Dante and Beatrice both lived in Florence, Italy for all of their lives. For two periods of nine years apart, Dante had only glimpsed at Beatrice each time, but the moment Dante saw Beatrice, he instantly fell in love with her, and his poems and writings reflected upon this.
"She has ineffable courtesy, is my beatitude, the destroyer of all vices and the queen of virtue, salvation." This is a quote from one of his works describing her as his savior, one who removed all evil intentions from her. It seemed he was not attracted to her physical aspects, but her divine stance, that is she was a holy catholic believer.
Throughout his whole life, he was utterly mesmerized by her beauty; and although he had never openly admitted to his obsession with Beatrice, there are obvious clues in his poems that related specifically to Beatrice and to no other women.
Beatrice was a magnificent inspiration to Dante’s work, as she had influenced him in many of his works including two of his greatest -
La Vita Nuova and
La Divina Commedia. After Beatrice's death, Dante retired into intense study and began writing poems dedicated to her memory. She was his beauty, his burning flame, his undying salvation.