Men Of Iron Volume 6: Purgatorio

The struggle between monarchs in Europe, particularly between the Holy Roman Emperor and the Pope, would spawn well over a hundred years of conflict in Italy. The Investiture Controversy caused a split between the Italian city states and even the people within the city states. Guelph was the name given to those who supported the Papacy - while the Ghibellines were the supporters of the Holy Roman Empire. Guelph cities tended to be farther away from the Papal States and closer to the Holy Roman Empire, and Ghibelline cities tended to be farther away from the Holy Roman Empire and closer to the Pope's temporal power.