Historia Langobardorum

Paulus Diaconus

HISTORIA LANGOBARDORUM

History of the Longobards

Translated by Fatima Immacolata Pretta

Copyright © 2020 – Paulus Diaconus

Publisher: Tektime

Content of the book

Historia Langobardorum – Versione 0.1

The book contains a short preface divided into thematic sections, followed by Origo Gentis Langobardorum, divided into seven paragraphs which contains the legend of the name and of Scandinavian origins. This is followed by Paolo Diacono's Historia Langobardorum. After Paolo's six books there is Andrea's Chronicon from Bergamo composed of nineteen sections which humbly completes the story of the Historia and makes us know, at least partially, the events that followed the Franca occupation.

Catalog

GBL

e-Books

Foro Barbarico

1 – Historia Langobardorum – Paulus Diaconus – Latino (IT) – ISBN 9788822856029 -

2 – Storia dei Longobardi – Paolo Diacono – Italiano – ISBN 9788822882547 -

3 – Edictum Rothari Regis – Scriptorium di Bobbio – Latino (IT) – ISBN 9788827504161 -

4 – Editto di Rotari – Scriptorium di Bobbio – Italiano – ISBN

5 – Origo Gentis Langobardorum – Re Rotari – ISBN 9788822814661 -

6 – Chronicon Gentis Langobardorum – Andrea da Bergamo – ISBN 9788822812841 -

7 – Codicis Gothani – Anonimo cavaliere Franco – ISBN 9788826464893 -

22 – Costituzione – Giustiniano – Latino – ISBN In lavorazione

23 – Costituzione – Giuistiniano – Italiano – ISBN

Foro Ellenico

1 – Iliade – Omero – Greco Antico – ISBN 9788832502022 -

2 – Iliade – Vincenzo Monti – Italiano – ISBN 9788834182192 -

3 – Odissea – Omero – Greco Antico – ISBN 9788832533460 -

4 – Odissea – Omero – Italiano – ISBN …

Foro Italico

1 – Le Grazie – Ugo Foscolo – ISBN 9788829584000 -

2 – I Sepolcri – Ugo Foscolo – ISBN …

3 – Confessioni di un Italiano – Ippolito Nievo – ISBN …

4 – Ul Milione – Martco Polo – ISBN

Foro Latino

1 – De Bello Gallico – Gaius Iulius Caesar – Latino (IT) ISBN 9788827516478 -

2 – Sulla Guerra in Gallia – Gaio Giulio Cesare – Italiano – ISBN 9788899163556 (Fermento Editore)

3 – De Bello Civili – Gaius Iulius Caesar – Latino (IT) – ISBN 9788827567807 -

4 – Sulla Guerra Civile – Gaio Giulio Cesare – Italiano – ISBN 9788834167359 -

5 -Sulla Guerra Alessandrina – Gaio Giulio Cesare – Italiano – ISBN 9788827565667 -

6 – De Bello Africo – Gaio Giulio Cesare – Italiano -ISBN 9788827539668 -

7 – De Bello Hispanico – Gaio Giulio Cesare – Italiano – ISBN 9788827573792 -

8 – Bellum Civili – Gaius Iulius Caesar – Latino (IT) – ISBN 9788834176948

9 – Sulla Guerra Civile Romana – Gaio Giulio Cesare – Italiano – ISBN 9788835349815 -

10 – Eneide – Virgilio – Latino (IT) – ISBN 9788832587180

11 – Eneide – Virgilio – Italiano – ISBN …

12 – Storia di Roma – Tuto Livio – Latino – ISBN …

13 – Storia di Roma – Tuto Livio – Italiano – ISBN …

14 – Le vite dei Cesari – Svetonio – Latino – ISBN …

15 – Le vite dei Cesari – Svetonio – Latino – ISBN …

Arena Letteraria

1 – Non Farti Male – Alessandro Lepri – ISBN

TRADUZIONI – TRANSLATION

English

Historia Langobardorum – Paulus Diaconus – Latin (EN) – ISBN

…

Origo Gentis Langobardorum – Re Rotari – Latin (EN) – ISBN 9788827527665

Français

Historia Langobardorum – Paulus Diaconus – Latin (FR) – ISBN 978882287964

Origo Gentis Langobardorum – Re Rotari – Latin (FR) – ISBN 9788827531433

Deutsch

Historia Langobardorum – Paulus Diaconus – Latin (DE) – ISBN 9788873041740

Origo Gentis Langobardorum – Re Rotari – Latin (DE) – ISBN 9788827534892

Geschichte der Langobarden – Paul Warnefried – Deutsch – ISBN …

Português

Historia Langobardorum – Paulus Diaconus – Latino (PR) – ISBN 9788873040224

Origo Gentis Langobardorum – Re Rotari – Latino (PR) – ISBN 9788827524541

Historias dos Lombardos – Paolo Diacono – Português – ISBN 9788873043164

中国 (Cinese)

1 – Historia Langobardorum – Paulus Diaconus – 拉丁 (CI) – ISBN …

5 – 伦巴第人的起源 (Origo Gentis Langobardorum) – Re Rotari – Latin (CI) – ISBN 9788828336730

2 – 伦巴德人的故事-伦巴第史 (Storia dei Longobardi) – Paolo Diacono – 中国 – ISBN 9788873046462

LIBRI – BOOKS

1 – Historia Langobardorum – Paulus Diaconus – ISBN 9788822898722

2 – Storia dei Longobardi – Palo Diacono – ISBN 9788826053431

Historia Langobardorum

History of the Longobards

Paulus Diaconus

Paul the Deacon

Traduzione di

Fatima Immacolata Pretta

The Origo Gents Langobardorum

The Chronicon of Andrea from Bergamo

Latin text

English Edition

Version 1.0

Barbarian Forum

Vol. 1

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book optimized for blind and partially sighted people

on the cover a copy of a detail of the paintings of the Teodolinda Chapel in Monza Italy

The history

Why publish an old and manifestly biased book in Latin? The reason is right there, in the definition of "part": written history is always part because it is generated by a "cultural structure"; entity that often coincides with the "nation-state". In practice for history, the same concept is valid for art, each era gives a different judgment on a given work of art. As a boy, when I studied art in high school, I went to the school library to consult a famous and beautiful series dedicated to painters, in those books the critical judgments of art experts and artists of different eras were reported. There you could see the change of opinion over time. So a Baroque work first pleases, then is despised and then returns to be found beautiful. This change of opinion is closely linked to historical events and social changes. To explain some basic concepts I will continue to use the art-history parallelism, which I believe is the most suitable. Here I briefly describe a personal experience I had at the University in taking a Medieval History exam. Attending the exams of some students of my age, I noticed their difficulty in defining historical periods, their attachment to dates. The teacher of the Statale di Milano was greatly irritated to see the inability to argue about the beginning and end dates of the Middle Ages. The dates are school conventions, the ancient age does not end a day in a certain place, but it is a border that shifts and brings with it social changes, often not uniform. The Gothic kingdom in Italy is perhaps already Middle Ages but we consider it late ancient, because we tend to start the Middle Ages in Italy with the twenty years of the Gothic wars or with the Lombard invasion in the peninsula. The right answer to the question `` when does the Middle Ages begin? '' Is the conventional date of the dismissal of the last Roman emperor of the West, accompanied by the clarification that it is, in reality, a long transition period going from Odoacre, to the Lombards, and does not involve the whole territory uniformly. If we look at art, we see the splendid mosaics of Ravenna, but then the imposing mausoleum of Theodoric appears, I point out that, after these, we move on to a paleo-Christian poor art: art marks well the passage from the ancient world to the new times. In the same way, regardless of the date on which Columbus was discovered to have discovered America, the art of the second quarter of Florence already showed the Renaissance, which appears briefly and immediately dissolves into Mannerism which will become Baroque already in the Michelangelo's dome of San Pietro . Thus the Municipalities become Lordships and politics reconnect the thread with classical antiquity which has in itself the symbols of power. A strange history of Classical art was born in democratic Athens to become an instrument of every imperial ambition. In any case, even art decrees the end of the Middle Ages, with the return to plasticity and Vasari's "stil novo". In practice it is Michelangelo's David and not Colombo, the right date to remember.

So, having clarified that it is the common sensitivity and not the dates that mark History, we add the concept of state education. Each state exalts the history that suits him to justify its existence, one could also add the geographic factor that is an integral part of it, but it would result in a discussion to Plato and too long. Squeezing, the Lombards divided Italy and for the future nation-state, everything that does not have Rome as its capital, and the entire national territory as a domain is negative, ugly, not important. This was the interest of the Savoys, of the Risorgimento patriots, of the kingdom and also of the Duce, now, with a party called the Northern League, the "trumpets of Rome" have returned to make themselves heard by dirtying the historical truth. I believe that Risorgimento Italy has become a mature state, ready to become Europe and part of the world. After all, for a hundred and fifty years, Savoiardi have been famous biscuits excellent for tiramisu and anti-Germanic sentiment has turned into sporting antagonism. Therefore, allowing everyone to read a text like this in its original format without state cultural mediation allows contemporary, "scientific" man to judge for himself and to deepen the topic at his leisure.

The Author

Paolo Diacono was born in Cividale del Friuli probably in 720 AD His Latin name was Paulus Diaconus, the Lombard one Paul Warnefried or even Paul of Varnefrido. He was a descendant of Leupichi, one of the Lombards following Alboino during the invasion of Italy. At a young age he was sent to PaVia, which at the time was the capital of the Lombard Kingdom of King Rachis. Here he was a pupil of Flaviano, he attended the school of the monastery of San Pietro in Ciel d'Oro of which he later became a teacher. I stayed at the court also with the later Kings Astolfo and Desiderio, under the latter, he became tutor of his daughter Adelperga. When Desiderio's daughter married the Duke of Benevento Arechi, he followed her. With the fall of the Lombard Kingdom in 774, due to his brother's imprisonment, he agreed to move to the Carolingian court between 782 and 787, where he was appreciated above all as a grammarian. After the release of his brother Paolo he escaped from the court of Charlemagne and returned to Benevento, and here he entered the monastery of Montecassino becoming a Benedictine monk. In the monastery between 787 and 789 he wrote the Historia Langobardorum, his most famous and important work. Another fact that concerns him, even if indirectly, is related to music, and in fact, from his hymn dedicated to San Giovanni Battista, in the eleventh century, Guido d'Arezzo obtained the seven musical notes, which made music a significant step forward. Paolo Diacono died in Benevento in 799 leaving his HIstoria unfinished because he was disappointed by the latest events of his beloved Lombards.

A final mention goes to Historia Romana, another work by Paolo, which was used for many centuries as an educational text.

WHAT IS THE LANGOBARDORUM HISTORY

A beautiful story, in many compelling parts, unfortunately the national needs of the previous two centuries did not allow an objective view of this period. The main problem is the nationality of the Lombards, called Germanic descent, try to understand, with the Austrians in Milan and Venice, then in Trento and Trieste, one could not really look at the Lombard period with national pride. Rome was also a problem, ask Garibaldi and Cavour. About Garibaldi, it is a name known among the Lombards, you will not find it the same in Paolo's Historia but you will find a beautiful suggestion. In short, Italy was born anti-German and for a long time what the Italians did, and even the last war, influenced the imagination of all of us. Furthermore, it was the Lombards who broke the unity of the peninsula, which will last until 1918. But, importantly, studies on the ethnic origins of Europe have shown that the nation-state identification is artificial, cultural, often recently creation and the blood is so mixed that perhaps the only true European nation is Europe, so enjoy the story. Sometimes it will be a little boring, imprecise, manifestly pro-Catholic and pro-Lombard, unfinished, the ending is missing because the author, disappointed by the unglorious end of the kingdom, refuses to complete it. In short, an epic without the grand finale.

The Work

The work was written by Paolo Diacono in the Benedictine monastery of Montecassino in the two years after his return from the Frankish court of Charlemagne where he worked as a grammarian. The Historia tells the story of a part of the people called Winili, who will later take the name of Lombards after the heroic and mythical battle against the Vandals. So following the events of the various kings, the story takes us to Pannonia and from there to Italy. At this point the author tells us about Italy at the time of the Lombard conquest, of Alboino and Rosmunda, of the ten years of anarchy followed by the election of a king. From here, the Historia takes up the narration of the court events. Autari, Teodolinda, Rotari, the compelling story of Grimoaldo and the last king mentioned by Paolo, the famous Liutprando, the one of the much discussed donation of Sutri to the Pope, the presumed beginning of the temporal power of the popes, enter the scene, but this donation is in fact a refund, the real donation is prior to Liutprando.

The author does not fail to broaden his gaze, also by telling ecclesiastical events, from a strictly Catholic point of view, he does not fail to tell us about the Byzantine emperors and the events of the near and fatal Franco kingdom. The story is often inaccurate and sometimes patently wrong, but still gives a correctly pro-Lombard picture of the whole that highlights the Franco-Papal factionalism in the Italic affairs.

Another peculiarity of the story is the Friulian note, Paolo, originally from Cividale, keeps us constantly informed about what happens in the north east of Italy but also in Benevento, his place of residence, Duchy closely linked to Friuli and the Lombard crown .

Paolo's historical sources are: Origo gentis Longobardorum, an ancient song that narrates the legend of Scandinavian origin, Secondo di Non, Gregorio di Tours, Isidoro of Seville, Beda the Venerable and the Annals of Benevento.

Book I (First) tells us about the origins of the Lombards, describing the various stages of approach to Italy until the victory of Alboino over the Gepidi and the departure for the peninsula, in addition to the events of San Benedetto.

Book II (Second) tells the entry into Italy (with a description of the peninsula), the conquest of Pavia by Alboino, the intrigue of his wife Rosmunda and the assassination of the beloved king, to end with the ten years of anarchy of the dukes.

book III (Third) tells us about the difficulties of the Empire of Constantinople, the three frank invasions, of Autari who marries the Catholic Teodolinda.

Book IV (Quarto) tells of the kings Agilulfo, Rotari and Grimoaldo with all its history, from the sack of Cividale by the Avari, to the conquest of the royal palace of Pavia.

Book V (Fifth) continues the detailed narration of the difficult period of the reign, Grimoaldo defeats Franks and Byzantines, deceives the Avars and consolidates the Kingdom. The chapter ends with the battle between Cuniperto and Alachis.

Book VI (Sesto) restarts from Cuniperto, tells us of his reign but also ranges over the Franco kingdom, the Empire and the Saracens. Then comes the despotic but capable Ariperto, the long struggle with the noble Ansprando, father of Liutprando, the last of which the author speaks to us, because Paolo, disappointed, will leave the work unfinished.

I must add that the copyist, the one who manually copied the original text, probably added many errors to the text that was already inaccurate in itself, or rather, copying from a copy produced a sum of errors.

This inconvenience will be solved with the invention of printing. Paolo himself confuses places and peoples, wrong years, in short, it is not a scientific text, but its historical importance because it shows us those centuries from the Lombard point of view.

What is Origo Gents Langobardorum

what is the origin of the Lombard people

The Origo is a short text that was inserted in the Edict of Rotari, it tells us the origins of the Lombard people, in particular it tells us the origin of the name "long beards". The same legend is also told to us by Paul where, however, it is defined ridiculous. There is also a partial list of Lombard kings.

The text was always carefully studied because it substantially preceded the narration of Paolo Diacono, in it we look for useful elements to understand the genesis and evolution of the Lombard lineage.

Origo Gents Langobardorum

Origin of the Lomgobard people

IN NOMINE DOMINI INCIPIT ORIGO GENTIS LANGOBARDORVM

1.

Est insula qui dicitur Scadanan, quod interpretatur excidia, in partibus aquilonis, ubi multae gentes habitant; inter quos erat gens parva quae Winnilis vocabatur. Et erat cum eis mulier nomine Gambara, habebatque duos filios, nomen uni Ybor et nomen alteri Agio; ipsi cum matre sua nomine Gambara principatum tenebant super Winniles. Moverunt se ergo duces Wandalorum, id est Ambri et Assi, cum exercitu suo, et dicebant ad Winniles: " Aut solvite nobis tributa, aut praeparate vos ad pugnam et pugnate nobiscum". Tunc responderunt Ybor et Agio cum matre sua Gambara: "Melius est nobis pugnam praeparare, quam Wandalis tributa persolvere". Tunc Ambri et Assi, hoc est duces Wandalorum, rogaverunt Godan, ut daret eis super Winniles victoriam. Respondit Godan dicens: "Quos sol surgente antea videro, ipsis dabo victoriam". Eo tempore Gambara cum duobus filiis suis, id est Ybor et Agio, qui principes erant super Winniles, rogaverunt Fream, uxorem Godam, ut ad Winniles esset propitia. Tunc Frea dedit consilium, ut sol surgente venirent Winniles et mulieres eorum crines solutae circa faciem in similitudinem barbae et cum viris suis venirent. Tunc luciscente sol dum surgeret, giravit Frea, uxor Godan, lectum ubi recumbebat vir eius, et fecit faciem eius contra orientem, et excitavit eum. Et ille aspiciens vidit Winniles et mulieres ipsorum habentes crines solutas circa faciem; et ait: "Qui sunt isti longibarbae" ? Et dixit Frea ad Godan: "Sicut dedisti nomen, da illis et victoriam". Et dedit eis victoriam, ut ubi visum esset vindicarent se et victoriam haberent. Ab illo tempore Winnilis Langobardi vocati sunt.

2.

Et moverunt se exhinde Langobardi, et venerunt in Golaidam, et postea possiderunt Aldonus Anthaib et Aainaib seu et Burgundaib; et dicitur, quia fecerunt sibi regem nomine Agilmund, filium Agioni, ex genere Gugingus. Et post ipsum regnavit Laiamicho ex genere Gugingus. Et post ipsum regnavit Lethuc, et dicitur, quia regnasset annos plus minus quadraginta. Et post ipsum regnavit Aldihoc, filius Lethuc. Et post ipsum regnavit Godehoc.

3.

Illo tempore exivit rex Audoachari de Ravenna cum exercitu Alanorum, et venit in Rugilanda et inpugnavit Rugos, et occidit Theuvane regem Rugorum, secumque multos captivos duxit in Italiam. Tunc exierunt Langobardi de suis regionibus, et habitaverunt in Rugilanda annos aliquantos.

4.

Post eum regnavit Claffo, filius Godehoc. Et post ipsum regnavit Tato, filius Claffoni. Sederunt Langobardi in campis feld annos tres. Pugnavit Tato cum Rodolfo rege Herulorum, et occidit eum, tulit vando ipsius et capsidem. Post eum Heruli regnum non habuerunt. Et occidit Wacho, filius Unichis, Tatonem regem barbanem suum cum Zuchilone. Et pugnavit Wacho, et pugnavit Ildichis, filius Tatoni, et fugit Ildichis ad Gippidos, ubi mortuus est. Iniuria vindicanda Gippidi Scandalum commiserunt cum Langobardis. Eo tempore inclinavit Wacho suavos sub regno Langobardorum. Wacho habuit uxores tres: Raicundam, filia Fisud regis Turingorum; et postea accepit uxorem Austrigusa, filiam Gippidorum; et habuit Wacho de Austrigusa filias duas, nomen unae Wisigarda, quam tradidit in matrimonium Theudiperti regis francorum; et nomen secundae Walderada, quam habuit uxorem Scusuald rex francorum, quam odio habens, tradidit eam Garipald in uxorem. Filia regis Herulorum tertiam uxorem habuit nomen Silinga; de ipsa habuit filium nomine Waltari. Mortuus est Wacho, et regnavit filius ipsius Waltari annos septem; Farigaidus: isti omnes Lethinges fuerunt.

5.

Et post Waltari regnavit Auduin; ipse adduxit Langobardos in Pannonia. Et regnavit Albuin, filius ipsius, post eum, cui mater est Rodelenda. Eo tempore pugnavit Albuin cum rege Gippidorum nomine Cunimund, et mortuus est Cunimund in ipsa pugna, et debellati sunt Gippidis. Tulit Albuin uxore Rosemunda, filia Cunimundi, quae praedaverat, quia iam mortua fuerat uxor ipsius Flutsuinda, quae fuit filia Flothario regis Francorum; de qua habuit filia nomine Albsuinda. Et habitaverunt Langobardi in Pannonia annis quadraginta duo. Ipse Albuin adduxit Langobardos in Italia, invitatos a Narsete scribarum; et movit Albuin rex Langobardorum de Pannonia mense aprilis a pascha indictione prima. Secunda vero indictione coeperunt praedare in italia. Tertia autem indictione factus est dominus Italiae. Regnavit Albuin in Italia annos tres, et occisus est in Verona in palatio ab Hilmichis et Rosemunda uxore sua per consilium Peritheo. Voluit regnare Hilmichis, et non potuit, quia volebant eum Langobardi occidere. Tunc mandavit Rosemunda ad Longinum praefectum, ut eam reciperet Ravenna. Mox ut audivit Longinus, gavisus est, misit navem angarialem, et tulerunt Rosemunda et Hilmichis et Albsuindam, filia Albuin regis, et omnes thesauros Langobardorum secum duxerunt in Ravenna. Tunc ortare coepit Longinus praefectus Rosemunda, ut occideret Hilmichis et esset uxor Longini. Audito consilium ipsius, temperavit venenum, et post valneum dedit ei in caldo bibere. Cumque bibisset Hilmichis, intellexit, quod malignum bibisset; praecepit, ut ipsa Rosemunda biberet invita; et mortui sunt ambo. Tunc Longinus praefectus tulit thesauros Langobardorum, et Albsuinda, filia Albuin regis, iussit ponere in navem et transmisit eam Constantinopolim ad imperatorem.

6.

Reliqui Langobardi levaverunt sibi regem nomine Cleph de Beleos, et regnavit Cleph annos duos, et mortuus est. Et iudicaverunt duces Langobardorum annos duodecim; posthaec levaverunt sibi regem nomine Autarine, filio Claffoni; et accepit autari uxorem Theudelenda, filia Garipald et Walderade de Baiuaria. Et venit cum Theudelenda frater ipsius nomine Gundoald, et ordinavit eum autari rex ducem in civitatem Astense. Et regnavit Autari annos septem. Et exivit Acquo dux Turingus de Thaurinis, et iunxit se Theudelendae reginae, et factus est rex Langobardorum; et occidit duces revelles suos, Zangrolf de Verona, Mimulf de insula sancti iuliani et Gaidulf de Bergamum, et alios qui revelles fuerunt; et genuit Acquo de Theodelenda filiam nomine Gunperga. Et regnavit Acquo annos VI. Et post ipso regnavit Aroal annos duodecim. Et post ipso regnavit Rothari ex genere Arodus, et rupit civitatem vel castra romanorum quae fuerunt circa litora apriso lune usque in terra Francorum quam ubitergium ad partem orienti, et pugnavit circa fluvium Scultenna, et ceciderunt a parte romanorum octo milia numerus.

7.

Et regnavit Rothari annos decem et septem. Et post ipsum regnavit Aripert annos novem. Et post ipsum regnavit Grimoald. Eo tempore exivit Constantinus imperator de Constantinopolim, et venit in partes Campaniae, et regressus est in Sicilia, et occisus est a suis. Et regnavit Grimoald annos novem; et post regnavit Berthari.