j LIBRARY^) 
 
 UNlVLrfolTY OF 
 CALIFORNIA 
 
 f SAN DIEGO
 
 /a 
 
 < '
 
 of tfce ^it 
 
 Girolamo Savonarola 
 
 A Prophet of Righteousness 
 
 'By 
 WILLIAM H. CRAWFORD 
 
 President Allegheny College 
 
 CINCINNATI: JENNINGS AND GRAHAM 
 NEW YORK: EATON AND MAINS
 
 COPYRIGHT, 1907, BY 
 JENNINGS AND GRAHAM
 
 "fPe 'will praise the hero-priest . . . 'who 
 'wears out, in toil, calumny, contradiction, a noble 
 life, to make a God's Kingdom of this earth. The 
 earth 'will not become too godlike. 1 ' Carlyle.
 
 PREFACE 
 
 IT was some years ago that I began the serious 
 study of the life and character of Savonarola. 
 Since then I have been on the alert to read what- 
 ever would throw light on the man, or show more 
 clearly the meaning and value of his work. In 
 the present volume no attempt has been made at 
 comprehensive biographical study. This would 
 have required much more space than has been 
 placed at my disposal. It has been my purpose 
 rather, keeping in mind the general aim of the se- 
 ries of which this volume is a part, to show what 
 Savonarola was as a man, and what he did as a 
 true prophet of righteousness. In doing this, I 
 have described the times in which he lived and the 
 men with whom he associated only so far as was 
 necessary to make clear the meaning of what he 
 spoke and what he wrought. 
 
 While recognizing that Savonarola had his lim- 
 itations, decided limitations at some points, as will 
 appear in the description of what he did or failed 
 to do in important crises, I conceive of him as a 
 man of unusually strong and striking personality; 
 a man of scholarly abilities and attainments; a 
 statesman of no mean order; a man of marked 
 qualities of leadership; a rare spiritual nature; but 
 
 5
 
 6 PREFACE. 
 
 above all a great Christian hero, a man of God; a 
 strong, brave, fearless prophet of righteousness. 
 The story of his life and work is here presented 
 with the hope that the reader may find in it new 
 courage for the work to which God has called him. 
 
 Like all others who have written on this theme 
 within the past quarter of a century, I must con- 
 fess my indebtedness to the monumental work of 
 Pasquale Villari, from which I have taken most 
 of the extracts of sermons and letters which ap- 
 pear throughout the volume, though in many in- 
 stances these have been carefully verified. It will 
 be noticed that I have quoted frequently, and some- 
 times at length, from the sermons and other writ- 
 ings of Savonarola. This has been done with a 
 purpose. The biography which means most to me 
 personally is the one in which I hear the man's own 
 voice, or read the words he himself penned. I am 
 taking it for granted that my readers are like me 
 in this respect. So 'instead of describing what Sa- 
 vonarola said, I have, whenever possible, let him 
 say it. 
 
 To guard against a one-sided or partisan pre- 
 sentation of the man and his work, the writings of 
 his detractors, both Catholic and Protestant, have 
 been examined as carefully as the writings of his 
 most extravagant eulogists. Earnest and faithful 
 attempt has been made to describe the man as he 
 was. To the best of my strength, honestly and 
 impartially, though it must be confessed sympathet- 
 ically, I have endeavored to present in the follow- 
 ing pages the real Savonarola. 
 
 It may be asked if Savonarola might not have
 
 PREPACK. 7 
 
 saved himself from death if he had not been so 
 uncompromising? Certainly. So might Socrates 
 have saved himself from the hemlock, and the Man 
 of Nazareth from the cross. But there are some 
 things morally impossible. No man could be as 
 great and powerful a personality as Savonarola 
 was and cry out against the frightful evils of his 
 time as he did without going to his death. The 
 conflict between Savonarola and Pope Alexander 
 VI was an irreconcilable one. W. H. C. 
 
 , PA., February 5, 1907.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 I. THE TIMES IN WHICH HE LIVED, - n 
 
 II. EARLY LIFE AND EDUCATION, - 19 
 
 III. IN THE MONASTERY OF BOLOGNA, - 33 
 
 IV. EARLY DAYS IN SAN MARCO, - 45 
 V. IN THE VILLAGES OF TUSCANY, - - 52 
 
 VI. LORENZO AND His CITY, 63 
 
 VII. A NEW VOICE IN THE DUOMO, - - 76 
 
 VIII. THE MIGHTIEST MAN OF FLORENCE, . - 88 
 
 IX. STARTLING EVENTS AND STRIKING 
 
 VISIONS, - 101 
 
 X. REFORMS BEGIN IN THE MONASTERY 
 
 OF SAN MARCO, 113 
 
 XI. CHARLES VIII OF FRANCE INVADES 
 
 ITALY, - - 132 
 
 XII. THE PREACHER AND THE NEW CON- 
 STITUTION, 150 
 
 XIII. JESUS KING OF FLORENCE, - - 159 
 9
 
 io CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 XIV. LETTERS, PLOTS, AND PAPAL BRIEFS, 165 
 
 XV. THE BURNING OF THE VANITIES, - 184 
 
 XVI. THE POPE ISSUES EDICT OF EXCOM- 
 MUNICATION, - - 204 
 
 XVII. THE STRUGGLE WITH ROME GOES ON, 219 
 
 XVIII. THE TRAGIC END, 2 35 
 
 XIX. INFLUENCE ON LATER TIMES, - 254
 
 Girolamo Savonarola 
 
 CHAPTER L 
 THE TIMES IN WHICH HE LIVED. 
 
 traveler who visits Florence will not linger 
 long in gray palaces and renowned picture gal- 
 leries before turning his face towards the mon- 
 astery of San Marco. The Brothers of St. 
 Dominic, former inhabitants of the place, are no 
 longer there. Our new Italy, the Italy of Gari- 
 baldi, Cavour, and Victor Immanuel, has little use 
 for monks. The monastery, confiscated by the 
 State, is now preserved as a national monument 
 and guarded by Italian police. 
 
 There is much of interest in this old monastery. 
 It was built for the Dominicans by a wealthy 
 banker of Florence, Cosimo de' Medici. Its library 
 has the proud distinction of being the first public 
 library founded in Italy. Its chapter-house has 
 been forever consecrated by George Eliot as the 
 place where Romola met her dying brother and 
 heard for the first time a voice she dared not 
 resist. Entering the gate and walking in the 
 cloister garden, or wandering through the empty 
 cells of the monks, one can not help thinking of
 
 12 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 the men who have made this monastery so famous. 
 First in the list is Fra Angelico. From entrance 
 to farthest cell the lofty and pure soul of this 
 Christian painter seems to hover near in the charm- 
 ing frescoes which are such beautiful expression 
 of profound and devout piety. Then comes An- 
 gelico's friend Antonino, known as the holy bishop. 
 A cell to the right on entering the corridor, marks 
 the place of his devotions and tells of his kindly 
 deeds. Farther on are the productions of another 
 master of the brush. Bartolomeo has honorable 
 place among the few whose spirits still linger in 
 San Marco. But of all the men who have given 
 name and fame to this monastery, the most con- 
 spicuous is Girolamo Savonarola. His cell is at 
 the farthest end of the corridor. To many it is 
 both oratory and sacred shrine. Hanging on the 
 wall are his rosary and fragments of his robe and 
 girdle; on a desk, near the small window over- 
 looking the convent garden, are manuscripts of his 
 sermons and a well-thumbed annotated Bible ; there 
 is the chair in which he sat, and above the desk 
 the large wooden crucifix so often held aloft while 
 Florence yielded to the influence of her great 
 preacher. 
 
 Going out from San Marco and walking 
 through the streets of Florence one may see on all 
 sides historic memorials of the city's distinguished 
 sons. There in a narrow street is the house of 
 Michael Angelo. In Medici sepulcher and na- 
 tional museum are masterpieces of his chisel; 
 yonder on San Miniato is his fortress ; in Santa 
 Croce is his tomb. The old home of Dante is still
 
 TIMES IN WHICH HE LIVED. 13 
 
 open to visitors. A stone slab marks the spot where 
 often, with expectation, he watched for his Beatrice ; 
 and proud monuments in church and open square 
 do honor to this great Italian poet. The Medici 
 have their buildings and tombs, paintings, manu- 
 scripts and gems, to tell of their power and wealth. 
 But among all the men of note in Florentine his- 
 tory there is no more striking figure than Savon- 
 arola. 
 
 The critics do not yet come into perfect agree- 
 ment when they try to sum up the elements of his 
 character and point out the influence of his life. 
 But for that matter the critics never come into 
 perfect agreement as to anything. When they 
 shall stop trying to find in this man a leader for 
 some party, a prophet for some political achieve- 
 ment, an advocate for Protestantism, or a true son 
 for Catholicism ; when they shall stop trying to 
 narrow the man and let him be as large as God 
 made him; when we shall study him with our 
 prejudices shaken off, and try to find out about 
 him simply the truth, then it will be that Savonarola 
 will come to his true place in history. In doctrine 
 he was a Roman Catholic, in his warfare against 
 a corrupt papacy a Protestant, in his reformation 
 of public morals a Puritan, in his advocacy of the 
 rights of the poor a Democrat. But no one of 
 these can claim all the man. Poet and preacher, 
 statesman and reformer, theologian and martyr, 
 he must forever rank, not only as one of the most 
 illustrious makers of Florence, but as one of the 
 illustrious makers of European history. 
 
 No need to go into unfrequented corners to
 
 14 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 find his memorials. There is hardly a street in 
 Florence which does not remind one of him. Out 
 from San Marco stood his wooden pulpit. The 
 Riccardi palace on the Via Cavour tells how he and 
 Capponi saved Florence from the fury of Charles 
 VIII, King of France., The Duomo, in all its 
 arches and in the immensity of its mighty dome, 
 is still re-echoing the strains of his rare and 
 commanding eloquence. The gray stones of the 
 Palazzo Vecchio have voice to declare his valiant 
 achievements and heroic fortitude. The Piazza 
 Signoria, crowded at eventide, still speaks of ex- 
 cited multitudes men, women, and children who 
 saw there the triumph, and saw also the humilia- 
 tion, of the man who exerted larger influence upon 
 Florence in his day than any other single man in 
 all her history. The presence of Savonarola in 
 Florence is pervasive. 
 
 But this twentieth century Florence is altogether 
 too modern to furnish a background for the life 
 and character of Savonarola. It has too many 
 railroads, smacks too much of the telegraph and 
 the telephone; they have bicycles there now and 
 automobiles. If we would see the real Savonarola 
 we must give play to our historic imagination and 
 put ourselves, if we can, in the times in which he 
 lived and breathe the spirit of his surroundings; 
 we must turn back the pages in our book of his- 
 tory more than four hundred years till we come to 
 the year of our Lord 1452. This is the year in 
 which Savonarola was born. Forty-six years later 
 he suffered martyrdom in Florence and his ashes 
 were flung into the Arno. Born in Ferrara, two
 
 TIMES IN WHICH HE LIVED. 15 
 
 years after the half century had begun, his life 
 was cut short two years before the half century 
 ended. 
 
 Here is an age which challenges attention and 
 commands thought. The half century covered by 
 the life of Savonarola was full of prophetic events. 
 It was in this half century that printing was in- 
 vented, the foe of tyranny and enemy of supersti- 
 tion; ignorance must hide her face, freedom has a 
 new friend, and conscience an emancipator. It 
 was in this half century that Constantinople was 
 taken by the Turks ; this meant for Italy the com- 
 ing in of great scholars from the East with wealth 
 of ancient manuscripts and precious gems. It 
 was in this half century that the arm of Ferdinand 
 broke the power of the Moors in Granada and 
 drove the Saracens from most Catholic Spain. It 
 was in this half century that Christopher Columbus 
 of Genoa set sail to find a new passage to the 
 Indies, but found in its stead the path to a new 
 continent. It was in this same half century that 
 away to the north in the town of Eisleben in Sax- 
 ony Martin Luther was born; in the next half 
 century this Saxon lad, grown to be monk, doctor, 
 and reformer, will shake the world; and give to 
 European civilization such an impetus for liberty 
 and progressive ideas that her nations shall sit 
 supreme among all the peoples of the earth. The 
 last half of the fifteenth century was an age of 
 transition. The soul of the new was struggling to 
 break away from the traditions of the old. 
 
 The intellectual life of Italy was rejoicing in 
 all the glories of the Renaissance. The study of
 
 1 6 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 the humanities was everywhere hailed with enthu- 
 siasm. The classics commanded all the thought of 
 those who laid any claim to scholarship. Greek 
 art and architecture, language and literature, were 
 everywhere praised, in the halls of the great uni- 
 versities and in the palaces of the nobility. But 
 all this belonged only to the few. The masses were 
 sunk in ignorance and superstition. The free 
 school and suffrage were centuries in the future. 
 
 The political situation was about as bad as 
 could be imagined. The empire had sunk to its 
 lowest point. Rome was the center, but only in 
 name; the emperor was little more than German 
 king. Italy groaned under the misrule of petty 
 tyrants. The race of real princes seemed to be 
 dead. Degenerate sons, familiar only with the 
 luxurious ease of profligate courts, knew not how 
 to govern themselves, much less the people. It 
 was an opportunity for war, and on all sides war's 
 dread presence brought terror and destruction. 
 Even from beyond the Alps were heard mutter- 
 ings of its approach. Conspiracy, too, lifted her 
 head in Milan, in Genoa, in Pavia; but her most 
 frightful atrocities were in Florence. Liberty was 
 dead. The rights of the individual were unpro- 
 tected. 
 
 This was an age when the garments of the 
 Church were defiled until they became a stench in 
 the nostrils of purity. The tiara itself was bespat- 
 tered with blood. The Chief Bishop of Christen- 
 dom seemed to be serving two masters. "The 
 popes of the Renaissance," says Dr. Schaff, "were 
 the successors of Maecenas rather than St. Peter."
 
 TIMES IN WHICH HE LIVED. 17 
 
 They were intolerant of open heresy, but not 
 always of open immorality. Pius II, renowned 
 as a scholar, shielded illegitimate offspring by a 
 frivolous appeal to David and Solomon. Sixtus 
 IV, famous until now as the great cathedral builder, 
 was a shameless promoter of nepotism and legal- 
 ized prostitution to increase the revenues of the 
 papal court.^ Innocent VIII, surrounded in the 
 Vatican by bastard sons and daughters, established 
 a bank for the sale of pardons. Each sin had its 
 price. Roderigo Borgia, a Spaniard by birth ; law- 
 yer, soldier, cardinal, and finally pope, closed the 
 century under the title Alexander VI. To this 
 man belongs the bad pre-eminence of being the 
 worst pope that ever sat in St. Peter's chair. 
 There is no quarrel between Catholics and Prot- 
 estants as to the character of Roderigo Borgia. A 
 recent Catholic historian says: "The clearest proof 
 that the Catholic Church is divine is the fact that 
 such a Pontiff as Alexander VI could not destroy 
 it." His ambition, avarice, and sensuality were 
 simply notorious in his own day. With money he 
 purchased the votes of the cardinals who made 
 him pope. Simony he could not rebuke when it 
 ministered to his unholy ambition. In Rome men 
 said, "Alexander sells the keys, he sells the altars, 
 he sells Jesus Christ." When there was no papal 
 emissary there to hear, the answer was, "Well, he 
 bought them, so he has a right to sell them." The 
 Vatican was converted into an Oriental harem. The 
 name of Alexander's daughter Lucretia has been 
 written, whether justly or unjustly, in the shame- 
 less list with the Jezebels and Lady Macbeths of
 
 1 8 GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 the centuries. His son Cesare so played with the 
 poisoned cup and the stiletto that Rome became 
 a slaughter-house. This Cesare, incarnation of 
 crime, Alexander promoted to highest ecclesias- 
 tical honors. No wonder the title "His Holiness" 
 passed into a byword of reproach. The sins of the 
 Vatican were also the sins of the priests. If money 
 purchased the papacy for a Borgia, it also pur- 
 chased heaven for the rake and the murderer. The 
 servants of the altar were often the parasites of 
 princely courts and the slaves of licentiousness. 
 The cloisters, too, were tainted with corruption. 
 The vows of poverty and chastity few pretended 
 to keep. If the thirteenth century needed such men 
 as Francis of Assisi and St. Dominic to rise 
 and cry out against the abuses of the monastery, 
 the fifteenth century needed them much more. All 
 classes seemed to have caught the sordid and licen- 
 tious spirit of the age. Italy was on the fatal 
 slope which led to her ruin. Christianity was every- 
 where brought into derision and contempt. Such 
 were the times in Italy in the last half of the fif- 
 teenth century. It was in the Borgian era that 
 Savonarola was called to play his part in the drama 
 of history.
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 EARLY LIFE AND EDUCATION. 
 
 THE name Savonarola was not unknown in 
 Northern Italy. The first of the line of whom we 
 have knowledge was one Antonio, a native of 
 Padua, who in the thirteenth century fought so 
 valiantly in defense of his city that one of her gates 
 was named in his honor, and to this day it is called 
 Porta Savonarola. The Reformer's grandfather, 
 Michele Savonarola, had left the ancestral Paduan 
 home at the urgent invitation of the Duke of Fer- 
 rara, Niccolo III, of the house of Este. This house 
 of Este was one of the few great ruling houses of 
 Northern Italy. It almost rivaled the Medici in its 
 patronage of art, literature, and the sciences. No 
 pains were spared to attract distinguished men to 
 its court. It was to the court of Ferrara, one 
 favorable to learning and art, that Michele Savon- 
 arola was invited in the middle of the fifteenth 
 century. Eminent physician, man of letters, and 
 distinguished lecturer, he added luster to the bril- 
 liant company to which he came. 
 
 The name had at least two centuries of fairly 
 honorable history before the subject of this sketch, 
 the noblest Savonarola of them all, was presented 
 by his father for holy baptism in the Church of 
 Santa Maria del Vaio. His father Niccolo was a 
 man of little worth, a hanger-on of the court. He 
 
 19
 
 20 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 studied medicine some, but seems to have failed 
 to- make good in anything except appearing well 
 at court functions. The mother was totally differ- 
 ent. Like Augustine, Gregory, and Constantine, 
 Savonarola had a mother who was a woman of 
 strong mind and noble character. Her name was 
 Elena, daughter of the illustrious house of Bona- 
 cossi of Mantua. It is an accepted saying that 
 great men have usually had remarkable mothers. 
 Savonarola was no exception. His mother was a 
 woman of fine intellect, rare culture, and almost 
 masculine strength of character. She was ever 
 held in tenderest affection by her illustrious son. 
 It is significant of Savonarola's fine spirit and 
 real greatness that he always treated his father 
 with respect. He gave him all the honor which 
 would have been due him from a devoted son had 
 he been one of the noblest citizens of Ferrara; but 
 it was to his mother that he gave his heart's affec- 
 tion. His love for her was beautiful and tender 
 during his entire life. It was to her that he opened 
 his heart in the dark days of trial when the city 
 of Florence was beginning to turn against him, 
 and when he saw ahead only the triumph of wicked 
 enemies and a tragic death. To this Niccolo and 
 Elena were born five sons and two daughters. 
 Girolamo was the third of the sons. He was born 
 on St. Matthew's Day, September 21, 1452. His 
 baptismal name was Girolamo Marco Francesco 
 Matteo. 
 
 Many stories have gathered about the child- 
 hood of Savonarola, but few of them are thought 
 to have any foundation in fact. The one distin-
 
 EARLY LIFE AND EDUCATION. 21 
 
 guishing mark of his youth was his seriousness. 
 He was not pretty, so we are told, or playful; he 
 coveted quiet and his mood was usually that of re- 
 serve. Silent and solitary, he was often seen walk- 
 ing in green fields or wandering by the banks of 
 the river Po. He had one great friend and teacher 
 to whom he owed much, his grandfather. "With 
 the patience and simple directness gained by long 
 years and experience this wise old scientist," says 
 Villari, "devoted himself to the development of his 
 grandson's intellect, the careful unfolding of its 
 budding thoughts and ideas. Such a training was 
 undoubtedly the best of schools; and the boy soon 
 rewarded his grandsire's devotion by showing a 
 true passion for study. So great was his ardor 
 for books that even those beyond his comprehen- 
 sion were eagerly seized upon and ransacked for 
 hidden treasures." Perhaps the early biographers 
 may put it a little too strongly when they describe 
 him, even while a mere lad, as endowed with "mar- 
 velous love of truth" and a "charm which seemed 
 to carry towards truth by its own nature," but 
 there is good evidence that he was a youth of 
 much more than usual promise. 
 
 The affection of Michele Savonarola for this 
 grandson is rare and beautiful; but unfortunately 
 the devoted teacher died when his pupil had hardly 
 reached his teens. It had long been expected that 
 Girolamo would perpetuate the reputation of the 
 family by taking up the profession of his grand- 
 father. Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas were in 
 those days considered indispensable as a prepara- 
 tion for the study of medicine. These authors our
 
 22 GlROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 young medical student seems to have read with 
 great eargerness. The study of their writings did 
 much to give direction to his later life. In Aris- 
 totle he laid broad and deep foundations for his 
 intellectual development; in Thomas Aquinas he 
 prepared the way for future theological studies and 
 for his career in monastery and pulpit. Both mas- 
 ters he studied with great earnestness, and both 
 affected mightily his future life. Plato he studied 
 later, but Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas were the 
 two books, apart from the Bible, which made the 
 man. 
 
 Modern Ferrara gives little conception of the 
 Ferrara of the fifteenth century in which Savon- 
 arola carried on his medical studies. The modern 
 city shows here and there marks of former mag- 
 nificence. The cathedral and the ducal palace 
 tell of glory and greatness long gone. The broad 
 deserted streets are now grass grown ; bastions, 
 towers, ancient walls, and moldy palaces suggest 
 a grandeur belonging to another age. Signs of 
 decay are everywhere. All that the traveler sees 
 in churches, palaces, and other public buildings, 
 tells of a golden age of long ago. The population 
 of the present city is about thirty thousand. The 
 population of the former city, made glorious by the 
 house of Este, was one hundred thousand. The 
 city was prosperous, too. Commercially and polit- 
 ically it was at this time one of the famous cities of 
 Italy. Here came noble princes as guests; em- 
 perors also came, and even popes. Festivities were 
 almost perpetual. Shows and carnivals followed 
 each other in quick succession. The splendor of
 
 EARI,Y LIFE AND EDUCATION. 23 
 
 the city and court was at its height during the 
 youth of Savonarola. 
 
 The names of two of the Dukes of Ferrara 
 ought to be remembered: Niccolo III, who in- 
 vited Michele Savonarola to the court of Este, and 
 Borso, who succeeded to the dukedom in 1450 and 
 ruled until 1471. Niccolo built strong the founda- 
 tions of his house which was to be resplendent as a 
 center of learning and art. By overcoming all the 
 lords of surrounding strongholds, he became abso- 
 lute in his power in the province and in the city. 
 He improved the years of peace by enriching the 
 cathedral, building churches, palaces, and other 
 stately edifices. At his death he was succeeded 
 by a natural , son, Lionello, who reigned for nine 
 years, when Borso, another natural son, came to 
 the throne. These were two of the "bastard 
 princes" who made Italy notorious in the fifteenth 
 century. The times in which they ruled were not 
 favorable to the peaceful occupany of a place of 
 power. Milan was in revolt; Venice was jealous; 
 on all sides was war. But Ferrara, how it hap- 
 pened is not altogether clear even yet, was known 
 as "the land of peace." Lionello has this to his 
 credit that he was the friend of scholars and pro- 
 tected sculptors and poets, Guarino being one ; he 
 composed Latin orations and Italian sonnets; he 
 founded the famous Este Museum, and was largely 
 responsible for the prosperity of the university. 
 Dazzling luxury marked his reign, and stories of 
 the brilliant festivities he directed were told far 
 and near. 
 
 In the display and magnificence of his court
 
 24 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 functions Lionello was tame in comparison with 
 Borso, who came after him. This Borso was not a 
 model prince though he did have some good quali- 
 ties. He loved justice, so it is said, and caused it 
 to be constantly observed, when it did not clash 
 with his own personal interests. But better than 
 justice itself, he loved the title which was usually 
 conferred upon him, "The Just." More than any 
 other ruler in Northern Italy, Borso reminds one 
 of Lorenzo the Magnificent of Florence. The bril- 
 liancy of his court, his patronage of learning, his 
 political pretensions and ambitions, his utter dis- 
 regard of the liberties of the people whom he gov- 
 erned, all mark him as a fine prototype of Lorenzo. 
 "As Lord of Ferrara," says Villari, "he was lavish 
 in hospitality to all, he had a rare collection of 
 manuscripts and antiquities, was always seen 
 dressed in gold brocade, and the richest stuff in 
 Italy was worn at his court. He had the finest 
 falcons, horses, and dogs that had ever been seen; 
 he was even famous for the excellence of his buf- 
 foons ; descriptions of his State entertainments 
 were frequently circulated throughout the whole 
 of Italy." 
 
 In 1452, the year of Savonarola's birth, -Ferrara 
 was visited by the Emperor Frederick III. He was 
 on his way to receive the imperial crown at the 
 hands of the pope. His retinue comprised two thou- 
 sand men. Borso, so we are told, rode forth to 
 meet him, attended by all his nobles and clergy, and 
 for ten successive days gave tournaments, concerts, 
 and balls in his honor. On the emperor's return 
 from Rome these festivities were renewed, and on a
 
 EARLY LitfE AND EDUCATION. 25 
 
 still grander scale. The emperor was now received 
 on a magnificently decorated platform in the Piazza. 
 in all the gorgeous trappings of imperial display, 
 and wearing the imperial crown. Borso, hardly 
 less gorgeously attired, presented himself to the 
 emperor to receive the ducal title he had so ear- 
 nestly coveted. After the fashion of a people with- 
 out liberty and caugjit in the toils of a richly bro- 
 caded despotism, men on all sides shouted, "The 
 duke! The duke! Long live Duke Borso!" 
 
 This display Savonarola did not see, but he did 
 look upon pageants far more imposing and magni- 
 ficent. After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, 
 the increasing power of the Turk caused much 
 anxiety in Northern Italy. There was almost uni- 
 versal call for a new crusade. But there was no 
 one to gather up the yearnings of the people and 
 give them expression in action. There was no 
 Peter the Hermit, no Bernard of Clairvaux. Noth- 
 ing was done until 1458, when Pope Pius II, newly 
 come to the chair of St. Peter, summoned a coun- 
 cil at Mantua, and called the Christian powers to 
 act in a holy war against the great Infidel. In 
 journeying from Rome to Mantua, Pius II visited 
 Ferrara. He came with retinue the like of which 
 had never been seen in the city of the house of 
 Este. In this retinue were ten cardinals, sixty 
 bishops, and many secular princes. The pope en- 
 tered Ferrara under a canopy of gold. The streets 
 were covered with cloth or strewn with flowers ; 
 rich tapestries and gay festival decorations hung 
 from the windows, and the city was filled with 
 shoutings, songs, and music. Stately ceremonies
 
 26 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 in the cathedral gave welcome to the Pontiff, and 
 festivities truly royal detained him many days. 
 
 The council at Mantua was long remembered 
 for the eloquent speeches delivered. Nothing was 
 done, however, for the crusade. But the failure 
 of a Church council could not check the enthu- 
 siasm of the festival-loving people of Ferrara. On 
 the pope's return journey to Rome he halted again 
 at Ferrara where he was welcomed and feted more 
 royally than before. Even pagan divinities, it is 
 said, were set up in his honor. The glory of these 
 receptions must have been long discussed and often 
 in the hearing of the youthful Savonarola. 
 
 The gay court to which his family was at- 
 tached possessed no attractions for Girolamo Sa- 
 vonarola. Only once, it is said, did he ever enter 
 the splendid castle of the duke. The festivities and 
 frivolities were not to his liking. His keen eye, 
 true as well as keen, was beginning to see beneath 
 the surface. It has been suggested that the castle 
 itself, that grim, quadrangular building with its 
 four massive towers, must have seemed typical of 
 the social life of Ferrara. The subterranean dun- 
 geons of the castle were full of immured victims. 
 The clanking of chains and the groans of human 
 beings in pain could be heard from their depths. 
 Above were strains of music and ceaseless revelry ; 
 the ringing of silver plate, the clatter of majolica 
 dishes, and the clinking of Venetian glass. Anguish 
 groaned beneath the songs of revelry. All was 
 brilliant without, but Savonarola saw, with that 
 keen and true eye of his, that all this brilliancy was 
 only the flush of humanity's fever. The brilliance
 
 EARLY LIFE AND EDUCATION. 27 
 
 was the brilliance of disease. The shows and car- 
 nivals, which dazzled the people and held them in 
 strange fascination, were to him only "the ring- 
 ing of silver plate and the clinking of Venetian 
 glass." The fruits of tyranny which he saw, in 
 ignorance, in vice, and in superstition ; in lost lib- 
 erties and throttled life, these were "the clanking 
 of chains and the groans of human beings in pain." 
 He felt that justice was dethroned. In a poem on 
 the ruin of the world he cried out in the bitterness 
 of passion: 
 
 " Happy henceforth he who by rapine lives, 
 
 He who on the blood of others swells and feeds ; 
 Who widows robs and from his children's needs 
 Takes tribute ; and the poor to ruin drives." 
 
 There were a few brief days when the young 
 Girolamo saw a brighter side to life. A Strozzi 
 girl, whose family had been exiled from Florence, 
 lived near his home. She was a girl of dark hair 
 and rich black eyes, so the chroniclers say. An ar- 
 dent affection for this fair exile soon gave Savon- 
 arola to feel the music and freshness of a new 
 hope. The world took on a new meaning and 
 beauty. He saw all now through the eyes of tender 
 love. But when he declared his affection he was 
 repulsed with haughty disdain. "No Strozzi," said 
 she, "may stoop to wed a Savonarola." Pierced 
 as by a rapier thrust, he flung back at her a cruel 
 fact concerning a stain on her birth. Perhaps he 
 repented afterwards. We do not know. But his 
 dream world was suddenly shattered. The old and 
 serious thoughts came back. Contempt for the
 
 28 GiRoivAMo SAVONAROLA. 
 
 world, horror at the misery he saw, increasing in- 
 terest in Aquinas, and finally, a single word in the 
 sermon of an Augustinian monk, led him to re- 
 nounce his profession and forsake his home to 
 enter a monastery. The "single word" was spo- 
 ken at Faenza in 1474, by a wicked monk, but the 
 word stuck. What it was he never told. What- 
 ever it was, it marked the beginning of a new plan 
 for his life. He could no longer find liberty or 
 peace in the world, he would seek it in the Church. 
 This ought to be marked as a crisis in his life; 
 perhaps the crisis. John Chrysostom did not enter 
 the cloister of Diodorus, or Martin Luther ap- 
 proach the gates of Erfurt, with higher aim or 
 nobler purpose, than did Savonarola offer himself 
 to the Brothers of St. Dominic in Bologna. 
 
 On an April morning, in all the strength of 
 his young manhood, he sat with his mother for 
 the last time in the old home. It was just a year 
 since his decision to enter a monastery. For 
 twelve months he had been struggling against the 
 breaking of home ties. Playing upon his lute he 
 sang in such sad strain that his mother stopped 
 him : "My son, this is a token of separation." With 
 faltering touch he continued to finger the strings, 
 but into his mother's face he dared not look. He 
 felt that she knew his secret. On the morrow 
 when Ferrara was wild with festivities in honor 
 of St. George, he ran away from his home. He 
 fled from his profession, his friends, and all the 
 preferment open to him in the court of Ferrara; 
 and before the sun had set on Lombard hills, he 
 was clad in the white robe of a Dominican novice.
 
 AND EDUCATION. 29 
 
 On the morning after arriving in Bologna, he 
 wrote a letter to his father, describing in full the 
 reasons which led him to forsake his home to 
 enter a monastery. The letter was earnest and 
 affectionate. In it he called attention to a paper 
 on "Contempt for the World," left behind some 
 books on his desk, which was, in a sense, a defense 
 of his action. This paper, discovered about a gen- 
 eration ago, has written on it the following words 
 by Savonarola's father: "I remember how, on the 
 24th of April, which was St. George's day in 1475, 
 Girolamo my son, student in arts, departed from 
 his home and went to Bologna, and entered among 
 the Brothers of St. Dominic in order to become a 
 brother; and left me, me Niccolo della Savonarola, 
 his father, these underwritten consolations and ex- 
 hortations for my satisfaction." 
 
 This brief document affords clear proof that 
 Savonarola saw, and with clear vision, the woes 
 about to come upon Italy, and saw also that in 
 some way he was to be a special messenger of 
 God to warn the people of these woes. "Not one," 
 so a paragraph in the document reads, "not a single 
 righteous man is left. It behooves us to learn from 
 babes and women of low estate, for in these only 
 doth there yet linger any shadow of innocence. 
 The good are oppressed and the people of Italy 
 become like unto the Egyptians who held God's 
 people in bondage. But already famine, flood, 
 pestilence, and many other signs, betoken future 
 ill and herald the wrath of God. Divide, O Lord, 
 divide once again the waters of the Red Sea, and 
 let the impious perish in the flood of Thy wrath."
 
 30 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 The letter to his father may be regarded as an 
 apology for his apparently unfilial act. "I wish 
 you," he writes, "as a true man, and one who de- 
 spises fleeting things, to be influenced by truth, 
 and not by passion like women, and to judge, under 
 the dominion of reason, whether I am right in 
 fleeing from the world." He then speaks of the 
 evils of the age described in the paper on "Con- 
 tempt of the World," and explains and defends 
 his action in leaving home. "Instead of weeping," 
 he says, "you have rather to thank the Lord Jesus 
 who has given you a son, and then has preserved 
 him to you for twenty-two years; and not only 
 this, but besides has designed to make him His 
 knight-militant. Ah ! do you not regard it as a 
 great grace to have a son a knight of Jesus Christ ? 
 But, to speak shortly, either it is true that you love 
 me, or it is not true. I know well that you will 
 not say you do not love me. If then you love me, 
 since I have two parts, that is, the soul and the 
 body, do you love most the soul or the body? You 
 can not say the body, because you would not love 
 me if you loved the baser part of me. If then you 
 love the soul best, why should you not seek the 
 good of the soul? Therefore, you ought to re- 
 joice, and to regard this as a triumph. Do you 
 believe that it is not a great grief for me to be 
 separated from you?" 
 
 Mrs. Oliphant, in criticizing this letter, points 
 out that such pleas have been repeated from the 
 beginning of the world, and will be to its end, 
 whenever a good and loving child obeys a personal 
 impulse which is contrary to filial duty, but not to
 
 EARLY LIFE AND EDUCATION. 31 
 
 filial tenderness. Perhaps a truer criticism would 
 be to suggest that in this case, as in many others, 
 personal conviction as to duty often comes into 
 sharp conflict with filial affection. Influenced by 
 deep and strong conviction, there was only one 
 thing for Savonarola to do. "Believe me," he 
 writes, "that never since I was born have I had a 
 greater grief nor a greater affliction of mind, than 
 seeing myself abandon my own blood, and go 
 among people unknown, in order to make a sacri- 
 fice to Jesus Christ of my body, and to sell my will 
 into the hands of those whom I never knew." This 
 letter is addressed to "The noble and excellent man, 
 Niccolo Savonarola, the best of parents." 
 
 What effect this letter may have had we can 
 only imagine. It undoubtedly brought quick reply 
 from his fond mother. There is a second letter, 
 but without date, in which the young monk ex- 
 presses great regret that his father and mother 
 should reproach him or complain of his decision. 
 This letter begins, "Why do ye weep, blind ones? 
 Why do ye complain so much? If our temporal 
 prince had called me now to girt a sword on my 
 side in the midst of the people, and to make me 
 one of his knights, what joy you would have expe- 
 rienced! And if I had then repudiated such an 
 honor, would you not have thought me a fool? 
 And now the Prince of princes, He who is of 
 infinite power, calls me with a loud voice, even 
 prays me (O great love!) with a thousand tears, 
 to girt a sword on my side, of the finest gold and 
 precious stones, and wishes to place me among 
 the number of His knights militant! And now,
 
 32 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 because I have not refused so great honor, although 
 I am unworthy (and who would refuse it?), be- 
 cause I, giving thanks to so great a Lord, since 
 He thus wills, have accepted it, you will afflict 
 me, when you ought to rejoice and give thanks ; 
 and the more you do so, the more you show that 
 you love me." 
 
 The reference in the above letter to the call 
 to knighthood by the temporal prince, meaning the 
 duke, was undoubtedly to remind his parents of 
 their joy that his oldest brother, Ognibene, had 
 entered the army. Ognibene's decision had led to 
 no complaint on their part. They praised him 
 rather. The young monk would persuade them 
 that their joy in his own decision ought to be 
 greater. This letter seems to have had the desired 
 effect. Both parents recognized that his decision 
 was unalterable. His was the stronger will, and 
 there was left nothing for them but to be resigned. 
 For Savonarola, the new life he had chosen was 
 all before him and untried. He threw himself into 
 it with decision, strength, and enthusiasm.
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 IN THE MONASTERY OF BOLOGNA. 
 
 THE life in Bologna was full of eager study and 
 earnest thought. Worn with fasting, his clothing 
 the coarsest, Savonarola showed a marked ability 
 which soon led to his appointment as instructor of 
 the novices. 
 
 This was not at all according to the program 
 he had laid out. He had come to the monastery 
 praying that he might be employed in the humblest 
 and most menial duties of the brotherhood. Gladly 
 would he become simply a convent drudge if he 
 might thus do penance for his sins ! Long after- 
 wards he told his intimate friend and biographer, 
 Pico della Mirandola, that when he entered the 
 convent in Bologna, he had not purposed to take 
 holy orders, nor have anything to do with his 
 favorite philosophical studies. His sole purpose 
 was to ask for the privilege of manual labor. His 
 thought was to work in the garden, make clothes 
 for the brothers, and do other work of like char- 
 acter. He had no desire to "merely change from 
 an Aristotle of the world to an Aristotle of the 
 cloister." Two things he wanted peace and lib- 
 erty. For these he had come to the convent. It 
 was, therefore, a grief instead of a joy when he 
 was commanded by his superior to instruct the 
 novices in physics and philosophy. But remem- 
 3 33
 
 34 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 bering his three-fold vow poverty, chastity, obe- 
 dience there was only one thing for him to do 
 obey. That he did. 
 
 The monastery was not all that Savonarola had 
 hoped for. Its solitude did bring peace and lib- 
 erty, but the quiet of cloistered surroundings did 
 not blind him to frightful corruptions and abuses. 
 At times his soul was roused to fury as he thought 
 of the dreadful havoc wrought by princes of the 
 Church. Costly buildings, processions, and festi- 
 vals did not concern him ; he was striving after the 
 purity of the inner life of the soul. An ardent 
 student of the Bible, he knew it almost by heart, 
 from Genesis to Revelation. In his early as well 
 as in his later study of the Bible, Savonarola was 
 particularly impressed with the bold and striking 
 imagery of the prophets and Revelation. John 
 Knox in his little room over High Street in Edin- 
 burgh, did not study his Bible more earnestly and 
 faithfully than did Savonarola in his cell near the 
 shrine of St. Dominic. 
 
 Perhaps the most significant event during the 
 seven years spent in this monastery, was the dis- 
 covery that the corruption which he had seen 
 blighting the world was also blasting the Church. 
 The -foul atmosphere of the court and the rabble 
 had touched also the priests and monks. It was 
 in Ferrara that he wrote his poem on "The Ruin 
 of the World." In Bologna he wrote a new poem. 
 Its title was, "The Ruin of the Church." In his 
 poetic vision the Church was represented as a 
 chaste and venerable virgin. Burning to speak 
 with her, he asks, "Where is the light of early
 
 IN THE MONASTERY OF BOLOGNA. 35 
 
 days? Where are the ancient saints? Where is 
 the learning, love, and purity of olden times ? Tak- 
 ing him by the hand the virgin leads him to a 
 poor cave where she dwells. She shows him her 
 beautiful body "disfigured with the wine red finger 
 marks of evil." "Who hath done this?" he asks. 
 The Church replies, "A false, proud, harlot; Rome 
 hath done it." Then it was that the fiery indigna- 
 tion of the future prophet broke forth in strongest 
 passion, "O God, lady, that I might break those 
 spreading zt'ings !" 
 
 In Morley's life of William Ewart Gladstone, 
 particular attention is called to an entry which 
 Gladstone made in his diary while a student in 
 Oxford University. The entry was this: "The 
 great end is that the love of God may become the 
 habit of my soul, and particularly these things are 
 to be sought: The gift of love, of self-sacrifice, of 
 purity, of energy." This entry Mr. John Morley 
 describes as the biographic clew to Gladstone's life. 
 It was the working out of the resolution expressed 
 in the words written in the diary which made Glad- 
 stone the man he was. Mr. Morley was exceed- 
 ingly happy in seizing upon the true biographic 
 clew to the future greatness and Christian states- 
 manship of Gladstone. In seeking to find a 
 biographic clew to the life of Girolamo Savonarola, 
 the careful student of his character and achieve- 
 ments is almost irresistibly drawn to the words 
 quoted above, "O God, lady, that I might break 
 those spreading wings." During all his life from 
 Bologna on, his one great purpose was this, to 
 "break the spreading wings" of papal corruption
 
 36 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 >. 
 
 then blighting and blasting the Church. In this 
 poem, we see the first stragglings of a mighty spirit 
 which shall yet cause an unworthy occupant of 
 Peter's chair to tremble for his security. 
 
 The reigning pontiff during the seven years of 
 Savonarola's residence in Bologna was Sixtus IV. 
 This pope was described in the opening chapter as 
 "a shameless promoter of nepotism," and a man 
 who "legalized prostitution to increase the revenues 
 of his papal court." If the political situation in 
 Italy was bad, and it was bad, there was nothing 
 in the leadership of the Church to make it better. 
 Rome was impotent. No wonder such a condition 
 of affairs roused the righteous wrath of the young 
 monk. He could not help seeing that the scan- 
 dalous lust of Sixtus knew no bounds. His five 
 nephews were all singled out for high honors. 
 One was made Prefect of Rome, another a cardi- 
 nal, the third suddenly acquired much gold and 
 married a princess, the fourth, a particular favorite 
 of the pope, the notorious Riario, was elevated 
 from simple friar to cardinal prelate, with title San 
 Sisto. And he had further honors in being made 
 Patriarch of Constantinople and Archbishop of 
 Florence. Dashing, unscrupulous, and ambitious, 
 this ecclesiastical spendthrift reveled in such 
 unusual luxury of living that he rivaled even the 
 most dissolute of Italian princes. This, too, in an 
 age when the gross dissoluteness of Italian princes 
 was notorious. 
 
 The name of this Riario was well known in 
 Ferrara. Stories of his hospitality (hospitality of 
 doubtful propriety it was, too) to the Princess
 
 IN THE MONASTERY OF BOLOGNA. 37 
 
 Elenora of Aragon when in Rome, were public 
 property in the city. It was known also that none 
 of these excesses seemed to change in the least the 
 affection of Sixtus for his favorite nephew. The 
 character of this pope and the unholy doings of his 
 gay nephew, whose sins even a cardinal's robes 
 could not hide, were known and scorned by the 
 young Savonarola. 
 
 The general degradation politically which made 
 possible such open scandal in the Church, has been 
 accounted for by the fact that whereas former 
 rulers had fought their way to power over the 
 heads of their enemies, their sons, born in ease 
 and reared in palaces, were only trained to the 
 luxuries of life. Such conditions were favorable 
 to war; not great war, but petty war. Plots and 
 conspiracies were frequent. One of the worst con- 
 spiracies of the time, that of the Pazzi in Florence, 
 is so suggestive of political and ecclesiastical con- 
 ditions, that it perhaps ought to be told just here. 
 The name of the Medici has already been referred 
 to. The house was the most powerful in Florence, 
 and for half a century they were absolute masters 
 of the city. One member of this house, Lorenzo 
 de' Medici, familiarly known as Lorenzo the Mag- 
 nificent, will stand out as one of the two most 
 conspicuous figures in the background of the pic- 
 ture of Savonarola and his times. The Pazzi were 
 also a noble family of Florence. They were re- 
 lated to the Medici, but jealous of them. Their 
 name has been given to a plot made against the 
 life of Lorenzo and his brother Giuliano. They 
 were not the prime movers in the plot, but they
 
 38 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 were active in it. It has been charged that the 
 instigator of the conspiracy was no less a person- 
 age than Pope Sixtus himself. The charge is 
 probably without foundation, but it is certain that 
 his beautiful nephew, the gay Riario, had a hand 
 in the plans, and that Salviati, Archbishop of Pisa, 
 was an active participant. The plan was to as- 
 sassinate the two brothers at once on a given 
 Sunday, and during mass, in the cathedral. Mon- 
 tesecco, a soldier of some reputation, was hired to 
 do the deed; but when he found what place they 
 had fixed upon for the killing his courage failed. 
 He was ready to commit murder, but would not 
 bring upon himself the guilt of sacrilege in addi- 
 tion. The conspirators had to find other instru- 
 ments. Two priests finally consented. Why not? 
 Were they not asked by princes of the Church? 
 And were not the liberties of the people to be re- 
 stored when the enemy was dead? Had not Riario 
 and Salviati promised it? And did they not truly 
 represent the Head of the Church? The signal 
 agreed upon was the ringing of the bell which 
 announced the elevation of the host. One priest 
 did his work well. Giuliano fell dead at the first 
 thrust or two of the knife. Lorenzo escaped. He 
 was wounded, but drawing his sword fought his 
 way bravely to the sacristy. The conspirators then 
 sought to rouse the populace. The populace was 
 ready and rose up, but not in defense of the Pazzi. 
 That very day, and within a few hours after the 
 bloody celebration of the mass, the Archbishop of 
 Pisa was hung from a window of the Riccardi 
 palace, his ecclesiastical robes still on, and beside
 
 IN THE MONASTERY OF BOLOGNA. 39 
 
 him hung the lifeless form of one of the Pazzi. 
 Others of the conspirators were quickly hunted out 
 and slain. Not much care was taken to identify 
 them either. The important thing was to do enough 
 killing to give the impression that the conspirators 
 were thoroughly punished. 
 
 The purpose of this conspiracy was supremacy. 
 The most extraordinary feature about the affair 
 was the rank of the principals. If Pope Sixtus 
 did not promote the conspiracy he certainly did 
 not try to prevent it. His pet nephew would have 
 profited had it succeeded. No wonder the pope 
 was angry when he heard how the plot had failed. 
 It is said that he broke forth in fierce threats and 
 anathemas ; not against the assassins, but against 
 Lorenzo and the people of his city. He suspended 
 the bishops and clergy of Florence from the exer- 
 cise of all spiritual functions. And this was in 
 the open ! Men knew about it and talked about it. 
 
 What of Savonarola? Did he see clearly the 
 meaning of it all? Three years before, the har- 
 lotry of Rome had so stirred his soul that he cried 
 out, "O God, lady, that I might break those spread- 
 ing wings !" How these later happenings must 
 have roused his righteous indignation! "It was 
 in these times and amid these events that the mind 
 of Savonarola grew into shape." 
 
 In the monastery, carefully attending to the 
 instruction of the novices, Savonarola did not for- 
 get that the "chaste and venerable virgin" had said, 
 "Weep and be silent ; so it seemeth best to me." 
 He was austere in his habits ; far more so than the 
 rules of the brotherhood required. He fasted much
 
 4O GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 and ate only what was necessary to sustain life. 
 His clothing was plain and coarse, but always 
 scrupulously clean. He preached poverty faith- 
 fully and earnestly, but he abhorred dirt. Like 
 John Wesley of a later time he believed that clean- 
 liness is next to godliness. His bed was a rudely 
 arranged lattice work of wood, covered with a 
 sack of straw and a rough woolen blanket. His 
 vigils of prayer were frequent and long continued. 
 Worn almost to a skeleton by his rigid mortifica- 
 tion of the flesh, he walked about looking more 
 like a shadow than a man. 
 
 There is a story that two monks of Vallom- 
 brosa who came to visit him were so struck by the 
 contrast between his coarse garments and their 
 own luxurious attire that they thought it nec- 
 essary to make some explanation. Their frocks 
 they said were made of fine cloth because it wore, 
 so much longer. "Ah," replied Savonarola dryly, 
 "what a pity it is that St. Benedict and San Gio- 
 vanni Gualberto did not know that; for then they 
 might have worn the same!" The monks had no 
 further excuses to offer for their fine clothes. 
 
 As a teacher of the novices Savonarola's suc- 
 cess was marked. He was thorough in his stud- 
 ies. He thought clearly and had rare power in 
 expressing his thoughts to others when speaking 
 to a small company of interested hearers. In Bo- 
 logna he took up the writings of Plato, and for a 
 time was greatly interested in them; but the book 
 he studied most and loved best was the Bible. It 
 was in the exposition of the Bible to the novices, 
 rather than in explaining Aristotle and the prin- 
 ciples of physics, in which he found greatest de-
 
 IN THE MONASTERY OF BOW>GNA. 41 
 
 light. Such was his success with the novices that 
 he was promoted from the office of instructor to 
 that of preacher, and was sent to visit several of 
 the convents in Northern Italy and to preach in the 
 churches. In 1481 he was appointed to preach in 
 Ferrara, his native city. This was not an easy 
 task, and he went to it unwillingly. Something of 
 the spirit of prophecy was already upon him, but 
 he shrank from the pulpit. A fire burned in his 
 soul, but he was not yet ready to preach. Besides, 
 Ferrara was the last place he would have chosen. 
 This was his home, and he was not sure how his 
 message would be received. 
 
 But he was under command to preach, and he 
 gave himself to the task with enthusiasm and 
 energy. His sermons do not seem to have made 
 any great impression, either in Ferrara or in other 
 cities and towns where he preached. This may 
 have been because he had not yet learned how to 
 express the thought which burned within his soul. 
 It was a keen disappointment to him that his 
 preaching in Ferrara was not more fruitful in re- 
 sults. In a letter to his mother he says, "It is very 
 seldom that a monk can do his best work in his 
 native country. People have less confidence in the 
 counsels of a fellow-citizen than in those of a 
 stranger. 'No prophet is accepted in his own 
 country,' said our Savior; and he was not ac- 
 counted one by his own countrymen. If I were 
 to do in Ferrara what I do in other cities they 
 would say as they did of Christ, 'Is not this the 
 carpenter, the son of a carpenter and of Mary?' 
 So of me: 'Is not this Master Girolamo who com- 
 mitted such and such sins, and who was no better
 
 42 GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 than we were? We know him well/ And they 
 would give no heed to my word." Perhaps another 
 reason why he was not heard with greater favor 
 was that his preaching was so strikingly different 
 from that of the friars, whose aim was not edifica- 
 tion but entertainment. The passion to please dic- 
 tated the pulpit fashion of the age. The popular 
 friars tickled the ears of the multitude with sto- 
 ries and buffooneries, coarse jokes and the like '> 
 they spoke smooth sentences and they were enter- 
 taining. Such preaching Savonarola branded as a 
 dead word and not Jesus Christ. 
 
 The sermons in Ferrara were cut short by civil 
 war. The States of the Church on one side and the 
 States of the princes on the other, seemed about to 
 center upon Ferrara as their battle-ground, the 
 forces of Sixtus coming from the south and the 
 forces of Venice from the north. Savonarola was 
 ordered by his superior to leave Ferrara and take 
 up quarters with the brothers of San Marco in 
 Florence. 
 
 The journey across the Apennines must have 
 been one filled with strange thoughts, disap- 
 pointment and home commingled. From the 
 heights of Fiesole he would catch his first glimpse 
 of his new home. Standing there where he stood, 
 with the blue heights of the Apennines behind us 
 and the valley of the Arno at our feet, let us look 
 for a moment at the city to which our young monk 
 is going. Florence is beautiful for situation. "The 
 city of flowers and the flower of cities" shines in 
 all its mediaeval splendor. The slopes above the 
 left bank of the winding Arno, from San Miniato 
 towards the sea, and the heights above the side
 
 IN THE MONASTERY OF BOLOGNA. 43 
 
 of the city nearest us, from beyond Careggi there 
 to the left of the road which leads to Fiesole, are 
 decked with charming villas, which look out from 
 their foliaged surroundings like gems of beauty 
 glittering under the soft and sunny skies of Tus- 
 cany. There within the city gates are the palaces 
 of the nobility. Art and architecture have done 
 their* best to build within the walls of Florence 
 monuments which shall be the marvel of succeed- 
 ing centuries. Arnolfo's tower stands above its pal- 
 ace of strength, a silent sentinel, but ready to ring 
 out its warning in the hour of danger. The Loggia 
 dei Lanzi looks out on the Piazza, as if to listen to 
 the discussions of the people and learn their 
 thoughts. The Campanile of Giotto shines like a 
 silver pillar! Ruskin describes it as the best com- 
 bination of strength and beauty ever produced by 
 mortal. In front of the Duomo are the bronze 
 doors of Ghiberti hanging on their hinges in the 
 Baptistery. "They are fit," said Michael Angelo, 
 "to be the gates of Paradise." But above all and 
 king of all is the mighty dome of Brunelleschi, 
 without a rival among all the cathedrals of Italy. 
 
 The conspicuous man in this Florence is Lo- 
 renzo the Magnificent. Most illustrious member 
 of the house of Medici, he is now at the height 
 of his power and fame. For Lorenzo as the patron 
 of learning and art no eulogy is too extravagant. 
 Painting is awakened to new life ; sculpture is hon- 
 ored; princely palaces are built and stately 
 churches; the classics have nowhere more earnest 
 study ; on the street corners and in the market- 
 place men discuss the rival philosophies of Plato 
 and Aristotle. Lorenzo has gathered about him a
 
 44 GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 company of artists and scholars matched nowhere 
 in all Europe. There is Poliziano! brilliant pro- 
 fessor of Greek and Latin eloquence in the univer- 
 sity, first poet of his age. There is Landino ! the ex- 
 positor of Dante. There is Pico della Mirandola! 
 "the most learned creature," says Mrs. Oliphant, 
 "that ever fluttered near a prince ;" classical writer 
 and Orientalist, linguist and scientist. There is 
 Marsilio Ficino! founder of the far-famed Platonic 
 Academy; the man who more than any other rep- 
 resents the renaissance of Platonic philosophy and 
 exerts largest influence in the progress of inde- 
 pendent thought. Into this charmed circle will 
 come in a few days the young Michael Angelo 
 to chisel his mighty conceptions into forms of 
 beauty. 
 
 This is the Florence upon which Savonarola 
 now looks for the first time. He will make his 
 home in the monastery of San Marco, just within 
 the San Gallo gate yonder. Florence ! The simple 
 monk who approaches thy gates is a man thou wilt 
 do well to know. The spotless lily on thy coat of 
 arms has not more purity in its face than thou 
 wilt find in his soul. He will be a better prophet 
 of thy future than any representative of -thy Pla- 
 tonic Academy. He will touch diviner notes of 
 poetry in thy Duomo yonder than any son of the 
 muses who sits at Lorenzo's table. He will speak 
 out for thy liberty when every other voice is si- 
 lent. He will have the courage and fortitude to 
 steady thy ship of State when mobs and tyrants 
 would peril thy independence. Open thy gates 
 wide to him to-day ! Bid him welcome.
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 EARLY DAYS IN SAN MARCO. 
 
 THE early days in San Marco seem to have been 
 hopeful ones. Angels, madonnas, and saints, fresh 
 from the brush of Angelico, looked down on the 
 new brother with heavenly faces. The name of 
 the holy bishop, Antonino, was ever on the lips of 
 the monks. The novices listened with rapt atten- 
 tion to the new lecturer. There was an air of 
 scholarship in the new surroundings which was 
 pleasing to the eager mind of Savonarola. Here 
 in this monastery were spent the happiest and most 
 joyful years of his life; here also the saddest and 
 most painful. 
 
 The monastery of San Marco was originally 
 the home of a company of Sylvestrine monks who 
 had come from Vallombrosa in the closing years 
 of the thirteenth century. For a full hundred years 
 these brothers of St. Sylvester lived worthy lives 
 and wrought for the good of the Church and for 
 Florence. After the great plague described by 
 Boccaccio, discipline was relaxed and evils began 
 to creep in. In 1436, through the influence of 
 Cosimo de' Medici, the property was turned over 
 to a society of Dominicans who had formerly lived 
 in a small monastery at Fiesole, but later estab- 
 lished themselves in a convent in the region of San 
 Miniato, back of where the Boboli gardens are now. 
 
 45
 
 46 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 This monastery was turned over to the Sylvestrine 
 monks, and the Brothers of St. Dominic, in solemn 
 procession, entered San Marco. 
 
 The buildings of San Marco were at that time ' 
 in a sad state of dilapidation, partly through neg- 
 lect and partly because of a serious fire during the 
 previous year. Cosimo, the great patron of the 
 Dominicans in Florence, promised 10,000 florins 
 for the rebuilding of the monastery. He actually 
 spent nearly 40,000 before he was done. The work 
 was intrusted to Michelozzo Michelozzi, one of the 
 most celebrated architects of the day. The result 
 was practically a new monastery which was com- 
 pleted in 1443. Not content with the new build- 
 ings, Cosimo desired to secure for the Dominicans 
 a valuable library. But manuscripts were expen- 
 sive, and it was no easy task to secure such a li- 
 brary as Cosimo wanted. Fortunately for him, the 
 greatest collector of manuscripts in all Europe, 
 Niccolo Niccoli, had just died leaving his rare and 
 valuable collection to Florence. But with manu- 
 scripts and codices he had also bequeathed many 
 debts, which the city was not able to assume. 
 These Cosimo paid off, and then turned over the 
 whole library, not counting a few codices which 
 he reserved for himself, to the monastery. This 
 library gave to San Marco a pleasing pre-eminence 
 as a center of erudition and culture. Brothers of 
 the Dominican Order, ambitious for further knowl- 
 edge of letters, came to Florence, and men of dis- 
 tinction both lay and clerical, frequently visited the 
 monastery to see the library and to converse with 
 the more learned of the friars.
 
 EARLY DAYS IN SAN MARCO. 47 
 
 Two men so lived and wrought in this mon- 
 astery during the early years of its history that 
 no sketch of Savonarola, however brief, would be 
 complete without mentioning their names, and tell- 
 ing something of what they did. One was Giovanni 
 da Fiesole, known to Christian art, and to the 
 Christian world, as Fra Angelico. It was he who 
 covered the convent walls with the incomparable, 
 frescoes already referred to. Vasari describes him 
 as a man of simple and blameless life, who painted 
 incessantly, but never painted other than sacred 
 subjects. He might have amassed *a fortune, but 
 he scorned to do so, saying that true riches con- 
 sisted in being content with little. He might have 
 enjoyed dignities both within and without his con- 
 vent, but he refused. Humane and temperate, he 
 led a chaste life, avoiding the snares of the world, 
 and he was wont to explain that peace and quiet 
 were essential to the pursuit of art, and that he 
 who illustrates the acts of Christ should live in 
 his presence. If he received an order for a paint- 
 ing, he would first consult the wishes of his su- 
 perior ; permission once granted, he was always 
 ready to perform his part. In a word, he was 
 modest and humble in all his actions, and in his 
 pictures tender and pious. No one, so well as he, 
 knew how to confer upon saints the air and sem- 
 blance of real sanctity. He never retouched or al- 
 tered anything he had finished, but left it as it 
 was, believing it to be the wish of God that it 
 should be so. An appreciative Catholic critic says : 
 "Fra Angelico, I feel tempted to believe, nour- 
 ished his mind on the Imitation of Christ when he
 
 48 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 was not studying the Holy Scriptures; for it is 
 the spirit of the 'Imitation,' the spirit of the Gos- 
 pel of St. John, that illuminates his canvases." 
 No visitor to San Marco can enter the cells, linger 
 in the cloisters, or sit down in the chapter-house 
 before the great crucifixion without feeling that 
 Michael Angelo was right in saying that Angelico 
 must have visited Paradise and been allowed to 
 select his models from among those he saw there. 
 Painting to him was prayer, and his pictures were 
 as prayers laid at the feet of his Savior. The 
 Catholic Church has never written his name in 
 the list of saints, but Christian art knows him as 
 "Angelico." 
 
 The second name is that of Antonino, already 
 described, as "the holy bishop whose cell is at 
 the right on entering the corridor." Proud as the 
 brothers of San Marco were of all their costly 
 manuscripts and rich treasures of art, they gloried 
 most in their founder and spiritual father, An- 
 tonino. He was one of those characters, says Vil- 
 lari, who are the true glories of the human race. 
 One of those true men he was, whose life was a 
 living example of self-abnegation, active charity, 
 and beautiful Christian love. He was the founder 
 of nearly every benevolent institution in Florence. 
 The institutions he did not found he revived or 
 changed their purpose. He had the happy faculty 
 of touching the bad and making it good. The so- 
 ciety of the Bigallo, once captains of the faith, but 
 later the terror of Florence, was transformed into 
 a society for the rescue and care of forsaken or- 
 phans. It was he who founded the society of
 
 EARI,Y DAYS IN SAN MARCO. 49 
 
 "The Good Men of St. Martin," a society to 
 secure relief for the honest poor who were 
 ashamed to beg. These are only a few of the 
 things he did for the public benefit. Often he was 
 seen going about the city leading a donkey loaded 
 with bread and clothes for those who suffered from 
 poverty and plague. His death, in 1459, was 
 mourned in Florence as a public calamity. His 
 name in the monastery was like ointment poured 
 out. 
 
 Such was the San Marco to which Savonarola 
 came in 1481. .Charmed by the frescoes of An- 
 gelico, and influenced by the spirit of Antonino, 
 which still pervaded the cloister, the early days in 
 Florence must have been among the happiest of 
 his life. No wonder he felt that he had come into 
 the world of his dreams. The past was almost 
 forgotten in an ambitious and hopeful present. 
 
 But that keen and true eye which had looked 
 beneath the surface in Ferrara, soon began to dis- 
 cover that in Florence also there was a seeming 
 and a real. The monks who lauded Antonino took 
 no thought to live his life. The painters who 
 praised Angelico had nothing of his spirit. Art 
 had no high ideal. Much of the boasted scholar- 
 ship was only meaningless imitation. The people, 
 fascinated by the spell of their magnificent Lorenzo, 
 had lost their liberties and did not know it. In 
 the shows and carnivals of their ruler, they heard 
 only "the ringing of silver plate and the clinking 
 of Venetian glass." In the tightening grip of the 
 tyrant, his usurpation, profligacy, and bloodshed; 
 in the lewd songs of the street and the abandoned
 
 5O GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 corruption of the popular mind; in the fawning 
 parasitism of the princely families and the spolia- 
 tion of public morals; in the intolerable degrada- 
 tion of the poor and the free play of the assassin's 
 dagger, Savonarola heard "the clanking of chains 
 and the groans of human beings in pain." 
 
 The preachers of Florence quoted in their ser- 
 mons from the Greek poets and Latin orators ; sel- 
 dom from the Gospels and Epistles. They pre- 
 sented not the Christ of Calvary but the gods of 
 Olympus. The Church had become paganized. 
 With eye and ear open to all, the old indignation 
 of Savonarola again broke forth. Often the im- 
 passioned cry must have escaped, in the privacy 
 of his cell or as he walked about the monastery, 
 "O, that I might break those spreading wings!" 
 
 The opportunity came. He was invited to 
 preach the Lenten sermons in the Church of San 
 Lorenzo. As lecturer in San Marco he had made 
 some reputation, and a fine audience greeted him 
 for the first sermon; but before the sermons were 
 done less than two-score people remained to hear 
 him. The defeat was simply overwhelming. Was 
 it because the people of Florence were not church- 
 goers? Not at all. Fra Mariano was preaching to 
 crowds in the spacious Church of Santo Spirito, 
 on the other side of the Arno. The church was 
 filled to the doors at every service, and everywhere 
 the sermons were praised, praised for their grand 
 sentences and periods of harmonious cadence. 
 What will Savonarola do? The pulpit is closed 
 against him by his own announcement that he will 
 preach no more. The one direction in which he
 
 EARLY DAYS IN SAN MARCO. 51 
 
 must go, he can not go! Florence is not yet ready 
 for her great preacher. The city must listen a little 
 longer to Mariano. 
 
 But if the people were not yet ready for their 
 preacher, neither was the preacher ready for the 
 people. He had not yet found his true voice. He 
 could not speak his message. His vision was not 
 yet clear and complete. He must go out from the 
 city into the village of Tuscany where, in the moun- 
 tains, like Moses and Elijah, he shall receive more 
 fully the word which God will have him speak.
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 IN THE .VILLAGES OF TUSCANY. 
 
 IT was a keen disappointment to Savonarola 
 that his first attempt at preaching in Florence was 
 such a failure. With bowed head, and hood drawn 
 tightly about his face, he went to his cell with a 
 heavy heart. If he had been a man without a mes- 
 sage it would have been different. But he had a 
 message, and he knew it. The "spreading wings" 
 he saw always as a dark cloud looming up in 
 the south. No man could see clearly what he saw 
 without having a message. 
 
 The trouble was he could not speak out what 
 was within him. For some reason he did not as 
 yet have power to challenge and hold the atten- 
 tion of the people. Perhaps this was in part 
 because of his harsh and unfamiliar Lombard 
 speech, so different from the soft> musical rhyth- 
 mic speech of Tuscany. The form of his address, 
 too, may have had something to do with his fail- 
 ure. The tricks of oratory he could not endure. 
 Besides, he preached from an unfamiliar book 
 the Bible. Plato, Aristotle, and Aquinas the peo- 
 ple knew about. But Moses and Isaiah, St. John 
 and St. Paul ! To such writings as these men had 
 given little concern. Savonarola preached the 
 great themes of the Bible. The very language of 
 
 52
 
 IN THE VILLAGES OF TUSCANY. 53 
 
 the Bible he quoted much in his sermons. His 
 was an earnest, straightforward, and, at times, im- 
 passioned message, vitally related to the life of 
 the men and women about him. But he was not 
 yet the medium through whom God could speak 
 to Florence of her wickedness in high places and 
 the foulness lurking in the dark. 
 
 The ideal preacher of Florence was Fra Ma- 
 riano. He preached the sort of a sermon that the 
 gay city enjoyed. "I went to hear him," writes 
 the refined and learned Poliziano to a friend, 
 "feeling badly disposed, and mistrustful of the 
 great praises I had heard of him. But no sooner 
 did I enter the church than the preacher's appear- 
 ance, his habit and his face, wrought a revulsion 
 in my feelings, and I at once desired and expected 
 great things. I confess to thee, that he frequently 
 seemed to soar to a gigantic height in the pulpit, 
 far beyond all human proportions. And now, be- 
 hold, he begins to speak! I am all ears to the 
 musical voice, the chosen words, the grand sen- 
 tences. Then I note the clauses, recognize the 
 periods, am swayed by their harmonious cadence." 
 This was the preacher for pleasure-loving Florence. 
 He had a musical voice, his words were well 
 chosen, and what "grand sentences" he spoke! 
 And then to think of the "clauses," "the periods," 
 and the "harmonious cadences !" Florence asked 
 nothing better of a preacher than this. Mariano 
 completely overshadowed every other preacher of 
 the city. The leaders, politicians and devotees of 
 Plato, heard him with delight. Everybody else 
 followed them.
 
 54 GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 It was the wonderful popularity of this Fra 
 Mariano which led a friend of Savonarola to say 
 to him one day not long after his failure in San 
 Lorenzo, "Father, one can not deny that your doc- 
 trine is true, useful and necessary; but your man- 
 ner of delivering it lacks grace, especially as it 
 is daily compared with that of Fra Mariano." 
 Stung by the covert suggestion, Savonarola re- 
 plied rather impatiently, "These verbal eloquences 
 and ornaments will have to give way to sound 
 doctrine simply preached." Meanwhile Mariano's 
 popularity increased. His "grand sentences" and 
 periods of "harmonious cadence" attracted and held 
 the people. That polished style of his ! Who in 
 Florence could resist it? "His words, phrases and 
 gestures were all studied ; his lines from the Latin 
 poets were declaimed with much eloquence ; and 
 he was lavish of quotations from Plato and Aris- 
 totle. His sermons were copied from the orations 
 of Ficino to the Platonic Academy, which were 
 then considered models of highest eloquence ; he 
 frequently recounted laughable anecdotes, and used 
 every device to swell the number of his hearers." 
 
 Savonarola, though humiliated, was not dis- 
 heartened. He went to his cell and devoted him- 
 self to the study of the Bible with greater en- 
 thusiasm than ever. The prophets loomed big 
 before him and he saw again how they fought 
 against ingratitude and against sin. He waited 
 much in prayer. He kept long vigils. At last a 
 vision came to him. The present and future 
 calamities of the Church passed before his eyes 
 and he heard a voice charging him to preach.
 
 IN THE VILLAGES otf TUSCANY. 55 
 
 At about this time he was sent by his superior 
 to Reggio, a little town in the extreme northern 
 part of Italy, to attend a chapter meeting of his 
 brotherhood. On the journey disquieting news 
 came to him of war breaking out against his native 
 city of Ferrara. He knew the cause to be the 
 greed and ambition of the man called to be the 
 head of the Church. In a spirit of holy indigna- 
 tion he could hardly contain, he arrived at Reggio. 
 The chapter meeting was attended not only by 
 Dominican Brothers, but by a large company of 
 ecclesiastics, and by laymen distinguished in letters 
 and science. The man who claimed most atten- 
 tion was Pico della Mirandola. This prodigy, still 
 in his teens, was easily the center of attraction. 
 Distinguished scholars bowed before him and he re- 
 ceived the homage of the highest dignitaries of the 
 Church. His precocity and marvelous memory ex- 
 cited the astonishment of all. It was said of him later 
 that he was acquainted with not less than twenty- 
 two different languages. In fact he devoted him- 
 self to the study of all languages and of all tongues 
 for which teachers and grammars could be found. 
 Imitating the Platonists of Alexandria he sought 
 to harmonize theology and philosophy, and even 
 attempted to reconcile paganism with Christianity. 
 It seems almost ludicrous, but in 1486 he went to 
 Rome and proposed a philosophical tournament. 
 Nine hundred propositions were issued, including 
 all questions in all the sciences. With rare com- 
 placency he announced his readiness to reply to 
 all comers. He even sent invitations to men of 
 learning in all countries to visit Rome and ques-
 
 56 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 tion him concerning any or all of his propositions. 
 The tournament was suddenly brought to an end 
 by Pope Innocent VIII, who condemned the ques- 
 tions, the whole nine hundred of them. 
 
 It is probable that Pico's vast erudition was 
 not what his friends claimed and that his literary 
 ability was greatly overrated. Nevertheless, his 
 quickness of mind; his wonderful memory; the 
 varied brilliancy of his conversation ; his nobility 
 and grace; his youthful beauty; the fair hair fall- 
 ing in thick curls on his shoulders; everything 
 about him, in short, attracted sympathy and helped 
 to advance his reputation. He was the man who 
 was the center of attraction for all the distinguished 
 scholars attending the chapter at Reggio. At that 
 moment, fresh from the universities of Bologna 
 and Ferrara, where he had completed his studies 
 in theology and philosophy, he was at the height 
 of his youthful beauty and already renowned for 
 his eloquence. 
 
 Not much chance for Savonarola to speak out 
 his thoughts before such a company as this, but 
 he was there to represent San Marco, and he 
 waited ready to speak if commanded. Silent he 
 sat among his brother monks, yet there was, some- 
 thing about his appearance which there, as every- 
 where, attracted attention. He was a man of me- 
 dium height and dark complexion ; he had gray 
 eyes, aquiline nose, and large mouth; his thick 
 lips spoke purpose of stubborn firmness; his fore- 
 head was marked with deep furrows that told of 
 serious thought; there was no line of beauty in 
 his countenance, but a benevolent charm and a
 
 IN THE VISAGES otf TUSCANY. 57 
 
 severe nobility of character which inspired confi- 
 dence. 
 
 While the discussions were taken up with rit- 
 ual and dogma Savonarola sat silent and appar- 
 ently unconcerned. But when a question of 
 morals and discipline was touched upon he rose 
 to his feet. All eyes were fastened upon him! 
 Now for the first time he spoke his convictions 
 with power. The soul of the man expressed itself 
 in every gesture and movement. With radiant 
 countenance, eyes darting flashes of lightning, his 
 warning struck like hot thunderbolts. His hear- 
 ers were transfixed with amazement. Pico della 
 Mirandola, who heard him that day, confessed him 
 to be a wonderful man, gifted with a mysterious 
 moral force, and said, "Here is a man who once 
 known can never be forgotten." From that day 
 Pico became the friend of Savonarola. To Lorenzo 
 the Magnificent he sent a message expressing his 
 belief that the eloquent monk would contribute 
 much to the glory of Florence, and urged Lorenzo 
 to invite him to make there his permanent home. 
 But Savonarola was not yet ready to speak his 
 message in Florence. He returned to the city 
 when the chapter meeting was over, but gave him- 
 self with enthusiasm to the further study of the 
 Bible and to the work in which he was always 
 successful, the instruction of the novices. 
 
 An event of great moment to Italy and the 
 Christian Church occurred now, in the death of 
 Sixtus IV. Righteous souls rejoiced in the begin- 
 ning of better days for Christianity. No one 
 dreamed that a worse pope could come to the
 
 58 GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 papal chair than Sixtus, who had so outrageously 
 disgraced the tiara and all else he touched. It 
 was now that Savonarola wrote a poetic prayer 
 addressed to Jesus Christ: 
 
 " Ah ! look with pity on Thy storm-beaten bride, 
 Look on the blood that must be shed ; 
 Unless Thy merciful hand, 
 The hand ever ready to pardon, 
 Will not restore her to the peace 
 Of past day of poverty." 
 
 The result of the conclave in the election of 
 Innocent VIII startled even the pleasure-loving 
 priests and smooth-tongued orators of the Lenten 
 season. It seemed incredible ! But in Florence 
 as well as in Rome, the names of the cardinals 
 who had sold their votes were freely discussed, as 
 well as the prices paid. Many pious souls would 
 gladly have gone back to the days of Sixtus. Cath- 
 olic writers make sad work in trying to offer any 
 apology whatever for Innocent VIII. It was no- 
 torious that in his day the Roman court became 
 the center of sensuality and scandalous living. 
 With religion openly threatened and humanity dis- 
 honored, men waited with bated breath what doom 
 might yet be reserved for poor Italy. 
 
 The storm of emotion which swept the soul 
 of Savonarola can not be described. It is haYd 
 even to imagine. Fortunately he got out of Flor- 
 ence; got where he could breathe, away from the 
 frightful surroundings which daily reminded him 
 of the great scandal of Rome. He was sent to San 
 Gemignano. The people here were simple folk 
 who had not yet learned that the true test of a
 
 IN THE VISAGES OF TUSCANY. 59 
 
 sermon was in its "grand sentences and periods of 
 harmonious cadence." They did know something 
 of the political conditions in Italy, and they knew 
 also that there was something wrong with the 
 Church. They had a vague sense that the times 
 were out of joint. Here it was, and in speaking to 
 this people, that the thoughts which had so long 
 filled Savonarola's soul definitely voiced themselves 
 and became a real message. He sounded here the 
 spiritual battle-cry which had come to him after 
 seeing the vision of the calamities about to fall 
 upon the Church. He boldly announced that the 
 Church would be scourged; that it would be re- 
 generated ; and that all this would come to pass 
 speedily. This announcement was not made as a 
 vision; it was a conclusion supported by rational 
 argument and on the authority of the Bible. The 
 scourge of God's wrath must come! It could not 
 be otherwise. The transgressions of His people 
 compelled it. 
 
 Here then at San Gemignano Savonarola dis- 
 covered that he had a message for men outside the 
 monastery. He had oftentimes stirred the blood 
 and fired the consciences of the novices with his 
 burning words; he had powerfully portrayed the 
 scandalous corruption of the Church to brother 
 monks and the learned men at Reggio ; but his 
 message in both instances was in the language of 
 the schools. At San Gemignano he spoke the lan- 
 guage of the people, and brought a message to the 
 people. What he did was not very unlike what 
 Wyclif had done in England a century before, 
 and what Martin Luther did a little later in Ger-
 
 60 GiROivAMO SAVONAROIA. 
 
 many, he brought the great word and message 
 of God to the common people. His was a strange 
 eloquence, wholly unfamiliar. The people had 
 never heard anything like it ; they were in ecstasy ; 
 they were moved. God's prophet had spoken to 
 them. It was here at San Gemignano that Savon- 
 arola found his true vocation. 
 
 When Fra Girolamo returned to Florence it 
 was with a new calm and confidence. He could 
 wait now, for he knew that somehow, in God's 
 good time, "the spreading wings" would be broken. 
 He re-entered upon his work as lecturer to the 
 novices with increased confidence in the heavenly 
 vision, and with a strong conviction that through 
 the preaching of the Book, and through this only, 
 men would be brought to right living. 
 
 The Lenten season of 1486 found Savonarola 
 at Brescia, a town some two hundred miles north 
 of Florence, just at the foot of the Alps. If the 
 Lenten season the year before at San Gemignano 
 had been eventful, this one at Brescia was even 
 more so. The man was being guided to his God- 
 appointed work. His theme in this series of ser- 
 mons was the Book of Revelation. With fervent 
 words and commanding tone he spoke with .a voice 
 which sometimes seemed to the people the voice 
 of thunder. He reproved sin, denounced the cor- 
 ruptions of the time, and pointed out the impending 
 threatenings of God's wrath. "Your city here," he 
 declared, "will fall a prey to raging foes ; you will 
 see rivers of blood in the streets; wives will be 
 torn from their husbands, virgins ravished, and 
 children murdered before their mothers' eyes. All
 
 IN THE VIUAGES of TUSCANY. 61 
 
 will be terror and fire and bloodshed." Then, with 
 a persuasive eloquence, never forgotten by the peo- 
 ple who heard him, he exhorted to repentance; 
 he described God's mercy and infinite forgiveness. 
 It was a voice from the other world. When the 
 sermons were done, there was no talk in Brescia 
 but of the wonderful preacher. 
 
 A quarter of a century later, when the blood- 
 thirsty soldiers of Gaston de Foix slaughtered six 
 thousand people in Brescia, there were many who 
 remembered Fra Girolamo's message of warning. 
 All Italy soon heard that a new prophet had risen 
 up in the north. Savonarola could no longer doubt 
 his mission. He preached in Genoa, and later in 
 Pavia and in Bologna. Shortly before going to 
 Genoa he wrote a letter to his mother which is 
 strikingly suggestive of his spirit and purpose at 
 this time. "I have renounced the world, and have 
 become a laborer in my Master's vineyard in many 
 cities, not only to save my own soul, but the souls 
 of other men. If the Lord have intrusted the tal- 
 ent to me, I must needs use it as He wills; and 
 seeing that He hath chosen me for this sacred 
 office, rest ye content that I must fulfill it far from 
 my native place, for I bear better fruit than I 
 could have borne at Ferrara. There it would be 
 with me as it was with Christ, when his country- 
 men said, 'Is not this man a carpenter, and a son 
 of a carpenter?' But out of my own place it has 
 never been said to me ; rather, when I have to 
 depart, men and women shed tears, and hold my 
 words in much esteem." He perhaps had in mind 
 here the leave-taking after the Lenten season at
 
 62 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 Brescia. "I thought to have written only a few 
 lines, but love hath caused my pen to run on, 
 and I have opened my heart to you far more than 
 was my purpose. Know, then, that this heart of 
 mine is more than ever bent on devoting soul and 
 body, and all the knowledge granted to me by 
 God, to His service and to my neighbor's salva- 
 tion; and since this work was not to be done in 
 my own land, I am fain to perform it elsewhere. 
 Encourage all to righteous living. I depart for 
 Genoa this day." 
 
 After preaching in these cities of the North 
 Savonarola yielded to the invitation of Lorenzo and 
 returned to Florence. Little did Lorenzo know 
 whom he was inviting to come. He thought it 
 was a friend of his own true friend, Pico della 
 Mirandola. Had he known what a foe of tyranny 
 Savonarola was, and how he would destroy the 
 power of his own house, the invitation would not 
 have been sent. There was just one prophet in 
 Northern Italy at that time to whom God had 
 given a message against the corruptions of the age, 
 and there was just one city where the prophet's 
 message could be spoken to the best advantage. 
 The prophet was Savonarola; the city, Florence.
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 LORENZO AND HIS CITY. 
 
 THE house of the Medici, renowned in Floren- 
 tine history and illustrious in Europe, was at the 
 zenith of its power and influence during the rule 
 of Lorenzo the Magnificent. For our present pur- 
 pose the first member of the house we need to 
 know about is Giovanni, a wealthy merchant-prince 
 of Florence in the early part of the fifteenth cen- 
 tury. It was this Giovanni who amassed the for- 
 tune which brought the family into prominence. 
 He was the richest banker of his day in all Italy. 
 
 The history of Florence has been divided into 
 four periods: first, the heroic stage, from 1183 to 
 1321 ; second, the leveling stage, from 1321 to 
 1382 ; third, the reactionary or aristocratic stage, 
 from 1382 to 1434; fourth, the Medicean, or servile, 
 stage. The third period was marked by the rule 
 of a burgher aristocracy, made possible by certain 
 families coming to quick riches. There was much 
 of disorder in this period, for it was one of transi- 
 tion. During part of the time Florence was the 
 seat of the papacy. In 1419 Pope Martin V took 
 up his residence in Florence, and thus made it the 
 center of Christendom. Guicciardini, in his "His- 
 tory of Florence," maintains that the government 
 at this epoch was the wisest, the most glorious, and 
 the happiest the city had ever known. The Renais- 
 
 63
 
 64 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 sance was dawning and Florence was full of 
 scholars and artists patronized by the government. 
 
 The great and ruling family of this period was 
 the Albizzi, which finally fell before the rapidly 
 growing strength and influence of Giovanni de' 
 Medici, whose fortune and extensive banking inter- 
 ests throughout Central and Northern Italy, and 
 even in Rome and Switzerland, made it possible 
 for him to wield a power almost irresistible. This 
 Giovanni was in his day the Rothschild of Italy. 
 He had a happy way of making private liberalities 
 add to his prestige in politics, and he had learned 
 the art of using political prestige for the purpose 
 of bringing florins to his banks. Great financial 
 advantage came to him through his friendly rela- 
 tions with the papal court. When Pope John 
 XXIII went to the Council of Constance, Giovanni 
 accompanied him; and through pontifical prefer- 
 ment had charge of the banking interests of the 
 council. This was a source of immense revenue 
 for the rich banker. On returning to Florence, his 
 wealth vastly increased, Giovanni was more care- 
 ful than ever to augment his popularity by liberal 
 giving. Individuals were helped by him, churches 
 and charitable institutions were in some instances 
 almost dependent upon him, and in critical mo- 
 ments he came to the relief of the government 
 itself. There were whispers of "conscience money" 
 at times, but Giovanni was doing much for the 
 glory of Florence, and the wealthy banker was not 
 seriously hurt by small criticism. 
 
 It ought to be kept in mind that the Medici 
 did not at any time rule in Florence as the Este
 
 LORENZO AND His CITY. 65 
 
 did in Ferrara, or the Sforza in Milan. They were 
 not officers of the government at all. They were 
 the power behind the government. They were 
 known simply as citizens ; but their power was rec- 
 ognized everywhere as absolute. 
 
 On the death of Giovanni, Cosimo his son, af- 
 terwards known as the "Father of his Country," 
 was banished from the city. But even in banish- 
 ment his name and power were such that he was 
 everywhere treated as a royal guest. He enriched 
 every city he visited. His stay in Venice was cele- 
 brated by building a library for the Benedictines. 
 Michelozzo was the architect. In less than a year 
 a Signory was chosen in Florence favorable to the 
 Medici, and Cosimo returned to his native city, 
 "carried back," as he said, "to his country upon the 
 shoulders of all Italy." He saw the house of 
 the Albizzi in ruins, and entered in triumph his 
 own palace in the Via Larga. Florence was now 
 in the firm grasp of the "thin dark-faced mer- 
 chant." For three whole centuries, dating from this 
 triumphant entry, the history of Florence was con- 
 nected with that of the house of Medici. 
 
 The foreign policy inaugurated by Cosimo was 
 something entirely new for Florence. He began 
 by devising plans to put a stop to the wars which 
 for so long had been devastating fair Italy. First 
 of all, he allied himself with the house of Sforza 
 in Milan, giving lavishly of his money to make 
 strong his hold upon so important a city. The 
 understanding between Florence and Milan was not 
 looked upon with favor by the Florentine people; 
 nor did they regard with more favor the agreement 
 5
 
 66 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 entered into later with Naples. But this triple 
 alliance, as against Rome and Venice, did much to 
 preserve the balance of power in Italy for many 
 years. 
 
 Cosimo was a successful man of business, an 
 ideal husband and father, and apparently a kindly 
 fellow-citizen to all. He was particularly fond of 
 the society of artists and men of letters; Brunel- 
 leschi and Michelozzo, Donatello and Fra Filippo 
 Lippi, to name only a few intimately connected 
 with him, found in him the most generous and de- 
 serving of patrons. Many of the early Renaissance 
 churches and convents in Florence and its neigh- 
 borhood were built through his munificence. San 
 Lorenzo, San Marco, and the Badia of Fiesole, are 
 the most typical. He even founded a hospital in 
 Jerusalem. Why should one complain of the busi- 
 ness or political methods of a man so generous and 
 public spirited ? One of the remarks of this shrewd 
 and far-sighted merchant-prince, when it was gently 
 hinted that he was putting much money into public 
 buildings, was this: "I know the humors of this 
 city ; fifty years will not pass before we are driven 
 out; but the buildings will remain." 
 
 It was Cosimo, as previously stated, who 
 founded the great library in San Marco. He did 
 much for letters. The new learning commanded 
 his admiration and generous support. "To 
 Cosimo," says Burkhardt, "belongs the special 
 glory of recognizing in the Platonic philosophy the 
 fairest flower of the ancient world of thought, of 
 inspiring his friends with the same belief, and thus 
 of fostering within humanistic circles themselves
 
 LORENZO AND His CITY. 67 
 
 another and higher resuscitation of antiquity." It 
 was Cosimo who founded the far-famed Platonic 
 Academy of Florence, the center of the richest 
 Italian thought of the century. 
 
 Cosimo was succeeded by his son, Piero, a man 
 of shattered health, who had little taste for gov- 
 ernment. His rule was short. He died in 1469, 
 and was buried in the sacristy of San Lorenzo. A 
 beautiful monument by Verrochio marks the spot. 
 
 The reigns of government were now taken up 
 by his eldest son, the brilliant young Lorenzo, a 
 man of quite different type from his father. "The 
 second day after the death of my father," writes 
 Lorenzo in his diary, "although I, Lorenzo, was 
 very young, in fact only in my twenty-first year, 
 the leading men of the city and of the ruling party 
 came to our house to express their sorrow for our 
 misfortune, and to persuade me to take upon myself 
 the charge of the government of the city, as my 
 grandfather and father had already done. This 
 proposal being contrary to the instincts of my age, 
 and entailing great labor and danger, I accepted 
 against my will, and only for the sake of protect- 
 ing my friends and our fortunes, for in Florence 
 one can ill live in the possession of wealth without 
 control of the government." 
 
 There are three paintings in Florence strikingly 
 suggestive of the life of Lorenzo. The first is a 
 fresco by Benozzo Gozzoli. It represents him as a 
 gallant boy in the Riccardi palace, the palace of 
 his father and grandfather, riding under a bay tree 
 and crowned with roses. The second is Botti- 
 celli's famous Adoration of the Magi, in which
 
 68 GiROivAMo SAVONAROLA. 
 
 Lorenzo is seen in the prime of early manhood. 
 The third is what Gardner describes as "that truly 
 terrible picture of Vasari in the Uffizi." In this 
 painting Lorenzo is fully developed, the omniscient 
 and all-embracing tyrant. Lorenzo's face, as seen 
 here, is as eloquent a protest against the iniquity 
 of tyranny as can be found in the pages of the 
 most "terrible" of Savonarola's sermons. 
 
 Lorenzo's determination to be the absolute mas- 
 ter of Florence was apparent from the beginning. 
 He took pains to strengthen the alliance with the 
 ruling house in Milan. After the failure of the 
 Pazzi conspiracy he acted with tyrannical prompt- 
 ness, and in such a way as to leave himself "se- 
 curely enthroned above the splash of blood." At 
 great personal risk he went voluntarily to Naples 
 and made peace with Ferdinand, the infamous 
 tyrant of that city. It has been suggested, and 
 probably with good reason, that Botticelli's noble 
 allegory of the olive-decked "Pallas Taming the 
 Centaur" of war and disorder appears to have been 
 painted in commemoration of this event. By a 
 change in the laws, through which a Council of 
 Seventy was created to control the election of the 
 Signory, the government was placed absolutely in 
 Lorenzo's hands. The older councils still remained 
 and the Republican form of government was con- 
 tinued. Had Lorenzo lived longer, changes might 
 have been introduced, but for the time being he 
 had everything he needed. Besides, the people 
 were satisfied and that counted for something. It 
 made government easier. "Florence," writes Guic- 
 ciardini, "could not have had a better or more de- 
 lightful tyrant."
 
 LORENZO AND His CITY. 69 
 
 Lorenzo won great reputation through his for- 
 eign policy. The East and the West united to 
 praise him. The sultan honored him with pres- 
 ents, and sent ambassadors to declare his friend- 
 ship ; Egypt did the same ; the princes of Germany 
 treated him as an equal ; so also did the King of 
 France. When foreign invasion was imminent, 
 Lorenzo succeeded in preserving the balance of 
 power between the five great Italian States, so that 
 they might present a united front against a com- 
 mon foe. If Lorenzo had had his grandfather's 
 genius for making money, and for the management 
 of large financial interests, he could have done more 
 for the State than he did. But he seems to have 
 had no care for commercial affairs at all, and his 
 large inherited fortune provided small income with 
 which to gratify his tastes. He sometimes found 
 it necessary to help himself from the public purse ; 
 and he did it without showing any such public 
 spirit as Cosimo. This element of weakness in 
 Lorenzo ought to be kept in mind, as it led to 
 much suspicion in many quarters. His strained 
 relations with Pope Sixtus IV have already been 
 referred to. Reference has also been made to the 
 increased power which came to him through the 
 failure of the conspiracy of the Pazzi. On the 
 whole Florence under Lorenzo's administration was 
 prosperous. The industries, the commerce, and the 
 public works of the city, were the delight of the 
 prosperity-loving Florentines. Even the peasantry 
 were far more comfortably situated than in neigh- 
 boring republics. 
 
 When Pope Innocent VIII came to the papal
 
 yo GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 throne Lorenzo made friends with him, and 
 through this friendship obtained a cardinal's hat 
 for his son Giovanni, then only fourteen years of 
 age. This boy-cardinal afterwards became Pope 
 Leo X, whose bull Martin Luther burned at Wit- 
 tenberg. 
 
 The crowning glory of Lorenzo's rule in Flor- 
 ence was his patronage of letters and art. His 
 own palace was turned into a school, and was made 
 the resort of illustrious men from all parts of the 
 world. It was here that Ficino, Poliziano, and 
 Pico della Mirandola conversed concerning the 
 noble thoughts of Plato and Aristotle. It was 
 here, too, that Michael Angelo began to try his 
 chisel. But Lorenzo was more than a patron. His 
 distinction as compared with every other Maecenas 
 known to history, lay in his active participation in 
 the intellectual labors he promoted. He was one 
 of the leading spirits among the literati of his time, 
 and was a prose writer of no mean ability. It is 
 to his lasting fame that he was a leader in the 
 movement to break away from the erudite lan- 
 guage of scholars and revive the national literature. 
 This was done by recurring to the primitive sources 
 of the spoken tongue and popular verse. He was 
 one of the first to raise popular poetry to the dig- 
 nity of art. True, he prostituted his powers by 
 writing lewd carnival songs to be sung on the 
 streets by the young nobles, and all this for the 
 purpose of corrupting the people, that they might 
 not know to what extent they had lost their lib- 
 erties. 
 
 The many-sidedness of Lorenzo, the good here
 
 LORENZO AND His CITY. 71 
 
 and the bad there, is still a perplexity. The strange 
 contrasts in the life of the man are as unintelligible 
 as they are striking. He was equally at home, so 
 it is said, in the Platonic academy disputing on 
 the nature of virtue, in the society of artists dis- 
 cussing the theory of beauty and its exemplifica- 
 tion in the creations of the Italian painters and 
 sculptors, in the garden of San Marco contem- 
 plating with satisfaction his own work in advanc- 
 ing at once the fine arts and the interests of religion, 
 and in the carnival joining in the wildest orgies 
 of its votaries. Villari is authority for the state- 
 ment that after hours of strenuous labor over some 
 new law, framed to crush any lingering remains 
 of liberty, or after passing some new decree of 
 confiscation or sentence of death, he would repair 
 to the Platonic Academy and take part in heated 
 discussions on virtue and the immortality of the 
 soul; then go about the town to sing his "Canti 
 Carnascialeschi" in the company of dissolute 
 youths and indulge in the lowest debauchery. 
 After this he would return home, receiving Pico 
 and Ppliziano at his table, and vie with them in 
 reciting verses and discoursing on the poetic art; 
 and whatever was the occupation of the moment, 
 he threw himself into it as heartily as though it 
 were the sole purpose of his life. 
 
 Nothing gave greater distinction to the Flor- 
 ence of Lorenzo's day than the Platonic Academy. 
 This, it will be remembered, was not created by 
 him, but by his grandfather, Cosimo. Lorenzo 
 did, however, take great pride in the academy, and 
 fostered it in every possible way. He was himself
 
 72 GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 an earnest student of Plato and found much de- 
 light in the discussions which went on in his fa- 
 vorite School of Philosophers. 
 
 The purpose in founding the academy was to 
 establish in Florence a rival of the ancient academy 
 which had won such glory for Greece, and had 
 been so effective in propagating Platonic ideas. 
 Marsilio Ficino, the high priest of the new "relig- 
 ion of love and beauty," had shown an ardent love 
 for Plato even in boyhood, and had written works 
 on his philosophy while still a youth in his teens. 
 Intrusted with the presidency of the academy, he 
 had mastered the Greek language, read the "Doc- 
 trine of Ideas" in the original, and made extensive 
 commentaries on all Plato's writings. His venera- 
 tion for the great Greek philosopher amounted al- 
 most to worship. He always kept a lamp burning 
 before the bust of Plato. 
 
 The manner in which Ficino mixed his Platon- 
 ism and Christianity was sometimes quite amus- 
 ing. For instance, in attempting to demonstrate 
 the truth of Christ's teaching and explain His divine 
 mission, he uses this argument: "The coming of 
 Christ was frequently prophesied by the Sybils; 
 the verses in which Virgil foretold it are known 
 to all. Plato, on being asked how long the pre- 
 cepts of his philosophy would endure, replied : 'Un- 
 til the coming of Him by whom the source of all 
 truth will be unsealed.' Porphyry says in his Re- 
 sponses: The Gods declare Christ to be highly 
 pious and religious, and affirm that he was an im- 
 mortal, testifying of him very benignantly." Rather 
 a doubtful apologist for the Christian faith! To
 
 LORENZO AND His CITY. 73 
 
 this man and his school came scholars from all 
 parts of Italy, from the North and from the South. 
 Ambitious students came also from Germany, from 
 France, and from Spain. The lectures which Fi- 
 cino delivered in the academy were the subject of 
 conversation in every company of scholars through- 
 out Europe. Had he not discovered a system of 
 philosophy reconciling Christianity and paganism? 
 No wonder the scholastic world did him honor and 
 reverence! And no wonder Florence came to en- 
 viable eminence because of the famous academy 
 it fostered. 
 
 It was on the invitation of Lorenzo, tyrant and 
 philosopher, that Savonarola now turned his face 
 toward Florence with the purpose of making there 
 his permanent home. He crossed the Apennines on 
 foot, traversing the same road by which he had 
 come eight years before. It was a hot summer 
 day, and he was fatigued in mind and body as he 
 walked toward the city where he had received such 
 small welcome. There is a story that when he had 
 almost fainted in his journey, a mysterious stranger 
 appeared who restored his courage and strength, 
 led him to a hospice, gave him food, and accom- 
 panied him to Florence. On reaching the San 
 Gallo gate the stranger said, "Remember to do 
 that for which God hath sent thee," and then dis- 
 appeared. 
 
 It was soon told throughout the city that the 
 preaching friar who had suddenly leaped into such 
 fame in the cities of the North was in Florence, and 
 that he had come at the expressed wish of Lorenzo. 
 Many were curious to hear the new preacher. But
 
 74 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 Savonarola waited. Back in San Marco again, he 
 took up once more the instruction of the novices. 
 Soon others besides the novices asked for the priv- 
 ilege of hearing him. The audience increasing 
 daily, the place of the meeting was changed to the 
 convent garden. Almost without his knowing it, 
 the lectures were transformed into sermons, and 
 the garden became too small for the people who 
 desired to hear him. Urged to try the pulpit again 
 and preach in the Church, where larger audiences 
 might hear him, he hesitated, and finally asked that 
 prayers be offered that he might be wisely guided. 
 Unable longer to resist entreaty or satisfy his own 
 conscience, he made the following announcement 
 one Saturday afternoon in the cloister garden, 
 standing under a damask rose tree. "To-morrow 
 we will speak in the Church, and give a lecture and 
 a sermon." And he added, so it is said, "I shall 
 preach for eight years." Was this prophecy or 
 coincidence? He did preach for just eight years, 
 and then his voice was silenced. 
 
 The scene in the cloister garden is nowhere 
 more beautifully described than in one of Mrs. 
 Oliphant's appreciative chapters. This gifted 
 woman seems to see so clearly the meaning of it 
 all. "Never," she writes, "was there a more touch- 
 ing, tender incongruity than that perfumed canopy 
 of bloom above the dark hair covered with its cowl. 
 Beneath the blue sky that hung over Florence, 
 within the wide square of the cloister with all its 
 arching pillars, with Angelo's Dominic close by, 
 kneeling at the cross-foot, and listening, too this 
 crowd of Florentines gathered in the glorious in-
 
 LORENZO AND His CITY. 75 
 
 closure encircling the scholars and their master. 
 A painter could not desire a more striking scene. 
 The roses waving softly in the summer air above, 
 and the lads in their white convent gowns, with 
 earnest faces lifted to the speaker what a tender 
 central light do they give, soft heart of the flowers 
 and youth, to the grave scene! For grave as life 
 and death were the speaker and the men that stood 
 around and pressed him. on every side. Before long 
 he had to consent, which he did with reluctance, 
 to leave this quiet cloister and return to the pulpit 
 where once his Lombard accent had brought him 
 nothing but contempt and failure. Thus the first 
 chapter of Fra Girolamo's history ends, under the 
 damask rose-tree in the warm July weather, within 
 those white cloisters of San Marco. In the full 
 eye of day, in the pulpit and the public places of 
 Florence, as prophet, spiritual leader, apostle 
 among men, was the next period of his life to be 
 passed. Here his probation ends."
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 A NEW VOICE IN THE DUOMO. 
 
 THE day after the announcement under the 
 damask rose-tree in the cloister garden found Sa- 
 vonarola in the pulpit of the Church of San Marco. 
 This was Sunday, August I, 1489. The church 
 was crowded. Representatives of all classes im- 
 proved the opportunity to hear the preacher whose 
 name was now frequently mentioned on street and 
 in market place. Many, no doubt, who had gone 
 away disappointed from the Church of San Lorenzo 
 eight years before, were now in San Marco to 
 see and hear for themselves, and find out, if pos- 
 sible, what change had come over Fra Girolamo. 
 Some were there merely to satisfy curiosity. 
 
 The series of sermons begun in the rose-tinted 
 garden was continued. The theme was the Apoca- 
 lypse, and the preacher was at his best. His hour 
 of opportunity had come and he must improve it. 
 He had fought a hard battle, struggling against 
 doubts and fears, but his decision had been, made ; 
 he had mounted the pulpit that morning with clear 
 vision of duty, and with firm conviction that he was 
 there as the ambassador of Jesus Christ. Even be- 
 fore he spoke the audience seemed to feel the 
 presence of a strong and powerful personality. His 
 voice, it is said, resounded at times with almost 
 supernatural effect. His intellectual power aston- 
 
 76
 
 A NEW VOICE IN THE DUOMO. 77 
 
 ished his hearers, and they were thrilled and moved 
 by the contagion of his enthusiasm. 
 
 There was no doubt about his mission after 
 that morning. The news of the new voice and the 
 wonderful message passed from lip to lip through- 
 out Florence. Men began to forsake Plato to dis- 
 cuss the words and personality of the new preacher. 
 Opinions were divided. Some declared that the 
 preacher was only a fanatic, who by his rare voice 
 and power as an orator swayed the people; others 
 went so far as to say that his was no eloquence at 
 all, the effect on the crowd being brought about by 
 a combination of loud words and striking imagery ; 
 the men of the academy inclined to the view that 
 the preacher, though a man of remarkable natural 
 ability, was after all unlearned in the language and 
 thought of the schools, and that therefore his influ- 
 ence would only be transitory. Savonarola heard 
 all these criticisms, but, in the pulpit at least, paid 
 no attention to them. What the academy said was 
 undoubtedly a keen thrust which must have hurt 
 him. Perhaps this was what led him to take ad- 
 vantage of printer's ink. He published now several 
 of his sermons, a tractate on philosophy which was 
 in part a compendium of his lectures to the novices, 
 and two or three brief pamphlets on what he con- 
 sidered essential theology. Whatever may have 
 been his purpose in issuing these volumes at this 
 time, they certainly had a wonderful influence in 
 silencing criticism. The men of the academy knew 
 after reading these writings that a master mind 
 was influencing the people who thronged San 
 Marco.
 
 78 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 It was just nine years after the first arrival in 
 Florence that Savonarola entered the pulpit of the 
 great cathedral of the city, known as the Duomo. 
 As lecturer in the cloister garden, and preacher 
 in the Church of San Marco, his fame had been 
 rapidly increasing. The man and his sermons had 
 become an absorbing topic of conversation. The 
 Duomo was now a necessity. No other building in 
 all Florence was large enough to hold the people. 
 Fra Mariano's day was done. His "grand sentences 
 and periods of harmonious cadence" had served 
 their time. The people would hear the new voice. 
 Earnest looking men and women they were who 
 crowded into the Duomo. They were there to hear 
 a preacher who had eyes to see the age in which 
 he lived, and courage to declare what he saw. 
 Such a preacher will always have an audience. 
 Savonarola broke every homiletical rule of his time. 
 He fearlessly trampled upon every oratorical stand- 
 ard set up by the professors of sacred rhetoric. In 
 the pulpit he cared for just one thing. He would 
 bring to his hearers the living word and message of 
 God. That thing he did. The pulpit was his throne. 
 In the first sermons in the Duomo the people rec- 
 ognized the new sovereignty. Like the prophets of 
 Israel and Judah, he came with a message divine. 
 Amos and Isaiah had not stronger conviction that 
 they spoke by the command of Jehovah. 
 
 The three famous propositions, which he had 
 announced with such fervor and burning passion at 
 San Gemignano, and later at Brescia, he now re- 
 iterated within the walls of the great Duomo. First, 
 the Church will be scourged. Second, it will be
 
 A NEW VOICE IN THE DUOMO. 79 
 
 regenerated. Third, all this will come to pass 
 speedily. These three propositions included all the 
 themes of Savonarola's preaching. The necessity 
 for the impending scourge he saw in the unblush- 
 ing immorality, widespread skepticism, and intoler- 
 able oppression of the times. The scourge, he said, 
 would come upon all. The immoral literati he 
 condemned as unsparingly as he did the corrupt 
 contadini. He attacked the gambler of the palace, 
 the parlor, and the club with as fierce invective as 
 he did the dice-thrower of the street. The money- 
 lenders, with their unjust bargains and cruel exac- 
 tions, he denounced with scathing words. "Chil- 
 dren of the devil," he branded them. 
 
 The democracy of Savonarola's preaching was 
 apparent from the beginning. He threw himself 
 with tremendous enthusiasm against the idea that 
 there is one standard for the religious life, another 
 for social life, and still another for political life. In 
 his philosophy and Christian teaching they were all 
 one. Religious, social, and political life, all were 
 one before God! What he wanted, and no think- 
 ing man heard him without feeling that what he 
 wanted was right, was to bring Christianity down 
 into the market-place, to apply its principles in so- 
 ciety, and to bring political life into harmony with 
 its standards. The skepticism and corrupt lives of 
 the men recognized as leaders in the academy and 
 in the government of Florence he condemned un- 
 sparingly. 
 
 The enthusism and excitement created by his 
 sermons seem to have led Savonarola to ques- 
 tion whether he had not undertaken too great a
 
 8o GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 program. He had spoken awful words concerning 
 the judgments of God which would come upon the 
 wicked city of Florence. He had told the people, 
 on the authority of reason, on the authority of the 
 Bible, and on the authority of the visions of the 
 Lord which had come to him, that the gilded vice 
 of the city must be put away and Florence purged 
 of its corruptions, or the fierce judgments of the 
 Almighty would come upon the people and the 
 wrath of outraged Heaven smite them. Perhaps 
 he had gone too far! In a book published later, 
 entitled "A Compendium of Revelations," he de- 
 scribes the great miseries of soul experienced dur- 
 ing the second week of these Lenten sermons. He 
 tells how all that kept him from his principal study 
 became quickly distasteful, and that whenever he 
 thought of entering upon another path, he became 
 instantly hateful to himself. "I remember," he 
 writes, "when I was preaching in the Duomo in 
 1491, and had already composed my sermon upon 
 these visions, I determined to omit all mention of 
 them, and never recur to the subject again. God is 
 my witness how I watched and prayed the whole of 
 Saturday and throughout the night; but all other 
 ways, all doctrines save this, were denied me. 
 Towards break of dawn, being weary and dejected 
 by my long vigil, I heard, as I prayed, a voice say- 
 ing to me : 'Fool, dost thou not see that it is God's 
 will that thou shouldst continue in the same path?' 
 Wherefore that day I preached a terrible sermon." 
 An autograph summary of this sermon is still 
 preserved in the museum of San Marco. It is 
 bound in a codex with a number of others preached
 
 A NEW VOICE IN THE DUOMO. 81 
 
 the same year. One of the most striking passages 
 in it is an arraignment of the clergy. Terrible 
 words, indeed, are used by the fearless preacher. 
 He describes how the greed of gold has led the 
 clergy to forget the inner life of the spirit; the 
 outer ceremonies of the Church, in which there is 
 for them traffic and gold, these they gave careful 
 attention to; the services of the Church which 
 most minister to the spiritual life, but in which 
 there is no opportunity for gain, these they neglect. 
 "Fathers," said he, "make sacrifice to this false 
 idol, urging their sons to enter the ecclesiastical 
 life, in order to obtain benefices and prebends ; and 
 thus ye hear it said, 'Blessed is the house that owns 
 a fat cure.' But I say unto you a time will come 
 when rather it will be said, Woe to that house ; and 
 ye will feel the edge of the sword upon you. Do 
 as I bid you; rather let your sons follow the way 
 of all others, than undertake the religious life for 
 gain. In these days there is no grace, no gift of 
 the Holy Spirit that may not be bought and sold. 
 On the other hand, the poor are oppressed by 
 grievous burdens, and when they are called to pay 
 sums beyond their means, the rich cry unto them, 
 Give me the rest. There be some who, having but 
 an income of fifty, pay a tax of one hundred, while 
 the rich pay little, since the taxes are imposed at 
 their pleasure. When widows come weeping, they 
 are bidden to go to sleep. When the poor com- 
 plain, they are told to pay and pay again." 
 
 This paragraph is characteristic. Savonarola 
 scorned the idea of taking up the ecclesiastical life 
 for the money there was in it, and looked with 
 6
 
 82 GiROivAMo SAVONAROLA. 
 
 horror upon the buying and selling of the gifts of 
 God. He had a heart of sympathy for the op- 
 pressed; the widows and orphans commanded his 
 care and help ; but the rich, in their heartless dis- 
 criminations and injustices, he condemned. "Bethink 
 ye well, O rich, for affliction shall smite you. This 
 city shall no more be called Florence, but a den of 
 thieves, of turpitude and bloodshed. Then shall 
 you all be poverty stricken, all wretched, and your 
 name, O priests, shall be changed into a terror. I 
 sought no longer to speak in thy name, O Lord; 
 but Thou hast overpowered me, hast conquered me. 
 Thy word has become like unto a fire within me, 
 consuming the very marrow of my bones. There- 
 fore, I am derided and despised of my people. But 
 I cried unto the Lord day and night, and I say 
 unto you, I know that unheard of times are at 
 hand." 
 
 It is clear from the above passage that the 
 preacher had definite knowledge of what the bad 
 leadership of Florence actually was. The rich cared 
 nothing for the liberties of the people, and the 
 highest ambition of the priests was personal gain. 
 What could be hoped for from such leadership as 
 this ? Savonarola acknowledged that there was small 
 chance of getting many converts to his views., but 
 he was God's prophet, and must needs speak the 
 message which had been given him. "When Jesus 
 came to redeem the world He found hearers in 
 -Judea alone, and even there the faithful were few, 
 but He called them to Him on the mount, and after- 
 wards, by their means He transformed the human 
 race." "You forsake me, deride me," said he, "yet
 
 A NEW VOICE IN THE DUOMO. 83 
 
 shall I gain a few disciples, who will give all up 
 for Christ's sake. They will ask neither benefices 
 nor prebends ; will accept neither gifts nor alms but 
 only their daily bread. They will dress like the 
 poor ; they will not seek the great ; they will not 
 run after the magistrates in the palace; they will 
 not build up houses ; they will not visit women daily 
 to carry them images and rosaries; they will be 
 truthful ; they will climb the mount of faith ; they 
 will have revelations from heaven and more learn- 
 ing, not however, the learning of Scotus or the 
 poets, but that of their own conscience and of Holy 
 Writ." In this description of the type of disciples 
 Savonarola desired to create, one is reminded of the 
 poor priests of John Wyclif who introduced into 
 England a new type of parson, the type immortal- 
 ized by Chaucer in the lines : 
 
 " Christes lore and His apostles twelve 
 He taught, but first He followed it himselve." 
 
 These Lenten sermons gave to Savonarola un- 
 disputed claim to the one great pulpit of Florence. 
 His mastership and spiritual leadership in this pul- 
 pit were acknowledged by all. The men who had 
 been the recognized leaders of Florence were, it 
 is true, secretly against him. They saw, as Savon- 
 arola saw, that an irresistible conflict was bound to 
 take place ; nay was now on. In March, of this 
 year he wrote a significant letter to Fra Dominico 
 who was then preaching at Pisa. This Dominico 
 was one of his most faithful followers, and a man 
 whose later devotion and loyalty shine out most 
 gloriously. "Our work," he says, in this letter,
 
 84 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 "goes on well, for God helps marvelously, although 
 the chief men of the city are against us, and many 
 feel that we may meet with the fate of Fra Ber- 
 nardino. I have faith in the Lord ; He gives me 
 daily greater courage and perseverance. I preach 
 the regeneration of the Church, taking the Scrip- 
 tures as my sole guide. Be of good cheer and re- 
 turn quickly, that I may tell you the marvelous 
 deeds of the Lord." The fate of Fra Bernardino, 
 here referred to, was exile. He had preached 
 against usury and paid the penalty of being driven 
 from the city. 
 
 As an evidence of the wonderful popularity to 
 which Savonarola came as a result of his first 
 preaching in the Duomo, he was invited in April 
 to preach a sermon before the Signory in the 
 Palazzo Vecchio. The Signory was the governing 
 council of Florence. "I am here," he said, in be- 
 ginning this address to the city fathers, "I am here 
 in the waters of Tiberias." "In the presence of the 
 Signory I do not feel master of myself as in a 
 church. Therefore, I am constrained to be more 
 measured and urbane, even as Christ in the house 
 of the Pharisees. I must tell you, then, that all the 
 evil and all the good of the city depend from its 
 head ; and, therefore, great is his responsibility even 
 for small sins, since,, if he followed the right path, 
 the whole city would be sanctified. We, therefore, 
 must fish in this sea with nets that can hold the 
 smallest fish, nor must we employ overmuch cau- 
 tion, but, on the contrary, speak frankly and openly. 
 Tyrants are incorrigible because they are proud, 
 because they love flattery, and because they will not 
 restore ill-gotten gains. They leave all in the hands
 
 A NEW VOICE IN THE DUOMO. 85 
 
 of bad ministers; they succumb to flattery; they 
 hearken not unto the poor, and neither do they con- 
 demn the rich; they expect the poor and the peas- 
 antry to work for them without regard, or suffer 
 their ministers to expect this; they corrupt voters, 
 and farm out the taxes to aggravate the burdens 
 of the people. You must, therefore, remove dis- 
 sensions, do justice, and exact honesty from all." 
 The reference here to the incorrigibility of tyrants 
 was in such plain terms, that his auditors could not 
 fail to discover that the words were aimed against 
 their favorite, Lorenzo. But the very audacity of 
 the preacher only served to increase his fame. 
 
 In July following he was elected Prior of San 
 Marco. He was thus master of the leading pulpit 
 of Florence and of the leading monastery. Now 
 happened an event which made it clearer than ever 
 that a new leader had come to the city of the Medici. 
 It was the custom that when a new Prior of San 
 Marco was appointed, he must go to the Riccardi 
 palace and pay his respects and vow allegiance to 
 the leading representative of the house through 
 whose munificence the monastery had been built, 
 and through which it had so largely benefited. This 
 Savonarola did not do. When leaders among the 
 friars, fearing for him and for the monastery be- 
 cause of the position he was taking, came to him 
 and urged that he pay a visit to Lorenzo, he said, 
 "I consider that my election is owed to God, and to 
 Him alone will I vow obedience." When Lorenzo 
 heard of this he was indignant, and said sarcastic- 
 ally to the informer who brought the news, "A 
 stranger has come into my house, yet he will not 
 stoop to pay me a visit." But no sarcastic word of
 
 86 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 Lorenzo could hurt the fame of the new preacher. 
 He was rapidly becoming known as the master 
 spirit of Florence. His sermons attracted increas- 
 ingly large audiences. 
 
 No one has ever been able to describe Savon- 
 arola's preaching. No one can. During the days of 
 his supremacy, the pulpit of the Duomo was the 
 strongest center of influence in Italy. All classes 
 were held by the matchless preacher. Scholars and 
 artists, artisans and politicians, nobility and conta- 
 dini, acknowledged the greatness of his message and 
 the mighty power of his words. From the sur- 
 rounding villages and from distant cities the people 
 thronged to hear him. All night they walked from 
 their homes; and stood in the gray dawn before the 
 Duomo waiting for the hour when the doors would 
 open. No business was transacted in any street of 
 Florence until after the sermon. Crowded in the 
 nave, in the aisles, and in the transepts of the great 
 building; sitting on tiers of temporary seats built 
 up against the walls of the nave, perched upon pil- 
 lars or hanging under the archways to catch a bet- 
 ter view of the preacher's face, the people waited 
 for the hour of the sermon. In prayer they waited 
 or chanted with the choir the Psalm or Litany. 
 
 When at last the preacher stood in his pulpit, 
 his white robe marking him a conspicuous figure 
 in the dimly lighted Duomo, every face was pressed 
 a little nearer, and every ear listened to catch the 
 first word. The Bible was at last opened. The 
 text was announced with a voice that reached the 
 farthest man standing at the end of the longest 
 aisle. The preacher wandered for a time, in what 
 seemed a very wilderness of heterogenous ideas.
 
 A NSW VOICE IN THE DUOMO. 87 
 
 Theology, politics, morals, and religion, were all 
 brought into contribution. Suddenly the theme 
 touches some point of living interest to himself and 
 his hearers. Fancy begins to play. The voice 
 swells. There is new animation in gesture. Every 
 part of the body seems to move responsive to the 
 touch of some inward passion. Now the preacher 
 feels an arm of strength, which will strike a blow 
 at "the spreading wings!" Images colossal rise 
 before the spell-bound audience. Then lightning 
 flashes. Thunder is heard, and in crashing bolts. 
 Large rain drops begin to fall. The fury of the 
 storm is upon them ! The voice of the preacher 
 reverberates to the farthest corner of the Duomo 
 with the thunder of God's wrath. "The vengeance 
 of the eternal God is hot! From peasant to pope, 
 he will strike sin and break corruption in pieces." 
 In all parts of the Duomo men fall upon the marble 
 floor. In terror they hide their faces. Dread horror 
 fills the place. 
 
 Then there is silence. The stern look fades from 
 the preacher's face : his eyes, softened and suffused, 
 seem lost in some infinite beauty hanging there in 
 the great dome above him! When he speaks his 
 voice is full of sweetness and tenderness, as he de- 
 scribes the infinite mercy of God and His love. 
 Now it is that the reporter's pencil falls from his 
 fingers. He is overcome with agitation. The 
 friends of the preacher think they see the Madonna 
 standing by his side. And above his head a chorus 
 of angels, filling the dome, and hovering under the 
 ceilings of nave and aisle and transept! The mul- 
 titude is melted. The arches above hear only sobs, 
 and look only upon weeping.
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 THE MIGHTIEST MAN OF FLORENCE. 
 
 IT is not strange that the preaching which the 
 people were hearing in the Duomo was displeasing 
 to the man in the Medici palace. Such preaching 
 has always been displeasing to tyrants and political 
 bosses, and to leaders of all sorts who are corrupters 
 of the morals of the people. Lorenzo knew that the 
 doctrine of Fra Girolamo put into practice would 
 mean his overthrow. He must bring the new 
 preacher into his favor. That was the hardest task 
 that Lorenzo ever attempted. Savonarola felt that, 
 as Prior of San Marco and preacher in the chief 
 pulpit of Florence, any recognition of Lorenzo, be- 
 yond the demands of courtesy, would be a com- 
 promise of principle and fatal to his cause. But 
 Lorenzo was shrewd and he knew how to win men. 
 
 Lorenzo began, after the true fashion of the 
 politician, by showing unusual courtesies. He went 
 frequently to hear mass in the Church of San 
 Marco. He walked one day in the cloister garden. 
 The monks were delighted that their monastery was 
 honored by the presence of so noble a guest. They 
 ran excitedly to the prior's cell to tell him of 
 Lorenzo's presence. "Did he inquire for me?" 
 asked the serious-faced preacher, looking up from 
 his annotations. "No," they said. "If he did not 
 ask for me," answered Savonarola, "let him go or 
 
 88
 
 MIGHTIEST MAN OF FLORENCE. 89 
 
 stay at his pleasure." This was all the reply. 
 Nothing daunted, Lorenzo sent rich gifts to the 
 convent. The only allusion to the large benefac- 
 tions was in a sermon, when the preacher said, "A 
 faithful dog does not give up barking in his master's 
 defense because a bone is thrown to him." To the 
 delight of the monks large pieces of gold were 
 found in the boxes of the monastery. Savonarola, 
 knowing well enough where they came from, or- 
 dered them sent to the Good Men of St. Martin, a 
 society whose business it was to care for the poor. 
 ''These smaller pieces," he said, "will be enough 
 for us." 
 
 Failing by all his usual methods of success, 
 Lorenzo now tried the influence of a committee. 
 Five citizens of noble birth were instructed to visit 
 San Marco to induce the preacher to modify his 
 words. Savonarola received them, perhaps in the 
 chapter-house with Angelo's great fresco of the 
 Crucifixion looking down upon them. These men 
 were such distinguished citizens of Florence that it 
 is worth while to know their names. They were 
 Domenico Bonsi, Guidantonio Vespucci, Paolo An- 
 tonio Soderini, Bernardino Rucellai, and Francesco 
 Valori. All of them, with possibly one exception, 
 became afterwards the friends of Savonarola, two 
 of them ardent supporters of his cause. These men, 
 in opening the conversation, sought to give the im- 
 pression that they had come wholly of their own 
 accord and because of their love for the convent. 
 In the interests of the public good, as they said, 
 they suggested, in a stammering fashion, some slight 
 modifications in the tone of the Prior's preaching.
 
 90 GlROLAMO SAVONAROIvA. 
 
 They also suggested that such criticism of the 
 leaders of Florence as he had been indulging in, 
 might lead to the bringing of the monastery of San 
 Marco into disrepute. They went so far as to 
 suggest the possibility of his not being allowed 
 longer to preach, and even hinted at banishment. 
 "Lorenzo sent you here," said Savonarola. "Go 
 tell him to repent. I fear no sentence of banish- 
 ment, for this city of yours is like a mustard seed 
 on the earth. But the new doctrine shall triumph, 
 and the old shall fall. Although I be a stranger 
 and he a citizen, and the first in the city, I shall 
 stay, while he will depart." The monk could not 
 be bought. To the amazement of Lorenzo he had 
 at last found a preacher who was incorruptible. 
 
 Savonarola's peculiar ascendency over the 
 monks under his spiritual care was such as few 
 men have ever known. His method was to be very 
 frank with them, to open his heart and tell them of 
 his inner thought and his purpose. He gave them 
 to feel that they knew all his plans. One day he 
 said, "It is now twenty-seven months since I began 
 to preach on the Apocalypse. Afterwards, being 
 upon a hill, I looked down thence upon a fortified 
 city, which suddenly, as from an earthquake, began 
 to totter and fall. Its inhabitants were quarreling 
 among themselves. And I bethought me: This 
 city can not have good foundations, nor its citizens 
 charity. I then went down into the valley, and 
 beheld that there were caverns beneath the houses. 
 I began instantly to build a new city on the plain, 
 asking help from the men; but instead of aiding 
 in the work, some carried off the stones, while
 
 MIGHTIEST MAN OF FLORENCE. 91 
 
 others jeered at me, and shot arrows at me from 
 the old walls. Therefore, I would have withdrawn 
 in despair, but the Lord commanded me to perse- 
 vere." It was hardly necessary for him to explain 
 that the "arrows" shot at him from the old walls 
 were the false teachings of the clergy, and that the 
 "new city" he was building was the city of the 
 spiritual life which would always be assailed by 
 wicked and worldly men. "It is easy," he said, 
 "to lead men to the outer life; to mass, to confes- 
 sion; but hard to guide them to the inner life and 
 dispose them to grace. It is necessary to shun too 
 many ceremonies. These ceremonies are not essen- 
 tial, inasmuch they vary for different times and 
 places. The ancients lived well without them. 
 Now by many ceremonies all is converted into 
 sham and gain, as is proved by the universal greed 
 for benefices. Besides, by its effect is the cause 
 known; and your city having no charity can not 
 have strong foundations. Pray ye, then, in a fer- 
 vent spirit, so that the Lord may give victory to 
 the new doctrine. Run not after false knowledge, 
 but examine all things by the light of the Scrip- 
 tures." 
 
 Up to this time Lorenzo had posed as a friend 
 of Savonarola, but it was known by those on the 
 inside that he was smarting under the criticisms 
 which came daily from the pulpit of the Duomo. 
 He bethought himself of one last method by which 
 he dared attempt to break the power of the new 
 preacher. Fra Mariano was asked to enter the 
 pulpit again and take up the cudgel against the 
 Dominican in the cathedral pulpit of Florence,
 
 92 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 who dared so presumptuously to speak of times and 
 seasons and visions. Fra Mariano was glad to 
 accept the invitation. He undoubtedly felt, and 
 rather keenly, too, his own loss of prestige since 
 the whole city had gone after Savonarola. It was 
 announced, therefore, that on Ascension Day Fra 
 Mariano would preach, in his own convent church 
 at San Gallo, from the words in Matthew, "It is 
 not for you to know the times or the seasons." 
 No little excitement was created by this announce- 
 ment. It was talked of in the shops and on the 
 streets, in council chambers and in the market- 
 place. Lorenzo's intimates among the literati un- 
 doubtedly congratulated him on his shrewd move 
 to break the power of his enemy. When the day 
 came the church was crowded. Most of the lead- 
 ing citizens were there. Pico della Mirandola 
 graced the occasion by his presence, Poliziano the 
 president of the academy was there, and even Lo- 
 renzo, confident of the crushing defeat the pre- 
 sumptuous prophet of the Duomo would suffer, was 
 among the hearers. It seemed to be the general 
 feeling that somehow Savonarola had come to trial. 
 Many were hoping with Lorenzo that Mariano's 
 sermon would settle for good the visions and 
 prophecies of Fra Girolamo. 
 
 The style of this popular court preacher has 
 already been described. Mariano had all the tricks 
 of the persuasive orator. He knew how to wait 
 for the moment, just the right moment, to clinch 
 an argument or strike an opponent. But in this 
 Ascension Day sermon he over-reached himself. In 
 the very beginning of his discourse he branded
 
 MIGHTIEST MAN of FLORENCE. 93 
 
 Savonarola as a false prophet and accused him of 
 sowing sedition and creating scandal. This was 
 done, too, in such an insolent manner, and in lan- 
 guage so coarse and abusive, that the audience left 
 the place, disappointed and disgusted. Fra Ma- 
 riano had missed his opportunity. Savonarola was 
 stronger than ever. 
 
 Chagrined and humiliated Mariano secretly 
 vowed vengeance. What dire wrath was his, and 
 what vengeance he purposed, we shall know later. 
 But he could do nothing in the open now. The 
 series of sermons, of which the first only had been 
 preached on that Ascension Day, was suddenly 
 broken off. Mariano's day in Florence was done. 
 On the following Sunday Savonarola preached 
 from the same text Mariano had used, and to an 
 audience which crowded the Duomo. It is to his 
 credit that he did not use his increased power to 
 wage personal battle against the men who had tried 
 to crush him. Lorenzo undoubtedly considered 
 himself defeated, and no longer tried to interfere 
 with the independence of San Marco or the teach- 
 ings of the Duomo pulpit. Savonarola, with all the 
 fire and enthusiasm of his great soul, went on with 
 his preaching. 
 
 Again and again during these days the preacher 
 cried out against the corrupt manners of the age. 
 He denounced every vice which was notorious at 
 this time. Gambling was singled out for the fiercest 
 invective. The curses he pronounced on all gam- 
 blers, whether men or women, are startling and 
 almost frightful. The thunders of God's wrath 
 were in his voice as he threatened and commanded.
 
 94 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 Listen to this as a sample: "If you see persons 
 engaged in gambling in these days, believe them 
 to be not Christians, since they are worse than 
 infidels, or ministers of the evil one, and celebrate 
 his rites. They are avaricious men, blasphemers, 
 slanderers, detractors of others' fame ; are tyrants ; 
 they are hateful to God ; are thieves, murderers, and 
 full of all iniquity; I can not permit you to share 
 in these amusements; ye must be steadfast in 
 prayer, continually rendering thanks to the Al- 
 mighty in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. He 
 that gambleth shall be accursed, and accursed he 
 that suffereth others to gamble; shun ye their con- 
 versation, for the father that gambles before his 
 son shall be accursed, and accursed the mother 
 that gambles in her daughter's presence. There- 
 fore, whoever thou art, thou shalt be accursed if 
 thou dost gamble or allow others to gamble; thou 
 shalt be accursed, I tell ye, in the city, accursed in 
 the fields; thy corn shall be accursed and thy sub- 
 stance; cursed the fruit of thy land and thy body; 
 thy herds of oxen and thy flocks of sheep; cursed 
 shalt thou be in all thy comings and goings." 
 
 He was no less fierce in his denunciation of 
 usury and unlawful gain. "Owing to avarice," he 
 said, "neither you nor your children lead a good 
 life, and you have already discovered many devices 
 for gaining money, and many modes of exchange 
 which ye call just, but are most unjust, and ye have 
 likewise corrupted the magistrates and their func- 
 tions. None can persuade you that it is sinful to 
 lend at usury, or make unjust bargains ; on the 
 contrary you defend yourselves to your soul's dam-
 
 MIGHTIEST MAN otf FLORENCE. 95 
 
 nation. Thou sayest that the good and happy life 
 consists in gain; and Christ says, 'Blessed are the 
 poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.' 
 Thou sayest that the happy life consists in pleasure 
 and voluptuousness; and Christ says 'Blessed are 
 they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.' 
 Thou sayest the happy life consists in glory; and 
 Christ says 'Blessed are ye when men shall revile 
 you and persecute you.' The way of life hath been 
 shown to you, yet none follows it, none seeks it, 
 none learns it." What a striking contrast is drawn 
 here between the spirit of the sharp business man, 
 out for gain, and the spirit of Christ. 
 
 The most powerful impressions made by his 
 preaching were not through his impassioned denun- 
 ciations of vice and evil-doing, but in his touching 
 and beautiful descriptions of the mercy of God and 
 his love, and in his tender and earnest pleadings 
 with the people to bring their lives into harmony 
 with the divine life of Jesus Christ. "O ! would 
 that I might persuade you to turn away from 
 earthly things and follow after things eternal! 
 Would God grant this grace to me and to you, I 
 should assuredly deem myself happy in this life. 
 But this is a gift from God. 'None may come unto 
 Me,' saith the Lord, 'unless he be brought by the 
 Father.' I can not enlighten you inwardly, I can 
 only strike upon your ears ; but what may that avail 
 if your intellect be not enlightened nor your affec- 
 tions kindled?" There was something in his voice 
 which gave such effect to his words that often 
 when he spoke, as in the passage just quoted, the 
 whole audience was melted to tears.
 
 96 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 It is in the sermon on the Gospel of the Epiph- 
 any in which his deep feeling and lofty imagina- 
 tion are seen, perhaps, as clearly as in any other 
 of his discourses. He shows here great skill both 
 in description and argument, and proves himself a 
 master in exhortation. The three following para- 
 graphs are from this Epiphany day sermon. They 
 are well worthy the space here given to them : 
 
 " 'Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of 
 Judea, in the days of Herod the king; behold there 
 came to Jerusalem wise men from the East, say- 
 ing, Where is He that is born in Judea? For 
 we have seen His star in the East, and have come 
 to worship Him with gifts' mark the words and 
 observe the mysteries. Behold then that He, by 
 whom all things were made, is this day born upon 
 earth. Wherefore, the beginning of all things (in- 
 asmuch as by Him all things were created) is now 
 born, and hath a young virgin for His mother. 
 Behold, He who holds the world in His hand, is 
 brought forth of a maid. Behold, He that is above 
 all things begins by having a native land; He be- 
 gins as the compatriot of men, the companion of 
 men, the brother of men, and the son of man ! See 
 how God cometh near unto you !" 
 
 "Hearken then, my brethren, and let not your 
 thoughts go astray. Open your eyes, and behold 
 who are these that are coming. I cry unto you, O 
 men, and my voice is for the children of men. Be- 
 hold the wise men, behold the Chaldeans ; behold 
 those that were not born among Christians ; behold 
 those that were not baptized ; behold those that were 
 not instructed in the law of the Gospel; behold
 
 MIGHTIEST MAN o FLORENCE. 97 
 
 those that did not receive the numerous sacraments 
 of the Church; behold those that heard not the 
 voice of preachers. Behold the wise men of the 
 East, from the midst of a perverse and evil nation, 
 from distant and remote regions; shrinking from 
 no expense, from no weariness, from no danger. 
 They came. And when was it that they came? 
 When all the world was full of idolatry; when 
 men bowed down before stocks and stones; when 
 the earth was full of darkness and gloom, and all 
 men full of iniquity. When was it that they came ? 
 When Christ was a babe, when He lay upon straw, 
 when He showed naught but weakness, when He 
 had as yet done no miracles. We beheld his star 
 in the Bast, the star that announced his coming. 
 Behold, they saw His star, but no other miracle; 
 they beheld not the blind restored to sight nor the 
 dead raised nor any other visible thing. And we 
 come to worship Him. We have made a great 
 journey only to worship the foot-prints of the Babe. 
 If only we may see Him, may adore Him, may 
 touch Him, if only we may lay our gifts before 
 Him, we deem ourselves blessed. We have for- 
 saken our country, have forsaken our families, 
 have forsaken our friends, have forsaken our 
 kingdom, have forsaken our great riches; we 
 have come from a distant land, through many 
 dangers, and with much speed, and solely to 
 worship Him. This is sufficient for us, this is 
 more to us than our kingdoms, this is more pre- 
 cious to us than our very life. What then shall 
 we say to these things, my brethren? What, by 
 our faith, shall we say? O living faith! O highest 
 7
 
 98 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 charity! See ye then how great was the perfidy 
 of the Judeans, how great the hardness of their 
 hearts, since neither by miracles, nor by prophecies, 
 nor by this voice, were they moved !" 
 
 "But why have we directed our sermon against 
 the men of Judea, and not rather against ourselves ? 
 Why dost thou see the mote in thy brother's eye, 
 yet can not see the beam in thy own? Behold, the 
 Lord Jesus is no longer a babe in the manger, but 
 is great in heaven. Already hath He preached and 
 performed miracles, hath been crucified, hath risen 
 again, and now sitteth at the right hand of the 
 Father, hath sent his Holy Spirit down upon the 
 earth, hath sent the apostles, hath subjugated the 
 nations. Already the kingdom of heaven is every- 
 where; behold, its door is opened unto you; the 
 Lord hath led the way, and the apostles and mar- 
 tyrs have followed Him. But thou art slothful, and 
 all labor is a burden to thee, and thou wilt not 
 follow the footsteps of Christ. Behold, each day 
 avarice grows, the whirlpool of usury is widened, 
 lust hath contaminated all things, and pride soar- 
 eth to the clouds. Ye are children of the devil, and 
 ye seek to do the will of your father. O ! well 
 might it be said of you, in the words of the Bible 
 'Behold, I go unto a people which knoweth me not, 
 and calleth not upon my name ; daily have I reached 
 out my hands to an unbelieving people, which walk- 
 eth in the way of perdition, a people which pro- 
 voketh me to anger.' " The effect of such a ser- 
 mon could not have been other than wholesome 
 and helpful. It was in sermons of this character 
 that he found his greatest delight. He was a true 
 Gospel preacher.
 
 MIGHTIEST MAN OF FLORENCE. 99 
 
 The struggle between Savonarola and Lorenzo 
 was nearing its end. In his charming villa at 
 Careggi Lorenzo the Magnificent lay dying. Physi- 
 cians of greatest repute had done their best. Pico 
 and Ficino had paid frequent visits to their great 
 friend. Poliziano had nursed the sick man like a 
 brother. When priests gathered about him to ad- 
 minister the last sacrament, Lorenzo was visibly 
 overcome with agitation. Frightful specters of his 
 sins rose up to horrify him. There was the sack 
 of Volterra! There were beautiful girls driven to 
 shame through robbery! There was frightful and 
 indiscriminate slaughter in the reprisals which fol- 
 lowed the conspiracy of the Pazzi ! Friends tried 
 to console him. Priests and monks attempted 
 words of comfort. But he would have none of 
 them. Mariano would not do now! He would 
 have none of the fawning priests and friars who 
 had so basely bowed to his every wish. To the 
 amazement of all he commanded them to send for 
 Savonarola, and said, "I know no honest friar save 
 this one." Savonarola could hardly believe the 
 message. Made certain there was no mistake, he 
 started. We can hardly imagine the fast hurry- 
 ing thoughts which must have crowded through his 
 brain as, with black cowl drawn about his face, 
 he walked out through the San Gallo gate towards 
 Careggi. He was ushered into the chamber of the 
 illustrious Prince. The two mighty men of Flor- 
 ence were at last come together ! One was dying 
 the other was approaching his greatest power and 
 influence. 
 
 As the two men looked at each other Lorenzo
 
 ioo GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 was again overcome with agitation. Savonarola 
 spoke of the goodness and mercy of God! The 
 dying man listened. The testimony of biographers, 
 early and late, Catholic and Protestant, .seems to 
 be divided as to just what took place between these 
 two men. The description here given follows Bur- 
 lamacchi and othe'r early biographers, rather than 
 Poliziano, Rostoe, and others, who had good rea- 
 son, all of them, for trying to soften the account 
 as given by intimate friends of the great preacher. 
 "Before absolution," said Savonarola, "three things 
 are necessary." "What things, Father?" asked the 
 dying Lorenzo. With solemn face and extended 
 hand Savonarola began. "First a great and living 
 faith in God's mercy." The answer came quickly, 
 "I have the fullest faith in it, Father." "Second, 
 you must restore all your ill-gotten wealth or 
 charge your sons to restore it in your name." 
 There was no quick answer to this demand, but 
 after some hesitation assent was given. And now 
 Savonarola, rising to his full height, announced the 
 last requirement. "You must restore liberty to 
 the people of Florence." The angry Lorenzo, sum- 
 moning all his dying strength, turned his back. 
 The absolution was not granted. Forces and ideas 
 so opposite as those represented by these two men, 
 could not be brought into harmony, even in the 
 chamber of death. It was Lorenzo who departed ! 
 This was as Savonarola had said to the committee 
 of noble citizens two years before, "He will depart, 
 but I shall stay."
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 STARTLING EVENTS AND STRIKING 
 VISIONS. 
 
 PIERO DE' MEDICI, son of Lorenzo, succeeded to 
 the position of power and influence in the govern- 
 ment of Florence. If we may accept his father's 
 estimate of him, Piero was the fool of the family. 
 To each of Lorenzo's sons he gave a name sug- 
 gestive of his character. Giovanni, the young car- 
 dinal, he called the "wise one;" Giuliano, the 
 "good ;" to Piero, his successor in political responsi- 
 bility, he gave the name "mad one." Lorenzo did 
 not miss it much in the estimate he made of his 
 three sons. 
 
 Piero was almost totally unlike his father. He 
 did have some of his bad qualities, but none of the 
 good. The prudence and far-sightedness which 
 Lorenzo had shown in his successful foreign policy, 
 did not appeal to Piero at all. Nor did he have 
 any patience with the form and semblance of free- 
 dom in the government of Florence which Lorenzo 
 had diplomatically preserved. He was not born 
 for an administrator, and the details of politics 
 were not to his liking. As a man to guide the 
 Florentine ship of State he was an utter failure. 
 He did have ambition. He was a good athlete, and 
 showed great skill in such sports as handball, foot- 
 ball, wrestling, boxing, and tennis. He excelled 
 
 101
 
 io2 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 as a horseman, and was exceedingly fond of racing 
 and tournaments. So proud was he of his ath- 
 letic skill that he challenged the best players of all 
 Italy to come to Florence and meet him. In the 
 arts and sciences he took little interest, though he 
 was a man of no mean intellectual ability. He 
 wrote much poetry, such as it was, and spoke with 
 pleasing fluency. 
 
 Piero inherited the proud spirit of the Orsini 
 family from his mother. The courteous refinement 
 of manner which had characterized his father, and 
 contributed so largely to his popularity, found no 
 expression in him. Socially engaging, when he 
 wanted to be, and strikingly attractive in personal 
 appearance "the only handsome member of the 
 Medici family" he was, at times, blunt, rough, and 
 uncouth in manner. He often broke into violent 
 fits of anger when there was hardly slight excuse. 
 It is said that on one occasion at a dancing party 
 he boxed the ears of one of his cousins. He not 
 only offended private individuals but created pub- 
 lic resentment in many quarters by openly disre- 
 garding the forms of liberty so dear to the freedom- 
 loving Florentines. Instead of flattering the people 
 by keeping up the appearance of being only a 
 citizen, and, therefore, one of the people, thus fol- 
 lowing the example of his father and grandfather, 
 he rashly decided to play the role of absolute prince. 
 This policy created disaffection. Many who had 
 willingly acknowledged the leadership of Lorenzo, 
 stoutly refused to brook the insolent arrogance of 
 Piero. Murmurs were heard among the citizens, 
 and, almost before men realized it, a hostile party
 
 STARTLING EVENTS. 103 
 
 had risen up in antagonism to the rule of the 
 Medici. 
 
 It was now that Savonarola, all unconscious to 
 himself, came to be regarded as the leader of the 
 opposition. There was nothing in his preaching 
 which showed any direct antagonism to Piero. In 
 fact, it has been thought by some that Savonarola 
 did not regard Piero as a formidable opponent of 
 his work. Piero, on the other hand, could not look 
 upon the growing power and influence of the Prior 
 of San Marco without feeling that the preacher 
 constituted a menace to his own power and influ- 
 ence. With more earnestness than ever Savonarola 
 kept on preaching justice and liberty. 
 
 Within two weeks after the death of Lorenzo, 
 while preaching the Lenten sermons in the Church 
 of San Lorenzo, Savonarola saw a vision which he 
 described in the following words : "I saw two 
 crosses, whereof the one, which rose from the midst 
 of the city of Rome, and reached even to the sky, 
 was black, and it bore the inscription CRUX IR# 
 DEI. (The Cross of God's Wrath.) Immediately 
 upon its appearance, I saw the sky dark with scud- 
 ding clouds, and a tempest of wind ; lightning, thun- 
 derbolts, hail, fire, and hurtling swords arose, and 
 an immense multitude of men were slain so that 
 only a remnant was left. Thereafter, I saw the 
 sky grow calm and clear, and another cross rose 
 up, from the midst of Jerusalem, not less lofty than 
 the first, but of a splendor so brilliant that it illu- 
 minated all the world; causing fresh flowers to 
 spring on every side and joy to abound, and it bore 
 the legend CRUX MISERICORDL^ DEI. (The Cross
 
 104 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 of God's Mercy.) And forthwith all nations of 
 the earth flocked together to adore and embrace 
 it." 
 
 Such a vision could only create in the minds of 
 the people expectation, of an impending crisis. The 
 "black cross," signifying the wrath of God, rose 
 from Rome. The "white cross," emblematic of 
 Divine mercy, rose from Jerusalem. This was the 
 third in the series of visions in which Savonarola 
 saw frightful evils impending because of the cor- 
 ruptions and atrocities of Rome. On seeing the 
 first of these visions he had cried out, "O God, 
 lady, that I might break those spreading wings!" 
 On seeing the black cross, the darkened sky, the 
 lightning and thunder, the wind and the hail, and 
 the multitudes of slain, the cry must have broke 
 forth again, and with increasing earnestness. He 
 proclaimed once more the scourge which would 
 come upon the Church, and the regeneration which 
 would follow. 
 
 Not long after this vision came the announce- 
 ment of the death of Innocent VIII. His suc- 
 cessor was Roderigo Borgia, who has already 
 been described as "the man to whom belonged 
 the bad pre-eminence of being the worst pope 
 that ever sat in St. Peter's chair." The num- 
 ber of cardinals who were in the conclave when he 
 was elected, was twenty-three. His election was 
 bought. This nobody doubted. But Rome was be- 
 coming so accustomed to simony that the purchase 
 created little surprise. Many discussed the details 
 of the bargain without the slightest feeling that they 
 were doing an impropriety, any more than if they
 
 STARTLING EVENTS. 105 
 
 had been talking of a trade between the King of 
 Naples and the Duke of Milan. It is a pity that 
 so little good can be said of Roderigo Borgia, who 
 assumed the title Alexander VI. Licentious and 
 immoral, notorious for his insatiable greed for gold, 
 scandalously ambitious for honors and preferment, 
 this Alexander sat himself down in the chair of 
 St. Peter, to rule the Church and Italy in the inter- 
 est of his own personal ambition and for the ad- 
 vantage of his notorious household. 
 
 It was stated in the opening chapter that there 
 is no quarrel between Catholic and Protestant as 
 to the character of this pope. In a recent biography 
 of Savonarola, by Herbert Lucas, a Jesuit, the 
 author, after referring to the scandalous excesses 
 of the unworthy men, who for family or political 
 reasons, had been advanced by Sixtus and In- 
 nocent to the highest positions in the Church and 
 in the papal States, says, "It was in fact precisely 
 these unworthy promotions under Sixtus IV, which 
 rendered possible the choice of his successor Inno- 
 cent VIII, and which paved the way for that 
 crowning scandal, the simoniacal election of the 
 ever infamous Alexander VI." In the whole list 
 of Protestant biographers it would be difficult to 
 find stronger words of criticism than these and 
 others of Fra Lucas. The election of Alexander 
 was received throughout Italy with almost uni- 
 versal dismay. Ferdinand of Naples, it is said, 
 burst into tears at the news, although never before 
 known to weep, even on the death of his own chil- 
 dren. Fra Lucas is right in describing it as the 
 "crowning scandal" of the age.
 
 io6 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 The announcement of Roderigo Borgia's elec- 
 tion to the papal throne, naturally tended to turn 
 many eyes toward the man in the Duomo, who had 
 been speaking out so vehemently against the cor- 
 ruptions of Rome. Perhaps some called attention to 
 his declaration, made less than a year before, that 
 the death of three men was at hand, Lorenzo, In- 
 nocent VIII, and the King of Naples. Two were 
 already dead, and the third too feeble to last much 
 longer. The three famous propositions were being 
 talked about everywhere. "The Church will be 
 scourged ! It will be regenerated ! All this will 
 come to pass speedily!" Was not the time of the 
 fulfillment of the prophecies at hand? The fame 
 of Savonarola rapidly increased. 
 
 The effect of this papal election upon Savon- 
 arola must have been almost overwhelming. He 
 undoubtedly thought again of the visions he had 
 seen, and the earnest messages he had spoken. He 
 re-read the prophets; the noble and impassioned 
 addresses of Isaiah, and the frightful woes and 
 lamentations of Jeremiah. There now appeared 
 another vision. It came to him in his cell in San 
 Marco. This vision can best be told in his own 
 words. "I saw then in the year 1492, the night 
 before the last sermon which I gave that Advent in 
 Santa Reparata (the Duomo), a hand in heaven 
 with a sword, upon which was written : 'The sword 
 of the Lord upon the earth, soon and swiftly;' 
 and over the hand was written, 'True and just 
 are the judgments of the Lord.' And it seemed 
 that the arm of the hand proceeded from three 
 faces in one light, of which the first said: 'The
 
 STARTLING EVENTS. 107 
 
 iniquity of my sanctuary crieth to me from the 
 earth.' The second replied: 'Therefore will I visit 
 with a rod their iniquities, and with stripes their 
 sins.' The third said: 'My mercy will I not re- 
 move from it, nor will I harm it in my truth, and 
 I will have mercy upon the poor and the needy.' 
 In like manner the first answered : 'My people have 
 forgotten my commandments days without num- 
 ber.' The second replied: 'Therefore will I grind 
 and break in pieces and will not have mercy.' The 
 third said: 'I will be mindful of those who walk 
 in my precepts.' And straightway there came a 
 great voice from all the three faces, over all the 
 world, and it said : 'Hearken, all ye dwellers on the 
 earth; thus saith the Lord. I, the Lord, am speak- 
 ing in My holy zeal. Behold, the days shall come 
 and I will unsheath My sword upon you. Be ye 
 converted therefore unto Me, before My fury be ac- 
 complished; for when the destruction cometh, ye 
 shall seek peace and there shall be none.' After 
 these words it seemed to me that I saw the whole 
 world, and that the angels descended from heaven 
 to earth, arrayed in white, with a multitude of spot- 
 less stoles on their shoulders and red crosses in 
 their hands; and they went through the world, 
 offering to each man a white robe and a cross. 
 Some men accepted them and robed themselves with 
 them. Some would not accept them, although they 
 did not impede the others who accepted them. 
 Others would neither accept them nor permit that 
 the others should accept them ; and these were the 
 tepid and the sapient of this world, who made 
 mock of them and strove to persuade the contrary.
 
 108 GlROIvAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 After this, the hand turned the sword down towards 
 the earth; and suddenly it seemed that all the air 
 grew dark with clouds, and that it rained down 
 swords and hail with great thunder and lightning 
 and fire; and there came upon the earth pestilence 
 and famine and great tribulation. And I saw the 
 angels go through the midst of the people, and give 
 to those who had the white robe and the cross in 
 their hands a clear wine to drink; and they drank 
 and said : 'How sweet in our mouths are Thy words, 
 O Lord.' And the dregs at the bottom of the 
 chalice they gave to drink to the others, and they 
 would not drink; and it seemed that these would 
 fain have been converted to penitence and could 
 not, and they said : 'Wherefore dost thou forget us, 
 Lord?' And they wished to lift up their eyes and 
 look up to God, but they could not, so weighed 
 down were they with tribulations; for they were 
 as though drunk, and it seemed that their hearts 
 had left their breasts, and they went seeking the 
 lusts of this world and found them not. And they 
 walked like senseless beings without hearts. After 
 this was done, I heard a very great voice from those 
 three faces, which said : 'Hear ye then the word of 
 the Lord; for this have I waited for you, that I 
 may have mercy upon you. Come ye therefore to 
 me, for I am kind and merciful, extending mercy 
 to all who call upon me. But if you will not, I 
 will turn my eyes from you forever.' And it turned 
 then to the just, and said: 'But rejoice, ye just, 
 and exult, for when my short anger shall have 
 passed, I will break the horns of sinners, and the 
 horns of the just shall be exalted.' And suddenly
 
 STARTLING EVENTS. 109 
 
 everything disappeared, and it was said to me: 
 'Son, if sinners had eyes, they would surely see 
 how grievous and hard is this pestilence, and how 
 sharp the sword.' ' : 
 
 The description of this vision has been given at 
 length because it is perhaps the most strikingly 
 characteristic of all Savonarola's visions. Besides, 
 it enters into and determines, to a very great ex- 
 tent, his future preaching. "The Gladius Domini" 
 (Sword of Jehovah) which he saw, promising 
 mercy to the good, and threatening chastisement to 
 the wicked, was to Savonarola the wrath and the 
 judgment of God coming to "break the spreading 
 wings." His description of the vision to the great 
 and excited audience in the Duomo must have been 
 simply overwhelming. The people never forgot it. 
 It was an event which marked a day to be reckoned 
 from. The white robes and red crosses of the 
 vision, were thereafter the distinguishing marks of 
 Savonarola's followers in public processions and 
 similar functions. Many medals were struck in 
 the preacher's honor, celebrating the announcement 
 of the vision. Two of them are still preserved in 
 the Ufizzi gallery in Florence. Villari has described 
 one of them as attributed by Heiss, and certain 
 other writers, to one of the Delia Robbia family. 
 This medal bears on the obverse the friar's head, 
 cowled, but with the rather high forehead left un- 
 covered. The legend encircling it is "Hieronymus 
 Savonarola Ferrariensis vir doctissimus ordinis prae- 
 dicatorum." (Girolamo Savonarola, of Ferrara, 
 the most learned of the class of prophets.) On the 
 upper part of the reverse is a hand with a dagger ;
 
 no GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 beneath a city (Florence or Rome), and around it 
 the words, "Gladius Domini super terram cito et 
 velociter." (The sword of the Lord upon the earth, 
 soon and swiftly.) 
 
 It is worthy of remark that in this very year, 
 1492, while Columbus, a man of Genoa, was dis- 
 covering a new world beyond the seas, Savonarola, 
 a man of a sister Italian city, was discovering a 
 new world of spiritual living and moral respon- 
 sibility. 
 
 With all Savonarola's preaching, and with all 
 his care in directing affairs in the monastery in this 
 eventful year, he twice journeyed to Venice, once 
 in February and again in May. He also visited 
 Pisa, where he preached for a short time in the 
 monastery of Santa Caterina. In the Lenten season 
 of 1493, to the surprise and disappointment of 
 many, he was not heard in the Duomo, having been 
 appointed to preach the Lenten sermons for that 
 year in Bologna. Why he was sent there is not 
 known. Villari puts the responsibility on Piero de' 
 Medici, who, less judicious than his father, wished 
 to be rid of the too popular preacher, round whom 
 all his enemies were beginning to rally. He ac- 
 cordingly arranged with the General of the Order, 
 to have the prior removed from Florence. 
 
 This explanation of the absence is not accepted 
 by all. There is good reason, however, for believ- 
 ing that it was not the wish of Savonarola to be 
 absent from Florence at this time. The brothers of 
 San Marco were sore distressed at his being away 
 from them and wrote him of their grief and im- 
 patience at his delay in returning. "Your tender 
 affection," he writes in reply, "is ever in my mind,
 
 STARTLING EVENTS. in 
 
 and I often speak of it with Fra Basilio, my very 
 dear son and your true brother in Christ Jesus. 
 . . . We lead a very solitary life, like unto two 
 turtle doves, awaiting the spring to return again 
 to the soft climate where we once dwelt, amid the 
 blossoms and joys of the Holy Spirit. . . . But if 
 your sadnees seems too great for you to deem life 
 possible without me, your love is still imperfect, 
 and therefore God has taken me from you for some 
 space of time." 
 
 He did not enjoy his stay in Bologna. The 
 city was not at all pleasing to him. Besides, his 
 heart was in Florence. In Bologna the despotic 
 Bentivoglio, ruffian as well as despot, ruled with 
 an iron hand. Preachers were expected to keep 
 well within prescribed limits in Bologna. Under 
 such constraint Savonarola must have hesitated 
 even more than he did when preaching before the 
 Signory in Florence. After the first hearing, he 
 was described by the literati as "a simple man and 
 a preacher for women." But great numbers came 
 to hear him. Even before he arrived his name was 
 well known in Bologna, as in all Italy. 
 
 The only incident worthy of note during this 
 series of sermons was a stinging rebuke which was 
 given to my Lady Bentivoglio, who came day after 
 day with the crowd to hear the popular preacher. 
 She always arrived late. Not the last important 
 lady who has had "the vice of coming in late to 
 Church." She came with a long train of ladies, 
 cavaliers, and pages. It was an interruption of the 
 service which Savonarola could not tolerate. For 
 the first day or two he paused in his sermon until 
 she was seated, thinking she would take this as a
 
 ii2 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 gentle rebuke and arrive earlier. This she did not 
 do. Savonarola then remarked on the sin of dis- 
 turbing the devotions of the faithful. Offended at 
 these words, which she clearly understood were 
 meant for her, she came still later thereafter, made 
 more noise in coming in, and was in every way 
 haughtier in her manner. At last Savonarola could 
 bear it no longer. Interrupted one morning when 
 he was in the very midst of a most earnest exhor- 
 tation, he cried out in a voice that startled every 
 one in the room, "Behold, here cometh the devil 
 to interrupt God's Word." The haughty wife of 
 Bentivoglio, insulted and angered, ordered two 
 of her cavaliers to strike the preacher dead then 
 and there in the pulpit. This they had not the 
 courage to do. Chagrined and humiliated, she then 
 sent two others to find the monk in his cell and 
 kill him. Savonarola received them, so the story 
 goes, with so much calm and dignity, and spoke 
 to them with such an air of authority, that they 
 listened respectfully and departed in confusion. 
 
 It was near the end of the Lenten season and 
 Savonarola was soon to leave Bologna, but he 
 would not let it be said that he had been driven 
 away or that he had gone out secretly. Before 
 leaving the pulpit on the day of his last sermon, 
 after declaring his confidence in his God-appointed 
 mission, he said, "This evening I set forth on my 
 journey to Florence, with my little staff and wooden 
 flask, and I shall rest at Pianora. If any man have 
 aught to say to me, let him come before I leave. 
 But I tell you that my death is not to take place in 
 Bologna."
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 REFORMS BEGIN IN THE MONASTERY 
 OF SAN MARCO. 
 
 ON returning to Florence Savonarola found the 
 opposition to Piero more determined than ever. 
 He was in a strait betwixt two. If he spoke as he 
 felt he ought to speak, he might be sent away from 
 Florence again. If he kept silent but he could 
 not do that. He finally decided upon a course of 
 action which in all probability he had thought 
 through before. His one aim now was to carry 
 out a program of reform. But he saw that it was 
 necessary to begin with the men who occupied posi- 
 tions of leadership. In this case it was the monks 
 and the priests. The first among them to be reached 
 were the friars of San Marco. Savonarola felt the 
 necessity of setting his own household in order. 
 To do this he must secure for himself and for the 
 convent a more independent position. 
 
 San Marco and the other Dominican monasteries 
 connected with it in Tuscany had been, since 1448, 
 under the jurisdiction of the congregation of Lom- 
 bardy, and Savonarola as Prior of San Marco was 
 subject to the commands of the vicar of that con- 
 gregation. In order to secure the freedom needed 
 in his work of reform, Savonarola made application 
 to Rome, asking that the independence of the Tus- 
 cany congregation be again recognized. He was 
 8 113
 
 ii4 GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 heartily supported in this by all the members of 
 San Marco, by the Signory of Florence, by Piero 
 de' Medici, and by one of the most influential pa- 
 trons of the order, Cardinal Caraffa of Naples. 
 Savonarola never showed more clearly than in this 
 instance his practical wisdom, sagacity, and far- 
 sighted diplomacy. He was not content with simply 
 forwarding the petition, powerfully supported 
 though it was. He sent two of the most trusted 
 brothers of San Marco, Fra Alessandro and Fra 
 Dominico, instructing them to urge the application 
 in every way possible with wisdom. These messen- 
 gers found on arriving in Rome that the Lombardy 
 congregation was urgently opposing the plan of 
 separation, and that they had back of them Ludo- 
 vico Sforza of Milan, the Duke of Ferrara, Benti- 
 voglio of Bologna, the Venetian Signory, the King 
 of Naples, and Rome. There seemed no chance for 
 the success of the plan of separation, and Savon- 
 arola's messengers so wrote him. By speedy post 
 he replied, "Fear not, remain firm, and you will 
 conquer ; the Lord scattereth the counsels of nations 
 and overthroweth the designs of princes." 
 
 Victory came in a most unexpected manner. It 
 was through Cardinal Caraffa, who shrewdly out- 
 witted the powerful opposition and secured for San 
 Marco the coveted brief. The subject was discussed 
 at a consistory on the 22d of May, 1493. The pope 
 wearied of the discussion, which had already been 
 persistent and long continued, suddenly dissolved 
 the consistory, saying that he was not disposed to 
 sign any briefs that day. Cardinal Caraffa did not 
 leave with the others, but remained with the pope,
 
 REFORMS BEGIN. 115 
 
 ngaging him in entertaining conversation on other 
 subjects. At the opportune moment he produced 
 the brief already prepared and playfully asked the 
 Holy Father to sign it. Laughingly the pope re- 
 fused, and laughingly Cardinal Caraffa drew the 
 pope's signet ring from his finger and sealed the 
 brief. Caraffa had hardly gone from the pope's 
 presence, when a delegation came in haste from 
 the Lombardy congregation with newly-framed ar- 
 guments against the independence of San Marco. 
 But they were too late. The brief was sealed. The 
 pope tired of the whole affair refused to hear 
 any of their arguments. "Had you come sooner," 
 he said, "your request would have been granted, but 
 now what is done is done." 
 
 By a shrewd move on the part of the Father 
 Provincial of the Lombardy congregation, Savon- 
 arola and certain others to quit San Marco and 
 order was sent to San Marco commanding Savon- 
 arola and certain others to quit San Marco and 
 immediately return to their own convent in Bologna. 
 It was intended that this order should reach 
 San Marco before the papal brief. By what 
 has been termed "a happy circumstance," 
 though Savonarola fully believed that it was 
 by the intervention of Divine Providence, the 
 order had been addressed to the superior of 
 the convent at Fiesole, with the request that he 
 communicate with the brothers concerned in San 
 Marco. The superior to whom the letter was ad- 
 dressed was away from the convent, and the im- 
 portant and urgent message did not reach San 
 Marco until more than a week after it was due.
 
 n6 GIROLAO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 It was then to no purpose. The brief had arrived 
 and San Marco was now the head of the congre- 
 gation of Tuscany, subject only to Rome and the 
 general of the order. Savonarola was re-elected 
 prior, and on the I5th of May, by the action of the 
 General of the Order of Dominicans, he was made 
 provincial. This not only gave him independence 
 in. San Marco, but gave him power in all the mon- 
 asteries related to San Marco in the province of 
 Tuscany. Everything the prior desired had now 
 been accomplished and he was ready to begin the 
 reforms which he felt to be necessary. 
 
 Savonarola had thought, at one time, of taking 
 his brother monks to some mountain place where in 
 solitude he might with them live a pure and holy 
 life, utterly apart from the world. But his maturer 
 view was very different. It had nothing whatever 
 of the ascetic about it. "It was not a question of 
 forsaking the world, but of living in its midst in 
 order to purify it ; it was his business to train men, 
 not to be good hermits, but worthy monks, living an 
 exemplary life, and ready to shed their blood for 
 the salvation of souls. To purify manners, rekindle 
 faith, and reform the Church, were the subjects 
 Savonarola sought to promote." The first reform 
 established in the monastery was the restoring of 
 the old order of St. Dominic which forbade the 
 holding of property. St. Dominic's last words to 
 his disciples had been, "Have chanty, preserve hu- 
 mility, observe voluntary poverty. May my male- 
 diction and that of God fall upon him that shall 
 bring possessions to this order." These words, in 
 good clear letters, were still written on the cloister
 
 REFORMS BEGIN. 117 
 
 walls of San Marco, but since the days of An- 
 tonino they had been disregarded. A change in 
 the constitution had made it possible for the mon- 
 astery to hold property, and San Marco became 
 wealthy. 
 
 In restoring the old order by which the vow 
 of poverty was made binding, all the property which 
 had come into the possession of the monastery in 
 violation of St. Dominic's command was now sold. 
 Then came the problem of providing an income 
 sufficient to maintain the society. Savonarola be- 
 gan by reducing the cost of living. Ornaments, 
 fine cloth, and expensive furniture were all forbid- 
 den; illuminated books, gold and silver crucifixes, 
 and the like, were prohibited. The reforming 
 prior did not ask others to do what he did not do 
 himself. In his cell even now may be seen evi- 
 dences of his simple mode of living the rosary, the 
 wooden crucifix, the cloak, the undergarment, and 
 the hair shirt. All these tell more loudly than words 
 how Savonarola was an example to those under his 
 spiritual care. 
 
 The reorganization had its positive side as 
 well. The practice of manual labor was in- 
 troduced, the study of painting and sculpture, and 
 the art of writing and illuminating manuscripts 
 were encouraged. "The result," according to Father 
 Marchese, "was that this convent, and the others 
 which became associated with it, produced a num- 
 ber of distinguished painters, sculptors, architects, 
 modelers, brass-founders and wood-carvers." 
 
 With much enthusiasm Savonarola gave his at- 
 tention to the raising of the standard of education
 
 n8 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 in the monastery, being particularly careful to em- 
 phasize the education which would fit the brothers 
 for the ministry of preaching. "Three branches of 
 study," this also from Father Marchese, "were car- 
 ried on at San Marco under the guidance of Fra 
 Girolamo scholastic theology, moral theology, and 
 Holy Scripture. To the first only a very few were 
 admitted. Those who were less gifted he advised 
 to apply themselves to the study of moral theology. 
 But most earnestly he inculcated on all the study 
 of the Holy Scripture, and that this might be pur- 
 sued with profit he made provision for the teaching 
 of Hebrew, Syriac and Chaldee." It will be seen 
 from this that Savonarola expected his brother 
 monks not simply to read the Bible but to give it 
 serious study, and not in the scholastic language 
 only, the Latin, but in such Oriental languages as 
 would throw light on its meaning. One reason for 
 teaching the Syriac and the Chaldee was that he 
 might later fulfill his holy purpose of preaching the 
 Gospel to the Turk. 
 
 There seems to have been no friction whatever 
 in carrying out these reforms. The manifest sin- 
 cerity and earnestness of the prior, and the con- 
 tagion of his enthusiasm, seemed ,to pervade the 
 entire convent. Every friar caught something of 
 his spirit and the monastery prospered. Within a 
 few years the number of friars increased from fifty 
 to nearly three hundred, so that the original build- 
 ing was too small to contain them. Men of the 
 noblest families of Florence came to the gates of 
 the monastery and prayed to be admitted. Not less 
 than six representatives of the house of Strozzi
 
 REFORMS BEGIN. 119 
 
 occupied cells in San Marco. Five of the Bettini 
 were there. The names of Medici, Tornabuoni, 
 Vespucci, and Salviati, are found in the list of mem- 
 bers. It is hardly too much to say that during the 
 palmy days of Savonarola the monastery of San 
 Marco was the pride of Florence. 
 
 Some in the city and many outside could not 
 comprehend the new order of things. A letter 
 written about this time to an abbess of Ferrara, 
 throws light on the doubt and questionings which 
 were arising in the minds of many. This abbess 
 had .evidently written to Savonarola expressing 
 doubt as to the wisdom of the innovations. In reply 
 he said, "It is quite a mistake to say that we have 
 entered upon a new mode of life. A return to 
 the principles and example of our saintly predeces- 
 sors is not the adoption of a new mode of life. . . . 
 But for mendicants to build themselves palaces with 
 marble columns ; to live in a cell handsome enough 
 for a prince; to hold possessions contrary to the 
 profession of one's Order; to wear rich cloth in 
 place of rough serge; to pray little; to wander 
 hither and thither; to wish to be poor and at the 
 same time to want for nothing these things are 
 indeed innovations and are a stumbling-block to 
 souls. Our first fathers lived in one fashion, our 
 modern fathers live in another. Let every one make 
 his choice between the old style and the new. Our 
 way of life, instead of giving scandal here in Flor- 
 ence, on the contrary, gives great edification; and 
 yet you must know that we have hardly begun to 
 carry out what we intend." "It is time," he goes 
 on to say, "it is time, it is indeed time, to adopt a
 
 120 GIROI,AMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 singular mode of life, before the world has grown 
 luke warm, so that God may well say in the words 
 of the Apocalyse 'I will spew thee out of My 
 mouth/ " 
 
 If the Reformer sometimes seemed stern and 
 severe in the pulpit, and as he walked the streets 
 of Florence, his relations with the monks and with 
 visitors who came frequently to the convent, were 
 always most cordial and friendly. "The natural 
 gravity of his disposition was softened by a gentle 
 graciousness, which seldom failed to beget a warm 
 affection in those closely associated with him. He 
 could unbend from his usual austerity of mien, and 
 enter with genial freedom into the pleasantries and 
 pastimes of the brothers in their hours of recrea- 
 tion. Occasionally he would take them out for a 
 day's excursion into the country, choosing some se- 
 cluded spot where they could enjoy the beauties of 
 nature undisturbed; and there he would freely join 
 with them in their simple repast under a shady 
 tree, read to them, sing with them, and look on 
 with frank and easy good humor at the sports in 
 which the novices sought vent for their youthful 
 spirits and energies ; endearing himself to them all 
 by his winning brotherliness and humanity." 
 
 The months following the Lent of 1492 were 
 full of thrilling events. The death of Lorenzo and 
 the accession of Piero the "mad," the death of 
 Innocent VIII and the unholy coronation of Alex- 
 ander VI, the portentous visions of the white and 
 black crosses and the Gladius Domini, the trying 
 experience of Bologna, the hotly contested battle 
 for the independence of San Marco, the transforma-
 
 REFORMS BEGIN. 121 
 
 tions begun in the monastery through the restora- 
 tion of the old order, and the increasing devotion 
 and enthusiasm of the people, who now openly de- 
 clared that the Prior of San Marco was a true 
 prophet of God, all these events quickly crowded 
 together, and the responsibility of the mission under 
 which he staggered, must have been almost over- 
 whelming as Savonarola began the Advent sermons 
 of 1493. 
 
 In these sermons we probably see Savonarola's 
 preaching at its best, so far at least as the best in 
 his preaching can be reproduced in cold type. The 
 gleam and flash of the orator's eye and the weird 
 fascination and power of his clear, penetrating, and 
 thrilling voice, can not be put down on the page of a 
 book. They can only be felt. The subject of these 
 sermons was the seventy-third Psalm. Texts for 
 twenty-five sermons Savonarola found in this one 
 Psalm, and they were all suggestive of the message 
 he felt called of God to bring to the people. "The 
 infamous manners of princes and priests of Italy," 
 "The corruption of the Church," "The approach of 
 the threatened scourge," "The anxiety of the right- 
 eous to put an end to the general depravity," all 
 these themes were in this Psalm. In these sermons 
 Savonarola gave almost a complete exposition of 
 his doctrines. He set forth in clear and explicit 
 terms the nature and character of the reforms which 
 he hoped to see brought about in Florence and in all 
 Italy, and then throughout Europe. His was a 
 comprehensive purpose. He dreamed of a regen- 
 eration which would revive the whole Church and 
 bring Constantinople again within the Christian
 
 122 GlROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 fold. Even in this age, so dark morally and spirit- 
 ually, Savonarola had the spirit of the true mis- 
 sionary of the first century and the twentieth. He 
 believed that the doctrine he preached was for all 
 men, but he would begin in Florence. 
 
 In order to understand the later career of Savon- 
 arola it is important that the sermons of this Advent 
 series shall be studied with care. The key-note was 
 sounded in one of the earliest of them when the 
 preacher addressed himself to the clergy. "They 
 tickle men's ears when they talk of Aristotle and 
 Plato, Virgil and Petrarch, and take no concern for 
 the salvation of souls. Why, instead of expounding 
 so many books, do they not expound the one Book 
 in which is the law and spirit of life ! The Gospels, 
 O Christians, you should ever have with you; not 
 merely the letter, but the spirit of the Gospels, for 
 if thou hast not the spirit of grace, what will it 
 avail to carry about the whole Book? And, again, 
 still greater is the foolishness of those that load 
 themselves with briefs and tracts and writings, so 
 that they are like unto stalls at a fair. Charity does 
 not consist in written papers, the true books of 
 Christ are the apostles and the saints ; the true read- 
 ing of them, is to imitate their lives." - 
 
 No preacher was ever more emphatically a man 
 of one book. Perhaps the finest thing ever said 
 about him as a student of the Bible is this : "By 
 force of study and meditation he had ceased to 
 regard the Bible as a book. It was a world, a 
 living, speaking, infinite world, in which the past, 
 present and future were all revealed to him." This 
 is beautifully illustrated in the following paragraph 
 from one of his sermons, in which he seems to talk
 
 REFORMS BEGIN. 123 
 
 with the saints whom he is addressing as though 
 they were actually there in the Duomo. "Tell me, 
 O Peter, tell me, O Magdalen, wherefore are you 
 in Paradise? You sinned even as we sin. Thou, 
 Peter, who hadst testified unto the Son of God, 
 hadst conversed with Him, heard Him preach, be- 
 held His miracles, and, alone, with two other dis- 
 ciples, hadst beheld His transfiguration on Mt. 
 Tabor, harkened unto His paternal voice ; and who, 
 despite all this, at the word of a base woman didst 
 deny Him thrice, yet thou art restored to grace, 
 and made the head of the Church, and dost now 
 enjoy heavenly bliss ; how hast thou gained these 
 guerdons? Confess that not by thine own merits 
 hast thou attained salvation, but by the goodness of 
 God, who didst bestow so many blessings on thee, 
 and vouchsafed to thee in this life so much light 
 and grace. And thou, Magdalen, once called the sin- 
 ner, thou didst hearken many times to the preach- 
 ing of thy master, Jesus Christ, and nevertheless 
 wert deaf to His words, . . . but when it pleased 
 the Lord, and He touched thy heart, thou didst 
 hasten as in a frenzy, with thy vase of alabaster, 
 to the house of the Pharisee, and, casting thyself 
 at the sweet Master's feet, didst bathe them with 
 thy tears, and wast deemed worthy to hear the 
 sweet words 'Thy sins which are many are for- 
 given.' Later, thou wast so favored by the Saviour 
 as to be the first to behold Him risen from the dead, 
 and wert made an apostle unto the apostles. This 
 grace, these gifts, were not vouchsafed to thee for 
 thy deserts, O Mary! but because God loved thee 
 and willed thy salvation."
 
 124 GiROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 It is in such paragraphs as the above that certain 
 German and English writers have found evidence 
 to support the theory that Savonarola was a pre- 
 curser of the reformation in preaching the doctrine 
 of justification by faith. Their position is utterly 
 without foundation, as every careful student will 
 agree, who has examined Savonarola's sermons. 
 In doctrine Savonarola was a good Catholic. The 
 source of his teaching, however, was not the Church 
 fathers but the Bible. This gave him a freedom 
 in preaching which slaves to the doctrines of the 
 Church did not have and could not have. There 
 was a freshness about his words. Some of his dis- 
 tinctions are fine. "We must not," says he, "con- 
 demn the sinner, but only his sins, and must have 
 compassion on him; for so long as free will and 
 the grace of God endure, he may always turn to 
 the Lord and be converted." He was ever a match 
 for the philosophers in his audience. "If any one 
 asks," said he, "why the will is free, we reply unto 
 them, Because it is will." Human responsibility 
 was ever made prominent in his preaching. He 
 taught that man must needs co-operate in the act 
 of justification, and do all that in him lies, for God 
 will not fail him. If a brother would fain receive 
 the love of Jesus Christ he must first hearken unto 
 the Divine voice of the Lord, which was daily call- 
 ing unto him. God could not do it all. Man must 
 do somewhat for himself." 
 
 No preacher has ever surpassed Savonarola in 
 the effective preaching of the beauty and power of 
 Divine love. Two illustrations, here given, will 
 suggest his method. "Take, for instance," this he
 
 REFORMS BEGIN. 125 
 
 said in one of his sermons, "the physician that 
 bringeth love and charity to the sick, for, if he be 
 good and kind, and learned and skillful, none can 
 be better than he. Thou wilt see that love teacheth 
 him everything, and will be the measure and rule 
 of all the measures and rules of medicine. He 
 will endure a thousand fatigues as though they were 
 of no account, will inquire into everything, and 
 will order his remedies and see them prepared, and 
 will never leave the sick man. If instead, gain be 
 his object, he will have no care for the sufferer, 
 and his very skill will fail him." This description 
 of the spirit of the true physician is certainly a 
 noble utterance. To many it will suggest the char- 
 acter of Dr. MacLure. Savonarola's early studies 
 he never forgot, and to the day of his death he had 
 a high and exalted conception of the noble pro- 
 fession of medicine. What an ideal he holds up 
 for the physician in the words, "Love will be the 
 measure and rule of all the measures and rules of 
 medicine !" 
 
 "Behold what love can effect." This is quoted 
 from the same sermon as the foregoing. "Take the 
 example of the mother with the child. Who hath 
 taught this young woman, who hath had no chil- 
 dren before, to nurse her babe? Love. See what 
 fatigue she endureth by day and by night to rear 
 it, and how the heaviest fatigue seemeth light to 
 her. What is the cause of this? It is love. See 
 what ways she hath, what loving caresses and sweet 
 words for this little babe of hers ! What hath 
 taught her these things ? Love. Take the example 
 of Christ, who, moved by the deepest charity, came
 
 126 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 to us as a little child, in all things like unto the 
 sons of men, and submitted to hunger and thirst, 
 to heat and cold and discomfort. What hath urged 
 Him to do this? Love. He spoke now with just 
 men, now with publicans and sinners, and He led a 
 life that all men and all women, small and great, 
 rich and poor, may imitate ; all after their own way 
 and according to their condition, and thus un- 
 doubtedly win their salvation. And what made Him 
 lead so poor and marvelous a life? Undoubtedly, 
 love. Love bound Him to the pillar, love led Him 
 to the cross, love raised Him from the dead and 
 made Him ascend into heaven, and thus accomplish 
 all the mysteries of our redemption." 
 
 Savonarola had a genius for taking the familiar 
 and the common-place to illustrate the highest 
 Christian truths and virtues. In sweetness and 
 gentleness of spirit he made heaven come near to 
 men and unfolded the mysteries of Divine love; 
 he also rebuked sin and cried out with mighty 
 voice against unrighteousness. In burning words 
 he described the princes of Italy as "wicked princes 
 sent to chastise the sins of their subjects;" princes 
 whose "courts and palaces were the refuge of all 
 the beasts and monsters of the earth ;" princes 
 whose evil doings were only matched by the flat- 
 tering philosophers and poets" and the "priests 
 who follow in the same course." These made up 
 the "City of Impious and Foolish," whom God 
 would destroy. They behold light and darkness, 
 and they prefer darkness to light. Here follows 
 one of the most striking of all his illustrations. 
 "Behold now," speaking of the princes of Italy,
 
 REFORMS BEGIN. 127 
 
 "behold now, they plunge into the sea and mount 
 upon a whale, which they believe to be a rock, 
 and they settle upon it. What generation of men 
 is this? What purpose can be theirs? especially 
 as I would have you to know that they intend to 
 build a city on the whale's back. What would ye? 
 I say. You will weigh down the beast and will 
 drown. Nevertheless, they labor and dispute, build 
 fortifications and come to blows, and one seeks to 
 subjugate the other, and finally there arrives a 
 tyrant to oppress them all. He persecutes his 
 enemies to the death, has spies everywhere, hence 
 there are fresh wars and fresh dissensions. At last 
 the whale, wearied by all this tumult, makes a 
 plunge, and thereupon all are drowned, and the city 
 of Babylon is destroyed." "Thus," concludes Sa- 
 vonarola, "it is made manifest that the impious 
 perish by the labors of the foolish, and that the 
 foolish shall be chastised." The preacher did not 
 have to explain to his audience the meaning of this 
 illustration. The people knew that the "City of 
 Fools" was none other than the unstable govern- 
 ment of Piero de' Medici, which was already going 
 so badly that it was hardly necessary for a prophet 
 to predict its overthrow. 
 
 In this series of Advent sermons Savonarola 
 discussed all the themes included in his three great 
 propositions. Politics, morals, religion, and the 
 Church, all came in for their share. Perhaps his 
 strongest words were against the clergy, the "bad 
 shepherds of the flock of Christ." "See," he cried 
 out, "how in these days prelates and preachers are 
 chained to the earth by love of earthly things; the
 
 128 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 cure of souls is no longer their concern; they are 
 content with the receipt of revenue; the preachers 
 preach for the pleasure of princes, to be praised and 
 magnified by them. Go thou to Rome and through- 
 out Christendom in the mansions of the great 
 prelates and great lords, there is no concern save 
 for poetry and the oratorical art. Go thither and 
 see, thou shalt find them all with books of human- 
 ities in their hands, and telling one another that 
 they can guide men's souls by means of Virgil, 
 Horace, and Cicero. Wouldst thou see how the 
 Church is ruled by the hands of astrologers? And 
 there is no prelate nor great lord that hath not 
 intimate dealings with some astrologer, who fixeth 
 the hour and the moment in which he is to ride 
 out or undertake some piece of business. For these 
 great lords venture not to stir a step save at their 
 astrologer's bidding." 
 
 "Our Church," he went on to say, "hath many 
 fine outer ceremonies for the solemnization of ec- 
 clesiastical rites, grand vestments and numerous 
 draperies, with gold and silver candlesticks, and so 
 many chalices that it is a majestic sight to behold. 
 There thou seest the great prelates with splendid 
 miters of gold and precious stones on their heads, 
 and silver crosiers in hand ; there they stand at the 
 altar, decked with fine copes and stoles of brocade, 
 chanting those beautiful vespers and masses very 
 slowly, and with so many grand ceremonies, so 
 many organs and choristers, that thou art struck 
 with amazement; and all these priests seem to thee 
 grave and saintly men; thou canst not believe that 
 they may be in error, but deem that all which they
 
 REFORMS BEGIN. 129 
 
 say and do should be obeyed as the Gospel; and 
 thus is our Church conducted. Men feed upon these 
 vanities and rejoice in these pomps, and say that 
 the Church of Christ was never so flourishing, nor 
 Divine worship so well conducted as at present. 
 Likewise that the former prelates were inferior to 
 these of our own times. The former, it is true, had 
 fewer gold miters and fewer chalices, for, indeed, 
 what few they possessed were broken up to relieve 
 the needs of the poor ; whereas our prelates for the 
 sake of obtaining chalices, will rob the poor of their 
 sole means of support. But dost thou know what 
 I would tell thee?" Here follows a striking sen- 
 tence which has been widely quoted : "In the primi- 
 tive church the chalices were of wood, the prelates 
 of gold; in these days the Church hath chalices of 
 gold and prelates of wood." No word of comment 
 is needed on such preaching as this. Savonarola 
 simply told the people what many of them knew, 
 that back of all the show and pomp there was in- 
 sincerity and uncleanness, greed of gain and a 
 pagan spirit. 
 
 In the twenty-third sermon of this series, after 
 the preacher had again and again cried out against 
 the frightful corruptions of the Church, he appealed 
 to heaven and called out to the Almighty, "What 
 doest thou, O Lord? Why dost thou slumber? 
 Arise, and come to deliver Thy Church from the 
 hands of the devils, from the hands of tyrants, the 
 hands of iniquitous prelates. Hast Thou forsaken 
 Thy Church ? Dost Thou not love her ? Is she not 
 dear unto Thee? O Lord, we are becoming the 
 despised of all nations; the Turks are masters of 
 9
 
 GlROLAMO SAVONAROIvA. 
 
 Constantinople ; we have lost Asia, have lost Greece, 
 we already pay tribute to the Infidel. O Lord God, 
 Thou hast dealt with us as a wrathful father, Thou 
 hast cast us out from Thy presence ! Hasten then 
 the chastisement and the scourge, that it may be 
 quickly granted us to return unto Thee." 
 
 At the close of these sermons Savonarola was 
 widely recognized not only as a wonderful preacher 
 and a prophet of God, but as a true and mighty 
 champion of liberty; a man who would plead the 
 cause of the people. In the following spring the 
 Lenten sermons were a continuation of the series 
 he had begun two years before on Noah's ark, 
 which he described in its allegorical sense as por- 
 traying the gathering together of the righteous of 
 the earth. Its length represented faith, its width 
 charity, its height hope. Every day he gave some dif- 
 ferent interpretation of ten of the planks of which 
 the ark was composed. On Easter morning, and 
 when expectation was aroused to a high pitch, he 
 declared the ark to be completed and closed his 
 sermon with these words: "Let all hasten to enter 
 into the Lord's ark. Noah invites you all to-day, 
 the door stands open; but a time will come when 
 the ark will be closed, and mariy will repent in 
 vain of not having entered therein." 
 
 It occasioned no little surprise in Florence that 
 the preacher devoted so much time to the theme 
 of the ark and its building, and men were curious 
 to know what he meant by the talk about the coming 
 of a new Cyrus who would march through Italy 
 in triumph. Surprise was increased when in the 
 autumn the preacher again took up the theme on
 
 REFORMS BKGIN. 131 
 
 which he had delayed so long during the previous 
 Lent. 
 
 On the 2 1st of September he preached the third 
 sermon in this third series on the ark. The day 
 was destined to be a memorable one for Savon- 
 arola and for Florence. The crowd in the Duomo 
 had been waiting since early morning. On enter- 
 ing the pulpit the preacher could not fail to notice 
 the extraordinary agitation. He was himself agi- 
 tated. In a voice, the like of which had never been 
 heard in the Duomo, he announced his text, "Be- 
 hold, I will bring a flood of waters upon the earth." 
 A strange alarm seemed to sweep over the audi- 
 ence. Pico della Mirandola declared afterwards 
 that he felt a cold shiver run over him, and that 
 his hair stood on end. The delay in getting to the 
 end of the series of the sermons, which Savonarola 
 had not been able to understand, was now made 
 plain. The night before there had come to Florence 
 the startling announcement that Charles VIII of 
 France was crossing the Alps to conquer Italy.
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 CHARLES VIII OF FRANCE INVADES 
 ITALY. 
 
 THE flood had come with the French king. So 
 Savonarola believed. This was the scourge he had 
 been prophesying, the scourge which would come 
 upon Italy and the Church; upon Italy, to punish 
 the princes and the people for their sins ; upon the 
 Church, to punish and regenerate. Charles VIII 
 was the messenger of God and the scourge of God. 
 Savonarola had no doubt about this. Here at last 
 was the power which would "break the spreading 
 wings." It is not at all strange then that on the 
 morning after the announcement of the coming of 
 Charles he preached the sermon he did, to the ex- 
 cited audience packed in the Duomo, from the text, 
 "Behold, I bring a flood of waters upon the earth." 
 The effect of this sermon and of others which fol- 
 lowed will be described later. 
 
 The political situation which led to the coming 
 of Charles VIII was briefly this : There was a crown 
 in Naples then worn by Alfonso, son of Ferdinand, 
 which Charles had been persuaded belonged to him. 
 This Charles, a son of Louis XI, was then only 
 twenty-two years of age, and had just come to the 
 French throne. His supposed claim to the crown 
 of Alfonso came through the recent death of Rene 
 of Anjou, giving the province of that name, with 
 
 132
 
 CHARLES VIII OF FRANCE. 133 
 
 all Angevin rights to the Neapolitan throne, to the 
 French king. Interested parties persuaded Charles 
 that his claim was good. Alexander VI, ever ready 
 to lend his favor to any enterprise which promised 
 advantage to himself or his family, and looking with 
 greedy eye on the possible outcome of a French in- 
 vasion, gave encouragement to Charles and prom- 
 ised him support. If the invasion offered oppor- 
 tunity for gaining personal ends he was ready for 
 it. He knew he could change his attitude later if 
 he wanted to: treaties and alliances were easily 
 made and as easily unmade. Perhaps the march 
 of Charles through Italy might add a few princi- 
 palities to the domains of his ambitious sons and 
 daughters. If so he was in favor of it. 
 
 The most urgent invitation which Charles re- 
 ceived came from Ludovico Sforza, of Milan, more 
 familiarly known as Ludovico, the Moor. Ludo- 
 vico had strong reasons for wanting Charles to 
 forcibly claim the Neapolitan crown, and that right 
 speedily. His own power in Milan was in danger. 
 It is hard to understand how a man so inordinately 
 ambitious as Ludovico was should also be a prey 
 to fear. That he was dominated by ambition 
 nobody doubted, and his duplicity and bad faith 
 were a matter of common remark throughout Italy. 
 He resorted to every conceivable method to put 
 enemies out of the way and increase his own per- 
 sonal power. Just vain enough to consider himself 
 a master of Statecraft, he was forever devising 
 schemes to crush his enemies and use his friends. 
 If we may accept his own estimate of himself, he 
 was the craftiest politician in Italy. But knowing
 
 134 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 as he did the mesh-work of lies which characterized 
 all his relations with the other princes of Italy, it 
 was only natural that he should at times be dom- 
 inated by fear. At this particular time his fear 
 had reached a point where it was mingled with 
 terror and alarm. The rightful heir to the dukedom, 
 Giovanni Galeazzo was a prisoner in Pavia, put 
 there and kept there by Ludovico. The wife of 
 Galeazzo was Isabella of Aragon, daughter of Al- 
 fonso of Naples. The grievous and outrageous 
 wrongs to her husband Isabella described at length 
 to Alfonso, her father, and to her grandfather, 
 Ferdinand, and published .them to all Italy. Al- 
 fonso, proud of the prestige of his own house, had 
 more than once threatened Ludovico that he would 
 bring his armies and drive him from his place of 
 power and take from him his ill-gotten gains. The 
 time had now come when it looked as though Al- 
 fonso might be able to carry out his threat. 
 
 Ludovico was in agonies of fear. He had al- 
 ready failed in a bold scheme to win the favor of 
 Alexander VI. The scheme he had proposed was 
 that the representatives of the three powers which 
 composed the old triple alliance Florence, Naples 
 and Milan should visit Rome at the same time, 
 to pay their respects to the new pope. PierO'de 
 Medici had his own ambitious plans, and induced 
 Alfonso to decline Ludovico's invitation. It was 
 just then, when in sheer desperation and under 
 mortal fear of what might happen at any moment, 
 that Ludovico, with a shrewdness worthy of the 
 most astute politician, decided to invite the French 
 king to enter Italy and undertake with his help the
 
 CHARGES VIII OF FRANCE. 135 
 
 conquest of the Neapolitan kingdom, and thus gain 
 the crown which rightfully belonged to him since 
 the death of Rene of Anjoti. "This," says a recent 
 Italian writer, "proved to be the beginning of the 
 long string of disasters which was to desolate Italy 
 for ages to come, destroy her commercial prosper- 
 ity, stifle her literary and scientific culture, and ex- 
 tinguish every spark of her liberty." 
 
 It was greatly in Charles' favor that the field 
 of opportunity in Italy was just then so inviting. 
 No State seemed secure; each was jealous of the 
 other ; princes were arrayed against the people, and 
 the people arrayed against the princes. Ludovico 
 could hardly help seeing what everybody else saw, 
 that now was the opportune time for the invader. 
 More than one of the surrounding nations must 
 have been looking with jealous eye upon Italy at 
 this time. The Turks were only waiting the oppor- 
 tune moment ; Spain would be ready as soon as she 
 finished her rejoicing over the conquest of a new 
 world; Germany was developing a military power 
 and already looking for something for it to do; 
 Switzerland, with the best infantry in Europe, 
 seemed to be ready for anything which promised 
 gain. "All of these nations, including France, 
 deemed it unpardonable," says a proud-spirited 
 Florentine, "that Italy should still be the world's 
 preceptress, that students from all parts of Europe 
 should flock to her universities ; that she should be 
 the sole center of art and literature ; that her man- 
 ners should be imitated, her language studied in 
 every court throughout Christendom ; that the writ- 
 ers, artists, philosophers, physicians, astrologers,
 
 136 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 and navigators of Italy should still surpass all others 
 in glory as much as her princes and merchants 
 eclipsed all others in wealth." It is hardly possible 
 that all these considerations entered into the think- 
 ing of the nations named. Nevertheless, this land 
 beyond the Alps, with its song and story, its wealth 
 and traditions of political prestige, had long been 
 the envy of the Northern nations ! 
 
 France, under Charles VIII, began "the mighty 
 movement that was to bring life to Europe by Italy's 
 death." This invasion Gibbon describes as "An 
 event which changed the face of Europe." There 
 was little about Charles personally which would 
 lead one to think of him as the leader of a campaign 
 which was to be so momentous in its results. He 
 had almost no education hardly knew the alpha- 
 bet, was physically deformed, and seems to have 
 been almost utterly devoid of judgment. But he 
 was eager to rule and ambitious to immortalize his 
 name. His program of conquest was almost be- 
 wildering. It included a crusade against the Turks. 
 The conquest of Naples and the relief, as he 
 thought, of the distressed Neapolitans was only in- 
 cidental to the carrying out of the larger work to 
 which he had been divinely commissioned. Charles 
 did not receive much support from the French 
 barons. Almost to a man they were against the 
 expedition. They knew the character of Ludovico, 
 had no confidence in a pope so vacillating and 
 changeable as Alexander VI, and put much higher 
 estimate than did their king on the strength of 
 Alfonso. Besides, they knew that Charles was 
 utterly without power to carry on a difficult cam-
 
 CHARLES VIII OP FRANCE. 137 
 
 paign, and that the French treasury was empty. 
 Under these circumstances they did everything in 
 their power to thwart the king's purpose. But 
 Ludovico was urgent, and the powerful Cardinal 
 Rovere, afterwards Pope Julius II, favored the ex- 
 pedition. This was enough for Charles. 
 
 The liberty-loving men of Italy looked with 
 favor upon the coming of this great and friendly 
 king from the North, who was to right wrongs and 
 take up the cause of the oppressed. The expedition 
 had been broached by envoys sent from Charles, so 
 that Italy was not actually taken by surprise. 
 When, however, the news spread that he had act- 
 ually crossed the Alps, and with an army of sixty 
 thousand men, it created widespread feeling of 
 uncertainty and unrest. Stories were current of the 
 great guns the French were bringing, of the im- 
 mense number of Swiss foot-soldiers, and of the 
 powerful Scots, terrible to look at. All tended to 
 confusion and alarm. 
 
 It was the announcement in Florence that 
 Charles VIII had crossed the Alps with great and 
 powerful armies, and that he was devastating cities 
 and massacring the inhabitants which led to that 
 notable coming together of the people in the Duomo 
 to hear what the great preacher would say about it. 
 And when the text was announced, "Behold, I will 
 bring a flood of waters upon the earth," everybody 
 in the Duomo knew that the rushing and roaring 
 waters were near at hand. Charles VIII was the 
 "flood." The preacher's message that morning was 
 a vindication of his own position, and of his own 
 prophecies so oft repeated. It was also a call to
 
 138 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 repentance. God would favor Florence, so he told 
 the people, if the people would repent and turn to 
 God, but the wicked would be punished. 
 
 It was decided that Piero and a delegation of 
 citizens should go to meet Charles in his camp near 
 Milan to find out definitely whether he would come 
 to Florence, and if so on what terms he would enter 
 the city. Piero, beside himself with fear for him- 
 self and his family, broke away from the delega- 
 tion and went in person to Charles to make terms 
 on his own account. He was received coldly. Fear- 
 ful lest everything might be taken from him, he 
 promised all the king asked and more. He gave up 
 important fortresses purchased by Florence at im- 
 mense cost, and promised a fine of 200,000 florins, 
 and besides this offered to give the city of Florence, 
 without condition, to the French king. When the 
 news of this frightful humiliation reached Florence 
 the excitement was intense. To the liberty-loving 
 citizens the time had come to throw off the tyran- 
 nical yoke of the Medici and give the people the 
 right to govern their own city. 
 
 Again the people crowded to the Duomo to hear 
 what the preacher would say. One revolutionary 
 word from his lips and Florence would have been 
 in the hands of a mob. Men were there ready .to 
 sack, burn, or destroy anything and everything 
 which belonged to the Medici. The memory of 
 sixty years of tyranny's fearful bondage, made them 
 eager for any violence or bloodshed which would 
 lead them towards liberty. Many carried concealed 
 weapons and more than one steel corslet was hid- 
 den under the closely drawn robes of outraged
 
 CHARLES VIII OF FRANCE. 139 
 
 Florentines crowded together in the dimly-lighted 
 Duomo. Some were there suspected of being in 
 sympathy with the Medici, others ready to kill any 
 Medicean adherent on the spot, and for the glorious 
 cause of liberty. Wronged men were there who 
 felt keenly that revenge ought to come from some 
 source. It was not an easy task to speak just the 
 right word to such an audience. The very air 
 seemed thick with uncertainty and distrust. Yet 
 there was expectancy, too. Was not Fra Girolamo 
 to preach ! 
 
 No fitter message was ever brought to a waiting 
 congregation. There was no allusion to politics. 
 Nothing was said about old party or new party. 
 But with tremendous earnestness and deep feeling 
 which touched and moved all who came within the 
 sweep of his mighty and persuasive voice, the 
 preacher pleaded in tones of sympathy, and with a 
 manner which made him seem like God's man as he 
 stood in the pulpit, pleaded for peace, for charity, 
 and for union. "Behold!" he cried, and his voice 
 reached the men standing under the farthest doors 
 of the Duomo, "Behold ! the sword has come upon 
 you, and the prophecies are fulfilled. The scourge 
 has begun! Behold! these hosts are led by the 
 Lord, O Florence ! The time of singing and danc- 
 ing is at an end ; now is the time to shed floods of 
 tears for thy sins. Thy sins, O Florence! Thy 
 sins, O Rome! Thy sins, O Italy! They have 
 brought these chastisements upon thee! Repent 
 ye, then ; give alms, offer up prayers and be united ! 
 O my people ! I have long been as a father ; I have 
 labored all the days of my life to teach you the
 
 140 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 truths of straight and of Godly living, yet I have 
 received nothing but tribulation, scorn and con- 
 tumely; give me at last the consolation of seeing 
 you do good deeds ! My people, what desire hath 
 ever been mine but to see you saved, to see you 
 united? Repent. ye, for the kingdom of heaven is 
 at hand. But I have said this so many times, and 
 I have cried to you so many times; I have wept 
 for you, O Florence, so many times, that it should 
 be enough. . To Thee, I turn O Lord, to Thee who 
 didst die for love of us and for our sins; forgive, 
 O Lord, forgive the Florentine people that would 
 fain become Thy people." 
 
 The effect of the sermon upon Savonarola him- 
 self was such that he had to be almost carried from 
 the Duomo, so exhausted was he. It was days 
 before he was himself again. The effect upon the 
 people was beyond description. The Duomo had 
 been for them a place of peace! They would re- 
 pent. They would be united. They would live holy 
 lives. With calm and serious faces they went out 
 into the street as from the very presence of God. 
 During the most trying days of uncertainty which 
 followed not an excess of any kind was committed, 
 and the revolution, which many had expected to see 
 accomplished in the public square with much flow- 
 ing of red blood, was accomplished in peace in the 
 . Palazzo Vecchio. This miracle, for such it was, 
 has been described as unprecedented in Florentine 
 history, and is unanimously attributed by the his- 
 torians of the time to Savonarola's beneficial ascend- 
 ency over the minds of the people. 
 
 The Council of Seventy called a special meet-
 
 CHARGES VIII otf FRANCA. 141 
 
 ing to decide upon a course of action. There was 
 much agitation. Every man realized that the safety 
 of Florence hung in the balance. The former 
 method of procedure, no one speaking until 
 he was invited by the Signory, was disregarded. 
 Orsini spoke first. He said something about 
 things going badly, and that it was a time 
 for strong remedies; then became confused and 
 sat down. An ambitious youth, Tani de Nerli 
 by name, in a few passionate words, indorsed 
 the sentiments just uttered, then began to hesi- 
 tate, and was finally apologized for by his father. 
 Things were not going well. The trouble was, the 
 council had been so long under the domination of 
 the Signory that though the sentiment was strong 
 that something ought to be done, no one seemed 
 to have power to voice the common thought in such 
 a way as to command a hearing and win respect 
 for the spirit of revolt which was in the air. At 
 last Piero Capponi stood up. Something about him 
 commanded attention. He was a man of fine pro- 
 portions; his hair was white; there were flashes of 
 fire in his eyes, and he had a courageous look that 
 compelled all others to keep silence. Like our own 
 General Grant, this Capponi was a man of few 
 words, but of resolute deeds. In a short address 
 which might almost be described as a Declaration 
 of Independence for Florence, Capponi won every 
 man there to the conviction that the time had come 
 for prompt and decisive action. These were his 
 words : "Piero de' Medici is no longer fit to rule the 
 State; the Republic must provide for itself; the 
 moment has come to shake off this baby govern-
 
 142 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 ment." These patriotic words have been ringing 
 through Florentine history ever since. "Let am- 
 bassadors," said Capponi, "be sent to King Charles, 
 and should they meet Piero by the way, let them 
 pass him without salutation and let them explain 
 that he has caused all the evil, and that the city 
 is well disposed to the French. Let honorable men 
 be chosen to give a fitting welcome to the king; 
 but at the same time let all the captains and sol- 
 diery be summoned from the country and hidden 
 away in the cloisters and other secret places; be- 
 sides all the soldiery, let all men be prepared to 
 fight in case of need, so that when we shall have 
 done our best to act honestly toward this most 
 Christian monarch, and to satisfy with money the 
 avarice of the French, we may be ready to face him 
 and show our teeth, if he shall try us beyond our 
 patience, either by word or by deed. And, above 
 all," urged Capponi, "it must not be forgotten to 
 send Father Girolamo Savonarola as one of the 
 ambassadors, for he has gained the entire love of 
 the people." 
 
 The ambassadors were chosen, five of them, 
 Capponi, Nerli, and Savonarola were in the num- 
 ber. Four started immediately on their mission. 
 Savonarola waited to once more address the peo- 
 ple. His farewell words in the Duomo were these : 
 "The Lord hath granted thy prayer and brought 
 great revolution by peaceful means. God alone 
 came to rescue the city when it was forsaken of 
 all. Wait and thou shalt see the disasters which 
 will happen elsewhere. Therefore, be steadfast in 
 good works, O people of Florence; be steadfast in
 
 CHARLES VIII OF FRANCE. 143 
 
 peace. If thou wouldst have the Lord steadfast in 
 mercy, be thou merciful to thy brethren, thy friends, 
 and thy enemies ; otherwise thou shalt surely be 
 smitten by the scourges prepared for the rest of 
 Italy. 'I love mercy,' crieth the Lord unto you. 
 Woe to him that obeyeth not His commands." The 
 sermon done, Savonarola started for Pisa. There 
 he met the king and his fellow ambassadors. 
 
 Piero de' Medici, then in the king's camp, soon 
 found that these ambassadors represented a gov- 
 ernment which had left him out. Pleading earnestly 
 for the king's support, and promising big sums of 
 money, he started for Florence. The welcome he 
 received when he returned was not to his liking. 
 The Florence he had come to was not the Florence 
 he had left. A revolution had taken place, and a new 
 order had been established. On the day after his 
 arrival, discouraged by the cold bearing of the 
 Signory, by the averted countenances of former 
 friends, and by revolutionists crowding toward the 
 Riccardi palace under the leadership of Valori, he 
 hastened from his palace and fled from the city 
 through the San Gallo Gate. This was the gate 
 through which Savonarola had entered twelve years 
 before. Even the dregs of Florence now looked 
 upon Piero with contempt as he ran through the 
 San Gallo Gate to save his life. "I would rather 
 have been hacked to pieces," said Bentivoglio to 
 him when he reached Bologna, "than to abandon 
 my State in this fashion." These were the words 
 of a braggart. It was not long before Bentivoglio 
 played the coward as beautifully as Piero had done. 
 Once and again Piero de' Medici tried to get back
 
 144 GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 into Florence, but all in vain. The power of the 
 Medici was broken. Piero's cousins, on returning 
 to Florence, stripped the shields with the balls on 
 them from their houses, and changed their name 
 from Medici to Popolani. 
 
 Savonarola was not in Florence now, and the 
 crowd collected by Valori was intoxicated with a 
 desire for pillage. They went through the house 
 of Giovanni de' Medici, and broke into the garden 
 near San Marco where Lorenzo had gathered rich 
 treasures of art. The Signory, together with men 
 who looked to Savonarola for guidance, did every- 
 thing in their power to quell disturbances and keep 
 the peace. But unfavorable news had come con- 
 cerning the attitude of the king. Charles would 
 give the ambassadors no definite answer. There 
 was much anxiety as to what news the prior would 
 bring when he came. 
 
 After the other ambassadors had made their 
 plea and had left Pisa, Savonarola made his way to 
 the French camp and into the king's presence. 
 Losing no time in preliminaries, and coming at 
 once to the purpose of his mission, Savonarola ad- 
 dressed the French monarch thus : "O, most Chris- 
 tian king, thou art an instrument in the hands of 
 the Lord who sendeth thee to relieve the woe in 
 Italy, as for many years I have foretold; and He 
 sendeth thee to reform the Church which now lieth 
 prostrate in the dust. If thou be not just and 
 merciful; if thou shouldst fail to respect the city 
 of Florence, its women, its citizens and its liberties ; 
 if thou shouldst forget the task the Lord hath 
 sent thee to perform, then will He choose another
 
 CHARGES VIII OF FRANCE. 145 
 
 to fulfill it; His hand shall smite thee and chastise 
 thee with terrible scourges. These things say I unto 
 thee in the name of the Lord." 
 
 His message delivered, Savonarola returned to 
 Florence. Two men were now looked upon as the 
 men of the hour : Savonarola, who preached unity, 
 charity, and peace, and Capponi, who collected men 
 and armies for the defense of the city. Every house 
 was made an arsenal. Hired troops to the number 
 of six thousand were secretly quartered in avail- 
 able places throughout the city. Material for bar- 
 ricading the streets was packed away in convenient 
 places. Charles was to be received as though com- 
 ing on a friendly visit but, "if he showed his teeth," 
 the city was to be in arms. 
 
 On the 1 7th of November Charles arrived, clad 
 in black velvet and gold brocade, and riding on a 
 proud charger; he entered the city with lance lev- 
 eled. The army made a great display, and the 
 Florentines opened their eyes in wonder at what 
 they saw. But Capponi ! Well, he knew the city 
 was prepared for any emergency. And Valori, the 
 Cato of Florence! He, too, was confident. With 
 the utmost courtesy Charles was shown to the Ric- 
 cardi palace which had been fitted up for his use. 
 That night the city was a blaze of illuminations, and 
 there were feastings and amusements. The next 
 day also was given up to gayety. The citizens were 
 then ready for an answer to their question, namely 
 the terms on which Charles had entered their city 
 and the nature of the treaty he desired to make with 
 them? They soon learned that the leveled lance 
 meant something. It was no easy matter, and they 
 10
 
 146 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 were not long in finding it out, to make terms with 
 the haughty king. By the merest accident Charles 
 was given to know more about Florence than he 
 had seen while riding through the streets on his 
 gayly caparisoned charger. Some French soldiers 
 were going about the streets one day dragging Ital- 
 ian prisoners of war, and forcing them to beg 
 money to secure their ransom. A daring citizen 
 cut some of the ropes and the prisoners escaped. 
 The soldiers were furious, and there was riot in the 
 street. Then at a single stroke of the alarm bell, 
 barricades began to go up ; armed soldiers filled the 
 streets ; sticks, stones, and pieces of iron rained from 
 house windows on the heads of the Swiss infantry. 
 When order was finally restored, the soldiers slipped 
 quietly into their hiding-places and the barricades 
 disappeared. Charles and his army had never seen 
 anything like this before and they were impressed 
 by it. 
 
 The Signory now saw an opportunity to hasten 
 the treaty negotiations. The main points had al- 
 ready been settled, except as to the amount of 
 money to be paid. Piero's offer had led Charles to 
 expect much more than Florence was able to pay. 
 Messengers were continually going back and forth 
 between the Signory and the king until there was 
 much weariness and unrest on both sides. The 
 king finally brought matters to a conclusion, though 
 not to the conclusion he expected, by ordering his 
 secretary to read his ultimatum, which was refused 
 on the spot. The king, furious with rage, blurted 
 out in threatening tone, "Then we will sound our 
 trumpets." Quick as a flash Capponi sprang to the
 
 CHARGES VIII OF FRANCE. 147 
 
 most popular achievement of his life. Snatching 
 the paper from the secretary's hand, he tore it in 
 pieces, and trampling it in rage beneath his feet, 
 answered the threat to sound trumpets, with the im- 
 mortal words, "And we will ring our bells!" Charles 
 had heard the alarm bell ring in Florence once. He 
 did not care to hear it again. The terms of the 
 treaty were quickly agreed upon and the instrument 
 signed. With happy play on words Macchiavelli 
 describes this event by saying that even the clash of 
 arms and stamping of steeds could not drown "La 
 voce d' un Cappon fra cento Galli" ("The crow of 
 a Capon among a hundred cocks"). 
 
 The treaty provided that there should be friendly 
 relations between the Republic and the king; that 
 Charles should have the title "Protector of the liber- 
 ties of Florence;" that 120,000 florins should be 
 paid; that the fortresses were to be held not more 
 than two years, and that the Pisans should be par- 
 doned for their recent revolutionary actions as soon 
 as they resumed allegiance to Florence; and that 
 the Medici -were to be banished and their estates 
 were to remain confiscated until all of Piero's debts 
 were paid. Both parties met in the Duomo and 
 solemnly pledged that all parts of the treaty should 
 be carefully observed. That night the city was il- 
 luminated again. 
 
 On the morrow Florence began to get ready 
 to say farewell to her royal guest, but the king did 
 not take his leave that day, or the next day; nor 
 did he go on the day after that. Florence became 
 restless again. Business was at a standstill, there 
 were bad goings on at night, the hosts were be-
 
 148 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 coming weary of their guests. In a diplomatic way 
 the king was given to understand that his stay was 
 becoming a burden and that the time had come for 
 his departure. But Charles was enjoying his quar- 
 ters in the Riccardi palace, and gave no intima- 
 tion that he had any thought of taking his leave. 
 Matters in the city were becoming serious. 
 
 The citizens again appealed to Savonarola, who 
 all this time had been urging the people to throw 
 aside all personal ambitions and animosities, to 
 have regard only to the general good, and, with 
 the firm resolve, to promote the unity and con- 
 cord of their city; then indeed would they be ac- 
 ceptable in the Lord's sight. Capponi's brilliant 
 and heroic passage at arms in the palace, by which 
 the king was brought to terms, did not count more 
 for the good of Florence than the commanding 
 voice of Savonarola which kept the city in peace. 
 The appeal now made by the citizens was that 
 Savonarola should do more than preach from the 
 pulpit. They Avanted him to go in person to 
 Charles and influence him to leave the city, and do 
 it immediately. Every other means had been tried. 
 Savonarola knew what a difficult task it was, but 
 he did not hesitate. He went at once to the palace, 
 and, passing straight by officers, 'lords and barons, 
 faced the king with his message: "Most Chris- 
 tian Prince! Thy stay here is causing great in- 
 jury both to our city and thine own enterprise. 
 Thou losest time, forgetful of the duty imposed 
 upon thee by Providence, and to the serious hurt 
 of thy spiritual welfare and worldly fame. 
 Hearken now to the voice of God's servant! Pur-
 
 CHARLES VIII OF FRANCE. 149 
 
 sue thy journey without delay. Seek not to bring 
 ruin on this city and thereby rouse the anger of 
 the Lord against thee." There was something 
 about this man of God; something in his serious 
 face, penetrating eye, commanding voice, and the 
 bloodless hand holding aloft the crucifix, that made 
 him irresistible. On the morrow Charles left Flor- 
 ence. 
 
 There was but one judgment now concerning 
 Savonarola. He was a true prophet of all the things 
 which had occurred. He it was who deserved the 
 credit of influencing the king's conduct on entering 
 Florence and during his stay in the city. And he it 
 was also who had induced Charles to depart when 
 no one else could move him. 
 
 The party of the people was now in full control, 
 arid Savonarola ruled the will of the people. Every- 
 thing seemed to conspire to augment the preacher's 
 popularity and increase his power. Pico della 
 Mirandola, dying on the very day Charles entered 
 Florence, requested that he be clothed in the habit 
 of St. Dominic and interred in the Church of San 
 Marco. Poliziano, too, his honors all gone and 
 hated of the people, died with a prayer of peni- 
 tence on his lips. He, too, had earnestly requested 
 that he might be buried in the cloak of a Domin- 
 ican, and that his body might lie beside that of Pico 
 in the Church of San Marco. It could not fail to 
 attract increased attention to Savonarola that these 
 two celebrated Florentines, like Lorenzo the Mag- 
 nificent, had turned to San Marco at the last hour. 
 The Prior of San Marco was rapidly becoming the 
 people's hero.
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 THE PREACHER AND THE NEW CON- 
 STITUTION. 
 
 JUST four days after the departure of Charles 
 the great bell of the Palazzo Vecchio rang out to 
 call a Parlamento. This was not unlike a modern 
 town meeting, except that it was much larger. All 
 the men of the city came together to express their 
 judgment on any important matter. This had the 
 look of democracy, but there was little of democ- 
 racy about it. The Parlamento was the instru- 
 ment of tyrants. But it was the old order, and 
 Florence knew nothing better as yet. The Signory 
 now appeared before this gathering of the peo- 
 ple with a request that they be given the privilege 
 of appointing twenty men with power to elect a 
 new Signory and other necessary magistrates. The 
 request was granted, and the government of "The 
 Twenty" took the place of the old Medicean gov- 
 ernment of "The Seventy." All 'Other forms and 
 offices remained the same. There were the three 
 higher offices the Signory, eight in number; the 
 Gonfalonieres of the Companies, sixteen in number ; 
 and the Buoni Uomini, twelve in number. There 
 were also "The Ten of War," "The Eight of Guard 
 and Custody," and the two councils, which under 
 Lorenzo had become one. 
 150
 
 PREACHER AND NEW CONSTITUTION. 151 
 
 The new government promised much, but it was 
 soon found to have limitations. Power was en- 
 tirely in the hands of the Signory. These eight 
 men "passed the laws, dispatched ambassadors, de- 
 clared war, and frequently acted as a tribunal of 
 justice, pronouncing sentence of death and confis- 
 cation." The Twenty, with no such personality 
 back of them as the Seventy had had in Lorenzo's 
 day, soon discovered that their authority was only 
 nominal. It was necessary to have a government 
 which could do something. There were serious 
 matters to be attended to. There was rebellion 
 among the Pisans to be put down ; other cities were 
 in revolt; King Charles was urgently demanding 
 money. Florence needed a stronger and more ef- 
 fective government, and that right away. Discus- 
 sions among the citizens began and increased. Some 
 urged a Great Council such as Venice had. Others 
 maintained that Florence ought to devise a govern- 
 ment of her own without imitating Venice. It 
 seemed at times that there were only two ways open 
 one in the direction of tyranny, the other in the 
 direction of anarchy. Two eminent Doctors of 
 Law, Vespucci and Soderini, finally came forward 
 with a plan. The plan involved the substitution of 
 a general council of the people for all former coun- 
 cils, and the creation of a lesser council composed 
 of men of age and experience. The government 
 of the Twenty was to be abolished. The Signory, 
 the Ten, and the Gonfalonieres of the Companies 
 were to be maintained. There was much talk and 
 wrangling, and some serious discussion of the pro- 
 posed changes. The longer the matter was dis-
 
 152 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 cussed, the more undecided the people seemed to 
 be as to the wisdom of the plan. Charges of ulterior 
 motive began to be made. There was crimination 
 and recrimination. Vespucci and Soderini could 
 not make the majority of the people believe that 
 their constitution was the one Florence needed. 
 Valori, great popular leader though he was, was 
 not equal to the emergency which the city now 
 faced. Even Capponi, brave and courageous old 
 soldier, was not strong enough to lead Florence in 
 these days of political crises. Agam the people 
 turned to San Marco. 
 
 Savonarola had not been idle. He had been de- 
 voting himself unselfishly to the interests of the 
 city. But he had not allowed himself to be drawn 
 into political discussions. His one great care had 
 been the poor and the unemployed. "Forsake 
 pomp and vanities," he cried out in his pulpit. 
 "Sell all superfluous things, and bestow the money 
 on the poor. Citizens ! let us collect alms in every 
 church for the poor, in the city and outside the 
 walls. Devote to the poor for one year at least, the 
 funds of the Pisan University (then suspended) ; if 
 this should not suffice, let us take the church plate 
 and decorations, and I will be the first to set you 
 the example. But, above all things', pass a law that 
 shops may be opened and work provided for trie 
 populace now idling in the streets." In a most re- 
 markable way the people responded to these calls 
 for help, and large sums of money were collected. 
 Day after day he urged the people to charity : "This 
 is the time for words to give place to deeds, vain 
 ceremonies to real feelings. The Lord said: 'I was
 
 PREACHER AND NEW CONSTITUTION. 153 
 
 a hungered and ye gave me no meat; I was naked 
 and ye clothed me not.' He did not say: Ye built 
 me not fine churches, nor fine convents. He did but 
 exhort you to works of charity ; therefore by charity 
 shall all things be renewed." 
 
 While men were looking to Savonarola with the 
 hope that he would say something which would 
 throw light on the grave constitutional crisis which 
 faced Florence, he was fairly abandoning himself 
 in pleading for the poor and devising plans to 
 provide work for the unemployed. What more 
 could he do? But he must do more. He had 
 already said and done so much for the welfare of 
 Florence that the people demanded some suggestive 
 word from him now. 
 
 Before touching the constitution, the two things 
 most immediately necessary were: first, to provide 
 against the return of Piero ; and, second, to prevent 
 the personal enemies of Piero from venting their 
 wrath upon his adherents still in the city. The 
 former was the easier to do. The latter was the 
 task of Savonarola. He gave himself to it with 
 the wisdom of a patriot and the spirit of a saint. 
 Day after day in the Duomo he pointed out that 
 the grave political crisis which was upon them de- 
 manded unselfish action on the part of those who 
 cared for the welfare of Florence. Again and again 
 he cried out from the pulpit : "Florence, forgive, and 
 make peace, and cry not again: 'Flesh, and more 
 flesh, blood and more blood.' Forgive ! Forgive !" 
 
 In a paragraph which stirs one's blood, Villari 
 has shown what it meant for Savonarola to accept 
 responsibility at this crisis. Here are his words:
 
 154 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 "Undoubtedly the grandest lesson taught us by his- 
 tory is that of seeing how in terrible moments 
 such as these, when the world seems to be at the 
 mercy of brute force, and the earth threatened 
 with chaos; when rank and power, science and 
 wealth are alike impotent; when courage itself is 
 vanquished by the unbridled audacity of the mob 
 help is only to be obtained from virtue, generous 
 resolve, and unselfish love of goodness. Thus Fra 
 Girolamo Savonarola was fated to be the savior 
 of Florence. The hour had struck for his appear- 
 ance in the arena of politics ; and notwithstanding 
 the firm determination with which he had hitherto 
 held aloof from it, he was now compelled to obey 
 the summons by the pressure of events." 
 
 Nothing shows more clearly the spirit and pur- 
 pose of Savonarola in accepting a share of the re- 
 sponsibility for deciding upon a governmental pol- 
 icy, than an extract from one of his sermons. "The 
 Lord has driven my bark into the open sea, the 
 wind drives me forward, and the Lord forbids my 
 return. I communed last night with the Lord and 
 said : 'Pity me, O Lord ; lead me back to my haven.' 
 'It is impossible; see you not that the wind is con- 
 trary?' 'I will preach if so I must; but why need 
 I meddle with the government of Florence?' 'If 
 thou wouldst make Florence a holy city, thou must 
 establish her on firm foundations, and give her a 
 government which favors virtue.' 'But Lord, I 
 am not sufficient for these things.' 'Knowest thou 
 not that God chooses the weak of this world to 
 confound the mighty? Thou art the instrument, I 
 am the doer.' Then was I convinced and cried,
 
 PREACHER AND NEW CONSTITUTION. 155 
 
 'Lord, I will do Thy will ; but tell me what shall be 
 my reward?' 'Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard.' 
 'But in this life, Lord?' 'My son, the servant is 
 not above his master. The Jews made Me die on 
 the cross; a like lot awaits thee.' 'Yea Lord, let 
 me die as Thou didst die for me.' Then He said, 
 'Wait yet a while ; let that be done which must be 
 done, then arm thyself with courage." 
 
 In all his relations to the government of Flor- 
 ence Savonarola never got away from the idea 
 that Florence was to be made a holy city, a city 
 favorable to virtue and established on the firm 
 foundation of righteousness. In no other way 
 could he justify his participation in the affairs of 
 State. Almost his first words were against tyrants. 
 To him the word tyrant signified a man of evil 
 life, a man of greater wickedness than other men, 
 an usurper of others' rights. The first law he 
 pleaded for was a law that henceforth no one 
 man should be the head of the city. To do other- 
 wise meant building on the sand. Those who 
 would fain rise above other men, who could not 
 tolerate civil equality, these were to him desperately 
 wicked, destroyers of souls and of States. "Your 
 reform," said he, "must begin with spiritual things, 
 for these are higher than material things, of which 
 they are the rule and the life; and likewise all 
 temporal good must be subordinate to the moral 
 and religious good, from which it depends. If, 
 perchance, ye have heard it said that 'States can 
 not be governed by Paternosters/ (a saying at- 
 tributed to Cosimo de' Medici), remember that 
 is the maxim of tyrants ; of men hostile to God and
 
 156 GiROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 the common welfare, a rule for the oppression, not 
 for the relief and liberation of a city. But if, on 
 the contrary, you desire a good government, you 
 must submit it to God. Certainly I would take no 
 concern for a State that should not be subject to 
 Him." 
 
 If Savonarola was to speak any direct word to 
 influence the form of a new constitution, he must 
 do it quickly. The plan which he first outlined was 
 as follows: "When ye shall have purified your 
 hearts, rectified your aims, condemned gambling, 
 sensuality, and blasphemy, then set to work to 
 frame your government; first making a rough 
 draft of it, afterwards proceeding to details and 
 amendments. And let your first draft, or rather 
 model and basis of government, be conceived in 
 such wise: that no man may receive any benefit 
 save by the will of the whole people, who must 
 have the sole right of creating magistrates and 
 enacting laws." Here was a complete change from 
 the old order, a death blow to tyranny. But he 
 goes on, "The form of government best adapted 
 to this city, would be that of a Grand Council on 
 the Venetian plan." He then recommended the 
 assembling of all the people in their proper com- 
 panies, and suggested that each company propose a 
 form of government. From these the Gonfaloniere 
 was to select four ; and from these four the Signory 
 was to choose the one best adapted to Flor- 
 ence. "I believe," said he, "that the Venetian model 
 will be the one chosen, and you need hold it no 
 shame to imitate the Venetians, because they, too, 
 received it from the Lord, whence all good things
 
 PREACHER AND NEW CONSTITUTION. 157 
 
 come. You have seen how, since that government 
 has been established in Venice, no factions nor dis- 
 sensions of any sort have arisen, therefore we must 
 needs believe that it exists by God's will." 
 
 Savonarola now had frequent visitors in San 
 Marco for advice on matters pertaining to the con- 
 stitution. He was often seen on his way to the 
 Palazzo Vecchio, where two or three times he 
 preached on the moral aspects of the constitutional 
 question then before Florence. On an appointed 
 day he preached in the Duomo to men only. All the 
 magistrates were there, and the men of the city 
 were there. It was an eventful gathering. Four 
 conclusions were clearly set forth and maintained 
 by the preacher. First, the fear of God and the 
 restoration of good manners and customs. Second, 
 the love of popular government and of the public 
 good, setting aside all private interests. Third, a 
 general amnesty, by which they should absolve the 
 friends of the past government from all faults, re- 
 mitting all fines, and showing indulgence toward 
 those who were indebted to the State. Fourth, to 
 constitute a form of universal government, which 
 should comprehend all its citizens, to whom, ac- 
 cording to the ancient ordinance of the city, the 
 government belonged. In this sermon he again 
 expressed his belief that the Grand Council of 
 Venice, with some modifications, perhaps, was the 
 one best suited to Florence. There was a decision 
 and ring about his words which dispelled all doubt. 
 The people went out from the Duomo shouting, "// 
 Consiglio Grande! II Consiglio Grande!" The 
 matter of the constitution was settled. There was
 
 SAVONAROLA. 
 
 nothing left for the Signory but to confirm the de- 
 cision of the people, a decision made under the 
 influence of the mighty preacher. 
 
 Without attempting to mark, step by step, the 
 movements which finally led to good order and 
 good government in Florence, it is enough to say 
 that within one year from the day Piero fled from 
 the San Gallo Gate, a reform had been accom- 
 plished in Florence the like of which has seldom 
 been seen. The new constitution had been framed, 
 the people had been led in a remarkably short space 
 of time to feel something of responsibility for self- 
 government, a spirit of real patriotism had been 
 developed and a desire for a well ordered city, the 
 tyrant had been driven out and a government of 
 the people established. And think of it! Not a 
 sword drawn; not one drop of blood spilled on 
 any street; no violent dissensions; and all this in 
 Florence, a city notorious for its rioting and bitter 
 dissensions among leading families. And one man 
 did it all! Did it from the pulpit of the Duomo! 
 No wonder his work has been described by Villari 
 as "an example without precedent in the history 
 of the might of human utterances and the human 
 will."
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 JESUS KING OF FLORENCE. 
 
 IT was now that the citizens of Florence brought 
 out the famous bronze statue of Judith and Holo- 
 phernes, formerly the property of the Medici, and 
 with much enthusiasm set it up at the gateway of 
 the Palazzo Vecchio. They placed it there in rec- 
 ognition of the fact that a new era had begun for 
 Florence. And they put upon it an inscription tes- 
 tifying to all who should pass, from then until now, 
 that it was a memorial of the securing of stable 
 and safe government for Florence under the con- 
 stitution. 
 
 During these months in which the Republic 
 was being established, and even before this time, 
 Savonarola had now and then dreamed of an order 
 of things in Florence, towards the realization of 
 which he more and more gave the enthusiasm of 
 his life. His vision was not that of Plato's Ideal 
 Republic, but a Christian State, in which the prin- 
 ciples of Christianity should actually influence the 
 government at all points, a State in which the 
 manners of the people should be determined by the 
 Divine influence of Jesus Christ working in the 
 hearts of men, a State in which Jesus should act- 
 ually be king. In his vision he saw Florence as a 
 "holy city." Great souls who have dreamed this 
 same dream in the centuries intervening have found 
 
 '59
 
 160 GiROivAMo SAVONAROLA. 
 
 how difficult, nay, impossible, of realization is the 
 dream. The vision is with us yet; but forever 
 above us, not realized. But the fact that men 
 see it, is making the world better. 
 
 Savonarola loved Florence, and he wanted for 
 his city a government and a manner of life which 
 God could approve. It was a bold dream. The 
 first time he made known to the people his high 
 ambition was in one of the Advent sermons of 
 1494. He was discoursing from the Book of Hag- 
 gai on various forms of government, monarchial 
 and others. The intense political excitement of the 
 time made such a theme one which would hold 
 the closest attention. While the audience hung 
 breathlessly on his words, waiting in suspense for 
 what might come next, the preacher, knowing that 
 the supreme question in the people's mind was the 
 form of government which should be adopted, ex- 
 claimed, "Well, Florence, God is willing to satisfy 
 thee, and to give thee a government, a king to 
 govern thee. This king is Christ. The Lord will 
 govern thee himself, if thou consent, O Florence! 
 Suffer thyself to be guided by Him. Take Christ 
 for thy master, and remain subject to His law." 
 
 He then went on to show what an influence 
 for good Florence might have, not only in Italy 
 but among other nations, if she would only accept 
 such Divine sovereignty as he had described. In 
 the very climax of his sermon, when the interest of 
 the audience was at highest tension, he threw out 
 this startling and thrilling challenge: "Florence! 
 Jesus Christ, who is King of the universe, hath 
 milled to become thy King. Wilt thou have Him
 
 JESUS KING of FLORENCE. 161 
 
 for thy King?" It was a supreme moment. The 
 audience, swayed by the bold and mighty thought 
 of the preacher, hesitated, then responded to the 
 challenge, and shouted as with one voice, "Gesu 
 Christ o nostro Re!" (Jesus Christ our King.) 
 Florence had a new slogan now. When the ser- 
 mon was done men shouted it in the Piazza, and on 
 the streets, Gesu Christ o nostro Re! Everywhere 
 they shouted it. Jesus had been chosen King of 
 Florence. 
 
 No one saw more clearly than Savonarola, that 
 it would be no easy matter to transform Florence 
 into the city he had seen in his vision. He now 
 gave himself most earnestly to the work of moral 
 reform. Florence was at this time the victim of 
 the most degrading vices. Crimes not to be named 
 were prevalent, not among the poorer classes only, 
 but among the rich. "Your life," said the preacher, 
 pleading earnestly with the people to live clean and 
 pure lives, "your life is the life of swine." The 
 testimony of contemporary historians is evidence 
 that the charge was hardly extravagant. In all his 
 sermons now he cried out, even more strongly 
 than before, against the corruptions in high place 
 and low which were a blight upon the city. He 
 earnestly entreated the people to break away from 
 all their sins and evil doings, and become true sub- 
 jects of the new Sovereign. 
 
 Not content with bringing his message to the 
 people, Savonarola again and again appealed to the 
 magistrates to take vigorously in hand the work 
 of reforming the city. More than once he told 
 them that their constitution could not do the work, 
 ii
 
 1 62 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 nor any of their councils; it must be done by 
 definite action on their part and by the personal 
 activity of the men charged with the government 
 of the city. "Magistrates," he said on one occa- 
 sion, "it is to you that I address myself. Put down 
 these vices, destroy these sins, punish this horrid 
 passion which is against nature; and not merely 
 by a private fine, but in public, that all Italy may 
 know it. Expose all the courtesans in a public 
 place, and send them off to the sound of trumpets! 
 But you say, 'O Father! there are so many of 
 them that this would be to upset the whole city.' 
 Well, then, begin with one; then go on to the 
 rest! And if you can not give them chastity, you 
 can at least teach them decency. Punish gamblers ; 
 for, be well assured gambling still goes on. Give 
 orders Signers, that none shall play in the streets 
 at great games or small. Have the tongues of 
 blasphemers pierced! St. Louis, King of France, 
 had the lips of a blasphemer cauterized, and said: 
 'I should be happy to have as much done to my- 
 self if I could at such a price have my kingdom 
 clear of such offenders.' Put down dancing, too, 
 for this is not a time to dance. Prohibit balls in 
 town and country." These words sound very like 
 the words of Puritanism. But before criticising 
 Savonarola too severely for advocating such harsh 
 and drastic methods of reform, his detractors ought 
 to be made to tell just what the shameless moral 
 condition of Florence was at this time. Read Fra 
 Filippo Lippi as a hint of what it was ! There are 
 times when drastic methods are the only methods 
 worth trying. Hildebrand was drastic in his meth-
 
 JESUS KING OF FLORENCE. 163 
 
 ods. So were Luther and Knox. So was Crom- 
 well. 
 
 The transformations in the social life of Flor- 
 ence, from 1495 to 1497, rea d like the story of 
 miracles. The whole aspect of the city was 
 changed. Finery and jewelry were cast aside ; 
 women dressed plainly on the streets ; money which 
 had before been spent for ornament and display 
 was now given to the poor; theaters and taverns 
 were empty; cards and dice disappeared; the 
 churches were crowded; alms-boxes were well- 
 filled ; tradesmen and bankers restored their ill- 
 gotten gains; purity, sobriety, and justice prevailed 
 in the city, and the Prior of San Marco was every- 
 where hailed as the greatest public benefactor. 
 
 But it was a long distance from the old Flor- 
 ence with the old constitution to the new Florence 
 with the new constitution. Savonarola found, as 
 men find in our day, that thorough-going municipal 
 reform is a slow process, and does not come about 
 by simply making a new constitution. Opposition 
 to reform had been lurking about in Florence from 
 the very beginning of Savonarola's ascendency in 
 the pulpit of the Duomo. Now that he was at- 
 tempting to break up the old order entirely and 
 establish a new city, opposition to him assumed 
 more definite form and gathered strength. 
 
 Many who believed in the popular government 
 because they thought it favorable to liberty had no 
 sympathy whatever for Savonarola as a religious 
 reformer. The adherents of the Medici, the Bigi, 
 bitterly opposed the administration which had 
 driven out their chief ; they attempted the same part
 
 164 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 played by the royalists of England two centuries 
 later in the overthrow of Puritanism and the resto- 
 ration of Charles II. The Aristocrats, too, had a 
 party furiously opposed to the reformer and his 
 followers. But the opposition which overtopped all 
 others was centered in Rome. The pope now rose 
 to strike down the reformer of the North, who had 
 dared speak out so boldly against the Church. The 
 man who had braved the cunning and flattery of 
 Lorenzo was now called upon to measure swords 
 with the mightiest monarch of Christendom. Alex- 
 ander VI had political power unmatched; he was 
 the spiritual head of the Church ; he held the keys 
 of Christendom, in unholy hands it is true, but 
 they were the keys of St. Peter. A more unequal 
 contest could hardly be imagined. What it was 
 the following pages will tell.
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 LETTERS, PLOTS AND PAPAL BRIEFS. 
 
 AT the close of the Lenten season in 1495 Sa- 
 vonarola was at the climax of his power and influ- 
 ence. No question was discussed, social, political, 
 religious, or moral, that Fra Girolamo was not 
 quoted as the final authority. Yet he never deliv- 
 ered a political address, never harangued the crowd 
 in the street, never was seen in social gatherings, 
 never spoke at any of the tradespeople's meetings. 
 He was never heard except from the pulpit. The 
 pulpit was his throne of power, and from it he 
 ruled Florence. He was the acknowledged spir- 
 itual and political dictator of the city. And that, 
 too, by glad common consent, for his was "a 
 heavenly despotism." But, as stated in the last 
 chapter, there was a lurking opposition to Savon- 
 arola which began with his popularity. When he 
 became the acknowledged master of Florence, and 
 particularly when he began the reforms which so 
 radically changed the character of the city, jeal- 
 ousy, envy, and hatred, became increasingly active, 
 and the opposition began to come out into the 
 open. 
 
 There were five political parties in Florence, 
 
 the Bigi, the Bianchi, the Arrabbiati, the Compag- 
 
 nacci, and the Piagnoni. The last named was the 
 
 great party of the people, which for a time seemed 
 
 '65
 
 1 66 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 to carry everything before it. It was the party of 
 Savonarola. The' name Piagnoni, meaning "the 
 weepers," was given in derision. The Piagnoni 
 were strongly opposed to the Medici, believed in 
 popular government, were in full sympathy with 
 the movement for moral reform, and were the stout 
 defenders of the rights of the people. They could 
 always be depended upon to take up arms in de- 
 fense of the city. They were the devout and honest- 
 minded men of all classes. The Arrabbiati, or "the 
 furious," were the fierce and implacable opponents 
 of Savonarola. They included many men of wealth 
 and rank, whose ambition was to restore to Florence 
 the aristocratic form of government which existed 
 before the Medici came into power. They were 
 strongly opposed both to Savonarola and the 
 Medici. A section of this party came to unenviable 
 notoriety later as the Compagnacci, "the evil com- 
 panions." With Dolfo Spin! as their leader, they 
 stopped at no outrage or indecency which would 
 in any way break the power of Savonarola. The 
 Bianchi, or "the whites" as they were called, were 
 the radicals of Florence. They were in the main 
 favorable to the popular government, but objected 
 to the limited franchise, and did not, care much for 
 religion. The Bigi, or "the grays," were the ad- 
 herents of the Medici. Their organization was 
 secret. Though under great obligation to Savon- 
 arola for the general amnesty act which made it 
 possible for them to live in peace and safety, they 
 early began their intrigues for Piero's return, and 
 were among the most treacherous of all Savon- 
 arola's enemies.
 
 LETTERS, PLOTS AND PAPAL BRIEFS. 167 
 
 Early in this year of great popularity Savon- 
 arola received a brief from Rome directing him to 
 preach the Lenten sermons for that year at Lucca. 
 This without doubt was the work of the Arrabbiati, 
 who did not at all like the way Savonarola was 
 giving direction to the affairs of State. The prior's 
 reforms and political measures were offensive to 
 them. When the contents of the brief became 
 known, the Signory and the Council of Ten drew 
 up letters of remonstrance, asking for the recall of 
 the papal brief, explaining that conditions in the 
 city were such that Savonarola could not be spared 
 at that time. These remonstrances, together with 
 several private letters had the desired effect, and 
 Savonarola was allowed to remain in the pulpit of 
 the Duomo. It is not difficult to understand why 
 it was so easy to secure the recall of this papal 
 brief. Charles VIII of France was in Naples, and 
 he was still the Protector of the Liberties of Flor- 
 ence. There were good and valid reasons why 
 Alexander did not care just now to incur the ill 
 will of Charles. 
 
 In the summer following the Lenten sermons 
 which contributed so largely to the advancement 
 of the reform movement, Florence was greatly dis- 
 turbed by the announcement that Charles VIII was 
 marching north from Naples, and that Piero de' 
 Medici was with him. The expedition of the 
 French had been one continuous triumph from the 
 time they had crossed the Alps until now. But a 
 change had come. Ludovico, the Moor, with other 
 Italian princes, began to discover that the French 
 were not in Italy with purpose to reform, but to
 
 1 68 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 plunder for their own personal advantage. Ludo- 
 vico felt that something ought to be done, and be- 
 gan at once to decide upon a plan to drive out the 
 invader. The plan he devised was the organiza- 
 tion of the "Holy League," the ostensible purpose 
 of which was to defend Italy against the Turks and 
 protect the rights of the Chair of St. Peter. The 
 real purpose was to drive the French from Italy, 
 and that as quickly as possible. The parties com- 
 posing this league were the pope, the emperor, the 
 King of Spain, the Republic of Venice, and the Duke 
 of Milan. The French ambassador, the shrewd De 
 Commines, then at the court of Venice, saw at once 
 the purpose of the league, and dispatched a quick 
 messenger to his master in Naples, urging imme- 
 diate departure for France. It is said that De Com- 
 mines himself proceeded to Florence for an inter- 
 view with the man who had prophesied the coming 
 of Charles to Italy, to inquire whether he would 
 be able to depart in safety. "Tell his majesty, the 
 most Christian king," said Savonarola, "that God 
 has conferred upon him many benefits, and has 
 granted him to acquire so great a kingdom without 
 difficulty, and although since then he has com- 
 mitted many sins, God will not fail him, and he 
 need have no doubts as to his enemies, for he will 
 return with victory into his own kingdom of 
 France." 
 
 When the news came to Florence that Charles 
 and his army were actually approaching their ter- 
 ritory the whole city was aroused. The Arrabbiati 
 and the Piagnoni were one in their purpose to pro- 
 tect Florence against another visit from Charles
 
 LETTERS, PLOTS AND PAPAL BRIEFS. 169 
 
 and his plundering soldiers. In this crisis the Ar- 
 rabbiati prayed as well as counseled for the protec- 
 tion of their city. It would seem that Savonarola 
 felt there was almost too much praying at times 
 iji proportion to some other things that needed to 
 be done. "Offer prayers," he said one day in the 
 pulpit, "but do not neglect human precautions. We 
 must help ourselves in every way, by every means, 
 and then the Lord will be with us. Courage, my 
 brethren, and above all things union. If you will 
 remain united and agree in one will, even if the 
 whole world were against us, the victory will be 
 ours." 
 
 A delegation was sent to Charles to learn, if 
 possible, his plans. They found him at Siena but 
 he received them coldly, was curt and churlish. 
 Every question they asked brought a rough reply. 
 They inquired by what road he intended to march 
 through their territory, in order that they might 
 furnish supplies? The blunt answer was, "Fur- 
 nish your whole territory." It is not at all surpris- 
 ing that the interview was so unsatisfactory. Charles 
 knew that the city of Florence was in arms, and the 
 delegation knew that Piero, their most bitter enemy, 
 was in the king's camp. 
 
 It was only bad news that the ambassadors 
 brought back to Florence. The city was rilled with 
 alarm. Once more the authorities turned to Sa- 
 vonarola. Arrabbiati as well as Piagnoni declared 
 that only the Prior of San Marco could avert the 
 coming calamity. Savonarola had written several 
 letters to Charles since their interview in the Ric- 
 cardi palace nine months before. In these letters
 
 170 GiROivAMo SAVONAROLA. 
 
 he had charged him, as the chosen instrument of 
 God, to be faithful to the work to which he had 
 been divinely commissioned, and warned him of 
 the judgment of God which would come upon him 
 in case of disobedience. It was at Poggionsi that 
 Savonarola again faced the haughty King of France. 
 In prophetic tone he reminded him of their former 
 conferences, of his broken faith with God, and of 
 his present situation as a fugitive surrounded by 
 new and uncertain perils. "Most Christian prince," 
 the message sounds like Isaiah, "thou hast provoked 
 the Lord to anger by breaking faith with the Flor- 
 entines, by forsaking the task of reforming the 
 Church, that the Lord had so often announced to 
 thee by my lips, and for which he had chosen thee 
 by such manifest signs. Thou wilt escape from the 
 present dangers; but shouldst thou fail to resume 
 thy abandoned task, shouldst thou fail to obey the 
 commands which the Lord once more repeateth to 
 thee by the voice of his poor servant, I tell thee 
 that still heavier woes shall be poured upon thee 
 by His wrath, and that another shall be chosen in 
 thy stead." The king, it is said, was terror struck 
 by the manner and message of the man who had 
 prophesied his coming and now so fearlessly warned 
 him of his duty. Orders were given that the army 
 should immediately march towards Pisa. Savon- 
 arola was earnestly entreated to accompany the 
 king on the march. He did go with him for a 
 short distance, but at Castel Fiorentino he spoke a 
 farewell message and returned to Florence. 
 
 On the 2 ist of June Savonarola announced from 
 the Duomo pulpit that the danger was over. The
 
 LETTERS, PLOTS AND PAPAL BRIEFS. 171 
 
 announcement was made in most characteristic 
 fashion. "Here I am once more among you. You 
 ask me, 'Father, have you brought us some good 
 news ?' Yes, good news ; I bring nothing but good 
 news. You know that in time of prosperity I 
 brought you bad news, and now in your tribula- 
 tion I bring nothing but good news ; good news for 
 Florence." "I have been yonder in the camp," he 
 went on to say, "which is like being in hell. Do 
 not ever allow yourself to desire to be a great lord, 
 for such men never have an hour of true peace and 
 happiness." He then described how he had gone to 
 his majesty the king, and what message he had 
 brought him. "He heard me with kindness," said 
 the preacher, "and promised me to do what I 
 bade him." Charles did not do all he promised. 
 He did, however, refrain from trying to enter Flor- 
 ence again. 
 
 Savonarola now stood high in public favor. His 
 praises were on the lips of all. But the departure 
 of Charles gave Rome an opportunity. The great 
 French king was no longer the effective Protector 
 of the Liberties of Florence. Before describing 
 how Rome seized the opportunity offered for si- 
 lencing the preacher whose words had been so 
 offensive, something ought to be said about a 
 serious menace to the fortunes of the Republic, 
 which was nothing less than the attempt of Piero 
 to return to power. Savonarola suspected that a 
 secret movement was on, and gave himself with 
 great energy to the bringing about of a change in 
 the constitution which would save Florence from 
 drifting again into the hands of tyrants. There
 
 172 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 still existed under the constitution the possibility 
 of calling a Parlamento. Savonarola knew that the 
 safety of the State depended on the Great Coun- 
 cil already established. He would have every mem- 
 ber of the Signory take an oath on entering office 
 that he would not call, or have any part in calling, 
 a Parlamento. "If any one will do this," said he 
 one day from the pulpit, "if he be of the Signory, 
 let his head be struck off; if he be not of it, let 
 him be declared a rebel, and his goods confiscated." 
 Then, in words which seem far from what is proper 
 in the pulpit, he said: "If the Signory, as a body, 
 should endeavor to summon a Parlamento, the mo- 
 ment they appear in front of the Palazzo any man 
 may cut them to pieces without being guilty of sin." 
 Such extravagance and violence of speech was 
 freely excused by the Florentines a little later, when 
 the news came that Piero had raised an army and 
 was marching against the city gates. 
 
 The enterprise failed utterly and Piero was dis- 
 graced, even in the eyes of his friends. But more 
 than ever the liberty-loving citizens of Florence 
 saw the importance of doing everything in their 
 power to protect their city against the return of the 
 tyrant. They, therefore, shouted in praise of Sa- 
 vonarola when he cried out in the pulpit that who- 
 ever would seek to bring back the Medici to Flor- 
 ence should be put to death. "Will you who pay 
 no respect to Christ, have respect to private citi- 
 zens? Do justice, I tell you. Off with his head! 
 Even were he the chief of the first family in the 
 city, off, I say, with his head! Trust in naught 
 but the Great Council, which is the work of God
 
 LETTERS, PLOTS AND PAPAL BRIEFS. 173 
 
 and not of man, and whosoever would change it, 
 or set up a tyrant, or place the government in the 
 hands of private citizens, let him be accursed of 
 the Lord forever." These are severe words, but 
 they fairly represent the intense spirit of patriotism 
 which prevailed in Florence in the driving out of 
 the Medici and in the making of the new consti- 
 tution. 
 
 Charles gone and Piero gone, the way was now 
 open for the Arrabbiati and Alexander. Ludovico, 
 the Moor, too, saw an opportunity. The people's 
 preacher, so Ludovico had been told, had reflected 
 in some of his sermons on his "fair name" and he 
 would be avenged. Piero and Fra Mariano, both 
 now in Rome, were eager to indorse, amplify, and 
 exaggerate any reports which told of Fra Giro- 
 lamo's outspoken arraignment of the leaders of the 
 Church and the corruptions of the court of Rome. 
 The Arrabbiati took pains that all previous criti- 
 cisms of the Prior of San Marco should now be 
 repeated in Rome. The pope was urged to silence 
 the voice which had been raised so effectively 
 against vice and bad government in Florence, and 
 which had brought about such transformations in 
 the city that scenes of revelry and debauch were 
 almost a thing of the past. They made much of the 
 prior's prophecies and visions, but what they most 
 complained of, good Catholics that they were, was 
 his open criticisms of the Holy Father. 
 
 The pope had long been smothering his wrath 
 and waiting an opportunity to strike the daring 
 preacher. The opportunity had now come. A 
 papal brief was addressed to Savonarola dated July
 
 174 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 25, 1495. I* runs as follows: "To our well be- 
 loved son, greeting and apostolic benediction: We 
 have heard that of all the workers in the Lord's 
 vineyard, thou art the most zealous; at the which 
 we deeply rejoice, and give thanks to Almighty 
 God. We have likewise heard that thou dost assert 
 that thy predictions of the future proceed not from 
 thee but from God; wherefore we desire, as be- 
 hooves our pastoral office, to have speech with thee 
 concerning these things; so that being, by thy 
 means, better informed of God's will, we may be 
 the better able to fulfill it. Wherefore, by thy vow 
 of holy obedience, we enjoin thee to wait on us 
 without delay, and shall welcome thee with loving 
 kindness." 
 
 The friends of Savonarola believed that this in- 
 vitation meant simply a dungeon in the Castle of 
 St. Angelo. The Arrabbiati were now openly boast- 
 ing of their influence at the court of Rome. More 
 than once plots had been discovered by which they 
 had purposed by steel or poison to take the life of 
 the man whose lashings and stinging rebukes they 
 had so keenly felt. Savonarola had already an- 
 nounced to the people that his exhausted physical 
 condition would make it necessary for him to dis- 
 continue his sermons for a time. With his high 
 ideals of obedience there was nothing for him to 
 do but to yield submission to papal authority, but 
 he determined to preach one more sermon before 
 writing his reply. It was one of his "terrible ser- 
 mons;" so he said afterwards. Broken and ex- 
 hausted physically, he was hardly able to drag him- 
 self up the stairs of the pulpit; but once on his
 
 LETTERS, PLOTS AND PAPAL BRIEFS. 175 
 
 throne, and looking down into the expectant faces 
 of the people, he was a man of strength again and 
 spoke his message with power. Not knowing what 
 was before him he seemed to feel it important to 
 gather up in this sermon all his essential teachings. 
 He poured out his soul against the abuses and evils 
 still prevailing in Florence, and in righteous wrath 
 pronounced a curse on those who were guilty of 
 polluting the favored city of God. He urged the 
 Signory to give earnest attention to affairs of real 
 importance and not waste their time in petty mat- 
 ters. In closing he said: "My people, when I 
 stand here I am always strong; and if, when out 
 of the pulpit, I could feel as when in it, I should 
 always be well. But after descending these stairs 
 I believe that my pains will return, and for this 
 reason some time will pass before I see you again, 
 for I must needs wait a little to recover. Then, if 
 still living, I will again begin to preach." He told 
 them that probably a month would elapse before he 
 would again enter the pulpit; in the meantime Fra 
 Dominico would preach ; he was confident that the 
 welfare of Florence would be cared for; it was 
 God's will. "I must now conclude," said he, "for 
 I have preached so often, and labored so hard, as 
 to have shortened my life by many years, and am 
 fallen very weak. Well, brother, what reward 
 wouldst thou have? I would have martyrdom; I 
 am content to endure it ; I pray for it each day, O 
 Lord, for love of this city." 
 
 In the sermon just referred to Savonarola ap- 
 pears as the fearless preacher of righteousness, the 
 far-seeing Christian statesman, and the true pa-
 
 176 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 triot. The reference to martyrdom indicates a new 
 note coming into his preaching. Even now he must 
 have seen that so far as he was personally con- 
 cerned he was fighting a losing battle. No one 
 man, however great and strong, could stand for 
 any length of time against such opposition. Re- 
 turning to the monastery he immediately wrote his 
 reply to the papal brief. In it he declared that he 
 had long desired to visit Rome and worship at the 
 shrine of the apostles Peter and Paul. "But I am 
 barely issued from a very serious malady the which 
 hath forced me to suspend both preaching and 
 study, and still threateneth my life. . . . Further- 
 more, I am bound rather to obey the benign pur- 
 pose of the command than the mere words in which 
 it is framed. Now, inasmuch as the Lord, by my 
 means, hath saved this city from much bloodshed, 
 and subjected it to good and holy laws, there be 
 many adversaries, both within and without the city, 
 who, having sought to enslave it, and having been 
 confounded instead, now seek my blood, and have 
 since attempted my life by steel and poison. Where- 
 fore, I could not depart without manifest risk, nor 
 can I even walk through the city without an armed 
 escort. Also, this newly reformed government, that 
 the Lord hath been pleased, by my means, to give 
 to Florence, is not yet firmly rooted, and is visibly 
 in danger without continued assistance; wherefore, 
 in the judgment of all good and experienced citi- 
 zens, my departure would be of great hurt to the 
 city, while of scant profit to Rome. I can not 
 suppose that my superior would desire the ruin of a 
 whole city; and, therefore, trust that your holiness
 
 LETTERS, PLOTS AND PAPAL BRIEFS. 177 
 
 will graciously accede to this delay, so that the re- 
 form begun by the Lord's will may be brought to 
 perfection, since I am certain that it is for the good 
 of the same that he hath now raised up these 
 hindrances to my journey. 
 
 "And should your holiness desire greater cer- 
 titude on the matters publicly foretold by me con- 
 cerning the chastisement of Italy and the renova- 
 tion of the Church, you will find them set forth 
 in a book of mine that is now being made public 
 ('Compendium Revelationum'). I was anxious 
 to have these predictions put in print, so that, should 
 they be not fulfilled, the world may know me to 
 be a false prophet. But there are other things of a 
 more hidden nature that must still remain veiled; 
 and which I may not as yet reveal to any mortal. 
 
 "Accordingly, I beseech your holiness to gra- 
 ciously accept my very true and plain excuse, and 
 to believe that it is my ardent desire to come to 
 Rome; wherefore, as soon as possible, I shall spur 
 myself to set forth." 
 
 Alexander made no formal reply to this letter, 
 but he did in some way communicate the informa- 
 tion that the apology for delay was satisfactory. 
 In less than thirty days thereafter a most unex- 
 pected thing happened, which proved a decided 
 shock to Savonarola and his friends. A papal brief 
 arrived from Rome addressed to the monks of a 
 neighboring monastery, describing Savonarola as 
 "a certain Fra Girolamo, a seeker after novelty, 
 and a disseminator of false doctrines." The brief 
 commanded that the monastery of San Marco 
 should again be reunited with the Lombard con- 
 
 12
 
 178 GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 gregation, and that Savonarola should refrain from 
 every description of preaching, whether public or 
 private; all this under pain of excommunication. 
 
 Nothing in all the correspondence between Sa- 
 vonarola and Alexander VI is so hard to explain 
 as this brief. Only a few weeks before Savonarola 
 had been addressed as a "beloved son." He is now 
 described as "a certain Fra Girolamo." Nothing 
 had been done since the former brief to merit the 
 pope's displeasure. What had happened? Political 
 reasons were undoubtedly .part of the cause of the 
 sudden and radical change in the pope's attitude. 
 Alexander did not like the Republic of Florence, 
 yet he did not dare openly to antagonize it. If he 
 could crush Savonarola on other grounds than be- 
 cause of relations with the Republic, his end would 
 be gained. 
 
 Savonarola immediately wrote to influential 
 Dominicans in Rome complaining of the action of 
 evil-minded citizens who would fain re-establish 
 tyranny in Florence. "All these men," said he, 
 "seek my death." In a letter to the pope, written 
 on the iQth of September, he lamented that his 
 enemies should have succeeded in deceiving the 
 holy father regarding events which had occurred 
 openly and in the presence of many witnesses. He 
 declared his submission to the Church, and re- 
 minded the pope that the brief granting the inde- 
 pendence of San Marco had not been secured by 
 the application of a few friars, but at the request 
 of all. He maintained that as he had not lapsed 
 into error, and as he had proved the falsity of all 
 the charges brought against him, the holy father
 
 LETTERS, PLOTS AND PAPAL BRIEFS. 179 
 
 ought to reply to his defense and grant him absolu- 
 tion. "I preach," said he, "the doctrine of the holy 
 apostles, have departed in nothing from their pre- 
 cepts, and am ready, if I should be in error, not 
 only to correct myself, but to avow it publicly, and 
 make amends before the whole people. And now 
 again I repeat that which I have always said, that is, 
 that I submit myself and my writings to the cor- 
 rection of the Hory Roman Church." Alexander 
 accepted the defense, and in a most conciliatory 
 brief, dated October i6th, professed his gratification 
 that Savonarola was so willing to yield obedience 
 to the Church and required only that he abstain 
 from all preaching until such time as he might con- 
 fer with him in Rome. 
 
 It was a piece of good fortune for Savonarola 
 that this brief was a long while in getting to Flor- 
 ence. Time was given for important words to be 
 spoken in the Duomo, words vital to the safety of 
 the city. But when the brief did come it was 
 obeyed. The preacher betook himself to the quiet 
 of the monastery and there devoted his time to rest 
 and study. 
 
 Savonarola believed with all his soul in the jus- 
 tice of his cause; his eyes were not blind to the 
 scandals of Rome; and, perhaps, even as early as 
 this, he gave serious thought to the possibility of a 
 general church council which should declare Alex- 
 ander's election null and void. Cardinal Rovere 
 believed this ought to be done. To him Alexander 
 was "an infidel and a heretic," who had purchased 
 St. Peter's chair for money. He was, therefore, 
 not a true pope. When King Charles was in Rome
 
 i8o GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 eighteen cardinals waited upon him, asking him 
 to call a general council, on the ground that Alex- 
 ander had not been legally elected. Cardinal Ro- 
 vere and Savonarola exchanged more than one let- 
 ter on the subject. 
 
 Some rare and beautiful glimpses into these 
 months of retirement which followed are to be 
 seen in the personal letters of Savonarola written 
 to members of his family. He shared all their suf- 
 ferings and joys. A letter to his mother, on learn- 
 ing of the death of one of his brothers, is evidence 
 of his fine feelings and his tender love for his home, 
 and particularly for her who was the center of 
 his human affections. But even in writing to his 
 mother he does not forget his lofty mission or the 
 great matters of Christian faith and practice which 
 are upon his heart. He closes with heroic words 
 to prepare for her the tragic end which even now 
 casts its shadow upon him. "I would that your 
 faith were as that of the holy Jewish woman in 
 the Old Testament, so that you might be able, 
 without shedding a tear, to see your children mur- 
 dered before your eyes. Dearest mother, I say not 
 this in order to comfort you ; but to prepare you, 
 lest I should have to die." Padre Marchese when 
 shown this letter said after reading it, "Were all 
 the writings of Fra Girolamo Savonarola perished 
 or destroyed, this letter would be sufficient proof 
 of the sincere and steadfast piety of his soul." 
 
 Fra Dominico was preaching the Advent ser- 
 mons in the Duomo now. Strong preacher he was, 
 too, and represented well his master's teaching. But 
 as the carnival approached, the Arrabbiati, grown
 
 LETTERS, PLOTS AND PAPAL BRIEFS. iSi 
 
 bold because of their confidence in the favor of 
 Rome, planned to celebrate in true Medicean style. 
 That meant lewd songs and indecent ballads, wild 
 revelry, drunkenness and debauch. The boys of 
 Florence took great delight in the carnival. There 
 was no law during carnival days. That they liked. 
 They cajoled and pestered the people in the day- 
 time to get money for their bonfires and feastings 
 at night. After the bonfire, came what one of the 
 chroniclers calls "the mad and bestial game of 
 stones." All this had been greatly held in check, 
 and some features stopped altogether, by the reform 
 movement of Savonarola. But now that the re- 
 former was under ban of the pope, the Arrabbiati 
 would have a carnival to be remembered. The 
 boys, and they were the same then as now, were 
 ready and eager for any carnival the Arrabbiati 
 might get up. 
 
 It was now that Savonarola decided upon a re- 
 form movement among the children. He well knew 
 that it would be no easy task to break up old cus- 
 toms, but he had a habit always of attempting the 
 thing he thought necessary to be done. His plan 
 was to substitute religious gayeties for carnival 
 gayeties. At the street corners where the boys had 
 gathered to demand money of the passers-by, he 
 placed small altars at which these same boys were 
 to stand and collect money for the poor. In the 
 old carnival days there was much singing in the 
 streets, singing well suited to prepare the gay rev- 
 elers for what was to go on under cover of night. 
 Savonarola had too much good sense to try to stop 
 the singing. He said to the boys, "Sing as much
 
 1 82 GIROI,AMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 as you will, but sing hymns and not immoral songs. 
 I will write songs for you." He got Benivieni to 
 help him. In all the streets of Florence the chil- 
 dren sang the new songs; sang gayly and happily 
 of the Christ Child, the Bambino; and with glad 
 voices they shouted in the midst of their singing, 
 "Gesu Christo nostro Re." In order that all might 
 be done decently and in order, Savonarola had di- 
 rected Fra Domenico to select leaders from among 
 the boys to visit the Signory and lay their plan 
 before the city fathers and ask for their consent. 
 
 These leaders acted as captains of companies 
 to arrange little processions and to sing about the 
 altars. Enthusiasm ran high. There was hardly 
 less gayety and noise than before, but it was of a 
 different kind. "The bestial game of stones" was 
 stopped altogether, and three hundred ducats were 
 collected for the poor. When the last day of the 
 carnival came there was a great procession; not 
 only the children but a large part of the population 
 were in it. The children sang their hymns and 
 shouted their "Gesu Christo." They entered the 
 churches and sang there; then out in the street 
 again, always singing and always shouting their 
 "Gesu Christo." The procession ended with a 
 visit to the "Good Men of St. Martin," to whom 
 they handed over their carnival offering for the 
 poor. 
 
 There is perhaps nothing in all Savonarola's 
 mighty work in Florence which so brings us into 
 sympathy with him as this ministry among the 
 children. With rare tact and wisdom he carried 
 on the work; now directing their activities in col-
 
 LETTERS, PLOTS AND PAPAL BRIEFS. 183 
 
 lecting money for the poor; now gathering them 
 into spacious galleries built up in the Duomo where 
 he preached to them; and now forming them in 
 great processions in the streets, all of them in 
 white and all carrying little red crosses. Savon- 
 arola loved children, and from this carnival season 
 to the close of his life he was their devoted friend, 
 adviser, and leader. All unconsciously he was pre- 
 paring the way for John Wesley and Robert Raikes.
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 THE BURNING OF THE VANITIES. 
 
 As THE preacher improved in health, his friends 
 devoted themselves with energy to securing the 
 recall, or at least a modification, of the papal brief. 
 The Ten, composed entirely of Savonarola's adher- 
 ents, were particularly active in writing letters to 
 the pope and to many of the cardinals. They re- 
 peatedly urged the Florentine ambassador at Rome 
 to use his influence to secure the pope's permis- 
 sion for Savonarola to return to the pulpit. "You 
 could do nothing," they said, "that would be more 
 grateful and welcome to all your fellow-citizens or 
 better appreciated by the good sense of this whole 
 population." Largely through the good offices of 
 the Cardinal of Naples, who will be remembered as 
 the cardinal who so shrewdly secured the brief 
 which gave independence to San Marco, the pope 
 finally gave consent that Savonarola should again 
 preach. This consent was probably given with the 
 hope that the preacher would modify his words, 
 and tone down his criticisms of Rome. No sooner 
 was the glad news brought to Florence, than the 
 Signory unanimously invited Savonarola to be the 
 preacher in the Duomo during the Lenten season 
 then at hand. 
 
 An event now happened, which, to Savonarola, 
 was frightfully suggestive of the degradation of 
 184
 
 THE BURNING OF THE VANITIES. 185 
 
 Rome. A papal commissioner, Ludovico by name, 
 was sent to Florence to offer him a cardinal's hat. 
 There is a story connected with the coming of this 
 commissioner which seems to have good founda- 
 tion in fact. It runs thus: The pope placed some 
 of Savonarola's sermons, probably the recently pub- 
 lished ''.Compendium of Revelations," in the hands 
 of a learned Dominican bishop, with the request 
 that he pass judgment upon them. After going 
 over them carefully, the bishop reported that the 
 prior had said nothing which was not honest and 
 wise. "He speaks against simony and against the 
 corruption of the priesthood, which in truth, is very 
 great, but he respects the dogmas and the authority 
 of the Church; wherefore I would rather seek to 
 make him my friend, even were it needful, by of- 
 fering him the cardinal's purple." 
 
 How soon after this the papal commissioner was 
 sent is not known, nor is it positively known just 
 what motive Alexander had in making the offer. 
 Perhaps he thought it wise, as the bishop suggested, 
 to make Savonarola his friend. Was it not worth 
 while to have such a friend? It is, of course, pos- 
 sible, and to many it seems probable, that the pope's 
 motive was simply to silence the preacher. It has 
 been whispered, even so late as our own time, that 
 the best way to deal with a radical in the Church 
 is to make a bishop of him. There is something 
 about the high and holy office, so it is said, which 
 tends to soften tone and modify teaching. What- 
 ever may have been the pope's motive in offering 
 the hat. it is certain that Savonarola looked upon 
 it as bribery and barter. As such, he scorned it.
 
 1 86 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 But suppose he had accepted the offer! The title 
 of this volume would then be "Cardinal Savon- 
 arola." No! The book would never have been 
 written ; nor any other book telling of the life and 
 character of the great preacher of Florence. "Come 
 to my next sermon," said Savonarola to the papal 
 commissioner, "and you shall have my reply." The 
 commissioner, listening for the promised reply, 
 heard the abuses of Rome denounced, the papal 
 briefs pronounced invalid, the fatal malady of the 
 Tiber vividly described, and could not fail to dis- 
 cover that here was a preacher who would have no 
 red hat but one made red by his own blood. "I 
 desire," said he, "neither hats or miters, be they 
 great or small; I desire naught save that which 
 Thou, O Lord, hast given Thy saints ; it is death ; 
 a crimson hat, a hat of blood; that I desire." 
 
 The 1 7th day of February, 1496, has been well 
 described as a memorable day in the life of Savon- 
 arola. On that day, and by the pope's permission, 
 he stood again in the pulpit of the Duomo. After 
 months of compulsory silence, and fresh from the 
 disgraceful red hat affair, it is not hard to imagine 
 what his state of mind was. Grief and indignation 
 strove for mastery. Savonarola now saw, and 
 clearly, too, that all his crimes against Rome were 
 summed up in this, that he had dared to uphold 
 political freedom and Christian virtue. But he had 
 a conscience void of offense, and in that strength 
 he could stand. Aye, and face the mightiest of the 
 earth. 
 
 Great preparations had been made to take care 
 of the crowds expected at this sermon and the ones 
 to follow. The spacious floor of the Duomo would
 
 THE BURNING OF THE; VANITIES. 187 
 
 not be sufficient. Everybody knew that. A great 
 amphitheater was built up against the walls of the 
 nave, sixteen tiers of seats in height. The Signory 
 had spared no pains to see that order was main- 
 tained. They knew that the Arrabbiati would be 
 there with stilettos, and hired assassins, too, sent 
 by the Moor of Milan. 
 
 A great crowd waited for Savonarola as he came 
 out of the San Marco gate and well-armed men 
 formed a body-guard as he walked to the Duomo. 
 When he stood in the 'pulpit he faced an audience 
 the like of which he had never looked upon before, 
 an excited, nervous, breathless audience. The con- 
 flicting emotions of the speaker and the highly 
 wrought expectancy of the hearers combined to 
 make the sermon far more impressive than one 
 could ever guess from reading it. Never had Sa- 
 vonarola's eyes gleamed and flashed fire as they did 
 that day. But when the regal power back of flash- 
 ing eye gave command, there was perfect quiet and 
 the sermon began with calm voice. The opening 
 sentences were in the form of a dialogue. "How is 
 it, O Friar, that thou hast tarried so long in idle- 
 ness, without coming to the camp to thy soldiers' 
 aid ? My children, I have not been in idleness ; on 
 the contrary, I come from the camp, and have been 
 defending a stronghold, the which, had it been cap- 
 tured, you also might have been destroyed ; but now, 
 by God's grace and through your prayers, we have 
 saved it. ... Come, brother, dost thou perhaps fear 
 to be killed? No, my children, certainly not; for 
 had I been afraid, I should not have come here, 
 where I am now, in greater peril than before."
 
 188 GlROLAMO SAVONAROtA. 
 
 After making it clear that the question of his 
 orthodoxy was beyond dispute he touched upon 
 the delicate question of his relations with Rome. 
 At this time and again in the closing sermon of 
 the series, he said, "We are not compelled to obey 
 all commands ; when given in consequence of lying 
 reports they are invalid ; when in evident contradic- 
 tion with the law of charity laid down in the Gos- 
 pel, it is our duty to resist them, even as St. Paul 
 resisted St. Peter. We are bound to presume that 
 no such commands will be imposed on us, but in 
 case they were imposed, we must then reply to 
 our superior, saying, 'Thou dost err, thou art not 
 the Roman Church, thou art a man and a sinner !' " 
 In taking this bold position he was careful to make 
 it plain that he did it with good reason. This is 
 shown in the following sentence : "Were I to clearly 
 see that my departure from a city would be the 
 spiritual and temporal ruin of the people, I would 
 obey no living man that commanded me to de- 
 part, for inasmuch in obeying him I should disobey 
 the commands of the Lord ; and likewise because I 
 should presume that my superior had no inten- 
 tion to do evil, but had been misled by false re- 
 ports." He confesses utter lack of knowledge as 
 to the outcome of his work. "I have embarked 'on 
 a stormy flood, assailed on all sides by contrary 
 winds. I would fain reach the port, yet I can find 
 no dock; would fain repose, yet find no resting- 
 place; would fain remain still and silent but may 
 not for the will of God is as a fire in my heart, 
 which unless I give it vent, will consume the mar- 
 row of my bones. Come, O Lord, since thou dost
 
 THE BURNING OF THE VANITIES. 189 
 
 have me steer through these deep waters, let thy 
 will be done." 
 
 This sermon was a forecast of the entire series, 
 a series which commanded the most intense interest 
 throughout. The descriptions of the corruptions 
 and scourges were as thrilling and new as though 
 heard for the first time. And they were new. The 
 theme was a living one. It was related to all the 
 life of Florence. When the preacher cried out, 
 "Wretched Italy! I see thee stricken down; 
 wretched people! how I see thee all oppressed," 
 the people groaned and bowed their heads in grief. 
 When the mortal malady of Rome was the theme, 
 and the pride, greed, lusts, and ambition of princes 
 and prelates were pointed out as the cause of Italy's 
 woes, the Duomo was filled with cryings and curs- 
 ings. The emotions of the people were swept as 
 by a storm. 
 
 Now and then there were fine flashes of pa- 
 triotism. Ideals of citizenship were held up which 
 are suggestive even now. Read the following on 
 the responsibility of suffrage: "There be many 
 that go about the city scattering notices to the 
 effect that this or that man should not be elected. 
 I tell you : never obey the suggestions of these pa- 
 pers. If those whom you would not have elected 
 be bad, you may openly proclaim it in council, now 
 that there is no tyrant to oppress you. Wherefore 
 come forth, and say frankly, 'Such an one is not 
 fit for this office.' But if he be a good man let 
 him be chosen." The utter unselfishness of Sa- 
 vonarola in his heroic work for the political refor- 
 mation of Florence, is strikingly brought out in
 
 1 90 GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 this : "I am told there be some in the council who, 
 when one is about to be balloted, say of him, 'Let 
 us give him the black bean, or the white bean, be- 
 cause he is of this or that party ;' and what is worse 
 I am told, there be many that say, 'He is one of the 
 Friar's men, let us give him the black beans.' (The 
 black bean meant a favorable vote.) What, have 
 I taught you this? I have no friend save Christ 
 and the righteous. Act no more in this wise, for 
 this is no purpose of . mine, and you would soon 
 cause dissensions. Let electors give their beans to 
 those they conscientiously hold to be good and sa- 
 gacious men, as I have frequently told you before." 
 
 It speaks volumes for the greatness and sub- 
 limity of Savonarola's character that, during these 
 days when he was lashing Florence and Rome for 
 their vices and their corruptions, he held himself 
 so utterly aloof from narrow and party spirit. The 
 charges brought against him by some modern critics 
 that he lacked in magnanimity and sought to exalt 
 his own friends at- the expense of others, are so 
 utterly without foundation that it is hardly worth 
 while even to mention them. Nor is it worth 
 while to stop here to answer the criticism that he 
 ought to have interposed to save the lives of Ber- 
 nardo del Nero and his fellow conspirators, who 
 tried to deliver Florence into the hands of the 
 tyrant Piero. They were guilty of treason. What 
 could Savonarola do? It would be hard to find, 
 in all the history of heroic men placed in such posi- 
 tion as Savonarola was, a finer example of lofty 
 ideals and unselfish patriotism. 
 
 Among the striking features of this Lenten sea-
 
 THE BURNING otf THE VANITIES. 191 
 
 son were the great meetings for the children. They 
 sat in temporary seats in the Duomo. Now all the 
 preacher's words were for them. They were ex- 
 horted to be diligent in their studies, to be kind 
 and charitable, to have high ideals, to keep them- 
 selves pure, and to fear God. Near the close of 
 Lent, elaborate preparations were made for an- 
 other great procession. It was to take place on 
 Palm Sunday. A tabernacle was built in the 
 Duomo, and on it was painted a representation of 
 Christ riding in triumph into Jerusalem. This was 
 carried at the head of an immense procession, the 
 boys leading, all dressed in white, with olive wreaths 
 on their heads and red crosses or palm branches 
 in their hands. Following the boys came the young 
 men, then the older men, and after them many 
 priests and friars. After these followed the girls 
 and the women. This procession, like the former 
 one, carried a large offering of money which had 
 been gathered up at the street corners by busy and 
 persistent boys. The procession wound around the 
 Duomo, then to the Piazza. Signoria, where not 
 many months hence would be witnessed the black- 
 est crime in the history of Florence. From there 
 the white line of happy children moved slowly 
 towards the spacious square in front of the church 
 and monastery of San Marco, where the joy and 
 gladness of Palm Sunday reached its climax. Here 
 the large offerings of coin were turned -over to the 
 newly established Monte di Pieta, a sort of public 
 pawnshop, recently organized by Savonarola as a 
 savings-bank and money loaning institution for the 
 poor. This was one of the means adopted by the
 
 192 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 reform preacher to drive out from Florence the 
 usurers, chiefly Jewish money-lenders, who were 
 sapping the life blood of the city. 
 
 It is hardly too extravagant to say that in all 
 the history of preaching it would be difficult to 
 find an instance where the immediate effects of a 
 series of sermons were so great. Count over your 
 great preachers and study again the effect of their 
 sermons upon an audience and upon a city, and 
 when you are done Savonarola will stand out 
 greater and grander than before. Like a true war- 
 rior of God and prophet of God, he fought and 
 prophesied against tyranny, against corruption in 
 high places, against every evil of the time which 
 hindered men from being the great free beings 
 God intended them to be. "What will be the end 
 of this war thou art carrying on?" he soliloquized 
 one day in the pulpit. "If thou wouldst know the 
 general result, I tell thee it will end in victory; 
 but if thou wouldst know what will be its result as 
 regards myself in particular, I tell thee it will end 
 in death and in being cut to pieces. Rest assured, 
 however, that all this will serve to spread abroad 
 this doctrine, the which proceedeth not from me, 
 but from God. I am but a tool in His hands; 
 wherefore I am resolved to fight to the death." 
 The offer of a cardinal's hat had not softened Sa- 
 vonarola's tone or modified his teachings and warn- 
 ings. Alexander VI was discovering, as Lorenzo 
 the Magnificent had discovered two years before, 
 that here was a preacher who could not be bought. 
 He would have no red hat but one made red by his 
 own blood, the martyr's hat. 
 
 Now it was that the great preacher of Florence
 
 THE BURNING OF THE VANITIES. 193 
 
 began to be the subject of frequent discussions in 
 circles outside the limits of Italy. His published 
 sermons were read in France, in Germany, and in 
 England. Even the sultan had some of them trans- 
 lated that he might read them. Enemies as well as 
 friends joined to make his name widely known. 
 The most extravagant, and, in some instances, scur- 
 rilous, misrepresentations were published in letters 
 and in pamphlets. Doggerel, too, was used to make 
 ridiculous his utterances and bring his work into 
 disrepute. Do not let it be supposed that all this 
 went unchallenged. Piagnoni stoutly, and at times 
 nobly, defended the character and teachings of their 
 great leader. Perhaps they were not always wise, 
 but their heart was right, and they stand out in 
 striking contrast with the Arrabbiati. 
 
 The battle to the death was on. It was only a 
 question of time. A consistory of fourteen Domin- 
 ican theologians was asked by the pope to care- 
 fully look into the conduct and teachings of the 
 troublesome preacher. By far the most serious 
 charge made against him, was that he was the cause 
 of all the misfortunes of Piero de' Medici. To the 
 papal court this was serious. The Republic of 
 Florence did not look at it that way. It counted in 
 his favor that he had stood against Piero. Soon 
 after Easter Savonarola went to Prato, where his 
 preaching was the one topic of conversation. 
 Learned professors of the university of Pisa, now 
 temporarily located at Prato, and humble peasants, 
 all heard him with equal interest. "The land of 
 Prato," says one of the chroniclers, "seemed 
 turned into a church." 
 
 13
 
 194 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 Two books published about this time added 
 greatly to Savonarola's strength and influence. 
 One was "On the Simplicity of the Christian Life," 
 the other was an "Exposition of the Seventy-ninth 
 Psalm." These publications were quite different 
 in character. In the first, Savonarola describes 
 what he considers the essentials in Christian life 
 and character. In the second, the most striking 
 feature is the fearful arraignment of the priest- 
 hood. "It is the general practice," he says, "to 
 be one day in the theater, and the next in the 
 Episcopal chair; to be in the theater to-day, and 
 to-morrow a canon in the choir; to-day a soldier, 
 and to-morrow a priest." 
 
 In May he returned to the pulpit with the noble 
 utterance, "I am here in obedience to Him who is 
 the Prelate of prelates and the Pope of popes." 
 Later he was invited by the Signory to speak in 
 the hall of the Great Council before the magis- 
 trates and leading citizens. Never did he use more 
 even-tempered words than on this occasion. "The 
 clergy," said he, "wrongfully complain of me. If 
 I have attacked vice, I have attacked no individual 
 in particular. But still greater wrong is done me 
 by the citizens, who go about crying that I meddle 
 in all the business of the State. I have never in- 
 tervened in your affairs; both in public and in pri- 
 vate I have said, and now repeat in this place, that 
 such is not my office ; and even did I seek to inter- 
 fere in those things, no one ought to give ear to 
 me. What if I have suggested good laws for the 
 well-being of the people and their liberty? What 
 if I have checked discord and pacified men's minds ?
 
 THE BURNING OF THE VANITIES. 195 
 
 All that hath been to the glory of God; and those 
 men would stone me for a good work. They go 
 about crying, 'The friar would have money, the 
 friar hath secret intelligence, the friar would play 
 the tyrant, the friar would have a cardinal's hat.' 
 I tell you that had I desired such things, I should 
 not be wearing a tattered robe at this hour." 
 
 There were months now when Florence saw 
 many dark days. There were intrigues for the re- 
 turn of Piero, and Maximilian had come to take 
 the iron crown of the empire and arbitrate or pos- 
 sess in Italy. The pope's army was approaching, 
 and the war with Pisa was not going on well. A 
 heavy blow fell in the death of one of the city's 
 greatest men, Piero Capponi; he was killed in bat- 
 tle by a shot from a Pisan gun. Then famine came 
 and the plague. The magistrates were alarmed 
 for their city. They needed some voice to inspire 
 hope and confidence. The one voice with such 
 power was Savonarola's. At the command of the 
 Signory he spoke. "Listen to my words!" and as 
 he began to speak his old enthusiasm began to 
 kindle, "I am willing to forfeit my robe if we 
 do not drive away our enemies." Two days later, 
 and a foaming charger galloped through the San 
 Frediano Gate, to tell Florence that her ships of 
 supplies were safely anchored in the harbor at Leg- 
 horn. The famine was ended and the power of 
 the plague soon broken. The preacher might now 
 continue to speak in spite of papal briefs. Once 
 more the city sounded Savonarola's praises. Once 
 more he was the deliverer of Florence. Once more 
 the people declared him to be God's true prophet.
 
 196 GlROIyAMO SAVON AROI/A. 
 
 The opportunity which now came to the 
 preacher was not allowed to go by unimproved. 
 Reminding the people of recent reverses and sore 
 afflictions and how they had been delivered, he 
 earnestly exhorted them to thanksgiving to God. 
 With new fervor he held up high ideals of gov- 
 ernment, challenged the people to political virtue 
 and civic honesty, and urged them to hold inviolate 
 their new liberties. Savonarola seems to have 
 clearly understood that there was no permanent 
 safety for the new Republic apart from the virtue 
 and intelligence of its citizens. He constantly pleaded 
 for unselfish action and the common good. His 
 one great demand of the civil authorities was that 
 they regard justice. He was forever warning 
 against the tricks and rascalities of politicians. 
 Justice was what he wanted. "Do justice, there- 
 fore, magnificent Signory; justice, Signory of 
 Eight; justice, magistrates of Florence; justice, men 
 and women; let all cry for justice!" 
 
 The Piagnoni were, for the time, the absolute 
 masters of Florence. Savonarola's "heavenly des- 
 potism" was almost universally recognized in the 
 city. But the might of Rome was filling the south- 
 ern horizon, and, under the surface, there were 
 plots and intrigues in Florence. Some were se- 
 cretly whispering that the friar was expecting too 
 much of weak humanity, and demanding more of 
 the city than it could do; he was too much of a 
 rigorist. Danger lurked on all sides and Savon- 
 arola knew it. He might have trimmed a little 
 just now. Ah, but he could not do that. His fine 
 Christian idealism and powerful will, ever held
 
 THE BURNING OF THE VANITIES. 197 
 
 him to the high standard of Christian virtue and 
 political freedom he had so long proclaimed from 
 the Duomo pulpit. Any but a true man would have 
 lowered his standard. 
 
 Outwitted in the previous carnival, the Arrab- 
 biati began early to make plans to have the carnival 
 of 1497 all their own way. The revelries, the 
 orgies, and all Medicean extravagances were to 
 be revived and new features added. Never was a 
 more vigorous and determined effort made to cru- 
 cify virtue and enthrone vice. Driven to the limits 
 of madness, the Arrabbiati were determined to 
 break utterly the influence of the Piagnoni and put 
 a stop to the sway of the "twist necks" and "prayer 
 mumblers." But Savonarola and his faithful Fra 
 Domenico were not caught napping. The boys of 
 the city were early organized to repeat what they 
 had done in preparation for the carnival of the year 
 before. The altars were set up, the lauds were 
 sung, and a decidedly new feature was added which 
 greatly increased the enthusiasm of the boys. They 
 were instructed to go about the city and appeal 
 everywhere for what they were to call Vanities. They 
 asked for old-time carnival masks and costumes, for 
 indecent books and pictures ; they went from house 
 to house making their appeal, and repeating brief 
 prayers, as the vanities were placed in their hands. 
 When the great and final day of the carnival came, 
 all thoughts of revelry and orgies were forgotten. 
 Nothing was thought of but the great procession 
 and what was to happen in the Piazza. 
 
 Early in the morning the people gathered in 
 large numbers in the Duomo to celebrate mass. At
 
 198 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 a later hour they came again. This time for the 
 procession. All the doings of the day were to be 
 for the glory of King Jesus. At the head of the 
 procession was a beautiful figure of the infant 
 Christ, the Bambino. Donatello's chisel had made 
 it. What a chisel Donatello had! The people 
 looked upon the beautiful figure with delighted 
 wonder. One of the Bambino's hands was point- 
 ing to the cross, the other was raised in benedic- 
 tion. Close behind the image followed the boys, 
 some thousands of them, robed in white and with 
 red crosses. All Florence was in the procession or 
 watching it. The boys with the alms-boxes gath- 
 ered a bountiful harvest for the Good Men of St. 
 Martin. The day reached its climax of enthusiasm 
 in the spacious Piazza, in front of the Palazzo Vec- 
 chio. There an imposing pyramid had been built 
 up. Its circumference at the base measured two 
 hundred and forty feet, and its height sixty feet. 
 Seven great tiers measured the distance between 
 base and summit, each tier standing for a mortal 
 sin. There on the tiers and well classified, if we 
 may accept Benivieni's statement, were the vanities. 
 Gambling devices of all sorts were there, musical 
 instruments which had been used in the revelries 
 of former carnivals, lascivious books both in Latin 
 and Italian, indecent pictures and pieces of sculp- 
 ture, women's dresses with immodest figures on 
 them, and gay and fantastic carnival trappings of 
 all sorts. The apex of the pyramid was 
 crowned with a personification of old King 
 Carnival. It was a spectacular scene ! The 
 pyramid in the center of the Piazza! The white-
 
 THE BURNING OF THE VANITIES. 199 
 
 robed children arranged in front of the old Palace 
 and the Loggia dei Lanzi! Singing their lauds 
 and hymns in honor of King Jesus, they cried out 
 their childish invectives against the carnival, and 
 shouted with fine enthusiasm, "Viva Gesu Christo, 
 nostro Re!" At a given signal torches lighted the 
 pyramid at the four corners, and the mighty pile 
 blazed and flamed in mad fury! The children 
 shouted louder than ever! The trumpeters of the 
 Signory sounded their trumpets ; the bells from the 
 Palace tower pealed forth notes of triumph, and all 
 the people in the Piazza, shouted with the children, 
 shouted as they had never shouted before, "Long 
 live Jesus Christ, King of Florence." So ended 
 the carnival of 1497. 
 
 Did Savonarola do wisely in this? We should 
 hardly praise the preacher-reformer who would at- 
 tempt such a bonfire in New York or Chicago. But 
 Savonarola lived in a different age and under the 
 sunny skies of Italy. George Eliot in her Romola 
 seems to see possible reason in it all. "Had there 
 been bonfires in the olden times? There was to 
 be a bonfire now, consuming impurity from off the 
 earth. Had there been symbolic' processions? 
 There were to be processions now, but the symbols 
 were to be white robes, and red crosses, and olive 
 wreaths emblems of peace and innocent gladness 
 and banners and images held aloft were to tell of 
 the triumphs of goodness. ... As for the collec- 
 tions from street passengers, they were to be 
 greater than ever not for carousing and super- 
 fluous suppers, but for the benefit of the hungry and 
 needy." Whatever we sober people of the North,
 
 200 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 and of the twentieth century, may think of what 
 happened, there is no doubt but that Savonarola 
 thought he was doing God's service. Nor is 
 there any doubt that the vast majority of the cit- 
 izens saw in the proceedings of the day, the ar- 
 raignment and destruction of vice and the corona- 
 tion of virtue. 
 
 One of the most beautiful illustrations of the 
 impression made is to be found in the diary of a 
 contemporary, Luca Landucci. In describing the 
 apostolate of the children in gathering up the van- 
 ities, Landucci writes, "The children had received 
 such encouragement from Fra Girolamo to reprove 
 unbecoming modes of dress and the vice of gam- 
 bling, that when the people said, 'Here come the 
 prior's children,' every gambler, however bold he 
 might be, would take himself off, and women at- 
 tired and conducted themselves with all modesty. 
 The children were held in such reverence that every 
 one abstained from scandalous vice. Not a word 
 on such matters was to be heard from young or 
 old during the holy time; but it was short. The 
 wicked have proved more powerful than the good. 
 Brief as it was, may God be praised that I saw that 
 holy time; and I pray that He may give us back 
 once more that holy and chaste mode of life. That 
 this was indeed a blessed time any one may judge 
 who will consider the things which then were done." 
 In closing the description Landucci says, "I have 
 written these things because they are true, and I 
 have seen them, and have experienced in them some 
 consolation, and children of my own were among 
 those blessed and modest bands." Many of the
 
 THE BURNING OF THE VANITIES. 201 
 
 writings of the time go to show that in the thought 
 of the vast majority of the people the boys out in 
 groups doing what Savonarola had commanded 
 them, were indeed "blessed and modest bands." 
 There were large numbers who saw in these chil- 
 dren the guardian angels of Florence. 
 
 Much has been said in these later days of the 
 excesses and extravagances connected with the 
 burning of the vanities, and Savonarola has been 
 branded as an iconoclast, a hater of art, a narrow- 
 minded bigot, and a rigorist of altogether too pro- 
 nounced a type. The charge that he was a hater 
 of art, followed extravagant reports concerning the 
 value of the art treasures actually destroyed. These 
 reports seem to have originated in a statement of 
 Burlamacchi, that a Venetian merchant actually 
 offered twenty thousand crowns for the vanities 
 collected. In view of some other statements of 
 Burlamacchi who did not seem to have a genius 
 for figures, it is not now thought that any such* 
 offer could have been made. Some real works of 
 art were burned. At least one volume of Boccacio 
 went up in smoke. There are intelligent and widely 
 traveled people still living who will never shed any 
 tears over it either. But granting that some val- 
 uable books were burned, and some real works of 
 art, they constituted only a very small part of what 
 was actually destroyed. The great and sole object 
 of the bonfire was to suppress immorality, to put a 
 stop to the kind of festivities and revelings which 
 were corrupting the manners of Florence and de- 
 bauching her people. 
 
 The attitude of Savonarola towards art and
 
 202 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 learning is too well understood to make necessary 
 any elaborate defense of his conduct in this in- 
 stance. In a noble passage Villari has pointed out 
 how Savonarola founded a school of design in 
 San Marco, and how he was continually surrounded 
 by a band of the best artists of his age. "All the 
 world knows," says he, "the ardent affection he 
 had inspired in Fra Bartolemeo, who for four years 
 after his master's death was unable to resume the 
 brush. All the della Robbia were devoted to Sa- 
 vonarola, two of them received the monastic robe 
 from his hands, and the family long preserved a 
 traditional reverence for his name. Concerning 
 Lorenzo di Credi, Vasari tells us that 'he was a 
 partisan of Fra Girolamo's sect,' and relates of 
 Cronaca, that 'he had conceived so great a frenzy 
 for Savonarola's teachings, that he could talk of 
 nothing else ;' and he says the same of Sandro 
 Botticelli, whom he numbers among those who 
 illustrated the prior's works with beautiful engrav- 
 ings. But it is enough to mention the name of 
 Michael Angelo Buonarotti, known to be one of his 
 most constant hearers, and who, in his old age 
 constantly read and re-read the prior's sermons, 
 and never forgot the potent charm of that orator's 
 gestures and pose." If added argument be needed 
 it may be found in the fact that at this very time 
 Savonarola gave the credit of the monastery of 
 San Marco and its remaining property, to the pur- 
 chase of the celebrated Medicean library, when the 
 credit of the city was utterly exhausted, thus pre- 
 serving to letters and art the fine collection of 
 Greek and Latin codices, and the almost unrivaled
 
 THE BURNING op THE VANITIES. 203 
 
 treasure of miniatures, still preserved in the Lau- 
 rentian library. 
 
 If there were space it would be interesting to 
 describe here Savonarola's ideas of the beautiful. 
 In a little work on the "Division and utility of all 
 the Sciences," he devotes one entire portion to "An 
 apology for the art of Poetry." He condemned, 
 and in scathing terms, the "false race of pretended 
 poets" who did nothing but run after the Greeks 
 and Romans, repeating their ideas, copying their 
 style and their meter, and even invoking the same 
 deities. In an age when the vigorous and noble 
 poetry of Dante was neglected and almost despised 
 in the general craving for and delight in obscen- 
 ities, the invective with which he smites "the false 
 race of pretended poets" is hardly to be wondered 
 at. Savonarola was a lover of the beautiful and a 
 friend of art. No one can read his writings and 
 come to any other conclusion. But he despised the 
 art which encourages vice.
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 THE POPE ISSUES EDICT OF 
 EXCOMMUNICATION. 
 
 IT is now time to turn to Alexander VI and 
 study the methods by which he proceeded to silence 
 the offensive preacher. He began with a nice bit 
 of diplomacy. It was nothing less than a secret 
 offer, that if the Florentines would break with 
 France (he meant break with Savonarola) and join 
 the Holy, League, he would guarantee that Pisa 
 should be returned to them. The Ten immediately 
 sent a special envoy to Rome to confer with the 
 pope and report. After the conference the envoy 
 reported that the holy father was much displeased 
 over what the French had done. "May God par- 
 don the "author of that expedition," this the pope 
 said to the envoy, "which has been the cause of 
 all the woes of Italy, as your State, having been 
 dismembered by the loss of Pisa, must be well 
 aware. It would be worse still if the French came 
 again. Wherefore, we are using our best efforts, 
 as our Lord God knows, to weld the whole of 
 Italy into one body. To effect this we count chiefly 
 on your sagacious wits. After great difficulty we 
 have induced the league to bestow Pisa on you, 
 but only on condition that you join with us, and 
 act as good Italians, by leaving the French in 
 France. For this we must have stronger guarantee 
 204
 
 EDICT ox EXCOMMUNICATION. 205 
 
 than mere words." Making reply, the envoy as- 
 sured the pope that the word of Florence was as 
 good as their writing, and that notwithstanding 
 their alliance with the French, they were neverthe- 
 less good and true Italians, and regarded the inter- 
 ests of their country. At this point he was inter- 
 rupted by the pope who roughly exclaimed: "Mr. 
 Secretary, you are as fat as ourself, but pardon 
 me, you have come on a lean mission, and if you 
 have naught else to say to me you may go back at 
 once to your post." After adding that the Flor- 
 entines would be driven by force to what they 
 would not do of their own accord, and would re- 
 pent when it was too late, he lost all self-control 
 and cried: "We well know that all this comes of 
 your faith in the prophecies of that parable-monger 
 of yours, and allowing him to lacerate us, insult 
 us, threaten us, and trample upon us, who though 
 unworthy, now occupy the chair of St. Peter." It 
 was all in vain that the envoy tried to explain that 
 the pope had evidently been misinformed and that 
 Savonarola was actually a good and honest man. 
 "He continued," so runs the tale of Gherardi, "to 
 ride the high horse, declaring that the league would 
 do this and say that." In reporting the matter to 
 Florence, the envoy closed by saying, "The rage 
 against Savonarola is increasing on all sides in 
 Rome, so that it is no more possible to say a word 
 in his defense. And we must be on our guard 
 against the intrigues of Piero de' Medici, who will 
 certainly profit by the present serious aspect of 
 affairs, which is decidedly favorable to him." 
 
 The warning against the intrigues of Piero
 
 206 GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 came none too soon. The party of the Medici in 
 Florence saw an opportunity for coming into power, 
 and secured the election of Bernardo del Nero as 
 Gonfaloniere. This great and unexpected victory 
 was made possible through the violent struggle 
 which had been going on between the Arrabbiati 
 and the Piagnoni. The news of the election was 
 not long in getting to Piero, who, after the failure 
 of the expedition of the previous year, had gone 
 to Rome apparently a ruined man, hopeless and 
 almost penniless. Utterly discouraged he gave him- 
 self over to a life of debauch. He consumed his 
 time and strength in gluttony, gambling, lewdness, 
 and every description of unnatural vice. But the 
 possibility of again coming into power roused him 
 in the midst of his debaucheries, and he imme- 
 diately hastened to collect men and arms to march 
 upon Florence. 
 
 The story of the expedition is hardly worth 
 telling. Within less than thirty days, Piero was 
 camped outside the gates of Florence with an 
 army of one thousand three hundred men. When 
 the general alarm and excitement was at its highest, 
 a representative of the Signory sent a messenger 
 to Savonarola to ask what the outcome would be. 
 The answer was, "O ye of little faith, wherefore 
 do you doubt? Go tell the Signory that Piero de' 
 Medici will ride up to the gates, and ride off again 
 without obtaining any success." This is exactly 
 what happened. The adherents of the Medici 
 within Florence were so amazed at the uprising of 
 the people against the return of Piero that they saw 
 no way but to join with them in defending the city
 
 EDICT of EXCOMMUNICATION. 207 
 
 against the tyrant. It did not take Piero long to 
 see that the promised uprising in his favor was 
 not to take place. He waited under the walls of 
 Florence just one day, and before sunrise on the 
 following day, he and his army by quick march- 
 ing were safely beyond the Sienese border. A more 
 humiliating expedition was never undertaken. 
 
 Now that the Medici party was repudiated, the 
 Arrabbiati came into power. The new Signory 
 was composed almost entirely of this party. The 
 one aim of the Arrabbiati was to crush Savonarola 
 and his "prayer mumblers." In this they were as- 
 sured of the support of Ludovico of Milan; the 
 pope, too, had promised help. Now it was that 
 Dolfo Spini, leader of the Compagnacci, saw his 
 chance. He and his turbulent band devoted their 
 days and nights to concocting plans to bring the 
 preacher and his Piagnoni into disrepute. Insulting 
 placards were fastened on the walls of San Marco 
 and the monks were jeered at in the streets. The 
 services in the church and monastery were dis- 
 turbed, and a most disgraceful occurrence took 
 place in the Duomo. It was on Ascension day. A 
 scheme had been devised by the brutal Dolfo Spini 
 and his ruffians to kill Savonarola while preaching. 
 The plan was to blow up the pulpit with fireworks 
 while the sermon was going on. This was finally 
 given up on account of the probable loss of life 
 among the people assembled and the reaction which 
 might set in against them as the authors of the 
 deed. This plan abandoned, they proceeded to de- 
 file the pulpit. They placed pointed nails, lightly 
 covered, on the parts of the pulpit where they
 
 2o8 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 would pierce the preacher's hands when he be- 
 came emphatic in his discourse. They smeared the 
 steps of the pulpit with unmentionable filth, and 
 over the front of the pulpit they hung an ass's 
 hide. What they hoped for from this was to pro- 
 voke a riot. 
 
 The Piagnoni, now constantly on the alert, dis- 
 covered what had been done and cleared away all 
 traces of the defilement long before the hour for 
 the sermon. The excitement was intense. Many 
 went to San Marco to beg Savonarola not to risk 
 his life by attempting to preach that day. His re- 
 ply was one of noble indignation. "No fear of 
 man shall induce me to deprive the people of their 
 sermon on the day appointed by the Lord to His 
 disciples for going to spread His doctrine through- 
 out the world." The only thing the friends of the 
 preacher could do now was to prepare for his de- 
 fense in case of disturbance. This they did in good 
 earnest. 
 
 At the hour for the sermon, Savonarola entered 
 the pulpit. The Compagnacci were in the congre- 
 gation, but well back by themselves. Gayly dressed 
 and perfumed they smiled with insolent derision at 
 the plainly dressed Piagnoni, who watched the 
 preacher with eager faces as he began his sermon. 
 The Compagnacci were there to scoff and disturb. 
 The Piagnoni were there to pray and do whatever 
 else was necessary. 
 
 The subject of the discourse was "The Power of 
 Faith." After discussing faith in general and 
 showing how it could overcome every obstacle, he 
 addressed himself especially to the faithful, telling
 
 EDICT of EXCOMMUNICATION. 209 
 
 them that they lost heart too easily and were sad 
 when they ought to rejoice. In speaking to the 
 wicked, he prayed that God might not be angry 
 with them, but forgive them and convert them. 
 He warned them that they were not making war 
 on him, but on the Lord. Right in the midst of 
 this appeal a tremendous crash was heard, the doors 
 were flung open, and amidst great confusion large 
 numbers of people fled from the building. A rush 
 was made for the pulpit, but devoted friends gath- 
 ered about the preacher, some with arms, to de- 
 fend him. They were none too soon. Savonarola 
 tried to go on with the sermon, but finding it im- 
 possible, he knelt in prayer and waited for the 
 tumult to cease. Later he was escorted back to the 
 monastery by faithful and devoted friends, some of 
 whom brandished swords, others waved crosses, and 
 all shouted, "Long live King Jesus." The sermon 
 was finished in the convent garden, where Savon- 
 arola encouraged his friends with the assurance 
 that his enemies would fall in the pit they had dug 
 for others, and that they were undermining the 
 foundations of a wall that would crush them. 
 
 The news of this Ascension-day occurrence 
 spread far and near. No one seemed quite sure 
 whereunto it would lead. The Arrabbiati were 
 clearly coming into the ascendency. It was sig- 
 nificant that no one implicated in the disturbance 
 in the Duomo was punished. Many of the people 
 there present were questioned, but nothing was 
 done except to forbid the preaching of all monks. 
 On the 2Oth of May a Pratica was held at which 
 it was attempted to bring about the banishment of 
 M
 
 2io GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 Savonarola. This, it was soon found, could not be 
 done. Even the Arrabbiati realized that there were 
 limits beyond which they could not go. The peo- 
 ple would not suffer the banishment of their leader. 
 The one man who seemed perfectly calm during 
 these trying days was Savonarola. Not deeming 
 it wise to attempt to preach, for fear of further 
 disturbance, he took up the pen with the purpose 
 of expressing in type what he could not say by 
 word of mouth. "Be not troubled," he said in an 
 open letter to God's chosen and faithful Christians, 
 "but rather rejoice in persecutions." He assured 
 his followers that the present tribulations, despite 
 the will of those who had provoked them, would 
 serve to diffuse the pure light of the Gospel. The 
 Arrabbiati seized every opportunity tp bring Sa- 
 vonarola into their power. They wrote frequent 
 letters to the pope, urging him that the time had 
 come when they could deliver his enemy, and their 
 enemy, into his hands. The Arrabbiati hoped, and 
 the Piagnoni feared, that the edict of excommuni- 
 cation might arrive at any moment. 
 
 Two days after the Pratica Savonarola, un- 
 doubtedly foreseeing what might come from Rome, 
 addressed to the pope a dignified but conciliatory 
 letter. In it he inquired why it was that the holy 
 father had given so ready an ear to false charges 
 brought against him by his enemies, and had re- 
 fused to listen to him ; he bitterly complained of the 
 shameless language of Fra Mariano, and again de- 
 clared his submission to the authority of the Church. 
 He assured the pope that he had preached no doc- 
 trine save that of the fathers, as would speedily
 
 EDICT of EXCOMMUNICATION. 211 
 
 appear in a work he was about to publish, "The 
 Triumph of the Cross." In concluding the letter, 
 he said that if all human help failed him, he would 
 put his trust in God, and make manifest to all the 
 world the iniquity of those who might perhaps be 
 driven to repent the work they" had in hand. 
 
 There is good reason for believing that the pope 
 was much impressed by the matter and tone of this 
 letter, but it reached him too late. Nine days be- 
 fore he had sealed and forwarded the edict of ex- 
 communication. It was only by accident that Sa- 
 vonarola did not receive it before the date of his 
 own letter. The pope's edict was intrusted to the 
 care of one Vittoni da Camerino, who, after pro- 
 ceeding as far as Siena, became alarmed lest he 
 should be torn in pieces by the Piagnoni when he 
 arrived in Florence, delivered the edict over to 
 other hands and returned to Rome. It was near 
 the end of May before the bad business of carry- 
 ing the edict from Rome to Florence had been 
 accomplished. 
 
 The form of the instrument may have had 
 something to do with the difficulty in getting it to 
 its destination. It was not addressed in the usual 
 form, to all the faithful, but to the monks and 
 churches of certain monasteries. This edict, which 
 marked the beginning of the end for Savonarola, 
 was as follows : "We have heard from many per- 
 sons worthy of belief that a certain Fra Girolamo 
 Savonarola, at this present said to be Vicar of San 
 Marco in Florence, hath disseminated pernicious 
 doctrines to the scandal and great grief of simple 
 souls. We have already commanded him, by his
 
 2i2 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 vows of holy obedience, to suspend his sermons, 
 and come to us to seek pardon for his errors; but 
 he refused to obey, and alleged various excuses, 
 which we too graciously accepted, hoping to con- 
 vert him by our clemency. But, on the contrary, 
 he persisted still more in this obstinacy; wherefore 
 by a second brief (/th of November, 1496) we 
 commanded him, under pain of excommunication, 
 to unite the convent of San Marco to the Tusco- 
 Roman congregation recently created by us. But 
 even then he still persisted in his stubbornness, thus 
 ipso facto, incurring censure. Therefore, we now' 
 command ye, on all festivals, and in the presence 
 of the people to declare the said Fra Girolamo ex- 
 communicate, and to be held as such by all men, 
 for his failure to obey our apostolic admonitions 
 and commands. And, under pain of the same pen- 
 alty, all are forbidden to assist him, hold inter- 
 course with him, or approve him either by word 
 or by deed, inasmuch as he is an excommunicated 
 person, and suspected of heresy. Given in Rome 
 this 1 3th day of May, 1497." 
 
 It will be observed that the one sin of which 
 Savonarola was guilty was disobedience. He was 
 not pronounced a heretic, but only described as 
 "suspected of heresy." But he was disobedient. 
 This was the pope's charge against him. And 
 it is worthy of remark just here that modern Ro- 
 man Catholic writers agree in this, that Savon- 
 arola's one crime was that of disobedience. For 
 the people of Florence, however, the edict was an 
 edict. It was excommunication. The Arrabbiati 
 were jubilant. They had broken the power of
 
 EDICT OF EXCOMMUNICATION. 213 
 
 their accuser and could now do as they pleased. 
 The Piagnoni were crushed by the sorrow which 
 had come upon them. Many of the noblest citizens 
 sent quick protest to Rome. General and special 
 envoys pleaded the cause of -the silenced preacher 
 to the pope and to the cardinals. The Florentines 
 were given to understand that the pope's hatred 
 for Savonarola was because he had kept Florence 
 in alliance with the French and thus defeated the 
 purpose to make the Holy League all powerful in 
 Northern Italy. 
 
 It was the i8th of June before the excommuni- 
 cation was finally published in Florence. More 
 than a month had elapsed since it was sealed with 
 the Fisherman's Seal. It was read at last, with 
 elaborate ceremony and great solemnity, in the 
 churches of Santa Croce, Santa Maria Novella, 
 Santo Spirito, the Annunziata, and the Badia. 
 These were the churches to which the edict was 
 addressed. It was read by torch-light, read im- 
 pressively, and in the presence of the friars. Small 
 bells were tolled, and at the reading of the last 
 word the torches were all extinguished and the 
 friars were left in total darkness. The effect was 
 immediate. The insolence and ruffianism of Dolfo 
 Spini and his crowd now broke forth in new de- 
 vices of slander and indecency. Immoral practices, 
 we are told, returned as if by magic. The churches 
 were deserted, the taverns were filled; women re- 
 sumed the immodest mode of dress and the jewels 
 they had discarded, and again paraded the streets 
 attired in dazzling luxury. Scented gallants again 
 sang indecent songs under the windows of their
 
 214 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 mistresses. In less than a month Florence seemed 
 to have gone back to the carnival days of Lorenzo ; 
 all thoughts of patriotism and freedom were for- 
 gotten. Such were the first results of the edict of 
 excommunication. 
 
 But there was a deep undercurrent of senti- 
 ment in favor of Savonarola, and a spirit of pa- 
 triotism which bitterly resented a papal interdict 
 with a political motive back of it. Within less than 
 ten days after the proclamation of the edict, a new 
 Signory was elected favorable to the man under 
 ban. On the 5th of July Savonarola called a meet- 
 ing of all the leading citizens of Florence to ask 
 their advice as to what ought to be done. It seemed 
 to be almost the universal opinion of the meeting, 
 that the question at issue was not religious but 
 political, and that the edict was a direct blow at 
 the liberties of the people. 
 
 Almost immediately after this meeting the Si- 
 gnory forwarded a letter to the pope which read 
 as follows : "Most holy father, we are deeply af- 
 flicted to have incurred the ban of the Church, not 
 only because of the respect always entertained by 
 our Republic for the holy keys, but because we 
 see that a most innocent man ha's been wrongfully 
 and maliciously accused to your holiness. We deem 
 this friar to be a good and pious man, thoroughly 
 versed in the Christian faith. He has labored many 
 years for the welfare of the people, and no fault 
 has ever been detected either in his life or his doc- 
 trine. But as virtue is never free from the attacks 
 of envy, so there be many of our people who invert 
 the name of honesty, and think to rise to great-
 
 EDICT OF EXCOMMUNICATION. 215 
 
 ness by attacking the good. Wherefore, we fer- 
 vently implore your holiness, in your paternal and 
 divine charity, to use your own judgment in this 
 matter, and remove the weight of your ban, not 
 only from Father Girolamo Savonarola, but from 
 all those who have incurred it. Your holiness could 
 do no better kindness to the Republic, especially 
 in this time of pestilence in which bans are of grave 
 peril to men's souls." It is clear from the matter 
 and tone of this letter, that the government of Flor- 
 ence was determined to stand by the preacher. The 
 members of this Signory, and all their successors 
 for the remainder of the year, were of one mind. 
 They were friendly to Savonarola and they were 
 determined to induce the pope to withdraw the 
 edict. 
 
 A curious thing happened just now. The Car- 
 dinal of Siena, who afterwards became Pope Pius 
 III, sent word to Savonarola that if five thousand 
 crowns were paid to a troublesome creditor of his, 
 whom he named, he would undertake the recall of 
 the edict. As money could purchase almost any- 
 thing in the court of Alexander, the cardinal would 
 probably have been able to accomplish what he 
 promised. "I should deem myself far more deeply 
 banned," said Savonarola, "were I to accept abso- 
 lution at such a price." 
 
 Close upon this incident a tragedy occurred in 
 Rome, so atrocious that even the Italy of the 
 fifteenth century was stirred with horror. On the 
 night of June 14, the pope's eldest son, the Duke 
 of Candia, was killed by a dagger thrust, and his 
 body thrown into the Tiber. The murderer was
 
 216 GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 the duke's own brother, Cesare Borgia, Cardinal of 
 Valencia. Alexander was plunged into agonies of 
 grief. One of the dispatches of the Venetian am- 
 bassador declares: "The wild wail of the bereaved 
 old man in the castle of St. Angelo was heard in 
 the streets around." For four days he saw no 
 one, and would neither eat nor drink. Following 
 the terrible grief came remorse. Six cardinals were 
 appointed to reform the Church. When the news 
 of this tragedy and the pope's mourning reached 
 Florence, Savonarola immediately addressed a let- 
 ter of condolence to the afflicted pontiff. He urged 
 the power and value of faith as a source of strength 
 in adversity. He reminded the pope that he him- 
 self was suffering, suffering for the sake of a work 
 for which he desired help. Savonarola protested 
 that he wrote in all humility, and under the prompt- 
 ings of charity; that he desired that his Holiness 
 might find the consolation of God in his tribula- 
 tion. 
 
 It was an unusual thing that an excommunicated 
 friar should thus write to the pope who had ex- 
 communicated him. Evidence is not wanting that 
 the letter was received in good part. But alas for 
 Savonarola and the commission intrusted to the six 
 cardinals ! The pope soon forgot his grief and was 
 again mastered by his inordinate ambition and love 
 of display. He felt compelled, however, to move 
 cautiously in the case of Savonarola, and for sev- 
 eral reasons. The Signory was friendly to the 
 preacher, many influential persons had urged clem- 
 ency in the case of the excommunicated man, the 
 fearful ravages of the plague in Florence made it
 
 EDICT o$ EXCOMMUNICATION. 217 
 
 impolitic to be too drastic in the measures adopted 
 to enforce the edict, and, besides, leading citizens 
 of Florence had been discovered to be implicated 
 in the plot for the return of Piero. Among them 
 was the aged and highly respected Bernardo del 
 Nero. Whatever else was brought to the pope's 
 attention bearing upon the case of Savonarola, he 
 received frequent letters from members of the Si- 
 gnory. They were persistent and determined in 
 their appeals for the absolution of the great 
 preacher. "It is our desire," so the Signory wrote 
 to their envoy, "that you should knock at every 
 door, shout aloud and make every possible effort, 
 and neither cease nor spare your labors, until this 
 purpose has been achieved." 
 
 The plague was now on in Florence. Savon- 
 arola was shut up in his convent ministering to 
 the sick, writing letters to friends, publishing small 
 tractates, and finishing his monumental work on 
 "The Triumph of the Cross." This work, perhaps 
 more than any other of his writings, completely 
 vindicates him as a preacher of sound doctrine. 
 The primary object of the book was to show that 
 the teachings of the Gospel and man's reason are 
 in entire accord. The method used was new in the 
 fifteenth century. The treatise is divided into four 
 books. In the first, the author discusses the ex- 
 istence and attributes of God. In the second, he 
 shows the truth and excellence of the Christian 
 religion which he maintains is above reason, but 
 not contrary to it. In the third, he takes up such 
 great doctrinal subjects as the incarnation, original 
 sin, the passion of Christ, Christian morals and the
 
 218 GIROI.AMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 sacraments, and shows that they can not be ob- 
 jected to from the standpoint of reason. In the 
 fourth and last book, he confutes all other creeds, 
 doctrines and religions, and proves them to be 
 utterly false when compared with Christianity. The 
 Christian religion, he concludes, is the one true re- 
 ligion. The following passages are selected from 
 the epilogue: "Now, if Jesus Christ has done all 
 these things without miracles, it is the greatest of 
 all miracles; and if He has accomplished them by 
 miracles this religion is Divine." "Appointed by 
 God, preserved through so many centuries, main- 
 tained in spite of persecution, sealed by the blood 
 of martyrs; yes, that faith is Divine! If then, we 
 have not lost all our understanding, we must be- 
 lieve that the faith of Jesus Christ is the true 
 faith."
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 THE STRUGGLE WITH ROME GOES ON. 
 
 EVENTS now crowded together in quick succes- 
 sion. The pope demanded, the Signory politely re- 
 fused ; the pope showed signs of relenting ; the 
 Signory urged again the recall of the edict; the 
 pope was furious with rage, the Signory confessed 
 themselves his obedient subjects. So the struggle 
 for the body of Savonarola went on, and for weary 
 months. 
 
 The Arrabbiati resorted to every method they 
 could think of to silence the voice which had spoken 
 out against the scandalous impurity of their lives 
 and the base treachery of their political schemes. 
 The Piagnoni kept on declaring the virtues and 
 achievements of their great leader, sent frequent 
 letters and petitions to friends in Rome to defeat 
 the black purposes of the Arrabbiati and the Bigi, 
 and were ever on the alert to discover the wicked 
 plots of enemies of the new constitution and of the 
 new liberties of the citizens. Savonarola was ever 
 calm and confident. Conscious of personal integrity 
 and of the truth of his teachings, believing that in 
 some way the "spreading wings" would yet be 
 broken and the Church regenerated, he stands out 
 in a solitary grandeur all his own. 
 
 From May until late December there had been 
 six months of silence. The voice of the preacher 
 219
 
 220 GlROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 had not been heard in the Duomo or in San Marco. 
 During these months the pen had been Savon- 
 arola's only method of defense. That this was so 
 is perhaps fortunate for the Reformer's fame. It 
 was the pen, writing what the voice could never 
 have spoken, which has given us clear and con- 
 vincing argument why the edict of excommunica- 
 tion ought to be regarded as invalid, and why it 
 was necessary for a preaching friar, conscious of 
 the truth of the words he had spoken, to stand out, 
 and to the death, against the commands of a cor- 
 rupt pope who had not only bought the privilege 
 of sitting in St. Peter's chair, but had smeared and 
 polluted all the holy vestments of papal authority. 
 In this position he was ably supported by the 
 learned Pico della Mirandola, who maintained in a 
 forceful open letter that excommunication derives 
 its force from justice, and without justice can take 
 no effect. It was in these months, when he was 
 under the ban of Alexander Borgia, that Savon- 
 arola built up an enduring memorial of his inno- 
 cence and fame in writing the "Triumph of the 
 Cross." 
 
 The time came when the preacher could no 
 longer keep silent. But it was a bold thing to 
 speak when the pope had commanded silence. How 
 could Savonarola justify himself? In this way. 
 He saw that immorality was increasing, that the 
 Republic was in danger, and that a voice of warn- 
 ing was needed. This was enough. On Christmas- 
 day he publicly administered the mass three times 
 in the Church of San Marco, and then led his 
 brother monks in solemn procession around the
 
 STRUGGLE WITH ROME GOES ON. 221 
 
 Piazza, in front of the monastery. This courageous 
 act so impressed the Signory that they gave per- 
 mission for him to preach in the Duomo. In antici- 
 pation of the immense crowd which would come, 
 temporary galleries were again put up. The arch- 
 bishop's vicar, alarmed at what was about to take 
 place, forbade all monks and priests from hearing 
 the sermon, and commanded the parish priests to 
 threaten their flocks with loss of all the sacraments 
 and unconsecrated burial in case they went to hear 
 the excommunicated prior. The Signory made 
 short work of this little vicar. They notified him 
 that unless he withdrew his mandates he would be 
 proclaimed a rebel. This only increased the in- 
 terest in the promised sermon. When Sunday came 
 the Duomo was crowded. 
 
 Who can divine the feelings of Savonarola as 
 he ascended once more this throne? Under the 
 protection of the power of the government he was 
 there to defy the power of the Church. The eccle- 
 siastical arm had been raised to strike him down. 
 The secular arm was now raised in his defense. 
 The theme of the sermon comprised the excom- 
 munication, the authority of the pope, and the right 
 of every honest conscience to resist unjust com- 
 mands. In beginning the sermon he prayed this 
 prayer: "I beseech thee, O Lord, to let no word 
 pass my lips that may be opposed to the Holy 
 Scriptures or the Church." Then, with words that 
 burned, he proceeded to defend his action in defy- 
 ing the edict of excommunication. "The righteous 
 prince or the good priest," said he, "is merely an 
 instrument in the Lord's hands for the government
 
 222 GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 of the people. But when the higher Agency is 
 withdrawn from prince or priest he is no longer 
 an instrument, but a broken tool." In attempting 
 to show how it may be determined whether the 
 higher Agency be present or absent, he maintained 
 that if the laws and commands be contrary to that 
 which is the root and principle of all wisdom, 
 namely, of Godly living and charity, it may be 
 taken for granted that the prince or priest is a 
 "broken tool," and that men are in no wise bound 
 to obey him. This test he applied to the edict of 
 excommunication and showed how it opened the 
 way for the return of drunkenness, profligacy, and 
 every other crime; and how righteous living had 
 been struck down. "Therefore on him that giveth 
 commands opposed to charity, which is the plenti- 
 tude of our law, anathema sit. Were such com- 
 mand pronounced by an angel, even by the Virgin 
 Mary herself and all the saints (the which is cer- 
 tainly impossible), anathema sit. If pronounced 
 by any law, or canon, or command, anathema sit. 
 And if any pope hath ever spoken to a contrary 
 effect from this, let him be declared excommuni- 
 cate. I say not that such pope hath ever existed; 
 but if he hath existed he can have been no instru- 
 ment of the Lord, but a broken tool." In closing 
 the sermon Savonarola said that, if necessary, his 
 work would be attended by some open and mighty 
 miracle. 
 
 On the two following Sundays he continued the 
 discussion. Openly and defiantly he now stood 
 squarely against the pope and defied his edict. He 
 still believed in ecclesiastical authority, but -he
 
 STRUGGLE; WITH ROME GOES ON. 223 
 
 rebelled against the unworthy exercise of ecclesi- 
 astical authority by a man notoriously bad in char- 
 acter and bad in purpose. The godless decrees of 
 a godless pope no true believer was bound to re- 
 spect. So he maintained. The position of Savon- 
 arola at this point was thoroughly Protestant. The 
 Catholic view of the case is different. It has been 
 well put by Dr. Pastor, who says, "According to 
 the teaching of the Church, an evil life can not 
 deprive the pope or any other ecclesiastical au- 
 thority of his lawful jurisdiction." This same 
 author maintains that Savonarola "was bound to 
 obey the Holy See, however it might be desecrated 
 by such an occupant as Alexander VI." 
 
 The interest in these sermons can hardly be 
 imagined, much less described. There was some- 
 thing almost tragic about it. The multitudes in the 
 Duomo were in sympathy with the preacher, be- 
 cause they believed in him, and gloried in what he 
 had done for Florence ; but to break with the pope, 
 to defy the great head of the Church this they 
 were hardly ready for. There was something about 
 it they could not quite understand. They experi- 
 enced a sense of uneasiness and were in doubt. 
 Savonarola himself could not fail to see that with 
 all the enthusiasm of the great crowds, he failed 
 to receive just that hearty support and absolute 
 loyalty which had heretofore been given so un- 
 grudgingly. 
 
 In the closing sermon of this series Savonarola 
 announced to an audience which could hardly be- 
 lieve their ears when they heard him, that" on the 
 last day of the carnival, after saying mass in the
 
 224 GIROLAMO SAVONAROI/A. 
 
 Church of San Marco, he would go out in front 
 of the monastery and there make a challenge to 
 heaven, which would prove the truth and sincerity 
 of his course of action. "When I shall take the 
 sacrament in my hands," the audience listened 
 breathlessly as he spoke, "let every one earnestly 
 pray that if this work proceeds not from the Lord, 
 He may send upon me fire from heaven which shall 
 then and there draw me down to hell." The news 
 of the proposed challenge spread like wild-fire 
 throughout the city and when the day came the 
 Piazza of San Marco was crowded. Standing room 
 in every part of the Piazza, and in the streets lead- 
 ing into it, was at a premium. The surrounding 
 buildings were crowded. All eyes were turned 
 toward the wooden pulpit which had been set up 
 on a raised platform just out from the door of the 
 monastery. Friars were gathered about the plat- 
 form chanting their Psalms. 
 
 George Eliot in her Romola has wonderfully 
 described this scene. Savonarola, as though com- 
 ing into the holy place of God's presence, ascended 
 the pulpit and bowed in prayer, then solemnly ad- 
 dressed the audience, calling upon them to join in 
 the prayer he had asked them to offer. Holding 
 aloft the consecrated host, his clear voice rang out 
 in this startling challenge to the Almighty. "O 
 Lord, if my deeds be not sincere, if my words come 
 not from Thee, strike me in this moment with Thy 
 thunder !" The people waited ; dazed, breathless, 
 expectant ! But no flash came from out the heavens. 
 No thunder was heard. The beam of light, which 
 George Eliot makes so much of, was undoubtedly
 
 STRUGGLE WITH ROME; GOES ON. 325 
 
 the Divine ecstacy which the people saw in the 
 preacher's face as he turned to go back to the 
 monastery. This was the greatest triumph, so it 
 seemed to those who were there present, in all the 
 public life of Savonarola. It does not seem so to 
 us. He showed here as he showed later, in the 
 ordeal of fire, how difficult k is for a truly great 
 man to altogether break away from the age in 
 which he lives. 
 
 On the afternoon of this day there was another 
 great carnival procession and another burning of 
 vanities, the pyramid higher and more imposing 
 than before. The outward triumph of this last 
 carnival which Savonarola ever saw, was certainly 
 all that he and the Piagnoni could have wished. 
 True, the Compagnacci were insulting and did 
 everything they could to interrupt the procession. 
 But the Piagnoni had their way, and the program 
 they had arranged was carried out in every par- 
 ticular. 
 
 The sermons which Savonarola preached in the 
 Duomo while under excommunication were all 
 printed and immediately distributed in Florence 
 and throughout Italy. They went by swift mes- 
 senger to the pope, who was more furious than 
 ever. He immediately threatened the whole city of 
 Florence with interdict if the Signory did not put a 
 stop to the sermons. Savonarola was described in 
 this brief as "the son of perdition." Another brief 
 was sent to the canons of the Duomo, ordering them 
 to prevent Savonarola from again entering their 
 building. In the last sermon which he preached in 
 the Duomo Savonarola said: "They call me 'the
 
 226 GiROivAMo SAVONAROLA. 
 
 son of perdition.' Let this be sent back for 
 answer: 'The man whom you thus designate has 
 neither harlots nor concubines, but gives himself 
 up to preaching the faith of Christ. His spiritual 
 children, those who listen to his doctrine, do not 
 pass their time in the commission of crime; they 
 live virtuously. This people labors to exalt the 
 Church, and you to destroy it.' " The menaces and 
 threats of Rome had no terror for the aroused 
 Puritanism in Savonarola. Again he held up the 
 corruptions of Rome to the public gaze; again he 
 described the woes of his beloved Italy; again he 
 proclaimed a mighty regeneration of the Church 
 and the triumph of the Gospel. "I will thunder 
 in their ears," and the preacher's voice sounded like 
 thunder to those who heard him, "I will thunder 
 in their ears after such a fashion that they will hear 
 indeed. The time draws near to open the casket, 
 and if we but turn the key there will come forth 
 such a stench from the Roman sink that it will 
 spread through all Christendom, and every one will 
 perceive it." 
 
 It seems to be commonly understood that this 
 announcement that he might "turn the key," was a 
 hint of his purpose to call a general church council 
 which would depose Alexander and take measures 
 to reform the Church. But after Alexander had 
 branded him as "the son of perdition," and threat- 
 ened interdict for Florence in case he continued 
 to preach, there was little more that Savonarola 
 could do. He did preach a few sermons in San 
 Marco and then said farewell to the pulpit. He 
 had preached for eight years since coming out of
 
 STRUGGLE WITH ROME GOES ON. 227 
 
 the rose-scented garden where he had been lectur- 
 ing to monks and citizens. The prophecy then was 
 fulfilled and Savonarola's preaching was done. 
 
 There was nothing left now but to "turn the 
 key." But it was too late to do that effectively. 
 Alexander, it is true, was increasingly unpopular, 
 his scandalous life more and more notorious, his 
 avarice more unblushing than ever; but with the 
 return of Charles to France the time had passed 
 for the calling of a Church council. No one knew 
 this better than the shrewd cardinals who had 
 waited upon him in Rome. Savonarola, however, 
 was not a politician. He only knew that his cause 
 was just and that it ought to prevail. That was 
 enough for him. His plan involved the co-opera- 
 tion of the sovereigns of France, Spain, Germany, 
 England, and Hungary in calling a council of the 
 whole Church. The formal letter, addressed to 
 each of these princes, began thus: "The Church is 
 steeped in shame and crime from head to foot. 
 You, instead of exerting yourself to deliver her, 
 bow down before the source of all this evil. There- 
 fore, the Lord is angry and hath left the Church 
 for so long without a shepherd. I assure you, in 
 the word of the Lord, that this Alexander is no 
 pope at all, and should not be accounted as such; 
 for, besides having attained to the chair of St. Peter 
 by the shameless sin of simony, and still daily sell- 
 ing benefices to the highest bidder, besides his 
 other vices which are known to all the world, I 
 affirm also that he is not a Christian, and does not 
 believe in the existence of God, which is the deepest 
 depth of unbelief." These princes were enjoined
 
 228 GiROivAMo SAVONAROLA. 
 
 to convoke a council as speedily as possible in some 
 neutral place, and they were given the assurance 
 that God would favor their work. Before send- 
 ing the formal letter to these princes, communica- 
 tion was opened with the Florentine envoys at their 
 respective courts. One of the letters thus sent was 
 intercepted by spies of the Duke of Milan. From 
 the duke the letter went quickly to Alexander. If 
 Alexander's rage could have been fiercer than it 
 was before, it would have been so now. Should 
 these princes respond favorably, Alexander's life 
 would be in danger; but with this letter in his 
 hands, bursting with rage though he was, he well 
 knew what would be the outcome in Florence. 
 
 The most pathetically tragic of all the experi- 
 ences of Savonarola thus far must now be recorded 
 the ordeal of fire. It ought never to have hap- 
 pened, and would not if Savonarola had shown 
 the poise and independence in this situation he 
 had shown in others. He was pressed into it 
 against his own reason and judgment. Influenced 
 by the sentiment of the age in which he lived, 
 and relying on the testimony and judgment of 
 brother monks, he was led to do what he knew 
 was out of harmony with his teachings and with 
 his profound convictions. 
 
 The way it happened was this. The Franciscan 
 monks of Santa Croce, envious of the fame which 
 had come to the Dominicans through Savonarola's 
 powerful leadership in Florence, now naturally took 
 the side of the pope with greater vehemence and 
 energy than ever. One of the number, Fra Fran- 
 cesco de Puglia, who was preaching the Lenten
 
 STRUGGLE WITH ROME GOES ON 229 
 
 sermons in Santa Croce, declared his readiness to 
 enter a burning fire "along with the adversary," 
 to test the validity of the excommunication and 
 the error of Savonarola's prophetic pretentions. 
 The challenge was quickly accepted by Fra Do- 
 menico, who declared himself ready to prove by the 
 fiery ordeal the following conclusions: namely, 
 that the Church was in need of reform and would 
 be chastised first and then restored; that Florence 
 also would be chastised, and afterwards restored 
 to flourish anew; that infidels would be converted 
 to Christianity; that these things would come to 
 pass in that very age; and that the excommunica- 
 tion pronounced against Fra Girolamo Savonarola 
 was invalid and might be disregarded without sin. 
 Savonarola at once tried to refrain Domenico, who 
 pleaded with tears for the privilege of the high 
 honor of thus openly proving to the world the 
 truth of his master's teachings. Fra Silvestro now 
 came forward with the story of a vision in which 
 he had seen Fra Domenico guarded by angels and 
 coming out of the fire unhurt. What was most 
 embarrassing for Savonarola was that the Signory 
 formally gave their sanction to the proposed ordeal 
 and proceeded to arrange the terms and conditions 
 under which it should take place. Reluctantly Sa- 
 vonarola yielded. 
 
 Florence was eager for the day of the ordeal 
 to come, and was bitterly disappointed that it was 
 once postponed. What could be more dramatically 
 exciting than to see two monks walk into the flame 
 to prove which was right, the pope or Savonarola. 
 If Domenico should burn that would settle it that
 
 230 GIRCXUYMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 the excommunication was valid. If Francesco 
 should fall in the flames it would be good proof 
 that Savonarola was a true prophet. The solemn 
 decision of the Signory was that if the Dominican 
 champion should perish Savonarola must leave the 
 city, or if the Franciscan champion should burn, 
 then Fra Francesco must go. Should both cham- 
 pions, however, succumb to the flames, the sen- 
 tence of banishment was to fall on the Dominicans 
 alone; and if one or the other of them refused to 
 enter the fire, he and his party should suffer the 
 penalty. 
 
 Not a friar in San Marco but would have been 
 glad to take Domenico's place. On all sides they 
 offered themselves: "Behold me! behold me! I 
 am ready to go into the fire for the glory of the 
 Lord." The whole matter of the ordeal had been 
 fully reported to the pope, who knew all the details 
 of the plan and that the day had been set for the 
 event. Some there were who believed and hoped 
 that Alexander, as soon as he heard of it, would 
 promptly forbid the ordeal's taking place, but he 
 did not do it. Perhaps he saw, as the Arrabbiati 
 did, that in any case the ordeal would end in hu- 
 miliation for Savonarola. 
 
 The day finally fixed upon for the fire test was 
 the 7th of April. A great platform was erected 
 in the Piazza in front of the old Palace. It was 
 sixty yards long and ten yards wide, and on it 
 were two rows of fagots well saturated with pitch 
 and oil, between which the pious champions were to 
 walk. It was agreed that the fagots should be 
 lighted at one end of the platform and that the
 
 STRUGGLE WITH ROME GOES ON. 231 
 
 friars enter at the other, and that, after they had 
 entered, the fagots should be lighted behind them. 
 To make sure that all this be done decently and in 
 order, the Magnificent Signory had provided that 
 all openings to the Piazza should be guarded by 
 soldiers ; extra troops were also in reserve in front 
 of the Palace. Each party, too, had armed men 
 of its own. Three hundred Piagneni were drawn 
 up under Salviati to protect Savonarola and the 
 friars of San Marco. Dolfo Spiri was there with 
 a band of five hundred Compagnacci to guard the 
 rights of the Franciscans. 
 
 Before leaving San Marco Savonarola had cel- 
 ebrated the mass and said to his brother monks "I 
 can not be certain that the ordeal will take place, 
 for that does not depend on us ; but I am able to 
 tell you that if it does take place the victory will 
 certainly be ours." In this hesitation we see Sa- 
 vonarola's better and nobler self struggling against 
 the self which was the product of the age that gave 
 him birth. "Are you willing to serve God, O my 
 people?" When every one answered, "Yes," there 
 seemed nothing for him to do but go with the de- 
 fender of his honor to the Piazza Signoria. 
 
 The Loggia dei Lanzi, where stands the noble 
 statue of Judith and Holophernes, had been set 
 apart for the representatives of the contesting par- 
 ties. The Franciscans were given the half next 
 the Palace, the Dominicans were assigned the farth- 
 est side. The Franciscans had come early. The 
 bell in the great tower was striking twelve, so it 
 is said, when the Dominicans approached, singing 
 that great psalm so often sung nearly two cen-
 
 232 GlROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 turies later by Cromwell and his armies as they 
 marched to battle: "Let God arise, and let His 
 enemies be scattered." Voices in the crowd took 
 up the refrain with such strength and fervor that, 
 to the Piagnoni, it seemed as if the earth trem- 
 bled in sympathy with their great cause. Fra Do- 
 menico, walking as though going to his coronation* 
 wore a red cope and held a cross in his hand. Sa- 
 vonarola, dressed in the white robes of a priest, 
 carried before him the sacrament. When he en- 
 tered the Loggia and faced the immense throng of 
 people, all doubt seemed to have vanished ; he stood 
 there with serene countenance to await the vindi- 
 cation which a righteous God was about to show. 
 
 Fra Rondinelli, who had been appointed to take 
 the place of Fra Francesco as the representative 
 of the Franciscans, had not yet appeared. He was 
 inside the Palace consulting with the Signory and 
 entering objections. Rondinelli never believed he 
 would come out of the fire alive. He was therefore 
 slow about entering it. First, he would not have 
 Domenico go into the fire with the red cope. That 
 settled, he objected to Domenico's vestments; they 
 were possibly enchanted so that the fire would not 
 touch them. Here Savonarola protested, but finally 
 yielded; and Domenico was conducted into -the 
 Palace to exchange clothes with Allessandro 
 Strozzi. It was a glad moment for Fra Allessandro, 
 for he thought that he, instead of Domenico, was 
 to have the high honor of facing the flames. With 
 the joy of a true Christian martyr he threw him- 
 self at the feet of Savonarola for his blessing. 
 
 The crowd, not understanding the cause of the
 
 WITH ROMS GOES ON. 233 
 
 delay, became restless, and there were cries for 
 Savonarola to end the matter by going into the 
 fire himself. Could he not do it? Was he not a 
 prophet? Would not God speak to the flames 
 and command them not to touch him? Disorder 
 near the rows of fagots led the Compagnacci to 
 rush toward the Loggia. Salviati promptly met 
 them, and drawing a line on the ground at a good 
 distance from the Loggia, threatened death to the 
 first man who crossed it. Rondinelli had not yet 
 shown himself. The crowd murmured and grew 
 more impatient. A thunder storm suddenly broke 
 over the city and the rain fell in torrents. But 
 not a man left the Piazza.. The crowd had come 
 for a miracle ! And a miracle they would have ! 
 Now Rondinelli objected to Domenico's crucifix. 
 He would take the host then. "Horrors !" cried the 
 Franciscans. There was constant coming and 
 going between the Palace and the Loggia, but 
 nothing done. Night was coming on, and the 
 crowd was getting ugly. Finally the Signory com- 
 manded that the ordeal stand suspended and that 
 both parties return to their monasteries. The 
 monks were ready. On both sides they had had 
 enough of the bad business. Not so the crowd. 
 Where was the miracle ? They had sniffed no smell 
 of scorching flesh ! It was Savonarola whose honor 
 was at stake ! Why had he not walked between the 
 fagots? Surely if he were God's prophet he could 
 have done it! 
 
 The spell was broken. No one knew it better 
 than Savonarola. It was a Via Dolorosa indeed 
 along which he carried his heavy heart as he re-
 
 234 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 turned to San Marco. And how the crowd hooted 
 at him and derided him as he entered the convent 
 gate ! The agonies in the prior's cell in San Marco 
 that night must have had something of Geth- 
 semane's burden in them. There were other bur- 
 dens, too. We may well believe that ere morning 
 the greater Savonarola had triumphed, the Savon- 
 arola which was so much larger than the age in 
 which he lived.
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 THE TRAGIC END. 
 
 THERE; are but four things to tell of now, the 
 arrest, the mock trial, the thirty days of solitary 
 confinement in the little cell in the top of Arnolfo's 
 tower, and the death in the Piazza.. 
 
 Before entering his cell, after returning from- 
 the humiliating ordeal in front of the old Palace, 
 Savonarola went at once into the convent church 
 where Piagnoni women had waited all day in 
 prayer. Entering the pulpit, he told them of all 
 that had happened during the day, and counseled 
 them to live godly lives ; then dismissed them with 
 his blessing. 
 
 On the morrow all was quiet in Florence. It 
 was Palm Sunday. What memories must have 
 come to Savonarola as he heard the monks chant- 
 ing that morning, "Blessed is he that cometh in the 
 name of the Lord." He had made much of Palm 
 Sunday all through the years of his supremacy 
 in the pulpit. His sermon on this day was in the 
 Church of San Marco. It was the last sermon he 
 ever preached. His message was sad and brief. 
 He solemnly offered his body as a sacrifice to 
 God, and declared his readiness to suffer death 
 for the good of his people. With the sublime com- 
 posure of one who had fought a good fight and 
 235
 
 236 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 kept the faith, he bade farewell to his people, well 
 knowing that he was speaking to them for the last 
 time. After pronouncing the benediction of peace, 
 he went back to his cell, and was again alone with 
 his God. 
 
 Later in the day, at Vesper time, the Compag- 
 nacci, breaking the sullen calm which had oppressed 
 the city from morning until now, created a disturb- 
 ance at the Duomo where one of the friars of San 
 Marco was to preach. Stones and insolence met 
 the Piagnoni who came to hear the sermon. 
 
 "Our turn has come now !" fiercely snapped the 
 Compagnacci. "No sermon to-day!" Swords 
 flashed, and then the riot began. Their work done 
 at the Duomo, the Compagnacci shouted, "To San 
 Marco! To San Marco! Fire in hand!" The 
 opportunity for which they had waited had come, 
 and with ruffian delight they improved it. Wait- 
 ing only to gather a crowd, they slashed their way 
 to San Marco. More than one of the Piagnoni lay 
 dead behind them. "Twist necks" and "prayer 
 mumblers" would get it now! Some with swords 
 stained with blood, others grasping guns or carry- 
 ing sticks, and still others with their hands filled 
 with stones, they pushed and crowded into the 
 Piazza, of San Marco, yelling their wild threats, 
 hooting, at shrieking women, tearing their way 
 toward the man who had reproved their evil doings 
 and denounced their crimes. Finding the church 
 still well filled with people who had remained in 
 prayer after vespers, they pelted them with stones, 
 and struck right and left at those who tried to 
 escape. The doors of the church and convent were
 
 THE TRAGIC END. 237 
 
 quickly barred. Then the mob yelled their wrath 
 outside. 
 
 Some of the friars, and certain citizens devoted 
 to San Marco, fearing what might happen, had 
 concealed a store of arms, without the knowledge 
 of Savonarola. They had breast-plates, helmets, 
 halberds, cross-bows, shields, four or five arque- 
 busses, and two small cannon. Lucca della Rob- 
 bia was in the company, and Fra Benedetto; Fran- 
 cesco Valori was also there. When Savonarola 
 saw the friars with helmits on, and breast-plates 
 over their robes, brandishing great halberds, and 
 shouting "Viva Gesu Christo!" he was deeply 
 grieved, and at once implored and commanded that 
 all attempts at defense should cease. "Do not stain 
 your hands in blood; do not disobey the precepts 
 of the Gospel, nor your superior's commands." 
 Thus he cried with a loud voice. Only a few heard 
 him. The mob were attacking the gates, and their 
 furious yells shut out all else. 
 
 Savonarola now put on his priestly robes, and 
 with cross in hand approached the gate to deliver 
 himself to his enemies, saying to his companions, 
 "Suffer me to go forth, since through me this tem- 
 pest has arisen." But friars and citizens protested 
 that he would be torn to pieces, and begged him 
 not to leave them. "What," they said, "will become 
 of us without you?" Failing to persuade them, he 
 bade all follow him into the church. "Prayer," 
 he said to the friars, "is the only weapon to be 
 employed by a minister of the Gospel." Kneeling 
 in the choir of the church with those who had
 
 238 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 followed him, he led them in intoning the chant, 
 "O Lord, save Thy people !" 
 
 Some two hours before sundown, the mace- 
 bearers came to the monastery to announce a decree 
 of the Signory just enacted: that all in the mon- 
 astery were to lay down arms ; that Savonarola was 
 sentenced to exile; and that he must be out of 
 Florentine territory within twelve hours' time. 
 Many could not believe the message. How could 
 the Signory order men who were defending their 
 own property to lay down arms, and do nothing to 
 the mob outside? It was unthinkable! But that 
 was the decree. The mace-bearers had delivered 
 the message as instructed. Some now left the mon- 
 astry to defend their own homes, and to gather 
 reinforcements for San Marco. Among them was 
 Valori. He was let down over the rear wall. On 
 reaching his home he found it surrounded by 
 enemies ; saw his wife brutally murdered before his 
 eyes ; and then, pushing his way toward the Palace 
 to answer a summons of the Signory, he was struck 
 by a Tornabuoni sword and killed instantly. His 
 house was sacked and burned. Many others suf- 
 fered the same fate. 
 
 It was a Compagnacci night The "Bad Men" 
 of the Arrabbiati revelled in fire and blood until 
 they sank down exhausted. The attack on San 
 Marco became more desperate as night deepened, 
 until finally the walls were scaled, and the mob 
 entered. They had been held back so long that 
 frenzy had now reached its limit. With torch and 
 sword they made their way through the cloisters, 
 sacking rooms on all sides, entering the cells to
 
 THE TRAGIC END. 239 
 
 smear and scorch with their torches some of the 
 most beautiful of Fra Angelico's frescoes. Then 
 they broke open the door of the choir where the 
 friars were praying. Thus suddenly surprised, the 
 friars seized anything within reach, and rushed 
 upon their assailants. It was a strange sight! 
 Crosses, torches, and halberds all in the air at once ! 
 The great bell of the convent sounded an alarm, 
 and the struggle was on in earnest. Villari tells a 
 thrilling story of the daring and heroism of these 
 friars in defending their monastery; how Baldo 
 Inghirlami and Francesco Davanzati dealt vigorous 
 blows; how Luca della Robbia chased the foes 
 through the cloister, sword in hand ; how Fra Ben- 
 edetto and a few associates mounted the roof, and 
 repeatedly drove back the enemy with a furious hail 
 of stones and tiles; how several of the monks fired 
 their muskets with good results; and how a cer- 
 tain Fra Enrico, a young, fair-haired, handsome 
 German, particularly distinguished himself by his 
 prowess ; swinging a great halberd, he accompanied 
 each stroke, as it fell upon the back of a rioter, 
 with the words, "O Lord, save Thy people!" 
 
 With complete victory in sight, the defenders 
 were smiting vigorously right and left to clear the 
 monastery of the last invader, when another edict 
 came from the Signory, declaring all to be rebels 
 who did not forsake the convent within an hour. 
 It was evident now that the Signory was deter- 
 mined to crush San Marco as well as its Prior. 
 Savonarola still remained, with a few others, in the 
 choir of the church where they continued in prayer 
 and praise. A little later another decree came, and
 
 240 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 this a threatening one, commanding Savonarola, 
 Fra Dominico and Fra Silvestro to present them- 
 selves at the Palace without delay. Dominico de- 
 manded that the decree should be brought in writ- 
 ing. When it finally came, and in proper form, 
 Savonarola gathered his brother friars about him, 
 and spoke a parting message. Simple words, but 
 memorable. "My beloved children, in the presence 
 of God, in the presence of the consecrated wafer, 
 with our enemies already in the convent, I confirm 
 the truth of my doctrine. All that I have said hath 
 come to me from God, and He is my witness in 
 heaven that I speak no lie. I had not foreseen that 
 all the city would turn so quickly against me, never- 
 theless, may the Lord's will be done. My last ex- 
 hortation to you is this: Let faith, prayer, and pa- 
 tience be your weapons. I leave you with anguish 
 and grief to give myself into mine enemy's hands. 
 I do not know whether they will take my life, but 
 certain am I that once dead I shall be able to 
 succor you in heaven far better than it hath been 
 granted me to help on earth. Take comfort, em- 
 brace the cross, and by it you shall find the way 
 of salvation." 
 
 It was one o'clock in the .morning when the 
 mace-bearers came from the Signory with- the 
 decree of arrest properly signed. Before leaving 
 the monastery Savonarola spoke this one parting 
 word to the broken-hearted friars: "My brethren, 
 take heed not to doubt. The work of the Lord 
 shall go forward without cease, and my death will 
 but hasten it on." The mob were so intoxicated 
 with ghoulish glee when they saw the prisoner that
 
 THE TRAGIC END. 241 
 
 the officers of the Signory had difficulty in saving 
 him from their clutches. They flashed lanterns in 
 his face and sneered, "Behold the true light!" A 
 human cur twisted one of his fingers and taunt- 
 ingly hissed, "Turn the key, prophet !" But enough. 
 It was a mob at its worst. That tells the whole 
 story. Brought before the Gonfaloniere, the pris- 
 oners were assigned to their cells. Savonarola was 
 taken to a little room high up in the bell-tower of 
 the old Palace. Strange coincidence ! In this very 
 cell Cosimo de' Medici, father of Lorenzo the Mag- 
 nificent, had once been a prisoner. 
 
 The Signory immediately notified Rome of what 
 had happened. They sent messages to Milan and 
 to other courts. In the message to Rome they 
 instructed their envoy to obtain from the pope abso- 
 lution from all the censure they might have in- 
 curred in tolerating Savonarola's sermons, and later 
 for having laid violent hands on ecclesiastics. They 
 asked permission to sit in judgment on Savonarola 
 and his associates in crime, and in closing re- 
 quested the envoy to ask his Holiness for a speedy 
 settlement of the question of Church taxes, which 
 had long been vexing them. It was a happy mes- 
 sage the pope sent in reply. Full absolution was 
 granted and the papal benediction. They were 
 given authority to examine and try the prisoners 
 and also to put them to torture. The Signory were 
 praised for all they had done, and plenary in- 
 dulgence was sent for the Easter octave in the 
 Duomo. Letters of hearty congratulation came 
 from the Duke of Milan, and he promised the 
 speedy surrender of Pisa. But of all the tidings 
 16
 
 242 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 which brought cheer to the enemies of Savon- 
 arola none compared with a message from France 
 announcing the death of Charles VIII. He had 
 died on the 7th of April, the very day of the ordeal 
 of fire. Savonarola's one strong political friend 
 was thus taken from him in the hour of his greatest 
 need. Earth offered no further hope for him. Shut 
 up in a dungeon, his enemies masters of Florence, 
 the Compagnacci busy with plans to complete the 
 overthrow of the Piagnoni, he well knew that he 
 was in his enemy's hands and that no mercy would 
 be shown. Preliminary preparations were made for 
 the trial by holding a Pratica, in which was dis- 
 cussed the mode and place of examination, and the 
 court before which the distinguished prisoner 
 should be tried. 
 
 It was soon evident that customs, and even laws, 
 would be set aside in order to secure the certain 
 and speedy condemnation of the man who had 
 done more for the liberties of Florence than all 
 others of the century in which he lived. New 
 councils of the Ten and the Eight were elected and 
 instructed to sit with the men who were actually 
 in office. On the nth of April a Commission of 
 seventeen examiners was appointed to conduct the 
 trial of the three friars. In trie list of the seven- 
 teen composing the comission there were some of 
 the bitterest enemies Savonarola had; among them 
 Dolfo Spini, the most ferociously vindictive of them 
 all. With such a Commission nobody had any 
 doubt as to what would be the outcome of the trial. 
 The day after the arrest Savonarola was taken 
 to a hall in the Bargello where the examination was
 
 THE TRAGIC END. 243 
 
 to begin. All the questions centered about three 
 points, his religious teaching, his political con- 
 duct, and his prophecies. In all the examinations 
 and tortures it was made clear to the examiners 
 that on the first two points they could find nothing 
 against him. It was only at the point of his proph- 
 ecies that he showed any weakness at all. 
 
 Perhaps a word ought to be said just here with 
 reference to Savonarola's claim to prophetic gifts. 
 It will be remembered that from the beginning of 
 his public ministry he saw visions, in which it 
 seemed to him that God actually spoke to him and 
 gave him a message for the people. The word 
 which he proclaimed was not his word but God's 
 word. This he said over and over again. More 
 than once, too, he foretold events which actually 
 came to pass. There were two notable instances, 
 however, in which he failed. First, in the case of 
 Charles VIII, whom he described as the scourge 
 of God, who would punish the princes of Italy and 
 be the means of regenerating the Church. This 
 Charles did not do. And because he did not do it 
 Savonarola prophesied that woes would come upon 
 him. And they did come. The royal heart of 
 Charles was filled with bitter grief at the untimely 
 death of the Dauphin; and his own sudden and 
 ignominious death was spoken of, even by so 
 worldly-minded a man as De Comines, as an ap- 
 parent fulfillment of the prophecies which he had 
 read in letters addressed to King Charles, and 
 which he had actually heard from the lips of Sa- 
 vonarola himself. The second notable failure was 
 in the prophecy that he would "turn the key," and
 
 244 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 that the princes of the nations would rise up to 
 depose Alexander, and adopt means for the refor- 
 mation of the Church. 
 
 What shall be said of this claim to prophetic 
 gifts? Nothing perhaps except this, that in some 
 instances Savonarola failed to distinguish between 
 human discernment of the inevitable results of a 
 course of action and direct, immediate revelation. 
 Many of his so-called prophecies were utterances 
 for which he never claimed any supernatural il- 
 lumination. Others bear all the marks of real 
 prophecy, as much so as anything to be found in 
 the Old Testament. It is not claimed here that 
 they were prophecies of this class, but it may be 
 asserted that this explanation of them offers as 
 few difficulties in interpretation as any other which 
 has been suggested. But we are coming to under- 
 stand in these later days that the prophet of God 
 is not primarily one who foretells future events. 
 In fact the power to foretell is almost the smallest 
 thing about the prophet. The prophet is a dis- 
 cerner rather than a foreteller. Measured by the 
 standards of our own time, and making due allow- 
 ance for a mystical tendency in his thinking, there 
 is little to criticise in Savonarola's prophecies. He 
 himself often said that he did not certainly know 
 to what extent God had vouchsafed to him the 
 power to forsee what would happen for the glory 
 or shame of the Church. But the examiners saw 
 their opportunity and pushed their questions at the 
 point of the prophecies ; and when questions would 
 not do they tried torture; then they questioned 
 again, and then again went back to the torture.
 
 THE; TRAGIC END. 245 
 
 Pico della Mirandola has given a minute ac- 
 count of the horrible punishment of torture which 
 Savonarola suffered. It is almost too bad to print, 
 and would not be written down here, but that some, 
 forsooth, count it much against Savonarola that 
 he said some things under torture which he de- 
 nied afterwards, and would never have said except 
 in the delirium of excruciating pain. Pico's story 
 of the torture is this: "His hands were bound 
 behind his back with the strongest chains. They 
 were then tied to a rope attached to the roof of 
 the building, by which he was first drawn up to a 
 great height, and then let fall with great violence, 
 so that his feet did not quite touch the ground ; and 
 his body, remaining suspended in the air, sprang 
 upwards again, so that his shoulders were put out 
 of joint and his muscles strained and torn. Instru- 
 ments of torture were set before his eyes. Insults 
 were heaped upon him; he was struck and spit 
 upon, his torturers demanding all the time that he 
 should recant his prophecies and disavow his pre- 
 tensions to be a messenger of God. Burning coals 
 were then applied to his feet, so that the flesh and 
 nerves were half burned, in order that he might be 
 induced to retract. He refused to do so. Again 
 and again they repeated the torture, and he re- 
 peated his innocence, crying out with the prophet 
 Elijah, 'O Lord, take away my life.' When the 
 torture was over and he was led back to his cell, he 
 immediately knelt down and prayed in the words 
 of Christ, 'Father, forgive them, for they know not 
 what they do.'" 
 
 How often the torture was applied is not known,
 
 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 but again, and again, and again, the frail body was 
 racked and bruised and burned. Under continued 
 torture he spoke incoherently at times, and was not 
 clear about the prophecies ; but there is every rea 
 son for believing that Villari is right in maintain- 
 ing that throughout the whole course of the trial 
 Savonarola was consistent with his real self. What 
 the torturer could not do, the Signory tried to ac- 
 complish by employing an unscrupulous notary, one 
 Ser Ceccone, to so revise the report of the trial 
 that they might have some reason for putting the 
 man to death. After the first series of examina- 
 tions, part of the report of the trial was published ; 
 but the indignation of the people against the 
 Signory was so great that every copy was ordered 
 suppressed. A subsequent edition did not make the 
 case of the Signory much better. 
 
 A second trial was begun on the 2ist of April 
 with new examinations, new torture, new revising 
 and altering of testimony; but the result was no 
 better. It is said the Signory was so poorly pleased 
 with the result that they gave Ceccone only thirty 
 ducats, instead of the four hundred promised, on 
 the ground that he had not made out a case for 
 them. "Thirty pieces of silver," then, was all this 
 unscrupulous notary had for his bad work. Alas ! 
 Judas, others have sinned thy sin! 
 
 There was a month now before the coming of 
 the papal commissioners from Rome. All this time 
 Savonarola sat in his narrow cell in the Palace 
 tower. His right arm, which had been saved from 
 the torture in order that he might sign his tes- 
 timony, he could now use for writing. It speaks
 
 THE TRAGIC END. 247 
 
 much for the moral greatness and heroism of the 
 man that, in these thirty days, he did not write one 
 word in self-defense, not a word against his 
 judges, not a complaint against any of his enemies! 
 His thoughts were given wholly to God and his 
 own personal relation to Him. 
 
 Savonarola achieved, during this month in the 
 little cell in the Palace tower, one of the greatest 
 victories of his life. He wrote a Miserere and an 
 Exposition of the Thirtieth Psalm. The Miserere 
 was widely published after his death, and in a re- 
 markably short space of time ran through thirteen 
 separate editions. Both were republished by Mar- 
 tin Luther at Strassburg. In the preface Luther 
 declared that Savonarola was a precurser of the 
 Protestant doctrine, and one of the martyrs of the 
 Reformation. "This man," said he, "was put to 
 death solely for having desired that some one 
 should come to purify the slough of Rome." 
 
 Two brief passages from these writings are all 
 that space will allow. The first is from the Mis- 
 erere: "But when Thy spirit shall descend upon 
 me, when Christ shall live within me; then shall I 
 be saved. Strengthen me in Thy spirit, O Lord; 
 not until then, can I teach Thy ways to the wicked. 
 Hadst thou asked the sacrifice of my body, I would 
 have given it ere now; but burnt offerings are as 
 naught to Thee; Thou wouldst have the offering 
 of the spirit. Therefore, O sinner, bring thy re- 
 pentant heart unto the Lord, naught else shall be 
 required of thee." 
 
 The following is from the Exposition of the 
 Thirtieth Psalm: "Who is he that putteth bounds
 
 248 GiROivAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 to the mercy of God, and thinketh to bear the 
 waters of the ocean in his hands? Hast thou not 
 heard the Lord say : 'When the sinner repenteth and 
 turneth away from his sins, I will no more remem- 
 ber his iniquities.' God's mercy is boundless. Didst 
 thou fall, rise up, and mercy shall receive thee. 
 Wast thou ruined, cry, and mercy shall come to 
 thee." 
 
 At the end of the thirty days the papal com- 
 missioners came. Francesco Romolino was one of 
 them ; a brutish man, but a faithful servant of Alex- 
 ander, well known afterwards as Cardinal Romo- 
 lino. "We shall make a fine bonfire," said he, "I 
 bear the sentence with me already prepared." On 
 the following morning, May the 2Oth, the third 
 trial began. The examiners were on hand, and the 
 torturers. The papal commissioners were there, 
 and well supported by chosen representatives of the 
 municipality. Ceccone was given help this time. 
 Men who would be spurs to his wits acted as his 
 assistants. The trial was substantially the same as 
 the others, except that Romolino's menaces and 
 furious threatenings added to the grewsomeness of 
 the scene. Perhaps, too, there were more legal ir- 
 regularities in this third trial. At the close of the 
 second day Romolino commanded Savonarola , to 
 appear before him the following morning to receive 
 his sentence. The calm reply was, "I am a pris- 
 oner. I will come if my jailers bring me." 
 
 It is said that when the messengers entered 
 Savonarola's cell to announce his sentence they 
 found him kneeling in prayer. He looked up only 
 long enough to receive their message, and then 
 calmly went on with his praying. Jacobo Nic-
 
 THE TRAGIC END. 249 
 
 colini, representing a brotherhood organized for 
 the purpose of ministering to the condemned dur- 
 ing the last hours of life, came into the cell and 
 asked Savonarola if there was anything he de- 
 sired. He had one request, that he might have a 
 brief interview with his two brother prisoners, 
 Fra Domenico and Fra Silvestro, whom he had 
 not seen for forty days. After much hesitation, 
 the Signory gave permission. 
 
 The interview took place in the hall of the 
 Great Council. How strange that the Signory 
 should have fixed upon this place for the meeting! 
 The "Hall of the Five Hundred," as it was com- 
 monly called, was where the Great Council met, 
 the council for which Savonarola had pleaded so 
 earnestly "A council after the pattern of the 
 Venetians;" and the hall itself was so grand and 
 spacious ! It was Savonarola who had urged that 
 it should be built. He even offered to send work- 
 men from the Duomo to hasten the work. The 
 Italy of to-day, and the world, blesses that Signory 
 for fixing upon the hall of the Great Council, as 
 the place where Savonarola should spend at least 
 one hour of his last night on earth with his two 
 brothers who were to go with him on the morrow 
 to the scaffold. 
 
 We know little of what took place in that meet- 
 ing. Nor ought we care to know. Domenico and 
 Silvestro had both been told that their master had 
 denied the faith, and confessed to having preached 
 false doctrines. The moment they looked into his 
 face they knew it was all a lie. In the early morn- 
 ing they met again to receive the sacrament, Sa- 
 vonarola officiating. On raising the host he de-
 
 250 GIROI.AMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 clared his faith in the following confession: "O 
 Lord, 1 acknowledge Thee to be the perfect, in- 
 finite Trinity, the three in one, Father, Son, and 
 Holy Ghost ; I acknowledge Thee to be the eternal 
 Word; and that Thou didst descend into Mary's 
 womb, and didst mount the cross to shed thy blood 
 for our sins. I pray Thee that by Thy blood I 
 may gain remission of my sins, I implore Thee to 
 forgive them; and likewise to grant Thy pardon 
 for every offense or hurt brought on this city; 
 for every error I may have unwittingly com- 
 mitted." He was ready now for the scaffold. 
 
 He who has never been in Florence on a May 
 morning can have little conception of its beauty 
 and glory. Nature decked in robes of royalty, 
 fragrant air, soft skies, gorgeous sunshine washing 
 domes and campaniles, and bringing out the beauty 
 of stately church and splendid palace! It was on 
 such a morning, that the inhabitants of Florence 
 gathered in the spacious square in front of the 
 old Palace to witness the burning of their prophet. 
 A raised scaffold led from near the door of the 
 Palace to the place of the gibbet. The fagots were 
 piled up for the flame. 
 
 From all the streets the people had gathered. 
 The Piazza, was thronged. The buildings on all 
 sides were crowded, every window was filled with 
 living human faces. The roofs were loaded with 
 eager spectators. Men were crouching in the 
 cornices of the buildings, and hanging in the iron 
 torch rings of the surrounding walls. Never be- 
 fore had been seen in the Piazza such a multitude ! 
 Some were there with angry look, thirsting only 
 for blood. Their mad yells were the cries of wild
 
 THE TRAGIC END. 251 
 
 beasts or devils rather than men. Some with 
 doubtful expression on their faces simply waited 
 for the end of the tragedy. Some were there from 
 long vigils; with red eyes and haggard look they 
 trembled at the approach of the fatal moment! 
 Others calmly waited for some superhuman inter- 
 vention, some flash from heaven, which should 
 strike down this mad conspiracy and vindicate 
 their prophet. The officials who were to occupy 
 the tribunals walked slowly to their places of 
 responsibility. The hour had struck, and in all 
 the Piazza there was a dull painful silence. 
 
 There in the door of the Palace stood Savon- 
 arola. His two friends, Domenico and Silvestro, 
 were on either side. Silvestro had shown weak- 
 ness in the trial, but was calm now. Domenico, 
 true hero and faithful friend, looked towards the 
 gibbet with the face of a conqueror. At the be- 
 ginning of the ceremony Savonarola's robe was 
 taken from him. "O sacred habit," he said as they 
 took it, "how much I desired thee! By the grace 
 of God thou wast granted to me; and I have pre- 
 served thee unstained to this moment. Now I do 
 not abandon thee, but thou art taken from me." 
 At the first tribunal, the bishop, stumbling over the 
 formula he was loath to pronounce, said with much 
 emotion, "I separate thee from the Church militant 
 and and from the Church triumphant." "From 
 the Church militant," quickly replied Savonarola; 
 ''thou canst do that, but thou hast no power to 
 separate me from the Church triumphant." They 
 were led now to the second tribunal, where stood 
 the papal commissioners, and then taken by the 
 officers to the third tribunal, to receive sentence.
 
 252 GiROivAMo SAVONAROLA. 
 
 The form of sentence pronounced by the Signory 
 was this : "The Gonfaloniere and the Eight, having 
 well considered the trials of the three friars, and 
 the enormous crimes which they revealed, and 
 especially having considered the sentence of the 
 pope, which consigns them to the secular tribunal 
 for punishment, decree that each one of the three 
 friars shall be hanged on the cross, and then 
 burned, in order that their souls may be entirely 
 separated from their bodies." The sentence pro- 
 nounced, there was nothing now but to be led to 
 the executioner. With calm face and steady step, 
 whispering the great Credo, Savonarola walked 
 without flinching to the place of death ! 
 
 There was but one thing more for the magis- 
 trates of Florence to do, write their dispatches of 
 the day's proceedings. It was a welcome message 
 they sent to Alexander. Florence had done his 
 bidding, and was ready for his congratulations and 
 benediction. Mariano was assured that the re- 
 venge he had so long hoped for had come at last, 
 the "parable monger" would trouble him no more. 
 The Arrabbiati might open their taverns and their 
 theaters, and fill their processions with the wildest 
 orgies. No one would now rebuke their mid- 
 night revels. All who had taken part in this mad 
 plot of death might come together for as much 
 carnival rioting as they liked. The voice of the 
 preacher was still, and the prophet had been for- 
 ever silenced. 
 
 It was a sad business. Florence would bitterly 
 
 .repent of it. "The martyr's soul went out in fire," 
 
 because an immoral pope wanted it so. And the 
 
 magistrates of Florence said, "So it shall be."
 
 THE TRAGIC END. 253 
 
 They did not know then, poor deluded principals 
 in this crime ; they did not know that the day would 
 come when men would know their names only as 
 they know Pilate's name, through the part they 
 took in the killing of an innocent man. 
 
 O Florence! How couldst thou do it? Why 
 didst thou not strike down his traducers and save 
 him? He was a true prophet of thy glory and 
 thy greatness ! Again, O Florence ! City of Dante 
 and of Michael Angelo! Again! Again! How 
 couldst thou do it? Let a modern put words into 
 the mouth of one of thy noblest citizens as he 
 turns his face from that tragic scene of death: 
 
 " Finished is thy kingdom, weighed in the balance, 
 Weighed and found wanting, given to the Medes 
 
 and Persians ! 
 
 Thou shalt explore a lone, a lifeless gulf; 
 Ghosts of thy great shall haunt thee, and thy stones 
 Majestically mock thy fallen pride ; 
 Yea, as a king who buys ignoble peace, 
 Crouching, a slave, among ancestral vaults, 
 So shalt thou be, O Florence : dead thy freedom, 
 Perished thy crafts ; and if there yet endure 
 One voice, one seeing eye, one plastic brain, 
 The offspring of our honorable years, 
 Doomed to outlive the cataclysmal age, 
 Hardly his soul shall fashion, hardly sing, 
 Save but 'mid pillared loneliness to mourn, 
 Crooning in stone, the swan song of our Fate ; 
 Dawn, Day and Dusk and Night one vasty tomb ; 
 Dawn that saith, " Wake me not ;" Day tired of toil ; 
 Dusk glad because of sleep ; and Night ah night ! 
 When shalt thou rise, my Italy, my land ? 
 Grateful is slumber ; happiest he, God wot, 
 Who sleeps in stone while shame atfd woe endure !"
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 INFLUENCE ON LATER TIMES. 
 
 A FEW mornings after the tragedy in the Piazza, 
 women were seen kneeling in prayer at the spot 
 where the fire had burned .their prophet. This was 
 not the first sign that the memory of Savonarola 
 would be honored in Florence. Before the sun 
 had set on the day of the burning, ladies from the 
 first families of the city, disguised as servants, 
 gathered ashes and charred pieces of wood from 
 the place of the gibbet to preserve them as pre- 
 cious mementos and sacred relics. 
 
 On the anniversary of this martyrdom, for 
 more than two hundred years, that place where 
 stood the gibbet was strewn with the whitest lilies 
 and the most fragrant roses that grow in the val- 
 ley of the Arno. Ten years after the cruel mur- 
 der of Savonarola in Florence, the great Raphael 
 painted his portrait in Rome, and in the very halls 
 of the Vatican. In thirty years Michael Angelo, 
 inspired by what he heard in the Duomo, bravely 
 built a stout fortress on San Miniato to defend the 
 Republic against the combined powers of pope 
 and Caesar, and in tottering age this same Angelo 
 was wont to read the sermons of the great Prior 
 of San Marco, and talk of the life and character 
 of the statesman-preacher. Strangest of all, Alex- 
 ander himself seemed to repent of his participa- 
 254
 
 INFLUENCE ON LATER TIMES. 255 
 
 tion in the bloody matter, and permitted all the 
 writings of Savonarola to be printed, and scattered 
 broadcast, without challenge. 
 
 In recent years, and mainly through men of 
 widely different religious views, Dominican monks 
 on the one side and ardent Protestants on the 
 other, there has been a remarkable revival of in- 
 terest in Savonarola and his work. Protestants 
 have pointed out, influenced in part, no doubt, by 
 the strong words of Martin Luther", that Savon- 
 arola deserves a place among the great reformers 
 in the Protestant movement which had its begin- 
 ning in the fifteenth century. They hold that 
 when we speak of John Wyclif and his heroic 
 work in England and of John Huss and what he 
 did and suffered in Bohemia, we ought also to 
 speak, and very clearly and emphatically, too, of 
 Girolamo Savonarola as the man who more than 
 any other, and more than all others combined, 
 gave a moral and a spiritual tone and character to 
 the Renaissance. 
 
 Good Catholics have pointed to the fact that 
 Pope Benedict XIV wrote Savonarola's name with 
 honorable mention in his list of saints and holy 
 men, and that many who truly hold the Catholic 
 faith, some of them since canonized, have read 
 his writing with delight and profit. The Domin- 
 ican monks have presented urgent petitions to the 
 Holy See praying that he be made a saint. At 
 least twice it has been expected by some of them 
 that their request would be granted. It is prob- 
 ably too late now for this to be brought about, yet a 
 Catholic historian has risen up in England to say,
 
 256 GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA. 
 
 "I consider him the great Christian hero of the 
 fifteenth century." Cardinal Newman, though he 
 admired the man, was of the opinion that the work 
 of Savonarola belonged to his own time only. It 
 is not so. The mighty preacher of Florence is ex- 
 ercising a potent influence to-day in all the for- 
 ward movements of the Christian Church. Cath- 
 olics and Protestants alike, in England and Amer- 
 ica, are feeling the throb and influence of his 
 mighty life. 
 
 This age in which we live, then, bears abundant 
 testimony to the pure life and worthy work of the 
 great Prior of San Marco. A little more than a 
 generation ago the cry rang out in our Northern 
 civilization, "Italy is free ! On both sides of the 
 Apennines; from Sicily to the Alps; free in her 
 schools and press, in her Church and her State; 
 and the Protestant Bible is being sold under the 
 shadow of the Vatican!" Many now living re- 
 member what a thrill of joy ran through the Prot- 
 estantism of our country when the wires brought 
 the message. 
 
 When the sons of liberty, in regenerated Italy, 
 began building their monuments for Mazzini and 
 Cavour, Garibaldi and Victor Immanuel, they re- 
 membered also the earlier heroes and martyrs of 
 Italian freedom. Then it was they formed the 
 marble and fashioned the bronze, for Arnoldo and 
 Bruno, Dante and Galileo, Michael Angelo, and Sa- 
 vonarola. In Ferrara, under the shadow of that 
 "grim quadrangular building with its four massive 
 towers," Galetti has raised the marble form of the 
 preacher with arms extended to plead for princi- 
 ples of liberty. In the Prior's cell in San Marco,
 
 INFLUENCE ON LATER TIMES. 257 
 
 speaking bronze and purest Carrara unite to pre- 
 sent the face and form of the prophet once de- 
 graded but now honored. And in the Hall of the 
 Five Hundred in Florence, the hall of the Great 
 Council, where assembled under Victor Immanuel 
 the first free parliament of united Italy, there now 
 stands, in heroic marble, the most conspicuous fig- 
 ure in that mighty hall, the statesman-preacher, 
 Savonarola. He is still speaking to Florence ! His 
 left hand rests on the marzocco; his right holds 
 aloft the old crucifix, while his eyes flash with im- 
 passioned love of liberty. Thus the civilization of 
 to-day honors its prophet of yesterday. England 
 has given him first place in her greatest fiction, 
 Germany has built him into her poetry and her 
 history and given him honorable place by the side 
 of her heroic Luther, France and Italy have con- 
 tributed of their best biographers to perpetuate his 
 memory and his fame. 
 
 Alexander and Mariano attempted too much in 
 Florence. Libertines and tyrants often do that. 
 They thought they had silenced their man, when 
 they burned him on that May morning, and 
 dumped his ashes into the Arno. The Arno had 
 not borne its precious cargo to the blue waters of 
 the Mediterranean before those ashes were caught 
 up in the mists which rose from the valley of 
 beauty, and floated back to descend in fertilizing 
 showers which should prepare the soil of Italy and 
 Europe for a new and better civilization. Did a 
 profligate pope and a scheming Signory think they 
 could silence such a man as this? A man whose 
 moral and spiritual leadership had been recognized
 
 SAVONAROLA. 
 
 by all Florence as the mightiest the 'pity had ever 
 known? Did they think that? If they did, let 
 their shades know this: that Bruneleschi's dome 
 shall break in falling fragments, and Arnolfo's 
 palace of strength be scattered to the winds; that 
 the Arno shall cease to run, and the strong foun- 
 dations of Fiesole and San Miniato crumble to dust, 
 before his voice the mightiest voice Florence ever 
 heard shall be still. That voice, speaking out for 
 purity, liberty, and justice, will never be silent. 
 
 It has been asked why Savonarola did not ac- 
 complish what Martin Luther did in Germany and 
 John Knox in Scotland? Luther and Knox would 
 have gone to their death in Italy had they at- 
 tempted there their work under Alexander VI. 
 The time was one of mortal combat between the 
 old and the new, and in it all Savonarola was 
 prophet of the new. This speaks volumes for the 
 clearness of his vision and the greatness of his 
 personality. 
 
 If Savonarola did not shake off all the old, his 
 face was ever towards the future and his eye fixed 
 on reformation. Had he lived twenty years later 
 he would have protested against the shameless 
 barter in indulgences as stoutly as did Martin 
 Luther. Whether his work of reform would 
 have continued within the mother Church, or in 
 separation from it, we can not tell. It is enough 
 to know that he served well the age in which he 
 lived. Preacher of purity! Advocate of justice! 
 Apostle of liberty ! We shall not say too much if 
 we borrow the words of his favorite pupil Bar- 
 tolomeo, and call him "A Prophet of God."
 
 INDEX 
 
 PAGE 
 
 ANTONINO 48 
 
 Arrabiati Faction 180 
 
 BENTIVOGLIO, Lady in 
 
 Bologna 33 
 
 Borgia, Roderigo (Pope Al- 
 exander VI) 105 
 
 Botticelli, Fresco by 67 
 
 Brescia 60 
 
 Burning of the Vanities. . . . 199 
 
 CAPPONI, Piero 141 
 
 Killed in battle 195 
 
 Caraffa, Cardinal 114 
 
 Charles VIII of France : 
 
 Invades Italy 136 
 
 Spares Florence 147 
 
 Alarm on his return 168 
 
 His departure 171 
 
 Children, Reform move- 
 ment among 181 
 
 Conspiracy against the 
 
 Medici 37 
 
 FERRARA 22 
 
 Dukes of 23 
 
 Visit of Emperor to 24 
 
 Ficino, Marsilio 72 
 
 Fiesola, Giyanni da (Fra 
 
 Angelico) 47 
 
 Florence : 
 
 As it was and is ",42 
 
 Constitution 153 
 
 Grand Council formed. . . 157 
 
 Jesus King 160 
 
 New Government 149 
 
 Parlamento 150 
 
 Political parties 165 
 
 Social life transformed. . .163 
 Spirit of liberty 158 
 
 Fra Mariano 50 
 
 His style of speaking 53 
 
 Popularity 54 
 
 Preaches in the cathedral. 91 
 
 PAGB 
 
 GASTON de Foix 61 
 
 " Good Men of St. Martin ".49 
 Gozzoli, Benozzo, Fresco by. 67 
 
 MEDICI Family, The : 
 
 Cosimo 45, 65 
 
 Founds the library in 
 
 San Marco, 66 
 
 Founds the Platonic 
 
 Academy 67 
 
 Giovanni, Cardinal and 
 
 Pope (Leo X), 70 
 
 Giuliano, assassinated. ...38 
 I/orenzo, the M a g n i fi- 
 
 cent... 37,67 
 
 Patron of learning and 
 
 art 43 
 
 Tyranny of 68 
 
 His debauchery 71 
 
 Friendly advances to 
 
 Savonarola 88 
 
 Reproved by him for 
 
 his vices 93 
 
 On his death bed 99 
 
 Piero, 67, 101 
 
 Deposed 143 
 
 Plots to return 143 
 
 Intrigues of 195 
 
 Marches against Flor- 
 ence, and retreats . . . 206 
 Monkish poverty and lux- 
 ury 40 
 
 Murder of the Pope's son, 
 
 Duke of Candia 215 
 
 ORDEAL by Fire, sus- 
 pended 229 
 
 PAPAL Corruption and ve- 
 nality, 16, 34, 104 
 
 Pazzi Family 37 
 
 Their conspiracy against 
 
 Medici 38 
 
 Pico della Mirandola 55, 131 
 
 His death 149 
 
 259
 
 26o 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAGE 
 Popes : 
 
 Sixtus IV 36 
 
 Innocent VIII 58 
 
 Martin V 63 
 
 John XXIII 64 
 
 Leo X (Giovanni de' Me- 
 dici) 70 
 
 Alexander VI (Roderigo 
 
 Borgia) 105 
 
 Preaching of Savonarola, 
 and his Advent ser- 
 mons 122 
 
 REGGIO 55 
 
 Riario, a papal favorite 36 
 
 SAN GEMIGNANO 58 
 
 San Marco 45 
 
 Attacked by a mob 238 
 
 Savonarola, Girolamo : 
 
 Family of 19 
 
 Disappointed in love 27 
 
 Enters Monastery 28 
 
 Letter to his father 29 
 
 Appointed to preach 41 
 
 First preaching in Flor- 
 ence a failure 50 
 
 Student of the Bible 54 
 
 Personal characteristics. . .56 
 
 Moral force 57 
 
 In San Gemignano 59 
 
 Finding his true vocation. 60 
 Preaches in Brescia and 
 
 elsewhere 60 
 
 Invited by Lorenzo de' 
 
 Medici to Florence ...73 
 Sermons in the Duomo . . .73 
 His "Compendium of 
 
 Revelations " 80 
 
 God's prophet 82 
 
 Preaching before the 
 
 Signory 84 
 
 Becomes prior of San 
 
 Marco 85 
 
 Character of his preach- 
 ing 86,90 
 
 Vision 103 
 
 PAOB 
 
 Savonarola, Girolamo : 
 Visits Venice and Pisa. . .no 
 Reforms in the monas- 
 tery 113 
 
 Plots circumvented 115 
 
 Advent Sermons 127 
 
 Interviews King Charles 
 
 VIII 144 
 
 Secures his departure 
 
 from Florence 149 
 
 Again prevails with the 
 
 King 170 
 
 Incurs the papal displeas- 
 ure 171 
 
 Accused of heresy 177 
 
 Correspondence with the 
 
 pope 178 
 
 Offered a cardinal's hat. 185 
 
 Published Sermons 193 
 
 His attitude toward art.. 201 
 Efforts to crush him de- 
 feated 207 
 
 Popes edict of excom- 
 munication 211 
 
 Letter to the pope 216 
 
 Writes his work "Tri- 
 umph of the Cross " . .217 
 Sustained by the Sig- 
 nory 221 
 
 Defies the pope 222 
 
 The pope's wrath 225 
 
 Florence threatened with 
 
 an interdict 225 
 
 Decree of the Signory. . . .238 
 Arrest and trial of Savon- 
 arola 241 
 
 Subjected to the torture. .245 
 
 Martydom by fire 252 
 
 Influence of Savonarola 
 
 on later times 254 
 
 The spirit of liberty 256 
 
 Sforzai Ludovico, of 
 
 Milan 133. i<>7 
 
 VASARI, Fresco by 68 
 
 Venality of the papal 
 
 Court 58,104
 
 
 UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY 
 
 A 000 738 761 6