PODCAST: Guelphs & Ghibellines, and Florence in the 12 hundreds. Buondelmonte, Campaldino & Dante.

[@RetroResearch]

Thank you! This has been enormously helpful! I think this struggle continues to reverberate and shape our current social and political landscape!

[@dantesdivinecomedy6963]

Thank you so much, J. Philip! And apologies for the delayed reply - the notifications didn't come through for a while. And agreed - it's a very complex topic on the local level, almost down to the specific quartiere and family, but the larger dynamics of private money and power is very much the same still, albeit a bit more hidden.

[@dantesdivinecomedy6963]

Btw. I've just started a new Substack about Dante, would love to hear your thoughts and comments there too! thesacredpoem.substack.com/ Very best, Richard

[@RetroResearch]

@@dantesdivinecomedy6963 Thank you for your response. I have been feeling over the past year or so that the conflict between the Guelphs and Ghibellines is alive and well. We certainly know who the Guelphs are in today's setting. However, those who philosophically tend toward the Ghibelline outlook seem to be a little harder to identify. Keep up the great work!

[@RetroResearch]

@@dantesdivinecomedy6963 I am very much looking forward to it!

[@dantesdivinecomedy6963]

@@RetroResearch Agreed, it might be some of the nature of "old money", more discreet in some ways. And thanks for the encouragement!

[@juanfervalencia]

This is fantastic, very well done

[@dantesdivinecomedy6963]

Thank you so much! 🙏🙏 Btw. I've just started new podcast on Dante's Paradiso - if that's interesting too! open.spotify.com/show/0FvBNwnuobj8rXIoH9yLxz

[@Rocinante2300]

Do you have a favorite small Italian city-state?

[@dantesdivinecomedy6963]

Good question! There are many gems in Tuscany, f.ex. Lucca, or Siena, but in the end - I think I'll have to go with Firenze, where I lived for a few years. The Renaissance Spirit is one of the greatest beauties on the planet, and a shining treasure of human history. And a continuous gift and inspiration today!!

[@Rocinante2300]

@@dantesdivinecomedy6963 Do you think that if the Normans weren’t involved, southern Italy would have had city-states like the north?