Atlantic Italies

Overview & Synopsis

While no pre-unification Italian state ever possessed colonies beyond the Strait of Gibraltar, the Mediterranean peninsula was linked to the Americas and Africa through a variety of entanglements. Weaving networks that crossed political boundaries, merchants profited from manifold economic opportunities – including the Atlantic slave trade, which, from its beginnings in the 15th century to its demise in the 19th century, attracted considerable investments from the Italies. Mariners, scholars, clerics, and aristocrats served the empires of various European powers, whereas others – such as mendicant friars – carved out room for manoeuvre that transcended imperial agendas. City dwellers and peasants discovered new foodstuffs and acquired an increasingly global consumer culture. By challenging narratives moulded by methodological nationalism, this book explores how such connections shaped the Italian Peninsula and contributes to a new trans-imperial perspective on the Atlantic world.