OGIER GHISELIN
DE BUSBECQ
VOL. II.

(The rights of translation and of reproduction are reserved)

THE
LIFE AND LETTERS
OF
OGIER GHISELIN DE BUSBECQ

SEIGNEUR OF BOUSBECQUE

KNIGHT, IMPERIAL AMBASSADOR

BY

CHARLES THORNTON FORSTER, M.A.

Late Fellow of Jesus College, Cambridge: Vicar of Hinxton

AND

F. H. BLACKBURNE DANIELL, M.A.

Late Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge: Barrister-at-Law

Πολλῶν ἀνθρώπων ἴδεν ἄστεα καὶ νόον ἔγνω

IN TWO VOLUMES

VOL. II.

LONDON

C. KEGAN PAUL & CO., 1 PATERNOSTER SQUARE

1881

CONTENTS
OF
THE SECOND VOLUME.

LETTERS FROM FRANCE.

Book I.

LETTERS TO MAXIMILIAN.

LETTER I.

Yesterday, August 21, I arrived at Speyer. I stayed a day at Salzburg and another at Augsburg, on account of my health. For at my third stage from Vienna an attack of hæmorrhage came on, unaccompanied, however, by pain, or any great derangement of the system. The physicians I consulted at Salzburg and Augsburg told me that, if I neglected it, the consequences might be serious, and ordered me to rest for some days. For my own part, till now I saw no reason for interrupting my journey for any length of time, but, as I observe that this trouble, whatever it may be, is aggravated by heat and motion, I intend to stay here over to-morrow, for fear of more haste perhaps proving to be worse speed. In order to save time, I have abandoned my project of passing through the Netherlands, and intend to go directly to Metz by easy stages, as my health will not admit of rapid travelling. As to the King of France, I can learn nothing here; no one knows where he is, but he is said to be going straight to Rheims, which lies, I imagine, on my road, and I hope to get there before him.

When I passed through Munich, the Duchess, the sister of your Majesty,1 who had lately returned from a visit, sent to me, and made particular inquiries about the health of your Majesty, of the Empress, and your children. She also gave me messages for the Queen of France, and sent letters to Augsburg next day for me to take to her.

I was speaking to someone to-day who had come but lately from the Prince of Orange, and he said that negotiations2 for peace had been opened with him through St. Aldegonde, who was a prisoner in the hands of the Royalists. He represented the Prince as strongly inclined for peace, but said that the cities, which had called him in, were no less strongly opposed to it, and would rather suffer the worst extremity than trust themselves to the Spaniards, or send Orange away. The same person told me that Leyden was starving, and must soon surrender.3 The Prince, he said, was not to blame for it, but the inhabitants, who, having been repeatedly warned to lay in stores in time, had obstinately neglected to do so. He also informed me that the Spanish fleet, if it was really coming, was to sail round Scotland, and that Orange had set up false beacons and lights on the coast to draw it among the shoals and sandbanks.

Perhaps the information I have sent your Majesty is not of much importance, still I feel sure that it will at least do no harm, and that with your accustomed graciousness you will not take my sending it amiss. I pray God to preserve your Majesty, and remain, &c.

Speyer,4 August 22, 1574.5

LETTER II.

On September 2 I arrived at Meaux, fourteen6 miles from Paris. My journey was delayed by want of post-horses, for, as the King had just gone to Lyons, they had almost all been transferred to that road from their proper stations, and so for two days and nights I sailed down the Marne, but, as it winds very much before its confluence with the Seine, near Paris, I had to change my mode of travelling, and return to land. As no horses or carriages were to be had, I sent people to Paris to get some, and also to look for lodgings against our arrival. When the Queen, your Majesty’s daughter, knew of this, she sent two of her own carriages, which brought me and my suite to Paris on the 4th.

On that day the Queen7 wished me to rest, and did not send for me till the next day. I found her in excellent health, but her face was melancholy, and still showed traces of her recent loss. As I was going through the points mentioned in my instructions, she spoke gratefully of your Majesty’s thinking of her and sending to console and visit her in her bereavement. She was not surprised, she added, at the deep regret expressed by your Majesty, for, indeed, her late Consort had always felt the warmest affection for you, and had always been most anxious to meet your wishes. She then made very minute inquiries about your Majesty’s health. But, when I said that she must wait patiently till your Majesty should be able to decide, according to the turn events might take, whether she was to leave or stay, she gently replied, that all she asked was to be allowed to do that which was most useful and pleasing to her father. Our conversation then ended, and I received permission to retire.

The next day the Queen again ordered me to be summoned, and during the interview I contrived to introduce the question of her marriage to the new King (Henry III.) by alluding to the reports now current; many people set her down as his future bride, I remarked, and if the union were to take place, it would, in my opinion, harmonise with your Majesty’s views and policy. Her reply was such as to make it perfectly plain the suggestion was by no means to her liking; and yet I could see that she did not intend to be obstinate; she will, I am sure, place herself in her father’s hands, and further his interests and wishes by every means in her power.8

I also touched on the Constantinople matter, as your Majesty directed. She promised to bear it in mind when the Queen Mother returned. I will then make it my business to remind her of it.

I went to her a third time to ask that, as your Majesty’s principal reason for sending me here was that I might look after her interests, she would kindly give orders to the maréchaux de logis to provide me with proper quarters in the neighbourhood, and she at once complied with my request.

As to other matters, there is no news of any importance. The King is expected to arrive at Lyons today, where the Queen Mother, Alençon, and Vendôme9 have been for some time awaiting him. Disturbances are still going on in Poitou and the neighbouring provinces. The King, they say, is preparing to exert his influence, and, if need be, to put them down with a strong hand. He has hired 5,000 Swiss, besides reiters from Germany, and some thousands of Italian musketeers.

With regard to our business, not much, I see, can be done here while the King is away, and so, if I was not afraid I might transgress the rules of etiquette, I should like to run home for a few days. But I cannot make up my mind, as I hardly know what people here might think; otherwise I see no objection, as I had your Majesty’s permission.

Montmorency and Cossé10 are still confined in the Bastille, and both are so strictly guarded by the people,11 that passers-by cannot so much as bow to them without danger.

Yesterday there arrived here Master John Koch, whose misfortune has been a great grief to me. Today I took the letters he brought to the Queen, and she immediately answered them.

Paris, September 10, 1574.

LETTER III.

A few days ago I sent such news as I had by way of Brussels; I now write, more because I have a convenient opportunity of forwarding a letter, than because I have anything particular to tell.

The King arrived at Lyons on the 6th. His army is besieging the town of Nove,12 twelve miles from Lyons, which they think will not be hard to take, as it is commanded on every side by the adjoining hills. Still, they are not quite confident, as they know how obstinate the King’s opponents have hitherto been in defending the places they have occupied. Montpensier13 is besieging the town of Fontenay; a capitulation, they say, was agreed on, but his men refused to accept it, preferring to risk their lives in storming the place, rather than forego their plunder, so the result is still uncertain. Great is the strength of despair, and however things may turn out, their spoils, I warrant, will be blood-stained.

They say that the King, before he reached Lyons, asked his Council’s advice, as to whether he should send back the Italian troops he had brought with him as a body guard, and that Pibrac,14 whom your Majesty saw at Vienna, was for dismissing them. This gave offence to the Queen Mother, and on his arrival at Lyons she ordered him to return to Paris, and resume his duties as Advocate of the Kingdom. The Queen Mother, people think, is in favour of war, because she hopes thereby to retain her power.

Damville,15 they say, received an unfavourable answer from the King, and consequently remained at Turin; he has now, I hear, been summoned by the King; a suspicious circumstance, as many think. It will be two months, it is supposed, before the King gets away from his affairs at Lyons, and in the meantime business here makes little progress. I expect the King and the Queen Mother will give your Majesty an account of what is passing in France. At any rate I feel justified in saying that everybody is anxiously looking for a marriage between the King and your Majesty’s daughter—it is the general topic of conversation.

The Comte de Bailen, after being kept for a long time in Gascony by the dangers of the road, has at last started for Lyons.

Paris, September 17, 1574.

LETTER IV.

I have despatched two letters to your Majesty since I arrived here, one I sent by way of Brussels, the other, dated the 17th, was given to a servant of the Duke of Bavaria, who was travelling this way from Spain. 12Now I have a convenient opportunity of sending despatches by the hands of Master John Koch.

The King has determined to continue the war rather than suffer two religions in his kingdom, or allow the rebels to remain in possession of the towns they have seized; while they declare that they will hold them to the death, having no hope of safety left save in their walls and their despair. Thus the King is again getting entangled in difficulties, from which he will not easily free himself, and which he might perhaps have avoided.

Fontenay, the town about which I wrote lately, fell at the third assault. There was great slaughter both of besiegers and besieged. People think Lusignan will be attacked next. It is a fortress of considerable strength, five miles from Poitiers, and being built on a rock is not easily accessible.16 The siege of Lusignan will give Montpensier’s army occupation for some time, and though less important places like these may be easily recovered by the King, at any rate the reduction of Montauban, Nismes, Rochelle, and other towns, which still hold out, will prove a more difficult task. But who can say what may happen in the meanwhile? Time brings about many a surprise, and the result may turn out far other than what it is expected to be. The King thinks differently; under his mother’s influence, as it is supposed, he is entering on the war with a light heart. Within the last few days an Edict17 was published, by which all who had fled the country are invited to return home within six months, under promise of an amnesty; if they do not avail themselves of this act of indemnity within that time, they are to be considered outlaws and public enemies. This proclamation, it is feared, will be the signal for those who distrust the King’s word to take the field—it is the trumpet calling them to battle. To people’s astonishment some noble families, as, for instance, those of Rambouillet and d’Estrées,18 have been ordered to leave the Court and retire to their homes.

At his parting from the Duke of Savoy, the King is said to have made him a present of two towns which are still held by his garrisons—namely, Savigliano and Pignerolo, if I remember the names rightly. This arrangement, however, has been interfered with by the Duke’s wife having died, unfortunately for him, before it was completed, an event which may possibly make the King change his intentions.19

I am far from satisfied with the state of the business which is the principal object of my mission—namely, the settlement of the Queen’s dower. The King’s return, I suspect, is further off than people think, and meanwhile nothing can be done here. The Queen is thus left in a state of uncertainty; she knows not what is to happen, or what her position is to be, and therefore she naturally feels by no means comfortable. Some people think the King will go down to Avignon, to be nearer the seat of the war which is imminent; and, if so, it is supposed he will not be in Paris for full six months from this. If this be true, though sufficient provision has been made for her in the meantime, still perhaps it is hardly creditable that a lady, who is now practically your Majesty’s ward, should be left dependent on another’s beck and call, and sit quietly waiting till it pleases him to ask her to become once more a wife. Such a position is, in my humble opinion, a highly improper one; nor do I believe that in any other case the relatives of a widowed queen ever waited so long before taking steps to protect her interests. I trust your Majesty will consider what is to be done. Shall I go to the King—which will involve some expense—or shall I write to him, or shall I wait here for his return, whenever that may be?

If I may give my opinion, I think the King is likely to have more trouble than he expects. For, taking even the most favourable supposition, and assuming that he reduces a great part of the rebels to submission, I consider that he cannot possibly complete his task during the present winter, and that many of them will hold out still. What then will be the King’s position? His forces will be no longer what they were at the beginning of the campaign; war, privation, and winter will have thinned their ranks. On the other hand, we must be prepared to see the exiled nobles now in Germany come to the succour of their friends with such troops as they can raise. All France will then be in a blaze once more; the issue of the contest it is impossible to foretell, for who can say how many secret allies the rebels can reckon on? Those who are thoroughly estranged from the King are not a few.

This forecast of future probabilities is derived in great measure from a conversation I had, when I was passing through Kaiserslautern, with an intimate friend of the Palatine and Casimir.20 The exiles I speak of have been prevented from invading the country chiefly by two motives: in the first place, they had some hopes that the King would be more indulgent to their party, and wished to give him a trial; secondly, among their chiefs are two sons of the Constable,21 and they saw that if they stirred it would be the signal for the execution of their imprisoned brother, Montmorency; the Queen Mother has openly threatened and declared as much. Perhaps, too, they are influenced by the consideration that it would be very bad policy to choose the moment when the King’s forces are at their best for attacking him, instead of biding their time.

To turn to another subject. A few days ago a gentleman, who is one of the King’s councillors, came to see me, and gave me a book to send to your Majesty, to whom it is dedicated by the author. It is the work of François de Foix, Bishop of Aire, and Privy Councillor to the King. He is an old man of the highest rank, and is a great scholar. He is also a near relative of your Majesty, for his father, he states in his letter, was brother of your Majesty’s grandmother on the mother’s side.22 His elder brother, the Comte de Candale, is dead. He left a son, who was killed by a musket-shot in the head,23 while fighting under Damville, who was then engaged in some service for the King. He left only two daughters, the eldest of whom succeeded to the family property, and is being brought up in the house of her maternal grandmother, the widow of the Constable, their father having married one of the Constable’s daughters. To return to the Bishop. He is a man of the greatest learning, especially in mathematics, and is regarded by the professors of that science here as one of their most distinguished men. He has translated Hermes Trismegistus24—a writer of such antiquity that some people make him out to be a contemporary of Moses himself—from Greek into Latin, and this is the work that is now on its way to your Majesty. He has also translated him into French, and has dedicated the translation to the Queen Mother. He has written, besides, five books of commentaries on the same author in French, which those who have seen it assert to be a noble work; and this has been published under the patronage of the Queen, your Majesty’s daughter. I humbly hope your Majesty, when answering my letter, will condescend to acknowledge the arrival of the book, and gratify the good old man by thanking him for the compliment. I will take care to show the passage to his friends, who brought me the book.

As to the Queen’s condition, I have nothing to write which your Majesty will not hear from her own letters. One matter, I think, I should not omit to mention. Everything here is exceedingly dear, especially the necessaries of life, such as bread, wine, fire-wood, and lodgings. With these high prices, I do not see how I am to keep within the salary allowed by your Majesty. However, I will do the best I can for this half year, and after that I trust your Majesty will kindly see that I am properly provided for.

To conclude. As I perceive there is no immediate prospect of the King’s arrival, and I can leave Paris for some days without any inconvenience to the Queen, I have determined, with her approval, to avail myself of your Majesty’s kind permission, and to make the journey home, which I have so long intended, to arrange my private affairs. I think of remaining in the Netherlands till your Majesty’s gracious reply to this letter arrives at Brussels, which I consider your Majesty will find to be the most convenient route for sending an answer. I have nothing more to add except my earnest prayer that God may long preserve your Majesty to us and to Christendom.

Paris, September 28, 1574.

Montmorency is still detained in the same prison; Cossé, on account of his illness, is allowed a more convenient lodging, but is guarded there with the utmost strictness.

I am not sure if it is worth adding a postscript to say that, if your Majesty should think fit to send me to the King, any despatches to the Duke of Savoy could be conveyed at the same time without any additional trouble or expense, for Turin is not very far from Lyons, and is nearer still to Avignon—if I mistake not.

LETTER V.

I have but lately sent all the news I had by the hands of Master John Koch. Since then nothing has happened worth notice, except that letters from Lyons have reached Paris, saying that the question of the Queen’s dower has been discussed at Court, and that the Duchy of Berry has been assigned to her on account thereof. The annual income, however, of this Duchy, derived from real estate, does not come up to the amount of her dower; whence the rest is to be provided we do not know, but it certainly ought to be charged on lands in the neighbourhood. The Queen herself has not heard a word on the subject, though the King has written several times to her, and the Queen Mother still more frequently. The report I mention about the dower prevents my starting for the Netherlands, as I had intended, for I am afraid of perhaps being wanted here.

As to the King’s return, nothing is yet known for certain: some think it is not near, and that he intends going further away; others regard his movements as a trick to induce the gentlemen of the Court to start for the camp, under the notion that the King will shortly follow. I can make no positive assertion either way; I have not been long in France and am at a distance from the scene of action; hitherto I have been unable to do more than chronicle rumours and people’s opinions. Your Majesty must excuse it, therefore, if I am occasionally wrong in my facts or mistaken in my predictions.

One part of the Royal army is besieging Poussin,25 a castle fortified by the Huguenots, on the bank of the Rhone, a little below Vienne, I believe, and not many miles from Lyons. The rest of it is with Montpensier, besieging Lusignan, which is garrisoned, they say, by about 600 soldiers and 200 gentlemen. La Noue,26 the head of the rebels, is said to be at Rochelle with such a following, that they think he will be master of the town. As to Damville, some people have a story that, when he found the King intended to arrest him and put him to death, he crossed by sea from Savoy to Montpellier, a city in his government, and that he has induced it with some of the neighbouring towns to revolt. Of this, however, there is nothing known for certain, and I suspect it is somebody’s invention.

Paris, October, 1574.

LETTER VI.

I lately despatched a letter to your Majesty by a running footman, whom I sent to Brussels to bring back the answer I am expecting from your Majesty. Since then nothing new has occurred except that the Queen was threatened with an attack. The symptoms were sickness, accompanied by general inflammation and irritation of the skin, while at night she suffered from thirst. Physicians were called in, and they declared it to be a case of bile in the blood; they said that there was danger of fever if remedies were not promptly employed. Accordingly, they treated her with purgatives and bleeding; since then there has been a change for the better, and the physicians now have great hopes that the attack has been taken in time, and this is also my view. The Queen herself is in good spirits, and considers herself as well as before the illness. Still I should not like to leave your Majesty in ignorance of what has happened.

A few days ago the Comte de Bailen arrived from Lyons to offer the Queen the condolences of the King of Spain; he had already expressed his master’s regret to the King and Queen Mother at Lyons. He was kept a long time at Bordeaux by the dangers of the road, and he incurred serious risks on his way round by Lyons, as parties were watching at various places on his route with intent to waylay him. He is now hesitating as to what road he shall choose for his return, and seems to think the safety of his route a more important consideration than its length. He has, moreover, a wish to visit the Netherlands and other countries.

To-day I was informed that Pibrac is coming here from Lyons; from him I shall be able to learn how matters stand there. He is also bringing, they say, the King’s instructions to me with reference to the dower. Your Majesty shall be duly informed of whatever I hear.

Poussin, which was being besieged, has fallen into the King’s hands; the defenders, according to some accounts, sallied out by night and escaped from the town.27 Damville’s conduct excites suspicion; two Vicomtes are said to have come to him at Montpellier to concert plans for war. One of them, I think, is the Vicomte de Montbrun; the other’s name I have not heard. Damville is also believed to have tried to take Avignon by surprise; people think that he will raise the standard of a fresh insurrection, and thus exasperate the King, who is at present inclined towards justice and mercy, as your Majesty will see from the Edict28 I enclose. There seems, therefore, to be no prospect that France will see any termination of the woes with which she is afflicted. One civil war begets another, until there is no end.

About the King’s coming there are vague reports, which change every day. I cannot be sure of anything till I have an interview with Pibrac, and, as soon as I have seen him, I will lose no time in making my report to your Majesty.

Paris, October 31, 1574.

LETTER VII.

In my last letter to your Majesty I gave an account of the Queen’s health; and how her physicians hoped to keep off a fever by timely remedies. Unhappily, a few days later, though the Queen had felt no inconvenience in the mean time, there was a return of the complaint, and it was found necessary to repeat the medicines and to bleed her again. The blood that was taken was very corrupt, so much so that her physicians became anxious, feeling sure that her illness would be serious, and possibly dangerous. They called in some of the first physicians in Paris, and held a consultation. The attack, however, never became dangerous, and on the fifth day there was a decided improvement, and on the seventh, which was Sunday, the fever had quite subsided. Her physicians are not yet altogether free from anxiety, as there is still some derangement of the system, which they are endeavouring to remove; the Queen, however, now the fever has left her, is not in the least nervous about herself. Thanks to God’s mercy, she is in a fair way towards recovery.

There is another matter, as to which it is essential to have explicit instructions from your Majesty. From the beginning of next January the Queen, they say, will have her dower assigned to her, and instead of living as hitherto at the expense of the State, she will have to maintain herself on her own resources and out of the revenues of her dower. Consequently there are several points that present themselves for your Majesty’s consideration. In the first place, your Majesty will have to indicate the source from which the Queen is to get money for her maintenance till her own revenues begin to come in; secondly, your Majesty will have to decide whether she is to remain here for the winter, so as to have milder weather for her journey, or to return immediately. If the last course is preferred, your Majesty will have to settle all the questions relating to her route, the expense to be incurred, the suite that is to attend her, the road she is to take, and her ultimate destination. If, on the other hand, there is not time to make all these arrangements, and it should be therefore decided that she shall stay some months longer in France, still a decision must be come to as to whether she is to remain in Paris, or retire to the place assigned her as dower. For there can be no question that she will live at much less expense in her own house, if I may call it so, than here in Paris, where everything is excessively dear. There is a château in the Duchy of Berry which would just suit her, called Remorantin; the Queen Mother herself is said to have sometimes thought of retiring thither. Apart from any questions of economy, a residence in the country would be more in keeping with her position as a widow. Assuming this to be settled, your Majesty’s opinion will be required as to all the arrangements of her new establishment, and the gentlemen and ladies who are to constitute her household. Nothing can be determined till I receive your Majesty’s instructions.

I mentioned in my former letter that the Duchy of Berry is to be assigned to the Queen, and I have now written that after the first of January she is to live at her own charges. Both these statements are founded only upon current report and require confirmation, for neither the Queen, nor the Comte de Fiesco,29 nor I have received any official notice on the subject. However, the fact is in itself so probable and the rumour has become so general, that neither the Comte nor myself have any doubt of its truth. I heard from one of Pibrac’s relatives in Lyons that he would shortly be here to discuss the whole question with me on behalf of the King. However, he has not arrived yet, though he is expected every day. I shall lose no time in informing your Majesty of the result of our interview. In the meantime I have thought it better to send this letter without waiting for his arrival.

The report, which was at first very general, of the King’s intending to marry your daughter, is now universally discredited. Some people, whose opinion is worth having, ascribe the cause to the Sorbonne or College of Divines in Paris. When King Henry VIII. of England began to question the validity of his marriage with his deceased brother’s widow, and wanted to have it declared null, these divines were consulted as to the lawfulness of the marriage. At the instigation of King Francis I., who wished to gratify the King of England, knowing that the dissolution of the marriage would dissolve the alliance between the Emperor Charles and Henry, they pronounced the marriage unlawful and incestuous, in opposition to all the other divines and jurists before whom the case had been laid.30 This decision being so contrary to the general opinion, King Francis thought it sufficient to forward it to England, and wished it to be suppressed as far as possible in France. But the King of England, being anxious to support his case, had the decision printed, and published far and wide. This precedent is supposed to be a great stumbling-block to the King, and to make him have scruples of the lawfulness of a marriage with his brother’s widow, as he would thereby seem to question the authority of his ancestor’s decision.

This is one version of the story; whether it be the true one, or simply an excuse, I cannot tell for certain. I fully expect that when I have had a talk with Pibrac I shall be able to make out more of this matter, or at any rate to form a tolerably good guess; for even if he says nothing I shall be able from his very silence to draw my own conclusions as to the King’s wishes and intentions.

It is considered certain that the King will go down to Avignon. His object, I imagine, is to be nearer the scene of action, where his presence is required. Meanwhile the siege of Lusignan continues. As to other matters, I cannot venture to make any positive assertion. The Comte de Bailen will, I understand, leave this to-morrow on his way back to Spain. He intends going to Nantes, a seaport in Brittany, and thence taking ship for Bilbao or St. Sebastian. He has chosen this as being by far the shortest route as well as the safest.

I most humbly entreat your Majesty for an early answer to this letter, for, until we have your instructions, we cannot bring this business to a conclusion with credit to your Majesty. I would suggest sending the answer to Leonhard de Taxis31 at Brussels, who has promised to use all speed in forwarding your Majesty’s letters to Paris.

Paris, November 9, 1574.

I told your Majesty that we were expecting Pibrac in Paris. Well, he has arrived, and as we were old friends, having made each other’s acquaintance when the King of France was staying at Vienna, I went and called on him. He returned my visit. I took the first opportunity which offered itself in the course of our conversation of introducing the Queen’s business, and expressed my surprise at the delay in the assignment of the dower. He replied that affairs of this kind could not be arranged in a hurry, and that matters would be set right if I went to the King myself.

LETTER VIII.

I have little to add to what I told your Majesty in my last two letters of the Queen’s health. She is still confined to her bed by the orders of her physicians, but she looks well, and is in excellent spirits. There is no need for me to say more, as she is writing to your Majesty herself.

Pibrac arrived three days ago. I lost no time in calling upon him, to ascertain whether he had any instructions with regard to the Queen’s dower. He avoided the subject, and talked of Poland, and a message the King had received from a Diet held at Warsaw, begging him to return forthwith. He told me that the Turkish Ambassador had been present at the meeting of the Diet, and informed the Poles that the Sultan would make it a casus belli if they elected a Muscovite or one of your Majesty’s sons to the vacant throne: they must appoint one of their own countrymen, two of whom he specified as proper candidates. It was supposed, however, that it was at the instigation of these two gentlemen that the embassy had been sent. Pibrac then observed that there was one of your Majesty’s subjects who was looking out for the throne.

I remarked that an absent king was not likely to keep his crown long. He agreed, and was of opinion that the Poles would soon be engaged in fighting with each other.

The conversation flagged, and as he made no allusion to the subject in which I was interested, I introduced it myself. I told him that there was a rumour that the Queen’s dower had been assigned. He informed me that the report was correct, and represented the settlement which had been made as most advantageous to the Queen. He said that he understood your Majesty intended arranging a marriage for the Queen with the King of Portugal. I replied that I knew nothing of the matter beyond the fact that the King of Portugal had been most anxious to obtain her hand before her marriage. At present, I added, he was too much engaged with his expedition against Fez.32

It appears from my conversation with Pibrac that the Queen will not receive her dower till January, and I am anxious to know what arrangement your Majesty proposes for providing her with funds in the meantime.33

November 13, 1574.

LETTER IX.

On Saturday last I despatched a letter to your Majesty by a gentleman who paid a visit to the Queen on behalf of the King and Queen Mother, as he told me that on his return to Lyons the Seneschal of that city would be sent to your Majesty. The Queen also wrote a letter, which I enclosed. I wrote in such a hurry that I am afraid my letter is hardly as clear as it should be; I trust your Majesty will, with your usual kindness, pardon its shortcomings.

The purport of my letter was that the Queen was convalescent, and that her dower was to commence on the 1st of January. She will then begin life afresh, and her residence and the arrangements of her establishment will depend upon your Majesty’s pleasure. I humbly trust that your Majesty will make such provision as the case requires.

I understand that in similar cases the widows of French Kings have been sent home with a French retinue at the charge of the royal treasury; but I see that the Queen’s officials are anxious as to the source from which funds are to be provided until her revenues shall begin to accrue, for her debts are already large, and will be still greater by January 1. At that date she will not owe less than 50,000 francs. The King ought to pay the money, but I am afraid he will not do so punctually, and in that case her creditors are likely to become troublesome. I am also anxious as to her income, for I fear that, whatever reductions are made in her household, she will have difficulty in meeting her expenses if she remains in France.

As to other matters, there is not much for me to say, except that the King’s affairs are far from prosperous. The besieged garrison of Lusignan has made a successful sally, and Montpensier has lost so many men that he is compelled to raise the siege. Some companies also of the Comte de Retz’s forces, with a detachment of cavalry, have likewise, they say, been cut to pieces by Damville’s troops. Damville is believed to be full of confidence, and busy in making preparations for defence. He holds a commission as Condé’s lieutenant. There are fears that Condé himself will take the field, and that troops will be raised in Germany. In confirmation of this, we hear that the people of Rochelle have sold a large quantity of salt to German traders, whose ships are lying in their harbour, and that the proceeds are to be placed to the credit of Condé in Germany, for the purpose of hiring soldiers. If this be true, it is very serious news for France.

As to the King’s views with regard to marriage, I cannot speak with any certainty. Some think that he has set his heart on Monsieur de Vaudemont’s daughter, who is a very handsome girl. Besides, the King is devoted to the House and party of Lorraine, and most anxious for its advancement.

However, if he marries her he will cause tongues to wag, and give offence to those who from interest or jealousy are opposed to the party of Lorraine. Amongst these must be numbered Vendôme, Condé, and possibly Alençon himself, who will suspect—not without reason perhaps—that this marriage is only the thin end of the wedge.

Paris, November 16, 1574.

LETTER X.

I received your Majesty’s two letters dated October 31, and also my instructions, on November 23. I was at Paris when they arrived, having abandoned my visit to the Netherlands for reasons with which your Majesty is already acquainted.

I informed the Queen of your Majesty’s wishes, and at the same time delivered the letter. I took the opportunity of ascertaining her views as to the desirability of my visiting the King in accordance with your Majesty’s instructions. She thought it advisable, on the grounds mentioned by your Majesty. I asked her to think the matter over, and when I had an interview with her the next day she was still of the same opinion.

Also I asked her whether the King (Charles IX.) had made a will before he died? She replied in the negative, telling me that he had only given verbal instructions on certain points; she was quite sure he had made no will. I believe the Queen is right, for so far I have not heard from anyone of his leaving a will. I will, however, make further inquiries.

A few days after I had written my last letter to your Majesty, the Bishop of Paris,34 who is the Queen’s Chancellor, paid me a visit, and we were shortly afterwards joined by the Comte de Fiesco and Monsieur de France, the Queen’s first steward. We discussed the question of the dower; the last two gentlemen expressed their doubts as to the possibility of getting the pension of 20,000 francs usually granted to Queens Dowager charged on a good security, quoting the case of the Queen of Scots, whose pension was settled in such a way as to be absolutely worthless.

It would be of the greatest advantage to the Queen, your Majesty’s daughter, if she could have the command of 10,000 or 12,000 thalers to meet her expenses until the revenues of her dower shall begin to accrue. I think we could manage without money in hard cash, if a credit could be opened at Lyons or Antwerp, so that we might be able to draw on our agents. My duty to your Majesty and the Queen, my mistress, renders it incumbent on me to make this suggestion, but I shall gladly acquiesce in your Majesty’s decision, whatever it may be.

Your Majesty mentions ‘credentials.’ I have not received them, and I think they would be of some service to me; for if anyone should challenge my right to act as the Queen’s representative, I have no authority to produce except my letter of instructions, and I should not care to have its entire contents made public.

Paris, November 30, 1574.

LETTER XI.

I set out on the journey which I had undertaken at the desire of your Majesty, and arrived at Lyons December 12. There I waited a couple of days for the purpose of making inquiries as to the remainder of my route, and obtaining what was needful for the road.

I felt it my duty to have an interview with the Spanish Ambassador and ascertain from him how matters were going on. His Excellency had been ordered to remain at Lyons with the other ambassadors, and there await the King’s arrival; but he had a still more imperative reason for remaining—to wit, the gout!

He advised me most kindly with regard to my journey, telling me much of the dangers to be encountered, both on the river route and that by land, and recommending me strongly not to go to Avignon. I think he would have persuaded me, had I not sent for some boatmen who had lately made the voyage; from them I ascertained that matters were not nearly so bad as the Ambassador had represented; there was a risk, but no certainty, of our being attacked. Accordingly, not wishing to waste my time at Lyons, where no intelligence was to be obtained of the movements of the King—nor, indeed, any news at all—and thus displease both your Majesty and the Queen, I determined at all hazards to continue my journey.

Accordingly I embarked at Lyons on the 15th, and reached Avignon on the 17th.35 By God’s mercy, I encountered no difficulty or danger on the way, and found the road far safer and pleasanter than I had been led to expect. Not that it was altogether safe, for at Valence Bishop Montluc,36 (the chief negotiator in the Polish business), when he came on board to pay his respects, advised me to take with me six musketeers, as people had been stopped in the neighbourhood, and some had been killed. I followed his advice.

I had an audience of the King on the 19th of the same month, and was received most kindly. On my delivering your Majesty’s message and letter, together with that of the Empress, he answered in very handsome terms, that for your Majesty’s sake he would do all that lay in his power for the Queen, and spoke at great length of the attentions and kind services he had received at your hands. The Queen Mother (Catherine de Medici), to whose presence I was admitted a few days later, held similar language; she had been suffering from constant sickness, which prevented her giving me an earlier interview. I ascertained later that the King had sent letters to the Queen at Paris touching the dower, and that, contrary to the usual custom, they had been registered by the Parliament of Paris before being presented to the Queen. I called on his Majesty and made some objections to his proposal. The King said he must refer the matter to his council, and also wait for an answer from the Queen’s advisers. He spoke of your Majesty’s kindness at great length, and specially of the assurances he had lately received, through Vulcob,37 that he would have your Majesty’s support if he cared to keep his kingdom of Poland.

In the course of our conversation I discovered that the King would do whatever the Queen Mother wished, so I determined to approach her again and ask for her services on behalf of the Queen. She professed the utmost willingness and said, she would do her best for the Queen, who had been an excellent daughter to her.

A few days later, de Morvilliers,38 the Bishop of Orleans, and the Bishop of Limoges called on me and we had a long discussion with regard to the dower. I must not forget to mention that, when the King told me that your Majesty had offered to assist him in keeping his kingdom of Poland, I was much surprised, but made no reply, as I thought it might possibly be a trap. I wonder also that nothing has been said as to the non-payment of the marriage portion39; I am afraid they are keeping this argument in reserve.

I must not forget to inform your Majesty that, in the course of my interview with the Queen Mother, she told me she felt assured of the kindly feeling which your Majesty entertained for her, because your Majesty had continually advised her against war, whereas those who wished her ill had given the opposite counsel. She had followed your Majesty’s advice, she said, for a long time, and thereby exposed herself to severe criticism from not a few.

Lyons, January 24, 1575.

LETTER XII.

To-day the King set out from Lyons on his way to Rheims, where he is to be crowned—as he told me himself—on the 13th.

I will not weary your Majesty with a full description of the state of France, but content myself with a sketch.

Ever since the commencement of the civil wars which are distracting the country, there has been a terrible change for the worse. So complete is the alteration, that those who knew France before would not recognise her again. Everywhere are to be seen shattered buildings, fallen churches, and towns in ruins; while the traveller gazes horror-stricken on spots which have but lately been the scenes of murderous deeds and inhuman cruelties. The fields are left untilled: the farmer’s stock and tools have been carried off by the soldier as his booty, he is plundered alike by Frenchman and by foreigner. Commerce is crippled; the towns lately thronged with merchants and customers are now mourning their desolation in the midst of closed shops and silent manufactories. Meanwhile, the inhabitants, ground down by ceaseless exactions, are crying out at the immense sums which are being squandered for nought, or applied to purposes for which they were never intended. They demand a reckoning in tones which breathe a spirit of rebellion. Men of experience, members of the oldest families in France, are in many cases regarded with suspicion, and either not allowed to come to Court, or left to vegetate at home. Besides the two parties into which Frenchmen are divided by their religious differences, there are also feuds and quarrels which affect every grade of society.

In the first place, the feeling against the Italians who are in the French service is very strong; the high promotion they have received and the important duties with which they have been intrusted, arouse the jealousy of men who consider them ignorant of French business, and hold that they have neither merit, services, nor birth to justify their appointment. Birague, as Chancellor, holds one of the highest offices in the kingdom; Comte de Retz40 is a Maréchal; Strozzi is in command of the infantry of France; Guadagni is Seneschal of Lyons; and in the same way other Italians occupy most important posts, while Frenchmen murmur.

Again, Italians farm nearly all the taxes, and exact their dues so rigidly as to drive the natives, who are unaccustomed to such extortion, to the very verge of rebellion; there will be another Saint Bartholomew41 if they do not take care, and they will be the victims.

The feuds which separate the leading families of France are more bitter than those described in ancient tragedy; this is the state of feeling which exists between the Houses of Guise, Vendôme and Bourbon, not to mention that of Montmorency, which, through its alliances and connections, has a considerable party of its own.

The Bourbons are the strongest; the Guises have most influence at Court, but this is an advantage which they may lose any day by the death of the King, and then their fall is inevitable.

By his nearest relations the King is feared rather than loved, for, knowing the designs they entertained before the death of his brother (Charles IX.), they have no confidence in his mercy and forgiveness, though he professes to have pardoned them, and think that his vengeance is only deferred for a time. On the other hand, the King must see clearly from the flight of Condé what the feelings of his own family are towards him.

The district in which the rebellion on religious grounds has struck its deepest roots begins at Rochelle and reaches to the Rhone, comprising the whole of Guienne and Languedoc: it includes Saintonge, Poitou, the Limousin, Perigord, Gascony, the country round Narbonne, &c., &c. Nor is this all; across the Rhone, in Dauphiny itself, Montbrun has seized places, as, for instance, Livron, which is now besieged by the Royalists.

In making the statement that the rebels are powerful in Languedoc and Guienne, I must not be understood to say that the principal cities of those provinces do not obey the King; my meaning is that the insurgents occupy posts of vantage throughout the country, which enable them to render both life and property insecure; there is no peace or quiet for those who are loyal to the King. To drive them from their fortresses would be a most difficult task, for they have formidable positions and strong fortifications, garrisoned by veteran soldiers, who have made up their minds to die rather than trust the King’s word. Such, undoubtedly, is their determination, for though peace, which is the only cure for these ills, has lately been freely mentioned, and certain men were at Avignon from Condé and his party, still, up to the present moment, no arrangement has been concluded. True, the King is ready to pledge his word that, if his towns are restored to him, no one shall be troubled on account of his religion; but the memory of Saint Bartholomew42 is a fatal obstacle: they will place no confidence in his promise, and believe that it is only a stratagem to destroy the survivors of that night.

Such acts of treachery, it would seem, never answer in the long run, whatever the advantage at the time may be!

Some people have a notion that the idea of peace is not seriously entertained, but is simply a manœuvre to break up the confederacy by making overtures to some of its members.

Ambassadors, it is true, have been sent lately to Rochelle, but in the meantime both parties are busy fighting: the King is pressing on the sieges of Livron and Lusignan, while the rebels are using every means in their power to harass and perplex him. After the King’s departure from Avignon, they took possession of Aigues-Mortes,43 where they found a store of cannon, which will be of great service to them. One fort, however, still remains in the hands of the Royalists, and the Duc de Uzes, who commands for the King, does not despair of retaking the town under cover of its fire.

It is not that I should regard the situation as hopeless, if there were a prospect of matters taking a turn for the better, but, bad as is the present state of things, it is nothing compared to what we may expect any day to see.

Having given my ideas as to the state of the country, I will now give my opinion of the King. Of his character your Majesty has had opportunities of judging; he is naturally well disposed, and in the hands of good advisers and councillors of sound judgment might turn out a pattern sovereign. But his companions are wild young men, the tone of French society is licentious, and he listens to selfish intriguers who are seeking their own advantage; under such circumstances, who can say that he will not go astray? Both he and his brother (Alençon) are of a weakly constitution and not likely to be long-lived.

The ambassadors who came from Poland have been ordered to remain at Lyons, and there await the King’s arrival; it is supposed that his Majesty will not care much for the despatches which they bring, as they are couched in rough, not to say threatening, language. It seems that the King has thoughts of keeping Poland, for, though he is still a bachelor, he has announced his intention of bestowing it on one of his future children, and with this view is negotiating for an alliance with the King of Sweden’s daughter; for my own part, however, I am inclined to suspect that this is a mere feint. First among the aspirants to the Crown of Poland stands the Duke of Ferrara, but in France the idea is that the Transylvanian44 is the candidate most popular with the Poles. The King is dissatisfied with the Duke of Savoy’s conduct with regard to Damville, and it is supposed that, if what is past could be recalled, he would not be so liberal with his towns.45

It seems that the siege of Livron will be a long business; for, though the wall has been battered with cannon, and there is as wide a breach as the besiegers could desire for them to mount to the attack, two assaults have already been repulsed with heavy loss. There are several reasons to account for these failures: in the first place, the attacking column has to climb up hill through the rubbish and débris, which crumble away under their feet; secondly, fresh intrenchments have been made within the circuit of the walls, and the besieged are so confident of holding the town that they may almost be said to laugh at the efforts of their enemies.46 I saw this with my own eyes when I passed Livron on my way back from Avignon. Thirdly, when they come to close quarters, not only do they meet with a most stubborn resistance from the men, but many of them are also wounded by the women, who rain stones upon them from the roofs and ramparts. I saw six ensigns on the walls of the town, whence it is assumed that there are 400 soldiers in the garrison; they have muskets, but no cannon. His son-in-law, who was in command of the town, having been killed by a cannon-ball, Montbrun, the night before I arrived, sent four more gentlemen into the place with a party of soldiers; it is said that they passed through the outposts of the German horse commanded by Count Nogarola.

Your Majesty no doubt received intelligence long ago of the death of the Cardinal of Lorraine.47 He died of fever, after an illness of eighteen days. The attack was brought on, people think, by his walking in a procession of Flagellants, at night. The Queen Mother has been poorly from the same cause, and her daughter (Marguerite), wife of Vendôme (Henry of Navarre), had a troublesome cold, which lasted several days.

There are four societies of Flagellants at Avignon; the Cardinal enrolled himself in one of them, and advised the King to do the same; his Majesty’s example was followed by the whole of the nobility. On one occasion, when they were walking in procession with these societies at night, which is the usual time for such ceremonies, there was a very cold wind, and this is supposed to have been the cause of the Cardinal’s illness and death, for two or three days afterwards he fell sick.

He was a great man, and took a prominent part in the government of the country. In him we have lost a profound scholar, an eloquent speaker, an experienced statesman. He was ever anxious to advance the interests of his party and his family, and I am by no means sure that the State did not sometimes suffer in consequence. The King visited him during his illness, and would have gone to him oftener if he had not been afraid of infection. He has felt his death deeply. When the body was being removed from Avignon, on its way to Rheims, the King and four Cardinals accompanied it to the gates of the city. They were attended by all the nobles of the Court, with the King’s brother and the King of Navarre (as they style him here) at their head. These last, I imagine, were by no means sorry to do this honour, not to the Cardinal, but to his corpse! He died at night, and the Queen Mother was so upset by his death that the next day she fancied she saw him bidding her farewell, and could hear him saying ‘Adieu, madame; adieu, madame.’ She tried to point him out to those who were with her.48

Whilst I was writing, news came that Lusignan had surrendered to Montpensier. The garrison are to be allowed to retire to Bouteville and Pons with their arms and property. I hear also that the siege of Livron has been raised; the attacking force is broken up; the men being quartered in the neighbouring villages, from which they are to watch the town and see that no provisions are brought in. They will have a hard task, methinks, to keep up so strict a blockade, as not to be sometimes given the slip.

Lyons, January 24, 1575.