Post occasio calva : Lord Fauconberg e il negoziato anglo-toscano del 1670-71

In 1670, Charles II Stuart felt the need to re-establish a dialogue with the states of the Italian peninsula, interrupted during the civil war and the Interregnum. To this end he used an envoy extraordinaire, Lord Fauconberg, who was instructed to enter into political and commercial negotiations with Turin, Genoa, Florence and Venice. Celebratory accounts not withstanding, the mission was a disaster: only the court of Savoy seemed interested in establishing alliances and collaboration. In the following essay, we follow in the footsteps of the ambassador, paying particular attention to the Tuscan stage, the most embarrassing and unsuccessful episode in the tour. [Publisher's text]