Cola di Rienzo

Cola di Rienzo (1313–1354) was a Roman notary who championed the Roman people against the city's barons. A nobleman had killed his brother, sharpening his desire to restore order in Rome. A mission to Pope Clement VI at Avignon in 1343 won him papal favour, and in 1347 he led a rising and took the title of tribune.

He reformed justice, cleared robbers from the roads and summoned Italian cities to federate, but was driven from power within months. After years of imprisonment in Prague and Avignon he returned to Rome in 1354 as papal senator, only to be murdered by a mob.