The Profession of Arms 2001

In autumn 1526, during the War of the League of Cognac, Emperor Charles V dispatches a veteran general, Georg von Frundsberg, with a seasoned army of German Landsknechte to march toward Rome. The papal forces, though outnumbered, are led by Giovanni De’ Medici and attempt to slow the Imperial advance through a harsh winter, relying on hit-and-run raids against Imperial supply trains to delay the march.

The Imperial force moves with purpose, while Mantuan diplomacy briefly shifts the balance. Federico II Gonzaga, the Marquis of Mantua, seeks to shielding his domain by allowing the Imperial troops to pass through his Curtatone fortifications, only to deny passage to the papal troops a few hours later.

Beyond the passes, the march leads the Imperial army to Ferrara, where Alfonso I d’Este makes a stark exchange: four falconets capable of piercing armor in return for the marriage of his heir to an Imperial princess, a bargain that underscores the tangled web of power and alliance during this conflict.

As exhaustion deepens, the papal detachment reaches Governolo, where de’ Medici intends to trap Frundsberg. In the ensuing clash, de’ Medici is wounded in the leg by a falconet shot and is carried back toward Mantua, his condition deteriorating as the wound becomes infected.

The infection proves deadly, and de’ Medici dies of sepsis, a blow that shifts the momentum of the campaign. With the papal leadership weakened, the Imperial armies press their assault toward Rome, determined to press their advantage.

In the film’s closing moments, a sober, almost ceremonial note lingers: after Giovanni de’ Medici’s death, the European commanders declare that the cruelty of warfare has led them to reconsider the use of firearms, choosing to cease their use as a statement of restraint rather than victory.