History of S. Italy.

Cue (NZERS), Issue 3, 15 July 1944, Page 10

History of S. Italy.

- In order to form some cohesive idea of the historical background of Italy, it would be necessary to conduct extensive research through the many Immense works that do exist However, the soldier seldom has the time or the facilities to do this — although the inclination is often there.

* The purpose Of this article — the first of a. .series of three —is to give a brief but accurate survey of Italy from Rome to all the land that lies to the south. FAMILIAR DATES < - So that a ’period association' with well known events in British history may be. created, dates, familiar to everybody, are inserted throughout the articles in italics. Because of its unique shape, acting as a road into Europe, and because of its position adjacent to the East; which always has been a vast storehouse of ideas and culture, Italy has always been important in European history. THINLY POPULATED Italy, a land of mountain and forest, was before 1000 B.C. most likely only very thinly populated by people of the original Mediterranean stock. Eventually Aryan speaking tribes from the .North infiltrated through the peninsula, forming little ■ towns and settlements such as Rome. The Greeks too had before that date come down the east side of the Adriatic into the tip of the Balkans and founded their city states. ; By the 7th century B.C. they had spread to adjacent lands and eventually formed colonies in Southern Italy known as Magna Graecia with Taranto as one of the chief towns. Naturally they introduced their own culture which was later to have a profound effect on this country. Remains of fine Grecian temples are to be seen at ’rPaestium, near Salerno.

In the : central part of Italy, about Florence, a non-Aryan people from * Asia Minor, the Etruscans, had settled, bringing with them methods and a genius which were. to prove of great importance in Roman times and later in the Renaissance. Early development in Italy tended more to the South and West. In the South the plain, of Apulia was flat and rich, and flocks of sheep could easily be moved from wintering on the lowlands to feeding on the highlands in summer. .Moreover the Bay of Taranto presented a very safe anchorage to small boats. Thus the West, with its plains, developed at the cost of the more barren East. ' Further, the Adriatic at some seasons is a difficult sea to navigate owing to the northerly winds. As the rivers on the West are not navigable, early towns appeared chiefly on the coast and later at bridge crossings of rivers. FOUNDING OF ROME The traditional date for , the founding of Rome is 753 B.C. This town gradually developed both in size and organisation until it began to exert its power. on adjacent territories. Among the first, to feel this influence were the Etruscans, who were defeated and disappeared as a people about the middle of the four hundreds B.C. The Romans absorbed - these people and thus consolidated their position in Central Italy. In 312 B.C. Claudius started building

the Appian Way to subjugate the people to the south of Rome. Already the Greek Empire had reached its maximum development under Alexander the Great. Arts and commerce flourished — there was great intellectual activity in Magna Graecia (Southern Italy) and Sicily. > , ' PRESSURE On- the division of the Greek empire after the death of Alexander, the Romans extended their pressure on , Magna Graecia, and by 275 8.C., when they defeated Pyrrhus at Beneventum, they became the masters of most of the mainland south of the Po Valley. The Greek cities continued to enjoy a full cultural freedom. Here, in essence, is the unified homeland stage of Italy on which some of the most varied drama in history has been enacted. 1. PERIOD OF PREPARATION, and absorption up to 270 B.C/ when the Romans were developing rapidly, absorbing the native populations. The Etruscans . were absorbed. Of their culture, the very little that remains, is chiefly centred around Florence. They assimilated the Greek colonies to the south, and there z the culture was’ to have a profound effect on the Romans. - 300 B.C. Druids in Britain. '- W ■ ■ . ' ' - ‘2. THE PERIOD OF ROME AND ITS EMPIRE FROM 270 B.C. TO 395 A.D. This kis a vast period during which time Roman architecture and j culture developed and the Empire was extended until its boundaries embraced, an area from Britain to the Balkans. Roman civilisation dominated the known world and Rome itself was the ruling centre into which poured prodigious wealth.

By the third century A.D., the Roman Empire, decaying socially and morally, faced the barbarians. The Emperors were mostly: fighting military autocrats. Pressed by the invading Goths from ‘the .North, the Emperor- Constantine moved the capital from Rome to the safest place, Byzantium (or, as it was named after him, Constantinople). , BYZANTINE EMPIRE Constantinople later became the centre of the Byzantine Empire and of Byzantine art. Here Constantine established the Christian religion and called the firsts general council at ,Nicea in 325 A.D. This new religion was a most significant event for it "started a new cycle in the history of art. The public affairs of the empire steadily degenerated and in 364 A.D. were in such a doubtful and dangerous situation that Valentian made a final" division of the empire in order to . facilitate administration and defence. He himself "took over Italy or the Western v Roman . Empire and established his brother, Valens, at Constantinople as Emperor of the Eastern .or Byzantine Empire. ; TUMULTUOUS TIMES The Eastern Empire was. destined to, last until 1453, during much of time it exercised sovereign rights over parts of Italy. It was therefore a persistent element and a power to be reckoned with in the tumultuous times that followed. Furthermore, during the troublesome times- of the West when art, standards of living and learning were in a deplorable state,, it acted as a reservoir of classical knowledge. The full force was felt at the Renaissance.By 395 the ruler of the Western Empire had lost so much prestige that he ruled in subservience to his ministers or favourites. The genius of Rome had expired. 55 B.C. Julius Caesar Visits Britain

The British soldier can stand up to anything except the British War Office.—G.B. Shaw. z .