But where, meanwhile, was the army of the League?[*10] The Duke of
Urbino, after quelling the insurrection at Florence, had lingered
there for some days at the instance of the Cardinal Legate, who
represented to him that Rome was amply provided with means of
defence. Yet, upon learning Bourbon's advance, the confederates
despatched Guido Rangone from Incisa, where their army lay, to
anticipate by forced marches his arrival at that capital. Taking
five thousand light infantry of the _bande nere_, with a large force
of cavalry, he pushed on, and at Otricoli met the Datary's foolish
missive of the 4th of May, which, declining further relief, asked for
but a few hundred troops as enough for the wants of the city. The
Count, however, paid no attention to this news, and, hurrying across
the Campagna, heard near the Ponte Salara that the enemy had that
morning penetrated the walls. Had he but known the real state of the
army, or by a headlong dash risked his all in the noble enterprise,
his name would have been honoured as the saviour of Rome. But his
genius was unequal to the opportunity, and he retired to Otricoli to
await the arrival of his chiefs.
[Footnote *10: Where indeed! The Duke of Urbino had left Florence on
May 3rd, but it was the 22nd of that month before he reached Isola.
Strangely enough, he marched much slower than the barbarians.]
The Duke at length aroused himself, and moved rapidly forwards.
On the 3rd he quitted Florence, and at Cortona separated the army
into two divisions for facilitating the commissariat. One he led by
Perugia, the other, under Saluzzo, took the Val di Chiana, with a
common rendezvous at Orvieto.[*11] He was at the lake of Thrasimene
on the day Rome fell, and arrested his march at Perugia to effect
once more a revolution there, by substituting his friend Orazio
Baglioni for Gentile, a partisan of the Medici. Santori justly
observes, that "in the Duke of Urbino the desire of avenging old
injuries was suspected to have prevailed over zeal for the honour of
Italy and the safety of Rome": indeed, this ill-timed gratification
of an old grudge cost several precious days. On the 9th, his advanced
guard were met at Casalino on the Tiber by a fugitive from Rome with
news of the fall of that city, and again halted. Thus it was the 16th
ere he joined the other division of the army at Orvieto, where it had
preceded him by five days, and whence, after cruelly sacking Città
della Pieve, which refused supplies, he sent on a strong party of
two thousand foot and five hundred horse to carry off the Pope. It
was commanded by Federigo da Bozzolo, whose gallantry well qualified
him for such an attempt; but his horse having unfortunately fallen
upon him near Viterbo, disabling him entirely, the command of the
expedition devolved upon a subaltern, who, finding it daylight ere he
came in sight of S. Angelo, and his orders being for a night attack,
retraced his steps without communicating with the castle.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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