“ Pledging his lands, he crossed the Alps and issued a manifesto at Verona setting forth his claim on Sicily. Notwithstanding the defection of his uncle Louis and other companions who returned to Germany, the threatenings of Pope Clement IV., and lack of funds, his cause seemed to prosper. Proclaimed king of Sicily, his partisans both in the north and south of Italy took up arms; his envoy was received with enthusiasm in Rome; and the young king himself was welcomed at Pavia and Pisa. ”

“ Although he had been entrusted by his father to the guardianship of the church, he was pursued with relentless hatred by pope Innocent IV., who sought to bestow the kingdom of Sicily on a foreign prince. Innocent’s successor, Alexander IV., continued this policy, offered the Hohenstaufen lands in Germany to Alphonso X. king of Castile, and forbade Conradin’s election as king of the Romans. Having assumed the title of king of Jerusalem and Sicily, Conradin took possession of the duchy of Swabia in 1262, and remained for some time in his dukedom. ”

“ At Naples he was tried as a traitor, and on the 29th of October was beheaded with his friend and companion Frederick of Baden, titular duke of Austria. With his death the Hohenstaufen race became extinct. ”