OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE. ; 373

in the palace; and shot vollies of arrows into chap.his bark as he escaped down the Tyber in thehabit of a monk. But he still possessed in thecastle of St. Angelo a faithful garrison, and atrain of artillery; their batteries incessantlythundered on the city, and a bullet more dex-trously pointed broke down the barricade of thebridge, and scattered with a single shot theheroes of the republic. Their constancy wasexhausted by a rebellion of five months. Un-der the tyranny of the Ghibeline nobles, thewisest patriots regretted the dominion of thechurch; and their repentance was unanimousand effectual. The troops of St. Peter againoccupied the capitol; the magistrates departedto their homes; the most guilty were executedor exiled; and the legate, at the head of twothousand foot and four thousand horse, was sa-luted as the father of the city. The synods ofFerrara and Florence, the fear or resentment ofEugenius, prolonged his absence: he was re-ceived by a submissive people; but the pontiffunderstood from the acclamations of his trium-phal entry, that to secure their loyalty and hisown repose, he must grant without delay theabolition of the odious excise. II. Rome wasrestored, adorned, and enlightened, by the peace-

^coro*

ful reign of Nicholas the fifth. In the midst of nation of athese laudable occupations, the pope was alarm- ^™ r o",ed by the approach of Frederic the third of Aus- F'« der|ctria; though his fears could not be justified by a ^ us 2 ,the character or the power of the imperial can-didate. After drawing his military force to the