JUSTINIAN’S LEGACY The Last War of Roman Italy L’EREDITÀ DI GIUSTINIANO L’ultima guerra dell’Italia romana

As was already clear in Dante Alighieri’s mind, the main legacy of the emperor Justinian is undoubtedly his legislation. Especially starting from the 12th century and up to recent times, the Corpus Iuris Civilis influenced European legal history in a very deep way. The long period, however, between Justinian and Henry IV was by no means devoid of knowledge of the CIC. Neither Lombard domination nor that of the Carolingians and the Ottonians could completely eradicate from Italy the memory and the ideal appreciation of Justinian’s laws. In each case, the fortune of Justinian’s legislation would surely not have been possible if the Byzantine texts had not arrived in Italy already in the sixth century (perhaps even before the Gothic War), and if someone, somewhere, had not preserved them (together with the perception of their value) over the centuries of the very early Middle Ages. As showed in particular by the oldest manuscript tradition of Justinian’s texts, the role of the Roman Church in the survival of this legacy was decisive. A couple of examples make it clear how ideological motivations as much as practical interests pushed the Church towards a decision with profound future consequences