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 THE PLOT. 277 pires of the New and tlic Elder Eomo in his own person. Thus the indignation which he had a riglit to feel at the de- position and imprisonment of liis wife's father urged him to a course which coincided with that which liis own amhition would dictate. Add to this that the disastrous result of the last crusade had been most keenly felt in Germany, and that any movement against the empire in the East was sure to be popular with his own subjects, and we see that the motives which urged Philip to assist young Alexis were exceedingly strong. If he could help him by turning the crusade into a weapon against the reigning emperor in Constantinople, he would at the same time succeed in recovering the allegiance of those of his own subjects whom the pope's excommunica- tion had caused to waver. He could let the pope see that he was more powerful than his rival, and even Innocent might think it well to side with the stronger claimant. His own power would be enormously increased. He might be not only the triumphant leader of the Ghibelin party, but lord of the East and of the West. Impelled by such motives, the appointment of Boniface, Marquis of Montferrat, to the command of the crusading army on the death, in May, 1201, of Theobald of Champagne, supplied the instrument he recpired. If Boniface could be induced to act with him, a successful attack might be made on Constantinople, and his plans appeared assured of success. ^ ., Boniface, as Eobert de Clari is careful to point out, J>OTllf;lCC Marquis '..f was a rclativc of Philip. His father was AVilliam Montfenat, ,. -»r c iiii and the con- ot Montterrat, wdio had played an important part iiection of his m t i n^ -« family with on tlic Ghibclm side. This AVilliam had married Sophia, daughter of Frederic Barbarossa, and sister or half-sister of Philip.* In the contest for the imperial throne, which had commenced on the death of Henry the Sixth, in 1197, between Philip and Otho of Brunswick, Inno- cent himself had sent Boniface with the Archbishop of May- ence to try to arrange their differences. The mission had. ' See genealogical table of the family of Montferrat, " Du Cange," p. 309, Paris cd.