here - Nobility Associations

suspicions being aroused by the demeanor of the papal retinue, and also annoyed
by the occupation of Campania by papal troops, he fled to the Saracens at Lucera.
Aided by Saracen allies, he defeated the papal army at Foggia on 2 December 1254,
and soon established his authority over Sicily and the Sicilian possessions on the
mainland. In that year Manfred supported the Ghibelline communes in Tuscany, in
particular Siena, to which he provided a corps of German knights that was later
instrumental in the defeat of Florence at the Battle of Montaperti. He thus reached
the status of patron of the Ghibelline League. Also in that year Innocent died,
succeeded by Alexander IV, who immediately excommunicated Manfred. In 1257,
however, Manfred crushed the papal army and settled all the rebellions, imposing
his firm rule of southern Italy and receiving the title of vicar from Conradin.
Kingship
The following year, taking advantage of a rumor that Conradin was dead, he was
crowned King of Sicily at Palermo on August 10. The falsehood of this report was
soon manifesting; but the new king, supported by the popular voice, declined to
abdicate and pointed out to Conradin’s envoys the necessity for a strong native
ruler. The pope, to whom the Saracen alliance was a serious offence, declared
Manfred’s coronation void. Undeterred by the excommunication Manfred sought to
obtain power in central and northern Italy, where the Ghibelline leader Ezzelino III
da Romano had disappeared. He named vicars in Tuscany, Spoleto, Marche,
Romagna and Lombardy. After Montaperti he was recognized as protector of
Tuscany by the citizens of Florence, who did homage to his representative, and he
was chosen "Senator of the Romans" by a faction in the city. His power was also
The Hohenstaufen Dynasty - Page 79 of 200