Apocalypse in Rome: Cola di Rienzo and the Politics of the New AgeDonald G. Musto2003

On May 20, 1347, Cola di Rienzo overthrew without violence the turbulent rule of Rome's barons and the absentee popes. A young visionary and the best political speaker of his time, Cola promised Rome a return to its former greatness. Ronald G. Musto's vivid biography of this charismatic leader--whose exploits have enlivened the work of poets, composers, and dramatists, as well as historians--peels away centuries of interpretation to reveal the realities of fourteenth-century Italy and to offer a comprehensive account of Cola's rise and fall.