 The reality was that the Florentine army launched several fruitless attacks against the Sienese army during the day, then when the Sienese army countered with their own offensive, traitors within the Florentine army killed the standard bearer and in the resulting chaos, the Florentine army broke up and fled the battlefield.Almost half the Florentine army (some 15,000 men) were killed as a result.The period 1260-1355 has been characterized as a "golden age" in Siena.