Giovanni Boccaccio
Born	1313 Certaldo
Died	21 December 1375 (aged 62) Certaldo
Occupation	Renaissance humanist
Nationality	Italian
Writing period	Early Renaissance

Giovanni Boccaccio (1313 – 1375)^[1] was an Italian author and poet, a friend and correspondent of Petrarch, and an important Renaissance humanist in his own right and author of a number of notable works including On Famous Women, the Decameron, and his poetry in the Italian vernacular. Certaldo is a town of Tuscany, Italy, in the Province of Florence. Events 69 - The end of the Year of the four emperors: Following Galba, Otho and Vitellius, Vespasian Certaldo is a town of Tuscany, Italy, in the Province of Florence. Employment is a Contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. Renaissance Humanism was a European intellectual movement beginning in Florence in the last decades of the 14th century Nationality is a relationship between a Person and their State of Origin, Culture, association Affiliation and/or Loyalty Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Francesco Petrarca ( July 20, 1304 – July 19, 1374) known in English as Petrarch, was an Italian scholar Renaissance Humanism was a European intellectual movement beginning in Florence in the last decades of the 14th century On Famous Women ( Latin: De mulieribus claris) is one of two such collections of biographies of famous people written by Giovanni Boccaccio, the Florentine The Decameron (subtitle Prencipe Galeotto) is a collection of 100 Novellas by Italian author Giovanni Boccaccio, probably begun in Vernacular refers to the Native language of a country or a locality Boccaccio is particularly notable for his dialogue, of which it has been said that it surpasses in verisimilitude that of just about all of his contemporaries, since they were medieval writers and often followed formulaic models for character and plot. Verisimilitude in its literary context is defined as the fact or quality of being verisimilar the appearance of being true or real likeness or resemblance of the truth reality or a fact’s Medieval literature is a broad subject encompassing essentially all written works available in Europe beyond and during the Middle Ages (encompassing the one thousand

Biography

The exact details of his birth are uncertain, a number of sources state that he was born in Paris and that his mother was a Parisian,^[2] but others deprecate this as a romanticism by the earliest biographers. Paris (ˈpærɨs in English; in French) is the Capital of France and the country's largest city In this case his birthplace was possibly in Tuscany, perhaps in Certaldo, the town of his father. Tuscany (Toscana is a region in Italy. It has an area of 22990 km² and a population of about 3 ^[3] . He was almost certainly illegitimate,^[2] the son of a Florentine merchant and an unknown woman. In Common law, legitimacy is the status of a Child that is born to parents who are legally married to one another or that is born shortly after the Florence ( Italian: Firenze Florentia and Fiorenza) is the Capital City of the Italian region of Tuscany

Early life

Boccaccio grew up in Florence. His father was working for the Compagnia dei Bardi and in the 1320s married Margherita dei Mardoli, of an illustrious family. The Compagnia dei Bardi was a Florentine banking and trading company which was started by the Bardi family. It is believed Boccaccio was tutored by Giovanni Mazzuoli and received from him an early introduction to the works of Dante. Giovanni Mazzuoli, also Giovanni degli Organi (ca 1360 - May 14, 1426) was an Italian composer and organist of the medieval era. In 1326 Boccaccio moved to Naples with the family when his father was appointed to head the Neapolitan branch of his bank. Naples ( Napoli, Neapolitan: Nàpule) is a historic City in southern Italy, the Capital of the Boccaccio was apprenticed to the bank, but it was a trade for which he had no affinity. He eventually persuaded his father to let him study law at the Studium in the city. ^[2] For the next six years Boccaccio studied canon law there. Canon law is internal ecclesiastical law governing the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox churches and the Anglican Communion of churches Then from there he pursued his interest in scientific and literary studies. ^[4]

His father introduced him to the Neapolitan nobility and the French-influenced court of Robert the Wise in the 1330s. Robert of Anjou, known as Robert the Wise (Roberto il Saggio 1277 – 20 January, 1343) was King of Naples from 1309 to 1343 At this time he fell in love with a married daughter of Robert the Wise (known as, King Robert of Naples) and she is immortalized as the character "Fiammetta" in many of Boccaccio's prose romances, particularly Filocolo (1338). Robert of Anjou, known as Robert the Wise (Roberto il Saggio 1277 – 20 January, 1343) was King of Naples from 1309 to 1343 Boccaccio became a friend of fellow Florentine Niccolò Acciaioli, and benefited from his influence as administrator and, perhaps, the lover of Catherine of Valois-Courtenay, widow of Philip I of Taranto. Niccolò Acciaioli (1310 &ndash 8 November 1365 a member of the Florentine banking family of the Acciaioli, was the Grand seneschal of the Catherine II of Valois (1303 &ndash 1346 was Titular Empress of Constantinople from 1308 to her death Princess Regent of Achaea from 1332 to 1341 Philip I of Taranto ( November 10, 1278 – December 26 1331) of the Angevin house was titular Emperor of Constantinople Acciaioli later became counsellor to Queen Joanna and, eventually, her Grand Seneschal. Joan I (1328 – May 12, 1382) born Joanna of Anjou, was Queen of Naples from 1343 until her death A seneschal was an officer in the houses of important nobles in the Middle Ages.

It seems Boccaccio enjoyed law no more than banking, but his studies allowed him the opportunity to study widely and make good contacts with fellow scholars. His early influences included Paolo da Perugia (a curator and author of a collection of myths, the Collectiones), the humanists Barbato da Sulmona and Giovanni Barrili, and the theologian Dionigi di Borgo San Sepolcro. See also Mythology Myth is derived from the Greek word μύθος mythos, which simply means 'story' Dionigi di Borgo San Sepolcro ( c 1300 — March 31 1342) was an Augustinian Monk who was at one time Petrarch

Children

In the 1330s Boccaccio became a father of two illegitimate children, Mario and Giulio. In the 1340s Boccaccio became a father again, of another illegitimate child, Violante. He was born in Ravenna, where Boccaccio was a guest of Ostasio I da Polenta from about 1345 through 1346. Ravenna is a City and Comune in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Ostasio I da Polenta (died November 14 1346) was lord of Ravenna from 1322 until his death

Mature years

In Naples, Boccaccio began what he considered his true vocation, poetry. Works produced in this period include Filostrato and Teseida (the source for Chaucer's Troilus and Criseyde and The Knight's Tale respectively), Filocolo, a prose version of an existing French romance, and La caccia di Diana, a poem in octave rhyme listing Neapolitan women. Il Filostrato is a Poem by the Italian writer Giovanni Boccaccio, and the inspiration for Geoffrey Chaucer 's Troilus and Geoffrey Chaucer (c 1343 – 25 October 1400? was an English author poet Philosopher, bureaucrat, courtier and Diplomat. Troilus and Criseyde (circa 1380-87 is Geoffrey Chaucer 's Poem in Rhyme royal ( rime royale) re-telling the tragic love story of "The Knight's Tale" is the first tale from Geoffrey Chaucer 's The Canterbury Tales. ^[5] The period featured considerable formal innovation, including possibly the introduction of the Sicilian octave to Florence, where it influenced Petrarch. The Sicilian octave ( Italian ottava siciliana or ottava napoletana, lit ^[6]

Boccaccio returned to Florence in early 1341, avoiding the plague in that city of 1340, but also missing the visit of Petrarch to Naples in 1341. Bubonic plague is the best-known manifestation of the bacterial disease plague, caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis (formerly known as He had left Naples due to tensions between the Angevin king and Florence. His father had returned to Florence in 1338, where he had gone bankrupt. The death of his mother occurred shortly afterward. Although dissatisfied with his return to Florence, Boccaccio continued to work, producing Comedia delle ninfe fiorentine (also known as Ameto) a mix of prose and poems, in 1341, completing the fifty canto allegorical poem Amorosa visione in 1342, and Fiammetta ^[7] in 1343 The pastoral piece Ninfale fiesolano probably dates from this time also. In 1343 Boccaccio's father re-married, to Bice del Bostichi. His children by his first marriage had all died (except Boccaccio) and he was gladdened by the birth of a son, Iacopo, in 1344.

In Florence, the overthrow of Walter of Brienne brought about the government of popolo minuto. Walter VI of Brienne (neè Gaulterio de Candia VI Comte de Brienne c It diminished the influence of the nobility and the wealthier merchant classes and assisted in the relative decline of Florence. The city was hurt further, in 1348, by the Black Death, later represented in the Decameron, which killed some three-quarters of the city's population. The Black Death, or the Black Plague, was one of the deadliest Pandemics in human history widely thought to have been caused by a bacterium named Yersinia

From 1347 Boccaccio spent much time in Ravenna, seeking new patronage, and despite his claims, it is not certain whether he was present in plague-ravaged Florence. His stepmother died during the epidemic and his father, as Minister of Supply in the city was closely associated with the government efforts. His father died in 1349 and as head of the family Boccaccio was forced into a more active role.

Boccaccio began work on the Decameron ^{[8] [9]} around 1349. The Decameron (subtitle Prencipe Galeotto) is a collection of 100 Novellas by Italian author Giovanni Boccaccio, probably begun in It is probable that the structures of many of the tales date from earlier in his career, but the choice of a hundred tales and the frame-story lieta brigata of three men and seven women dates from this time. The work was largely complete by 1352. It was Boccaccio's final effort in literature and one of his last works in Italian, the only other substantial work was Corbaccio (dated to either 1355 or 1365). Italian ( or lingua italiana) is a Romance language spoken by about 63 million people as a First language, primarily in Italy. Boccaccio revised and rewrote the Decameron in 1370-1371. This manuscript has survived to the present day.

From 1350 Boccaccio, although less of a scholar, became closely involved with Italian humanism and also with the Florentine government. His first official mission was to Romagna in late 1350. Romagna is an Italian historical region that approximately corresponds to the south-eastern portion of present-day Emilia-Romagna. He revisited that city-state twice and also was sent to Brandenburg, Milan, and Avignon. Brandenburg ( Lower Sorbian: Bramborska; Upper Sorbian: Braniborska) is one of the sixteen states of Germany. Milan (Milano Milan (listen) is one of the largest cities in Italy, located in the plains of Lombardy. Avignon (/aviɲɔ̃/ in French) ( Provençal: Avinhon in classical norm or Avignoun in Mistralian norm is a commune He also pushed for the study of Greek, housing Barlaam of Calabria, and encouraging his tentative translations of works by Homer, Euripides, and Aristotle. Homer ( Ancient Greek:, Homēros) is a legendary ancient Greek epic Poet, traditionally said to be the author of the epic poems the Euripides ( Ancient Greek:) (ca 480 BC–406 BC was the last of the three great tragedians of classical Athens (the other two being Aeschylus Aristotle (Greek Aristotélēs) (384 BC – 322 BC was a Greek philosopher a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great.

In October 1350 he was delegated to greet Francesco Petrarca as he entered Florence and also to have the great man as a guest at his home during his stay. The meeting between the two was extremely fruitful and they were friends from then on, Boccaccio calling Petrarch his teacher and magister. Petrarch at that time encouraged Boccaccio to study classical Greek and Latin literature. They met again in Padua in 1351, Boccaccio on an official mission to invite Petrarch to take a chair at the university in Florence. Padua ( Padova 'padova Latin: Patavium, Padoa) is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy. Although unsuccessful, the discussions between the two were instrumental in Boccaccio writing the Genealogia deorum gentilium; the first edition was completed in 1360 and this would remain one of the key reference works on classical mythology for over 400 years. Giovanni Boccaccio's Genealogia deorum gentilium, known in English as On the Genealogy of the Gods of the Gentiles, is a Mythography The discussions also formalized Boccaccio's poetic ideas. Certain sources also see a conversion of Boccaccio by Petrarch from the open humanist of the Decameron to a more ascetic style, closer to the dominant fourteenth century ethos. For example, he followed Petrarch (and Dante) in the unsuccessful championing of an archaic and deeply allusive form of Latin poetry. In 1359 following a meeting with Pope Innocent VI and further meetings with Petrarch it is probable that Boccaccio took some kind of religious mantle. Pope Innocent VI (1282 or 1295 &ndash September 12, 1362) born Étienne Aubert, Pope at Avignon from 1352 to 1362 the successor There is a persistent, but unsupported, tale that he repudiated his earlier works, including the Decameron, in 1362, as profane.

Illustration of one of the women featured the 1374 biographies of 106 famous women, De Claris Mulieribus, by Boccaccio - from a German translation of 1541

In 1360 Boccaccio began work on De mulieribus claris, a book offering biographies of one hundred and six famous women, that he completed in 1374. On Famous Women ( Latin: De mulieribus claris) is one of two such collections of biographies of famous people written by Giovanni Boccaccio, the Florentine Two centuries later, approximately in 1541, this work was translated into the German language by Heinrich Steinhöwel and printed by Johannes Zainer, in Ulm, Germany. The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. Ulm (ˈʊlm is a City in the German Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the River Danube. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The secondary title caption, a subtitle, of the German translation reads Hie nach volget der kurcz sin von etlichen frowen / von denen johannes boccacius in latin beschriben hat, vnd doctor hainricus stainhöwel getütschet.

Following the failed coup of 1361, a number of Boccaccio's close friends and other acquaintances were executed or exiled in the subsequent purge. Although not directly linked to the conspiracy, it was in this year that Boccaccio left Florence to reside in Certaldo, and became less involved in government affairs. He did not undertake further missions for Florence until 1365, and traveled to Naples and then on to Padua and Venice, where he met up with Petrarch in grand style at Palazzo Molina, Petrarch's residence as well as the place of Petrarch's library. Venice ( Italian: Venezia, Venetian: Venesia or Venexia) is a city in Northern Italy, the capital of the Palazzo Molina or Palace of Two Towers is Petrarch's home also known as "Molina house of the two towers The poet Petrarch arranged to leave his personal library to the city of Venice; but it never arrived He later then returned to Certaldo. Certaldo is a town of Tuscany, Italy, in the Province of Florence. He met Petrarch only once again, in Padua in 1368. Upon hearing of the death of Petrarch (July 19, 1374), Boccaccio wrote a commemorative poem, including it in his collection of lyric poems, the Rime.

As mentioned above, he returned to work for the Florentine government in 1365, undertaking a mission to Pope Urban V. Blessed When the papacy returned to Rome from Avignon in 1367, Boccaccio was again sent to Urban, offering congratulations. Avignon (/aviɲɔ̃/ in French) ( Provençal: Avinhon in classical norm or Avignoun in Mistralian norm is a commune He also undertook diplomatic missions to Venice and Naples.

Of his later works the moralistic biographies gathered as De casibus virorum illustrium (1355-74) and De mulieribus claris (1361-1375) were most significant. ^[10] Other works include a dictionary of geographical allusions in classical literature, De montibus, silvis, fontibus, lacubus, fluminibus, stagnis seu paludibus, et de nominibus maris liber (a title desperate for the coining of the word "geography"). He gave a series of lectures on Dante at the Santo Stefano church in 1373 and these resulted in his final major work, the detailed Esposizioni sopra la Commedia di Dante. ^[11] Boccaccio and Petrarch, also were two of the most educated people in early Renaissance in the field of archaeology. Archaeology, archeology, or archæology (from Greek grc ἀρχαιολογία archaiologia – grc ἀρχαῖος archaīos ^[12]

Boccaccio's change in writing style in the 1350s was not due just to meeting with Petrarch. It was mostly due to poor health and a premature weakening of his physical strength. It also was due to disappointments in love. Some such disappointment could explain why Boccaccio, having previously written always in praise of women and love, came suddenly to write in a bitter Corbaccio style. Furthermore, there are signs that he may have taken up religion. Petrarch describes how Pietro Petrone (a Carthusian monk) on Boccaccio's death bed sent another Carthusian (Gioacchino Ciani) to urge him to renounce his worldly studies. The Carthusian Order, also called the Order of St Bruno, is a Roman Catholic religious order of enclosed monastics. ^[13] Petrarch then dissuaded Boccaccio from burning his own works and selling off his personal library, letters, books, and manuscripts. Petrarch even offered to purchase Boccaccio's library, so that it would become part of Petrarch's library. The poet Petrarch arranged to leave his personal library to the city of Venice; but it never arrived ^[14]

His final years were troubled by illnesses, some relating to obesity and what often is described as dropsy, severe edema that would be described today as congestive heart failure. Oedema (or Edema in American English formerly known as dropsy or hydropsy, is the increase of Interstitial fluid in any organ &mdash swelling Heart failure is a Cardiac condition that occurs when a problem with the structure or function of the Heart impairs its ability to supply He died at the age of sixty-three in Certaldo on 21 December, 1375, where he is buried.

References

Works

Alphabetical listing of selected works,

• Amorosa visione (1342)
• Buccolicum carmen (1367-1369)
• Caccia di Diana (1334-1337)
• Comedia delle ninfe fiorentine (Amato, 1341-1342)
• Corbaccio (around 1365, this date is disputed)
• De Canaria (within 1341 - 1345)
• De Casibus Virorum Illustrium (c. De Casibus Virorum Illustribus ( "On the Fates of Famous Men") is a work of 56 biographies in Latin Prose composed by the Florentine 1360)
• De mulieribus claris (1361, revised up to 1375)
• Decameron (1349-52, revised 1370-1371)
• Elegia di Madonna Fiammetta (1343-1344)
• Esposizioni sopra la Comedia di Dante (1373-1374)
• Filocolo (1336-1339)
• Filostrato (1335 or 1340)
• Genealogia deorum gentilium libri (1360, revised up to 1374)
• Ninfale fiesolano (within 1344-46, this date is disputed)
• Rime (finished 1374)
• Teseida delle nozze di Emilia (before 1341)
• Trattatello in laude di Dante (1357, title revised to De origine vita studiis et moribus viri clarissimi Dantis Aligerii florentini poetae illustris et de operibus compositis ab eodem)
• Zibaldone Magliabechiano (within 1351-1356)

For an exhaustive listing there is Giovanni Boccaccio: an Annotated Bibliography (1992) by Joseph P. On Famous Women ( Latin: De mulieribus claris) is one of two such collections of biographies of famous people written by Giovanni Boccaccio, the Florentine The Decameron (subtitle Prencipe Galeotto) is a collection of 100 Novellas by Italian author Giovanni Boccaccio, probably begun in The Filocolo (orig Il Filocolo) is a Novel written by Giovanni Boccaccio between 1335-36 Il Filostrato is a Poem by the Italian writer Giovanni Boccaccio, and the inspiration for Geoffrey Chaucer 's Troilus and Giovanni Boccaccio's Genealogia deorum gentilium, known in English as On the Genealogy of the Gods of the Gentiles, is a Mythography Consoli.

Further reading

• On Famous Women, Latin text and English translation, 2001 ISBN 0-674-00347-0
• The Decameron, ISBN 0-451-52866-2
• The Life of Dante, ISBN 1-84391-006-3
• The Elegy of Lady Fiammetta, ISBN 0-226-06276-7