452 Lombards
Constance, which acknowledged explicitly the cities and
communes’ rights of self-government and incorporated
them into the institutional structure of the empire, was
signed.
SECOND LOMBARD LEAGUEIn 1226 the emperor FREDERICKII summoned a diet at
Cremona, and the Italian communes became suspicious of
Frederick’s imperialist intentions and refounded the
league. The emperor then abolished the privileges con-
ceded at the peace of Constance. His victory a few years
later at Cortenuova in 1237 was the high point of imperial
power in Italy. A failed siege of Brescia in 1238, the defec-
tion of important imperial allies such as PISAand GENOA,
the excommunication of the emperor in 1239, his military
defeats at Parma in 1248 and Fossalta in 1249, and the
death of Frederick II himself in 1250 signaled the failure
of this second HOHENSTAUFENattempt to impose imperial
rule on the northern Italian communes.
See alsoGREGORYIX, POPE;GUELFS ANDGHIBELINES.
Further reading:Thomas Carson, trans., Barbarossa
in Italy(New York: Italica Press, 1994); Marshall W. Bald-
win, Alexander III and the Twelfth Century(1968; reprint,
Glen Rock, N.J.: Newman Press); William F. Butler, The
Lombard Communes: A History of the Republics of North
Italy(London: Fisher Unwin, 1906); Peter Munz, Freder-
ick Barbarossa: A Study in Medieval Politics(London: Eyre
and Spottiswoode, 1969).
Lombards (Langobardi, longbeards) They were a
tribal people of Germanic origin who eventually migrated
into Italy. According to PAUL THEDEACON, the Lombards
left Scandinavia for the mouth of the Elbe. Around 526,
they settled in PANNONIA, modern-day HUNGARY. In 568,
under King ALBOIN, they entered Italy through Friuli and
conquered the north of the country. By the end of the sixth
century, the Lombards held Spoleto, Benevento, and a large
part of southern Italy. A kingdom was organized in the
north with its capital at Verona, and then Pavia, and two
duchies in the center and south around Spoleto and Ben-
evento. CHARLEMAGNEconquered the kingdom in 772 and
the Carolingians absorbed Spoleto in the middle of the
ninth century. This kingdom was subsequently divided
into two and then three principalities in 849 and 900.
Southern Lombardy remained independent until Ben-
evento fell to the Romans in about 1053. Capua and
Salerno were under Norman rule by 1058 and in 1077.
Their political organization centered on a small num-
ber of aristocratic families and a king. Succession to the
throne was regulated by a kinship link with the previous
king. The dukes and other military leaders exercised royal
powers and profited from a lack of central stability. Under
Rothari (r. 636–652), a law collection tried to unify them
as a nation. ARIANSwhen they entered Italy, the Lombards
had converted to Catholicism under Agilulf (r. 590–616),
as a result of the influence of Queen Theodelinda (d. 628),
a friend of Pope GREGORYI THEGREAT. In the eighth cen-
tury, relations with the Roman Church deteriorated when
Rome broke with Byzantium and the Pope appealed for
Frankish help to exercise temporal power. The FRANKS
successfully claimed the crown as kings of the Lombards.
See alsoGREGORYI THEGREAT,POPE;LOMBARDY AND
THE KINGDOM OF THE LOMBARD; NORMANS IN ITA LY;
OSTROGOTHS.
Further reading: Paul the Deacon, History of the
Lombards,trans. William Dudley Foulke (Philadelphia:
University of Pennsylvania Press, 1974); Katherine Fisher
Drew, trans., The Lombard Laws(Philadelphia: University
of Pennsylvania: Press, 1973); Neil Christie, The Lom-
bards(Oxford: Blackwell, 1995).Lombardy and the kingdom of the Lombards
Lombardy is a region of ITA LYthat only acquired its pre-
sent form within the unified Italian nation in the 19th
century. The forerunner to this state was founded in the
14th century by the VISCONTIfamily and formed the basis
for a “duchy of MILAN.”
After the conquest of the kingdom of the Longobards
by CHARLEMAGNEin 772, the name Longobardia desig-
nated the whole of the kingdom in northern and central
Italy. During the INVESTITURE CONTROVERSYin the 11th
century, the term began to refer solely to northern Italy.
For BRUNETTOLatini and DANTEin the 13th century, the
“Lombard” dialects spoken in northern Italy were clearly
distinct from the Tuscan spoken in TUSCANYand the
ROMAGNA. During the 12th and 13th centuries, Lom-
bardy was the region of most of the cities forming the
LOMBARDLEAGUEagainst the HOHENSTAUFENemperors.LATER POLITICS
From around 1250, the struggles and rivalries within the
governments of the COMMUNESfavored the emergence of
the lordships. Several neighboring towns recognized as
their master the lords of Milan. The Visconti of Milan, as
did their successors the SFORZA, embodied and symbol-
ized princely magnificence. Most of the region came
under the control of the Visconti and Sforza dynasties
whose power was centered on Milan in the 14th and 15th
centuries.ECONOMY AND RELIGION
Economically the central Po Valley, the heart of Lombardy,
was among the richest regions in Europe and a center of
European commerce. On its roads merchandise passed
from the East to the West. Roads led over the Alpine
passes to the Rhône and Rhine Valleys, as well as Liguria,
TUSCANY, and ROME. Benefiting from the river routes,
TRADEin agricultural goods, metals, and textiles devel-
oped very early. Lombardy was also a center of religious
activity both orthodox and heretical that was particularly