Andrew Vidali (PhD)

Winter Semester 2020/2021

Andrew Vidali is a visiting fellow in the Field of Excellence “Dimension of Europeanization” in this winter semester. His research interests focus on the relationship between crime, violence, law, politics, and state formation in late medieval and early modern Italy. Most of his published work investigated these topics in the context of the Republic of Venice. During his time in Graz, he will focus on investigating extradition treaties in late medieval and early modern central and northern Italy. His research project aims to compare interstate judicial policies between pre-modern Italy and modern Europe by examining the relationships of late medieval and early modern extradition treaties with border banditry, sovereignty, and right to asylum.

"Studying pre-modern extradition agreements can bring new light to the historical process of borders perception and control. The landscape of renaissance Italy has several features in common with that of late 20th and early 21st century Europe, such as political fragmentation and the different weight of political actors. Understanding why extradition policies failed in Renaissance Italy will help to understand why late 20th and early 21st century Europe was able to better face this challenge."

Andrew Vidali gained his MA in History at Ca' Foscari University and his PhD in Early Modern History at the University of Trieste in March 2020. Currently he is preparing a book from his doctoral dissertation, which will focus on the relation between violence among Venetian noble families and the development of Venetian legal institutions in the 16th century.

Brown Bag: Negotiating Justice at the Borders: Extradition Agreements and Border Banditry in Renaissance Italy