Episode 84: Social and Political Transformation in Medieval Italy

In this episode we take a break from the political narrative to focus on some of the key social and economic changes that are taking shape in Northern Italy between 875 and 1000 AD. During this period, Medieval Italy experiences a number of changes (urbanization, estate fragmentation) that will result in major changes to Italian economic and social life in the very near future. Next time, we will see how these broader changes influence the political development of Italy during this same period. Finally, in this episode I want to answer the often asked question: what did happen to the old Roman Senators and wealthy landowners after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire? 

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A fast-moving history of the western world from the ancient world to the present day. Examine how the emergence of the western world as a global dominant power was not something that should ever have been taken for granted. This podcast traces the development of western civilization starting in the ancient Near East, through Greece and Rome, past the collapse of the Western Roman Empire into the Dark Ages, and then follows European and, ultimately, American history as the western world moved into a dominant world position.