The book "The Treatise of Lorenzo Valla on the Donation of Constantine" was written in 1440 by the Italian humanist Lorenzo Valla, who lived in the 15th century. This study examines the "Donation of Constantine," a text reportedly written in the fourth century by the Roman Emperor Constantine. The constitution gave the pope control over the Western Roman Empire as well as temporal power. Valla's treatise reveals the document's falsification and establishes that it was a fake rather than an authentic text from the fourth century. One of the first occasions in history that critical textual analysis was used to establish a document was a fake was when he utilized historical and philological data to refute the document. Valla's insight was important and had a lot of sway. His work opened the groundwork for contemporary historical and textual criticism and advanced humanist research. The book was crucial in challenging the papacy's power during the Renaissance and in revealing the forgery that was the "Donation of Constantine." In conclusion, "The treatise of Lorenzo Valla on the Donation of Constantine" is a significant contribution to textual criticism and humanist research. It challenged the papacy's authority during the Renaissance by showcasing the effectiveness of critical textual analysis and revealing the forgery of an important historical document.

Valla (1407-1457) was the most important theorist of the humanist movement. His most famous work is the present volume, an oration in which Valla uses new philological methods to attack the authenticity of the most important document justifying the papacy's claims to temporal rule.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.