THE BUILDING OF BROU
Besides her many poems Margaret has perpetuated the memory of the chief phases in her life by means of devices, a symbolical language much in vogue in the Middle Ages.
When she returned to Flanders, after her first marriage with Charles VIII. was annulled, the device she chose was a high mountain with a hurricane raging round the summit, and underneath, 'Perflant altissima venti.' This device ingeniously expressed the idea that those in a high position are more exposed than others to the winds of adversity. After the death of Prince John of Castile and her child, Margaret adopted another device, a tree laden with fruit, struck in half by lightning, with this inscription, 'Spoliat mors munera nostra.' This device is attributed to Strada.
Lastly, as the widow of Duke Philibert, she composed the famous motto which we find reproduced everywhere on the tombs, walls, woodwork, and stained-glass windows of the church at Brou:
FORTUNE.INFORTUNE.FORT.UNE.
And this was her last motto, which she kept to the end. This enigmatical inscription has been variously interpreted. Cornelius Agrippa, her panegyrist, and Gropheus, Chevalier d'Honneur to the princess, who composed a Latin poem in her praise in 1532, saw no other meaning in this device than the résumé of her life ... a plaything of fortune; and they explain the word 'infortune' by the third person of the present indicative of the verb 'infortuner,' Fortuna Infortunat Fortiter Unam—'La fortune infortune (tries, persecutes) fort une femme.' Guichenon adopts this version and says the princess composed her device 'to show that she had been much persecuted by fortune, having been repudiated by Charles VIII., and having lost both her husbands, the Prince of Castile, and the Duke of Savoy. This,' he adds, 'is the true meaning of this device, although another interpretation has been given to it: Fortune Infortune Fortune. Fortune to have been affianced to the King of France, misfortune to have been repudiated by him, and fortune to have married the Duke of Savoy; but this explanation does not agree with the device.' In fact, it is not admissible, for it supposes the device to be composed of three words only, whilst on the marble it is clearly composed of four:
FORTUNE.INFORTUNE.FORT.UNE.
The small church of the monastery of Brou, founded in the beginning of the tenth century by Saint Gérard, had a great reputation for holiness. It was here the bodies of Philibert and his mother were laid. Margaret's thoughts were constantly occupied with the monument she wished to erect to her husband's memory, the magnificence of which should satisfy her artistic taste. She proposed devoting her dowry to this object in order to raise the necessary funds. Philibert's brother had succeeded to the ducal crown under the title of Charles III., but the state of the duchy's finances made it difficult for him to pay Margaret's dowry, which consisted of 12,000 écus d'or per annum in French coin, or in lieu of this sum the usufruct of Bresse and the provinces of Vaud and Faucigny. Charles III. on his accession had found the revenues greatly reduced; besides Margaret's dowry, three other dowager-princesses enjoyed the income from a great part of his estates. Blanche de Montferrat, widow of Charles I., had the best part of Piedmont; Le Bugey was in the hands of Claudine of Brittany, widow of Duke Philip; lastly, Louise of Savoy received the largest portion of Chablais. This was the state of things when Margaret complained of the insufficiency of the revenues from the properties of Bresse, Vaud, and Faucigny, revenues far from equivalent to the sum of 12,000 écus d'or per annum according to the terms of her marriage contract. As Charles remained deaf to her complaints, Margaret had recourse to her father, and travelled to Germany to persuade Maximilian to give her his support. Charles at last agreed to send four jurisconsuls empowered to arrange this business. During the meetings which took place at Strasburg, Margaret explained the motives which made her insist on the fulfilment of the clauses with reference to her dowry. 'Her intention being to found a church and monastery on the site of the Priory of Brou, the resting-place of the Lady Margaret of Bourbon and Duke Philibert, she must needs collect all her resources to meet the expense which such an endowment would require. She also pointed out that, according to the Lady Margaret of Bourbon's will, the church and monastery were to be erected at the expense of her heirs and successors. Now this charge falling on Duke Charles, he could not conscientiously dispense with carrying out his mother's last wishes, but as she, Margaret, offered to fulfil this task at her own expense, he was ill-advised to dispute with her what was legally her due. Charles III.'s envoys had nothing to say to this argument excepting the state of penury and embarrassment in which their master found himself.'
At last, on the 5th of May 1505, in the presence of Maximilian, a treaty was signed in the hall of the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem at Strasburg, by which Duke Charles granted to Margaret the county of Villars and the Seignory of Gourdans, with all rights of government as well as power of redeeming the mortgaged lands of Bresse to the amount of 1200 florins. After the ratification of this treaty Margaret returned to the castle of Pont-d'Ain and prepared to carry out her plans.
She first called her Council together and explained her intentions. Margaret of Bourbon's vow was to build a church in honour of Saint Benedict, but as this order had already become lax, Margaret wished that the church and monastery should be placed under the protection of St. Nicolas de Tolentin, who had lately been canonised, and was noted for the number of miracles worked by his intercession, and for whom she felt a particular devotion.
The princess's Council, foreseeing the enormous expense which the execution of this plan would involve, tried to dissuade her from it, and endeavoured to turn her mind to completing the church of Notre-Dame de Bourg, which Jean de Loriol was then building. At the time of the young duke's death they had promised to bring his body to rest in the Abbey of Haute-Combe near the Dukes of Savoy, his predecessors. But she would not listen to this argument, and replied 'that she had been informed of the vow which the late lord and lady, her husband's parents, had made to found a monastery of the order of St. Augustine on the site of Brou, but the former, after he succeeded, forgot to fulfil it, and neglected the duty of accomplishing his vow, and that it had pleased God to take her lord and husband in his youth in such a way that he had not leisure nor time to fulfil his father and mother's vow, but that she, with the help of God, would do so.'[22]
The series of objections from the Council, and Margaret's firm determination, are still more apparent in the following quaint dialogue recorded by a witness in Paradin's Chronique de Savoie:—'When several prominent people pointed out that as she was the daughter of a great Emperor, and had been Queen of France, and had since married so great and famous a Prince, she would be put to heavy and intolerable expense in order to accomplish something worthy of her greatness, she replied that God would take care of the expense. They, moreover, said to her: "Madame, possibly you regret that the body of Madame, his mother, is buried in this little place of Brou; a dispensation could easily be procured from the Pope to carry it elsewhere"; she answered, no dispensation was needed for a thing one could do oneself; they also put before her that after she had done what she intended, if a war should break out in this country, the enemy could retire and quarter themselves there, and from thence fight the town, which in the end would mean the destruction of the monastery. Margaret replied: "The power of princes is nowadays so greatly increased by artillery that should Bourg be besieged there would be no need to wait for the attack." They then pointed out that in the church of Notre-Dame de Bourg there was a very fine beginning, and that if it pleased her to employ what she wished to spend on this monastery, she would have the prayers of ten million people, for every one in Bourg goes once a day to pray in the said church of Notre-Dame. To that my said lady replied, shedding big tears: "You say truly, and it is my greatest regret, but if I did as you say, the vow would not be accomplished which by the help of God I shall fulfil." These are the objections that were made, and the replies which she gave when they tried to persuade her to give up this enterprise.' Margaret had already had the plans and estimates drawn up for the church and monastery of Brou, with the help of Laurent de Gorrevod, Governor of Bresse. The estimate was given to the workmen in the early spring of 1505, and the first stone of the sanctuary laid by the princess herself in the spring of the following year.
On the 11th February 1503 Henry VII. had lost his queen, Elizabeth of York, who died in the Tower of London, a week after giving birth to her seventh child. She had been a good and submissive wife to Henry, whose claim to the throne she had strengthened by her own greater right. The bereaved husband retired 'heavy and dolorous' to a solitary place to pass his sorrow, but before many weeks were over he and his crony De Puebla put their heads together and agreed that the king must marry again. Amongst other alliances the widowed Queen of Naples was suggested, but the lady decidedly objected to the marriage. In November 1504 Queen Isabella of Castile died, and the crown descended to her weak-minded daughter Joanna. A struggle was seen to be impending for the regency, and Henry was courted by both sides in the dispute. He had taken as his motto 'Qui je défends est maître,' and both Ferdinand, King of Spain, and the Emperor Maximilian were anxious to win him to their side. Margaret was secretly offered to Henry as a bride by Philip and Maximilian, and a close alliance between them proposed. Margaret, with her large dowries from Castile and Savoy, was now one of the richest princesses in Europe. Whilst Ferdinand was trying to ingratiate himself with Henry, it was clear to the astute King of England that he had now more to hope for from Philip and Maximilian, who were friendly with France, than from Ferdinand.[23]
Early in August 1505 De Puebla went to Richmond to see the Princess of Wales, and as he entered the palace one of the household told him that an ambassador had just arrived from the Archduke Philip, King of Castile, and was waiting for an audience. De Puebla at once conveyed the news to Katharine, and served as interpreter between the ambassador and the princess. After delivering greetings from the Emperor Maximilian, the Archduke Philip, and the Duchess of Savoy, the ambassador said his mission was a secret one to settle with the King of England about his marriage with the Duchess of Savoy, of whom he had brought two portraits. The Princess of Wales wished to see them, and the ambassador went to fetch them. One was painted on wood, the other on canvas. The princess was of opinion that Michel would have made better portraits. She asked the ambassador when the King-Archduke and the Queen-Archduchess were to leave for Spain. The ambassador replied as soon as possible, but that he had come to consult the King of England as to all arrangements.'[24]
On the 7th January 1506, after having presided at the Chapter of the Golden Fleece in the old Abbey of Middlebourg, the Archduke Philip, King of Castile, set out from Zealand with his wife, Queen Joanna, their second son, Ferdinand, an infant of a few months old, and a retinue amounting to two or three thousand persons. They embarked (January 8th) on board a splendid and numerous armada composed of more than twenty-four vessels, intending to go to Spain. All went well until the Cornish coast was passed, and then a dead calm fell, followed by a furious south-westerly gale, which scattered the ships, and left that on which Philip and Joanna were without any escort. A gale which lasted thirty-six hours dispersed the fleet. Despair seized the crew, and all gave themselves up for lost. Philip's attendants dressed him in an inflated leather garment, upon the back of which was painted in large letters 'the king, Don Philip,' and thus arrayed he knelt before a blessed image in prayer, alternating with groans, expecting every moment would be his last. Joanna is represented by one contemporary authority as being seated on the ground between her husband's knees, saying that if they went down she would cling so closely to him that they should never be separated in death, as they had not been in life. The Spanish witnesses are loud in her praise in this danger. 'The queen,' they say, 'showed no signs of fear, and asked them to bring her a box with something to eat. As some of the gentlemen were collecting votive gifts to the Virgin of Guadalupe, they passed the bag to the queen, who, taking out her purse containing about a hundred doubloons, hunted amongst them until she found the only half-doubloon there, showing thus how cool she was in the danger. A king never was drowned yet, so she was not afraid, she said.'[25]
Sandoval also mentions that Joanna displayed much composure during the storm. When informed by Philip of their danger, she attired herself in her richest dress, securing a considerable amount of money to her person, in order that her body, if found, might be recognised, and receive the obsequies suited to her rank.
Driven to land at Melcombe Regis, on January 16th, Philip sent to acquaint Henry VII. with his arrival, calling him 'father,' and expressing himself desirous of seeing him and his Court. Immediately the king hastened to show the archducal pair every mark of respect, and sent letters to gentlemen dwelling near the seaside to attend upon them, and afterwards despatched palfreys, litters, etc. They were entertained by Sir Thomas Trenchard at Wolveton in Dorsetshire; and he is traditionally said to have summoned his kinsman, John Russell, to assist him, because the latter having been in Spain, was well qualified to act as interpreter. Portraits of Philip and Joanna have been preserved in the Trenchard family, as well as a white china bowl on a foot bound with silver, said to have been left by them at Wolveton. On the 31st January Henry received the King-Archduke at Windsor, the two monarchs saluting each other with glad and loving countenances. The next two days being Sunday and Candlemas were devoted to religious exercises, and the following week to recreation. It is curious to read amongst all the state details that when 'the King of Castile played with the racquet, he gave the Lord Marquis (of Dorset) fifteen.' On the 9th February Philip was invested with the Order of the Garter. 'Immediately after mass, certain of the King of England's and the King of Castile's Council presented their respective sovereigns with the draft of the treaty of peace, having divers new articles and confirmations inserted therein. The kings, seated in their stalls, in St. George's Chapel, signed the writings with their own hands, and the pledges were solemnly sworn upon a fragment of the true cross, by which the rebel Earl of Suffolk was to be surrendered to his doom, and Philip's sister Margaret married to Henry, and England bound to the King of Castile against Ferdinand of Aragon.'
Joanna was deliberately kept in the background during her stay in England. She had followed her husband slowly from Melcombe, and arrived at Windsor ten days later, the day after Philip with great ceremony had been invested with the Order of the Garter, and had signed the treaty. On her arrival at Windsor she was welcomed by the King of England and her sister, the Princess of Wales, though she was not allowed to see the latter alone. The Cottonian MSS. tells us that Queen Joanna did not see her sister until just before her departure; they were not even then more than an hour together, and were never left alone, and Katharine left the next day for Richmond. 'On the twelfth the King of England went to Richmond to prepare his house there for the King of Castile, who joined him on the fourteenth, the Queen of Castile proceeding on the same day to the seaside to her ships lying at Dartmouth and Plymouth.' The rest of the time Philip was at Richmond was spent in recreation, and 'all the season the King of Castile was in the King of England's Court every holiday.' On the 2nd of March he took his leave, the King of England accompanying him on his way a mile or more, defraying the charges of all his servants, and giving rewards.' During the whole time of Philip and Joanna's sojourn in England their expenses and those of their suites were paid by the king's officials, and they were entertained with dubious hospitality for nearly three months. During this time Henry VII. availed himself of the situation to extort three treaties from his guest not altogether reconcilable with sound policy or honour. The first was a treaty of alliance, the second that of his marriage with the Archduchess Margaret, and the third a treaty of commerce. The latter was so disastrous to Flemish interests as to be known by the name of 'Malus intercursus.' It was agreed that the three treaties should be confirmed, sealed, and delivered at Calais, at fixed dates; but when the English envoys reached Calais they waited in vain for Philip's messengers. Henry VII., writing on August 19th to Maximilian, informs him that 'the new ratifications were to be exchanged in the town of Calais, the treaty of alliance and marriage before the 20th of June, and that of commerce before the last day of July. His ambassadors were at Calais by the appointed time, with all the necessary papers, but the ambassadors of King Philip have not arrived up to this day; nor has he heard anything of the approval of the Pope, which had been promised him, nor of the securities for the dowry and the consent of the archduchess. However, he is willing to consent to a prorogation of the term to the end of August.'
On the 23rd of April 1506 Philip and Joanna having reassembled their fleet, embarked at Weymouth, and reached Corunna, in the north-western corner of Galicia, after a prosperous voyage, on April 28th.
The following summary of the treaty between Henry VII. and Philip, King of Castile, concerning the intended marriage with the Archduchess Margaret, is interesting:—
The King of Castile binds himself to pay to the King of England 300,000 crowns, each crown of four shillings sterling, as the marriage portion of the Archduchess Margaret; he also promises punctually to pay the 18,850 crowns a year to which she is entitled as her jointure in Spain; he moreover binds himself to pay to Henry 12,000 crowns a year instead of the revenues from the towns, castles, and lands, which have been assigned to the archduchess as her jointure in Savoy. The King and Queen of Castile bind themselves to consent to the marriage, and to permit Henry's proxies to conclude a marriage per verba de præsenti with the Archduchess Margaret. The King of Castile promises to send his sister at his own expense to the town of Greenwich within a month after the first instalment of 100,000 crowns has been paid. King Henry promises to perform the marriage ceremonies within a month of the archduchess's arrival at Greenwich. Provisions are then made in case of the archduchess's or Henry's death with or without children by the marriage. The archduchess is at liberty to dispose by will of her jewels and ornaments. Should there be children by the marriage, they are to succeed to all inheritances in Spain, Flanders, etc., that the archduchess may become entitled to. King Philip promises to request the Pope to confirm this treaty, and both the King of Castile and his father, the emperor, promise to use all their influence with the Archduchess Margaret to persuade her to consent to this marriage.
King Philip signed the treaty at Windsor, March 1st, 1506, and Queen Joanna at Exeter, March 18th, 1506. The ratification of the treaty by Henry VII. follows; it is dated, Palace of Westminster, 15th May 1506.
On the 20th July Maximilian wrote to King Henry from Vienna that 'he had heard with great joy that the marriage between Henry and the Archduchess Margaret is arranged.' He begs him to send ambassadors to Malines, and has already despatched ambassadors to the same place. But on the 30th of July John le Sauvage wrote to Maximilian that 'the Archduchess Margaret decidedly refuses to marry Henry VII., although he, at first by himself, and afterwards conjointly with the Imperial ambassador, had daily pressed her during a whole month to consent.' But John le Sauvage adds, 'The alliance with England is not endangered thereby. For Henry desires the marriage between his second daughter and the Prince of Castile (Margaret's nephew Charles) more than his own with the archduchess.'
On August 6th G. de Croy wrote to the emperor that 'he is afraid that the refusal of the archduchess will cool the friendship of Henry.' On August 8th Ulrich, Count of Montfort, and Claude Carondelet also sent a letter to Maximilian to inform him that 'they have travelled with all haste to Savoy in order to see the Archduchess Margaret, whom they found in company of the President of Flanders. They pressed her very strongly to consent to marry the King of England. Her answer, however, was that 'although an obedient daughter, she will never agree to so unreasonable a marriage.' On the 16th of August Monsieur de Croy and other councillors write to the King of Castile 'that they have written to the King of England ... and have received this very day his answer, and send the letter of the King of England to him; they are much afraid that the King of England has cooled in his friendship in consequence of the answer which the Archduchess Margaret has given to the President of Flanders, and afterwards to the Count Montfort and the Bailly of Amont, ambassadors of the emperor, and again to the President of the King of Castile.' On September 24th Maximilian wrote to King Henry that 'he had not been able to persuade his daughter, the Archduchess Margaret, to marry him; but he would go and see her in order to persuade her.' Whilst these negotiations were taking place, an unexpected event freed Margaret from this distasteful marriage, though it added another sorrow to her lot.
In September of the same year her brother Philip was attacked by a malignant fever at Burgos, brought on, it was said, by indulgence or over-exercise, and for days lay ill in raging delirium, not without strong suspicions of poison. He was assiduously attended by his wife Joanna, who never left his side, but in spite of all her care the disorder rapidly gained ground, and on the sixth day after his attack, on September 25th, he breathed his last. Philip was only twenty-eight years old, and had been King of Castile two months, dating from his recognition by the Cortes. After his death Queen Joanna still stayed by his side, deaf to all condolence or remonstrance, to all appearance unmoved. She calmly gave orders that her husband's body should be carried in state to the great hall of the Constable's palace upon a splendid catafalque of cloth of gold, the body clad in ermine-lined robes of rich brocade, the head covered by a jewelled cap, and a magnificent diamond cross upon the breast. A throne had been erected at the end of the hall, and upon this the corpse was arranged, seated as if in life. During the whole of the night the vigils for the dead were intoned by friars before the throne, and when the sunlight crept through the windows the body, stripped of its incongruous finery, was opened and embalmed and placed in a lead coffin, from which, for the rest of her life, Joanna never willingly parted.'[26]
PHILIPPE LE BEL
FROM THE PAINTING IN THE LOUVRE (FLEMISH SCHOOL)
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Philip left six children—Eleanor, Charles (afterwards the Emperor Charles V.), Isabella, Ferdinand, Mary, and a little daughter, Katharine, born five months after his death. Philip was of middle height, and had a fair, florid complexion, regular features, long flowing locks, and a well-made figure. He was so distinguished for his good looks that he is designated on the roll of Spanish sovereigns as Felipe el Hermoso, or the Handsome. His mental endowments were not so extraordinary. The father of Charles V. possessed scarcely a single quality in common with his remarkable son. His poor wife Joanna never recovered his loss, her mind became more and more affected, and though she survived him for nearly half a century, she dragged out her cheerless existence a sort of state-prisoner in the palace of Tordesillas, a queen only in name.
Margaret herself composed her brother's Latin epitaph, which ended with a cry of anguish from the Lamentations of Jeremiah:—
Ecce iterum novus dolor accidit!
Nec satis erat infortunissimæ Cæsaris filiæ
Conjugem amisisse dilectissimum,
Nisi etiam fratrem unicum
Mors aspera subriperet!
Doleo super te, frater mi Philippe,
Rex optime,
Nec est qui me consoletur!
O vos omnes qui transitis per viam,
'Attendite et videte si est dolor sicut dolor meus!'[27]
Erasmus also dedicated a Latin eulogy to the archduke, and Jean le Maire, who had been attached to his person, addressed some verses to Margaret entitled: 'Les regrets de la dame infortunée sur le trespas de son très chier frère unicque.' She also received a sympathetic letter of condolence from Louis XII. Her reply, written from Bourg where she was staying, is as follows:—
'Monseigneur, très-humblement à vostre bonne grace me recommande; Monseigneur, j'ay par vostre président Villeneufve receu voz bonnes et gracieuses lettres et ouï ce que de vostre part il m'a dit et présenté dont ne vous saurois assez humblement remercier, mesmement le bon vouloir qu'aves à messieurs mes nepveurs et à moi, auquels, Monseigneur, vous supplie vouloir continuer et avoir toujours mes dits seigneurs mes nepveurs, leurs païs et affaires et moi, en bonne et singulière recommandation; ce que m'assure ferés volentiers, ensuyvant le contenu de vos dites lettres; et s'il y a chose en quoi vous puisse faire service, de tout mon pouvoir le ferai, aydant Nostre Seigneur auquel je prie, Monseigneur, vous donner bonne vie et longue. Escript à Bourg, 25 Octobre 1506.' Addressed: 'Monseigneur, Monseigneur le Roy de France.'
But although her brother was dead, Henry VII. had not given up all hope of winning the reluctant Margaret for his bride. On October 1st he wrote to her father that 'he has been informed that Madame Margaret makes great difficulties about ratifying the treaty of marriage'; and then threatens 'it would not be a thing to be wondered if he were to accept one of the great and honourable matches which are daily offered to him on all sides.' On October 31st we read that 'the French ambassadors are on their way to England, in order to offer to the King the daughter of the Duke of Angoulême in marriage. But the King of England has decided not to accept the proposal, as he still hopes to obtain the hand of the Duchess Margaret.' However, his hopes were vain, and Margaret was stern in her refusal. Henry next proposed to marry Joanna, the widowed Queen of Castile, but this iniquitous plan too was thwarted, and he remained a widower to the end of his life. Philip's death imposed new cares and duties upon Margaret; his children were left minors, and upon them she lavished the wealth of affection which fate had denied her giving to her own offspring. Her nephew Charles was her especial care, and he could hardly have entered political life under better tutelage, though his aunt's masterful nature may have checked the development of his own individuality.