Amalfi Republic
The Duchy of Amalfi () or the Republic of Amalfi was a ''de facto'' independent state centered on the Southern Italy, Southern Italian city of Amalfi during the 10th and 11th centuries. The city and its territory were originally part of the larger ''ducatus Neapolitanus'', governed by a Patrician (post-Roman Europe), patrician, but it extracted itself from Byzantine Empire, Byzantine vassalage and first elected a dux, duke (or doge) in 958. During the 10th and 11th centuries Amalfi was estimated to have a population of 50,000–70,000 people. It rose to become an economic powerhouse, a commercial center whose merchants dominated Mediterranean and Italy, Italian trade in the ninth and tenth centuries, before being surpassed and superseded by the other maritime republics of Northern Italy, the North, like Republic of Pisa, Pisa, Republic of Venice, Venice, and Republic of Genoa, Genoa. In 1073, Amalfi lost its independence, falling to Norman conquest of southern Italy, Norman invas ...
[...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  

Roman Catholicism
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a prominent role in the history and development of Western civilization.Gerald O'Collins, O'Collins, p. v (preface). The church consists of 24 Catholic particular churches and liturgical rites#Churches, ''sui iuris'' churches, including the Latin Church and 23 Eastern Catholic Churches, which comprise almost 3,500 dioceses and Eparchy, eparchies located List of Catholic dioceses (structured view), around the world. The pope, who is the bishop of Rome, is the Papal supremacy, chief pastor of the church. The bishopric of Rome, known as the Holy See, is the central governing authority of the church. The administrative body of the Holy See, the Roman Curia, has its pr ...
[...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]