Page 6. The story of the French knights who misunderstood the warning shots from Ischia is told in BrantÔme's Life of Dragut, No. 37 of the "Vies des Hommes Illustres." Concerning Vittoria Colonna there is, of course, a considerable literature. A pleasant and readable account of her life is contained in A Decade of Italian Women, by T. A. Trollope (Chapman and Hall, 1859).

Page 7. The tale of Gianni di Procida is Novella VI. of the fifth day of the Decameron.

Page 9. The common tale about the origin of the Sicilian Vespers is that Gianni di Procida, who is sometimes spoken of as having suffered in his own family from the lustful dealings of the French soldiery, and sometimes only as sympathising with the islanders in their intolerable wrongs, went through the island in disguise, beating a drum and capering up to whomsoever he met. If it were a Frenchman, he screamed some mad jest in his ear; if a Sicilian, he whispered some information about the projected rising, which was to take place at the signal of the Vesper bell ringing in Palermo. But for this tale there is no historical authority. Procida had certainly some connection with the revolt; but so far as can be discovered, the actual outbreak was unpremeditated, and the name of the Sicilian Vespers is applied to the massacre by no writer earlier than the latter part of the fifteenth century. The great authority on this subject is of course Amari, La Guerra del Vespro Siciliano.

Page 9. Virgil the enchanter. See note on p. 55.

Page 21. It is impossible to give separate references to all the authorities which I have consulted in writing this chapter. The work which I have found most valuable—incomparably so—is the Campanien of Beloch, which outstrips both in learning and in judgment all works known to me upon the PhlegrÆan Fields. It may be said, once for all, that with hardly one exception, the best works upon the region of Naples are by Germans. English scholarship does not appear to advantage. If a man will not read German, he may seek information usefully from Breislak, Topograpia Fisica della Campania (Firenze, 1798). Other useful works are:—Phillips, J., Vesuvius (Oxford, 1869); Daubeny, C. G. B., A Description of Volcanoes (London, 1848); Logan Lobley, Mount Vesuvius (London, 1889); to which should be added the "Physical Notices of the Bay of Naples," by Professor Forbes, in Brewster's Edinburgh Journal of Science, vol. x. All these works treat of the PhlegrÆan Fields, as well as of Vesuvius.

Page 24. The treatise of Capaccio will be found in the collection of chronicles which bears the name of GrÆvius, but was, in fact, completed after the death of that great scholar by Peter Burmann. The collection is an honour to Leyden, where it was published full half a century before Muratori commenced his work.

Page 26. This gossip about the Grotta del Cane is derived chiefly from a small guide to the locality, published early in the present century.

Page 37. Petrarch's account of his visit to the PhlegrÆan Fields will be found among his Latin verse epistles (Carm. lib. ii. epist. 7).

Page 41. Upon the theory that CumÆ was founded so early as a thousand years before Christ, I translate as follows from Holm (Geschichte Griechenlands, vol. i. p. 340), the most recent of authorities, and perhaps the most judicious:—"It is scarcely credible that an organised Greek city existed in these regions in such early times. But it need not be questioned that scattered settlements of Greeks were already established on the Campanian coast a thousand years before Christ; and it cannot be doubted that CumÆ is the earliest Greek colony, recognised as such, in the West.... CumÆ also became the mother city of Naples, but at what precise date cannot be determined."

Page 45. The dyke of Hercules. See Beloch, Campanien.

Page 52. For the Villa of Vedius Pollio, as well as for all the other antiquities of this region, see Beloch, Campanien.

Page 53. The story of the Grotta dei Tuoni is one of the interesting pieces of folklore collected by Signor Gaetano Amalfi, to whose unwearied labours I acknowledge gratefully many debts. It was published in the periodical called Napoli Nobilissima in 1895.

Page 55. For the stories of the enchanter Virgil, see Comparetti, Virgilio nel MediÆvo. The tale of the plundering of Virgil's tomb in the reign of Roger of Sicily is taken from the same work, where it is told on the authority of Gervasius of Tilbury. It was a widely credited tale, and will be found also in Marin Sanudo, Vite dei Dogi, p. 232 of the fine new edition of Muratori, now (1901) being issued under the direction of GiosuÈ Carducci, an enterprise which is remarkable both for scholarship and beauty, and deserves the more praise since it emanates from no great city, but from the printing house of Scipione Lapi at CittÀ di Castello, on the upper valley of the Tiber.

Page 65. The traditions of Queen Joanna are well set out by Signor Amalfi in La Regina Giovanna nella Tradizione (Naples, 1892), a little work which, though no other exists upon the subject, the British Museum disdains to purchase. Mr. Nutt procured me a copy, though with some difficulty. The book is not as complete as it might be; it contains, for example, no reference to the traditions of the Queen at Amalfi.

Page 71. For Alfonso of Aragon, see Guicciardini, Istoria d'Italia, lib. i. cap. 4. Most of my history is taken from this writer.

Page 72. For an account of San Lionardo, as well as for the subsequent tale of the Torretta, see Napoli Nobilissima (1892).

Page 81. NiccolÒ Pesce. See Nap. Nob. (1896). Schiller's ballad, "Der Taucher," will of course be found in any collection of his works.

Page 88. The best book on the Hohenstaufen is Von RÄumer, Geschichte der Hohenstaufen, a very fine and interesting work. Frederick loved more than Arab art, unless history is unjust. Amari speaks of him and his grandfather, King Roger, as "i due Sultani battezzati di Sicilia."

Page 97. Upon the vexed question where PalÆopolis stood, or if it stood anywhere at all, Beloch seems a little wilful, arguing stoutly that there never was such a city. "But," says Mr. Hodgkin, "in the face of Livy's clear statement (viii. 22) as to the situation of the two cities, and the record in the Triumphal Fasti of the victory of Publilius over the 'Samnites PalÆopolitanei,' this seems too bold a stroke of historical scepticism" (Italy and Her Invaders, vol. iv. p. 53).

Page 108.et seq. See Camillo Porzio, La Congiura de' Baroni.

Page 121. Upon the churches of Naples there are two works which surpass all others—namely, Documenti per la storia, le arti e le industrie, by Prince Gaetano Filangieri, a monument of vast learning; and Denkmaeler der Kunst des Mittelalters in Unter Italien, by H. W. Schulz, whose work forms the basis of almost every guide-book published on southern Italy.

Page 123. This tale of the graceless Duke of Calabria is in Giannone, Storia di Napoli, lib. xxii. ad init.

Page 126. Those who desire more information on the everyday life of Naples will do well to seek it in Kellner's work, AlltÄgliches aus Neapel, the tenth volume of the well-known series, "Kennst du das Land," which is sold everywhere in Italy.

Page 137. The account of this storm is in book v. epist. 5, of Petrarch's letters. The storm may, or may not, be the one which destroyed Amalfi. I know of no evidence pointing either way, save the improbability that two tempests should have wrought such devastation.

Page 140. Fucini's work is called Napoli a Occhio Nudo.

Page 141. Any history of Naples will give the facts of the struggle between Frederick the Second and Innocent. See especially von RÄumer or Giannone.

Page 143. La Colonna della Vicaria. Signor Amalfi quotes from Voltero, Dizionario filosofico, s.v. "Banqueroute," the following passage:—"Le nÉgociant fallito pouvait dans certaines villes d'Italie garder tous ses biens et frustrer ses crÉanciers, pourvu qu'il s'assit le derriÈre nu sur une pierre en prÉsence de tous les marchands. C'Était une dÉrivation douce de l'ancien proverbe romain, Solvere aut in aere, aut in cute, payer de son argent ou de sa peau" (Tradizioni ed usi, p. 123).

Page 146. The facts about the descent of the Turks upon Otranto in 1480 will be found stated briefly in all the histories. But they are sufficiently curious to make it worth while to consult the admirable and detailed report made to Ludovic Sforza, Il Moro, by the commissary who served him in his capacity as Duke of Bari. As ruler of the chief Apulian coast town, Il Moro was of course painfully anxious for exact information about the proceedings of the Turks. The report will be found in volume vi. of the Archivio Storico, published by the "SocietÀ di Storia Patria," of Naples.

Page 150.et seq. The story of Conradin's expedition and death is told best in von RÄumer, Geschichte der Hohenstaufen. It will be found also in Amari, La Guerra del Vespro. The two historians report the circumstances of Conradin's death with some differences of detail, having relied on different chronicles. The variations are not essential.

Page 158. Details concerning the examination of Conradin's tomb will be found in Filangieri, op. cit.

Page 161. For the story of Mas'aniello's revolt I have followed Sign. Gabriele Tontoli, Il Masaniello, overo Discorsi Narrativi, La Sollevatione di Napoli, printed at Naples in 1648. I selected this work (1) because it is rare; (2) because it is full of detail; (3) because it is the narrative of an eye-witness.

Page 178. The literature of Vesuvius is immense. As general references, I can only indicate again the works named in the note on page 21.

Page 182. Braccini's narrative was published at Naples in 1632 under the title Dell'Incendio fattosi nel Vesuvio.

Page 190. Palmieri's account has been translated. The Eruption of Vesuvius in 1872 (London, 1873).

Page 196. Herculaneum. Once more it is well to refer to Beloch, Campanien.

Page 201.et seq. The work of Signori Comparetti and de Petra was published at Turin in 1883, under the title La Villa Ercolanense dei Pisoni. It is one of those monuments of patient, well-directed learning and research which fill one with high hopes for the future of Italian scholarship. I presume the British Museum acquired its copy shortly after publication. I may add that I cut its pages in July, 1900—a fact that says worlds about British scholarship.

Page 209. The translation of Mau's Pompeii, its Life and Art, was published at New York in 1899.

Page 217. The only works worth mentioning about the pictures at Pompeii are those of Helbig, Untersuchungen Über die Campanische Wandmalerei (Leipzig, 1873), and his earlier WandgemÄlde (Leipzig, 1868). A summary of Helbig's conclusions will be found in Promenades ArchÉologiques, by Gaston Boissier (Paris, 1895).

Page 223. On StabiÆ a work comparable only to that cited above on Piso's villa has been written by Signor Michele Ruggiero, Degli Scavi di Stabia (Naples, 1881).

In connection with the Roman country life, I might have mentioned the recent excavations at Bosco-reale, where the villas were doubtless similar to those upon Varano. The first discoveries on that spot are set down by the superstitious peasants to the credit of a priest, who is said to have indicated a place where treasure would be found by digging. The real fact is that about the year 1868 a small proprietor named Pulzella discovered, while hoeing his field, the entrance to a buried chamber. He enlarged the aperture, and found a second room; but could not penetrate further without entering a neighbouring property, which belonged to Signor de Prisco. Of this discovery he said nothing for twenty years. In 1888 the ground passed into the possession of the de Prisco family, who, learning what had occurred, continued the excavation, found in 1894 all the apartments of a bath, and in one of them a great treasure of money and silver plate of exquisite workmanship, which was bought by Baron Rothschild and presented to the Louvre. A full account of the villa then unearthed is given by August Mau.

Six years passed, and recently the excavations have been resumed. A larger villa has been unearthed, near the former one. No treasure was found in it, nor any portable articles. Possibly the owners had been able to return and recover their property, or more probably they had fled on earlier warning. But the interest of this new house lies in its frescoes, which are of great beauty, both architectural and figure pieces. There can be no doubt that we are on the verge of a great expansion of our knowledge of Roman life; and it is to be hoped that the works at Bosco-reale will be vigorously pushed and carefully supervised.

An interesting account of the discoveries, with illustrations, will be found in the Italian magazine Emporium for December, 1900.

Page 229. Trade routes in the Sorrento peninsula. I cannot discover that anyone has written with scholarship on this most interesting subject. There is none more important to a clear comprehension of history, nor any more generally neglected.

Page 230. Santa Maria Maggiore. Gsell-Fels gives a good account of this remarkable church, based on that of Schulz.

Page 231. Catacombs at Castellammare. I regret that the passage in Schulz, Denkmaeler der Kunst des Mittelalters in Unter Italien, vol. ii. p. 224, referring to these catacombs, did not come under my notice in time to admit of my making a personal examination of them. They appear to be so completely forgotten that several well-informed persons to whom I applied denied their existence. They do exist, however, upon the road to La Cava. I cannot indicate the spot exactly, nor does Schulz do so. I translate from him as follows:—"To the largest grotto one goes by a broad passage hewn in the rock, in whose sides are squared niches, apparently designed for flasks, lamps, inscriptions or children's coffins. The uncertain line between ancient and modern alterations makes decision difficult. Then one goes through a sort of rock gateway of more modern construction.... In the background of the grotto, which has five niches on either of its longer sides, there are more graves under a vault. The greater number of the pictures are on the left as one enters. In the first recess stands a woman's figure in the Norman-Greek style of painting, badly damaged. Near her is a smaller figure of a saint holding a book. Higher up, in a disc set with white pearls, hovers the figure of Christ with a nimbus; and by it are other circles, with busts of angels. Over the upper one is written 'RAFA' (Raphael), above another 'MICAH, SCS VRVS' (?). The painting is in the ancient style with black, white, and red—that peculiar dark brown-red of early Christian pictures, as in the lower church at Assisi, the catacombs of Syracuse and Naples, etc.... The inscriptions, mostly white on a green ground, are in characters of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, or yet later times," etc., etc.

I cannot too emphatically express my sense of the great value of Schulz' work. Much is changed since 1860, when he wrote; yet still his survey must be the starting-point for every other writer.

Page 236. La Madonna di Pozzano. I take this legend from Storia dell'Immagine di S. Maria di Pozzano, written by Padre Serafino de Ruggieri. It was published at Valle di Pompeii in 1893.

Page 237. The facts about the Iconoclasts will be found in any Church history; e.g. Milman, Hist. of Latin Christianity, bk. iv. chap. 7.

Page 238. My chief authority for the stories of madonnas in this chapter and the next is Signor Gaetano Amalfi, whose invaluable work, Tradizioni ed Usi nella Penisola Sorrentina, forms volume viii. of the "CuriositÀ Popolari Tradizioniali," published by Signor PitrÈ at Palermo. Those who are acquainted with the bookshops in Naples will not be surprised to hear that I searched them vainly for a copy of this work, great as its interest should be for all visitors to the city. The book is largely written in the local dialects, and would be of little use to those who cannot read them.

Page 241. The old road from Castellammare towards Sorrento. Breislak, who wrote so recently as in 1800, says, "Le chemin est le plus mauvais possible, et ne peut se faire avec suretÉ qu'À pied."

Page 245. Quaresima. I refer once more to Signor Amalfi, op. cit.

Page 255. These various scraps of folklore are from the same work, as are also the legends in this chapter.

Page 260. For the tufa of Sorrento, see Breislak, Voyages physiques.

Page 270. On the archÆology of Sorrento the best work known to me is that of Beloch, Campanien.

Page 273. Not much has been written well on Capri. Storia dell'Isola di Capri, by Mons. A. Canale, is sold throughout the town, but has little value. Die Insel Capri, by Ferdinand Gregorovius, is a book of great beauty and merit; the reputation of Gregorovius stands in no need of praise. Kopisch' narrative, Die Entdeckung der blauen Grotte, is volume 2,907 of Reclam's "Universal Bibliothek."

Page 301. It is much to be desired that some German or Italian scholar—I fear none other would have the necessary patience—might undertake to elucidate the history of that collection of communes which passed by the name of Amalfi. Two histories exist—a modern one by Camera, an ancient one by Pansa. Both comprise interesting facts, but neither attempts to solve the puzzles which beset the traveller on every side. Nor will it be of any use for other writers to attempt solutions without long study; yet for one who might be willing to bestow the labour, there will certainly be reserved a rich reward of fame. Probably there is scarce any spot where thorough investigation might teach us so much of the tangled yet splendid history of Italy in the Middle Ages.

Page 305. The Knights Hospitallers of St. John were settled at Cyprus for a time after their expulsion from Acre; but were not long contented to remain vassals of the king of that island, and accordingly obtained the Pope's permission to turn their arms against the Greek Empire, from which they took Rhodes on 15th August, 1310. Finlay, History of Greece, vol. iii. p. 410.

Page 306. No one need concern himself with the works of Volpicella. They belong to the bad period of archÆology, when sentiment overcame both reason and sense. Schulz remains the safe and trusty guide; it being remembered always that changes have occurred since he wrote.

Page 311. The bronze doors at Amalfi and Ravello. Schulz remains the chief authority on this very interesting subject; but there is a good article on the subject in Lenormant, À travers l'Apulie et la Lucanie, under the heading "Monte Sant'Angelo."

Page 312. Monte Gargano, one of the most picturesque and interesting spots in Italy. There was a shrine for pagan pilgrims on this mountain in Strabo's time. He describes the crowd who came to consult the demi-god in his cavern, and lay sleeping in the open air around the cave, resting on skins of the black sheep they had slaughtered. In due course the heathen demi-god was replaced by a miraculous apparition of the archangel Michael, and Christian pilgrims came in crowds. It was the common process. The priests recognised a tradition of pilgrimage which they could not check, and legalised it by a Christian legend. See Lenormant, À travers l'Apulie et la Lucanie (Paris, 1883).

Page 330. Vietri is of great age. Strabo, quoted by Camera, indicates it under the name Marcinna as the only city between the rocks of the Sirens and PÆstum. Possibly he looked on Salerno and Vietri as one.

Page 331. The facts about pilgrims are from Ducange, s.v. "Peregrinatio," and Muratori, Dissertation 37.

Page 338. The best account of PÆstum known to me is in Lenormant, op. cit.