Irene Fosi, Professor of Modern History at University G. d'Annunzio in Chieti-Pescara, Italy, offers here a very informative and interesting history of the judicial system and the various courts that comprised it in Rome and the Papal States in early modern times. Drawing on a wealth of primary source material she describes very competently the structure and functioning of these courts, and gives a vivid picture of the human dimension of a wide variety of real cases and the people who sought, or evaded, justice in them.

The judicial system of Rome and the Papal States was anything but monolithic. It consisted of numerous central courts and authorities in Rome itself and local ones in provinces and towns. Fosi notes frequently that popes tried to clarify and improve the administration of justice in their realm, but with mixed success. This was due both to lack of clarity on jurisdiction in many areas and to divided loyalties of some personnel. She provides clear scholarly information on the Roman Inquisition (Holy Office) established in 1542 by Paul III and on its role among other papal tribunals. She illustrates the workings and relationships of these tribunals most vividly through the very large number of letters and papers of all kinds of people who petitioned the courts or complained about their treatment in an amazing variety of cases. She gives meticulous references to these sources, and a very useful seventeen page bibliography.