After the siege at Novara was over and his army called off, the council in Venice intended to answer a request from the pope to help protect the King in Naples. However, because of a delay that the sometimes dubious Ludovico Sforza, Duke of Milan had requested, they were told to wait and did so in the north of Italy into 1496. Upon word from Faenza that its exiles had been attacking the city and that they needed Venetian protection, as a result of the general mayhem that the war had engendered, with his army nearby, Contarini swung into action. It was December, 1495.
"... the Senate decreed that they would take the city of Faenza and its young lord under their protection, and that they would send a Venetian citizen there to govern in the child's name. The boy himself was to have 100 heavy cavalry, and 80 gold pounds a year for their pay. Before the decree was passed, however, the exiles invaded the territory of Faenza with the aid of the Florentines, but were routed and put to flight by Bernardo Contarini, now arrived at Ravenna." [iii,19]When the army, now with 700 cavalry and 3000 infantry were readied to head south, Contarini was put in charge of it, and as long as the war lasted, Bembo says. [iii,20] By the time he and his army reached Sessa Aurunca, Contarini had captured four towns held by the French. Again, at Gallucio, north of Naples, he fought bravely, killing many and putting the rest to flight. North of Benevento, at Fragneto Monforte where more French had holed up, Conatrini struck again.This time he sent a few out in front to lure the French out. It was an ambush and many French were killed, captured and put to flight. [iii, 28] Troops sent to give relief to French at San Severo were caught and half of them killed, again by Contarini and his men. [iii,29]
Later, the King Ferradino of Naples had decided to await German forces heading south to aid him rather than pursuing the French locally. Contarini found himself having to convince the King to let him give chase to those French troops laying siege to 'Folia'. Our editor here, Robert W Ulery, says we don't know where that is and suggests instead Foggia. When Contarini was allowed to go out he broke up the siege and, again forced the remaining French to flee. Where the French had barricaded themselves in Vallata, Contarini surrounded it and forced them out and then sacked the place.[iii, 30]
The large army that remained near San Severo, again, Contarini broke it up, killing soldiers, cavalry and capturing 90 more. [iii,31] Another last position of the French was at Tela, also not clearly identified. But Contarini had the same effect. [iii,33]
After a long siege, it was on July 20 that terms were signed by the French who were escorted out with the Venetian forces having occupied the area. Three days later, Bembo tells us, in the grip of a fever contracted somewhere, he died.
"The Senate later gave his mother an annual grant of a gold pound to live on, and to one of his sisters 20 pounds as dowry, to the other 3 pounds to enter a convent." [iii,36]
This must have seemed a large reward then seeing how great a service he had made. Years later, in August 1516, Sebastiano Giustiniani the Venetian ambassador sent to Henry VIII, would write to tell him of the exploits of Contarini in the Italian Wars,
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from Pietro Bembo: History of Venice; edited and translated by Robert W Ulery, Jr.; in english and latin, The I Tatti Renaissance Library; The President and Fellows of Harvard College, USA 2007
