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8th Century AD – Enter Charlemagne and the Franks

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The 8th century AD broke the old order in Italy. Byzantine power in the north collapsed when the Lombards conquered the Exarchate of Ravenna for the final time in 751, ending the line of Exarchs altogether. The Emperor’s ban on religious images — iconoclasm — opened a bitter rift between Constantinople and the papacy, and in retaliation the Empire stripped the popes of their income-producing estates in Sicily and southern Italy. Into this vacuum stepped the Franks. Pepin the Short’s donation of 754 created the Papal States, his son Charlemagne destroyed the Lombard kingdom in 774, and on Christmas Day 800 Charlemagne was crowned Roman Emperor in Rome. Meanwhile the south went its own way: Benevento became an autonomous principality, Naples under Duke Stephen II began its long independence, new dioceses such as Gaeta appeared, and Saracen fleets raided Sicily almost yearly — a preview of the century to come.

Full Chronological Summary (8th Century AD)

New Dioceses (8th Century)

  • Gaeta

Founding of Campobasso

  • The city of Campobasso is founded during this century.
  • The name appears to derive from Campus vassorum (“camp of the vassals”), because it served as the base for the vassals of the Count of Molise.
  • Other sources contend that the name simply means “low field.”

701 AD

  • (Sept 8) Pope Sergius I dies. He is succeeded, on October 30, by John VI.
  • Raginpert, son of King Godepert, overthrows Liutpert and seizes the Lombard throne. He reigns only briefly before dying, and Liutpert returns to power.

702 AD

  • Theophylactus replaces John II Platinus as Exarch of Ravenna. Shortly after arriving in Italy he marches to Rome, where the local population greets him with great hostility.
  • Aripert II, son of Raginpert, deposes Liutpert and takes the Lombard throne. Liutpert is captured and soon murdered. Aripert then defeats the regent Ansprand, who escapes across the Alps.
  • Atina is captured by the Lombards and annexed to the duchy of Benevento.

703 AD

  • Saracen pirates raid Sicily.

704 AD

  • Justinian II returns to power at Constantinople.
  • The Saracen leader Musa declares a Holy War in the western Mediterranean. He sends his ships into the Tyrrhenian Sea and attacks Sicily.

705 AD

  • (Jan 11) Pope John VI dies. He is succeeded, on March 1, by John VII, a Greek from Rossano in Calabria.

706 AD

  • Romoald II becomes duke of Benevento.
  • Caesarius II becomes Byzantine duke of Naples.

707 AD

  • The Byzantines lose the Balearic Islands to the Saracens.
  • (Oct 18) Pope John VII dies.

708 AD

  • (Jan 15) Sisinnius becomes pope but dies on February 4. He is succeeded, on March 25, by Constantine.

709 AD

  • Emperor Justinian II sends the Patrician Theodore to Ravenna with an army and a secret mission: punish the city for supporting his overthrow in 695.
    • Theodore tricks the city leaders into assembling for a banquet, then has them all arrested. His troops rampage through Ravenna, sacking the city.
    • The noble prisoners are transported to Constantinople, where most are executed.
    • By exacting this personal revenge, Justinian II succeeds only in weakening Byzantine power in Italy.

710 AD

  • John III Rizocopo becomes Exarch of Ravenna for a short time. He meets with Pope Constantine shortly before the pope departs for Constantinople in October.
  • A rebel named Giorgius (George) leads an uprising in Ravenna which spreads to several other cities, including Cervia, Forlì, and Forlimpopoli. During the violence the Exarch John III Rizocopo is killed.
  • Saracens attack Cagliari in southern Sardinia.

711 AD

  • Entichius becomes Exarch of Ravenna and successfully puts down the rebellion in northern Italy led by Giorgius.
  • (Sept) John I becomes Byzantine duke of Naples.
  • (Dec) Emperor Justinian II is overthrown and executed. The imperial throne is seized by the Monothelite Philippikos.
  • Ansprand returns to the Lombard kingdom at the head of a large army of Bavarians and Austrians.
  • Saracens invade southern Spain, beginning their conquest of the Iberian peninsula.

712 AD

  • Aripert II drowns while attempting to cross the river Ticino.
  • Ansprand becomes king of the Lombards in March but dies in June. He is succeeded, on June 12, by his son Liutprand, who will rule for over three decades.

713 AD

  • (June 3) Byzantine emperor Philippikos is deposed and blinded. He is succeeded by Anastasius II.
  • Scholasticus becomes Byzantine Exarch of Ravenna.

715 AD

  • (Apr 9) Pope Constantine dies. He is succeeded, on May 19, by Gregory II.
  • Rebel Byzantine troops revolt and declare Theodosius, a tax official, as emperor. Theodosius III lays siege to Constantinople as Emperor Anastasius II flees to Nicaea.
  • Saracens lay siege to Constantinople for a second time (to 717).

716 AD

  • Theodosius III captures Constantinople. The former emperor Anastasius II is allowed to retire to a monastery in Thessalonika. He later attempts a revolt against Emperor Leo III; it fails and he is executed in 721.
  • Pestilence strikes Naples. Romoald II of Benevento takes advantage of it to seize the castle at Cumae. Pope Gregory II orders Romoald to withdraw and even offers compensation. Romoald refuses and places a strong garrison at Cumae.

717 AD

  • (Mar 25) Theodosius III is compelled to abdicate and Leo III the Isaurian becomes Byzantine emperor. Theodosius and his son are spared and allowed to enter the clergy.
  • Pope Gregory II bribes Duke John I of Naples with 70 pounds of gold to expel Duke Romoald’s garrison from Cumae.
    • Before the battle, John has a local priest named Sergius bless his troops, promising him the bishopric of Naples after the death of the incumbent.
    • The battle ends in complete victory for the Greek army of Naples. The Lombard gastald is killed along with about 300 of his men; another 500 Lombards are taken prisoner.
    • John keeps Cumae as a fief of Naples rather than turning it over to papal control.
  • (c) Petronace da Brescia becomes the first abbot of Monte Cassino since the monastery’s destruction in 584.
  • An epidemic in Rome kills 50,000. A plague raging at the same time in Constantinople takes 30,000 lives.

719 AD

  • John I dies. He is succeeded as Byzantine duke of Naples by Theodore I, who uses the Byzantine titles of ypatos chai doux (hypatus and duke).

720 AD

  • Saracens raid the coasts of Sicily.

721 AD

  • (early Apr) Plague strikes Naples, killing about 10% of the population.

722 AD

  • Severe drought leads to crop failure and famine in Campania.

726 AD

  • Byzantine Emperor Leo III issues a ban on religious images known as icons. A supporter of this policy comes to be known as an “iconoclast” (image-breaker), as opposed to a supporter of the use of icons, called an “iconodulist” or “iconodule” (one who serves the icons).
  • Paul becomes Exarch of Ravenna.

727 AD

  • Pope Gregory II condemns Emperor Leo III’s iconoclastic policy, creating a major rift between the papacy and the Empire.
  • The entire Byzantine exarchate of Ravenna rises in revolt against the imposition of iconoclasm. Leo III appoints Eutychus as Exarch to deal with the revolt.
    • Eutychus arrives in Naples and devises an unsuccessful plot to assassinate Pope Gregory II.
    • Eutychus then bribes the Lombard king Liutprand into a new agreement: Byzantine help imposing his authority over Benevento and Spoleto, in return for Liutprand’s help eliminating the pope. Upon learning of the agreement, Gregory II meets with Liutprand and convinces him not to act against him. Liutprand does, however, send troops to help Eutychus suppress the revolts in the Exarchate.
  • Byzantine power in northern Italy suffers a major blow when Liutprand conquers the exarchate of Ravenna, forcing the Exarch to flee to Venice. Byzantine interests in Italy begin to focus increasingly on the southern part of the peninsula.

728 AD

  • Liutprand completes his conquest of the Byzantine exarchate of Ravenna.
  • Saracen pirates raid Sicily.

729 AD

  • Exarch Eutychius recovers Ravenna by a surprise attack.
  • A temporary truce between the Lombards and Eastern Romans puts Rome in jeopardy: Liutprand and Eutychius agree to mount a joint attack on Papal Rome and lay siege to the city.
    • Gregory II goes to Liutprand and confronts the king directly. Liutprand agrees to lift the siege and offers his weapons and armor at the tomb of St. Peter.
    • In return, Gregory agrees to condemn Tiberius Petasius, a rival claimant to the Lombard throne. Without Liutprand, Eutychius is forced to withdraw as well.
  • Theodore I, Byzantine duke of Naples, dies. He is succeeded by George. During this period the dukes of Naples are charged with defending the Italian coast as far north as Terracina, as well as the north coast of Sicily.
  • Saracen pirates raid Sicily.
  • Volcanic eruptions on Lipari and Vulcano Islands — the last recorded eruption on Lipari.

730 AD

  • Theodore becomes Beneventan Gastald of Bari.
  • The Lombards retake Ravenna for a short time.
  • Saracen pirates raid Sicily.

731 AD

  • (Feb 11) Pope Gregory II dies. He is succeeded the same day by Gregory III, who follows his predecessor in condemning iconoclasm.
  • Saracen pirates raid Sicily.

732 AD

  • Adelais (Andelais) becomes duke of Benevento.
  • Emperor Leo III, defied by Pope Gregory III on the issue of sacred images, retaliates by confiscating the papal estates in Sicily and southern Italy — the principal source of papal income at this time.
    • Leo also transfers jurisdiction over the Greek archbishoprics of Thessalonica, Corinth, Nicopolis, Athens, and Patras, and the Italian archdioceses of Reggio and Syracuse, from the papacy to the Patriarch of Constantinople.
    • The papacy never regains control over the Greek seats; the Italian ones are only restored by the Normans in the latter half of the 11th century.

733 AD

  • Gregory becomes duke of Benevento.
  • Saracen pirates raid Sicily but meet stiff Byzantine resistance for the first time.

734 AD

  • Saracen pirates raid Sicily but are again repulsed by Byzantine defenses.

737 AD

  • Liutprand raises Hildeprand “the Useless”, either his nephew or grandson, to share the Lombard throne.
  • Lombards under Liutprand sack Ravenna.

738 AD

  • Thrasimund II, Lombard duke of Spoleto, rebels against Liutprand. The king suppresses the revolt and captures Spoleto and Benevento, placing his nephews in command of both duchies while their dukes flee to the protection of Pope Gregory III at Rome.

739 AD

  • George, Byzantine duke of Naples, dies. He is succeeded by Gregory I.
  • Pope Gregory III supports the dukes of Spoleto and Benevento against Liutprand.
  • Liutprand attacks the Duchy of Rome, seizes four cities including Orte and Bomarzo, and besieges Rome itself. Gregory III unsuccessfully appeals for help to the Frankish leader Charles Martel. Liutprand proceeds to ravage both the Duchy of Rome and Byzantine territories in central Italy.

740 AD

  • Godescalc becomes duke of Benevento.
  • Saracens launch an attack in strength against Sicily.
    • Led by prince Habib, who participated in the 728 attack, and his son Abd-ar-Rahman, the Saracens capture Syracuse by siege and plan to use the city as a base to conquer the rest of Sicily.
    • Their plans are thwarted when a Berber revolt forces them to return to Tunisia.
  • Violent earthquakes damage Rome, followed by an epidemic. Recurrences of this sickness will strike the city until c1000.

741 AD

  • (June 18) Emperor Leo III dies. He is succeeded by his son Constantine V Copronymus, an equally ardent iconoclast.
    • His derogatory nickname derives from the Greek kopra (feces) and onoma (name), given to him by iconodule enemies on the basis of a rumor that, as an infant, he defecated into the baptismal font or into the imperial purple cloth in which he was wrapped.
  • (Nov 29) Pope Gregory III dies. He is succeeded, on December 10, by Zachary.
  • Liutprand makes a new attempt to capture Ravenna. Pope Zachary marches north, meets with Exarch Eutychius near Rimini, and moves on to Ravenna. After securing the city, Zachary travels to the Lombard capital at Pavia and convinces Liutprand not only to abandon his planned assault on Ravenna but also to return some territory he had earlier seized.

742 AD

  • (Apr 2) Charlemagne is born at Aachen.
  • King Liutprand occupies the duchies of Spoleto and Benevento.

743 AD

  • Gisulf II becomes duke of Benevento.

744 AD

  • Angelbert becomes Beneventan Gastald of Bari.
  • (Jan) Liutprand, king of the Lombards, dies. He is succeeded by Hildeprand “the Useless.” Within a few months Hildeprand is deposed by a great council of nobles who consider him too incompetent. Ratchis, the duke of Friuli, becomes the new king.
  • A plague breaks out in Calabria. Over the next two years it spreads into Sicily, the Greek mainland, and the Aegean Islands.

746 AD

  • A deadly outbreak of bubonic plague rages through the Greek Peloponnesus. Having arisen a year before in Asia Minor, where it killed about a third of the population, the death rate in Greece is so great that the region is nearly depopulated and resettled by Slavs.
    • Because of this, many scholars believe that the only true survivors of the old Hellenic race are now those residing in southern Italy and Sicily.

747 AD

  • Carloman, Mayor of Austrasia, retires as a monk to Monte Cassino.
  • Plague spreads throughout Greek-held Calabria and Sicily.

748 AD

  • New outbreak of plague in Constantinople.

749 AD

  • Ratchis, king of the Lombards, abdicates and retires to Monte Cassino. He is succeeded by his brother Aistulf.
  • Liutprand, son of Gisulf II, becomes duke of Benevento.
  • Pestilence in Calabria, Naples, and Constantinople.

750 AD

  • Optato becomes abbot of Monte Cassino.

751 AD

  • Aistulf conquers the Exarchate of Ravenna, effectively destroying Byzantine power in northern Italy.
    • Shortly after this, the Exarch Eutychius falls in battle against the Lombards. He is the last person to hold the office of Exarch of Ravenna.
    • Henceforth, Byzantine (i.e. imperial Roman) interests in Italy focus on the southern mainland and Sicily.

752 AD

  • (Mar 14) Pope Zachary dies. Stephen succeeds him on March 23 but dies on March 26, before he can be consecrated — causing many scholars to reject him from the papal list. His successor, also named Stephen, is thus referred to as either Stephen II or Stephen III because of the ambiguous status of his predecessor.

753 AD

  • Saracens launch another major raid on Sicily (alt. date 752).

754 AD

  • Pope Stephen II (III) crowns Pepin the Short as king of the Franks at St.-Denis near Paris.
  • Franks under Pepin invade northern Italy to support the pope against the Lombards.
  • The Donation of Pepin: after defeating Aistulf, Pepin “donates” the lands of the old Byzantine Exarchate of Ravenna to papal control, creating the Papal States.
    • For centuries afterward, Frankish documents refer to the Papal States as the “Roman Empire,” while the true Roman Empire is referred to as the Greek or Byzantine Empire.
    • The Papacy becomes fully independent of Byzantine control.

755 AD

  • Stephen II becomes Byzantine duke of Naples. Although he holds the Byzantine title of Patrician (patricius), it is Stephen who begins the process of making Naples autonomous from the eastern empire.

756 AD

  • Pepin successfully defends Rome from another attack by Aistulf.
  • (Dec) Aistulf is killed in a hunting accident. He is succeeded by Desiderius — the last king of the Lombards.

757 AD

  • (Apr 26) Pope Stephen II (III) dies. He is succeeded by Paul I.

758 AD

  • Desiderius briefly captures Benevento and Spoleto.
  • Arechis II, husband of Adelperga, daughter of King Desiderius, succeeds his father Liutprand as duke of Benevento.

760 AD

  • (c) The Church of Santa Sophia is built at Benevento.
  • Ermeri becomes abbot of Monte Cassino. On July 18 he is replaced by Graziano.

761 AD

  • Duke Stephen II refuses to allow Bishop Paul, the papal envoy, to enter Naples because Paul is an enemy of iconoclasm — the policy of the emperors then controlling the Byzantine Empire, of which Naples is still a part.
  • Domnus becomes the first bishop of Mortorano (anc. Mamertum), Calabria.

763 AD

  • Naples continues its allegiance to the Byzantines. Duke Stephen II acknowledges the authority of Antiochos, the Byzantine Patrician of Sicily, addressing him in correspondence as “our lord” and “most excellent patrician and protostrategos.”
  • At this time Stephen secures control of the duchy of Naples as a hereditary right — often seen as the beginning of the independent duchy of Naples, which will survive until 1139.

764 AD

  • Duke Stephen II of Naples switches his allegiance from Constantinople to Rome. Rejecting imperial iconoclastic policy, Stephen acknowledges the Pope as his suzerain instead of the Emperor.
  • Bishop Paul, shut out of the city in 761, is now allowed to take control of the city of Naples.
  • (Aug) Tomichi becomes abbot of Monte Cassino.

765 AD

  • Papal privileges are restored in Benevento and Tuscany, and partially in Spoleto.

766 AD

  • Naples is struck by a new plague which devastates the population. Among the dead is Bishop Paul. Stephen II abdicates as duke of Naples in order to succeed Paul as bishop. The duchy enters a long period of chaos.
  • Antiochus, Byzantine governor (Patrician) of Sicily, is executed at Constantinople for refusing to obey iconoclast decrees.

767 AD

  • (June 28) Pope Paul I dies. Constantine becomes antipope. He is soon taken prisoner by the Lombards and imprisoned at the monastery of San Saba, where he dies in 768.
  • The former duke Stephen II is consecrated as bishop of Naples. His son, Gregory II, becomes Byzantine duke of Naples.
  • Outbreak of plague in Naples and the rest of Byzantine Italy.

768 AD

  • (Aug 7) Stephen III (IV), a native of Sicily, becomes Pope (alt. date 767).

769 AD

  • Pope Stephen III (IV) holds a council which changes the procedures for papal elections. Devotion to icons is also confirmed as the Papacy continues its opposition to Byzantine iconoclasm.

771 AD

  • (Feb) Potone becomes abbot of Monte Cassino.
  • (Dec 4) Carloman, king of Austrasia, dies. The rule of all the Franks is now united under his brother Charles — better known as Charlemagne.

772 AD

  • (Jan 24) Pope Stephen III (IV) dies. He is succeeded, on February 9, by Adrian I.
  • Jacob, bishop of Catania, is executed for refusing to obey iconoclast decrees.

773 AD

  • Desiderius, King of the Lombards, quarrels with Pope Hadrian I over control of the old Exarchate of Ravenna. When the Lombard king lays siege to Rome, Hadrian appeals for help to Charlemagne, king of the Franks.

774 AD

  • Charlemagne marches into northern Italy and conquers the Lombard kingdom, assuming the title of King of the Lombards (alt. date 773). He confirms Papal control over the lands bestowed by the Donation of Pepin in 754.
  • Arechis II unsuccessfully attempts to become King of the Lombards. He is instead elevated to the status of prince of Benevento by the new Frankish rulers, as compensation for giving up territory to the newly created Papal States.
    • He acknowledges Charlemagne as his lord and returns territory to papal control.
    • He issues laws enforced within his state as a supplement to the standard Lombard law code, and becomes autonomous of royal authority (alt. date 773).

775 AD

  • (Sept 14) Byzantine emperor Constantine V dies. He is succeeded by Leo IV.

777 AD

  • Teodemaro becomes abbot of Monte Cassino (alt. date 778).

778 AD

  • The Byzantine patrician of Sicily establishes his headquarters at Gaeta during his campaign against the Saracens in Campania.

780 AD

  • (Sept 8) Byzantine emperor Leo IV dies. He is succeeded by his 10-year-old son Constantine VI, with his mother Irene acting as guardian.
  • Bishop Leontius of Bari attends the Seventh Ecumenical Council (2nd Council of Nicaea).

781 AD

  • Byzantine empress Irene signs an agreement with Charlemagne renouncing all claims to the Papal States.
    • As part of the agreement, Charlemagne betroths his 6-year-old daughter Rotrude to Constantine VI. Some scholars believe this was meant as an attempt at eventual unification of the Byzantine and Frankish domains under one rule. The intended marriage never took place.
  • Charlemagne defines the boundaries of the Papal States. Centering on the Duchy of Rome (also known as the Patrimony of Peter), papal authority extends over a considerable amount of central Italy and beyond — including Ravenna, the Pentapolis (Rimini, Pesaro, Fano, Sinigaglia, and Ancona), Tuscany, Corsica, Lombardy, and parts of the duchy of Benevento.
  • Revolt of Elpidius, Byzantine strategos of Sicily. A fleet dispatched from Constantinople under the patrician Theodore crushes the rebels; Elpidius escapes to Africa, where he defects to the Saracens.

786 AD

  • Charlemagne reduces Arichis of Benevento to subjugation.

787 AD

  • Grimoald III becomes prince of Benevento.
  • (Oct 15) Eruption of Vesuvius (to Jan 15, 788).
  • 13 Sicilian cities send bishops to the 2nd Council of Nicaea, which brings an end to the first period of Byzantine iconoclasm and reunites the western and eastern churches. Among those attending is Bishop John of Tricala, Sicily.
  • There are two Byzantine headquarters located in the theme of Sicily.
  • Theodorus becomes bishop of Panormus (Palermo).

790 AD

  • Byzantines attack Benevento but are forced to withdraw when Frankish reinforcements arrive to help the defenders.
  • A military revolt makes Constantine VI sole Byzantine ruler. Irene retains her title but has no actual power. Although outwardly friendly toward one another, factional tensions between the two grow.
  • Paulus Diaconus (Paul the Deacon), at the monastery of Monte Cassino, writes his history of the Lombards.

792 AD

  • Irene receives confirmation of her title, but tensions continue between her followers and those of Constantine VI.

794 AD

  • Theophylactus II succeeds Gregory II as Byzantine duke of Naples.
  • A Benedictine monastery is founded at Salerno. According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, the library of ancient botanical and medical works collected here formed the basis of the famed Salerno medical school.

795 AD

  • (Dec 25) Pope Adrian I dies. He is succeeded, on December 26, by St. Leo III. Leo’s election creates much hostility from Rome’s noble families, insulted that a commoner had been chosen as pope.

796 AD

  • Gisolfo becomes abbot of Monte Cassino.

797 AD

  • A conspiracy of supporters of the Empress Irene forces Constantine VI to flee Constantinople. He escapes at first but is captured and brought back.
    • (Aug 15) Constantine VI is formally deposed and blinded by order of his mother. His ultimate fate is uncertain — some sources say he soon died of his wounds, but there is evidence he may have survived and actually outlived his mother.
  • (Aug 16) Irene is formally declared ruler of the Byzantine Empire. Technically she holds the masculine title of basileus (emperor), because its feminine equivalent basilissa properly designated the wife or mother of a reigning emperor.

799 AD

  • (Apr) Pope Leo III is physically attacked by a gang. His assailants unsuccessfully try to blind him and cut out his tongue. He survives but is formally deposed and sent to a monastery.
    • Leo escapes and is given protection by Charlemagne. On November 29, he returns to Rome with a Frankish escort and resumes his papacy.
  • Stephen II, former duke of Naples, dies. He is buried in the Catacombs of San Gennaro.
  • Bishop Leo II builds a church at Acerenza [PZ] to house the relics of the martyr S. Canio (d. 395).
  • (Apr 13) The historian Paul the Deacon, the Benedictine monk of Monte Cassino who wrote the important Historia gentis Langobardorum (History of the Lombards), dies.

800 AD

  • (Dec 25) Charlemagne is crowned Roman Emperor at Rome by Pope Leo III.
    • The rulers of this newly revived “Western Roman Empire” — better known to history as the Holy Roman Empire — will lay claim to southern Italy and Sicily as parts of their legitimate legacy. In this claim they are opposed by the Byzantines, who still consider their realm to be the true “Roman Empire.”
  • Isernia is sacked by the Saracens.

Key Themes of the 8th Century

  1. The End of Byzantine Ravenna
    • The Exarchate fell to the Lombards in 727, was recovered, and fell for good in 751. Eutychius, killed in battle, was the last Exarch.
    • Byzantine attention shifted permanently to the southern mainland and Sicily.
  2. Iconoclasm Divides East and West
    • Leo III’s ban on icons (726) set the popes against the emperors for most of the century.
    • The Empire confiscated the papal estates in Sicily and southern Italy (732), cutting off the papacy’s main income and pushing it toward the Franks.
    • The 2nd Council of Nicaea (787) ended the first period of iconoclasm and reunited the churches.
  3. The Franks and the Papal States
    • The Donation of Pepin (754) created the Papal States and freed the papacy from Byzantine control.
    • Charlemagne conquered the Lombard kingdom (774), confirmed and defined the papal territories (781), and was crowned Roman Emperor (800) — creating a rival “Roman Empire” whose claims to southern Italy would echo for centuries.
  4. The South Goes Its Own Way
    • Benevento survived the fall of the Lombard kingdom as an autonomous principality under Arechis II.
    • Naples under Duke Stephen II secured hereditary rule (763) and switched allegiance from Constantinople to Rome (764) — the beginning of an independent duchy that lasted until 1139.
  5. Plague, Famine, Quake, and Fire
    • Epidemics struck repeatedly — Rome and Constantinople (717), Naples (721, 766), Calabria and Sicily (744–749), and the catastrophic Peloponnesian plague of 746.
    • Earthquakes damaged Rome (740); Vesuvius erupted (787); Lipari saw its last recorded eruption (729).
  6. The Saracen Shadow
    • Saracen fleets raided Sicily almost continuously, captured Syracuse briefly in 740, took the Balearics, and began the conquest of Spain (711).
    • These raids foreshadow the full-scale invasion of Sicily that opens the 9th century.

By century’s end (800 AD), the map of Italy had been redrawn: a Frankish empire in the north claiming the Roman name, a papal state across the center, Lombard Benevento and an increasingly independent Naples in the south, and Byzantine Sicily under a lengthening Saracen shadow. The 9th century opens with that shadow becoming an invasion.