Chaucer's Italy : Armchair Traveller : 9781909961838 : 1909961833 : 14 Apr 2022 : An exploration of the influence of Italy and Italians on Chaucer's life and writing.   Geoffrey Chaucer might be considered the quintessential English writer, but he drew much of his inspiration and material from Italy. In fact, without the tremendous influence of Francesco Petrarch and Giovanni Boccaccio (among others), the author of The Canterbury Tales might never have assumed his place as the ?father? of English literature. Nevertheless, Richard Owen's Chaucer's Italy begins in London, where the poet dealt with Italian merchants in his roles as court diplomat and customs official. Next Owen takes us, via Chaucer's capture at the siege of Rheims, to his involvement in arranging the marriage of King Edward III's son Lionel in Milan and his missions to Genoa and Florence. By scrutinizing his encounters with Petrarch, Boccaccio, and the mercenary knight John Hawkwood?and with vividly evocative description