Dante Alighieri
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iir»^^:«y».>i.».. ....««»»««»»»««*«».«»»««»«»»»»»»»»«»«««.......»»» »...........»^, ThE: LIFE OF DmTE I •H or JUL uiiiuii.im... ....... ...,.. -/^ THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES To CA\yylS>ty}K^L^ f^(V2, DANTE ALIGHIERI DANTE ALIGHIERI BY PAGET TOYNBEE WITH TWELVE ILLUSTRATIONS METHUEN & CO. 36 ESSEX STREET W.C LONDON 1902 Second Edition, Revised and Enlarged "the grete poete of Ytaille That highte Dant." Chaucer, Monk''s Tale. p^"^ PREFACE little book lays no claim to originality, THISand 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 sometimes 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 Dante'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 eai-lier period. Again, when a thing has been well said by a previous writer, I have been content to let him 2052138 6 PREFACE less well speak, instead of saying the same thing in my own words. The translations for the most part are my own. I have, however, been indebted for an occasional turn or phrase to Selfe and Wicksteed's Selections versions of the from Villani, and to the latter's Early Lives of Dante. The illustrations are reproduced, by permission, from photographs by Messrs. Alinari and Messrs. Brogi of Florence. iWizy 1900 In this second edition a few slips and misprints have been corrected, and a few omissions have been rectified. As regards these I am glad to acknowledge my indebtedness to various to friendly readers and reviewers, and especially the writer of an interesting and instructive notice which appeared in the Pilot, at the beginning of the present year. In deference to suggestions from several quarters I have now supplied an Index, together with an Appendix, containing a bibliographical note of notices of the early biographies and biographical Dante, which it is hoped will add to the interest and usefulness of the book. Paget Toynbee August 1901 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 Ghibellines with the aid of Frederick n. expel the Guelfs from Florence— Return of the Guelfs after the Emperor's death, and pacification between the two parties . 13 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 at victory Montaperti . ... 30 Chapter III. (i 261-1267) Flight of the Guelfs from Florence—Farinata degli Uberti saves Florence from destruction—The Ghibellines supreme in Tuscany—Defeat of 7 8 CONTENTS PAGB 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 ...... 46 PART II DANTE IN FLORENCE Chapter I. (i 265-1 290) 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 ...... 59 Chapter II. (1289-1290) Military service — War with Arezzo — Battle of Campaldino — Victory of Florentine Guelfs— Buonconte da Montefeltro—Siege of Caprona— " " Quomodo sedet sola civitas I . -73 Chapter III. (1291-1300) Early studies —Brunetto Latino—Classical acquire- ments—Marriage—Gemma Donati — Children— Public life — Embassy to San Gemignano— Priorate ........ 88 Chapter IV. (1300-1302) Blacks and Whites in Pistoja—In Florence—Cerchi and Donati —May Day 1300—Dante in office —• CONTENTS PAGE Embassy to Rome—Charles of Valois in Florence Triumph of the Blacks — Condemnation and exile of Dante ,.....• loi PART III DANTE IN EXILE Chapter T. (1302-1321) Wanderings — Dante's fellow-exiles — Henry vn. in sentence Dante Italy —His death—Fresh against —His retirement to Ravenna—Death and burial . 115 Chapter II Boccaccio's rebuke to the Florentines — Efforts of Dante's remains— Florence to get possession of their removal— Leo X. grants permission for 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 . 133 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 , . 147 lo CONTENTS Chapter II PAGE Portraits of Dante — The Giotto portrait in the Bargello — Norton's account of the Bargelio portrait — Its disappearance and rediscovery — The death mask—Its relation to the portrait— The Naples bronze—^The Riccardi portrait—The picture by Domenico di Michelino . 158 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 of Venice . , . , Doge . .176 PART V DANTE'S WORKS Chapter I Italian works —Lyrical Poems—The F'ita Nuova—The Con-vivio . ...... 193 Chapter II The Di-vina Commcdia—Its origin, subject, and aim— Date of composition—Boccaccio's story of the lost cantos—Why it was written in Italian —Dante and his rimes—Manuscripts and printed editions . 202 Chapter III Latin Works—The De Monarchia-—The De Vulgari - Eloquentia — The Letters The Eclogues — The Quaestio de Aqua et Terra . .220 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 1. Bronze bust of Dante at Naples . Frontispiece 2. Florence and the Arno ... to face p. 13 of Florence to face 28 3. The city .... p. Pazzi in the 4. Farinata degli Uberti (^staiui by the at . to face Portico of Uffi-zi Florence) p. 48 in Florence to face 60 5. Dante's house ... p. 6. San Gemignano to face p. 99 of Dante's face taken after death to face 7. Cast p. 115 8. Dante's tomb at Ravenna ... to face p. 132 found at 9. Chest in which Dante's remains were . to face Ravenna in 1865 . p. 142 10. Portrait of Dante by Giotto in the Bar- a gello at Florence {from draiving by Seymour Kirkup) to face p. 159 11. Mask of Dante in the Uffizi at Florence the the Marchesa {formerly in possession oj to face 1 68 Torrigiani') ..... p. 12. Dante and his book (from the picture by Domenico to face di Michelino, in the Duomo at Florence . p. 193 n PART I GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES CHAPTER I 1215-1250 — of the two Origin of the names Distinguishing principles of the into Florence parties in Italy—Introduction parties The Ghibellines with the aid of Frederick n. expel the Guelfs from Florence—Return of the Guelfs after the Emperor's death, and pacification between the two parties. ITALY in the middle of the NORTHERNthirteenth 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 Italianised forms German origin, being merely 1 May 1265. 13 14 GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES (Guelfo and Ghibellino) of the two German names Welf 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 tenth and eleventh 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 Brunswick is descended. Weiblingen was the name of a castle in Fran- conia, belonging to Conrad the Salic, who was from Emperor 1024 to 1039, and was the pro- genitor, through the female line, of the Swabian emperors. By the election of Lothair in 1125 in succession to Henry v. (Emperor from 1106 to 1125) the Swabian family were ousted from what had to they come regard almost as an hereditary and at this time a possession ; hostility appears to have commenced between them and the house of Welf, who were nearly related to Lothair. In 1 07 1 the Emperor Henry iv. had conferred the Duchy of Bavaria the upon 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 in. of Swabia to the Imperial throne, and the rebellion of Henry the Proud, the Welf Duke of Bavaria, gave rise to a the bloody struggle between two houses ; and at GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES 15 the battle of Weinsberg, fought on December 21, 1140, in which the Welf Duke was defeated by Conrad, the names Jf^elf and Weihlingen were for the first time, it is said, adopted as war-cries. These names, which in Germany, as we have seen, distinguished 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 respectively with the supporters of the Church and the suppoi-ters of the Empire.