 Frederick's death brought a period of unrest and feudal anarchy.In the War of the Sicilian Vespers between the Angevin and Aragonese dynasties for control of Sicily, Syracuse sided with the Aragonese and expelled the Angevins in 1298, receiving from the Spanish sovereigns great privileges in reward.The preeminence of baronial families is also shown by the construction of the palaces of Abela, Chiaramonte, Nava, Montalto .