La „Chronica Danielis“: il Barbarossa, i della Torre e la battaglia di Desio (1277)

Abstract

Abstract The „Chronica Danielis“ is a fantastical chronicle dedicated to the mythical Inglexio family, purported to have ruled Milan from the 7th to the 12th centuries. According to this legend, the emperor Frederick I was responsible for the family’s demise: when he destroyed Milan with the help of some Milanese traitors in 1145 (sic!), he either killed the last members of the Inglexio family or deported them to Germany. Jörg W. Busch has proved that the legend of the Inglexio was written during the rule of the della Torre family (1259–1277) to legitimise their power in Milan. The hypothesis is correct, but the „Cronica Federici primi“ – the third part of the text – is not a work of propaganda. On the contrary, it is a fictional reconstruction of the end of the della Torre family’s power after their defeat at Desio in 1277. Specifically, this article analyses the „Cronica Federici primi“ and provides a new edition of the text.