Italy and the Popes: Faith, Arts, and Wars in the Italian Peninsula

Catalog description

It is impossible to think of Italy without associating it with the Pope, who, among other things, is the Bishop of Rome. However, the Papacy played a complex role throughout the centuries in Italian politics and culture, interfering with the creation of a unitarian state (as Machiavelli claimed) and acting as one of the most important patrons of the arts, science, and literature, while also creating the Index of Prohibited Books. This course traces the history of the Papacy, from Peter to Leo XIV, to provide insight into Italian history, society, and culture. The course will be taught in Italian and counts toward the minor in Global Medieval Studies.