This was poor comfort for Massimiliano, but the Emperor's will was not to be gainsaid, and the Count could only lay down his office and take leave of the young Duchess, assuring her of his undying loyalty and faithfulness. Charles had not forgotten his niece, and before he sailed for Barcelona on the 15th of November he sent one of his oldest and most trusted servants, Jean de Montmorency, Sieur de Courrières, the Captain of the Archers' Guard, to take charge of the Duchess, and eventually conduct her to Flanders. But while negotiations for her second marriage were still pending, it was felt desirable that she should remain in Lombardy; and since the Castello would no longer be a fit place for her, Montmorency was ordered to escort her to Pavia. On the 10th of December, 1536, De Courrières arrived with fifty archers of the Imperial Guard, and, after a brief consultation with the Cardinal and Stampa, decided to take the Duchess to Pavia without delay.[140]
The leaves of the trees in the gardens were turning yellow, and a pale wintry sun shone down on the Castello, which Christina had first seen in the joyous May-time, when a little procession of black-robed ladies, with their attendants, issued from the Rocchetta, and mounted the horses and litters in waiting for them. A few bystanders saluted them reverently, and followed them with wistful eyes as they rode out of the gates, down the street leading to the Porta Ticinese, until they were out of sight.
A few days later Count Massimiliano Stampa marched out of the Castello at the head of his troops, and gave up the keys, which he had received from the last Sforza Duke, to the Spanish Captain Alvarez de Luna, who entered the gates amid the curses and groans of the citizens. Henceforth the life of Milan as an independent State was over, and the yoke of Spain descended on the ancient capital of Lombardy.
II.
Dec., 1536] A PALACE IN RUINS
The city of Pavia had always been loyal to the House of Sforza. In no part of the duchy was there greater rejoicing on the restoration of Duke Francesco II.; nowhere was his premature death more deeply lamented. Several of Christina's most faithful servants were natives of Pavia; among others, Benedetto da Corte, the master of her household, and Bottigella, who had been so active in the preparations for her reception. Now the people of Pavia welcomed her coming warmly, and exerted themselves to see that nothing was lacking to her comfort. But the city and Castello had suffered terribly in the protracted struggle with France. The palace which had been the pride of the Sforza Dukes was stripped of its fairest treasures. The frescoes and tapestries were destroyed, the famous library was now in the castle of Blois, and a great part of the walls had been thrown down by French guns and allowed to crumble to pieces. So dilapidated was the state of the building that it was difficult to find habitable rooms for the Duchess and her suite.
On the 21st of December, ten days after Christina's arrival, she was forced to address a request to the chief magistrate, Lodovico Pellizone, begging that her bedroom might be supplied with a wooden ceiling, as the room was lofty and bitterly cold in this winter season. Pellizone wrote without delay to the Governor of Milan, but received no reply, and on New Year's Day Montmorency himself wrote to remind the Cardinal of the Duchess's request, urging that the work might be done without delay, and putting in a plea for a better provision of mattresses to accommodate the members of her household. Still no redress was obtained, and at length the Captain of the Archers took the law into his own hands, and sent for carpenters to panel the Duchess's bedroom.[141] But in spite of these drawbacks, in spite of the wind that whistled through the long corridors and the comfortless air of the empty halls, Christina's health and spirits were excellent. Her spirits quickly recovered their natural buoyancy in these new surroundings, her eyes shone with the old brightness, and the sound of merry laughter was once more heard in the spacious halls and desolate gardens. On the 3rd of January, only two days after Montmorency addressed his fruitless remonstrance to the Viceroy, Christina herself wrote a letter to the same illustrious personage in a very different strain. She had, it appears, seen a very handsome white horse in the hostelry of the Fountain in Pavia, and was seized with a passionate desire to have the palfrey for her own use. So she wrote in the most persuasive language to her good Father the Cardinal, begging his leave to buy the horse, which she is convinced will suit her exactly. But, since she fears that her monthly allowance will not suffice to defray the cost, she begs His Eminence to advance the necessary sum, and charge it to the extraordinary expenses for which she is not responsible. This letter, written in her large round hand, was sent to Milan by one of the Duchess's lackeys, with the words "Cito, cito" on the cover, and an urgent plea for an immediate answer.[142] The kindly old Cardinal, who had a soft side for the youthful Princess, could hardly refuse so pressing a request, and Christina probably bought the white horse, and had the pleasure of mounting it when she rode out to visit the friars of the Certosa or hunted in their park.
Feb., 1537] THE EMPEROR'S SERVANT
She had another good friend and devoted servant in the Sieur de Courrières—Monsignor di Corea, as he was called in Italy. This gallant gentleman had grown up in close intimacy with the Emperor from his boyhood. He accompanied Charles to Spain as cupbearer, and was appointed Captain of the Archers' Guard on attaining his majority. In 1535 he followed his master to Africa at the head of a chosen band of archers, fifty of whom remained with him as an escort for the Duchess. By Charles's orders, he sent constant reports to His Majesty from Pavia. The correspondence fills a whole volume, and is extremely interesting if only because it shows the familiarity with which the great Emperor treated his old servant, and the freedom which Montmorency allowed himself in addressing his master.
On the 15th of February, Charles wrote from Valladolid, thanking De Courrières cordially for the services which he had rendered the Duchess, approving highly of her residence at Pavia, and promising to pay for the maintenance of his archers. He alludes pleasantly to Montmorency's meeting with another of his confidential servants, Simonet, whom he had left at Milan.