The View From Forli: Troops Begin To Arrive In Bologna: 1494

The view from Forli after the King of Naples died was troubling as well. The Countess, Caterina Sforza may have known that the aged king Ferrante had also kept Alfonso, the duke of Calabria, the heir in Naples from attacking Milan himself. This was regarding the advancement of the uncrowned acting duke in Milan, Ludovico 'il Moro' and his son. Over the years bit by bit Caterina's uncle was taking over all matters in Milan, slowly taking the place of Caterina's little brother Gian Galeazzo Sforza, the rightful heir. He was husband to Isabella, the daughter of that same Alfonso, duke of Calabria. He now, with the death of his father became the new uncrowned king in Naples.

If it sounds messy it was. Caterina in Forli, had sent dignitaries and gifts when her uncle Ludovico had married Beatrice d'Este and then when he married her sister Anna to Alfonso d'Este, the heir of the duchy of Ferrara. Caterina hadn't gone to the weddings of her little brother to that Isabella either, though she was the Aragonese daughter of duke Alfonso of Calabria in Naples. That was in 1489 but Caterina had a good excuse then.

When Ludovico in 1492, sent his new wife Beatrice as ducal ambassador to Venice, Isabella was outraged at what she saw as a clear breach of her own position and standing and wrote, complaining furiously to her father in Naples. This is a part of the story that Elizabeth Lev tells, which sums up her prelude to the looming invasion [ p. 172-73], as well, in her biography of Caterina Sforza.

Others, like near contemporary Francesco Guicciardini point to letters sent from Piero de Medici of Florence to Alfonso in Naples, pledging future support. In the past, Piero's father, Lorenzo de Medici maintained a more neutral stance toward Naples and to King Ferrante which was reciprocated over the years. With this new generation, changes in the former balance among the various powers sprang out into the open.

Stories, that the young French King would come to Italy himself and claim his rightful title to Naples, an inheritance that he gained through the House of Anjou, spread that spring of 1494. In Bologna, Lev tells us, just up the road from Forli, Caterina could well know that troops were amassing [p. 174]. Horsemen, archers and all manner of folks began arriving and milling. The locals remarked how well behaved they all seemed, leaving the women and fields and homes in peace. It must have been some relief to Caterina as she pondered her options.

It was plain as the men gathered up the road that the region she lived in was the natural crossroads for forces coming from the north and for those coming up from the south to meet them. The Romagna-Emilia plain was the perfect spot for a grand contest. But wars brought bloodshed and worse, financial ruin. Soldiers and their trains did not always stay so well-behaved. Her uncle in Milan sent dignitaries asking for promises of loyalty to him and her birth city of Milan. The pope Alexander VI sent letters and dignitaries and promises to her as well, asking her to help in their support of Naples. Through the year, Caterina maintained an uneasy neutrality to either side. On the one hand she owed her freedom to the aid and support she had gained from the papcy, when her husband was killed. The pope sent Cardinal Rafaello Riario, this time to try to gain her pledge of assistance. He was met with the same resolute neutrality by her while under the gaze of the always present Giacomo Feo.

This hands-off neutrality by Forli allowed the forces to grow in the region all summer until Charles VIII the French King arrived himself,  in September.

__________________________________________________
all notes, pagination from Elizabeth Lev, The Tigress of Forli: Renaissance Italy's most courageous and notorious countess, Caterina Riario Sforza de'Medici : 2011, USA, Houghton, Mifflin, Harcourt Publishing Company