Pagina 54 di 310

And as to any fresh acquisition, he intended to become master of

Tuscany, for he already possessed Perugia and Piombino, and Pisa

was under his protection. And as he had no longer to study France

(for the French were already driven out of the kingdom of Naples

by the Spaniards, and in this way both were compelled to buy his

goodwill), he pounced down upon Pisa. After this, Lucca and Siena

yielded at once, partly through hatred and partly through fear of

the Florentines; and the Florentines would have had no remedy had

he continued to prosper, as he was prospering the year that

Alexander died, for he had acquired so much power and reputation

that he would have stood by himself, and no longer have depended

on the luck and the forces of others, but solely on his own power

and ability.