city state · Italy

Commune of Brescia

1100 CE – 1337 CE (approx.) · capital Brescia

A combative Lombard city-republic, home of the reformer Arnold of Brescia, that withstood a siege by Emperor Frederick II in 1238.

Origins

Brescia's citizens took power from their bishop in the late 11th and early 12th centuries, and the commune was governed by consuls by around 1100. It controlled a rich territory of valleys, iron mines and lakes between Lake Garda and Lake Iseo.

Rule and society

The commune was run by consuls and later a podestà. The preacher Arnold of Brescia, who attacked clerical wealth, came from the city. Brescia joined the Lombard League against Frederick Barbarossa, resisted a long siege by Frederick II in 1238 and another by Henry VII in 1311. It was famed for iron working and arms making, and its Old Cathedral, the Rotonda, dates from this era.

Decline and legacy

Exhausted by faction, Brescia accepted the Scaliger lords of Verona and then in 1337 submitted to Azzone Visconti, joining the Lordship of Milan. The Republic of Venice took it in 1426.

Connections (3)

More states of Italy →

Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Commune of Brescia. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/commune-of-brescia
MLA
“Commune of Brescia.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/commune-of-brescia. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Commune of Brescia.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/commune-of-brescia.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Commune of Brescia’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/commune-of-brescia (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻