o sought to rise in his profession,
had to enrol himself under the banners of the one or the other.
Bartolommeo chose Braccio for his master, and was enrolled among his
men as a simple trooper, or _ragazzo_, with no better prospects
than he could make for himself by the help of his talents and his
borrowed horse and armour. Braccio at this time was in Apulia,
prosecuting the war of the Neapolitan Succession disputed between
Alfonso of Aragon and Louis of Anjou under the weak sovereignty of
Queen Joan. On which side of a quarrel a Condottiere fought mattered
but little: so great was the confusion of Italian politics, and so
complete was the egotism of these fraudful, violent, and treacherous
party leaders. Yet it may be mentioned that Braccio had espoused
Alfonso's cause. Bartolommeo Colleoni early distinguished himself
among the ranks of the Bracceschi. But he soon perceived that he
could better his position by deserting to another camp. Accordingly
he offered his services to Jacopo Caldora, one of Joan's generals, and
received from him a commission of twenty men-at-arms. It may here
be parenthetically said that the rank and pay of an Italian captain
varied with the number of the men he brought into the field. His title
'Condottiere' was derived from the circumstance that he was said to
have received a _Condotta di venti cavalli_, and so forth.
Each _cavallo_ was equal to one mounted man-at-arms and two
attendants, who were also called _ragazzi_. It was his business
to provide the stipulated number of men, to keep them in good
discipline, and to satisfy their just demands. Therefore an Italian
army at this epoch consisted of numerous small armies varying in
size, each held together by personal engagements to a captain, and all
dependent on the will of a general-in-chief, who had made a bargain
with some prince or republic for supplying a fixed contingent of
fighting-men. The _Condottiere_ was in other words a contractor
or _impresario_, undertaking to do a certain piece of work for a
certain price, and to furnish the requisite forces for the business
in good working order. It will be readily seen upon this system how
important were the personal qualities of the captain, and what great
advantages those Condottieri had, who, like the petty princes
of Romagna and the March, the Montefeltri, Ordelaffi, Malatesti,
Manfredi, Orsini, and Vitelli, could rely upon a race of hardy vassals
for their recruits.

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