LETTER XX.
I sent quite lately, by Peter the courier, such statements as seemed necessary, and I think my despatches must have already reached your Majesty.
I now write by order of the Queen.
To-day she summoned me into her presence and told me she was quite certain from the present aspect of affairs, and specially from the greater severity with which Montmorency was guarded, and the circumstance that the King was levying troops, that there was every prospect of war, and of all the confusion that must necessarily follow in its train.
She instructed me to write to your Majesty, and urge this additional reason for expediting her journey home. She says she has borne her position patiently as long as she could, but she foresees that it will soon become intolerable. I told the Queen that I would humbly obey her orders, although I felt sure that your Majesty, after reading my last despatches, would do all that was possible towards forwarding her return, and that on this account my letter would be unnecessary.
Having informed your Majesty of my conversation with the Queen, I consider I have executed her commands, and do not think any petition or prayer necessary on my part, in order to induce your Majesty to accede to the natural desire of your most loving daughter.
If we can trust the news we hear, war is already at our gates, and a war which holds out no prospect of relief, but, on the contrary, will aggravate the misfortunes and miseries of France; this is saying a great deal, for the country is already in so bad a state that to make it worse seemed a downright impossibility.
But if the report be true that Condé and the other exiles will bring strong forces to the support of their friends, there are no bounds to the mischief that will ensue; in that case the existence of the present régime will hang on a thread, and be in the utmost danger; for then the contest will be, not as to whose opinion shall have weight in council, or who shall stand first in honour and rank, or who shall administer the affairs of the kingdom, but simply who shall wear the crown.
If the King should gain the day, it is easy to see that he will stand upon his rights, and punish the rebels as traitors; while, if the other party should prove victorious, they will bring the King to trial for his tyrannical conduct. He must expect no mercy or forgiveness; he has often tried issues with them, and still oftener broken his word, until at last none will believe it. It is to be feared also that the flames of civil war are likely to spread over a wider area than existing appearances would seem to indicate; for there are many who smother their grievances at present, though they are disgusted with the treatment they have themselves received and the miserable condition of the country, and these, it is to be apprehended, will flock to Condé’s standard. The voice of the country is undoubtedly on his side, as all are dissatisfied with the manner in which the government is at present conducted.
The case of Montmorency, to which I have alluded, stands thus. His prospects (of regaining his liberty) appeared to be good, and he was being treated with much more indulgence than before, when tidings came of his brother, Damville[69]; then all of a sudden there was a complete change, and the prison rules were made much stricter: by the King’s orders all his servants were removed, and, though seriously ill, he was not allowed to keep so much as his physician or his cook, new servants being appointed by the King. This alteration in his treatment has caused the greatest alarm to his mother and other relatives, for they think that this is a first step towards taking him off by poison.
The King is so sure of Damville’s being dead that he has already given away every one of his offices and commands. He is supposed to have died of the plague fever on the last day of last month.
His friends refuse to regard him as dead and console themselves with a vague hope that he is still alive.
I trust that no delay or difficulty will arise with regard to the Queen’s journey; still, if it had not been finally settled otherwise, I am not sure that the route by the Netherlands would not be the most convenient. In any case, that road will always be open to her, should the others be blocked. But your Majesty will decide what is best.
The Portuguese ambassador has arrived and called yesterday on the Queen. The King was indisposed, but is now better.
Paris, June 13, 1575.[70]
[LETTER XXI.]
The Duke of Lorraine and Vaudemont are, they say, expected here in the course of two or three days.
The tedious and difficult negotiations about peace have kept Paris in suspense for a long time. The following appears to be the result: the deputies from the insurgents have not been able to carry all their points, and the King, on his part, has not succeeded in inducing them to accept his terms. They have therefore agreed upon a compromise, the clauses of which are to be referred to Condé, Damville, and the confederate towns: should they accept them, peace will be declared; in the other case, war will be resumed. But it will be much easier to declare war than to carry it on, as France is terribly reduced, and the King himself is in the greatest straits for want of money.
The religious question, which in the Netherlands is the only obstacle to peace, has not been considered here as a matter of paramount importance, and the King has made no difficulty about granting liberty of conscience; there were other points which were more difficult for him to digest—to wit, that the rebels should have possession of two cities in each province, in addition to those which they now hold, as places of refuge in time of trouble. They demand also that members of their party should be admitted into the Parliaments, and that the King should pay the wages of the German reiters who have taken service with them; and, again, that the States-General be convened. If this last should be granted, the Queen Mother will be in great danger of losing her authority. There are some other points, which your Majesty will learn from the enclosed paper.
Never did France so hunger after peace; never was the country so unanimous in desiring it. On other occasions it has been sometimes the Order of the Clergy and sometimes the Order of the People, which has been averse to a pacification; now all exclaim with one voice that war means ruin. But the peace, I suspect, will not last long,[71] since it has been obtained by compulsion, and granted by necessity.
Moreover, I have observed that the authority of the Crown has marvellously declined; men have shaken off their respect for the King’s name, and are like horses who have got rid of their traces and fairly bolted. The revolutionary spirit is rampant; some people are extremely unpopular; feuds among the chiefs run high—these feuds are of old standing and cemented with the blood of slaughtered kinsmen; to settle and arrange such differences would require much trouble, ample time, and infinite tact. I see that some people in a high position think that it would be to the advantage of France if certain illustrious gentlemen were to quit the country, and all the nobles who wish for war were to find a field abroad, thereby relieving their country of anxiety and trouble. From all this we may safely conclude that quiet in France (if quiet be possible!) means a great disturbance in the atmosphere elsewhere. On this ground some—not without reason, perhaps—remember with regret, how useful Milan[72] was as a training-school for the education of young French soldiers, and also as a means of letting out, without injury to the rest of the body, that bad blood of which France has such store.
The nation desires Condé to be appointed to lead a force into the Netherlands to the assistance of Orange, for it is thought that it will be no small gain to France if he is sent beyond the borders. Condé is himself possessed of considerable resources, and will be well supported by his party, who wish to see him famous and great; they will the more readily fall in with this plan because it will remove him from the scene of danger and place him where he will be safe under the shadow of that great Prince (Orange).
Meanwhile the Royalists will rejoice at this opportunity of delivering France from a troublesome and restless crew, and congratulate themselves that the quarrel is to be fought out in the Netherlands instead of France.
I must explain that nothing is so hateful to your French gentleman as quiet and repose. He would rather be rolling the stone of Sisyphus than keep still; he is for ever hunting after an enterprise; he would fain do something great; if that something be honourable, all the better, but if there be difficulty on that score, he is not particular; so long as it affords a field for the display of courage and skill, and is thought dashing, the question whether it is right or wrong is absolutely immaterial. These are the ideas which nature has planted in him, and example confirmed, while long years of lawlessness and licence have made their practice a habit.
Hugo de Blot, the Netherlander, is anxious to enter your Majesty’s service; as no better post is to be had, he has applied for the comparatively humble position of librarian. He has asked me to recommend him.
I am fully aware how little weight my word can be expected to carry, feeling as I do that I have need to be recommended myself instead of recommending others; still I trust your Majesty will not be offended at my mentioning the subject. I know De Blot to be both a good scholar and an honest man; there are, however, two people who will be able to give most positive testimony as to his character—Bishop Listhius[73] and Lazarus Schwendi,[74] for they both selected him to take care of their boys—he was their tutor for several years in Italy—and if they judged him fit to take care of their boys (liberos) I conclude he is quite fit to take care of your Majesty’s books (libros).
I do not wish to press the matter further. I have now given my testimony on behalf of an excellent gentleman, and at the same time I feel I have done my duty to your Majesty in introducing to your notice a man who will fill the post admirably. Your Majesty will now come to a decision as to the appointment, and of the wisdom of that decision, whatever it may be, I entertain not the slightest doubt.[75]
The Spanish Ambassador told me that the Duke of Medina de Rio Sicco is coming hither from his Sovereign to congratulate the King of France on his marriage. An ambassador is also coming from Portugal on the same errand: I believe he has been six months on the road, although he arrived a few days ago at Nantes, a town in Brittany.
The King is suffering from influenza, but is not supposed to be in any danger. There was a report quite lately that the Duke of Savoy had taken Savona, but it is not believed to be true. As to Jorneton, of whom your Majesty writes in the letter dated May 2, your Majesty’s orders shall be obeyed.
Madame de Montmorency, formerly wife of the Constable of France, who was then in such high estate, is now in great misery and affliction on account of her sons; she has earnestly besought the Queen to procure letters from your Majesty to the King of France, asking him to release her son, the Maréchal de Montmorency, from his long imprisonment. The Queen has given me instructions to write to your Majesty about this business. I should have had some hesitation in complying with her wishes, if any ground still existed for the dreadful suspicions which were at first entertained with regard to his case; but facts have now transpired which tend to show that these suspicions rested on little or no foundation, and people are beginning to take a juster view; indeed, the Queen Mother could not be kept from visiting Montmorency, and chatted with him for some time. Under these circumstances, I feel that I cannot do wrong in obeying the Queen’s orders, and that your Majesty might write to the King on the subject of Montmorency’s release in perfect confidence that such a suggestion will not be taken amiss in any quarter. Undoubtedly this great and honoured lady (Madame de Montmorency) has shown the utmost kindness and attention to the Queen during the whole of her residence in France; she has never failed to support her in every way, and on her assistance, advice, and loyalty the Queen has been always able to reckon; such services may well claim your Majesty’s kind consideration, and this is a good opportunity of manifesting your gratitude.
By adopting the course which I venture to suggest, your Majesty will not only gratify the Queen, but will also lay the whole House of Montmorency—which now, indeed, is brought low, but must one day rise again—under an obligation so great that it can never be forgotten.
Paris, June 7, 1575.
[LETTER XXII.]
Not long ago I called upon the King of Portugal’s Ambassador, and a few days later he returned my call. I had a conversation with him which is perhaps of no great importance, but it is as well that your Majesty should hear of it.
He spoke of the Queen in the highest terms, and then let fall some words of regret at the bereavement she had undergone. Her husband, he remarked, had died in the flower of life, and she was very young to be a widow. On my replying that it was God’s will, and we must accept His decrees without murmuring, the Ambassador interrupted me with a remark that the Queen would have great difficulty in finding a second husband of such rank as would justify her in marrying him, seeing that her first husband had been a very great and powerful King.
Hereon I remarked that it was by no means an unusual thing for the queens of great kings, on the death of their husbands, to marry potentates of inferior rank, and sometimes to take even dukes as their husbands. I was able to quote, as an instance, Mary, the sister of Henry VIII., King of England, who on the death of her first husband, Louis XII., King of France, was, at her brother’s desire, married in England to the Duke of Suffolk. ‘Still,’ said the Ambassador, ‘if I am any judge of looks, she is too proud to marry anyone lower in rank than her first husband.’ Thereon I replied, that I had good reason to know that any idea of a second marriage was most distasteful to the Queen, who cherished in her heart the memory of the husband she had lost, but never could forget. Still, I observed, she was a lady of great judgment and discretion, one who would, I was sure, always be willing to take her parents’ advice and submit to their wishes. The Ambassador expressed his appreciation of such discretion, and we proceeded to discuss other topics, coming back at last to the old subject, and talking of the connection between the Houses of Austria and Portugal, which dates from the time of the Emperor Frederic.[76] He concluded his remarks by saying that he hoped to see the old alliance renewed by another marriage between the two Houses.
By the way, I must not forget to say that just before this he had been expressing his regret at the Queen’s leaving France, and going so far away.
Whatever may be the meaning of his observations, I see no reason for hiding them from your Majesty.
As to the other matters, Damville,[77] who was lately reported as dead, appears to have come to life again; the prayers of his friends have had more weight than those of his enemies; but, after all, it is a very common thing in France for people to accept idle rumours as established facts, without suspending their judgment or giving themselves time to ascertain the truth. It is quite certain that he was very ill, and some declare that his symptoms indicated poison. Montmorency is now more gently dealt with, and receives the same treatment as he did before the rigour of his confinement was increased.
The delegates of the insurgents are expected here in the course of a few days, with the answer of their party as to peace or war. Endless people have endless reasons to give for expecting that the answer will be favourable. For my own part, I should be sorry to express an opinion one way or the other; indeed, so many changes take place, and so many rumours are about, that I should not like to pledge myself for anything I had not seen with my own eyes. Meanwhile war is going on, but it does not seem to promise any decisive result calculated to affect the issue of the struggle. Insignificant towns and places are daily lost or recaptured, and the most important news we have had this long while is of a severe defeat the Swiss received the other day in Dauphiny,[78] some companies being completely annihilated.
The Queen is quite well, but cannot help fretting at the delay. She longs to return home; she is also yearning to see her daughter; her wish, however, cannot be gratified, as she has not funds for the journey; indeed, she is so poor that meals are no longer served at any table save that at which the Queen herself sits. Rations of bread and wine are issued to the rest of her people, and with this they have to content themselves as best they may.
Paris, July 7, 1575.
If the King of Portugal wishes for the marriage, and your Majesty is disposed to consent, advantage might be taken of the opportunity now afforded of sending the Queen straight from Paris to Portugal without much expense.
I see our friends in France have not yet given up all hope with regard to their claims on Poland, for they are said to be sending thither 200,000 crowns, which they have borrowed from the Duke of Savoy. He has received the marquisate of Saluzzo as security for his advances. Pibrac, too, it is supposed, will be able to do some good by visiting the Palatines[79] one by one, and making an appeal to them in the King’s name.