The ceremony began by a grand mass chaunted in the abbey-church of St. Denis by a reverend cardinal, assisted by the archbishop of Sens and other bishops. When this was done the queen was solemnly crowned; after which, a magnificent dinner was served and an open court was kept. Having made a short stay at St. Denis, she prepared for her public entry into Paris, where she was received with all due honours. The whole of the clergy in their copes of cloth of gold, and bearing holy relics, came out to meet her, as did the bishop of Paris, the provost of marchands, the sheriffs, and all the companies of trades in their holiday dresses. When they had paid their obeisances, the queen entered Paris in triumph. All the streets were hung with tapestries: many pageants and mysteries were exhibited,—and bonfires, and all other usual demonstrations of joy, were made on her arrival. She was conducted in great state toward the cathedral of Notre-Dame; and at the corner of the rue neuve Notre-Dame, the rector of the university, attended by all his doctors, was waiting to make his oration; after which, she proceeded to the cathedral to offer up her prayers. She was then conducted to the palace, where apartments had been handsomely fitted up for her, becoming her state. During the queen's residence in Paris, a variety of amusements took place, such as joustings, tournaments, dancings and feasts. The king lived with her in the greatest harmony and love; and, in course of time, they had three fine boys, who were spared to them but a short time; for they all died in their infancy, during the expedition to Naples, according to the Divine will. May God give them grace to pray for us!

When peace was concluded with the archduke, the king resolved to visit Picardy, which he did at divers times, accompanied by some of the princes of the blood, his lords, and valiant captains. He made a public entry into several towns wherein he was most honourably received and grandly feasted, for they were delighted to see their king. Although every town tried to surpass the other, yet the entertainments at Amiens were the most sumptuous and magnificent. The barons, and common people, of Picardy were exceedingly pleased that the king had come to visit them, and were more ardent than before in their affections to so benign a prince.

On the morrow of Corpus-Christi-day, to the great scandal of all Paris, a priest called master John L'Anglois, while in the chapel of St. Crispin and St. Crispinian in the church of Notre-Dame, moved and instigated by the devil, approached the priest saying mass,-and after the consecration of the host, this wicked priest tore it furiously from the hands of him who had just consecrated it, and threw it on the ground with contempt, thinking to trample it with his feet. He was instantly seized and carried to prison, wherein he was some time detained for examination. When this took place, he persevered in his iniquity, and refused to adjure his errors; for which he was publicly degraded from his priesthood in the church of Notre-Dame, and delivered over into the hands of master Pierre de la Porte, then lieutenant-criminel for the provost of Paris. De la Porte sentenced him to be drawn on a hurdle to the pig-market, there to have his tongue cut out, and his body burned until consumed to ashes,—which sentence was executed.

About this time, pope Innocent died at Rome. He had peacefully governed the church during his papacy, and was full of mercy, for he absolved the Venetians from the censure which had been fulminated against them by his predecessor Sixtus. Roderigo Borgia was elected pope in his stead, and took the name of Alexander VI. The new pope was a Spaniard by birth, and of a robust and courageous disposition: he had been vice-chancellor to Innocent, and was full of enterprise and revenge against his enemies. During the reign of this pope, king Charles made a most victorious expedition into Italy, as shall be more fully related hereafter.

CHAPTER CXCI.-OF THE EXPEDITION WHICH KING CHARLES UNDERTAKES TO RECOVER HIS KINGDOM OF NAPLES, AND THE REASONS THAT MOVED HIM THERETO.

WHEN King Charles had, by his prudence, subjugated or reduced to peace all the countries that were immediately on his frontiers, so that he had not any disturbances to apprehend from those quarters, like a magnanimous prince, and full of prowess, he turned his thoughts

to regain the kingdoms of Naples and of Sicily, which legally and justly belonged to him. Although he was small in body, he had a great mind,—and from the time he had determined on his project, nothing could dissuade him from it. Master Robert Gaguin declares, in his chronicle, that he would never listen to the ambassadors that were sent to him by the Parisians, to entreat him to lay aside the expedition to Naples: on the contrary, he assembled, with all diligence, a most numerous army of horse and foot, and selected able captains to command them.

The king was strongly excited to this measure by pope Alexander and Ludovico Sforza, who both hated Alphonso, for having, as it was said, usurped the crown of Naples, and done many injuries to the barons of that country. For this reason, the pope and Ludovico had invited Charles to invade Italy. The king, for the more readily assembling of his men at arms, made the city of Lyon his chief residence, to be near at hand for the march of his army.

*

CHAPTER CXCII.-FRIAR JEROME SAVONAROLA FORETELS THE INVASION OF ITALY BY THE KING OF FRANCE.—THE KING, WHILE AT LYON, PRUDENTLY ARRANGES A REGENCY TO GOVERN THE KINGDOM DURING HIS ABSENCE. HE DEPARTS THENCE FOR GRENOBLE, WHERE HE TAKES LEAVE OF THE QUEEN.

BEFORE King Charles had shown any intentions of marching into Italy, friar Jerome Savonarola preached publicly in the year 1493, in several towns of Italy, the invasion of king Charles, which caused him to be looked up to by the Florentines as a true prophet.

While the king was at Lyon, regulating the plans he should pursue in his intended attempt to recover the kingdoms of Naples and Sicily, he sent the duke of Orleans forward over the Alps, in company with many other lords and captains and a large detachment of troops, as ambassadors to Milan, Genoa, Venice, Florence, Lucca, Pisa, Viterbo, and Rome, and to different towns in Lombardy, to learn whether they would keep their promises to the king, and support him in his expedition to Naples. Having been honourably received everywhere, the duke of Orleans returned to his county of Asti, when the promises of support were again repeated.

At this time the lord des Querdest (more commonly called des Cordes) fell dangerously ill at Lyon, as he was preparing to cross the Alps with the king. Being advised by the physicians to return and try his native air of Picardy, he took leave of the king and departed from Lyon, but was unable to proceed further than the town of Bresle, three leagues from Lyon, where he died. By the king's command, great honours were paid to his body, which was put into a leaden coffin; in all the towns it passed through, processions came out to meet it; and it was carried to the church of Our Lady at Boulogne-sur-mer for interment, according to the orders he had given.

King Charles, before he left Lyon, held several councils respecting the appointment of a regency to govern the kingdom in his absence. Duke Peter of Bourbon, who had married the lady Anne of France, was nominated sole regent of the kingdom: the lord de Baudricourt was made governor of Burgundy; the lords de Avaugour § and of Rohan ||, governors of Brittany; the lord d'Orval ¶, governor of Champagne; the lord de Graville, governor of the

Jerome Savonarola-was a jacobin friar, and had foretold that the king of France would invade Italy, to punish the inhabitants for their vices, and their rulers for their tyranny. He afterward preached against king Charles. He was burned at Florence by the intrigues of pope Alexander VI. at the instigation of the Venetians and the duke of Milan, against whose vices he had publicly declaimed.

The death of Jerome Savonarola was a disgrace to the times. Florence supported him as an inspired person. His piety, his austere life, and his edifying sermons, gained him the esteem and admiration of all the Florentines. There may, perhaps, have been some imprudence in his sermons, which persons of piety will attribute to zcal; and the pope was too severe in having him burned for the

slight censure he had passed on his conduct, which was notoriously infamous.

Philip de Crevecoeur lord des Querdes, marshal of France in 1418.

John de Baudricourt, lord of Choiseul, marshal of France in 1418.

§ Francis, bastard son of duke Francis the Second of Bretagne, count of Vertus, baron of Avaugour, lord of Clisson.

|| John, viscount de Rohan, married to Mary, daughter of Francis I., duke of Bretagne.

¶ John d'Albret, lord of Orval, who, by his marriage with Charlotte, daughter of John, count of Nevers, and sister of Elizabeth, duchess of Cleves, acquired the county of Rethel in Champagne, as her coparcenary share.

country of Caux, Normandy, and all Picardy; and the lord d'Angoulême, governor of that county and of Guienne. All these lords having taken their leave of the king, set out for their respective governments. The king remained, some days after their departure, enjoying the good cheer and pleasures of Lyon; and the beauty of the Lyonnoises, was also one great inducement to detain him there; but an epidemical disorder having appeared, he set out from Lyon with his queen and court for Vienne, which is seven leagues below Lyon. When the king and queen left the ancient town of Vienne, they passed through Villeneuve and other towns, wherein they were received with due honours, to Grenoble.

On Saturday, the 23rd of August, in the year 1493, king Charles accompanied by his queen, and numbers of princes, lords, ladies, and damsels, made his entry into the town of Grenoble; which entry was very magnificent, as well on the part of the clergy, who came out to meet him in rich copes and bearing relics, as on the part of the court of parliament in that town, and the nobles and inhabitants, all well dressed according to their different ranks, some in handsome liveries, others with divers devices, as their fancy led them. Those who had been deputed to present the keys of the town to the king, made an eloquent harangue in his praise. A rich canopy was carried over his head, and another over that of the queen; and they were thus conducted into the town, where all the streets were hung with tapestries. Several allegorical pageants and mysteries were displayed in honour of the king and queen. When this procession arrived at the cathedral, their majesties dismounted to offer up their prayers, and were thence conducted to their lodgings in the palace of the court of parliament. The king and queen staid six whole days at Grenoble, where several councils were held relative to the greater security of passing the Alps with the army. It was thought advisable to send back the carriages that were there in waiting to transport the king's baggage, and other stores for the troops; and in their stead a number of mules were collected for this purpose, otherwise too much time would have been lost; for this is the usual mode of transporting merchandise across the mountains.

Proper persons were selected to fix on the quarters for the king and his army, so that as little confusion as possible might arise; and the chief manager in this business was Pierre de Valetaut; and a better chief could not have been fixed on, for he was perfectly well acquainted with the whole country the army was to march through. Purveyors were also appointed to go from town to town to collect provisions for the cavalry and infantry, every article of which was to be paid for at a regulated price; and no pillaging of any kind was to be permitted with impunity. Those among them were to have the titles of marshals, maîtres d'hôtels, and provosts, accordingly as they behaved themselves well.

To preserve the friendship of those Italian towns which had promised support, and to keep them to their engagements, the following persons were sent to them (as their fidelity was not overmuch to be depended upon), namely, John de Cardonne, master of the household, to Florence; the lord Charles Brillart to Genoa; Gaulcher de Tinteville to Sienna; La Ville Rigault d'Oreilles to Milan; Adrian de l'Isle to Pisa; the lord de Louan to Lucca; and others to Viterbo. With each of these envoys were sent gentlemen of the long robe, to make harangues, should there be necessity. On the same business, the following persons were sent ambassadors to the different regencies and princes of Lombardy and Italy: the lord de la Trémouille to the king of the Romans *; Louis Lucas to Ludovico Sforza, at Milan; the lord du Bocage to the Venetians; the lord d'Aubigny to Rome, accompanied by the lord d'Autun, the president Grusnay, and the general de Bidont, as ambassadors to the pope; the lord d'Argentont, in company with Monstreau, was sent elsewhere.

The commanders of the king's army were the princes of the blood and others; namely; the duke of Orleans, the lord de Montpensiert, the lord de Foués, the lord de Luxembourg, the lord de Vendôme§, the lord Angillebert of Cleves ||, the lord John Jacques T, the prince

Louis II. de la Tremouille, viscount Thouars and prince of Talmont, grandson of George count of Guisnes and Boulogne. He was killed at the battle of Pavia. Philip de Comines, the historian.

Gilbert de Bourbon, lord of Montpensier, father of Charles duke of Bourbon, and constable of France. He married the daughter of the marquis of Mantua, and died in 1496.

§ Francis de Bourbon, count of Vendôme, married to a daughter of the constable de St. Pol. He died in 1496, and was father of Charles, and grandfather of Anthony, duke of Vendôme and king of Navarre.

Engilbert, second son of John duke of Cleves, and Elizabeth heiress of Nevers, afterwards called duke of Nevers. ¶ John James Trivulzio, marquis of Vigevano, one of the greatest generals of his age.

of Salerno, the lord de Miolens, the lord de Piennes, the marquis de Saluces†, de Vienne‡, de Rothelin, the marshals de Gié§ and de Rieux||, the seneschals of Beaucaire ¶ and of Normandy**, together with numbers of other barons, knights, captains of renown, and loyal gentlemen.

The following nobles were nominated for attendants in the king's company :-De Bourdillon++, de Châtillon, de la Palice++, George Edouille, together with some of his household, such as Paris, Gabriel, d'Yjon, and others of his domestics. They also served as masters of the household, in the room of those who had been sent forward as ambassadors or envoys. Guyot Lousiers had the command of the artillery. The lord de Chaudoyt had charge of the fleet, together with the bailiff of Vitry, Jehannot du Tertre, Perot de Bach駧, the lord de Villeneuve, Réné Parent, the bailiff of St. Pierre du Monstier, John Château Dreux, Herné du Chesnoy, John de Lasnay, the lord du Fau, Adam de l'Isle, Giraut and Charles de Susaine, the lord de la Brosse ||||, Honoré lord du Chef: and likewise the officers in ordinary to the king, such as butlers, cupbearers, valets, grooms, ushers of the chamber, and many more, suitably to the state of so great a monarch on this occasion.

When king Charles had staid six days in Grenoble for the arrangement of his affairs, he took leave of the queen, who departed thence, for France, most honourably accompanied.

CHAPTER CXCIII.-THE KING OF FRANCE SETS OUT FROM GRENOBLE TO CROSS THE ALPS ON HIS MARCH TO NAPLES.

On Friday, the 29th of August, the king, having heard mass and taken leave of his queen, set out from Grenoble to dine at a place called La Meure, a village dependent on a barony belonging to the count of Dunois. He thence went to sup and lie at the small town of Escoy, where he was honourably received by the burghers and inhabitants. On the morrow, he dined at St. Bonnet, and went to lodge at a small city in Dauphiny, called Gap. The next day he dined at Forges, and supped at Embrun ¶¶, where he was joyfully received by all ranks, and lodged at the bishop's palace, who was then absent on an embassy from the king to the pope. On Monday morning, having heard mass in the church of Our Lady, the king left Embrun for St. Crespin, where he lay, and thence went to Briançon ***. He was received with every honour by the clergy and people, and conducted to an immense inn without the town, as the most convenient lodgings for him. He and his company were there served with plentiful cheer and excellent wines. On the 2nd of September the king dined at Serzene; and in the evening was at the provostship of Ourse, where, after his repast, a tall man, native of la Poille, was brought before him, as charged with being one of the "principaux maistres de la vau-perte+++." After the king had heard what he had to say,

* Anthony de San Severino, prince of Salerno, son of probably this was his uncle or some other relation. the famous Robert de San Severino. 1515.

Louis II., marquis of Saluces, died in 1504. Vienne. This family was divided into so many branches that I cannot fix on the person here meant.

James de Chabannes, lord of la Palice, marshal in

$ Perron de Baschi, maître-d'hôtel to Charles VIII., one of the sons of Berthold de Baschi, lord of Vitozzo,

§ Peter de Rohan, lord of Gié, marshal of France inquire to king Louis III. of Sicily, and lineally descended 1475.

John V., lord of Rieux and Rochefort, marshal of France.

Stephen de Vers, seneschal of Beaucaire, chamberlain to the king, a native of Languedoc of mean extraction, through whose instigation principally this extravagant expedition was undertaken. Brissonnet, another court favourite, afterwards a cardinal, was the second promoter of the enterprise.

from Hugolino de Baschi, sovereign lord of Orvieto, who in 1322 was driven from his seignory and afterwards entering into the service of the republic of Pisa, beat the Florentines at the battle of Bagno in 1363. The descendants of this family settling in France, became marquises of Aubais in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

Réné de la Brosse, count of Penthievre, son of John count of Penthievre, and son-in-law to the historian Philip ** Louis Després, lord of Montpezas, seneschal of Nor- de Comines. He was killed in the battle of Pavia in 1524. mandy. ¶¶ Embrun-is twenty-four leagues from Grenoble, ana eight from Gap.

+ Qu. Imbert de la Platière, youngest son of Philibert de la Platière lord des Bordes? He was a great favourite *** Briançon,-capital of the Briançonnois, nine leagues with Francis I. and Henry II., and was mareschal of from Embrun, nineteen from Grenoble. France in 1562. He died in 1567, s.p. But more ttt Vau-perte,-a sodomite.-Du Cange.

he delivered him into the hands of his officers of justice, who, having duly examined the charge laid against him, caused him to be publicly hanged on a tree.

The ensuing day, the king dined at Chaumont, and immediately after entered Savoy, to lie at Suse. The duchess of Savoy, accompanied by many lords, ladies, and damsels, had come thither to meet him, and entertained him handsomely. On quitting Suse, he dined at St. Jousset, entered Piedmont, and lodged at Villanne t; and wherever he came, he was received with all due honours. On the morrow he made preparations for his entry into Turin, as described in the following chapter.

CHAPTER CXCIV.-THE KING OF FRANCE MAKES HIS PUBLIC ENTRY INTO TURIN, WHERE HE IS RECEIVED WITH GREAT HONOURS AND SOLEMNITY.

On the 5th of September, as king Charles approached Turin, he was met by a procession of the clergy, accompanied by the nobles and inhabitants of that city, the university, and by the noble lady the princess of Piedmont, most magnificently dressed in cloth of gold frize, after an antique fashion, ornamented with large sapphires, diamonds, rubies, and other precious stones. She had on her head a heap of gold ornaments, intermixed with carbuncles, jacinths, and tufts of fine gold. On her neck she wore collars, with wide rockets, decorated with large oriental pearls, having also bracelets of the same. Thus richly dressed, she was mounted on a palfrey led by six lackeys, well equipped in cloth of gold, and attended by a company of damsels most elegantly dressed, and numbers of lords, knights, esquires, and pages of honour. In this manner did the king enter Turin, the streets of which were all decorated with cloths of gold or of silk; and in different places were stages erected, on which mysteries were represented from the Old and New Testaments, and upon historical subjects. The king was conducted to the castle, where he was received by the aforesaid lady of Piedmont, the duke her son, his uncle the lord of Bresse, and other great barons, to the melodious sounding of trumpets, clarions, and other instruments. Every offer of service and support was made to the king in his expedition to Naples; and it must not be omitted, that public tables were laid out in all the principal streets for the refreshment of every one that chose to sit down at them.

The ensuing day, the princess of Piedmont led her son into the king's apartment, where they dined joyously together; and after the repast, the king took his leave of them and the other lords, to sup and lie at Quiers‡, whither orders had been previously sent for his handsome reception, which was accordingly done: and he was so well pleased, that he remained in Quiers three days amusing himself in feasting, and with the ladies §.

CHAPTER CXCV.—THE KING LEAVES QUIERS FOR ASTI, WHERE HE IS INFORMED OF THE GALLANT CONDUCT OF THE DUKE OF ORLEANS AT GENOA.-LUDOVICO SFORZA AND HIS LADY VISIT THE KING AT ASTI.-A MARVELLOUS EVENT AT GENOA.

ON Tuesday, the 9th of September, the king, after thanking the lords and ladies of Quiers for the honourable reception they had given him, departed for Villa-nuova; and thence went to supper in the town of Asti, belonging to the duke of Orleans, where he was received by all ranks of inhabitants with greater magnificence than at any other town, considering their means. The king was lodged at the house of one John Roger, and the other lords in different houses. The duke was absent on the coast of Genoa, on the king's business, and to

Blanche, daughter of William the ninth marquis of Montferrat, and widow of Charles the first duke of Savoy, protectress of the dukedom for her son Charles the Second, then an infant.

+ Villanne. Q. if not Villa-nova d'Asti? a town in Piedmont, about four leagues distant from Turin and from Asti.

VOL. II.

Quiers,-five miles to the eastward of Turin.

§ It was an attachment to the beautiful daughter of a physician that detained Charles at Quiers, and made him repeat his visits.-See further particulars in the notice of a MS. history of Gohori, in the seventh vol. of Notices des MS. in the National Library at Paris.

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