La Gerusalemme Liberata

<p><i>La Gerusalemme Liberata</i> (Jerusalem Delivered) is an epic poem by Torquato Tasso first published in 1581. It tells a largely fictionalized version of the First Crusade in which Christian knights led by Godfrey of Bouillon battle Muslims to take Jerusalem. </p> <p>Tasso began work on the poem in his youth and labored over it for many years. It is comprised of twenty books in ottava rima and combines elements of classical epics with the themes of chivalry love and religious conflict prevalent in Renaissance literature. The poem blends historical events with imaginative episodes creating a rich tapestry of heroism romance and supernatural occurrences.</p> <p>Despite some controversies regarding its theological and literary merits La Gerusalemme Liberata remains one of the most important and influential works of Italian literature inspiring countless artists composers and writers for centuries.</p><p>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.</p><p>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.</p><p>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.</p>