1848. I began this tale in Rome. Having had occasion to read the original authorities from which modern historians have drawn their accounts of the life of Rienzi, I was led to believe that a very remarkable man had been superficially judged, and a very important period crudely examined. I have adhered to to all the leading events of the public life of the Roman Tribune; and the reader will find in these pages a more full and detailed account of the rise and fall of Rienzi, than in any English work of which I am aware.