I.
Michaelmas Day, 1551, was memorable, both in France and Germany, for a snowstorm of extraordinary severity, followed by an alarming earthquake and violent tempest, omens, as it proved, of impending disasters.
In this same month of September, Henry II. recalled his Ambassador from Augsburg. Ten days later he declared war. For some time past he had been supporting Ottavio Farnese, who was in open revolt against his father-in-law, and carrying on secret intrigues with Maurice of Saxony and the Protestant Electors. The Marquis Albert had never forgiven the Emperor for the affronts of which he imagined himself to be the victim, and, after vainly offering his sword to the English King and his hand to Princess Mary, he went to France as Maurice's emissary. Here he concluded a secret treaty, which was signed at Friedewald on the 5th of October by the German Princes, and ratified at Chambord by Henry II.[445]
Sept., 1551] INTRIGUES WITH FRANCE
Charles's affairs were in a critical state. The war of Parma was a heavy drain on his resources, and had swallowed up the gold of Mexico and the best Spanish soldiers, while Maurice's treachery had converted the strongest body of imperial Landsknechten into foes.
"The Emperor doth little yet," wrote Roger Ascham from Augsburg, "but the French be a great deal aforehand. He is wise enough, but hath many irons in the fire, and everyone alone to give him work enough, the Turk by land and sea, the French sitting on his skirts, beside Magdeburg and the rest."[446]
The discontent in Augsburg rose to the highest pitch when, one day in September, ten preachers were summarily banished. The imperial residence was besieged by crowds of furious women, clamouring to have their babes christened, and guards were doubled at every gate, while Charles sat within, enfeebled by gout and reluctant to face the coming peril.
In vain Mary of Hungary warned him of Maurice and Albert's intrigues with France, and told him that his incredulity was like to cost him very dear, and that if he did not take care he would lose, not only Germany, but also the Netherlands, which were not the meanest feather in his cap. Both he and Arras refused to listen. Instead of following his sister's advice and remaining at Worms or Spires to control Germany and protect Lorraine, Charles lingered on at Augsburg after war was declared, and persisted in taking refuge at Innsbruck. After protracted delays, he at length left Augsburg on the 21st of October, dragging the reluctant Ambassadors in his train, and crossed "the cold Alps, already," sighed Ascham, "full of snow," to descend on Tyrol.[447]
Meanwhile his niece was watching the course of events with increasing anxiety. All the French King's fine promises could not allay Christina's fears, as the autumn months went by, and the din of warlike preparations sounded louder in her ears. In her terror she clung to the Guises, hoping that their influence might save her son and his realm from ruin. On the 20th of July she went to Joinville to meet the Dowager Queen of Scotland and stand proxy for Queen Catherine at the christening of Francis of Guise's daughter, afterwards the notorious Duchess of Montpensier. When, in October, the young Duke of Longueville died suddenly, on the eve of his mother's departure, Christina once more went to condole with Antoinette on the loss of her "Benjamin."[448] Both she and Anne, who came to Nancy at her earnest request, were full of sympathy for the venerable Duchess in the trials that clouded her declining years. A fresh proof of Christina's anxiety to gratify her powerful relatives appears in a letter which she wrote to her uncle from Pont-à-Mousson on the 28th of October, begging him to grant a request of the Cardinal regarding the Abbey of Gorzes, which he had lately annexed to his vast possessions.
"I could not refuse this petition," she adds, "as my Lord Cardinal is so near of kin to my children, and has always treated me and my son with so much kindness and affection. And I humbly beg Your Majesty to show him favour, in order that he may see that I do all that is possible to please him and his house."[449]
Jan., 1552] FRENCH INTRIGUES
As the year drew to its close, the insolence of the French increased, and their incursions and depredations were a perpetual source of annoyance to the people of Lorraine. At the same time their intrigues fomented discontent among the nobles, some of whom were annoyed at the appointment of Monsieur de Montbardon to be the young Duke's tutor. This French Baron had originally followed the Constable of Bourbon into exile, and, after being for many years in the Emperor's service, had by his wish accompanied Christina to Lorraine. And both the Regents had good reason to doubt the loyalty of one of the Lorraine magnates, Jean de Salm, a son of the late Marshal, commonly known as the Rhinegrave, who had lately received the Order of St. Michel from Henry II. All Christina could do in this critical state of affairs was to keep Mary of Hungary and the Emperor fully informed of current events.
On the 7th of January the Sieur de Tassigny, an agent whom the Queen had sent to Nancy, received a command from a Court page to come to the Duchess's rooms that night, in order that she might tell him certain things which she dared not write. Tassigny obeyed the summons, and had a long talk with Christina in the privacy of her own chamber. She told him that the French were assembling in great force on the frontier, and that Lorraine would be the first country to be attacked. And she further informed him that certain great personages in Germany, the Marquis Albert, Duke Maurice, and others, were in secret communication with the King, and were about to take up arms against the Emperor, and join the French when they crossed the Rhine. The Rhinegrave had been often seen going to and fro in disguise between the King and Duke Maurice. Moreover, a German had lately told the Duchess that he had been at table with the Elector the day before, and had heard him vow that he would release his father-in-law, the captive Landgrave of Hesse, were he at the Emperor's own side! When another guest warned Duke Maurice to be more careful, lest his rash words should be repeated, he replied defiantly: "What I say here is meant for all the world to hear."
This confidential conversation was faithfully reported to Mary of Hungary by Tassigny, who concluded his letter with the following words:
"En somme, Madame complains that she is in a terrible position, seeing that Lorraine will be entirely at the mercy of the French, and that there is not a single person in whom she can trust and who is loyal to His Imperial Majesty, excepting Monsieur de Bassompierre, her chief Councillor, and Monsieur de Vaudemont, who is quite alienated from France, and entirely devoted to the Emperor, saying that it is impossible to serve two masters."[450]
Feb., 1552] LE VOYAGE D'AUSTRASIE
By Christina's wish, Tassigny went on to Nomény the next day, and had a long interview with Vaudemont, who assured him that every word spoken by Her Excellency was true, that at Candlemas there would be a great revolt in Germany, and that the French King meant to seize the three bishoprics—Toul, Verdun, and Metz. The only way to prevent this would be for the Emperor to place strong garrisons in these cities, and thus defeat his enemies' plans. The Count's information, as time showed, was perfectly accurate, and, in spite of all that has been alleged to the contrary, he was probably loyal to the Duchess, who never doubted his honesty, and to whom he seems to have been sincerely attached. But he was timid and vacillating, and lacked courage and firmness to face the crisis when it came.
Mary, to whom Christina turned in this extremity, was powerless to help. Every available man was needed to defend the Low Countries, and she could only advise her niece to claim the protection of the Empire for her son's State, and, if Lorraine were actually invaded, retire with her children to the Palatinate. Even Charles began to wake up from his lethargy, and to realize too late that Mary had been right all the time. At Christmas Stroppiana wrote from Innsbruck:
"We begin to suspect the existence of a plot against the Emperor, hidden under the cloak of a military revolt. Maurice is not a stranger to this conspiracy, and Albert has let his soldiers loose and is ravaging Germany."[451]
A few weeks later Christina's secretary, who kept Arras informed of all that was happening in Lorraine, sent the Emperor a message to say that the King was collecting his forces at Châlons, and that Maurice was marching on Augsburg at the head of his Landsknechten, although no one knew whether he meant to fight for the King or the Emperor.[452]
On the 5th of February Henry issued a manifesto, stamped with the cap of liberty, proclaiming himself the protector of the Germans and their deliverer from the Emperor's yoke, and, after solemnly invoking St. Denis's help, set out for Reims with the Queen and Dauphin. The gilded youth of France all flocked to the camp at Châlons, eager to start on the voyage d'Austrasie, as the expedition was termed by these gay spirits, and drive Charles of Austria out of Germany. The Constable was appointed to the chief command, Aumale was made Captain of the horse, and the Rhinegrave Colonel of the German infantry.
March, 1552] HENRY II. AT JOINVILLE
As soon as the news reached Nancy, the Duchess sent Bassompierre to Brussels, and told the Queen that terror reigned everywhere, although it was doubtful if Henry would march on Germany or turn aside to invade Lorraine. The alarm which filled the hearts of these two defenceless women is reflected in the letters which Anne and Christina wrote during these anxious days. The wildest rumours were abroad, and death and ruin seemed to be staring them in the face. Bassompierre soon returned with a letter from Mary, thanking Anne for her valuable information, and begging her not to desert the sorely-tried Duchess at this crisis. Since Madame was good enough to honour her with her commands, Anne asked nothing better than to obey. She wrote daily to Brussels, giving minute details of the King's advance. On the 15th of March he left Reims, and reached Joinville on the 22nd. From here he sent Commissioners to Nancy to inform the Duchess that her towns would not be attacked, and that there was no need to fortify them. The Regents only raised a sufficient body of men under the Governor of Nancy, Baron d'Haussonville, to protect the Duke's person. Following her aunt's advice, Christina sent one of her secretaries to Innsbruck to ask the Emperor for assistance; but Charles could only lament his inability to come to her help, and advise her to ask the French King to respect the neutrality of Lorraine. This was her only hope, and, encouraged by the Cardinal of Guise, she and Anne went to Joinville on the 1st of April, and sought an audience from the King.[453]
Here they were received in the kindest manner by the old Duchess, and conducted into Henry's presence by the Constable. The King received them courteously, and conversed some time with them in a friendly manner. Christina begged him to take her son under his protection, and reminded him that his grandmother, Renée de Bourbon, was a Princess of the blood royal; then, gathering courage, she told him that she had been accused of designs against him by slanderous tongues, and asked nothing better than to show that she was absolutely innocent of these charges. "So great a lady," remarked the Sieur de Rabutin, who witnessed the interview, "must have been very reluctant to plead so humbly, and I doubt if she would ever have taken a step so contrary to her natural inclination if her uncle had been able to give her help."[454] The King listened civilly, and replied that he bore her no ill-will whatsoever, but was obliged to secure the frontier and protect himself from danger on the side of Lorraine. As for her son, he cherished the most friendly feelings for him, and was anxious to see him affianced to his own daughter, if the Duchess were agreeable. This kind language and the affection shown her by the Cardinal and his mother relieved Christina's worst fears. She begged the King to do her the honour of staying under her roof if he came in that direction, and returned to Nancy with the Constable, who escorted the two Duchesses home, in the most amiable fashion, and then went on to take possession of Toul.
On her return, Christina wrote the following letter to the Emperor:
"Monseigneur,
"I have been to Joinville in accordance with Your Majesty's advice, and have sent full particulars of my interview with the King to Monsieur d'Arras. I beg you, Monseigneur, to give me your commands as to my future conduct, as my only wish is to obey Your Majesty to the end of my life.
"Your very humble and very obedient niece,
"Chrestienne.
"From Nancy. April 5, 1552."[455]
A few days of anxious suspense followed. The French Queen fell ill of quinsy, and was in danger of her life. Solemn prayers and litanies were chanted for her recovery in all the churches, and Diane of Poitiers hastened to Joinville, where she found the King "playing the good husband at his wife's bedside."[456] But by Palm Sunday Catherine recovered sufficiently for Henry to leave her in the charge of Duchess Antoinette and continue his march. On Monday, the 11th of April, he joined the Constable before Toul, which opened its gates the next day. On the 13th the King left the bulk of the army to go on to Metz with the Constable, and, taking the household cavalry and a few companies of men-at-arms under the Duke of Guise, turned his steps towards Nancy.