the state of mind with which pen- 
 ance is to be approached, and denote respectively, according to the inter- 
 pretation of Maria Rossetti, " candid confession, mirroring the whole man ; 
 mournful contrition, breaking the hard heart of the gazer on the Cross ; 
 love, all aflame, offering up in satisfaction the life-blood of body, soul, and 
 spirit" {Shadow of Dante, p. 112). 
 
PURGATORIU 203 
 
 Beati qui sitiunt justitiam (xxii. 5). In the sixth 
 circle, where the sin of gluttony is purged, the angel of 
 abstinence sings Beati qui esuriunt justitiam {yi'xw. iSl)- 
 In the seventh circle, where the sin of lust is purged, the 
 angel of purity sings Beati mundo corde (xxvii. 8). The 
 system of purgation is explained by Dante as follows : — 
 Love exists in every creature, and as, if rightly directed, it 
 is the spring of every good action, so, if ill directed, it is the 
 spring of every evil action ; love may err through a bad 
 object (thus giving birth to pride, envy, anger), through 
 defect of vigour in pursuit of good (thus giving birth to 
 sloth), through excess of vigour in the same (thus giving 
 birth to avarice, gluttony, lust), '^[he manner of purgation 
 is Jjlyselbid^. consisting in, firstly, a material punishment() 
 intended to mortify the eyil passions and incite to virtue ; i 
 secondly, a subject for jmeditation, bearing on the sin 
 purged, and its opposite virtue, with examples of persons 
 conspicuous for the one or the other drawn from sacred 
 and profane history; tljirdly, a prayer, whereby the soul 
 is purified and strengthened in the grace of God.^ 
 
 In the Terrestrial Paradise are two streams, which both 
 issue from one source, Lethe and Eunoe, the former 
 of which washes away the remembrance jof sin, while the 
 latter strengthens the remembrance of gmd deeds (xxviii. 
 121-9). ""^ '*^'* 
 
 Paradiso. According to Dante's conception, which is 
 based upon the Ptolemaic system, the Universe consists 
 of nine spheres or Heavens, concentric with the Earth, 
 round, which they revolve, it being fixed at the centre 
 {Convivio, iii. 5, IT. 57-8)." The Earth is surrounded by 
 the spheres of air and fire, the latter being in immediate 
 contact with that of the Moon {Purg. xviii. 28 ; Par. i. 
 
 iPor an excellent account of Dante's Purgatory, see P. Perez, 
 / setti cerchi del Purgatorio (Verona, 1867). 
 
204 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 115 ; Conv. iii. 3, 11. 11-13), which is the lowest of the nine 
 Heavens. Beyond the Heaven of the Moon come in order 
 those of Mercury, Venus, the Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, 
 the Fixed Stars, and last of all that of the Primum Mobile 
 or First Movement. Each of these Heavens revolves with 
 a velocity which increases in proportion to its distance 
 from the Earth. Each of the planets revolves in the 
 epicycle^ of its own Heaven, except the Sun, which re- 
 volves round the Earth. The Primum Mobile (or Crystal- 
 line Heaven) governs the general motion of the Heavens 
 from East to West, and by it all place and time are ulti- 
 mately measured {Par. xxvii. 115-20; xxviii. 70-1 ; Conv. 
 ii. 6, 11. I4S-7; ii. 15, 11. 12-13). 
 
 Each of the Heavens is presided over by one of the 
 Angelic Orders, and exercises its special influence on 
 earthly affairs {Par. ii. 127-9; Conv. ii. 2, 11. 62-3; ii. 5, 
 11. 21-4; ii. 6, 11. 105-16.) The three lowest Heavens are 
 allotted to the souls of those whose life on Earth was 
 rendered imperfect through their having yielded to the 
 temptations of the world. The next four are allotted to the 
 souls of those whose actions were wholly directed by virtu- 
 ous motives. The last two Heavens have no special occu- 
 pants assigned to them, but serve apparently as common 
 places of meeting, the one to the blessed spirits, the other 
 to Angels. Finally, beyond and outside of all the other 
 Heavens lies the Empyrean, an incorporeal and motion- 
 less Heaven, where is neither time nor place, butli^hl 
 only (Par. xxvii. 106-20; xxx. 39); this is the special 
 abode of the Deity and resting-place of the Saints {Conv. 
 ii. 4, 11. 28-30). The latter, arranged in the form of the 
 
 1 An epicycle is a small circle whose centre is on the circumference of 
 a larger circle, along which it travels. In the solar system the path of 
 the Moon about the Earth forms an epicycle in respect of the orbit of the 
 Earth around the Sun. 
 
PARADISO 20S 
 
 petals of a white Rose, gaze upon the beatific vision of 
 the Deity, who is surrounded by the nine orders of the 
 three Angelic Hierarchies. 
 
 Each of the first seven spheres or Heavens is represen- 
 tative of, and corresponds to, one of tljfiUS^SIlJSsikSSii, 
 ArtSj the other three corresponding to Natural, Moral and 
 Divine Science (or JCJ»22'°Sy) respectively {Conv. ii. 14, 11. 
 48-64). The general scheme of Dante's Paradise is as 
 follows : — The first Heaven, that oftj^jyloou, which is 
 presided over by Angels, and is representative of 
 Grammar, is tenanted by the spirits of those who failed to 
 keep their holy vows {Par. ii. 34-v. 84). The second 
 Heaven, that of Me^ijof, which is presided over by Arch- 
 angels, and is representative of Logic, is tenanted by the 
 spirits of those who for the love of fame wrought great 
 deeds upon Earth (v. 8s-vii.). The third Heaven, that of 
 '\^gjl}S» which is presided over by Principal||}es, and is re- 
 presentative of Rhetorigj is tenanted by the spirits of those 
 who upon Earth were lovers (viii-ix.). The fourth Heaven, 
 that of the Sun, which is presided over by Powers, and is 
 representative of Arithmetic, is tenanted by the spirits of 
 those who loved wisdonr(x.-xiv. 78). The fifth Heaven, 
 that of Mars, which is presided over by Vjxtues, and is 
 representative of Music, is tenanted by the spirits of those 
 who fought for""the"Taith (xiv. 79-xviii. 51). The sixth 
 Heaven, that of Jupiter, which is presided over by Do- 
 minions, and is representative of Geometry, is, tenanted by 
 the spirits of those who loved, jjisjjsp (xviii. 52-xx.). The 
 seventh Heaven, that of Saturn, which is presided over 
 by Thrones, and is representative of Astrology, is tenanted 
 by the spirits of those who lived in contemplation of holy 
 things (xxi.-xxii. 99). The eighth Heaven, that of the 
 Fijced Stars, is presided over by Cherubim, and is repre- 
 sentative of Natural Science (xxii. loo-xxvii. 87). The 
 
2o6 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 ninth Heaven, that of the Primum Mobile, or the Crystal- 
 h"ne Heaven, is presided over by Seraphim, and is 
 representative of Moral Science (xxvii. 88-xxix.). The 
 tenth Heaven, that of the Empyrean, is representative of 
 Divine Science, and is the abode of the Deity and of the 
 Spirits of the Blessed. The latter, as already mentioned, 
 are arranged in the petals of a vast white Rose, which, ac- 
 cording to Dante's description, resembles ^a kind of 
 amphitheatre, the centre being formed of a sea of light. 
 On the highest tier, at the point where the light is most 
 dazzling, is seated the Virgin Mary. Next below Mary 
 sits Eve, and below Eve, on the third tier, sits Rachel, 
 with Beatrice at her side ; and on successive tiers below 
 them are Sarah, Rebekah, Judith, Ruth, and other Hebrew 
 women. On the opposite side, facing Mary, on the same 
 tier, is seated St. John the Baptist, below whom on suc- 
 cessive tiers are St. Francis, St. Benedict, St. Augustine, 
 and others. These two lines (from Mary downwards on 
 one side, and from the Baptist downwards on the other) 
 form, as it were, a wall, which divides the Rose into two 
 parts. In one part are the seats (all filled) of those who 
 believed in Christ to come (i.e. those who lived under the 
 Old Testament dispensation) ; in the other are the seats 
 (only partially filled) of those who believed in Christ 
 already come (i.e. those who lived under the New Testa- 
 ment dispensation), and who, when all the seats are filled, 
 will be equal in number to those on the opposite side. 
 The lowest tiers are filled by infants, who were saved, not 
 by their own merits, but through baptism by the merit of 
 Christ (xxx.-xxxiii.). 
 
 Boccaccio tells a story of how at Dante's death the 
 last thirteen cantos of the Paradiso were not to be 
 found, so that it was supposed that he had left his great 
 work unfinished, until the whereabouts of the missing 
 
STORY OF MISSING CANTOS OF D.C. 207 
 
 cantos was miraculously revealed to his son, Jacopo, in a 
 vision : — 
 
 " The friends Dante left behind him, his sons and his 
 disciples, having searched at many times and for several 
 months everything of his writing, to see whether he had 
 left any conclusion to his work, could in nowise find any 
 of the remaining cantos ; his friends generally being much 
 mortified that God had not at least lent him so long to 
 the world, that he might have been able to complete the 
 small remaining part of his work ; and having sought so 
 long and never found it, they remained in despair. 
 Jacopo and Piero were sons of Dante, and each of them 
 being a rhymer, they were induced by the persuasions of 
 their friends to endeavour to complete, as far as they were 
 able, their father's work, in order that it should not remain 
 imperfect ; when to Jacopo, who was more eager about it 
 than his brother, there appeared a wonderful vision, which 
 not only induced him to abandon such presumptuous 
 folly, but showed him where the thirteen cantos were 
 which were wanting to the Divina Commedia, and which 
 they had not been able to find. 
 
 "A worthy man of Ravenna, whose name was Pier 
 Giardino, and who had long been Dante's disciple, grave 
 in his manner and worthy of credit, relates that after the 
 eighth month from the day of his master's death, there 
 came to his house before dawn Jacopo di Dante, who told 
 him that that night, while he was asleep, his father Dante 
 had appeared to him, clothed in the purest white, and his 
 face resplendent with an extraordinary light ; that he, 
 Jacopo, asked him if he lived, and that Dante replied : 
 ' Yes, but in the true life, not our life '. Then he, Jacopo, 
 asked him if he had completed his work before passing 
 into the true life, and, if he had done so, what had become 
 of that part of it which was missing, which they none of 
 
2o8 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 them had been able to find. To this Dante seemed to 
 answer : ' Yes, I finished it ' ; and then took him, Jacopo, 
 by the hand, and led him into that chamber in which he, 
 Dante, had been accustomed to sleep when he lived in 
 this life, and, touching one of the walls, he said : ' What 
 you have sought for so much is here ' ; and at these words 
 both Dante and sleep fled from Jacopo at once. For 
 which reason Jacopo said he could not rest without com- 
 ing to explain what he had seen to Pier Giardino, in order 
 that they should go together and search out the place thus 
 pointed out to him, which he retained excellently in his 
 memory, and to see whether this had been pointed out by 
 a true spirit, or a false delusion . For which purpose, though 
 it was still far in the night, they set off together, and 
 went to the house in which Dante resided at the time of 
 his death. Having called up its present owner, he ad- 
 mitted them, and they went to the place thus pointed out ; 
 there they found a mat fixed to the wall, as they had al- 
 ways been used to see it in past days ; they lifted it gently 
 up, when they found a little window in the wall, never 
 before seen by any of them, nor did they even know that 
 it was there. In it they found several writings, all mouldy 
 from the dampness of the walls, and had they remained 
 there longer, in a little while they would have crumbled 
 away. Having thoroughly cleared away the mould, they 
 found them to be the thirteen cantos that had been want- 
 ing to complete the CommediaP ^ 
 
 The missing cantos, adds Boccaccio, were at once sent 
 to Can Grande della Scala, to whom Dante had been in 
 the habit of sending every few cantos of his poem, as he 
 finished them, in order that Can Grande might see them 
 before they were submitted to any one else. 
 
 ' Vita di Dante, ed. Macri-Leone, § 14, pp. 68-70 (trans, by Bun- 
 bury). 
 
STORY OF FIRST SEVEN CANTOS OF D.C. 209 
 
 Boccaccio is responsible for another interesting anecdote ^ 
 about the Commedia, which, if we are to accept it as 
 authentic, shows how the Florentines, by exiling Dante, 
 were very near depriving the world of one of its most pre- 
 cious treasures. 
 
 " It should be known," he says, " that Dante had a sis- 
 ter, who was married to one of our citizens, called Leon 
 Poggi, by whom she had several children. Among these 
 was one called Andrea, who wonderfully resembled Dante 
 in the outline of his features, and in his height and figure ; 
 and he also walked rather stooping, as Dante is said to 
 have done. He was a weak man, but with naturally good 
 feelings, and his language and conduct were regular and 
 praiseworthy. And I having become intimate with him, 
 he often spoke to me of Dante's habits and ways; but 
 among those things which I delight most in recollecting, 
 is what he told me relating to that of which we are now 
 speaking. He said then, that Dante belonged to the 
 party of Messer Vieri de' Cerchi, and was one of its great 
 leaders ; and when Messer Vieri and many of his followers 
 left Florence, Dante left that city also and went to Verona. 
 And on account of this departure, through the solicitation 
 of the opposite party, Messer Vieri and all who had left 
 Florence, especially the principal persons, were considered 
 as rebels, and had their persons condemned, and their pro- 
 perty confiscated. When the people heard this, they ran to 
 the houses of those proscribed, and plundered all that was 
 within them. It is true that Dante's wife. Madonna 
 Gemma, fearing this, by the advice of some of her friends 
 
 1 This story is given both in the Vita di Dante and in the Comento ; in the 
 latter {Lezione 33) the name of Boccaccio's informant is given, not as 
 Pier Giardino, but as Ser Dino Perini of Florence, who is supposed to be 
 the individual who figures in Dante's Latin Eclogues under the name of 
 Meliboeus (see below, p. 254). 
 14 
 
210 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 and relations, had withdrawn from his house some chests 
 containing certain precious things, and Dante's writings 
 along with them, and had put them in a place of safety. 
 And not satisfied with having plundered the houses of the 
 proscribed, the most powerful partisans of the opposite 
 faction occupied their possessions, — some taking one and 
 some another, — and thus Dante's house was occupied. 
 
 " But after five years or more had elapsed, and the city 
 was more rationally governed, it is said, than it was when 
 Dante was sentenced, persons began to question their 
 rights, on different grounds, to what had been the property 
 of the exiles, and they were heard. Therefore Madonna 
 Gemma was advised to demand back Dante's property, on 
 the ground that it was her dowry. She, to prepare this 
 business, required certain writings and documents which 
 were in one of the chests, which, in the violent plunder of 
 effects, she had sent away, nor had she ever since removed 
 them from the place where she had deposited them. For 
 this purpose, this Andrea said, she had sent for him, and, 
 as Dante's nephew, had entrusted him with the keys of 
 these chests, and had sent him with a lawyer to search for 
 the required papers ; while the lawyer searched for these, he, 
 Andrea, among other of Dante's writings, found many 
 sonnets, canzoni, and such similar pieces. But among 
 them what pleased him the most was a sheet in which, in 
 Dante's handwriting, the seven first cantos of the Com- 
 media were written ; and therefore he took it and carried 
 it off with him, and read it over and over again ; and al- 
 though he understood but little of it, still it appeared to 
 him a very fine thing; and therefore he determined, in 
 order to know what it was, to carry it to an esteemed man 
 of our city, who in those times was a much celebrated re- 
 citer of verses, whose name was Dino, the son of Messer 
 Lambertuccio Frescobaldi. 
 
STORY OF FIRST SEVEN CANTOS OF Z^.C. 211 
 
 " It pleased Dino marvellously; and having made 
 copies of it for several of his friends, and knowing that the 
 composition was merely begun, and not completed, he 
 thought that it would be best to send it to Dante, and at 
 the same time to beg him to follow up his design, and to 
 finish it. And having inquired, and ascertained that Dante 
 was at this time in the Lunigiana, with a noble man of the 
 name of Malaspina, called the Marquis Moroello, who was 
 a man of understanding, and who had a singular friend- 
 ship for him, he thought of sending it, not to Dante himself, 
 but to the Marquis, in order that he should show it to him : 
 and so Dino did, begging him that, as far as it lay in his 
 power, he would exert his good offices to induce Dante to 
 continue and finish his work. 
 
 "The seven aforesaid cantos having reached the 
 Marquis's hands, and having marvellously pleased him, he 
 showed them to Dante ; and having heard from him that 
 they were his composition, he entreated him to continue 
 the work. To this it is said that Dante answered : ' I 
 really supposed that these, along with many of my other 
 writings and effects, were lost when my house was plundered, 
 and therefore I had given up all thoughts of them. But since 
 it has pleased God that they should not be lost, and He has 
 thus restored them to me, I shall endeavour, as far as I 
 am able, to proceed with them according to my first 
 design.' And recalling his old thoughts, and resuming 
 his interrupted work, he speaks thus in the beginning of 
 the eighth canto : 'My wondrous history I here renew '." ^ 
 
 The question cis to why Dante, a man of great learning, 
 chose to write the Commedia in Italian, instead of in Latin, 
 exercised the minds of many wise men of his day, Boccaccio 
 tells us. His own opinion on the subject he gives as 
 follows : — 
 
 • Comento, ii. 129-32 (trans, by Bunbury) ; cf. Vita di Dante, ed. cit. 
 § 14. PP 65-7. 
 
212 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 " In reply to this question," he says, "two chief reasons, 
 amongst many others, come to my mind. The first of 
 which is, to be of more general use to his fellow-citizens 
 and other Italians ; for he knew that if he had written 
 metrically in Latin as the other poets of past times had 
 done, he would only have done service to men of letters, 
 whereas, writing in the vernacular, he did a deed ne'er 
 done before, and there was no bar in any incapacity of the 
 men of letters to understand him ; and by showing the 
 beauty of our idiom and his own excelling art therein, he 
 gave delight and understanding of himself to the unlearned 
 who had hitherto been abandoned of every one. The 
 second reason which moved him thereto was this. See- 
 ing that liberal studies were utterly abandoned, and 
 especially by princes and other great men, to whom poetic 
 toils were wont to be dedicated, wherefore the divine works 
 of Virgil and the other illustrious poets had not only sunk 
 into small esteem, but were well-nigh despised by the most ; 
 having himself begun, according as the loftiness of the matter 
 demanded, after this guise — 
 
 ' Ultima regna canam, fluido contermina mundo, 
 Spiritibus quae lata patent, quae praemia solvunt 
 Pro mentis cuicumque suis,' etc.,' 
 
 he left it there ; for he conceived it was a vain thing to put 
 crusts of bread into the mouths of such as were still sucking 
 milk ; wherefore he began his work again in style suited 
 to modern senses, and followed it up in the vernacular." ^ 
 The skill exhibited by Dante in the management of the 
 rhymes in his poem, which consists of considerably over 
 
 1 " The furthest realms I sing, conterminous with the flowing universe, 
 stretching afar for spirits, paying the rewards to each after his merits," 
 etc. 
 
 2 Vita di Dante, ed. cit. § 15, pp. 71-2 (trans, by Wicksteed). This 
 information was obviously derived by Boccaccio from a passage in the 
 suspect) letter of Frate Ilario (see above, p. 92 note). 
 
DANTE AND HIS RHYMES 213 
 
 fourteen thousand lines, is very remarkable. According 
 to the author of the commentary known as the Ottimo 
 Comento, who was a contemporary of Dante, the poet 
 boasted that he had never been trammelled in his com- 
 position by the exigencies of rhyme. " I, the writer," 
 says the commentator, "heard Dante say that never a 
 rhyme had led him to say other than he would, but that 
 many a time and oft he had made words say in his rhymes 
 what they were not wont to express for other poets." 
 
 Another commentator, Benvenuto da Imola, in connec- 
 tion with Dante's extraordinary facility in the matter of 
 rhymes, repeats a quaint conceit, which had been imagined, 
 he says, by an ardent admirer of the poet: — "When 
 Dante first set about the composition of his poem, all the 
 rhymes in the Italian language presented themselves before 
 him in the guise of so many lovely maidens, and each in 
 turn humbly petitioned to be granted admittance into this 
 great work of his genius. In answer to their prayers, 
 Dante called first one and then another, and assigned to 
 each its appropriate place in the poem ; so that, when at 
 last the work was complete, it was found that not a single 
 one had been left out," 
 
 The statistics as to the editions, manuscript and printed, 
 of the Divina Commedia are interesting. The known 
 manuscripts number between five and six hundred,^ giving 
 an average of about four a year for the 1 50 years between 
 the date of Dante's death (1321) and that of the first 
 printed edition (1472). None of these dates earlier than 
 fourteen or fifteen years after Dante's death, of whose 
 original manuscript not a trace has yet been discovered. 
 Of printed editions there are between three and four hun- 
 dred, giving an average of less than one a year for the 430 
 
 ' See E. Moore, Contributions to the Textual Criticism of the Divina 
 Commedia ; and Colomb de Batines, Bibliografia Dantesca (Parte iv.). 
 
214 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 years between the date of the first edition (1472) and the 
 latest.^ The earliest probably is that printed at Foligno 
 in 1472, in which year editions appeared also at Mantua 
 and at Jesi. Two editions were printed at Naples shortly 
 after, one in 1474, the other in 1477. A Venetian edition 
 appeared also in 1477; a Milanese in 1477-78; and a 
 second Venetian in 1478. The first Florentine edition 
 (with the commentary of Cristoforo Landino) did not 
 appear until 148 1. At least six other editions were 
 printed in Italy in the fifteenth century. In the next cent- 
 ury two editions were printed at the famous Venetian press 
 of Aldus, one in 1 502 (in which the well-known Aldine an- 
 chor began to be used for the first time), the other in 15 15. 
 The first edition printed outside Italy was the counterfeit of 
 the first Aldine, which appeared at Lyons in 1502 or 1503. 
 Three other editions were printed in the sixteenth century 
 at Lyons, viz. in 1547, 1551, and 1571. No other edition 
 appeared outside Italy for nearly two hundred years, till 
 1768, when an edition was published at Paris. An edition 
 with the imprint London, but actually printed at Leghorn, 
 appeared in 1778. The earliest specimen of any length 
 of the Italian text of the Commedia printed in England 
 was a passage of twenty-seven lines — a curiosity of mis- 
 printing — from the last canto of the Inferno (xxxiv. 28- 
 54), inserted by Thomas Heywood, the dramatist, in the 
 seventh book of his Hierarchie of the Blessed Angels, which 
 was published in 1635.^ More than a hundred years later 
 Giuseppe Baretti printed selections from the sixth canto 
 of the Inferno, the eighth of the Purgatorio, and the thirty- 
 third of the Paradiso, in his Italian Library (published in 
 
 1 At first sight it might appear as if the popularity of the poem had 
 decreased 'since the invention of printing ; but it must be borne in mind 
 that a manuscript " edition " consisted of one copy only, whereas a 
 printed edition may consist of hundreds or even thousands of copies. 
 
 2 See Paget Toynbee, Dante in English Literature, vol. i. pp. 129-30. 
 
ENGLISH EDITIONS OF THE COMMEDIA 215 
 
 London in I7S7). Not long afterwards (in 1782) William 
 Hayley printed the first three cantos of the Inferno, with 
 a translation in terza rima, in the notes to the third Epistle, 
 in his Essay on Epic Poetry. This was followed by the 
 complete text of the Inferno, which accompanied the first 
 issue of Gary's Hell, published in London in two volumes in 
 1805-6. Two complete English editions of the Commedia 
 (the first of the whole poem) were printed in London in 
 1808. The first (perhaps) of these, in three volumes i6mo, 
 edited by G. B. Boschini, and dedicated to the Ladies 
 Elizabeth and Emily Percy, daughters of the second Duke 
 of Northumberland, contained the text only without notes. 
 The other, in three volumes i2mo, dedicated respectively 
 to the Countess of Lonsdale, the Countess of Dartmouth, 
 and Mrs. Pilkington, was edited by Romualdo Zotti, who 
 supplied notes in Italian, selected and abbreviated from 
 various Italian commentaries. Two other editions were 
 printed in London in 18 19; one in three volumes i6mo, 
 edited by S. E. Petronj ; the other in three volumes lamo, 
 a reissue, with the notes recast, of Zotti's edition of 1808. 
 In 1822-23 was published the diminutive edition of the 
 Commedia, in two volumes 32mo (dated respectively 1823 
 and 1822), dedicated to the second Earl Spencer, the great 
 book collector, which forms part of the well-known series 
 of " Diamond Classics " issued by William Pickering, and 
 printed by Corrall, this being the first complete edition of 
 the Commedia issued in England in which no foreigner's 
 name appears. In 1824 a French translation of the In- 
 ferno, dedicated to the Princess Augusta, second daughter 
 of George III, by J. C. Tarver, accompanied by the 
 Italian text, was printed at Windsor, of which a second 
 impression, with a reconstructed title-page, was issued in 
 1826. In 1826-27 John Murray published the first instal- 
 ment, in two volumes 8vo, of Gabriele Rossetti's famous 
 
2i6 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 Comento Analitico on the Commedia, consisting of the 
 text of the Inferno, with the commentary. The work, the 
 first volume of which is dedicated to John Hookham Frere, 
 and which numbers among its subscribers Brougham, Scott, 
 Isaac D'Israeli, Henry Hallam, and Samuel Rogers, is an- 
 nounced on the title-page as being in six volumes, but no 
 more than the first two ever saw the light. In 1 827 ap- 
 peared the first English printed edition of the Commedia 
 complete in one volume. The text, beautifully printed by 
 the Whittinghams at their Chiswick Press, was edited by 
 Pietro Cicchetti. The editor claims that this volume, 
 which is in i2mo, and consists of 610 pages, is the first 
 single-volume of the Commedia in this small format — 
 a claim which shows that his acquaintance with the biblio- 
 graphy of the subject was limited, since at least half a dozen 
 single volume editions in small format were published in 
 Italy and France during the sixteenth century. In 1839 
 and 1840 two single-volume editions were published in 
 Edinburgh in 24mo, neither of which, singularly enough, is 
 in the British Museum. In 1842-43 was published in 
 London by Pietro Rolandi, in four volumes 8vo, under the 
 editorship of Giuseppe Mazzini, Ugo Foscolo's edition of 
 the Commedia, containing the Italian text and various 
 illustrative matter, the first instalment of which had been 
 published by Pickering during Foscolo's lifetime in 1825. 
 In 1849 the well-known translation of the /«;%r«o by John 
 A. Carlyle, accompanied by the Italian text, was published 
 by Chapman and Hall ; and from this date onwards Eng- 
 lish editions of the Commedia or of one or other of the 
 divisions of the poem, for the most part accompanied by 
 translations, have followed each other fast, the grand total 
 at the present date amounting to twenty-six, exclusive of 
 reprints and reimpressions. The most important text of 
 the Commedia published in England is that included in the 
 
ENGLISH EDITIONS OF THE COMMEDIA 217 
 
 volume, known as the Oxford Dante, issued at Oxford in 
 1894 (second edition, 1897; third edition, 1904), which 
 contains the whole of the works of Dante.^ Two editions of 
 the text alone were published in 1900 (one in London,^ the 
 other at Oxford)^ in commemoration of the six hundredth 
 anniversary of Dante's journey throi^h the three kingdoms 
 of the other world. The latest of all are the beautiful 
 edition, in three volumes {Inferno^ 1902 ; Purgatorio, 1904 ; 
 Paradiso, 1905), printed at the Ashendene Press by C. H. 
 St. John Hornby ; and the sumptuous reprint, in one large 
 folio volume, of the text of the Oxford Dante (comprising 
 the whole works) issued from the same press in 1909.* 
 
 The Commedia has been translated, in whole or in part, 
 into almost every known literary language. Besides Eng- 
 lish, there are versions of the whole poem in Bohemian, 
 Catalan, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Greek, Hun- 
 garian, Latin, Polish, Portuguese, Roumanian, Russian, 
 Spanish, Swedish, and Welsh. The Inferno has been ren- 
 dered into Hebrew; and various selections into Armenian, 
 Basque, Icelandic, Norwegian, Sanskrit, and even Volapiik. 
 Versions in French, Spanish, and Catalan were already in 
 existence in the fifteenth century, and a Latin translation 
 was made as early as the fourteenth century, in 1381 as is 
 supposed. The first German translation of the Commedia 
 did not appear until the eighteenth century, in 1767-69, 
 
 1 Tutte U opere di Dante Alighieri, nuovamente rivedute nel testo dal 
 Dr. E. Moore; con Indice del Nomi Propri e delle Cose Notabili compilato 
 da Paget Toynbee (Clarendon Press). 
 
 * La Commedia di Dante Alighieri. II testo Wittiano riveduto da 
 Paget Toynbee (' Per il sesto centenario del viaggio di Dante MCCC 
 . . . MDCCCC ' (Methuen and Co.). 
 
 ^La Divina Commedia di Dante Alighieri nuovamente riveduta nel 
 testo dal Dr. E. Moore, con indice dei nomi propri compilato da Paget 
 Toynbee (Clarendon Press). 
 
 * See Paget Toynbee, The Earliest Editions of the Divina Commedia 
 printed in England, in Athenaum, 2 Jan. 1904. 
 
21 8 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 several years after the completion of the earliest English 
 version. 
 
 Renderings of detached passages from the Commedia 
 occur in English literature within sixty years or so of 
 Dante's death, in the works of Chaucer, who introduces a 
 translation of St. Bernard's prayer to the Virgin, from the 
 thirty-third canto of the Paradiso, in the Prologue to the 
 Second Nun's Tale ; and in the Monk's Tale a rendering 
 of the story of Ugolino, from the thirty-third canto of the 
 Inferno ; besides shorter passages in others of the Tales, and 
 in Troilus and Cressida, the Legend of Good Women, and 
 elsewhere.i With the exception of a few lines by Sir John 
 Harington and Milton, the first English translation from 
 the Commedia, other than mere incidental renderings, was 
 the version of the Ugolino episode, published by Jonathan 
 Richardson, the artist, in 17 19 in hxs Discourse on the Dig- 
 nity, Certainty, Pleasure and Advantage of the Science of a 
 Connoisseur. The same piece was translated by the poet 
 Gray some twenty years later ; and five more versions of it 
 appeared before the end of the eighteenth century. The 
 earliest recorded English translation of the whole poem 
 was one by William Huggins, the translator of Ariosto, 
 who at his death in 1761 left the work in manuscript, with 
 directions that it should be printed and published, which, 
 however, was never done. About the same time Dr. 
 Burney made a translation of the Inferno, which likewise 
 never saw the light. In 1782 William Hayley published 
 his terza rima translation of the first three cantos of the 
 Inferno mentioned above.^ In the same year appeared 
 the first complete English translation (that is, the first pub- 
 lished translation) of the Inferno. This was by Charles 
 Rogers, in blank verse. Rogers' version was followed in 
 
 iSee Paget Toynbee, Dante in English Literature, vol, i. pp. i ff. 
 2 See above, p. 215. 
 
ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS OF COM MEDIA 219 
 
 1785 by a rendering, in six-line stanzas, by Henry Boyd, 
 who seventeen years later, in 1 802, published a translation 
 of the whole of the Commedia in the same metre — the 
 first complete English version to see the light.^ In 1805 
 Gary published the iirst instalment of his famous blank 
 verse translation, consisting of the first seventeen cantos 
 of the Inferno, the other seventeen cantos being published 
 in the following year, A fourth translation of the Inferno, 
 in blank verse, by Nathaniel Howard, appeared in 1807; 
 and a fifth, also in blank verse, by Joseph Hume, in 1812. 
 In 1 814 was published the first edition of Gary's transla- 
 tion of the whole of the Commedia, of which a second edi- 
 tion was issued in 1819, and a third in 1831. In 1833 
 Ichabod Charles Wright published a translation of the 
 Inferno, in bastard terza rima, which was followed by the 
 Purgatorio in 1836, and the Paradiso in 1840, in the same 
 metre. In 1844 appeared the fourth, and last edition 
 corrected by himself, of Gary's translation. Since that 
 date twenty other English translations of the Com- 
 media have been published. Of these, nine are in terza 
 rima, four in blank verse, five in prose, one in heroic coup- 
 lets, and one in nine-line stanzas. There have been, 
 besides, eighteen independent translations of the Inferno 
 alone, of which eight are in terza rima, five in blank verse, 
 three in prose, one in rhymed quatrains, and one in Spen- 
 serian stanzas. Also there have been six independent 
 translations of the Purgatorio, three in prose, one in Mar- 
 vellian stanzas, one in octosyllabic terza rima, and one in 
 blank verse ; and one independent translation, in prose, of 
 the Paradiso. Reckoning the totals for each cantica of the 
 poem, this gives in all forty-four English translations of the 
 Inferno, twenty-nine of the Purgatorio, and twenty-four of 
 
 ' See Paget Toynbee, English Translations of Dante in the Eighteenth 
 Century, in Modern Language Review, vol. i. pp. 9-24, 
 
220 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 the Paradiso. A classification of these according to metre 
 gives, for the Inferno, seventeen in terza rima, twelve in 
 blank verse, eight in prose, and seven in what, for con- 
 venience, may be called experimental metres ; ^ for the 
 Purgatorio, ten in terza rima, eight in prose, five in blank 
 verse, and six in experimental metres f for the Paradiso, 
 nine in terza rima, six in prose, five in blank verse, and 
 four in experimental metres.' 
 
 From these figures it appears that during the last cen- 
 tury and a quarter the Commedia has been translated 
 into English on an average once in about every five years. 
 If the independent translations of the several divisions 
 of the poem be included in the reckoning, it will be found 
 that an English translation of one or other of the three 
 cantiche has been produced on an average once in about 
 every sixteen months of the same period. 
 
 Next after the Ugolino episode, from the thirty-third 
 canto of the Inferno, of which there are altogether more 
 than seventy English versions, the two most popular pas- 
 sages of the Commedia with English translators have been 
 the episode of Francesca da Rimini, from the fifth canto of 
 the Inferno, and the first two terzine of the eighth canto of 
 the Purgatorio. Of the Francesca da Rimini episode there 
 are twenty-three separate versions independent of transla- 
 tions of the Inferno, of which only one belongs to the 
 eighteenth century, as against seven of the Ugolino. The 
 most famous version is that by Lord Byron, in "third 
 rhyme," to use his own term, which was composed in 1820, 
 but not published until ten years later. Of the first six lines 
 of the eighth canto of the Purgatorio, the last line of 
 
 'Including bastard terza rima, six-line stanzas, nine-line stanzas, 
 heroic couplets, and rhymed quatrains. 
 
 * Including bastard terza rima, six-line stanzas, nine-line stanzas, 
 heroic couplets, and Marvellian stanzas. 
 
 3 Including bastard terza rima, six-line stanzas, nine-line stanzas, 
 and heroic couplets. 
 
COMMENTARIES ON THE COMMEDIA 221 
 
 vhich is famous in English literature as having inspired 
 he first line of Gray's Elegy, there are sixteen independ- 
 int translations. Among these are versions by Peacock 
 n Headlong Hall (1816) ; by Byron in the third canto of 
 Don Juan (1821); and by Samuel Rogers in his Italy 
 1830). 
 
 This record ^ constitutes a remarkable tribute on the 
 )art of the English-speaking ^ races to the transcendent 
 fenius of Dante. Not as yet, it seems, need Dante fear 
 
 " Di perder viver tra coloro 
 Che questo tempo chiameranno antico," * 
 
 IS he expressed it to the spirit of his ancestor Cacciaguida 
 ;ix hundred years ago. 
 
 Commentaries on the Commedia began to make their 
 ippearance in Italy at a very early date. Four at least, 
 m the Inferno, were written within three or four years of 
 Dante's death ; viz. one, in Latin, by Graziolo de' Bam- 
 jaglioli (d. before 1 343), Chancellor of Bologna, composed 
 n 1324 (published in 1892 by Antonio Fiammazzo),* of 
 vhich an Italian translation (published in 1848 by Lord 
 Vernon) * was made in the fourteenth ceintury * ; one, in 
 [talian, by Dante's son, Jacopo (d. before 1349), written 
 
 1 For details, see Paget Toynbee, Chronological hist of English Trans- 
 af ions from Dante, from Chaucer to the Present Day, in Annual Report 
 f the Cambridge (U.S.A.) Dante Society for 1906 ; see also English 
 Translations of Dante's Works, in Bulletin Italien, torn. vi. pp. 285-8 (igo6). 
 
 * Translations (three of the Commedia, and one of the Inferno) by 
 Americans are included in the record. 
 
 ' Paradiso, xvii. iig-20 : — 
 
 " To be as one forgotten among those 
 Who shall regard as ancient these our days." 
 
 * See Appendix D, where the titles of the printed editions of the early 
 :ommentaries referred to above are given in extenso. 
 
 ' See Luigi Rocca, Di alcuni Commenti della Divina Commedia com- 
 '>osti nei primi vent' anni dopo la morte di Dante. Firenze, i8gi, pp. 43- 
 jj. The identification of this work as a translation of the commentary of 
 jraziolo de' Bambaglioli is due to Dr. Moore (see his Studies in Dante, 
 fol. iii. p. 345 ». 2). 
 
222 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 before 1325 (published by Lord Vernon in 1848),! which 
 is considered by some to be earlier than that of Graziolo ^ ; 
 one, in Latin, by Guido da Pisa, written probably about 
 1324 (as yet unpublished) ^ of which a fourteenth century 
 Italian translation exists (also unpublished)*; and one, 
 in Italian, by an anonymous author, probably a native of 
 Siena, written between 1321 and 1337 (published in 1865 
 by Francesco Selmi).' The first commentary on the 
 whole of the Commedia was written in Italian between 
 1323 and 1328 by Jacopo della Lana (d. after 1358), of 
 Bologna ; this was first printed in the edition of the Corn- 
 media published at Venice by Vendelin da Spira in 1477, 
 in which, however, it was erroneously attributed to Ben- 
 venuto da Imola; it was printed a second time in the 
 following year in the edition of the Commedia published 
 by Nidobeato at Milan ; and was reprinted at Milan in 
 1865, and at Bologna in 1866-7, by Luciano Scarabelli.' 
 Lana's commentary, of which more than sixty MSS. are 
 known, was twice translated into Latin in the fourteenth 
 
 ^ See Appendix D. 
 
 ^See Rocca, op. cit. pp. 63 ff. Another authority, F. P. Luiso, holds 
 that the Ckiose printed by Lord Vernon were not written in that shape 
 by Jacopo di Dante, but are a distorted translation of a Latin original. 
 He considers, on the other hand, that the Latin Chiose di Dante le quali 
 fece el figliuolo co le sue niani, preserved in a MS. in the Laurentian library 
 at Florence, of which he published a portion (on the Purgatorio) at 
 Florence in 1904, represent the work of Jacopo, and were written probably 
 in his father's lifetime, and were possibly to some extent inspired by the 
 poet himself. See, however, an article by M. Barbi in Bullettino della 
 Society Dantesca Italiana, N.S. xi. pp. 195-229 {1904). 
 
 ^ See Moore, Studies in Dante, vol. iii. pp. 349, 357, 363. 
 
 ^ See Colomb de Batines, Bibliograjia Dantesca, vol. ii. p. 300. 
 
 ^See Appendix D. Some authorities, including Selmi, think that 
 this commentary was written in Dante's lifetime, before 1320 ; Rocca, 
 however, shows (op. cit. pp. 109-10, 117), that it must have been written 
 later than 1321, the date of Dante's death, and before 1337. 
 
 ^ See Appendix D. 
 
COMMENTARIES ON THE COMMEDIA 223 
 
 century, the author of one of these versions being Alberico 
 da Rosciate (d. 1354), a celebrated lawyer of Bergamo.^ 
 Eight more commentaries belong to the fourteenth cen- 
 tury ; viz. that known as the Ottimo Comento, written in 
 Italian by Andrea Lancia {c. i2giy-c. 1360), a Florentine 
 notary, about 1334^ (published in 1827-9 by Alessandro 
 Torri) ' ; the Latin commentary of Dante's son, Pietro 
 (d. 1364), written in 1 340-1, which exists in two different 
 forms,* only one of which has been published (by Lord 
 Vernon in 1845) ' ; that written in Latin by an unknown 
 monk of Monte Cassino not earlier than 1350 (published 
 in 1865)^; the unfinished commentary in Italian on the 
 Inferno, comprising the first sixteen cantos and part of the 
 seventeenth, written by Boccaccio (1313-1375) for the 
 purpose of his public lectures on Dante in Florence be- 
 tween 1373 and 1375 ^ (first published in 1724 by Lorenzo 
 Ciccarelli) ^ ; the Latin commentary (of which a fourteenth 
 century Italian version exists in MS.) ^ composed between 
 1373 and 1380 by Benvenuto da Imola {c. 1338- 1390), 
 part of which he delivered as public lecturer on Dante at 
 Bologna in 1375 ^ (published in 1887 by William Warren 
 Vernon, under the editorship of G. F. Lacaita) ^ ; the 
 Italian commentary, formerly attributed to Boccaccio, 
 composed in 1375 (published in 1846 by Lord Vernon) ^ ; 
 that in Italian by Francesco da Buti (1324-1406), of which 
 
 'See Rocca, op. cit., pp. 127-227. ''See Rocca, of. cit. pp. 228-342. 
 
 ' See Appendix D. '' See Rocca, op. cit. pp. 343-407. 
 
 5 See Paget Toynbee, Boccaccio's Commentary on the Divina Corn- 
 media, in Modern Language Review, vol. ii. pp. 97-120. 
 
 " See Batines, op. cit. vol. iii. p. 315. 
 
 ' See Paget Toynbee, Benvenuto da Imola and his Commentary on the 
 Divina Commedia, in Dante Studies and Researches, pp. 216-37. M. 
 Barbi has recently shown that the Latin commentary which passes under 
 the name of Stefano Talice da Ricaldone is little more than a transcription 
 of Benvenuto's lectures at Bologna. See Bullettino delta Societa Dantesca 
 Italiana, N.S. xv. pp. 213-36 (1908). 
 
224 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 the first draft appears to have been completed in 1385, 
 and which was finally completed in 139S/ composed for 
 delivery as public lectures at Pisa (published in 1858-62 
 by Crescentino Giannini)^; and the commentary in 
 Italian, written at the end of the fourteenth or beginning 
 of the fifteenth century^ by an unknown Florentine 
 (commonly referred to as " Anonimo Fiorentino ") (pub>- 
 lished in 1866-74 by Pietro Fanfani).^ 
 
 To the beginning of the fifteenth century belongs the 
 Latin commentary written by Giovanni dei Bertoldi 
 {c. 1350-1445), commonly known as Giovanni da Serravalle, 
 Bishop of Fermo, which was composed between February 
 1416 and January 141 7. This commentary* (published 
 
 ' The reading of the date of the completion of the commentary in the 
 colophon at the end of the Paradiso is uncertain; but at any rate the 
 work was not completed before 1393, for in the comment on Paradiso, vi. 
 1-9, Buti gives a list of Emperors, which he concludes with these words : 
 " lo centesimo tredecimo e ora Vinceslao re di Boemia . . . lo quale non 
 e anco coronato, benche corra 1393 dalla incarnazione"- 
 
 ^^se Appendix V). 
 
 ^ The MS. from which Fanfani, the editor, printed the commentary 
 professes to have been written in 1343, but this date, which appears to 
 have been added by a later hand, is obviously incorrect, for the author 
 borrows freely from Boccaccio's commentary, which was not begun till 
 thirty years afterwards. 
 
 * A copy of this commentary was presented in 1443 by Humphrey, Duke 
 of Gloucester, to the University of Oxford, where it was seen in the public 
 library a hundred years later by John Leland, the antiquary, during his 
 tour through England in 1536-42. The commentary was accompanied by 
 a prose translation of the Commedia in Latin (begun in January 1416 and 
 completed in May of the same year). It was probably a MS. of this 
 translation which was seen by Leland in the Cathedral library at Wells 
 (founded and endowed by Bishop Bubwith) during the tour above-mentioned 
 (see G. L. Hamilton's notes on Serravalle in Annual Report of the Cam- 
 bridge (U.S.A.) Dante Society, 1902 ; and Paget Toynbee, Dante in Eng- 
 lish Literature, vol. i. pp. xviii. 21-2, 29-30). Only three complete MSS. 
 of Serravalle's work are known ; one of these is in the Vatican, another in 
 the British Museum, and a third in the Escorial (see A. Farinelli, Dante in 
 Ispagna, p. 70 n). 
 
COMMENTARIES ON THE COM MEDIA 225 
 
 at Prato in 1891) " has a special interest for Englishmen 
 as having been written (during the Council of Constance, 
 1414-1418) at the instigation of two English Bishops, 
 Nicholas Bubwith, of Bath and Wells, and Robert Hallam, 
 of Salisbury, by one who had himself been in England,^ 
 and who made, for the first time, the explicit statement 
 that Dante visited this country and studied at Oxford — ' 
 a statement (unhappily not otherwise authenticated) 
 prompted probably by a desire to please his English col- 
 leagues, one of whom, Hallam, had been Chancellor of the 
 University of Oxford.* Three other commentaries belong 
 to this century, one, on the Inferno only, by Guiniforto 
 delli Bargigi (1406-f. 1460), of Pavia, written about 1440 
 (published in 1838 by G. Zacheroni)*; another, in Latin, 
 by Stefano Talice da Ricaldone (d. c. 1520), written in 
 1474, and supposed at one time to have been delivered as 
 lectures at Saluzzo,^ but now regarded as a more or less 
 faithful transcription of Benvenuto da Imola's lectures 
 at Bologna' (privately printed, by order of the King 
 of Italy, at Turin in 1886; published in 1888 at Milan 
 under the editorship of V. Promis and C. Negroni) ^ ; 
 and the third, in Italian, written in 1480 by Cristoforo 
 Landino (1434-1504), of Florence, which first saw the 
 light in the celebrated first Florentine edition of the 
 
 ' See Appendix D. 
 
 2 In his comment on Inferno, xx. 126, he says he passed through the 
 Straits of Gibraltar " quando redibam de regno Anglie "- 
 
 3 See above, p. 93. * From 1403 to 1405. 
 
 ^ See Appendix D. Zacheroni unfortunately did not print Guiniforto's 
 work in full, all the theological portions of the commentary being 
 omitted. 
 
 ^ See vol. i. pp. xiii, xvi, of the Milan edition (1888) of the com- 
 mentary. 
 
 ' See the article by M. Barbi referred to above (p. 223 n. 7), and also 
 Rocca, op. cit. p. 137. 
 
 15 
 
226 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 Commedia (published in 1481),^ and has many times been 
 reprinted.^ 
 
 In the sixteenth century the only commentaries of im- 
 portance were those (in Italian), of Alessandro Vellutello 
 {c. isi9-<?. 1S90), of Lucca, first published at Venice in 
 1544,' and three times reprinted*; of Giovan Battista 
 Gelli (1498-1563), of Florence, whose lectures on the 
 Commedia before the Florentine Academy (delivered at 
 various times between 1541 and 1563) were successively 
 printed at Florence in a series of issues between 1 547 and 
 1561,^ and have recently (1887) been collected and pub- 
 lished by C. Negroni * ; and of Bernardino Daniello (d. 
 c. 1560), of Lucca, whose commentary was printed at 
 Venice in 1568,' and has not been reprinted. 
 
 In the seventeenth century, during which only three 
 editions of the Commedia were printed in Italy/ as 
 against some forty in the previous century, the interest in 
 Dante was at its lowest ebb. It is not surprising, con- 
 sequently, that during this period no commentaries on 
 
 1 See Appendix D, This edition, a copy of which was sold recently for 
 ;f 1000, was illustrated with plates from designs by Botticelli. 
 
 ^No less than fifteen times in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, viz. 
 at Brescia in 1487, and at Venice in 1484, 1491 (two editions), 1493, 1497, 
 1507. 15121 1516, 1520, 1529, 1536, 1564, 1578, 1596 (the commentary of 
 Vellutello being printed with it in the last three editions). 
 
 ^ See Appendix D. 
 
 ' At Venice, in the so-called " edizioni del naso"(from the big-nosed 
 portrait of Dante), in 1564, 1578, 1596. 
 
 ^See Batines, op. cit. vol. ii. pp. 655-60. 
 
 ^See Appendix D. It appears from a remark of Gelli that his con- 
 temporary Pier Francesco GiambuUari (1495-1555), who published in 1544 
 a work De'l sito, forma, e misure dello inferno di Dante, also wrote a com- 
 mentary on part of the Commedia. In his Lettura Terza, Lezione Prima, 
 Gelli quotes GiambuUari's opinion, " secondo che scrive in uno comento 
 ch' egli faceva sopra questo poeta, non condotto da lui se non a pochi canti 
 del Purgatorio, per esserci state tolto con non piccola perdita de la morte " 
 (ed. Negroni, vol. i. p. 318). This commentary has not been preserved. 
 
 'Vicenza, 1613 ; Padua, 1629; Venice, 1629. 
 
COMMENTARIES ON THE COMMEDIA 227 
 
 the poem were produced. In the eighteenth century, 
 however, when a marked reaction took place, two notable 
 commentaries made their appearance which retained their 
 popularity down to the middle of the next century. The 
 earlier of these, by Pompeo Venturi (1693-1752), a Jesuit 
 of Siena, was first published at Lucca in 1732, and was 
 reprinted more than twenty times in the next hundred 
 years (between 1739 and 1850).^ The other was the cele- 
 brated commentary of Lombardi, first published at Rome 
 in 1 79 1, with the title La Divina Commedia di Dante Ali- 
 ghieri novamente correta spiegata e difesa da F. B. L. M. C. 
 (i.e. Francesco Baldassare Lombardi, Minor Conventuale), 
 a voluminous work, which has been seven times reprinted 
 in full,^ and four times in an abbreviated form.' To the 
 eighteenth century also belong the valuable indices to the 
 Commedia, the first of their kind, compiled by Giovanni 
 Antonio Volpi (1686- 1766), of Padua, which were first 
 published in the third volume of the edition of the poem 
 issued at Padua in 1726-37,* and have been many times 
 reprinted. 
 
 In the nineteenth century commentaries on the Com- 
 media began to abound. The best known of the earlier 
 ones are, that of Niccol6 Giosafatte Biagioli (1772-1830), 
 
 ' Three editions have been printed at Venice (1739, 1751, 1772), one 
 at Verona (1749), nine at Florence (1771, 1813, 1819, 1821, 1826, 1827, 
 1830, 1837, 1839), four at Bassano (1815, 1820, 1826, 1850), two at Leg- 
 horn (1817, 1818), one at Pisa (i8ig), one at Turin (1830), one at Palermo 
 (1834), and one at Paris (1841). 
 
 ^ Two more editions were printed at Rome (1815, 1820), one at Padua 
 (1822), two at Florence (1830, 1838), one at Naples (1830), and one at 
 Prato (1847). 
 
 ' These were issued respectively at Rome (1806, 1810), Jena (1807), 
 and Naples (1839). 
 
 * The indices are there described as " indici ricchissimi, che spiegano 
 tutte le cose difScili, e tutte 1' Erudizioni di esso Poema, e tengono la vece 
 d' un' intero Comento ". 
 
228 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 first published in Paris in 1818-19, and reprinted more 
 than a dozen times between 18 19 and 1868^; and the 
 still more popular commentary of Paolo Costa, first pub- 
 lished at Bologna in 1819-21, which has been reprinted 
 more than thirty times.^ Others worthy of mention be- 
 longing to the first half of the century are the once famous 
 "Comento analitico" of Gabriele Rossetti (1783-1854), 
 projected in six volumes, but of which only the first two 
 volumes (on the Inferno) were published (London, 1826- 
 27);' the commentary projected by Ugo Foscolo (1778- 
 1827) in five volumes, of which only one, containing the 
 Discorso sul testo, appeared in his lifetime (London, 1825), 
 the remaining portion of the work so far as completed 
 being published twenty years later (London, 1842-43) 
 under the editorship of Mazzini; and that of Niccolo 
 Tommaseo, first published at Venice in 1837, and several 
 times reprinted.* Of more recent Italian commentaries 
 the following may be mentioned, all of which more or less 
 hold their own at the present day ; viz. those of Brunone 
 Bianchi (Florence, 1854, 1857, 1863, etc. ; tenth edition, 
 1890) (based on that of Costa, of which Bianchihad pre- 
 viously published several editions, with additions of his 
 
 ' Six editions were printed at Milan {i8ig, 1820, 1829, 1838, 1845, 1851), 
 eight at Naples (1838, 1845, 1854, 1855, 1858, i860, 1862, 1868), and one 
 at Palermo (1856). 
 
 ^ Three more were printed at Bologna (two in 1826, one in 1832-3), nine 
 at Milan (1827, 1840, 1850, 1855, 1857, 1862, 1863, 1873, 1888), nine at 
 Florence (1827, 1830, 1836, 1839, 1840-2, 1844, 1846, 1847, 1849), four at 
 Naples (1830, 1837, 1839, 1849-50), one at Monza (1837), two at CoUe 
 (1841, 1844), one at Voghera (1841-2), two at Prato (1850, 1852), and three 
 at Venice (two in 1852, one in 1856-7). 
 
 3 In this work Rossetti developed his extravagant theories as to the 
 esoteric anti-papal significance of the Commedia, which he afterwards 
 more fully expounded in his works Sullo Spirito AntipapaU che produsse la 
 Riforma (London, 1832), and II Mistero dell' Amor Platonico del Medio 
 Bvo (London, 1840). 
 
 * At Milan, in 1854, 1856, 1865, i86g. 
 
ENGLISH COMMENTARIES ON D.C. 229 
 
 own); Pietro Fraticelli (Florence, 1852, i860, 1864, etc.; 
 reprinted eight or nine times before 1900) (based on Ven- 
 turi, Lombard!, Costa, and Bianchi); G. A. Scartazzini 
 (Leipzig, 1874-90; minor editions, Milan, 1893, 1896, 
 1903); and Tommaso Casini (Florence, 1887, 1889, 1892, 
 etc.; fifth edition, 1903); to which may be added those 
 of Antonio Lubin (Padua, 1881) ; Giuseppe Campi (Turin, 
 1888-93); Giacomo Poletto (Rome, 1894) ; and Francesco 
 Torraca (Rome-Milan, 1905-7). 
 
 English commentaries, like English translations, came 
 late into the field. The earliest made their appearance in 
 the form of notes to the translations of Henry Boyd 
 (1785, 1802), H. F. Cary(i8os-6, 1814, 1819, 183 1, 1844), 
 Nathaniel Howard (1807), Joseph Hume (18 12); I. C. 
 Wright (1833-40, 184s, 1854), and John Dayman (1843, 
 1865).^ The first English commentary properly so called 
 was that published anonymously in London in 1822 by 
 John Taaffe, an Irishman domiciled in Italy, under the 
 title of A Comment on the Divine Comedy of Dante Ali- 
 ghieri, in the publication of which Byron and Shelley in- 
 terested themselves, but of which only the first portion 
 (on Inferno, i.-viii.) ever saw the light.^ Among recent 
 commentaries in the form of notes to translations of the 
 Commedia, the most important are those of C. B. Cayley 
 (1855),^ J. W. Thomas (1859-66), H. W. Longfellow 
 (1865-7),* A. J. Butler (i88o-92),« E. H. Plumptre (1886- 
 87), F. K. H. Haselfoot (i887),<' and C. E. Norton (1891- 
 92)'' ; and of commentaries proper, W. W. Vernon's 
 
 ^ See Paget Toynbee, Chronological List of English Translations from 
 Dante, in Annual Report of the Cambridge (U.S.A.) Dante Society, igo6. 
 ^ See Paget Toynbee, Dante in English Literature, vol. ii. pp. 340 ff. 
 ^ Issued as a supplement to his translation (1851-4). 
 '' Frequently reprinted. 
 
 ■■ Second editions, i8gi (Paradiso), 1892 (Purgatorio). 
 ° Second edition, 1899. ' Second edition, 1902. 
 
230 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 "Readings" on the Inferno (1894), Purgatorio (1889), 
 and Paradiso (1900)^; and H. F. Tozer's "English Com- 
 mentary on the Divina Commedta" (1901).^ 
 
 Other works on the Commedia (or including the Com- 
 medid) which should be mentioned here are, the Vocabolario 
 Dantesco of L. Blanc (Leipzig, 1852), translated into 
 Italian by G. Carbone (Florence, 1859)' ; the Dizionario 
 delta Divina Commedia of Donato Bocci (Turin, 1873) ; the 
 Dizionario Dantesco of Giacomo Poletto (Siena, 1885-7) ; 
 the Concordance of the Divina Commedia of E. A. Fay 
 (Boston, Mass. 1 888) ; the Enciclopedia Dantesca of G. A, 
 Scartazzini (Milan, 1.896-8); the Dante Dictionary of 
 Paget Toynbee (Oxford, 1898); and the Indice dei Nomi 
 Propri e delle Cose Notabili of the same author, appended 
 to the Oxford Dante (Oxford, 1 894).* 
 
 ^ Second editions, 1897 (Purgatorio), 1906 (Inferno), 1909 (Paradiso). 
 ^See Chronological List of English Translations from Dante (loc. cit.). 
 ^ Often reprinted. ^ Second edition, 1897 ; third edition, 1904. 
 
DANTE ALIGHIERI 
 Front the painting by A}tdrea del Castagiio, tn the Miiseo Nazioitale at Florence 
 
CHAPTER III 
 
 Latin Works — The De Monarchia — The De Vulgari Eloquentia — 
 The Letters — The Eclogues — The Quaestio de Aqua et Terra — Apocryphal 
 Works. 
 
 IN addition to his Italian works Dante wrote several 
 works in Latin. 
 De Monarchia. — The most important of these and the 
 best known is the De Monarchia, a treatise on monarchy, 
 which has been described as " the creed of Dante's Ghibel- 
 linism ". Its subject is the relations between the Empire 
 and the Papacy ; it is a plea for the necessity of a uni- 
 versal temporal monarchy, coexistent with the spiritual 
 sovereignty of the Pope. The work is divided into three 
 books,^ in the first of which Dante treats of the necessity 
 of monarchy ; in the second he discusses the question how 
 far the Roman people were justified in assuming the fiinc- 
 tions of monarchy, or the imperial power ; in the third he 
 inquires to what extent the function of the monarchy, i.e. 
 the Empire, depends immediately upon God. 
 
 ^ The division of the books into chapters was made by Dante himself, as 
 is evident from the passages in which he refers to previous or subsequent 
 chapters (e.g. i. 8, 1. 33 ; ii. 6, 1. 10 ; ii. 8, 11. 106-7 ; '"• ^6, 1. 1). The 
 numeration of the chapters is due to modern editors, who unfortunately 
 have not all adopted a uniform system. Witte, for instance, divides Book i. 
 into sixteen chapters, Book ii. into thirteen, and Book iii. into sixteen ; 
 whereas Fraticelli and Torri divide Book i. into eighteen, Book ii. into 
 eleven, and Book iii. into fifteen; while Giuliani adopts yet another 
 system. (For a comparative table of the various arrangements, see Table 
 xxxiii. in the Dante Dictionary^ 
 
 331 
 
232 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 Both Villani and Boccaccio include the De Monarchia 
 in their lists of Dante's works. The former says briefly: 
 " Dante also composed the Monarchia, in which he treated 
 of the function of the Pope and of the Emperors ".i Boc- 
 caccio, on the other hand, speaks of the book at some 
 length, and relates how, soon after Dante's death, it was 
 publicly condemned to be burned by the Papal Legate in 
 Lombardy, who would also have burned Dante's bones if 
 he had not been prevented : — 
 
 " This illustrious writer also, when the Emperor Henry 
 VII came into Italy, composed a book in Latin prose, 
 entitled Monarchia, which he divided into three books, 
 corresponding to the three questions which he determines 
 in it. In the first book he proves by logical argument 
 that the existence of the Empire is necessary to the well- 
 being of the world ; and this is the iirst question. In the 
 second book, drawing his arguments from history, he 
 shows that Rome of right gained the imperial title ; which 
 is the second question. In the third book he proves by 
 theological arguments that the authority of the Empire 
 proceeds direct from God, and not through the medium 
 of any vicar, as the clergy would seem to hold ; and this 
 is the third question. 
 
 " This book, a few years after the death of the author, 
 was condemned by Messer Beltrando, Cardinal of II 
 Poggetto,^ and Papal Legate in Lombardy, during the 
 pontificate of John XXII. And the occasion of this was 
 because Lewis, Duke of Bavaria, elected by the German 
 electors King of the Romans, coming to Rome for his 
 coronation, contrary to the wishes of the aforesaid Pope 
 John, when he was in Rome, made a Minor Friar, named 
 
 * Bk. ix, ch. 136. 
 
 2 Bertrand du Pouget, created Cardinal by his uncle, Pope John XXII, 
 in 13 16. 
 
DE MONARCHIA 233 
 
 Piero della Corvara, Pope, contrary to the ordinances of 
 the Church, and made many cardinals and bishops ; and 
 had himself crowned in Rome by this Pope. And when 
 afterwards questions arose in many cases as to his authority, 
 he and his following, having discovered this book, began 
 to make use of many of the arguments it contained, in 
 defence of his authority and of themselves; for which 
 cause the book, which up till then had hardly been known, 
 became very famous. But later, when the said Lewis was 
 gone back to Germany, and his followers, and especially 
 the clerics, had declined and were scattered, the said 
 Cardinal, there being none to oppose him, seized the 
 aforesaid book, and publicly condemned it to the flames, 
 as containing heretical matter. And he strove to deal 
 with the bones of the author after the same fashion, to the 
 eternal infamy and confusion of his memory ; but in this 
 he was opposed by a valiant and noble knight of Florence, 
 Pino della Tosa by name, who happened to be then at 
 Bologna, where this matter was under consideration ; and 
 with him was Messer Ostagio da Polenta, both of whom 
 were regarded as influential persons by the aforesaid 
 Cardinal." 1 
 
 Critics are by no means agreed as to the date when the 
 De Monarchia was composed. Some hold that Dante 
 wrote it before his exile from Florence, chiefly on the ground 
 that it contains no reference to his exile, it being the only 
 work of Dante, with the exception of the Vita Nuova 
 
 1 Vita di Dante, ed. Macri-Leone, § i6, pp. 72-3. The whole of 
 Boccaccio's account of the De Monarchia is omitted from the edition of 
 the Vita di Dante published, together with the editio princeps of the Vita 
 Nuova, at Florence in 1576 with the imprimatur of the Florentine In- 
 quisitor General. This suppression was noticed by Milton, who remarks 
 on the fact in his Commonplace Book (see Paget Toynbee, Dante in Eng- 
 lish Literature, vol. i. p. 122). 
 
234 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 (written in his youth), and the Quaestio de Aqua et Terra 
 (written just before his death), in which he does not refer 
 to his being an exile.^ Others maintain that it was written 
 as late as 13 17-18, or even later, on the ground that in 
 many of the MSS. there is a passage which contains a 
 direct mention of the Paradiso.^ Unless this is a later 
 interpolation either by Dante himself, or by some copyist 
 (which seems the. more probable), it follows necessarily 
 that the treatise must have been written after the Para- 
 diso, and consequently towards the close of Dante's life. 
 On the whole, the most probable view is that it was 
 written, as Boccaccio says it was, about the time when 
 the Emperor Henry VII visited Italy, perhaps in 131 1 
 or 1312.^ 
 
 1 The chief upholder of this theory was Karl Witte— see the Prolego- 
 mena to his edition (Vienna, 1874) of the De Monarckia, pp. xxxiii-xlix. 
 
 ^ The passage in question, which occurs in the middle of the twelfth 
 chapter of the first book runs as follows : — 
 
 " Libertas aibitrii . . . est maximum donum humanae naturae a Deo 
 collatum, sicut in Paradiso Comedie jam dixi ". 
 
 This is an unmistakable reference to Paradiso, v. ig-24 : — 
 " Lo maggior don che Dio per sua larghezza 
 Fesse cieando, ed alia sua bontate 
 Piii conformato, e quel ch' ei piu apprezza, 
 Fu della volenti la libertate, 
 Di che le creature intelligenti, 
 E tutte e sole furo e son dotate." 
 ' There is a passage at the beginning of the second book, which, ac- 
 cording to the reading of the most important MS., as well as of all the 
 early printed editions, contains an undoubted reference to the Emperor Henry 
 VII. In his rebuke to the opposition offered to the Emperor Dante speaks 
 of " Reges et principes in hoc unico concordantes, ut adversentur Domino 
 suo et uncto suo Romano Principi " (ii. i, 11. 25-7). This reference to the 
 Emperor as "the Lord's anointed " can only be to Henry VII. To no 
 other of the successors of Frederick II, contemporary with himself, would 
 Dante have dreamed of applying this term. In a passage of the Convivio, 
 where he describes Frederick as " the last Emperor of the Romans," he 
 emphatically declines to recognize Rudolf and Adolf and Albert (the im- 
 
DE MONARCHIA 235 
 
 The arguments of the De Monarchia are admirably 
 summarised in Bryce's Holy Roman Empire ^ : — 
 
 Book I. — Monarchy is first proved to be the true and 
 rightful form of Government. Men's objects are best at- 
 tained during universal peace : this is possible only under 
 a monarch (i. 1-7). And as he is the image of the divine 
 unity, so man is through him made one, and brought most 
 near to God (i. 8). There must, in every system of forces, 
 be a primum mobile ; to be perfect, every organization 
 must have a centre, into which all is gathered, by which 
 all is controlled (i. 9). Justice is best secured by a supreme 
 arbiter of disputes, himself untempted by ambition, since 
 his dominion is already bounded only by ocean (i. lo-i i). 
 Man is best and happiest when he is most free ; to be free 
 is to exist for one's own sake. To this noblest end does 
 the monarch and he alone gpjide us ; other forms of govern- 
 ment are perverted, and exist for the benefit of some class ; 
 he seeks the good of all alike, being to that veiy end ap- 
 pointed (i. 12-15). Abstract arguments are then con- 
 firmed from history. Since the world began there has 
 been but one period of perfect peace, and but one of 
 perfect monarchy, that, namely, which existed at our 
 Lord's birth, under the sceptre of Augustus (i. 16). 
 
 , BookJA.r— Since then the heathen have raged, and the 
 kings of the earth have stood up ; they have set them- 
 selves against their Lord, and His anointed the Roman 
 
 mediate predecessors of Henry VII) as Emperors at all: "Federigo di 
 Soave, ultimo Imperador de' Romani, ultimo dico per rispetto al tempo 
 presente, non ostante che Ridolfo e Adolfo e Alberto poi eletti sieno ap- 
 presso la sua morte e de' suoi discendenti " (iv. 3, 11. 39-43). Now Henry 
 VII was crowned at Aix on 6 January, 1309 ; consequently, if the above 
 be the true reading, as there can be hardly a doubt that it is, the book 
 must have been written later than that date (see Paget Toynbee, Dante 
 Studies and Researches, pp. 302-3), 
 
 •Reproduced (with references added) by kind permission of the author. 
 
236 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 prince (ii. i). The universal dominion, the need for 
 which has been thus established, is then proved to be- 
 long to the Romans. Justice is the will of God, a 
 will to exalt Rome shown through her whole history. Her 
 virtues deserved honour : Virgil is quoted to prove those 
 of Aeneas, who by descent and marriage was the heir of 
 the three continents: of Asia through Assaracus and 
 Creusa ; of Africa by Electra (daughter of Atlas and 
 mother of Dardanus) and by Dido ; of Europe by Dar- 
 danus and Lavinia. God's favour was approved in the 
 fall of the shields to Numa, in the miraculous deliverance 
 of the capitol from the Gauls, in the hailstorm after Cannae. 
 Justice is also the advantage of the state : that advantage 
 was the constant object of the virtuous Cincinnatus, and 
 the other heroes of the republic. They conquered the 
 world for its own good, and therefore justly, as Cicero 
 attests ; so that their sway was not so much the command 
 as the protection of the whole earth (ii. 2-6). Nature her- 
 self, the fountain of all right, had, by their geographical 
 position and by the gift of a genius so vigorous, marked 
 them out for universal dominion : — 
 
 Excudent alii spirantia moUius aera, 
 Credo equidem : vivos ducent de marmore vultus ; 
 Orabunt causas melius, coelique meatus 
 Describent radio, et surgentia sidera dicent : 
 Tu regere imperio populos, Romane, memento ; 
 Hae tibi erunt artes ; pacisque imponere morem, 
 Parcere subjectis, et debellare superbos (ii. 7).' 
 
 Finally, the right of war asserted, Christ's birth, and 
 death under Pilate, ratified their government. For 
 Christian doctrine requires that the procurator should 
 have been a lawful judge, which he was not unless Tiberius 
 
 ^ Aeneid, vi. 848-54. 
 
DE MONARCHIA 237 
 
 was a lawful Emperor. Else Adam's sin and that of his 
 race was not duly punished in the person of the Saviour 
 (ii. 8-13). 
 
 jSflaLIII.=^The relations of the imperial and papal power 
 are then examined, and the passages of Scripture (tradition 
 being rejected), to which the advocates of the Papacy ap- 
 peal, are elaborately explained away (iii. 1-3). The argu- 
 ment from the sun and moon does not hold, since both lights 
 existed before man's creation, and at a time when, as still 
 sinless, he needed no controlling powers. Else accidentia 
 would have preceded propria in creation. The moon, too, 
 does not receive her being nor all her light from the sun, 
 but so much only as makes her more effective. So there 
 is no reason why the temporal should not be aided in a 
 corresponding measure by the spiritual authority (iii. 4) 
 This difficult text disposed of, others fall more easily ; 
 Levi and Judah, Samuel and Saul, the incense and gold 
 offered by the Magi ^ ; the two swords, the power of 
 binding and loosing given to Peter (iii, 5-9). Con- 
 stantine's Donation was illegal : no single Emperor or 
 Pope can disturb the everlasting foundations of their 
 respective thrones ; the one had no right to bestow, nor 
 the other to receive, such a gift (iii. 10). In giving the 
 imperial crown to Charles the Great, Leo the Third ^ ex- 
 ceeded his powers : usurpatio juris non facit jus (iii. 11). 
 It is alleged that all things of one kind are reducible to 
 one individual, and so all men to the Pope. But Emperor 
 and Pope differ in kind, and so far as they are men, are 
 reducible only to God, on whom the Empire immediately 
 depends ; for it existed before Peter's see, and was recog- 
 
 ' Typifying the spiritual and temporal powers. Dante meets this by 
 distinguishing the homage paid to Christ from that which His Vicar can 
 rightfully demand. 
 
 '^ [Dante actually, by an error, says Hadrian crowned Charles the Great.] 
 
238 DANTE'S WORKS ' 
 
 nized by Paul when he appealed to Caesar. The temporal 
 power of the Papacy can have been given neither by 
 natural law, nor divine ordinance, nor universal consent : 
 nay, it is against its own Form and Essence, the life of 
 Christ, who said " My kingdom is not of this world " (iii. 
 
 12-lS). 
 
 f. Man's nature is twofold, corruptible and incorruptible : 
 he has therefore two ends, active virtue on earth, and the 
 (enjoyment of the sight of God hereafter; the one to be 
 / attained by practice conformed to the precepts of philo- 
 / sophy, the other by the theological virtues. Hence two 
 guides are needed, the Pontiff and the Emperor, the latter 
 ' of whom, in order that he may direct mankind in accord- 
 ance with the teachings of philosophy to temporal 
 blessedness, must preserve universal peace in the world. 
 Thus are the two powers equally ordained of God, and 
 the Emperor, though supreme in all that pertains to the 
 secular world, is in some things dependent on the Pontiff, 
 since earthly happiness is subordinate to eternal. " Let 
 Caesar, therefore, show towards Peter the reverence where- 
 with a firstborn son honours his father, that, being illu- 
 mined by the light of his paternal favour, he may the 
 more excellently shine forth upon the whole world, to the 
 rule of which he has been appointed by Him alone who 
 is of all things, both spiritual and temporal, the King and 
 Governor"^ (iii. i6). 
 
 The Ue Monarchia was twice translated into Italian in 
 the fifteenth century; viz. by an anonymous writer in 
 1 46 1, and by Marsilio Ficino, the Florentine Platonist, in 
 1467.^ It was first printed in the original Latin at Basle 
 
 ' Ed. 1904, pp. 276-80. 
 
 i* See Tom's edition, pp. xli-ii, 118-21. Ficino's translation accompanies 
 the Latin text in the editions of FraticelH, by whom it was first printed 
 in 1839. There are three English translations of the D« Monarchia, viz. 
 
DE VULGARI ELOQUENTIA 239 
 
 i" 1559 (in a collection of treatises on subjects connected 
 with the Roman Empire)/ by a Protestant publisher, 
 Joannes Oporinus (Johann Herbst), and was in all pro- 
 bability seen through the press by an Englishman, John 
 Foxe, the martyrologist, who was employed as reader of the 
 press in the printing-office of Oporinus, and who quotes 
 the work in his Book of Martyrs?' Curiously enough, 
 Oporinus thought the treatise was not written by the 
 author of the Divina Commedia, but by a fifteenth century 
 writer of the same name.* 
 
 Eight manuscripts of the De Monarchia have been pre 
 served, three of the fourteenth century, four of the fifteenth, 
 and one of the sixteenth.* 
 
 De Vulgari Eloquentia: — Besides the De Monarchia 
 Dante wrote in Latin prose a treatise on the vulgar tongue 
 {De Vulgari Eloquentia), which is mentioned among his 
 writings by both Villani and Boccaccio. The former says 
 (in a passage which is omitted from some manuscripts) : — 
 "Dante also wrote a short work, entitled De Vulgari 
 Eloquentia, which he intended to be in four books, but 
 only two of these are in existence, perhaps owing to his 
 premature death ; in this work, in vigorous and elegant 
 
 by F. J. Church, in Dante : an Essay, by R. W. Church, 1879 (pp. 177-308) ; 
 by P. H. Wicksteed, in Translation of the Latin Works of Dante, 1904 
 (pp. 127-279) ; and by Aurelia Henry, 1904. 
 
 '^Andreee Alciati yureconsulti clariss. De Formula Romani Imperii 
 Libellus. Accesserunt non dissimilis argumenti Dantis Florentini De 
 Monarchia libri tres. Radulphi Carnotensis De translatione Imperii 
 libellus. Chronica M. jfordanis, Qualiter Romamim Imperium translatum 
 sit ad Germanos. Omnia nunc primum in lucem edita. 
 
 2 See Paget To5mbee, John Foxe and the Editio Princeps of Dante's 
 De Monarchia, in Aihenceum, 14 April, 1906. 
 
 ' In his Epistola Dedicatoria he says : " Sunt autem quos adjunximus, 
 primilm Dantis Aligherii, non vetustioris illius Florentini poetae celeberrimi, 
 sed philosophi acutissimi atque doctiss. viri, et AngeU Politiani familiaris 
 quondam, de Monarchia libri tres " (p. 51). 
 
 * See the Codictm Ehnchus in Witte's edition, pp. Ivii-viii. 
 
240 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 Latin, and with admirable arguments, he condemns all 
 the vernacular dialects of Italy".' 
 
 Boccaccio says : — 
 
 " Subsequently, not long before his death, Dante com- 
 posed a little book in Latin prose, which he entitled De 
 Vulgari Eloquentia, wherein he purposed to give in- 
 struction, to such as wished to learn, in the art of com- 
 posing in rime; and though it appears from the work 
 itself that he intended to devote four books to the subject, 
 either because he was surprised by death before he had 
 completed them, or because the others have been lost, 
 only two books are now to be found." ^ 
 
 The work consists of a dissertation on the Italian lan- 
 guage as a literary tongue, in the course of which Dante 
 passes in review the fourteen dialects of Italy. It also 
 contains a consideration of the metre of the canzone, thus 
 forming to a certain extent an " art of poetry ". Like the 
 Convivio, the De Vulgari Eloquentia is incomplete. It 
 was originally planned, as both Villani and Boccaccio ob- 
 serve, to consist of at least four books, as appears from the 
 fact that Dante twice reserves points for consideration in 
 the fourth book.^ In its unfinished state it consists of 
 two books only ; the first, which is introductoty, is divided 
 into nineteen chapters ; the second, into fourteen, the last 
 of which is incomplete, the work breaking off abruptly in 
 the middle of the inquiry as to the structure of the stanza. 
 The division into numbered chapters, as in the case of the 
 Convivio, is due to Dante himself, as is evident from the 
 fact that on one occasion he refers back to a previous 
 chapter.* 
 
 The exact date of the composition of the De Vulgari 
 Eloquentia is disputed. It was certainly written after 
 
 1 Bk. ix. ch. 136. ^ Vita di Dante, ed. cit. § i6, p. 74. 
 
 ' " In quarto hujus operis " (ii. 4, 1. 13 ; 8, 1. 83). 
 4 " In tertio hujus libri capitulo " (ii. 8, 11. 61-2). 
 
DE VULGARI ELOQUENTIA 241 
 
 Dante's exile, references to which occur in both books of 
 the treatise.^ It is probably an earlier work than the 
 De Monarchia, and perhaps earlier than the Convivio ; 
 but there is a strong argument for placing it after the latter 
 in a passage in that work in which Dante speaks of a book 
 which, God willing, he intends to compose upon the vulgar 
 tongue.2 On the other hand, John I, Marquis of Mont- 
 ferrat, who died in 1305, is spoken of as being still alive ; 
 as are Azzo VIII of Este, who died in 1308, and Charles 
 1 1 of Naples, who died in 1 309.^ It appears probable, 
 therefore, that the treatise was written between 1 302 and 
 1305, and consequently before the Convivio.^ 
 
 The contents of the De Vulgari Eloquentia are briefly 
 as follows ^ : — 
 
 Book I. — Chap. I. Introductory. Wherein the vulgar 
 tongue, or vernacular, differs from a learned or literary 
 language, such as Latin. — Chap. 2. That man alone, as 
 distinguished from angels and animals, is endowed with 
 speech. — Chap. 3. For what reasons man had need of 
 speech. — Chap. 4. The origin of human speech. Adam 
 the first speaker ; his first utterance the name of God. — 
 Chap. 5. Adam's first utterance addressed to God, in 
 the Garden of Eden. — Chap. 6. That the Hebrew tongue, 
 the language of all mankind down to the building of the 
 Tower of Babel, was the language spoken by Adam. — 
 
 1 " Nos autem cui mundus est patria, velut piscibus aequor, quamquam 
 Sarnum biberimus ante dentes, et Florentiara adeo diligamus ut, quia 
 dileximus, exilium patiamur injuste . ■ ." (i. 6, 11. 17-21 ; cf. i. 17, 11. 35-8 ; 
 ii. 6, 11. 36-9). 
 
 2 " Un libra ch' io intendo di fare, Dio concedente, di Volgare Eloquenza " 
 (i. 5, 11. 67-9). 
 
 3 V. E. i. 12, 11. 36-9. 
 
 * It is, of course, possible that Dante may have had the two works on 
 hand concurrently. 
 
 * The arguments at the head of the chapters in A. G. Ferrers Howell's 
 translation have occasionally been utilised in this analysis. 
 
 16 
 
242 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 Chap. 7. Of the building of the Tower of Babel, and 
 of the confusion of tongues. That the children of Shem, 
 who took no part in the building of Babel, and from 
 whom was descended the people of Israel, alone retained 
 the use of the Hebrew tongue.— C^«/. 8. Of the inhabi- 
 tants and languages of Europe, and of their boundaries ; 
 viz. the Teutons, English, and others, in the North of 
 Europe, who used the aflfirmation ib ; the Greeks in the 
 East of Europe and part of Asia ; and the Spaniards, 
 French, and Italians in the South, whose affirmations were 
 respectively oc, oil, and si. — Chap. 9. Of the language of 
 the South of Europe, which was originally one and the 
 same, but eventually was split up into three, as indicated 
 by the affirmations oc, oil, and si. Of the cause of varia- 
 tion in language. That no vernacular is invariable, 
 whence the necessity for the invention of " grammar " (i.e. 
 literary language with fixed rules). — Chap. 10. Of the 
 respective claims to precedence of the languages of si, ml, 
 and oc. Classification of the principal dialects of Italy, 
 according as they belong to the west or east side of 
 the Apennines. The number of dialects fourteen, but the 
 varieties of idiom in Italy alone more than a thousand, if 
 every variation be reckoned. — Chaps. 11-15. Examination 
 of the several dialects of Italy, in the search for a languc^e 
 worthy to be called the Italian tongue. — Chap. 11. Re- 
 jection of the dialects of Rome, the March of Ancona, 
 Spoleto, Milan, Bergamo, Aquileia, Istria, the Casentino, 
 Prato, and Sardinia. — Chap. 12. Of Sicily as the birth- 
 place of Italian poetry. Of the degeneracy of the princes 
 of Italy as compared with Frederick II and his son 
 Manfred. Rejection of the local Sicilian dialect (as dis- 
 tinguished from the language used by Sicilian poets), and 
 of the Apulian dialect — Chap. 13. Rejection of the 
 Tuscan dialects (of Florence, Pisa, Lucca, Siena, and 
 
DE VULGARI ELOQUENTIA 243 
 
 Arezzo) ; of the Umbrian (of Perugia, Orvieto, and Citta 
 di Castello); and of the Genoese. Of certain Tuscan 
 poets (including Dante himself) who rose superior to their 
 local dialect. — Chap. 14. Of the two types of dialect on 
 the east side of the Apennines; viz. the soft dialect 
 peculiar to Romagna, and especially to Forll, and the 
 harsh dialect characteristic of Brescia, Verona, Vicenza, 
 Padua, and Treviso. All of these rejected, together with 
 the Venetian dialect. — Chap. 15. Examination of the 
 dialect of Bologna, which, though superior to all other 
 local dialects, is yet by no means worthy to be ranked 
 as the language of Italy, as is evident from the fact that 
 it was rejected by the most distinguished poets of Bologna, 
 such as Guido Guinicelli, Onesto, and others. Rejection 
 of the frontier dialects of Trent, Turin, and Alessandria. — 
 Chap. 16. No single dialect having been found to conform 
 to the required conditions, a standard must be sought for, 
 which is declared to be the " illustrious, cardinal, courtly, 
 and curial " vernacular, common to all the cities of Italy, 
 and peculiar to none. — Chap. 17. Explanation of the 
 term " illustrious " as applied to the common language of 
 Italy. — Chap. 18. Explanation of the terms "cardinal," 
 " courtly," and "curial," as applied to the same. — Chap. 
 19. This "illustrious, cardinal, courtly, and curial" lan- 
 guage declared to belong to the whole of Italy, and to be 
 the Italian vulgar tongue. The author's intention (only 
 fulfilled in part) to treat first of this " illustrious " language, 
 and of those considered worthy to use it ; and then to 
 discuss in detail the lower forms of the vernacular language. 
 Book II. — Chap. I. That the " illustrious " language is 
 equally fitted for prose and verse. Consideration of its 
 use in verse. Ought it to be used by every one who 
 writes verse? No, but only by those who write with 
 knowledge and genius, since the best language is suited 
 
244 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 only to the best thoughts.— Ckap. 2. Of the subjects 
 worthy to be treated of in the " illustrious " language. 
 These decided to be Arms, Love, and Virtue. Of the 
 poets, Provencal and Italian (including Dante himself), 
 who have sung of these subjects. — Chap. 3. Of the different 
 forms of vernacular poems : canzoni, ballate, and sonnets. 
 The canzone the most excellent form, and consequently 
 that in which the most excellent subjects (named above) 
 should be treated of. Of the preeminence of the canzone. 
 — Chap. 4. Of the form of the canzone. Definition of 
 poetry. Of the choice of subject, and of the style in which 
 it should be treated of, whether in the tragic, comic, or 
 elegiac. Of the tragic style. — Ckap. 5. Of the different 
 lines permissible in the canzone. The line of eleven 
 syllables the most stately on several grounds, and con- 
 sequently to be preferred. Examples of this line from 
 Proven9al and Italian poets (including Dante himself). — 
 CAap. 6. Of construction, that is, of the arrangement of 
 words according to rule. Of the various kinds of con- 
 struction. The most illustrious kind that which combines 
 taste, elegance, and loftiness. Examples of the use of this 
 kind by Provencal and Italian poets (including Dante). 
 List of Latin writers, in verse and prose, who might have 
 furnished other examples. Denunciation of those who cry 
 up Guittone d' Arezzo as a model, his style being plebeian 
 both in vocabulary and construction. — Ckap. 7. Of the 
 different classes of words, viz. "childish," "feminine," 
 " manly," " sylvan," " urban," etc. Of those whose use is 
 admissible in the canzone. Instances of these. — CAap. 8. 
 Of the meanings of the term canzone. Definition of the 
 canzone in the technical sense as used by the author. 
 One of Dante's own canzoni quoted as an example. — 
 CAap. 9. Of the stanza ; and of the three essential points 
 in the art of the canzone. Definition of the stanza. — 
 CAai>. 10. Of the structure of the stanza in relatinn tn the- 
 
DE VULGARI ELOQUENTIA 245 
 
 musical setting. Explanation of the various terms employed. 
 — Chap. II. Of the relation between the several parts of 
 the stanza in regard to the number of lines and syllables. 
 Three of Dante's own canzoni quoted in illustration. — 
 Chap. 12. Of the arrangement of different kinds of lines 
 in the stanza. Canzoni of Provencal and Italian poets 
 (including Dante) quoted in illustration. Rules as to the 
 order of sequence of lines of different lengths in the " foot " 
 and in the " verse " (in the technical sense of these terms 
 as used by Dante). — Chap. 13. Of the unrimed stanza; 
 and of the rimed stanza. Rules as to the arrangement 
 of rimes in the " foot " and in the " verse ". Of three 
 things to be avoided in the matter of rime. Two sestine 
 of Dante's quoted in illustration. — Chap. 14. Of the number 
 of lines and syllables in the stanza ; and of the length of 
 the stanza in relation to the subject [in the midst of which 
 the treatise comes abruptly to an end]. 
 
 The De Vulgari Eloquentia made its first appearance 
 in print in the Italian translation of Trissino, published 
 (anonymously) at Vicenza in 1529. The original Latin 
 text was first printed about fifty years later (in 1577) at 
 Paris, by Jacopo Corbinelli, a Florentine, who came to 
 France in the train of Catherine de Medicis. A second 
 Italian translation was made at the beginning of the 
 seventeenth century by Celso Cittadini of Siena (d. 1627), 
 the manuscript of whose version, which has never been 
 published, and which was first brought to light in 1824, 
 is preserved in the Imperial Library at Schonbrunn.^ Be- 
 
 ^ See the introduction (pp. Ixxxv ff.) to Rajna's critical edition, // Trat- 
 tato De Vulgari Eloquentia (Florence, i8g6). Rajna, who prints speci- 
 mens of Cittadini's version (pp. ccxii-xv), shows that this translation 
 was made from Corbinelli's edition of the Latin text, with the help 
 of Trissino's version (p. xcvi). An English translation, by A. G. Ferrers 
 Howell, was published in i8go, and reissued in a revised form in 1904, in 
 Translation of the Latin Works of Dante (pp. 3-115). 
 
246 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 fore the publication of the Latin text by Corbinelli the 
 genuineness of the treatise, as printed in ItaHan by Tris- 
 sino, was by no means generally admitted. The Latin 
 text has been many times reprinted. A critical edition, 
 by Pio Rajna, was published at Florence, under the aus- 
 pices of the Societa Dantesca Italicma, in 1896; a revised 
 text by the same editor was published in 1897. 
 
 Only three manuscripts of the De Vulgari Eloquentia 
 are known to be in existence, two of which (preserved 
 respectively at Grenoble and at Milan) belong to the 
 fourteenth century or beginning of the fifteenth. The 
 Grenoble manuscript (which has been reproduced in fac- 
 simile) formed the base of CorbinelU's edition of the 
 Latin text ; while the Milanese (or Trivulzian) manuscript 
 was the original from which Trissino made his Italian 
 version. 
 
 Latin Letters. — Dante wrote several letters in Latin, 
 mostly political, some of which have been already quoted.^ 
 Those commonly accepted as genuine are ten in number, 
 viz. : — 
 
 Epist. \? To Niccol6 Albertini da Prato, Cardinal of 
 Ostia (written after July, 1304), thanking him on behalf 
 of the Florentine Bianchi for his attempts to make peace 
 in Florence, and bring about the return of the exiles, and 
 begging him to persevere in his efforts, and, further, pro- 
 mising in obedience to his wishes to abstain from hostilities 
 against the Neri. 
 
 This letter, together with five others {Epistolae ii, iii, v, 
 vi, vii), is preserved in a MS. in the Vatican {Palatine 
 
 1 See above, pp. 93-9, 195-6. Such as we possess were mostly discovered 
 in the last century through the exertions of Karl Witte, Vi\iO in 1827 printed 
 at Padua (in Dantis Alligherii Epistolae quae exstant) the letters which had 
 up to that date been brought to light. 
 
 "According to the numeration of the Epistolae in the Oxford Dante (pp. 
 403-20). 
 
LATIN LETTERS 247 
 
 1729), which also contains the De Monarchia. This MS., 
 which was taken from Heidelberg on the capture of the 
 city by Tilly in 1622, was presented by Maximilian of 
 Bavaria to Pope Gregory XV in that year. It belongs to 
 the end of the fourteenth century, being dated 1394. 
 The above letter, which was first printed by Torri in 
 1842,^ is not expressly assigned to Dante in the MS., but 
 is commonly ascribed to him on internal evidence. 
 
 Epist. ii. To Guido and Oberto, Counts of Romena 
 (written circ. 1304), condoling with them on the death of 
 their uncle. Count Alessandro of Romena, chief of the 
 Ghibellines of Arezzo. 
 
 This letter is preserved in the Vatican MS. {Palatine 
 1729) already mentioned (see above). It was first printed 
 by Torri in 1842.^ It is assigned to Dante in the title 
 supplied by the copyist, but is considered by some 
 authorities to be not by Dante, but by another hand, 
 though not necessarily a forgery. 
 
 Epist. iii. To the Marquis Moroello Malaspina (written 
 circ. 1307), with a canzone {Canz. xi. " Amor, dacche con- 
 vien pur ch' io mi doglia "), describing how the writer had 
 been overcome by a tempestuous passion for a lady he 
 had met in the valley of the Arno. 
 
 This letter, like the two previous ones, is preserved in 
 the Vatican MS. mentioned above. It was first printed 
 (with considerable emendations) by Witte in 1842.^ It is 
 assigned to Dante in the MS., and is generally accepted 
 as authentic. 
 
 ^Epistole di Dante Alighieri edits e inedite, Livorno, 1842 (pp. 2-4). 
 
 ''Op. cit. p. 8. 
 
 ^In Dante Alighieri' s Lyrische Gedichte, iibersetzt und erkldrt von 
 K. L. Kannegiesser und K. Witte, Leipzig, 1842 (Zweiter Theil, pp. 235- 
 36). A critical text was printed by O. Zenatti, in Dante e Firenze (pp. 
 431-2) ; but see L' Epistola di Dante a Moroello Malaspina, by F. Novati, 
 in Dante e la Lunigiana (pp. 507-42). 
 
248 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 Epist. iv. To a Pistojan exile, commonly supposed to 
 be Cino da Pistoja (written circ. 1308), in reply to his in- 
 quiry whether the soul "can pass from passion to pas- 
 sion," with a sonnet (perhaps Son. xxxvi. " lo sono stato 
 con Amore insieme "). 
 
 This letter is preserved in a MS. (which belonged to 
 Boccaccio) in the Laurentian Library at Florence (xxix. 
 8). It was first printed by Witte in 1827.1 The letter 
 is headed in the MS. " Exulanti Pistoriensi Florentinus 
 exul immeritus," the two exiles being commonly identified 
 with Cino da Pistoja and Dante. In this same MS. are 
 preserved two other letters of Dante {Epistolae viii, ix), 
 as well as the letter of Frate Ilario to Uguccione della 
 Faggiuola.^ 
 
 Epist. V. To the Princes and Peoples of Italy on the 
 advent of the Emperor Henry VII into Italy (written in 
 1 3 10), exhorting them to receive him as the Imperial 
 successor of Caesar and Augustus, and the representative 
 of justice and mercy.^ 
 
 This letter, like the first three, is preserved in the Vati- 
 can MS. above mentioned. The Latin original, which was 
 not discovered until 1838, was first printed by Torri in 
 1842.* There exists an early Italian translation of it, 
 attributed to Marsilio Ficino (143 3- 1499), which was first 
 printed at Rome in 1754. In the title the writer is de- 
 scribed as "humilis Italus Dantes Aligherius Florentinus 
 et exul immeritus ". 
 
 Epist. vi. To the people of Florence (dated 31 March, 
 13 11), expressing his indignation at their resistance to 
 Henry VII, and fiercely denouncing them as rebels 
 against the Empire.* 
 
 ' Dantis Alligherii Epistolae quae exstant, Patavii, 1827 (pp. 14-16), 
 "See above, p. 92 note. *See above, p. 93. 
 
 * Op. cit. pp. 28-32. " See above, pp. 93-6. 
 
LATIN LETTERS 249 
 
 This letter, like the preceding, is preserved in the Vatican 
 MS. It was first printed by Torri in 1842.^ In the title 
 the writer is described as " Dantes Aligherius Florentinus 
 et exul immeritus". This is one of the three letters of 
 Dante mentioned by Villani.^ 
 
 Epist. vii. To the Emperor Henry VII (written on 
 16 April, 131 1), urging him to come without delay, and 
 crush the rebellious Florentines.^ 
 
 This letter, like the two preceding ones, is preserved in 
 the Vatican MS. The Latin original was first printed by 
 Witte in 1827* from a MS. at Venice. There exists an 
 early Italian translation, which was first printed by Doni 
 in 1547 at Florence.* In the title the writer is described 
 as in the preceding letter. This is one of the three letters 
 of Dante mentioned by Villani." 
 
 Epist. viii. To the Italian Cardinals in conclave at 
 Carpentras after the death of Clement V (written after 
 20 April, 1 3 14), calling upon them to elect an Italian 
 Pope, who should restore the Papal See to Rome.'' 
 
 This letter is preserved in the Laurentian MS. (xxix. 
 8), mentioned above, which contains also Epistolae iv, ix. 
 It was first printed by Witte in 1 827.* In the title the 
 writer is described as " Dantes Aligherius de Florentia ". 
 This letter, like the two preceding ones, is mentioned by 
 Villani, who says : — 
 
 " This Dante, when he was in exile . . . wrote three 
 noble letters, one of which he sent to the government of 
 Florence, complaining of his undeserved exile; the 
 second he sent to the Emperor Henry when he was be- 
 sieging Brescia,^ reproaching him for his delay, after the 
 
 ' op. cit. pp. 36-42. ^ See below. ' See above, p. 94. 
 
 'Dantis AlUgherii Epistolae quae exstant, Patavit, 1827 (pp. 30-46). 
 ° In Prose Antiche di Dante, Petrarcha, et Boccaccio, etc., pp. g-12. 
 8 See below. ' See above, p. 97. 
 
 * Op. cit. pp. 53-61. ' Actually, Cremona. 
 
2 so DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 manner of the prophets of old ; and the third he sent to the 
 Italian Cardinals, at the time of the vacancy of the Holy 
 See after the death of Pope Clement, urging them to agree 
 together in electing an Italian Pope. These letters were 
 written in Latin, in a lofty style, fortified with admirable 
 precepts and authorities, and were greatly commended by 
 men of wisdom and discernment." ^ 
 
 Epist. ix. To a Florentine friend (written in 1316), re- 
 jecting with scorn the offer of a return to Florence under 
 certain degrading conditions.^ 
 
 This letter, like the preceding, is preserved in the 
 Laurentian MS. (xxix. 8), which formerly belonged to 
 Boccaccio. It was first printed by Dionisi in 1790 at 
 Verona.' 
 
 Epist. X. To Can Grande della Scala (written not later 
 than 1318), dedicating the Paradiso to him, with remarks 
 upon the interpretation of the poem, and on the subject, 
 form, and title of the Divina Commedia} This letter, 
 which is preserved, in whole or in part, in six MSS., 
 including one of the fourteenth century,^ formed the 
 subject of the opening lecture on the Divina Commedia 
 delivered in Florence by Filippo Villani in 1391, when 
 he was appointed (next but one in succession to Boc- 
 caccio) to the readership on Dante, which had been estab- 
 lished in 1373.® It was first printed, in a very corrupt 
 text, by G. Baruffaldi in 1700 at Venice.'^ In the title the 
 writer is described as "Dantes Aligherius Florentinus 
 natione, non moribus ". 
 
 1 Bk. ix. ch. 136. 2 See above, pp. 98-g. 
 
 3 In the fifth volume of his Aneddoti (p. 176). * See above, pp. 195-6. 
 
 5 See N. Zingarelli, Dante, pp. 723-4. 
 
 "See Scartazzini's Companion to Dante (translated by A. J. Butler), 
 pp. 359-60. 
 
 ' In Galleria di Minerva, vol. iii. pp. 220-8 (see Torri's Epistole di 
 Dante Alighieri (p. 158). 
 
LATIN LETTERS 251 
 
 Besides the above ten letters/ there are three short 
 letters written in Latin, between 13 10 and 1311, by the 
 Countess of Battifolle to Margaret of Brabant, wife of 
 the Emperor Henry VII, which were supposed by Witte 
 to have been composed by Dante, but this attribution 
 is not generally accepted.^ There is another letter, 
 which exists only in Italian, purporting to have been 
 written by Dante to Guido Novello da Polenta at 
 Ravenna, from Venice, on 30 March, 1314 ; this, however, 
 is an undoubted forgery, probably of the sixteenth century, 
 when it was first printed.' Other letters, which have 
 been lost, are mentioned by several of Dante's early bio- 
 graphers ; and Dante himself in the Vita Nuova (§31, U. 
 5-9) refers to a letter he composed beginning, " Quomodo 
 sedet sola civitas". Boccaccio says "he wrote many 
 prose epistles in Latin, of which a number are still in ex- 
 istence ".* Leonardo Bruni claims to have seen several 
 letters in Dante's own handwriting (of which he gives a 
 description),* among which he mentions one giving an ac- 
 count of the battle of Campaldino ® ; and another referring 
 to his priorate as the origin of all his misfortunes '' ; and 
 others which he wrote after his exile to members of the 
 government of Florence, as well as to the people,' among 
 
 'There are two English translations of these letters, viz. by C. S. 
 Latham, in A Translation of Dante's Eleven Letters, 1891 ; and by P. H. 
 Wicksteed, in Translation of the Latin Works of Dante, 1904 (pp. 295- 
 368). 
 
 ^ These letters, which are preserved in the Vatican (MS. Palat. 1729), 
 were first printed by Torri, op. oil. pp. 64-8 ; their authenticity as com- 
 positions of Dante is upheld by F. Novati and others (see Novati's article 
 L' Epistola di Dante a Moroello Malaspina, in Dante e la Lunigiana (pp. 
 
 509> 537)- 
 
 3 By Doni, in Prose Antiche di Dante, Petrarcha, et Boccaccio, etc., 
 Fiorenza, 1547 (pp. 75-6). 
 
 ■* Vita di Dante, ed. Macri-Leone, § 16, p. 74. 
 
 ' See above, p. 54 note. ' See above, pp. 54, 57 note. 
 
 ' See above, p. 74. ' See above, p. gi. 
 
252 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 the latter being a long one, beginning, " Popule mee, quid 
 fed tibi ? " i Filelfo quotes the beginnings of three Latin 
 letters alleged to have been written by Dante (to the 
 King of Hungary, to Pope Boniface, and to his own son 
 at Bologna), and adds that Dante wrote many others, too 
 numerous to mention.^ No trace of any of these letters 
 has been found ; and it is probable that his account of 
 them was a mere fiction on the part of Filelfo, whose 
 statements are by no means always to be believed, and 
 who is known to have been guilty of literary frauds of 
 various kinds. 
 
 Latin Eclogues. — Dante also wrote two Eclogues, in 
 Latin hexameters, addressed to Giovanni del Virgilio, 
 professor of poetry at the University of Bologna, who had 
 urged Dante to write poetical compositions in Latin, and 
 had invited him to come to Bologna to receive the poet's 
 laurel crown. These Eclogues were written during the 
 last two years of Dante's life, between 1319 and 1321.' 
 "Two eclogues of great beauty" are mentioned by 
 Boccaccio among Dante's works,* and, though some critics 
 reject them as spurious, there seems no sufficient reason 
 for questioning their authenticity. They exist in five 
 independent manuscripts, in one of which (the Lauren- 
 tlan MS. xxix. 8, which also contains three of Dante's 
 letters), written in the hand of Boccaccio, they are accom- 
 panied by a Latin commentary by an anonymous con- 
 temporary writer,* supposed by some to be Boccaccio 
 
 ■ Vita di Dante, ed. Brunone Bianchi, 1883, pp. xv, xvii, xxi. 
 
 " Vita Dantis, ed. 1828, pp. 111-14. 
 
 5 See C. Ricci, L' Ultimo Rifugio di Dante, pp. 68 ff. 
 
 * Vita di Dante, ed. Macri-Leone, § 16, p. 74. They are also twice 
 mentioned by Bruni, Vita di Dante, ed. cit. pp. xxv, xxvii. 
 
 5 Edited by F. Pasqualigo, Lonigo, 1887. For the MSS., see Wick- 
 steed and Gardner, Dante and Giovanni del Virgilio, pp. 268 ff. 
 
LATIN ECLOGUES 253 
 
 himself.* The Eclogues were first printed^at Florence, at 
 the beginning of the eighteenth century, in a collection of 
 Latin poems (in eleven volumes), Carmina Illustrium 
 Poetarum Italorum (1719-1726); they were reprinted at 
 Verona in 1788 by Dionisi in the fourth series of his 
 Aneddoti, together with the Latin commentary, and have 
 been many times reprinted since. Critical editions have 
 been published by Wicksteed and Gardner (London, 1902),^ 
 and G. Albini (Florence, 1903).^ 
 
 In the Latin Carmen * which opens his correspondence 
 with Dante, Giovanni del Virgilio, after a complimentary 
 reference to the Commedta, expresses his regret that Dante 
 should confine himself to the composition of poems in the 
 vernacular, instead of in Latin ; to submit such themes 
 as his to the judgment of the vulgar herd is like casting 
 pearls before swine (11. i-2i). Giovanni then suggests to 
 Dante several subjects from contemporary history worthy 
 of being treated in a Latin poem, for instance, the exploits 
 and death of the Emperor Henry VII (24 August, 1313) ; 
 the defeat of the Guelfs at Monte Catini by Uguccione 
 della Faggiuola (29 August, 1315); the operations of 
 Can Grande della Scala against Padua (1314-1318); or, 
 finally, the siege of King Robert of Naples in Genoa, and 
 his ultimate defeat of the Ghibellines (July 1318-February 
 
 1 See G. Albini, Dantis Eclogae (Firenze, 1903), p. xvi. 
 
 2 In Dante and G. del Virgilio, pp. 146 ff. 
 
 2 There are three English translations of the Eclogues, viz. one (in 
 blank verse) by Dean Plumptre, in The Commedia and Canzoniere of 
 Dante (1887), vol. ii. pp. 326-41 ; and two by P. H. Wicksteed, one (in 
 prose) in Dante and G. del Virgilio, pp. 147 ff. ; the other (in blank verse) 
 in Translation of the Latin Works of Dante (1904), pp. 373 ff. 
 
 ■■ Beginning, " Pieridum vox alma, novis qui cantibus orbem " ; the 
 Carmen and Dante's two Eclogae, vrith Giovanni's Ecloga Resfonsiva, are 
 printed in the Oxford Dante (pp. 185-90). The Carmen appears from 
 internal evidence to have been written in the spring of 13 19. (See Ricci, 
 op. cit. p. 71). 
 
254 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 1 3 19) (11. 26-30); such a poem would extend Dante's 
 fame throughout the four quarters of the globe, and 
 Giovanni himself, if thought worthy, would present him 
 for the laurel crown (11. 30-38). Giovanni concludes by 
 begging Dante to send him a reply. 
 
 Ecloga i. Dante in reply sends to Giovanni a Latin 
 eclogue,! in which he says that when the latter's poem 
 reached him he (Tityrus) was in company with a friend, 
 Meliboeus (Dino Perini of Florence),^ who was eager to 
 know what Mopsus (Giovanni) had to say (1). 1-6) ; to 
 which Tityrus replied that Mopsus discoursed of matters 
 too high for his (Meliboeus') comprehension (11. 7-23) ; at 
 length,5however, yielding to Meliboeus' entreaties Tityrus 
 informs him that Mopsus has invited him to receive the 
 laurel crown at Bologna (11. 24-33). Meliboeus assumes 
 that Tityrus will accept the invitation, but Tityrus gives 
 reasons why he should decline, suggesting that it would 
 be better for him to await his recall to Florence and re- 
 ceive the crown_ there (11. 34-44). Meliboeus reminds 
 him that time ilies, but Tityrus assures him that when his 
 poem dealing with the heavens and their inhabitants (the 
 Paradiso) shall be finished, he will then be prepared to 
 receive the crown, if Mopsus approve (11. 45-51). Meli- 
 boeus thereupon recalls Mopsus' objections against ver- 
 nacular poetry, and asks Tityrus how he proposes to win 
 him over (11. 51-7). Tityrus replies that he will send to 
 Mopsus ten vessels of milk from his favourite ewe (i.e. ten 
 cantos of the Paradiso) ; meanwhile let Meliboeus con- 
 cern himself with his own duties (11. 58-66). 
 
 Ecloga Responsiva? Giovanni del Virgilio, adopting 
 the pastoral style in imitation of Dante, sends back an 
 
 ^ Beginning, " Vidimus in nigris albo patiente lituris ". 
 ^ Apparently the same individual who related to Boccaccio the story of 
 the finding of the lost cantos of the Commedia (see above, p. 209 note). 
 ' Beginning, " Forte sub irriguos colles, ubi Sarpina Rheno." 
 
LATIN ECLOGUES 255 
 
 eclogue in which he relates how, while he was in solitude 
 at Bologna, the song of Tityrus (Dante) was borne to 
 him by Eurus from Ravenna (11. 1-2 1); and was echoed 
 in Arcady, where the long-unheard strain was welcomed 
 with delight by the inhabitants and by the very beasts 
 (11. 22-5). Mopsus (Giovanni) then, asking himself why 
 he too should not sing a pastoral strain instead of, as be- 
 fore, a city lay (his carmen), forthwith begins (11. 26-32). 
 Hailing Tityrus as a second Virgil, he bewails his hard fate 
 as an exile, and expresses the hope that he may be granted 
 his heart's desire to return to his own city and there be 
 crowned (11. 33-46); meanwhile will he consent to visit 
 Mopsus in his cave (Bologna), where he should receive 
 every welcome from the friends of Mopsus and from all 
 the dwellers in Arcady, and where he need fear no danger 
 (11. 47-76). But perhaps Tityrus would despise the abode 
 of Mopsus ; and, besides, lolas (Guido da Polenta) would 
 hardly permit him to exchange his lordly roof for such 
 humble entertainment as Mopsus could offer (11. 77-83). 
 Yet the invitation is dictated by admiration and love; 
 and if Tityrus despise Mopsus, why then he will content 
 himself with a draught of his Phrygian Muso (i.e. with 
 the company of Albertino Mussato of Padua) (11. 83-9) 
 — but he must conclude, milking time is at hand, 
 and his companions are returning with the setting sun 
 
 (90-7). 
 
 Ecloga ii. 1 In response to the eclogue of Giovanni del 
 Virgilio, Dante writes a second poem in the same style,^ 
 relating how, while he (Tityrus) and Alphesiboeus (Fiduccio 
 
 1 It appears from a note of the anonymous commentator that this second 
 eclogue (which some critics hesitate to accept as entirely from the hand of 
 Dante) was not composed until a year after the receipt of Giovanni's 
 eclogue, and did not reach the latter until after Dante's death (see 
 Pasqualigo, op. cit. p. 13). 
 
 2 Beginning, " Velleribus Colchis praepes detectus Eous" 
 
256 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 de' Milotti) ^ were conversing together in the shade one 
 spring day at noontide, suddenly Meliboeus (Dino Perini) 
 appeared, hot and out of breath (11. 1-30). Greeting him 
 with laughter, Tityrus asks him why he comes in such 
 hot haste (11. 31-5). Meliboeus makes no reply, but blows 
 on his flute, which gives forth the words of the poem sent 
 by Mopsus (" Forte sub irriguos colles," etc.) (11. 36-43). 
 When they have gathered its import, Alphesiboeus in- 
 quires of Tityrus if he intends to accept the invitation of 
 Mopsus ; to which Tityrus replies, " why not ? " (11. 44-8). 
 Alphesiboeus then beseeches him not to leave his friends, 
 and warns him of the danger he would incur if he went 
 (11. 49-62). Tityrus answers that for Mopsus' sake he 
 would willingly for a time exchange their pleasant pastures 
 for the rugged abode of his friend, were it not for his dread 
 of the violence of Polyphemus^ (11. 63-75). Thereupon 
 Alphesiboeus dilates on the cruelty of Polyphemus, and 
 prays that Tityrus will never place himself in his power 
 (11. 76-87). Tityrus listens in silence, and smiles assent 
 — and now evening has begun to fall (11. 88-94). Mean- 
 while lolas (Guido da Polenta) had been in hiding close 
 by and had overheard the whole conversation (11. 95-8). 
 
 Quaes tio de Aqua et Terra. — The authenticity of the 
 short physical treatise attributed to Dante, known as the 
 Quaestio de Aqua et Terra, has been long disputed. Until 
 quite recently it was held by the majority of professed 
 Dantists to be an undoubted forgery. This work, which 
 consists of twenty-four short sections, purports to be a 
 scientific inquiry as to the relative levels of land and water 
 
 1 So identified by the anonymous commentator, who describes him as 
 a physician of Certaldo resident at Ravenna. 
 
 " Polyphemus is thought by some to indicate King Robert of Naples, 
 the protector of the Guelfs ; others hold the reference to be to a member 
 of some Bolognese family whom Dante had offended, e.g. the Caccianimici 
 (cf. Inf. xviii. 48-66) (see Ricci, op. cit. pp. 105 ff.). 
 
QUAESTIO DE AQUA ET TERRA 257 
 
 on the surface of the globe ; it claims, in fact, to be a re- 
 port, written by Dante's own hand, of a public disputation 
 held by him at Verona on Sunday, 20 January, 1320, 
 wherein he determined the question, which had previously 
 been propounded in his presence at Mantua, in favour of 
 the theory that the surface of the earth is everywhere 
 higher than that of the water. 
 
 The treatise was first published at Venice in 1508, by 
 one Moncetti, who professed to have printed it from a 
 manuscript copy, with corrections of his own.i Unfor- 
 tunately he never produced the manuscript, of which 
 nothing more has ever been heard. In spite, however, of 
 the suspicious circumstances attending its publication, and 
 of the fact that no such work is mentioned by any of 
 Dante's biographers or commentators, it is difficult to be- 
 lieve that it could have been written by any one but 
 Dante. The internal evidence in favour of its authenticity 
 is overwhelmingly strong ; while there seems no adequate 
 motive for a falsification of this kind at the beginning of 
 of the sixteenth centuiy, when the literary forger found a 
 
 ^ Quaestio florulenta ac perutilis de daobus elementis aquae et terrae 
 iractans, nuper reperta que olim Mantuae auspicata, Veronae vera dis- 
 putata et decisa ac manu propria scripta, a. Dante Florentino poeia claris- 
 simo, quam diligenter et accurate correcta fuit per reverendum Magistrum 
 jfoannem Benedictum Moncettum de Castilione Arretino Regentem Pata- 
 vinum ordinis Eremitarum divi Augustini Sacraeque Theologiae doctorem 
 excellentissimum. At the beginning of the treatise proper, after the pre- 
 liminary matter, is the following short title : Quaestio aurea ac perutilis 
 editaper Dantem Alagkerium poetam Florentinum clarissimum de natura 
 duorum elementorum aquae et terrae diserentem. Only seven copies are 
 known of the editio princeps, of which one is in the British Museum, 
 one in the Cornell University Library (Fiske Collection) in America, and 
 the remaining five in various public libraries in Italy. The work was re- 
 printed at Naples in 1576, but this edition is also exceedingly rare (see 
 Athenaeum, 16 October, and 13 November, 1897; and 8 July, 1905). A 
 facsimileoftheediiie/rtBce/s, with translations in Italian, French, Spanish, 
 English, and German, was published (by L. Olschki) ^t Florence in 1905. 
 
 17 
 
2 58 DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 more promising field in the imitation of classical works. 
 One of the latest writers on the subject, Dr. E. Moore, 
 who has gone very carefully into the whole matter, un- 
 hesitatingly believes it to be a genuine work of Dante, 
 " corrupted possibly in some of its details, but still in all 
 essential points the production of the same mind and pen 
 to which we owe the Divina Commedia, the De Monarchia, 
 and the Convivio." ^ A critical text of the Quaestio, edited 
 by Dr. C. L. Shadwell, to whom the rehabilitation of the 
 treatise is largely due, is printed in the third edition (1904) 
 of the Oxford Dante. This text was reissued in a revised 
 form, together with an English translation, in 1909.^ 
 Analysis of the Quaestio de Aqua et Terra : — 
 The treatise opens with the author's statement that 
 while he was at Mantua a debate arose as to whether 
 water " within its own natural circumference " is in any 
 part higher than the land ; he then states his reasons for 
 attempting a solution of the question, and his resolve to 
 commit his conclusions to writing (§§ 1-2). Five of the 
 chief arguments of those who upheld the affirmative view 
 are first set out (§§ 3-7) ; but the author holds this opinion 
 to be contrary both to observation and to reason, and 
 states his intention of proving first, that water cannot in 
 any part of its circumference be higher than the land ; 
 and secondly, that the land is everywhere higher than the 
 surface of the sea ; he will then deal with the objections 
 to these conclusions, after which he will show what is the 
 
 ' Studies in Dante, ii. 356. 
 
 ' Five English translations of the treatise have been published ; viz. by 
 C. H. Bromby, A Question of the Water and of the Land, 1897 ! by A. C. 
 White, in Annual Report oj the Cambridge (U.S.A.) Dante Society for 
 1903 ; by P. H. Wicksteed, in Translation of the Latin Works of Dante, 
 1904 (pp. 389-423) ; by S. P. Thompson, in the volume containing fac- 
 simile reprint of the editio princeps, Florence, 1905 (pp. 59-86) ; and by 
 C, L. Shadwell, in Dante's Quaestio de Aqua, et Terra, Oxford, 1909, 
 
QUAESTIO DE AQUA ET TERRA 259 
 
 final cause of this elevation of the land, and lastly he will 
 refute the five arguments in favour of the contrary opinion 
 already stated (§§ 8-9^. Water in its own circumference 
 can only be higher than the land either by being excentric, 
 or by being concentric, but in some part irregularly ele- 
 vated or gibbous (§ 10) ; in proof of his first proposition 
 the author demonstrates that water can neither be ex- 
 centric nor gibbous (§§ 11 -14); proof of the author's 
 second proposition (§ 15) ; opponent's arguments against 
 these conclusions (§ 16), and author's reply (§ 17); op- 
 ponent's answer to author's objections and author's fresh 
 arguments (§§ 18-19). Having now established his posi- 
 tion that earth is everywhere higher than water, the 
 author proceeds to examine into the cause of this elevation, 
 which he finally refers to the influence of the stars (§§ 20- 
 21); as to further inquiry, let men cease to search into 
 matters that are too high for them (§ 22). The author 
 next refutes the arguments in favour of the contrary view 
 stated at the outset (§ 23), and concludes with the record 
 of his own name and of the place and date of the disserta- 
 tion (§ 24). 
 
 Apocryphal Works. — Besides the spurious letters men- 
 tioned above, and sundry apocryphal sonnets and canzoni, 
 Dante has been credited with the authorship of certain 
 religious poems in terza rima, namely a translation of the 
 seven Penitential Psalms, and a poem of eighty-three 
 terzine, known as his Professione di Fede, which consists 
 of a paraphrase of the Apostle's Creed, the ten Command- 
 ments, the Pater Noster, and the Ave Maria, together 
 with reflections on the seven Sacraments, and seven 
 Deadly Sins, The Professione di Fede, sometimes spoken 
 of as Dante's Credo} is contained in more than forty 
 
 ' For the circumstances in which this Credo is alleged to have been 
 composed, see above, pp. 130-2, 
 
26o DANTE'S WORKS 
 
 manuscripts, in the majority of which it is attributed to 
 Dante, though in a few it is assigned to Antonio da 
 Ferrara. It was first printed at Rome in the fifteenth 
 century {circ. 1476),! and was reprinted as an appendix 
 to the edition of the Divina Commedia published at 
 Venice by Vendelin da Spira in 1477. It has been many 
 times reprinted since.^ The Sette Salmi Penitenziali, 
 which are contained in numerous manuscripts, were first 
 printed in the fifteenth century {c. 1475) at Venice.' 
 They were reprinted with the Latin originals and anno- 
 tations, together with the Professione di Fede, by Quadrio 
 at Milan in 1752, who published a second edition, with 
 additional matter, at Bologna in 1753, which has fre- 
 quently been reprinted. An Ave Maria, in twenty-four 
 terzine, quite distinct from that contained in the Profes- 
 sione di Fede, was printed in a limited edition at Bologna, 
 in 1853, fi'O'n ^ fourteenth century manuscript*; and 
 another Credo was printed at Mantua in 1871.* 
 
 Whatever may be said as to the genuineness or other- 
 wise of the Professione di Fede, the proemio of which, at 
 any rate, can hardly have been written by Dante, it 
 seems at least possible that the Sette Salmi Penitenziali 
 may have been his composition, perhaps as an early ex- 
 ercise in the use of terza rima, a metre which he was the 
 
 ' Two fifteenth century editions (Rome, circ. 1476 ; and Florence, circ. 
 1490) are in the British' Museum. 
 
 ' It is included, together with the Sette Salmi Penitenxiali, in the Ox- 
 ford Dante (pp. 193-202). The Professione di Fede has been translated into 
 English by Dean Plumptre, in The Commedia and Canzoniere of Dante 
 (vol. ii. pp. 318-25). 
 
 3 Two fifteenth century editions, both printed at Venice, are in the 
 British Museum. 
 
 *Ave Maria inedita di Dante Alighieri, edited by A. Bonucci (100 
 copies). 
 
 " Un nuovo Credo di Dante Alighieri, published by A. Manardi on the 
 occasion of the inauguration of Dante's statue at Mantua on 30 July; 1871. 
 
APOCRYPHAL WORKS 261 
 
 first to introduce. It is not to be supposed that Dante 
 acquired the complete mastery of this metre, which he 
 displays from the outset in the Divina Commedia, with- 
 out considerable previous practice. In the Commedia 
 itself the increase of skill in the handling of the tersa rima, 
 and in the avoidance of repetition in the rimes, is easily 
 perceptible to a close observer as the poem advances. 
 Quadrio, who pointed out the many Dantesque phrases 
 which occur in the Sette Salmi, and who had no hesitation 
 in accepting them as genuine works of Dante, regarded 
 them as examples of the " elegiac " style,^ as distinguished 
 from the tragic and comic, of which Dante speaks in the 
 De Vulgari Eloquentia? 
 
 ' See his Prefazione. ^ Bk. ii. ch. 4. 
 
APPENDIX A 
 
 GENEALOGICAL TABLE OF THE FAMILY OF DANTE 'aLIGHIERI 
 
 (1131) Adamo^ 
 I 
 
 (1076) Moronto b 
 
 (ii8g) Preitenitto 
 
 (1189) Cacciaguida a 
 (born c. logo, d. c. 1147), 
 m. Alighiera degli Alighieri d 1 
 
 J i 
 
 (n8g, 1201) Alighiero le 
 ace. to Pietro di Dante,' m. a sister of Gualdrada,? 
 daughter of Bellincion Berti g ; 
 
 Eliseo c '' 
 
 (1215) Bonareddita 
 
 (1260, 1277) Bellincione 
 
 Bello (1255, 1277) 
 (d. bef. 1268) 
 
 (1239, 1256,1283) Alighiero II h (1277) Bello (1269, 1277) Gherardo (1260, 1278) Brunetto •• (1269) Geri del (1237, 1241) Gualfreduccio (1277) Cenni i* (1295, 1298) Cione ° 
 (d. aft. 1274, bef. 1283) Bello ■ 
 
 m. I. Bella (1332) ' 
 
 2. Lapa de' CialufE (1332) * 
 
 J \ T" 
 
 1. Dante Alighieri (1297, 1300, 1301, 1304, 1305, etc.) 2. Francescoi '" (1320) 2. Tanak 2. A daughter 'i (1288) Bellinol (1295, 1311) Lapo (1311) Niccolo 
 
 m. (bef. 1299) Gemma di (born bef. 1279, d. c. 1348) m. Lapo Riccomanno m. Leon Poggi 
 
 Manetto Donati (1329) ' I 
 
 L I 
 
 (1315, 1332, 1343, etc.) Pietro 12 (1315, 1332, 1343) Jacopo ^^ (1332) Antonia (1350) Beatrice ^^ Andrea Poggi i'' 
 
 (d- 1364) (d. bef. 1349) (d. aft. 1350, bef. 1370) 
 
 Note. — The dates attached to the names are those of documents in which the individuals in question are mentioned. 
 
 a Pay. XV. 89, 135. b Pay. xv. 136. = Par. xv. 136. d Pa/, xv. 137-8. e Par. xv. 91-4. f /»/. xvi. 37. g Par. xv. 112; xvi. 99. h Sow. Hi*. 8 ; liii*. 14 ; liv*. i. i /«/. xxix. 27. 
 J Sob. liii*. 10. k Sok. liii*. 10. 1 So«. liii*. 11. 
 
 ^ In a document dated 28 April, 1131, mention is made of " Cacciaguida filius Adami " (see Davidsohn, Geschichte von Florenz, i. 440 re.). ^ Eliseo had a grandson (Arrigo), and 
 great-grandsons (Bonaccorso and Eliseo), exiled from Florence in 1268 ; and great-great-grandsons (Bonaccorso, d. 1303, and Guidotto), returned to Florence in 1280. ' See above, 
 p. 41 n. * Brunetto fought at Montaperti (4 Sept. 1260), where he was in charge of the Carroccio. ^ Cenni, i.e. Bencivenni. " Cione, i.e. Uguccione, was alive in 1298 ; his sons are 
 mentioned, together with Dante, in the Riforma di Baldo d' Aguglione (2 Sept. 1311), viz. " De Sextu Porte Sancti Petri. . . . Filii domini Cionis del Bello et Dante AUighierii." 
 ' Bella's family is unknown ; it is conjectured that she was the daughter of Durante di Scolaio degli Abati, in which case Dante's Christian name (a contraction of Durante) was 
 doubtless derived from his maternal grandfather. Bella is mentioned as deceased in a document dated 16 May, 1332 : " dominae Bellae olim matris dicti Dantis, et olim aviae dictorum 
 Jacobi et domini Pieri " (see Scherillo, Alcuni Capitoli delta Biojrrajia di Dante, p. 29). " Lapa was alive in 1332, as appears from the document of 16 May, 1332, quoted in the 
 previous note : " dominae Lapae matris dicti Francisci, et filiae olim Chiarissimi Cialuflfi, et uxoris olim Alaghierii supradicti". ' Gemma is mentioned in a de^d dated 24 Aug. 1329 : 
 " domine Gemme vidue uxori olim dantis allagherii et filie quondam dOmini Manetti domini Donati " (see Bullettino delta Svcieta Dantesca Italiana, N.S. 1902, ix. 184). '" Francesco 
 is mentioned in at leabt twenty documents between 1297 and 1343 (see Bullettino delta Societd Dantesca Italiana, N.S. 1907, xiv. 124-36). ^1 This sister ot Dante's is conjectured to 
 be the " donna giovane e gentile ... la quale era meco di propinquissima sanguinita congiunta " of Vita Nuova, § 23, 11. 86, 94-6 ; the " Donna pietosa e di novella etate, Adorna 
 assai di gentilezze umane," of Canz. ii. 12. 1- Pietro and Jacopo are mentioned in the second decree of banishment against Dante (6 Nov. 1315) : " Dantem Adhegerii et filios " ; as 
 well as (by name) in documents of 1332 and 1342. Many documents relating to Pietro's life at Verona (1332-1364) have been preserved (see Bullettino della Societi. Dantesca Italiana, 
 N.S. 1906, xiii. 41-7). 15 Beatrice was alive in 1350 as a nun at Ravenna ("suora Beatrice figliuola che fu di Dante AUighieri monaca nel monastero di San Stefano dell' Uliva di 
 Ravenna "), when Boccaccio was commissioned to present her with ten gold florins on behalf of the Capitani di Or San Michele of Florence ; she died before 1370, in which year there 
 is a record of the payment of a bequest of hers of three gold ducats to the convent where she had lived (see Giornale Dantesco, vii. 339-40). !■* Andrea Poggi supplied Boccaccio with 
 information about Dante's habits and manner of life (see above, pp. 39, 209-11). 
 
 Passerini, 
 
 [Besides the authorities mentioned above, see L. Passerini, DeHa Pamig-Ha rfj Darei«, in Dante c il suo Secolo (pp. 53-78); FruUani e Gargani, Della Casa di Dante; G. L. 
 eiini, La Famiglia Alighieri; and A. Baitoli, Della Vita di Dante Alighieri, in Storia della Letteratura .' 
 
 1 Italiana (voll v. pp. 1-21, '97-110).] 
 
APPENDIX B 
 
 LETTER OF FRATE ILARIO TO UGUCCIONE DELLA 
 FAGGIUOLAi 
 
 " To the most illustrious and magnificent Lord, Uguccione 
 della Faggiuola, among the Princes of Italy the foremost and 
 most eminent, Frate Ilario, a humble monk of the monastery 
 of Corvo, at the mouth of the Magra, sendeth greeting in His 
 name who verily is the salvation of all men. 
 
 " In the words of our Saviour in the Gospel, ' A good man 
 out of the good treasure of his heart, bringeth forth that which 
 is good'. Wherefrom we learn two things, — firstly, that by 
 what Cometh out of a man we may judge of that which is in 
 his heart ; and secondly, that by our speech, which was given 
 to us for this purpose, we may make manifest that which is in 
 our own hearts. As it is written, ' By their fruits ye shall know 
 them '. And albeit this was said of the unrighteous, yet it may 
 be understood much more generally of the righteous, inasmuch 
 as these are ever more ready to make known their thoughts, 
 and the others to hide them. Nor is it only the desire of glory 
 which moves the good that is within us to bring forth fruit, but 
 the very commandment of God, which forbids us to leave idle 
 the gifts that are given to us. For God and Nature abhor that 
 which is idle ; wherefore the tree that bringeth not forth fruit in 
 due season is cast into the fire. Truly, therefore, this man, 
 whose work, together with mine own exposition thereon, I now 
 purpose to send to you, above all men of Italy appears to have 
 observed from his youth up this precept as to the bringing forth 
 
 1 See above, p. 92 note. 
 263 
 
264 APPENDIX B 
 
 of the treasure of the heart ; seeing that, according as I hav 
 been informed — .and it is a marvel to hear — he tried, even whe 
 a child, to express himself upon subjects such as had neve 
 been told of before. And, greater marvel still, he set himse 
 to discuss in the vulgar tongue matters which could scarce t 
 expounded by the most accomplished scholars even in Latin- 
 in the vulgar tongue, I say, not in unadorned prose, but in th 
 music of verse. But leaving his praises to his works, whei 
 without doubt every wise man will most plainly perceive then 
 I come briefly to my present purpose. 
 
 " Know, then, that this man, when he was on his way to cros 
 the mountains, and was passing through the diocese of Lun 
 whether from reverence for the place, or from some oth( 
 motive, betook himself to the monastery mentioned aboV( 
 And when I saw him, and as yet neither I nor the other monl 
 knew who he was, I enquired what he sought. As he returne 
 no reply, but only kept his eyes fixed on the buildings of th 
 monastery, I again asked him what he sought. Whereupoi 
 looking at me and my brother monks, he said 'Peace'. Th 
 made me burn more and more to know what manner of ma 
 he was ; so drawing him apart from the others I entered int 
 conversation with him, and at last recognised who he was ; ft 
 though I had never set eyes on him before that day, his fan 
 had long ago reached me. Now when he noted that my who! 
 attention was set on him, and that I was interested in what 1; 
 was saying, he drew forth from his bosom with a friendly a 
 a small book, which he frankly offered to me. ' This,' he sai( 
 ' is part of a work of mine, which perhaps you have never seei 
 I leave it to you as a memento, that you may the better kee 
 me in mind.' So saying he handed me the book, which 
 gratefully accepted ; and pressing it to my bosom I opened i 
 and in his presence lovingly fixed my gaze upon it. And whe 
 I caught sight of words in the vulgar tongue, and exhibited son 
 degree of astonishment, he asked what was the cause of ir 
 hesitation. To which I replied that I was surprised at the ni 
 
LETTER OF FRATE ILARIO 265 
 
 ture of the language ; for not only did it seem to me a difficult, 
 nay, an inconceivable, task to express such an arduous theme 
 in the vulgar tongue ; but also it appeared not altogether fitting 
 that such weighty matters should be clothed in a popular dress. 
 'Your opinion,' he replied, 'is certainly in accordance with rea- 
 son. When at the outset the seed (sent to me perchance from 
 heaven) began to germinate in the form of this undertaking, I 
 made choice of the language most appropriate for it. And not 
 only did I make choice of it, but I made a beginning with it, 
 in the usual poetical style, as follows : — 
 
 Ultima legna canam fluvido contermina mundo, 
 Spiritibus quae lata patent, quae praernia solvunt 
 Pro meritis cuicunque suis. 
 
 " ' But when I came to consider the condition of the present 
 time, I observed that the songs of illustrious poets were re- 
 jected as things almost of no worth; and this because the 
 nobles, for whom in better times such things were written, to 
 their shame be it said, had Elbandoned the liberal arts to men 
 of low estate. For this reason I laid aside the poor lyre which 
 I had ventured to use, and made ready another, better adapted 
 to the intelligence of the public of to-day. For it is vain to put 
 solid food to the lips of sucklings.' After saying this he added 
 very kindly that if I had leisure for such a task I might furnish 
 this work of his with a running commentary, and send it to you 
 along with my notes. If I have not always succeeded in un- 
 ravelling his hidden meaning, at any rate I have laboured faith- 
 fully and in an ungrudging spirit ; and I now, in obedience to 
 the behest of this devoted friend of yours, despatch to you the 
 work in question, as requested. Any ambiguities that may be 
 discovered in it you must set down to my insufficiency, for be 
 assured that the text itself is in every respect to be regarded as 
 unimpeachable. If at any time your Highness should enquire 
 for the other two parts of this work, with the intention of 
 uniting them together into a single whole, you may ask for the 
 second part, which is the sequel to this, from the eminent 
 
266 APPENDIX B 
 
 Marquis Moroello ; and the third and last part will be found in 
 the hands of the most illustrious Frederick, King of Sicily. 
 For as the author assured me was his intention — after surveying 
 the whole of Italy, he made choice of you three, in preference 
 to all others, to be the patrons of this threefold work of his." 
 
 (The original of this letter, with an Italian translation, is printed 
 by Fraticelli in his Vita di Dante, pp. 346-9, 357-9; a critical 
 text is given by Rajna, op. cit} pp. 126-8). 
 
 ' See above, p. 92 note. 
 
APPENDIX C 
 
 Extracts from letters from Seymour Kirkup to Gabriele 
 Rossetti, concerning the discovery of the Giotto portrait of 
 Dante in the Bargello, and Kirkup's drawing from it.^ 
 
 Florence, 12 September, 1840. 
 
 . . . We have made a discovery of an original portrait of 
 Dante in fresco by Giotto ! Although I was a magna pars in 
 this undertaking, the Jacks in Oiifice have not allowed me yet 
 to make a copy. Sono tanto gelosi, most likely afraid I should 
 publish it and prevent some friends of their own reaping all the 
 profit they hope from that speculation. 
 
 I was the person who first mentioned to Sig. Bezzi, a Pied- 
 montese and friend of Carlo Eastlake's, the existence of the 
 portrait under the whitewash of three centuries. We were joined 
 by an American, and we three undertook at our expense to 
 employ a restorer to uncover the walls of the old chapel in the 
 palace of the Podesta in search of the portrait — mentioned by 
 F. Villani, Filelfo, L. Aretino, Vasari, Cinelli, etc. Nothing 
 but the constancy and talent of Sig. Bezzi could have over- 
 come the numberless obstacles and refusals we met with. He 
 wrote and spoke with the persuasions of an advocate, and per- 
 severed with the obstinacy and activity of an Englishman 
 (which I believe he now is). He alone was the cause of suc- 
 cess. We should have had no chance without him. At last, 
 after uncovering enough of three walls to ascertain it was not 
 
 ' These extracts are reprinted from Gabriele Rossetti : A Versified 
 Autobiography (pp. 144-54), by kind permission of Mr. W. M. Rossetti, and 
 Messrs. Sands and Co. 
 
 267 
 
268 APPENDIX C 
 
 there, the Government took the task into their own hands, on 
 our terms, with the same restorer, and in the fifth wall they 
 have succeeded. The number of walls is six, for the chapel has 
 been divided into two — (magazines of wine, oil, bread, etc. for 
 the prisoners). 
 
 The precise date of the painting is not known. The poet 
 looks about twenty-eight — very handsome — un Apollo colle 
 fatiezze di Dante. The expression and character are worthy of 
 the subject, and much beyond what I expected from Giotto. 
 Raphael might own it with honour. Add to which it is not 
 the mask of a corpse of fifty-six — a ruin — but a fine, noble 
 image of the Hero of Campaldino, the Lover of Beatrice. The 
 costume very interesting — no beard or even a lock of hair. A 
 white cap, over which a white capuccio, lined with dark red 
 showing the edge turned back. A parchment book under his 
 arm — perhaps the Vita Nuova. 
 
 It is in a group of many others — one seems Charles II of 
 Naples. Brunetto Latini and Corso Donati are mentioned by 
 the old authors. 
 
 II 
 
 Florence, 14 September, 1841. 
 
 By the time you receive this, I hope that the portrait of Dante, 
 for you, will be in London. The gentleman who has taken 
 charge of it was in such haste to leave the country (from the 
 consequences of a fatal duel) that I had not an opportunity 
 for writing. 
 
 You will receive, in fact, three portraits. They are as 
 follows : — 
 
 No. I. A drawing in chalk, on light-brown paper, of the face 
 as large as the original. I had intended to write a memorandum 
 on it, but in my hurry it was forgotten. Perhaps you would 
 have the kindness to add it, if you think it worth while, viz. : — > 
 
 " Drawn by S. K., and traced with talc, on the original fresco 
 by Giotto, discovered in the Chapel of the Palazzo del Podesti, 
 Florence, on the 21st July, 1840, before it wa,s retouched." 
 
LETTERS OF KIRKUP TO G. ROSSETTI 269 
 
 No. 2. A small sketch in water-colours, giving the colours 
 of the dress, and the heads supposed to be of Corso Donati 
 and Brunetto Latini. 
 
 No. 3. A lithography by the painter and restorer Marini, who 
 uncovered the painting. This is made on a tracing by himself. 
 
 I thought it useful to send you these in order to give you a 
 better idea of this very interesting discovery — Dante, under 
 thirty years of age. With respect to No. i, it is fixed with 
 glue-water, and will not rub out with common usage. The 
 only thing it is liable to is the cracking or bending of the paper, 
 which sometimes in a face alters the expression. 
 
 Since I drew it, I have had the mortification to see the 
 original retouched, and its beauty destroyed. You will perceive 
 that the eye is wanting. A deep hole in the wall was found 
 exactly on that spot, as if done on purpose. It was necessary 
 to fill it that it might not extend further ; not content, they 
 ordered Sig. Marini to paint the eye on it, and he has daubed 
 over the face in many parts, to the ruin of its expression and 
 character. It is now fifteen years older, a mean pinched ex- 
 pression, and an effeminate character, compared to what it was. 
 It is not quite so bad as the lithography I send you, but not 
 far from it. When I saw what was done, I asked a young man, 
 his assistant, if it was done with colours in tempera, and he 
 assured me, with a boast, that it was in bon fresco. If so, Dante 
 is gone for good. But I have still hopes that he spoke only of 
 the eye, and many of my friends think it can only be accom- 
 plished on the old, and hard painting by some distemper-colour 
 of a glue, size, or egg ; and, if so, a damp cloth fixed on it 
 for half an hour will bring it all away without injuring the 
 original fresco. I mean to take my time, and perhaps some 
 day I may restore Dante to himself a second time. I had the 
 principal part in the late discovery. 
 
 The lithography I send you is exceedingly unlike and in- 
 correct, though a tracing. In shading and finishing he has 
 totally lost and changed the outline, if he ever had it. It is 
 
2;o APPENDIX C 
 
 vulgar, old, and effeminate — the contrary in every respect to 
 the original. The Florentines of to-day cannot draw, nor even 
 trace. Think of what such a hand would do, if allowed to paint 
 over it ! and that has been the case. . . . When I mentioned 
 to you that my drawing was a secret, I only meant that, if 
 known here that I obtained access to make a tracing by bribery, 
 it would compromise those who had assisted me. You are 
 welcome to show it to whom you please, and do whatever you 
 wish with it. But I recommend you not to give it away, for it 
 is the only copy that has been made to my knowledge before 
 the fresco was retouched,^ except the miserable lithography 
 which I send ; and, if so bad a copy was produced by the help 
 of tracing, and from the original in its pure state, nothing very 
 good is to be expected in future. The eye in the said litho- 
 graphy was, of course, added by the copier. You will perceive 
 by my drawing that the outline (the eye lash) remained, which 
 was fortunate, as it gives the exact situation of the feature. 
 
 Ill 
 
 Florence, 5 Febrttary, 1843. 
 
 . . . The three pomegranates in Giotto's fresco are so un- 
 certain b their appearance, from injury and time, that I was 
 doubtful about them, but a word from you decides the question 
 in my mind. They are chipped and much obliterated ; and, 
 from there seeming a sort of double outline, and no shade or 
 colour but the yellow drapery on which they are painted, I took 
 them for an embroidery on the breast of the Barone. Some 
 remains of fingers and stalk, however, had led the Florentines 
 to consider them as melograni, and they were puzzling their 
 brains to find a meaning. 
 
 > Another drawing, the original of which is now in Berlin, was made by 
 Perseo Faltoni, who acted as assistant to Marini, the " restorer " of the 
 fresco (see T. Paur, Dante's Portrdt, in yahrbuch der Deutschen Dante- 
 GeseUschaft, vol. ii. pp. 301-2 ; and K. Witte's note, p. 440). A reproduc- 
 tion of this drawing is given by F. X. Kraus in Dante, Sein Leben und 
 Sein Werk, p. 166. 
 
APPENDIX D 
 
 CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF EARLY (CENT. XIV-XVI) COM- 
 MENTARIES ON THE COMMEDIA, WITH TITLES OF 
 THE PRINTED EDITIONS REFERRED TO IN THE TEXT,' 
 
 1. Graziolo de' Bambaglioli; in Latin (1324): // com- 
 mento piu antko e la pih antica versione latina delt inferno di 
 Dante, dal codice di Sandaniele del Friuli. Udine, 1892 
 (published by A. Fiammazzo). 
 
 2. Italian translation of the preceding ^ (Cent, xiv) : Comento 
 alia Cantica dell' Inferno di Dante Allighieri di autore anonimo, 
 ora per la prima volta dato in luce. Firenze, 1848 (published 
 by Lord Vernon). 
 
 3. Jacopo di Dante ; in Italian (before 1325) ; Chiose alia 
 Cantica deir Inferno di Dante Allighieri attribuite a Jacopo suo 
 figlio, ora per la prima volta date in luce. Firenze, 1848 (pub- 
 lished by Lord Vernon). 
 
 4. GuiDO DA Pisa; in Latin (about 1324), unpublished; 
 Italian translation (Cent, xiv.) of the same, also unpublished. 
 
 5. Anonymous ; in Italian (between 1321 and 1337) : Chiose 
 Anonime alia prima cantica della Divina Commedia, di un 
 contemporaneo del Poeta, pubblicate per la prima volta. Torino, 
 1865 (published by F. Selmi); 
 
 6. Jacopo della Lana; in Italian (between 1323 and 
 1328) : printed at Venice in the 1477 edition of the Commedia^ 
 and at Milan in the 1478 edition of the Commedia ; reprinted 
 (by L. Scarabelli) at Milan in 1865, and at Bologna in 1866-7 : 
 
 1 See above, pp. 221-6. " See above, p. 221 note 5. 
 
 ' In which it js erroneously attributed to Benvenuto da Imola. 
 271 
 
272 APPENDIX D 
 
 Comedia di Dante degli Allagherii col commento di Jacopo della 
 Lana Bolognese ; two Latin translations (Cent, xiv) of the 
 same, one by Alberico da Rosciate of Bergamo, unpublished. 
 
 7. Andrea Lancia; in Italian (about 1334): -^' Ottimo 
 Commento della Divina^ Commedia. Testa inedito d' un contem- 
 
 poraneo di Dante. Pisa, 1827-9 (published by A. Torri). 
 
 8. PiETRO DI Dante; in Latin (1340-1): Petri Allegherii 
 super Dantis ipsius genitoris comoediam Commentarium, nunc 
 primum in lucem editum. Florentiae, 1845 (published by Lord 
 Vernon). 
 
 g. Anonymous; in Latin (after 1350) : II Codice Cassinense 
 della Divina Commedia per la prima volta letteralmente messo a 
 stampa. Monte Cassino, 1865. 
 
 10. Giovanni Boccaccio; in Italian (1373-5): first pub- 
 lished at Naples (with the false imprint of Florence) in 1 7 24 by 
 Lorenzo Ciccarelli: II Commento di Giovanni Boccacci sopra 
 la Divina Commedia di Dante Alighieri, con le Annotazioni di 
 Ant. Maria Salvini. Prima impressione ; reprinted at Florence 
 in 1831-2 by Ignazio Moutier; and again at Florence in 1844 
 by Pietro Fraticelli; latest edition, by Gaetano Milanesi, pub- 
 lished at Florence by Felice Le Monnier in 1863. 
 
 11. Benvenuto da Imola; in Latin (1373-80); Benevenuti 
 de Rambaldis de Imola Comentum super Dantis Alligherii Com- 
 oediam nunc primum integre in lucem editum. Florentise, 1887 
 (" sumptibus Gulielmi Warren Vernon, curante Jacopo Philippo 
 Lacaita ") ; Italian translation (Cent, xiv) of the same, unpub- 
 lished ; another (very untrustworthy) by Giovanni Tamburini, 
 published at Imola in 1855-6: Benvenuto Rambaldi da Im^la 
 illustrato nella vita e nelle opere, e di lui Commento Latino sulla 
 Divina Commedia di Dante Allighieri voltato in Italiano} 
 
 i 12. Anonymous; in Italian (1375): Chiose sopra Dante? 
 
 ' On this so-called translation, see C. E. Norton : Review of a trans- 
 lation into Italian of the Commentary by Benvenuto da Imola on the 
 Divina Commedia. Cambridge, Mass., 1861. 
 
 2 Formerly attributed to Boccaccio, hence commonly known as // Falso 
 Boccaccio. 
 
EARLY COMMENTARIES ON D.C. 273 
 
 Testo inedito ora per la prima volta pubblicato. Firenze, 1846 
 (published by Lord Vernon). 
 
 13. Francesco da Buti; in Italian (completed 1385 and 
 139s): Commento di Francesco da Buti sopra la Divina Corn- 
 media di Dante Allighieri. Pisa, 1858-62 (published by Cres- 
 centino Giannini). 
 
 14. Anonymous; in Italian (about 1400): Commento alia 
 Divina Commedia d'Anonimo Fiorentino del Secolo XIV^ ora 
 per la prima volta stampato. Bologna, 1866-74 (published by 
 Pietro Fanfani). 
 
 15. Giovanni da Serravalle ; in Latin (February 1416- 
 January 141 7) : Fratris Johannis de Serravalle Ord. Min. Epis- 
 copi et Principis Firmani Translatio et Comentum totius libri 
 Dantis Aldigherii, cum textu italico Fratris Bartholomaei a 
 Colle ejusdem Ordinis, nunc primum edita. Prato, 1891 
 (edited by M. da Civezza and T. Domenichelli). 
 
 16. GuiNiFORTO DELLi Bargigi ^ ; in Italian {Inferno only) 
 (about 1440) : Lo Inferno delta Commedia di Dante Alighieri 
 col Comento di Guitiiforto delli Bargigi tratto da due manoscritti 
 inediti del secolo decimo quinto. Marsilia-Firenze, 1838 (pub- 
 lished by G. Zacheroni). 
 
 17. Stefano Talice da Ricaldone; in Latin* (i474) : 
 La Commedia di Dante Alighieri col Commento inedito di Stefano 
 Talice da Ricaldone. Torino, 1886; Milano, 1888 (published 
 by order of the King of Italy, edited by Vincenzo Promis and 
 Carlo Negroni). 
 
 18. Cristoforo Landing; in Italian (1480): Comento di 
 Christophoro Landini fiorentino sopra la Comedia di Danthe 
 Alighieri poeta fiorentino. Firenze, 1481.* 
 
 19. Alessandro Vellutello ; in Italian (1544) : La Comedia 
 
 ' So described by the editor because the MS. from which it was printed 
 is dated (but obviously in error) 1343. 
 
 ^ Otherwise known as Guiniforte Barziza. 
 
 ' This is in reality little more than a transcript of Benvenuto da 
 Imola's lectures at Bologna (see above, p. 225). 
 
 * Many times reprinted (see above, p. 226 note 2). 
 18 
 
274 APPEJNUiA u 
 
 di Dante Aligieri con la nova espositione di Alessandro Vellutello. 
 Vinegia, 1544.1 
 
 20. GiovAN Battista Gelli; in Italian (between 1541 and 
 1563) : originally printed at Florence in several volumes be- 
 tween 1547 and 1561; first collected edition: Letture edite e 
 inedite di Giovan Batista Gelli sopra la Commedia di Dante} 
 Firenze, 1887 (edited by Carlo Negroni). 
 
 21. Bernardino Daniello ; in Italian (before 1560): Dante 
 con r espositione di M. Bernardino Daniello da Lucca, sopra la 
 sua Comedia delt Inferno, del Purgatorio, et del Paradiso ; 
 nuovamente stampato, et posto in luce. Venetia, 1568. 
 
 ' Three times reprinted (see above, p. 226 note 4). 
 '■" In his various Letture (twelve in all) Gelli commented on Inferno, i.-xxv. , 
 and on portions of Inferno, xxvi., Purgatorio, xvi., xxvii., and Paradiso, 
 
APPENDIX E 
 
 BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE OF THE EARLIEST BIOGRA- 
 PHIES AND BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICES OF DANTE 
 
 1. Giovanni Villani {fi. 1348): in his Cronica or Istorie 
 de' suoi tempi (ix. 135 1) ; first printed at Venice, 1537. [English 
 translation by P. H. Wicksteed (Hull, 1898).] 
 
 2. Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375): Vita di Dante^ ; 
 first printed at Venice, 1477 (prefixed to the edition of the 
 Divina Commedia, published by Vindelin da Spira). [English 
 translation by J. R. Smith (New York, 1901); and by P. H. 
 Wicksteed (London, 1904).] 
 
 Boccaccio also inserted brief biographical notices of Dante 
 in his Comento sopra la Commedia (Lezione prima), first printed 
 at Naples (with the imprint of Florence), 1724; and in his De 
 Genealogia Deorum (xv. 6), first printed at Venice, 1472 (Italian 
 translation by Giuseppe Betussi, first printed at Venice, 1547). 
 
 3. Antonio Pucci (circ. \2,\a-circ. 1390): in his Centiloquio, 
 in terza rima (cap. 55) (written in 1373); first printed at Flor- 
 ence, 1772-1775 (m \oh. m.-Yi. of Deiizie degli £ruditi Toscani, 
 published by Padre Ildefonso da San Luigi). 
 
 4. Benvenuto DA Imola {circ. 1338-1390): in Latin, pre- 
 
 ' In modern editions of Villani this chapter is numbered 136. 
 
 * Boccaccio's Vita di Dante exists in two forms, one of which, com- 
 monly known as the Compendia, is shorter than the other. The latest 
 writer on the subject (E. Rostagno : La Vita di Dante, Testo del cost detto 
 Compendia attribuiia a Giovanni Boccaccio, Bologna, i8gg) argues, with 
 some probability, that the so-called Compendia, is Boccaccio's first draft ol 
 his work. 
 
 275 
 
276 APPENDIX a. 
 
 fixed to his Commentary on the Divina Commedta ; first 
 printed at Florence, 1887. 
 
 5. Melchiorre^ Stefani {d. 1403); in his Storia Koren- 
 tina (Lib. vi. rub. 340); first printed at Florence, 1759 (by 
 Mehus, in his Vita Ambrosii Traversarii).^ 
 
 6. FiLiPPO ViLLANi {d. 1404) : in Latin, in his Liber de 
 Civitatis Florentix famosis Civibus (ii. § 2) ; first printed at 
 Florence, 1826. 
 
 7. Francesco da Buti (1324-1406) : prefixed to his Com- 
 mentary on the Divina Commedia ; first printed at Pisa, 1858. 
 
 8. Antonio Cartolario : in Latin,^ appended to De Vita 
 ac Moribus Philosophorum veterum ; first printed at Florence, 
 1759 (by Mehus, in his Vita Ambrosii Traversarii)* (anony- 
 mous Italian translation, printed at Venice, 1521).^ 
 
 9. DoMENico Di Bandino {circ. i54.Q-drc. 1414) : in Latin, 
 in Book v. of his Jvns memorabilium Universi^ (conipleted 
 about 141 2) ; first printed at Florence, 1759 (by Mehus, in his 
 Vita Ambrosii Traversarii). 
 
 10. Simone Serdini da Siena (otherwise known as II 
 Saviozzo) {circ. i^Go-circ. 1419): biographical details in his 
 poem in terza rima on the Divina Commedia (written in 1404) ^ ; 
 first printed at Paris, 1577 (in the editio princeps of Dante's De 
 Vulgar i Eloquentia, edited by Jacopo Corbinelli, pp. 76-81). 
 
 11. Giovanni dei Bertoldi (otherwise known as Giovanni 1 
 
 ' In the Delizie degli Eruditi Toscani (vol. iii. S.) the author's name 
 is given as Marchionne di Coppo Stefani. 
 
 ' See A. Solerti : Le Vite di Dante, Petrarca e Boccaccio, scritte fino al 
 secolo decimosesto, p. 81. 
 
 ' Based on Benvenuto da Imola. 
 
 * See A. Solerti : Le Vite di Dante, Petrarca e Boccaccio, scritte fino al 
 secolo decimosesto, p. 76. 
 
 * See Haym, Biblioteca Italiana, 1781, p. 157 note 5. 
 
 ' See Tiraboschi : Storia delta Letteratura Italiana, vi. Pte. 2, pp. 1141-5 
 (ed. Milan, 1824). 
 
 ' See Carlo del Balzo : Poesie di mille Autori intomo a Dante Alighieri, 
 iii. 224-241 (Rome, 1891) ; and Moore : Dante and his Early Biographers, 
 pp. 88 n. 3, 113-15- 
 
EARLY NOTICES OF DANTE 277 
 
 da Serravalle) {circ. 1350-1445) : in Latin, prefixed to his Com- 
 mentary on the Divina Commedia (completed 16 January, 
 141 7) ^ ; first printed at Prato, 1891. 
 
 1 2 . Leonardo Bruni (otherwise known as Leonardo Aretino) 
 (1369-1444): Vita di Dante; first printed at Perugia, 1671 ; 
 and at Florence, 1672. [English translations by P. H. Wick- 
 steed (Hull, 1898); and J. R. Smith (New York, 1901).] 
 
 13. Secco Polentone {circ. i^T^-ci'rc. 1448): in Latin, in 
 his De Scriptoribus illustribus latina lingiuz ^ ; first printed at 
 Florence, 1747 (by Mehus in his edition of Manetti's lives of 
 Dante, Petrarch, and Boccaccio). 
 
 14. Sant' Antonino (1389-1459); Archbishop of Florence, 
 1446) : in Latin, in his Opus Historiale .■ first printed at Nurem- 
 berg, 1484.' 
 
 15. GiannozzoManetti (1396-1459): 1111,3X111, Vita Dantis 
 (originally written in Italian) ; first printed at Florence, 1747. 
 
 16. Flavio Biondo (1388-1463) : in Latin, in his Historia- 
 rum ab inclinato Romano Imperio Libri xxxi (Dec. ii. lib. ix.) 
 (completed about 1440) ; first printed at Venice, 1484 ; a com- 
 pendium of Biondo's work was made, in Latin, by Enea Silvio 
 Piccolomini (1405-1464; Pope Pius II, 1458), and translated 
 into Italian by Lucio Fauno ("Le Historic del Biondo, da 
 la declinatione dello Imperio di Roma, insino al tempo suo, 
 che vi corsero circa mille anni. Ridotte in compendio da Papa 
 Pio, e tradotte per Lucio Fauno," Venice, 1543).* 
 
 ^See Moore: op. cit. 110-13. Of this work but four MSS. are 
 known, only three of which are complete ; one of these is in the British 
 Museum, another in the Vatican Library, and the third in the Escorial 
 (see A. Farinelli, Dante in Ispagna, p. 70 «.). 
 
 ^ See Tiraboschi : Storia delta Letteratura Italiana, vi. Pte. 2, pp. 
 1145-7 (ed. Milan, 1824). Polentone's work exists in two forms, the one 
 much shorter than the other — the notice of Dante is printed in both 
 forms by A. Solerti, in Le Vite di Dante, etc. pp. 154-5. 
 
 3 Tiraboschi mentions an edition of Venice, 1480 ; but this is unknown 
 to Hain, Brunet, and Proctor, 
 
 * See Bullettino delta SocietA Dantesca Italiana, No. 8 (1892), pp. 21-2, 
 25 ; and Haym: Biblioteca Italiana, 1781, p. 29 note 7. 
 
278 APPENDIX h- 
 
 1 7. Anonymous Notice, in Cronica Generate del 1^21 al 1470, 
 at Ferrara ; first printed at Milan (s.a.) (by A. Solerti, in Le Vite 
 di Dante, Petrarca e Boccaccio, scritte fino al secolo decimosesto)} 
 
 18. FiLiPPO DI CiNO RiNUCcmi (1392-1462); Vita di 
 Dante ; ^ first printed at Florence, 1779 (in Delizie degli Eruditi 
 Toscani, vi. 245 ff.).^ 
 
 19. Giovanni Mario Filelfo (1426-1480) : in Latin, Vita 
 Dantis ; first printed at Florence, 1828. 
 
 20. Cristoforo Landing (1434-1504): prefixed to his Com- 
 mentary on the Z'/ww Commedia; first printed at Florence, 1481. 
 
 21. Jacopo FiLiPPO FoRESTi (commonly known as Filippo 
 da Bergamo) (1434- 15 20) : in Latin, in his Supplementum 
 Chronicarum orbis ab initio mundi usque ad annum 1482 * ; first 
 printed at Venice, 1483 (anonymous Italian translation, printed 
 at Venice, 1488; and another, by F. Sansovino, Venice, 1581).' 
 
 22. Hartmann Schedel, {d. circ. 1500) : in Latin, in his 
 Liber Chronicarum * (the famous Nuremberg Chronicle, the print- 
 ing of which was completed under the author's supervision on 
 12 July, 1493); fii^st printed at Nuremberg, 1493. 
 
 23. Anonymous Notice, in Latin, in the Supplement to the 
 first Venice edition (5 September, 1494) of the Speculum 
 Historiale of Vincent of Beauvais.'' 
 
 ' No. xvi. p. 157. 
 
 "Written circ. 1450; based on Vellutello and Leonardo Bruni. 
 
 ^ See A. Solerti : he Vite di Dante, etc., p. 97. 
 
 * The text of this notice is printed in the Modern Quarterly of Lan- 
 guage and Literature for March, i8g8 (p. 52), where reference is made to 
 an article in the Historisches yahrbuch by Prof. Grauert, who shows that 
 the Speculum notice (No. 23) was borrowed &om that in the Nuremberg 
 Chronicle (No. 22), and that that was borrowed firom the notice in the 
 Supplementum of Filippo da Bergamo, which in its turn was based on two 
 passages in the De Genealogia Deorum of Boccaccio. (See above, No. 2.) 
 
 ' See Haym : Biblioteca Itdliana, 1781, p. 36 note 5. 
 
 ^ See above, note 4. 
 
 ' See Paget Toynbee : A Biographical Notice of Dante in the 1494 
 edition of the Speculum Historiale (in Eng. Hist. Rev., April 1895) ; and 
 supplementary article on the same, in Mod. Quart. Lang. Lit., March 
 i8g8 (see above, note 4). 
 
EARLY NOTICES OF DANTE 279 
 
 24. JoHANN Tritheim (1462-1516): in Latin, in his De 
 Scriptoribus Ecclesiasticis (c. 79)^; first printed at Basle, 1494. 
 
 25. Rafaello Maffei di Volterra (commonly known as 
 Rafaello Volterrano) (1451-1522): in Latin,^ in his Comment- 
 ariorum Urbanorum Libri xxxviii; first printed at Rome, 1506. 
 
 26. Paolo Giovio (1485-1552); in Latin, in his Elogia 
 Virorum Uteris illustrium ; first printed at Florence, 1549. 
 
 27. Francesco Maurolico (fl. circ. 1550) : in Latin, in his 
 supplement to the De Poetis Zatinis of P. Crinito and P. 
 Sampieri; first printed at Messina, 1865.' 
 
 28. GiAMPiETRO Ferretti (1482-1557): in Latin, in his 
 Vitae virorum illustrium civitatis Ravennae ; first printed at 
 Ravenna, 1864.* 
 
 29. GiROLAMO DELLA CoRTE (fl. circ. 1560) : in his Storia di 
 Verona lib. xxii^ fino al 1560; first printed at Verona, 1596.* 
 
 30. Bernardino Daniello da Lucca {d. circ. 1560) : pre- 
 fixed to his Commentary on the Divina Commedia ; first 
 printed at Venice, 1568. 
 
 31. Alessandro Vellutello {circ. i$ig-circ. 1590): pre- 
 fixed to his Commentary on the Divina Commedia ; first 
 printed at Venice, 1544. 
 
 32. LoDOvico Dolce (1508-1568) ; prefixed to his edition of 
 t\i& Divina Commedia; first printed at Venice, 1555. 
 
 33. Mathias Flach Francowitz (known as Flaccus lUy- 
 ricus) [d. 1575); in his Catalogus Testium Veritatis ; first 
 printed at Basle, 1562.'' 
 
 1 See A. Solerti : he Vite di Dante, etc, p. 197. 
 
 2 See Pere Hardouin : Doutes sur I'dge du Dante, pp. 25-6 (ed. Paris, 
 1847) ; and Tiraboschi: Storia della Letteratura Italiana, vii. p. 1166. 
 
 ' See A. Solerti : Vite di Dante, etc. p. igg. 
 
 ^ See A. Solerti : Vite di Dante, etc. pp. 200-1. 
 
 5 Actually only xx. 
 
 « See Bulletiino della Societa Dantesca Italiana, No. 8 (1892), pp. 
 24-s ; and Haym : Biblioteca Italiana, 1781, p. 73, n. 8. 
 
 'See Edward Leigh : A Treatise of Religion and Learning, and of 
 Religious and Learned Men (1656), p. 177 ; and Paget Toynbee : Dante 
 in English Literature from Chaucer to Cary, vol. i. p. 148. 
 
28o APPEMDIX t. 
 
 34. JacopoGorbinelli (fl. 1570-1590); in the edt'd'ojirinceps 
 of Dante's Be Vulgari Elogtientia (pp. 8i-z), printed at Paris, 
 
 1577- 
 
 35. Marcantonio NicOLETTi (1536-1596); in his Vite degli 
 
 scrittori volgari illustri libri iv, first printed at Milan (s.a.) 
 (by A. Solerti, in Le Vite di Dante, Petrarca e Boccaccio, scritte 
 fino al secolo decimosesto)} 
 
 36. Jean Papire Masson (1544-1611): in Latin, in his 
 Vitae trium Hetruriae procerum Dantis, Fetrarckae, Boccacii ; 
 first printed at Paris, 1587. 
 
 37. Francesco BoccHi (1548-1618): in Latin, in his £/(?^a 
 Morentinorum Doctrinis Insignium (i. § 20) ; first printed at 
 Florence, 1609. 
 
 38. Alessandro Zilioli (fl. 1 600- 1 630); in his Istoria 
 delle Vite de' Poeti Italiani ; first printed at Milan (s.a.) (by 
 A. Solerti, in Le Vite di Dante, Petrarca e Boccaccio, scritte fino 
 al secolo decimosesto).^ 
 
 The above lives and notices of Dante (with the exception of 
 Nos. 3, 10, 26, 29, 33), many of which were previously more 
 or less inaccessible, as being either in MSS. or in rare early 
 editions, have recently been printed, some for the first time, by 
 Angelo Solerti in his collection of the lives of Dante, Petrarch, 
 and Boccaccio, down to the end of the sixteenth century, pub- 
 lished at Milan under the title of Le Vite di Dante, Petrarca e 
 Boccaccio, scritte fino al secolo decimosesto (s.a.). 
 
 Information as to the credibility and sources of many of these 
 notices of Dante will be found in Storia della Letteratura 
 Italiana (vol. v.), by Adolfo Bartoli (Florence, 1884); Dante 
 and his Early Biographers, by Edward Moore (London, 1890); 
 Studi Danteschi, by Vittorio Imbriani (Florence, 1891) ; Alcuni 
 Capitoli della Biografia di Dante, by Michele Scherillo (Turin, 
 1896) ; and in the volume of Solerti mentioned above. 
 
 In addition to these, the reader may be referred to the Vita 
 di Dante of Count Cesare Balbo (first published at Turin in 
 
 1 No. xxxi. pp. 222-33. ^ No. xxxii. pp. 234-6. 
 
EARLY NOTICES OF DANTE 281 
 
 1839; reissued at Florence by Le Monnier, with additional 
 notes by Emmanuele Rocco, in 1853), of which an English 
 translation, with modifications and additions, by Mrs. F. J. 
 Bunbury, was published in London in two volumes in 1852 ; 
 the Vita di Dante of Melchior Missirini (published at Florence 
 in 1840); the Storia della Vita di Dante by Pietro Fraticelli 
 (first published at Florence in 1861), which is based upon the 
 Memorie per servire alia vita di Dante, collected by Giuseppe 
 Pelli (first published at Venice in 1758, in second part of vol. 
 iv. of Antonio Zatta's edition of Le Opere di Dante ; second 
 and enlarged edition published at Florence in 1823) ; the 
 Companion to Dante (London, 1893) of G. A. Scartazzini, 
 which is a translation (with modifications), by A. J. Butler, 
 of the same author's Dante-Handbuch (Leipzig, 1892), which 
 in its turn is a rifacimento of the author's own Prolegomeni 
 della Divina Commedia (Leipzig, 1890) ; and, lastly, to the 
 first part of Nicola Zingarelli's exhaustive volume upon Dante 
 in the Storia Letteraria d Italia (Milan, 1903), of which a 
 compendium {La Vita di Dante in Compendio), was published 
 at Milan in 1905. 
 
 References to numerous other works (many of them by 
 English writers), including the valuable monographs by Isidoro 
 Del Lungo, will be found in the bibliographical sections '^ of 
 the above-mentioned works of Scartazzini, as well as, under 
 various headings, in the same writer's Enciclopedia Dantesca 
 (Milan, 1896-9). 
 
 ^ Omitted from the English edition. 
 
INDEX 
 
 Abati; Ghibelline family of Florence, 37 »., 38; Dante's mother perhaps 
 
 member of, 37 »., 38. 
 Abati, Bocca degli ; his treachery at Montaperti, 24. 
 Abati, Durante degli ; maternal grandfather (as is supposed) of Dante, 38. 
 Abati, Scolaio degli ; maternal great-grandfather (as is supposed) ot 
 
 Dante, 38. 
 Accursius (d. 1260) ; proposed monument to, in Duomo at Florence, 112. 
 Adamo ; great-great-great-grandfather of Dante, 40. 
 Adamo, Maestro ; burnt alive for coining, 84 ». 
 Adimari family of Florence ; their hostility to Dante, 43 «., 149 ; Dante's 
 
 relations with, 147-9. 
 Adolf (Emperor, 1292-1298) ; not recognized as Emperor by Dante, 
 
 234-5 «. 
 Aguglione, Baldo d' (d. c. 1315); his Riforma, 95. 
 Aix; coronation of Henry VII at, 235 ». 
 Alberico da Rosciate. See Rosciate. 
 Albert I (Emperor, 1298-1308) ; reference to, in Convivio, 173, 23s h. ; 
 
 not recognized as Emperor by Dante, 234-5 "• 
 Albertino Mussato. See Mussato. 
 Albini, G. ; critical edition of Dante's Eclogues, 253. 
 Aldobrandi, Tegghiaio ; Florentine Guelf, 21, 
 
 Aldus (Aldo Manuzio) (1450-1515) ; editions of Z>. C. printed by, 214. 
 Alfraganus ; Dante's astronomical authority, 48 «., 67. 
 Alighieri, Alighiera degli ; Dante's great-great-grandmother, 40, 41. 
 Alighieri, Alighiero degli ; Dante's great-grandfather, 40, 41 ; his wife and 
 
 sons, 41, 
 Alighieri, Alighiero degli ; Dante's father, 37, 38 ; a notary, 38 ; mention 
 
 of, in documents, 38 n. ; twice married, 38 ; his children, 38 ; position 
 
 of, in Florence, 39 ; character of, 39 ; alluded to by Forese Donati, 
 
 39 ; eldest son of Bellincione, grandson of Cacciaguida, 42. 
 Alighieri, Antonia ; Dante's daughter, 70 ; identified by some with Beatrice 
 
 Alighieri, 71 «. 
 Alighieri, Beatrice; Dante's daughter, 70; with Dante at Ravenna, 71, 
 
 99 ; a nun in the convent of Santo Stefano dell' Uliva, 71 ; visited by 
 
 Boccaccio there, 71 ; her bequest to the convent, 71 ; identified by 
 
 some with Antonia Alighieri, 71 n. 
 Alighieri, Bellincione degli ; Dante's grandfather, 37, 41 ; his sons, 42. 
 
284 INDEX 
 
 Alighieri, Dante (1263-1321); mention of, in documents, 38 »., 53, 72-3, 
 74, 82, 83, 84, gi ; birth of, 36, 42 ; his family Guelfs, 36-7 ; a friend 
 of Giovanni Villani, 37 ». ; his parentage, 37-8 ; stepmother, 37 «. ; 
 house in Florence, 37 n. ; descent, 37-42; half-brother and half- 
 sisters, 38-9 ; origin of his Christian name, 38 ; his nephew Andrea 
 Poggi, 39 ; poetical correspondence with Forese Donati, 39, 51 ; earliest 
 known ancestors, 40 ; approves the Vendetta, 41 ; born in Florence, 
 42 ; his baptism, 42 ; breaks the font of San Giovanni, 42-3 ; first 
 meeting with Beatrice, 43 ; his love for her, 43-5, 53, 63 ; grief at her 
 death, 47-9, 63 ; tradition as_tp his Jiasing joined_the Franciscan 
 Order, 48 n. ; corr'esponHence with Cino da Pistoja and ^uidoCaval- 
 cahti, 48-52; alleged unfaithfulness to memory of Beatrice, 51, 71; 
 comes of age, 53 ; military service, S3-63 ; at battle of Campaldino, 
 53-4, 57, 61, 62, 74; alleged accourif of the battle, 57 n., 251; his 
 handwriting, 54 n. ; at capitulation of Caprona, 62; early studies, 
 64-7 ; relations with Brunetto Latino, 64 ; artistic skill, 65, 72 ; 
 familiarity with Provencal literature, 66; ignorance of Greek, 66; 
 attendance at the schools of the Dominicans of Santa Maria Novella, 
 66 n. ; alleged studies at Bologna and Padua, 67 ; marriage, 67-g ; 
 Boccaccio's picture of his married life, 67-9 ; children, 69-71 ; de- 
 scendants, 70 n. ; alleged amours, 71 ; attachment to lady at Lucca, 
 71, 97 ; enrolled in Guild of Apothecaries, 72 ; details of public life, 
 72-4; embassy to San Gemignano, 73 ; priorate, 74, 75, 78, 81, 86; 
 document relating to, 74 n. ; belongs to White faction, 82 ; in charge 
 of public works in Florence, 82 ; opposes Pope Boniface, 82 ; embassy 
 to Rome, 83, 124-5 ; charges,agaiB8t~,-83-4 ; sentenced to banishment, 
 and afterwards to death, 83-4, 88, 98 ; confiscation of his goods, 84-5 ; 
 his private property, 85-6 ; loans and debts, 86-7 ; in exile, 88-118 ; re- 
 ferences to his sufferings, in Convivio, 88-9, 91, 175, 177 ; in De Vulg. 
 Eloq., 89 ; his wanderings, 89-103 ; at San Godenzo, 90 ; holds aloof 
 from other exiles, 90 ; at Forli, 90 ; at Verona with the ScaUgers, 91 ; 
 alleged visit to Padua, 91 ; doubts as to this visit, gi n.; at Sarzana 
 with the Malaspini, 91 ; relations with them, gi-2 ; supposed visit to 
 monastery of Santa Croce del Corvo, 92 ».; in Paris, 92; alleged 
 visit to England and Oxford, 92-3 ; back in Italy, 93 ; in Tuscany, 
 93-4; present at coronation of Henry VII at Milan, 94; letters to 
 the Princes and Peoples of Italy, to the Florentines, and to Henry 
 VII, 93-4, 95-6 ; excluded firom amnesty, 95 ; hopes of return to 
 Florence extinguished by death of Henry VII, 96-7 ; letter to the 
 Italian Cardinals, 97; at Lucca, 97; attachment to Gentucca, 97; 
 again sentenced to death, 98 ; rejects pardo n, 98- g; letter to friend 
 in Florence, 98-9 ; again at Verona, gg ; goes to Ravenna, 99 ; life 
 at Ravenna, gg-ioo ; friends at Ravenna, 100 ». ; invited to receive 
 laurel crovra at Bologna, 100, 252, 254 ; at Mantua and Verona, 
 100-1,257; at Piacenza, loi, 103; reputed a sorcerer, roi-3 ; embassy 
 to Venice, 103 ; death at Ravenna, 103 ; age at time of his death, 
 103 n.; date of his death, 103 «., 151; burial at Ravenna, 104-5; 
 epitaphs, 105-6; his tomb, 106-7; record of his death by Villani, 
 107, 126-7 ; elegies by Cino da Pistoja and Giovanni Quirini, 107-8 ; 
 poetical correspondence with Quirini, 107 n. ; fate of his remains, 
 109-18; attempts by Florentines to get possession of them, 112-13; 
 proposed monument to, in Duomo at Florence, 112 ; offer of Michel 
 
INDEX -28 s 
 
 Angelo to design and execute tomb, 113 ; disappearance of remains, 
 113-14, 117; rediscovery of them, 115-17 ; reburial, 118; character- 
 istics of Dante, iig-57; description of, by Boccaccio, iig-a5; anec- 
 dotes of, by Boccaccio, 120, 121-3, 124-5 ! ^'^ abstemiousness, 120 ; 
 taciturnity, lai ; eloquence, 121 ; fondness for music and poetry, 
 121, 123 ; delight in solitude, 121 ; absorption in studies, 121-2 ; 
 marvellous memory, 122-3 i greedy of honour and glory, 123-4 > 
 scornful disposition, 124 ; high conceit of himself, 124-5 ; fortitude 
 in adversity, 125 ; political animosity, 125 ; alleged lustfulness, 126 ; 
 description of, by Villani, 126-7 ; portraits of, 128-43 ; Norton on, 
 128-40; portrait by Giotto, 128-35, i39-40> 141 1 death-mask of, 135-40; 
 statue in Santa Croce, 137 «. ; his beard, 138 «. ; Naples bronze bust, 
 141 ; portrait by Taddeo Gaddi, 141 ; the Riccardi portrait, 142 ; 
 picture by Domenico di Michelino, 143 ; picture by Andrea del 
 Castagno, 143 n. ; anecdotes of, 144-57 ; by Petrarch, 144-5 ; by 
 Michele Savonarola, 145; by Gower, 145-6; byAnonimo Fiorentino, 
 146-7 ; by Sacchetti, 147-50 ; by Sercambi, 152-4 ; by Poggio Fioren- 
 tino, 154-5 i ^y Sir John Harington, 155 ; by Edward Wright, 156; 
 by Isaac D'Israeli, 156-7; Italian works of, 158-230; Canzoniere, 
 158-60 ; Vita Nuova, 160-73 > Convivio, 173-92 ; Divina Commedia, 
 193-230; Latin works, 231-59; De Monorchia, 231-9; De Vulgari 
 Eloqumtia, 239-46; Latin LettSVST 2^6-$2 ; Cailn' Btiogues, 252-6; 
 Quaestio de Aqua et Terra, 256-g ; Apocryphal Works, 259-61 ; earliest 
 biographical notices of, 275-81. 
 
 Alighieri, Francesco ; half-brother of Dante, 38 ; mentioned by Forese 
 Donati, 39 ». ; one of the guarantors in act of reconciliation between 
 Alighieri and Sacchetti, 42 ; his and Dante's debts and loans, 86-7 ; 
 helps to discharge Dante's debts, 87. 
 
 Alighieri, Francesco ; last male descendant (great-great-great-great-grand 
 son) of Dante, 70 ». 
 
 Alighieri, Gaetana (Tana) ; half-sister of Dante, 38 ; mentioned by Forese 
 Donati, 39 n. 
 
 Alighieri, Jacopo (d. bef. 1349) ; Dante's son, 42-70 ; his writings, 70 ; 
 his career, 70; commentary on Inferno, 70 n., 221-2, 271; with 
 Dante at Ravenna, 71, gg ; helps -to discharge Dante's debts, 87 ; 
 contemplates completing the Paradiso, 207 ; his dream as to where- 
 abouts of missing cantos of poem, 207-8 ; his commentary perhaps 
 written during Dante's lifetime, 222 n. 
 
 Alighieri, Leonardo ; great-grandson of Dante, 70 n. ; Bruni acquainted 
 with, 70 ». 
 
 Alighieri, Pietro (d. 1364) ; Dante's eldest son, 41, 42, 70 ; his commen- 
 tary on D. C., 41 »., 70, 223, 272; two different versions of, 41 «., 
 223 ; statement as to marriage of Alighiero, Dante's great-grand- 
 father, 41 ; his identification of Beatrice, 43 ; his career, 70 ; his son 
 and grandson and their descendants, 70 ». ; visit of his grandson 
 Leonardo to Florence, 70 ». ; with Dante at Ravenna, 71, 99; helps 
 to discharge Dante's debts, 87 ; contemplates completing the 
 Paradiso, 207. 
 
 Alighieri, Tana. See Alighieri, Gaetana. 
 
 .Almanack used by Dante, 197 n. 
 
 Alphesiboeus ; name under which Fiduccio de' Milotti figures in poetical 
 correspondence between Dante and G. del Virgilio, 100 »., 255-6. 
 
286 liNUlLA 
 
 American Dante Society, See Cambridge (U.S.A.). 
 
 Americans ; translations of D. C. by, 2zi n. 
 
 Andalo, Loderingo degli ; Ghibelline, appointed joint Podestjk of Florence 
 
 with Catalano de' Malavolti, in 1266, 30 ». 
 Andrea Poggi. See Poggi. 
 
 Anonimo Fiorentino; commentary on D. C, loi n., 146-7, 224, 273 ; re- 
 marks on witchcraft, loi ». ; anecdote of Dante and Belacqua, 146-7 ; 
 
 borrows freely from Boccaccio's Comento, 224 «. 
 Antonia Alighieri. See Alighieri. 
 Antonino, Sant' (1389- 1459) ; notice of Dante, 277. 
 Arabian calendar ; utilized by Dante in V. N., 47 »., 48 »., 67, 165, 170. 
 Arbia, battle of the. See Montaperti. 
 Aretines ; defeated by Florentines at Campaldino, 53-60. 
 Arezzo ; headquarters of the exiled Whites, 90. 
 Aristotle; Dante's knowledge oi Ethics, t^n., 66; oi Metaphysics, 66; 
 
 quoted in V. N,, 66. 
 Armenian ; selections from D, C. translated into, Z17. 
 Arnolfo di Lapo (c. 1232-1310) ; forced to build the Palazzo della Signoria 
 
 at Florence askew, 12. 
 Arts, guilds of, at Florence, 30. 
 Arundel Society ; reproduction of Kirkup's drawing of Giotto's portrait of 
 
 Dante, 134. 
 Ascoli, Cecco d'. See Cecco. 
 Ashendene Press ; editions of D. C, and whole works of Dante, printed 
 
 at, 217. 
 Atheist, Dante and, 155. 
 Athenceum, 217 n., 239 n., 257 n. 
 
 Aucassin et NicoUte ; form of, compared with V. N., 166. 
 Augusta, Princess (1768-1840) ; Tarver's French translation of Inferno 
 
 dedicated to, 215. 
 Ave Maria; alleged paraphrases of, by Dante, 259, 260. 
 Avignon ; Papal Court at, loi. 
 AzzoVIII of Este (Marquis, 1 293- 1308) ; mentionedin DeVulg.Eloq.,2/\i. 
 
 B 
 
 Bacci, O. See D'Ancona. 
 
 Balbo, Cesare; Vita di Dante, 280; ed. by E. Rocco, 281; English 
 translation by F. J. Bunbury, 281. 
 
 Baldo d' Aguglione. See Aguglione. 
 
 Bambaglioli, Graziolo de' (d. bef. 1343) ; Latin commentary on Inferno, 
 221, 222, 271 ; Italian translation of, 221, 271 ; identified by Dr. 
 Moore, 221 ». 
 
 Bandino, Domenico di (c. 1340-c. 1414) ; notice of Dante, 276. 
 
 Baptistery of Florence. See Giovanni, San. 
 
 Barbi, M. ; as to the site of Dante's house, 37 ». ; doubts as to alleged 
 documentary reference to Dante, 72 ». ; prints documents relating 
 to Dante's loans and debts, 86 n., 87 ». ; discusses evidence as to 
 Dante at Forli, 90 «., 92 «. ; critical edition of V.N., 167 »., 173; 
 chapter divisions in, 167 ». ; on Jacopo di Dante's commentary, 222 
 n. ; on so-called commentary of Stefano Talice da Ricaldone, 223 «., 
 225 "■ 
 
INDEX 287 
 
 Baidi ; great Florentine banking-house, 46 ; theit relations with Edward 
 III, 46 ». 
 
 Bardi, Simone de' ; husband of Beatrice Portinari, 46. 
 
 Baretti, Giuseppe (1719-1789) printed selections from D. C. in his Italian 
 Library, 214. 
 
 Baigello. See Podest4, Palazzo del. 
 
 Bargigi, Guiniforto delli (1406-c. 1460) ; commentary on Inferno, 225, 273. 
 
 Barker, William (fl. 1550) ; notice of Domenico di Michelino's picture of 
 Dante in his Epitapkia et Inscriptiones Lugubres, 143 «. 
 
 Bartoli, A. ; Storia della Letteratura Italiana, 54 »., 164 «., 280. 
 
 Bartolini, Lorenzo (c. 1777-1850) ; gives Kirkup mask of Dante, 137. 
 
 Baruffaldi, G. ; first prints Dante's letter to Can Grande, 250. 
 
 Barziza, Guiniforte. See Bargigi. 
 
 Basle ; ediiio princeps of De Monarchia printed at, 238. 
 
 Basque ; selections firom D. C. translated into, 217. 
 
 Bassano ; editions of Venturi's commentary on D. C. published at, 227 n, 
 
 Batines, Colomb de ; Bibliografia Dantesca, 213 «., 222 «., 223 n., 
 226 n. 
 
 BattifoUe, Countess of; her letters to wife of Henry VII supposed by 
 Witte to have been composed by Dante, 251 ; their authenticity up- 
 held by Novati, 251 «. 
 
 Beatrice Alighieri. See Alighieri. 
 
 Beatrice degli Uberti. See Uberti. 
 
 Beatrice Portinari. See Portinari. 
 
 Beauvais, Vincent of (d. c. 1264) ; anonymous notice of Dante in 1494 
 Venice edition of Speculum Historiale, 278 ; Grauert on, 278 n. 
 
 Belacqua, Dante and, 146-7. 
 
 Bella; Dante's mother, 38; presumed to belong to the Abati family, 
 37 «., 38 ; first wife of AlighierOj 38 ; mention of, in document, 38 ». 
 
 Bellincion Berti ; his daughter the wife of Alighiero, Dante's great-grand- 
 father, 41. 
 
 Bellincione degU Alighieri. See Alighieri. 
 
 Bello ; ancestor of Dante, 41 ; his son Geri, 41-2. 
 
 Bello, Geri del. See Geri. 
 
 Bembo, Bernardo (1433-1519) ; restores Dante's tomb at Ravenna, 106-7, 
 114 ; entrusts the work to Pietro Lombardi, 106-7 ! his inscription 
 transcribed by Fynes Moryson, 107 ». ; ambassador at Venice, 112. 
 
 Bembo, Pietro (1470-1547) ; son of Bernardo Bembo, iq6 ; secretary to 
 Leo X, 113 ; letter as to removal of Dante's remains to Florence, 113. 
 
 Benedict XI (Pope, 1303-1304); succeeds Boniface VIII, 90; sends 
 Cardinal Niccolo da Prato to pacify Florentines, 90, 246. 
 
 Benevento, battle of (1266) ; Man&ed defeated by Charles of Anjou, 28-9, 
 
 31. 34. 35. 36. 59 »• 
 Benvenuto Rambaldi da Imola. See Rambaldi. 
 Bergamo, Filippo da. See Forest!. 
 Bernardo Canaccio. See Canaccio. 
 Bertoldi, Giovanni de'. See Serravalle. 
 
 Betussi, G. ; translation of Boccaccio's De Geneahgia Deorum, 275. 
 Bezzi, G. A. ; helps to discover Bargello portrait of Dante, 132, 267. 
 Biagioli, N. G. (177Z-1830); commentary on D. C, 227-8; editions of, 
 
 228 n. 
 Bianchi. See Whites. 
 
288 IJNiJiiA 
 
 Bianchi, Brunone; edition of Bruni's Vita di Dante, 57 »., 74 «., and 
 passim (See Bruni) ; commentary on D. C, 228-9. 
 
 Bible ; quotations from, in V. N., 67. 
 
 Bice ; familiar name of Beatrice, 44, 47 n. 
 
 Biondo, Flavio (1388-1463) ; states that Dante was at Fori!, go m. ; his 
 Historiae ah incUnato Romano Imperio, go «., 277 ; compendium of, 
 277 ; notice of Dante in, 277. 
 
 Biscioni, Anton Maria (1674-1756) ; Prose di Dante Alighieri e di M. Gio. 
 Boccaccio, 172, 173 »., 191; the first to use the title Convito in an 
 edition of the Convivio, 173 »., 191. 
 
 Blacks and Whites; origin of, in Pistoja, 75-6 ; in Florence, 76-81 ; leaders 
 of both parties banished from Florence, 81 ; intervention of Pope 
 Boniface, 82 ; Whites send embassy to Rome, 83 ; ascendancy of 
 Blacks, 83 ; sentences against Whites, 83-4 ; exiled Whites form alli- 
 ance with Ghibellines, go ; meeting at San Godenzo, 90 ; abortive 
 attempt to enter Florence, go ; Dante dissociates himself from them, 
 90 ; fresh sentences against Whites, 98. 
 
 Blacksmith, Dante and, 147-8. 
 
 Blanc, L. G. ; Vocabolario Dantesco, 230; Italian translation of, 230, 
 
 Bocca degli Abati. See Abati. 
 
 Boccaccio, Giovanni (13 13-1375) ; Vita di Dante quoted, 44-5, 67-8, 69, 
 85, 99, 100, 104-5, 109-12, 119-26, 159-60, 161-2, 174-5, 193-5. 196 »., 
 206-8, 212, 232-3, 240,251; date of, 45 ». ; editio princeps of, 275; 
 English translations of, 275 ; two forms of, 275 ».; Comento sopra la 
 D. C, quoted, 103 «., 2og-it ; acquaintance with Dante's nephew, 39; 
 identification of Beatrice, 43 ; visits Dante's daughter at Ravenna, 71 ; 
 not the forger of alleged letter of Frate Ilario, g2 «. ; states that Dante 
 visited Paris and England, 92-3; rebuke to the Florentines, iog-12; 
 proposed monument to, in Duomo at Florence, ri2 ; visits to Ravenna, 
 119; description of Dante, 119-26; anecdotes of Dante, 120, 121-3. 
 124-5 ! mention of Dante's lyrical poems, 159-60; of V. N., 161-2; 
 of Convivio, 174-5 ; account of D. C, 193-5 ! stories of recovery of lost 
 cantos of D. C, 206-11 ; opinion as to why D. C. was written in 
 Italian, 211-12; letter of Frate Ilario known to, 212 «.; unfinished 
 commentary on D. C, 223, 272 ; public lectures on Dante at Florence, 
 223 ; commentary on D.C. falsely attributed to, 223, 272 ». ; Comento 
 utilized by Anonimo Fiorentino, 224 ».; account ofDe Monarckia, 
 232-3 ; omitted in 1576 edition of Vita di Dante, 233 «. ; account of 
 De Vulg. Eloq., 240; owned MS. containing letters of Dante and 
 letter of Frate Ilario, 248, 250 ; mention of Dante's letters, 251 ; bio- 
 graphical notices of Dante in Comento sopra la D. C, 275 ; and De 
 Genealogia Deorum, 275, 278 «. 
 
 Bocchi, F. ; notice of Dante, 280. 
 
 Bocci, D. ; Dizionario alia D. C, 230. 
 
 Bodleian Library at Oxford ; authorship of epitaph on Dante disclosed in 
 MS. in, 106 ; MS. of Convivio in Canonici Collection in, 192 n. 
 
 Boethius ; his De Consolatione Philosophies studied by Dante, 65, 67, 166, 
 182 ; form of, compared with Vita Nuova, 166. 
 
 Boffito, G., and Melzi d' Eril ; Almanack Dantis Aligherii, 197 n. 
 
 Bohemian ; translation of Z7. C. in, 217. 
 
 Bologna; alleged studies of Dante at, 67; D. invited to receive laurel 
 crown at, 100, 252, 254 ; Jacopo della Lana's commentary on D. C, 
 
INDEX 289 
 
 published at, 222, 271 ; Benvenuto da Imola's lectures on D. C. at, 223 ; 
 
 commentary of Anonimo Fiorentino on D. C. published at, 273 ; first 
 
 edition of Costa's commentary, 228. 
 Bologna, Gian (1524-1608) ; possessed mask of Dante, 136, 
 Bonagiunta of Lucca (fl. 1296) ; Dante's interview with, in Purgatory, 
 
 71. 97- 
 Bonaini, F. ; Acta Henrici VII, 97 n. 
 
 Boniface VIII (Pope, 1294-1303) ; sentence against creatures of, in Flo- 
 rence, 74 ; intervenes between Blacks and Whites in Florence, 80, 
 
 82, 124 ; sends Charles of Valois as his representative, 82-3, 124 ; 
 
 opposed by Dante, 82; Dante member of embassy to, 83, 124-5; 
 
 alleged letter of Dante to, 252. 
 Bonucci, A. ; edition of alleged Ave Maria of Dante, 260 n. 
 Boschini, G. B. ; editor of first English edition of D. C, 215. 
 Bottari, Giovanni (1689-1775) ; mentions cast of Brunelleschi's face, 
 
 13s. 
 Botticelli, Sandro (1447-1510) ; designs for first Florentine edition of D. C, 
 
 226 n. 
 Boyd, Henry (c. 1750-1832) ; author of first published English translation 
 
 of D. C, 219; notes on D. C, 229. 
 Brabant, Margaret of; wife of Henry VII, 251; letters of Countess of 
 
 BattifoUe to, attributed to Dante, 251. 
 Braccioforte Chapel at Ravenna ; Dante's remains in, 115, 118. 
 Bracciolini, Francesco Poggio (1381-1459) ; anecdotes of Dante in his 
 
 Facezie, 154-5. 
 Brescia ; edition of Landino's commentary on D. C. printed at, 226 n. ; 
 
 besieged by Henry VII, 249. 
 British Museum ; no copies of Edinburgh editions of D. C. in, 216 ; MS. 
 
 of G. da Serravalle's commentary on D. C. in, 224 »., 277 n. ; copy 
 
 of editio princeps of Quaestio de Aqua et Terra, 258 ». ; Cent. XV, 
 
 editions of Dante's Credo, 260 n. 
 Bromby, C. H. ; translation of Quaestio de Aqua et Terra, 258 n. 
 Brougham, Henry (1778-1868) ; subscriber to Rossetti's Comenio Analitico 
 
 alia D. C, 216. 
 Browning, Oscar; quoted, 5. 
 Brunelleschi, Filippo (1377-1446); cast of his face preserved in Florence, 
 
 135- 
 
 Brunetto Latino. See Latino. 
 
 Bruni, Leonardo (1369-1444); Vita di Dante quoted, 54 «., 57 n., 58 «., 
 70 n., 74, 77, 85-6, 89, 91, 141 ; description of Dante's handwriting, 
 54 K. ; claims to have seen letters of Dante now lost, 54 «., 57 «., 
 86 »., 91 »., 251-2 ; his Dialogus ad Petrum Histrum, 54 n. ; acquaint- 
 ance with Dante's great-grandson Leonardo, 70 n. ; mentions Taddeo 
 Gaddi's portrait of Dante, 141 ; Kirkup's statement that he mentions 
 Giotto's portrait of Dante, 267 ; editio princeps of his Vita di Dante, 
 277 ; English translations of, 277. 
 
 Brunswick, royal house of ; descended from the Guelfs, i. 
 
 Bryce, James ; analysis of De Monarchia in his Holy Roman Empire, 
 235-8. 
 
 Bubwith, Nicholas (Bp. of Bath and Wells, 1407-1424) ; founded and en- 
 dowed Cathedral Library at Wells, 224 «. ; at Council of Constance 
 instigated G. da Serravalle to write commentary on D. C, 224-5. 
 
 19 
 
290 _^ INDEX 
 
 Buckingham, Duke of (1592-1628) ; anecdote of Dante quoted to, by Lord 
 
 Keeper Williams, 125 n. 
 Bulletin Italien, 221 n. 
 
 Bullettino della Societa Dantesca Italiana. See Societa Dantesca. 
 Bunbury, Mrs. F. ]. ; account of Bargello in 1852, 132 n. ; translation 
 
 from Boccaccio's Vita di Dante, 207-8 ; from his Comento, 209-11 ; 
 
 translation of Balbo's Vita di Dante, 281. 
 Buonccnte da Montefeltro. See Montefeltro. 
 Buonconvento ; death of Henry VII at, g6. 
 Buondelmonti, Buondelmonte dei ; murder of, 5-7, 8, 34. 
 Burnetto ; Dante's uncle, 37 «., 42 ; in charge of Florentine Carroccio at 
 
 Montaperti, 42. 
 Burney, Charles (1726-1814) ; translated Inferno, 218. 
 Burning alive ; punishment of, 84 n. 
 Buti, Francesco da (1324- 1406) ; commentary on the D. C, 48 »., 223, 
 
 224, 273, 276 ; date of, 224 ; mentions tradition that Dante joined 
 
 Franciscan Order, 48 ». ; lectures at Pisa on D. C, 224; notice of 
 
 Dante, 276. 
 Butler, A. J.; translation of i3. C. with notes, 220; translation of Scartaz- 
 
 zini's Dante Handbuch, 250 »., 281. 
 Byron, Lord (1788-1824) ; translated Francesca da Rimini episode from 
 
 D. C, 220 ; version of Purg, viii. 1-6 in Don Juan, 221 ; interest 
 
 in publication of Taaffe's Comment on D. C, 229. 
 
 Cacciaguida ; great-great-grandfather of Dante, 38 n., 40 ; mention of, in 
 documents, 40 n. ; his father Adamo, 40 ; his history related in the 
 Commedia, 40-1 ; baptized in San Giovanni, 40, 42 ; his brothers 
 Moronto and Eliseo, 40 ; his wife Alighiera, 40 ; military services 
 and death, 40 ; situation of his house in Florence, 40-1 ; his sons 
 Preitenitto and Alighiero, 40-1 ; descendants, 41-2 ; " foretells " 
 Dante's exile, 88, 90, 91. 
 
 Caccianimici family of Bologna; member of, supposed to figure as 
 Polyphemus in poetical correspondence between Dante and G. del 
 Virgilio, 256 n. 
 
 Calendars, Arabian and Syrian ; utilized by Dante in V. N., 47 »., 48 «., 
 67, 165, 170. 
 
 Calimala; street in Florence connecting Mercato Vecchio and Mercato 
 Nuovo, 31 «. 
 
 Cambridge (U.S.A.) Dante Society ; Annual Reports, 82 »., 91 »., 161 n., 
 221 »., 224 «. 
 
 Cammino, Gherardo da (d. 1306) ; reference to, in Convivio, 175. 
 
 Campaldino, battle of (1289) ; Tuscan Ghibellines defeated by Florentine 
 Guelfs, 53-62, 67 ; Dante takes part in, 53-4, 57, 61, 62, 74 ; alleged 
 account of, by Dante, 57 «., 251 ; Villani's account of, 57-60; Buon- 
 conte da Montefeltro killed in, 60, 61-2 ; reminiscences of, in D. C, 
 61, 6a. 
 
 Campi, G. ; commentary on D. C, 229. 
 
 Can Grande. See Scala. 
 
 Canaccio, Bernardo ; friend of Dante at Ravenna, loo n. ; his epitaph on 
 Dante, 105-6 ; supposed until recently to have be§n written by Dante 
 
INDEX 291 
 
 himself, ro6 ; identity of writer discovered in MS. in Bodleian, 106 ; 
 translated by Fynes Moryson, 106 n, 
 
 Cancellieri family of Pistoja ; Black and White factions originate from 
 feuds of, 75-7. 
 
 Cancellieri, Focaccia de' ; occasions hostilities between two branches of 
 Cancellieri family, 75-6. 
 
 Canolati, Bartolommeo ; dealings of Visconti with, as a sorcerer, 101-3. 
 
 Cante de' Gabrielli. See Gabrielli. 
 
 Canterbury ; MS. of Convivio at, 192 n. 
 
 Canzoni e Madrigali di Dante, i6o. 
 
 Canzoniere. See Lyrical Poems. 
 
 Caponsacchi, Cilia di Gherardo de' ; wife of Folco Portinari, 46 ». ; her 
 eleven children, 46 ».-47 «. 
 
 Caprona ; Dante present at capitulation of, 62. 
 
 Carbone, G. ; translation of Blanc's Vocabolario Dantesco, 230. 
 
 Cardinals, Italian ; Dante's letter to, 97, 249-50. 
 
 Carducci, G. ; Rime di M. Cino da Pistoja, 49 ». , 50 n., 108 n. 
 
 Carlyle, J. A. (1801-1879) ; printed Italian text of Inferno with his trans- 
 lation, 216, 
 
 Carmina Illustrium Poetarum Italorum; Dante's Eclogues first printed 
 
 in, 253- 
 Carpenter, G. R.; Episode of the Donna Pietosa, 161 n. 
 Carpentras; conclave at, 97, 249. 
 Carroccio, Florentine, 15 ; Villani's account of, 17-18 ; at battle of Monta- 
 
 perti, 21 ; capture of, by Sienese, 24 ; flagstaffs preserved in Cathedral 
 
 of Siena, 24 n. ; Dante's uncle in charge of, at Montaperti, 42. 
 Cartolario, A. ; notice of Dante, 276. 
 Cary, H. F. (1772-1844) ; printed Italian text of Inferno for first time in 
 
 England, 215 ; his translation of D. C, 2ig ; notes on D. C, 229. 
 Casentino ; Dante in, 92-3. 
 Casini, T. ; commentary on D. C, 36 «., 229; edition of V. N., 166 »,, 
 
 167 «. ; chapter divisions in, 167 «. 
 Cassino, Monte. See Monte Cassino. 
 
 Castagno, Andrea del (c. 1390-1457) ; his representation of Dante, 143 n. 
 Casts from human face ; art of taking, known to the ancients, 135 «. 
 Cat, anecdote of Dante and, 156-7. 
 Catalan; translation of D. C. in, 217. 
 Cavalcanti, Cavalcante, 33-4. 
 Cavalcanti, Guido (c. 1255-1300) ; marries the daughter of Farinata degli 
 
 Uberti, 34; Dante's firiend, 36 ?»., 45, 47 »., 50, 81, 159, 164, 170; 
 
 replies to Dante's first sonnet, 45, 50, 159 ; his reply translated by 
 
 Rossetti, 159 K. ; friend of Manetto Portinari, to whom he addressed 
 
 a sonnet, 47 n.; poetical correspondence with Dante, 50-1; one of 
 
 the Whites, 81 ; exiled through Dante's means, 81 ; death of, 81-2 ; 
 
 his last poem, 82 «. ; Taddeo Gaddi's portrait of, in Santa Croce, 141 ; 
 
 Dante's V. N. dedicated to, 164 ; his lady, Giovanna, 170. 
 Cavalcaselle, G. B. ; version of Kirkup's letter to the Spectator on the 
 
 Giotto portrait of Dante, 133 n. ; opinion as to the portraits of Dante, 
 
 142 n. 
 Cavicciuli, Antonio di Baldinaccio de' ; member of the Adimari family of 
 
 Florence, rescued from death by Dante, 43 n. 
 Cayley, C. B. (1823-1883) ; translation of D. C, with notes, 229, 
 
292 INDEX 
 
 Cecco d' Ascoli (1257-J327) ; Quirini's defence of Dante's niemory against 
 
 imputations of, 108 ; anecdote of Dante and, 156-7. 
 Cerchi family of Florence; leaders of White Party, 76; feud with Donati, 
 
 77-81. 
 Cerchi, Ricoverino de'; wounded in broil in Florence, 81, 
 Cerchi, Vieri de' ; at battle of Campaldino, 58, 61, 76 ; leader of Whites 
 
 in Florence, 76, 79, 80. 
 Charles I of Anjou (1220-1285); defeats Manfred at Benevento, 28-9, 31, 
 
 34> 35) 36 ; receives lordship of Florence for three years, 34. 
 Charles II of Anjou (1243- 1309) ; in Florence, 55 ; aids Florentines, 56; 
 mentioned in De Vulg. Eloq., 241 ; supposed to figure in Bargello 
 fresco containing portrait of Dante, 268. 
 Charles of Valois (1270-1325) ; representative of Boniface VIII in Florence, 
 
 82-3, 124. 
 Charles Mattel of Hungary (1271-1295) ; Dante's acquaintance with, 140 «. 
 Charles the Great {742-814) ; Dante's error as to coronation of, 237 n. 
 Chaucer, Geoffrey (c. 1340-1400) ; translations firom D. C. in his works, 
 
 218. 
 Checcacci, G. ; opinion as to portraits of Dante, 142 b. 
 Chiswick Press ; single volume edition of D, C. printed by Whittinghams 
 
 at, 216. 
 Church, Dean ; quoted, 3-5. 
 
 Church, F. J. ; translation of De Monorchia, 239 n. 
 Cialuffi, Lapa di Chiarissimo ; Dante's stepmoflier, 37 »., 38 ; second wife 
 
 of Alighiero, 38 ; mention of, in document, 38 n. 
 Ciccarelli, L. ; first editor of Boccaccio's commentary on D. C, 223, 272. 
 Cicchetti, pietro; editor of first single volume English edition of ZJ. C, 
 
 216 ; his mistaken claim in respect of it, 216. 
 Cicero; De Amicitia Studied by Dante, 65, 67, 182. 
 Cinelli, Giovanni (d. 1706) ; biographical notice of Dante, 136 ; reference 
 to mask of Dante, 136 ; Kirkup's statement that he mentions Giotto's 
 portrait of Dante, 267. 
 Cino da Pistoja (1270-c. 1337) ; friend of Dante, 48 ; canzone on death of 
 Beatrice, 48-9, 107; translated by Rossetti, 49; canzone on death 
 of Dante, 50, 107-8 ; replies to Dante's first sonnet, 50, 159 ; his re- 
 ply translated by Rossetti, 159 ».; poetical correspondence with 
 Dante, 50, 107; Dante's letter to, on subject of love, 50, 248. 
 Cittadini, Celso (d. 1627) ; Italian translation oi De Vulg. Eloq., 245. 
 Civezza, M. da ; joint editor of Serravalle's commentary on D. C, 273. 
 Clement IV (Pope, 1264-1268) ; invites Charles of Anjou to take posses- 
 sion of Sicily, 28. 
 Clement V (Pope, 1305-13x4) ; death of, 97, 249, 250. 
 Codronchi, Mgr., Archbishop of Ravenna; mention of the hiding of 
 
 Dante's remains, 114. 
 CoUe ; editions of Costa's commentary on D. C. published at, 228 n. 
 Co'mmedia; Dante's reference to in V. N., 48, 193 ; dedications of, 92 »., 
 195 ; completed at Ravenna, 100 ; divergent opinions in it and Con- 
 vivio, 175; Italian language brought to highest perfection in, 176; 
 account of, 193-206 ; by Boccaccio, 193-5 ; by Villani, 195 ; echoes 
 of, in ViUam, 195 ; its origin, 193-4 ; Dante's account of its subject 
 and aim in letter to Can Grande, 195-6, 250 ; its title, 196 «. ; number 
 of lines in, 197, 213 ; date of action of, 197 ; duration of action, 197-8 ; 
 
INDEX 293 
 
 dates of composition, 198 ; scheme of, 198-206 ; Boccaccio's story of 
 lost cantos of Paradiso, 206-8 ; and of unfinished Inferno, 209-11 ; 
 why written in Italian, 211-12; Dante and his rhymes, 213 ; statistics 
 of MSS., 213; of printed editions, 213-14, 226; editio pyinceps, 172, 
 191, 214 ; French editions, 214 ; selections printed in England, 214-15 ; 
 English editions, 215-17; translations, 217-18; English translations, 
 218-221 ; statistics of, 219-20 ; lectures on, by Boccaccio, 223 ; by 
 Benvenuto da Imola, 223, 225; by Buti, 223-4; by Filippo Villani, 
 250; commentaries on, 41 »., 70, 98 «., loi »., 103 »., 131 «., 146-7, 
 221-9, 271-4; Cent. XIV, 221-4, 271-3 ; Cent. XV, 224-6, 273 ; Cent. 
 XVI, 226, 273-4; Cent. XVIII, 227; Cent. XIX, 227-9; English 
 commentaries, 229-30; indices, 227, 230; dictionaries, 230; con- 
 cordance, 230 ; the work quoted, 21, 22, 24, 27, 30, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 
 41, 42, 48 «., 51, 55, 56, 61-3, 64, 69, 71, 84, 89, 90, 91, 92, 97, 100, 
 loi »., 129 «., 138, 140, 146, 175 «., ig6 «., 197, 211, 221, 234 n. 
 
 Compagni, Dino (c. 1260-1326) ; his Chronicle quoted, 77-8. 
 
 Conrad the Salic {Emperor, 1024-1039) ; progenitor of Swabian Em- 
 perors, 2. 
 
 Conrad III (Emperor, 1138-1152); defeats Henry of Bavaria at Weins- 
 berg, 2. 
 
 Conradin of Hohenstaufen (1251-1268) ; intrigues of Guelfs with, 28. 
 
 Constance, Council of (1414-1418) ; G. da Serravalle at instigation of two 
 English bishops writes commentary on D. C. at, 225. 
 
 Convito; incorrect title of Dante's Convivio first used by Biscioni, 173 »., 191. 
 
 Convivio ; reference to Dante's exile in, 88-9, 91, 175, 177 ; Kirkup makes 
 drawing of Giotto's portrait of Dante in copy of 1531 edition of, 
 134 ». ; reference to V. N. in, 161 ; Biscioni's edition, 172, 173 n,, igi ; 
 account of the work, 173-92 ; correct title of, 173 »., 191 ; editio 
 princeps of, 173 »., 191 ; Cent. XVI editions, 173 «., igi ; MSS. of, 
 173 »., 191-2 ; attempts to identify missing canzoni in, 174 ; division 
 into chapters, 174 ; Villani's account of, 174 ; Boccaccio's, 174-5 ; 
 date of work, 175 ; perhaps composed at Bologna, 175 ; meaning of 
 name, 175 ; wherein it differs from V. N. 175, 176 ; reason why 
 written in Italian, 175, 177-8 ; analysis of work, 176-91 ; English 
 translations of, 176 »., 192 n. ; printed editions of, 191 ; critical 
 editions, 191 ; supposed reference to De Vulg. Bloq. in, 241 ; the 
 work quoted, 42 «., 48 n., 65-6, 66 »., 69 «., 88-9, 161, 173 «., 174 n., 
 175 »., 197 «., 234-5 «• 
 
 Corbinelli, Jacopo (fl. 1570-1590) ; printed editio pyinceps of De Vulg. 
 Eloq., 245, 246, 276, 280 ; first printed Serdini's notice of Dante, 276 ; 
 his notice of Dante, 280. 
 
 Cordeliers ; Franciscans so called, 48 n. 
 
 Cornell University Library ; copy of editio princeps of Quaestio de Aqua 
 et Terra in, 257 ». 
 
 Corrall, C. ; printer of Pickering's diminutive edition of D. C, 215. 
 
 Corsi, Domenico Maria (Cardinal, 1686-1697) ; restores Dante's tomb at 
 Ravenna, 107 ; engraving of tomb as restored by him, 107 «. 
 
 Corso Donati. See Donati. 
 
 Costa, Paolo ; commentary on D. C, 228 ; editions of, 228 n. 
 
 Credo, Dante's; alleged origin of, 150-2; MSS. of, 259-60: assigned by 
 some to Antonio da Ferrara, 260 ; editions of, 260 ; English transla- 
 tion of, 260 ». ; another Credo, 260 ». 
 
294 INDEX 
 
 Cremona ; besieged by Henry VII, 94. r t-> ■ o 
 
 Cronica Generate dal 1321 al 1470; anonymous notice of Dante m, 278. 
 
 D' Ancona e Bacci ; Manuale delta Letteratura Italiana, 72 ». 
 Daniello, Bernardino (d. c. 1560) ; commentary on D. C, 226, 274, 279 ; 
 
 notice of Dante, 279. 
 Danish; translation oiD. C. in, 217. 
 Dante Alighieri. See Alighieri, Dante. 
 Dante, Jacopo di. See Alighieri, Jacopo. 
 Dante, Pietro di. See Alighieri, Pietro. 
 Dante da Majano (fl. 1290) ; replies to Dante's first sonnet, 159 ; reply 
 
 translated by Rossetti, 159 n. 
 Dante e il sua Secolo, 98 n. 
 Dante e la Lunigiana, 247 «. 
 
 " Dantinus" at Padua, doubtfully identified with Dante, 91 n. 
 Dartmouth, Countess of (Frances Finch, 1761-1838) ; second English 
 
 edition of D. C. dedicated to, 215. 
 Davidsohn, R. ; Geschichte von Florenz, 40 «. 
 Dayman, J. ; notes on D. C, 229. 
 
 Del Balzo, C. ; Poesie di Mille Autori intorno a Dante Alighieri, 276 «. 
 Del Lungo, I. ; Beatrice nella Vita e nella Poesia del Secolo xiii, 43 «., 
 
 46 «. ; Dante ne' tempi di Dante, 51 ».; Dell' Bsilio di Dante, 71 »., 
 
 84 «., 95 «., 98 »., 112 »., 113 n., 115 ».; Dal Secolo e dal Poema di 
 
 Dante, 74 n ; Dim Compagni e la sua Cronica, 97 «. ; monographs 
 
 on Dante, 281. 
 Delizie degli Eruditi Toscani, 275, 276 «., 278. 
 Delia Corte, Girolamo (fl. c. 1560) ; notice of Dante, 279. 
 Delia Torre, A. ; critical text of Dante's letter to Florentine ftiend, 99 n. 
 Dino Compagni. See Compagni. 
 Dino Perini. See Perini. 
 Dionisi, Giovanni Giacomo (1724-1808) ; first printed Dante s letter to 
 
 Florentine friend, 250 ; reprinted Dante's Eclogues in his Aneddoti, 
 
 253. 
 
 D'lsraeli, Isaac (1766-1848) ; anecdote of Dante in Curiosities of Litera- 
 ture, 156-7 ; subscriber to Rossetti's Comento Analitico alia D. C, 
 216. 
 
 Divina Commedia. See Commedia. 
 
 Dolce, Lodovico (1508-1568) ; notice of Dante, 279. 
 
 Domenichelli, T. ; joint editor of Serravalle's commentary on D. C, 273. 
 
 Domenico di Michelino (1417-1491); his representation of Dante, 143; 
 formerly attributed to Orcagna, 143 «. ; notice of, by William Barker, 
 143 », ; inscription on, translated by Ed. Wright, 143 n. 
 
 Dominican Schools of Santa Maria Novella, 66 ». 
 
 Donati family of Florence; their houses back to back with those of 
 Alighieri, 67 ».; leaders of Black Party, 76 ; feud with Cerchi, 77-81. 
 
 Donati, Corso (d. 1308) ; Podesta of Pistoja, 58 ; at battle of Campaldino, 
 58, 59, 61, 67, 76 ; leaders of Blacks in Florence, 76, 80, 83 ; Giotto's 
 portrait of, 131, 268, 269. 
 
 Donati, Forese (d. 1296) ; friend of Dante, 39, 51, 67 ; poetical correspond- 
 ence with Dante, 39, 51. 86. 
 
INDEX 295 
 
 Donati, Gemma; Dante's wife, 37 «., 67; her family, 67; Boccaccio's 
 description of her, 67-8 ; Dante's relations with, 67-g ; identified by 
 some with the " donna gentile " of V. N., 67 «., 161 ; separation from 
 Dante, 6g, 71, 88 ». ; survives Dante, 71 ; conceals Dante's writings 
 when he was condemned, 209-10 ; claims back her dowry from Dante's 
 confiscated property, 210. 
 
 Donati, Manetto; Dante's father-in-law, 67, 86; security for debt of 
 Dante, 86, 87. 
 
 Donati, Maria ; Dante's mother-in-law, 67, 86 ; her will, 86. 
 
 Doni, Anton Francesco (1513-1574) ; first printed Italian translation of 
 Dante's letter to Henry VII, 249 ; alleged letter of Dante to Guido 
 Novello da Polenta first printed by, 2S1 «. 
 
 Donkey-driver, Dante and, 150. 
 
 Dupr£, G. ; opinion as to portraits of Dante, 142 n. 
 
 Dutch ; translation of D. C. in, 217. 
 
 Eastlake, Charles Lock (1793-1865) ; friend of Bezzi, who helped to dis- 
 cover the Bargello portrait of Dante, 267. 
 
 Eclogues of Dante, 100, 172 ; account of, 252-3 ; Boccaccio's mention of, 
 252 ; MSS. of, 252 ; Latin commentary on, 252, 255 »., 256 n. ; 
 editions of, 253 ; analysis of, 253-6 ; English translations of, 253 ». 
 
 Edinburgh ; English editions oiD. C, published at, 216. 
 
 Edizioni del naso of D. C, 226 n. 
 
 Edward III (1327-1377) ; failure of Bardi banking house through his de- 
 fault, 46 n. 
 
 Elisei ; Dante's supposed descent from, 38, 41 n. ; situation of their house 
 in Florence, 41 n. 
 
 Eliseo; ancestor of Dante, 38, 40. 
 
 Eloquentia, De Vulgari. See Vulgari Eloquentia, De. 
 
 Empoli ; Ghibelline council at, 27. 
 
 England ; supposed visit of Dante to, 92-3 ; editions of D. C. printed in, 
 215-17. 
 
 English commentaries on D. C, 229-30. 
 
 English editions of D.C., 215-17. 
 
 English Historical Review ; account of opening of Dante's tomb, Ii6-r7 ; 
 article on unknown biographical notice of Dante, 278 ». 
 
 English translations of Canzoniere, 160 n. ; of Vita Nuova, 173 n. ; of 
 Convivio, 176 n., 192 «. ; of D. C, 218-20; of Ugolino episode, 220; 
 of Francesca da Rimini, 220 ; of Purg. viii. 1-6, 220-1 ; of De 
 Monarchia, 238 n.-g n. ; of De Vulgari Eloquentia, 245 «. ; of Latin 
 Letters, 25 1 «. ; oi Latin Eclogues, 253 ». ; oiQuaestio de Aqua et Terra, 
 258 ». ; of Apocryphal Works, 260 ». ; of Villani's notice of Dante, 275 ; 
 of Boccaccio's Vita di Dante, 275 ; of Bruni's Vita di Dante, 277. 
 
 Epicycle ; definition of, 204 n. 
 
 Ercole, P. ; Guido Cavalcanti e le sue Rime, 47 «., 50 b., 82 n. 
 
 Escorial ; MS. of G. da Serravalle's commentary on D. C. in, 224 »., 277 n. 
 
 F 
 
 Faggiuola, Uguccione della (d. 1320) ; Ghibelline leader, 92 «., 97, 98 ; 
 alleged letter of Frate Ilario to, concerning Dante, 92 «., 248, 263-6 ; 
 
296 INDEX 
 
 alleged dedication oi Inferno to, 92 ». ; captures Lucca, 97 ; defeats 
 
 Tuscan Guelfs at Monte Catini, 98, 253. 
 Faltoni, Perseo; drawing of the Giotto portrait of Dante, 270 ». 
 Fanfani, P.; editor of commentary of Anonimo Fiorentino on D. C, 224, 273, 
 Farinata degli Uberti. See Uberti. 
 Farinelli, A. ; Dante in Ispagna, 224 n., 277 n. 
 Fauno, Lucio ; Italian translation of Pope Pius II's compendium of 
 
 Flavio Biondo's Historiae ah incUnato Romano Imperio, 277. 
 Fay, E. A. ; Concordance of the D. C, 230. 
 Ferrara ; Cacciaguida's wife probably native of, 40. 
 Ferretti, Giampietro (1482-1557) ; notice of Dante, 279. 
 Fiammazzo, A. ; editor of Graziolo de' Bambaglioli's Latin commentary 
 
 on Inferno, 221, 271. 
 Ficino, Marsilio (1433-1499) I Italian translation of De Monarchia, 238 ; 
 
 first printed by Fraticelli, 238 «. ; Italian translation of Dante's letter 
 
 to the Princes and Peoples of Italy attributed to, 248. 
 Fiduccio de' Milotti. See Milotti. 
 Filelfo, Giovanni Mario (1426-1480) ; mentions letters of Dante, 252 ; Vita 
 
 Dantis, 252 »., 278; Kirkup's statement that he mentions Giotto's 
 
 portrait of Dante, 267. 
 Flaccus lUyricus. See Francowitz. 
 Florence ; proposed destruction of, by Ghibellines, 27 ; saved by Farinata 
 
 degli Uberti, 27 ; Vendetta in, 41-2 ; baptisms in, 43 ». ; hospital of 
 
 Santa Maria Nuova, 47 ; Blacks and Whites in, 76-81 ; besieged by 
 
 Henry VII, 95 ; edition of Dante's lyrical poems printed at, 160, 172 ; 
 
 editio princeps of V. N., 160, 172 ; Biscioni's edition, 172, 191 ; 
 
 Barbi's critical edition, 173 ; first English translation of V. N., 173 n, ; 
 
 editio princeps of Convivio, 173 «., 191; editions of D. C, 196 m., 
 
 214, 227 »., 228 n. ; Landino's commentary on D. C. first printed at, 
 
 195 »., 214, 225-6, 273 f Boccaccio's lectures on D. C. at, 223 ; Gelli's 
 
 lectures, 226 ; F. Villani's lectures, 250 ; Rajna's critical edition of 
 
 De Vulg. Eloq. printed at, 245 n., 246. 
 Florentine reckoning, 28 «., 36 n. ; method of indicating old and modern 
 
 styles, 36 «. 
 Florentines ; Dante's letter to, 93-4, 248-g ; Boccaccio's rebuke to, log- 
 
 112 ; attempt to get possession of Dante's remains, 112-15. 
 Folco Portinari. See Portinari. 
 Foligno; editio princeps oiD. C. printed at, 214. 
 Fondora, Cosciorino ; husband of Gentucca Morla, 97. 
 Forese Donati. See Donati. 
 
 Foresti, Jacopo Filippo (1434-1520) ; notice of Dante, 278 ; Italian trans- 
 lations of, 278. 
 Forli ; Dante at, 90, 92. 
 Foscolo, Ugo (1778-1827) ; edition of D. C. 216, 228 ; Discorso sul Testo 
 
 delta D. C, 216, 228. 
 Foxe, John (1516-1587) ; probably saw editio princeps of De Monarchia 
 
 through the press, 239 ; volume containing it quoted in Booi of 
 
 Martyrs, 239. 
 Francesca da Rimini episode from D. C. ; English translations of, 220. 
 Francesco Alighieri. See Alighieri. 
 Francis, St. ; legend as to rocks at La Vernia in connection with his re- 
 
 cei\ang the stigmata, 48 ». 
 
INDEX 297 
 
 Franciscan Order ; tradition that Dante joined it for a time, 48 «. ; saluta- 
 tion of, given by Statius and returned by Virgil in Purgatory, 48 n. 
 
 Francowitz, Mathias Flach (d. 1575) ; notice of Dante, 279. 
 
 Frangipani of Rome ; Dante's reputed descent from, 37. 
 
 Fraticelli, P. ; Vita di Dante, 67 »., 72 »., 73 »., 266, 281 ; commentary 
 on D. C, 229; edition of De Monarchia, 231 m., 238 ». ; chapter 
 divisions in, 231 «. ; first printed Ficino's translation, 238 n. ; edition 
 of Boccaccio's commentary on D. C, 272. 
 
 Frederick II (Emperor, 1212-1250) ; helps to repel Guelfs from Florence, 
 7-10 ; called by Dante the last Emperor of the Romans, 234 n. 
 
 Frederick II (King of Sicily, 1296-1337) ; Paradiso said to have been 
 dedicated to, 92 n., 266. 
 
 French; translations of D. C. in, 217. 
 
 Frere, John Hookham (1769-1846) ; Rossetti's Comento Analitico alia 
 D. C. dedicated to, 216. 
 
 Frescobaldi, Dino ; sends first seven cantos oi Inferno to Moroello Mala- 
 spina, 210-11. ; 
 
 Frullani e Gargani ; Delia Casa di Dante, 40 n. 
 
 Gabrielli, Cante de' ; Podesta of Florence, 83 ; sentences Dante to 
 
 banishment, and afterwards to death, 83-4, 88, 98. 
 Gaddi, Taddeo (c. 1300-1366) ; portrait of Dante in Santa Croce, 141 ; 
 
 destroyed by Vasari, 141. 
 Gaetana CTana) Alighieri. See Alighieri. 
 Galleria di Minerva, 250 n. 
 Gardner, E. See Wicksteed and Gardner. 
 Gargani, G. See Frullani. 
 Gargonza ; meeting of exiled Whites at, 90. 
 Garrow, Joseph (fl. 1840); translation of F. N., 173 k. 
 Gelli, Giovan Battista (1498-1563) ; lectures on D. C, 226, 274 ; statement 
 
 as to commentary on D. C. by GiambuUari, 226 n. 
 Gemma Donati. See Donati. 
 
 Genoa ; Henry VII at, 95 ; King Robert of Naples besieged in, 253. 
 Gentucca ; Dante's attachment to, 71, 97 ; identified as wife of Cosciorino 
 
 Fondora of Lucca, 97 », Se« Morla. 
 Geri del Bello ; first cousin of Dante's father, 41 ; murder of, by one of 
 
 Sacchetti, 42, 147 ; Dante's meeting with, in He!l, 42 ; his murder 
 
 avenged, 42. 
 German; translations of D.C. in, 217; translation of Dante's lyrical 
 
 poems in, 247 «. 
 Gherardesca, Ugolino della (d. 1289); leader of Pisan Guelfs, 55; im- 
 
 prisonment and death in Tower of Famine at Pisa, 55, 62. 
 Ghibellines ; expelled from Florence, 14-15 ; retire to Siena, 15-16 ; helped 
 
 by King Manfred, 16-17 ! victorious at Montaperti, 21-5 ; hold council 
 
 at Empoli, 27; return to Florence, 27-8; masters of Tuscany, 28; 
 
 downfall after death of Manfired, 28-35 ; defeated at Campaldino, 53- 
 
 60. 
 GiambuUari, Pier Francesco (1495-1555) ; commentary on D. C, 226 n. ; 
 
 quoted by Gelli, 226 ». ; De 'I sito, forma, e misure dello Inferno, 
 
 226 n. 
 
298 INDEX 
 
 Gianni, Lapo (fl. 1300) ; friend of Dante and Guido Cavalcanti, 51, 165 «, 
 
 Giannini, C. ; editor of Buti's commentary on D. C, 224, 273. 
 
 Giardino, Piero di; friend of Dante at Ravenna, 100 »., 103 «., iig; 
 supplies Boccaccio with information about Dante, 103 »., 119 ; his 
 account of Jacopo di Dante's dream as to the lost cantos of the 
 Paradiso, 207-8. 
 
 Gillum, Col. W. J. ; presents Kirkup's drawing of Giotto's portrait of 
 Dante to Museo Nazionale at Florence, 134 ». 
 
 Gillum, Mrs. ; account of how Kirkup made drawing of Giotto's portrait 
 of Dante, 134 n. 
 
 GiornaU Dantesco, 71 »., loi n. 
 
 Giornale del Centenario di Dante, 142 «., 143 n. 
 
 Giornale Storico della Letteratura Italiana, 41 «. 
 
 Giotto (1266- 1337) ; mentioned in D. C, 129 «. ; portrait of Dante, 128-35, 
 139-40, 141 ; account of, by Lord Lindsay, 129, 130 n. ; probable date 
 of, 130, 130 n. ; references to, by F. Villani, 130 ; Antonio Pucci, 
 130 ».; G. Manetti, 130-1; Vasari, 131, 132; Landino, I3i«.; Moreni, 
 132 ; his portraits of Brunetto Latino and Corso Donati, 131 ; redis- 
 covery of fresco containing portraits, 132-3, 135 »., 267-70; Kirkup's 
 drawing of the Dante portrait, 134-5 1 Taddeo Gaddi's portrait of, in 
 Santa Croce, 141. 
 
 Giovanna ; lady of Guido Cavalcanti, 170. 
 
 Giovanni dei Bertoldi. See Serravalle. 
 
 Giovanni del Virgilio. See Virgilio. 
 
 Giovanni, San, Baptistery of, at Florence ; attempted destruction of, by 
 Ghibellines, lo-ii; saved by Niccolo Pisano, 12 ».; Cacciagiiida 
 baptized in, 40 ; Dante baptized in, 42 ; Dante breaks font in, 42-3 ; 
 fonts in, 43 «. ; Villani's estimate of baptisms in, 43 n. 
 
 Giovio, Paolo (1485-1552) ; notice of Dante, 279. 
 
 Giuliani, G. B. ; edition of De Monarchia, 231 n. ; chapter divisions in, 
 
 231 71. 
 
 Gloucester, Humphrey, Duke of (1391-1447) ; presents copy of Giovanni 
 da Serravalle's commentary on D..C. to University of Oxford, 224 n. 
 
 Gonzaga, Luigi Valenti (Cardinal, 1776) ; restores Dante's tomb at 
 Ravenna, 107, 114. 
 
 Gower, John (c. 1330-1408) ; anecdote of Dante in Confessio Amantis, 
 145-6. 
 
 Grauert, Prof. H. ; identification of the notice of Dante in 1494 edition of 
 Speculum Historiale, 278 «. 
 
 Gray, Thomas (1716-1771) ; translated Ugolino episode firom D. C, 218 ; 
 first line oi Elegy inspired by Purg. viii. 6, 220-1. 
 
 Greek ; Dante ignorant of, 66 ; translation of D. C. in, 217. 
 
 Gregory XV (Pope, 1621-1623) ; receives MS. of Dante's letters and De 
 Monarchia from Maximilian of Bavaria, 247. 
 
 Grenoble ; MS. of De Vulg. Eloq. at, 246. 
 
 Gualdrada, la buona; her sister the wife of Alighiero, Dante's great- 
 grandfather, 41. 
 
 Guardamorto, tower at Florence ; destroyed by Ghibellines, 11-12. 
 
 Guelfs and Ghibellines, 1-35; origin of names, 1-2; introduction into 
 Italy, 2 ; characteristics of the two parties, 2-5 ; first appearance in 
 Florence, 5-7 ; distinctive banners adopted by, 14-15 ; varying for- 
 tunes of (1215-1267), 7-35. 
 
INDEX 299 
 
 Guelfs; expulsion of, from Florence, 8 ; return Of, 12 ; defeated at Monta- 
 perti, 21-5, 39 ; retire to Lucca, 26 ; expelled thence, 28 ; regain their 
 ascendancy, 28-35; Dante's Guelf connexions, 36-7, 39; Guelf victory 
 at Campaldino, 53-60 ; Black and White Guelfs, 75-83 ; Dante one 
 of the White Guelfs, 82 ; Tuscan Guelfs defeated at Monte Catini by 
 Uguccione della Faggiuola, 98. 
 
 Guido Cavalcanti. See Cavalcanti. 
 
 Guido da Pisa; Latin commentary on Inferno, 222, 271 ; Italian transla- 
 tion of, 222, 271. 
 
 Guido Guerra (d. 1272); leader of Florentine Guelfs, 20-1, 29. 
 
 Guido Novello, Count (d. 1293) ; Ghibelline Podesti of Florence, 27 ; 
 commands Ghibelline expedition against Lucca, 28 ; murmurs against, 
 in Florence, 30; alarm after Manfred's death, 31 ; fails to repress the 
 discontented Florentines, 32 ; flies from Florence, 33 ; Podestjl of 
 Arezzo, 56 ; his flight at battle of Campaldmo, 59. 
 
 Guido Novello da BattifoUe ; Dante's host at Poppi, 93. 
 
 Guido Novello da Polenta (d. c. 1325) ; invites Dante to Ravenna, 99 ; 
 sends him on embassy to Venice, 103, 155 ; his honourable burial of 
 Dante, 104-5, log, 116 ; leaves tomb incomplete, 105-6, 136 ; probably 
 had cast taken from Dante's face, 135-6 ; alleged letter of Dante to, 
 from Venice, 251 ; figures as lolas in poetical correspondence between 
 Dante and G. del Virgilio, 255-6. 
 
 H 
 
 Hadrian I (Pope, 772-795^; Dante's error as to coronation of Charles the 
 
 Great by, 237 «. 
 Hallam, Henry (1777-1859) ; subscriber to Rossetti's Comento Analitico 
 
 alia D. C, 216. 
 Hallam, Robert (Bp. of Salisbury, 1408-1417) ; at Council of Constance 
 
 instigated Giovanni da Serravalle to write commentary on D. C, 225 ; 
 
 Chancellor of University of Oxford, 225. 
 Hamilton, G. L. ; notes on G. da Serravalle and his commentary on D. C, 
 
 224 ». 
 Hardouin, Jean (1646-1729); Doutes sar I'Age du Dante, 279 n. 
 Harington, Sir John (1561-1612) ; anecdote of Dante in his Epigrams, 155 ; 
 
 lines from D. C. translated by, 218. 
 Haselfoot, F. K. H. ; translation of D. C, with notes, 229. 
 Hayley, William (1745-1820) ; printed Italian text of Inf. i.-iii. in notes to 
 
 Essay on Epic Poetry, 215 ; translation in terza rima of same in 
 
 same, 215, 218. 
 Haym, Niccola Francesco (d. 1730) ; Biblioteca Xtaliana, 276 «., 277 «., 
 
 278 »., 279 «. 
 Hebrew; translation oi Inferno in, 217. 
 Hecker, 0. ; Boccaccio-Funde, 45 ». 
 Heidelberg ; MS. of Dante's letters and De Monarchia removed from, by 
 
 Tilly, 247. 
 Henry IV (Emperor, 1056-1106) ; confers Duchy of Bavaria upon Welfs, 2. 
 Henry V (Emperor, 1106-1125); succeeded by Lothair of Saxony, 2. 
 Henry VI (Emperor, iigo-1197) ; brother of Philip, Duke of Swabia, 2. 
 Henry VII (Emperor, 130S-1313); enters Italy, 93; resisted by Florence, 
 
 93-41 95-6 ; besieges Cremona, 94 ; Dante's letter to, 94, 249 ; Dante 
 
300 INDEX 
 
 present at his coronation at Milan, 94 ; issues edicU against Florence, 
 95 ; besieges Florence, 95 ; raises siege, g6 ; death at Buonconvento, 
 96 ; rejoicings of Florentines at, 96-7 ; reference to, in De Monarchia, 
 234 «.; coronation at Aix, 235 ». ; death of, suggested to Dante by 
 G. del Virgilio as theme for Latin poem, 253. 
 
 Henry, Aurelia; translation oiDe Monarchia, 239 n. 
 
 Herbst, Johann. See Oporinus. . 
 
 Heywood, Thomas (c. 1575-0. 1650); extract from D.C. prmted m 
 Hierarchic of the Blessed Angels, 214. . 
 
 Hierarchies, Celestial ; Dante's different opinions as to arrangement of, m 
 Convivio and D. C, 175. 
 
 Hillard, K. ; translation of Convivio, 192 «. 
 
 Hislorisches yahrbuch, 378 », 
 
 Hohenstaufen ; imperial line, 2 ; Conradin of, 28. 
 
 Homer ; quoted at second-hand in V. N., 66. 
 
 Horace ; quoted in V. N., 66. 
 
 Hornby, C. H. St. J. ; editions of D. C, and whole works of Dante, 
 printed by, 217. 
 
 Howard, Nathaniel (fl. 1800) ; translated /m/swo, 219 ; notes on Inferno, 229. 
 
 Howell, A. G. F. ; translation of De Vulg. Eloq., 24.1 »., 245 n. 
 
 Huggins, William (1696-1761) ; author of earliest recorded English trans- 
 lation of D. C, 218. 
 
 Hume, Joseph (1777-1855) ; translated Inferno, 219 ; notes on Inferno, 229. 
 
 Humphrey, Duke. See Gloucester. 
 
 Hungarian ; translation of D. C. in, 217. 
 
 Hungary, King of; alleged letter of Dante to, 252. 
 
 I 
 
 Icelandic ; selections from D. C. translated into, 217. 
 
 Ilario, Frate ; alleged letter of, to Uguccione della Faggiuola, concerning 
 Dante's visit to monastery of Santa Croce del Corvo, 92 ».; the 
 letter known to Boccaccio, 212 n. ; MS. containing it owned by 
 Boccaccio, 248 ; translation of, 263-6. 
 
 Ildefonso da San Luigi, Padre; Delizie degli Eruditi Toscani, 275, 
 276 n., 278. 
 
 Imbriani, V. ; Studi Danteschi, 86 «., 91 «., 280. 
 
 Imola, Benvenuto da. See Rambaldi. 
 
 Inferno ; alleged dedication to Uguccione della Faggiuola, 92 n. ; number 
 of lines in, 197; date of composition, 198 ; scheme of, 198-200; Boc- 
 caccio's account of recovery of seven first cantos of, 20g-ii ; English 
 translations of, 218-20 ; Cent. XIV commentaries on, 221-2 ; Boc- 
 caccio's unfinished commentary on, 223. 
 
 Inquisition, and ediiio princeps of V. N., 172-3. 
 
 Inquisitor, Dante and, 150-2. 
 
 lolas ; name under which Guido da Polenta figures in poetical correspond- 
 ence between Dante and G. del Virgilio, 255-6. 
 
 Jackson, W. W. ; translation of Convivio, 176 n., 192 ». ; summary of 
 contents utilized, 176-91. 
 
INDEX 301 
 
 Jacopo Alighieri. See Alighieri. 
 
 Jahrbuck der Deutschen Dante-Gesellschafi, 270 n. 
 
 Jena; edition of Lombardi's commentary on D. C. published at, 227 «. 
 
 Jesi ; edition of D. C. printed at, 214. 
 
 John I, Marquis of Montferrat. See Montferrat. 
 
 John XXII (Pope, 1316-1334); attempt on life of, by Visconti of Milan, 
 
 101-3 ; Dante's aid invoked as a sorcerer, 102 ; uncle of Cardinal 
 
 Bertrand du Pouget, 232 m. 
 Jubilee of 1300; date of action of D. C, 197. 
 
 K 
 
 Kannegiesser, K. L. ; translation of Dante's lyrical poems, 247 n. 
 
 Kirkup, Seymour (1788-1880) ; helps to discover Bargello portrait of 
 Dante, 132; account of itbefore restoration, 133-4 ; facsimile, tracing, 
 and drawing of it, 134-5 ; sale of his library, 134 n. ; account of the 
 three masks of Dante, 136-7 ; letter to Charles Lyell as to mask, 
 136 B. ; presents mask to Oxford Dante Society, 137 n. »• letters to G. 
 Rossetti as to discovery of Bargello portrait, 267-70. 
 
 Kleptomania ; anecdote of Dante and, 156. 
 
 Kraus, F. X. ; Dante, Sein Leben und Sein Werk, 270 n. 
 
 Lacaita, G. F. ; editor of Benvenuto da Imola's commentary on D. C, 
 
 223, 272. 
 La Vernia ; tradition as to upheaval of rocks of, at Crucifixion, 48 n. 
 Lagia; lady mentioned in Son. xxxii., 165 «. 
 Lana, Jacopo della (d. aft. 1358) ; author of first complete commentary 
 
 on D. C, 222, 271 ; his work erroneously attributed to Benvenuto 
 
 da Imola, 222, 271 ». ; editions and MSB. of, 222, 271-2 ; Latin transla- 
 tions of, 222-3, 272. 
 Lancia, Andrea (c. i2go-c. 1360); author of Ottimo Comento on D. C, 
 
 223, 272. 
 Landino, Cristoforo (1434-1504) ; mentions Giotto's portrait of Dante, 
 
 131 «. ; commentary on D. C, 131 «., ig6 n., 214, 225-6, 273 ; notice 
 
 of Dante, 131 «., 278. 
 Lando da Gubbio; proclaims amnesty to Florentine exiles, 98; Villani's 
 
 description of, 98 n. 
 Lapa Cialuffi. See Cialuffi. 
 Lapo Gianni. See Gianni. 
 Lastra ; exiled Whites at, go. 
 
 Latham, C. S. ; translation of Dante's Letters, 195-6 «., 251 n. 
 Latin ; translations of D. C. in, 217, 224 ». 
 Latino, Brunetto (c. 1210-1294); relations with Dante, 64; his Tresor, 
 
 64 ; Giotto's portrait of, 131, 268, 269. 
 Leghorn. See Livorno. 
 
 Leicester, Earl of; owns MS. of Convivio at Holkham, 192 n. 
 Leigh, Edward (1602-1671) ; Treatise of-' Religion and Learning, and of 
 
 Religious and Learned Men, 279 «. 
 Leipzig ; edition of V. N. published at, 167 «. 
 
302 INDEX 
 
 Leland, John (c. 1500-1552) ; saw copies of G. da Serravalle's commentary 
 on D. C. at Oxford and Wells, 224 ». 
 
 Leo X (Pope, 1513-1521) ; authorizes removal of Dante's remams from 
 Ravenna, 113-14, 117. 
 
 Leon Poggi. See Poggi. 
 
 Leonardo Aretino. See Bruni, Leonardo. 
 
 Letters of Dante; mentioned by Bruni, 54 »., 57 m., 86 »., 91 «., 95 »., 
 251; by Villani, 249-50 ; by Boccaccio, 251 ; by Filelfo, 252 ; account 
 of, 246-52; discovered mostly through exertions of Witte, 246 ».; 
 Witte's editions of, 246 ». , 247, 248, 249 ; numeration of, in Oxford 
 Dante, 246 k. ; Torri's edition, 247, 248, 249, 251 ». ; doubtful letters, 
 251-2; English translations, 251 ».; to Cino da Pistoja, 50, 248 ; to 
 Princes and Peoples of Italy, 93, 248 ; to Florentines, 93-4, 95-6, 
 248-g ; to Emperor Henry VII, 94, 249 ; to Italian Cardinals, 97, 
 249-50; to friend in Florence, 98-9, 250; critical text Of, 99 n.; to 
 Can Grande, 195-6, 250 ; utilized by F. Villani, 250 ; to Niccolo da 
 Prato, 246-7; to Counts of Romena, 247; to Moroello Malaspina, 
 247; letters quoted, 54 »., 93-4, 195-6. 
 
 Lindsay, Lord (1812-1880) ; account of Giotto's portrait of Dante in 
 History of Christian Art, 129, 130, 133 n. 
 
 Liverpool ; Rossetti's picture of " Dante's Dream " in Walker Art Gallery, 
 170 n. 
 
 Livorno ; edition of V. N. published at, 167 «. ; edition of D. C. printed 
 at, with false imprint of London, 214 ; editions of Venturi's commen- 
 tary on D. C. published at, 227 «.; Torri's edition of Dante's letters, 
 247 «., 248 «., 249 «., 251 n. 
 
 Lombardi, Francesco Baldassare ; commentary on D. C, 227 ; editions 
 of, 227. 
 
 Lombardi, Pietro (d. c. 1515) ; Venetian architect entrusted by Bembo 
 with restoration of Dante's tomb at Ravenna, 106-7 ! P^r' of his work 
 still existent, 107. 
 
 London ; edition of D. C. with false imprint of, 214 ; earliest editions of 
 D. C. printed In, 215-16 ; Rossetti's Comento Analitico alia D. C, 216, 
 228 ; Foscolo's Discorso sul testa delta D. C, and edition of D. C, 
 216, 228 ; centenary edition of D. C, 217. 
 
 Longfellow, H. W. ; translation of D. C. , with notes, 229. 
 
 Lonsdale, Countess of (Augusta Fane, 1761-1838) ; second English edition 
 ofD. C dedicated to, 215. 
 
 Lowell, J. R. ; quoted, 104. 
 
 Lubin, A. ; commentary on D. C, 229. 
 
 Lucan ; quoted in V. N., 66. 
 
 Lucca; Dante's attachment to lady of, 71, 97; captured by Uguccione 
 della Faggiuola, 97 ; Dante at, 97 ; Venturi's commentary on D. C. 
 first published at, 227. 
 
 Luiso, F. P. ; Chiose di Dante le qualifece eljigluolo, 70 «., 222 «. ; Tra 
 Chiose e Commenti Antichi alia D. C, 70 ». 
 
 Luni, Bishop of; Dante's negotiations with, on behalf of Malaspini, 
 92. 
 
 Lunigiana ; Dante in, 91-2. 
 
 Lyell, Charles (1767-1849); Poems of the Vita Nuova and Convito of 
 Dante, 136 «., 160 ». ; letter from Kirkup as to mask of Dante, 136 
 », ; translation of Dante's lyrical poems, 160 «, 
 
INDEX 303 
 
 Lyons ; editions of D. C. printed at, 214; first edition of D. C. printed 
 
 outside Italy, executed at, 214. 
 Lyrical Poems of Dante, 45, 49, 50, 51-2, 71, 158-60, 165 n, ; mention of, 
 
 by Villani, 159; by Boccaccio, 159-60; earliest printed editions, 
 
 160 ; English translations, 160 n. ; Santi's edition,. 174 n. 
 Lysistratus Sicyonius (c. 320 B.C.) ; according to Pliny the first who 
 
 took cast of human face, 135 ». 
 
 M 
 
 Macri-Leone, F. ; edition of Boccaccio's Vita di Dante, 45 «., 68 «., 69 
 
 »., axiA passim. See Boccaccio. 
 Maffei, Rafaello (1451-1522) ; notice of Dante, 279. 
 Maghinardo da Susinana (d. 1302) ; though Ghibelline by birth supports 
 
 the Florentine Guelfs, 56 «. 
 Malaspina Currado (d. t. 1294) ; " foretells " Dante's visit to the Mala- 
 
 spini in Lunigiana, gi-2. 
 Malaspina, Franceschino (d. bet. 1313 and 1321) ; Dante's host at Sarzana, 
 
 91-2. 
 Malaspina, Moroello (d. c. 13 15) ; Purgatorio said to have been dedicated 
 
 to, 92 »., 266 ; first seven cantos of Inferno sent to, by Dino Fresco- 
 
 baldi, 210-11 ; Dante with, in Lunigiana, 211 ; urges Dante to 
 
 complete Inferno, 211 ; letter of Dante to, 247 ; F. Novati on, 
 
 247 «. 
 Malaspini ; Dante's relations with, gi-2. 
 Malavolti, Catalano de' ; Guelf, appointed joint Podesti of Florence, with 
 
 Loderingo degli Andalo, in 1266, 30 «. 
 Manardi, A. ; edition of alleged Credo of Dante, 260 «. 
 Manetti, Giannozzo (1396-1459) ; mentions Giotto's portrait of Dante, 
 
 130-1 ; Vita Dantis, 131 «., 277. 
 Manetto Portinari. See Portinari. 
 Manfred, King (c. 1231-1266); helps exiled Florentine Ghibellines, 16-17, 
 
 18-19 1 defeat of his German horsemen, 19 ; reinforces the Ghibelline 
 
 exiles at Siena, 19-21 ; defeated and killed at Benevento, 28-9, 34, 
 
 35. 36. 
 Mantua; Dante at, loo-i, 257; edition ofZ?. C. printed at, 214; statue 
 
 of Dante at, 260 «. 
 Mantuans ; their reverence for Virgil, no. 
 Marini ; helps in search for Bargello portrait of Dante, 133 ; retouches 
 
 the portrait, 133, 269. 
 Martin, Theodore {1816-1909) ; translation of V. N., 173 n. 
 Martinella; Florentine bell so called, 17, 18, 21, 24; captured with Car- 
 
 roccio by Sienese at battle of Montaperti, 24. 
 Marvellian stanzas ; translation of Purgatorio in, 219, 220 ». 
 Masson, Jean Papire (1544-1611) ; Vita Dantis, 280. 
 Maurolico, Francesco (fl. c. 1550 ) ; notice of Dante, 279. 
 Maximilian of Bavaria (1573-1651) ; presents MS. of Dante's letters and 
 
 De Monarchia to Pope Gregory XV, 247. 
 Mazzini, Giuseppe (1805-1872) ; editor of Foscolo's edition of D. C, 
 
 216, 228. 
 Medicean Academy at Florence; urge removal of Dante's remains to 
 
 Florence, 113, 114, 117 ». 
 
304 INDEX 
 
 Medici, Cosimo de' (1519-1569) ; destroys Taddeo Gaddi's portrait of 
 Dante in Santa Croce, 141. 
 
 Medici, Francesco I de' (Grand-Duke, 1574-1587) ; removes font broken 
 by Dante from Baptistery of Florence, 43 n. 
 
 Medici, Lorenzo de' (1448-1492); attempts to obtain Dante's remams 
 firom Ravenna, 112. 
 
 Mehus, L. ; Vita AmbrosH Traversarii, 276 ; edition of Manetti's lives 
 of Dante, Petrarch and Boccaccio, 277. 
 
 Meliboeus ; name under which Dino Perini figures in poetical correspond- 
 ence between Dante and G. del Virgilio, 100 »,, 209 »., 254-6. See 
 Perini, 
 
 Mez2ano, Menghino ; friend of Dante at Ravenna, 100 «., 105 ; his 
 epitaph on Dante, 100 »., 103 «., 105, 107 ; his friendship with Dante 
 attested by Coluccio Salutati, 100 «., 105 n. ; statement as to date 
 of Dante's death, 103 n.; close student of D. C, and reputed com- 
 mentator, 105 B. 
 
 Michel Angelo (1475-1564) ; offers to design and execute tomb for Dante's 
 remains, 113. 
 
 Michelino, Domenico di. See Domenico. 
 
 Milan; Dante present at coronation of Henry VII at, 94; edition of 
 Dante's lyrical poems printed at, 160; edition of Convivio, igi ; 
 edition of D. C, 214, 222, 271 ; editions of Jacopo della Lana's 
 commentary on D. C, 222, 271 ; edition of Stefano Talice da Rical- 
 done's so-called commentary on D. C, 225, 273 ; Biagioli's commen- 
 tary, 228 M. ; Costa's commentary, 228 n. ; Tommaseo's commentary, 
 228 K.; MS. of De Vulg. Eloq. at, 246. 
 
 Milanesi, Gaetano; Opere di Vasari, 141 «., 143 »., 145 ». ; report on 
 portraits of Dante, 142 n.; edition of Boccaccio's commentary on 
 D. C, 272. 
 
 Milotti, Fiduccio de' ; friend of Dante at Ravenna, 100 «. ; the Alphesi- 
 boeus of his Eclogues, 100 «., 255-6. 
 
 Milton, John (1608-1674) ; lines from D. C. translated by, 218 ; reference 
 to Boccaccio's account of De Monarchia, 233 n. 
 
 Minutoli, C. ; Gentucca e gli altri Lucchesi noininati nella D. C, 98 n. 
 
 Missirini, M. ; Vita di Dante, 281. 
 
 Modena; edition of Convivio printed at, igi. 
 
 Modern Language Review, 173 «., 219 «., 223 «. 
 
 Modern Quarterly of Language and Literature, 278 ». 
 
 Monarchia, De ; condemned to be burned by Cardinal Bertrand du Pouget, 
 102, 232-3 ; account of, 231-9 ; chapter divisions in, 231 n. ; Villani's 
 mention of, 232 ; Boccaccio's account, 232-3 ; date of, 232, 233-5 1 
 no reference to Dante's exile in, 234 ; mention of Paradiso in some 
 MSS. of, 234 ; analysis of, 235-8 ; Cent. XV Italian translations, 
 238 ; English translations, 238 n. ; ediUo princeps, 238-9 ; the volume 
 containing it probably seen through press by John Foxe, 239 ; quoted 
 by Foxe in Book of Martyrs, 239 ; Oporinus' mistake as to author of, 
 239 ; MSS. of, 239, 247. 
 
 Moncetti, G. B. ; first editor of Quaestio de Aqua et Terra, 257. 
 
 Montaperti, battle of (1260) ; Florentine Guelfs defeated by Sienese, 21-5, 
 26, 27, 28, 30,37 »., 39, 42. 
 
 Monte Cassino ; anonymous commentary on D. C. by monk of, 223, 272. 
 
 Monte Catini, battle of (13 15) ; Tuscan Guelfs defeated by Uguccione 
 
INDEX 30s 
 
 della Faggiuola, 98, 253; the event suggested to Dante by G. del 
 VirgiUo as subject for Latin poem, 253. 
 
 Montefeltro, Buonconte da (d. 1289) ; Ghibelline leader, killed at battle 
 of Campaldino, 60-1 ; relates to Dante, in Purgatory, the fate of his 
 body, 61-2. 
 
 Montefeltro, Guide da (1223-1298) ; father of Buonconte, 60. 
 
 Montferrat, John I, Marquis of (1276-1305) ; mention of, in De Vulg. 
 Eloq., 241. 
 
 Montfort, Guy de (c. 1243-1288) ; vicar in Florence after battle of Monta- 
 perti, 34-5. 
 
 Monza ; edition of Costa's commentary on D. C. published at, 228 n. 
 
 Moon, spots on ; Dante's different theories as to, in Convivio and D. C, 
 175- 
 
 Moore, Dr. E.; account of opening of Dante's tomb, 116-17 ; critical 
 edition of Convivio in Oxford Dante, 191 ; owns MS. of Convivio, 
 192 ».; Studies in Dante, 197 »., 221 «., 222 «., 258 n. ; Time Re- 
 ferences in D. C, ig8 n. ; Contributions to Textual Criticism o/D. C, 
 213 n.; editor of Oxford Dante, 217 n.; and of centenary edition of 
 D. C, 217 «.; identified Italian translation of Graziolo de' Bambag- 
 lioli's Latin commentary on Inferno, 221 ». ; on Quaestio de Aqua 
 et Terra, 258; Dante and his Early Biographers, 276 «., 277 »., 
 280. 
 
 Mopsus ; name under which G. del Virgilio figures in poetical correspond- 
 ence with Dante, 254-6. See Virgilio. 
 
 Mordani, Filippo ; mention of hiding of Dante's remains, 114. 
 
 Moreni ; his attempts to discover Giotto's portrait of Dante, 132. 
 
 Morla, C. di Guglielmo di ; fether of Gentucca, 97 ». 
 
 Morla, Gentucca ; identified with Gentucca mentioned in D. C, 97. 
 
 Moronto ; ancestor of Dante, 38 «., 40. 
 
 Moryson, Fynes (1366-1630) ; translates Bernardo Canaccio's epitaph on 
 Dante, 106 «.; transcribes Bembo's inscription on Dante's tomb, 
 107 «. 
 
 Moutier, I. ; edition of Boccaccio's commentary on D. C, 272. 
 
 Mozzi, Andrea de' (Bp. of Florence, 1287-1295) ; hospital of Santa Maria 
 Nuova endowed by Folco Portinari at his suggestion, 47 «. 
 
 Murray, John (1778-1843) ; publisher of Rossetti's Comento Analitico alia 
 D. C, 215-16. 
 
 Muso ; name under which Albertino Mussato of Padua figures in poetical 
 correspondence between Dante and G. del Virgilio, 255. 
 
 Mussato, Albertino (1261-1329) ; figures under the name of Muso in 
 poetical correspondence between Dante and G, del Virgilio, 255. 
 
 N 
 
 Naples ; Henry VII marches against, g6 ; bronze bust of Dante at, 141 ; 
 editions of D. C. printed at, 214 ; editions of Lombardi's commentary 
 on D. C, 227 ». ; of Biagioli's commentary, 228 ». ; of Costa's com- 
 mentary, 228 ». ; reprint of Quaestio de Aqua et Terra, 257 n. 
 
 Naples, King Robert of. See Robert. 
 
 Negroni, C. ; editor of Stefano Talice da Ricaldone's so-called comment- 
 ary on D. C, 225, 273; of Gelli's lectures on D. C, 226, 274. 
 
 Neri. See Blacks. 
 
3o6 INDEX 
 
 Niccola Pisano (c. 1205-1278) ; destroys Guardamorto tower at Florence, 
 II n, ; contrives to spare Baptistery, 12 n. 
 
 Nicoletti, Marcantonio (1536-1596) ; notice of Dante, 280. 
 
 Nidobeato, Martino Paolo ; edition of D. C, with commentary of Jacopo 
 della Lana, printed by, at Milan, 222, 271. 
 
 Nine ; connection of, with Beatrice, 164-6. 
 
 Norton, C. E. (1827-1908) ; On the Original Portraits of Dante, 128-40 ; 
 translation of V. N., 162 «., 173 ». ; remarks on V. N., 162-4 ; trans- 
 lation of £). C, with notes, 229 ; review of Tamburini's translation of 
 Benvenuto da Imola's commentary on D. C, 272. 
 
 Norwegian ; selections from D. C. translated into, 217. 
 
 Novati, F. ; Epistolario di Coluccio Salutati, 105 »., 196 ». ; on Dante's 
 letter to Moroello Malaspina, 247 n. 
 
 Nuremberg Chronicle; notice of Dante in, 278. 
 
 Okey, T. ; translation of V. N., 159 »., 160 «., 173 «. 
 
 Oporinus, Joannes (1507-1568) ; printer of editio princeps oiDe Monarchia, 
 239 ; his error as to authorship of treatise, 239. 
 
 Orcagna, Andrea (c. 1308-1368) ; picture of Dante by Domenico di Mich- 
 elino in Duomo at Florence formerly attributed to, 143 n. 
 
 Ottimo Commento ; author of, quoted, 213 ; date of 223,272; author of, 
 223, 272 ; Torri's edition of, 223, 272. 
 
 Otto IV (Emperor, 1208-1212) ; contests Imperial throne with Philip, 
 Duke of Swabia, 2-3. 
 
 Ovid; quoted in V. N., 66. 
 
 Oxford ; supposed visit of Dante to, 93, 225 ; MS. of Convivio at, 192 ». ; 
 editions of D. C. printed at, 217 ; copy of G. da Serravalle's com- 
 mentary on D. C. presented to, by Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, 
 224 ». ; the bcok seen at Oxford by Leiand, 224 n. 
 
 Oxford Dante, 39 »., 5o».,sik., 86«., 100 »., 150 »., 167 «., 246»., 253 «., 
 260 n. ; chapter divisions of V. N. in, i6y n. ; critical edition of Con- 
 vivio in, 191 ; contains whole works of Dante, 217 ; edited by E. 
 Moore, 217 ».; contains index of proper names and notable matters, 
 217 »., 230; critical text oiQuaestio de Aqua et Terra, 258. 
 
 Oxford Dante Society ; mask of Dante presented to, by Kirkup, 137 ». 
 
 Padua ; alleged studies of Dante at, 67 ; alleged visit to, in 1306, gi ; 
 doubts as to this visit, 91 ». ; edition of Convivio printed at, 191 ; 
 Cent. XVII edition of D. C, 226 ». ; edition of Lombardi's com- 
 mentary on D. C. 227 n. ; first edition of Volpi's indices to D. C, 227 ; 
 Witte's edition of Dante's letters, 246 »., 248 «., 249 n. ; Cangrande's 
 operations against, 253. 
 
 Paget, Sir James ; opinion of death-mask of Dante, 137 n. 
 
 Palatine MS. in Vatican, containing Dante's letters and De Monarchia, 
 246-7, 248, 249 ; history of, 247. 
 
 Palazzo del Podest4. See Podest^. 
 
 Palazzo della Signoria. See Signoria. 
 
 Palazzo Vecchio. See Signoria. 
 
INDEX 307 
 
 Palermo; edition of Venturi's commentary on D. C. published at, 227 «. ; 
 
 Biagioli's commentary, 228 n. 
 Papanti, G. ; Dante secondo la tradizione e i novellatori, 145 n., 146 »., 
 
 152 «., 156 »., 157 ». 
 Paradiso ; alleged dedication of, to Frederick II of Sicily, 92 n. : dedica- 
 tion to Can Grande, 195-6, 250 ; number of lines in, 197 ; date of 
 composition, 198 ; scheme of, 203-6 ; Boccaccio's story of lost cantos, 
 206-8 ; completion of, contemplated by Dante's sons, 207 ; cantos of, 
 submitted to Can Grande by Dante, 208 ; recovered cantos sent to 
 Can Grande, 208; English translations of, 219-20; mention of, in 
 some MSS. of De Monorchia, 234. 
 
 Paris ; Dante at, 92, 122 ; edition of D. C. printed at, 214 ; edition of 
 Venturi's commentary on D. C. published at, 227 n.; first edition of 
 Biagioli's commentary, 227-8; editio frinceps oi De Vulg. Eloq,, 245, 
 280. 
 
 Pasqualigo, F. ; edition of anonymous Latin commentary on Dante's 
 Eclogues, 252 ». 
 
 Passerini, G. L. ; La Famiglia Alighieri, 70 n. 
 
 Passerini, L. ; Storia degli Stabilimenti di Beneficenza della Citta di 
 Firenze, 47 ».; report on portraits of Dante, 142 n. 
 
 Paur, T. ; Dante's PortrUt, 270 n. 
 
 Peacock, Thomas Love (1785-1866) ; version of Purg. viii. 1-6 in Head- 
 long Hall, 221. 
 
 Pelli, Giuseppe; Memoire per servire alia vita di Dante, 281. 
 
 Percy, Ladies Elizabeth and Emily ; first English edition of D. C. dedi- 
 cated to, 215. 
 
 Perez, P. ; / sette cerchi del Purgatorio, 203 n. 
 
 Perini, Dino ; friend of Dante at Ravenna, 100 n. ; the Meliboeus of 
 his Eclogues, 100 «., 209 «., 254 ; Boccaccio's informant (according 
 to the Comento) as to recovery of first seven cantos of /m/o-ko, 209 n., 
 254 M. 
 
 Perugia ; editio princeps of Bruni's Vita di Dante printed at, 277. 
 
 Petrarca, Francesco (1304-1374) ; Boccaccio's Latin epistle to, 92 ; pro- 
 posed monument to, in Duomo at Florence, 112; anecdote of Dante 
 in Res Memorandae, 144-!;. 
 
 Petronj, S. E. ; editor of English edition of i3. C, 215. 
 
 Phillimore, C. M. ; Dante at Ravenna, 118. 
 
 Piacenza ; Dante at, loi, 103. 
 
 Piccolomini, Enea Silvio (1405-1464). See Pius II. 
 
 Pickering, William (1789-1854) ; publisher of diminutive English edition of 
 D. C, 215 ; and of Foscolo's Discorso sul Testo del D. C, 216. 
 
 Piero. See Pietro. 
 
 Piero di Dante. See Alighieri. 
 
 Piero di Giardino. See Giardino. 
 
 Pietro Alighieri. See Alighieri. 
 
 Pilkington, Mrs. (Maria Elizabeth Gibbs, 1755-1843); second English 
 edition of D. C. dedicated to, 215. 
 
 Pisa ; lectures on D. C. at, by Francesco da Buti, 224 ; edition of Ven- 
 turi's commentary on D. C. published at, 227 n. 
 
 Pisa, Guido da. See Guido. 
 
 Pistoja ; Corso Donati Podesta of, 58 ; Blacks and Whites in, 75-7. 
 
 Pistoja, Cino da. See Cino. 
 
3o8 INDEX 
 
 Pius II (Pope, 1458-1464) ; compendium of Flavio Biondo's Histonae ab 
 
 inclinato Romano Imperio, 277 ; Italian translation of, 277. 
 Pliny ; reference in Histona Naturalis to art of taking casts from human 
 
 face, 135 ». J- J /I ■ 
 
 Plumptre, E. H. (1821-1891) ; translation of Commedm and Lanzoniere 
 of Dante, 160 «., 253 »., 260 «.; notes on D. C, 229; translation of 
 Dante's Latin Eclogues, 253 n. ; and of Dante's Professtone dt Fede, 
 
 260 n. 
 PodestEl ; office of, in Florence, 5 «., 30 «. 
 Podesta, Palazzo del, in Florence; now known as Bargello, 129 ; portrait 
 
 of Dante in, 129-35 ; fire in, mentioned by Villani, 130 «. ; Mrs. 
 
 Bunbury's account of, 132 n. 
 Poggi, Andrea; nephewof Dante, 39 ; resemblance to Dante, 39 ; supplies 
 
 Boccaccio with information about Dante, 39 ; account of the recovery 
 
 of the seven first cantos of the Inferno, 209-11. 
 Poggi, Leon ; married Dante's half-sister, 38-9 ; his son Andrea intimate 
 
 with Boccaccio, 39. {See above.) 
 Poggibonsi; Henry VII at, 95. 
 Poggio Fiorentino. See Bracciolini. 
 Polentone, Secco (c. 1375-c. 1448) ; notice of Dante, 277 ; two forms of, 
 
 277 «. 
 Poletto, G. ; commentary on D. C, 229; Dhionario Dantesco, 230. 
 Polish ; translation of D. C. in, 217. 
 Poliziano, Angelo (1454-1494) ; authorship of De Monarchia attributed to 
 
 friend of his by Oporinus, 239 ». 
 Polj^hemus ; name under which King Robert of Naples is supposed to 
 
 figure in poetical correspondence between Dante and G. del Virgilio, 
 
 256 «. 
 Poppi ; Dante at, 93. 
 
 Portinari, Beatrice (1266-1290) ; Dante's first meeting with, 43 ; identi- 
 fied by Boccaccio and Pietro di Dante with the Beatrice of V. N. and 
 
 D. C, 43 ; Boccaccio's account of, 43-5 ; salutes Dante, 45 ; denies 
 
 him her salutation, 45 ; Dante sees her at a wedding-feast, 45-6 ; 
 
 her marriage to Simone de' Bardi, 46 ; the marriage probably political, 
 
 46 ». ; death of her father Folco, 46-7 ; mentioned in her father's 
 will, 46 M.-47 ». ; her death, 47, 63, 67, 71, 161, 165 ; date of her death, 
 
 47 ».-48 n., 161, 165 ; canzone on her death by Cino da Pistoja, 48-g, 
 107 ; connection of number nine with, 164-6 ; Dante's resolve to say 
 of her what had been said of no other woman fulfilled in D. C, 193. 
 
 Portinari, Folco (d. 1289) ; father of Beatrice, 43-4, 46-7 ; death of, 46-7, 
 161, i6g ; account of 46 ».-47 k. ; his will, 46 ».-47 n. ; founds hos- 
 pital of Santa Maria Nuova in Florence, 47. 
 
 Portinari, Manetto (d. 1334) ; eldest son of Folco Portinari, 47 ». ; prob- 
 ably the near relation of Beatrice mentioned by Dante in V. N. as 
 his intimate friend, 47 «., 171 ; friend of Guido Cavalcanti, 47 «. 
 
 Portuguese ; translation of D. C. in, 217. 
 
 Pouget, Bertrand du (Cardinal, 1316-1351); condemns Dante's De Mon- 
 archia to be burned, 102, 232 ; created cardinal by his uncle. Pope 
 John XXII, 232 «. 
 
 Prato ; G. da Serravalle's commentary on D. C. published at, 224-5, 273) 
 277 ; edition of Lombardi's commentary, 227 ».; Costa's commentary, 
 228 n. 
 
INDEX 309 
 
 Prato, NiccoIS da (Cardinal, 1303-1321) ; sent by Benedict XI to pacify 
 Florence, 90, 246 ; Dante's letter to, 246-7. 
 
 Preitenitto ; ancestor of Dante, 40, 41. 
 
 Professione di Fede, Dante's ; also known as Dante's Credo, 259. See 
 Credo. 
 
 Promis, V. ; joint editor of Stefano Talice da Ricaldone's so-called com- 
 mentary on D. C, 225, 273. 
 
 Prose Antiche di Dante, Peirarcha, et Boccaccio, 249 »., 251 n. 
 
 Provenzano Salvani. See Salvani. 
 
 Ptolemy, the astronomer ; quoted in V. N., 66. 
 
 Pucci, Antonio (c. 1310-c. 1390) ; supposed reference to Giotto's portrait 
 of Dante, 130 n. ; notice of Dante in Centiloquio, 275. 
 
 Purgatorio; alleged dedication to Moroello Malaspina, 92 ». ; number 
 of lines in, 197 ; date of composition, ig8 ; scheme of, 200-3 '< English 
 translations of, 219-20. 
 
 Quadrio, Francesco Saverio (1695-1756); opinion ol Setts Salmi Peniten- 
 ziali attributed to Dante, 261. 
 
 Quadrivium ; Dante's instruction in arts of, 66 n. 
 
 Quaestio de Aqua et Terra; treatise ascribed to Dante, loi, 256 ; delivered 
 as public dissertation at Verona, loi, 257 ; disputed authenticity of, 
 loi, 256-8 ; account of, 256-8 ; editio princeps of, 257 ; facsimile re- 
 print of, 257 «., 258 ». ; English translations, 258 «.; critical text of, 
 258 ; analysis of, 258-9. 
 
 Quirini, Giovanni; poetical correspondent of Dante, 107, 107 n.; lament 
 on Dante's death, 108 ; sonnet in defence of Dante's memory, 108 ; 
 sonnet to Can Grande della Scala urging him to publish Dante's 
 Paradiso, 108. 
 
 Rafaello Volterrano. See Maifei. 
 
 Rajna, Pio; La Lettera di Frate Ilario, 92 »., 266; critical edition of 
 De Vulg. Eloq., 245 «., 246. 
 
 Rambaldi da Imola, Benvenuto (c. 1338-1390) ; account of Belacqua, 147 ; 
 commentary on D. C, 147, 213, 222, 223, 225, 272 ; Italian transla- 
 tions of, 223, 272 ; story of Dante and his rhymes, 213 ; Jacopo della 
 Lana's commentary erroneously attributed to, 222, 271 n. ; lectures 
 at Bologna on D. C., 223 ; his lectures transcribed by Steiano Talice 
 da Ricaldone, 223 n., 225, 273 n. ; biographical notice of Dante, 275-6, 
 
 Raphael (1483-1520) ; portrait of Dante, 137. 
 
 Ravenna ; Dante's daughter Beatrice a nun in convent of Santo Stefano 
 deir Uliva at, 70-1 ; visited by Boccaccio at, 71 ; Dante's children, 
 Pietro, Jacopo, and Beatrice, with him at, 71, 99 ; Dante's last re- 
 fuge, 99 ; Commedia completed at, 100 ; Dante's friends at, 100 ». ; 
 death of Dante at, 103 ; burial and tomb, 103-7, "l ! Fynes Moryson 
 at, 106 n., 107 «. ; people of, refuse to part with Dante's remains, 
 109, 112-15 ; relics of Dante in Biblioteca Nazionale at, 118 ».; Boc- 
 caccio's visits to, 119 ; Dante and the Inquisitor at, 15 1-2. 
 
3IO INDEX 
 
 Reckoning, Florentine method of, 28 »., 36 n. 
 
 Ricaldone, Stefeno Talice da (d. c. 1520) ; his so-called commentary on 
 
 D. C. a transcription of Benvenuto da Imola's lectures at Bologna, 
 
 223 «., 225, 273 ». 
 Ricci, Corrado; L' Ultimo Rifugio di Dante, 100 «., 103 «., 104 »., 106 »., 
 
 113 »., 114 »., 116 »., 118 »., 137 »., 252 «., 253 ». ; opinion of death 
 
 mask of Dante, 137 ». 
 Ricci, Stefano ; possessed mask of Dante, 137 ; statue of Dante in Santa 
 
 Croce, 137 n. 
 Richardson, Jonathan (1665- 1745) ; translated Ugolino episode from D. C, 
 
 218. 
 Rime di Trecentisti Minori, 131 n. 
 
 Rinuccini, Filippo di Cino (1392-1462) ; Vita di Dante, 278. 
 Robert (King of Naples, 1309-1343) ; Guido of BattifoUe his Vicar in 
 
 Florence, 98 ». ; opponent of Henry VII, 152 ; anecdote of Dante 
 
 and, 152-4 ; his defeat of Ghibellines in 1318-19 suggested to Dante 
 
 by G. del Virgilio as subject for Latin poem, 253-4 '< supposed to figure 
 
 as Polyphemus in poetical correspondence between Dante and G. 
 
 del Virgilio, 256. 
 Rocca, L. ; Del commento di Pietro di Dante alia D. C, 41 ». ; Di Alcuni 
 
 Commenti della D. C. composti nei primi venV anni dopo la morte di 
 
 Dante, 70 «., 221 h., 222 «., 223 n.; Chiose attribuite a Jacopo di 
 
 Dante, 70 n., 222 «. 
 Rogers, Charles {1711-1784) ; author of first published English translation 
 
 ol Inferno, 218. 
 Rogers, Samuel (1763-1855) ; subscriber to Rossetti's Com^nto Analitico 
 
 alia D. C, 216 ; version of Purg. viii. 1-6 in Italy, 221. 
 Rolandi, Pietro; publisher of Foscolo's edition of D. C, 216. 
 Romagna ; Dante in, 125. 
 Rome; Dante's embassy to, 83, 124-5 ; editions of Lombardi's commentary 
 
 on D. C. published at, 227 n. 
 Romena, Counts of; letter of Dante to, 247. 
 Rosciate, Alberico da (d. 1354) ; Latin translation of Jacopo della Lana's 
 
 commentary on D. C. 223, 272. 
 Rossetti, D. G. (1828-1882) ; Dante and his Circle, 49 »., 50 n., 52 »., 
 
 107 n., 159 «. ; picture of Dante's " Boat of Love," 51 ». ; at one 
 
 time owner of Kirkup's tracing of Giotto's portrait of Dante, 134 
 
 ». ; picture of " Dante's Dream," 170 n. ; translation of V. N., 
 
 173 »• 
 Rossetti, G. (1783-1854) ; tracing of Giotto's portrait of Dante given to, 
 
 by Kirkup, 134 n. ; letters of Kirkup to, about portrait, 135 »., 267-70, 
 
 Comento Analitico alia D. C, 216, 228 ; Sulla Spirito Antipapale che 
 
 produsse la Riforma, 228 ji.; II Mistero dell' Amor Platonico del 
 
 Medio Evo, 228 «. 
 Rossetti, M. F. (1827-1876) ; Shadow of Dante, 202 n. 
 Rossetti, W. M. ; Gabriele Rossetti, 135 «., 267 n. 
 Rostagno, E. ; edition of Compendio of Boccaccio's Vita di Dante, 275 n. ; 
 
 theory as to its relation to the Vita, 275 n. 
 Roumanian; translation of Z). C. in, 217. 
 Rudolf (Emperor, 1272-1292); not recognised as Emperor by Dante, 
 
 234-5 »• 
 Russian; translation oiD. C. in, 217. 
 
INDEX 311 
 
 Sacchetti family of Florence; feud with Alighieri, 42; Geri del Bello 
 murdered by member of, 42, 147 ; one of Sacchetti murdered in re- 
 venge, 42 ; reconciliation between the two families, 42. 
 
 Sacchetti, Franco (c. 1335-1400) ; anecdotes of Dante in his Novelle, 
 147-50. 
 
 Salutati, Coluccio (d. 1406) ; attests friendship of Menghino Mezzano 
 with Dante, 100 «., 105 ».; speaks of D. C. as " opus divinissimum," 
 196 ». 
 
 Saluzzo; Stefano Talice da Ricaldone's so-called commentary on D. C, 
 supposed to have been delivered as lectures at, 225. 
 
 Salvadori, G. ; Sulla Vita Giovanile di Dante, 66 «. 
 
 Salvani, Provenzano (d. 1269) ; leader of Sienese Ghibellines, 20, 
 
 San Gemignano ; Dante's embassy to, 73. 
 
 San Giovanni. See Giovanni, San. 
 
 San Godenzo ; Dante present at meeting of exiled Whites at, 90. 
 
 San Procolo, in Florence ; Dante in charge of public works on, 82. 
 
 Sanskrit; selections from D. C. translated into, 217. 
 
 Sansovino, Francesco (1521-1586); Italian translation of Filippo da Ber- 
 gamo's Supplementum Chronicarum, 278. 
 
 Santa Croce, in Florence ; Ricci's statue of Dante in, 137 n. ; portrait of 
 Dante by Taddeo Gaddi, 141. 
 
 Santa Maria Novella ; Dominican schools of, at Florence, probably at- 
 tended by Dante, 66 n. 
 
 Santa Maria Nuova; hospital at Florence endowed by Folco Portinari, 47. 
 
 Santi, A. ; Canaoniere di Dante, 174 n. 
 
 Santi, Friar Antonio ; conceals Dante's remains, 116. 
 
 Sarzana; Guido Cavalcanti exiled to, 81-2 ; Dante at, 91. 
 
 Saviozzo, II. See Serdini. 
 
 Savonarola, Michele (d. c. 1460) ; anecdote of Dante, 145. 
 
 Sayer, E. ; translation of Convivio, 192 n. 
 
 Scala, Bartolommeo della (lord of Verona, 1301-1304) ; Dante's host at 
 Verona, gi. 
 
 Scala, Can Grande della (lord of Verona, 1308-1329) ; Dante's host at 
 Verona, 99, 144 ; sonnet of Quirini to, urging him to publish Dante's 
 Paradiso, 108 ; stories of Dante and, 144-6, 154 ; Paradiso dedicated 
 to, 195, 250; Dante's letter to, explaining subject and aim of D. C, 
 195-6, 250, cantos of Paradiso submitted to, by Dante, 208 ; missing 
 cantos sent to, by Dante's sons, 208 ; his operations against Padua 
 suggested to Dante by G. del Virgilio as subject for Latin poem, 253. 
 
 Scaligers of Verona. Sc« Scala. 
 
 Scarabelli, L. ; editor of Jacopo della Lana's commentary on D. C, 222, 271. 
 
 Scartazzini, G. A. ; commentary on D. C, 229 ; Enciclopedia Dantesca, 
 230, 281 ; Companion to Dante, 250 »., 281 ; Dante-Handbuch, 281 ; 
 Prolegomeni della D. C, 281. 
 
 Schedel, Hartmann (d. c. 1500) ; notice of Dante in Nuremberg Chronicle, 
 278. 
 
 Scherillo, M. ; Alcuni Capitoli della Biografia di Dante, 38 »., 280; La 
 Forma Architettonica della Vita Nuova, 166 «. 
 
 Schonbrunn; MS. of Cittadini's translation of De Vulg. Bloq. preserved 
 at, 245. 
 
312 INDEX 
 
 Scott, Sir Walter (1771-1832) ; subscriber to Rossetti's Comento Analitko 
 alia D. C, 216. 
 
 Selfe. See Wicksteed, 
 
 Selmi, F. ; editor of anonymous commentary on Inferno, 222, 271. 
 
 Sercambi, Giovanni (1348- 1424); anecdotes of Dante, 152-4. 
 
 Serdini, Simone (c. 1360-c. 1419) ; otherwise known as II Sa/iozzo, 276; 
 notice 6f Dante, 276. 
 
 Serravalle, Giovanni da (c. 1350-1445) ; statement that Dante studied at 
 Oxford, 93, 225 J otherwise known as G. de' Bertoldi, 224, 276 ; Latin 
 commentary and translation of D. C, 224-5, 273, 276-7 ; copy of, pre- 
 sented to University of Oxford by Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, 
 
 224 «. ; copies of, seen by Leland at Oxford and at Wells, 224 n. ; 
 MSS. of, 224 «., 277 «. ; written during Council of Constance at in- 
 stigation of two English Bishops, 224-5 ; Serravalle's visit to England, 
 
 225 ; notice of Dante, 276-7. 
 
 Sette Salmi Penitenziali ; alleged translation of, by Dante, 259 ; MSS. 
 
 and editions of, 260. 
 Sforza, Duchess ; her connection with mask of Dante, 136. 
 Shadwell, C. L. ; critical text and translation of Quaestio de Aqua et Terra, 
 
 258. 
 Shelley, P. B. (1792-1822) : interest in publication of Taaffe's Comment 
 
 on D. C, 229. 
 Siena; flagstaffs preserved in Cathedral of, 24 n. ; anecdotes of Dante 
 
 at, 122, 154 ". anonymous commentary on Inferno by native of, 222. 
 Signoria, Palazzo della, at Florence ; now known as Palazzo Vecchio, 
 
 12 ; built askew by Arnolfo di Lapo, 12 ; Martinella bell hung in, 18 n. 
 Smith, J. R. ; translation of Boccaccio's Vita di Dante, 275 ; of Bruni's 
 
 Vita di Dante, 277. 
 Society Dantesca Italiana ; Bullettino, 37 »., 38 «., 53 «., 72 »., 84 «., 
 
 85 «., go «., 92 »., 99 «., 222 »., 223 «., 277 «. ; critical edition oi 
 
 V. N., 167 B., 173 ; of De Vulg. Eloq., 246. 
 Solerti, A. ; Vite di Dante, Petrarca e Boccaccio, scritte fino al secolo 
 
 decimosesto, 276 »., 277 »., 278 n., 279 »., 280. 
 Sonetti e Canzoni di diversi Autori Toscani, 160. 
 Sorcery. See Witchcraft. 
 Spanish; translations of JD. C. in, 217. 
 Spectator ; Kirkup's account of " restoration " of Giotto portrait of Dante, 
 
 133. 133 «• 
 
 Spencer, Earl (George John, 1758-1834) ; Pickering's edition of D. C. 
 dedicated to, 215. 
 
 Spenserian stanzas; translation of Z>. C. in, 219. 
 
 Spira, Vendelin da. See Vendelin. 
 
 Stefani, Melchiorre (d. 1403) ; notice of Dante, 276. 
 
 Strada, Zanobi da (1312-1361) ; proposed monument to, in Duomo at Flor- 
 ence, 112. 
 
 Strocchi, Dionigi ; mention of hiding of Dante's remains, 114. 
 
 Swedish; translation of £>. C. in, 217. 
 
 Syrian calendar; utilised by Dante in V. N., 47 «., 48 »., 67, 165, 170. 
 
 Taaffe, John (fl. 1820) ; author of first English commentary on D. C. 
 229 ; interest of Byron and Shelley in publication of, 220. 
 
INDEX 313 
 
 Tacca, Pietro (d. 1640) ; mask of Dante given to, by Gian Bologna, 136. 
 Tamburini, G. ; Italian translation of Benvenuto da Imola's commentary 
 
 on D. C, 272 ; Norton's review of, 272 «. 
 Tana (Gaetana) Alighieri. See Alighieri. 
 Tarver, J. C. (1790-1851); prints French translation of Inferno, v^ith 
 
 Italian text, at Windsor, 215. 
 Tegghiaio Aldobrandi. See Aldobrandi. 
 
 Terza rima ; English translations from D. C. in, 215, 218, 219, 220. 
 Thomas, J. W. ; translation of D. C, virith notes, 229. 
 Thompson, S. P. ; translation of Quaestio de Aqua et Terra, 258 «. 
 Tilly, Johann Tserclaes, Count of (1359-1632) ; removes MS. of Dante's 
 
 letters and De Monarchia from Heidelberg, 247, 
 Tiraboschi, G. (1731-1794) ; Storia delta Letteratura Italiana, 276 »., 
 
 277 «., 279 n. 
 
 Tityrus ; name under which Dante figures in poetical correspondence with 
 G. del Virgilio, 254-6. 
 
 Tomraaseo, N. ; commentary on D. C, 228 ; editions of, 228 n. 
 
 Torraca, F. ; commentary on D. C, 229. 
 
 Torri, A. ; chapter divisions in edition of V. N., 167 ». ; editor of Ottimo 
 Comento, 223, 272; edition of De Monarchia, 231 «. 238 «.; chapter 
 divisions in, 231 «.; edition of Dante's letters, 247, 248, 249, 251 «. 
 
 Torrigiani, Marchese ; his mask of Dante, 137. 
 
 Toynbee, Paget ; Dante Dictionary, 42 »., 159 «., 230, 231 n. ; Dante 
 Studies and Researches, 48 »., 223 »., 235 «. ; Dante in English 
 Literature, 125 »., 143 k., 155 «., 156 »., 157 n., 214 «., 218 «., 224 «., 
 229 n., 233 »., 279 ». ; Inquisition and Editio Princeps of V. N,, 173 n. ; 
 Indice dei Nomi Propri e delle cose Notahili contenute nelle opere di 
 Dante, 217 n., 230 ; // Testo Wittiano della D. C, 217 «. ; Earliest 
 editions of D. C. printed in England,'2i7 n. ; English Translations 
 of Dante in Cent, XVIII, 2ig n. ; Chronological List of English 
 Translations from Dante, 221 »., 229 n., 230 n. ; English Transla- 
 tions of Dante's Works, 221 ». ; Boccaccio's Commentary on D. C, 
 223 n. ; Benvenuto da Imola and his Commentary on D. C, 223 «. ; 
 yohn Foxe and the Editio Princeps of Dante's De Mon., 239 «. ; 
 Biographical Notice of Dante in 1494 edition of Speculum Historiale, 
 
 278 n. 
 
 Tozer, H. F. ; English Commentary on D. C, 230. 
 Trissino, Giangiorgio (1478-1550) ; translation oiDe Vulg. Eloq., 245-6. 
 Tritheim, Johann (1462-15 16) ; notice of Dante, 279. 
 Trivium ; Dante's instruction in arts of, 66 «. 
 Trivulzian MS. of D« Vulg. Eloq., 246. 
 
 Turin ; edition of Stefano Talice da Ricaldone's so-called commentary on 
 D. C. published at, 225, 273 ; edition of Venturi's commentary, 227 «. 
 
 U 
 
 Uberti family of Florence ; leaders of Ghibellines, 12, 13, 31. 
 
 Uberti, Beatrice degli ; daughter of Farinata, married to Guido Caval- 
 canti, 34 n. 
 
 Uberti, Farinata degli (c. 1200-c. 1264) ; advice to Florentine Ghibellines, 
 16-19 : pretended negotiations with Guelfs, 20, 22 ; at battle of 
 Montaperti, 23 ; at Council of Empoli saves Florence from destruc- 
 
314 INDEX 
 
 tion, 27 ; his daughter married to Guido Cavalcanti, 34 ; his death, 
 
 34 «.; Dante's meeting with, in Hell, 37. 
 Uffizi Gallery at Florence ; mask of Dante in, 137 ». 
 Ugolino della Gherardesca. See Gherardesca. 
 Ugolino episode from D. C; English translations of, 218, 220. 
 Uguccione della Faggiuola. See Faggiuola. 
 
 Vasari, Giorgio (1511-1574) ; life of Niccola Pisano, 11 n. ; life of Arnolfo 
 di Lapo, 12 n. ; life of Giotto, 131 ; mentions Giotto's portrait of 
 Dante, 131, 267 ; life of Andrea del Verrocchio, 135 ; on taking casts 
 from human face, 135 ; life of Taddeo Gaddi, 141 ; mentions Gaddi's 
 portrait of Dante, 141 ; destroys fresco by order of Cosimo I, 141. 
 
 Vatican; MS. of G. da Serravalle's commentary on D. C. in, 224 «., 
 227 ».; MS. of letters of Dante, 246-7, 248, 249, 251 ». ; MS. of Dc 
 Monarchia, 247. 
 
 Vellutello, Alessandro (c. 1519-0. 1590) ; commentary on D. C, 226, 273-4, 
 279 ; notice of Dante, 279. 
 
 Vendelin da Spira ; first printed Jacopo della Lana's commentary on D. C, 
 222 ; and Boccaccio's Vita di Dante, 275. 
 
 Vendetta ; recognised institution in Florence, 41-2 ; approved by Dante, 41. 
 
 Venice ; Dante's embassy to, 103, 155 ; edition of Dante's works published 
 by Zatta at, 107 ». ; Dante and the Doge of, 155-6 ; edition of Dante's 
 lyrical poems printed at, 160 ; editions of Convivio, 191 ; editions of 
 D. C, 196 »., 214, 222, 226 «., 271, 274; editions of Landino's com- 
 mentary on D. C. , 226 n. ; Vellutello's commentary, 226 n. ; Daniello's 
 commentary, 226 ; Cent. XVII edition of D. C, 226 n. ; Venturi's 
 commentary, 227 «. ; Costa's commentary, 228 «. ; MS. of Dante's 
 letter to Henry VII at, 249 ; editio pnnceps of Quaestio de Aqua et 
 Terra, 257. 
 
 Venturi, Pompeo (1693-1752) ; commentary on D. C, 227 ; editions of, 
 227 ». 
 
 Venus ; mistake as to, in almanack used by Dante, 197 ». 
 
 Vernon, Lord {1803-1866) ; commentaries of Pietro and Jacopo di Dante 
 on D. C. published by, 70 »., 222, 223, 271, 272 ; owner of Kirkup's 
 facsimile of Giotto's portrait of Dante, 134; Italian translation of 
 Bambaglioli's commentary on Inferno published by, 221, 271 ; com- 
 mentary on D. C. attributed to Boccaccio published by, 223, 272-3. 
 
 Vernon, W. W. ; Benvenuto da Imola's commentary on D. C. published 
 by, 223, 272 ; Readings on Inferno, Purgatorio, Paradiso, 229-30. 
 
 Verona ; Dante at, gi, 99, loi ; dissertation De Aqua et Terra delivered 
 at, 101, 257 ; edition of Venturi's commentary on D. C. published at, 
 227 «. ; Dante's letter to Florentine friend first printed at, 250. 
 
 Vicenza ; Cent. XVII edition of D. C. printed at, 226 «. ; Trissino's trans- 
 lation of De Vulg. Eloq., 245. 
 
 Villani, Filippo (d. 1404) ; statement as to Dante's intimacy with his uncle 
 Giovanni, 37 »., 126 ; Latin commentary on canto i of Inferno, 
 37 n. ; mention of Giotto's portrait of Dante, 130, 267 ; lectures on 
 D. C. at Florence, 250 ; notice of Dante, 276. 
 
 Villani, Giovanni (d. 1348) ; his Chronicle quoted, 5-7, 8-10, 11-12 12-13, 
 14-15, i6-t7, 17.18, 18-19, ao, 21-5, 26-7, 28, 29-33, 34, 35. 39. 43, 44. 
 
INDEX 315 
 
 55. 56-7. 58-60, 62, 79-81, 85, 96 »., 98 «., 107, 126-7, 130 »., 159. 
 i74i 19S1 232, 239-40, 249-50; his intimacy with Dante, 37 »., 126 ; 
 does not mention Alighieri among Guelf families of Florence, 39-40 ; 
 estimate of yearly baptisms in Florence, 43 n. ; testimony to Dante's 
 guiltlessness of corruption, 85 ; notice of Dante's death, 107 ; account 
 of Dante, 126-7, 275 ; mention of Dante's lyrical poems, 159 ; of 
 Convivio, 174 ; account oiD. C, 195 ; mention of De Monarchia, 232 ; 
 account of De Vulg. Eloq,, 239-40 ; mention of Dante's letters, 249-50. 
 
 Vincent of Beauvais. See Beauvais, 
 
 Virgil; quoted in V. N., 66. 
 
 Virgilio, Giovanni del ; professor at Bologna, 100 ; invites Dante to re- 
 ceive laurel crown at Bologna, 100 ; poetical correspondence with 
 Dante, 100, 252-6 ; epitaph on Dante, 103 «., 105 ; statement as to 
 date of Dante's death, 103 n. ; figures as Mopsus in poetical corres- 
 pondence with Dante, 254-6. 
 
 Visconti, Galeazzo (d. 1328) ; process against, for attempt on life of Pope 
 John XXII, 101-3 (see below) ; reference to his marriage in D. C., 
 
 lOI ». 
 
 Visconti, Matteo (d. 1322) ; process against him and his son Galeazzo for 
 attempt on life of Pope John XXII, 101-3 ; his dealings with the 
 sorcerer Canolati, 101-2 ; speaks of employing Dante as a sorcerer at 
 Piacenza, 102. 
 
 Visions ; part played by, in V. N., 164-6. 
 
 Vita Nuova ; contains story of Dante's love for Beatrice, 43, 46, 48 ; re- 
 ference to D. C. in, 48, 193 ! date of, 66, 160 ; composed after Pro- 
 vencal model, 66, 166 ; authors quoted in, 66-7 ; account of, 160-73 ; 
 editio princeps of, 160, 172, 173, 233 n. ; positive dates in, 160-1 ; 
 Boccaccio's account of, 161-2 ; Norton on, 162-4 I meaning of name, 
 163-4 i dedicated to Guido Cavalcanti, 164 ; distinctive features of, 
 164-6 ; main divisions of, 166 ; chapter divisions, 166-7, 167 ». ; 
 analysis of, 167-72 ; printed editions, 172-3 ; Barbi's critical edition, 
 173; MSS. of, 173; English translations, 173 «.; wherein it differs 
 from Convivio, 175, 176 ; probably the book which Dante holds in the 
 Giotto portrait, 268 ; the work quoted, 38 »., 43, 45, 46, 47 n., 63, 
 64, 65, 67, 197 «. . , . , , 
 
 Voghera; edition of Costa's commentary on D. C. published at, 228 ». 
 
 Volapuk ; selections from D. C. translated into, 217. 
 
 Volpi, Antonio (1686-1766) ; indices to D. C, 227. 
 
 Vulgari Eloquentia, De ; reference to Dante's exile in, 89, 241 ; account 
 of, 239-46 ; Villani's account of, 239-40 ; Boccaccio's account, 240 ; 
 chapter divisions in, 240 ; date of, 240-1 ; supposed reference to, in 
 Convivio, 241 ; analysis of, 24ir5 ; early Italian translations, 245 ; 
 editio princeps, 245, 276, 280; English translation, 245 ». ; Rajna's 
 critical text, 245 »., 246 ; MSS. of, 246; the work quoted, 89, 240 »., 
 241 «. 
 
 W 
 
 Wallis, Whitworth ; owner of bronze bust of Dante, x. 
 Weinsberg, battle of (i 140) ; war-cries at, 2. 
 
 We// and Weiblingen ; origin of Italian Guelf and GhibiUino, 1-2 ; used 
 as war-cries at battleof Weinsberg, 2. 
 
3i6 INDEX 
 
 Wells; copy of G. da Serravalle's commentary on D. C, seen at, by 
 Iceland, 224 n. 
 
 Welsh; translation of JD. C. in, 217. 
 
 White, A. C. ; translation otQuaestio de Aqua et Terra, 258 «. 
 
 Whites. See Blacks. 
 
 Whittinghams ; printers of first single volume English edition of D. C, 
 216. 
 
 Wicksteed, P. H., and E. Gardner ; Dante and Giovanni del Virgilio, 92 
 «., 252 «., 253 «. ; critical edition of Dante's Eclogues, 253. 
 
 Wicksteed, P. H., R. Selfe and; Selections from Villani, viii. 
 
 Wicksteed, P. H. ; translation of Early Lives of Dante, viii ; of Can- 
 zoniere of Dante, 159 »., 160 n. ; of Convivio, 160 »., 192 ». ; of Boc- 
 caccio's Vita di Dante, 212 «., 275; of De Monorchia, 239 «.; of 
 Dante's letters, 251 «. ; of Dante's Eclogues, 253 «. ; of Quaestio de 
 Aqua et Terra, 258 «.; of Villani's notice of Dante, 275; of Bruni's 
 Vita di Dante, 277. 
 
 Wilde, R. H. (1789-1847) ; helps to discover Bargello portrait of Dante, 
 132. 
 
 Williams, Lord Keeper (1582-1650) ; quotes anecdote of Dante from Boc- 
 caccio to Duke of Buckingham, 125 n. 
 
 Windsor ; French translation of Inferno, with Italian text, printed at, 215. 
 
 Witchcraft; Dante reputed an adept in, 101-2; reference to in D. C, 
 loi n. ; remarks of Anonimo Fiorentino on, loi n. 
 
 Witte, Karl (1800-1883) ; chapter divisions in his edition of V. N., 167 b. ; 
 restores correct title of Dante's Convivio, 173 n. ; Dante-Forsch- 
 ungen, 173 n. ; critical text of X). C, 217 «. ; edition ofDe Monarchia, 
 231 »., 234 «., 239 n. ; chapter divisions in, 231 n.; theory as to date 
 of treatise, 234 n. ; letters of Dante discovered through his exertions, 
 
 246 «. ; edition of Dante's letters, 246 «., 248, 249 ; prints letters of 
 Dante to Moroello Malaspina in Dante Alighieri's Lyrische Gedichte, 
 
 247 n.; upholds attribution to Dante of three letters to Margaret of 
 Brabant, 251 ; note on Paur's article on portraits of Dante, 270 «. 
 
 Wright, Edward (fl. 1720) ; translated inscription on Domenico di Miche- 
 lino's picture of Dante, 143 ». ; anecdote of Dante in Observations on 
 France and Italy, 156 n. 
 
 Wright, Ichabod Charles (1795-1871) ; translation of D. C, 219 ; notes on 
 D. C, 229. 
 
 Zacheroni, G. ; editor of Guiniforto delli Bargigi's commentary on In- 
 ferno, 225, 273. 
 
 Zanobi da Strada. See Strada. 
 
 Zatta, A. ; edition of Dante's works published at Venice, 107 »., 281. 
 
 Zenatti, O. ; prints critical text of Dante's letter to Moroello Malaspina, 
 247 «. 
 
 Zilioli, A. ; notice of Dante, 280. 
 
 Zingarelli, N. ; Dante, 8£ »., 91 «., 107 «., io8 «., 175 »., 192 «., 250 «., 
 281 ; Vita di Dante in Compendio, z8i. 
 
 Zotti, R. ; English editions olD. C. edited by, 215. 
 
 "* ABERDEEN ; THE UNIVERSITY PRESS