r LIBRARY ^ 
 
 UNIVOISITVOF 
 
 CALIPO*HU 
 SAN DIEQO
 
 The Romance of the 
 House of Savoy 
 
 1003-1519 
 
 By 
 
 Alethea Wiel 
 
 Author of "The Story of Venice," "Vittoria Colonna,' 
 " Two Doges of Venice," etc. 
 
 Second Volume 
 
 With illustrations reproduced chiefly from 
 contemporary sources 
 
 New York and London 
 G. P. Putnam's Sons 
 
 Clje Jhwkerbochcr Crests 
 1898
 
 COPYRIGHT, 1898 
 
 BY 
 
 G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS 
 Entered at Stationers' Hall, London 
 
 *nicherbocfcr pres. Hew Both
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Amadeus VIII., First Duke of Savoy. The Hermit of 
 Ripaille. Pope Felix V. The Return to the Her- 
 mitage. (1383-1451) i 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 The Home-Surroundings of the House of Savoy in the 
 Fifteenth Century. Tastes, Fashions, and Person- 
 alities. Inventories of the Objects Contained in the 
 Ducal Palaces of Turin, Chambery, and Pont d'Ain 
 at the Close of the Fifteenth Century . .. 92 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 Yolande of France. Her Marriage. Appointed Regent 
 of the State. Her Difficulties with Count Philip of 
 Bresse. Death of Amadeus IX. Tortuous Policy 
 of Louis XI. ; of Charles, Duke of Burgundy ; and 
 of the Duke of Milan. Yolande's Intrigues. Her 
 Imprisonment by the Duke of Burgundy. Her 
 Release. Her Return to Savoy. Her Death. 
 (1434-1478) 127 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 Bona of Savoy. Brought up at the Court of France. 
 Her Marriage with the Duke of Milan, Galeazzo 
 Maria Sforza. Journey to Florence. Murder of
 
 iv Contents 
 
 PAGB 
 
 the Duke of Milan. Bona Named Regent of the 
 State. Her Amours. Death of her Son, Gian 
 Galeazzo, Duke of Milan. Bona's Withdrawal to 
 France. Her Poverty. Her Death. (1449-1503.) 174 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 Blanche of Montferrat. Her Marriage with Duke 
 Charles I. of Savoy. His Death. Blanche's 
 Regency. The Chevalier Bayard. Arrival of 
 Charles VIII. of France in Italy. His Reception 
 in Turin. Death of the Young Duke. Blanche's 
 Life at Carignan. Bayard's Tourney. Her Death. 
 (1485-1519) . . ... . . .193 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 INDEX 
 
 249 
 
 255
 
 ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 FACING PAGE 
 
 * DUKE AMADEUS VIII. OF SAVOY, AFTERWARDS POPE 
 
 FELIX V Frontispiece 
 
 SEAL OF DUKE AMADEUS VIII 14 
 
 VIEW OF NICE IN 1726 28 
 
 COAT OF ARMS OF HOUSE OF SAVOY, WITH THE QUAK- 
 TER1NGS OF SAXONY, SAVOY, CHABLAIS AND AOSTA, 
 PIEDMONT, JERUSALEM, CYPRUS, ARMENIA, LUSIG- 
 NAN, AOSTA, SUSA, BAUOE, VAUD, NICE, AND 
 
 FAUCIGNY 
 
 VIEW OF Aix 
 
 ARMS OF AMADEUS VIII., AS POPE FELIX V. 
 
 VIEW OF AVIGLIANO 
 
 ARMS OF HUMBERT OF THE WHITE HANDS . 
 
 * DUKE AMADEUS IX. OF SAVOY 
 
 THE BLESSED AMADEUS OF SAVOY, AMADEUS IX. 
 VIEW OF MONCALIERI, WHERE YOLANDE OF FRANCE 
 
 DIED 
 
 SEAL OF THOMAS I., COUNT OF SAVOY 
 
 SHIELD OF YOLANDE OF FRANCE 
 
 BONA OF SAVOY, DUCHESS OF MILAN .... 
 
 From a drawing made by Signor Cesare Ferrari, from a mar- 
 ble effigy of Bona at the Certosa of Pavia. 
 
 SEAL OF COUNT AYMON OF SAVOY .... 192 
 
 * DUKE CHARLES I. OF SAVOY 192 
 
 VIEW OF CASALE 212 
 
 SEAL OF THOMAS I., COUNT OF SAVOY .... 227 
 
 * DUKE CHARLES II. OF SAVOY 232 
 
 MEDAL OF PHILIBERT II. AND YOLANDE LODOVICA . 238 
 
 VIEW OF CARIGNAN _; 2 4 
 
 SEAL OF EDWARD, COUNT OF SAVOY .... 247 
 
 * Designed by F. J. D. Lange from contemporary sources. 
 V
 
 THE ROMANCE OF 
 
 THE HOUSE OF SAVOY 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 AMADEUS VIII., FIRST DUKE OF SAVOY. THE 
 HERMIT OF RIPAILLE. POPE FELIX V. 
 THE RETURN TO THE HERMITAGE. (1383- 
 
 '"PH E strange vicissitudes through which 
 I Amadeus the Peaceful passed, the 
 positions he successively filled of duke, 
 hermit, pope, and finally hermit again, 
 colour his life with a romance totally dif- 
 ferent from that of his predecessors. 
 
 His birth, which took place at Cham- 
 bery, September 4, 1383, was the signal 
 for unusual rejoicing throughout Savoy. 
 His father, Amadeus VII. (the Conte 
 Rosso), was at that moment warring in 
 Flanders, where he had gone to assist 
 
 VOL. II. I
 
 2 The House of Savoy 
 
 King Charles VI. of France against the 
 English, and where he is described as 
 dressed in deep mourning for his father, 
 the Conte Verde, whose death had oc- 
 curred that same year in Apulia. The 
 French monarch, on receiving the news 
 of the birth of a son to Amadeus, begged 
 him to doff his sables and to array him- 
 self in more festive garb. Count Ama- 
 deus could find no excuse for refusing ; 
 the thought of his own fatherhood must 
 have softened his grief and caused him to 
 rejoice over his son's birth. 
 
 This joy, however, was short-lived. The 
 premature death of Amadeus VII., in 
 1391, left his only son a minor under the 
 tutelage of his grandmother, Bonne de 
 Bourbon, widow of the Conte Verde. 
 This tutelage was recognised only after a 
 sharp contest between the two widowed 
 Countesses, Bonne de Bourbon and Bonne 
 de Berry, the latter of whom, naturally 
 enough, claimed the right to act as guar- 
 dian to her son ; this post, however, was 
 wrested from her by her mother-in-law, 
 " Madame la Grande," whose nomination
 
 The Duke-Pope 3 
 
 was approved by the King of France and 
 the chief nobles and prelates of Savoy. 
 Bonne de Berry, judging it to be futile to 
 contend longer, retired from Savoy. After 
 only a few months of widowhood she 
 sought and found consolation in a second 
 marriage, with Bernard, Count of Ar- 
 magnac, by whom she had several children. 
 
 Amadeus remained, therefore, abso- 
 lutely under his grandmother's guidance 
 till the year 1398 ; much of the greatness 
 of his rule may surely be ascribed to her 
 training. 
 
 In 1413, Amadeus entertained the Em- 
 peror Sigismund with splendid hospitality 
 on his passage into Italy ; and in requital, 
 the Emperor elevated him, in 1416, to the 
 rank of Duke. It was during the fifteenth 
 century, which witnessed the elevation of 
 Savoy from a county to a duchy, that her 
 princes found their plans of aggrandise- 
 ment arrested on the north-west by the 
 increasing power of the great French mon- 
 archy, and on the north-east by the forma- 
 tion of the Swiss confederacy. They, 
 therefore, with the astute policy character-
 
 4 The House of Savoy 
 
 istic of their race, determined for the fu- 
 ture to aim at the gradual acquisition of 
 Lombardy, which still remained open to 
 them, and which one of their number com- 
 pared to "an artichoke which the House 
 of Savoy was to have, leaf by leaf." 
 
 Under Amadeus VIII., Savoy was one 
 of the most powerful of the Italian states, 
 and could bring eight thousand men-at- 
 arms into the field, at a period when the 
 utmost force of France or England did 
 not amount to more than thirty thousand. 
 
 In 1418, Piedmont reverted to its su- 
 zerain, Amadeus VIII. of Savoy, in con- 
 sequence of the failure of the branch of 
 the family which had held it so long ; not, 
 however, before Louis, its last prince, had 
 aided his cousin of Savoy to reduce the 
 Marquis of Saluzzo (who had transferred 
 his allegiance to France), and thus laid the 
 foundation of many subsequent wars with 
 that country. Amadeus preferred peace 
 to war ; but those who wished for his neu- 
 trality were required to purchase it. Thus, 
 Filippo Maria, Visconte of Milan, pre- 
 sented him with Vercelli ; and when the
 
 The Duke-Pope 5 
 
 Marquis of Montferrat was hard pressed 
 by the enmity of Milan, Amadeus exacted 
 from him that he should hold his country 
 from him as a fief, as the price of his good 
 offices. In 1416, Savoy was erected into 
 a duchy by the Emperor Sigismund ; and 
 Amadeus, anxious to justify the confi- 
 dence shown him by the people of Pied- 
 mont, when they returned under his sway, 
 published, in 1430, his code, entitled Stat- 
 uta Sabaudia, in which he embodied all 
 the best laws and regulations of his prede- 
 cessors, who, even in the midst of their 
 military expeditions, had not neglected the 
 needs of their subjects, but had striven to 
 give their governments something like a 
 peaceful organisation. Nay, Amadeus VI. 
 has the credit of having brought justice 
 within the reach of the lowest ranks of 
 his people, by the institution of the Avocat 
 des pauvres, who was bound to conduct 
 the causes of the poor gratis. Amadeus 
 VIII., however, entertained larger views, 
 and seems to have seen that the time was 
 come for the development of a different 
 system from that under which Italy had
 
 6 The House of Savoy 
 
 groaned for so long a time. The repeated 
 grants of the Emperors in favour of the 
 House of Savoy had done away with the 
 " immediacy " of the feudal aristocracy, 
 by which they claimed exemption from 
 all jurisdiction but that of the Empire. 
 The counts of Savoy were supreme and 
 free from all subjection to the Imperial 
 Chamber ; and no subject could now defy 
 the laws of the country. The cities, on 
 their part, weary of their turbulent free- 
 dom, were glad to submit to a more set- 
 tled government, and one by one came 
 into the hands of the Prince. All of them 
 had charters, which, by the terms of their 
 ultimate submission, were to be preserved 
 to them ; but a just and liberal govern- 
 ment gave them no reason to recur to 
 their peculiar rights, which soon grew to 
 be mere antiquated forms. The amalga- 
 mation of the separate townships into one 
 county, rather than into a number of petty 
 republics, was further promoted by occa- 
 sional assemblies of the States-General, 
 which, though far from being what we now 
 understand by a representative govern-
 
 The Duke-Pope 7 
 
 ment, did exercise a considerable control, 
 and were probably a fair representation of 
 all who at that time were possessed of suf- 
 ficient intelligence to have a voice in pub- 
 lic affairs. It is a question as to when 
 the " States " of Savoy and Piedmont first 
 began to exercise their special functions. 
 The system of government which Ama- 
 deus VIII. established was most thorough 
 for that time. He ordered lawyers to frame 
 and administer the laws ; the offices of chan- 
 cellor, president, and members of councils, 
 and to a certain extent those of bailiff 
 and chatelain, were awarded in considera- 
 tion of legal attainments. Law lords sat 
 by the side of peers by descent, and the 
 gown became as sure a road to distinc- 
 tion as the sword. He appointed judges to 
 each of the seven Transalpine provinces ; 
 and in Piedmont one to every town of 
 note. He held, yearly, a Supreme Gen- 
 eral Audience or Court of Appeals, for 
 the reversion of judgments issued by local 
 courts, or even by the councils them- 
 selves. The effect of all these measures 
 may be judged from the fact that in the
 
 8 The House of Savoy 
 
 time of Amadeus VIII., justice de Savoie 
 was a proverbial expression for prompt 
 and fair justice. 
 
 Amadeus VIII. greatly ameliorated the 
 condition of his people, and proved his 
 sagacity by the publication of a code of 
 excellent laws. He introduced into his 
 dominions the unity of legislation they 
 needed. He placed this work in the 
 hands of competent jurisconsults, at 
 whose head was his Grand Chancellor, 
 Jean de Beaufort. Thus were produced 
 the Statutes of Savoy, a unique code, 
 divided into five books, officially published 
 at Chambery, in the great hall of the 
 castle, in 1430. It was from this code that 
 France drew the idea of her own, in the 
 same way that the Florimontane Academy, 
 founded at Annecy in 1607 by St. Francis 
 de Sales and the jurisconsult, Antoine 
 Favre, was elder sister of the French 
 Academy. It is sad to turn from this 
 really enlightened system of government 
 to that part of the code which relates to 
 religion ; there the barbarism and bigotry 
 of the age is apparent ; and the laws of
 
 The Duke-Pope 9 
 
 Amadeus VIII. laid the foundation of 
 the cruel persecution of the Vaudois, 
 which, for a long time, was a disgrace 
 to the House of Savoy. 
 
 The history of the House of Savoy is 
 the history of grand military successes 
 and noble achievements ; every mountain- 
 side and glen of the picturesque princi- 
 pality has been associated with the gallant 
 deeds and glories of this royal race. 
 Nevertheless, there is a darker side to the 
 picture. The dukes of Savoy, from the 
 first Duke, Amadeus VIII., were always 
 a strong race ; they have produced many 
 successful warriors and astute politicians, 
 and their history has been illustrated by 
 heroic actions and great military enter- 
 prises. On the other hand, their history 
 has also been illustrated by disaster, big- 
 otry, and oppression. Kings of France 
 have persuaded Dukes of Savoy to emu- 
 late their fanaticism. Though a brave 
 soldier like Duke Emmanuel Philibert 
 has opposed the persecution of the Vau- 
 dois, and a conscientious ruler like Duke 
 Victor Amadeus II. has repented of his
 
 io The House of Savoy 
 
 harshness, yet Duke Charles Emmanuel 
 II. has provoked the rebuke of Milton's 
 sonnet On the Late Massacre in Piedmont. 
 
 It is strange that the dark horror of relig- 
 ious persecution in Savoy should date from 
 the otherwise mild and sagacious reign of 
 Amadeus VIII. But this ruler, with all 
 his clear-sightedness in temporal affairs, 
 had entertained a strange ambition to be a 
 saint also, and finally aspired to the papacy. 
 
 The interest evoked by Amadeus VIII. 
 culminates when, full of honours, he de- 
 termined to leave his throne and abjure 
 the world. His reign had been so suc- 
 cessful as to be almost monotonous from 
 the very extent of its prosperity. Ama- 
 deus had been appealed to as arbiter by 
 most of the princes of Europe ; by pur- 
 chase or by negotiation he had acquired 
 such vast possessions that his duchy, 
 from a small province, had developed into 
 an important state ; his Court was the 
 centre of all that was great, learned, and 
 artistic in that part of Europe ; his 
 schemes for his country's aggrandisement 
 had always succeeded ; yet Amadeus
 
 The Duke-Pope n 
 
 VIII., the Solomon, as he was called, of 
 his age, determined to withdraw from the 
 position created by his talents and filled 
 by him to perfection, in order to seek the 
 retirement of the hermitage of Ripaille. 
 
 The strangeness of the step raised a 
 string of surmises as to the motive of 
 the Duke's act. While one hypothesis 
 pleaded religion as the cause, another 
 was immediately put forth urging worldly 
 grounds. One of the chief motives 
 brought forward was Amadeus's grief for 
 the loss of his wife, Mary of Burgundy. 
 To this was also added his disgust with 
 human nature, as manifested in an attempt 
 on his life by one of his own subjects, on 
 whom he had conferred many favours. 1 A 
 cause mentioned by Monod (one of Ama- 
 deus's chief panegyrists), was the influence 
 exercised oh the Duke by his niece, Mar- 
 garet of Savoy, widow of Theodore, Mar- 
 quis of Montferrat. After her husband's 
 death, this Princess retired from the world 
 among the Sisters of St. Dominic, at Alba ; 
 she refused all the allurements of the 
 
 1 P. Monod, Amadeus Pacific-its, p. 18. Taurini, 1624.
 
 12 The House of Savoy 
 
 Duke of Milan, who, seconded by the 
 Pope, tried by every means in his power 
 to make her his wife. Such piety was sup- 
 posed to have had an effect in stimulat- 
 ing Amadeus to adopt a similar course of 
 renunciation. 
 
 On the other hand, Amadeus's detract- 
 ors ascribe other motives to his act of 
 semi-abdication. They refuse to recog- 
 nise any religious intention in the step, 
 and maintain that it was solely the result 
 of strategy. They declare that the Duke, 
 in view of the schisms then raging in the 
 Church, foresaw the possibilities that 
 might some day place the triple crown 
 upon his head, and that with this before 
 him he judged it advisable to assume a 
 character of holiness, certain that an out- 
 ward form of godliness, joined to his 
 rank and his reputation for wisdom, would 
 gain for him the desired end. They 
 dwell on the ambition that was the rul- 
 ing passion of Amadeus's actions, and 
 lay the charge of that quality at his 
 door as though it were a crime. Not 
 quite justly, perhaps, for though an idea
 
 The Duke-Pope 13 
 
 of personal advantage may have en- 
 tered into Amadeus's motives, there is 
 no doubt that the strong element of reli- 
 gion which coloured the age in which he 
 lived reacted upon his own actions as 
 well. The son of the Conte Rosso, and 
 the grandson of the Conte Verde, Ama- 
 deus must have inherited some of his 
 forefathers' spirit of chivalry ; the matter- 
 of-fact prosperity of his reign may have 
 urged him to vary his latter years with 
 incidents far more startling in their origi- 
 nality than an expedition to Constanti- 
 nople, or a crusade against the Infidel. 
 The picture of a Duke of Savoy stepping 
 aside from the course of his natural career 
 to retire awhile from the world, only to 
 reappear as Pope, is as quaint and un- 
 expected as can be found in history or 
 fiction ; and posterity must marvel con- 
 cerning the impulses at work within a 
 man who had always seemed a model of 
 common sense, practical rather than ro- 
 mantic, prosaic rather than visionary. 
 Was it ambition ? Was it religion ? Or 
 was it rather a blending of both of these
 
 H The House of Savoy 
 
 elements in a mind from early youth im- 
 bued with religious tendencies and steeped 
 in that devotion and esteem for holy things 
 which in those days formed a marked fea- 
 ture in men's lives ? 
 
 On the 7th of November, 1434, the cere- 
 mony took place whereby Amadeus VIII. 
 renounced his duchy and retired to a life 
 of simplicity and seclusion. He assem- 
 bled the chief prelates and barons of his 
 
 SEAL OF DUKE AMADEUS VIII. 
 
 duchy, and seated on a throne, his sons 
 Louis and Philip standing on either side 
 of him, Humbert the Bastard of Savoy 
 and two ducal marshals at his feet, he re- 
 lated, in a lengthy peroration, all that he 
 had done for the State since he came into
 
 The Duke-Pope 15 
 
 power. He then announced his intention 
 of retiring from the world, naming as his 
 lieutenant-general in his stead his eldest 
 son, Louis, who, kneeling before his fa- 
 ther, received from him his parental bless- 
 ing, together with the instructions as to 
 his powers of office. The restrictions as 
 to what he might not do far exceeded 
 the prerogatives vouchsafed to him. He 
 might form no alliances, engage in no 
 wars, name no bishops, confer no titles 
 without the express consent of his father ; 
 the homage, the oaths, and the other acts 
 of fealty were to be accepted and received 
 in Amadeus's name only. The Prince, in 
 fact, was to have all the burden of reign- 
 ing without any of its compensations ; and 
 the constant repetition of " We also ex- 
 pressly forbid," or, " You shall not pre- 
 sume to do," rings with a tone of author- 
 ity which completely fettered all liberty 
 of action on the lieutenant-general's part. 
 Amadeus then instituted Louis a Knight 
 of the Order of the Collar and bestowed 
 on him the title of Prince of Piedmont a 
 title since then always borne by the eldest
 
 16 The House of Savoy 
 
 sons of the dukes of Savoy. This cere- 
 mony ended, the assembly was dismissed, 
 and Amadeus remained alone with the six 
 companions whom he had chosen to share 
 his hermitage with him. These compan- 
 ions were men advanced in years, who 
 had been either ambassadors, generals, or 
 privy councillors ; they were either widow- 
 ers or celibates, and had already agreed to 
 participate in the life of seclusion to which 
 Amadeus had invited them. 
 
 The following day, in the Church of 
 Ripaille (founded and endowed by Am- 
 deus VIII. and dedicated by him to the 
 order of St. Augustine), the Prior of the 
 monastery arrayed the Duke and his six 
 comrades in the dress of hermits ; and 
 thus arose the order known at first as that 
 of " the Knights Hermit of St. Maurice." 
 Its original character was half religious 
 and half military, while the knights formed, 
 in reality, Amadeus's council of state, as 
 he not only directed from his retreat all the 
 administration of home affairs, but busied 
 himself with the politics of the rest of 
 Europe as well.
 
 The Duke-Pope 17 
 
 The following description given by 
 ^Eneas Silvius Piccolomini * will best serve 
 to show the life led by Amadeus and his 
 knights, the site chosen by them for their 
 retreat, the dress they wore, their food 
 and occupations : 
 
 " Far from the clang of arms, with his 
 kingdom centred in the mountains, Ama- 
 deus was called upon to arbitrate, now for 
 this one, now for the other, and was consid- 
 ered the only one capable of dictating up- 
 rightly, whether for himself or for others ; 
 while to him, as to another Solomon, 
 French and Italians alike appealed. On 
 the shores of Lake Leman many a high 
 and stately tree reared itself above the 
 meadows which stretched away below these 
 woods, watered here and there with run- 
 ning brooks. Much of this land was en- 
 closed by walls built by Amadeus VIII., 
 and within were collected stags, does, and 
 other animals that war not against man- 
 kind. Near to the shore of the lake he had 
 built a church, wherein he placed priests, 
 
 1 In his Commentarii, lib. vii., which were published under 
 the name of " Jean Gobelin," his amanuensis.
 
 i8 The House of Savoy 
 
 and instituted prebends and other dignita- 
 ries, and also built habitations where the 
 Canons could dwell in comfort ; and not 
 far from there he built a fine palace, hav- 
 ing towers and a moat, in which there 
 were seven habitations, six being similar 
 and fit to be occupied by cardinals ; in 
 each one there were a hall, a room, an an- 
 teroom, and certain secret rooms or re- 
 ceptacles where precious things were 
 stored. The seventh habitation, set 
 apart for the Prince, would not have been 
 deemed unfit for a king, or for the Su- 
 preme Pontiff. Here dwelt Amadeus 
 and his six councillors (ottimati^), ad- 
 vanced in years, of the same age ; each 
 had reached the age of sixty. As they 
 had all been cavalry officers and had 
 often led their followers to war, they 
 now, under Amadeus, Deacon and Mas- 
 ter, by the alteration of their secular garb 
 made profession of becoming Knights 
 of St. Maurice. Not far from that spot, 
 St. Maurice, with the Theban legion, 
 had suffered martyrdom for the name of 
 Christ.
 
 The Duke-Pope 19 
 
 " The spot was called Ripaille, and was 
 distant from Thonon about a thousand 
 paces. The Cardinal of Santa Croce, 
 while on his way to France to treat for 
 peace a second time, arrived here with his 
 ships. Amadeus went to meet him at the 
 port, walking down through the woods, 
 girt with walls, to the port near the shore. 
 It was a wonderful thing, which posterity 
 will hardly credit, to see the reception of 
 the Apostolic Legate by this Prince, the 
 most mighty of his age, feared alike by 
 French and Italians, who was wont to be 
 decked in golden robes and surrounded by 
 others clad in purple, preceded by bearers 
 with axes and followed by hosts of armed 
 and powerful retainers, now preceded only 
 by six hermits and a few priests in vile 
 raiment. A company worthy to be ad- 
 mired ! Each hermit had on his breast a 
 gold cross, the only sign he still retained 
 of nobility ; in all else he showed his dis- 
 dain of the world. The Cardinal and 
 Amadeus embraced each other with much 
 charity ; nor could the Cardinal sufficiently 
 extol the conversion of the Prince."
 
 20 The House of Savoy 
 
 The life of Amadeus there was simple, 
 though not austere. H is hours were passed 
 between the wise discussion of public affairs 
 and the close observance of religious ex- 
 ercises with his six seigniors who formed 
 with him the new order of religious chiv- 
 alry. Each companion of the Order wore 
 a long beard, as was the wont with hermits, 
 a grey habit with a golden girdle, a furred 
 mantle decorated with a gold cross, a 
 crimson bonnet, and a long, pointed grey 
 hood, and carried in his hand a knotted 
 and twisted stick. 
 
 According to M. Jules Vuy the corre- 
 spondence of Amadeus VIII. with the 
 Duke Louis, his son, at the moment of 
 the affair of Milan, showed unmistakably 
 that the solitude of Ripaille was not one 
 of futile indolence and vulgar leisure, but, 
 on the contrary, full of serious and high 
 preoccupations. 
 
 The contemporaries of Amadeus, with 
 two exceptions, bear testimony to the re- 
 spectable and useful lives of himself and 
 his knights. The attacks, however, of 
 these two pamphleteers, who were in the
 
 The Duke-Pope 21 
 
 pay of his enemies, were preserved by 
 Duclos in his History of Louis XL and by 
 Richelet, and were popularised by the 
 malicious verses of Voltaire. 
 
 The fare of these recluses was not of a na- 
 ture to raise uneasiness as to its sufficiency 
 or quality, for one account asserts that 
 they lived on partridges, pheasants, and 
 capons, while pomegranates, oranges, and 
 other fruits supplied the dessert for the 
 hermitage. Many accusations are rife 
 that this profession of self-denial was an 
 excuse for a life of ease, pleasure, and 
 sensuality. It has been asserted that the 
 expression faire Ripaille (i. e., to feast, or 
 live well), was derived from the time and 
 doings of Amadeus VIII. and his boon 
 companions. 
 
 The opportunity to have a fling at roy- 
 alty and religion afforded by the charges 
 laid at Amadeus's door was one not to be 
 neglected by Voltaire, and the following 
 lines show his sentiments with regard to 
 the Duke of Savoy at Ripaille : 
 
 " Ripaille, je te vois ; O bizarre Amedee, 
 Est-il vrai que dans ces beax lieux,
 
 22 The House of Savoy 
 
 Des soins et des grandeurs e"cartant toute ide"e, 
 
 Tu ve"cus en vrai sage, en vrai voluptueux, 
 Et, que, lasse" bient6t de ton doux hermitage, 
 Tu voulus etre pape et cessas d'etre sage ?" ' 
 
 These charges, brought in later days 
 against a man who in his lifetime stood so 
 high in public estimation, are not worthy 
 of credence. When one considers the 
 extraordinary deference paid to the Her- 
 mit-Duke by the other princes of Europe, 
 and the respect which he inspired in men 
 capable of passing an impartial judgment, 
 together with the known veneration and 
 love he had shown from his earliest days 
 for religion, they tend to give the lie to 
 many of the accusations brought against 
 him. His existence at Ripaille was far 
 from being idle or self-centred, though 
 unfettered by the outward cares and para- 
 phernalia of State ; he attended, as before 
 his renunciation, to the administration of 
 his duchy and, in all but external appear- 
 ance, acted as the ruler of Savoy. 
 
 For five years this life of peace and pri- 
 vacy, of activity and usefulness, went on 
 
 1 Voltaire, Epitre 75.
 
 The Duke-Pope 23 
 
 uninterruptedly, but at the end of that 
 time a startling change came to disturb 
 Amadeus the Peaceful. 
 
 To explain the causes of this change, 
 we must turn, for a moment, from the 
 affairs of Savoy to the disturbances in the 
 Church. In order, however, to have a 
 just appreciation of the historical move- 
 ment of the time, which gave the oppor- 
 tunity to Amadeus VIII. of Savoy to 
 step out from a life in which he was 
 quietly vegetating at his hermitage of 
 Ripaille to the most important and con- 
 spicuous station in the centre of the stage 
 of current history, we must regard the 
 situation, not only in its ecclesiastical 
 bearings, but also as a crisis in European 
 politics. 
 
 The councils which had been convened 
 by different popes to regulate the disor- 
 ders in the Church had sat successively 
 at Constance, Pavia, Siena, and lastly at 
 Basle, where the reigning Pope, Eugenius 
 IV., had confirmed the Council appointed 
 by his predecessor, Martin V. The Coun- 
 cil of Basle was not so much busied with
 
 24 The House of Savoy 
 
 theological and doctrinal controversy as 
 with politics pure and simple. The drama 
 of events had so disposed the principal 
 contestants that against Italy, or rather 
 against the Italian domination of the 
 Church and the consequent influence of 
 Italy upon European affairs, were ranged 
 the other Powers of Europe. The Em- 
 peror of Germany and the King of France, 
 with some other rulers, vigorously opposed 
 the Italian policy which ruled the Church 
 and so overruled the nations. 
 
 Pope Eugenius claimed that it was the 
 duty of a pope to preserve the Church 
 patrimony even by war, rather than that, 
 without an armed resistance, he should suf- 
 fer the temporalities of the Church to be 
 alienated. The military conflicts in which 
 he engaged with various Italian princes 
 drove him out of Rome for a time. He 
 passed most of his period of exile at 
 Florence. 
 
 Though the Council of Basle had been 
 opened in July, 1431, no sittings had been 
 held till the following December, when 
 certain measures for the reform of abuses
 
 The Duke-Pope 25 
 
 met with only the partial approbation of 
 Eugenius IV., who also began to cavil at 
 the nominations of some of the cardinals 
 made by his predecessor. Thus were 
 sown the seeds of irritation and misunder- 
 standing between himself and the Council 
 that, shortly after, bore such bitter fruit. 
 The Pope was distracted with care, war, 
 and the Council of Basle. This assem- 
 bly, begun by decree of Pope Martin, in- 
 creased daily by the conflux of the princes 
 of Spain, France, Germany, and Hungary. 
 These princes referred the care of all Chris- 
 tendom to the Council ; this became in- 
 tolerable, so the Pope contrived means 
 to dissolve it. But the Emperor of Ger- 
 many upheld the princes and prelates 
 then at Basle. Thus the Council not 
 only disobeyed the Pope, but admonished 
 him several times to come himself, with 
 his cardinals, to Basle, which was a con- 
 venient place that Pope Martin had chosen 
 to hold the Council in. Otherwise, they 
 threatened to oppose him as a prevaricat- 
 ing and obstinate person. 
 
 In order to obtain a greater hold upon
 
 26 The House of Savoy 
 
 the assembly, the Pope meditated remov- 
 ing the Council to Ferrara, where he could 
 very easily force an acquiescence in his 
 views that was not feasible at the distant 
 town of Basle. The mere mention of such a 
 removal ruffled the temper of the Fathers 
 of the Church, who promulgated a decree, 
 which had emanated originally from Con- 
 stance, to the effect that the Pope must be 
 subservient to the Council. To this an- 
 nouncement Eugenius answered by annul- 
 ling the Council, depriving the Cardinal 
 Giuliano of the Legation conferred on him 
 by Martin V., and ordering the cardinals 
 and bishops assembled at Basle to present 
 themselves within the next eighteen 
 months at Ferrara. 
 
 All the chief princes of Europe pro- 
 tested against this arbitrary action on the 
 part of the Pope ; finally, overcome by 
 the resistance of so many potentates, and 
 convinced by two letters from Cardinal 
 Giuliano (which breathe a spirit of Apos- 
 tolic freedom), the Pope was induced to 
 reconfirm the Council of Basle by a new 
 bull. But the Fathers, quietly ignor-
 
 The Duke-Pope 27 
 
 ing this amende honorable of the Pontiff, 
 proceeded to ventilate their grievances 
 against His Holiness, and dwelt more fully 
 than before upon his inability to annul the 
 assembly, or to convene one in another 
 place. Enraged beyond measure at this 
 behaviour, Eugenius again changed his 
 mind; he revoked his conciliatory bull, and 
 annulled the Council a second time, sum- 
 moning it to meet anew at Ferrara. There- 
 upon the Fathers determined to act on 
 their own account, and published an edict ; 
 they declared themselves rightfully con- 
 voked, assisted by the Holy Spirit, endued 
 with the lawful authority of a regularly 
 convened assembly ; on the strength of 
 these powers they implored Eugenius to 
 reconsider his verdict, warning him that 
 should he not hearken to their admonitions 
 they would be obliged to provide for the 
 wants of the Church, and proceed in due 
 form to depose him. Their next step was 
 to insure the independence and superiority 
 of the Council, and to announce that, if 
 within a given time the Pope did not 
 acknowledge the Council, he should be de-
 
 28 The House of Savoy 
 
 clared contumacious and no heed would be 
 taken of his opposition. These decrees 
 they took pains to establish by orthodox 
 means. 
 
 All this time the Pope's wars were con- 
 tinuing. Having recovered Rome, he 
 sent his General, Viteleschus, who sacked 
 many towns formerly belonging to the 
 Church, and sent such inhabitants as sur- 
 vived to Rome. In 1435, Eugenius left 
 Florence and resided at Bologna, where 
 he built a fort and fortified the city. 
 
 Philip, Duke of Milan, was displeased 
 because the Florentines, by the help and 
 persuasion of Pope Eugenius, had sent 
 Francis Sforza to aid the Venetians. Out 
 of revenge he induced the leaders of 
 the Council of Basle to cite Eugenius be- 
 fore them. They did so repeatedly. The 
 Pope, somewhat taken aback at these pro- 
 ceedings, made different overtures to the 
 Fathers, to which, however, they refused 
 to hearken. Then, in order to heal the 
 division between himself and the Council, 
 he applied to Amadeus of Savoy, whose 
 peaceable disposition and rectitude of pur-
 
 The Duke-Pope 29 
 
 pose he had already experienced on for- 
 mer occasions, before matters became so 
 serious. Eugenius had confidence in the 
 Duke of Savoy, although he knew that he 
 was the strongest representative whom 
 the clerical politicians of Basle could put 
 forth as the champion of their rights. 
 
 On account of the peculiar location of 
 the site of the Council, the subjects of Ama- 
 deus constituted a majority of its members. 
 Amadeus was one of the most powerful 
 rulers of Europe. The alliances of his 
 House bound to his interests, by the ties 
 of consanguinity, all the great Powers. No 
 other man of prominence in both ecclesi- 
 astical and state affairs was able by reason 
 of the prestige of his position and the in- 
 fluence of his connexions to stand forth as 
 the mediator between Pope Eugenius and 
 the Council. When it was suggested by 
 the Savoyards in the Council that the ser- 
 vices of Amadeus could be utilised, the 
 hint was received with enthusiastic acclaim. 
 At the request of the Council there was 
 sent to the Pope a legation from Amadeus. 
 This was a proceeding which involved
 
 30 The House of Savoy 
 
 complications of the most delicate char- 
 acter. It was a difficult thing to be able, 
 in the Pope's presence, to gracefully ex- 
 cuse the action of the Council ; for it was 
 
 COAT OF ARMS OF HOUSE OF SAVOY, WITH THE QUARTERING^ 
 
 OF SAXONY, SAVOY, CHABLAIS AND AOSTA, PIEDMONT, 
 
 JERUSALEM, CYPRUS, ARMENIA, LUSIGNAN, AOSTA, 
 
 SUSA, BAUQE, VAUD, NICE, AND FAUCIQNY. 
 
 this Council that had deposed him. They 
 proffered the services of Amadeus as me- 
 diator between Eugenius and the recal- 
 citrant prelates and clerics at Basle.
 
 The Duke-Pope 31 
 
 Amadeus willingly set himself to the 
 task ; he started at once for Dijon to en- 
 treat the Duke of Burgundy, who was 
 there at that moment, to join with him in 
 pacifying the Fathers in Council. Not 
 content with that, he despatched the 
 Bishop of Belley and the Prior of St. 
 Dominic at Chambery as ambassadors to 
 Basle, to induce all to lay aside their con- 
 tentions and to combine for the good of 
 Christianity in preaching peace and good- 
 will to men. 
 
 It is curious to note how, in the midst 
 of his zeal for the cause of Church unity, 
 Amadeus was not forgetful of his own 
 rank and dignity, and enjoined on his am- 
 bassadors, or orators as they were called, 
 the need of bespeaking a suitable seat for 
 themselves in the Council Chamber. He 
 impressed on them what an easy matter 
 this would be before the arrival of the 
 Duke of Burgundy's ambassadors ; for, if 
 the Burgundians were once on the spot, it 
 would be impossible to precede them ; but, 
 at the same time, it would be absolutely 
 indecorous for Savoy to give place to Bur-
 
 32 The House of Savoy 
 
 gundy. Amadeus had only lately been 
 raised to the dignity of Duke of Savoy, 
 but he argued that, as his ancestors had 
 for three centuries borne the title of Duke 
 of Aosta and of the Chablais, the patent 
 of Duke was not of recent creation, and 
 his rank therefore should be recognised as 
 above that of the Duke of Burgundy. But 
 this was asking just a little too much ; 
 and thereupon arose the discussion as 
 to the appropriate seat for the orators 
 of Savoy. The President of the Coun- 
 cil, the Archbishop of Ostia, occupied of 
 course the seat of honour ; the next high- 
 est place was immediately on his right 
 hand, and this had been destined for the 
 Burgundian orators. On the President's 
 left sat the Patriarch of Alexandria, and 
 on the Patriarch's left was the seat ap- 
 pointed for the ambassadors of Amadeus. 
 The burning question was now mooted as 
 to whether this place was, indeed, the 
 most honourable after that occupied by 
 the Burgundians, or whether a seat to their 
 right would not have been of a higher 
 grade. The agitation over this matter
 
 The Duke-Pope 33 
 
 was great, and it could only be settled by 
 taking the votes of the assembly. The 
 relief experienced all round must have 
 been untold when, without one dissenting 
 voice, the left hand of the Alexandrian 
 Patriarch was proclaimed to rank directly 
 after the right hand of the President ; so 
 that no slight was put upon the Savoyard 
 orators, and the small superiority accorded 
 to those of Burgundy could not offend 
 mortally the dignity of their neighbours 
 of Savoy. 
 
 The importance assigned to so petty a 
 matter causes one to wonder how momen- 
 tous affairs could ever have obtained suffi- 
 cient hearing ; but there was involved a 
 deeper issue in the question than at first 
 sight appears, which places it in a light not 
 at all comic or contemptible. Amadeus 
 was anxious to rank Savoy among the fore- 
 most powers of Europe. He had ad- 
 vanced his country to a height never 
 previously attained, and he was eager to 
 insure for it a position that should be re- 
 cognised throughout Christendom. So his 
 directions may be credited to a serious 
 
 VOL. II. 3
 
 34 The House of Savoy 
 
 purpose, inspired by zeal for his country's 
 advancement, and the determination to 
 neglect no means whereby her position 
 should be rightly understood and re- 
 spected. 
 
 But, apart from the schemes for his 
 country's progress and his desire to pro- 
 mote her weal, Amadeus was sincerely 
 engrossed in the vexed question of the 
 Pope's discord with the Basilean Fathers. 
 His intervention, however, failed to do 
 more than to produce a momentary lull in 
 the strife ; neither the number of councils 
 convened, nor the experiment of changing 
 their places of meeting, proved of the least 
 service in allaying the growing discord. 
 The irritation was too real and wide- 
 spread ; the spirits of all concerned were 
 too antagonistic to listen to appeals for 
 forbearance and submission. Eugenius 
 declared the Council of Basle to be void : 
 the members of the Council, in their turn, 
 denounced the Pope as contumacious and 
 incapable of all jurisdiction, whether tem- 
 poral or spiritual ; they passed a decree 
 (June 25, 1439) whereby Eugenius IV.
 
 The Duke-Pope 35 
 
 was deposed from the papal chair, and 
 pronounced a disturber of the peace and 
 of ecclesiastical unity, simoniacal, perjured, 
 incorrigible, a schismatic, and a heretic. 
 
 The most learned and able theologians 
 of Europe were to be found in the Coun- 
 cil of Basle. The important position of 
 this assembly may be seen from the fact 
 that the ambassadors of the Emperor of 
 Germany, and of the King of France, the 
 Bishop of Lubeck, and the Archbishop of 
 Tours, approved the act of the Council 
 in suspending Pope Eugenius IV., and 
 declaring him an enemy to the truth. 
 
 The peace-making, conciliatory mind 
 of Amadeus was staggered at these pro- 
 ceedings on the part of the Council. Such 
 an outburst against the head of the 
 Church he considered to be sacrilegious 
 and invalid. Had Eugenius been guilty, 
 as the Basilean Fathers assumed, they 
 should have remembered that a decree of 
 Theodoric the Arian, King of the Goths 
 (when in A.D. 500 he had been asked to 
 pronounce against Pope Symmachus), had 
 declared that " God had willed that the
 
 36 The House of Savoy 
 
 things of men should be judged by men ; 
 but that he whom He had chosen to fill 
 His See, the Most High alone would 
 judge ; and He willed that the successors 
 of St. Peter should owe their innocence 
 to Heaven alone, and commit their con- 
 science inviolate to the judgment of the 
 Most High." 
 
 But Amadeus's feelings, though shocked 
 at the irregularity of such proceedings, 
 were tempered with wariness. He was 
 careful not to commit himself to either 
 party, and with much tact he put forth a 
 protest, repudiating all that his ambassa- 
 dors at Basle might have said or done 
 contrary to the obedience due by him to 
 the Catholic Church ; to which Church he 
 declared his determination ever to adhere 
 faithfully. 
 
 Upon receiving notice of the resolution 
 of his deposition, Pope Eugenius imme- 
 diately annulled the Council. 
 
 Meanwhile, affairs were going on apace 
 at Basle. The only cardinal present was 
 the Cardinal of Aries. He was resolutely 
 determined upon giving Pope Eugenius
 
 The Duke-Pope 37 
 
 no opportunity whereby he might be re- 
 turned to power. He feared that the 
 Council might rescind its own action in 
 suspending and deposing Eugenius ; that 
 he might be restored to favour and rein- 
 stated once more in the allegiance of his 
 rebellious bishops. This was a contin- 
 gency which was likely to occur as long 
 as the papal chair was left vacant. If it 
 could be filled by a substitute to whom 
 would be accorded their homage as a 
 lawful and reigning pope, the Cardinal's 
 plans for the undoing of Eugenius would 
 at last achieve success. He accordingly 
 determined upon offering in nomination 
 as Pope the name of Amadeus. 
 
 Upon the Council proceeding to elect 
 a new Pope, the Cardinal of Aries had to 
 bide his time, and to wait until a French 
 candidate had been disposed of. The 
 French party predominated at the Coun- 
 cil, and through its influence the choice 
 fell first on John, surnamed the Good, 
 Count of Angouleme and Perigord, and 
 son of Louis, Duke of Orleans, and Val- 
 entina of Milan.
 
 38 The House of Savoy 
 
 After Duke Louis's assassination in 
 1407, Valentina, having found her beauty 
 and her sorrow ineffectual in her ap- 
 peal to King Charles VI. to obtain 
 vengeance on her husband's murderers, 
 withdrew to Blois. She died of grief the 
 following year (1408), leaving the orphan 
 John to the care of his elder brother, 
 Charles, Duke of Orleans, himself aged 
 only sixteen. In 1412, John was given by 
 his brother to the English as a guaranty 
 for the sum of one hundred thousand 
 crowns, owed by the Duke for a force of 
 English soldiers raised by him to support 
 his cause against France. John remained 
 a prisoner for more than thirty-two years, 
 and his captivity was shared by his brother 
 Charles, who was imprisoned in England 
 from 1415 to 1440. The two brothers 
 whiled away the hours of captivity by 
 writing poetry, history, and moral philoso- 
 phy. In order to regain his liberty John 
 had to ransom himself by the payment of 
 the one hundred thousand crowns. To 
 raise this sum he was obliged to sell the 
 County of Perigord, which was bought by
 
 The Duke-Pope 39 
 
 John of Brittany, Count of Limoges. 
 On his return to France he married Mar- 
 garet, daughter of the Viscount de Rohan ; 
 but he spent his life in seclusion, separated 
 alike from family and public affairs, ab- 
 sorbed in study and devout meditation. 
 His goodness and his retired, contempla- 
 tive life gained for him many admirers ; 
 and a majority of the Council of Basle 
 thought him a fit person to fill the papal 
 chair, and laid the offer before him. This 
 offer, however, was declined by John the 
 Good. 
 
 It would be more satisfactory to the 
 admirers of Duke Amadeus if they could 
 point to him as awaiting the result of this 
 turn in affairs with dignified equanimity 
 and calm indifference as to the personal 
 result. But such, unfortunately, was not 
 the case. Amadeus busied himself with 
 efforts to insure his own nomination. 
 Overtures were sent to several princes 
 with the idea of inviting their assistance 
 in this crisis. Among others he appealed 
 to his own son-in-law, the Duke of Milan. 
 
 The nationality of the electors to the
 
 40 The House of Savoy 
 
 papacy shows that there was an attempt 
 at giving an apparently equal represen- 
 tation to the nations sending delegates 
 France, Italy, Germany, and Spain. 
 Savoy, however, secured a majority among 
 the electors through an amusing techni- 
 cality : it was insisted that Savoy should 
 be considered as belonging to both France 
 and Italy. There were twelve bishops 
 among the electors : the Cardinal of 
 Aries, the Bishop of Basle, and one Span- 
 ish and two French bishops ; the remain- 
 ing seven bishops were Savoyards. The 
 fact that a majority of these electors be- 
 longed to territories governed by the 
 Duke of Savoy may have been the result 
 of a fortuitous combination of circum- 
 stances ; but, so far as appearances go, it 
 is difficult to maintain seriously that Ama- 
 deus, or, at any rate, his friends, had been 
 trying to play fair. 
 
 The Council was induced by the Cardi- 
 nal of Aries to place itself on record as 
 maintaining the necessity of protection 
 from the machinations of its enemies. 
 On this account it was the duty of the
 
 The Duke-Pope 41 
 
 Council to elect as Pope one who, in the 
 ordinary process of selection, would hardly 
 have been suggested. It was necessary 
 to pass out of the sphere of the ecclesias- 
 tics and the theologians, and to select one 
 who could be efficacious in wielding the 
 arm of the secular power. There was 
 only one man, conspicuous for his piety 
 and his devotion to the real interests of 
 the Church, who was also rich and power- 
 ful enough to stand as a strong bulwark 
 in defending her against the hostility of 
 her foes. 
 
 It also has been claimed that the spite 
 felt by Philip, Duke of Milan, against 
 Pope Eugenius for his share in the wars 
 in Italy, caused Philip to infatuate the 
 Council at Basle into electing his father- 
 in-law as Pope to displace Eugenius. 
 This factor may have had some weight. 
 However, after balloting four times, Ama- 
 deus, Duke of Savoy, as being the man 
 for the times, was elected to fill the papal 
 chair. 
 
 A deputation, comprising the most 
 learned and influential Fathers of the
 
 42 The House of Savoy 
 
 Council, waited upon the Duke to per- 
 suade him to accept the Papacy ; among 
 the number was yEneas Silvius Piccolo- 
 mini, afterwards Pope Pius II. 1 In com- 
 mon with his other colleagues, he now 
 entreated Amadeus (for whom he always 
 expressed great admiration) to consent to 
 their proposal. But Amadeus refused ; 
 he said that he had not renounced one 
 burden only to take up another ; the de- 
 
 Silvius Piccolomini, sprung from an ancient family 
 of Siena, was one of the leading humanists of the day. He 
 acted as secretary to Cardinal Capranica at the Council of 
 Basle. In a way that savoured more of craft and cunning 
 than of straightforwardness and constancy, he had the art of 
 ingratiating himself with each pope, in turn, whom that Coun- 
 cil set up or deposed. Piccolomini also knew how to curry 
 favour with the Emperor Frederick III., and between imperial 
 power and papal patronage managed to attain by degrees to 
 the highest honours of the Church. Before being admitted to 
 holy orders his pen had run riot in a protest against papal au- 
 thority as well as in a licentious novel entitled A Story of two 
 Lovers (Lucrezia e Eurialo). These writings he recanted in a 
 papal bull, dated 1463, as unworthy of one who had been 
 chosen as Christ's representative on earth. Having been sent 
 on a mission to Scotland by the Cardinal of Santa Croce, he was 
 present at the moment of the assassination of King James I., 
 and took an active part in condemning the murderers. The 
 value of his historical writings may well atone for the failings 
 of his youthful pen, while his honourable record as Pope may 
 be more than enough to efface the memory of his early frail- 
 ties.
 
 The Duke-Pope 43 
 
 putation had to plead, to urge, even to 
 threaten before the Duke showed any 
 signs of yielding. When the representa- 
 tion was made that resistance on his part 
 was no less than an opposition to the will 
 of God and would surely call down on 
 him the wrath of the Most High, Ama- 
 deus submitted and accepted the dignity 
 laid upon him. Thus it was that Amadeus 
 VIII., Duke of Savoy, became the last 
 antipope. This acquiescence has brought 
 down upon him a mass of criticism which 
 judged him very severely at the time, and 
 has not yet been silenced. His admirers 
 see in his acceptance a sincere desire to 
 heal the division in the Church ; they 
 dwell on his reluctance to accept the dig- 
 nity, on the tears he shed on hearing that 
 he had been elected to the post, on the 
 sanctity of his life, on his renunciation of 
 the throne and its glories ; they maintain 
 that he only yielded, at last, to pressure, 
 and to the menace of peril incurred in re- 
 jecting a mission entrusted to him by 
 God himself. 
 
 Another weighty argument in favour of
 
 44 The House of Savoy 
 
 Amadeus's honesty is found in the fact 
 that at the moment of his retirement, the 
 schism in the Church was chiefly through 
 his means in abeyance. He had pro- 
 tested against the sentence of condemna- 
 tion that the Council was about to pass 
 upon Eugenius ; his protest, joined to that 
 of the Duke of Burgundy, delayed the 
 Pope's deposition for several years. Had 
 Amadeus's aim been to become Pope, he 
 would hardly have played the part of 
 peacemaker with such zeal and success ; 
 nor would he have run counter to the 
 wishes of the Council whose feelings he 
 had ruffled rather than propitiated by his 
 opposition, and by his insistence at such 
 a moment for a higher place for his am- 
 bassadors than the one allotted to them 
 by the Council. 
 
 But his accusers ascribe very different 
 motives to him. 1 They say that the line 
 of action pursued by him was designing 
 
 1 Chief among these are : Flavio Biondo, Secretary of State 
 to Pope Eugenius IV. ; Cibrario ; and Scarabelli in his learned 
 dissertation entitled " Paralipomeni di storia piemontese dall* 
 anno 1285 al 1617" (Archivio Storico italiano, vol. xiii., 
 Firenze, 1847).
 
 The Duke-Pope 45 
 
 and ambitious from beginning to end. 
 They assert that he retired to Ripaille 
 solely in the hope of eventually obtaining 
 the Papacy ; that his refusal at first to ac- 
 cept the dignity was only part of a pro- 
 gramme of assumed humility ; and that 
 the whole affair was prearranged between 
 him and his son-in-law, the Duke of Milan, 
 whose influence at the Council was all- 
 powerful in gaining the election of the 
 Duke of Savoy. 
 
 It is difficult to say positively which 
 side of the controversy is in the right. 
 Amadeus was a man with unbounded 
 powers as an administrator ; his talents for 
 governing and directing were great and 
 well known ; the love of ruling was strong 
 in him, and he had retained authority when 
 its externals had been discarded ; and it 
 cannot be supposed that he was ignorant 
 of his capabilities or willing to set them 
 aside for ever. In accepting the office of 
 Pope he doubtless felt that his remarkable 
 talents might bring about that concord in 
 the Church which Eugenius IV. and his 
 several Councils had failed to effect ; but
 
 4 6 The House of Savoy 
 
 that he had this object in view when five 
 years previously he had chosen to retire 
 to the Hermitage of Ripaille is an hy- 
 pothesis that one would not gladly accept. 
 
 The conclave that had elected Amadeus 
 VIII. to the Papacy was composed of men 
 of all nationalities and temperaments ; 
 though this is not the place to dilate upon 
 the formalities which attended the session, 
 an incident described by ^Eneas Silvius Pic- 
 colomini l may be of interest, even if it fails 
 in the recital to arouse the laughter that it 
 provoked at the time of its occurrence. 
 
 The account given by Piccolomini deals 
 chiefly with the diet allowed during the 
 session ; and after enlarging on the regula- 
 tions, restrictions, and observances of the 
 Conclave he goes on to say : " Everyone 
 had to nourish himself on one variety 
 alone, whether of meat or of fish ; or if 
 neither one or the other was to his liking, 
 then on eggs and cheese. Besides, he 
 who chose meat had to content himself 
 with one quality only, so that he who had 
 beef could not also have mutton. It was 
 
 1 Commentarii
 
 The Duke-Pope 47 
 
 the same with fish ; he that had been helped 
 to lamprey could not also have eel. And if 
 anyone failed to observe this rule, he lost 
 his other helping at the door. The servants 
 not having observed this rule the first day, 
 and having brought to their masters a 
 most abundant and varied supper, as if 
 they had been at a wedding, were all de- 
 spoiled at the door, and but one kind of 
 dish was introduced for each member. 
 Among those who suffered from this de- 
 privation was the Archdeacon of Cracow. 
 Portions of mutton and of little birds had 
 been prepared for him, but the birds were 
 subtracted, though the servant at the door 
 begged that the more abundant portion 
 should be served to his master, hoping in 
 this way to have a helping of mutton for 
 himself instead of little birds. His master, 
 however, would have preferred the little 
 birds ; when he knew of the withdrawal, 
 he complained loudly and on all sides, de- 
 claring that never since he had been or- 
 dained priest had he spent a worse day. 
 And when he was entreated not to make 
 such an outcry, seeing that the same thing
 
 48 The House of Savoy 
 
 had happened to the Cardinal (of Aries), 
 ' Ah,' said he, ' you compare me to the 
 Cardinal, a Frenchman, ascetic, not pos- 
 sessing a stomach, or, to say more truly, 
 not even a man ? I, unluckily for me, am 
 placed next to him, and a transparent cur- 
 tain enables me to see all that he does ; 
 and till now I have neither seen him eat 
 nor drink. And what affects me more, 
 he spends nights and days (although for 
 us it is never day), without sleep, and he 
 is always reading or occupied in business. 
 His stomach is the last thing he cares 
 for. I have nothing in common with him ; 
 I am a Pole ; he is a Frenchman ; he has 
 a frigid stomach, while mine is burning ; 
 for him fasting is health, for me it is death. 
 I, unless I eat much and sleep well, should 
 faint ; he is satisfied with everything. Let 
 the Frenchmen fast ; let the Poles eat.' 
 These words caused universal merriment." 
 
 The work of election over, the next step 
 was the installation of Amadeus into the 
 new dignity laid upon him ; the prelimi- 
 naries took place at Ripaille. 
 
 The Pope-elect was unwilling to relin-
 
 The Duke-Pope 49 
 
 quish his beard. He desired to be excused 
 from following another ecclesiastical cus- 
 tom : he did not wish to abandon his 
 secular name of Amadeus for a religious 
 name. After gravely consulting upon 
 these serious questions, the envoys were 
 disposed to be indulgent for the time be- 
 ing and to refrain from compelling the 
 new Pope to use the razor. But as to the 
 adoption of a new " name in religion " 
 they were as firm as adamant. They made 
 this an indispensable condition before they 
 would consent to his inauguration. These, 
 however, were trivial sources of annoy- 
 ance to them, compared with a crushing 
 blow dealt to their expectations of finan- 
 cial advantage. 
 
 It was not an unpleasing prospect which 
 had opened out before them, that of be- 
 coming the members of the household of 
 a pope possessed of immense riches. He 
 would be able to bestow substantial bene- 
 fits with a lavish hand upon his favour- 
 ites. But to their great disappointment 
 Amadeus showed no disposition to begin 
 distributing his vast fortune among his ec- 
 
 VOL. II. 4
 
 50 The House of Savoy 
 
 clesiastical adherents. On the contrary, he 
 showed a disposition to regard his own 
 possessions as merely held in trust by 
 him ; he seemed to feel that they consti- 
 tuted a stewardship for which he should 
 render strict account to his descendants. 
 He was not inclined to expend for personal 
 uses and ambitions what belonged to the 
 House of Savoy. This feeling of respon- 
 sibility to their princely House was almost 
 a universal trait among the descendants of 
 Humbert the White-handed ; to it, more 
 than to anything else, is due the credit 
 for the ever-advancing fortunes of this 
 dynasty. It was perfectly natural 'and in 
 the line of traditional policy handed down 
 from remote ancestors, that Amadeus 
 should firmly define his position and crush 
 the expectations of the delegates from the 
 Council. He said frankly: "You have 
 abolished Annates l ; what do you expect 
 the Pope to live on ? I cannot consume 
 my patrimony and disinherit my sons." 
 
 1 A year's income of a vacant bishopric or other ecclesiasti- 
 cal benefice ; its estimated value for one year, paid as a tax 
 to the Pope by the new incumbent.
 
 The Duke-Pope 51 
 
 The preliminary negotiations over, there 
 followed the ceremony, which consisted in 
 taking off the Duke's hermit's dress and 
 arraying him in the spotless white papal 
 robe ; the pontifical ring was placed on 
 his finger, and he was publicly recognised 
 as Pope under the name, chosen by him- 
 self, of Felix V. His next act was to ab- 
 dicate absolutely the sovereignty of his 
 states. He appointed his son, Louis, as 
 Duke in his stead, and named Louis's 
 son, Amadeus (afterwards Amadeus IX.), 
 Prince of Piedmont and Achaia ; his sec- 
 ond son, Philip, he made Count of Ge- 
 neva. He then drew up his will and made 
 provision for his beloved monastery of 
 Ripaille. He instituted many rules and 
 directions as to the Order of St. Maurice, 
 which he designed to be a military-religi- 
 ous knighthood, possessed, too, of powers 
 such as might belong to a privy council ; 
 he was most solicitous for its spiritual and 
 temporal welfare. After clearly express- 
 ing his will that there should be one dea- 
 con and six knights (milites), he decrees 
 that the deacon shall pay every year the
 
 52 The House of Savoy 
 
 sum of 600 florins to provide for the pre- 
 servation of the roofs of all the build- 
 ings, and to pay for the board and wages 
 of the servants of the Convent ; while 
 each of the knights is to receive 200 flor- 
 ins for his board and clothing, and for 
 that, also, of the private servants. " As 
 endowment of the same conventus mili- 
 taris and of the knights and for the per- 
 petual maintenance of their income the 
 above-named lord testator affirms to have 
 decreed and wills to give and assign for- 
 ever and surely to the said Convent, 1000 
 florins of gold," and this sum was to be 
 forthcoming from certain places and things 
 judged expedient and seemly by the ex- 
 ecutors. The management of his her- 
 mitage was also regulated by Amadeus 
 before his departure ; he named Claude de 
 Saix, lord of Rivoire, deacon in his stead ; 
 then he set out for Basle, followed by a 
 numerous suite of noble and prelates. 
 
 The description of the newly elected 
 Pontiff's arrival and coronation at Basle 
 is given by Piccolomini in a letter to his 
 friend, "the Venerable and most learned
 
 The Duke-Pope 53 
 
 man, Master John of Segovia, most excel- 
 lent theologian and orator of Our Most 
 Holy Lord, Felix, at the Diet of Berry." 
 The writer's desire to have his account of 
 the proceedings perfect and exact is so 
 urgent that it would be churlish not to 
 allow him to relate in full scenes which he 
 saw with his own eyes, and pageants in 
 which he was himself a partaker : 
 
 " I imagine that through many voices the 
 coronation of the Most High Pontiff will 
 be known to thee and thy colleagues. 
 But as I believe that many things will be 
 misrepresented and incoherent I thought 
 it well to testify to the truth with my 
 letters and to give to you, thirsting for 
 the truth, a reliable narration of all that 
 was done. And, to be brief, I begin at 
 once. It has rarely been heard that the 
 Roman Pontiffs have been crowned at 
 the General Councils ; thou knowest how- 
 ever, that Alexander was crowned at Pisa, 
 and Martin at Constance ; but this coro- 
 nation was as far above those as Felix is 
 above them for nobility. Such is the 
 judgment of those who witnessed this
 
 54 The House of Savoy 
 
 one and the others. I, therefore, and in 
 few words will speak of this one. I will 
 not dilate on the election of this Pontiff 
 as brought about by the authority of this 
 Synod, of which I have already written 
 lengthily elsewhere. I omit, too, the em- 
 bassy sent to him, and the consent that 
 he gave, of which things thou art well in- 
 formed. 
 
 " I come to the coronation, which was 
 celebrated in this town of Basle on the 
 9th day of the Kalends of August. Our 
 lord had made his entrance thirty days 
 previously, the eighth day of the Kalends 
 of July, about which it would be worth 
 while to dwell, but one cannot write of 
 everything at the same time. In front of 
 the Cathedral is a spacious site, where 
 the popular sights are held. A mound 
 was erected here ; and an altar placed on 
 its summit. Above it were hung costly 
 draperies for protection against the sun 
 and the rain. From this height one sur- 
 veys all the Square ; here ascended the 
 clergy, all the nobles, and the Pontiff 
 who was about to be crowned. It was
 
 The Duke-Pope 55 
 
 calculated that two thousand men mounted 
 to this elevation. The day before, Louis, 
 Duke of Savoy, son of the same Roman 
 Pontiff, had arrived, a man of benign ex- 
 pression, affable manners, just in council 
 and in mind. He is of middle height ; 
 his eyes are of the very brightest. The 
 other son of the Most High Pontiff, Philip, 
 Count of Geneva, came with him ; he is a 
 youth of exalted virtue, honourable and 
 honest in deeds and habits ; in his com- 
 pany was Louis, Marquis of Saluces, of 
 whom thou couldst not say whether the 
 splendid presence or the eloquence was 
 more to be admired. In the train of the 
 Duke of Savoy and of the Most High 
 Pontiff came, besides, the nobles of most 
 exalted rank in Savoy, all wishing to be 
 present at the coronation of their Prince. 
 So that there was indeed a goodly com- 
 pany of personages and of horses, reckoned 
 at four thousand. From Germany came 
 the Marquis of Rothelin, beautiful in the 
 glory of his youth, with fair locks waving 
 in the wind ; Conrad of Winsperg, He- 
 reditary Chamberlain of the Roman Em-
 
 56 The House of Savoy 
 
 pire, a man old in years and in wisdom ; 
 the Count of Tierstein, who never had 
 his equal as youth and man, and who now 
 in his old age is incomparable. There 
 came, besides, the orators of Strasbourg, 
 of Bern, of Fribourg, of Soleure, and all 
 the nobility of the neighbourhood. Such 
 a multitude of people came together that 
 no one place could hold them all. . . . 
 The town provided a thousand robust 
 youths in arms to prevent tumults ; of this 
 host, as admirable as they were formida- 
 ble, part guarded the pavilion and part 
 the palace. The roofs of the houses, the 
 windows, the trees, were all besieged by 
 men and women. The Square, in the 
 meanwhile, was so full of people that 
 there would have been no place there for 
 a grain of mustard seed. 
 
 " At daybreak, in the presence of all 
 these masses, arrived the elected Felix; 
 majestic in his appearance, in the dignity 
 of his white hairs, displaying to all a sin- 
 gularly decorous bearing. H is height, like 
 that of his sons, is medium ; for an old 
 man he is well made ; his skin and his
 
 The Duke-Pope 57 
 
 hair are white ; his speech is slow and 
 rare. Preceding him came the mitred pre- 
 lates and the neighbouring clergy. He 
 took his seat in the most exalted place ; 
 the rest being seated, and general silence 
 being observed, the ceremonial began, in 
 which Felix showed himself so expert as 
 to need no assistance. No one would 
 have thought that that Father, who for 
 forty years had been busied in secular ne- 
 gotiations, could ever have found time to 
 acquaint himself with ecclesiastical rites. 
 He himself corrected the mistakes of 
 others, and would not allow of the least 
 irregularity. He celebrated his Mass, 
 singing and reading in so solemn a way 
 as not to be described, omitting nothing, 
 altering nothing. The sight struck won- 
 der into all, that old Father celebrating, 
 with his illustrious offspring assisting the 
 celebrant. Like young olive branches 
 round about the altar, the two sons served, 
 diligent and attentive, as far as laymen 
 could. All said that it might well be 
 affirmed that that felicitous one (Felix), 
 after having lived a praiseworthy secular
 
 58 The House of Savoy 
 
 life, after having happily ruled his duchy 
 and educated his numerous offspring, had 
 been called by God to the control of the 
 Church universal. Thou wouldst have 
 seen many weep for joy and bless the 
 Lord for having vouchsafed to them to 
 be present at such a sight ; such as has 
 not been seen before or heard by anyone. 
 " It is customary in the midst of such sol- 
 emn ceremonies to offer up supplications 
 in behalf of the Sovereign Pontiff. The 
 eldest of the cardinal deacons begins them 
 and the secretaries and apostolical judges 
 take up the sacred song. But on this day 
 the lawyers supplied the places of the 
 judges. When, therefore, Louis, Cardinal 
 of Saint Sabine, a prelate of great repute, 
 and very learned in the ritual, began his 
 functions as cardinal deacon by intoning 
 the anthem, the secretaries and lawyers in 
 response gave utterance to such discord- 
 ant notes that everybody burst into laugh- 
 ter. Some laughed even until the tears 
 ran down their cheeks, and for a week peo- 
 ple spoke of nothing but this barbarous 
 singing. Although many took this inci-
 
 VIEW OF AIX-LES-BAINS IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY.
 
 The Duke-Pope 59 
 
 dent in ill part and regarded it as an insult, 
 I, who was of the number, by no means felt 
 ashamed of my ignorance, for it is not given 
 to everyone to be perfectly acquainted 
 with church music. When therefore on 
 the following day it became necessary to 
 repeat the same anthem in the Church of 
 the Dominicans, I did not blush to do my 
 part as well as I was able. 
 
 "The Mass ended, and the Most High 
 Pontiff consecrated, the sacred tiara was 
 brought, glorious in its three gold crowns 
 all sparkling with gems. In the sight of 
 all this multitude and with deep emotion 
 Cardinal Louis to whom the Synod had 
 entrusted this office, which should have 
 belonged to the Bishop of Ostia about 
 now to gather the fruit of his labours, 
 placed on the happy head of Felix that 
 crown of immense value, judged by many 
 to be worth above thirty thousand ducats ; 
 immediately the cry went up from all of 
 " Long live the Pope ! " Plenary indul- 
 gences were then granted, which had never 
 before been given to that people. 
 
 " The ceremonial of the coronation
 
 60 The House of Savoy 
 
 ended, the assembly left the pavilion, and 
 the procession was formed, and all ad- 
 vanced on horseback. First of all marched 
 the laymen and throngs of servants ; sec- 
 ond, came the distinguished families of 
 the nobles ; third, the nobles themselves 
 and the knights ; fourth, the barons, the 
 counts and the marquises ; fifth, came the 
 young Duke, accompanied by his Coun- 
 cillors in robes of gold down to the ground. 
 Each one of them endeavoured by a dis- 
 play of pomp to eclipse his neighbour. 
 There were some decked in purple and 
 gold ; there were military dresses laden 
 with silver and jewels, divers garments, di- 
 vers ornaments, such as no one can even 
 imagine. 
 
 " After these came the neighbouring 
 clergy on foot, earring the relics of Saints, 
 and a file of white-robed boys marched 
 chanting. They were followed by a canopy 
 of red and yellow around which stood the 
 squires of honour, wearing red caps. Near 
 to them would have been the naval pre- 
 fects, had some of them been present, but 
 in their stead were placed the Hermits of
 
 The Duke-Pope 61 
 
 Ripaille, who are called the Knights of St. 
 Maurice ; these are grave personages ad- 
 vanced in years, who have been comrades 
 of Pope Felix both in his secular and relig- 
 ious life, and who showed by their dresses 
 what his dress formerly had been ; they 
 were seemingly worthy of much reverence. 
 Then came the priors with copes, and with- 
 out mitres. Then followed the keepers of 
 the chests and the advocates wearing their 
 copes crosswise, a style of dressing much 
 in keeping with their mode of singing. . . . 
 The abbots followed next, and then the 
 bishops, adorned with copes and mitres, 
 and mounted on caparisoned horses. In 
 this order we went before twelve horses, 
 as white as snow, like those which Rhesus 
 led to Troy, but covered with red clothing 
 up to their necks, preceding a canopy. 
 " Directly after the bishops, among innu- 
 merable lights was borne the Body of our 
 Lord Redeemer Jesus. The charge of con- 
 ducting this was confided, as to a faithful 
 sacristan, to John, Bishop of Strasbourg, a 
 theologian of a knowledge as vast as it is 
 useful. Then followed two cardinals and
 
 62 The House of Savoy 
 
 two bishops, those of Tursi, and of Vique, 
 who held the post of deacons to the cardi- 
 nals. Last of all, desired by all eyes, came 
 the Most High Pontiff under a canopy of 
 of gold, with the triple crown on his head. 
 Mounted on horseback, he advanced with 
 slow paces, led by the Marquis of Rothe- 
 lin and Conrad of Winsperg ; he blessed 
 the people as he came along. After came 
 the Treasurer, the clerks of the Chamber, 
 and those who scattered money to the 
 crowd, all in fitting apparel. The rear 
 was formed of the orators of the Princes 
 who happened to be there, and a confused 
 multitude of folk. Thus, as they passed 
 through the out-of-the-way quarters of the 
 town, the Jews, moved by new and falla- 
 cious hopes, drew forth the Mosaic law, 
 which the new Pope praised while disap- 
 proving of their rite. The procession re- 
 paired to the Convent of the Preachers 
 (Dominicans), where the Brothers came 
 forward with the Prior, and in front of the 
 altar consigned to the Pope the keys of 
 the Convent. Hardly had they concluded 
 a song of praise ere Felix, who was still
 
 The Duke-Pope 63 
 
 fasting, withdrew, it being already the third 
 hour after noon and nearer to supper than 
 to dinner time. 
 
 " The following day all presented them- 
 selves at Mass ; this, and some other cere- 
 monies, being ended, two pieces of silver 
 money and one of gold were given to each 
 prelate. And then the whole multitude 
 was bidden to a feast, where there were no 
 Orchian, Fannian, nor Licinian laws, nor 
 indeed any sumptuary law whereby to fix 
 the prices of the food or the quantity of 
 the eatables. The supper (or was it the din- 
 ner? for there were doubts as to whether 
 it was supper or dinner) was merry and 
 sumptuous ; by four o'clock more than 
 4000 men had supped. The cup-bear- 
 ers were the two sons, the beautiful off- 
 spring of the Most High Pontiff ; the 
 Marquis de Saluces directed the banquet. 
 At three hours after midday they finished. 
 At the hour of five they returned in 
 the same order observed in going. The 
 Pope after being accompanied to the 
 Church of the Virgin, which is the chief 
 one in Basle, entered the Palace by the
 
 64 The House of Savoy 
 
 back way to rest. These things I will 
 that thou knowest concerning the corona- 
 tion of our Most Holy Lord Felix the 
 Fifth ; thou canst now communicate them 
 to whom thou wiliest, and use thy diligence 
 to return as soon as possible to this Father 
 whom I esteem so highly, and to bring us 
 good news of your convent. Vale. From 
 Basle. The Ides of August, the year of 
 our Lord, 1440." 
 
 Felix V. was acknowledged as Pope by 
 England, France, Spain, Austria, Hun- 
 gary, Bohemia, Bavaria, Switzerland, Sa- 
 voy, Piedmont, and the Knights of the 
 Teutonic order. The rest of Christendom 
 acknowledged Eugenius IV., or else re- 
 mained neutral ; among those not taking 
 sides were the Emperor of Germany and 
 the German Electors. 
 
 The indefatigable Cardinal of Aries 
 sought to strengthen the schism by still 
 further augmenting the influence exerted 
 by Amadeus through his alliances with the 
 great Powers of Europe. He proposed to 
 make the new Pope the father-in-law of the 
 Emperor of Germany. He accordingly
 
 The Duke-Pope 65 
 
 suggested to the Emperor Frederick the 
 advisability of contracting a marriage with 
 Margaret, the daughter of the Duke-Pope. 
 She had been married to Louis of Anjou ; 
 for some years she had been a widow. 
 At first, this alliance appeared to strike the 
 German Emperor favourably. When it 
 became necessary, however, for him to com- 
 mit himself, he toyed with the proposition. 
 He did not see that it was to his interest 
 to antagonise the Council, especially when 
 it still included some powerful Electors of 
 the Empire ; at the same time he was dis- 
 mayed by the serious complications in 
 prospect, if, in the progress of events, the 
 schism became weaker. Then all persons, 
 ecclesiastical or secular, who had com- 
 mitted themselves to its fortunes would 
 suffer grievously in the general demorali- 
 sation. He hesitated to take a step which 
 would alienate many dignitaries of Church 
 and State throughout Europe. Still, he 
 was afraid, just then, to decline the prof- 
 fered honour of the hand of Margaret of 
 Anjou, involving, as it did, an alliance with 
 the Antipope and his Council of Basle. 
 
 VOL. ii. 5
 
 66 The House of Savoy 
 
 Until Frederick could judge as to the 
 amount of strength they were likely to 
 gather, he could not afford to offend them. 
 There was no course open to him but that 
 of temporising. He took the matter un- 
 der consideration, postponing any definite 
 decision. He accepted an invitation to 
 go to Basle. This gave the adherents of 
 the new Pope great assurance for the ful- 
 filment of their liveliest expectations, for 
 they believed that the issue of personal 
 negotiations between Frederick and Felix 
 would lead to the success of their most 
 audacious projects. 
 
 The entry of the German Emperor into 
 Basle on November n, 1442, was the sig- 
 nal for a triumphant demonstration by the 
 dignitaries of the Council. They were 
 discouraged, however, by the failure of 
 Frederick to meet their expectations. 
 They received him as an ally ; he behaved 
 merely as a neutral. He allowed nothing 
 to betray him into breaking the strict re- 
 serve in which he enveloped himself. To 
 the dismay of the schismatics he insisted 
 on its being understood that he would not
 
 The Duke-Pope 67 
 
 visit Felix unless he could be excused 
 from making him obeisance as Pope. The 
 prelates determined to leave nothing un- 
 done which might help to impress the 
 mind of the Emperor during his interview 
 with Felix. The Antipope was attired in 
 all the pomp and splendour of the Supreme 
 Pontiff. He was attended by his eight 
 newly created Cardinals, together with 
 the Cardinal of Aries. The papal retinue 
 moved majestically into the hall, preceded 
 by a cross-bearer. 
 
 The conference was a source of great 
 disappointment. There were no produc- 
 tive results of any appreciable value. 
 Frederick maintained a respectful reserve. 
 The Fathers did not score a single point ; 
 and their affairs were not advanced one 
 step towards the goal of their ambitions. 
 The matrimonial alliance which had been 
 suggested by the Cardinal of Aries was 
 not furthered by the interview. In fact 
 it was a source of disadvantage, in leading 
 Pope Felix to show his hand, and thus to 
 weaken the dignified attitude which a 
 claimant to papal honours should maintain
 
 68 The House of Savoy 
 
 before the rulers of the state. Felix, 
 finding all arguments unavailing to induce 
 the Emperor to acknowledge him as the 
 lawful incumbent of the papal throne, at 
 last offered him a dowry of two hundred 
 thousand gold ducats with his daughter 
 Margaret, if he would pay the required 
 allegiance. Even this, under the circum- 
 stances, proved of no value. After spend- 
 ing seven days at Basle, Frederick left, no 
 more committed to the support of the 
 schism than when he entered the city. 
 ./Eneas Sylvius l says that as the Emperor 
 was starting on his homeward journey, he 
 remarked : " Before this, there have been 
 popes who have bartered the honours of 
 the Church ; Felix is ready to purchase 
 them from anyone who can sell them." 
 
 The Emperor's declination of the mar- 
 riage with the Pope's daughter was, after 
 all, only a temporary reverse to the plot- 
 ters at Basle. Frederick had disappointed 
 them by a negative attitude. Yet he had 
 not espoused the cause of Felix's enemies. 
 But the Emperor might be influenced if his 
 
 Sylvius, De Dictis Alfonsi, lib. ii., 46.
 
 The Duke-Pope 69 
 
 Electors took a firm stand. The Electorate 
 of the Holy Roman Empire was vacillat- 
 ing between the rival Popes. At first the 
 Electors had formed a league in support 
 of the old Pope Eugenius. This was 
 promptly checked by the Emperor, who 
 considered it a rash proceeding to com- 
 mit the Electorate of the Empire to one 
 side of the controversy. He did not feel 
 that it would be expedient to antagonise 
 the powerful supporters of the Savoyard 
 Pope. Thereupon the German Electors 
 abandoned Eugenius and veered around 
 in favour of Pope Felix. The House of 
 Savoy was too powerful, and there were 
 too many among the rulers whose inter- 
 ests were associated with it by ties of 
 kindred, for an Elector to be hasty in 
 taking sides against Felix. 
 
 There were many suitors for the hand 
 of the daughter of the Pope, for she had 
 a dowry of two hundred thousand gold 
 ducats. This was not the only marriage 
 Felix had to offer. He also had a niece, 
 whom he was ready to dower with a hand- 
 some marriage portion. Communications
 
 70 The House of Savoy 
 
 were opened between Felix and the Elec- 
 tor of Saxony in reference to the latter's 
 son marrying the Pope's niece. This was 
 in December, 1442, and, soon after, the 
 Pope succeeded in espousing his daughter, 
 Margaret, the widow of Louis of Anjou, to 
 Count Louis, the Elector of the Palatinate. 
 This was not so imposing an alliance as 
 that which Felix previously had attempted 
 to make with the Emperor of Germany. 
 Still, in the ties which the Pope was able 
 to form there was much to encourage 
 him. All but two of the Electors of the 
 German Empire were now enlisted in 
 support of his schism. There was a high 
 probability that the adherents of Felix 
 would increase their strength so that they 
 would be able by violence to wrest from 
 Pope Eugeniushis ecclesiastical dominion. 
 The contest between the papal rivals 
 was no longer waged along the lines of 
 ecclesiastical controversy laid down by 
 the disputants at Basle. It had become 
 a mere squabble for spoils on the part of 
 the princes of Europe, with the battle- 
 ground not in the Church, but in the
 
 The Duke-Pope 71 
 
 German Empire. Theconflictingschem.es 
 of the German Electors were wrought in 
 behalf of their individual interests, and 
 utterly ignored the claims of Pope and 
 Antipope, unless when a temporary es- 
 pousal of either side was to be productive 
 of direct political or personal advantage to 
 an Elector. They were as ready to recog- 
 nise Felix as they were Eugenius ; one 
 Pope was as acceptable to them as another. 
 They were ready to commit themselves to 
 only that line of conduct which would sub- 
 serve their own interests. They were eager 
 to ally themselves with the side which 
 had the greater need of their help, if they 
 could be sure of gaining ultimate triumph 
 for that cause. In such a case they hoped 
 to be able to dictate the best terms for 
 themselves, and in the highest degree 
 possible to augment their power and 
 prestige. 
 
 The fortunes of Pope Felix seemed to 
 offer to the German Electors the most en- 
 couraging indications that their services 
 to his side would result in the most ad- 
 vantage to themselves. There was a fair
 
 72 The House of Savoy 
 
 chance of his winning in the end, but their 
 assistance was so necessary that it was 
 impossible for him to attain success inde- 
 pendently of their efforts on his behalf. 
 Hence the ext.ent of his obligations to them 
 would be all the greater. It was not es- 
 sential to these schemes for their own 
 aggrandisement that they should place 
 him on the throne of universal dominion 
 over the Church Catholic ; he might fall 
 far short of that and yet be in a position 
 in which his power, controlled for the 
 benefit of the German princes, could be 
 still of tremendous benefit to them. They 
 were for the Pope, whoever he might be, 
 who could be of the most use to them. 
 
 The King of Arragon was willing to 
 transport Felix V. to Rome and install him 
 in the Chair of St. Peter by force. Ama- 
 deus wisely shrunk from this desperate 
 enterprise. Afterwards this King of Arra- 
 gon became reconciled to Eugenius IV. 
 
 At three successive Diets appeared the 
 envoys of Basle and of Rome, of Felix 
 and of Eugenius. Eugenius pronounced a 
 deposition against the Archbishops of Co-
 
 The Duke-Pope 73 
 
 logne and of Treves, as adherents of Felix 
 V., the usurping pseudo-pope, but no one 
 thought of dispossessing these powerful 
 prelates, who were Electors of the Empire. 
 The Electorate at that time consisted of 
 seven princes, three ecclesiastical and four 
 secular. These were the Archbishops of 
 Cologne, Treves, and Mentz, the King of 
 Bohemia, the Duke of Saxony, the Mar- 
 grave of Brandenburg, and the Count 
 Palatine of the Rhine. The attitude of 
 the German Electors towards papal affairs 
 was so important a consideration with 
 Felix that he became indifferent to the 
 Council of Basle. The Fathers could 
 neither make nor mar his fortunes, and 
 as he was getting worn out by his life 
 at Basle, he was glad to leave the un- 
 wholesome atmosphere of the venerable 
 city. His sojourn there had been a sore 
 grievance to him. Serious inroads had 
 been made upon his health ; but the shock- 
 ing depletion of his purse had proved the 
 worst annoyance of all. The Council had 
 not once abated its constant drain upon 
 his resources for the defrayal of public
 
 74 The House of Savoy 
 
 charges and individual expenses. He went 
 to live at Lausanne in December, 1443. 
 It was more peaceful and healthful than 
 Basle, and gave him a much-needed relief 
 from a troublesome Council which had 
 become more expensive than useful to 
 him. 
 
 While Pope Felix looked to Germany 
 for the strength which would firmly in- 
 trench him in power over the Church, Pope 
 Eugenius felt that in the play of Italian 
 politics there would come round to him 
 the opportunity which would enable him 
 to regain the authority and influence which 
 rightfully belonged to him as the lawfully 
 constituted incumbent of the See of the 
 Fisherman. As there were many contend- 
 ing interests among the scattered states 
 of the peninsula, it would be in the line 
 of good politics for all the Italian princes 
 to restore the Papacy to its original pres- 
 tige as a temporal power, in order to pre- 
 vent any among themselves becoming too 
 powerful at the expense of Rome, and 
 thus a menace to their neighbours. Pope 
 Eugenius built his hopes of eventual re-
 
 The Duke-Pope 75 
 
 lief upon the certainty of the fact that the 
 Italian princes could escape in no way 
 from the necessity of committing to the 
 Papal States the balance of power in Italy. 
 They would be obliged to do this in self- 
 defence, independently of any sentiments 
 of friendliness or hostility towards the Ro- 
 man Pontiff. 
 
 After having spent eight years in exile 
 from his pontifical city of Rome, Pope 
 Eugenius returned from Florence to the 
 city by the Tiber. 
 
 The changing features of Italian condi- 
 tions could not be without their effects 
 upon the attitude of the German Emperor 
 and Electors. These were maintaining 
 what they called a strict neutrality ; but 
 any toleration on their part of the claims 
 of Felix, of course, constituted an imputa- 
 tion and a latent rebellion against the 
 absolute and sole authority of the Pope 
 at Rome. Any course they could take, 
 short of the complete repudiation of the 
 schism, was intolerable to Pope Eugenius. 
 On the other hand, diplomatic negotia- 
 tions, if carried forward in a way to arouse
 
 76 The House of Savoy 
 
 the cupidity of the Germans, might eventu- 
 ally prove the ruin of Felix. 
 
 There was only one man who was per- 
 fectly qualified to present acceptably the 
 overtures of the Italian Papal Court to the 
 German Emperor and his Electors. This 
 man was the real author of the dissolution 
 of the Council of Basle, of its gradual 
 degradation in the estimation of Europe ; 
 he quietly drove Pope Felix to his ab- 
 dication, and even added firmness and 
 resolution to the obstinate and violent 
 opposition of Pope Eugenius. This man 
 was /Eneas Sylvius Piccolomini. 
 
 It was /Eneas who at Thonon saw 
 Amadeus living in his hermitage, as he 
 reports, " Magis voluptuosam quam poeni- 
 tentialem," a life of pleasure rather than 
 of penance. /Eneas became secretary to 
 Pope Felix V. ; afterwards he was secre- 
 tary to the Emperor, then secretary to 
 Felix's rival, Pope Eugenius, while Felix 
 still was Antipope, and finally secretary 
 to Pope Nicholas V. At last /Eneas 
 became Pope himself, under the title of 
 Pius II.
 
 The Duke-Pope 77 
 
 tineas was in many respects the clever- 
 est man of his age. While he lacked the 
 essential elements of greatness, yet he 
 was a man of intellectual force, of varied 
 culture, and far in advance of his period. 
 Nevertheless, he was unable to emanci- 
 pate himself from the low standards which 
 guided the moral conduct of his associates. 
 As a result he presents the sad spectacle 
 of a man of the highest ability treacher- 
 ously prostituting his faculties. He stood 
 high in the confidence of the schismatics 
 until he abandoned their camp for that of 
 the German neutrals. 
 
 ^neas was one of the most prominent 
 attendants at the rebellious Council of 
 Basle. When Duke Amadeus of Savoy 
 was elected as Pope, ^Eneas, as we have 
 seen, was among the representatives of the 
 Council sent to escort the Duke to Basle, 
 where he was to be crowned with the 
 papal tiara. ^neas was honoured by 
 Pope Felix with the position of one of his 
 secretaries. This gave the crafty Italian 
 the opportunity of learning the internal 
 affairs of this opposition Papacy. When
 
 78 The House of Savoy 
 
 he found that very few continued to ad- 
 here to Pope Felix except those who were 
 devoid of ambition or ability, he deter- 
 mined to desert a sinking ship. He went 
 to Germany to the neutrals. 
 
 Among the Germans ^Eneas met with 
 much success. He was elevated by the 
 Emperor to the post of Imperial Poet, a 
 dignity which had been held by Petrarch. 
 He finally forsook his attitude of neutral- 
 ity and became a warm adherent of Pope 
 Eugenius, whom he had formerly attacked 
 with fierce acrimony. 
 
 He so far brought about the repudia- 
 tion of Felix and the restoration of the 
 German allegiance to Pope Eugenius that 
 at the death of the latter the schism was 
 utterly shattered and discredited. 
 
 For three years Felix lived in Basle ; 
 in 1443, as we have seen, he removed to 
 Lausanne, from whence he often visited 
 Geneva. 
 
 Eugenius now, lest he should seem to 
 have his mind fixed upon nothing but 
 war, took a short respite from military 
 affairs and devoted himself to making
 
 The Duke-Pope 79 
 
 Nicholas Tolentunas a saint. Tolentunas 
 was a monk of the Order of St. Augustine 
 who had had a number of miracles attri- 
 buted to him which had made him famous. 
 After that, Pope Eugenius expelled the 
 Canons Secular from the Lateran and 
 admitted only the Regulars. Then, feel- 
 ing that he had done his duty by things 
 spiritual for the time, he looked about for 
 a more congenial task. He soon felt that 
 he had neglected the Florentines, to whom 
 he owed an old grudge. 
 
 Pope Eugenius accordingly determined 
 to bear down upon the unhappy town of 
 Florence, which had helped his enemies on 
 a previous occasion when he had been 
 sorely pressed. He hit upon an ingenious 
 plan of campaign. He had no doubt but 
 that if he attacked Florence with not only 
 his own forces, but also with those of his 
 allies, he could soon reduce the hapless 
 population to a properly humble and re- 
 pentant state of mind. 
 
 Unfortunately for Pope Eugenius, all 
 these beneficent designs were frustrated 
 by his death. Still the love for war had
 
 8o The House of Savoy 
 
 been developed to so great a degree in the 
 Pope that, besides his Italian campaigns, 
 he instigated the Dauphin, son of King 
 Charles of France, to go with a great body 
 of horse against the forces of Basle. He 
 did so and routed the adherents of the 
 Council. 
 
 Their cause was now so hopeless that 
 the Fathers at Basle yielded to the friendly 
 urgency of the Kings of France and of 
 England. They were abandoned also by 
 the Emperor of Germany, who threat- 
 ened to dissolve the Council. 
 
 Felix was still living in Lausanne when 
 Eugenius IV. died in 1447. 
 
 The Conclave at Rome chose as Eugen- 
 ius's successor, Thomas di Sarzana, who, 
 as Pope Nicholas V., was one of the most 
 learned pontiffs who ever filled the Chair 
 of St. Peter. His election gave rise to 
 the universal hope that peace would be 
 restored, and that the scandal of two 
 Popes would be removed. 1 The qualifi- 
 cations of the new Pope were such as to 
 
 *At the coronation of Pope Nicholas V., ^Eneas Sylvius 
 Piccolomini officiated as cross-bearer.
 
 The Duke-Pope 81 
 
 make Felix realise that his services in 
 that capacity were no longer required, and 
 that his mission would be better fulfilled 
 by the renunciation of a post which, in 
 his heart, he must have recognised was 
 not the place for him. He consequently 
 empowered his son, Duke Louis, to enlist 
 the good offices of Charles VII., King of 
 France, to settle the differences between 
 him and his rival. The matter was con- 
 cluded in 1449, when Felix V., at a council 
 convoked by him at Lausanne, declared 
 " that, for the peace of the Church 
 and to make an end of the schism, he 
 renounced the Papacy." His act of self- 
 denial (for such it undoubtedly was) met 
 with a proper reward. He was named 
 Bishop of Sabina, Cardinal Legate and 
 Perpetual Vicar of the Holy See in all 
 the states subject to " Casa Savoia," and 
 in Switzerland and Germany ; he was to 
 rank immediately after the Pope ; he was 
 not to be spoken of as the "Antipope," 
 but as "the former Pope Felix V." 1 ; and 
 
 1 Predari, Storia politico, civile, mi li tare della dinastia de 
 Savoia dalle prime origini a Vittorio Emmanuele II. (Torino, 
 
 VOL. II. 6
 
 82 The House of Savoy 
 
 (a matter of primary importance to him 
 and to his followers) the nominations and 
 ordinations he had made during the nine 
 years of his pontificate were to be recog- 
 nised as valid ; his acts, in union with 
 those of the Council of Basle, were to 
 hold good ; while the excommunications 
 uttered against him by the late Pope Eu- 
 genius IV. were all declared null and void. 
 At the same time, Felix was to exercise the 
 same courtesies towards Nicholas and the 
 Holy See ; he was, together with the 
 Council of Basle, to acknowledge Nicho- 
 las V. as the one and true Pontiff; he 
 was to recognise the acts passed by him 
 and the late Eugenius as lawful ; and he 
 was to remove all the anathemas and ex- 
 communications uttered in the past. On 
 retiring from the Papacy, Felix received 
 certain concessions in regard to eccle- 
 siastical appointments which placed the 
 Church of Savoy on a footing of inde- 
 pendence very remarkable in that age. 
 
 1869), vol. i., p. 255, foot-note : " In all the bulls of Nicho- 
 las V., Amadeus is always called, ' Felicem Papam Quintum 
 tune in sua obedientia nominatione.' "
 
 The Duke-Pope 83 
 
 There was universal rejoicing through- 
 out the whole of Christendom at this 
 happy termination of a strife, unworthy 
 alike of those who took part in it and of 
 the cause for which it was undertaken. 
 The popular sentiment found expression 
 in a line which declared : 
 
 " Lux fulsit mundo, cessit Felix Nicolao," 
 which may be rendered rudely : 
 
 The world was once more bathed in light, 
 When Felix to Nich'las restored his right. 
 
 A whimsical conceit has made of this 
 memorial verse a cryptogram. By chang- 
 ing the s of fulsit into an x, and adding 
 together the Roman numerals contained 
 in the line, the year of the Antipope's ab- 
 dication, 1449, may be formed. 
 
 The outburst of good feeling, however, 
 was occasionally disturbed by a few recal- 
 citrants who refused to be reconciled. 
 For instance, Poggio Bracciolini, one of 
 the scholars at the Court of Pope Nicho- 
 las V., pays his respects in no uncertain 
 tones to the ex-Pope Felix V., who was
 
 84 The House of Savoy 
 
 then living in retirement at Ripaille. He 
 calls him " another Cerberus," " a high 
 priest of malignity," " a perverter of the 
 faith and foe to true religion," " a golden 
 calf," "a rapacious wolf," and "a roaring 
 lion." He waxes furious as he recalls the 
 turpitude of the Council of Basle which 
 elected this Antipope. It is " that sink 
 of iniquity, the Synagogue of Basle," " a 
 monstrous birth," " conventicle of repro- 
 bates," " riotous band of debauched men," 
 " apostates, libertines, ruffians, deserters, 
 men convicted of the most shameful 
 crimes, blasphemers, rebels against God." 
 Writers unfriendly to Amadeus allege 
 that he did not renounce the tiara volun- 
 tarily. According to Monod, his tenacity 
 in retaining his dignity was due to the 
 encouragement of Guilliaume Bolomier, a 
 man who had raised himself by his talents 
 from a humble condition to that of Chan- 
 cellor of Savoy. He was absolutely in 
 Duke Amadeus's confidence ; he was em- 
 ployed by him in all missions and embas- 
 sies of an important or confidential nature, 
 and became also his private secretary.
 
 The Duke-Pope 85 
 
 But he paid dear for the fortune which 
 had raised him to such heights. Duke 
 Louis disliked him for the influence he 
 had over his father, and for the way in 
 which that influence was directed in con- 
 nection with the Papacy. The Pied- 
 montese nobles hated him for his arro- 
 gance and insolence towards them, and 
 they determined to work his downfall. 
 They succeeded so well in their endeav- 
 ours that Duke Louis consented to his 
 condemnation, and signed the warrant for 
 his decapitation. This, however, was 
 commuted to what was considered a mild- 
 er form of punishment ; the unfortunate 
 man was taken from his prison in the 
 Castle of Chillon, placed in a boat, and 
 thrown by the hangman into the Lake of 
 Geneva with a stone tied round his neck. 
 Amadeus's detractors maintain that he 
 only renounced the Papacy for the advan- 
 tages that he gained by so doing ; but 
 the more likely hypothesis is that he 
 desired the welfare of the Church and re- 
 joiced in the knowledge that this was 
 achieved by his self-abnegation. He re-
 
 86 The House of Savoy 
 
 tired at once to his beloved hermitage 
 at Ripaille, where he lived in peace, sur- 
 rounded by the Knights of St. Maurice and 
 wholly given over to religion. In Janu- 
 ary, 1451, he died at Geneva, a town for 
 which he had always had a great affection, 
 and where, up to the last, he exercised the 
 office of Bishop. " He finished his days 
 in miracles and holiness, having reigned 
 taking together his duchy and his pon- 
 tificate about forty years ; and he ren- 
 dered his peace to the Holy Church, his 
 duchy to Monseigneur Louis, his only 
 son, 1 his body to the earth, and his soul 
 to God the Creator." 2 His body was in- 
 terred at Ripaille, but the tomb was 
 broken into by the insurgents of Bern, in 
 1538, in seeking treasure. His bones 
 were afterwards collected by Emmanuel 
 Philibert I., and laid in the cathedral at 
 Turin ; they now rest in the chapel of St. 
 Sudario in Turin, where King Charles 
 Albert erected a fine mausoleum over 
 them. A fine monument to Amadeus 
 
 1 His other son, Philip, Count of Geneva, had died in 1444. 
 * Paradin, Chronique de Savoye^ p. 333, Lyon, 1552.
 
 The Duke-Pope 87 
 
 VIII. is still shown in the cathedral at 
 Lausanne. 
 
 The character of Amadeus VIII. is not 
 easy to fathom. The deeper one dives 
 into the intricacies of his story the harder 
 it becomes to form an impartial judgment 
 upon a mind that blended so strangely the 
 things of earth and of heaven. Ambition 
 sounded the key-note of his nature ; that 
 element entered largely into his thoughts 
 and actions. And though this theory is 
 not confirmed by his five years' retirement 
 and seclusion at Ripaille, it reasserts itself 
 on the evidence of the last two years of 
 his Papacy, which were spent in piteously 
 clutching at the shadow when the sub- 
 stance of the Keys was slipping from his 
 grasp, when he still clung to a position 
 that his dignity neither as Pope nor Prince 
 could permit him to occupy. 
 
 But who again can say that ambition 
 was the sole motive of his action ? The 
 idea of becoming Pope of Rome to one 
 who had already renounced the Dukedom 
 of Savoy seems so original and quaint, that 
 the excuse of ambition hardly sanctions it,
 
 88 The House of Savoy 
 
 nor does it satisfactorily explain the Duke's 
 conduct. The legend that such a destiny 
 had been foretold to him by an astrologer 
 and that the prophecy had taken hold of 
 his imagination seems again hardly suf- 
 ficient to warrant one's acceptance of this 
 surmise ; so the enigma remains yet un- 
 ravelled, and the key of the mystery must 
 be found ere the riddle can be read aright, 
 and the problem fairly solved. 
 
 That Amadeus acted uprightly in his 
 capacity of Pope has been universally ad- 
 mitted ; his appointments to the Church's 
 benefices (he created in all twenty-five Car- 
 dinals) were made according to merit, never 
 with a view to favour his relatives ; to quote 
 Monod's words : "He never mixed the ec- 
 clesiastical purple, dyed with the Blood of 
 Christ, with his own, although he had many 
 grandchildren, his son Louis's sons ; but he 
 willed that it [the Cardinalate] should be 
 the reward of merit, not of kinship." 1 
 
 One account of his behaviour to the Em- 
 peror Frederick III. shows a high nobility 
 of mind and disdain for money-hunters. 
 
 1 Monod, op. cit., p. 179.
 
 The Duke-Pope 89 
 
 The Emperor was under the delusion that 
 Amadeus VIII. was enormously rich ; with 
 a view to possessing himself of some of 
 this wealth, he reflected that he might take 
 to wife one of the Duke's daughters, pro- 
 vided only that her father would give her 
 a large dowry. With this intention Fred- 
 erick repaired to Basle, and there had a 
 secret colloquy with the papal Duke. " But 
 when Amadeus perceived that it was not 
 so much the connexion that was sought 
 after as the money (and notwithstanding 
 that the Fathers counselled otherwise), he 
 cut short all negotiations." 1 According 
 to this account Frederick was far from 
 pleased at having thus deluded himself. 
 
 Although Amadeus abundantly showed 
 the possession of a varied genius, and a 
 sincere and indulgent heart, always open 
 to the finest sentiments of humanity, yet 
 his rule as Pope was not as useful as he 
 might have made it. While his own acts 
 as Supreme Pontiff were upright and hon- 
 ourable, his pontificate was not advantage- 
 ous to the world at large. The clergy 
 
 1 Monod, op. cit., p. 181.
 
 90 The House of Savoy 
 
 under his rul'e grew insolent, while the 
 contempt entertained for them by the 
 laity became intensified. Amadeus's own 
 renown as a leader and administrator 
 waxed ever fainter. The verdict of a 
 modern writer upon the Hermit-Duke is 
 that " he finished without glory a life 
 gloriously begun." * 
 
 But a less harsh sentence and a pleas- 
 anter to carry away in one's memory of a 
 prince who, whatever his faults may have 
 been, was undeniably a great man, is to be 
 found on the monument erected to him by 
 his descendant, the Cardinal Prince Maurice 
 of Savoy, in the church of Carignan, where 
 with pride and reverence the virtues of " the 
 mighty dead " are recounted as follows : 
 
 " Seventh of the name, thirteenth in the succes- 
 sion, first in the Dukedom, 
 Three times great. 
 
 In puerile innocence, in youthful wedlock, in 
 senile celibacy, 
 
 Three times pious. 
 
 With his sons, with his subjects, with his neigh- 
 bours, 
 
 Three times peaceful. 
 1 Scarab elli, op, cit.
 
 The Duke-Pope 91 
 
 In the Dukedom, in the Pontificate, in the 
 Legation, 
 
 Three times just. 
 
 By acclamation of his own, of strangers, and 
 of Councils, 
 
 Three times Solomon. 
 
 In the worship at the Hermitage, in the exalted- 
 ness from the Hermitage, in the return to the 
 Hermitage, 
 
 Three times felicitous. 
 
 In his life, in his death, in his miracles, 
 Three times holy." 
 
 ARMS OF AMAOEUS VIII. AS POPE FELIX V.
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 THE HOME-SURROUNDINGS OF THE HOUSE 
 OF SAVOY IN THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY. 
 TASTES, FASHIONS, AND PERSONALTIES. 
 INVENTORIES OF THE OBJECTS CONTAINED 
 IN THE DUCAL PALACES OF TURIN, CHAM- 
 BERY, AND PONT D*AIN AT THE CLOSE 
 OF THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY 
 
 IT is useless to attempt to portray the 
 history of any people without allud- 
 ing to their tastes, their habits, their 
 fashions, and their intellectual pursuits. 
 There is no intention in this chapter to 
 discuss the art of this period of Savoyard 
 history. Such a dissertation would be 
 altogether beyond the aim of the present 
 work, but some account of the personal 
 tastes and fashions of the dukes and duch- 
 esses of Savoy may not be out of place at 
 this point of their story. The condition 
 
 in which Savoy found itself at the mid- 
 92
 
 Home-Surroundings 93 
 
 die of the fifteenth century was one of 
 prosperity and culture. This was due in 
 a great measure to the wisdom and admin- 
 istration of Amadeus VIII., nineteenth 
 Count and first Duke of Savoy. 
 
 The position held in Europe by the 
 Duke as arbitrator in the quarrels of his 
 neighbours, and as their referee in all 
 questions requiring acumen, had brought 
 to his Court a number of ambassadors and 
 statesmen, who came for counsel and ad- 
 vice. They, in their turn, brought a stir 
 and an animation which had its effect in 
 stimulating trade, in enlarging the ideas, 
 and raising the tastes of all classes through- 
 out the country. The brilliancy of Duke 
 Amadeus's Court gave an encouragement 
 to art as well as to home and foreign in- 
 dustries. The magnificence with which 
 the princes of Savoy, at this epoch, sur- 
 rounded themselves, in their private as 
 well as in their public life, proved of two- 
 fold advantage to their Court. It gave an 
 incentive to trade and manufacture that 
 brought abiding good to Savoy ; it also 
 served as an impetus to commerce in such
 
 94 The House of Savoy 
 
 a way as to advance social development 
 by several centuries. 
 
 The wealth then existing in the duchy 
 is revealed in the inventories which have 
 come down to us. The minuteness of 
 these records gives us an insight into the 
 luxury and fashions, the tastes and the 
 entertainments indulged in by the princes 
 and princesses of the House of Savoy. A 
 long list exists of the literary and artistic 
 treasures contained in the three ducal 
 residences of Turin, Chambery, and Pont 
 d'Ain. This catalogue enumerates and 
 describes no less than one thousand, six 
 hundred and thirty different items : three 
 hundred books, manuscripts, and codices ; 
 three hundred jewels, pieces of plate, and 
 valuables appertaining to the Treasury ; 
 five hundred pieces of tapestry ; three 
 hundred hangings, draperies, and utensils 
 for the services and decoration of the 
 Church ; two hundred pieces of armour, 
 of ironwork, and of furniture. 
 
 It is impossible not to be impressed by 
 the costliness of these possessions : the 
 wonderful miniature-painting in most of
 
 Home-Surroundings 95 
 
 the codices ; the exquisite workmanship 
 in the design and execution in the jewel- 
 lery ; the value and variety of the stuffs ; 
 the tapestries displaying the records of past 
 and present history with every detail as 
 to beauty of colour and pattern carried out 
 in the elaboration of their threads ; the 
 furniture and other treasures betokening 
 unrivalled sumptuousness, and bespeaking 
 for the House of Savoy a splendour the 
 knowledge of which has but lately come 
 to light, and displays the luxury and taste 
 existing in Savoy four hundred years ago. 
 Duke Amadeus's Court became a rallying 
 point for artists from every land. During 
 his reign a large influx of artificers, paint- 
 ers, sculptors, goldsmiths, embroiderers, 
 musicians, and miniature-painters found 
 favour and occupation in Savoy. 
 
 The same order of things was continued 
 under the weak and vain Lodovico, or 
 Louis, Amadeus's son and successor. This 
 condition may be said to have reached the 
 meridian of its prosperity in that reign, for 
 to Louis's love of display was added that 
 of his wife, Anna of Cyprus. Her Oriental
 
 96 The House of Savoy 
 
 nature delighted even more than that of 
 her husband in all the luxury and magnifi- 
 cence that wealth and self-indulgence could 
 supply. " Under Duke Louis, whose van- 
 ity and weakness are well known," says a 
 modern writer, " the decorative arts and 
 industries received a still greater impetus 
 from the splendour of the Court, from the 
 immoderate luxury, from the extravagant 
 revellings in gold and gems, from the 
 prodigality of the gifts and the wasteful- 
 ness of every kind, into which the lovely 
 and capricious Anna of Cyprus dragged 
 her feeble consort. The unfortunate, 
 steadily declining condition of the ducal 
 finances availed in no way to check the 
 enormous purchases of precious cloths of 
 gold and of silver, of silks, of jewels, and 
 of the thousand other costly articles which 
 fed the luxury of the Court. This extra- 
 vagance, in its turn, nourished and in- 
 creased art and industry. 1 
 
 To give the precedence to jewels, gifts, 
 and clothes would cast a reflection on the 
 
 1 P. Vayra, " Le lettere e le arti alia Corta di Savoia nel 
 secolo XV.," Misc. di Storialt., T. xxxii., p. 20.
 
 Home-Surroundings 97 
 
 literary treasures owned by the dukes of 
 Savoy. We will simply follow in the steps 
 of those who drew up the inventory, and 
 lead off with the books and manuscripts, 
 even if the chronological order is not al- 
 ways strictly maintained. The first inven- 
 tory, which was made by " Messieurs 
 Amye de challes maistre d'oustel de mon 
 tres redouble' seigneur Monseigneur le due 
 de sauoye et Jehan vulHod tre'sorier de 
 sauoye " [Messrs. Amye de Challes, Stew- 
 ard of my very redoubtable lord, Monsig- 
 nor the Duke of Savoy, and Jehan (John) 
 Vulliod, Treasurer of Savoy], the 25th of 
 October, the year of grace 1498, opens 
 with a list of the books to be found at that 
 period at the Castle of Chambery, these 
 books being for the most part kept in 
 cases or coffers. These coffers are cov- 
 ered either with cloth or leather, the cloth 
 being generally red, the leather black, and 
 they are barred and bolted in a way that 
 hints of more security for the books than 
 of facility of access to the reader. The 
 cases, too, are generally lined. All be- 
 tokens a care for the books that has
 
 98 The House of Savoy 
 
 availed to preserve many of them intact 
 to the present day. Many of them are of 
 great value ; many deal with religious 
 subjects. The exactness with which they 
 are catalogued shows with what faithful- 
 ness the "maistre d'oustel" and the "tres- 
 orier" carried out their work. No detail 
 is omitted, and the condition of the book 
 receives as much notice as its authorship 
 and nomenclature. Thus No. 5, for in- 
 stance, is spoken of as follows : " Vng 
 aidtre gros liure en parchemin, escript a 
 la main, traictant de la disputacion de 
 sainct paul centre symon 1'enchanteur, 
 commencant a la grosse lectre : Quant 
 sainct paul, couuert de paul et de 
 cuyr & vng meschant fermail de peau et 
 locton " [Another great book on parch- 
 ment, written by hand, treating of the dis- 
 putation of St. Paul against Simon the 
 Magician, beginning with the capital let- 
 ter (probably illuminated) : " When St. 
 Paul," covered with skin and with leather, 
 with a faulty clasp of leather and locton\. 
 This work, of which a manuscript copy 
 exists in the Bibliotheque Nationale, of
 
 Home-Surroundings 99 
 
 Paris, treats of a legend relating to St. 
 Paul, beginning, " Quant St. Paul fu 
 venus a Rome tuit li juif vindrint a lui," etc. 
 [When St. Paul came to Rome all the Jews 
 came to (see) him, etc.]. The copy at Paris 
 dates from the end of the thirteenth cent- 
 ury, and at the conclusion the authorship is 
 ascribed to Marcellus. The " faulty clasp " 
 evidently points to its being out of repair, 
 or in some way wanting in the duties re- 
 quired of it. The subjects of many of the 
 books are interesting as showing the occu- 
 pations of the day, the habits of the counts 
 of Savoy in those times, and the bent of 
 their minds. Thus we come upon "vng 
 petit liure de parchemin, escript, a la main, 
 traictant du jeu de 1'eschacquier appelle 
 doctrine, illumine d'or et d'aczur, folliage* 
 tout a 1'entour de la premiere margine 
 commencant : Cy commence, couuert de 
 post et de vellours decire a quatre fer- 
 meaulx a boucles d'argent doure, et deux 
 agullectes de ruban ou il y a trois fers 
 d'argent doure" [A little parchment 
 book, written by hand, treating of the 
 game of chess or checkers called doctrine,
 
 ioo The House of Savoy 
 
 illuminated with gold and azure, foliated 
 all round the first margin, beginning : 
 " Here begins," covered (in) boards with 
 torn velvet, with four clasps of silver 
 gilt and two ribbon straps, with three 
 nails or studs of silver gilt]. Chess, then, 
 was evidently a pastime in the House of 
 Savoy ; and the description of this torn, 
 used work on the subject shows that the 
 game was one frequently indulged in, the 
 matter well studied, and the volume often 
 in the hands of the combatants. Can the 
 damaged condition of this little work be ex- 
 plained in any way ? Can it be that the 
 sting and smart of a triumphant " check- 
 mate " would have so stirred the choler of 
 the defeated player that no reprisals could 
 be found, save those of flinging at the head 
 of the victor the little tome, whose counsels 
 had been powerless to avert defeat ? 
 
 Another book shows that the taste of 
 that day was not unlike our own, and that 
 The Romaunt of the Round Table and 
 The Romaunt of the Rose were read and 
 studied then as now. The copy of the 
 latter in the Duke's collection was by
 
 Home-Surroundings 101 
 
 William of Lorris ; and the very copy 
 here mentioned exists to this day in the 
 Biblioteca Nazionale of Turin. This 
 is followed again by volumes on sacred 
 subjects ; then come works of Seneca and 
 translations from the French. After nine- 
 teen books have been named and de- 
 scribed, the contents of the first " couffre " 
 are concluded, and those of the second 
 are catalogued. 
 
 This collection, well bolted and barred 
 within " vng aultre couffre couuert de 
 cuyr noir " [another coffer covered with 
 black leather], contains a famous manu- 
 script of the date of 1294, known as the 
 Bible historiale, of which " la premiere 
 histoire est de dieu le pere aucques les 
 quatre euuangelistes, commensant : Pour 
 ce que les dyables," etc. [the first history 
 is of God the Father also the four evan- 
 gelists, beginning : "In order that the 
 devils," etc.]. It is bound in boards cov- 
 ered with crimson velvet, in which are 
 nine nails in the shape of St. Maurice's 
 cross ; it has two clasps fastened with 
 green silk, and the clasps and the nails
 
 102 The House of Savoy 
 
 are all silver-gilt. A very fine Codex 
 which tallies with this description is to be 
 found at the National Library at Turin, 
 and is looked upon as being the copy in 
 question. No less than sixteen " couf- 
 fres " are catalogued in turn, all covered 
 either with red cloth or black leather, 
 many of them lined, and all carefully 
 guarded with iron bars and locks. Con- 
 tained in these various strongholds are to 
 be found works by Dante ; Froissart ; 
 The Romance of Fier-a-bras ; the poems 
 of Charles, Duke of Orleans, written dur- 
 ing his captivity in England ; The Hun- 
 dred Tales of Boccaccio ; the writings of 
 Boethius ; Cicero ; the Fathers of the 
 Church ; the Mirouer du Monde [" Mirror 
 of the World," a book much in vogue at 
 that epoch] ; works on medicine ; on the 
 preservation of health ; the Lives of Illus- 
 trious Men, by Cornelius Nepos ; works 
 on the diseases of horses, and their treat- 
 ment ; others concerning precious stones ; 
 others concerning the siege and fall of 
 Troy ; of tournaments and the art of 
 chivalry ; plays, both sacred and profane ;
 
 Home-Surroundings 103 
 
 and other works of rare editions and 
 great value, bringing the collection up to 
 about three hundred volumes. 
 
 The list of books being concluded, the 
 inventory proceeds with articles of a more 
 housewifely nature under the heading of 
 " La Tappisserie," hangings and draperies 
 decorated with clouds, angels, scrolls, 
 leaves, and flowers. One coverlet is thus 
 described : " Vng aultre banchie [literally, 
 covering for a bench] bleu fait a nueez, 
 dessus a quatre anges tenant escrips en 
 leurs mains " [another blue coverlet with 
 clouds, on which are angels holding scrolls 
 in their hands]. Others again are orna- 
 mented with the arms of Savoy, together 
 with those of the princesses who married 
 into the ducal house. We find the Savoy 
 motto, " F. E. R. T.," surrounded with the 
 love-knots or bows (" lacz, lacci ") which 
 give it so decorative an effect. Griffins, 
 wild animals, scenes from hunting and 
 rural life, are all in fantastic designs, dis- 
 playing the taste and execution of the 
 different crafts employed in the manufact- 
 ure of these tapestries.
 
 104 The House of Savoy 
 
 Together with " La Tappisserie " comes 
 a list of linen of every sort and condition : 
 embroidered, plain, painted, with trim- 
 mings and without, adapted for every 
 variety of purpose. Many pouches, bags, 
 and purses are also described ; a box 
 wherein is contained a large hat of grey 
 felt " a vn soleil dessus fait de petites 
 perles " [has a sun upon it made of little 
 pearls]. There are banners and fly-wisps 
 an Eastern importation, which from hav- 
 ing been a piece of household furniture 
 was afterwards used in religious services. 
 
 Numerous also are the hangings and 
 curtains for church purposes. One is 
 " vng drap de vellours gris pour vng pare- 
 ment d'oustel, brode dessus de fil d'or et 
 soye, la vie de sainct pierre et sainct 
 pol, armoye aux quatre coinetz de crois 
 blanches tout a 1'entour de lacz de sauoye, 
 et Pert, double de toyle rouge" [an altar- 
 cloth of grey velvet, embroidered in gold 
 thread and silk, with the lives of St. Peter 
 and St. Paul emblazoned at the four corn- 
 ers, with white crosses round Savoy knots, 
 and F. E. R. T., lined with red cloth].
 
 Home-Surroundings 105 
 
 Another is " vng aultre grant drap de vel- 
 lours verd brode dessus la vie de sainct 
 Jehan baptiste a grans personnages d'or 
 et soye, armoyes au dessus et aux coustes 
 tout au long de petites croix blanches et 
 des armes de Bourgongne my parties et 
 double de toyle noyre " [another great 
 cloth of green velvet with the life of St. 
 John the Baptist embroidered on it, with 
 great figures in gold and silk emblazoned 
 upon it (or above), and all along the sides 
 little white crosses, and the arms of Bur- 
 gundy in the middle, and lined with black 
 cloth]. 
 
 Stuffs in damask, in silk, in linen, in 
 cloth of gold, in velvet, in satin, in serge, 
 and in other materials, of every colour, 
 with patterns and designs innumerable, 
 go to make up a collection which must 
 have been complete in its way, and of 
 immense value at that date. Hunting and 
 forest scenes were evidently favourite sub- 
 jects with the ducal family of Savoy, and 
 very effective and beautiful many of them 
 must have been. Such, for instance, as : 
 " Deux pans de soye blanche ouure a
 
 io6 The House of Savoy 
 
 ouurage de nappies a folliages de bro- 
 deure d'or et soye verde a vng jardin verd, 
 trois fames et vng homme dedans trois 
 arbres, a celluy du mylieu de la croix 
 blanche pendue et tout de brodeure " 
 [two panels of white silk embroidered 
 with Naples work with foliage in gold 
 and green silk, a green garden with 
 three women and a man within, three 
 trees, on the middle one a white cross 
 hanging, and all embroidered]. Or take 
 again : " Vng aultre grant tappis de ver- 
 dure a forestz a grant personnaiges, 
 hommes et femmes a chevaulx chassans 
 de hors" [Another great hanging of a 
 green forest with great figures of men 
 and women on horseback bear-hunting]. 
 This " chasse de hors " being the chase 
 of the bear (ours), not "out of doors," as 
 might at first strike one's imagination. 
 
 A lengthy list is reserved for the bed- 
 hangings, together with their adornments 
 and the materials of which they are made. 
 Very beautiful must have been these 
 "ciels" and " douciels " (canopies and dos- 
 sals) with much minute detail worked in
 
 Home-Surroundings 107 
 
 figures, foliage, beasts (including uni- 
 corns), birds, such as hawks, peacocks, 
 etc., scrolls, inscriptions, and heraldic de- 
 vices. 
 
 The tricolour of red, white, and green 
 is often mentioned, and it is interesting to 
 notice how constantly the mixture of these 
 colours which in after times were to be- 
 come the national colours of Italy were 
 introduced in the stuffs, jewellery, and 
 decorations of the ducal House of Savoy 
 hundreds of years ago. A necklace given 
 to Margaret of Savoy, daughter of Ama- 
 deus VIII., on the occasion of her (second) 
 marriage with Louis, Duke of Bavaria, is 
 said to have weighed one mark, six ounces, 
 and nine pennies, and to have been enam- 
 elled in green, white, and red. These 
 colours again made their appearance in a 
 coverlet which is thus described : " Vne 
 couuerte de litiere de velours cramoysi 
 double d'Vng drap de turquie de soye 
 Rouge, ouure ladite doubleure de ladite 
 soye et Rozes d'or, frenge de soye blanche, 
 verde et rouge " [a bed-cover of crimson 
 velvet, lined with a Turkish cloth of red
 
 io8 The House of Savoy 
 
 silk, the said lining of the said silk being 
 embroidered, and with gold roses, and 
 fringed with silk, white, -green, and red]. 
 On other stuffs the arms of Yolande of 
 France, the arms of Montferrat, of Bour- 
 bon, of Burgundy, of Bresse, of Cyprus 
 (the last in honour of Anna of Lusignan), 
 are in turn embroidered with those of 
 Savoy. By the richness and variety of 
 their quarterings they must have -greatly 
 enhanced the decorative effect of these 
 hangings. 
 
 Even the mattresses are thought of and 
 their quality mentioned in this compre- 
 hensive list. The first one spoken of is, 
 however, of a humble order, and only 
 " vn g grant matrat de cocton fait de fus- 
 tenne carrelli " [a great mattress of cotton 
 made of (or covered with) plaid fustian]. 
 The next is more imposing, being " vng 
 aultre mactrat de velours cramoysi grant 
 double de taffetas gris decire ledit taffetas " 
 [another great mattress of crimson velvet 
 lined with grey silk, the said silk being 
 torn]. Think of a crimson velvet mattress ! 
 No wonder that the light grey silk lining
 
 Home-Surroundings 109 
 
 should get torn in the daily process of 
 turning, if such liberties could be taken 
 with mattresses of that value ! 
 
 The mattresses disposed of, lengthy 
 mention is made of articles for church 
 use. Then the tale begins again of linen 
 and household properties, sheets of all 
 sizes and qualities, table-cloths, napkins, 
 cushions, pillow-cases (these latter made 
 of silk, nay, even of velvet as well as 
 of linen), and an unlimited amount of 
 tapestry, on some of which is worked the 
 portrait of Du Guesclin, and on some that 
 of " mistere sainct george." 
 
 The armoury is also mentioned. The 
 list here is a short one, of no special art- 
 istic or historic interest, though so exact 
 is it that not even an old and bad pair of 
 bellows " for blowing the fire " is omitted. 
 
 To enumerate all the objects recorded 
 in these inventories would prove weari- 
 some, for several pages follow, filled only 
 with articles for the Duke's private chapel, 
 and then all the minutiae of goods con- 
 tained in his palaces at Chambery, Turin, 
 and Pont d'Ain. But an occasional object
 
 1 10 The House of Savoy 
 
 now and again attracts attention and re- 
 quires a special notice, as in the case of 
 " Maistre Jehan's" room, which may be 
 taken as a specimen of a bachelor's apart- 
 ment with a certain claim to comfort, thus : 
 "En la chambre de maistre Jehan " (who 
 Maistre Jehan maybe does not transpire, 
 but he may have been one of the gentle- 
 men who drew up the inventory and who 
 is spoken of as " Maistre Jehan Vulliod," 
 Treasurer of Savoy) " vng lit moyen garny 
 de cussin, trois couuerte barrees, vng ciel 
 de toille blanche et les quatre pendans, 
 vne table de noyer, deux trecteux, trois 
 banes de chesne tant, grans que petis, 
 troys grans escabelles et vne petite, vng 
 meschant buffet de sappin, deux trellis a 
 mettre sus le lit " [a medium-sized bed 
 furnished with pillows, three cross-barred 
 coverlets, a canopy of white cloth and the 
 four hangings, a table of chestnut, two 
 trestles, three oaken benches, large and 
 small, three large stools and one small 
 one, a poor buffet of pine, two trellised 
 gratings to put over the bed]. The use 
 of these trellised gratings on the beds was
 
 Home-Surroundings 1 1 1 
 
 to prevent the dogs from getting on them 
 and damaging the rich coverlets at that 
 time so much in use. The footnote which 
 gives this explanation offers almost an 
 apology for the need of such things, bid- 
 ding us make allowance for the age in 
 which such practices were in use, and ex- 
 cusing the rough habits of the day. 
 
 One curious item among a heap of tables, 
 old bits of iron, and odds and ends of 
 every sort, is one for some wood for " le 
 lit de mal repos " [the bed of ill repose], 
 a weird and pathetic wording for the bed 
 wherein all must some day seek rest, and 
 which is more commonly spoken of as a 
 coffin. 
 
 To show how exact this inventory is, it 
 suffices to take note of " vne meschante 
 nappe toute deciree que ne vault riens et de 
 trous dedans, aultres nappes a fillez noirs 
 qui ne valent riens " [a faulty table-cloth, all 
 torn, which is worth nothing, with holes in 
 it, and others with black netting, which 
 are worth nothing]. The inventory also 
 make's mention of the entire apparatus 
 for a bath, of warming-pans, and of all the
 
 ii2 The House of Savoy 
 
 utensils needed for domestic life. It fur- 
 nishes us with the proof that life in those 
 days, was not so unlike our own, and that 
 the comforts, cleanliness, and luxury which 
 we are apt to consider as peculiar to our- 
 selves were known and practised in Savoy 
 four centuries ago. 
 
 It may be that a glance at the " Etren- 
 nes " or New Year's gifts, made by the dif- 
 ferent dukes and duchesses, will be of 
 interest in serving to show the fashions of 
 that day, and the costliness of the presents 
 given by these personages to. the members 
 of their family, their household, and de- 
 pendents at the beginning of each year. 
 The inventory from which the following 
 extracts are taken bears the date of 1445, 
 when Louis, son of Amadeus VIII., and 
 his wife, Anna of Cyprus, were reigning 
 in Savoy. An offering made by Duchess 
 Anna to the Pope shows how even then 
 the mosquitoes were as troublesome as to- 
 day, and how different remedies were tried 
 in order to escape from so persistent an 
 evil. The Duchess sends a gift to the 
 Holy Father in the shape of a candle-
 
 Home-Surroundings 113 
 
 stick of gold made to represent a labourer, 
 wherein to hold some " birds of Cyprus," 
 these " birds " being composed of some 
 grain or powder, burnt as pastilles to de- 
 stroy, or at least stupefy, the mosquitoes. 
 The gift is thus described in the inventory : 
 " Pour j chandelier dor a tenir oysellons 
 de Cypres, fait a fasson dung gaigneur 
 pesant xj onces iiij deniers d'or ; lequel 
 ma Damme donna a nostre tressaint Pere 
 pour bonne estrayne ledit jour de Ian ; 
 (encluz xxvj ecus pour la fasson cxjiij 
 escuz et demie) " [for a gold candlestick 
 to hold birds of Cyprus, made in the 
 fashion of a labourer, weighing eleven 
 ounces four deniers of gold, which my 
 Lady gave to our most holy Father for 
 a good gift the said New Year's Day, 
 one hundred and fourteen crowns and a 
 half, including twenty-six crowns for the 
 making]. 
 
 The Duke's present to his Holiness con- 
 sisted of a gold salt-cellar in the form of a 
 knight holding a " dragier " [bonbonniere]. 
 His gift to his sister Margaret, wife of 
 Louis of Anjou, King of Sicily and Jeru- 
 
 VOL. II. 8
 
 ii4 The House of Savoy 
 
 salem, was a reliquary fashioned in a round 
 shape, set with six rubies and six pearls 
 all round the centre-piece ; in the middle 
 of one side was a cameo ; in the middle of 
 the other was a sapphire set in a white 
 ground. The Duchess's gift to her sister- 
 in-law was " a gold falcon enamelled in 
 white, seated on a throne enamelled in 
 green, garnished with a diamond, five ru- 
 bies, and three pearl pendants." These 
 gifts to Queen Margaret were the most 
 costly of all the " Etrennes," the Duke's 
 gift costing fifty ducats, that of his wife 
 thirty-two. 
 
 Duke Louis's gift to his sister Maria, 
 Duchess of Milan, the wife of Filippo 
 Maria Visconti, was " an enamelled tree 
 of gold, whereon was a man holding in 
 his hand a monkey and three flying fal- 
 cons " ; a present that evidently was not 
 easy of transport, as stress is laid on the 
 fact that it was to be conveyed by " Mon- 
 seigneur le mareschal de la Mouree a ma 
 dame de Milan," doubtless from the diffi- 
 culty that would be experienced in pack- 
 ing for shipment so awkward a decoration
 
 Home-Surroundings 1 1 5 
 
 as a monkey and three hawks on the wing, 
 even when they were imprisoned in settings 
 of gold and enamel. 
 
 The New Year's offerings that passed 
 between Louis and his Duchess were 
 as follows : " Paternostres de cassidonne 
 garnyes de vj pommes dargent dorees 
 propices a tenir pommes dambie " ; " vng 
 pendant d'or garny dune grosse perle dung 
 dymant, et dun rubys, et vng colier dor 
 garny de perles et de rubys ; lesquelles 
 Paternostres de cassideine et pendant des- 
 susdiz ma Damme donna destrenne a 
 Monseigneur et Monseigneur donna a 
 ma Damma ledit colier ledit jour de Ian" 
 [Paternosters of chalcedony garnished 
 with six silver-gilt apples, designed to hold 
 amber beads (or grains of amber if for 
 medicine) ; and a gold pendant adorned 
 with a great pearl, a diamond, and a ruby, 
 and a gold necklace adorned with pearls 
 and rubies ; which Paternosters of chalce- 
 dony and pendant above-mentioned my 
 Lady gave as a gift to my Lord, and my 
 Lord gave my Lady the said necklace on 
 the said New Year's Day].
 
 n6 The House of Savoy 
 
 The price of these gifts after the bar- 
 gain had been made was twelve ducats for 
 the " Paternostres," and eighteen ducats 
 for the necklace. This was a moderate 
 sum in comparison with those generally 
 expended for this kind of presents. 
 
 Other gifts follow in great abundance 
 to the various members of the ducal 
 family, brothers, sisters, brothers-in-law, 
 sisters-in-law all being remembered. 
 Though jewellery predominates to a great 
 extent, it does not exclude other things, 
 such as swords with elaborate sheaths ; 
 table-knives, which were evidently a fa- 
 vourite form of present, and consisted of 
 one pair, sometimes even of two, costing 
 ten florins the pair, or twenty florins in- 
 cluding the sheath ; blades, gilt at Venice 
 and engraven with designs ; caskets, in the 
 shape of apples, for amber (amber being a 
 drug much in vogue for its properties as 
 a perfume and as a medicine) ; and all 
 such kinds of gifts as might serve to knit 
 closer the bonds of family affection and 
 to brighten the New Year. 
 
 Nor were the members of the household
 
 Home-Surroundings 117 
 
 forgotten. The Duke presented eight 
 ladies of the Court each with a gold 
 chain ; the price of these eight chains 
 amounted to a total of forty-six ducats. 
 To twelve other ladies were given rings ; 
 each ring was formed of two stones, and 
 cost two ducats apiece ; the stones were 
 either a ruby, a turquoise, or an emerald, 
 probably not of the first quality. Rings 
 were given freely, also purses, both by the 
 Duke and the Duchess. But nothing can 
 equal the quantity of caps presented by 
 the ducal couple, with which the list draws 
 to a close, and which figure under differ- 
 ent names, assuming, at the same time, 
 different shapes, sizes, and colours. Some 
 are large, some are small ; some have 
 strings, others have none ; some are scarlet, 
 others are grey, while the fashion of a spec- 
 ially mentioned large red cap is one much 
 dwelt on, and evidently received much con- 
 sideration at that epoch. The list of re- 
 tainers who received these gifts is also 
 given, and must not be omitted here, con- 
 sisting, as it does, of trumpeters, minstrels, 
 chambermen and chamberwomen, bakers,
 
 n8 The House of Savoy 
 
 butlers the literal rendering of the word 
 botelliers or bottlers of the wine, caterers, 
 cooks, scullerymen, poulterers, butchers, 
 carriers, grooms, marshals, valets, messen- 
 gers, upholsterers, gamekeepers, falconers, 
 pastry-cooks, and other ordinary servants, 
 equally of Monseigneur as of Madame, 
 and of Messeigneurs the children. To 
 all of these the Duke presented a New 
 Year's gift of a florin apiece. 
 
 In almost every inventory some mention 
 is made of the " Ring of St. Maurice," 
 (the symbol which has already been spoken 
 of as denoting the sovereign power and 
 state in Savoy) and of " the true Cross." 
 This latter, or more probably only a por- 
 tion of it, was always kept in the Duke's 
 room ; though, during Duchess Yolande's 
 life, the sacred relic was deposited in her 
 apartment. An account is also given of 
 this Duchess's dresses ; neither their num- 
 ber nor their fashion would commend 
 themselves to the exigencies of to-day. 
 We read first of "six manches de vellours 
 cremesy brocard dor " [six sleeves of crim- 
 son velvet, brocaded with gold]. Then
 
 Home-Surroundings 119 
 
 comes "vne robe longue de Madame Yo- 
 lant, quest de cremesi " [one long robe of 
 Madame Yolande of crimson]. It is re- 
 markable how throughout these invento- 
 ries the spelling is always changed, and 
 the same word is altered every time it oc- 
 curs. Another gown, this one, however, 
 short, "de madicte Dame de cremesi" 
 [of my said Lady, of crimson], then another 
 one, also short, " de camelot de saye vio- 
 lete " [of violet silk camelot], and then 
 the list is complete. And a more modest 
 and limited wardrobe for so high and 
 puissant a dame could not well be found. 
 Considerable improvement as to quantity 
 and quality in the matter of wearing ap- 
 parel is manifest in the inventory taken 
 after Duke Philibert's death in 1482, when 
 a step in advance had been made as to 
 luxury and elegance, for here we read of 
 fur-lined coats ; sable and marten are fre- 
 quently used, though varied with the skins 
 of hares, of down, and of black Rouma- 
 nian lambs. All these articles, it would 
 seem, were given, after the Duke's demise, 
 to his valets and waiting-men.
 
 120 The House of Savoy 
 
 It is easy to see from what has been 
 recorded in the foregoing pages that 
 wealth and extravagance went hand in 
 hand in the House of Savoy. But the day 
 of reckoning was not far off, and the suc- 
 cessors of Amadeus VIII., who possessed 
 neither the intelligence nor the energy of 
 that prince, were forced to resort to every 
 kinds of means to make headway against 
 the financial difficulties that were steadily 
 accumulating, and to meet a legacy of 
 debt that each father passed on with the 
 same undeviating policy to his son and 
 successor. The primary cause of the 
 ever-increasing insolvency of " Casa Sa- 
 voia " owed its origin undoubtedly to the 
 expeditions to the East arid to Naples 
 of the " Conte Verde," and to the ex- 
 penditure incurred by Amadeus VIII., 
 when under the name of Felix V. 
 he assumed for a while the papal tiara. 
 The evil days were close at hand, and al- 
 ready Louis of Savoy, Amadeus's son and 
 successor, had to pawn much of his father's 
 goods to raise money and meet the de- 
 mands constantly made on his purse.
 
 Home-Surroundings 121 
 
 either by the exigencies of the state or 
 the wasteful expenditure of his wife, Anna 
 of Cyprus. 
 
 On the occasion of the second marriage 
 of his sister, Margaret of Savoy, with Louis, 
 Duke of Bavaria, Louis pledged himself 
 to give his sister a marriage portion of one 
 hundred and twenty-five thousand florins 
 " of the Rhine," twenty-five thousand of 
 which were to be paid on the bride's arri- 
 val at Basle, and the rest within the space 
 of the three following years. But the 
 Duke of Savoy's finances were worse in- 
 stead of better at the end of the allotted 
 time, and in order to keep his word he 
 sent a quantity of plate and jewels as 
 security for the absent florins. These 
 securities were to be deposited in a safe 
 place in the town of Basle, and should the 
 money not be forthcoming in the future, the 
 plate and jewels were to remain confiscate 
 to the Duke of Bavaria. Among a mass 
 of silver-gilt cups, salvers, goblets, ewers, 
 vases, jugs, and so forth, is mentioned 
 also the tiara that Margaret's father had 
 worn as Pope, which is described as " three
 
 122 The House of Savoy 
 
 crowns of gold with many precious mar- 
 garites in the papal crown therein enclosed 
 and sealed." The state of the ducal ex- 
 chequer must have fallen low to allow so 
 precious and interesting a relic to be sent 
 to a foreign country. Duke Lodovico 
 must either have felt very positive that 
 the day would come when this treasure 
 could be rescued, or else have had no 
 hope of better times and so permitted the 
 deluge of despair to swallow up all the as- 
 sociations of past, present, and future to- 
 gether. History has not revealed to us 
 whether the Duke's hopes or fears were 
 fulfilled. 
 
 Before closing the record of the person- 
 alties owned by the dukes and duchesses 
 of Savoy, the feasts and entertainments 
 given at the Court must not be omitted 
 from the consideration that they surely 
 deserve. Duchess Yolande was evidently 
 hospitably inclined, and the banquets given 
 under her auspices called forth on more 
 than one occasion the notice of the Court- 
 chroniclers. Those that elicit the most 
 comment were given to the ambassadors
 
 Home-Surroundings 123 
 
 of the Dukes of Milan and of Burgundy 
 in the year 1474, and to the Prince of 
 Taranto, the son of the King of Sicily, in 
 January of the following year. But these 
 pale before the glories of the festival that 
 took place in December, 1476, when the 
 guests were Yolande's own son and his 
 wife, the Count and Countess of Geneva. 
 The " bill of expenses " is drawn up by 
 one Lancelot de Lans, whose profession 
 was that of " gentleman of the mouth " 
 (gentiluomo di bocca), implying doubtless 
 that all questions as to food and supplies 
 for the mouth were under his care and 
 supervision. A difficult and thankless 
 post to fill, if tastes were as fastidious and 
 exacting as they are nowadays ! The ex- 
 penses refer to the entertainment and 
 presents provided for the guests, to the 
 utter exclusion (at least here) of the dishes 
 and viands set upon the board. The 
 first articles to be provided are pewter 
 covers wherewith to protect what are here 
 spoken of as " entremes " ; by this word 
 is meant " all that occurred between the 
 courses," and, in the Middle Ages, the
 
 124 The House of Savoy 
 
 diversion which took place during an in- 
 terval of the repast. Under these cov- 
 ers were dresses, described as " liveries," 
 streaked with gold and silver, and which 
 were destined as gifts for the guests. 
 Then followed heads of pigs and of boars, 
 invariably gilded and bedecked with trim- 
 mings and devices. After these came the 
 triumphal car, or " baldacchino " (a device 
 of no small account in the feast), on w r hich 
 were placed a Captain and four damsels, 
 all armed with gold and silver weapons, 
 with banners and standards waving about 
 
 O 
 
 them ; the maidens were adorned with 
 locks of artificial hair, whereof the tresses, 
 several yards in length, fell curling to the 
 ground, or floated in the breeze as the 
 chariot moved along on its triumphal way. 
 There were minstrels ; there were 
 dancers, mummers, and masqueraders ; and 
 above all there was a giant effigy called 
 " Goliath," whose make-up must have 
 caused considerable trouble, to say noth- 
 ing of the expense. For first of all there 
 was the potter's clay for the mould where- 
 in he was to be cast, together with all the
 
 Home-Surroundings 125 
 
 consequent items for that process ; then 
 came the arms for making " Goliath " a 
 complete man of war, his banners, his 
 lances, and his daggers, and finally his 
 " large head." However, when all was 
 told, the price for so satisfactory a produc- 
 tion was not more than one florin ; though 
 this did not include the hair for " Goliath," 
 which has a separate notice all to itself, 
 being composed of old sheep's wool (the 
 fact of the wool being old is dwelt on, 
 though the merits as to its antiquity are 
 not revealed), and costing " vj gros." The 
 sempstresses' bill came to thirteen florins. 
 In this was comprised the labour for mak- 
 ing and sewing on the fringes that went 
 not only round the knights' banners, but 
 also about the dishes, the stitching needed 
 by the men-at-arms, and the supplying of 
 the hair for the maidens on the car, for 
 each of whom no less than four yards 
 of tresses were required. A numerous 
 list is given of the other odds and ends 
 needed for the occasion, such as candles, 
 string, cord, hooks, cloth, wax-flowers in 
 the shape of fleurs-de-lys, copper-wire for
 
 The House of Savoy 
 
 making crowns, lanterns, ostrich feathers 
 for the masqueraders, and two for the 
 Duchess, dresses for the mummers and 
 the minstrels, jerkins, gilt and silvered 
 leather for the linings of caps and edging 
 of waistcoats and " justacorps," silk, fus- 
 tian, and other materials, together with 
 the money paid to the carpenters, semp- 
 stresses, gilders, painters, furriers, etc. 
 These make up a sum total of over two 
 hundred and fifteen florins. 
 
 ARMS OF HUMBERT OF THE WHITE HANDS.
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 YOLANDE OF FRANCE. HER MARRIAGE. AP- 
 POINTED REGENT OF THE STATE. HER 
 DIFFICULTIES WITH COUNT PHILIP OF 
 BRESSE. DEATH OF AMADEUS IX. TOR- 
 TUOUS POLICY OF LOUIS XI. J OF CHARLES, 
 DUKE OF BURGUNDY ; AND OF THE DUKE 
 OF MILAN. YOLANDE'S INTRIGUES. HER 
 IMPRISONMENT BY THE DUKE OF BUR- 
 GUNDY. HER RELEASE. HER RETURN 
 TO SAVOY. HER DEATH. (1434-1478.) 
 
 THE Salic law was in full force in Sa- 
 voy. The opposition with which it 
 had been combated by the daughters of 
 the House of Savoy had been vehement 
 and determined ; but their resistance had 
 been in vain, and no princess of the dyn- 
 asty could sit on the throne of her fore- 
 fathers, or transmit her rights to that 
 throne to any of her heirs. But, as if to 
 atone for this restriction, a destiny stronger 
 than any law, in a spirit of contradiction 
 127
 
 128 The House of Savoy 
 
 (so often to be found where arrogant 
 forces have asserted themselves), had 
 brought compensation in a shape alto- 
 gether unlocked for, and in a manner that 
 was certainly never demanded. In no 
 other European history are the same 
 number of minorities to be met as in that 
 of the House of Savoy. Invariably these 
 minorities were watched over and directed 
 by princesses who had made Savoy the 
 land of their adoption, and who by their 
 devotion might well claim from it the 
 same love and respect which has ever 
 been conceded to the direct descendants 
 of Humbert of the White Hands. These 
 minorities, with a few exceptions, may be 
 dated from the reign of Amadeus IX. and 
 his wife, Yolande of France, when, to quote 
 a modern writer, " The reign of Amadeus 
 IX. inaugurated that long series of re- 
 gencies, which, although entrusted to wo- 
 men of masculine qualities, brought the 
 state of Savoy, all the same, to the very 
 verge of absolute ruin." l 
 
 1 Bertolotti, Davide, Istoria delta R. Casa di Savoia, p. 
 107, Milano, 1830.
 
 Yolande of France 129 
 
 The pair were affianced when still in the 
 cradle, the bride-elect being but two years 
 old, and her plighted bridegroom a year 
 younger. The contract for the marriage 
 was drawn up at Tours (where Yolande 
 was born the 6th of August, 1434) by her 
 father, Charles VII., and the ambassadors 
 of Amadeus VIII., the bridegroom's grand- 
 father. In conformity with a rule in vogue 
 in Savoy, the child was sent soon after 
 to be educated in the country of her 
 adoption, from her earliest youth to learn 
 the language, customs, and traditions of 
 the land which henceforth she was to con- 
 sider her own. 
 
 The period when Yolande first arrived 
 in Savoy was one of prosperity for the 
 country. Amadeus VIII. had brought 
 the duchy to a flourishing condition ; and 
 the decay that set in during the reign of 
 his son Louis was too gradual to be as 
 yet felt. " The Sabaudian state began to 
 decline, owing to the maladministration of 
 the new Duke [Louis], flighty, a lover 
 of display, effeminate, and unable to move 
 a step without his wife, the beautiful Anna
 
 130 The House of Savoy 
 
 of Cyprus, who filled his Court with Cy- 
 priots, to the annoyance and envy of the 
 nobles of Savoy." l 
 
 What share Yolande took in the brilliant, 
 luxurious, and frivolous Court no record re- 
 lates. Her first actual appearance in pub- 
 lic was evidently in 1451, when, at the age 
 of seventeen, she was present at the mar- 
 riage of her brother Louis, Dauphin of 
 France, with Charlotte of Savoy, eldest 
 daughter of Duke Louis and Anna of 
 Cyprus. This marriage, though opposed 
 by King Charles VII., was promoted by 
 the bride's parents, who were proud of the 
 alliance, and who hoped by it to secure 
 the future king of France as an unalter- 
 able ally to the cause and interests of Sa- 
 voy. Charles VII. had endeavoured in 
 vain to prevent the marriage ; he was 
 angry at the manner in which his heir had 
 been " caught " ; and he resolved to march 
 against Duke Louis to punish him for his 
 share in a transaction which annoyed him 
 doubly, as monarch and as father. 
 
 1 Dina, Achille, Jolanda, Duchessa di Savoia e la Ribellione 
 Sabauda net 1471, p. 6. Alba, 1892.
 
 Yolande of France 131 
 
 The intervention of the Papal Legate 
 was invoked to allay the King's wrath, but 
 a more timely intervention arose at that 
 moment in an invasion of the English into 
 France. Charles was only too glad to con- 
 clude peace with his kinsman of Savoy 
 and to devote himself to the more trouble- 
 some neighbour. This peace was ratified 
 by the marriage of the Prince of Pied- 
 mont and Yolande of France, which took 
 place in 1452, the bride having attained 
 the age of eighteen, and the bridegroom 
 being only seventeen. The young couple 
 divided the earlier part of their married 
 life between the provinces of Vaud and 
 Bresse ; they were not on the best of terms 
 with the reigning Duke and Duchess, and 
 preferred to pass their days far from a 
 Court whose frivolity excited their disdain, 
 and whose reckless display and extrava- 
 gance they were unable to restrain. 
 
 It was an anxious time for Savoy, and 
 not over quiet for France, Burgundy, or 
 Milan. In Milan the line of the Visconti 
 had just become extinct, and the Duke of 
 Savoy, neglecting the golden opportunity
 
 i3 2 The House of Savoy 
 
 to subjugate the Milanese and thus to 
 lay the basis of a powerful state in 
 Italy, allowed himself to be outwitted by 
 his far cleverer and more energetic rival, 
 Francesco Sforza, who fixed himself and 
 his dynasty on the throne of Milan to the 
 utter exclusion of the House of Savoy. 
 
 By the death of King Charles VII., in 
 1461, the Dauphin Louis became King of 
 France. Savoy, after having made but a 
 feeble effort to shake off the encroaching 
 policy of Charles, weak though that policy 
 had been, was absolutely unable to assert 
 herself against the wiles, the ingenuity, 
 and the unscrupulousness of Louis XI. 
 In Burgundy, the turbulent, warlike Count 
 of Charalois, soon to succeed his father as 
 Duke Charles the Bold, was adding to the 
 condition of unrest of all around him, by 
 his alliances first with one power, then 
 with another, and by the necessity which 
 obliged him to keep always on the alert 
 against the treachery, ability, and cunning 
 of his traitorous cousin and so-called friend, 
 the King of France. 
 
 Amid the universal turbulence engen-
 
 Yolande of France 133 
 
 dered by the rule of such men, Savoy could 
 not hope for a quiet existence ; and the 
 fever of agitation spread its contagion into 
 the very heart of the country, bringing 
 misery, civil war, and desolation. Of all 
 the restless spirits running on the earth 
 and at that moment their name was legion 
 the most restless perhaps was Philip of 
 Savoy, Count of Bresse, fifth son of Louis 
 and Anna, generally known by the nick- 
 name he had adopted for himself of " Lack- 
 land " (Sans Terre) in ironic allusion to 
 the small patrimony bestowed on him by 
 his father. This prince, whose intriguing 
 nature had disordered his father's reign, 
 and hastened, it is said, his mother's end, 
 was not minded to accept without a strug- 
 gle the position into which affairs were 
 drifting in Savoy. His brother, Amadeus 
 IX., whose health was undermined by epi- 
 lepsy and whose thoughts were wholly ab- 
 sorbed by heavenly things, had wished, 
 when his father's death called him to the 
 throne in 1465, to renounce that dignity 
 and devote himself exclusively to a life of 
 seclusion and contemplation. But his
 
 134 The House of Savoy 
 
 wife, Yolande, resolutely opposed his 
 intentions, and, for the sake of her child- 
 ren, persuaded her husband to remain at 
 the head of affairs, which she undertook to 
 administer in his name, in order to oust 
 her ambitious brother-in-law and to main- 
 tain the right of succession for her sons. 
 The Venetian Orator, Dandolo, reporting 
 from Savoy at this moment to his govern- 
 ment, writes : " I signify to you how the 
 ill-health of the Duke is known to all, 
 while his memory fails him and his answers 
 are given at random ; Madama [Yolande] 
 governs, and she certainly attends to her 
 words and doings ; if it is lawful to form a 
 judgment in forty-three days, she seemed 
 to me humane, a sagacious lady, and 
 filled with the dignity due to her position ; 
 but she is only a woman." The disdain 
 expressed in the Orator's concludingwords, 
 " ma & pur donna," is the more noticeable 
 as circumstances were to emphasise its 
 truth, and to stamp upon Yolande's regency 
 the brand of misfortune for Savoy, and the 
 need through succeeding years for the 
 firm hand and the powerful rule of a man.
 
 Yolande of France 135 
 
 In order to maintain the rights claimed 
 by her for her children, Yolande had to 
 keep a sharp lookout on three sides from 
 which danger threatened. On one side 
 was her brother, Louis XI., the more to 
 be feared since, under the mask of acting 
 as her protector and adviser, he veiled the 
 deepest designs on the state entrusted 
 to her care ; on another side was Charles 
 the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, whose en- 
 mity with Louis induced all who were 
 hostile to that monarch to throw in their 
 lot with the Duke and to swell the ranks 
 of Burgundy into a formidable and numer- 
 ous host ; and lastly, there were her broth- 
 ers-in-law, Philip, Count of Bresse, James, 
 Count of Romont, and John Louis, Bishop 
 of Geneva. 
 
 In France, the League for the Public 
 Good had just been formed against King 
 Louis by his most powerful vassals and 
 subjects ; the Dukes of Bourbon and 
 Burgundy had joined it ; and Amadeus of 
 Savoy was urged on one hand by the Leag- 
 uers to espouse their cause, while on the 
 other King Louis claimed his assistance
 
 i3 6 The House of Savoy 
 
 and support. In conformity with the 
 wishes and injunctions of his wife, Ama- 
 deus gave adherence to the French mon- 
 arch, a measure which at once prompted 
 his brothers to espouse the cause of the 
 League. The annoyance of these princes 
 was heightened when, soon afterwards, 
 Yolande, chiefly through the instrument- 
 ality of Louis XL, was named Regent of 
 the duchy, her husband, though he did 
 not abdicate, desiring his subjects to obey 
 her in all things. This nomination, ap- 
 proved by the Three States, by the nobles, 
 and by the people of Savoy, gave still 
 further offence to the Duke's brothers, 
 especially to Count Philip. The con- 
 stant efforts made by the Count to possess 
 himself of the regency, his plots for de- 
 posing Yolande, her counter-plots to de- 
 feat his aims, led to a series of alliances, 
 negotiations, diplomatic missions, and se- 
 cret understandings, wherein each party 
 tried to circumvent and outdo the other. 
 These intrigues were joined in by the 
 King of France, by Duke Charles of 
 Burgundy, and by Duke Galeazzo Maria
 
 Yolande of France 137 
 
 Sforza, and involved the different actors 
 in a succession of frauds, double-dealings, 
 and subtleties so complex and intricate 
 that they are very difficult to unravel. 
 
 Count Philip's first movement against 
 Yolande was in 1471, when, seeing how 
 absolutely he was debarred from share in 
 the government, he determined to possess 
 himself of the persons of the Duke and 
 Duchess, and then to appoint himself 
 ruler. Some hint of his intentions reached 
 the Duchess. She at once repaired with 
 her husband and children to Montmelian, 
 which was better fortified than Chambery, 
 where the Court had been till then. There 
 Philip besieged them. One of the gates 
 of the town having been gained by treach- 
 ery, Philip entered Montmelian. At his 
 approach, the ducal party took refuge in 
 the citadel, and after eight days' parleying, 
 the Regent, who looked in vain for help 
 from France, had to surrender to her 
 brother-in-law. 
 
 Amadeus was at once conveyed to 
 Chambery, but Yolande (who on occa- 
 sions showed herself to be her brother's
 
 The House of Savoy 
 
 own sister ! ), was seized with an unex- 
 pected illness and professed to be unable 
 to start with her husband, whom she would 
 follow, she said, the next day. Philip ac- 
 cordingly set out with Amadeus, while the 
 Counts of Romont and of Geneva stayed 
 behind with Yolande, her children, and 
 her ladies-in-waiting. It was then ar- 
 ranged that they should dine at Apremont 
 the next day, and sup at Chambery. The 
 first part of this plan was carried out ; but 
 after dinner, when all was in readiness to 
 start for Chambery, the Duchess suddenly 
 declared she could go no further then, but 
 that she would overtake them the day fol- 
 lowing ; and to keep up the deceit she sent 
 forward all the kitchen apparatus, together 
 with the master of her household. That 
 evening the Count of Geneva took leave 
 of her, confidently expecting to see her 
 again next morning. But hardly was she 
 alone than she despatched advices to her 
 faithful servitors, the Seigneurs of Com- 
 minges and Miolans, to come at midnight 
 to her rescue, and, at a signal of lighted 
 fires, to approach the castle walls. After
 
 Yolande of France 139 
 
 supper, she dismissed her male attendants, 
 enjoining on them to go and sleep, as they 
 would have to rise early next morning ; 
 then, having carefully bolted the doors, 
 she, her children, and her ladies made 
 ready for their departure. At the ap- 
 pointed hour the signals were given ; part 
 of the armed men under the Count of 
 Miolans drew near to the castle, and Yo- 
 lande, who had secreted the keys, opened 
 a postern gate through which she and her 
 party slipped out and mounted on horse- 
 back, while Miolans posted his followers 
 in the castle. 
 
 The Duchess rode to La Bussiere, and 
 passed the rest of the night in a monas- 
 tery, the following morning going on to 
 Grenoble, where she was received with 
 great honours. Meanwhile, Count Philip 
 had reached Chambery, and having in his 
 power the person of the reigning Duke, 
 he resolved to derive from this circum- 
 stance all the advantages otherwise denied 
 him. He convoked the Three States in 
 Amadeus's name, and together with his 
 brother, the Count of Romont, proceeded
 
 The House of Savoy 
 
 to institute a form of government. Yo- 
 lande, far from being overawed at the 
 boldness of these measures, uttered her 
 protest : she at once announced that the 
 government of the land depended solely 
 on herself, and she wrote imperious let- 
 ters to the governors of all of the fort- 
 resses throughout the duchy, forbidding 
 them, under penalty of death and forfeit- 
 ure of their goods, to deliver up their 
 castles to anyone, whoever he might be, 
 without an express order from her or from 
 her " fair son, the Prince Charles," whose 
 arrival from France she was then looking 
 for with the greatest eagerness. She sent 
 messengers to the Three States to thank 
 them for their expressions of devotion and 
 fidelity ; help was also demanded from 
 Milan ; and Hugues de Montfaucon was 
 despatched to France to entreat the King 
 not to delay in hastening her son's arrival. 
 For the moment the hopes of peace and 
 deliverance were centred round the person 
 of the Prince of Piedmont, whose resi- 
 dence in France at his uncle's Court was 
 intended to give him an education and an
 
 Yolande of France 141 
 
 experience that would stand him in good 
 stead in after years. The hopes of the 
 presence of the Heir-apparent among his 
 own subjects, and of the loyalty to be 
 evoked by the thought of his advent, as 
 well as the joy that Yolande felt over her 
 son's arrival, when his sympathy, counsel, 
 and support would enable her to make 
 a still firmer front against the assaults of 
 her brothers-in-law, were all doomed to a 
 cruel disappointment. The Prince, only 
 sixteen years old, put himself at the head 
 of eight thousand archers ( the nucleus of 
 that famous body of light infantry, the first 
 example of a standing army, which, insti- 
 tuted in 1448 by Charles VII., had been in- 
 creased three years previously to no less 
 than fifty thousand men by Louis XL), and 
 set off to the rescue of his parents. But at 
 Orleans he was struck down by a fatal at- 
 tack of pneumonia, and on the morning 
 of the 1 2th of July, 1471, the news of his 
 death reached poor Yolande. The shock 
 might well have broken her heart and 
 crushed her spirit and courage : Heaven 
 itself seemed to have forsaken her for the
 
 The House of Savoy 
 
 time, and she must have needed all her 
 faith, and all the vigour and energy of her 
 mind to face such a blow. 
 
 The appeals, however, to her powerful 
 neighbours had not been in vain ; and, 
 among others, the Duke of Milan sent his 
 ambassador, one Antonio d'Appiano, to 
 report on the condition of affairs in Sa- 
 voy, and to see to what extent his help 
 would be required. Appiano was also 
 requested to inform Galeazzo about Yo- 
 lande's children, which he accordingly did 
 in the following terms : " This My Lady 
 has three male children : the eldest about 
 five years, intelligent, thin, and always of 
 a bad colour because he has the malady 
 of the stone, and this was told me by His 
 Majesty himself . . . and since the 
 death of the other prince he is called Mon- 
 signore and Prince and Heir, seeing that 
 the duchy will devolve on him. The sec- 
 ond is about two and a half to three years, 
 and is a lively boy of a somewhat serious 
 countenance and of a good colour ; four 
 days ago he was a little indisposed. The 
 third is but one year old, lively, but a bit
 
 Yolande of France 143 
 
 serious in his aspect. She has two daugh- 
 ters, the eldest of about eight years old, and 
 the second from six to seven to my think- 
 ing. Both have but little colour ; but are 
 decidedly nice-looking and capable of being 
 present at table and at vespers, where they 
 always read the office ; and at table with 
 My Lady they have very good manners ; 
 likewise, the two eldest boys are always 
 at table, where all are served in a proper 
 manner by their respective serving-wom- 
 en." 1 
 
 Duchess Yolande also suffered from that 
 painful " malady of the stone," and when to 
 this were added the anxieties as to her hus- 
 band's health, the cares of state, the vigi- 
 lance that had always to be maintained 
 against the open and secret animosity of 
 her brothers-in-law, it needs no great 
 stretch of the imagination to realise the 
 weight and burden under which she had 
 to live. Her political embarrassments 
 were removed for a while by the help sent 
 to her from France and Milan ; and Count 
 
 1 Letter a di Antonio d' Appiano, Chambery, 9 Settembre, 
 1471.
 
 H4 The House of Savoy 
 
 Philip, seeing that his best policy was to 
 cease for the present from his unnatural 
 persecution, consented to an agreement 
 with his sister-in-law, whose position as 
 Regent he now promised to recognise, 
 while she was to consent to the formation 
 of a Council in which the Princes of Savoy 
 were also to have a voice. After the 
 signing of this treaty, Amadeus was set 
 free, and the husband and wife met again 
 at Chambery the Duke in a precarious 
 state of health engendered by the loss of 
 his eldest son, and the Duchess worn by 
 all she had gone through, and terrified, 
 too, by the misery which she foresaw only 
 too clearly awaited her from the Duke's 
 altered condition. The pair removed at 
 once to Vercelli, where it was hoped that 
 change of air and scene would restore 
 Amadeus's health and reinvigorate the 
 Duchess, whose condition required rest 
 and freedom from anxiety. 
 
 The Court had hardly been settled five 
 months at Vercelli when the Duke became 
 alarmingly ill. The Duchess, whose love 
 and concern revealed at once to her the
 
 Yolande of France 145 
 
 gravity of the case, applied to the Duke 
 of Milan in her need, and begged him to 
 send instantly one of his most skilful phy- 
 sicians. Two of his most learned and 
 trusted doctors came to Vercelli ; but their 
 skill was in vain, and Amadeus expired 
 on the 3Oth of March, 1472, aged only 
 thirty-seven years, his last words being : 
 " Do justice and judgment, and love the 
 poor, and God will give you peace at the 
 last." The piety and goodness of Ama- 
 deus IX. gained for him intense venera- 
 tion during his life ; the patience with 
 which he bore a trial heavy enough to 
 depress the bravest spirit cannot be suffi- 
 ciently admired, for against this trial it is 
 said he never was heard to utter one word 
 of complaint, nor ever to murmur at the 
 heavy cross laid on him. His marvellous 
 care for the poor was the characteristic of 
 his life, and it is related of him that on 
 one occasion when the Duke of Milan, who 
 had come to visit him, inquired where he 
 kept his hounds, he answered, pointing to 
 a group of poor people : " There you see 
 them, and with that pack I trust to se- 
 
 VOL. II. 10
 
 The House of Savoy 
 
 cure to myself a glorious prey and obtain 
 through them the joys of Paradise." In 
 his latter years, he denied himself in every 
 way he could, selling even his jewels, in- 
 cluding, it is said, the insignia of the 
 Order of the Collar, and all that he pos- 
 sessed of luxury and grandeur, to give to 
 the poor, often parting even with much of 
 his wardrobe. His memory was held in 
 such veneration that he was enrolled in the 
 number of the Saints, and a decree of 
 Innocent XI. set apart the 3Oth of March 
 as the day dedicated henceforward to the 
 " Blessed Amadeus of Savoy." 
 
 The Prince of Piedmont being only 
 seven years old at the time of his father's 
 death, his mother Yolande was appointed 
 Regent and guardian by the unanimous 
 voice of the Three States and by popular 
 acclamation ; and she lost no time in de- 
 spatching a messenger to her brother, 
 King Louis, to inform him of her hus- 
 band's death, and to implore his protection 
 for herself, her children, and the state 
 committed to her trust. But Duchess 
 Yolande did not confine herself to appeals
 
 AMADEUS IX.
 
 Yolande of France 147 
 
 for earthly aid ; two beautiful prayers 
 composed by her at this period have come 
 down to us, and show by their touching 
 tone of entreaty and humility the earnest- 
 ness of her petition. The first of these 
 prayers is : 
 
 " Feit a la doulce Mere de Dieu per 
 grant ferueur et deuocion pour ly donner 
 et oufrir elle et ses enfans et tout son fait. 
 
 JHESUS MARIA 
 
 Glorieuse vierge Marie, mere de Dieu 
 et madame ma maistresse, je Yolant de 
 France, miserable pecheresse et vostre es- 
 claue, confesse et vous promet de toute sa 
 puissance, per la foy quelle doit a Dieu et 
 a Vous, et confesse vous auoir fait hom- 
 mage de corps et de ame et de biens, et 
 de rechief vous donne son corps et same, 
 et vous bailie toutes la signorie et ses en- 
 fans et le pais, et toutes la justice et puis- 
 sance quelle at en ce monde, a votre 
 gouuernement, et sen demetz et le vous 
 remetz, et de ceste heure en avant vous 
 rent son corps et son ame et ses enfans, 
 prais et signoire, et Vous supplie que laye 
 pour recommandes et les veulliez garder
 
 148 The House of Savoy 
 
 de leurs ennemys et de tout ce qui leur 
 porroit nuyre, et aussy me veullie gar- 
 der a Iheure de la mort de lennemy et 
 de sa puissance, car je il renunce, et au 
 monde aussy. Et se ma personne per 
 fragillite tonboit en peche, que a Iheure 
 de la mort ilz ne me puisse riens de- 
 mander, car je tay fait toute ma vie 
 depuis ma cognoissance hommaige, et 
 suis tesclaue. Et en tesmoing du dit 
 homage jeu dit tous les jours XV Aue 
 Maria. Et en tesmoing de verite, et 
 aussy que tout ce que yai escript de ma 
 main je veult qui soit fait. Et depuis ma 
 naissance jusques a la fin lennemy ne me 
 puisse riens demander en corps ne ame, et 
 aussy le pais, lequelz je vous donne. Jay 
 escript ces presentes de ma main et sellez 
 de mon seel a Pinerol le xij jours de 
 septembre. 
 
 " Vostre miserable esclaue, 
 
 " YOLANT DE FRANCE. 
 Monseigneur sainct Francois et vous 
 Marie Magdelaine, je vous supplie, pre- 
 sentes ceste lectre a la vierge Marie, et a 
 Iheure de la mort soiez en mes tesmoing
 
 Yolande of France 149 
 
 centre lennemy et protestes a mon bon 
 ange comme a mes aduocat que je ne suis 
 que a la virge Marie." 
 
 [Made to the sweet Mother of God 
 through great fervour and devotion, to 
 give her and offer to her herself, her child- 
 ren and all that she does. 
 
 JESUS MARIA 
 
 Glorious Virgin Mary, Mother of God 
 and my Lady Mistress, I, Yolande of 
 France, miserable sinner and your slave, 
 confess and promise you with all my 
 might, by the faith which I owe to God 
 and to you, and confess to have paid you 
 homage with body and soul and goods, 
 and hereby give you my body and soul, 
 and witness to you all my signory, my 
 children and the country, and all the just- 
 ice and power which I have in this world, 
 to your government, and put it away 
 from myself, and put it in your hands, 
 and at this hour render to you, in advance, 
 my body, and soul, and my children, coun- 
 try, and signory, and beg your intercession 
 for them, and that you will guard them 
 from their enemies and from all that might
 
 i5 The House of Savoy 
 
 injure them, and also that you will guard 
 me at the hour of my death from the 
 enemy and from his power, for I renounce 
 him and the world also. And if I 
 should through frailty fall into sin, that 
 at the hour of my death he may have no 
 power over me, for all my life since I was 
 conscious, I have paid thee homage and 
 am thy slave, and in witness of the said 
 homage I have said, every day, fifteen 
 Ave Marias. And in witness of the truth 
 I will that all I have written with my hand 
 should be done. And from my birth even 
 to the end let the enemy ask nothing of 
 me in body or soul or of the country 
 which I give to you. I have written this 
 present with my hand, and seal it with 
 my seal at Pinerol the twelfth day of 
 September. 
 
 Your miserable slave, 
 
 YOLANDE DE FRANCE. 
 
 My Lord St. Francis, and you, Mary 
 Magdalen, I pray you, present this letter 
 to the Virgin Mary, and at the hour of 
 my death be my witnesses against the 
 enemy, and declare to my good angel as
 
 Yolande of France 151 
 
 well as to my advocate that I belong only 
 to the Virgin Mary.] 
 
 Another prayer again to the Blessed 
 Virgin from her " miserable slave, Yo- 
 lant de France," as she so touchingly 
 calls herself, runs as follows : 
 " JHESUS MARIA 
 
 A vous, glorieuse virge Marie, mere de 
 Dieu et madame et maistresse, je Yolant 
 de France, pouure pecheresse et vostre 
 talliable et esclaue, tant comme amini- 
 streresse et tutri de la Duchie de Sauoye 
 et de Piemon et aultres signorie aproue 
 et ratifie la lectre escripte cy deuant. Et 
 premierement en ly donant mon dit corps 
 et ame et mes enfans, et ly remetz toutes 
 la puissance que per les Estas ma estee 
 donnee, Vous supplia que il vous plaise la 
 accepter, et gouuerner le dit pais et enfans 
 et moy aussy et les garder de leurs enne- 
 mys, en maniere que puisse faire chose 
 quapres ceste mortelle vye puisse auoir la 
 pardurable. Et de ceste heure me de- 
 metz de toute ma puissance et la vous 
 remetz. Et, que chose que per fragillite 
 face ou puisse ferez centre vostre volente,
 
 152 The House of Savoy 
 
 proteste que a Iheure de la mort ne me 
 puisse riens demander lennemy, car je re- 
 nunces a luy et a tous ses fais et au 
 monde aussy. Et pour hommage vous 
 dit tous les jours de ma vye XV Aue 
 Maria cy en signe destre vostre tallable. 
 Vous supplians, glorieuse Mere de Dieu, 
 que a Iheure de ma mort en veulliez estre 
 mon tesmoing, et que je ne veult ne en- 
 tent qui puisse auoir puissance sur moy, 
 et veult viure et morir en ta loy et comme 
 bonne crestienne. Et en tesmoing de 
 verite ay conforme et approuue la premiere 
 lectre estre vaillable, et ceste cy, toutes 
 escriptes de ma main et selee de ma tutee 
 et administracion. 
 " Vostre tres humble et miserable esclaue 
 
 "YOLANT DE FRANCE. 
 Monseigneur sainct Francois, et vous 
 Marie Magdelayne presente ceste lectre 
 a la glorieuse vierge Marie, protestant 
 aucques sainct Jaques, a qui je suis pele- 
 rine, que je ne suis que a elle, et elle me 
 veulle recepuoir mon corps et tout mes 
 enfans et pais en ceste mortelle vye, et 
 lame quant elle partira de ce poures corps,
 
 Yolande of France 153 
 
 affin que ses dit soient veritable quelle est 
 aduocate des pecheurs, desquelx je me 
 tien, voire des plus poures, et jen demande 
 mon bon Angel en tesmoing." 
 
 [JESUS MARIA 
 
 To you, glorious Virgin Mary, Mother 
 of God, and my lady and mistress, I Yo- 
 lande of France, poor sinner and your 
 bondwoman and slave, as well as admin- 
 istratrix and tutrix of the Duchy of Savoy 
 and of Piedmont and of other signories, 
 approve and ratify the letter written 
 herewith. And first in giving you my 
 said body and soul and my children and 
 putting into your hands all the power 
 which the States have given me, I sup- 
 plicate you that it may please you to 
 accept them, and to govern the said 
 country and children and me also, and 
 to guard them from their enemies in 
 order that they may do such things that 
 after this mortal life they may have life 
 everlasting. And from this hour, I put 
 away all my power, and put it in your 
 hands. And whatever through frailty I 
 have done or may do against your will
 
 154 The House of Savoy 
 
 let the enemy at the hour of my death 
 demand nothing of me, for I renounce 
 him and all his works and the world 
 also. And for homage I have said to 
 you all the days of my life fifteen Ave 
 Marias, in sign that I am your bondwo- 
 man. Supplicating you, glorious Mother 
 of God, that at the hour of my death you 
 will be my witness, and that I neither 
 wish nor intend that he should have 
 any power over me, and I wish to live 
 and die in your law and as a good Christ- 
 ian. And in witness of the truth, I con- 
 firm and approve the first letter to be 
 valid, and this also, all written with my 
 hand and sealed, of my tutorship and ad- 
 ministration. 
 
 Your very humble and miserable slave, 
 
 YOLANDE DE FRANCE. 
 
 My Lord St. Francis, and you Mary 
 Magdalen, present this letter to the 
 glorious Virgin Mary, declaring as well 
 as St. James, whose pilgrim I am, that 
 I am hers only, and that she will re- 
 ceive my body and all my children and 
 country in this mortal life, and my soul
 
 Yolande of France 155 
 
 when it shall depart from this poor body, 
 on to the end in order that her words may 
 be true that she is the advocate of sinners, 
 of whom I am one, and one of the poor- 
 est and I call my good angel to witness 
 this.] 
 
 These two "letters" (as Duchess Yo- 
 lande herself calls them) are followed by 
 an official note which establishes their au- 
 thenticity, and which then goes on to say : 
 " The valiant Lady had given these let- 
 ters to one of her women, forbidding her 
 to shew them to anyone, and enjoining on 
 her that when she saw the hour of her 
 death to be drawing nigh, to bring them 
 and place them between her hands. But 
 this woman was so taken aback by this 
 death that she forgot the command of her 
 Lady and mistress, and when she per- 
 ceived her omission she then brought 
 them. The said letters were so highly 
 valued by the gentlemen of the Council 
 that her noble daughter, our reverend 
 Lady and mother, Sister Louise of Savoy, 
 was powerless to obtain these letters writ- 
 ten in the handwriting of her Lady-mother
 
 i5 6 The House of Savoy 
 
 for her own, for it was willed that they 
 should remain in the House of Savoy. 
 Therefore, her said noble daughter copied 
 them and kept them ever by her, carrying 
 them always religiously about with her 
 things which she loved right dearly." 
 
 In the meanwhile the petition made by 
 the widowed Duchess to Louis XI. for 
 help unluckily for Savoy was responded 
 to in the manner habitual to that monarch. 
 He had been long anxious to establish a 
 hold upon Savoy, and Yolande's appeal 
 gave him the opportunity he wanted with- 
 out even entailing on him the usual 
 amount of lying, deceiving, and cheating 
 which he generally practised before con- 
 ferring on his petitioner his so-called 
 "help." The treachery with which he 
 supported Philip of Bresse, and incited 
 him to rebel against the Regent while 
 avowedly espousing her cause was the 
 more contemptible in one who was her 
 brother, and posed as the guardian of her 
 children and herself. 
 
 The wiles employed by Louis XI. and 
 Count Philip were deceitful in the extreme,
 
 Yolande of France 157 
 
 but Yolande was far too wary to be de- 
 ceived. The answer that she returned to 
 Philip when, soon after her husband's 
 death, the Count suggested that a visit 
 from his wife might cheer her, showed 
 that she was alive to his attempts to force 
 his way into her Court and thence to ob- 
 tain a footing in her Council. Philip had 
 said that his wife was not only willing to 
 pay a visit, but also to live with the Duch- 
 ess. Yolande's reply was : This is not 
 the time in which she should come ; she, 
 Madame, being on this occasion sad and 
 tearful, while she (Count Philip's wife) 
 was a bride ; that brides desired to be en- 
 tertained in a fit manner, and that for the 
 moment no entertainments could be looked 
 for from her. 1 
 
 In the month of September following 
 Amadeus's death Yolande gave birth to a 
 posthumous son, and she asked the Duke 
 of Milan to act as godfather, and to hold 
 the child at the font. The Duke begged 
 to be excused from the latter function, 
 pleading that he was ill adapted for such 
 
 1 Lettera del Vescovo di Como, Vercelli, 18 Aprile, 1472.
 
 158 The House of Savoy 
 
 solemnities and ceremonies (di essere mal 
 apto ad simile solemnitate et ceremonie). 
 The Duchess on being told of this excuse 
 by the Duke's Orator answered, laughing, 
 " that the Duke would not have to do 
 other than place his hand upon him, for 
 though it is true and customary that the 
 first godfather should hold the infant in 
 his arms at the baptism . . . such a 
 charge could not be laid on great seign- 
 eurs." 1 The Duke of Bari, afterwards so 
 famous as Lodovico the Moor, Duke of 
 Milan, acted in his brother's stead ; and 
 the infant, who only lived a few months, 
 received the names of Claud Galeazzo. 
 
 The bonds of kinship existing between 
 the House of Savoy and the Sforza fam- 
 ily were still further strengthened by the 
 betrothal of the young Duke Philibert of 
 Savoy with Bianca Maria, daughter of 
 Galeazzo and Bona of Savoy ; but of the 
 dependence to be placed on Milan as an 
 ally Duchess Yolande must have felt some- 
 what uncertain if the following incident is 
 
 1 Lettera di Antonio d'Appiano, Vercelli, 21 Settembre,
 
 Yolande of France 159 
 
 to be taken as an example of Duke Ga- 
 leazzo's trustworthiness. The Duke had 
 declared that he desired to be always al- 
 lied to Savoy, and that " neither a King 
 of France or God Himself, were He to 
 come down to earth, should cause him to 
 change his mind " ; but on Yolande's ap- 
 plying to him for a body of men to assist 
 in the defence of Montmelian and Cham- 
 bery, he declined to send them, the excuse 
 being that his infantry were not used to 
 such places, and that she had better apply 
 to the Duke of Burgundy for help on the 
 other side of the Alps. Truly a reliable 
 friend and neighbour, this Lord of Milan, 
 and one in whom a persecuted, defence- 
 less woman might well feel confidence in 
 the hour of need ! 
 
 And indeed, Duchess Yolande must 
 often have been at her wits' end to know 
 to whom to apply in her distress. Her 
 brother, the King of France, though pro- 
 fessedly fond of her, thought more of 
 getting the Duchy of Savoy into his 
 clutches than of protecting its Duchess, 
 and pursued his policy of fraud, cunning,
 
 160 The House of Savoy 
 
 and hypocrisy, regardless of his sister. 
 Her brother-in-law, Count Philip of 
 Bresse, was her implacable foe, who played 
 into the hands of Louis XI. with a view 
 to further his own ends, oblivious alike 
 of patriotism or of family feeling. The 
 Duke of Milan was dominated by a policy 
 as unstable as it was selfish ; and the Re- 
 gent, in her despair, turned at last to 
 Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, as 
 an ally on whom she might place some 
 trust, and whose own interest might in- 
 duce him to be faithful. 
 
 The Duke, on his side, was anxious to 
 secure the Duchess to his interests. His 
 overthrow by the Swiss at Grandson (1476) 
 had greatly diminished his prestige, be- 
 sides seriously damaging his financial con- 
 dition ; it had also given him a shock as 
 to the position in which his allies would 
 regard him, and he felt it necessary to 
 grapple more closely than ever to his 
 cause those whom he could still consider 
 his friends. He invited the Duchess to 
 meet him at Lausanne to confer with him 
 as to the state of affairs, and several inter-
 
 Yolande of France 161 
 
 views took place between them, to the rage 
 and annoyance of Louis XL, who in after 
 times taunted his sister with the negotia- 
 tions with his enemy, and resented bit- 
 terly her conduct in acting for the welfare 
 of Savoy rather than for the advantage of 
 France. The defeat of Charles of Bur- 
 gundy on the battle-field of Morat, where 
 a troop of men and officers sent by Yo- 
 lande to the assistance of the Duke were 
 all killed, served still further to blast his 
 reputation ; and Yolande, fearing that she 
 had thrown in her lot with the losing side, 
 began to consider the wisdom of abandon- 
 ing Charles, and of ingratiating herself 
 anew with Louis. 
 
 This phase of Duchess Yolande's char- 
 acter is not a pleasant one to dwell on, 
 but though her tactics cannot be excused, 
 they may be condoned to some extent 
 when one reflects on the strategies of 
 the day (perhaps, too, of all days when 
 politics and self-interest come in ! ), and 
 remembers that probably some of her 
 brother's tendencies ran in her veins also. 
 Her readiness to forsake Duke Charles 
 
 VOL. II. II
 
 1 62 The House of Savoy 
 
 and to make up to King Louis excited 
 the indignation of the Burgundian Duke, 
 but he determined to dissemble his wrath 
 and to pretend to believe in her all the 
 same. 
 
 This feint, however, he did not long con- 
 tinue ; he considered that it would be 
 more to his advantage to secure posses- 
 sion of the Duchess and of her son, and 
 he lost no time in putting his resolve 
 into execution. The Duchess was at that 
 moment at Geneva, intending to return 
 to Piedmont, and had had an interview 
 with Charles, when he had tried to per- 
 suade her to retire to his states, where 
 she would be safer than in Switzerland or 
 in her own domains. Yolande refused to 
 comply with the Duke's suggestions, and 
 the Duke then commissioned his chamber- 
 lain, Olivier de la Marche, to carry off the 
 Duchess and Duke Philibert without fur- 
 ther discussion. This order was altogether 
 unacceptable to Olivier ; " I did what he 
 ordered me, against my heart," he says, 
 " because the Duke, my master, was such 
 that he willed that one did what he com-
 
 Yolande of France 163 
 
 manded on pain of losing one's head." ' 
 The interview between Duke Charles and 
 Duchess Yolande had taken place at a 
 spot called St. Cloud, two miles outside 
 Geneva, and after the Duke had cere- 
 moniously taken leave of Yolande she 
 started with an escort of cavalry to return 
 to Geneva. 
 
 It was nightfall ; the Duchess was in 
 her litter, her children riding beside her, 
 when, on a sudden, a company of horse- 
 men rushed on the party, and Olivier de 
 la Marche, with a following of six hundred 
 horse, pounced down on the ducal cortege. 
 Fighting began at once, swords flashed, 
 blood flowed, blows were freely given and 
 exchanged, and in the scuffle the Duchess's 
 litter was overturned. She herself, her 
 second son Charles, and her daughters 
 Marie and Louise were taken prisoners, 
 but owing to the devotion and valour of 
 the Lords of Racconigi, of Riparolo, and of 
 La Villette, the little Duke Philibert and 
 his brother James Louis were saved from 
 the clutches of Charles the Bold, and car- 
 
 1 See Appendix.
 
 1 64 The House of Savoy 
 
 ried off safely to Chambery, from whence 
 they were afterwards removed to the Court 
 of their uncle of France for greater safety. 
 The Duke of Burgundy received the com- 
 pany very grumpily, and was much put 
 out at the escape of Duke Philibert, and 
 Olivier says that his life was in dan- 
 ger, owing to his having failed in seizing 
 the person of the young Duke. Charles's 
 ill-humour was so great he refused to see 
 the Duchess ; and having tried in vain 
 through one of his councillors to induce 
 Yolande to send for her eldest son, he 
 ordered the prisoners to be removed, first 
 to the Castle of Rochefort and then to 
 Rouvre. 
 
 The Duchess's Court at Geneva made 
 incessant meanings, weepings, and lament- 
 ations over their mistress's captivity, "and 
 who had heard and seen their tears and 
 sighs would certainly have felt great com- 
 passion and pity ; and I know not if the 
 laments of the Magdalen were as piteous 
 with which she washed the feet of the Re- 
 deemer with tears. And Duke Philibert, 
 your son, said : ' Weep no more, I pray
 
 Yolande of France 165 
 
 you. God will give me grace, and with the 
 help of our relations and good friends we 
 will be avenged.' " l Savoy was indeed for 
 the moment in a pitiable plight : the Re- 
 gent, with one. of her sons and two of her 
 daughters, was a prisoner in the hands of 
 a prince who till then had been considered 
 a friend ; the Duke, one of his brothers, 
 and the chief places of the land were in 
 the power of the King of France ; the 
 state was governed by two princes whose 
 only thought and aim was personal ambi- 
 tion and private vengeance. Such a con- 
 dition of things was one not easily to be 
 remedied. 
 
 The sensation produced by the Duch- 
 ess's captivity showed itself in different 
 ways : Louis XI. determined to turn it 
 to account in procuring for himself that 
 hold over the affairs of Savoy against 
 which his sister had always maintained 
 a firm resistance ; the princes of Savoy 
 judged the opportunity an excellent one 
 for making good their pretensions to the 
 
 1 Letter a di Antonio d' Appia.no al Duca di Milano, Ginevra, 
 29 Giugno, 1476, V. Gingins. Dep. cccxxv.
 
 1 66 The House of Savoy 
 
 government of the country ; while the 
 country itself deplored the absence of a 
 Regent whose rule had inspired confidence, 
 wielded as everyone knew it to be for the 
 real welfare and advancement of Savoy. 
 
 SEAL OF THOMAS I., COUNT OF SAVOY. 
 
 Yolande's courage was undaunted. She 
 was not guarded rigorously enough to be 
 prevented from corresponding with her 
 friends, and she lost no time in communi- 
 cating with them as to the means to be
 
 Yolande of France 167 
 
 employed for effecting her release. She 
 despatched her secretary, one Cavoretto, 
 to her brother, King Louis, entrusting him 
 with a ring which his Majesty had given 
 her on her wedding-day, and imploring the 
 King by this sign to procure her freedom. 
 But such a move was far from coinciding 
 with Louis's plans. He had no desire to 
 see his sister reinstated as yet as Regent, 
 for her captivity left him the leisure to 
 establish himself as the arbiter of Savoy, 
 with the Count of Bresse as his lieutenant- 
 general. He consequently pretended to 
 look upon the Duchess's emissary as a spy 
 of the Duke of Burgundy ; he declared 
 that the ring which he recognised as his 
 sister's had been stolen from her, and 
 ordered Cavoretto to be arrested and 
 thrown into prison. 
 
 Yolande, left without news of her mes- 
 senger, and imagining in her ignorance 
 that some evil had befallen him, resolved 
 to make another effort to gain her brother's 
 ear. This second envoy arrived at a mo- 
 ment when Claud de Seyssel had just come 
 to the French Court on behalf of the
 
 168 The House of Savoy 
 
 Three States to petition the King to as- 
 sist them in obtaining Yolande's libera- 
 tion. The King deemed it expedient this 
 time to listen to the envoys' appeal, and he 
 despatched a force of three hundred lances 
 under Charles d' Amboise to bring about his 
 sister's deliverance. On the night of Oc- 
 tober 2, 1476, by a strategic manoeuvre, 
 d' Amboise took possession of the Castle 
 of Rouvre ; the garrison was put to the 
 sword, and the Duchess, with her children 
 and her attendants, escaped on horseback 
 to Tours, where King Louis came to meet 
 her. His first words took the form of a 
 sarcastic greeting : " Madame la Bour- 
 gogne, vous soyez la tres bien venue ! " 
 "She knew well," says Commines, "by 
 his face that he was but joking ; and re- 
 plied very wisely that she was a good 
 Frenchwoman, and ready to obey the 
 King in all that he might command her. 
 The said Lord conducted her to his cham- 
 ber and treated her right royally." 1 
 
 And another chronicler presents a pic- 
 ture of the familiar footing existing be- 
 
 1 See Appendix.
 
 Yolande of France 169 
 
 tween this royal brother and sister in the 
 following manner : " The King had his 
 sister to sup with him and gave her many 
 fair words and familiarities, calling her 
 into his room when he went to bed and 
 allowing her to warm for him his sheets 
 and cushions, and to put him to bed, be- 
 sides other services rendered to his Ma- 
 jesty : it was all of that most hearty 
 familiarity which may exist between the 
 most loving brother and sister." * 
 
 But the quaint homeliness of this family 
 scene is somewhat marred by the mutual 
 longing on the part of this " most loving 
 brother and sister" to separate, and this is 
 strongly set before us by Commines, who 
 says : " True it is that he had great de- 
 sire to be rid of her. She was very wise 
 and was still keener to be gone, for they 
 mutually knew each other well." 
 
 The King consequently urged the Duch- 
 ess's departure in every way he could : 
 he provided her with money ; he engaged 
 himself strictly to protect her states, her 
 children, and herself against whatever foes 
 
 1 See Appendix.
 
 1 70 The House of Savoy 
 
 might assail them ; while Yolande on her 
 side swore to enter into no alliance save 
 only with the King of France. The 
 brother and sister, having entered with all 
 solemnity into this covenant, parted, and 
 Yolande, having received from the King 
 many bits of stuff, both of silk and wool, 
 numerous jewels, together with her pre- 
 cious ring, started with all her children for 
 Chambery, which she reached on Decem- 
 ber 9, 1476, in a downpour of rain and snow. 
 
 But Yolande's trials were not yet ended. 
 Her brother-in-law, the Count of Bresse, 
 refused to restore to her the government 
 of the Subalpine provinces, and not till 
 she was reinforced by an army, led in per- 
 son by Galeazzo of Milan, did Philip 
 withdraw his claims and consent to ac- 
 knowledge her supremacy. 
 
 "It was then, after so many struggles 
 and deceptions, that Yolande could rest 
 from the toils of life. Her mind had lost 
 none of its vigour ; and she applied her- 
 self ardently to the relieving of her people. 
 The benefits of a wise administration shed 
 around her the blessings of a tardy peace :
 
 Yolande of France 171 
 
 she superintended the education of her 
 family, left noble recollections of her Chris- 
 tian charity, visited the provinces. Many 
 religious institutions bore witness to her 
 piety. Never had the great qualities of 
 this Princess made themselves felt in a 
 more evident way. Her intellect was as 
 young and active as ever." l 
 
 But her frame, never strong, was fail- 
 ing fast. The trials and anxieties she 
 had undergone, the responsibilities that 
 weighed on her from day to day, the 
 shock of the murder of her brother-in- 
 law, the Duke of Milan, and the death of 
 the Duke of Burgundy at the battle of 
 Nancy told severely on her, worn as she 
 was with sickness and cares. The pre- 
 sentiment, too, that she would never re- 
 cover from her illness was ever present 
 with her, and hindered to a wide extent 
 the possibility of coping successfully with 
 the malady. 
 
 On August 10, 1478, she left Turin for 
 the last time and repaired to Moncrivello 
 for change of air. 
 
 1 See Appendix.
 
 i; 2 The House of Savoy 
 
 Louis XL and the widowed Duchess of 
 Milan sent messages of kindness and con- 
 dolence to Duchess Yolande on hearing 
 of her illness ; Louis, moved by remorse 
 for his former ill-treatment of his unfor- 
 tunate sister, repeated his expressions of 
 kindness and protection to her son ; and 
 Duchess Bona sent for her relief her own 
 Court physician, who, however, arrived 
 too late, for on August 29, 1478, after 
 peacefully commending her soul to her 
 Maker, and her children and state to his 
 Most Christian Majesty the King of 
 France, Yolande of France, Duchess of 
 Savoy, passed calmly away, aged only 
 forty-four years. 
 
 The mortal remains of Duchess Yo- 
 lande were laid to rest in the church at 
 Vercelli where her husband was buried ; 
 and the whole country mourned the loss 
 of her who " had been one of the most 
 virtuous and illustrious Princesses of her 
 time, who was marvellously attached to 
 the interests of the Crown of Savoy, and 
 who by her prudence and by her conduct 
 saved this state from the shipwreck which
 
 Yolande of France 1 73 
 
 threatened it during the illness of her hus- 
 band and the minority of her son " l ; and 
 " extraordinarily was she mourned by all 
 the people of Savoy." 2 
 
 1 Guichenon, op. cit., ii., c. 28. * Ibid., Histoire de Bresse. 
 
 SHIELD OF YOLANDE OF FRANCE.
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 BONA OF SAVOY. BROUGHT UP AT THE 
 COURT OF FRANCE. HER MARRIAGE 
 WITH THE DUKE OF MILAN, GALEAZZO 
 MARIA SFORZA. JOURNEY TO FLORENCE. 
 MURDER OF THE DUKE OF MILAN. BONA 
 NAMED REGENT OF THE STATE. HER 
 AMOURS. DEATH OF HER SON, GIAN GA- 
 LEAZZO, DUKE OF MILAN. BONA's WITH- 
 DRAWAL TO FRANCE. HER POVERTY. 
 HER DEATH. (1449-1503.) 
 
 DURING the early part of the reign 
 of Louis XI. of France, the House 
 of Savoy at least on the female side 
 was well represented at his Court. 
 
 Louis's wife, Charlotte of Savoy, had 
 gathered around her three of her sisters, 
 two of whom quickly found husbands 
 in France. The eldest, Agnes, married 
 Francis of Orleans, Count of Dunois ; 
 the younger one, Maria, married Francis, 
 174
 
 BON A MA 
 BIA DVCIS 
 SA MLI- 
 
 BON A OF SAVOY, DUCHESS OF MILAN. 
 
 FROM A DRAWING MADE BY SIQNOR CESARE FERRARI FROM A MARBLE EFFIQY OF 
 BONA AT THE CERTO8A OF PAVIA.
 
 Bona of Savoy 1 75 
 
 Count of St. Pol, Constable of France. 
 All these sisters made their home at the 
 French Court, where Louis, out of love 
 for his wife, or from the consciousness of 
 the political advantages that he saw would 
 accrue to him from such a step, welcomed 
 his sisters-in-law. 
 
 But Bonne, or Bona (and as most of her 
 life was spent in Italy and among Italian 
 surroundings, she will be called by the 
 Italian version of her name), was an or- 
 phan when she came to France to be edu- 
 cated and disposed of according to the will 
 and choice of her brother-in-law. Louis 
 was well aware of the value that a bride 
 of the loveliness and rank of Bona would 
 represent in his hands. Of extraordinary 
 beauty, a Princess of the ancient House 
 of Savoy, and under the patronage of 
 the King of France, she was a prize that 
 might tempt many a wooer, while at the 
 same time the bestowal of her hand would 
 be a mark of the King's favour and a re- 
 compense to any fortunate suitor whom 
 his Majesty might wish to encourage or 
 reward.
 
 1 76 The House of Savoy 
 
 The King was just then under special 
 obligations to Francesco Sforza, Duke of 
 Milan, the great condottiere, who had se- 
 cured the hand of the heiress of the 
 House of Visconti for himself, and who 
 by his genius and energy had established 
 himself on the throne of Milan. Fran- 
 cesco was anxious to continue in his dy- 
 nasty the greatness of which he had 
 laid the foundations ; and by alliances, 
 both matrimonial and civil, he bade fair 
 to reach the goal of his ambition. Fran- 
 cesco's eldest son, Galeazzo, had gone, at 
 his father's desire, to France at the head 
 of a Milanese force to assist Louis against 
 the " League for the Public Good," and 
 so practical a form of friendship deserved 
 a reward over and above that of merely 
 fair words. The King knew well that a 
 connection with his own royal house 
 would be a compliment that Francesco 
 Sforza, the grandson of the peasant of 
 Cotignola, would appreciate, and he de- 
 termined to bestow the hand of Bona of 
 Savoy on Galeazzo Maria, the Heir Ap- 
 parent to the Duchy of Milan.
 
 Bona of Savoy 177 
 
 But that this alliance should find fa- 
 vour with the bride's family was quite 
 another matter. State reasons and family 
 pride alike made the marriage an unpalat- 
 able one, and a great deal of opposition 
 from several members of the House of 
 Savoy was forthcoming on the occasion. 
 But the sensitiveness of Amadeus IX. and 
 his brothers had to give way before the 
 resolution of Louis XL, and the marriage 
 became a settled thing. The betrothal, 
 however, did not take place till after the 
 death of the Duke of Milan. When the 
 news of this event reached Galeazzo he 
 hurried off at once to Milan, where, owing 
 to the prudence and firmness of his wid- 
 owed mother, the Duchess Blanche, the 
 succession was secured to him. Galeazzo 
 made a sorry return to his mother in after 
 years for the devotion she had displayed 
 on his behalf, for, after enduring perse- 
 cutions, neglect, and cruelty from him, she 
 died at the age of forty-two. Her death, 
 according to Corio, 1 was " due more to poi- 
 son than to natural infirmity." In that 
 
 1 Corio, Storia di Milano, Prima Edizione. 
 
 VOL. II. 13.
 
 178 The House of Savoy 
 
 death rumour has it that her son had no 
 small share ; he never cleared himself. 
 
 The betrothal of the affianced pair took 
 place at the Castle of Ambois, when Tris- 
 tan Sforza, the Duke's natural brother, was 
 proxy for the bridegroom. After the 
 ceremony he wrote a long despatch to 
 the Duke, telling him of all the incidents 
 that had occurred. He describes the long 
 procession of lords and ladies, of the 
 princes of the blood, of the Queen and 
 her suite, and of the King, who led in the 
 bride, holding her by the right hand. He 
 minutely pictures the ceremonial when 
 the King placed the nuptial ring on Bona's 
 finger ; he goes on to say that a solemn 
 mass was celebrated, after which the 
 blessing was given ; and then that he 
 bestowed on "Vostra Illustrissima Con- 
 sorte " the kiss of peace, seeing that such 
 was the custom. The bride's dress he 
 describes as follows : " The above men- 
 tioned, your Consort, was dressed in regal 
 fashion in a robe of white cloth of gold, 
 having the royal crown on her head with 
 many, great, and precious ornaments ; her
 
 Bona of Savoy 1 79 
 
 hair was spread over her shoulders as is 
 customary here at such weddings, which 
 was constantly handled and set in order by 
 His afore-mentioned Majesty together 
 with many jocund and pleasant words." 1 
 
 The wedding service being ended, their 
 Majesties, the bride and the proxy bride- 
 groom, Tristan, retired to the King's own 
 rooms, where Tristan presented on Duke 
 Galeazzo's behalf the jewels sent by him 
 to Bona, and which evidently caused great 
 satisfaction. " I presented her first of all 
 with the little ring with a heart whose 
 signification I begged her to note ; then 
 I gave the buckles ; then the necklace, 
 the sight of which caused Their Majesties 
 to marvel, for not only did they admire it 
 greatly but they extolled it above meas- 
 ure. The King among other words spake 
 also these : ' I thank your dear brother for 
 such beautiful jewels ' ; whereupon I re- 
 plied that Your Highness would give even 
 better ones, whereat he said he well knew 
 
 1 Letter to Galeazzo Maria, Duke of Milan, from Tristan 
 Sforza, 1468. From Marchele Felice di San Tommalo's 
 Notizie intorno alia Vita di Bona di Savoia, Torino, 1838 
 (Bocca).
 
 i8o The House of Savoy 
 
 the love he bore him, and how mighty 
 and magnanimous he was, with other fair 
 and pleasant words, while all the time the 
 jewels were now in the hands of His Ma- 
 jesty the King, now in those of Her Ma- 
 jesty the Queen, who then with my help 
 put them on her [Bona], round her neck, 
 on her shoulders, on her head, on her 
 arms. Finally all the company went up- 
 stairs to a hall where feasting and dancing 
 occupied the rest of the day." The hon- 
 ours shown to the Duke's representative 
 were said to have been out of the com- 
 mon and of a nature that Louis XI. did 
 not generally exhibit to his guests ; but 
 they do not seem to have had the effect of 
 making Tristan desirous to prolong his 
 stay in France, for he inserts a postscript 
 in his letter to his brother in which he 
 says : "If I should remain in this country, 
 which God forbid, I would employ a cy- 
 pher," a hint that he was aware of the 
 treachery reigning around him, and of the 
 need of guarding against any double- 
 dealing whereby the interests of the Milan- 
 ese Court might be injuriously affected.
 
 Bona of Savoy 181 
 
 A few days after the betrothal, Tristan 
 set out to escort the bride to her new 
 home and present her to her husband. 
 Great care was taken in selecting the 
 route whereby they were to travel ; any 
 Savoyard territory was carefully avoided, 
 probably from the dread lest some of her 
 family might kidnap the bride, and pre- 
 vent the marriage from being carried out. 
 This would not have been the first time 
 that such a high - handed proceeding 
 had been resorted to by those princes. 
 There was a suspicion that the House 
 of Savoy, in an endeavour to secure the 
 Duchy of Milan, had attempted a similar 
 move on the occasion of Galeazzo's return 
 from France at the moment of his father's 
 death ; and that after two days' confine- 
 ment in the Duke of Savoy's territory he 
 had escaped, owing to the devotion of one 
 of his servitors who baffled the vigilance 
 of Galeazzo's keepers and saved his mas- 
 ter from the trap laid for him by Yolande, 
 Duchess of Savoy. 
 
 The bridal party travelled by way of 
 Marseilles and Genoa, and the marriage
 
 1 82 The House of Savoy 
 
 between Galeazzo and Bona was celebrated 
 at Pavia on the 6th of July, 1468. 
 
 Three years later the Duke and Duch- 
 ess travelled to Florence, when the pomp 
 with which they journeyed excited the 
 attention of high and low. Duke Galeazzo 
 had a love of display only equalled by his 
 cruelty and vice, and he spared no ex- 
 pense to make his visit to Florence the 
 occasion for an outlay and magnificence 
 such as the richest monarch of modern 
 days would not dream of emulating. 
 
 " The chief vassals and councillors of 
 the Duke went with him in suits of clothes 
 laden with gold and silver, each one being 
 in his turn accompanied by servitors 
 sumptuously apparelled. The Ducal pen- 
 sioners were all clothed in velvet. Forty 
 waiting-men were decorated with superb 
 chains of gold round their necks. Other 
 waiting-men had embroidered suits. The 
 Duke's grooms were in silk liveries faced 
 with silver. For the Duchess fifty steeds 
 were set apart and ready with their saddles 
 on, their trappings being all of gold and sil- 
 ver ; her pages were richly dressed ; she had
 
 Bona of Savoy 183 
 
 twelve chariots all covered with cloth of 
 gold and silver and embroidered with the 
 ducal arms ; the mattresses and feather- 
 beds inside were of cloth with costly lace 
 (rizzo sopra rizzo] ; some were of silver, 
 others of crimson satin, and even the trap- 
 pings of her horses were covered with silk. 
 There followed in the ducal train fifty 
 steeds with saddles of cloth of gold, and 
 silver stirrups ; fifty men-at-arms, each so 
 magnificent that he might have been a cap- 
 tain, five hundred picked soldiers ; one 
 hundred mules covered with the richest em- 
 broidered cloth of gold ; three thousand 
 horses and also two hundred mules covered 
 alike in damask for the transport of the 
 courtiers." 1 The procession was finally 
 brought to a close by five hundred couples 
 of hounds, and an unheard-of number of 
 falcons, sparrow-hawks, trumpeters, musi- 
 cians, and jugglers, who were all conveyed 
 across the Apennines to the inconvenience 
 and dismay, it may be supposed, of those 
 who would have to lodge and board them 
 in " Arno's fair white walls " ! 
 
 1 Corio, op. at., p. 4.
 
 1 84 The House of Savoy 
 
 The cortege returned by Lucca and 
 Genoa, and at both places Bona was pre- 
 sented with gifts, Lucca offering her two 
 white geldings and ten thousand ducats, 
 while Genoa presented her with many silk 
 hangings for her rooms and some silk 
 brocades. 
 
 Soon after the return of the Duke and 
 Duchess to Milan, Bona's second child, 
 Bianca Maria, was born, and not long after 
 that, again, great festivities were held in 
 honour of the betrothal of Gian Galeazzo, 
 the Duke's eldest son, aged four years, to 
 Isabella of Aragon, the daughter of Al- 
 fonso, Duke of Calabria, and Ippolita 
 Sforza ; and two years later, Philibert of 
 Savoy was affianced to little Bianca Maria, 
 who had reached the age of two. 
 
 But these bright matrimonial prospects 
 were about to be darkened by the tragedy 
 of the Duke's death. Galeazzo was a man, 
 or rather a monster, whose cruelties, vices, 
 and evil passions had excited the rage, 
 disgust, and hatred of his subjects. His 
 mania for hunting made him act at times 
 in a manner so brutal as to be almost in-
 
 Bona of Savoy 185 
 
 credible, and but one instance will suffice 
 to show what form his anger could take 
 if, in any way, his game-laws were in- 
 fringed. A peasant had killed a hare. 
 This was in direct disobedience to the 
 orders of the Duke, who wreaked his 
 vengeance upon him. He condemned the 
 wretched man to swallow the hare, raw, 
 together with its skin, hair and all, and 
 it need hardly be added the man died in 
 agony. 
 
 Besides the Duke's cruelty and immor- 
 ality, he oppressed his subjects with nu- 
 merous and heavy taxes, and the fate that 
 overtook him at last may by no means be 
 considered undeserved. A conspiracy was 
 formed against him, and on St. Stephen's 
 Day, while assisting at Mass in the church 
 of that name, he was stabbed by three 
 Milanese youths, who hoped that on the 
 tyrant's death all the citizens would rise 
 against his dynasty and assert their free- 
 dom and independence. 
 
 Galeazzo had had many presentiments 
 as to his end, and before leaving home 
 to go to the church he took leave of his
 
 1 86 The House of Savoy 
 
 children (with whom he had kept with 
 much solemnity all the Christmas festivi- 
 ties) as though he was never to see them 
 again. 
 
 His corpse was exposed in the Chapter 
 of the church where he had met his end ; 
 and Bona sent three rings and a seal of 
 great price to be placed in the coffin of her 
 youthful husband (for he was but thirty- 
 three at the time of his death), together 
 with a suit of white cloth in which Gale- 
 azzo had always expressed a wish to be 
 buried. 
 
 The hopes of the conspirators that the 
 whole town would rise and throw off the 
 ducal yoke were not fulfilled. The Mi- 
 lanese quietly consented to the succession 
 of the Duke's little son, Gian Galeazzo ; 
 but as he was only seven years of age his 
 mother, Bona, was appointed Regent and 
 guardian. Francesco (Cicho) Simonetta 
 was named her chief councillor and di- 
 rector. 
 
 The difficulties that Bona had to en- 
 counter in her capacity as Regent may to 
 some extent be compared with those un-
 
 Bona of Savoy 187 
 
 dergone about this same date in Savoy 
 by her sister-in-law, Yolande of France. 
 Both women had opposed to them a set of 
 brothers-in-law full of ambition, craft, and 
 audacity ; both also had powerful neigh- 
 bours to conciliate or repel ; and both 
 were young and beautiful women. But 
 there the resemblance ceases ; for the 
 characters of these Regents were as differ- 
 ent as possible. Yolande was irreproach- 
 able in her morals, and gifted besides with 
 intellectual powers of a greatly superior 
 nature to those of her sister-in-law. Bona, 
 on the other hand, was a woman of low 
 tastes and habits. Her behaviour was im- 
 moral and undignified. Her conduct had 
 the most disastrous results, not only for the 
 family of Sforza but for the whole of 
 Italy as well. 
 
 There was at that moment at the Court 
 of Milan a certain Antonio Tassino, who 
 had come from Ferrara in the capacity of 
 merchant, and who had then entered the 
 ducal service, being appointed by Galeazzo 
 himself to wait specially on the Duchess. 
 This man, who was extraordinarily hand-
 
 i88 The House of Savoy 
 
 some, gained a complete ascendancy over 
 Duchess Bona. She fell hopelessly in 
 love with him, confided to him all the 
 state secrets and, in spite of the warnings 
 of her upright and wise minister, Simon- 
 etta, she trusted him blindly. This man 
 knew well that Simonetta had neither es- 
 teem nor liking for him, and the knowledge 
 of this dislike prompted Tassino to venge- 
 ance. He threw himself into the party 
 of Lodovico Sforza, the cleverest and most 
 ambitious of the late Duke's brothers, and 
 Lodovico knew well how to make use of 
 such a tool. Through Tassino's instru- 
 mentality Lodovico was reinstated in office 
 and readmitted into the town of Milan, 
 from which he had been wisely removed 
 by the advice of Simonetta. In vain the 
 minister warned Bona against the folly of 
 such a step ; she refused to listen to any 
 counsel that seemed to her antagonistic to 
 her lover. Simonetta's prophetic words 
 on Lodovico's entry into the town, " I 
 shall lose my head, and you, the state," 
 were uttered in vain. The prophecy, how- 
 ever, was but too quickly fulfilled.
 
 Bona of Savoy 189 
 
 Hardly was Lodovico back in Milan 
 before he caused Simonetta to be arrested 
 and soon after beheaded. He then named 
 himself tutor to his young nephew, and 
 removed Bona from her share in the gov- 
 ernment, bidding her "to attend rather 
 to her devotions than to the sovereignty 
 of the state." From that time forward 
 Lodovico the Moor was absolute master 
 of Milan. He banished Tassino, whose 
 insolence and vanity procured him enemies 
 on all sides ; and the favourite, laden with 
 jewels and treasure, retired to Venice. 
 Duchess Bona was wild at this exile of 
 her lover : her desire to rejoin him became 
 her ruling idea, and made her alike obliv- 
 ious of her duties as a mother and of her 
 dignity as a woman. In order to carry 
 out her folly, she consented to renounce 
 publicly and voluntarily all share in the 
 government of her son's state, hoping by 
 such a step to be free from all responsi- 
 bility, and at liberty to set off to rejoin 
 Tassino. 
 
 But the crafty Lodovico had other aims 
 in his head. He had no intention that
 
 1 90 The House of Savoy 
 
 Bona should leave the duchy, as, when 
 once out of the country, he feared she 
 would but too easily and readily find 
 friends and relatives to espouse her cause 
 and to reinstate her in power. He con- 
 sequently took all necessary measures to 
 prevent her departure, detaining her for 
 a long time in a sort of honourable cap- 
 tivity, and surrounding her always with 
 creatures of his own appointing. Poor 
 Duchess Bona, deprived of her high office, 
 and bafHed in her intention to find com- 
 pensation for such a loss in the arms of 
 her lover, presents a sorry figure. 
 
 The crown of sorrows, though, awaited 
 her in 1494, when her son, Gian Galeazzo, 
 who had reigned as a puppet in his uncle's 
 hands, died at the Castle of Pavia ; the 
 cause of his death was slow poison, which 
 it is generally supposed was administered 
 to him by Lodovico's orders. Bona was 
 allowed by her despotic brother-in-law to 
 attend on her son in his last illness. Who 
 can tell but that the bitterest drop in her 
 cup of agony was caused by the reflection 
 that his life might have been spared, had
 
 Bona of Savoy 191 
 
 she only stayed at the head of affairs, 
 and not given up "her all on earth and 
 more than all in Heaven" for a wretch 
 quite unworthy of such love and sacrifice. 
 After her son's death Bona was allowed 
 to withdraw to France, where her life was 
 of so retired a nature as to induce some 
 writers to believe that she died in 1499. 
 But recent discoveries have proved clearly 
 that she was living in 1502 at the Castle 
 of Fossano, situated in the lands of her 
 nephew, Philibert II. of Savoy, and that 
 she died there in the second half of No- 
 vember, 1503. It is piteous to read of 
 the straits in money matters to which she 
 was reduced, and to know that her latter 
 years were harassed with the ceaseless 
 struggle to obtain her rightful income. 
 How often the reflection of the wealth 
 she once possessed must have forced itself 
 upon her when she was inditing letters im- 
 ploring for the means " de satisfaire a mes 
 premieres necessites ! " And how bitter 
 then must have been the remembrance 
 of the treasures that once were hers before 
 assassination had left her house desolate !
 
 i9 2 The House of Savoy 
 
 The place of Duchess Bona's sepulture 
 is uncertain. Complete mystery surrounds 
 the last hours of one whose existence is a 
 record of sin and folly, though touched 
 at every point by the sanctifying hand of 
 sorrow and misfortune. 
 
 SEAL OF COUNT AYMON OF SAVOY.
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 BLANCHE OF MONTFERRAT. HER MARRIAGE 
 WITH DUKE CHARLES I. OF SAVOY. HIS 
 DEATH. BLANCHE'S REGENCY. THE CHEV- 
 
 ALIER BAYARD. ARRIVAL OF CHARLES 
 
 VIII. OF FRANCE IN ITALY. HIS RECEP- 
 TION IN TURIN. DEATH OF THE YOUNG 
 DUKE. BLANCHE'S LIFE AT CARIGNAN. 
 BAYARD'S TOURNEY. HER DEATH. (1485- 
 
 ON the night of the ist of April, 
 1485, an august company was 
 assembled in the hall of audience in the 
 Castle of Casale. The hour was near two 
 o'clock in the morning, and the occasion 
 was the betrothal of Blanche of Montfer- 
 rat to Charles I., surnamed " the War- 
 rior," Duke of Savoy. The chief figure 
 in that assembly was Boniface, Marquis 
 of Montferrat. He was a man old in 
 years, but renowned as one of the greatest 
 
 VOL. II. 13. 
 
 1Q3
 
 i94 The House of Savoy 
 
 warriors of his day ; following in the foot- 
 steps of many of his ancestors, he had 
 gained renown as a condottiere, and 
 had served as general to the forces of 
 Venice, the Visconti, and the Sforza when 
 they had summoned him on different oc- 
 casions to lead their armies to battle. 
 Called on to succeed two brothers who 
 had filled successively the Marquisate of 
 Montferrat, Boniface applied himself to 
 the new duties devolving on him. These 
 included the office of guardian to his or- 
 phaned nieces, the daughters of his brother, 
 the Marquis William. 
 
 William's career had been that of a regu- 
 lar soldier of fortune. Francesco Sforza 
 no mean judge of fighting and fighters 
 had pronounced him to be the ablest 
 captain in Italy. He had been married 
 three times. His hopes, however, of con- 
 tinuing the dynasty in his own male de- 
 scendants had proved illusive. He had 
 not resorted to wedlock until considerably 
 advanced in years. So Providence, to 
 punish him for not having availed himself 
 of the privilege of matrimony when young,
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 195 
 
 had bestowed on him two female children, 
 Jane, or Joanna, the daughter of his first 
 wife, Marie de Foix ; and Blanche, by his 
 second wife, Elisabetta Maria Sforza, the 
 daughter of Francesco Sforza, Duke of 
 Milan. This second wife was only thir- 
 teen years old when she became the bride 
 of William of Montferrat ; and it can only 
 be hoped that she was too young and too 
 ignorant to shudder at the fate which 
 allied her to a bridegroom of sixty-five, as 
 the chronicles of Montferrat assert the age 
 of the Marquis to have been. But, all 
 the same, he outlived this second wife, 
 married a third one, and died in 1483, 
 leaving his brother Boniface to inherit 
 his dignities, and to succeed, if possible, 
 where he had failed in providing a son to 
 carry on the family honours. 
 
 Boniface hastened to try to accom- 
 plish all that was required of him. 
 Though a bachelor, and an old one into 
 the bargain, he lost no time in marrying 
 Helene de Brosse, the sister of his 
 brother's third wife ; but at first no better 
 fate attended him than had befallen the
 
 i9 6 The House of Savoy 
 
 late Marquis. A daughter was the only 
 issue of this marriage, prompted entirely 
 by diplomacy, and not in the least by in- 
 clination. The succession of Montferrat 
 became, therefore, a burning question. 
 All the neighbouring states had parcelled 
 out his heritage to suit their respective 
 requirements and ambitions before Mar- 
 quis Boniface had left off thinking of 
 brides and children. 
 
 The eldest daughter of Marquis William 
 had thought of securing to herself and to 
 her husband, the Marquis de Saluces, the 
 succession after her father's death ; for a 
 stipulation in her marriage-contract had 
 insured this right to her, provided that 
 Boniface had no son. She, for her part, un- 
 dertook to hand over a handsome marriage- 
 portion to her half-sister Blanche when the 
 moment came for her to be married. 
 
 The most powerful claimants after Jo- 
 anna and her husband were Lodovico 
 Sforza, Duke of Bari (surnamed the 
 Moor), and the Duke of Savoy. The lat- 
 ter, whose family had already contracted 
 several alliances with the House of Mont-
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 197 
 
 ferrat, based his claim on the relationships 
 resulting from these marriages ; his ap- 
 proaching union with Blanche strength- 
 ened his pretensions, and in order to 
 enforce them still further the Duke re- 
 solved to be married without any more 
 delay. He was seconded in this resolu- 
 tion by Lodovico the Moor, who, with all 
 the cunning and sagacity which he pos- 
 sessed in so remarkable a degree, deter- 
 mined to go shares with Savoy in the 
 division of Montferrat, to the utter exclu- 
 sion of the Marquis de Saluces and his 
 wife. The contract was drawn up in all 
 haste at Casale (Duke Charles being re- 
 presented by his emissary, Antoine de la 
 F6ret), when it was decided that Blanche 
 should receive a marriage-portion of eighty 
 thousand ducats ; or, should she have no 
 male cousin to succeed to her uncle's es- 
 tates, she was then to " inherit all the lands, 
 rights, and jurisdictions situate beyond the 
 Po," and the vassals, chatelains, and peo- 
 ple of those lands were to swear to ob- 
 serve this covenant, and to yield obedience 
 to Savoy without further objection.
 
 198 The House of Savoy 
 
 The marriage was contracted in the 
 manner known as sponsalia per verba 
 de prcesenti (a form done away with by 
 the Council of Trent), and the young 
 couple only awaited the moment of meet- 
 ing to perform the rite with the full 
 ceremonial enjoined by the Church, and 
 befitting their exalted position. 
 
 But the wary old Marquis had no idea 
 of calmly letting his patrimony go away 
 into different ramifications of nieces and 
 nephews-in-law. He, too, had his schemes 
 he, too, had visions of brides and sons ; 
 and in spite of his advanced age he, too, 
 was about to become again a bridegroom. 
 The calculating relatives probably laughed 
 at Boniface's dreams and doings ; but the 
 laughter must have died away on their 
 lips when, in due time, his second wife, 
 Mary of Servia, bore him two sons, and 
 the longed-for possession of Montferrat 
 became, for the House of Savoy, a prize 
 to dream of and to struggle after. It was 
 two centuries later when, after possession 
 by the Marquis of Mantua, it became Sa- 
 voyan territory.
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 199 
 
 But apart from the plots and counter- 
 plots for the succession of Montferrat, 
 Duke Charles of Savoy was eager for the 
 arrival of his bride ; the reports of her 
 beauty, of her goodness, and her intelli- 
 gence made him anxious to behold her, 
 and while awaiting her presence he did his 
 utmost to prepare for her reception, and 
 to secure the papal dispensation needed to 
 make them lawful husband and wife. 1 Fifty 
 archers of the Guard were to form the 
 Duchess's escort ; a tailor, Pierre Roche, 
 
 was to be in attendance to fashion new 
 
 
 
 and smart wearing apparel for the bride ; 
 and, with even still greater consideration, 
 a cook was despatched from the ducal es- 
 tablishment to preside over the travelling 
 kitchen of the Duchess Blanche. Truly a 
 bridegroom who showed such care, not only 
 for the wearing apparel of his bride, but also 
 for the exigencies of her table, bade fair 
 to make a model husband. 
 
 1 Usseglio, L. Bianca di Montf errata, Cap. I., p. 17, Roux 
 e Ca., Torino, 1892. Charles I. 's grandfather, Lodovico of 
 Savoy, and Blanche's maternal grandmother, Jane or Joanna, 
 were brother and sister ; the affianced pair were therefore 
 second cousins.
 
 200 The House of Savoy 
 
 While sending forward these emissaries 
 on the road, the Duke busied himself at 
 Turin in preparing a stupendous quantity 
 of dresses of velvet, satin, and cloth of 
 gold for himself, his brother, the Marquis 
 of Gex, and the whole Court ; after which 
 he removed to Moncrivello, and from there 
 to Crescentino, where his bride met him, 
 followed by a numerous train of council- 
 lors, ladies-in-waiting, shield-bearers, doc- 
 tors, astrologers, and retainers of all sorts 
 and kinds, who were lodged and boarded 
 for several days by the Duke at Moncri- 
 vello, where all awaited the longed-for 
 dispensation from Rome. This arrived, 
 at last, on May 9, 1484, and two days 
 after, in the presence of all the grandees 
 of his Court, his uncle Francis, Arch- 
 bishop of Auch ; his brother Giacomo 
 Luigi ; Gabriel de Seyssel, Lord of Aix ; 
 Enrico de Valperga, majordomo of the 
 palace, and many others, the Duke de- 
 clared that his marriage with Blanche of 
 Montferrat, contracted in his name by his 
 proxy, Antoine de la Foret, was now valid 
 and consummated, owing to the papal
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 201 
 
 dispensation, without which their marriage 
 could not have received the blessing and 
 sanction of the Church. The bride was 
 not present at this ceremony, but the 
 nuptials having been blessed and ratified 
 by the Pope, no further function was re- 
 quired and the young couple were lawfully 
 joined together from that moment, all the 
 requirements of church and state having 
 been satisfied. 
 
 Five days were spent at Moncrivello, 
 and were devoted to preparations for the 
 solemn entry into Turin, which took place 
 on the afternoon of the igth, after one 
 night's halt at Chivasso. The brilliant 
 cavalcade, having arrived at the capital, 
 found shelter in the principal inns, for the 
 Castle and the Episcopal Palace retained 
 for the use of the guests were not suffi- 
 cient to house all the cortege of barons 
 and nobles who flocked from Savoy and 
 Montferrat to do honour to the newly 
 married pair. The reception accorded them 
 by the town of Turin was hearty and effu- 
 sive ; and the wonderful beauty of Blanche, 
 her charm of manner, and her intellectual
 
 202 The House of Savoy 
 
 gifts attracted and fascinated all classes of 
 her husband's subjects. Feastings, enter- 
 tainments, illuminations, and other demon- 
 strations evinced the public joy, and rich 
 and poor alike did all that lay in their 
 power to testify their satisfaction in their 
 Prince's nuptials and to welcome his fair 
 young bride. 
 
 This bright opening of a life whose 
 happiness was to be all too short-lived 
 was clouded over by the death of the 
 Duke's young brother, Giacomo Luigi, 
 Marquis of Gex. The lad, for he was 
 but about fifteen at the time of his death, 
 had always been delicate, and the frequent 
 bills from the apothecary show how efforts 
 were constantly made to restore the boy's 
 health. The Duke, whose love for this 
 delicate brother was very great, had spent 
 large sums in many of the churches of 
 Turin for votive offerings, hoping in this 
 way to bring about his brother's restora- 
 tion to health; but in July of this same 
 year (1485) he became so much worse 
 that all hopes of his recovery were at an 
 end. No remedies availed to save the
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 203 
 
 young, dearly loved life : the skill of num- 
 berless doctors proved useless, a bath of 
 oil administered on the last day of the 
 youth's life failed to restore him to his de- 
 voted brother, and on the i;th of the 
 month he died. A costly funeral was held 
 in his honour in the Church of St. John, 
 and he was interred with every possible 
 mark of pomp and respect before the high 
 altar, all the clergy of the town assisting 
 at the mass for the repose of his soul. 
 
 After the sad ceremony was finished, the 
 Duke and Duchess, to escape for a while 
 from the mournful associations surround- 
 ing them, left Turin for Rivoli, where they 
 passed the rest of the summer. A further 
 journey was planned later on in the year, 
 to show the Duchess her husband's coun- 
 try, and to introduce her to the beauty of 
 her new surroundings. A journey to Sa- 
 voy was decided upon, and preparations 
 for the undertaking were set on foot. The 
 removal of the Court from one place to 
 another was no small affair in those days, 
 the more so when it was also a question 
 of crossing the Alps, when the amount of
 
 204 The House of Savoy 
 
 luggage alone required a special service, 
 including as it did the hangings and tapes- 
 tries that the Duke conveyed from one 
 house to another to cover the bare 
 walls, and extending to the Duchess's pet 
 parrot and sparrow, who had also to be 
 calculated for in the removal. There 
 were, besides, heaps of kitchen utensils, 
 tools, plate, arms, and clothes to be trans- 
 ported, and the number of pack-horses and 
 mules that were needed on these occa- 
 sions was simply interminable. This cara- 
 van was followed by a host of courtiers, 
 gentlemen- and ladies-in-waiting, squires, 
 valets, and waiting-men, so that the re- 
 moval of the Court seemed like the march 
 of a whole army, and involved no end of 
 organisation and expense. All the same, 
 the time devoted to these journeys was 
 shorter than might have been imagined. 
 This one, which was taken leisurely, occu- 
 pied only seventeen days, starting from Ri- 
 voli on the 26th of September and reaching 
 Geneva on the i 2th of October, after cross- 
 ing the Mont Cenis and halting at Susa, 
 Aiguebelle, and Annecy. The Duchess
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 205 
 
 was carried in a litter, although, with un- 
 heard-of luxury for those times, a coach had 
 been prepared for her, decorated with the 
 arms of Savoy and Montferrat, and adorned 
 with much painting and gilding an 
 elaborate piece of work, in sooth, that had 
 engrossed the labours of the painter, one 
 Georges Jaquier, for no less than three 
 months. There was also a palfrey in readi- 
 ness for the Duchess, led by her squires, 
 so that she could vary her mode of progress 
 in divers ways should she wish to do so. 
 
 Duke Charles and Duchess Blanche 
 stayed for three months at Geneva, and 
 the whole of their stay was one long suc- 
 cession of feasts and amusements. There 
 were boar-hunts ; there were expeditions 
 on the lake, pantomimes, theatrical per- 
 formances, grand Church functions, visits 
 from the Duke's sister Maria and her hus- 
 band, the Marquis de Kochberg, and other 
 innocent pastimes wherewith to gladden 
 the hearts and enliven the spirits of the 
 young couple. 
 
 Geneva was the place chosen for gaiety 
 and festivity ; while Chambery, on the
 
 206 The House of Savoy 
 
 other hand, was set apart for the more 
 solemn season of Lent. The Duke and 
 his bride left the lovely Lake Leman at 
 the end of January and reached the capi- 
 tal of Savoy the 4th of February, where 
 they observed Lent very strictly ; the 
 Duke, on Holy Thursday, revived a cus- 
 tom that had fallen into neglect for some 
 years in the House of Savoy of feeding 
 and waiting on thirteen old men, and 
 washing their feet on his knees. After 
 Easter, they returned to Piedmont, where 
 disputes and negotiations between Savoy 
 and Saluces (involving also unpleasant 
 relations with France) occupied the atten- 
 tion of the Duke, and plunged him finally 
 into a war with Lodovico, Marquis of 
 Saluces. The Duke, whose delight in 
 war was a well-known fact, was repeatedly 
 successful in this campaign ; but his devo- 
 tion to his young wife made him unself- 
 ishly give up his favourite pursuit to be 
 near Blanche, whose confinement was not 
 far distant. For three months Charles 
 stayed with his Duchess at Turin ; and on 
 the nth of July, 1487, Blanche was safely
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 207 
 
 delivered of a daughter. The child, over 
 whose birth great rejoicings were held, 
 may be said literally to have been cradled 
 in gold, for a magnificent cot had been 
 prepared for her in Milan, chiselled by the 
 hand of Lodovico Casano, and edged with 
 an elaborate bit of carving representing 
 the nativity of Christ, with devices of the 
 arms of Savoy, Montferrat, and other 
 great families allied to them, painted and 
 gilded by one Giovanni Ambrosio. The 
 coverlet was a rich piece of cloth of gold 
 lined with no less than 342 skins of er- 
 mine ; and the price of this princely cradle 
 was reckoned at about 830 florins. The 
 infant was baptised in the Cathedral 
 Church of St. John on Sunday, July 29th, 
 and two godmothers and five godfathers 
 acted as her sponsors. They were : Maria, 
 Marchesa of Montferrat ; the Lady Paola 
 Gambara, wife of Lodovico Costa, Lord 
 of Bene ; Lodovico Sforza, Duke of Bari 
 (who was represented by Galeazzo Vis- 
 conti with a following of twenty-four horse) ; 
 Urban of Bonnivard, Bishop of Vercelli ; 
 Jean Compeys, Archbishop of Tarantasia ;
 
 208 The House of Savoy 
 
 Antoine Champion, Bishop of Mondovi 
 and Chancellor of Savoy ; and Agostino 
 de Corradidi Lignana, Abbot of Casa- 
 nova. The festivities in honour of the 
 christening were on such an extensive 
 scale that even the sumptuous amount of 
 plate owned by the Duke was not suffi- 
 cient for the use of his guests, and he had 
 to borrow from his brother, Count Giano 
 of Savoy, from the Count de la Chambre, 
 from the Countess Valperga, and from the 
 Canon of Vercelli to make good the de- 
 ficiency. 
 
 The next event that marks the life of 
 Blanche was the birth of a son, on June 
 3, 1488. The Duke had gone to France 
 in the previous month of March, to see if, 
 by a personal interview with his royal 
 cousin, he could not smooth away the dif- 
 ficulties and disagreements on the ques- 
 tion of the homage owed by the Marquis 
 of Saluces to the Duke of Savoy. Charles 
 had gone with a retinue of over a thou- 
 sand men, and, regardless of the ever- 
 failing condition of his exchequer, had 
 determined on a display of riches and
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 209 
 
 magnificence, trusting that this appearance 
 of wealth would mislead King Charles 
 VIII. as to the state of his finances, and 
 persuade him of the futility of waging war 
 against an adversary whose funds and 
 supplies were evidently inexhaustible. 
 But the King of France was either better 
 informed as to the state of his cousin's 
 exchequer, qr was not to be deceived by 
 the trick practised upon him ; he held out 
 against the Duke's arguments ; he sup- 
 ported the claims of Saluces as opposed 
 to those of Savoy ; and the Duke had to 
 come away, after having expended vast 
 sums and reaped few of the benefits that 
 he had promised himself in return for this 
 outlay of time and money. Before leav- 
 ing France the news reached him of the 
 birth of a son, and he instantly besought 
 the French monarch to stand godfather 
 to his boy, a request to which Charles 
 VIII. at once acceded. 
 
 During the absence of her husband 
 Duchess Blanche had remained at Turin, 
 leading a quiet, retired life, occupied with 
 her handmaidens in embroidery, as well 
 
 VOL. II. 14.
 
 210 The House of Savoy 
 
 as other housewifely pursuits, attending 
 Mass frequently, and devoted also to 
 alms-giving. The only amusement she 
 allowed herself was a concert in the last 
 days of Carnival ; and after this one out- 
 burst of musical dissipation all sounds of 
 revelry were exchanged for the sermons 
 of Father Angelo da Chivasso, who had 
 the honour of preaching to the Duchess 
 and her Court during Lent. These pious 
 observances were varied with the prepara- 
 tions made for Blanche's confinement ; 
 and in a beautiful large chamber, all hung 
 with red and white satin, she gave birth to 
 her first-born son on the morning of June 
 23, 1489. The event was hailed with en- 
 thusiasm and delight in Turin ; couriers 
 rushed in all directions to proclaim the 
 news ; guns were fired ; fireworks were 
 shot off ; bands of music patrolled the 
 streets to proclaim the birth of an heir to 
 the throne. The Prince's baptism was 
 fixed for the 2d of August, so that the 
 sponsors or their representatives might 
 have time to arrive for the ceremony ; 
 while festivities, consisting chiefly of music,
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 211 
 
 singing, and dancing were inaugurated at 
 Court in honour of the event. 
 
 On Sunday, August 2d, the baptism 
 took place. The whole Court issued from 
 the castle and proceeded in great state 
 to the cathedral. The street through 
 which the cortege passed was strewn with 
 leaves and flowers ; great branches from 
 the trees gave a grateful shade on either 
 side of the road. The church was hung 
 with silks and brocades, and shone with 
 thousands of wax candles, which glistened 
 " like the sun and the moon " ; while to do 
 honour to the baby-prince innumerable 
 sacred relics were displayed throughout 
 the building. The procession was met by 
 the bishops and clergy, and then moved 
 along the cathedral to the sound of chant- 
 ing and hymns, after which the ceremony 
 was performed in the ducal chapel. The 
 babe received three names : Charles, out 
 of compliment to his godfather, the King 
 of France ; John, because he was born on 
 the vigil of St. John's Day ; and Amadeus, 
 in memory of his grandfather, Amadeus 
 VIII. The Duke was not present at his
 
 212 The House of Savoy 
 
 son's christening ; he had tarried at Cham- 
 bery on his way from France, and from 
 there he went to join the Duchess at 
 Turin, where he was received with exu- 
 berant demonstrations of delight and af- 
 fection on the part of his subjects. 
 
 But besides the political failure of his 
 French expedition, Charles did not return 
 in the same conditions physically as those 
 in which he had started. His health, 
 never very robust, gave signs of failing, 
 and his physicians, perplexed at the symp- 
 toms, suggested change of air. The Duke 
 refused to be frightened by disease. He 
 fought against the evil with all the energy 
 and courage of his nature, exerting him- 
 self to attend to his multiform duties not- 
 withstanding the increasing languor and 
 weakness which sapped his strength and 
 vitality. He followed, however, the ad- 
 vice given him, and journeyed first to 
 Moncalieri, then to Pinerolo, where much 
 was hoped from the salubriousness of the 
 air. But he was a doomed man. One 
 doctor after another was called in, only to 
 make a vain trial of his skill, and to pro-
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 213 
 
 nounce himself incompetent to save the 
 Duke's life. It would be tedious, were it 
 not pathetic, to read in turn the names of 
 the different physicians as they passed in 
 endless file by the dying man's bedside, 
 each one trying some new medicine and 
 subjecting the patient uselessly to fresh 
 examinations and fresh prescriptions. 
 " No medicine in the world can do thee 
 good," for here, as of old with " Hamlet the 
 Dane," the case was one of poisoning, and 
 no remedy was forthcoming to counteract 
 the subtle disease. The Duchess made 
 votive offerings for the life of her youth- 
 ful husband ; an image in wax whose 
 weight was equal to that of the Duke was 
 offered up by her at the Church of " Nos- 
 tro Signore della Misericordia" at Ales- 
 sandria. Prayers and intercessions and 
 vows were all in vain, and on March 14, 
 1490, Duke Charles the Warrior died. 
 Had he lived another eleven days he 
 would only then have attained the age of 
 twenty-two. 
 
 The lamentations over his premature 
 death were genuine and universal. His
 
 214 The House of Savoy 
 
 talents, his activity, his zeal for his coun- 
 try's good, had raised the fondest hopes 
 concerning him. The people, who were still 
 suffering from the weakness of Louis's 
 reign, from the unsettled minority of Phili- 
 bert, and the turbulence consequent on the 
 regency of Yolande of France, had seen 
 in the accession of Charles I. the likelihood 
 of a wise and firm rule, the consolidation of 
 the ducal dynasty, and a long prospect 
 of peace and prosperity. Now all these 
 visions were forever destroyed. The 
 Duke's heir was a babe of nine months, 
 and a minority and regency, even though 
 watched over by the care and wisdom of 
 Blanche, were overshadowed by the proba- 
 bility of dissensions and disturbances at the 
 hands of Philip de Bresse. 
 
 " Well indeed might they be shaken 
 With the weight of such a blow ; 
 He was gone their prince, their idol, 
 Whom they loved and worshipped so ! " ' 
 
 The rumour that Charles had been poi- 
 soned was first raised by the tribe of phy- 
 
 1 Aytoun, Lays of the Scottish Cavaliers.
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 2 1 5 
 
 sicians whose skill had been baffled by the 
 Duke's illness, and who sought to excuse 
 their incompetence by alleging an evil be- 
 yond the control of human agency. The 
 guilt of this crime was ascribed to the 
 Marquis de Saluces, whose hatred of Duke 
 Charles was well known, and who was also 
 accused of compassing in the same way, 
 and at about the same time, the deaths of 
 the Marshal de Miolans, and of a member 
 of the Fieschi family, who were both bit- 
 ter enemies of the Marquis and warm 
 adherents of the Duke. Some milder 
 judgments, though, exonerate the Marquis 
 from so foul a crime, and point to the del- 
 icacy of all the children of Duke Amadeus 
 IX. and Yolande of France, and to the 
 demands made on his strength and youth 
 before Charles was old enough to endure 
 them. 
 
 The funeral honours bestowed upon 
 Charles I. were lavish in the extreme. 
 The number of torches burnt, of masses 
 chanted, of priests and people who 
 thronged to attend the rites, all testify to 
 the love and respect which were now
 
 216 The House of Savoy 
 
 poured forth as the last tribute of a na- 
 tion's grief and homage. The body, 
 wrapped in a large scarlet mantle trimmed 
 with ermine, a cap of red velvet on 
 the head, was borne to the ducal chapel, 
 where it lay in state for three days. Dur- 
 ing this time constant Masses were said ; 
 day and night the brothers of the five con- 
 vents of Pinerolo stood round the bier 
 chanting the prayers for the dead. On 
 the 1 8th of March the funeral took place. 
 The body, which had been embalmed, was 
 carried to the Church of St. Francis, and 
 there immured. The church was all hung 
 in black, and thousands of wax candles, 
 supplied from every part of Piedmont as 
 those of Pinerolo were not nearly sufficient 
 for the purpose relieved the darkness of 
 the funeral hangings. The bier was es- 
 corted by an immense concourse of people, 
 prelates, clerks, nobles, and poor people 
 (the latter all clad in mourning provided 
 by the Court), carrying torches on which 
 were stamped the arms of Savoy, while all 
 the bells in the town and the neighbour- 
 hood tolled out sadly and slowly their tale
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 217 
 
 of death and mourning. After the body 
 had been laid in its last resting-place, the 
 Bishops of Mondovi, of Vercelli, and of 
 Moriana officiated separately at a solemn 
 Mass. No less than three hundred and 
 nine Masses were said that very morning 
 in the same church by priests summoned 
 for the purpose from far and near. Fu- 
 neral services and functions lasted after 
 this for nine days. During those days of 
 mourning and weeping, alms were also 
 given to nearly three thousand poor 
 people. 
 
 What words, though, can describe the 
 grief of the Duchess Blanche at the death 
 of her young and beloved husband ? Her 
 sorrow was profound and lasting. The 
 weeds, which she assumed then and never 
 entirely put off, were but outward tokens 
 of the desolation which entered her heart, 
 never again to leave it altogether on this 
 side of the grave. The mourning observed 
 at Court was also deep and genuine. The 
 rooms were all draped in black ; and that 
 every member of the household also wore 
 sables it is hardly necessary to say.
 
 218 The House of Savoy 
 
 But the relief, the luxury, as it were, of 
 indulging in her grief, the solace of dwell- 
 ing on the memories of her happy past 
 undisturbed by state cares and anxieties, 
 was a privilege altogether impossible for 
 the Duchess. Her thoughts and interests 
 had to be wholly devoted to the adminis- 
 tration of the government, to the bringing 
 up of her children, although the sympathy, 
 the advice, and the companionship, which 
 would have turned her task into a pleasure, 
 had gone from beside her and was re- 
 placed only by an utter void in all its 
 novelty and bitterness. The mortal re- 
 mains of Charles I. were hardly laid to 
 rest ere his vassals thronged around his 
 widow to renew their oath of allegiance ; 
 state officers entreated for a confirmation 
 in her son's name of their different em- 
 ployments ; councillors applied for instruc- 
 tions ; her subjects implored her clemency 
 and protection ; and Blanche, forcing back 
 thoughts that might now find no place in 
 her mind, and tears which might no longer 
 flow, let none go away unsatisfied. She 
 exerted herself, with a diligence and an
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 219 
 
 energy beyond her years, to inspire her 
 people with confidence and courage, and 
 to convince them that all was not lost in 
 the death of their sovereign. 
 
 The question as to the Regency and the 
 guardianship of the young Duke engrossed 
 all minds. No doubt was entertained that 
 the great-uncles of the child (especially 
 the restless and ambitious Philip de Bresse) 
 would leave no stone unturned to possess 
 themselves of the person of Charles II., 
 and of the reins of office. But Blanche 
 was determined that no one but herself 
 should bring up her child, or rule in his 
 name. She knew how keen a struggle 
 such a determination would involve, and 
 she resolved to lose no time in taking the 
 necessary measures to insure her nomina- 
 tion both as guardian and as Regent. She 
 was backed in her resolution by Mon- 
 signor Francis of Savoy, the only one of 
 her husband's uncles who had no wish to 
 usurp his great-nephew's rights, and who, 
 having spent much of his time with Charles 
 and Blanche, was really fond of his rela- 
 tives. He had always warmly espoused
 
 220 The House of Savoy 
 
 Blanche's side in all her troubles and per- 
 plexities. Supported by him, the Duchess 
 called together her Council, and announced 
 to them her desire to hear their opinions 
 and wishes as to her son's guardianship. 
 But one voice reigned throughout the as- 
 sembly, and the councillors all declared 
 that, owing to her exceptional gifts, her 
 love of justice tempered with mercy, her 
 virtue, her intellect, and her prudence, 
 Blanche of Montferrat, and she alone, was 
 fit to rule over the person and over the 
 state of her infant son. This office the 
 Duchess accepted at once ; she swore on 
 the Gospel to rule well and faithfully ; and 
 she then and there appointed Monsignor 
 Francis as Governor-General under her. 
 And sore was the need in which Blanche 
 stood of a firm and friendly adviser at 
 that moment. The war with Saluces still 
 continued, fomented through several gen- 
 erations by hatred and jealousy, and un- 
 dermining by its continuance the strength 
 of both states. The attitude adopted by 
 Philip de Bresse presented a greater 
 peril still, in the shape of civil war. The
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 221 
 
 exchequer was empty, drained to its last 
 farthing by Duke Charles's expedition 
 into France. The effect of these unto- 
 ward circumstances made itself felt in an 
 agitation and irresolution in the minds of 
 the Duchess's subjects which boded ill in 
 the face of a civil war. But through this 
 trying time Blanche gave no sign of 
 either weakness or wavering. Though 
 accustomed to a life centred in home 
 duties and home interests, with no train- 
 ing for public life or its responsibilities, 
 she rose to her position with all the energy 
 and resolution of a great mind, and her be- 
 haviour throughout this critical period was 
 guided by the promptings of genius. No 
 symptom of yielding encouraged the sedi- 
 tious spirits to come to the front. Even 
 the dauntless Philip de Bresse recognised 
 that he must completely alter his tactics 
 should he wish to return to his native 
 land ; that his only chance of obtaining a 
 voice in his country's government lay in 
 submission to the Regent and absolute 
 deference to her decrees. Blanche was 
 anxious to gain over to her side this restless
 
 222 The House of Savoy 
 
 but powerful member of her husband's 
 family, and with much tact and diplomacy 
 she gained her point. Philip, recognising 
 the advantage of joining his influence and 
 arms to support the cause of Savoy against 
 that of Saluces, determined to act as a 
 faithful relative and subject of the House 
 of Savoy. He gave up his hostile attitude, 
 received as a reward the post of Governor- 
 General of Piedmont, and fulfilled his 
 duties nobly and faithfully. 
 
 That danger overcome, Blanche hasten- 
 ed to remove the next great peril threat- 
 ening the state, on the side of Saluces. 
 Advised by her cousin Lodovico the Moor, 
 and convinced by her own clear judgment 
 that no other course was possible, she or- 
 dered her troops to evacuate the lands of 
 Saluces. She signed a treaty by which 
 those same lands were restored to the 
 Marquis ; the vexed question of the hom- 
 age due from the Marquis to the Duke 
 was waived by the Duchess ; and though 
 some writers have described the whole 
 transaction as an act of treachery and 
 self - interest on the part of Lodovico
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 223 
 
 Sforza, the fact that it proved of lasting 
 benefit to Savoy may somewhat exonerate 
 the " Moor." 
 
 Another anxiety for Blanche at the 
 moment of assuming the Regency was the 
 state of the exchequer. Its empty condi- 
 tion has already been alluded to. A proof 
 of the utter lack of either money or credit 
 stands revealed in the fact that on the death 
 of Duke Charles I. the mourning for the 
 Duchess and her Court had to be paid for 
 with borrowed money. Blanche's high 
 sense of honour and justice sought at once 
 for a remedy to so crippling and mortifying 
 a state of things. She resolved without 
 delay to reduce the number of her house- 
 hold, and to cut down all the expenses re- 
 lating to her immediate service. 
 
 Among the pages who at this crisis left 
 the ducal Court was one whose name yet 
 thrills the hearts of all who hear it, and 
 awakens in every breast a feeling of chiv- 
 alry and romance. And yet under the 
 name of " Pierre du Terrail " few perhaps 
 will recognise the "Seigneur de Bayard," 
 the Chevalier sans peur et sans reproche
 
 224 The House of Savoy 
 
 [" the knight without fear and without 
 reproach "]. The young knight, or rather 
 page (for it was in that capacity he had 
 served at the Court at Turin), had been 
 presented to Charles I., at Chambery in 
 the spring of 1486. His name, spelt and 
 misspelt as " Bainard," " Bairard," " de 
 Beard," " Baicard," and his nickname, 
 too, of " Piquet," occur again and again 
 in the Court accounts, even after the 
 Duke's death, when he appears in the list 
 of those who put on mourning for his 
 dead master. It was not till the begin- 
 ning of October, 1490, that Bayard left 
 the service of Savoy. That he left with 
 marks of affection and respect is evident 
 from the following entry, which shows how 
 the departing page was provided with all 
 that he could require for his journey and 
 his apparel when Duchess Blanche could 
 no longer retain him near her person : 
 " Item, the 28th day of the said month of 
 September of the above year [1490] was 
 delivered to Master William Sorge, tailor 
 of the said my lord, a yard and a quarter 
 of black satin for making a jacket for
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 225 
 
 Piquet the page, who goeth to his uncle 
 Monseigneur of Grenoble ; and Madame 
 has given him notice and has commanded 
 that he shall be dressed." Besides other 
 articles of wearing apparel which are en- 
 tered in the account, he was also presented 
 with a gelding valued at twenty florins, and 
 ten florins were given him in money. To 
 complete his equipment another entry on 
 the 8th of October states that " a pair of 
 laced buskins of cowhide," were ordered, 
 "with double soles for Piquet the page 
 when he went to France," and that they 
 cost three florins. Bayard was once again 
 to visit the Court of Duchess Blanche, but 
 that was not till he was in the service of 
 the King of France, and had wielded 
 against Italy the sword which he had 
 learned to handle at the Court of Turin. 
 
 It is curious to note how one and all of 
 the courtiers (and I use the word in the sense 
 of those who held some post at the Court) 
 were provided with clothes at the Duchess's 
 expense. While satins, silks, and velvets 
 were purchased at Venice, Genoa, and 
 in France, the linen was bought in Hol- 
 
 VuL. II. 15.
 
 226 The House of Savoy 
 
 land. The cloth all came from France, 
 from whence who can deny that every 
 kind of history repeats itself? the fash- 
 ions were also obtained ; and the Court 
 tailor, Pierre Roche, who evidently still 
 retained his place and patronage, went 
 now and again to Paris to learn the 
 latest and most graceful modes, and 
 brought back for the Duchess's special 
 edification, not merely patterns and figures, 
 but tiny dolls, completely and elaborately 
 dressed, so that his royal mistress should 
 make no mistake as to the fashion and cut 
 in which her own garments were to be 
 modelled ! For, in spite of state cares 
 and occupations, once the first years of 
 mourning were ended, the Duchess was 
 not indifferent as to the splendour and 
 brilliancy of her Court ; feasts, banquets, 
 and theatricals, were all held in turn, and the 
 visit of a relative or an ambassador from 
 some foreign and friendly court became at 
 once an occasion for merriment and re- 
 joicing, as did also the wedding of any of 
 Blanche's maids of honour or other per- 
 sonal attendants. But though she in-
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 227 
 
 dulged in all the gaiety and revelling 
 possible at Court for the sake of her peo- 
 ple and to keep up the traditions of the 
 House of Savoy, she doubtless found a 
 greater pleasure and solace in the religious 
 services which she attended so frequently, 
 and in the many acts of charity and devo- 
 
 SEAL OF THOMAS I., COUNT OF SAVOY. 
 
 tion to which, notwithstanding her innu- 
 merable other duties, she always dedicated 
 much of her time and attention. In Lent, 
 and especially in Holy Week, she set a 
 good example by attending with great 
 pomp all the prescribed services. Large 
 and numerous were the alms which she dis-
 
 228 The House of Savoy 
 
 tributed to the poor, who thronged around 
 her on those occasions, certain that they 
 would not go away unrelieved from her gra- 
 cious presence. Her motherly heart also 
 sought comfort in constantly offering up 
 images of wax of the weight of her children. 
 She hoped to gain by these votive em- 
 blems some improvement in the health of 
 her son and daughter, both of whom were 
 extremely delicate. It was the little Duke 
 respecting whose condition the gravest 
 fears were entertained. The Duchess, 
 however, far from coddling the boy or in- 
 dulging in over-precautions and pamper- 
 ings, tried every means to harden and 
 invigorate his feeble frame. Before he 
 was five years old she had him taught to 
 ride, and " II Duchino " was soon pro- 
 nounced an accomplished horseman by all 
 who saw him careering about on his pony, 
 perfectly at home in the saddle. 
 
 But apart from her preoccupation as to 
 her children's health there was a cloud on 
 the political horizon which haunted Blanche 
 and filled her with doubts and misgivings 
 as to the course of action she would now
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 229 
 
 have to adopt. The intention of Charles 
 VIII. of France to descend upon Italy and 
 to possess himself of Naples, as the first 
 step towards further conquests, had so far 
 taken shape that this monarch was about 
 to start on that ill-fated expedition, 
 fraught with evil to everyone who took 
 any part in it. Charles's ambassadors had 
 been travelling throughout Italy, inquiring 
 at the different courts as to those who 
 would receive the King and help him for- 
 ward on his way. The answers had, on 
 the whole, been favourable, no one ventur- 
 ing to oppose single-handed His Most 
 Christian Majesty. No concord worthy 
 of the name existed at that moment in 
 Italy to unite against the common foe. 
 Where all were opening their doors and 
 highways, the Duchess of Savoy could not 
 be the only one to shut hers. And, be- 
 sides, the advice hardly removed from an 
 order that she received from Lodovico 
 the Moor, her chief councillor and ally, 
 left her no choice but to welcome the 
 French King and assume a pleasure, if she 
 felt it not, at the prospect of his arrival.
 
 230 The House of Savoy 
 
 The accusation brought forward, against 
 Blanche, of not having closed the passes 
 of Savoy to Charles VIII. and his army, 
 is a most unjust one. To have done so 
 would have been to lay herself open to 
 the enmity of Milan, Montferrat, Saluces, 
 and her colleague and uncle, Philip de 
 Bresse. Charles would have made for 
 himself a passage through other and more 
 friendly states. The only Italian ruler 
 that might have seconded her opposition 
 would have been Alfonso of Naples, and 
 he was too distant an ally to have been 
 of real help. Blanche had but one course 
 open to her. This course was to welcome 
 Charles with what appearance of cordiality 
 she could ; to arrange that his passage 
 through her states should bring as little 
 harm as possible to her subjects ; and to 
 speed him on his way with all the hurry 
 consistent with diplomacy and courtesy. 
 
 On Friday, September 5, 1494, Charles 
 VIII. made his solemn entry into Turin, 
 when a company of lunatics went out to 
 meet him, not, as might have been sup- 
 posed, to induce him by the irony of such
 
 Blanche of Mo ntferrat 231 
 
 a reception to desist from his mad under- 
 taking, but because " it was a most ancient 
 custom in the city on all solemn occasions, 
 and one employed when Charlemagne, 
 raised to the Imperial rank by Pope Leo 
 III., came by our Alps to Turin." 1 The 
 Duchess, accompanied by her son, rode out 
 by the " Porta di Susa" to receive her 
 guest, followed by the clergy, the Coun- 
 cil of Piedmont, the members of the Uni- 
 versity, the heads of the Communes, and a 
 large crowd of nobles, burghers, and work- 
 men. The little Duke, on horseback, had 
 on his head a helmet ; the Duchess was 
 mounted on a steed led by six squires, all 
 dressed in gold brocade. Blanche had on 
 a robe of antique cloth of gold 2 studded 
 with big sapphires, diamonds, rubies, and 
 other precious stones ; her hair, coifft in 
 a high erection over her head (as was the 
 fashion at that time), glistened with gems 
 and gold ; on her neck and arms were rows 
 upon rows of Oriental pearls. Surely a 
 dangerous display of jewels and riches to 
 
 1 Ferrero di Lavriano, Storia di Torino, ii., 494. 
 
 2 See Appendix.
 
 232 The House of Savoy 
 
 make before a needy man and a monarch 
 whose cry was always for money and whose 
 delicacy was never offended in whatever 
 form it was offered him ! Around the 
 Duchess came a host of maids of honour, 
 dressed so gorgeously that " nothing more 
 sumptuous could have been conceived " ; 
 behind them again came a crowd of knights, 
 barons, lords, squires, and pages. With 
 this brave escort the King entered Turin, 
 where the streets were hung with cloth of 
 gold, tapestry, and silk. Here and there 
 the procession halted to witness some mira- 
 cle play, together with representations of 
 historic and legendary scenes ; bands of 
 music struck up their strains of welcome. 
 Thus the royal party arrived at last at the 
 castle. Here the Duchess, her young 
 son, and Philip de Bresse tendered their 
 homage to King Charles, the little Duke 
 bade him welcome in a set speech, and so 
 courteous and affectionate was the greet- 
 ing given and the offers of help and serv- 
 ice tendered that Charles is said to have 
 shed tears of delight and emotion. 
 
 The following morning a long interview
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 233 
 
 took place between the King, Blanche, and 
 the little Duke, when, according to Bran- 
 tome, the King, whose devotion to the 
 fair sex is well known, " monstroit en ap- 
 parence estre au cour blesse " by the 
 grace and beauty of the Duchess. Though 
 his gallant overtures met with no response 
 on her side, she yet so far acceded to his 
 piteous entreaties for money as to hand 
 over to him all her jewels, in the belief that 
 this pledge of her good-will would hasten 
 his departure and that her jewels would 
 eventually be restored to her. No men- 
 tion occurs as to any restitution of this 
 noble loan of the Duchess. Still her re- 
 lief must have been great when that same 
 day, after dinner, the French King took 
 leave of his loving cousins of Savoy and 
 set off for Chieri, on his way to conquer 
 the Kingdom of Naples. 
 
 This is not the place to speak of the ex- 
 pedition of Charles VIII. into Italy, of 
 his conquest of Naples, of the League at 
 last formed against him by Italian states 
 and princes to drive him out of the Penin- 
 sula, nor of the climax brought about by
 
 234 The House of Savoy 
 
 the battle of Fornovo (July 6, 1495). 
 But an incident during that battle relates 
 to the House of Savoy, and therefore 
 must not be omitted. When Charles VIII. 
 left Turin, besides carrying off Duchess 
 Blanche's jewel-case, he also took with him 
 another rich possession in the shape of a 
 horse, presented to him by the young 
 Duke, and that was called " Savoie." 
 This horse is spoken of by all the writers 
 of the time, and Philip de Commines thus 
 describes a colloquy he had with the King 
 only a few minutes before the battle of 
 Fornovo : " Je vins a luy le trovay arme 
 de toutes pieces et monte sur le plus beau 
 cheval que j'aye veu de mon temps appele 
 Savoye ; plusieurs disoyent qu'il estoit 
 cheval de Bresse ; le due Charles de Sa- 
 voye le luy avoit donne : et estoit noir et 
 n'avoit qu'un aeil et estoit moyen cheval 
 de bonne grandeur pour celui qui estoit 
 monte dessus." 1 To the swiftness of this 
 horse Charles VIII. owed his safety at the 
 battle of Fornovo, and .though history 
 may lament that " Savoye " was possessed 
 
 1 Memories, lib. viii., cap. 10.
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 235 
 
 of such fleetness of foot, his Majesty of 
 France had cause to bless his godson for 
 such a gift and to ascribe to him indirectly 
 the safety of his valuable life ! 
 
 The hope entertained in Italy that 
 Charles would soon leave the country and 
 return to his own land was not quickly 
 fulfilled. For a month and a half Charles 
 loitered in Piedmont, dividing his time 
 between Turin and Chieri, and rendering 
 Blanche's position towards her Italian 
 neighbours an extremely difficult one. 
 She was looked upon with suspicion as 
 harbouring a national enemy, and though 
 her action received the support and ap- 
 probation of Lodovico the Moor, her other 
 allies maintained an attitude of distrust 
 towards her which was not removed till 
 September, 1495, when Charles freed her 
 and Italy from his undesirable presence. 
 
 His absence enabled the Duchess to 
 devote herself at once to looking after 
 her son's health. The whole Court re- 
 paired in October to Moncalieri, where the 
 winter was passed sadly enough, no change 
 for the better making, itself perceptible in
 
 236 The House of Savoy 
 
 the young Duke's condition. The reme- 
 dies employed for the little patient were 
 certainly some of the strangest that could 
 be imagined, and consisted of rose-water, 
 "eau de Melisse," extract of violets, costly 
 wines, while with these different liquids 
 were mixed powdered gold, fragments of 
 jacinths, of rubies, garnets, pearls, white 
 and pink coral, sandalwood, camphor, 
 amber, musk, aniseed, cinnamon, and burnt 
 horn. All these compounds were jumbled 
 up in such a medley that the wonder is 
 not so much that the child did not recover 
 as that he ever lived to take a second and 
 third dose of these odd concoctions. Other 
 remedies of baths, extracts of meat and 
 game, ointments, and the like were also 
 tried, but all was in vain, and on the 
 1 6th of April, 1496, notwithstanding the 
 prayers, votive offerings, and assiduous 
 care of his mother, Charles John Amadeus 
 died. The little corpse was embalmed, 
 and buried with much state in the Church 
 of St. Mary at Moncalieri, while his sub- 
 jects wept not so much for the loss of a 
 Prince who was too young to have im-
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 237 
 
 pressed them either for good or for bad, 
 as from the fact that his death removed 
 from them the wise and beneficent rule 
 of his mother, Blanche of Montferrat. 
 
 The cup of sorrow of which the poor 
 Duchess Blanche had drunk so deeply was 
 not yet entirely drained. Her daughter, 
 Yolande Lodovica, was still left to her, 
 and to this child her thoughts and atten- 
 tion were now altogether devoted. Blanche 
 had given up the Regency immediately on 
 her son's death, and had done all in her 
 power to insure the peaceful accession of 
 Philip de Bresse, her children's great-uncle, 
 and the only surviving son of Duke Lo- 
 dovico and Anna of Cyprus. Her life 
 then was passed quietly at Turin, a town 
 for which she always felt and manifested 
 a strong affection, and which owed to her 
 its final recognition as the definite capital 
 of the House of Savoy. Here she took 
 part in the betrothal of her daughter Yo- 
 lande to Philibert, Prince of Piedmont, 
 and eldest son of the reigning Duke 
 Philip. The relationship and the youth 
 of the young couple made their actual
 
 238 The House of Savoy 
 
 union an impossibility for the time being, 
 and though both these obstacles were such 
 as time and papal dispensations could easily 
 have removed, some historians have denied 
 the fact of this marriage. That their re- 
 lation was considered as such by the mem- 
 bers of the ducal family there can be no 
 doubt. The medal here given is a proof 
 that it ranked as a marriage when the token 
 was struck to commemorate the union of 
 the two families of the House of Savoy. 
 
 MEDAL OF PHILIBERT II. AND YOLANDE LODOVICA. 
 
 Three years after this betrothal, to sat- 
 isfy the entreaties of Philibert, who had 
 set up his Court at Geneva, Blanche went 
 in great state with Yolande to visit the
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 239 
 
 young Prince. The visit lasted several 
 months : but during the whole time 
 Blanche's anxieties knew no bounds, for 
 the affianced bride languished and drooped 
 day by day. On September 12, 1499, the 
 child died at Geneva, aged little more 
 than twelve years. 
 
 Duchess Blanche had now indeed 
 reached the culminating point of her sor- 
 rows. She had not yet attained to the 
 age of thirty, yet death had robbed her of 
 all those she loved best, leaving her a 
 childless widow with a future of sadness 
 and solitude before her, all the harder to 
 bear after the life of activity and stir to 
 which she had been accustomed. Now 
 all was taken from her, and the brave 
 spirit, that had worked with such energy 
 and interest for her people's good and for 
 her children's welfare, had to face the 
 dreariness of a lonely life with no given 
 occupations or duties beyond those she 
 might choose to form for herself. No 
 wonder that even Blanche's courage failed 
 for a moment before the depressing out- 
 look. Her health began to suffer, so she
 
 240 The House of Savoy 
 
 determined to leave Geneva, where the 
 associations of all she had gone through 
 were more than she could bear. She re- 
 moved by slow stages to Turin, thinking 
 that she would make her home there, but 
 that, too, was so haunted by memories of 
 the past that she could not bear it. She 
 accordingly retired to Carignan, where, 
 far from the turmoils of public life and its 
 cares, she could find the seclusion and 
 quiet which were now all she craved. 
 Here, occupied in looking after the pro- 
 perty adjoining the castle, and busy with 
 her household and domestic duties, she 
 lived in tranquillity and retirement. The 
 calm monotony of her life was now occa- 
 sionally interrupted by the visit of some 
 illustrious person who had known her in 
 her brighter and more prosperous days, 
 and who still wished to offer her the re- 
 spect and 'admiration which she never 
 failed to inspire in all who knew her. 
 King Louis XII. of France came twice 
 to visit her ; Francis I. did likewise ; and 
 the peerless Bayard, who for four years 
 had served as page to her husband, and
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 241 
 
 whose instincts of chivalry and knight- 
 hood had been fostered and developed at 
 the Court of Savoy, came also to offer his 
 homage to the widow of his old master. 
 This visit took place early in 1500. It 
 may be that it was prompted as much by 
 the knight's desire to see once more the 
 lady who was his " dear and only love " as 
 to pay his respects to the Duchess Blanche. 
 This lady, who had been one of Blanche's 
 maids of honour when Bayard was a page, 
 was now the Countess of Frossasco, wife 
 of Bertolino di Montbel, majordomo of 
 the palace. In their early youth the page 
 and the maid of honour had plighted their 
 troth to each other ; but the page had 
 gone off to France, and the maiden, ob- 
 livious of her youthful engagement, had 
 married a worthy and respectable gentle- 
 man of Savoy. Now, however, when they 
 met again, the old love but tempered with 
 chaste and noble sentiments revived once 
 more. The lady called upon the knight, 
 whose fame was now of world-wide re- 
 nown, to give some proof of his skill and 
 valour and in this way to do honour to 
 
 VOL. II. 16.
 
 242 The House of Savoy 
 
 the Court of Savoy where he had been 
 brought up. The knight thereupon re- 
 plied : " You know how I have always 
 loved and honoured you ; tell me what I 
 must do to please my lady the Duchess, 
 you before all, and also this goodly com- 
 pany." The Countess suggested that he 
 should hold a tourney, to which Bayard 
 agreed, saying : " You are the lady who 
 first possessed my heart ; I know I can 
 never hope for more than to kiss your 
 mouth and your hand ; that I should ask 
 more from you would be useless ; and, on 
 my soul, I would rather die than urge you 
 to dishonour. Give me, I pray you, one 
 of your wristbands, for that is necessary 
 to me." The lady gave the desired pledge, 
 the tourney was proclaimed, and Bayard 
 offered the wristband, to which was fast- 
 ened a ruby of the value of one hundred 
 ducats, as a prize to the knight who should 
 excel in three tilts with the lance and in 
 twelve sword-strokes. It is needless to 
 add that Bayard excelled all the other 
 knights, and to him, consequently, the 
 prize was awarded.
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 243 
 
 But he, blushing deeply, declared that 
 if he had won the prize, the merit lay not 
 with him but with her who had prepared 
 the reward. So he prayed her, therefore, to 
 deliver it to him whom she deemed most 
 worthy of such an honour. On this, the 
 Countess, after expressing her thanks to 
 Bayard, said to him : " Since you affirm 
 that it is owing to my wristband that you 
 have come out victorious in the lists, I 
 will preserve it all my life for love of you ; 
 but if you will not have the ruby, then let 
 it be given to the Lord of Mondragon 
 whom all declare to have been, after you, 
 the bravest knight." This having been 
 done, a great ball took place, and rejoicings 
 and feasts went on for the next five or six 
 days. After this entertainment, Bayard and 
 the French knights took leave of Blanche, 
 marvelling at their wonderful reception. 
 They asserted that never had they met a 
 prince or a princess who had shown such 
 courtesy and hospitality to her guests as 
 this Duchess had done. 
 
 After this, Blanche's life followed the 
 even tenor of its way for seven years.
 
 244 The House of Savoy 
 
 
 
 But occasional festivals brightened the 
 tranquil stateliness of her Court life, as 
 for instance in 1504, when a brilliant 
 entertainment for the wedding of one of 
 Blanche's maids of honour with one of 
 Duke Philibert's chief gentlemen was cele- 
 brated at Carignan, at which the Duke, 
 his wife, Margaret of Austria, and several 
 members of the ducal family were pres- 
 ent. But these gaieties were of rare oc- 
 currence. The Duchess was for the most 
 part left undisturbed to the cultivation of 
 silk-worms and the improvement of the 
 silk trade, which interested her greatly, 
 and owes much of its development and 
 success to her. The cultivation of silk- 
 worms (now such a source of income to 
 most Italian landowners) was then only 
 beginning to make its way. Duchess 
 Blanche gave a decided impetus to the 
 growing commerce. While she was still 
 Regent she had set up a silk factory in 
 Turin, and had also sent for a woman 
 from Greece to teach the art of weaving, 
 for a dyer from Barcelona, and for the 
 best dyes and colours from Venice.
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 245 
 
 The Duchess did not disdain the homely 
 duties of housekeeping, but personally 
 superintended the making of syrups, jams, 
 and other preserves with the keenest zest, 
 and afterwards enjoyed sending these 
 specimens of her handicraft to her friends 
 and relatives. To the Duke of Savoy she 
 sent presents of dried prunes and almonds, 
 of quince jam and another preserved 
 fruit called " zesti," which seems to have 
 been a specialty of Carignan. She also 
 devoted much of her time to her domestic 
 pets, for whom she had always a marked 
 affection, and was much occupied with 
 the rearing of several breeds of dogs, on 
 which she set great store, and which were 
 declared to be of great value. Several of 
 her letters are still extant which prove 
 how diligently she busied herself over all 
 the affairs entrusted to her control ; they 
 allude to the injunctions she gave to her 
 different agents, inciting them to greater 
 activity or reproving them when they 
 neglected their duties. 
 
 Thus the years slipped quietly and 
 quickly away ; but Blanche, notwithstand-
 
 246 The House of Savoy 
 
 ing the gallant way she had faced her 
 trials and carved out for herself a life full 
 of healthy pursuits and of wide-spreading 
 good, had suffered too deeply to live to 
 " a good old age." She was now only 
 about forty-seven years old, but the trials 
 and sorrows w r hich had so heavily over- 
 shadowed her early youth had sapped the 
 spring of her life. Her health began to 
 fail early in 1518, and Blanche, feeling 
 that her days were numbered, determined 
 to put her affairs in order. In February, 
 1519, she drew up her will. She be- 
 queathed all her possessions absolutely to 
 Charles III., Duke of Savoy; soon after 
 this, on the 3ist of March of this same 
 year, she died. Her funeral took place 
 at Carignan, when her body, dressed in 
 dark-coloured velvet studded with gold, 
 was buried, according to her desire, in the 
 Church of St. Mary adjoining the Augus- 
 tinian convent which had been largely en- 
 dowed and enriched by her. 
 
 The testimony passed on Blanche of 
 Montferrat by the old chronicler, Para- 
 din, is a fitting close to this short and in-
 
 Blanche of Montferrat 247 
 
 complete sketch of the Savoyard Duchess, 
 and runs as follows: "This good lady 
 knew well that in this Duchy and House 
 of Savoy tyrants had never found a foot- 
 ing ; and that a grand administration lay 
 entirely in piety and justice. To which 
 two things she gave such good heed that 
 in her time the good were never oppressed, 
 nor the evil advantaged." 1 
 
 1 See Appendix. 
 
 SEAL OF EDWARD, COUNT OF SAVOY.
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 VOL. I., P. ii. To Amadeus III. is due the 
 foundation of the Abbey of Hautecombe, on the 
 Lake of Bourget. Here he placed some monks 
 from Aulps, which was originally an offshoot from 
 the monastery of Molesme. The abbey, founded 
 in 1125, was for a long time the sepulchre of the 
 House of Savoy. Destroyed by ruthless hands at 
 the time of the French Revolution, it was rebuilt 
 by King Charles Felix and his wife, Queen Maria 
 Christina, in a debased style. 
 
 VOL. I., P. 129. "Grande chronique de Mat- 
 thieu Paris. Tradit en Fran$ais par A. Huillard- 
 Breholles, accompagne"e de notes et precedee dune 
 Introduction par M. Le Due de Luynes. Paris, 
 1840 " ; and " The History of England, written in 
 French, by Mr. Rapin de Thoyras ; translated into 
 English with additional notes by Mr. Tindal, M.A., 
 Vicar of Great Waltham in Essex. London, 1732." 
 I owe the privilege of consulting the former of 
 these works to Mr. Bain, i Haymarket, London, 
 and the latter to the Rev. E. Blythe, to both of 
 whom my thanks are due. 
 
 VOL. I., P. 139. "An obscure meaning and an 
 incomplete sentence," says M. de Luynes in his 
 note, and one for which he can offer no satisfactory 
 249
 
 250 The House of Savoy 
 
 explanation. I would suggest that it might refer 
 to the barons whose estates formed part of the 
 ever-growing town of London, and whose titles 
 were derived from those estates. 
 
 VOL. I., P. 158. The name of this princess was 
 simply the feminine of " Sanche." But the play of 
 words invented by the courtiers must doubtless 
 have pleased a princess who hailed from the land 
 of the "gay science," "lo gay saber." The Earl 
 of Cornwall, following the example of his uncle, 
 Richard Coeur de Lion, busied himself in com- 
 posing in the Provencal tongue, and esteemed it an 
 honour to be reckoned among the troubadours. 
 
 VOL. I., p. 177. The material relating to 
 Boniface is taken almost entirely from M. Paris's 
 chronicle, with frequent quotations translated from 
 the French publication to which such constant re- 
 ference has already been made. 
 
 VOL. I., p. 190. " Eya, per Christum, prede- 
 cessores mei aulam istam cum magnis expensis 
 fecerunt, sed expensas ad illam construendam nisi 
 de summa mutuata non invenerunt. Videtur qui- 
 dem mihi, quod ego illam feci : quia illorum debita 
 persolvi." Wharton, Anglia Sacra, i., p. n. 
 
 VOL. I., P. 191. A bull of Pope Gregory XVI., 
 dated September i, 1838, enrolls Boniface, Arch- 
 bishop of Canterbury, and Count Humbert III. 
 among the Beatified, and a long account of the 
 lives of these two princes is given in the Vita de
 
 Appendix 251 
 
 beati Humberta e Bonifacio di Savoia (Torino : 
 Stamferia Reale, 1839). These acts of beatification 
 were granted by Pope Gregory XVI. at the re- 
 quest of King Charles Albert. 
 
 VOL. I., P. 192. The greater part of this chap- 
 ter is taken from " Cronicque de Savoye " in the 
 Monum. Star. Pair., torn, i., col. 275 ; and from 
 "Datta Spedizione " in Oriente di Amadeo VI., 
 Conte di Savoia, Proiwta con Documenti Inediti. 
 Torino, 1826. 
 
 VOL. I., P. 227. "In the collection of coins 
 belonging to His Majesty the King of Sardinia is 
 a golden doubloon, struck under the reign of 
 Victor Amadeus I. [1630-37], on one side of which 
 appears his effigy and on the other four love-knots, 
 placed in the form of a cross, in the centre of 
 which is the shield of Savoy. They are alternate 
 with four groups of hands interlaced and surrounded 
 by this motto : Foedere et religione tenemur." 
 Frederick D. Hartland, The Times, London, Dec. 
 7, i855- 
 
 VOL. I., P. 228. The Conte Verde in his will 
 founded and endowed the Chartreuse of Pierre 
 Chastel, where fifteen monks (the number being 
 chosen in honour of the fifteen joyous mysteries of 
 the Blessed Virgin) were to live and to pray for the 
 souls of the Knights of the Collar. 
 
 VOL. I., P. 256. On the death of Amadeus VII., 
 not only were accusations made against Granville,
 
 252 The House of Savoy 
 
 the physician, Pierre de Lompnes the Chemist, 
 and the Countess Bonne la Grande, but one of the 
 leading courtiers, Othon de Grandson, was also 
 made responsible for being concerned in suggest- 
 ing the murder. This speedily assumed a most 
 serious aspect. Amadeus VIII. was induced to 
 have Grandson subjected to a judicial inquiry. 
 No suspicion of guilt, however, could be attached 
 to him. Six years after the death of the Red 
 Count, he was charged a second time with this 
 offence by Gerard d'Estavayer. An appeal was 
 made to a wager of battle, the judicial combat of 
 un jugement de Dieu. A sanguinary encounter 
 took place August 7, 1397, at Bresse, in which 
 Grandson was killed by d'Estavayer. Upon this, 
 the Grandson estates were escheated to the state 
 under a decree of the House of Savoy. 
 
 VOL. II., P. 163. Olivier de la Marche, J//- 
 moires sur la maison de Bourgogne, ch. viii., p. 579. 
 
 VOL. II., p. 168. Quotations from Olivier de la 
 Marche and from Commines are also taken from a 
 volume entitled Chotx de Chroniques et Memoires 
 sur Fhistoire de France, avec notes biographiques, par 
 J. A. C. Buchon (Paris, 1830). 
 
 VOL. II., PP. 169, 171. Menabrea, L. Chron- 
 iques de Yolande de France. . . . Documents 
 inedits recueilis et mis en ordre par L. M. Paris, 
 1859, Chamerot (Chambery Imp., Putrod Fils). 
 
 VOL. II., p. 231. Another account says that 
 this is not probable, the Duchess having decreed
 
 Appendix 253 
 
 that her mourning should be observed in spite 
 of the festivities ; and that, though she ordered 
 gorgeous and coloured dresses for the little Duke 
 and his suite, she gave instructions that her own 
 rooms should be hung with black velvet, her dress 
 was to be black, while all her personal attendants, 
 ladies, squires, pages, even to the caparisons of 
 their horses, should be dressed in either violet or 
 black. 
 
 VOL. II., P. 247. " La bonne dame evoit bien 
 sceu qu'en ce ducheet maison de Savoyeles tyrans 
 n'avoient jamais eu lieu ; et que les grandes ad- 
 ministrations consistoient en piete totalement et en 
 justice. Ausquelles deux choses elle avoit si dili- 
 gemment pourvu que de son temps les bons ne 
 furent onques oppressez ; ny les mauvais avan- 
 tagez." Paradin, ^laistre Guillaume. Croniqite 
 de Savoys. Lyon, 1552.
 
 INDEX 
 
 ACHAIA, Princes of : branch of House of Savoy, i. , 15; extinct, 
 
 r ? 
 
 Adelaide of Susa : i., 2-8 ; her inheritances, 107 ; three mar- 
 riages, IQS ; Oddone of Savoy marries her (1046), 108 ; 
 talents of, 109 ; increases importance of Savoy, no ; at 
 Canossa, 123; " daughter of St. Peter," 123 
 
 jEneas Sylvius Piccolomini : cited, ii., 17 et passim; delegate 
 to Amadeus, 42 ; scandalous early life, 42 ; account of 
 Council of Basle, 46 et seq. ; of coronation of Amadeus 
 VIII. as Pope Felix V., 54 et seq, ; drives Felix to his 
 abdication, and sides with Pope Eugenius, 76 ; Secretary 
 to Pope Felix, to Pope Eugenius, and to Pope Nicholas 
 V., 76 ; becomes Pope himself as Pius II., 77 ; his abil- 
 ities and his treachery, 77, 78 ; Imperial Poet, 78 
 
 Aimon, son of Humbert I., becomes a bishop, i., 3 
 
 the Peaceable, Count of Savoy, his wars and economy, 
 
 i., 17 ; provides for his son's minority, i., 194 
 
 Alps, the : i., 94 ; crossing the, ii., 203 
 
 Amadeus I., Count of Savoy: succeeds his father, Humbert 
 I., i., 3 ; his wife, 4 ; origin of his surname, di Coda, 4 
 
 II., i.,8, 128 
 
 III. and the Communes, i., II 
 
 IV., weakness of, i., 14. 
 
 V. : is chosen out of direct line, i., 14 ; finds Savoy 
 
 is dismembered, 15 ; a warrior, 16 ; attends the French 
 and English Courts, 16 ; at the coronation of the King 
 of England, 17 
 
 VI. : i., 18, 19, 20 ; his estimable qualities, 192 ; he 
 
 is opposed by France, 193 ; develops toward Italy, 193 ; 
 arbitrator, 194 ; love of arms, 195 ; at tournament, dressed 
 in green, // L'onte Verde, 196 ; wins contests and prizes, 
 196-201 ; as a Crusader, 201 et seq. ; cousin of Em- 
 peror of Constantinople, 203 ; at Avignon, 204 ; conscien- 
 tious, 207 ; piety of, 208 ; arrives with crusading army at 
 Venice, 210 ; appoints wife Regent, 210 ; sets sail, 212 ; 
 besieges Gallipoli, 213 ; relieves Emperor of Constanti- 
 
 255
 
 256 Index 
 
 Amadeus VI. (Continued). 
 
 nople, 215 ; attacks Bulgarians, 216 et seq. ; ingratitude 
 of the Greeks, 2t8 ; returns, 219 ; honorable course, 220 ; 
 sends parrot to wife, 220 et seq. ; at Rome, 221 ; credit 
 denied to, 222 ; unfairness of Greeks, 223 ; helps Louis 
 of Anjou, and dies on the way to Naples, 224 ; Orders in- 
 stituted by, 225 et seq. 
 
 VII.: i., 22 ; his character, 229 ; // Conte Rosso, 230 ; 
 
 early test, 230 ; attacks Beaujeu, 231 ; assists French in 
 Flanders, 231 ; tournament during siege of Bourbourg, 
 arrogance of an English knight, 234 ; vanquishes three 
 English knights, 237 et seq. ; marries Bonne of Berry, 
 241; victim of superstitions of his wife and his mother, 
 242 et seq. ; death of, 252 ; suspicions of foul play, 253 
 et seq. 
 
 VIII. , first Duke of Savoy, the Peaceful : i. , 22-27; birth, 
 
 ii., i ; his father, 2 ; his minority, 2 ; Emperor Sigismund 
 makes Duke, 3 ; prosperous reign, 4 ; army, 4 ; Piedmont 
 reverts to, 4 ; codifies laws, 5 ; centralises authority, 6 ; 
 the " States," 7 ; religious enactments, 8 ; bigotry, 9 ; 
 partial abdication, loetseq. ; motives, n et seq. ; restricts 
 son, 15 ; a hermit, 16 ; at Ripaille, 17 et seq. ; comments 
 by Vuy, 20; sarcasm of Voltaire, 21, 22; unjustly at- 
 tacked, 22 ; retirement disturbed, 23 ; Pope Eugenius IV. 
 applies to, 28 ; controls Council of Basle, 29 ; allied to 
 all the great Powers, 29 ; mediates between Council and 
 Eugenius, 30 ; jealous of the dignity of Savoy, 31 et seq.; 
 staggered by the Council's deposing Eugenius, 35 ; elec- 
 tioneers for papacy, 39 ; elected Pope, 41 ; refuses, 42 ; 
 at last convinced, 43 ; his honesty, 44 ; a bearded Pope, 
 49 ; would retain his secular name, 49 ; prudent with 
 money, 50 ; demands a papal income, 50 ; abdicates 
 dukedom, 51 ; dressed as Pope and named Felix V. , 51 ; 
 provides for his Order of St. Maurice, 51, 52 ; papal cor- 
 onation at Basle, 53 et seq. ; and the Jews, 60 ; acknow- 
 ledged as Pope by most of Europe, 64 ; marriage of 
 daughter, 65 et seq. ; the Emperor Frederick and, 65 et 
 seq. ; German Electors follow, 69 ; marriage of his niece, 
 70 ; violence of King of Arragon, 72 ; sends envoys to 
 three Diets, 72 ; leaves Basle for Lausanne, 74 ; re- 
 renounces papacy, 81 ; rewarded by Pope Nicholas V., 
 8 1 et seq. ; never called Antipope by Nicholas V., 81 ; 
 criticisms of, 83 et seq. ; retires to Ripaille, 86 ; his death, 
 86 ; his character, 87 ; his disdain of money-hunters, 
 88 et seq. ; snubs Frederick, 89 ; not a useful Pope, 89, 
 90 ; his epitaph, 90, 91
 
 Index 257 
 
 Amadeus IX.: i. , 30 ; marries Yolande of France, ii., 129 ; his 
 early prosperity, 130 ; abdication prevented, 134 ; Yo- 
 lande Regent, 136 ; seized by brother Philip, 137 ; set 
 free, 144 ; his death, 145 ; his benevolence, 145 et seq. 
 
 Amurath I., the Sultan, i., 203 
 
 Angevins driven out of Piedmont, i. , 16 
 
 Anjou, House of, its position in Italy, i., 20-22 
 
 , Louis of, the cause of, espoused by Amadeus VI., i., 
 
 20, 224, 237 
 
 Anna of Cyprus, her beauty and folly, i., 28-30 ; ii., 95, 129 
 
 Annonciade, Order of the, i., 226 
 
 Aosta, lands of, bequeathed, i., 3, 106 
 
 Arbitration between England and France : by Amadeus V., i., 
 1 8 ; by Amadeus VIII., 25 
 
 Archdeacon of Cracow, appetite of the, ii. , 46 
 
 Architecture encouraged, i., 80 
 
 Arduino, King of Italy, ancestor of House of Savoy, i., 5 
 
 Aries, the Cardinal of, ii., 36 et seq. 
 
 Armenia, King of, Duke of Savoy becomes, i., 30 
 
 Army, standing : established in Savoy, i., 42; of Amadeus VII., 
 ii.,4 
 
 Arragon, King of : his violence in supporting Pope Felix, ii., 
 72 ; soon goes over to Pope Eugenius, 72 
 
 Art in Savoy, ii., 92 et seq. 
 
 Arundel, Earl of, killed by Amadeus VII. in tournament, i., 
 236, 240 
 
 Assassination of Galeazzo of Milan, ii., 185 
 
 Asti : inherited, i. , 3 ; expels its bishop, 7 ; town of, burned 
 by Adelaide, 7 
 
 Austria : preferred by Savoy to France, i., 35 ; indifference of, 
 to Savoy, 38 ; succession to throne of, 66 ; treachery of, 
 70 ; an ally of House of Savoy, 75 ; disappointed by Napo- 
 leon, 75 ; hatred for House of Savoy, 75 ; wins over 
 Charles Felix, 78 ; pretensions of, 79 ; defeated by Charles 
 Albert, again victorious, 85 ; supremacy of, 85 ; war de- 
 clared against, 85 ; expulsion of, 89 ; war with Prussia, 92 
 
 Avignon, Pope Urban V. and Amadeus at, i., 204 
 
 Azeglio, Massimo d', a great minister, i., 89 
 
 BALANCE OF POWER, i., 12, 53 ; ii., 75 
 
 Balbo, minister of state, i., 77 
 
 Basle: Council of, ii., 23 et seq. (see Council); Amadeus 
 VIII. goes to live at, 53 ; leaves for Lausanne, 73 
 
 Battles : Chieri, i., 58 ; Cuneo, 56 ; Custoza, 92 ; Fornovo, ii., 
 234 ; Garibaldi's victories, i., 91 ; Gravelines, 41 ; Guas- 
 talla, 66 ; Lewes, 130, 166 ; Lissa, 92 ; Magenta, 91 ;
 
 258 Index 
 
 Battles (Continued). 
 
 Marseilles, 56 ; Rosebecque, 231 ; St. Quentin, 40 ; Sol- 
 ferino, gi 
 
 Bayard, the Chevalier : reared at the Court of Savoy, ii. , 223 
 et seq. ; his tailor's bill as a page, 224 ; sent to his uncle, 
 Monseigneur of Grenoble, 225 ; visits Duchess Blanche 
 again, 240 ; love for the Countess of Frossasco, 241 ; 
 tournament for her wristband, 243 ; gives her the prize, 
 
 243- 
 
 Beard, Amadeus VIII. refuses to part with his, ii., 49 
 
 Beatrice of Portugal, i., 40 
 
 of Savoy, Countess of Provence: visits England, i., 
 
 156; marries a daughter to the brother of Henry III., 
 156; mother of four queens, 158 ; alluded toby Dante, 1 58 
 
 Bed, putting the king to, ii., 169 
 
 Berauld, father of Humbert I., i., 99 
 
 Berry, Duke of: at tournament, i., 237 ; expedition to Africa, 
 
 243 
 
 Bertha of Savoy, Empress of Germany : Henry IV. un- 
 willingly marries her, i., in ; her intelligence and loy- 
 alty, 112 ; failure to compromise her, 113 ; her laughable 
 revenge, 114-118 ; her faithfulness, 118 ; at Canossa, 122 ; 
 death, 127 
 
 Bianchimani, see Humbert I., i., i. 
 
 Black Swan, Order of the, i., 225 
 
 Blanche of Montferrat : i., 32; marries Charles I. of Savoy, 
 ii., 194 et seq. ; marriage-portion, 197 ; beauty and in- 
 telligence, 199 ; entry into Turin, 201 ; journey to Savoy, 
 203 ; daughter born, 206 ; son born, 208 ; rejoicings in 
 Turin, 210; state baptism, 211 ; her husband's death, 
 213 ; Regent for Charles II., 219 ; evacuates Saluces, 
 222 ; straitened finances, 223 ; reduces household, 223 ; 
 Chevalier Bayard leaves, 223 et seq. ; her courtiers 
 clothed by her, 225 ; her gaiety a duty, 227 ; her piety, 
 228 ; the invasion of Naples by Charles VIII., 229 et seq. ; 
 her imposing reception of Charles, 231 ; she lends him 
 jewels, 233 ; son's death, 236 ; loses Regency, 237 ; 
 daughter's betrothal, 237 ; daughter's death, 239 ; do- 
 mesticity at Carignan, 239 ; visit from Bayard, 240 ; her 
 hospitality, 243 ; cultivates silk-worms, 244 ; industrious, 
 245 ; death, 246 ; tribute to her, 247 
 
 Boar-hunts, ii. , 205 
 
 Bolomier : influences Amadeus VIII., ii.,84; executed by 
 Duke Louis, 85 
 
 Bona of Savoy: reared in France, ii., 175 ; beauty, 175 ; to 
 marry Duke of Milan, 176; betrothed by proxy, 178;
 
 Index 259 
 
 Bona of Savoy (Continued). 
 
 wedding presents, 179 ; dangerous journey to Milan, 181 ; 
 magnificence at Florence, 182 ; husband's assassination, 
 185 ; appointed Regent, 186 ; her immorality, 187 ; in- 
 fatuation for Tassino, 187 et seq. ; loses power, 189 ; in 
 honourable captivity, 190 ; her son's death, 190 ; her 
 poverty, 191 ; dies in France, 191 et seq. 
 
 Bonaparte: see Napoleon I. ; invades Piedmont, i., 70 
 
 Boniface, Marquis of Montferrat : an old warrior, ii., 193 et 
 seq. ; tardy marriage, 194 ; second marriage, 198 ; having 
 sons disappoints relatives, 198 
 
 Boniface of Savoy, Archbishop of Canterbury : favourite of 
 English King, i., 171 ; personal beauty, 171 ; befriends 
 Bishop of Winchester, 173 ; faults of, 174 ; criticised by 
 Matthew Paris, 175 ; turbulent visitations to Canterbury, 
 Feversham, Rochester, 175 ; rudeness to the Bishop of 
 London, 176; -violence at Priory of St. Bartholomew-by- 
 Smithfield, 177 et seq. ; foiled at St. Paul's, 177 ; calls for 
 his sword, 179 ; rebuked by the Pope, 184 ; becomes gent- 
 ler, 186 ; oppresses Bishop of Rochester, 187 ; better side 
 of, 1 88 ; death of, 189; completion by, of the hall at Can- 
 terbury, 190; beatified by the Pope, 191, ii., 250 
 
 Bonne of Berry, superstitions of, blamed for death of Ama- 
 deus VII., i., 242 et seq. 
 
 of Bourbon : i., 23 ; Regent during crusade of Amadeus 
 
 VI., 210, 211 ; present of parrot to, 220 et seq. ; Re- 
 gent during the minority of Amadeus VII., 232 ; over- 
 steps authority, 233 ; her superstitions blamed for death 
 of Amadeus, 242 et seq. ; suspected, 253 ; exonerated, 
 256 ; character, 257 et seq. ; Regent during minority of 
 Amadeus VIII., ii., 2 
 
 Books in ducal residences, ii., 97 
 
 Borrowing plate for guests, ii., 208. 
 
 Boulogne-sur-Mer, Amadeus V. at, i., 17 
 
 Bourbon, Duke of, i., 237 
 
 Bretagne, Duke of, i., 237 
 
 Bridal party starts for England, i., 133 
 
 Bugey ceded by Henry IV. to Savoy, i., 6, 122. 
 
 Bulgarians : treachery of the, i., 215 ; punished by Amadeus 
 VI., 217 
 
 Burgundians, the, i., 95, 96 
 
 Burgundy: intrigues of, i., 31 ; Rudolph, Marquis of Savoy 
 and King of , 97; mother of Humbert I., Ermengarde, 
 wife of Rudolph II., 103 ; Emperor, suzerain of, 104 ; 
 Humbert, Governor of, 105; Amadeus VIII. resists, ii., 
 31 ; see Charles the Bold.
 
 260 Index 
 
 CANTERBURY : marriage at, i., 135 ; monks of, 172 ; turbulent 
 
 visitation of Boniface to, 175 
 Cardinal Mazarin relieves the Waldenses, i., 53 
 Carignan : Blanche retires to, ii. , 240; Bayard's tourney at, 
 
 242 
 
 Casale captured by Savoy from France, i., 56 
 Casanova, Abbot of, ii., 208 
 Cavour a great minister, i., 89. 
 Chambery : acquired by purchase, i., 16 ; inventory of palace 
 
 at, ii., 94 ; capital of the ancient County of Savoy, 206 
 Champagne, Count of, i. , 98 
 Charlemagne : and Savoy, i., 96 ; met by lunatics at Turin, ii., 
 
 231 
 Charles, of Anjou, the Pope's champion, seizes Naples, i., 21 
 
 the Bold, Duke of Burgundy : his intrigues against 
 
 Savoy, ii., \yzetseq. ; his character, 133; intrigue with 
 Yolande, 160 ; seizes her, 162 etseq. ; she escapes from, 
 168 
 
 IV., Emperor of Germany, i., 209 
 
 V. of Germany a patron of Emmanuel Philibert in 
 
 Spain and Flanders, i., 39 
 
 VI., King of France, assisted by Amadeus VII., i., 
 
 231, 233 
 
 VII., King of France, mediates between Amadeus 
 
 VIII. and Pope Nicholas, ii., 81 
 
 VIII. of France : is displeased at Charlotte of Sa- 
 voy becoming his daughter-in-law, i., 29 ; an undesirable 
 guest of Savoy, 32 ; war with Naples, ii., 229; met by 
 lunatics at Turin, 230 ; received by Blanche, 231 ; gal- 
 lantry to her, 233 ; borrows her jewels, 233 ; at battle of 
 Fornovo, 234 ; saved by his horse, " Savoie," 234, 235. 
 
 I. of Savoy, the " Warrior " : is married to Blanche of 
 
 Montferrat, i., 32 ; ii., 194 ft seq. ; prepares costumes, 
 200 ; enters Turin with bride, 201 ; journeys to Savoy, 
 203 ; washes poor men's feet, 206 ; ostentation in France, 
 208 ; health broken, 212 ; wax image offered for, but dies, 
 213; universally mourned, 214; charge of poisoning, 
 215 ; funeral, 216 
 
 II. of Savoy: i., 32 ; rejoicings at his birth, ii., 210; 
 
 his baptism, 211 ; under the regency of Blanche, 219; a 
 horseman at five, 228 ; receives Charles VIII., 231 ; makes 
 a speech of welcome, 232 ; gives him the horse " Savoie," 
 234 ; his death, 236 
 
 III., miscalled the Good : i., 27 ; he spends forty-one 
 
 out of forty-nine years in warfare, 38 ; double-dealing of, 
 37, 38
 
 Index 261 
 
 Charles Emmanuel I. : an eccentric man of genius, i., 44 ; is 
 adored by his people, in spite of his failings, 48 
 
 Emmanuel II., religious persecution by, i., 52 et seq., 
 
 ii., 9; rebuked by Milton's Sonnet, ii., 10 ; impressive 
 solemnity of death of, 53 
 
 Emmanuel III. changes sides, i., 65 
 
 Emmanuel IV. abdicates, i., 73 
 
 Felix, poor reign of, i., 78 
 
 Albert : liberality of, i., 82 ; tries to introduce many 
 
 reforms, 83 ; weakness of, 84 ; abdicates, 87 
 
 Chess, ii., 100 
 
 Chevalier Bayard, see Bayard. 
 
 Chillon : Count Peter at, i , 169 ; chivalry, 95 
 
 Church, the : disturbances in, ii., 23 et seq. ; Councils of, 23 ; 
 Italian domination of, 24 
 
 Code of Savoy suggests the French Code, ii., 8 
 
 Collar of Savoy, Order of the, i., 226 ; ii., 15 
 
 Colours, national, of Italy, ii., 107 
 
 Conrad the Salic, and Humbert I., i., 2, 104 
 
 Constantinople : affairs at, i., 201 ; Amadeus VI., at, 218 
 
 Conte Rosso, II, see Amadeus VII. 
 
 Verde, //. see Amadeus VI. 
 
 Council of Basle : i., 25 ; appointed by Pope Martin V., ii., 
 23; confirmed by Eugenius IV., 23 ; busied with politics, 
 24 ; Amadeus VIII. controls, 29 ; Amadeus mediates for, 
 30 ; place of honour at the, 31 ; deposes Pope Eugenius, 34; 
 high character of members, 35 ; their nationality, 40 ; 
 elects Amadeus as Pope, 41 ; feeding of members of, 
 46 et seq. ', abolishes Annates, 50 ; coronation of Amadeus 
 VIII. as Pope Felix V., 53 ; poorsingingof the lawyers, 58 ; 
 visit of Emperor Frederick to, 66 ; abandoned by Felix 
 V., 73 ; adherents routed by French cavalry, 80 ; threat- 
 ened by Emperor, 80 ; dissolves, 80 
 
 Cradle of gold, ii., 207 
 
 Crimean War earns unity for Italy, i., 89, 90 
 
 Cypher needed in letters from France, ii., 180 
 
 Cyprus: expedition against, i., 29; Duke of Savoy becomes 
 King of, 30 
 
 DANTE cited, i., 158 
 
 Dauphine inherited by France, i., 193 
 
 " Daughters of St. Peter," i., 123 
 
 Disgraceful marriage, a, i., 51 
 
 Divorce, failure of Emperor Henry IV. to secure, i., 118 
 
 Dogs : in the palaces, ii., in ; bred by Duchess Blanche, 245 
 
 Dolls dressed by tailor as fashion models, ii., 226
 
 262 Index 
 
 Duke of Savoy, the first, i., 23 ; ii., i, 3 
 
 Durazzo family, the, waive claims to Piedmont, i., 22 
 
 EASTERN Emperors : feeble, i, 202 ; deceitfulness of, 205 
 
 Edward II. of England, marriage of, 16 
 
 the Liberal, of Savoy : is godson of Edward I. of Eng- 
 land, i., 17 ; his wars and extravagance, 17 
 
 Eleanor of Provence, daughter of Beatrice of Savoy : married 
 to Henry III. of England, i., 135 ; Savoy relatives of, 
 invade England, 140; alluded to by Dante, 158 ; Peter 
 of Savoy bequeathes her his English estates, 168 
 
 Emmanuel Philibert : founder of the Monarchy, i., 41 ; in 
 service of Spain, gains victories of Hesdin, St. Quentin, 
 and Gravelines, 40, 41 ; religious toleration of, 43 
 
 Empress Bertha, see Bertha of Savoy 
 
 England: Amadeus V. sides with France against, i., 18 ; in- 
 fluence of Savoy in, 129 et seq.\ supports Amadeus VIII. 
 as Pope Felix V., ii., 64 
 
 English knights vanquished by Savoyards, i., 234 
 
 nobility : in wedding ceremonies, i., 137 ; are jealous 
 
 of Savoy princes, 141 
 
 Entertainments, ii., 122 et seq. 
 
 Ermine for cradle, ii., 207 
 
 Europe, most of, acknowledges Amadeus of Savoy as Pope 
 Felix V., ii., 64 
 
 Faire Ripaille, ii., 21 
 
 Fashions : ii., 92 et seq. ; from Paris in the fifteenth century, 
 226 
 
 Feasts, ii., 122 et seq. 
 
 Felix V., see Amadeus VIII. 
 
 " F. E. R. T.," explanations of, i., 226 el seq., 237; ii., 251 
 
 Feudal system finally abolished, i., 62 
 
 Florence, Pope Eugenius plans to attack, ii., 79 
 
 France: relation to House of Savoy i., 10 ; Amadeus V. sides 
 with, against England, 18 ; intrigues of, 31 ; abandoned 
 for Austria by Savoy, 35 ; treats Savoy with indifference, 
 38 ; sharp practices of, in exchanging territory, 45 ; be- 
 trayed by Charles Emmanuel, 48 ; evil influence of, 55, 
 ii., 9 ; in war with Savoy, i., 56 ; opposes Savoy, 193 ; 
 assisted in Flanders by Amadeus VII., 231 ; and Pope 
 Felix V., ii., 64 
 
 Francis I. of France, treachery of, i., 38 
 
 Frank kings, i. , 96
 
 Index 263 
 
 Frederick, Emperor of Germany : his projected marriage to 
 the daughter of Pope Felix V., ii., 65 et seq. ; visits Basle, 
 67 ; favours Pope Felix and then repudiates him, 78 
 
 Frossasco, Countess of : Bayard's early love, ii., 241 ; gives him 
 her wristband as a prize for tournament, 242 
 
 GALEAZZO, Duke of Milan : marries Bona of Savoy, ii., 176 
 et seq.\ his mother poisoned, 177 ; betrothed by proxy, 
 178 ; magnificence at Florence, 182 ; his vices, 184 ; his 
 assassination, 185 
 
 Garibaldi, victories of, i., 91 
 
 Generations, twenty-seven, of House of Savoy, i., 93 
 
 Geneva: and Venice reconciled by Amadeus VI., i., 20; 
 treachery towards, 48 ; Count of, 237 ; gaiety at, ii., 205 
 
 Genoa, gifts to Bona of Savoy from, ii., 184 
 
 " Gentleman of the Mouth," ii., 123 
 
 Geographical position of Savoy, i., 8 et seq., 37, 95 
 
 German ancestry of House of Savoy, i , 2 
 
 German Electors, who they were, ii., 73 
 
 Gian Galeazzo of Milan poisoned by his uncle, ii., 190 
 
 Gloucester, Countess of, engagement to Henry III., i., 134 
 
 " Goliath," effigy of, ii., 124 
 
 Goths, the, i., 96 
 
 Grandson, Othon de, accused of death .of Amadeus VII., 
 killed in judicial combat, i., 256; ii., 252 
 
 Granville, John of, charlatan : career of, i., 243 et seq.', caters to 
 superstitions of wife and mother of Amadeus VII., whom 
 he treats medicinally, 245 etseq.; suspected of poisoning 
 him, 248 ; tortured, 254 ; accuses others, 254 ; recants 
 before death, 255 
 
 Greek historians, unfairness of the, to Amadeus VI., i., 223 
 
 Green Count, the, see Amadeus VI. 
 
 HADDINGTON, Earl of, arrogance of, i., 234 
 Hautecombe, Abbey of, founded, i., ir, 170, 188, 189 ; ii., 249 
 Henry III. of England : influence of Savoy on, i., 129 et seq. ; 
 character, 130 ; matrimonial engagements, 131 ; seeks El- 
 eanor of Provence, daughter of Beatrice of Savoy, 132 ; 
 meets Eleanor at Canterbury, 134 ; wedding, 135 et seq.\ 
 favours wife's relatives, 140 ; appoints William of Savoy 
 Bishop of Winchester, 148 ; appeals to Pope, 149 ; treaty 
 with Thomas of Savoy, Count of Flanders, 152 ; extorts 
 money from Jews, 152; receives Thomas, 153; gives 
 " Savoy House" to Peter of Savoy, 161 ; forbids tourney 
 with knights of Savoy, 164 ; defeated at Lewes, and im-
 
 264 Index 
 
 Henry III. (Continued). 
 
 prisoned, helped by Peter, 166; partiality for Boniface 
 of Savoy, 171 ; appoints him Archbishop of Canterbury, 
 173 ; refuses to restrain Boniface, 182 
 
 of Germany and the " codazzo" of Amadeus I., i., 4 
 
 IV. of Germany: i., 6 ; married to Bertha of Savoy, 
 
 in; tries to divorce her, 1 1 2 ; resorts to a trick, 112; fails, 
 113 ; his wife's laughable revenge, 114-118 ; he bribes a 
 bishop, 118 ; oppresses his barons, and is excommunicated, 
 118 ; deposes Pope Gregory VII., 119 ; his subjects 
 rebel, 119; his brother-in-law elected Emperor, 120; 
 humiliated at Canossa by the Pope, 120 ; restored by the 
 Pope, 126 ; breaks promise, and wars against the Pope, 127 
 
 Hermit, Amadeus VIII. as a, ii., 16 et seq. 
 
 Hildebrand, see Pope Gregory VII. 
 
 Home-surroundings, ii., 92 et seq. 
 
 Hospital at Maidstone, Eng., founded by Boniface of Savoy, 
 i., 188 
 
 Hugh of Saxony, i., 99 
 
 Humbert I.: founder of the House of Savoy, i., 3; great- 
 nephew of Emperor of Germany, 99 ; of Saxon or Italian 
 origin ? 101 ; mother of, 103 ; signature of, 103 ; step- son 
 of King of Burgundy, 104 ; Governor of Burgundy, 105 ; 
 possessions in the County of Savoy, 105 
 
 II. and the Communes, i., ii 
 
 III., "the Saint," i., 12 
 
 IMPERIAL Vicar, several princes of House of Savoy appointed, 
 i., 13 
 
 Infidelity of Empress, i., 100 
 
 International politics, Savoy in, i., 7 
 
 Intrigues : of France, i., 31 ; ii., 132 ; of Philip de Bresse, i., 
 31 ; ii., 132 ; Romont, Count of, i., 32 ; Louis XI. of 
 France, ii., 132; Charles, Duke of Burgundy, 132 ; of 
 Yolande, Duchess of Savoy, 160 et seq. 
 
 Invasion by the French Republic, i., 70 
 
 Inventories of the palaces of Savoy in the fifteenth century, 
 ii. , 94 et seq. 
 
 Iron-headed Duke, the, i., 43 
 
 Isabella of Portugal, i., 40 
 
 Isabella, " the she-wolf of France," marriage of, i., 16 
 
 Italy : relation of, to House of Savoy, i., 10 ; House of Anjou 
 in, 20-22 ; Kingdom of, how built up, 37 ; Victor Em- 
 manuel declared King of, 92 ; Marquis of, 98 ; domination 
 of the Church by, ii. , 24 ; Papal States hold balance of 
 power in, 75
 
 Index 265 
 
 JEANNE Baptiste de Nemours. Regent, her craft, i., 54 
 
 Jerusalem, King of, Duke of Savoy becomes, i., 30 
 
 Jews : extortions from, i., 152 ; present Law of Moses to Pope 
 
 Felix V., ii., 60 
 John the Good, ii., 37 et seq, 
 John, King of France : i. , 22 ; at Avignon, 205 ; agrees to a 
 
 Crusade, 206 
 Paleologus, Emperor of Constantinople : cousin of Ama- 
 
 deus VI., i., 203 ; opposes Turks, appeals to the Pope, 204 ; 
 
 promises to acknowledge the Pope, 214 ; imprisoned by 
 
 King of Bulgaria, 215 ; rescued by Amadeus VI., 217 ; 
 
 ingratitude of, 218 
 Jugement de Dieu, ii., 252 
 
 KING, first, of the House of Savoy, Victor Amadeus II., i., 
 61 ; see Sicily and Sardinia 
 
 , a, without lands or subjects, i., 76 
 
 of Cyprus, Jerusalem, and Armenia, the Duke of Sa- 
 voy entitled, i., 30 
 
 Knights of St. Maurice, i., 25, ii., 16, 51 
 
 LAWYERS at Basle poor singers, ii., 58 
 
 League for the Public Good, ii., 135 
 
 Lear, the Piedmontese, i., 64 
 
 Lent, season of, at Chambery, ii., 206 
 
 Leopold of Austria, claimant for Spanish throne, i., 57 
 
 Letters to the Blessed Virgin, ii., 147 et seq. 
 
 Liege, See of, desired by William of Savoy, i., 149 
 
 Lombardy acquired, i., 91 
 
 Lompnes, Pierre de, implicated in death of Amadeus VII., 
 
 i-, 254 
 
 London : wedding festivities at, i., 135 , violence of Boniface 
 of Savoy at, 1 76 et seq. 
 
 Louis, King of Hungary, i , 209 
 
 XI. of France : intrigues against his father-in-law, Duke 
 
 Louis of Savoy, ii., 132; treachery to his sister, the 
 Duchess of Savoy, 156 ; his kindness to her, 169 ; four 
 Savoy princesses at his court, 174 ; marries Bonato Duke 
 of Milan, 176 
 
 XIV.: a foe to Savoy, i., 54 ; incites persecution of the 
 
 Waldenses, 55 
 
 , Duke of Savoy: first Prince of Piedmont, ii., 15 ; 
 
 lieutenant-general to Amadeus VIII., 15 ; Regent of 
 Savoy, but not absolute ruler, 15 ; becomes Duke, 51 ; 
 appeals to the French King for his father, 81 ; love of 
 luxury and display, 94 ; wife, Anna of Cyprus, 95 ;
 
 266 Index 
 
 Louis (Continued). 
 
 marries his daughter to Dauphin of France, 130 ; the 
 King offended, 130 ; arranges another French marriage, 
 131 ; his frivolity, 131 ; neglects to secure Milan, 132 ; 
 his death, 133 
 
 Ludovico Sforza of Milan : intrigues against Bona of Savoy, 
 ii., 188 ; beheads her minister, 189 ; expels her lover 
 and imprisons her, 190 ; poisons his nephew, 191 et seq. 
 
 Lunatics at Turin ; meet Charles VIII., ii., 230; said to have 
 met Charlemagne, 231 
 
 Luxury, ii., 93 et seq. 
 
 MADAMA Reale : Regent of Savoy, i., 49 ; her immoralities, 
 50 ; she rescues Savoy, 5 1 
 
 Male line, descent restricted to, i., 13 
 
 Manuscripts in ducal residences, ii., 97 
 
 Map of Savoy, i., 8 
 
 Marche, Olivier de la, an unwilling tool, ii., 162 
 
 Margaret, Queen of France, letter of, i., 133 
 
 Marquis of Savoy, Rudolph, i., 97 
 
 Marriage portion : pledges for, include a papal tiara, ii., 121; 
 
 sponsalia per verba de pr&senti, ii., 198 
 
 Marriages : Dauphin of France to Charlotte of Savoy, i., 29, 
 ii., 130 ; Margaret of Austria to Philibert II., i., 35 ; a dis- 
 graceful one, 49 ; Louise of Savoy to the King of Spain, 62 ; 
 Charles Emmanuel IV., of Savoy to the daughter of Louis 
 XV. of France, 70 ; Ermengarde to King of Burgundy, 
 103 ; Oddone of Savoy to Adelaide of Susa, 106 ; Emperor 
 of Germany to Bertha of Savoy, in ; Henry III. of Eng- 
 land to a princess of Savoy, 129 el seq.\ John of 
 England betrothed to Alais of Savoy, 131 ; Sanchia of 
 Provence to the King of the Romans, 158 ; daughter 
 of Amadeus V. to the Emperor of Constantinople, 203 ; 
 Amadeus VI. to Bonne of Bourbon, 210; Amadeus VII. 
 to Bonne of Berry, 242 ; Amadeus VIII. to Mary of 
 Burgundy, ii., ii ; daughter of Amadeus VIII. to the 
 Elector of the Palatinate, 70 ; niece of Amadeus VIII. 
 to the Elector of Saxony, 70 ; Louis of Savoy to Anna 
 of Cyprus, 94 ; daughter of King of France to Amadeus 
 IX., 129; Bona of Savoy to the Duke of Milan, 176; 
 Blanche of Montferrat to Charles I. of Savoy, 193 
 
 Matthew Paris criticises princes of Savoy, i., 141, 150 
 
 Men of letters, i., 68 
 
 Milan: Louis neglects to add, to Savoy, i., 28; held by 
 Charles Emmanuel II., 66 
 
 Milton's Sonnet On the Late Massacre in Piedmont, ii., 10
 
 Index- 267 
 
 Mob plunders treasury, i., 74 
 
 Montferrat, heritage of, causes war with Spain, i., 47 
 
 Moor, Ludovico the, ii., 197 
 
 Motto of the House of Savoy, i., 226 et seq ; 237, ii., 251 
 
 NAME in religion, Pope-elect objects to a, ii., 49 
 
 Naples, the Bourbons expelled from, i., 91 
 
 Napoleon I.: invades Piedmont, i., 70; proposes a confed- 
 eracy, 72 
 
 III. : generosity and wisdom of, i., 90 ; brings about the 
 
 acquisition of Venice, 92 
 
 New Year's gifts, ii., 112, et seq. 
 
 Nice : acquired by House of Savoy, i., 10 ; lost for a time, 59 ; 
 finally handed over to France, 91 
 
 Nicholas V. succeeds Eugenius IV. as Pope, i., 27, ii., 80 
 
 ODDONE : succeeds his father, Humbert I., i., 3 ; called "the 
 husband of his wife," gaining vast possessions through 
 his marriage, 4, 106 
 
 Oil, bath of, ii., 203 
 
 Orders instituted by Amadeus VI., i., 225 
 
 PARIS, Congress of, i., 90 
 
 Parrot, a present from Amadeus VI. to his wife, i., 220 
 
 " Passe Rose," Countess of Savoy, i., 14 
 
 Patron saint of House of Savoy, i., 102 
 
 Pembroke, Earl of, in tournament, i., 236, 240, 241 
 
 Peter I. of Savoy, i., 8, 128 
 
 II. of Savoy, "the little Charlemagne": visits his 
 
 niece, the Queen of England, and is given "Savoy 
 House" by Henry III., i., 161 ; has lordships in six 
 English counties and is made Earl of Richmond, 162 ; love 
 of tournaments, 163 ; jealousy aroused against him, 164 ; 
 leaves England, 165 ; tries to rescue Henry, 166; his tal- 
 ents, 166 ; marries Savoyards to English heiresses, 166 ; 
 succeeds as Count (1263), 167 ; Imperial Vicar, 167 ; 
 dressed in gold and iron, 167 ; his will, 168 ; at Chillon, 
 169 ; his death, 169 
 
 Philibert II. prefers Austria to France, i., 35, 36 
 
 Philip set aside from succession as Count of Savoy, i., 15 
 
 , Count of Bresse: intrigues against his brother, Amadeus 
 
 IX., i., 31, ii., 132; seizes Amadeus, 137; tricked by 
 Yolande, 138 ; tries to rule, 139 ; wife's visit to Yolande 
 declined, 157; rebels, 170; overcome, 170; troubles 
 Blanche of Montferrat, 220; submits, 221 ; she appoints 
 him Governor-General of Piedmont, 222
 
 268 Index 
 
 Piccolomini, see yEneas Sylvius 
 
 Piedmont: in the Crimean War, i., 89 ; reverts to Ainadeus 
 
 VIII., ii., 4 
 Poet, Imperial, post of, held by Petrarch, and later by yneas, 
 
 ii., 78 
 Pope Alexander IV., sends letter instead of money, i., 154 
 
 Eugenius IV: i., 2527; confirms Council of Basle, 
 
 ii., 23 ; justifies his going to war, 24 ; driven from Rome 
 to Florence, 24 ; cavils at the Council, 25 ; would move 
 it to Ferrara, 26 ; annuls it, 26 ; is resisted, 26 ; concili- 
 ates, 27 ; continues his wars and goes to Bologna, 28 ; 
 applies to Amadeus of Savoy, 28 ; deposed at Basle, 34 ; 
 Italian politics his opportunity, 74 ; returns to Rome, 75 ' 
 in affairs spiritual, 78 ; in affairs temporal, 79 ; love for 
 war, 80 ; death, So 
 
 Felix V., see Amadeus VIII. 
 
 Gregory VII., Hildebrand : i., 7; excommunicates 
 
 Henry IV., 119; is deposed by Henry, 119; humiliates 
 Henry at Canossa, 120 ft seq.; success of policy of, 120 
 et seq. 
 
 Nicholas V., election of, i., 27, ii., 80 
 
 Pius II., see ^Eneas Sylvius Piccolomini 
 
 Portugal, Beatrice of, i., 40 ; Isabella of, 40 
 Prayers written by Yolande of France, ii., 147 et seq. 
 Provence: acquired by House of Savoy, i., 10 ; loss of, 10 ; 
 brilliancy of Court of, 132 
 
 RAYMOND Berenger : married to Beatrice of Savoy, his four 
 daughters queens, i., 132 ; alluded to by Dante, 158 
 
 Red Count, the, see Amadeus VII. 
 
 Religious persecution, i., 52, 55, 56, ii., 9 
 
 toleration of Emmanuel Philibert, i., 43 ; ii., 9 
 
 Report : of Venetian envoy, ii., 134 ; of Milanese ambassador, 
 142 
 
 Richard of Cornwall, King of the Romans, i., 156 
 
 Richelieu's hatred of Savoy, i., 50 
 
 Ricotti on the value of geography in studying the history of 
 House of Savoy, i., 8 
 
 Ripaille: Amadeus VIII. at, i., 23, ii., 17 et seq. ; Canons, 
 18 ; ^Eneas describes, 19; Jules Vuys's comment, 20; 
 Voltaire's sarcasm, 21 et seq. \faire Ripaille^ 21 ; delega- 
 tion at, 42 ; Amadeus VIII. leaves, for Basle, 53 ; 
 Amadeus retires to, and dies at, 86 
 
 Roche, Pierre: a tailor, ii., 199; his bill for the Chevalier 
 Bayard, 224 ; dresses dolls as models of Paris fashions, 
 226
 
 Index 269 
 
 Rome : Pope Felix V. never reigned there, i., 27 ; Amadeus 
 VI. at, 221 ; Eugenius IV. driven from, ii., 24 
 
 Rosso, II Conte, see Amadeus VII. 
 
 Rudolph, Marquis of Savoy, King of Burgundy, " the worth- 
 less," i., 97 
 
 ST. PETER Damiani, i., 108 
 
 Sardinia, Victor Amadeus II. acquires title of King of, in ex- 
 change for that of Sicily, i., 61 
 
 Savoy, the House of : founders of, i., chap, i ; oldest reigning 
 house in Europe, 93 ; Italian origin, 101 ; Saxony, com- 
 mon ancestry and heraldry with, 102 ; importance of, 
 widens, no; influence in England, 129^^.; alliances 
 with England, 131 ; character of the princes of, 168, 
 171 ; growth stopped on north-east and north-west, ii., 3 ; 
 takes in Lombardy, 4 ; religious persecutions, 9 ; allied 
 by marriage to all the great Powers, 29 ; home-surround- 
 ings, 93 et seq.\ wealth, 93 et seq,\ extravagance, 120; 
 women as regents, 128 ; see Marriages, Italy, France, 
 Austria, Spain, Province of Savoy, Piedmont, Provence, 
 Nice, Sicily, and Sardinia 
 
 , Province of: lost for a time, i., 59; people of, claim to 
 
 be Allobrogi and repudiate House of Savoy, 70 ; handed 
 over to France, 91 ; Charlemagne and, 96 ; Burgundy and, 
 96 ; Rudolph, Marquis of, 97 ; Humbert's possessions in 
 the county, 105 ; Henry IV. buys his passage through, 
 122 ; at Council of Basle, credited to France and Italy, 
 ii., 40 ; journey to, from Turin, 203 
 
 Sicily, title of King of, acquired by Victor Amadeus II., and 
 exchanged by him for that of Sardinia, i., 61 
 
 Sieges: Turin, i., 60; Narbonne, 96; Alexandria, 207 ; Gal- 
 lipoli, 213 ; Mesembria, 216 ; Lamona, 217 ; Lanilo, 217 ; 
 Varna, 217 ; Bourbourg, 234 
 
 Silk- worms introduced by Duchess Blanche, ii., 244 
 
 Singing by the lawyers at Basle, poor, ii., 58 
 
 Spain : Emmanuel Philibert, educated at the Court of, i., 39 ; 
 etiquette of, introduced into the Court of Savoy, 39 ; Vic- 
 tor Amadeus II. a claimant to the throne of, 57 
 
 "States," the, of Savoy, ii., 7 
 
 Superstitions of the wife and mother of Amadeus VII., i., 
 242 et seq. 
 
 TAIL, Amadeus of the, i., 4 
 
 Tailor, a: in attendance, ii., 199; his bill for the Chevalier 
 Bayard, 244 ; dresses dolls, 226
 
 270 Index 
 
 Tassino, infatuation of Bona of Savoy for, ii., 188 ; his worth- 
 
 lessness, 189 
 
 Theatrical performances, ii., 205, 226 
 Thomas I. of Savoy : brilliant career of, i., 12 ; Imperial 
 
 Vicar, 12 ; dissensions of his sons, 13, 14 
 , Count of Flanders, a prince of Savoy : treaty with 
 
 Henry III., i., 152; visits England, 153 ; imprisoned at Asti, 
 
 again visits England, 154 ; Pope writes his relatives, 155 ; 
 
 his death, 155 ; to lead Crusade of Henry III., 165 ; his 
 
 princedom of Capua, 166 
 Tiara of Pope Felix V.: in pawn: ii., 121 ; never redeemed, 
 
 122 
 Tourney : between Knights of Savoy and of England, i., 162 ; 
 
 forbidden by the King, 164; of Amadeus VI., 196 et seq.\ 
 
 of Amadeus VII., 231 ; of the Chevalier Bayard, ii. , 243 
 Tragedy of life of Victor Amadeus II., i., 63 
 Transalpine dominions of House of Savoy, i., 16 
 Triumphal car, ii., 124 
 Turin made the capital, i., 42 
 Turks, advance of the, i. , 202 
 Tuscany acquired, i., 91 
 Two kings of Sardinia, i., 63 
 
 UCO DE LA ROCHETTE, i., l6 
 
 Umberto delle Bianchemani, see Humbert I., i., I 
 
 Unification of House of Savoy, i., 19 
 
 Urbino, Paciotto da, architect, i., 42 
 
 VALENTINA of Milan, ii., 37 
 
 Vaud, Barony of, another division of House of Savoy, i., 15 
 
 Venice : and Genoa reconciled by Amadeus VI., i., 20 ; ac- 
 quired through the war between Prussia and Austria, 92 
 
 Victor Amadeus II.: a minor, i., 54; asserts his manhood, 
 55, ii., 9 ; acquires title of King of Sicily, which he ex- 
 changes for that of Sardinia, i., 61 ; secret marriage of, 
 62 ; abdicates, 62 ; the Piedmontese Lear, 63 
 
 III. weak, i., 68 
 
 Emmanuel I. : a King without lands or subjects, unfit for 
 
 his work, i., 76 ; abdicates, 77 
 
 II.: i., 87; character of, 88; self-discipline 
 
 needed by him and his people, 88 ; sets in order the 
 
 kingdom, 88 ; declared King of Italy, 92 
 Villehardouin, Isabella of, marries Philip and gives him title 
 
 of Prince of Achaia, i., 15 
 Visconti, the, extinct, i., 28
 
 Index 271 
 
 Visitations of Archbishop Boniface : i., 175 et seq. ; declared 
 
 invalid by the Pope, 184 
 Voltaire sneers at Amadeus VIII., ii., 21, 22 
 
 WAGER of battle, ii., 252 
 
 Waldenses : persecuted, i., 52, ii., 9 ; relieved by Cardinal 
 Mazarin, i. , 53; again persecuted, 55; again relieved, 
 56 
 
 Wardrobe of a Duchess, scanty, ii., 118 
 
 Wars : with Dauphins of Vienne, i., 17 ; Chioggia, 20 ; Cru- 
 sade of Amadeus VI., 20 et seq.; against Cyprus, 29 ; 
 Charles III. spends forty-one years in, 38 ; with Spain, 
 47 ; with France, 56, 69 ; of the Spanish Succession, 57 ; 
 between Austria and Prussia, 92 ; between Henry IV. 
 and Hildebrand, 127 ; of the Barons, 130, 166 ; in Flan- 
 ders, 231 ; of Pope Eugenius IV., ii., 28 ; with Saluces, 
 220 ; France and Naples, 229 
 
 Washing by the Duke of the feet of thirteen old men, ii., 206 
 
 Wax image, votive offering of, ii., 213 
 
 Wedding preparations, ii. , 200 
 
 Westminster Abbey, Amadeus V. at, i., 17 
 
 Wharton, Anglia Sacra, cited, ii., 250 
 
 White-handed, the, see Humbert I., i., I 
 
 William of Montferrat, his belated marriage, ii., 194 et seq. 
 
 of Savoy, Bishop of Valence : takes niece to England, 
 
 i., 132; career, 133; tutor to the young Queen, 142; 
 charms English King, 143 ; granted riches and honours, 
 144 ; leaves for Savoy, 144 ; Matthew Paris criticises, 145 ; 
 returns to England, 145 ; goes to war for Frederick III., 
 145 ; at the siege of Milan, 146 ; celebrated in the Chronique 
 rime"e, 147 ; pleads for See of Valence, 148 ; appointed 
 Bishop of Winchester, 148 ; wants also the See of Liege, 
 149; death of, 150; his warlike spirit, 150 
 
 Winchester, monks of : refuse William of Savoy, appointed by 
 the King of England, i., 148 ; the Pope confirms William, 
 149 
 
 Women : evil effects of the regencies of, ii., 128 ; rule in Savoy 
 in spite of the Salic Law, 129 et seq. 
 
 YOLANDE of France: i., 29, 30; marries Amadeus IX., ii., 
 129 ; character, 134 ; threatened on three sides, 135 ; Re- 
 gent, 136 ; besieged by her brother-in-law, 137 ; tricks 
 Philip, 138 ; resists him, 140 ; son dies, 141 ; her husband 
 dies, 144 ; her written prayers to the Blessed Virgin, 147 
 et seq.; cheated by Louis of France, 156; seeks a god-
 
 272 Index 
 
 Yolande (Continued). 
 
 father for her son, 157 ; her son's betrothal, 158 ; Milan 
 disappoints her, 159; her intrigue with Burgundy, 160; 
 seized by Duke of Burgundy, 162 et seq.; escapes to 
 France, 168 ; kindness of Louis XI. to, 169 ; Philip 
 troubles her, 170 ; her death, 172 ; mourned by her 
 people, 172 et seq.\ contrasted with the immoral Bona 
 of Savoy, 187 
 
 Lodovica : betrothed to Philibert II., ii., 237 ; visits him 
 
 at Geneva, 238 ; her death, 239
 
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