Giovanni Villani

“ But when the Florentines perceived that they could not gain it by force, they made a truce with the Fiesolans, and abandoned the war between them; and making one truce after another, they began to grow friendly, and the citizens of one city to sojourn in the other, and to marry together, and to keep but little watch and guard one against the other. The Florentines perceiving that their city of Florence had no power to rise much, whilst they had overhead so strong a fortress as the city of Fiesole, one night secretly and subtly set an ambush of armed men in divers parts of Fiesole. ”

“ In the said time, our city of Florence was in the greatest and happiest state which had ever been since it was rebuilt, or before, alike in greatness and power and in number of people, forasmuch as there were more than-324- 30,000 citizens in the city, and more than 70,000 men capable of arms in the country within her territory; and she was great in nobility of good knights, and in free populace, and in riches, ruling over the greater part of Tuscany ”

“ And when the French met with the Guelf refugees from Florence and from Tuscany, they seemed to them such fine men, and so rich in horses and in arms, that they marvelled greatly, that being in banishment from their cities they could be so nobly accoutred, and their company highly esteemed our exiles. And afterwards they took them round by Lombardy to Bologna, and by Romagna and by the March, and by the Duchy, for they could not pass through Tuscany, forasmuch as it all pertained to the Ghibelline party, and was under the lordship of Manfred ”

“ For after he had taken Milan and then Cremona, many great lords of Germany and of France came into his service, some for pay, and many for love. And verily if he had abandoned the enterprise of the siege of Brescia, and had come into Tuscany, he would have quietly secured Bologna, Florence, and Lucca and Siena, and afterwards Rome, and the Kingdom of Apulia, and all the lands against him, forasmuch as they were not furnished nor provided, and the minds of the people were much at variance, forasmuch as the said Emperor was held to be the most just and benign sovereign. ”

“ With that host of the Emperor Charles the Great and of the Romans there came whatsoever master-craftsmen there were in Rome, the more speedily to build the walls of the city and to strengthen it, and after them there followed much people; and all they who dwelt in the country around Florence, and her exiled citizens in every place, hearing the tidings, gathered themselves to the host of the Romans and of the Emperor to rebuild the city ”

“ And whilst they were at the siege, they were continually making strong and fierce assaults upon the city, hurling things against it from many engines, and attacking it in many places by day and by night—being men of great vigour—in such wise that King Robert with all his forces could gain nothing against them in any part. ”

“ It is true that he is a passionate advocate of an ideal Empire, and that he looks to the Emperor to heal the wounds of Italy, but the more carefully his writings are studied the more clear does it become that what he seeks in the Emperor is not a champion of Teutonic feudalism and supporter of the territorial nobility, but a power that will make Roman Law run all through Italy, and will hold the turbulent nobles in check. The Empire and the Emperor mean to Dante justice and peace secured by the enforcement of Roman Law. ”

“ We have seen that in the twelfth century the nobles within Florence were on the whole fairly conscious of having common cause with the merchants, but that the very success of her external undertakings brought into the city a more turbulent and hostile order of nobility. On the other side, rich and powerful merchants pushed their way up into recognition as magnates, while retaining their pecuniary interest in commerce. Thus in the thirteenth century the body of magnates itself became divided, not only into clans, but into factions. ”

“ During the said discord among the Florentines, Pope Benedict, with good intent, sent to Florence the Cardinal da Prato as legate to set the Florentines at peace one with another, and likewise with their exiles and all the province of Tuscany; and he came to Florence, on the tenth day of the month of March, 1303, and was received by the Florentines with great honour and with great reverence, as by men who felt themselves to be divided and in evil state; and those which had the disposition and desire to live rightly, loved peace and concord, and it was the contrary with the others. ”

“ The Florentines, knowing themselves to be in number of their horsemen not much superior to those of the Emperor, and being without a captain, did not desire to try the fortune of battle, believing that they could hinder the Emperor by reason of the difficult pass, so that he could not get through to Florence. The Emperor seeing that the Florentines were not willing to fight, by counsel of the wise men of war, refugees from Florence, took the way of the hill above Ancisa, and by narrow and difficult ways passed the fortress and came out on the side towards Florence. ”

“ These lords, with their followers in great numbers, both horse and foot, besieging the city, arrayed and prepared themselves to make yet greater war upon the city than at the first; but by reason of the strength of the city the Romans wrought in vain, and many of them being dead by reason of the long siege and excessive toil, those great lords and consuls and senators well-nigh all returned to Rome; only Cæsar with his followers abode still at the siege. ”

“ King Charles, hearing how Conradino was departed from Rome with his followers to enter into the Kingdom, broke up his camp at Nocera, and with all his people came against Conradino by hasty marches, and at the city of Aquila in Abruzzi awaited his followers. And being at Aquila, he took counsel with the men of the city, exhorting them to be leal and true, and to make provision for the host; whereupon a wise and ancient inhabitant rose and said: "King Charles, take no further counsel, and do not avoid a little toil, to the end thou mayest have continual repose. ”

“ For the which dissension and civil fighting much evil was committed in the city and in the country, of murders, and burnings, and robberies, as in a city ungoverned and disordered, without any rule from the government, save that each should do all possible harm to the other; and the city was all full of refugees, and strangers, and folk from the country, each house with its own following; and the city would have utterly destroyed itself had not the Lucchese come to Florence at the request of the commonwealth, with great number of foot and horse ”

“ And when the Fiesolans saw themselves to be suddenly and unexpectedly surprised by the Florentines, part of them which were able fled to the fortress, which was very strong, and long time maintained themselves there. The city at the foot of the fortress having been taken and overrun by the Florentines, and the strongholds and they which opposed themselves being likewise taken, the common people surrendered themselves on condition that they should not be slain nor robbed of their goods; the Florentines working their will to destroy the city, and keeping possession of the bishop's palace. ”

“ When the said invitation was carried to France by the Cardinal Simon of Tours to the said Charles, he took counsel thereupon with King Louis of France and with the count of Artois, and with the count of Alençon, his brother, and with the other great barons of France, and by all he was counselled that in the name of God he should undertake the said emprise in the service of Holy Church, and to bear the dignity of crown and Kingdom. And the King Louis of France, his elder brother, proffered him aid in men and in money, and likewise offers were made to him by all the barons of France. ”

“ The third cause was the sacrilege he had done, when by the galleys of Pisa, and by his son King Enzo, he had taken the cardinals and many prelates at sea, as we afore told, and caused some to be drowned in the sea, and kept some dying in cruel and harsh prisons. The fourth cause was, because he was found and convicted in many articles of heresy in the faith; and certainly he was no Christian Catholic, living always more after his delight and pleasure than according to reason or just law; and in fellowship with the Saracens. ”

“ King Charles being in Tuscany, the Ghibelline refugees from Florence formed themselves into a league and company with the Pisans and Sienese, and came to an agreement with Don Henry of Spain, which was Roman senator, and already at enmity with King Charles, his cousin. Therefore, with certain barons of Apulia and Sicily, he made oath and conspiracy to make certain towns in Sicily and in Apulia to rebel, and to send into Germany, and to stir up Conradino, which was the son of Conrad, the son of the Emperor Frederick, to cross into Italy to take away Sicily and the Kingdom from King Charles. ”

“ But it was part of the policy of the victorious Florentines to compel the nobles they had reduced to submission to live at least for a part of the year in the city; and thus while the merchant people of Florence was increasing in wealth and power, the nobles in the city were in their turn constantly recruited by rich and turbulent members of their own caste, who were ready to support them in their attempt to retain the government in their hands. ”

“ And when he was come unto Siena, and these things had been disclosed to the said M. Farinata and M. Gherardo, the plotters, they said thus to him: "Thou wilt slay us, if thou spreadest this news throughout-179- Siena, inasmuch as fear will fall upon every man, but we desire that thou shouldest say the contrary; for if we do not fight while we have these Germans we are dead men, and shall never return to Florence, and for us death and defeat would be better than to crawl about the world any longer:" and their counsel was to try the fortune of battle. ”

“ Frederick was without the city, with all his forces and with the Lombards, and abode there many months, and had sworn never to depart thence until he should have taken it; and for this reason he had made a camp over against the said city of Parma, after the manner of another town, with moats and palisades and towers, and houses roofed and walled, to which he gave the name of Vittoria; and by the said siege he had much straitened the city of Parma, and it was so poorly furnished with victuals, that they could hold out but a short while longer, and this the Emperor knew well by his spies ”

“ The mother, whose only child he was, and not born till after his father's death, on hearing what had chanced, ran up to the lion in desperation, shrieking aloud and with dishevelled hair, and snatched the child from between its paws, and the lion did no hurt either to the woman or to the child, but only gazed steadfastly and kept still. ”

“ It always seemed worth while for some of them to strengthen their alliances with the territorial magnates, the open foes of the city, in order to strengthen their hold on the city itself; and it always seemed worth while for others to identify themselves more or less sincerely with the demands of the people in order to have their support in wrenching from their fellow magnates a larger share of the common spoil. ”

“ When the Guelf party had returned to Florence, and the vicar or Podestà was come from King Charles (the first of them being M. . . .) , and after twelve good men had been appointed, as of old the Ancients, to rule the republic, the council was re-made of 100 good men of the people, without whose deliberation no great thing or cost could be carried out; and after any measure had been passed in this council, it was put to the vote in the council of the colleges of consuls of the greater Arts, and the council of the credenza [privy council of the Captain of the People] of eighty. ”

“ In the time of Numa Pompilius by a divine miracle there fell from heaven into Rome a vermilion-coloured shield, for the which cause and augury the Romans took that ensign for their arms, and afterwards added S.P.Q.R. in letters of gold, signifying Senate of the People of Rome; the same ensign they gave to all the cities which they built, to wit, vermilion. Thus did they to Perugia, and to Florence, and to Pisa; but the Florentines, because of the name of Fiorinus and of the city, charged it with the white lily ”

“ The which thing could not gain credence with the Romans till the senators sent thither to learn the truth; and, this known, there was the greatest sorrow thereat in Rome. And he who desires to see this history more fully, let him read the book of Sallust called Catilinarius. The injured and wounded of Catiline's people who had escaped death in the battle, albeit they were but few, withdrew where is to-day the city of Pistoia, and there in vile habitations became the first inhabitants thereof, whilst their wounds were healing. ”

“ And albeit Manfred was wrath at his coming, forasmuch as he had purposed to be lord of the said kingdom, he made a great welcome to Conrad, his brother, rendering him much honour and reverence, and when he was in Apulia he led a host against the city of Naples, the which before had been five times attacked and besieged by Manfred, prince of Salerno, and he had not been able to conquer it; but Conrad, with his great host after a long siege, gained the city by surrender, on condition that he should neither slay the defenders nor dismantle the place. ”