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io6 HISTORICAL ABSTRACT.
1499. On September28 the Florentine commissioners at the camp (Antonio
Carigiani and Braccio Martelli) entrap Vitelli and take him prisoner.
He is transferred to Florence : after an examination on September
3o, is executed on October i. Vitellozzo Vitelli, who was to have been
seized at the same time, succeeds in escaping. [Guicciardini, St.
d'Italia, lib. iv. ch. 3, 4 ; Op. Ined. iii. 193-215 ; Ammirato, iii. 253-258.
See also the ' Spedlzione contra Pisa'--letters from September i to
November 17 in the ' Scntti Inediti di N. Machiavelli,' pp. 63-132.]
The question of Paolo Vitelli's guilt was never satisfactorily cleared
up : Guicciardini believed him innocent (' 6 opinione quasi chiara che
e' fussi innocente'), but his account of the popular opinion on the
subject given in the Storia Fiorentina is not quite consistent with that
given in his Storia d'Italia. Vitelli himself asserted his innocence in
a letter of September 28, and refused, though under torture, to admit
his guilt during the official examination. It has been suggested that
any inaction or hesitation on Vitelli's part may have been due to the
desire to see the issue of the war between Milan and France : the
growing discontent at Florence is proved by the letters from the
Dieci published by Villari [vol. i. Documenti vii-ix] ; the Florentines
probably desired to convince the Italians, and more especially
Louis XII, that they were prepared to deal with their commanders
in an independent spirit, without fear of any other power [v. Vlllari,
i. 338 ; Canestrini, Scr. Ined. p. 95, note]. Cf. Parenti : '... dove
per suo (Vitelli's) mezzo eravamo ruimti in ogni danno e vilipendio,
hora resurgeremo in reputazione, e mostreremo a tutto il mondo che
degenerati non eravamo da i nostri antichi; n& ci mancava animo
n&prudenzia a governare il nostro Imperio.' (Quoted by Tommasim,
who has discussed the subject in detail, bk. ii. Introd.) For
Machiavelli's opinion, cf. Dec. primo, v. 223 :--
_Poco di poi, del ncevuto inganno
Vi vendicasti assai, dando la morte
A quel che fu cagion di tanto danno.'
See also a fragmentary letter of Machiavelli, undated, first published
by Nitti, vol. i. 67, and accepted as genuine by Tommasini,
157, note].
The first Italian Expedition of Louis XII.--Louis XII, resolved
to enforce his claims to the Duchy of Milan, prepares an army to
invade Italy. Makes a league with the Venetians on February 9 ;
pubhshed on April 15. Ludovico Moro, after fruitless attempts
to win allies [Guicc., St. d'Italia, lib. iv. 4] finds himself
isolated: the French army, under the command of Gian
Giacomo Trivulzio, enters Italy, and advancing with lightning
speed [' come un folgore'] arrives on August 13 at Rocca di
Arazzo, about five miles S.E. of Asti: captures Anon (Annone)
between Asti and Alessandria; advances towards Milan; sacks