I T A 
noeent IV. formerly cardinal Fiefque, who had always 
exprefled the greateft regard for the emperor and his in- 
terell. Frederic was accordingly congratulated upon this 
occafion; but, having more penetration than thole about 
him, he fagely replied, “I fee little reafon to rejoice; the 
cardinal was my friend, but the pope will be my enemy.” 
Innocent foon proved the juftice of this conjecture. He 
attempted to negociate a peace for Italy ; but, not being 
able to obtain from Frederic his exorbitant demands, and 
in fear for the fafety of his own perfon, he fled into France, 
affembled a general council at Lyons, and in 1245 de- 
pofed the emperor. 
Conrad, the emperor’s fecond fon, had already been 
declared king of the Romans, on the death of his brother 
Henry, which foon followed his confinement; but, the 
empire being now declared vacant by the pope, the Ger¬ 
man bilhops, (for none of the princes were prefent,) at 
the inftigation of his holinefs, proceeded to the election 
of a new emperor; and they chofe Henry landgrave of 
Thuringia, who was ftyled in derifion, the King of Piiejls. 
Innocent now renewed the crufade againft Frederic. It 
was proclaimed by the preaching friars, fince called Do¬ 
minicans, and the minor friars, known by the name of 
Cordeliers or Francifcans. The pope, however, did not 
confine himfelf to thefe meafures only, but engaged in 
confpiracies againft the life of an emperor who had dared 
to refift the decree of a council, and oppofe the whole 
body of the monks and zealots. Frederic’s life was feve- 
ral times in danger from plots, poifonings, and afl'aflina- 
tions; which induced him, it is laid, to make choice of 
Mahometan guards, who, he was certain, would not be 
•under the influence of the prevailing fuperftition. 
About this time the landgrave of Thuringia dying, the 
fame prelates who had taken the liberty of creating one 
emperor made another; namely, William count of Hol¬ 
land, a young nobleman twenty years of age, who bore 
the fame contemptuous title with his predeceflbr. For¬ 
tune, which had hitherto favoured Frederic, l'eemed now 
to. deleft him. He was defeated before Parma, which he 
had long befieged ; and to complete his misfortune, he 
foon after learned, that his natural fon Entius, whom he 
had made king of Sardinia, w’as worfted and taken pri- 
foner by the Bolognefe. 
In this extremity Frederic retired to his kingdom of 
Naples, in order to recruit his army; and there died of a 
fever in the year 1250. After his death, the affairs of 
Germany fell into the utmoft confufion, and Italy conti¬ 
nued long in the fame diftracled ftate in which he had 
left it. The clergy took arms againft the laity; the weak 
were opprefled by the ftrong ; and all laws divine and 
human were difregarded. After the death of Frederic’s 
fon Conrad, who had afl'umed the imperial dignity as fuc- 
celfor to his father, and the death of his competitor Wil¬ 
liam of Holland, a variety of candidates appeared fan the 
empire, and feveral were elected by different faCHons ; 
among whom was Richard earl of Cornwall, brother to 
Henry II. king of England ; but no emperor was properly 
acknowledged till the year 1273, when Rodolph count of 
Hapfburg was unanimoully railed to the vacant throne. 
During the interregnum which preceded the election of 
Rodolph, Denmark, Holland, and Hungary, entirely freed 
themfelves from the homage they were wont to pay to the 
empire ; and about the lame time feveral German cities 
ereCted a municipal form of government, which has but 
lately been abolilhed. Lubec, Cologne, Brunfwic,and Dant- 
zic, united for their mutual defence againft the encroach¬ 
ments of the great lords, by a famous aft’ociation, called 
the Hanfeatic league ; and thefe towns were afterwards joined 
by eighty others, belonging to different ftates, which 
formed a kind of commercial republic. Italy alfo, dur¬ 
ing this period, afl'umed a new plan of government. That 
freedom for which the cities of Lombardy had lo long 
ftruggled, was confirmed to them for a Ann of money ; 
they were emancipated by the fruits of their induftry. Si- 
L Y. 46b 
cily likewile changed its government and its prince ; for a 
particular account of which revolution, lee Sicily. 
From the time of Frederic II. we may date the ruin of 
the German power in Italy. The Florentines, the Pi- 
fans, the Genoefe, the Luccans, &c. became independent, 
and could not again be reduced. The power of the em¬ 
peror, in Ihort, was in a manner annihilated, when Henry 
VII. undertook to reltore it in the beginning of the 14th 
century. For this purpofe a diet was held at Frankfort, 
where proper fupplies being granted for the emperor’s 
journey, well known by the name of the Roman expedition>. 
he let out for Italy, accompanied by the dukes of Aultria 
and Bavaria, the archbithop of Triers, the bilhop of 
Liege, the counts of Savoy and Flanders, and other noble¬ 
men, together with the militia of all the imperial towns. 
Italy was ftill divided by the factions of the Guelphs and 
Ghibelines, who butchered one another without humanity 
or remorfe. But their conteft was no longer the fame ; 
it was not now a ftruggle between the empire and the 
priefthood, but between faction and faction, inflamed by 
mutual jealoufies and animofities.. Pope Clement V. had 
been obliged to leave Rome, which was in the anarchy 
of popular government. The Colonnas, the Urfini, and 
the Roman barons, divided the city; and this divifion was 
the caufe of a long abode of the popes in France, fo that 
Rome feemed equally loft to the popes and the emperors. 
Sicily was in the pofleffion of the houfe of Arragon, in 
confequence of the famous mallacre called the Sicilian vef- 
pers, which delivered that island from the tyranny of the 
French. Carobert, king of Hungary, difputed the king¬ 
dom of Naples, with his uncle Robert, fon of Charles II. 
of the houfe of Anjou. The’houfeof Elte had eftablilhed 
itfelf at Ferrara; and the Venetians wanted to make them¬ 
felves mafters of that country. The old league of the 
Italian cities no longer fubfifted. It had been formed 
with no other view than to oppofe the emperors; and, 
fince they had neglected Italy, the cities were wholly em¬ 
ployed in aggrandizing themfelves, at the expence of each 
other. The Florentines and the Genoefe made war upon 
the republic of Pifa. Every city was alio divided into 
factions within itfelf. In the midlt of tliele troubles Hen¬ 
ry VII. appeared in Italy in the year 1311, and caufed 
himfelf to be crowned king of Lombardy at Milan. But 
the Guelphs had concealed the old iron crown of the 
Lombard kings, as if the right of reigning were attached 
to a Anall circlet of metal. Henry ordered a new crown 
to be made, with which the ceremony of inauguration was 
performed. 
Cremona was the firft place that ventured to oppofe the 
emperor. He reduced it by force, and laid it under heavy 
contributions. Parma, Vicenza, and Placentia, made 
peace with him on realonable -conditions. Padua paid 
100,000 crowns, and received an imperial officer as go¬ 
vernor. The Venetians prelented Henry with a large funi 
of money, an imperial crown of gold enriched with dia¬ 
monds, and a chain of very curious workmanlhip. Bre- 
feia made a defperate refiftance, and fuftained a very le- 
vere fiege ; in the courfe of which the emperor’s brother 
was flain, and his army diminifhed to fuch a degree, that 
the inhabitants marched out under the command of their 
prefect Thibault de Drulfati, and gave him battle ; but 
they u'ere repulfed with great lofs, after an obftinate en¬ 
gagement 5 and at laft obliged to fubmit, and their city 
was difmantled. From Brefcia, Henry marched to Genoa,, 
wdiere he was received with cxprellions of joy, and fplen- 
didly entertained. He next proceeded to Rome ; where, 
after much bloodftied, he received the imperial crown 
from the hands of the cardinals. Clement V. who had 
originally invited Henry into Italy, growing jealous of 
his fuccefs, had leagued with Robert king of Naples and 
the Urfini faction, to oppoie his entrance into Rome. He 
entered it in fpite of them by the afiiltance of the Colon- 
nas. Now mailer ol that ancient city, Henry appointed 
it a governor; and ordered, that all the cities and ftates 
of 
