mineering without controul. With this maxim, which is characteristic of the feditious, these factions joined in the city of Florence to trample on the laws; and the party Bianchi fucceeded to drive out by force the party Neri, and affumed the dominion of the city. But before the end of the year, another revolu- 1301. tion was effected both in Florence and Pistoia, and the houses of many of the principal people levelled with the ground. The Florentines, among whom the party Neri governed, in 1302, 1302. fufpecting that the Bianchi, now banished from their city, would, with the affiftance of the Bianchi who ruled in Piftoia, rife again with new force, entered into a combination with Lucca for the total deftruction of Piftoia; and a war fucceeded, which lafted many years, and extended to all the cities of Tufcany, introducing the diftinctions of Neri and Bianchi, and several revolutions, in all of them. But the war against Pittoia was maintained by Florence and Lucca in concert, till Pistoia was taken, its country divided, and its people perfecuted and oppreffed, when, finally, they refused to receive a podesta from Lucca and Florence. This occafioned another army to be fent against them. The Piftoians then called in the mediation of 1309. Sienna; by whofe decifion it was ordained, that the podesta and captain of the people for Pistoia fhould not be chofen by the Lucchefe and Florentines, but by the Pistoians themfelves, provided that the election fhould always fall upon fome citizen of Florence or Lucca. This award was fupported by the Tedici, Ricciardi, Roffi, Lazzari, and Sinibaldi, and others their followers, against the will of the Taviani, Ughi, and Cancellieri, and their adherents both among the grandees and popular citizens. This difference of opinion occa fioned 1 1316. 1317. fioned quarrels and diffenfions The three fa milies could not bear that the five families fhould * lord it over the city; each of these parties, therefore, ftriving to drive out the other, without regarding the expence or inconvenience, affembled their friends and forces, marched through the country, laid waste, combated, and affaffinated, in defiance of all government. But in the end, the Taviani having fallen into an ambuscade in the midst of their enemies, near a river, fome were killed, others made prifoners, and the reft difperfed as fugitives; and their fortrefs delle Piere di Montecuccoli, now called Valdibura, and the church of St. Simon, where they had been used to retreat, were facked and burnt. In 1316, the Pistoians conceived a jealoufy of the profperous fortune of Uguccione, not only on ac count of a fignal victory he had obtained against the Guelphs, but because he had been made lord of Pifa and Lucca, and had it in contemplation to reduce Pistoia to his power. But diffimulating their fears, and to make him friendly and benevolent to their city, the Piftoians chofe him for their podefta. Coming to Piftoia, he restored the Cancellieri, the Taviani, the Ughi, and Sinibaldi. In 1317 the Piftoians, by reafon of the turbu lence in Tuscany, put themfelves under the protection of Robert, king of Naples. Caftruccio 1318. Antelminelli, captain general of the wars of the Lucchefe, having conducted to a happy iffue many enterprizes for that community, thought of redu cing to its dominion the city of Piltoia by the means of its Bianchi exiles: but, after many fkirmishes and mutual ravages of each other's terri * Signoreggiaffero la citta. tory, tory, a battle fought between him and Giulione, who commanded the Piftoian forces against him, in which a decifive victory was obtained by the latter, produced a treaty of peace between them, one article of which was, that the exiles should be reftored; the Neri confenting to this rather than rifk a renewal of the war. In 1321, Uberto Cancellieri executed the office of podesta in the city of Padua, to the greatest fatisfaction of that people. And the fame year, Gio. Panciatichi gave clear proofs of fidelity and courage in the office of commiffary of Romagna, under Clement the Fifth and the people of Flo rence. 1321. From 1321 to 1330, the hiftory of this repub- 1321. lic is filled with wars, feditions, and intrigues, all 1330. fet on foot by the different contending parties, in order to elevate fome individual, a favourite, or a tool of their own, for the fovereign of the state. The fimple heads of the ftory muft fuffice.-Caf truccio commences a destructive war upon the frontiers to obtain the fovereignty of Pistoia for himfelf. Pittecciani betrays many castles into his hands to favour his defigns, being probably inclined to that party; Pittecciani, however, is beheaded for treason by the Pistoians. Amidst these calamities, Ormanno Tedici conceives the defign of making himself the fovereign of Pistoia. The want of rain for eight months, and the devastations of war, had occafioned a famine in Pifa, Lucca, and Piftoia. Upon this occafion Tedici, and Vanni Laz- Tedici. zari, both rich and powerful, as well as proud and Vanni ambitious men, and confequently jealous of each Lazzari. other as rivals, appear upon the stage; their intrigues are full of all that duplicity and hypocrify which is univerfal on fuch occafions.* Tedici *Fioravanti, lib. xix. perfuades perfuades the Pistoians to a truce with Caftruccio, and feizes the piazza and palace of the anziani with his partifans; is made lord of Pistoia, and reforms the magiftrates of the city, and concludes the truce with Caftrucchio, much against the will of the other party. Having gone through all the ceremonies of a revolution, that is to fay, reverfed every thing, recalled exiles, &c. and governed the city fourteen months, his nephew, Philip di Fortebraccio Tedici, a youth full of ambition, confpired to take away the fovereignty from his uncle, and affume it to himfelf. To this end he began by correfponding with the Guelphs in exile, and by infufing into them a belief that his uncle entertained a fecret correfpondence with Caftruccio to deliver Pistoia in his hands. The nephew, by other artificial difcourfes and fimulated manners, exerted himself with the Guelphs to depofe his uncle, and restore all the banished and fcattered members of the Guelph party. His fictions were credited, the refolution was taken with alacrity, they united themselves with the impoftor, and, the better to obtain their defires, communicated their intentions to Neruccio Conte de Sarteano, a Guelph gentleman of prudence and fagacity, and requested his counsel and affiftance; who, deceived by the relation of facts, fo well invented and coloured by Philip, acknowledged, that if remedy was not immediately provided, Piftoia would fall into the hands of Caftruccio; and offered them his cavalry, and promised to exert all his force to obtain the ends they defired. The uncle difcovering the confpiracy, complained tohis nephew, who roundly afferted it to be a fiction of malice; and went immediately to the heads of the plot, told them that the abbé, his uncle was informed of all, held a short confultation with them, in which it was re folved to rife at once, and carry into execution what they had intended. The confpirators affembling in the morning, and taking arms in feafon, rufhed with Philip to the piazza, scattered the guards, by putting to death all who refifted, took the place, ran through the city, affaulted the palace of the anziani, occupied the gates, and garnished the walls with their people, and Philip remained lord and fovereign of Piftoia. This done, Philip called together the council of the people, obtained the title of captain, and taking the fovereignty of the city on himfelf, reformed it with new anziani and magiftrates, and, governing feverely, made himself feared by all men. The abbé Tedici, having loft the lordship of Piftoia, and eager to regain the poffeffion of it, machinated with his other nephews and adherents to throw out of the window of the public palace his nephew Philip; and going with his followers to the palace, he was introduced alone to a conference with the artful Philip, by his exprefs order, who immediately ordered the gates to be shut against the other confpirators, and with a very few words again impofed on his uncle, and made him prifoner. Philip, thus liberated from the inares of his uncle, fuddenly renewed the truce with Caftruccio. He conducted his negotiations, both with Florence and Caftruccio, with fo much duplicity, that he deceived both: there are few examples of deeper fimulation, more exquifite addrefs, or of felfifh knavery of a blacker dye, than he practifed with his uncle, with the Florentines, and Caltruccio. After obtaining of the Florentines the creation of his fon a knight of the golden fpur, three thoufand golden florins for himfeif, and noble matches and rich dowries for his two daughters, of the Florentines, he married himself to Dialra, VOL. III. E the |