Sismondi on history: The struggle for liberty in Renaissance Italy

Authors

  • Rogério Arthmar Bolsista PQ2 do CNPq Professor Associado IV Programa de Pós-Graduação em Economia Programa de Pós-Graduação em História Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo

Abstract

This paper examines J.C.L. Simonde de Sismondi’s approach to the political organization of Renaissance Italy. It starts with a brief review of his evolutionary perspective of history, followed by a characterization of the Italian state-cities and the specification of the axioms of medieval liberty put forward by the Swiss author. It also sketches the main characteristics of the four epochs in Italian history after the fall of Rome, covering the periods of barbarism, of free republics, of the decline in liberty and, finally, of the invasion by foreign powers. The factors behind the rise and fall of liberty in medieval Italy are presented and, in the end, linked to Sismondi’s economic doctrine.

Keywords: Renaissance, state-cities, liberty, political systems.

Author Biography

Rogério Arthmar, Bolsista PQ2 do CNPq Professor Associado IV Programa de Pós-Graduação em Economia Programa de Pós-Graduação em História Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo

Bacharel em Ciências Econômicas UFRGS 1983

Mestre em Economia UFRGS 1989

Visiting Scholar University of Illinois 1995-1996

Doutor em Economia FEA-USP 1997

 

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Published

2015-05-11

Issue

Vol. 19 No. 1 (2015): January/April

Section

Articles

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