time of his death, the population of the grand duchy was 720,594 souls; the streets were lined with grass and the buildings on the verge of collapse in Pisa, while Siena was virtually abandoned. Grand Duchess Marguerite Louise and Dowager Grand Duchess Vittoria vied with each other for power. The Dowager, after a protracted battle, triumphed: The Grand Duke assigned his mother the day-to-day administration of the state. Cosimo III commenced his reign with the utmost fervour, attempting to salvage the sinking exchequer and allowing his subjects to petition him for arbitration in disputes. The novelty soon wore off, however. Vittoria, Cosimo having lost his taste for administration, was further empowered by admission to the Grand Duke's Consulta (Privy Council). Marguerite Louise, deprived of any political influence, went about arranging Prince Ferdinando's education and arguing with Vittoria over precedence, which only further encamped Cosimo on his mother's side.Acton, p. 114. In the midst of this, on the first anniversary of Ferdinando II's death, Gian Gastone was born to the grand ducal couple. Marguerite Louise feigned illness at the start of 1672: Louis XIV send Alliot le Vieux, Anne of Austria's personal physician, to tend to her. Dr. Alliot, unlike Saint-Mesmeê, did not comply with Marguerite Louise's plot to be sent to France, ostensibly for the thermal waters to ameliorate her "illness." In December she went on a pilgrimage to Villa di Pratolino—she never returned. Marguerite Louise, instead of going back to Florence, chose to live in semi-retirement at Poggio a Caiano. The Grand Duke eventually consented, but feared she may abscond, so she was not allowed to go to leave without his permission and when she went riding she was to be escorted by four soldiers. All the doors and windows of the villa had to be secured, too. The saga between them continued until 26 December 1674, after all attempts at conciliation failed, a beleaguered Cosimo agreed to allow his wife to depart for the Convent of Montmartre, France. The contract signed that day renounced her rights as a Princess of the Blood and with them the dignity Royal Highness. Cosimo granted her a pension of 80,000 livres in compensation. She departed the next June, after stripping bare Poggio a Caiano of any valuables. Persecution of Jews and the Lorrainer succession Without Marguerite Louise to occupy his attention, Cosimo turned to persecuting the Jewish population of Tuscany. Sexual intercourse