Page:The history of medieval Europe.djvu/403

 THE ITALIAN CITIES 353 ithe Apennines from Rimini and Venice on the Adriatic as (far west as Genoa and Turin, which remained loyal to the emperor. But even imperial Pavia had been at last forced to enter the league. The league also built a new town — named Alessandria after the pope — in northwestern Italy as an obstacle to the next expedition of Frederick, which they thought Alessandria would come through the western Alpine passes, and since the cities of the league held all the others. egnano Sure enough, in 1174 Barbarossa entered Italy by the Mont Cenis Pass and proceeded against Alessandria, but was unable to take it. Then an attempt to settle the points in dispute between himself and the cities by negotiations failed, but several towns were induced to abandon the league. Finally, in 1176 at Legnano occurred a decisive J field battle between the imperial forces and the Milanese jand their remaining allies. Frederick's army was routed i and chased for eight miles ; his camp and banner were cap- I tured ; and he himself was given up for dead until several days later he unexpectedly reappeared before the walls of i Pavia. Frederick thereupon gave up his attempt to subdue the I Lombard cities by force and recognized Alexander III as i rightful pope. After a truce of six years, during p ea ce of I which the emperor made separate treaties with Constance a number of the towns, the Peace of Constance was signed I in 1 183. The townsmen were to take an oath of allegi- ance to the emperor, to whom also were reserved a few rights such as taking supplies for his army when passing through Lombardy; but most of the regalia were surren- dered to the communes, who were also given back their consuls and were permitted to form leagues or make war with one another and to hold dependent territory outside their walls. The large towns thereupon resumed with alac- j rity their former interurban hostilities, and brought the nobles and small communes of the countryside more and more under their rule. Around the year 1200 town-halls with great bell towers, or palaces of justice for the law