Part 12

While the constitution was evolving in a manner which seemed to argue small political ability and no stability in the Florentines, the people had built up a wonderful commercial organization. Each of the seven _arti maggiori_ or greater gilds was organized like a small state with its councils, statutes, assemblies, magistrates, &c., and in times of trouble constituted a citizen militia. Florentine cloth especially was known and sold all over Europe, and the Florentines were regarded as the first merchants of the age. If the life of the city went on uninterruptedly even during the many changes of government and the almost endemic civil war, it was owing to the solidity of the gilds, who could carry on the administration without a government.

Cardinal Latino.

After Charles's victory over Conradin in 1268 the Florentines defeated the Sienese (1269) and made frequent raids into Pisan territory. As Charles perpetually interfered in their affairs, always favouring the _grandi_ or Guelph nobles, some of the Ghibellines were recalled as a counterpoise, which, however, only led to further civil strife. Rudolph of Habsburg, elected king of the Romans in 1273, having come to terms with Pope Nicholas III., Charles was obliged in 1278 to give up his title of imperial vicar in Tuscany, which he had held during the interregnum following on the death of Frederick II. In 1279 Pope Nicholas sent his nephew, the friar preacher Latino Frangipani Malabranca, whom he had created cardinal bishop of Ostia the same year, to reconcile the parties in Florence once more. Cardinal Latino to some extent succeeded, and was granted a kind of temporary dictatorship. He raised the 12 _buoni uomini_ to 14 (8 Guelphs and 6 Ghibellines), to be changed every two months; and they were assisted by a council of 100. A force of 1000 men was placed at the disposal of the _podesta_ and _capitano_ (now both elected by the people) to keep order and oblige the _grandi_ to respect the law. The Sicilian Vespers (q.v.) by weakening Charles strengthened the commune, which aimed at complete independence of emperors, kings and popes. After 1282 the _signoria_ was composed of the 3 (afterwards 6) _priori_ of the gilds, who ended by ousting the _buoni uomini_, while a _defensor artificum et artium_ takes the place of the _capitano_; thus the republic became an essentially trading community, governed by the _popolani grassi_ or rich merchants.

Battle of Campaldino (1289).

Ordinamenti della Giustizia (1293).

The republic now turned to the task of breaking the power of the Ghibelline cities of Pisa and Arezzo. In 1289 the Aretini were completely defeated by the Florentines at Campaldino, a battle made famous by the fact that Dante took part in it. War against the Pisans, who had been defeated by the Genoese in the naval battle of La Meloria in 1284, was carried on in a desultory fashion, and in 1293 peace was made. But the _grandi_, who had largely contributed to the victory of Campaldino, especially men like Corso Donati and Vieri de' Cerchi, were becoming more powerful, and Charles had increased their number by creating a great many knights; but their attempts to interfere with the administration of justice were severely repressed, and new laws were passed to reduce their influence. Among other internal reforms the abolition of the last traces of servitude in 1289, and the increase in the number of _arti_, first to 12 and then to 21 (7 _maggiori_ and 14 _minori_) must be mentioned. This, however, was not enough for the Florentine democracy, who viewed with alarm the increasing power and arrogance of the _grandi_, who in spite of their exclusion from many offices were still influential and constituted independent clans within the state. The law obliged each member of the clan (_consorteria_) to _sodare_ for all the other members, i.e. to give a pecuniary guarantee to ensure payment of fines for offences committed by any one of their number, a provision made necessary by the fact that the whole clan acted collectively. But as the laws were not always enforced new and severe ones were enacted. These were the famous _Ordinamenti della Giustizia_ of 1293, by which all who were not of the _arti_ were definitely excluded from the signory. The _priori_ were to remain in office two months and elected the _gonfaloniere_, also for two months; there were the _capitudini_ or councils of the gilds, and two _savi_ for each _sestiere_, with 1000 soldiers at their disposal; the number of the _grandi_ families was fixed at 38 (later 72). Judgment in matters concerning the _Ordinamenti_ was delivered in a summary fashion without appeal. The leading spirit of this reform was Giano della Bella, a noble who by engaging in trade had become a _popolano_; the _grandi_ now tried to make him unpopular with the _popolani grassi_, hoping that without him the _Ordinamenti_ would not be executed, and opened negotiations with Pope Boniface VIII. (elected 1294), who aimed at extending his authority in Tuscany. A signory adverse to Giano having been elected, he was driven into exile in 1295. The _grandi_ regained some of their power by corrupting the _podesta_ and by the favour of the _popolo minuto_ or unorganized populace; but their quarrels among themselves prevented them from completely succeeding, while the _arti_ were solid.

The Bianchi and the Neri.

In 1295 a signory favourable to the _grandi_ enacted a law attenuating the _Ordinamenti_, but now the _grandi_ split into two factions, one headed by the Donati, which hoped to abolish the _Ordinamenti_, and the other by the Cerchi, which had given up all hope of their abolition; afterwards these parties came to be called _Neri_ (Blacks) and _Bianchi_ (Whites). A plot of the Donati to establish their influence over Florence with the help of Boniface VIII. having been discovered (May 1300), serious riots broke out between the Neri and the Bianchi. The pope's attempt to unite the _grandi_ having failed, he summoned Charles of Valois to come to his assistance, promising him the imperial crown; in 1301 Charles entered Italy, and was created by the pope _paciaro_ or peacemaker of Tuscany, with instructions to crush the Bianchi and the _popolo_ and exalt the Neri. On the 1st of November Charles reached Florence, promising to respect its laws; but he permitted Corso Donati and his friends to attack the Bianchi, and the new _podesta_, Cante dei Gabrielli of Gubbio, who had come with Charles, punished many of that faction; among those whom he exiled was the poet Dante (1302). Corso Donati, who for some time was the most powerful man in Florence, made himself many enemies by his arrogance, and was obliged to rely on the _popolo grasso_, the irritation against him resulting in a rising in which he was killed (1308). In this same year Henry of Luxemburg was elected king of the Romans and with the pope's favour he came to Italy in 1310; the Florentine exiles and all the Ghibellines of Italy regarded him as a saviour and regenerator of the country, while the Guelphs of Florence on the contrary opposed both him and the pope as dangerous to their own liberties and accepted the protection of King Robert of Naples, disregarding Henry's summons to submission. In 1312 Henry was crowned emperor as Henry VII. in Rome, but instead of the universal ruler and pacifier which he tried to be, he was forced by circumstances into being merely a German kaiser who tried to subjugate free Italian communes. He besieged Florence without success, and died of disease in 1313.

Uguccione della Fagginola and Castruccio Castracani.

The Pisans, fearing the vengeance of the Guelphs now that Henry was dead, had accepted the lordship of Uguccione della Fagginola, imperial vicar in Genoa. A brave general and an ambitious man, he captured Lucca and defeated the Florentines and their allies from Naples at Montecatini in 1315, but the following year he lost both Pisa and Lucca and had to fly from Tuscany. A new danger now threatened Florence in the person of Castruccio Castracani degli Antelminelli (q.v.), who made himself lord of Lucca and secured help from Matteo Visconti, lord of Milan, and other Ghibellines of northern Italy. Between 1320 and 1323 he harried the Florentines and defeated them several times, captured Pistoia, devastated their territory up to the walls of the city in spite of assistance from Naples under Raymundo de Cardona and the duke of Calabria (King Robert's son); never before had Florence been so humiliated, but while Castruccio was preparing to attack Florence he died in 1328. Two months later the duke of Calabria, who had been appointed protector of the city in 1325, died, and further constitutional reforms were made. The former councils were replaced by the _consiglio del popolo_, consisting of 300 _popolani_ and presided over by the _capitano_, and the _consiglio del comune_ of 250 members, half of them nobles and half _popolani_, presided over by the _podesta_. The _priori_ and other officers were drawn by lot from among the Guelphs over thirty years old who were declared fit for public office by a special board of 98 citizens (1329). The system worked well at first, but abuses soon crept in, and many persons were unjustly excluded from office; trouble being expected in 1335 a captain of the guard was created. But the first one appointed, Jacopo dei Gabrielli of Gubbio, used his dictatorial powers so ruthlessly that at the end of his year of office no successor was chosen.

Attempt to capture Lucca.

The duke of Athens (1342-43).

The Florentines now turned their eyes towards Lucca; they might have acquired the city immediately after Castruccio's death for 80,000 florins, but failed to do so owing to differences of opinion in the signory; Martino della Scala, lord of Verona, promised it to them in 1335, but broke his word, and although their finances were not then very flourishing they allied themselves with Venice to make war on him. They were successful at first, but Venice made a truce with the Scala independently of the Florentines, and by the peace of 1339 they only obtained a part of Lucchese territory. At the same time they purchased from the Tarlati the protectorate over Arezzo for ten years. But misfortunes fell on the city: Edward III. of England repudiated the heavy debts contracted for his wars in France with the Florentine banking houses of Bardi and Peruzzi (1339), which eventually led to their failure and to that of many smaller firms, and shook Florentine credit all over the world; Philip VI. of France extorted large sums from the Florentine merchants and bankers in his dominions by accusing them of usury; in 1340 plague and famine wrought terrible havoc in Florence, and riots again broke out between the _grandi_ and the _popolo_, partly on account of the late unsuccessful wars and the unsatisfactory state of the finances. To put an end to these disorders, Walter of Brienne, duke of Athens, was elected "conservator" and captain of the guard in 1342. An astute, dissolute and ambitious man, half French and half Levantine, he began his government by a policy of conciliation and impartial justice which won him great popularity. But as soon as he thought the ground was secure he succeeded in getting himself acclaimed by the populace lord of Florence for life, and on the 8th of September was carried in triumph to the Palazzo della Signoria. The _podesta_ and the _capitano_ assenting to this treachery, he dismissed the _gonfaloniere_, reduced the _priori_ to a position of impotence, disarmed the citizens, and soon afterwards accepted the lordship of Arezzo, Volterra, Colle, San Gimignano and Pistoia. He increased his bodyguard to 800 men, all Frenchmen, who behaved with the greatest licence and brutality; by his oppressive taxes, and his ferocious cruelty towards all who opposed him, and the unsatisfactory treaties he concluded with Pisa, he accumulated bitter hatred against his rule. The _grandi_ were disappointed because he had not crushed the _popolo_, and the latter because he had destroyed their liberties and interfered with the organization of the _arti_. Many unsuccessful plots against him were hatched, and having discovered one that was conducted by Antonio degli Adimari, the duke summoned the latter to the palace and detained him a prisoner. He also summoned 300 leading citizens on the pretext of wishing to consult them, but fearing treachery they refused to come. On the 26th of July 1343, the citizens rose in arms, demanded the duke's abdication, and besieged him in the palace. Help came to the Florentines from neighbouring cities, the _podesta_ was expelled, and a _balia_ or provisional government of 14 was elected. The duke was forced to set Adimari and his other prisoners free, and several of his men-at-arms were killed by the populace; three of his chief henchmen, whom he was obliged to surrender, were literally torn to pieces, and finally on the 1st of August he had to resign his lordship. He departed from Florence under a strong guard a few days later, and the Fourteen cancelled all his enactments.

New constitution.

The expulsion of the duke of Athens was followed by several measures to humble the _grandi_ still further, while the _popolo minuto_ or artisans began to show signs of discontent at the rule of the merchants, and the populace destroyed the houses of many nobles. As soon as order was restored a _balia_ was appointed to reform the government, in which task it was assisted by the Sienese and Perugian ambassadors and by Simone da Battifolle. The _priori_ were reduced to 8 (2 _popolani grassi_, 3 _mediani_ and 3 _artifici minuti_), while the _gonfaloniere_ was to be chosen in turn from each of those classes; the _grandi_ were excluded from the administration, but they were still admitted to the _consiglio del comune_, the _cinque di mercanzia_, and other offices pertaining to the commune; the _Ordinamenti_ were maintained but in a somewhat attenuated form, and certain _grandi_ as a favour were declared to be of the _popolo_. Florence was now a thoroughly democratic and commercial republic, and its whole policy was mainly dominated by commercial considerations: its rivalry with Pisa was due to an ambition to gain secure access to the sea; its strong Guelphism was the outcome of its determination to secure the bank-business of the papacy; and its desire to extend its territory in Tuscany to the necessity for keeping open the land trade routes. Florentine democracy, however, was limited to the walls of the city, for no one of the _contado_ nor any citizen of the subject towns enjoyed political rights, which were reserved for the inhabitants of Florence alone and not by any means for all of them.

Statistics.

Florence was in the 14th century a city of about 100,000 inhabitants, of whom 25,000 could bear arms; there were 110 churches, 39 religious houses; the shops of the _arte della lana_ numbered over 200, producing cloth worth 1,200,000 florins; Florentine bankers and merchants were found all over the world, often occupying responsible positions in the service of foreign governments; the revenues of the republic, derived chiefly from the city customs, amounted to some 300,000 florins, whereas its ordinary expenses, exclusive of military matters and public buildings, were barely 40,000. It was already a centre of art and letters and full of fine buildings, pictures and libraries. But now that the _grandi_ were suppressed politically, the lowest classes came into prominence, "adventurers without sense or virtue and of no authority for the most part, who had usurped public offices by illicit and dishonest practices" (Matteo Villani, iv. 69); this paved the way for tyranny.

The Great Plague (1348).

War with Milan (1351).

In 1347 Florence was again stricken with famine, followed the next year by the most terrible plague it had ever experienced, which carried off three-fifths of the population (according to Villani). Yet in spite of these disasters the republic was by no means crushed; it soon regained the suzerainty of many cities which had broken off all connexion with it after the expulsion of the duke of Athens, and purchased the overlordship of Prato from Queen Joanna of Naples, who had inherited it from the duke of Calabria. In 1351 Giovanni Visconti, lord and archbishop of Milan, having purchased Bologna and allied himself with sundry Ghibelline houses of Tuscany with a view to dominating Florence, the city made war on him, and in violation of its Guelph traditions placed itself under the protection of the emperor Charles IV. (1355) for his lifetime. This move, however, was not popular, and it enabled the _grandi_, who, although excluded from the chief offices, still dominated the _parte Guelfa_, to reassert themselves. They had in 1347 succeeded in enacting a very stringent law against all who were in any way tainted with Ghibellinism, which, they themselves being above suspicion in that connexion, enabled them to drive from office many members of the _popolo minuto_. In 1358 the _parte Guelfa_ made these enactments still more stringent, punishing with death or heavy fines all who being Ghibellines held office, and provided that if trustworthy witnesses were forthcoming condemnations might be passed for this offence without hearing the accused; even a non-proved charge or an _ammonizione_ (warning not to accept office) might entail disfranchisement. Thus the _parte_, represented by its 6 (afterwards 9) captains, came to exercise a veritable reign of terror, and no one knew when an accusation might fall on him. The leader of the _parte_ was Piero degli Albizzi, whose chief rivals were the Ricci family.

The condottieri.

Italy at this time began to be overrun by bands of soldiers of fortune. The first of these bands with whom Florence came into contact was the Great Company, commanded by the count of Lando, which twice entered Tuscany but was expelled both times by the Florentine troops (1358-1359).

In 1362 we find Florence at war with Pisa on account of commercial differences, and because the former had acquired the lordship of Volterra. The Florentines were successful until Pisa enlisted Sir John Hawkwood's English company; the latter won several battles, but were at last defeated at Cascina, and peace was made in 1364, neither side having gained much advantage. A fresh danger threatened the republic in 1367 when Charles IV., who had allied himself with Pope Urban V., Queen Joanna of Naples, and various north Italian despots to humble the Visconti, demanded that the Florentines should join the league. This they refused to do and armed themselves for defence, but eventually satisfied the emperor with a money payment.

The parte Guelfa.

The tyranny of the _parte Guelfa_ still continued unabated, and the _capitani_ carried an enactment by which no measure affecting the _parte_ should be even discussed by the signory unless previously approved of by them. This infamous law, however, aroused so much opposition that some of the very men who had proposed it assembled in secret to discuss its abolition, and a quarrel between the Albizzi and the Ricci having weakened the _parte_, a _balia_ of 56 was agreed upon. Several of the Albizzi and the Ricci were excluded from office for five years, and a council called the Ten of Liberty was created to defend the laws and protect the weak against the strong. The _parte Guelfa_ and the Albizzi still remained very influential and the attempts to abolish admonitions failed.

War with the church (1375-78).

In 1375 Florence became involved in a war which showed how the old party divisions of Italy had been obliterated. The papal legate at Bologna, Cardinal Guillaume de Noellet (d. 1394), although the church was then allied to Florence, was meditating the annexation of the city to the Holy See; he refused a request of the Florentines for grain from Romagna, and authorized Hawkwood to devastate their territory. Although a large part of the people disliked the idea of a conflict with the church, an alliance with Florence's old enemy Bernabo Visconti was made, war declared, and a _balia_ of 8, the _Otto della guerra_ (afterwards called the "Eight Saints" on account of their good management) was created to carry on the campaign. Treaties with Pisa, Siena, Arezzo and Cortona were concluded, and soon no less than 80 towns, including Bologna, had thrown off the papal yoke. Pope Gregory XI. placed Florence under an interdict, ordered the expulsion of all Florentines from foreign countries, and engaged a ferocious company of Bretons to invade the republic's territory. The Eight levied heavy toll on church property and ordered the priests to disregard the interdict. They turned the tables on the pope by engaging Hawkwood, and although the Bretons by order of Cardinal Robert of Geneva (afterwards the anti-pope Clement VII.) committed frightful atrocities in Romagna, their captains were bribed by the republic not to molest its territory. By 1378 peace was made, partly through the mediation of St Catherine of Siena, and the interdict was removed in consideration of the republic's paying a fine of 200,000 florins to the pope.

Salvestro de' Medici.

The riot of the ciompi (1378).