Refusal of amnesty and new death sentence in 1315

In 1315, with the Ghibelline cities of Pisa and Lucca united under the guidance of Uguccione della Faggiuola, Florence was concerned about further attacks on the city. Thus, under the imminent threat of ferocious combat, and as had already happened with the arrival of Henry VII, the Florentine Commune decided to round up as many troops as possible by issuing yet another amnesty for all of the city’s exiles. Their return, however, was subject to the payment of a fine and a humiliating offering. Listed among those considered eligible for amnesty, Dante rejected the offer since, as can be seen in his letter to a “Florentine friend” (Epistle XII), accepting to return to the city under such conditions would not only have meant admitting blame, but would also have been incompatible with his sense of dignity.

The battle with Pisa and Lucca soon took place, confirming the fears of the Florentines, who suffered a disastrous defeat in the battle at Montecatini. In order to remedy the economic problems caused by the war, the Priors passed another law, offering those who had received death sentences the opportunity to have their sentence commuted to exile, so long as they paid a sum of money as guarantee. On this occasion too, Dante refused to make any kind of compromise. Thus, on 9 November 1315, the Florentine Imperial Vicar Raniero Zaccaria, reaffirming Dante’s death sentence and the confiscation and destruction of all his property, sentenced him and his sons to death by decapitation if they were ever again found within Florence. This was yet another blow for Dante, but not enough to completely destroy his hope that one day he would return home honourably, as indicated in canto XXV of Paradiso: ritornerò poeta, e in sul fonte / del mio battesmo prenderò ’l cappello (“I will return as a poet, and at my baptismal font receive the laurel crown”).