214 POLITICAL HERESY.— THE CHURCH. pulpit that he instructed his auditors as to their duties as citizens and gave vent to his inspiration in foretelling the result, for the leaders of the popular party were constantly in the habit of seek- ing his advice and obeying his wishes. Yet, personally, for the most part, he held himself aloof in austere retirement, and left the management of details to two confidential agents, selected anions: the friars of San Marco — Domenico da Pescia, who was some- what hot-headed and impulsive, and Salvestro Maruffi, who was a dreamer and somnambulist. In thus descending from the position of a prophet of God to that of the head of a faction, popularly known by the contemptuous name of Piagnoni or Mourners, he staked his all upon the continued supremacy of that faction, and any failure in his political schemes necessarily was fatal to the larger and nobler plans of which they were the unstable founda- tion. In addition to this, his resolute adherence to the alliance with Charles VIII. finally made his removal necessary to the suc- cess of the policy of Alexander VI. to unite all the Italian states against the dangers of another French invasion.* As though to render failure certain, under a rule dating from the thirteenth century, the Signoria was changed every two months, and thus reflected every passing gust of popular passion. 'When the critical time came evervthing turned against him. The alliance with France, on which he had staked his credit both as a statesman and a prophet, resulted disastrously. Charles YIII. was glad at Fornovo to cut his way back to France with shattered forces, and he never returned, in spite of the threats of God's wrath which Savonarola repeatedly transmitted to him. He not only left Florence isolated to face the league of Spain, the papacy, Yenice, and Milan, but he disappointed the dearest wish of the Florentines by violating his pledge to restore to them the strong- hold of Pisa. When the news of this reached Florence, Januarv 1, 1496, the incensed populace held Savonarola responsible, and a crowd around San Marco at night amused itself with loud threats to burn " the great hog of a Frate." Besides this was the severe distress occasioned bv the shrinking of trade and commerce in the civic disturbances, by the large subsidies paid to Charles YIII., and
- Villari, Lib. n. cap. iv. v.; T. II. App. p. ccxx. — Landucci, pp. 92-4, 112. —
Processo Autentico (Baluze et Mansi IV. 531, 554, 558).
