The Republic Reborn II: Reborn Again [Orders Due Jan 31]

[Steerpike]

[ic=A Letter to Roberto Basile]Consul Basile,

I will carry out the duties of Consul of the Interior and ensure that Rome is defended in the event of an attack. You are better versed in the current strategic realities beyond Rome's walls than I. Do you believe an attack likely in coming weeks? If you are reluctant to discuss such matters via letter, a meeting may be more appropriate.

Consul Sanguineus Viviani[/ic]

[TheMeanestGuest]

[ic= A Letter to Sanguineus Viviani]I do not judge it likely, Consul, but even the merest possibility necessitates preparedness. With this brewing schism we cannot necessarily know from where an attack may come, so err to caution and be on guard. Oddone Frangipani has lands all about us, though he is perhaps most likely to strike from the south.

Consul Roberto Basile [/ic]

[Nomadic]

[ic=Letter to Senator Basile]
Greetings my friend,

I am happy to see the apparent increase in support for your proposal regarding this Cassi. While I detest justice undone I detest far more that Rome's people should be threatened by these honorless brigands. While it wasn't unforeseen it still concerns me how brazenly Frangipani has now become in attempting to gather all Latium under him in the guise of serving this pretender to the throne of St Peter. I am especially concerned for the people under my charge in Antium and Nettuno. I fear that should Frangipani strike he will first do so there. Fifty men, no matter how well trained or equipped, could never hope to stand up against these wolves in knights clothing. At best they might stand for awhile behind the crude walls of Nettuno but I doubt they will stand long. I am coming then to you for advice while I still have the opportunity. If you think it wise I shall pull all but a token garrison from there so that they might strengthen the Roman force. Otherwise they may at best serve as a roadblock for Frangipani when he issues forth from the Torre Astura to defend Torre Maggiore. What say you on this matter?

Best Regards,
Arrigus Sismondii
[/ic]

[TheMeanestGuest]

[ic=A Letter to Arrigus Sismondii]Senator,

I have conversed with Signore Frangipani, and I believe that he will do as he says. It would be most sensible to accept his offer and to do as he says. You will still be able to maintain the vicarage for as long as His Eminence leaves it under your care. Acquiescing to Oddone on this, for the moment, will at the least render him less likely to anticipate our own attack on the Torre Maggiore. Your men will serve better in this effort, or at home in Rome to keep the peace. Antium may be reclaimed, and there is precious little of your work there that Oddone may damage or abscond with - I do not think him particularly inclined, in any case.

Consul Roberto Basile[/ic]

[Magnus Pym]

[ic=Letter to Arrigus Sismondii]Senator Sismondii,
You have my gratitude for your generous donation. The Halls have been cleared, so renovation can begin now. Roman Law and Justice is well served by this endeavor.

I noticed the progress you've made in Nettuno and the road that connects it to Rome. So then it is not only Roman Law, but Roman Trade also that is well served. We could yet cooperate on more issues that don't necessarily require reaching into our purse to effect benefits. I wonder, do you tire of the miserliness of the senators? The consiliarii have always been known to provide, but scores of other senators sit idly by, gorging themselves in riches while we struggle to keep our beloved city from drowning in chaos and poverty.

The Senate has barely codified any laws. Can you imagine if each senators funneled [0.2 WP] to the Treasury each season; a meager commitment in exchange for the privileges of the position. The Romans have called our government corrupt for too long. With a clarified constitution – an august text which describes how we obtain the privileges and responsibilities of a Senator, of a Consul or of a Magistrate – and improvements to the current succession law, they'd certainly be ascertained of the legitimacy of our government and thus become less likely to protest our rule violently.

If you deem the subject to be interesting enough, we should continue our correspondence.

Senator Hugo De Vinti[/ic]

[ic=Letter to Consul Basile]Consul,
I've seen your men leave the Demetri estate. They seem to have left the contents in one of his hidden cellar untouched. I found a bit of information, a letter, that might be of interest to you. Here is a copy.

...a letter reporting potential mint income to Chancellor Rolando Bandinelli, the man now known as Pope Alexander III.  The letter is not addressed directly to the Chancellor, however, but "Master Jechiel" (clearly a Jewish name), who is referred to as "steward of the household of His Eminence."  It speculates on possible income from debasing papal deniers, and asks about loan terms from unnamed moneylenders.

Senator Hugo De Vinti[/ic]

[ooc=Orders for the Spring season of 1160]Begin construction for the Weaving Hall in earnest. 20 WP

Provide Signore Luidolf, vicar of ad Gallinas, with the agreed upon rent money and ''gifts''. 6 WP

Broken down, 2 WP goes for the lease of the land, 1 WP goes to assuage his fear that leasing an additional field at this present time for flax cultivation might not get him some of the profits he might have gotten otherwise due to the situation in Rome's contado, 3 WP goes to contributing to the different repairs that must be done on fields or infrastructure damaged by Capocci's raids, elevating the total amount of wealth given for this sole purpose to 6 WP.

The additional weaving hall should, in effect, maximize the income from my fields, since 3 weaving halls cover 6 flax fields. A recalculation of my income is now needed.

Pay upkeep for Palatini. 1 WP

I and my palatinii will assist Consul Basile and Patricius Annibaldo in the conquest of the Torre Maggiore. Should the assault not begin immediately when the season begins, deliver the rent and gifts to Signore Luidolf, otherwise after the conquest is completed. I include it here because I wish an escort in case bandits should try to steal my treasure. Furthermore, while in the city, I will cleanse the Market of Trajan of the beggar and destitute people that have made it their refuge. Should any of them protest, persuade them that it is in their best interest to clear the area; backed with the full authority of and with the assent of the Senate and Consul Viviani, the Trajan Halls are to serve as the first formal Courthouse. If they should persist, formally arrest them for obstructing the work of an official of the Commune. When not occupied with the aforementioned initiatives, help the other senators bring order in Arenule and Cacabarriorum and around the Theater of Marcellus.

When The Trajan Halls are rid of refuges, begin construction of the courthouse. Pay with the [2 WP] provided by Senator Sismondii for this purpose.

If the Senate holds a vote about granting Pandolfo Cassi a pardon, vote in favour.

Use the ledgers found in Demetri's hidden cellar to build useful information that might allow me to know the exact location of his holdings, incomes from those holdings and any possibility of either usurping land, title or simply confiscating money, either revenue or immediate. (Sorry, I'm not sure how to word all this, but I hope this and our private conversation gives you a sense of what I'm after. Basically anything that can serve to enrich me or help Victor's cause (whether that is by helping Rome or causing harm to its enemies.))

I have 29 WP this turn and will spend 27.
2 WP, donated by Senator Arrigus Sismondii, will also be spent on the Courthouse.[/ooc]

[Nomadic]

[ic=Letter to Senator Basile]
Very well. I detest this Frangipani trying to strong-arm Rome on the matter. However, I remain as always aware (despite whatever he might say otherwise) that my position there was merely as a representative of Rome in the area. I shall withdraw my men. If you would do me the honor and write Oddone to inform him of this I would appreciate it. Have him know that my captain will await the arrival of his men. Once Nettuno is thus secured my men will depart for Rome.

As an aside senator I wish to inform you that while Nettuno is so occupied I do not feel comfortable investing too directly in it so I shall be focusing my money elsewhere for now. However, do not think I have forgotten my promise to your family. If you will provide me with the agreed upon [1 wp] I shall immediately put men to work completing the road from Ardea to their tower. This at least I will see to while I am able. Once things are more stable I will then be able to continue with work from there.

Regards,
Arrigus Sismondii
[/ic]

[ic=Letter to Senator de Vinti]
I recognize the issue we are having with the Roman treasury though I am hesitant to back any sort of fee of this nature. I would not directly oppose it though. If enough of the other lesser council members show approval I would not hinder its adoption. Note however that I have been in correspondence with the schola of weavers. I believe I can get them to accept senate oversight regarding guild structure. In exchange for our protection and formal recognition of their guild they would pay us a regular fee and we would have sole right to fine those merchants that violated the guild laws. I have been offered a tentative starting offer in the range of [3 wp] to [4 wp] though I believe I could reasonably get them to go somewhat higher. I shall be investigating any reoccurring costs such a venture might have (such as the hiring of guards). I am hopeful that with the introduction of a formal Roman justice system such guild law can be implemented. With it we shall have both halt these schola problems and also fill Rome's empty coffers.

Regards,
Arrigus Sismondii
[/ic]

[ooc=Orders]
- Donate the sum of [2 wp] to Senator de Vinti with the condition that it is to be used for the construction of a Roman courthouse.
- Pay [1 wp] upkeep on my palatini
- Pay [1 wp] for alum via Pisa if possible.
- If Senator Basile agrees to provide me with the agreed upon [1 wp] use it to work on finishing the road section between Ardea and the Torre San Lorenzo. Spend up to an additional [1 wp] from my own wealth to make this happen.
- Begin construction of an estate on Tiber Island, allocate [3 wp] towards starting construction on this project (3/5 for +1 opulence)
- Have men investigate the possible costs incurred in enforcing guild requirements in place of guild enforcers (I suspect this will mostly come down to the costs of maintaining enough guardsmen). Also look into what sort of reasonable fees might be charged for guild non-compliance.
- Have 30 of my palatini in Nettuno return immediately to Rome bringing with them the full store of crossbows and bolts from the armory. The remaining 20 (including the captain) shall guard Nettuno for the time being with instructions to hand over guardianship of the town to the Frangipani captain upon his arrival. Once the hand over is complete they will also return to Rome.
- Once Sismondii's palatini return he will post them to oversee his rocca as well as his investments in the area. Upon doing so the services of his masnada shall be offered to Sanguineus Viviani so that they may bolster his forces as thieftakers for clearing out Roman criminals. The use of 10 crossbows shall be given over to these masnada so as to aid them in conducting this duty. The remaining crossbows will be stored at Rocca Sismondii for use by the palatini.
- Support the motion to pardon Cassi
- If Basile doesn't send a letter to Frangipani have a short one drafted and delivered explaining that I have been instructed to accept his terms and remove my men and that my captain has been told to hand Nettuno/Antium over to the care of his men upon their arrival.
[/ooc]

[Nomadic]

Oh btw couple things carp.

Firstly, I just noticed that your europe map on the 1st page is no longer working. Secondly, what are the maximum opulence/security limitations placed on the new estate on the island?

[Polycarp]

Firstly, I just noticed that your europe map on the 1st page is no longer working.

Thanks.  Fixed.

Secondly, what are the maximum opulence/security limitations placed on the new estate on the island?

Since increasing levels of fortification past 3 simply involve making the tower taller, not necessarily wider, there is no limit on security level.  That said, Cencio and/or Ruggero may not like the idea of a heavily fortified estate on "their" island.

Opulence is limited by default to level 1, because levels 2 and higher imply some amount of spacious halls and/or exterior gardens, neither of which are going to be easy to get on the island.  (Note, however, that the "virtual" opulence level can still be increased by saved WP, as usual.)

[ic=Letter to Roberto Basile]If the Frangipani do ride against me, all I will be able to do is retreat behind my castle walls - that is what they're for, after all.  All the equites won't be able to stop them if Oddone comes to burn my fields or yours.  That's going to be the price of war with the man with more horsemen following him than any other nobleman in Latium.  If it comes to war with the Frangipani, you're going to have to bring the torch to them, and show Oddone his fields burn just as easily as anyone else's.  He doesn't have the starving Roman mob to worry about, but I bet the only thing to make the old man blink is to hit him in the purse.

Signore Niccolo Capocci[/ic]

[ic=Letter to Roberto Basile]Consul,

I am deeply troubled by this disunity in the church, not in the least because Rolando Bandinelli is a man I respect.  Though I have rarely spoken with him, it is obvious to me that he is exceedingly courageous - it was the same Rolando, after all, who was the one to challenge the emperor to his face at Besancon, asking him where his authority came from if not from the Pope.  I have heard Otto von Wittelsbach nearly killed him on the spot, only to be restrained by Barbarossa; the emperor may even now be wishing he had let his marshal complete that gruesome deed.

Thus it surprised me not at all to learn that Rolando had refused the summons to Pavia and defied the emperor.  While he is no warrior, and certainly does not look like one, he possesses a spine of iron.  He is highly learned in law, having been a professor and canonist at Bologna.  I imagine his unbending will and his expertise with law and treaty made him eminently qualified to be the late Adrian's chancellor.  He is not a diplomat of the Greek school, full of fulsome praise and slippery evasions, but was by all accounts an effective negotiator nonetheless, producing a treaty with the Sicilian king that was remarkably lenient considering the fact that Pope Adrian had been completely defeated.

I am afraid I cannot speculate as to what he will do.  Perhaps you would speak to my cousin Ugo, who is presently the Bishop of Piacenza, as I understand he knows Rolando personally.  Piacenza is an anti-imperial city, however, and its bishop likely of the same mind, so I do not know if cousin Ugo will be interested in speculating on Rolando's plans to a Roman consul.

While my uncle died in battle with Rolando's partisans, I hold Antonio Demetri responsible for his death, not the chancellor himself.  In truth I feel the conduct of Octavian at the conclave was most shameful, and it seems to me that Rolando, were we to lay politics aside and think only of virtue and character, is a far better candidate for Saint Peter's chair than Octavian, whose own qualifications seem to be limited to being a Roman of noble blood.  You are older and more experienced in statesmanship than I, consul, but if you will heed any advice of mine, I urge you to blunt the wrath of the senate against Rolando; the time may come when this city and this senate must reconcile with him, and we will be lost if the senate has burned all bridges with his party in its imperial zeal.

Patrician Cencio Pierleone[/ic]

[TheMeanestGuest]

[ic=A Letter to Oddone Frangipani]Signore,

In my own consultation with the Senator Sismondii he has been convinced of the reasonable nature of your request and has agreed to meet it. A troop of his men shall remain at Nettuno until your own should come to relieve them, at which point the security of the vicarage shall be entrusted to you.

To the matter of continued peace between us, I can assure you that here I am attempting no deception. I have always worked for peace, at times against the clamour and desire of my own Senate! Largely on my own initiative I reconciled the Commune to the Holy Church during the consecutive tenures of His Holiness Anastasius, and His Holiness Adrianus. As Consul I have worked with the lawful Prefects of Rome to maintain order in every respect. As Consul of Rome my city has marched only against the Tusculani. I knew that Rome would not benefit from the action, just as I knew the Tusculani did not benefit in allowing the harassment of peaceful Romans, nor in their subsequent defiance - a defiance notably lambasted by Signore Pietro Colonna in his capacity as Prefect. I think the Romans and the Counts of Tusculum both regret our conflict, and wish quite dearly that we had not been forced to it. Pride is a treacherous and deadly sin.

As always the Senate concerns itself with the rule of law, and with justice in Rome. Any criminal found and apprehended shall be tried and punished. You can be assured that the death of the Prefect Antonio and its circumstances will be investigated, and if any man should be guilty he will be dealt with accordingly. The Senate possesses abiding respect for the law and those who uphold it, and we have sought out legal experts to advise us in its execution. I know that you too, Signore, are a man who respects the rule of law, and I will not deny you justice where justice is deserved.

Consul Roberto Basile[/ic]

[ic=A Letter to Giovanni Conti di Segni]Your Eminence,

The Senate has since been made aware of the action of Signore Capocci, and of the circumstances involved. Signore Capocci has attested before the Consuls that Poteranum is his lawful and allodial fief, and that it was indeed illegally alienated from his family during the term of His Holiness Honorius the Second. I have seen documents attesting to this truth, and I am likewise assured of their veracity. I think that there are contestable grounds in this instance, as I suspect both His August Majesty the Emperor and His Holiness the Pope were misled by false documents or testimony - though I could not say with who responsibility for the propagation of such falsity rests. Therefore, I cannot concur with any certainty that Signore Capocci's claims are "spurious" or "false" in any capacity. Poteranum and its ownership are shrouded in clouds of doubt, and in the haze of time. To resolve this matter and to once and for all determine the heart truth of it, I will propose the convention of an investigation and trial, whereby all parties shall bring forward their testimony and their evidence for presentation, and the matter should then be decided by an impartial tribunal agreed upon by all involved. I would be most pleased to work with you, Your Eminence, in order to arrange any necessary preparation.

In Nomine Senatus Populusque Romanus,
Consul Roberto Basile[/ic]

[LD]

Can fortifications be established on any structure? not just forts and homes?

[Polycarp]

Can fortifications be established on any structure? not just forts and homes?

Only estates/castles can have security levels.  Things like enterprises can't be fortified.  The best you can do is build a tower/castle near or adjacent to the enterprise or whatever building it is you want to protect.

[Polycarp]

The update is now in progress.  If you need to make any modifications to your orders, please PM me, as I won't see further edits in this thread.

[Polycarp]

Spring has passed into Summer...
Summer in Rome is a time of unbearable heat, when the wealthy flee to country estates and the rest of Rome suffers in the stifling and malarial air.  The peasants must work regardless, mowing hay and weeding their gardens until it is time to harvest winter wheat and rye.  By the end of summer, the grain must be reaped, threshed, winnowed, and milled into flour.  The feasts of the Assumption of Mary and of St. Peter and St. Paul are celebrated in the summer, the latter especially important in Rome, the seat of Peter's blessed heir.

Our Consuls: Roberto Basile and Sanguineus Viviani
Our Pope:  Alexander III ("Sicilian") and Victor IV ("Imperial")
Our Prefect:  None
Our Rage: Fuming [5]

[ooc=This Season's Top 5 Popular Issues]
1. "God bless Lord Annibaldo!"
2. "Bread is too expensive!"
3. "Down with Octavian!"  "No, down with Rolando!"
4. "Perhaps we should see to our own neighborhood's defense..."
5. "We fear for our safety in these times..."[/ooc]

News from Abroad

News has come from distant Egypt that the Fatimid Caliph al-Fa'iz bi Nasr Allah has died.  Al-Fa'iz assumed the throne only six years ago after the murder of his father, and lived only to the age of eleven.  He is succeeded by his younger brother al-Adid li Din Allah, and thus Egypt remains under the rule of a minor.

Foreign merchants report that the Genoese have received the permission of the Greek emperor to open a trading quarter in Constantinople, the greatest and richest city in Christendom.  That concession places them on equal footing with the Venetians and Pisans, who already possess their own enclaves in the city.  Thousands of "Latins" presently live in the city, primarily in these enclaves, where they are not subject to Greek law and exempt from most taxation.

News of Italy

As spring began, the cause of Holy Roman Emperor Friedrich "Barbarossa" von Hohenstaufen in Italy appeared all but triumphant.  The complete destruction of Crema seemed, for a moment, to have cowed the emperor's opponents in Lombardy, and the council at Pavia resoundingly rejected Alexander III as a false Pope and enthroned his rival Victor IV with great pomp and majesty.  Following the council's end, the emperor and his wife Beatrice de Bourgogne toured western Lombardy, even visiting the still-ruined city of Tortona which he had razed in his last Italian expedition.

The emperor's enemies, however, did not stay cowed for long.  Pope Alexander dispatched Giovanni Conti da Anagni, Cardinal-Deacon of S. Maria in Portico, as his legate to Italy; arriving in Milan, the cardinal exhorted the Milanese to resistance against the Teutonic tyrant and denounced Victor as a fraud.  The cardinal assured the Milanese that God and righteousness were on their side, and delivered a long list of excommunications against imperial supporters in Lombardy – the bishops of Mantua, Lodi, Cremona, Como, and Pavia; various nobles including Count Guido III of Biandrate and Margrave Guilhem V of Montferrat; and the consuls of Cremona, Pavia, Novara, Vercelli, and Lodi.

The cardinal's words seem to have produced action in short order, for in April the Milanese marched against Lodi only twenty miles away, which had been razed by the Milanese in past years but rebuilt (in a nearby location) by the emperor.  The Milanese army evidently hoped to take the city by surprise and indeed penetrated the city's gate in their initial attack, but the Lodigliani sallied forth from an alternate gate and flanked their attackers.  After a bloody battle, the Lodigliani were forced back within their walls, but the Milanese – having lost both a substantial number of men and the advantage of surprise – subsequently withdrew.  Hearing of their repulse, the emperor soon came to Lodi personally and praised their stalwart defense against the empire's enemies.

With the assistance of the Lodigliani and the Cremonese militia, the emperor raided a number of Milanese possessions, destroying a bridge over the Adda and several minor castles.  More direct assaults, however, were impossible – most of the army that had taken Crema was composed of Lombard contingents which had since returned home.  The emperor used what forces he had to ravage the Milanese contado, laying waste to fields and orchards.  In May the Milanese marched forth to oppose him, taking with them their carroccio and a battle-line of wagons with projecting scythe-blades mounted upon them, but the emperor declined to give battle.  Soon after, the Cremonesi withdrew home to see to their own fields and orchards.  Left with only a few hundred imperial knights and retainers, the emperor was compelled to end his campaign and return to Pavia.

In Tuscany, the long-absent Margrave Welf VI convoked a diet this March at Borgo San Genesio.  The major feudatories and communes of Tuscany, imperial vassals all, were called upon to attend.  The primary object, it seems, was not merely to secure the allegiance of the Tuscans to the margrave, but to the margrave's 25 year old son (also named Welf) who had accompanied his father to Borgo San Genesio.  The diet was disrupted by conflict, however, when an argument between the Florentine representatives and the young Count Guido Guerra III led to the Florentines and Lucchesi storming the villa he was staying at.  Count Guido only narrowly escaped.  His aunt Sofia, Abbess of Pratoveccio, appealed to the Pisan consuls to avenge this outrage, and Pisan armsmen managed to drive the Florentines and Lucchesi out of the city quarter after a chaotic street battle.  Florence, Lucca, Pisa, and the Guidi all withdrew from the diet thereafter, and it is quite possible that a new Tuscan war may be in the making.

Margrave Welf, however, will not be around to see it.  In May, he abdicated his titles in Italy and returned over the Alps to the family estates in Swabia.  His son Welf VII was confirmed by the emperor at Pavia as Margrave of Tuscany and Duke of Spoleto.  The new margrave, who has presently established his court at Siena, appears to be pursuing a much more hands-on approach to the governance of the Italian territories than his father; the elder Welf made a grand total of two appearances in Tuscany in eight years of rule.  While the Welf family has a deep historical rivalry with the emperor's family of Hohenstaufen, reconciliation between the families has been a major policy aim of Emperor Friedrich, and more direct Welf rule in Tuscany is thus expected to strengthen the emperor's position there.

News of Latium

Pope Alexander III relocated himself and his Curia from Ninfa to Anagni in April.  Anagni has long been a favorite city of the popes, and has frequently served as the de facto capital of the patrimonium when Rome was too inhospitable for the Holy Father.  While Anagni is arguably more secure than Ninfa, there is also speculation that the move may be intended to distance Alexander from the Frangipani or limit the influence of that family over the Curia.  Ninfa is a Frangipani fief, while Anagni is a direct possession of the Holy See.

It is reported that this past month, Pope Alexander III has approved the canonization of Guarinus Foscari, the former Cardinal-Bishop of Palestrina who died in 1158.  A nobleman from Bologna, Saint Guarinus was known for his humility; he once climbed out of a window to avoid being selected as the Bishop of Pavia and hid in the countryside until the search was abandoned and another candidate chosen.  Pope Lucius II had to arrest him in order to compel him to accept the cardinalate, and even after this appointment he attempted to flee the patrimonium several times.  He is said to have given virtually all of the gifts he received during his tenure to the poor of Rome and other Latin cities.

Meanwhile, Pope Victor IV has returned from Pavia, escorted by a party of Lombard knights.  The party entered Latium by way of the Via Salaria shortly before Holy Week, and Victor celebrated Easter at Farfa.  Soon afterwards, however, Victor and his party fell back to Terni, perhaps feeling less than safe at the abbey.  Terni is controlled by Victor's brothers, and its single bridge over the Nera River makes it quite secure against threats to the south.

During Holy Week, a brazen attack was made against Dodone, the Bishop of Rieti.  As the bishop was leaving the Abbey of San Quirico, he was set upon by armed men disguised as lay workers at the monastery, abducted, and carried to Rieti, where the consuls whom the bishop had been in dispute with forced him to sign a generous agreement which ceded nearly all power over the commune of Rieti and its environs to the civic government.

The victory of Rieti's consuls, however, was short-lived, for they had sorely misjudged both their moment and their opponent.  Dodone, as soon as he was released, fled to the court of the recently arrived Pope Victor in Terni, and also sought the aid of Welf VI, the since-abdicated Duke of Spoleto who was at that very moment at his diet in Borgo San Genesio.  Welf and Victor agreed that the treaty signed under duress between Dodone and the consuls was to be immediately repudiated.  Threatened with outlawry by the duke and excommunication by the Pope, the consuls quickly relented, traveling to Terni to beg the forgivness of His Holiness.  They received this, but did not retain their city, for knights under the command of the junior Welf (who would become Duke himself in May, as noted) arrested them in Terni, releasing them only when they acceded to Duke Welf's appointment of Alberto, Lord of Contigliano, as rector and podesta of Rieti.

Thus the dispute between Rieti's bishop and its consul was resolved, with neither having achieved their desired victory.  The incident can only be considered fortuitous for Victor, as it appears to have forced Bishop Dodone, who had been carefully fence-sitting regarding the schism, to appeal to Victor for aid and thus move Rieti and its diocese into the pro-Imperial camp.

As for the abduction that triggered this resolution, the Reatini consuls pleaded ignorance of the kidnapping itself, causing rumors to fly as to the "hidden hand" which had attempted to resolve the issue in their favor.  Many suspect Farfa, which is rumored to have supported the consuls; indeed, Abbot Rusticus objected to the appointment of the rector, though he was allegedly mollified by Victor by promises of territorial concessions.  Others claim the hand of the Romans, who had also sided with the consuls.

In April, a Roman army alongside Patrician Annibaldo Annibaldi unexpectedly marched on the Torre Maggiore, an estate of the Savelli family which had by mutual agreement between Rome and Signore Giovanni de Savelli been placed in the guardianship of the Church for ten years.  Seeking to reclaim it from a pro-Alexander garrison, the Romans demanded its surrender.  The castellan refused unless he received orders from the Curia; after a 35-day siege, however, he was forced to relent, and the tower came back into the direct possession of the Savelli clan.

It was rumored that a Frangipani force was preparing to attack the besieging Romans, but this never happened.  In an apparent tit-for-tat, however, Frangipani forces took control of the ruined Torre San Anastasio on the southern Latin coast days after the fall of the Torre Maggiore.  At around the same time, it was reported that a company of horsemen raided Signore Annibaldi's lands near Grottaferrata, setting fires to fields, barns, and cottages until the return of Annibaldo's knights from the Roman campaign.  Neither Oddone Frangipani nor anyone else has taken responsibility for that action, but the timing and the very specific targeting of the raid leaves few in doubt.

News of Rome

March saw an explosion of violence in Arenule et Caccabariorum, which had slid into total lawlessness following flood, fire, and the concentration of refugees in this riparian district which has always been among Rome's poorest.  More than three hundred armsmen belonging to several prominent senators – some household regulars, and some hired toughs - made incursions into the district in the weeks leading up to Palm Sunday (March 20th), the first day of Holy Week.  Men suspected of theft or extortion were surprised in their homes and arrested, and those that resisted or fled were frequently beaten or killed in the street.  Several dozen men were hanged in the district, having been found guilty of theft, murder, disorder, or taking up arms against the Senate.

Some residents were thankful for the intervention, as many of the supposed criminals were "foreigners" (that is, Romans from another district) who had imposed themselves on the long-time locals, but many others resented the fact that the Senate was so slow to do anything about famine and disaster but so quick to send in troops because of some local thieves.  A raid on the 11th prompted a riot, with residents at one point shouting "pesci non pesceneri" ('fish not pesceneri,' a nickname for Basile's scale-armored armsmen) as they threw bricks at the consul's men.  There were also allegations that some of the hired senatorial toughs were little better than the thugs they were after, shaking down residents by threatening to arrest them as criminals.

The action seems to have accomplished its immediate aim, the suppression of organized criminal activity in Arenule leading up to the all-important pilgrimage season.  The episode has caused a great deal of anger among the locals, however, and the district remains a depressed slum in which fights between locals and refugees remain common.  The violence had other repercussions in neighboring S. Angeli in Foro Piscium, whose residents alleged the consular action had caused more criminals and refugees to flee into their district.

The situation was frozen for a month or so as many of the citizens of S. Angeli in Foro Piscium were on campaign.  After their return, however, the citizenry decided to act.  Fed up with civil unrest and seeking to pre-empt senatorial action, the popolo grasso of the district convened a mass assembly and voted to organize their own local militia (which, being made up largely of Roman citizen-militia, is already armed).  A local merchant-eques, Pietro Deutesalvi, was elected by acclamation as the capitano of the district's militia.

Rome's annual pilgrimage season, the source of much of its wealth, was underwhelming but not as severely disappointing as some recent years.  The most glaring loss was among pilgrims from Italy itself – with war and unrest from Rome to the Alps, many pious Italians probably felt this was not an opportune year to see the tombs of the saints.  

Nevertheless, the Holy Week season did provide some much-needed normalcy to the city, and some even more-needed silver in the pockets of innkeepers, wine-sellers, trinket peddlers, and all sorts of Romans who make a living from the faithful.  Still laboring under high bread prices, Rome's poorest at least could hope for some relief in the form of alms given by pilgrims seeking to add personal charity to their busy schedules of visiting shrines and relics.  The Senate itself also collected some revenue from tolls on merchants and peddlers entering the city during Holy Week, a duty formerly performed by the prefect.

It was reported that a riot broke out during Holy Week at the Church of San Lorenzo in Lucina when a monk there was discovered to be selling cheap, low-quality tallow candles to pilgrims which he had been passing off as expensive beeswax candles.  A mob of angry pilgrims was joined by local Romans, and the monk was beaten senseless on the church steps.  A group of alleged Arnoldists raided the church subsequently, plundering its candle supply and passing them out to pilgrims for free.  The monk died of his wounds a week later.

In May, the first dedicated courthouse of the Commune of Rome opened at the ancient Market of Trajan.  The Curia Senatus, the legal arm of the Roman senate, has been functionally in abeyance for years, but senators hope the establishment of a physical courthouse at an accessible location will help build trust in the senate's legal system.

The only significant cases which have been processed so far have been persons found in the possession of silver suspected to come from the Roman treasury.  Those intemperate thieves who could not resist throwing about handfuls of silver deniers aroused suspicion, were caught, and were hanged, though a handful of them were merely flogged and had their property seized in exchange for turning in other thieves.  The great majority of the missing money, however, has still not surfaced; even from those flogged and hanged, little was recovered, as the very act of freely spending the silver was what betrayed them to the law in the first place.

In March, the Senate took up the matter of the exiled traitor Pandolfo Cassi for a second time, after a proposal to commute his exile in exchange for information was defeated.  Consul Sanginueus Viviani, who had abstained from pushing either way in the last vote, this time led his supporters in the senate to Consul Basile's side and the motion passed handily.  Cassi has reportedly returned to Rome, free from his banishment but still shorn of all his property, which was seized by the Senate following his flight to Tivoli.

The Schism

In Latium, the ecclesiastical officials of the Latina Valley have surged to Alexander's support, taking many of the Church-administered towns of the valley with them.  Only the lord of Sgurgola, the count of Ceccano, and the free commune of Ferentino have yet to officially side with Alexander.  Ferentino's bishop, Ubaldo, was present at Victor's coronation, but the stance of the commune itself is unclear.

Pro-Alexander cities in the north have also moved towards making their stance official.  Orvieto, still at war with pro-Imperial Acquapendente, made its Alexandrine stance known, and Sutri and Civita Castellano followed.  The coming of these cities to the Alexandrine cause is welcome news for that party – Orvieto and Sutri are renowned for their defensive endowments, and have been described by commentators past and present as "impregnable."  Alongside Nepi, Sutri is commonly referred to as one of the "keys to Latium," and exercises control over the Via Francigena, the primary pilgrimage route to Rome.

The stance of the other Faliscan League cities is yet to be determined.  Magliano is a fief of the Anguillara family, and Signore Nicola Anguillara has not yet taken sides.  Viterbo, the second-largest city in Latium and a traditional rival of Rome, nevertheless has a significant popular current of pro-Imperial sentiment, and its consuls may be fearful of creating division among the people.  Nepi has also yet to declare itself.  Some Romans are hopeful that these are the beginnings of cracks in the Faliscan alliance that has menaced the Romans for years.

Elsewhere, the Frangipani have consolidated their control over Tuscia.  The protection of the recently rebuilt fortress of Orchia was entrusted to Oddone Frangipane by Pope Alexander, and Oddone's forces secured the small walled village of Corneto in March.  The commune of Tivoli, aligned with the Frangipani in recent years, has also declared for Alexander.

One of the few new adherents to the pro-Imperial cause in Latium is the strongly fortified Abbey of Subiaco, whose abbot – Cardinal Simone Borelli – has placed himself in the obedience of Pope Victor.

Note: As the allegiance of cities is now indicated on the Latium map, only the allegiance of families and other entities will be listed below from now on.

[spoiler=Declared for Pope Victor IV]The Pierleoni
The Crescenzi
The Annibaldi
The Savelli
The Capocci
The Templar Priory of Rome[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Declared for Pope Alexander III]The Frangipani
The Demetri
The Conti[/spoiler]

Campaigns

[spoiler=The Siege of the Torre Maggiore]
Shortly after the conclusion of Holy Week, the Senate raised the communal militia for its first military expedition since the siege of Tusculum.  The attendance by the citizen pedites was underwhelming; with the unrest in Arenule and surrounding districts, some citizens evidently opted to stay put, and there was little enthusiasm for the object of the campaign.  In theory, of course, citizens are obligated to show up for muster whether they like it or not, but the records of citizenship are so poorly kept – insofar as they are kept at all – that evading service does not carry much danger of discovery.

The march to the tower was quick and without incident.  Consul Basile opened negotiations for the tower's surrender, and presented signed documents attesting to the agreement between Rome and the Savelli.

His arguments were wasted on the castellan, a young man named Carlo who was the son of a minor nobleman with estates near Orvieto.  When offered the documents, he replied that neither he nor anyone else in the tower was literate; when they were read aloud he interrupted to declare that the contents were irrelevant.  His charge had been to hold the tower for the Holy Father, and that was what he was now doing.  The castellan offered to send a messenger to Anagni, where Pope Alexander was now resident, to request instructions, but said that he would not dishonor himself, his father, or the Holy Church by surrendering without a fight when he had not been ordered to do so.

The consul and the patrician opted to deny his request, and gave him one day to reconsider.  The next day, Carlo made his reply from the window – "I shall do as honor demands, signores, so do as you will."

The Romans began drawing up for a siege on April 10th.  The Torre Maggiore was merely a tower, not a whole castle, but as its name implied it was quite strong.  Rising over 90 feet into the air, the tower enjoyed a significant advantage over the besiegers.  Roman balistarii were mostly ineffective; even behind carts and palisades, the enemy was so high up that they could shoot down and over such protection.  The tower had few windows and no large number of crossbowmen, but they proved surprisingly skilled, picking off unwary or foolish Romans at regular intervals until the Romans drew back entirely from bowshot.

The Romans began building catapults and preparing siege-works.  They were hampered in this by the fact that the force was mainly militia and equites.  The peasants of the condatini had not been ordered up by the consul, whose strong backs might have been useful.  The equites, of course, did not perform menial work like ditch-digging and tree-cutting, and the pedites – middle-class artisans and merchants – resented both having to do it and the fact that the equites didn't.  A number of arguments and even fights were reported between equestrians and citizens at the siege camp.

By the end of the first week, engines were now beginning to hurl rocks at the fortress.  The defenders responded by setting up a catapult of their own on the tower's summit.  While it was small and fairly primitive compared to the Roman engines, its great height meant it easily outranged them.  It threw rocks back at the Romans, and while it seldom scored a hit, the continual threat kept the Roman engines at a distance and did nothing to help morale.

As the siege continued, the Romans received a report that a military encampment with the banners of the Conti and Frangipani had been sighted just west of Albano.  It was estimated that the camp had fewer than a thousand men, but Signore Annibaldo was convinced that this merely meant they were awaiting reinforcements, and urged an assault.  Consul Basile agreed, and the Romans immediately began preparing to take the tower by storm.

The most expedient method of attack appeared to be ramming the ground-floor gate, though the curtain wall around the tower made this difficult.  The wall, undefended and only 15 feet tall,  was itself not much of an obstacle to the army, but its presence meant that a protective gallery could not be simply wheeled up to the base of the tower.  Advancing on the curtain wall, the Romans realized they would have to create a breach in the wall wide enough to move the gallery through.  Doing this under plunging crossbow fire was dangerous and tedious.  Eventually, however, a path for the gallery was cleared, thanks in part to the fact that the rate of shooting from the tower had slackened dramatically after the 12th of May.

The gallery finally reached the gate on the following day, and on the morning of the 14th, the siege ended.  Totally out of ammunition, nearly out of food, without any evidence of coming reinforcements, Carlo decided that his honor had been satisfied and there was no further point in resisting.  He and the rest of the garrison were ultimately released, though it took the physical intervention of the consul to keep a group of the grumbling pedites from extracting much bloodier terms from the defeated Carlo and his men.

The Roman militia turned over the tower to the Savelli as promised, struck camp, and returned home two weeks ago.[/spoiler]

Finances

Treasury: 0 WP

Income: 1 WP

• Duty, Cencio Pierleone: 1 WP
• Toll, Holy Week Commerce: 1 WP (Spring Only)
• Rent, Colosseum: 2 WP (Spring Only)[/i]

Expenditures: 1 WP

• Upkeep, Senatorial Palatini (50): 1 WP
• Mint Fee: 1 WP (Spring Only)

State Projects:
None

State Properties:
Theater of Marcellus
Colosseum
Tabularium (Treasury)
Curia Julia (Senate House)
University
Market of Trajan (Courthouse)

[spoiler=Personal Finances]Arrigus Sismondii
Income: 20 (9/3/6/2)
Enterprises:
3 Wine Presses (+6 Autumn)
4 Pastures [Rented from Calafatus] (+4 Spring)
1 Fulling Mill (+1 Spring)
1 Weaving Hall – Wool (+4 Spring, +2 Winter)
1 Dyeworks (+3 Summer)

Savings: 9 WP
Costs: Palatini (-1 Every Season), Alum (1 WP in Spring), Rent to Calafatus (6 WP in Autumn)
Projects: Mole (4/?), Tiber Estate (3/5 WP, 2 seasons)
Assets: Rocca [3S/0O], 50 Palatini, 50 crossbows

Vittorio Manzinni
Income: 25 (12/4/4/5)
Enterprises:
1 Forge Mill (+1 Spring, +1 Winter)
1 Lumber Yard (+2 Winter)
1 Bakery (+2 Winter)
2 Storehouses – Glassware (+2 Spring, +2 Summer, +2 Autumn)
2 Storehouses – Linens (+2 Spring, +2 Summer, +2 Autumn)
2 Hospitia (+6 Spring)
Pontis Rent [Non-enterprise] (+1 Spring)
23
Savings: 16 WP
Costs: Palatini (-1 Every Season)
Projects: None
Assets: Estate [1S/2O], Land in Ripe et Marmorate and S. Angeli in Foro Piscium, 50 Palatini

Roberto Basile
Income: 20 (8/4/2/6)
Enterprises:
2 Storehouses – Loot (+2 Spring, +2 Summer, +2 Autumn)
2 Orchards (+2 Winter)
1 Perfumery (+4 Spring)
2 Fisheries (+2 Spring, +4 Winter)
2 Salinae (+2 Summer)

Savings: 3 WP
Costs: Armored Masnada (-2 Every Season)
Projects: +1 Security (3/5 WP, 2 seasons)
Assets: Tower House [4S/2O], 100 Masnada (Armored)

Hugo de Vinti
Income: 28 (17/3/1/7)
Enterprises:
1 Storehouse – Marble (+1 Spring, +1 Summer, +1 Autumn)
1 Sculptors' Workshop (+1 Spring, +1 Summer, +1 Winter)
5 Flax Fields (+5 Spring)
1 Cropland (+1 Summer)
3 Weaving Halls – Linen (+10 Spring, +6 Winter)

Savings: 2 WP
Costs: Palatini (-1 Every Season), Labarum Rent (2 WP in Spring)
Projects: None
Assets: Palazzo [0S/3O(-1)], Obelisk, 50 Palatini, 50 crossbows

Sanguineus Viviani
Income: 17 (0/11/6/0)
Enterprises:
4 Croplands (+4 Summer)
3 Grist Mills (+7 Summer)
2 Vineyards (+2 Autumn)
1 Wine Press (+4 Autumn)

Savings: 2 WP
Costs: None
Projects: Laboratory [1/?]
Assets: Estate [0S/0O]

Falco Bocca
Income: 17 (0/5/12/0)
Enterprises:
2 Croplands (+2 Summer)
1 Grist Mill (+3 Summer)
4 Orchards, Olive (+4 Autumn)
2 Oil Mills (+8 Autumn)

Savings: 1 WP
Costs: None
Projects: None
Assets: Estate [0S/0O(-1)][/spoiler]

[Polycarp]

Senatorial Inquests

Senators that requested information or launched endeavors have the results of their efforts listed here.  This information is private, but you may certainly choose to share it with the Senate.

(The size of the update required me to break off the Inquests from the rest of the post.)

[spoiler=Hugo de Vinti]Court
The courthouse at the Market of Trajan is now operational.  “Clearing” it was not particularly difficult, and the structure is architecturally sound.  The building’s sturdy brickwork looks worn, as do most of Rome’s ruins, but in a courthouse the appearance of age and ancient dignity might be considered a desirable trait.

While the physical structure of the court system is now in place, with both a university to teach law and a court in which to practice it, the “human structure” still leaves something to be desired.  The Roman justice system rests on the institution of the curia senatus, a body composed of senators and “legal experts” nominated by the Senate.  The form of this organization, however, has never been written down or firmly established, and in the past when it has operated it was generally on an ad hoc basis.  Furthermore, while the curia senatus includes the whole of the senate, most members are quite ignorant of proper legal procedure, and few can read Latin, let alone Greek.  The voluntary nature of the institution also means that, in practice, many members simply refuse to serve as judges, even those who have some qualifications to do so.

Of course, one could assign judge-ships by lots rather than through volunteering, but this means the least qualified members could easily be judges.  It is also politically problematic: a system of lots might place some random senator – an Arnoldist, a noble, an adherent of one of your political opponents, etc. – in a position to judge a very important case for you personally.  As a leading senator, it is worth bearing in mind that a lottery system would ensure a situation in which you had little direct power in the judicial system.

A number of different avenues for reform are possible, but any change would require action by the senate to restructure the institution.

Fields
Luidolf has yielded control of the lands in question.  They are, however, currently filled with wheat; clearing them for flax now would obviously destroy the harvest which is only two months or so away.  If maintained in their present form through the summer season, they will yield [1 WP] as normal, and could be converted to flax production thereafter.

[Normally, as noted in the enterprise description, it costs 2 WP to convert a Cropland enterprise to a Flax Field enterprise.  This is intended to reflect the costs of re-training or replacing an entire agricultural workforce, as well as the costs of new equipment.  Considering all your character has put into gaining expertise from abroad over the years, however, I’m going to give you a 1 WP discount on the conversion to reflect that.  Thus, it will cost 1 WP to convert that cropland, which ought to be done in Autumn orders unless you want to ruin the current harvest for some reason.]

Demetri
The Demetri family lands are largely west of Formello, abutting the lands of the Anguillara (to the north) and the Corsi (to the south).  The family’s primary estate was always in Rome itself, but there are a handful of lodges and towers the family controls in the countryside, the largest of which is the “Torre Cesano” three miles west of Formello.  The lands are largely wheat-growing farmlands, though records indicate vineyard production as well.  The total holdings are not as great as you expected to find – it is obvious they could never have supported the 200 or so horsemen that the Prefect brought to Rome.  Most of these forces must have been provided by someone else.  While it is not uncommon for knights to come into the service of the Roman prefect – who, after all, holds a high and prestigious office – for such a force to come together at such short notice suggests the backing of a much stronger or wealthier party.

Though Antonio Demetri della Suburra is dead, his family is not; the lands and estates west of Formello, are, presumably, fully occupied.  The Prefect’s death has not created any kind of legal dilemma; the family lands unquestionably belong to his heirs.  His estate in Rome is only abandoned because it is not politically feasible for the family to be in Rome, not because there is no legal heir to it.  Certainly one could plunder the land with a suitable force, but given the above, it’s difficult to see how usurpation could be aided by these documents.

Of course, the Demetri family also owns land in Rome.  It owes its other name – della Suburra – to the valley in which their now-ruined estate lies, between the southern end of the Viminal Hill and the western end of the Esquiline Hill, known in ancient times as Subura.  The whole valley is a possession of the family, and in an earlier age it was evidently a densely populated area – it is crowded with ruined brickwork buildings, mostly apartments and markets.  When the aqueducts were cut centuries ago, however, urban living was no longer sustainable here, and the people left.

Suburra is not totally uninhabited – many of the Dementri’s retainers, clerks, servants, and masnada lived here.  With the abandonment of the estate and the prefect’s death, some have fled the city and others have moved to the city center to find work, but there are some still in residence.  Goatherds also graze their animals here, and on the slopes of the Esquiline there are also some vineyards belonging to the Demetri.  The vintners, or at least some of them, are still in residence.

You spent 27 WP and earned 14 WP this turn.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Roberto Basile]Wedding and Family
Gerardo and Olithia Calafatus were married this spring.  The marriage oath itself made at your estate, which was followed by the groom and the bridge processing to the Calafatus estate, where the feast was held.  The couple and the bridal bed were blessed by the pro-Victor vicar of Santa Maria in Aquiro, a nearby titular church (as a titular church, it “officially” belongs to a cardinal-deacon, but the vicarius in this case is the priest who actually runs it as the cardinal’s deputy).

The groom’s family received many gifts from well-wishers and acquaintances, including Cencio Pierleone and a number of minor Roman noblemen.  One unexpected gift-sender was Rolando Scotti, a Roman nobleman whose family fled the city after the communal revolution but returned with the general amnesty granted by the Treaty of Campus Neronius.  Rolando’s sister Claritia is the wife of Trasimondo, the Count of Segni, one of Alexander’s principal supporters in Latium.  While Orlando still resides in Rome, he is presumed to share Trasimondo’s sympathies.  Apparently Fortis Calafatus served with Trasimondo in Pope Adrian’s campaign in Sicily, which may explain the gesture from the Scotti.

Ricardo was present for the wedding, and his family were taken to Ardea as per your instructions.  He remained in Rome through your campaign and is, at the moment, still here in the city.

Tower
Work has begun on raising your family tower.  Unfortunately scrapping from the Demetri Villa is of no help.  Rome has plenty of old stone (there are ancient ruins right on your own property already); the stones of the Demetri estate are no cheaper or useful than stone found anywhere else in the city.

Demetri Lands
The Demetri family owes its other name – della Suburra – to the valley in which their now-ruined estate lies, between the southern end of the Viminal Hill and the western end of the Esquiline Hill, known in ancient times as Subura.  The whole valley is a possession of the family, and in an earlier age it was evidently a densely populated area – it is crowded with ruined brickwork buildings, mostly apartments and markets.  When the aqueducts were cut centuries ago, however, urban living was no longer sustainable here, and the people left.

Suburra is not totally uninhabited – many of the Dementri’s retainers, clerks, servants, and masnada lived here.  With the abandonment of the estate and the prefect’s death, some have fled the city and others have moved to the city center to find work, but there are some still in residence.  Goatherds also graze their animals here, and on the slopes of the Esquiline there are also some vineyards belonging to the Demetri.  Those vineyards would be the optimal place to establish an orchard, but there is the issue that they are not abandoned – the vintners, or at least some of them, are still there, and live in the district.  Establishing your own enterprise here would involve destroying their livelihood and expelling them.  While these people are not citizens, they are Romans.

Oil
While linseed oil is certainly produced, chiefly for woodworking, there is not much of an opportunity for reasons that you already alluded to.  In fact, olive mills are not only serviceable for flax-seed pressing, they are in many places already used for this.  Because olives are seasonal, oil mills are idle for a good part of the year, and flax-seed pressing is already a fairly common side-business among owners of said oil mills when the olive crop is not yet ripe.  It produces only a small fraction of the income, however, so it is not very reasonable to operate an oil mill only as a flax-seed mill; that would be like opening a forge for the sole purpose of making horseshoes, but refusing to make nails or anything else.

Cassi
Pandolfo Cassi’s documents and sketches are now in your hands.

Arenule
The operation in Arenule was a limited success.  Infiltrating the local gangs was very difficult – these are not large criminal organizations, but small groups of young men from particular neighborhoods who generally all grew up together.  (Incidentally, offloading illegal cargo is not easy when practically no cargo is illegal – Rome has no import or tariff laws to circumvent.)

“Natives” and “foreigners” – long-time residents of the district and recent arrivals from the burned-out areas, respectively – were happy to inform on one another, but the information was often unreliable, with informants often appearing to be more interested in settling scores than assisting justice.  Your efforts were helped by the fact that some of the masnada, including your own, were from this section of society and knew their way around, but justice was nevertheless more of a blunt instrument than a scalpel this March.

When “criminals” were found they were easily outmatched by your men, though they were occasionally met by mobs.  One of your men was stabbed in the leg and another had his jaw broken by a hurled brick, but there were no fatalities.

While many of the gangs have been dissolved or destroyed, “order” seems to be predicated on an actual troop presence; as soon as the masnada left, petty crimes and fights would frequently break out again.  Your men still in place report that the district is far from orderly, still worse than it was before the fire or even the most recent flood.

The Late Prefect
Only a cursory investigation was required to establish that the Prefect was certainly shot dead at the western end of the Leonine city, and the only ones present in that area and bearing crossbows were armsmen belonging to Senator de Vinti, who seized an undefended section of the wall and forced entry into the city from there.  This area was not a site of major fighting, but the Prefect was not the only man to die there; he and a small group of his knights reportedly chased Octavian here after resistance from the Pierleonists collapsed.  Certainly the bolt that killed him was not the only bolt fired there, but it is difficult to say if it was a “volley” or not, as you would have to interview either de Vinti’s armsmen or some of the surviving knights.  The former would probably require the senator’s permission to be interviewed, and the latter are certainly nowhere in Rome.

Senator de Vinti maintains around 50 armsmen with crossbows, so presumably one of them was the perpetrator, but it is probably impossible to know who actually shot the lethal bolt unless one happens to know and confess.  Of course, de Vinti was with the armsmen and commanded them personally, so ultimate responsibility is presumably his.

Magister Rogerius Placentianus insisted that he was a scholar and teacher and was not prepared to simply speculate as to whether the violence was criminal; he said he would look into it if you provided him with the relevant testimonies, but seemed to consider the whole affair a “political” matter that was not within his domain.  This may be true – though it has also occurred to you that the Magister owes a great deal to the funding and initiative of Hugo de Vinti, and it may be that Rogerius is simply averse to aiding an investigation of his principal benefactor.

The Bishop of Rieti
Your plan to kidnap the bishop went better than even your own agents expected – only to backfire tremendously.  While the consuls of Rieti technically still possess their jobs, the appointment of a podesta by the Duke of Spoleto has relegated them to irrelevance.  The bishop and city both are now in Victor’s camp, which may give you some comfort, but Rome’s alliance with Rieti may be over – Signore Alberto di Contigliano probably has no reason to support the Roman Commune, and Bishop Dodone is probably not pleased that Rome supported his enemies.  With both Perugia and Rieti now under imperial podesta [n.b.: “podesta” is both singular and plural], the fledgling “Tiberian League” seems all but defunct.

One hopes that this debacle is never traced back to you.

Tabularium
The Tabularium has doors, at least.  Alas, any medieval building no matter how well-constructed is really only as strong as the men guarding it.

The “first story” is, in reality, probably the basement of the original building, and its walls are very thick.  The basement is accessible from an exterior doorway (the one you put a door on) and an interior staircase on the north side of the building, but this staircase was hastily sealed at some recent point, probably when the Senate started using it.  The floor itself is a narrow corridor flanked on the east side by a series of rooms, where the “treasure” is actually kept.  Each of these rooms has a small, high-up rectangular window facing the Forum to let light in, but they are currently bricked up, and the only light in the basement is now torchlight.

Above the basement is an arched gallery, though most of the arch openings have been bricked up as part of the process of converting the structure into a fortress.  This level has no “rooms” as such – it appears to have been more of a covered pavilion – but some interior walls were put up with brickwork in recent years.

There is another floor of arched galleries above this, though no work has been done converting it into a fortress, and it is in somewhat poorer repair than the gallery below it.

Overall, this building could be made into something useful.  Certainly it is well-placed; from the top story one can look down on the old Forum and the senate house to one side, and the Campus Martius to the other.  For now, however, a door and guards are about the best you can do to secure its present contents, at least without a major rebuilding effort.

Rainald
Word has arrived from your messenger that he was unable to gain an audience with the Archchancellor Rainald von Dassel, because Rainald apparently left for France at the end of February to gain the support of the French and English kings for Victor’s papacy.  Your messenger, in a letter which you received in late March, states that he will continue on to France to deliver the message, but it may be some time before he can return with a reply.

You spent 7 WP and earned 8 WP this season.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Falco Bocca]Enemies
The “dirt” on Alexander appears to be only that which is already alleged – that Rolando Bandinelli (now Alexander) entered into a secret conspiracy prior to Adrian’s death to elect a member of that conspiracy to the papacy, and was allegedly supported in this by the Sicilian king.  The only sources for this rumor are pro-Imperial, however, and it’s nothing new – Friedrich and Victor have been busy spreading this tale all over Christendom.

You made inquiries in Siena, his place of birth; Bologna, where he studied and taught canon law; and Pisa, where he served as a canon.  He seems to have been well-regarded in all of these places.  The Bandinelli family is an aristocratic house that has been part of Sienese politics for more than a century, and while they have had their feuds with other houses as is typical for such families, there is no evidence young Rolando played any part in their political life.  In Bologna, Rolando was so renowned for his writing and scholarship he was known as “summa magistri” (highest master).  In 1142 he went to Pisa and became a canon at the cathedral chapter there.  Pope Eugene III visited Pisa in 1148, and it seems likely they met here, because Eugene summoned him to Rome that same year and made him a cardinal-deacon in 1150.  He was promoted the very next year to cardinal-priest, and in 1153 became the Eugene’s chancellor.  He acquitted himself well enough in this position such that even after Eugene’s death, two successive popes, Anastasius and Adrian, kept him in his office as chancellor.  The only people that seem not to think highly of him are his imperialist opponents – truly a difficult man to find dirt on.  It seems likely that you will have to invent something to smear this man, and even if you do that it is uncertain whether anything will stick.

Oddone Frangipani is another matter.  He has been in the thick of Roman, Latin, and Church politics for decades.  His father, Cencio II, was widely considered a villain in Rome; he sacked the Abbey of Montecassino, arrested Pope Gelasius II, fought for the German emperors against the Papacy, and had all his family’s towers in Rome destroyed in 1121 by Pope Callistus II.  Cencio had a longstanding alliance with a powerful cardinal, Aimerico, but in 1130 Aimerico was the driving force behind Innocent II in the split papal election of that year and Cencio refused to support him.  His son, Oddone, made a break with his father and supported Aimerico and Innocent.  At that time, Oddone was virtually alone, and most of the Roman nobility favored Anacletus, a member of the Pierleoni family; but he was ultimately vindicated when, in 1138, Anacletus died, Innocent marched triumphantly into Rome, and the Pierleoni were humbled.

By then, Cencio was dead and Oddone was the master of the family.  He was the most important supporter of Pope Innocent, but the Pope’s entourage was ambushed at Galluccio in 1139 by the Normans (who were then fighting the Papacy), and Cencio was captured along with Innocent.  After that war ended, Cencio was effectively the master of Rome until 1145, when the Roman Commune rebelled against Pope Lucius II and forced both him and Oddone out of the city.  They attempted to retake Rome by force in 1145, but failed, and until the conclave last year he had not set foot in the city since.

Certainly Oddone has launched many raids, made many deals, and probably killed many people in his political career; the problem is not that he is too saintly to smear, but that he is already too dirty.  His family is rich, powerful, and feared; it is difficult to imagine what rumors or “dirt” one could spread to undermine him.

Propaganda
The quality of Roman poetry has not increased markedly in the last few months, though you are steadily producing more pamphlets.  In an age before the printing press, this is not a quick process at all, and the lack of common literacy means that it’s difficult to get verses to spread if they aren’t popular and catchy enough to spread by word of mouth.

While “Consola” has not yet caught on as you hoped, there is evidence that the schism is deepening in public opinion.  Those disseminating your material have noticed that fights and arguments on the matter are becoming more common, and opinions more polarized.  Despite the pro-Imperial leanings of the Senate, Romans at large seem almost equally split; there is still a great deal of resentment of the emperor for the violence that attended his entrance into the city at his coronation, and there is a great deal of scorn for Victor, whose behavior has been somewhat less than saintly.

During Holy Week, the Basilica of San Lorenzo was full of strangers and foreigners.  The community of priests and monks, however, knows its own, and there are no real opportunities for a newcomer to simply slip in now that the multitudes have departed.  The basilica is in an area of farmland with no surrounding villages – it essentially only functions as a monastery and pilgrimage destination.  The basilica also has a small hostel for pilgrims and travelers staying overnight; your agents stayed here occasionally but were unable to use their position to discover anything about Britto or the copying.  The monks, of the Benedictine Order, are very private.

It is evident that the monastery’s prior strongly supports Alexander, and it can be assumed that he is not the only one.  So far, Victor has not ordered him to be deposed or replaced – certainly the pope has a lot on his plate right now, and the prior of a single monastery outside Rome, even if it’s a major basilica, is probably not at the top of his agenda.  Presumably, however, the copying efforts could be stopped if the prior were to be replaced by a pro-Victor alternative.  Petitioning Pope Victor to do this might work, but Victor may not be interested in the opinions of a knight as to the suitability of a basilica prior.  In any case, even if a pro-Victor prior were appointed, the old one would still have to be physically removed and replaced, and that would have to be done rather carefully to avoid the appearance of subjecting one of the Church’s holiest basilicas to violence.

City Reports
Velletri has no history of friendship with Rome, but there are elements of its population that are unhappy with Tusculani rulership.  The city is not a free commune, a situation which its wealthier residents would certainly like to change, but opinion seems to be divided as to whether the best way to do this is to appeal to a Pope (either one) or the Emperor.

Ferentino is in a difficult position.  Ubaldo, its bishop, was one of the few bishops to be present at Victor’s coronation at Farfa, and he seems firmly in that camp.  The people themselves have no particular pro-imperial sympathies, but they have long been at odds with neighboring lords, and if those lords gravitate towards Alexander, they are likely to go the other way.  Ferentino, however, is in the Latina Valley, the stronghold of Alexander in Latium, and its consuls are presumably not fools – they have remained neutral so far, and are likely to remain that way as long as they think choosing a side poses a danger to their city.  The Normans, after all, are not very far away, and it is unlikely any pro-imperial lord or city could come to their defense if a Norman force were to attack them with the blessings of Alexander and his party.

The people of Palestrina seem to be largely pro-Alexander, though their lord Colonna has remained carefully neutral so far.  There are those who want more civic independence from the Colonna lordship, but this dissent is muted, as the town is currently quite prosperous.  Because the city’s leaders must be approved by the signore, the civic government is predictably cooperative.

Oddone Colonna’s alignment is hard to guess, though it is said in Palestrina that several delegates from Anagni have visited him, and the rumor in the marketplace is that Pope Alexander is strongly trying to woo him into open support.

All of the major cities you are interested in (that is, all except Toffia and Tagliacozzo, which are villages of minor importance) are reasonably well fortified, with Segni and Palestrina being especially strong.

Your agent in Segni reports a rumor that Trasimondo, the Count of Segni, sent a wedding gift to Gerardo Calafatus, who this past season wed the daughter of Consul Basile.  The gift was given by Rolando Scotti, a Roman nobleman who is also Trasimondo’s brother-in-law.  Count Trasimondo evidently served alongside Gerardo’s father, Fortis Calafatus, for some part of Pope Adrian’s campaign in Sicily.

Signore Scotti currently resides in Rome – he is one of those noblemen who fled the city when the commune was proclaimed, but returned with the amnesty granted by the Treaty of Campus Neronius.  While he has made no public statement of his affiliation, it seems likely he is sympathetic to Alexander and his party; clearly he is still a friend of his brother-in-law Trasimondo, who is one of Alexander’s principal supporters in Latium.

Land
Land, of course, is seldom sold, and this is not an excellent time for it (there is a schism going on, after all).  Within Rome, there is one potential opening – the lands of the late Prefect, Antonio Demetri.

The Demetri family owes its other name – della Suburra – to the valley in which their now-ruined estate lies, between the southern end of the Viminal Hill and the western end of the Esquiline Hill, known in ancient times as Subura.  The whole valley is a possession of the family, and in an earlier age it was evidently a densely populated area – it is crowded with ruined brickwork buildings, mostly apartments and markets.  When the aqueducts were cut centuries ago, however, urban living was no longer sustainable here, and the people left.

Suburra is not totally uninhabited – many of the Dementri’s retainers, clerks, servants, and masnada lived here.  With the abandonment of the estate and the prefect’s death, some have fled the city and others have moved to the city center to find work, but there are some still in residence.  Goatherds also graze their animals here, and on the slopes of the Esquiline there are also some vineyards belonging to the Demetri.

While these lands are not abandoned, their status is now in question with Antonio’s death and the ruin of his estate.  Seizure or sale might be possible, though you are certain you are not the only senator in Rome interested in these lands.

You spent 3 WP this season.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Vittorio Manzinni]Pigeons
[This is a clever idea, but I don’t think I want to introduce something that didn’t make it to Europe until the 15th century in this way.  For now, a message can only be transmitted as fast as a horse can ride or a ship can sail.  The only exception would be something like a signal lantern, but a lantern obviously has some significant limits.]

Taverns
Taverns tend to keep a rather low profile during the pilgrimage season – places of drinking, dicing, and carousing in Rome always come under increased scrutiny when pilgrims flood into the city looking for salvation.  Romans never stop drinking, however, and even pilgrims get thirsty.  These establishments tend to thrive most in the “middle class” areas of Rome; in the slums, cheap wine and ale are made and sold locally or from a “tavern” that is merely a bench, while the wealthy drink in their own estates.  It is the common citizen, usually an artisan, who uses taverns the most, and for them they are not merely a place to eat, drink, and dice, but a public space to discuss the issues of the day.

Whether your dice game will become popular or not remains to be seen; it is not yet widely implemented enough.  Pilgrims, however, seem to be averse to gambling in general, as many priests rail against it, and most people visiting Rome to have their prayers answered or their sins forgiven tend to try and avoid anything that seems sinful while they are here.

[Here’s my proposed enterprise.  It’s more expensive to set up than a Hospitium and would require a Wine Press to achieve its full potential – it is a tavern, after all – but it would also be much less vulnerable to bad pilgrimage seasons.]

Taberna (Urban, Hospitality)
While there is little distinction between an inn and a drinking-house in most places, in Rome the demands of the pilgrims for seasonal lodging vary from the demands of locals for a public house to drink and eat all year long.  The taberna caters primarily to Romans and non-pilgrim travelers, providing a public space to drink, eat, gamble, and talk about the news and rumors of the day.
Cost: 12
Income: +1 during Summer and Winter; additional +1 in Spring with a Wine Press.

Egypt
A messenger has returned from your associates in Egypt.  They report that an unusually low inundation caused widespread crop failure and famine in the country last year, sparking riots in Alexandria and an interruption of trade.

While the situation has returned to some degree of normalcy and the harbor at Alexandria is doing business again, your agents are concerned about the long-term political stability of the caliphate.  The young Caliph al-Faiz is dead at the age of eleven, reportedly of an epileptic fit; the child was never in very good health.  His younger brother al-Adid is now caliph, but it scarcely matters – the true master of Egypt is the vizier Talai ibn Ruzzik, who has ruled in the caliph’s name for the last five years.  The boy-caliph al-Faiz was a virtual prisoner in his own palace and never exercised any power, and it seems likely al-Adid will be the same.

The Fatimid Caliphate, while wealthy, is politically weak.  The government seems to drift from one internal crisis to another, with officials constantly struggling to seize control of the regency.  Vizier Talai himself deposed the previous vizier Abbas five years ago, and there are a number of other palace officials and regional governors who may attempt an overthrow of Talai in the same way.

The state is also militarily weak.  It lost Ascalon to the crusaders in 1154, which was the keystone Egypt’s defense, and has paid tribute to the Kingdom of Jerusalem for years.  Both King Amalric and Nur ad-Din Zangi, the Turkish ruler of Syria, probably have designs on Egypt.  War, if it comes, could seriously disrupt trade.

Egypt is still an incredibly rich country, and all sorts of goods flow through Cairo and Fustat from as far away as India to the port of Alexandria.  Now that the riots have passed, everything in the merchant’s quarter seems just as it always was.  The long term prospects for the realm, however, are not encouraging.  Diversification may be in order.

If Rome were a significant trading and naval power, it (and you) might benefit by supporting the winner in any eventual struggle, but Rome is neither of these things, and its “support” unfortunately counts for nothing.

Other Trade
Your current trade is primarily in glassware and linens.  Linen is made elsewhere, such as Sicily, but Egypt still provides the cheapest and best.  As for glassware, the best of this also comes from the Islamic world; Andalusia could potentially be an alternative source if Egyptian trade becomes too risky.  That said, there is some political turmoil in Andalusia as well with the rise of the Almohads; shifting your interests from Egypt to Andalusia would hardly remove all risk.

The crusader ports offer a potential alternative to Egypt for linen, and possibly even Syrian glass, but trade from the Kingdom of Jerusalem is dominated by the maritime republics who have very generous contracts giving them virtual monopolies on many exports, particularly the more valuable ones.  Breaking into this market as a Roman might be impossible unless you came to some personal arrangement with the Pisans, Genoans, or Venetians.

Daughter
26 is getting a little bit old for an unmarried woman at this time, so it’s probably best to get a move on!

Generally speaking, people marry within their own social class.  As an important senator and a wealthy man, however, you may have other alternatives.  Although noblemen usually marry noble ladies, a merchant’s daughter may be an attractive match to a nobleman in some financial difficulty, because she will inevitably come with a substantial dowry (which you would have to pay).  Since you are known as quite wealthy, it would probably have to be a very impressive dowry (indeed, such dowries are one way people in your position display wealth and power).

What do you get in return for losing both your dowry and your daughter?  Well, status – while a noble son-in-law doesn’t make you a noble, it aggrandizes your family, makes it more likely that your other descendents might marry into nobility, and may pave the way for your own family to gain that status some day.  In a more short-term sense, it also can establish an alliance between your family and a noble house, though whether that is worth anything depends on the strength of the noble house.  The trouble is, the noblemen that are most interested in merchant marriages tend to be those who are rather poor and weak – powerful noble families tend not to need merchants’ dowries.

One other option to consider is the Church.  Many high-class daughters went not to a husband, but to an abbey.  Typically, an abbey takes only the daughters of wealthy families as nuns (as they also must make a dowry-like payment).  In past centuries these were almost exclusively nobles, but things are starting to change.  It may even be possible for a non-noble to become an abbess in time, which is a position of potentially great power and influence (though it would be years before a new nun could start to approach that position).  If Vittorio is especially concerned about his immortal soul as he approaches the end of his life, this might be an attractive option.

You spent 5 WP and earned 12 WP this season.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Arrigus Sismondii]Vicariate
Sergio and the rest of your soldiers removed all military supplies of worth from Nettuno and handed it over to a small group of Frangipani armsmen in March.  The people of Nettuno seemed fairly indifferent.

Work on the road continues, slowly but surely.  The new Frangipani presence at the Torre San Anastasio, however – the abandoned castle where your men had once been imprisoned by bandits – may be cause for some concern.  While the ruined tower is not exactly a robust defensive position, soldiers there could certainly interfere with your road-building or interrupt travel once the road is completed.

Alum
Pisa has been able to make good on your mutual arrangement this year, though they remain concerned about Egyptian instability.

Schola
It seems unlikely that enforcement of Schola-like standards would cost a significant amount of money.  If violations of Schola regulations were criminalized, presumably violators would be fined, which would defray any costs of enforcement.  Whether the revenue would be higher or lower than the costs is unclear, and probably won’t become clear until a system is actually in place and functioning.

That said, the Senate probably does need some actual means by which to carry out the mandates of Roman justice.  Calling out the militia is really only for military matters, and the “senatorial” troops have in the past resisted the idea of taking on policing duties.  In the interim, such tasks have fallen to the masnada of individual senators, but it may be advisable to have people not beholden to a particular senator.

Currently there is no Roman “bureaucracy” – nobody is actually in the pay of the Senate except for the aforementioned senatorial troops.  Even the university is funded by a combination of its own fees and the contributions of individual senators (chiefly de Vinti).  As the responsibilities and powers of the senate expand, government officers will probably become necessary, including those who physically carry out the mandates of the senate and its courts.  This would be an unprecedented step for the Senate, however, and instituting such officers would probably require some senatorial debate on the matter.

You spent 8 WP and earned 9 WP this season.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Sanguineus Viviani]The Secret
Consul Basile provided you with a tour of his estate, centered on the distillery created under the supervision of “Avenazon” some years ago.  The worksite is a cluster of various workshops near the orchards – a smithy, brick-kilns, repurposed olive-presses, and so on – but the main building is the distillery itself, which is located in an ancient brickwork hall that may have once been some kind of cellar or vault.  Here there is a device the workers referred to as a “tower,” though Avenazon apparently referred to this kind of apparatus as an “alembic still.”  The device is essentially a cauldron with a conical shroud and a large upright copper tube extending from it like a chimney, though the top is closed.  A series of copper tubes slant down from the sides of the “chimney,” each draining into a different small surrounding cauldron.  The device functions by means of a brickwork charcoal furnace underneath the main cauldron, which is carefully tended by workers with bellows and rakes.

Basile also provided you with a Greek text purported to be a copy of the Arabic version of the Kitab al-Asrar, or “Book of Secrets,” written by the 10th century Saracen polymath Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi (or “Rhazes”).  Supposedly Avenazon made this copy himself; the rather poor grammar and awkward phrasing suggests that Avenazon’s grasp of Greek is not exactly perfect.  The book is also apparently incomplete, as Avenazon’s own Arabic copy from which he made the translation was, for whatever reason, not whole.

Unlike many treatises of alchemy or natural science you have come across or heard of, this is predominantly a practical book – as the author states at the beginning, “My book encompasses three subjects: the knowledge of substances, the knowledge of equipment, and the knowledge of procedures.”

In the first part, he differentiates components into plants, animals, and minerals, and breaks down each of these further (the minerals, for instance, into set lists of spirits, bodies, stones, vitriols, borates, and salts).  Some of the minerals he lists either have names that are unfamiliar to you or are known to you only by description; Rhazes, a native of Persia, probably had very different mineral resources available to him than you do.  Rhazes notes, for instance, that the best talc is from Yemen, the best iron oxide is from Istahr, and the best borax is from Zarawand.  Your ability to access these things is, to put it mildly, very limited.  He assumes that anyone reading his book has “distilled vinegar” and “distilled water” at their disposal, but as far as you are aware the only distillery in Rome is Basile’s orange-oil “tower.”

Equipment is also listed; some things, like bellows, tongs, and crucibles, are easily acquired.  Much harder to find will be glassware – alembics, beakers, flasks, grinding plates, retorts, and so on.  Rhazes insists that the best glass is “Syrian” which is “clear as rock crystal;” you will likely have to settle for some source closer to home.  Other things may be easy to obtain but troublesome to design, like the four different types of oven Rhazes describes, as well as copper stills and oil-extracting decensories.

Most of the text is filled with procedures.  This is the part which is apparently incomplete – supposedly Rhazes listed nearly 400 different procedures, and if that is true, less than half of them are listed here.  The basic processes of mixing, dissolving, solidifying, and calcining are provided, as well as intermediate procedures to produce other reagents from these.  Many of the “primary preparations” that build further on these earlier ones, however, seem to be missing – you had heard that Rhazes detailed the transmutation of metals in the Kitab al-Asrar, but only a handful of procedures relating to that are described in this text.  Since you don’t have the Arabic copy Avenazon translated from, you have no idea whether they were lost or whether Avenazon, apparently a surgeon by trade, simply felt he had no need for a few hundred formulae of metallurgical alchemy.

Despite its incompleteness, this seems like a valuable guide for the expansion of your efforts into the natural sciences.

Avenazon
Your agents began their search for the Jewish surgeon in Anagni, where Pope Adrian was when “Avenazon” entered the service of the Curia.  Many people there remembered the curious-looking man who dressed like a Saracen.  Some questioning turned up a prominent local Jew named Simeon, evidently an advisor or assistant to Nauclero, the Bishop of Anagni.  Simeon said that he had indeed met the doctor “Malal, whom the Christians call Avenazon,” and had hosted him at his estate several times.

Apparently the surgeon was present when Pope Adrian fell ill.  Simeon said that Malal and the Christian doctors had argued over Adrian’s quinsy; the Christian doctors prescribed bloodletting and gargle of dill, mulberry, and some other things (Simeon could not remember the ingredients exactly), while Malal insisted that the swelling was an abscess that should be cut open and drained.  The Christian doctors won out, but Adrian died anyway, and Malal left Agagni not long afterwards.  Simeon was certain he had gone south to the Kingdom of Sicily, but he did not know which city; he suspected either Palermo (the capital) or Salerno (the site of Italy’s foremost school of medicine).

Arenule
Most of the “thieves” are not very impressive.  They are young men from Arenule or the recently devastated districts, most of whom would normally work as farm laborers during the harvest and find odd jobs as porters or menial builders at other times of year.  The fire, and the flood before it, destroyed their houses; the Tusculani raids of the countryside destroyed their livelihoods as farm workers; and the resulting bread shortage left them starving.  Penniless and forced into a new neighborhood, stealing or extorting from the slightly more fortunate slum-dwellers became essentially their only means to survive.  Criminal masterminds, these men are not.

That said, the money of a senator (really, the money of anyone) goes a long way here.  Men who sift through burned-out houses to find iron nails to sell for stale bread are not terribly difficult to “bribe.”  Morus has established some contacts in Arenule, though whether contacts with such men will yield anything useful is as yet unclear.  Certainly the kind of thievery they engage in, which consists largely of stealing from other poor people, is not going to produce any amount of money that you care about.  If you ever need thugs again, however, you’ll have quite a few ready candidates.

These contacts are, however, a certain window on the lower classes of Rome.  Without citizenship, these people care very little about Roman politics – the Senate is, to them, just an idea.  They do not fight for Rome because they have no weapons, they are not protected by any but the most basic of Rome’s laws, and they care not at all about the schism or the emperor.

There is one ideology, however, that has legs here – Arnoldism.  These men are Romans; they have gazed upon gilded churches that look like what they imagine heaven to be, and bishops in silk vestments who have the power to exalt or damn someone for all eternity.  They strived every day with the promise that, through obedience and faith, they would receive a life in heaven infinitely superior to their meager lives on earth.  To have a man of God not only tell them that the apostles of Christ were poor fishermen and not wealthy princes, and that those silk-robed clerics do not even possess the power to save their souls, is nothing short of revolutionary.

Here, Arnold of Brescia enjoys a status practically equal to that of the Pope.  His followers are everywhere, telling the people that salvation only comes from those priests as poor as they themselves are.  The people here have no deep understanding of theology, but they can see with their own eyes Arnold walking their own streets, wearing humble clothes and eating the same bread they eat.  No pope nor bishop they know of has ever done that.

There is a lot of anger here – anger towards the haughty nobility, anger towards the corrupt and decadent Church, and increasingly anger towards the Senate, which in the nadir of their desperation arrived not to help them, but to arrest or kill men who had nothing left to them but theft.  Aimless riots have so far been the expression of that anger, but given the proper direction it could become a much more dangerous weapon.

You spent 2 WP this season.[/spoiler]

[ooc=Update]Whew!  Maps have been updated, letters to come.  Please note that information on two new families, the Anguillara and the di Ceccano, has been added to the noble family list on the front page.[/ooc]

[Polycarp]

[ic=On the Senate Floor]The Senate is deeply concerned about the organization of a local militia in S. Angeli in Foro Piscium.  While its constituent members appear to be citizens who, of course, possess the right to own and bear arms, the separate organization of them under a "captain" not controlled by the senate seems like a direct challenge to senatorial authority.

There are some in the Senate – including several from the aforementioned district – who speak in favor of the new organization, arguing that the local militia has not done anything disloyal and that it may indeed allow neighborhood forces to stop riots more effectively.  Most, however, are threatened by the development, not comforted by it.

Roberto Basile, long-time consul of the commune, has come under increasing criticism the past few months for his handling of events.  His support of the consuls of Rieti appears to have backfired; perhaps, say some senators, this debacle would not have happened if Consul Basile had not reassured the consuls with his support.  They proved too weak to stand, and now Rome may have no ally in Rieti at all - the city is now ruled by a Spoletan podesta and the county is still controlled by Bishop Dodone, who may not be pleased with Rome after the commune took the side of his enemies.

Basile's recent expedition to the Torre Maggiore has also been criticized.  A number of senators question what relevance this had to Roman security, considering the tower was simply handed over to the Savelli – who, after all, are not sworn to Rome like the Capocci, and have indeed fought Rome in the past.  Some allege that the Consul wasted Roman lives for his own familial concerns, as the campaign was really about protecting the estates of his noble in-laws, the Caetani, rather than defending the interests of the commune.

Quite a few senators are concerned that the foreign policy of the commune thus far has led to its isolation.  The vaunted "Tiberian League" of Rome, Rieti, and Perugia now appears to be effectively defunct, with both Rieti and Perugia under imperial podesta; while presumably on the same "side" as Rome in the schism, it is uncertain if they can still be in any sense considered useful allies.  Rome is starting to look very much like a salient into hostile territory, surrounded by hostile families and cities.  The situation is made all the worse by the fact that the Sicilians have now openly declared for Alexander; if they should invade Latium at their pope's bidding, Rome might find itself right in their path.  It should not be forgotten that the last time the Normans came to Rome in 1084, the city was sacked for three days; the ancient Forum that had survived the likes of Alaric, Gaiseric, and Totila was not actually abandoned until Guiscard devastated it less than a century ago.[/ic]

[ic=A Letter to the Senate]Eminent Senators,

Much self-serving rhetoric and deplorable rumors have reached our ears regarding the creation of an league for public safety in S. Angeli in Foro Piscium.  I wish to clearly state the reasons for this league's existence and strike a blow against misunderstanding and baseless scaremongering.

The Senate's response to civil unrest in our district, and many others, has been completely unacceptable.  Riots and looting have made ordinary business all but impossible, and the Senate – when it has acted at all – has frequently acted in ways to exacerbate problems, such as the recent resettlement of dangerous indigents and troublemakers in the Theater of Marcellus.

We do not ascribe any malice to the consuls or senators, nor do we seek to challenge their authority.  Rather, we believe the Senate is too cumbersome and ineffective an entity to protect our interests.  When there is a riot, what happens?  Either a patrol of private palatini arrives and, by fact of its small number, is unable to do anything; or the Senate summons the militia.  When the latter happens, senators must meet, send messengers to all quarters of the city, muster the militia in a central location, then march on the district – by which time the damage has already been done.

Let me clearly state, then, that we demand nothing more than that we should be able to muster our own militiamen of our own district to deal with civil unrest, that we may more quickly and ably protect our lives and our property.  Our assembly and our elected captaincy, an office which I am honored to hold, exist only to facilitate these functions.

Pietro Deutesalvi, Eques Romanus[/ic]