The 1st of December news reached Rome that Michelotto had been captured and all his men slain or dispersed by Giampaolo Baglioni somewhere between Perugia and Florence. This was a crushing blow to Caesar, who now had little hope left--he was “no longer considered of much importance.” At this time the Cardinal of Rouen was making preparations to leave Rome for the Court of the Emperor at Florence, and Caesar desired to go with him, but to this the cardinal would not consent. Before Amboise set out the Pope commanded Valentino to send one of his officers, Pedro de Oviedo, accompanied by a prelate, to obtain the surrender of the places his supporters were still holding in Romagna, but before consenting Caesar asked Amboise to give him a guarantee in writing that the Pope would keep the promises he had made to him before the conclave. Amboise, however, refused to do this, and after the Cardinal’s departure the Duke, finding his last support taken from him, acceded to the Pope’s demands. The commandant of Caesar, however, thinking or pretending to think there was treachery, seized the unfortunate Oviedo and hanged him from the battlements forthwith as a traitor to his sovereign. When he learned of this the Pope was beside himself--in fact, as Carlo da Moncalieri expressed it, he was “mad as the devil”--_alterato come il diavolo_--and threatened to put Caesar in prison for life. Believing that he had found some way to tell the commandant to disregard the order he had given, the Pope had Valentino confined in the Borgia Tower. He nevertheless continued to treat with him, and again allowed him to go to Ostia, this time in charge of the Spanish Cardinal Carvajal, with the understanding that he was to be given his liberty when his officers surrendered the strongholds in Romagna. Giustinian records the hanging of Oviedo December 20th and Caesar’s transfer to the Borgia Tower, and adds: “Terrified by recent events, the Cardinal of Sorento and Cardinal Borgia have left the city--possibly to go to the Spanish camp. It is believed by many that their flight was due to Valentino’s affairs or because they had acquiesced in the poisoning of Cardinal Sant Angelo.” When the Cardinals Francesco Romolino and Francesco Borgia fled to Naples with the little Dukes to ask Gonsalvo of Cordova for protection Vannozza and the Borgia ilk were trying to save their plunder. Much of it was intercepted and seized when they endeavoured to send it from the city to a place of safety. Some of the wagons dispatched from Rome to Ferrara in the name of the Cardinal d’Este were stopped by the Florentines, while others from Cesena were captured by Giovanni Bentivoglio. Caesar was wellnigh ruined when an event occurred which immediately restored the waning influence of the Spanish cardinals with the Pope, who was a French sympathiser, and this was the victory of Gonsalvo de Cordova at the Garigliano, December 31st, which finally assured the Regno to the Spanish crown.