102. Upon the castles, and the persons of their antagonists, however, the pride, or fear, of the Ghibellines had little mercy; and in their day of triumph they provoked against themselves nearly every rational as well as religious person in the commonwealth. They despised too much the force of the newly-risen popular power, founded on economy, sobriety, and common sense; and, alike by impertinence and pillage, increased the irritation of the civil body; until, as aforesaid, on the 20th October, 1250, all the rich burgesses of Florence took arms; met in the square before the church of Santa Croce, ("where," says Sismondi, "the republic of the dead is still assembled today,") thence traversed the city to the palace of the Ghibelline podesta; forced him to resign; named Uberto of Lucca in his place, under the title of Captain of the People; divided themselves into twenty companies, each, in its own district of the city, having its captain [1] and standard; and elected a council of twelve ancients, constituting a seniory or signoria, to deliberate on and direct public affairs. [Footnote 1: 'Corporal,' literally'.] 103. What a perfectly beautiful republican movement! thinks Sismondi, seeing, in all this, nothing but the energy of a multitude; and entirely ignoring the peculiar capacity of this Florentine mob,--capacity of two virtues, much forgotten by modern republicanism,--order, namely; and obedience; together with the peculiar instinct of this Florentine multitude, which not only felt itself to need captains, but knew where to find them. 104. Hubert of Lucca--How came they, think you, to choose _him _out of a stranger city, and that a poorer one than their own? Was there no Florentine then, of all this rich and eager crowd, who was fit to govern Florence? I cannot find any account of this Hubert, Bright mind, of Ducca; Villani says simply of him, "Fu il primo capitano di Firenze." They hung a bell for him in the Campanile of the Lion, and gave him the flag of Florence to bear; and before the day was over, that 20th of October, he had given every one of the twenty companies their flags also. And the bearings of the said gonfalons were these. I will give you this heraldry as far as I can make it out from Villani; it will be very useful to us afterwards; I leave the Italian when I cannot translate it:-- 105. A. Sesto, (sixth part of the city,) of the other side of Arno. Gonfalon 1. Gules; a ladder, argent. 2. Argent; a scourge, sable. 3. Azure; (una piazza bianca con nicchi vermigli). 4. Gules; a dragon, vert. B. Sesto of St. Peter Scheraggio. 1. Azure; a chariot, or. 2. Or; a bull, sable. 3. Argent; a lion rampant, sable. 4. (A lively piece, "pezza gagliarda") Barry of (how many?) pieces, argent and sable.