This book is a comprehensive introductory survey of the political, social, cultural and economic history of early modern Italy. It covers all aspects of life during this long, widely-neglected period: the family, the Republics, the economy, the plague, philosophy, justice and much more, giving a vivid picture of the so-called 'forgotten centuries' of Italian history. A major achievement in compression alone, Gregory Hanlon's masterly study will provide a generation of students with a valuable synthesis of this crucial era.