Dante Alighieri

Dante Alighieri in Florence, Republic of Florence, present-day Italy.

1265

Born to Alighiero di Bellincione and mother Gabriella "Bella" degli Abati, Dante's official date of birth is unknown. This approximation has been deduced by analysis of the first canto in the Inferno, in which Dante states: "Nel mezzo del cammin di nostra vita" ("Midway upon the journey of our life"). According to the bible the average human lifespan is 70 years, so Dante would be in his mid-thirties when he wrote his magnum opus. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dante_Alighieri

Dante meets Beatrice Portinari, his muse

1274

Florentine nobleman Folco Portinari throws a party for his neighbors. Nine-year-old Dante and his father attend. Dante spots Folco's daughter, eight-year-old Beatrice Portinari, and instantly falls in love http://preraphaelitesisterhood.com/the-unrequited-love-of-dante-and-beatrice/

Dante marries Gemma Donati

1283

Dante marries Gemma Donati. His beloved Beatrice also marries someone else, Simone dei Bardi. Dante and Gemma Donati have five children: sons Jacopo, Pietro, Giovanni and Gabrielle and daughter Antonia. https://antoniopriante.com/tag/gemma-donati/

Battle Between Guelphs and Ghibellinis

1289

Dante fights on the side of the pro-Pope Guelph forces against the pro-Emperor Ghibellinis. The Guelphs win, and Dante boasts of his military prowess in a letter to a friend. https://www.florenceinferno.com/guelphs-and-ghibellines/

Beatrice dies

1290

Dante's love Beatrice dies at the age of 24. He is devastated and reincarnates her later in his work as a divine guide in the Commedia. https://www.florenceinferno.com/beatrice-portinari/

Vita Nuova

1292

Dante writes La Vita Nuova di Dante Alighieri, a long poem tracing his relationship with Beatrice from their first meeting to her death. Scholars now interpret the title to signify Dante's "new life" as a poet. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Vita_Nuova

Dante Begins Political Career

1295

Dante enrolls in the apothecary's guild, which accepts poets and philosophers. As a member of a guild, he is able to participate in Florentine politics. He is soon elected to the council of the Heads of the Arts, the organization that helps choose the Priors, the six supreme magistrates of Florence. https://dappledthings.org/7653/dante-gets-political/

Dante Opposes Pope Boniface VIII

1301

In a public meeting, Dante opposes a request from Pope Boniface VIII to send 200 troops to acquire lands south of Siena. Word of Dante's opposition gets back to Boniface, who is not pleased.

Dante is Charged and Exiled

1302

Dante learns that new priors have charged him with barratry, the sale of political positions. As punishment, he is banished from Florence for two years and barred from public office for life. He is also ordered to pay a fine. When he refuses to pay the fine, Dante is sentenced to death in absentia. He never returns to Florence, the city of his birth, and spends the rest of his life exiled in Italy. https://spark.parkland.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1045&context=ah

Dante Begins the Commedia

1308

It is a semi-autobiographical three-part poem detailing the journey of Dante the pilgrim through Hell, Purgatory and Heaven. He also writes De Monarchia, a treatise on the relationship between the monarchy and the state. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dante_Alighieri

Inferno is Published

1314

Inferno, the first segment of Dante's three-part Divine Comedy , is published. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divine_Comedy

Dante Completes the Commedia

1320

One year before his death in 1321. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divine_Comedy