The Politics of Exile in Renaissance Italy

Description

Political exiles were a prominent feature of political life in Renaissance Italy, often a source of intense concern to the states from which they were banished, and a ready instrument for governments wishing to intervene in the affairs of their rivals and enemies. This book provides the first systematic analysis of the role of exiles in the political life of fifteenth-century Italy. The main focus is on the experiences and reactions of the exiles, and on how Italian states dealt with their own exiles and those of other powers. Siena, notorious in the 1480s for the numbers of her citizens in exile, is used as the model with which other cities are compared. Such a detailed study of the phenomenon of exile also provides fresh perspectives on the nature and power of governments in fifteenth-century Italy, and on ideas about the legitimacy of political authority and political action.

"Based on extensive use of Sienese archival sources, other archives, and very wide reading in the secondary literatuer of Italian Renaissance politics, the book does not propose a general thesis but provides a good deal of information on a neglected topic. Recommended for faculty, graduate studets, and some upper-division undergraduates." Choice "This book by Christine Shaw examines a topic that is too often neglected by historians of the Renaissance, although exiles were certainly an important part of political life of the time...Shaw's book makes a contribution to the field. Her rich footnotes, full of archival references, can easily be mined by historians for more information on Siena." American Historical Review "Readers will close her book with due respect for the wealth of the Sienese archives and with high regard for the thoroughness and competence of her research." Canadian Journal of History " The book is at its best...It offers a systematic and detailed survey of myriad and instances and outcomes of political exile. On the arcana of political and judicial procedures it is remarkably claer and incisive, and on the calculus of expectations for and against exiles the book is as tough minded as any of its poltical actors." Renaissance Quarterly