P3+Guelfs

Aim- Verena Miller

The Guelfs, who supported the pope, were created to be an opposing political party against the Ghibellines, who supported the emperor. As with any controversial groups, both the Guelfs and the Ghibellines started off together as one ruling power. Once one side of the family started focusing more on expansion, power, and possession, the other side broke off into a whole separate party, called the Guelfs. “The popes having favoured and fostered the growth of the communes, the Guelphs were in the main the republican, commercial, burgher party” (Edmund 1). Initially, the Guelf goal was protect the citizens. This group based it’s beliefs and actions around the power of the church and pope. By making a new party, people had a choice to get away from the manipulative ways that the imperial’s used to reign over the country. The Guelfs made it a point to try and spread human rights and a sense of togetherness, or “communes”, among their people, which ranged from allowing followers to actually own their belongings to the ability to of having a “republic”; making some sort of choice in who was leading them. They were “burgher” in a sense of that the church was well known and popular to begin with, making finding followers even more easier, which then made “commercial” and making profits possible without having to steal from the people. There were also many negative personal factors, such as family feuds, between the members on each side, which also lead to the splitting of the original faction. Thus making the fighting and political battles not always about what at best for the people and what supported their ideas, but also over the ranking of reputation, status, and importance of the Guelfs against the Ghibellines.

Works Cited:

Abulafia, David. The New Cambridge Medieval History V. Cambridge: The Press Syndicate Of The University of Cambridge, 1999.  Web.

Gardner, Edmund. "Guelphs and Ghibellines." __The Catholic Encyclopedia.__  Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 30   Aug. 2012.

Galantucci, Robert. Medieval Sienese Painting. n. d. Calvary Church, Tucson.  O. Browning. Guelphs and Ghibellines (1894); T. F. Tout, The Empire and the Papacy, 918–1273 (8th ed. 1924, repr. 1965);  R. E. Herzstein, ed., The Holy Roman Empire in the Middle Ages (1966). Audience - Hailee Hoff Audience - Hailee Hoff

During the time of the Middle ages, the well known historical land of Italy had been politically divided by the Guelfs and the Ghibellines. These two political parties were at a time one whole, until the 12th century that is. “The Guelfs were named for the Welf dynasty of Saxon dukes whom the popes favored in an effort to block the consolidation of imperial power in Italy”(Nauert).The separation occurred due to the quantity of power and with that power, disagreements. In Italy, the political party that was known as Guelfs (also spelled as Guelphs) supported the popes. On the other hand the Ghibellines supported the emperor. “After the Hohenstaufen dynasty lost the Empire when Charles of Anjou executed Conradin in 1268, the terms Guelph and Ghibelline became associated with individual families and cities, rather than the struggle between empire and papacy” (RTBot). However as explained the previous quote, the popes and emperor were not the only members involved with these two opposing parties. As time dragged on, families have been in the mess of things with the parties. Also explained in the quote by Nauert, the Guelfs were a party in which the Welf dynasty supported. This meant that the Ghibellines were not supported by the Welf dynasty but a separate powerful family. Although families were involved, so were the other residence in cities and towns of Italy. Like any other rivalry, there are battles and wars. These two rivals participated in just that, wars. Therefore many had to fight alongside their party in which they had supported even if they weren't a pope, emperor or one of the originating families. It was one of these wars that led to the ended the Ghibelline party, as in result to much bloodshed of the people of Italy. For, in the beginning the parties were only separated because of the popes and emperors, until the end when they were supported by other families and cities of Italy, until one of the two parties had come to its final fall.

Works cited:

"Guelfs And Ghibellines." RTBot. RTBot.net, 6 May 2010. Web. 30 Aug. 2012.

Nauert, Charles G. "Ghibellines/ Guelfs." Academic. Historical Dictionary of Renaissance, 2004. Web. 30 Aug. 2012.

Gardner, Edmund. "Guelphs and Ghibellines." __The Catholic Encyclopedia.__ Vol. 7.New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 30 Aug. 2012

**Historical- Harrisen Haslem**

The Guelfs were a political party in Germany during the late Middle Ages that was designed to go against the Italian party of the Ghibellines. The two political parties were made during the time of struggle between the popes and emperors. Their names were given to represent said struggle. They were also used to show a deeper struggle solely in Germany with the dukes of Saxony and Bavaria and the Hohenstaufen. “The rivalry between the German families, both which had large holdings in Swabia, dates from their rise to power under Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV” (Browning). For Italy, the name came from the two rival factions that put them into internal warfare for many years. The name Guelf (Guelph) was first used to categorize the supporters of Otto IV. The name soon lost its significance though. Many battles were fought between the groups, such as the Battle of Corte Nuova and the Battle of Monte Aperto where the Guelfs were defeated. There was also the Battle of Tagliacozzo and the Battle of Campaldino which the Guelfs were victorious in. The feud never truly ended, but as history took it’s own course with the high control of religion and then the fall of control as people became more literate, it became less and less important. The last recorded battle between the two was in 1325.

WORK CITED:

Gardner, Edmund. "Guelphs and Ghibellines." __The Catholic Encyclopedia.__ Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 30 Aug. 2012 .

See O. Browning, //Guelphs and Ghibellines// (1894); T. F. Tout, //The Empire and the Papacy, 918–1273// (8th ed. 1924, repr. 1965); R. E. Herzstein, ed., //The Holy Roman Empire in the Middle Ages// (1966).