Brun made a bad use of his victory. His cruelties to the prisoners and to Rapperswyl, which he burnt, are unjustifiable, and seem inexplicable in so far-sighted a statesman. He was ambitious, and desired not only his own advancement, but also that of his native city. He had depended on Austria, hoping to rise through her alliance and aid, but, suddenly forgetting all moderation, and disregarding all traditional _liaisons_ with her, he laid waste the territory of the counts of Rapperswyl, cousins to the Habsburgs. This of course entangled Zurich in a war with Austria, who threatened to level her with the ground. Having estranged the neighbouring states by her cruel proceedings, or rather by those of Brun, Zurich stood alone, and was compelled to look around for aid and countenance. Though by no means friendly towards the bold Forest men, the dictator Brun concluded an alliance with them. The Waldstätten were quite ready to receive into their league a commonwealth so powerful and well-organized as Zurich, a state likely to be at once their bulwark and their emporium. They therefore willingly agreed to Brun's stipulations (May 1, 1351), and, further acquiesced in the proviso that Zurich should be allowed to conclude separate treaties. These treaties or alliances were very common at that time, and changeable as they were, they nevertheless gave additional security for the time being. But though Brun had introduced a _régime_ of force, he yet made concessions to the masses, giving them a share of political power. And his constitutional system answered the wants of the city, to a great degree, for some four centuries and a half. FOOTNOTES: [29] White silk veils in the guise of bonnets were exported to Vienna, and even as far as Poland. This silk-making, of course, increased the prosperity of the town. It declined, and was reintroduced in the sixteenth century in a far more advanced condition, by the persecuted Protestants from Locarno. [30] He also reports that one of its gates bore the inscription, "_Nobile Turegum multarum copia rerum_." [31] It happened to be in the possession of the Elector of the Palatinate, and was carried off to France when Louis XIV. laid waste the province. XIV. BERN CRUSHES THE NOBILITY: GREAT VICTORY OF LAUPEN, 1339.