May 6, 1527 · Rome Theater
May 6, 1527
Charles V's army in Italy went unpaid and mutinied, and its commander — the Constable of Bourbon, a French traitor leading Germans and Spaniards — could not control it. They marched on Rome to pay themselves. Bourbon was shot dead scaling the wall, reportedly by Benvenuto Cellini, and the army, now leaderless, took the city and destroyed it over eight days. The Swiss Guard died almost to a man covering the Pope's escape; 147 of 189 were killed.
Commanders