The age-long quarrel between Siena and Arezzo gained a new impetus from the contentions between Carlo di Durazzo and Louis of Anjou for the crown of Naples. First Durazzo held Arezzo, and then Louis; but when the Sienese hoped to win the city thus ravaged by two alien lords, Louis sold Arezzo to Florence (1384), whose might was too formidable and whose claim on Arezzo was too close for Siena to dispute. Disappointed of this addition to their suzerainty, the Sienese turned on the reformers who had managed and mismanaged their affairs. A successful revolution was concluded in 1385, and resulted in the expulsion of many families on whose industry and experience in trade the prosperity of Siena largely depended. Once more there was a change in the form of government. In 1387. there was a re newal of war between Florence and Siena, who called to aid her Gian Galeazzo, duke of Milan, who made himself master of Siena, and the city became the property of one tyrant until 1403.
The 15th Century.—The city now became involved in the schism which was threatening the very life of the Papacy. Siena, as well as Florence, declared itself against Gregory XII (1409) ; and Ladislaus of Naples, his supporter attacked Sienese territory. His death ended this war ; and then came another conflict with Florence, Which supported Venice and Eugenius IV., while Siena favoured Milan and the king of the Romans. In 1433 the warring parties made There was another affray with Florence in ; and in a year or two later some of the citizens plotted to hand over Siena to Alphonso of Naples, whose death ended the conspiracy. In these years the magistracy was strengthened by the creation of an extraordinary body, the balia, which could act independently of the ordinary council. When Aeneas Sylvius Pic colomini was elected pope in 1455, the Sienese readmitted the nobles to a share in the government, a special concession which came to an end with the pope's death in 1464; although any members of the Piccolomini house were declared, eo ipso, to be popolani and privileged. In 1480, after the conclusion of the war of Milan and Florence against Naples and the pope, Alphonso, duke of Calabria, tried to obtain suzerainty of Siena. An alliance between the noveschi and some of the plebeians favoured his claims, and a revolt (June 1480) ended in a reorganization of the government. The old reformers as such were excluded, and the power vested in the hands of the popolani and a body called aggregati, consisting of nobles, and citizens of other orders who had not before been allowed to take office. The Neapolitan royal
family, however, fell out of favour in 1487, when the king of Naples gave some of the Sienese territories to Florence. For nine months there were riots in the city which culminated on Feb. 20, 1483. The popolani took again the spoils of office. But in 1487 the noveschi, prosperous, influential tradesmen, returned, and overthrew the popolani, and placed the State of Siena under the patronage of Our Lady.
The 16th Century.—Her legate in government was a re turned exile, Pandolfo Petrucci, who was till his death in 1512 master of Siena. He was a thoroughly sensible tyrant. Expelled by Cesare Borgia in 1502, he was restored through the interven tion of the Florentine Government and the king of France in March 1503. A contemporary chronicler who was no friend of Pandolfo, says that he can be named cum Joanne Bentivolio et Laurentio Medici. He founded no dynasty of permanence, and in 1522 Siena became a free city under the protection of the Emperor Charles V.
On Aug. 5, 1552, the Spanish "protection" ended. To attain this end Siena had called in Cosimo of Florence as well as France, and once more she suffered from the possession of powerful friends. There were battles and desperate diplomacies ; until in 1555 the Spaniards, having defeated the French, took possession of the town ; Philip II. of Spain then gave Siena to Cosimo I. de'Medici, head of her old rival Florence. Her separate history as a city-state ceases, though she retained a separate administration for another 200 years. In 1859 she once more took a leading part in the politics of Italy, for Siena was the first Tuscan city to vote for the annexation of Piedmont and the monarchy of Victor Emmanuel II.
Siena to-day is a city of 32,800 inhabitants, an archiepiscopal see, capital of a province and seat of a university. It is cele brated for the celebration of Il Palio, a race in which each ward competes for a banner; it is held on July 2 and Aug. io, and its horses race in the old Piazza del Campo.