At this time the cities of Verona, Padua, Ferrara, and Bologna, were engaged in wars, occasioned by the animosi ty of the Guelph and Ghibeline nobles. The former party was headed by the Marquis Obizzo of Este, ancestor of the dukes of Ferrara, NIodena, and Brunswick, and the royal family of Great Britain. On the other side was Eccelino Romano, father of the cruel tyrant of that name ; and at Ferrara, the family of Salinguerra. These wars in Milan, and some other of the cities north of the Po, ended in the expulsion of the nobility. But in Verona, Vicenza, and Bologna, their power was increased ; and at Ferrara, the Marquess of Este, having married Marchesella, daughter and heiress of William Marcheselli, the deliverer of An cona, had already acquired almost sovereign power and in fluence.
The next attempt was to reclaim the long-contested legacy of the Countess Matilda. For this purpose, he sent an army to expel the German nobles who possessed these fiefs. His pretensions were immediately acknow ledged by the cities ; and Ancona, Perugia, and several other towns, opened their gates, and submitted to the le gates of the pontiff. To the Tuscan cities, the pope address ed himself as the patron of their liberties ; and only asked their assistance, as the friends of liberty and the church. The cardinals Pandolpho and Bernard succeeded in their mission ; au assembly of the deputies from the Tuscan ci ties met at a village near San Nlincato, and there formed themselves into the Guelph or Tuscan League, by which they bound themselves to acknowledge no prince without the express consent of the Roman church ; to defend each other, and the church, when required ; and to assist in re covering all parts of its patrimony, and all the territory over which it had any rights, except what was actually occupied by any of the allies. The city of Pisa alone, grateful for former fat ours received from the emperors, would not join in this league, and continued at the head of the few cities and nobles who constituted the Ghibeline faction in Tuscany. In the administration of the Sicilian kingdoms, the pope was less successful ; and two expeditions against 'slarco vald, high steward of the empire, who, at the head of the German troops, with the assistance of the Saracens settled in Sicily, maintained the Ghibeline party there, were equally unfortunate. But it was in Italy alone that Innocent met .vith opposition in Hungary, Denmark, France, Portugal, Arragon, and Poland, his rescripts were implicitly obeyed ; and in England, his excommunication of King John, and :hat prince's surrender of his crown, are familiar to every British reader. In the mean time, a new pretender to the crow n of Naples appeared, Walter, count of Brienne, the son.in•law of the late King Tancrecl ; but this nobleman, .rho, (it is supposed) at the instigation of Innocent, invaded Naples with a small army, soon fell in a skirmish with the German troops of Marcovald. Soon after this, a period was put to the German dissensions, by the death of Philip of Suabia, who was murdered by a private enemy ; and Otho, having married his daughter, and thus united the rival ['Ami ties. was unanimously acknowledged king of Germany and the Romans at Alberstadt.
Early in the following year, Otho entered Italy to receive the imperial crown, with which Innocent had promised to invest him. His first task was to reconcile Azzo of Este (now acknowledged lord of Ferrara) with Eccclino Romano. This was at first difficult, the marquess having challenged his rival in Otho's presence ; but he at last succeeded in effecting a temporary agreement. To secure them both, he confirmed to Azzo his title of marquess of Ancona, which had been conferred on him by the pope, reserving, however, the rights of the empire ; while to Eccelino he gave the office of podesta of Vicenza, imposing on it, at the same time, a very considerable fine, as having been guilty of rebellion.
Otho then proceeded to Rome, where he was crowned emperor by the pope, 4th October 1209 ; but as the latter soon found that the Guelph prince was not so obedient as he could wish, and especially refused to resign his claims to the inheritance of the Countess Matilda, they soon parted equally discontented with each other, to seek allies in their approaching warfare. The emperor secured in his interest the Pisans, the German army in Naples, the Milanese, Parmarans, and Bolognese, Eccclino, and Salinguerra. On the other side, the party of the pope was warmly embraced by Azzo of Este, the cities of Genoa, Pavia, and Cremona, and the Marquess of Montfcrrat. Innocent having likewise negotiated a marriage between the young Frederic of Na ples and Constance, daughter of the king of Arragon, en tered into a treaty with the king of Fiance and several Ger man princes, to elect him to the crown of Germany, of which he represented him unjustly dispossessed.
On hearing of this, Otho immediately declared war against Frederic ; and, marching into his kingdom, made himself master of Capua, Salerno, and Naples ; but was in terrupted in the midst of his victories by the intelligence, that he had been excommunicated by Siffredi, archbishop of Mentz, and the imperial dignity declared vacant, and that the league against him had been joined by the king of Bo hemia, the duke of Bavaria, and many others of the princes of the empire.
He therefore quitted Italy without delay, and proceeded into Germany, whither he was soon followed by Frederic. This prince, setting out from Genoa, marched through Lombardy, where many attempts were made by the Geulph states to intercept him, which he escaped by the assistance of the Marquess of Este, aid arrived in safety at Chur, in the country of the Grisons, where he was met by his Ger man allies, who conveyed him to Aix-la-chapelle, and there crowned him king of the Romans. Otho, in the mean time, l.ad been defeated by the king of France at Bouvines, with a loss of 30,000 men ; by which his power was so much weakened, that he never afterwards was able to make head against his competitor.
It was about this period that the dissentions of the Boun delmonti and the Uberti first broke out in Florence ; which kept that city in a state of civil war for more than 30 years, and prepared its citizens for taking the distinguished part which they afterwards did in the wars of Italy. (See no