Three years after, war broke out a-new. Richelieu se cured on his side Odoard Farnese, duke of Pa:ma, and the dukes of Mantua and Savoy. The two brothers of the lat ter, however, Cardinal Maurice, and Thomas, entered Lao the imperial service. The death of Victor Amadeus left his dominions, and the care of his infant successor, in the hands of Louis. The campaign in Italy, however, was not at first successful ; and although the duke de Crequi afterwards defeated the duke of Modena and the Spaniards, the state of the contending parties remained at the end of two years, much the same. At this period, the male line of the Ruvere, dukes of Urbino, became extinct. The duchy was claimed by Ferdinand, grand duke of Tuscany, who married Victoria, grand daughter of the late mike ; but Urban VII I. had already seized it as a vacant fief of the papal see ; and Fer'dinand, unwilling to contend with the pope, was satisfied with the inheritance of the private property of the Rovere. The Barberun, nephews of Ur ban, finding him firm in his refusal to grant them the in vestiture of Urbino, mined their anibition to the acquisi tion of the duchy of Castro, near Rome, the property of the duke of Parma, which they persuaded the pope to invade. That prince having allied himself with Ferdinand II. grand duke of Tuscany, and Francis I. of Este. duke of Modena, marched at the head of 5000 men to the attack of the papal army near Bologna, commanded by Taddco Barberini, though consisting of 20,000. This daring en terprise was successful Ilarberini was forced to take refuge in Ferrara, and Farnese entered into and laid waste Romagna. The armies of Modena and Tuscany were equally successful, and the pope at length concluded a treaty with the dukes. This event was soon followed by the death of Urban VIII.
In France, by the death of Cardinal Richelieu and Louis XIII. the government was left in the hands of Cardinal Mazarine, who acted as prime minister to Queen Anne of Austria, regent during the minority of her son, Louis XIV. Mazarine, who entered warmly into the affairs of Italy, displeased by the election of Innocent X. who was his per sonal enemy, used all his interest to gain over the Italian princes. Thomas of Savoy, now in the French service, was successful in gaining over the duke of Parma ; and that prince, repairing to Paris, concerted with the cardi nal the plan of the war. Hostilities were commenced by the French army under the command of the Duke de Breze and Thomas of Savoy, which landed near Orbitello, and commenced the siege. But the fleet was in the mean time defeated by the viceroy of Naples, the duke de Breze killed, and the troops forced to reimbark and return to France. The second expedition was more fortunate, and the isle of Elha and the principality of Piombino surren dered to the French arms.
In the mean time, the kingdoms of Naples and Sicily were groaning under the oppression of the Spaniards, the chief object of each successive viceroy being to rival his predecessor in the raising of levies and taxes. The re sources and the patience of the Neapolitans were at length exhausted ; the ministers of Philip IV. had, by their mis conduct, occasioned the revolt of Catalonia and Portugal ; and these misfortunes, of too great magnitude to be long concealed from the people even in the most remote terri tories of Spain, awakened in the Sicilies the spirit of in surrection. The first explosion was at Palermo, where
the crown of Sicily was offered to Francis of Vintimilla, Marquess of Gierace ; but that nobleman, with great pru dence, resisted this dangerous promotion, and succeeded in calming, for a time, the indignation of his countrymen. But the misjudged severity of the viceroy again excited the Sicilians ; and the Spanish troops were forced to with draw from Palermo. The severity of the duke of Arcos, at Naples, roused in that city a rebellion no less formi dable. headed by Thomas Aniello, (commonly called Maseniello,) a fisherman, the lower classes made them selves masters of the palace and the viceroy, committed numberless excesses, and sacrificed to their vengeance the most obnoxious instruments of the tyranny to which they were subjected. Their leader assumed the title of lieutenant-gencral of the King of Spain, and for ten days exercised the most unlimited authority ; but at length, becoming intoxicated by a success so unexpected, he grew suspicious and cruel, and his whole conduct exhibited evident marks cf insanity. He was assassinated on the 1 I th clay of his short and extraordinary reign ; but the Neapolitans still continued in arms, and assuming a re publican government, chose as their commander Francis Toraldo, prince of :klassa.
The insurrection at Palermo had, in the mean time, been quelled by Cardinal Trivalzio, whose influence as a church man and an Italian, at length restored tranquillity. The Neapolitans, however, determined to throw of the yoke of Spain, now began to deliberate to whom they should make offer of the crown ; and actually entreated the pope, as their suzerein, to confer it on some prince of French extraction.
At this period, Henry, duke of Guise, happened to be at Rome. This nobleman, whose character resembled that of the ancient heroes of chivalric romance, was im mediately excited by the ambition of making himself master of Naples ; and without waiting for any aid proceeded imme diately to that city, and offered his services to the republic. Ile was received with entousiasm by the people, and immedi ately appointed their general with the title of duke, or doge. The civil administration still remained in the hands of Gennaro Anncse, one of the original insurgents ; but the duke, after the conquest of Capua and Aversa, openly as suming an authority and state which showed his intention of aiming at the crown, Annese contrived to excite the jealousy of the people against him, and, in concurrence with the archbishop, carried on a secret negotiation with Don Juan of Austria, and the Spanish troops in the citadel. At length having, by a false report of an attack on Nisites, contrived to remove the duke and his troops from the city, the Spaniards, issuing from the fortress, were received without resistance ; and Guise, after some unavailing at tempts to force his way back, retreated towards Rome, hut on his march was seized by treachery, and sent to Spain, where he remained a prisoner for five years. The Spaniards, again masters of Naples, punished the revolt with the greatest cruelty ; and even Gennaro Annese, whose treachery had restored the Spaniards, perished on the scaffold.