The article concerns political relations between the Sforza dominion and its alpine neighbors.
Many actors operated within and across the frontiers: lords, state officials, communities
and so on. International relations gave these protagonists the opportunity not only to
promote bold political initiatives, but also to outline their identity. A community, a jurisdictional
district, a fiefdom, and finally a state were not statically defined entities, but configurations
in the making. The same hierarchy of powers in the state was remolded, because
reprisals and collective responsibility for damages suffered by foreigners could strengthen
the solidarity between the duke, the officials and the subjects, but periodically the subjects
reacted by promoting initiatives that were so autonomous that even the subordination to
the prince was put into question.
Keywords: Fifteenth Century, Lombardy, Switzerland, Community, Identity Dynamics.
Parole chiave: Quattrocento, Lombardia, Svizzera, Comunità, Dinamiche identitarie.