Historical Background of Dante 71
wholly uncontested. They were foreigners, their rule was
harsh, and became increasingly unpopular, especially in
Sicily. In that island, after sixteen years, dissatisfaction
finally reached the exploding point, and there ensued a ter-
rible massacre of the French. This spontaneous uprising
of March 30, 1282, has passed into history as the Sicilian
Vespers. It initiated a revolt which, aided by the royal
house of Aragon, ended in depriving the French ruler of
Sicily, and putting it under the control of the Spanish kings
of Aragon. This change was not without a touch of poetic
justice, for in the veins of the house of Aragon flowed the
blood of the Hohenstaufens, derived from the marriage of
Manfred’s daughter Constance with Peter of Aragon.
Frederick, the youngest son of King Pedro and the grand-
son of Manfred, was finally securely seated on the throne.
This change occurred when Dante was passing into his
seventeenth year. And this balance of power in the south
remained unchanged during the rest of his life. The
Spanish descendants of Manfred remained firmly seated in
Sicily; Charles of Anjou died in 1285, shortly after the
Sicilian Vespers, but was succeeded by his son, Charles II,
1285-1329, and his grandson, Robert, who reigned in
southern Italy from 1309-1343; to all three of these men
Dante makes reference in one or another of his writings.
Throughout this period the Popes continued their an-
cient policy of attempting to build up their own territorial
possessions while preventing the development of any rival
power. Their greatest rival was now the French ruler of
the southern kingdom, even though, fortunately for the
Popes, Sicily had been taken from him. The papal policy
sought to keep the French ruler strong enough to serve as
support against any danger which might threaten, but weak
enough not to be a danger himself. Yet a greater danger