Report on an Imperial mission to Milan 1447 by Enea Silvio Piccolomini. Edited and translated by Michael von Cotta-Schönberg. 3rd preliminary version. (Reports on Five Diplomatic Missions by Enea Silvio Piccolomini; 2)
Abstract
At the death of Duke Filippo Maria Visconti of Milan in 1447, the House of Visconti became extinct. Among the pretenders to the Visconti heritage was Emperor Friedrich III who, with some justice, claimed that Milan was an imperial feud that had now reverted to the Empire. The emperor sent three successive embassies to Milan to persuade the city to accept his direct lordship, and Enea Silvio Piccolomini was a member of the first (1447) and the last (1449). Having returned to Vienna after the first embassy, Piccolomini wrote a report on the mission, of which a draft is still extant. The main issues of the negotiations as reported by Piccolomini concerned the form of government under an imperial rule, taxation and subsidies, and imperial visits.
Keywords
Duke Charles d'Orléans
Kaiser Friedrich III (Habsburg)
Aeneas Sylvius Piccolomini
Aeneas Silvius Piccolomini
Enea Silvio Piccolomini
King Alfonso d'Aragon
Milan
Milano
Venice
Venezia
Florence
1447
15th century
History of diplomacy
Renaissance diplomacy
Diplomatic reports
Giovanni Orlandi
Bishop Friedrich III Gren
Emperor Frederich III (Habsburg)
Duke Filippo Maria Visconti
Duke Francesco Sforza
Duke Louis I de Savoie
Origin : Files produced by the author(s)