¶ The tragicall history of Fridericke. 2. Emperour.  

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Frederick II

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For so much as the story of Fridericke the emperour is incident in the same tyme of this K. Henry 3. and containeth matter much worthy of memorie, considering the vtilitie therof: after the tractatiō of our english stories, I could not but also insert the whole narration of thys tragical history of the said Fridericke, which I haue caused faithfully and amplye to be collected and translated out of the latine booke of Nic. Cisnerus. containyng as followeth.

MarginaliaWhat house Friderick came of.FRiderike the second, came out of the auncient house of þ^e Beblines or Gibellines: which Gibellines came of þ^e most famous stock of the french kyngs & emperors.

MarginaliaWhat father and mother.He had Friderike Barbarossa to his graundfather, whose sonne Henricus the 6. emperour after hym was: and of Constantia, the daughter (or as some wryte the neece) of Roger the first, kyng of Sicile: he begatte thys Friderike the second.

MarginaliaThe tyme & maner of hys byrth.This Constantia was 50. yeares of age before she was conceiued wyth him: whom the Emperour Henry 6. to auoyde all doubte and surmise that of her conception and chylding might be thought, and to the peril of the empire ensue: caused his regall tente to be pitched abrode in a place where euery mā might resort. And whē the tyme of his queenes trauell approched, Constantia (in the presence of diuers ladies, matrones, and other gētle women of the empyre, a great number) was brought a bedde and deliuered of this Friderike: the vij. day before the Calendes of Ianuary, in the yere of christes incarnation, 1193. who by inheritaunce was kyng of Naples, Apulia, Calabria, and Sicilia.

Henricus his father obtayned shortly after he was borne, of the princes electors: that by their othe to him geuen, they would chuse hys sonne Friderike for their emperour after his decease, and so dyd, & immediatly called hym Cesar, beyng yet but in hys cradle.

This Henry when he dyed (which was shortly after the birth of Friderike) committed the protection of hym to Constantia his wyfe, to Philip his brother chiefe gouernour of Hetruria, and to the bishop of Rome, then Innocentius the third.

MarginaliaWhat patrones he had.Constantia, not long after the death of Henrye her husband being sickly and growing into age, and therby not so well able to gouerne the troblous and vnquiete state of the Empire: resigned, and wylled by her testamente, the safetye bothe of her sonne Friderike and also of his dominions, to the protection & gouernment of Innocēt the 3. thinkyng therby safely to haue prouided, &c.

MarginaliaThe cōspiracies of pope Innocent against Friderike duryng hys minoritie.This pope Innocent, assone as he had þ^e protectiō of þ^e yong emperour and his Segniories: became in stead of a patrone and protectour, to hym and to hys dominions both an enemy and conspiratour. The examples are many: One is, he perswaded Sibil the late wyfe of Tancredus (whom Henry put from the kyngdome of Sicile) to recouer þ^e same agayn, & that she shuld therunto require Phillip the Frenche kings ayde: Wherupon, one Waltherus beyng of the noble house of the earles of Brenno which in þ^e prouince of Barrencecis had great lyuing, & maryeng with Ateria the eldest daughter of Trancredus once king of Sicile as is sayd: now by the instigation, counsel, and ayde of the French king with the pope (wel hopyng to recouer the kingdom) entred and inuaded w^t greate power Campania, and Apulia. At which time also, the same worthy protectour Innocentius the thyrd, sent his legates wyth letters of excōmunication against all those that would not admit and take the sayd Waltherus for their kyng.MarginaliaThe second conspiracie.

An other was, that where the princes Electours and other nobles as before is sayd had promised by their oth to Hēricus, þ^t they would make Friderick his sōne Emperour after his dissease (whom þ^e pope saw to put their indeuour therunto & to bryng to passe) absolued thē all frō the othe which they had takē & geuen for the election of Friderick the emperour, as one not cōtent he should obtayne the same: And further, he raysed slaunders andMarginaliaThe thyrd conspiracie.defamatiōs against Philip, whom þ^e electours had chosen to gouerne the empire during the minority of Friderike hys nephew. He wrote his epistle (which is yet extante) to the duke Barthold of Zaringia to be emperor: Who, for that he gaue place to Philip, he went aboute to procure, that Otho the son of Henry Leo shoulde be made Emperour, and that the princes and lordes electours of Germany, would crowne him forth with after þ^e maner of Aquisgraue. MarginaliaThe fourth conspiracie.He depriued al such bishops as he knew to fauour Phillip as emperour, in the defēce of his nephewes ryght. But Phillip, whose cause was better, his skyll in martiall affayres greater, and in power and strength mightier: after diuers and great conflictes to the maruelous disturbāce and vastation of the whole empyre, by gods helpe he put to the worse. Al which calamities and mischiefes Conradus Lichtenanus at that tyme liuing, in his Annales most pitifully complayneth of: and accuseth the bishop of Rome and his adherentes to be the chiefe autors & deuisours of this great & lamentable mischief: as such, þ^t for to make thēselues rich by þ^e spoyle therof, sought by all meanes and desyred þ^e same.

MarginaliaThe fyfth conspiracie.Not long after a peace was concluded betwene Philip and Otho, and Philip reconsiled agayne to the pope: MarginaliaPhilip slaine.He was within a while after betwene Otho and hym, murdred in his chamber & slayne. And thē was Otho agayn brought to the imperiall seate, and new elected for emperour, wyth the counsel and consent of thys Innocent the thyrd: MarginaliaVariance betwene Otho and the pope.and so cōtinued till that a great variance & discord chaunced to rise betwene the sayd Otho & the pope. Wherupon, Innocentius sought by all meanes, how against hym in likewise, he might worke mischief and bryng him to his eande. The occasiō of this sodain chaunge & alteracion my author maketh no mention of, but that Otho (now being of great power) inuaded and destroyed these dominions of Friderike, as Flamminia, Picenum, Vmbria, Hetruria, but chiefly Campania, and Apulia, for that those properly pertained to the inheritaunce of Friderike.

Thus you see, how first by the counsel and consent of Pope Innocentius & by his instigation, besyde his secret conspiracies: this good Friderike and his dominions were hurte and indamaged. Then agayne, through hys default what damage he sustayned by Otho, who by hym and hys meanes was made so strōg as he was: notwythstandyng, the great truste he was put in for the protection both of Friderick and his dominions.

MarginaliaWhat learning & knowledge he was of.At thys tyme, Friderike was come to the age of xx. yeres: who in hys youth by þ^e prouision of Constantia his mother, was so wel instructed in letters, & in other artes & vertues so imbued: that at these yeres there appeared and dyd shyne in hym, excellent giftes both of wisdome and knowledge.

MarginaliaWhat vertues indued he was with.He was excellentlye well seene in thee latine and greeke tongue: although at that tyme learnyng began to decay and barbarousnes to increase. He had also the Germaine tongue, the Italian tounge, and the Sarasen toung. He daily exercised & put in practise those vertues which nature had planted in hym, as piety, wysedome, iustice, and fortitude: in so much, that wel he myght be compared and accompted, amongest the worthiest and most renowmed Emperours his predecessours.

MarginaliaFrid. suspected for hys graundfathers sake.Fazellus (the historisian of Sicilia in this time) writeth, that Fridericus was again after this had in great honour and estimation with Innocentius: but yet notwithstandyng, he had no sure confidence in him for þ^t he had the suspected name of Friderike his graundfather often in remembrance, and for that occasion was much desirous to haue hym far from Italy.

MarginaliaThe coronatiō of Fridericke.When Friderike had gathered hys power, he purposed to set vpō Otho his enemy: of which thyng Otho hearyng (as he was painefull in trauell) came out of Italy wyth hys army into Germany, thinkyng to haue