This book was written by an outstanding Russian historian, academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences Yevgeny Viktorovich Tarle (1874-1955), the author of many wonderful works on the history of Europe and Russia. It examines the history of Italy from the time of the fall of the Western Roman Empire to the beginning of the XIV century, which, according to the author, is a chronicle of foreign invasions and conquests. Detailing the events of political history, the author at the same time does not lose sight of both economic relations and the facts of cultural life, which also constitute the content of the history of medieval Italy.