In 1317, with the papal bull Si Fratum, Pope John XXII ordered Duke Passerino, Cangrande della Scala, and Matteo Visconti to resign their titles as imperial vicars, given the emperor’s absence. On May 5, 1323, the bishop of Mantua, Jacopo Benfatti, the bishop of Modena, Guido, Bertrando del Poggetto, Cangrande, and Passerino met in the bishop’s palace. They discussed resigning their titles as imperial vicars, as ordered by the pope. While the meeting was underway, however, imperial envoys under Louis the Bavarian arrived and demanded that the two vicars obey the legitimate sovereign. Thus, the Ghibelline camp regrouped. But the story didn’t end there: on July 7, 1323, the pope initiated a trial in Piacenza against Cangrande and Passerino. The inquisitors were Friars Barnaba and Onesto. But Passerino Bonacolsi, known as Passerino, does not appear at the trial.
