Its full title is Rienzi , der Letzte der Tribunen ( Rienzi , the Last of the Tribunes ) . Rienzi , der Letzte der Tribunen ( WWV 49 ) ( Rienzi , the Last of the Tribunes ) is an early opera by Richard Wagner in five acts , with the libretto written by the composer after Bulwer-Lytton 's novel of the same name ( 1835 ) . The title is commonly shortened to Rienzi .