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   I Forget (epilanthanomai@signs.codes)'s status on Wednesday, 02-Jul-2025 00:02:51 JST I Forget

   TIL #Shakespeare probably lifted the Montague and Capulet rivalry from Luigi da Porta, writing several decades earlier. Da Porta probably drew on recent popular stories and actual rivalries from his time in Udine. Da Porto's uncle was related to the powerful Montecchi family originally from Verona, whose 13th century Ghibelline rivalry with the Guelph Capelletti family of Cremona was famous enough that #Dante mentioned it in his Divine Comedy.

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     Kit Rhett Aultman (roadriverrail@signs.codes)'s status on Wednesday, 02-Jul-2025 00:02:48 JST Kit Rhett Aultman

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     @epilanthanomai Guelph/Ghibelline feuding actually makes it into more than one Shakespeare play; Falstaff mentions Guelphs in Henry IV. Ever since I learned about how that particular bit of sectarianism infused family and clan rivalries until it impacted fashion and dining etiquette, I had presumed the Montague/Capulet feud was a Guelph/Ghibelline conflict zhuzhed up to be more easily understood to the audience of its time and place.

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     I Forget (epilanthanomai@signs.codes)'s status on Wednesday, 02-Jul-2025 00:51:13 JST I Forget

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     • Kit Rhett Aultman

     @roadriverrail Interestingly, while the historic Montecchi/Capelletti rivalry was Ghibelline/Guelph, this morning's wikipediaing suggests that da Porto probably drew most directly from his own conflicts in early 16th century Udine, near Venice. I'm not an expert, but it looks like Venice/HRE conflicts were a little skew of Ghibelline/Guelph by then. Also there's some evidence he drew inspiration specifically from conflict inside his own Venetian Savorgnan-aligned family.

     https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luigi_Da_Porto