Villani: historical legend

The historian Giovanni Villani(1280-1348), was a historian from Florence, and he has told about Florence, and Italy, with usually fantasy; he has took that historian before has told and he certainly didn’t accurate searches about Florence and Italy, and it is normal to ancient historians, during middle age above all, but he confused Baduila, better known with name of Totila(516?-552) king of Ostrogoths during the war Greek Gothic, in Italy, with Attila, king of Unnis from(434-453), in fact Villani told about meet with Saint Leone 10^th pope, and he hinted to conquest of Spain, where neither Attila neither Totila are come, in fact Attila after the meet with the pope after mentioned come back, but alone because he had few men and he didn’t known how much soldiers has had Rome; thereupon he makes the first error. The second error of Villani, Attila was defeated by Roman and Visigoths people in 451 a.Ch., near Chalons en Champagne, and the Roman general Ezio(a.Ch.390-454). Second error of Villani about the round table, that invented the born of witchcraft Merlin and confused the year 470 a.Ch, with 12^th century, when is born the legend of these knights, by the way this table was round so that nobody was chief, because the more important man was in table of the table; evidently Villani has had some eco about the Chretien de Troyes(1135-1190) and his romance and he has took these legends, enclose witchcraft Merlin, and he has tough that it is history; then it was very difficult distinction between history and legend, it is ancient tradition from Greece and Rome, often what was heard was history; a clear example is Uther Pendragon father of king Arthur, likewise legendary figure, that was descendent of Enea, a poetical figure of Virgil in Aeneid, metical founder of Rome. The name of king Edevancer is absolutely stranger from history, and other very amusing legends that today are laughable but then were very credible. Theodoric king of Goths didn’t kill nobody pope, but he had alone contrast lively with the Church, but nobody pope died, and in opinion of Villani Theodoric killed pope John first(470-526), that was imprisoned; and we consider that during reign of Thodoric was pope Simmac(election 498-514).

Alessandro Lusana