The pope, from Schaffhausen, ordered the curia and the cardinals to join him under the pain of excommunication – within six days. Some of the curia left Konstanz. On Palm Sunday, four of the Italian cardinals, led by Oddo Colonna, fled to Schaffhausen. On the following day, three more arrived, including myself, bringing with me 98,000 gold florins which was Cossa's (and the marchesa's) share of what had been earned by the women, gambling and the other enterprises in the past few months which Bernaba had been overseeing for the marchesa.
Outraged by the mass desertions, Sigismund personally nailed a manifesto to the door of the papal, palace in Konstanz, against the pope and. the cardinals, charging John with tyranny, homicide, simony, fornication and jobbery.
Regnault de Chartres, Archbishop of Rheims, was the pope's first ambassador to the council. He brought a letter from the pope to the cardinals which appointed the body of the sacred college as his proctors to effect his resignation in case both of his rivals died or abdicated. The letter also stated Cossa’s wish to make the journey to Nice with Sigismund in order that simultaneous resignations might be effected there, knowing that if he arrived in Nice Benedict would refuse to resign. Two days later, a committee of three cardinals returned from Schaffhausen and reported to a congregation of the council. They advised the council that it was virtually dissolved through the absence of the pope, who possessed and retained the right to dismiss it when he chose. However, they reported, the pope would promise not to dissolve the council, and he himself would remain in the neighbourhood of Konstanz, if the sacred college and the curia went to him.
Sigismund then addressed the council and told it how it would vote. `My soldiers surround this place,' he told them. `If you vote to leave Konstanz, you will be dragged out to a prison.'
It was circulated everywhere throughout the city that the pope's proposals had been scornfully rejected by the council and by the cardinals – so that everyone was able to believe that Sigismund did not at all want to alienate the cardinals because that-.would have effectively broken up the council,
At the fourth general session of the council, held on Saturday, 30 March 1415, the following: resolutions were passed:
(I) The Synod of Konstanz, legitimately assembled in the Holy Spirit, constituting an ecumenical council and representing the Church Militant, derives its power directly from Christ, to whom everyone, of whatever state or dignity, even the pope, is bound to render obedience in all that relates to the faith or to the extirpation of the schism.
(II) The pope shall not summon from Konstanz – without consent of the synod – the curia or its officers, whose absence would entail a dissolution of the council.
(III) All penalties pronounced by the pope since leaving Konstanz against any dependants or members of the council are invalid.
Sigismund resolved to strangle the mockery of his religion, his ambition and his dignity caused by Cossa's flight with a vengeful and relentless show of statesmanship, and logic. But he hoped to do so mainly by a force of arms which would drag Cossa back to Konstanz by his heels through the mud. The Italian libertine, as Sigismund saw the pope, had almost succeeded in manoeuvring him into looking like some foolish outlander who had no more authority than a scullery maid. Even the thought of Cossa's returning to Konstanz bearing all the, dignity of a reigning pope filled him with dismayed rage and a blind-sense of prevention at any cost. He could see, as the council most obviously could not see, that Cossa's design was to draw out the negotiations, to vacillate and procrastinate until he could scatter the council and leave Sigismund standing there – like some bewildered bumpkin. Therefore, in protection of his amour-propre, that haughty, sky-high edifice from which most history has been hung, the king stationed, guards on the city, walls and posted armed men along all roads.
There were still desertions by the papal party from Konstanz to the pope at Schaffhausen only thirty miles away. The entire population of Konstanz was told that, as soon as they got there, they were under the protection of the Duke of Austria – so Sigismund, driven almost mad by frustration, told his armies to deal with the fat young duke. I withdrew to Schaffhausen once again, leaving Bernaba behind to observe.
Sigismund summoned Frederick to appear and answer. The three days of grace had expired and the duke had made no sign. His treachery to the empire and to the council was so heinous, as Sigismund daily reminded everyone, that not a voice was raised in Frederick's defence at any of the assemblies of the Teuton leaders. Sigismund pronounced the ban of empire on him. All the duke's lands and subjects were released from their obedience to him and reverted to the empire. It was forbidden to give him lodging or shelter, to provide him with food, forage, help or counsel, to keep the peace or to abide with him. The whole of empire, lords and cities, clergy and laymen, informed of the ban, were told that all alliances and contracts with the duke were null and invalid. The duke was outlawed.
By order of Sigismund, sealed letters were affixed to the cathedral door at the upper court, and at the door of St Stephen's church, summoning Frederick before the royal court. The king commanded all secular lords, knights, vassals and mercenaries to go to war against the duke's possessions. Mobilization was ordered in the imperial cities and stockpiling of food, provisions, rifles and gunpowder. The first expedition, made up of troops from Konstanz, Biberach, Ueberlingen, Pfullendorf and Buchorn, Kempten and other places, was sent out against Frederick's possessions in the Thurgau The duke's Swiss confederates refused to break their fifty years of peace with his family, but the Tyrol seized the opportunity.; Patriarchs, bishops and counts all produced their claims against Frederick. Within eight days, 437 lords and cities had sent in their cartels of defiance.
So many Letters of Feud arrived at Schaffhausen that the pope was appalled by their number: He was on his way to church on Black Thursday when a messenger brought him the news of the mobilization for war. Without hesitation, he told the cardinals that each man was to shift for himself He turned back to the castle. The next morning, when he asked them to join him in flight, every cardinal, including the pope's own nephew, but excepting, myself, declined. They were frightened of being made prisoners by Duke Frederick, who had sworn to make the pope and his cardinals pay for the war which had been forced upon him.
On Good Friday, clad in his pontifical robes, Pope John left Schaffhausen and rode twenty-four miles in a driving rain as far as Waldshut. Ten miles more the next morning got our papal party to the castle at Gross-Laufenburg, in the bishopric of Basel, where the Rhine separates the Jura from the Swabian range.
`We have to decide the way to get out of here safely to France,' Cossa said to me over a hearty dinner before going to bed with the Angioni twins,, whom Bernaba had been thoughtful enough to send to Schaffhausen for his pleasure.
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Although the council abandoned respect for Cossa's feelings at its fifth general session on that Easter Saturday, he could not have said that the form was not observed. The delegates; passed a resolution which read `Whoever,; of whatever condition or dignity he be, even of the papal, shall obstinately refuse to obey the decrees of this council, shall be liable to penitence and to punishment, even though secular aid have to be invoked.'