History of the City of Rome in the Middle Ages.
By Ferdinand Gregorovius. Translated from the Fourth German Edition by Annie Hamilton. Vol. VI., Parts I. and II (George Bell and Sons. 4s. 6d. net each part.)—We gladly welcome a further instal- ment of the excellent translation of this great work, a monument of German learning and a fine embodiment of the historic spirit. The present portion begins at the commencement of the four- teenth century and ends with the entrance into Rome of Pope Martin V. in 1420, thus treating of a period of more than a century, crowded with events and big with a new and rich litera- ture. We have first an era of struggle between the Guelf and Ghibelline factions ending in a Guelf victory and the sub- mission of Rome to the Pope. Next we have the movement of Cola di Rienzo, the Tribune and Dictator of the people of Rome, who tried to revive the ancient republican glories of Rome, and whose brief career, so striking, so dramatic, was to have so humiliating an end. The author's treatment of the singular character and semi-mystical mind of Cola is an admirable piece of historical work. " His magnificent ideas of the independence and unity of Italy," says Gregorovius, "of the reform of the Church and of the human race, are suffi- cient to outshine his political follies and to save his memory from obscurity." A time of chaos comes, ending with two rival Popes' each of whom is supported in different countries, and we note also the rise of the Visconti in Milan, the growing abuse of indul- gences, and the tumults in Rome caused by the rivalries of the great Roman houses,—the Colonna and Orsini. We find Popes deposed, Rome sacked under John XXIII., and finally peace for a time restored by the election and coronation of Martin V. It is an age of great personalities, of Dante, Petrarch, Catherine of Siena, and Gregorovins devotes not a little space to the discussion of Dante's political ideas, and Petrarch's active work, his connec- tion with Cola, and his friendship with the house of Colonna. A very interesting chapter at the end deals with the state of culture in the fourteenth century, with the material condition of Rome and the aspect of the city. The wise judgment of the author is everywhere discernible, and the student of the long and tragic story of the world's most fascinating city must place his Gregorovius alongside his Gibbon and his Mommsen.
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