discomforted the Popes soldiors, and slew their Captaine Hugolinus, besides. 2000. others slayn and takē prysoners. When now Fridericus had gathered agayne, & new mustred hys bandes at Dominum, he marcheth forth to Cremona: and notwithstandyng, that ther he vnderstood of þ^e good successe and victory that Encius had at Rhegium: yet for that he perceaued the defection and backslidyng of all or most part of Lumbardie from hym: he determined to take his iorney into Apulia, and when he had there leuied a strong and sufficient power, he purposed to make hys speedy returne agayne into Lombardie. MarginaliaCapras besieged & takē of the Emp.Therefore, in his jorney through Hetruria into Apulia, he ioyned with hys sonne Fridericus, which besieged Capras, and toke the same: and led with him dyuers of the chiefest captaynes prisoners, & after that subduyng vnto the obedience of the empire Miniatum, he came into Apulia.

When newes was brought hym thether, that Encius hys sonne (commyng to ayde the Mutinenses agaynst the Bononiens) was taken prisoner, two miles of from Mutina: and that in hys absence, the Popes captaines w^t their bandes and garrisons went throughout all Lumbardy, Aemilia, Flamminia, and Hetruria, to stirre and procure the Cities to reuolt from the obedience of the Emperour: And the same, partly workyng by subtile policies, & partly by force and sinister meanes to bryng them to hys purpose: determined with himselfe, that with all the force and power he might by any meanes procure and make, to haue begonne a fresh and prosecuted this warre to the vttermost. MarginaliaThe Emp. purposeth to make some great attēpt.Neyther was it to be doubted as Pandolphus Colonucius writeth, but that he would haue wrought some merueilous exploit & great attempt, but that he was of this hys purpose (wherunto he was both willyng and bent) preuented by vnlooked for death. For when he fell in this ague, beyng at a certayne castle of hys in Apulia called Florentinum, and saw by the extremity thereof his days to be but short: he remembred that which was once shewed hym, how he should dye at Florēce. Wherupon, he made and ordeyned hys testament: and when vnto Conradus and other of hys children he had geuen and appointed the great and innumerable masse of money which he had collected and leuied for the maintenance of his wars (and godly purpose as it is called) MarginaliaThe Emp. preuented by death.And vnto them also had geuen, all other hys kingdoms and dominions (to euery one accordyng to their ages and yeares) departed this wretched and miserable world.

Pandolphus writeth, that Fridericus was very willing to dye, and as they made certayne report to him which were present at his death: that his mynde was altogether set and bent vpō the heauenly ioy and felicitie. Which thing also Guilhelmus Putranus, Andreas Pādalus, and Manardus the bishop, beyng Italian writers do all affirme: MarginaliaFrid one of Gods elect.of whom thys last writeth, that he assuredly beleueth Fridericke to be one of the number of Gods elect.

The writers notwithstanding are of sundry iudgements and opinions touching this good Emperours death: Some write that he was traiterously poisoned by his cup bearer, beyng hyred therunto. Some other, that he was strangled with a pillow of Manfredo the sonne of Pherus. MarginaliaSundry opinions of the death of Fridericke the Emp.But Pādolphus as good a writer as þ^e best, maketh no mention of any poyson that was geuen hym, but onely that he died of an ague. The last opinion of Manfredus, he manifestly refuteth, and that there is no maner of lykelihood of the same: & further, that the contrary is affirmed by diuers other wryters that were of that tyme. He died in the yere of our lord. 1268. the 13. day of December, in the. 57. yere of hys age, & 37. yere of his raigne, whose corps was brought to Panormum, and there intombed.

MarginaliaThe issue of Fridericke the Emp.Fridericke had iij. wyues: the first was Constantia, the daughter of the kyng of Arragon: of whom he begat Henry the Duke of Sueuia and king of the Romains: The other Iole the daughter of Iohannes Brennus, kyng of Ierusalem, by whom he had the inheritance of Ierusalē, Naples, and Sicile: of whom he begate Conradus Duke of Sueuia, kyng of Ierusalē and Naples beyng Cesar. The third, Isabell the daughter of King Ihon of Englād, by whom he had a sōne named Hēry, which is said to die in his childhood. MarginaliaFrid a most puisant prince in marshall affaires.This Fridericus had not hys peere in Marshall affaires to be compared vnto hym and warlike pollices amongst all the princes of that age: A wise and skilfull souldior he was: a great indurer of painfull labours and trauels: most boldest in greatest perils: prudent in foresight: Industrious in all his doinges: prompt & nymble about that he tooke in hand: and in aduersitie most stout and couragious. But as in this corruption of nature few there be that attayne perfection: neyther yet is there any prince almost of such gouernment and godly institution, both in life and doctrine as is required of them: So neither was this Fridericke, without hys fault and humane fragilitie. MarginaliaFred was not without hys fault of human fragilitie.For the writers impute to him some fault of concupicence, wherwith he was stayned and spotted. And it appeareth that he was not all cleare therof, for as much as by sundry Concubines he had sundry children: As Encius, the kyng of Sardinia. Manfredus, the prince of Sarentinum: And Friderick, kyng of Antioche. And this is all that I finde of the description of Friderick by Colonucius, which he affirmeth to haue gathered out of good and probable autors. But as touching the haynous actes and flagitious deedes, which the pope burdeneth him withall, and in hys sentence agaynst hym maketh mention of: Fridericus not onely purgeth himselfe thereof, but also diuers historicians (as well Germaine writers as Italians) affirme the same to be false and of the Popes owne braynes, to do hym skare and teene withall, inuented. Of which matter, those thynges which Pandolphus (touchyng the commendation or dispraise of Fridericus writeth) I thought good out of Italian, to translate whose wordes be these.

MarginaliaThe wordes of Pandolphus touchyng the prayse and disprayse of the Emp. Friderick.Albeit the Emperour Fridericus was indued wyth many goodly giftes and vertues, yet notwithstanding was he accoumpted an enemy of the Church and a persecutor of the same: of which, both Innocentius the 4. in his sentence hath pronounced hym giltie, and the same sentence haue other popes registred in their sixe booke of Decretals and stablished the same for a law, how that he ought to be taken for no lesse. Therfore peraduenture, it should not become me to falsefie or call in question that, which other haue confirmed, or els to dispute and argue much of that matter. Yet notwythstanding, as much as his actes & deedes in writing declare, and the bookes of þ^e chiefest autors affirme, as also hys owne Epistles do testifie: I cannot presisly say, whether the byshops of Rome so call hym and iudge hym therfore: Or els for that, he was somewhat to bold in speakyng and tellyng them but the truth, and reprouyng the ecclesiasticall order of their great abuses. Or els whether for that, he would haue had them gone somewhat more nere the conditions & lyues of the auncient fathers of the primatiue Church and disciples of Christ: Or whether for that, he defended and stoode with them for the prerogatiue and dignities belongyng to the empire or not: Or els, whether that they stood in feare and awe of the great power he was of in Italy (which thing in deede Gregory the 9. in a certein Epistle of hys confesseth.) But of these things let th? iudge and discerne, that shall reade the monumentes and histories of Fridericke. MarginaliaThe popes church compared with Christ hys Church are as like as blacke & white.Truly (sayth he) when I consider with my selfe that Christ (whose vicar the Romane bishops boast themselues to be) sayd vnto his disciples: that they should follow hym and also imitate hys example as of their maister and teacher: and commaunded thē farther more, how they should not draw the sworde, but put vp the same into the scaberd: and farther gaue them in precept, that they should not onely forgeue iniuries seuen tymes, but 70. tymes seuen tymes to those that offended them: And whē I now compare the lyues of the bishops of Rome, how nere they follow hym whose vicar they say they be: And consider so many and great conspiracies, treasons, rebellions, disloyalties, lyenges in wayte, and trecherous deuises: So many Legates of the Popes (beyng Ecclesiastical persons) which will nedes be called the shepherdes of Christes flocke, to be such warriours and Captaines of souldiours in all the partes of Italy, Campania, Apulia, Calabria (being the Emperours dominions) in Picenum, Aemilia, Flaminia, and Lumbardy, to be sent out against him: And also whē with my selfe I meditate, the destruction of so many great & famous Cities, the subuertion of such common weales, the slaughter of so many men, and the effusion of so much Christian bloud: And lastly when I behold, so victorious, prosperous, and fortunate Emperors to be: and so many miserable, vnfortunate, and vanquished Popes put to flight: And persuaded with my selfe to thynke and beleeue, that the iudgemēts of God are secret & meruelous, & that to bee true which Aeneas Siluius, in hys history of Austria writeth: That there is no great & maruelous clade, no notorious & speciall calamitie, þ^t hath happened eyther to þ^e publike weale or els to þ^e church of God, of the which the bishops of Rome haue not bene the authors. Nicholaus Machiauellus also sayeth, that all the ruinous calamities & miserable chaunces þ^t the whole christiā common weale and also Italy hath suffred: haue ben brought in, by the popes and bishops of Rome.

Many Epistles of Fridericus there be, which he wrote vnto the Bishops of Rome, to the Cardinals, and to diuers other christiā Princes, all which I haue read: and in them is to be sene nothyng contrary vnto Christian doctrine, nothyng wicked & vngodly, nothyng iniurious to the Church of God, nothyng cōtumelious or arrogātly written of Friderike. But in deede I deny not, that they be fraught and