thence over Le Pont-de-Chalenton*, and through Beauce, straight to the castle of Amboise, where he found the queen and many lords and ladies of his noble blood. He was received there by the inhabitants with the utmost joy and honour.

He had not been long at Amboise before he heard of the treachery of the Neapolitans, and the death of the noble Gilbert lord of Montpensiert. The remaining captains, unable to support themselves in Naples after his loss, returned home as well as they could; for those traitors of Lombardy and Naples had suddenly risen in rebellion, and they could not possibly receive succours in time from France, had they attempted to hold out against them, from the great distance. King Charles made preparations to avenge himself on them for their treachery and infidelity,—but he had over-exerted himself in his late expedition. His constitution, which was naturally feeble, became daily worse: whence it happened, that as he was walking one day in a gallery of the castle of Amboise with the queen, and amusing himself by looking at some tennis-players, he was suddenly seized with a fit, and died shortly after, in the twenty-eighth year of his age, and in the month of April in the year 1497. May God have mercy on his soul!

CHAPTER COXII.-OF THE FUNERAL SERVICES PERFORMED FOR KING CHARLES VIII. OF FRANCE, AT AMBOISE, PARIS, AND ST. DENIS.

AFTER the decease of king Charles VIII., whose soul may God pardon! a very solemn funeral service was performed at Amboise, in the church of St. Florent, by the reverend cardinal the lord John Peraulet, assisted by many prelates, great lords, and other persons. There were immense numbers of tapers and torches, and great alms were distributed. When this service was over, the king's heart was carried for interment to the church of NotreDame-de-Clery, near to that of his late father. The body, with the representation of his figure over it, was borne in sorrowful pomp to the church of Our Lady in the Fields, in the suburbs of Paris, where it was watched all night by some of his most confidential friends. On the morrow morning, a grand procession came out of Paris, consisting of all the clergy with their crosses, the four orders of mendicant friars, the members of the court of parliament and of the other courts of justice, the provosts, sheriffs, and inhabitants dressed in mourning, to the church of Our Lady in the Fields,-where were waiting the great lords, officers, pages of honour, and others, to the number of more than seven thousand persons, clad in mourning, with hoods,-and, according to the usual ceremony, conducted the body to the cathedral-church of Our Lady in Paris. There were four hundred torches, ornamented with escutcheons of three flowers de luce, carried by four hundred poor men, dressed in black cloaks and hoods. A solemu funeral service was performed in the church of Notre-Dame; after which the body was carried with the same ceremonies through Paris to the abbey of St. Denis, where another service was solemnly performed for the deceased, and presents of money given to all the assistants in making the offerings at the mass, and great alms distributed to the poor.

When the accustomed ceremonies had been finished, the body of king Charles was interred in the sepulchre that had been prepared for him; after which there was a grand dinner given to all the assistants in honour of the late king, to whose soul may God graciously grant his pardon! Amen.

*Pont de Chalenton. Q. Charenton?

killed in the imperial service at the siege of Rome in 1527. 3. Francis duke of Chatelherault, died 1515. 4. Louisa, lady of Chavigny. 5. Reparata, married to Anthony duke of Lorraine. Neither of the sons left any issue surviving. Raymond Perault, bishop of Saintes, cardinal in 1493,

This prince, by his wife Clara Gonzaga, left issue,1. Louis count of Montpensier, who died in 1501. 2. Charles, who married Susanna, daughter and heiress of Peter II. duke of Bourbon, was made constable of France in 1515, was afterwards condemned for treason, and was died in 1505.

CHAPTER CCXIII.-OF KING LOUIS THE TWELFTH.

ON the 23rd of May, in the year 1498, Louis duke of Orleans, son to the late duke Charles, was consecrated king of France, in the same manner as his predecessors had been, in the cathedral of Rheims. He was the twelfth who had borne the name of Louis, and the fifty-fifth king of France. At this ceremony at Rheims were the twelve peers of France, or their substitutes. For the duke of Burgundy appeared the duke of Alençon; for the duke of Normandy, the duke of Lorraine; for the duke of Guienne, the duke of Bourbon; for the earl of Flanders, the lord de Ravenstein; for the earl of Champagne, the lord Angillebert of Cleves; for the earl of Toulouse, the lord of Foix. Almost the whole of the French nobility were present at the ceremony, which was solemnized in the usual mode to that of former kings, by the cardinal of St. Malo, archbishop of Rheims.

Immediately after, the king made knights of his order of St. Michael the lord de Taillebourg, the lord des Pierres, lord de la Gruture, the lord de Clerieux. He created also knights to the amount of four-score; among whom were the lord de Myolans, sir Claude de Mont-l'Or lord of Château-neuf, de Salazuit, and others, too numerous to name. When these things were done, the king ordered preparations for his entry into Paris. On the 1st of July, the king was crowned in the church of St. Denis, after the manner of his predecessors, kings of France. On the morrow he made a triumphant entry into Paris, and supped at the palace. When all these solemnities were ended, each person withdrew to different places, as ordered by the king. The first who made any opposition to him was the lord de Vergy; but the war was soon ended in Burgundy.

The duke de Valentinois, said to be the son of pope Alexander VII.* arrived at Lyon on the 18th of October, and made his public entry into that city. The king had given him the county of Valentinoist,-and he was now come to France to conclude his marriage with the daughter of the lord d'Albret. This duke was also a cardinal; but he had left that dignity behind him, and appeared in secular clothes with the utmost pomp and grandeur.

and 3d of December, the wind was so high at Lyon that the greatest alarm was caused by it; and the custodium, in which the hosts were kept, on the high altar, in the church of the Cordeliers, was burst open, owing to a broken pane in the window, and the sacred wafers blown all about the church, to the great scandal of devout persons. It happened somewhat before eight o'clock in the morning.

This year, the king gave the princess Jane of France the duchy of Berry; and, for the benefit of the realm, he espoused, by a dispensation from pope Alexander VII. the widowed queen of France, Anne of Brittany‡, which was of the greatest public utility. In the course of this year 1499, the head of St. Bonaventure was deposited, in a very rich shrine of silver, in the church of the Cordeliers at Lyon; and a most solemn procession was made on the occasion by the friars of the convent. On the 10th of June, in this year, the king made his public entry into Lyon, which was very magnificent. The streets were hung with tapestries, and many fine mysteries were represented in the squares. He was very anxious to recover possession of the Milanese, and had sent thither a large army, which, within fifteen days, reconquered Milan, on the 4th of September. Duke Ludovico was in the town, and narrowly escaped being taken, by quitting the place in disguise. The town of Alexandriadella-Paglia§, having shown much hatred to the French, was plundered, and the greater part of it destroyed.

When the king heard of the capture of Milan, he left Lyon, giving orders to the lord de Bersac to destroy all the benches and awnings before the doors in that city. He made his public entry into Milan, and regulated its government. On the Friday before All-souls-day, in this year, the bridge of Notre-Dame, at Paris, fell down, which was a heavy loss;

This was the notorious Caesar Borgia,- -ą worthy son of so worthy a father!

Valentinois, a county on the Rhône: Valence is the capital.

Her fate seems to have destined her to marry

those who, to obtain her, were forced to be divorced. Charles VIII. was betrothed to Margaret of Flanders, and Louis XII. was married to the daughter of Louis XI. § Alexandria-della-Paglia,-is about thirty-eight miles from Milan.

and the king sent thither John de Doyac to superintend the immediate construction of another.

The year 1500 was a grand year of jubilee at Rome, celebrated by pope Alexander VII., and attended by great numbers. There would have been more, if, on the 3rd of January, duke Ludovico Sforza had not, in person, regained Milan, by the aid of a considerable body of Germans. He won the town through the treason of the inhabitants, who surrendered themselves to him; but the French fought valiantly, and kept possession of the castle, whence they battered the town. Several Frenchmen, going to the jubilee at Rome, were murdered at the inns on the road,-which being discovered, justice was done on the perpetrators by burning their houses, with their inhabitants, to serve for examples to all others. The duke of Milan, Ludovico Sforza, gave a ducat to every one who brought him the head of a Frenchman. The count Gayache* and his wife now came to France; he was brother to the late Galeas Visconti.

On the 19th of March in this year, the queen of France made a second public entry into Lyon, the streets being hung with tapestry, and several beautiful mysteries represented. About eight days after, a number of prisoners of war were brought before the king at Lyon, for having broken their oaths, at which the public greatly murmured.

CHAPTER CCXIV.-DUKE LUDOVICO SFORZA IS MADE PRISONER BEFORE NOVARA, AND CARRIED TO FRANCE.

ON Thursday before Palm-Sunday, the French in Italy acted with such vigour that duke Ludovico fled from Novara with one hundred horse, abandoning his army and artillery in that town. When the French captains approached, a Burgundian leader, called the captain of the Yotiers, came out of Novara and surrendered himself and men to them. The bailiff of Dijon went into Novara to practise with the Swiss in the pay of the duke of Milan (about four thousand in all), who only asked for payment of what was due to them. In regard to the Lansquenets, they knew not how to act; for the Swiss in the king's service would not show them any mercy, although their captains did all they could that matters might be settled without effusion of blood. There were in Novara twenty thousand combatants; eight thousand Lansquenets, four thousand Swiss, eight hundred Burgundians, and the rest Lombards. In addition to these, a reinforcement of fifteen hundred men were on their march to join them, and within a mile of Vercelli, not including those in Vigeuet.

Shortly after, Ludovico returned and marched his army out of Novara, and encamped them near to the French; but God, knowing the usurpation and wickedness of Ludovico, inspired the French with courage to defend themselves, when attacked by him. Notwithstanding the duke of Milan thought himself certain of destroying the French, the matter ended without blood being spilt, and without a battle. It was said, that the Lansquenets refused to fight against their countrymen; and likewise, that the duke had not paid his men their arrears, which made them unwilling to serve him. On the other hand, the French were determined on battle; but when they marched to charge the Milaneso army, it surrendered to them without striking a blow. The duke of Milan, observing this, disguised himself in the frock of a Cordelier monk, and, by mixing with his men, thought to escape; but the lord de Ligny and the lord de la Trimouille made such good arrangements with their army, it was impossible; for they ordered the whole of the Milanese force to pass under the pikes, so that the duke was discovered, made prisoner, and put under the guard of the French in Novara, which place had thrown open its gates. The lord Jean Jacquest was

* Q. Count of Cajazzo? He was of the family of the San Severini, and connected by marriage with the house of Sforza, but not, that I can find, with that of Visconti. + Vigeue. Q. Vigevano?

The lord Jean Jacques. Trivulce, a Milanese, marquis of Vigevano, governor of Milan, captain of one hundred Lombardy men-at-arms and of two hundred archers, king's lieutenant of the French armies in Italy. He was pre

sent at the battles of Foronuovo and Aignadello, and held great and honourable employments under Charles VIII., Louis XII., and François I. He was made marshal of France in 1500, died in 1518. He was uncle to Theodore Trivulce, governor also of Milan, and marshal of France. See BRANTOME, vol. ii. des Vies des Hommes illustres étrangers.

present at this conquest, for he had always been faithful to the king. The duke had in his pay an astrologer or necromancer, in whom he put great confidence; but his astrology was of no avail to prevent him being made prisoner. According to agreements entered into with the Milanese army, they were allowed to depart in safety with their arms and baggage; but the duke and his artillery remained with the French. The lord-cardinal of Amboise was then at Vercelli, and vowed the king under the protection of Our Lady des Bonnes Nouvelles.

Intelligence of this success came to the king at Lyon, the vigil of Palm-Sunday, which rejoiced him exceedingly; and bonfires were made in the streets, for joy that the French had been victorious. Immediately after, news was brought that the duke of Milan was a prisoner, which caused the rejoicings to be repeated by all ranks of persons in Lyon. The children of the duke were sent into Germany.

CHAPTER CCXV.-THE CARDINAL ASCANIUS, BROTHER TO THE DUKE OF MILAN, IS TAKEN PRISONER, AND CARRIED TO FRANCE.

THE cardinal Ascanius, brother to the duke of Milan, was in that city when he heard of the duke being a prisoner: he instantly departed thence, with six hundred horse and some artillery, accompanied by the higher nobility of Milan. He had also with him a considerable body of Estradiots; and the commander of the whole was count John, brother to the marquis of Mantua, who intended to march for the Bolognese; but it was said, that he was met by a Venetian captain, of the name of Soucin Bienson*, with a body of troops, who attacked the cardinal. At this unexpected onset, the cardinal cried out, "Qui vive?" and was answered, St. Mark and France!" The battle lasted four hours, and the Venetian captain was severely wounded, with many of his men ; but when the cardinal, who was in armour, saw the fortune of the day was against him, he fled to a castle called Rivoli, which was immediately besieged by the Venetian.

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To make short of this matter,-the cardinal lost many of his men; and the brother to the marquis of Mantua was ransomed. With this Venetian captain was another, called Charles des Ursins. A Milanese captain, of the name of Badin, was made prisoner, with the abbot of Senselles, and four viscounts; and upwards of a hundred thousand ducats were taken, without including the baggage. The cardinal, astonished to find himself besieged in this castle without provision or money, entreated the captain to ransom him, which he refused, -so that he surrendered himself on the sole conditions of having his life spared, and of being given up to the king of France. The captain would have carried him a prisoner to Venice; but the seneschal of Beaucaire, the lord de Montoison, and the chief justice of Provence, who had thither to receive the cardinal, prevented it. gone The Venetians also, knowing

that the cardinal was an enemy to the king, that he had been taken on the king's territories near Piacenza, and wishing likewise to be on good terms with France, had the cardinal delivered into the hands of the before-named persons.

The inhabitants of Milan, on their duke and his brother the cardinal being made prisoners, opened a negotiation for the surrender of their town with the cardinal of Amboise, lieutenant for the king.

CHAPTER COXVI. -THE INHABITANTS OF MILAN ARE BRIBED INTO SUBJECTION.

On the 17th of April, which was Good Friday, in this same year, the inhabitants of Milan, acknowledging the great crimes they had committed against the king of France, their duke, most humbly besought the reverend father in God the lord George d'Amboise, cardinalpriest of the apostolical see, lieutenant-general for the said king, that he would be pleased (after having granted some small sums for their relief, to assist them in paying their fine,

Soucin Bicnson. Q.

and also to save them from the pillage and destruction which the army was ready to inflict on them) to come to the duke's palace in the city of Milan to receive their submissions, which they were determined to make publicly in acknowledgment of their misconduct, and to entreat the clemency of the king, on payment of such a fine as their means would admit of. This reverend cardinal acceded to their requests, and came to the palace called La Courtvieille, whither arrived in procession all the nobles, burghers, tradesmen, and inhabitants, preceded by little children dressed in white linen, and bareheaded, having a large crucifix, and the great banner of Our Lady, borne before them.

The lord-cardinal being seated on the throne prepared for him in the great court of this palace, and surrounded by many of the king's counsellors and captains, master Michael Touse, doctor of laws, and town-advocate, ascended a rostrum that had been there erected, and made the following harangue: "Unworthy as I am to ascend this rostrum, my most reverend and most illustrious lord-cardinal, I am very anxious to have it remembered, and thus publicly to express the complete submission and devotion my countrymen, the people of Milan, as well as myself, feel toward our sovereign lord and duke, the most Christian king of France; and although I know my own incapacity to express their wishes, notwithstanding my earnest desire so to do, yet, as a good citizen, I could not refuse their requests to undertake it, and I will accomplish it to the best of my abilities. Among all the cities and towns of Italy, Milan, without doubt, must be considered as the principal, when governed with justice by an upright lord, as all good and loyal citizens have desired. Since God the Creator has been pleased to place them in the hands of the most Christian king, their legitimate lord, they cannot wish for a better nor a more powerful prince: their duty is to persevere in the fidelity and loyalty which they have sworn to him when he received them with such benignity and humanity. It may be said, that he had reintegrated the citizens to their country, and their country to the founder; for the French had founded and built the city of Milan,—and the country, to this day, retains the name of Gallia Cisalpina. But, alas! we have sadly displayed the instability of our tempers, and committed the crimes of treason and rebellion without any reason for so doing; for neither the king our lord, nor the deputies he sent to govern us, have done any things that ought to have displeased us, or make us discontented. In regard to our lord himself, we have always found him full of humanity, affection, and clemency; and in regard to the lord de Luson, who had been appointed our chief-justice, we cannot accuse him of any improper acts, for he ever received us kindly, and heard our complaints attentively, doing justice to all parties, like as a good father would to his children.

“In like manner, the lord Jean Jacques, who has ruled us without distinction of persons or the smallest partiality, punishing rather his own people than ours, just as those excellent Romans, Brutus and Torquatus, put to death their children for the good of their country. He also has afforded us all necessary support. The lord-bishop of Como and others of the family of Trivulce have acted in a similar kind manner to us. We feel the more beholden to the lord Jean Jacques, because, knowing, as he did, the wicked intentions of many of the chief exciters to the late rebellion, he attempted to gain them over from their intentions by gratuities and honours, rather than dip his hands in the blood of his countrymen. He preferred also retiring into the castle to destroying the town by fire and sword, as perhaps strict duty would have forced him to; and from thence he departed, to return with so much the greater glory. The preservation of the town from ruin is solely owing to his prudent conduct: a superior victory to any achieved by arms, seeing that Ludovico Sforza and almost all the king's enemies are become prisoners. The cardinal Ascanius and others attached to

his party were, by God's merciful providence, induced to leave the town, when they might otherwise have injured it by obstinately holding out against the troops of our legitimate lord. The inhabitants, therefore, are greatly indebted to God and the king, who has kindly overlooked their faults, and not punished them according to their deserts.

"To check the fury of his victorious army, the king has been pleased to send you, my lord-cardinal, hither, with full powers to act according to your discretion; and this you have done with such prudence that you have saved the town to the king, for which we, our children, and our successors, shall be ever beholden to you. We also thank my aforesaid