DANTE ALIGHIERI (c. 1265-1321)was an Italian poet, writer, and political thinker. After studying at the University of Bologna, he married and had four children. Dante was exiled from his hometown of Florence in 1302 due to his political leanings, finally settling in the city of Ravenna in 1307, when he began writing The Divine Comedy. JOHN LOTHERINGTON has written widely on Renaissance literature and history. He is the editor and author of Years of Renewal: European History 1470-1600.