In this episode we take a break from the political narrative to focus on some of the key social and economic changes that are taking shape in Northern Italy between 875 and 1000 AD. During this period, Medieval Italy experiences a number of changes (urbanization, estate fragmentation) that will result in major changes to Italian economic and social life in the very near future. Next time, we will see how these broader changes influence the political development of Italy during this same period. Finally, in this episode I want to answer the often asked question: what did happen to the old Roman Senators and wealthy landowners after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire?