HawkwoodThe second son of a minor Essex landowner, John Hawkwood chose to head south in 1360 after serving as a captain in the Black Prince's wars against France. He and other freebooters besieged the Pope at Avignon, and when they were paid to go to Italy, discovered that the threat of force could be very profitable indeed. The Italian city statesFlorence, Milan, Siena, and Pisaoffered the richest pickings in Europe. Hawkwood became the most successful,