' 
 
 LIBRARY
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME 
 
 VOL. I.
 
 A GENTLEMAN 
 
 THE OLDEN TIME 
 
 FRANCOIS DE SCEPEATJX, SIRE DE VIEILLEVILLE 
 
 15091571 
 
 portraits antr Stories of tlje j^i 
 
 gurhtg tire lleign of Ijcnri II. 
 
 FROM THE FRENCH OF MADAME C. COIGNET 
 BY C. B. PITMAN ' 
 
 IN TWO VOLUMES 
 VOL. I. \/ 
 
 LONDON 
 
 RICHARD BENTLEY & SON, NEW BURLINGTON STREET 
 IJublisljtrs in rimtarg to f)er Ptajestjj tl^e 
 1887 
 
 [Tin Riyht of Translation is Reserved.]
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTEE I. 
 
 PAGE 
 BIRTH OF VIEILLEVILLE. HIS ARRIVAL AT AMBOISE. 
 
 HIS MARITIME ADVENTURES IN ITALY 1 
 
 CHAPTEE II. 
 
 THE CAPTURE OF AVIGNON. MARSHAL DE MONTEJAN 23 
 
 CHAPTEE III. 
 
 ADVENTURES OF THE MARECHALE DE MONTEJAN 44
 
 VI CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 PACK 
 DEATH OF M. SCliPEAUX. FRIENDSHIP OF VIEILLE- 
 
 VILLE AND THE BOURBON PRINCES. CAMPAIGN 
 
 IN PROVENCE 70 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 HENRI II. DIANE DE POITIERS. MONTMORENCY. 
 
 ST. ANDRi 89 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 VIEILLEVILLE'S MISSION TO ENGLAND. INTRIGUES AT 
 
 COURT . 122 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 OBSEQUIES OF FRANCOIS I. CONSECRATION OF 
 
 HENRY II. 
 
 146 
 
 CHAPTER VHI. 
 
 THE JUDICIAL DUEL OF JARNAC AND LA CHATEIG- 
 
 NERAYE . 166
 
 CONTENTS. Vll 
 
 CHAPTEE IX. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 GREEDINESS OF THE COURT. DISINTERESTEDNESS OF 
 
 VIEILLEVILLE. M. DE ST. ANDRE'S COMPANY. 
 
 THE KING'S JOURNEY. REVOLT OF LA 
 
 GUYENNE ... ... ... . . ... 196 
 
 CHAPTEK X. 
 
 SUPPRESSION OF THE REVOLT IN GUYENNE. MARRIAGE 
 
 OF MADEMOISELLE DE SCEPEAUX. SIEGE OF 
 
 BOULOGNE. MISSION OF ST. ANDRE TO ENGLAND 226 
 
 CHAPTEE XI. 
 
 THE GENERAL ' CONDITION OF EUROPE. PREPARATION 
 
 FOR WAR BETWEEN FRANCE AND THE EMPIRE... 271
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 FTER having for a long time been 
 attracted by historical researches, 
 I entered upon the study of the 
 sixteenth century without any precon- 
 ceived idea as to what would be the 
 outcome of it. My only motive was curiosity, 
 and my object was to discover one or more 
 of those original and powerful individualities 
 which distract one's thoughts from the pet- 
 tiness of the present and the deceptions of 
 public life. The sixteenth century teems 
 with them, and from the very outset my 
 interest in the subject was so great that I 
 conceived the idea of writing a biography ; 
 my choice soon falling upon Marshal de 
 Yieilleville, with whom I had been particularly 
 
 struck. At first I was uncertain as to 
 
 b 
 
 VOL. I.
 
 VI 11 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 whether this biography would take the form 
 of a magazine article, a pamphlet, or a book. 
 But as in history everything hangs together, 
 I found that there were so many highways 
 and byways to explore that the whole epoch 
 to which Vieilleville belonged opened itself up 
 to my research. At the same time the ideas 
 by which the personages were actuated came 
 into prominence, and the century to which 
 they belonged acquired a new historical 
 signification. . The multitudinous events which 
 occurred in its course, the variety of ideas 
 which were interchanged, and the contradic- 
 tory efforts by which various transformations 
 were effected, gives it a place of its own in 
 tho series of centuries. As the area of the 
 work thus extended, it became necessary to 
 go back a little further, and in order to give 
 a fair idea of the man who cannot be con- 
 sidered apart from the society in which he 
 moved I sketched in an introductory volume 
 the leading traits of the society of the time, 
 grouping around the central figure of 
 Francois I. all that related to his reign, and 
 keeping over for a second volume the life of
 
 INTRODUCTION. IX 
 
 Vieilleville, which, would afford an oppor- 
 tunity of reconstituting the reign of 
 Henri II. 
 
 Nor, for the matter of that, was my first 
 conception modified. In making a summary 
 of persons or contemporary events, in touch- 
 ing incidentally upon the questions of art 
 and science, my only object has been to 
 provide a frame for the personages sketched, 
 and to throw a little light upon the pictures ; 
 and if, as a very friendly critic has com- 
 plained, I have indulged in too many " meta- 
 physical disquisitions," my excuse must be 
 that philosophy is with me one of those in- 
 veterate failings for which there is no cure. 
 
 The reign of Henri II. is not nearly so 
 rich in materials for the historian as that 
 of his predecessor. There is nothing in it to 
 compare with the tragic episodes of the 
 Italian war, the revolt of Bourbon, the 
 capture of Home, the imprisonment at 
 Madrid, and, above all, that touching three- 
 fold incident of the mother keeping guard 
 over her son's kingdom while his sister goes 
 off to sustain and console him in his captivity.
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Events of this kind need no telling, and the 
 facts themselves are full of eloquence. 
 
 The personality of Henri II. is lacking in 
 grandeur and relief, while public affairs 
 during his reign were very uneventful and 
 monotonous. Though war may in detail 
 have abounded in curious surprises, no great 
 catastrophes occurred, and the very victories 
 which French arms achieved were whittled 
 away at last by the mean-spirited concessions 
 of a shameful peace. Some original person- 
 ality, characteristic of the epoch, and mixed 
 up in all the events of his time, was required 
 to give piquancy to the history of this reign, 
 and we have such a personage in the hero of 
 the present work. 
 
 At a time when noblemen rarely took up 
 the pen (tells us the author of the Vieilleville 
 memoirs),* they generally had in their 
 employ a secretary, at once a confidant and a 
 friend, who wielded it for them. "What with 
 the correspondence, the confidential missions 
 which he undertook, and the care of the title 
 
 * I refer to the collection of memoirs published in 
 London in 1787.
 
 INTRODUCTION. XI 
 
 deeds and the genealogical tree, the secre- 
 tary was familiar with all the affairs of the 
 family ; and when the life of his employer 
 had been a busy and eventful one, he gene- 
 rally retraced the principal incidents of it.* 
 These memoirs, written while the events they 
 narrated were still fresh, and without any 
 sort of affectation, are very valuable do- 
 cuments for the historian. They are, how- 
 ever, impaired by many omissions. Generally 
 written in a hurry, amid the pressure of 
 travelling or business, or else from memory 
 long afterwards, many of the most important 
 facts are omitted, while others are related 
 without any cohesion of time and place. 
 When the secretary happened to die before 
 they were completed the memoirs were 
 copied afterwards by persons who had not 
 been present at the events described in them, 
 and who accordingly made confusion worse 
 confounded. This was the case with the 
 
 * It was in this way that the memoirs of De Guesclin, 
 the Constable de Richemont, Bayard, and many others, 
 were prepared. The correspondences of different noble- 
 men in the sixteenth century are very numerous, but nearly 
 all are in the handwriting of a secretary.
 
 Xll INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Vieilleville memoirs composed by Vincent 
 Carloix. When they came into the possession 
 of Pere Grifiet, in the eighteenth century, 
 after having been stowed away for nearly two 
 centuries in the archives of a chateau, they 
 were found to be in several handwritings, 
 all, it is true, of the same period. The first 
 six books, which had been recopied (probably 
 after the original), were pretty regular, but 
 the three last, teeming with corrections and 
 erasures, were devoid of all order. Pere 
 Griffet, when he published them for the first 
 time in 1757, commenced a commentary 
 upon them, but without making change in 
 the order of the events described, full though 
 it was of patent errors. To this he added a 
 preface and notes, and as the manuscript 
 stopped at the capture of St. Jean d'Angely, 
 he completed the work with a precis taken 
 from a work by the Dominican Monk du Paz. 
 He also divided the work into chapters with 
 headings. He has been charged with touch- 
 ing it up and in some degree altering its 
 meaning ; but though the wording is clearer 
 and easier to understand than that of most of
 
 INTRODUCTION. Xlll 
 
 the contemporary memoirs, it abounds as 
 they do in the highly- coloured terms and 
 primitive expressions characteristic of the 
 age, and Pere Griffet has probably done no 
 more than reconstruct certain phrases. 
 
 Vincent Carloix, having been attached 
 for six and thirty years to Yieilleville's 
 person, and having accompanied him in all 
 his campaigns and travels, gives us the 
 animated impression of his life, which can 
 only be derived from an eye-witness. He 
 relates many conversations and speeches, the 
 absolute accuracy of which we may doubt, 
 but which none the less reproduce the inti- 
 mate and living side of history. If these 
 conversations and speeches were not delivered 
 word for word as they come down to us, they 
 ought to have been. So whenever these 
 narratives are confirmed by what we know 
 of the events and persons to which they 
 refer, I have followed them. But in many 
 cases, again, I have put them upon one side, 
 as the devotion of the author to his hero is 
 constantly leading him to exaggerate in the 
 most ridiculous fashion^ and even to invent.
 
 XIV INTRODUCTION. 
 
 But these are not the only memoirs of which 
 the same may be said. 
 
 There are two portraits of Vieilleville at 
 Versailles, one in the north attic, and the 
 other in the Salle des Marechaux, and he is 
 represented, just as the history of his life 
 reveals him, with strongly marked but 
 irregular features, a strong-willed and reso- 
 lute mouth, keen and intelligent eyes, and a 
 very vivid cast of countenance. Of an 
 energetic and hardy temperament, he was a 
 man of indomitable pride, and ready to un- 
 sheath the sword at a moment's notice. But 
 he was also very quick to reflect upon the 
 consequences of an act, and so was as well 
 fitted for the diplomatic as for the military 
 career. Vieilleville is the type of a class 
 which will soon have passed out of existence : 
 that of the old independent nobility. The feel- 
 ing of responsibility which as leader falls upon 
 him, gives a dignity to his commands, while 
 his humane spirit tempers their severity ; 
 not only does he never commit an act of 
 needless cruelty, but his justice is inexorable, 
 and his solicitude incessant. In time of
 
 INTRODUCTION. XV 
 
 war, he would protect the inhabitants of a 
 town, and at the same time see that his 
 troops were well cared for. But the slightest 
 relaxation of discipline rendered him implac- 
 able, as the troops at Metz learnt to their 
 cost. A very strict administrator at a time 
 when corruption was general, he was as 
 scrupulous in the handling of the royal, that 
 is to say the public, funds, as in his own 
 affairs. Each item of expenditure is ex- 
 plicitly stated, and his accounts are clear and 
 regular. His warm and generous heart, and 
 his natural loyalty, made him a model friend, 
 while his courteous manners, ready wit, and 
 keen observance of what was going on, 
 rendered him a true courtier. To these 
 qualities were superadded the Gallic humour 
 and the light-hearted gaiety and high spirits 
 which made our ancestors as ready to bear 
 reverses as good fortune.* 
 
 " Besides being of illustrious birth, Marshal de Vieille- 
 ville was valiant, full of wit and resource. In military 
 affairs, he acquired the reputation of being a perfect leader, 
 and sustained his renown in five celebrated diplomatic 
 missions in Germany, England, and Switzerland. . . He also 
 deserves credit as having been the sole architect of his
 
 XVI INTRODUCTION. 
 
 If with so many high qualities to help him, 
 Vieilleville did not fill a larger place in his- 
 tory, this may be attributed to two causes : 
 
 In the first place to his disinterestedness. 
 Attached to the person of three successive 
 sovereigns, and living upon intimate terms 
 with the two last, Vieilleville did not stoop 
 to turn their favour for him to account. He 
 used his influence for the good of the State, 
 sometimes for the benefit of a selfish and 
 ungrateful friend. For himself he asked 
 nothing. Wealthy by hereditary descent, 
 and imbued with the old spirit of independ- 
 ence, his aspirations, which were of a purely 
 military order, and with which was com- 
 bined the love of adventure, were quite 
 unselfish and full of chivalrous indifference to 
 
 fortune, of having been attached to the King and Queen 
 without taking part in factions, of having attained the 
 highest dignity by the sheer force of his services, and having 
 no other aim but the good of the State." li Addition to the 
 Memoirs of Castelnau," vol. ii., pages 154 1G3. 
 
 " The Marshal had acquired the reputation of being 
 brave and valiant. With all this bravery and valiance, he 
 was well versed in affairs of state, and very sharp witted. 
 He was, therefore, held in much esteem at Court."" Bran- 
 tome," vol. ii., page 496.
 
 INTRODUCTION. XV11 
 
 self. He served his King in the old-fashioned 
 way out of pure zeal for his service. His 
 master's confidence and affection were an 
 ample reward, especially if now and again he 
 was entrusted with some onerous and difficult 
 mission, which he was sure to discharge 
 with honour. Thus it was that, divested of 
 all ambition, his mind was serene and cheer- 
 ful, and that his attitude at Court was a 
 proud and dignified one. But if the King en- 
 deavoured to enlist him in a cause of which 
 he disapproved, as in that of the Guises, for 
 instance, or to arrest him in a struggle once 
 begun, as in the case of M. de Yillebon, his 
 refusal came very near to open revolt. 
 
 The second cause was the indifference of 
 Yieilleville in regard to the religious ques- 
 tions which were so prominent in his time. 
 Neither a Huguenot, as has been asserted, 
 nor an unbeliever, his adhesion to the estab- 
 lished faith was that of the statesman. 
 Holding aloof from the controversies of 
 theologians, and free from the mysticism of 
 the pious, the ancient religion represented in 
 his eyes the history, and the constitution of
 
 XV111 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 his country, the authority of the law, and the 
 wholesome moderation of custom. For these 
 reasons, he defended it against the onslaught 
 of the Huguenots, while regarding the indi- 
 vidual and inward conscience and conviction 
 of the individual as matters with which the 
 outside world had no concern or right to 
 interfere. Wherever his action extended, 
 he generally upheld this right, at whatever 
 risk to himself. It was this respect for the 
 moral rights of man that constituted the 
 grandeur of Yieilleville's character at the 
 same time, as the passionate accents of 
 religious enthusiasm never found utterance 
 in him, he remained, to a certain extent, 
 outside the movement of an age in which 
 recklessness and grandeur, aberration and 
 heroism, went hand in hand. 
 
 It is only by taking part in the popular 
 passions, at all events in spirit and intent, 
 that it is possible to guide and shape them. 
 Vieilleville, accused by the Catholics of being 
 a Huguenot, and by the Huguenots of being 
 lenient with them only the better to subdue 
 ' them, remained paralysed and powerless
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 amid the wars of religion. It was in vain that, 
 attached exclusively to the Monarchy, he 
 endeavoured to raise it above party ; the 
 Monarchy, devoid of all force, tossed from 
 one party to another, allowed the flag of 
 France to be blown hither and thither by the 
 varying winds of fortune, and this loyal and 
 devoted subject could but mourn over its 
 decadence. Vieilleville died upon the eve of 
 the Massacre of St. Bartholomew. 
 
 It will be admitted by those who read 
 this volume, and who note how careful I have 
 been to quote the sources from which my 
 information is taken, that I have scrupu- 
 lously adhered to historical truth, and have 
 given nothing at second-hand. All my in- 
 formation has been taken from official docu- 
 ments, from correspondence and memoirs, 
 which are either contemporary, or have been 
 derived from those who had received a direct 
 communication of the facts.* Some erudite 
 
 * I have been accused of making too much use of Bran- 
 tome. Doubtless, if the only thing sought for in history is 
 mere accuracy, he is not a good authority, but jn regard to 
 colour and life, no one can equal him.
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 persons think that unpublished matter, when 
 once put into print, ceases to be a source of 
 information. At this rate, original history 
 would be at an end once our archives had 
 seen the light of day. If the arduous un- 
 ravelling of ancient writings be a task of 
 high merit, it does not add to the value or 
 interest of the work. For the last half cen- 
 tury, numerous unpublished works derived 
 from the State, from private individuals, and 
 from the French Historical Society, have 
 been continually increasing the resources of 
 literary students. I have made a large use 
 of them. More familiar with historical study, 
 freely helped by advice, the value of which I 
 fully appreciate,* my researches have ex- 
 tended rather further than I had at first 
 intended. Many original letters from Vieille- 
 ville have been shown me, and have enabled 
 me to fix certain dates, but as most of them 
 related to military matters, they would have 
 
 I am anxious to renew my thanks to M. Lalanne, the 
 Librarian of the Institute, who has been the surest of 
 guides ; M. Tuetey, of the Archives ;' M. Desprez, of the 
 Bibliotheque Nationale ; and M. de Maulde, for their assist-
 
 INTRODUCTION. XXI 
 
 little interest for the public. The letters 
 from Henri II. to Montmorency are more 
 important. They characterize the motives 
 of the peace concluded at Cateau-Cambresis 
 in a way which is not new, but which con- 
 tributes to give it a solid basis.* 
 
 I have no pretensions to anything in 
 the shape of didactic teaching, for I do not 
 assume to be a savant or a professor. 
 Having travelled without let 'or hindrance 
 in the regions of the past, what attracts me 
 in these distant lands is not to count the 
 fragments, measure the depth of the mould, 
 or to sift the dust, but to raise up the ruins, 
 to restore to the ancient cities their warlike 
 aspect and local existence, to re-people the 
 country districts with their castles and 
 cottages, to bring back the judges to the 
 bench, the warriors to the battlefield, the 
 people to the fields, the streets, the churches, 
 and the public places of assembly, and when 
 I have evoked all these shadows from the 
 tomb, what fascinates me still more, is to try 
 
 * I do not believe that these letters have been published, 
 but I cannot be quite sure on the point.
 
 XX11 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 and discover upon their mysterious foreheads 
 their inmost thoughts, and to read in their 
 veiled eyes their sentiments, dreams, and 
 recollections. Upon returning from these 
 curious excursions, it is pleasing to relate 
 our discoveries and encounters, with the 
 sentiments which they awake, and the reflec- 
 tions they engender, to those, who, like my- 
 self, have a disinterested and lofty affection 
 for things of the mind, and who appreciate 
 the ancient French fatherland. Their sym- 
 pathy is all that I desire, and I am thankful 
 to them for having so far freely bestowed it.
 
 GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 BIRTH OF VIEILLEVILLE. HIS ARRIVAL AT 
 AMBOISE. HIS MARITIME ADVENTURES IN 
 ITALY. 
 
 T was probably upon the banks of 
 the Loire, in the part of Maine 
 which runs parallel with Anjou 
 
 in 
 
 and adjoins Brittany, that was born, 
 1509, the gallant knight and valiant captain 
 whose life I am about to write : Frangois de 
 Scepeaux, Sire de Vieilleville. The Scepeaux 
 descended in the female line from the d'Estou- 
 villes, and were allied to the royal branch of 
 the Bourbons.* This powerful family was 
 
 * Vieilleville was a grandson of Francois de Scepeaux 
 and Marguerite d'Estouville, a grand niece of Marguerite 
 
 VOL. I. 1
 
 2 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 formerly among the wealthiest in the king- 
 dom, but its devotion to the Crown, during 
 the war with the English, had reduced its 
 fortune very considerably. It still remained 
 possessed, however, of very extensive pro- 
 perty. 
 
 Rene de Scepeaux, the father of Francois, 
 represented the younger branch. He had 
 married the " high and virtuous dame 
 Marguerite de la Jaille," and both of them 
 led such a stately and dignified existence 
 in their domain of Duretal, that they were 
 a pattern to all the nobility of Maine and 
 Anjou. 
 
 The early years of Francois de Scepeaux 
 are enveloped in obscurity. He probably 
 passed them in his father's house, his time 
 being divided between his Latin tutor and 
 his fencing master, while preparing, according 
 to the usage of the higher nobility, to be 
 
 Adrienne, Duchesse d'Estouville, afterwards married Fran- 
 ois de Bourbon, Comte de St. Pol. " Vieilleville," vol. 
 xxviii., page 118 ; " Addition aux Memoires de Castelnau," 
 vol. ii., page 167 ; " Ge'ne'alogie des Scepeaux," pieces origin- 
 ales, 266159,067, folio 32.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 3 
 
 attached to some member of the Royal 
 Family, in order " to complete his education 
 and manners, and to learn virtue and under- 
 standing."* 
 
 At about the age of fourteen he entered 
 into the service of " the Most Serene 
 Princess Madame Louise de Savoie, mother 
 of Francois I." at Amboise. This was a 
 singular school in which to learn virtue, it 
 may be thought. He remained there four 
 years, but at the end of that time " a piece 
 of good fortune occurred to him which short- 
 ened his term of service and hastened his 
 advancement." 
 
 Having, one day, at the dinner of his 
 mistress, committed some blunder, he was 
 reprimanded by the maitre d'hotel, who went 
 so far as to give him a blow. Out of respect 
 for the Queen Regent he said nothing at the 
 time and went on with his service. But as 
 soon as dinner was over, he slipped away from 
 his governor and went to demand from the 
 
 * See, with reference to the education of the day, the 
 " Fin de la Yieille France, Francois I.," page 13.
 
 4 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 maitre d' hotel satisfaction for this insult. The 
 latter attempted to pass the matter off by 
 treating him as a child, but the lad insisted 
 upon having reparation made him, and fail- 
 ing to obtain it, ran the maitre d'hotel 
 through. 
 
 This created a great stir in the Chateau, 
 and as the King was staying there, he was 
 at once informed of what had occurred. 
 Francois I., however, did not feel at all 
 scandalised, as he held that the maitres 
 d'hotel had no right to lay a hand upon the 
 pages, lads of good family, who are under 
 the authority of their own governor. He 
 accordingly sent for the young culprit, in 
 order to effect a reconciliation between him and 
 his mother ; but the lad had taken to flight, 
 alarmed at what he had done, and made the 
 best of his way home to Duretal, where he told 
 his father what had occurred. That gallant 
 gentleman, recognizing in this act of vivacity 
 the characteristics of his race, was not 
 harder upon him than the King, and, in order 
 to let him have the opportunity of atoning 
 for it by a few valorous achievements,
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDKN TIME. 5 
 
 proposed that lie should join the expedition 
 which M. de Lautrec was preparing for Italy. 
 The lad was delighted at the prospect, 
 and as M. de Scepeaux was anxious that 
 his son should appear as a young gentleman 
 of quality, he gave him a liberal supply of 
 money, and selected for his following five- 
 and twenty young men of the best families 
 in Anjou and Brittany. It was at the head 
 of this cortege that Vieilleville repaired to 
 Chambery, where M. de Laufcrec was collect- 
 ing his army in the autumn of 1527. 
 
 M. de Lautrec, who was connected with 
 Vieilleville by the Parthenays, received him 
 very kindly. He had him lodged in his own 
 quarters, and showed him several marks of 
 friendship and honour. 
 
 The army soon crossed the Alps, and 
 seized, without a blow, the small towns in 
 the north of Italy. Pavia alone offered any 
 resistance, but it was taken after a siege 
 lasting four days, in the course of which 
 Vieilleville distinguished himself very much. 
 The town, taken by assault, was treated very 
 severely, by way of reprisal for the imprison-
 
 6 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 ment of King Francois I.* The army of 
 M. de Lautrec then went on to Piacenza and 
 Bologna, and as the Pope had taken to flight, 
 instead of marching upon Rome, it made 
 for Naples, passing through the Abruzzi 
 country. 
 
 As it was slowly following the Adriatic 
 coast, ten or twelve galleys of our allies the 
 Venetians, led by the nephew of the Duke of 
 Urbino, were keeping close in to the shore to 
 lend it any assistance which might be re- 
 quired. The Duke, hearing that a small 
 Imperial flotilla was on its way to Candia, 
 resolved to attack it. The report found its 
 way to shore, and Vieilleville, "who was 
 anxious to see everything he could," left his 
 followers in camp and jumped into a galley, 
 accompanied by a gentleman of honour, his 
 friend, M. de Cornillon, the two exchanging 
 oaths never to desert each other. 
 
 The galleys came in sight of the enemy's 
 fleet near Monaco, and the latter being the 
 
 * " Vieilleville," vol. xxviii., page 24 ; " Martin du 
 Bellay," vol. xviii., page 70.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 7 
 
 strongest, and having the wind in its favour, 
 opened the battle, and attacked the Venetian 
 galleys so furiously that they could not resist 
 the onslaught. They put up sail and made 
 off. The vessel upon which Vieilleville and 
 Cornillon had embarked being too closely 
 engaged to follow the others, was sur- 
 rounded and captured, and they were both 
 made prisoners by the Lord of Monaco. 
 They were put to ransom, and the Seig- 
 neur de Monaco proposed that Vieilleville 
 should go and fetch the sum of money 
 fixed, upon the understanding that if he did 
 not return in a given time his companion 
 would be put to the chain, and probably 
 kept to it for the rest of his life. Vieilleville, 
 fearing that the accidents of travel and the 
 length of the journey might detain him 
 beyond the time named, refused this pro- 
 posal, and induced their capturer to send a 
 messenger to M. de Lautrec for the ransom. 
 M. de Lautrec sent only that of Vieilleville, 
 who refused to abandon his companion, and 
 was devising some means for sending to his 
 father for the rest of the money, when the
 
 O A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Seigneur de Monaco, touched by his loyalty 
 and courage, agreed to forego the remainder, 
 and set them both at liberty. 
 . Upon returning to the camp, they found 
 M. de Lautrec had advanced far into Italy, 
 and that facing the French forces was what 
 remained of the army of Rome, led by the 
 Prince of Orange. The two armies were 
 watching each other in inaction. M. de 
 Lautrec had just seized the stud of the 
 Emperor, which was being conveyed into 
 Spain for him, and he made Vieilleville a 
 public present of two of the finest horses, 
 saying, " They have been broken in by the 
 Emperor's own equerry, and I have kept 
 them for you in the assurance that they will 
 never go back to France." He gave the best 
 his own name, Lautrec, while the other he 
 called Imperial. The two armies remained 
 for some time in presence of each other 
 without trying conclusions. A broad and 
 level valley separated them, and, pending the 
 battle, there was no lack of skirmishes, 
 charges, captures, and rescues. Vieilleville 
 having in one of these encounters captured
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 9 
 
 the son of the Seigneur de Monaco, was 
 delighted to send him back free and unhurt 
 to his father, with his arms and his charger, 
 in recognition of the courtesy with which 
 he had been treated. 
 
 The French, superior in numbers, were 
 eager to attack ; but M. de Lautrec was wait- 
 ing for the troops of Jean de Medicis, which 
 had since his death been led by Horatio Bag- 
 lioni. They duly arrived, but ' the Prince of 
 Orange, having learnt this, marched off dur- 
 ing the night without sound of trumpet or 
 drum, and with the bells and ornaments on 
 the harness of the mules removed whence 
 the proverb, " Deloger sans tambour ni trom- 
 pette." M. de Lautrec did not attempt to 
 pursue him, being content to follow in his 
 track on the road to Naples. On his way he 
 seized several places, Melfi among others, 
 the capture of which was marked by a curi* 
 ous incident. While the Prince of Melfi 
 was fighting upon the breach, sword in hand, 
 and without any shield, he was about to be 
 put to death when Vieilleville warded off the 
 blow. He made him prisoner, and so talked
 
 10 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 him over that the Prince returned his order and 
 oath of allegiance to the Emperor, in order to 
 become the subject of the King of France.* 
 
 The French army, continuing to advance, 
 eventually encamped upon the sea-shore of 
 Naples, a little to the south of the city. 
 Count Phillip Doria, nephew of Andrea 
 Doria, then arrived by sea, with eight gal- 
 leys, to reinforce it, just as the Venetians had 
 done in the Adriatic. The enemy's fleet re- 
 mained motionless in harbour, and Doria was 
 left at complete liberty to cruise in the Gulf. 
 
 It so happened that Vieilleville and Count 
 Doria had been great friends as boys, the 
 former being attached to the person of the 
 Queen Regent, while the latter had been page 
 in the King's chamber. Vieilleville, therefore, 
 when he heard of Count Doria's arrival, has- 
 tened to greet him on board his galley, and, 
 after a very effusive mutual welcome, Count 
 
 * Martin du Bellay mentions this conversion without 
 attributing it to Vieilleville. La Noue, at page 36 of his 
 "Discours," mentions the Prince of Melfi among the 
 foreign princes who showed themselves the most devoted to 
 France. He was afterwards made marshal and lieutenant 
 of the King in Piedmont.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 11 
 
 Doria did the honours of the fleet to his 
 friend, and placed it entirely at his service. 
 Vieilleville, who was anxious for a revenge of 
 his recent defeat, eagerly accepted the com- 
 mand of a galley, and chose the one named 
 " Regente," in honour of their common mis- 
 tress. Doria assembled upon deck Lieutenant 
 JNTapolion, the commander, who was a Corsi- 
 can by birth, the sailors and soldiers who 
 were on board, and presented them to their 
 new captain. Vieilleville, profiting by his 
 recent apprenticeship, took the frigate in 
 hand as if he had been a sailor all his life, 
 and all the crew yielded him a ready obedi- 
 ence. There were as great rejoicings at his 
 assuming the command as if the fleet had 
 won a signal victory. 
 
 A week passed in rejoicings, without the 
 enemy's fleet showing any sign of activity. 
 Vieilleville and Doria then went on shore, by 
 way of a change, and every night they supped 
 in camp with the officers of the army, and 
 joined in all sorts of dissipation. 
 
 Don Hugo de Moncado, the commander 
 of the Spaniards, hearing of all this, deter-
 
 12 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 mined to surprise the Genoese fleet in the 
 absence of the chiefs. He armed six galleys, 
 took with him the Marquis de Gtiast, and 
 other of the bravest chiefs of his force, and, 
 placing himself at their head, sailed down 
 upon the Genoese galleys, which he failed, 
 however, to take by surprise. 
 
 M. de Lautrec, forewarned of what was 
 brewing, had not only put Count Doria upon 
 his guard, but had reinforced his galleys with 
 four hundred adept and picked marksmen, 
 under the command of a veteran captain, a 
 native of Gascony. So, when the enemy arriv- 
 ed, and, thinking themselves sure of success, 
 attacked the Genoese fleet furiously, they met 
 with such reply as they had not bargained for. 
 At the first discharge the French sunk two 
 galleys, and the others were hemmed in. 
 The combat lasted two hours, hand to hand 
 and foot to foot, with severe losses on both 
 sides. Nearly all the Imperial forces per- 
 ished, the Viceroy and most of the nobles 
 being killed, while the Marquis de Guast was 
 made prisoner. Two galleys had been sunk 
 and two were captured, the two which
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 13 
 
 escaped being the " Moncadina " and the 
 " Nympharella," of which I shall have occa- 
 sion to speak presently. It must be said, 
 upon the other hand, that upon the French 
 side there remained but one hundred and 
 fifty of the four hundred marksmen sent by 
 M. de Lautrec, and not all of these were 
 uninjured.* 
 
 The most curious part of the affair was 
 Vieilleville's share in it. He had fought so 
 well on board the " Regente " that only 
 twelve of his marksmen were left out of fifty, 
 and with these twelve men he had conceived 
 the idea of attacking the " Nympharella," 
 one of the two vessels which the enemy had 
 preserved. He grappled her, and his men 
 boarded her; but while they were fighting 
 like demons, the convicts who were wielding 
 the oars un grappled the galley, and the 
 " Regente " bore off, Vieilleville, who had 
 remained on board the "Nympharella," 
 which set sail for Naples, being obliged to 
 
 * Martin du Bellay, whose version is analogous to that of 
 Yieilleville, says that the combat lasted an hour and a half, 
 and that sixty marksmen escaped.
 
 14 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 constitute himself the prisoner of Captain 
 Horatio de Barletta. He had already pic- 
 tured himself a prisoner in the Imperial 
 camp, when, upon approaching Naples, a 
 piece of news arrived which put quite a dif- 
 ferent face upon matters. Don Hugo de 
 Moncado having been killed two days before 
 in the combat, the Prince of Orange had 
 assumed the command of the town in his 
 stead, and the naval defeat had so exaspe- 
 rated him that when he saw the " Monca- 
 dina " come back into port after the disaster, 
 he had the captain and all the crew, hung, 
 without form of trial. 
 
 Horatio de Barletta, having learnt this, 
 was so afraid that he did not venture to come 
 into harbour, lest he should be treated in the 
 same way. Vieilleville then made such good 
 use of his indignation that, as in the case of 
 the Count de Melfi, he induced him to enter 
 the King's service. The captain, who had 
 seen by the way in which he fought that he 
 belonged to some illustrious family, placed 
 himself unreservedly in his hands, and he 
 accordingly took the oath of allegiance and
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 15 
 
 tore to pieces all the red crosses and stream- 
 ers of his men, who were not at all sorry at 
 what had occurred, being so irritated by the 
 cruelty of the Prince of Orange. The arms 
 of Spain and Austria were also effaced, the 
 Emperor's motto and the eagles, and the galley 
 bore down joyfully with bending oars, for the 
 wind was contrary upon the French camp. 
 
 In the meanwhile, Vieilleville's friends, 
 finding that he had not returned at the end 
 of twenty-four hours, gave him up for lost. 
 Count Phillip Doria, " in extreme mourn- 
 ing and grief," had search made for his body 
 among the corpses floating in the water, and, 
 as it could not be found, he feared that owing 
 to the weight of armour it had sunk to the 
 bottom. Then, in the hope that he might 
 have been made prisoner upon the galleys 
 which had made off, he arranged with M. de 
 Lautrec to send the " Kegente " to Naples, 
 under the orders of Lieutenant Napolion, 
 with a safe -conduct to demand his exchange, 
 or, at all events, to glean some news of him. 
 
 Napolion started at once, and the galley, 
 which was sailing fast with the wind in her
 
 16 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 favour, sighted about two miles from shore a 
 vessel, which from her shape he knew to 
 belong to the Imperial fleet, bearing down 
 upon him. The sailors were already making 
 ready for battle, when they descried a man 
 at the top of the main-mast flourishing a 
 white streamer. For fear of a surprise, they 
 would not lower their sails, being anxious to 
 retain their advantage, but the sight of the 
 white streamer "gave them pause," and their 
 astonishment increased when, upon getting 
 within a quarter of a mile of the other 
 vessel, they were greeted with flourishes of 
 the trumpet, and discovered upon the poop 
 and along the sides of the vessel sailors 
 waving their caps and shouting " France, 
 France ! " The next thing they saw was 
 Vieilleville himself, mounted upon the fore- 
 mast, shouting at the top of his voice to 
 Captain Napolion. The latter was overjoyed 
 to see him again, and thanked God that he 
 was not dead, nor even a prisoner, inasmuch 
 as he had command of the " Nympharella." 
 The men then dropped their sails, and the 
 two galleys accosted each other, the sailors
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 17 
 
 exchanging joyful greetings and relating their 
 adventures to one another. They anchored 
 under the protection of a lofty mountain to let 
 the convicts take some refreshment. Captain 
 Napolion, who had been a prisoner of Captain 
 Horatio de Barletta, and had been very well 
 treated by him, threw himself into his arms 
 when he learnt that he had rallied totheErench 
 cause, and the two commanders were delighted 
 at the idea of henceforth fighting under the 
 same flag and serving the same Sovereign. 
 
 In the meanwhile, the Prince of Orange, 
 after having had the crew of the " Moncadina" 
 hung, had provided a fresh crew for the 
 galley, and given the command to a brother of 
 the Prince of Melfi, Alfonso Caracciolo. Find- 
 ing that the " Nympharella," which he knew 
 had escaped destruction in battle, did not 
 return, and, having his suspicions as to what 
 had happened, he sent the " Moncadina " in 
 pursuit of her. The "Moncadina" came 
 upon the two galleys at anchor, and Vieille- 
 ville, who was the first to recognize her, at 
 once conceived of a stratagem to employ 
 against this fresh foe. Calling the crew 
 
 VOL. I. 2
 
 18 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 promptly together, he put the "Nympha- 
 rella" in advance, with her flag hoisted, 
 and placed the " Regente " in her stern as 
 if she was in tow of the Spanish vessel. 
 Captain Caracciolo, recognizing the Spanish 
 vessel, which appeared to be sailing along 
 in triumph, bore down upon her without 
 the slightest suspicion. They allowed 
 him to advance, and when he got within 
 range the " Nympharella " opened fire with 
 all her guns, the " Regente," which had got 
 under sail, doing the same. Caracciolo, 
 caught between two fires, endeavoured in vain 
 to make off. The forestay-sail of the " Mon- 
 cadina " was carried away, her masts were 
 broken, and her crew demoralised; so her 
 commander had no choice but to surrender. 
 Vieilleville, who preferred capturing the galley 
 to sinking it, took the word of the captain 
 and his men, and transferred them all to the 
 "Re*gente," the whole party then returning 
 to the French camp, with the "Moncadina" 
 in tow. 
 
 It may be imagined how well they were 
 received, and M. de Lautrec, upon hearing
 
 . A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 19 
 
 what had happened, declared that he had 
 never known anything so singular. He raised 
 to the rank of captain not only Horatio de 
 Barletta, but Alfonso Caracciolo, whose 
 brother, the Prince of Melfi, had already 
 rallied to the cause of France. 
 
 " I take them under my protection," said 
 M. de Lautrec to Yieilleville," and I do not 
 require of them any other pledge than that 
 which they have given you, and, out of regard 
 for you, I promise to treat them upon the same 
 footing as captains in the French army. As 
 to the galleys, they are yours by right of war, 
 and well have you deserved them, so they are 
 yours to do as you please with." 
 
 Vieilleville replied that he wished to give 
 them to Count Phillip in recognition of 
 the honourable reception which he had met 
 with upon his fleet. But M. de Lautrec 
 pointed out to him that this would be almost 
 more than royal generosity, and that as he 
 had not yet paid the three thousand crowns 
 of his ransom, and as he would require some 
 little money for his journey back to France, 
 he had better sell the galleys.
 
 20 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Yieilleville, who owed the three thousand 
 crowns to M. de Lautrec, understood the 
 allusion, and did as he advised. 
 
 One great disappointment cast its shadow 
 over the successes which Vieilleville achieved. 
 He did not find, upon returning to the 
 camp, his friend, Phillip Doria, whom M. de 
 Lautrec had despatched to France with two 
 galleys filled with prisoners. They were not 
 destined to meet again, for Phillip, who 
 had stopped at Genoa to greet his uncle, 
 followed him in his quarrel with the King, 
 and from this period he enlisted beneath the 
 Imperial flag. 
 
 During this time M. de Lautrec, whose 
 quarters were at Poge-Real, besieged the city 
 of Naples very closely both by sea and land, the 
 garrison not attempting to make any sortie. 
 Vieilleville, after having waited a month for 
 the assault, and seeing that there was no sign 
 of its being undertaken, asked for leave to go 
 back to France. Lautrec, with considerable 
 reluctance, granted it him, and entrusted him 
 with despatches for Francois I. 
 
 The way in which this campaign ended is
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 21 
 
 only too well known. The French, remain- 
 ing inactive, were eventually assailed by that 
 most terrible of scourges, the plague. The 
 disaster was an awful one, for the epidemic 
 spared neither princes nor captains, officers 
 or men, Lautrec himself being struck down. 
 Those who survived might have been taken 
 "for pilgrims rather than soldiers, so thin, 
 poverty-stricken, and gaunt did they appear." 
 The Germans, who sought to retreat by way 
 of Trent, were struck down like dogs, and 
 the French, who retreated upon Rome, did 
 not escape much better. 
 
 Vieilleville had doubtless been inspired by 
 his "good angel," when he left Italy before 
 the disaster occurred. Upon returning to 
 France, he repaired to Moulins, where the 
 King was, to deliver his despatches, in which 
 M. de Lautrec related the incidents of the 
 war, and dwelt in detail upon the " perilous 
 fortunes" of the messenger. He entreated 
 the King, in consideration of " such a pro- 
 mising beginning at such an early age (he 
 was only nineteen), to forgive him the 
 homicide of the maitre d'hotel."
 
 22 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Frangois I. told the lad that this was long 
 since forgotten, and that he was very pleased 
 to see him. " You have," the King added, 
 " rendered such brave and famous service, that 
 if you had made an attempt upon my own 
 person, I declare, upon my word of honour, 
 that I would forgive you. Be sure, then, 
 that you do not fail to present yourself at my 
 rising and going to bed, as well as at my 
 meals, to tell me about what took place with 
 my forces at Naples." 
 
 Vieilleville took care to obey the King's 
 orders, and for eight or ten days the conver- 
 sation went on, the King being " marvellously 
 interested in it." * 
 
 * "Vieilleville," vol. xxviii., pages 117 158.
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE CAPTURE OF AVIGNON. MARSHAL DE 
 MONTEJAN. 
 
 URESTGr tlie six years of peace which, 
 followed Cambrai, we may infer 
 from the silence of his memoirs 
 that Vieilleville led much the same life as the 
 other young nobles of his day : taking part in 
 tournaments and other games, hunting wolves 
 and bears, going upon long riding excursions, 
 and making himself proficient in the art of 
 love and gallantry to ladies. Upon the return 
 of the Princes, he was attached to the house- 
 hold of the Due d' Orleans, second son of the 
 King, afterwards Henri II.* 
 
 The Imperial war having begun afresh, 
 
 * Vincent Carloix dates this appointment from Vieille- 
 ville's return from Italy. But at this period the Princes 
 were still prisoners in Spain.
 
 24 A GENTLEMAN OP TIIE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 we find Yieilleville at Lyons in 153G, just as 
 Francois I. was about to descend the Rhone 
 with his army, while the Emperor was pre- 
 paring to cross the Alps.* 
 
 As, in spite of his protests of neutrality, 
 Clement VII. was suspected of being favour- 
 able to Charles V., Franois determined to 
 make himself master of Avignon, under the 
 pretence of protecting it, and thus avoiding 
 an open violation of neutrality. His pro- 
 posal was well received by the Council, and 
 the enterprise being decided upon, Vieilleville, 
 despite the objections raised upon the score 
 of his youth, was selected to carry it into 
 execution. He set out, as if on a simple 
 reconnoitring party, with six thousand horse- 
 men and no artillery, in order not to excite 
 suspicion. 
 
 Upon reaching Avignon, Vieilleville left 
 his forces behind him, hidden from view by 
 the rising ground, and taking with him six 
 of his gentlemen, made his way to the gates, 
 and requested, through a trumpeter, that he 
 
 * " Francois I.," page 286.
 
 A GENTLEMAN Off THE OLDEN TIME. 25 
 
 might speak with the Vice-Legate on behalf 
 of the King of France. The Vice-Legate at 
 once appeared upon the walls, and asked 
 what he had to say. 
 
 Vieilleville requested him to come down, 
 as he had an important communication, affect- 
 ing the interests of the city, to make, and he 
 added that he had only six followers with 
 him, while the Vice-Legate might, if he felt 
 apprehensive of his safety, bring a whole 
 company as his escort. 
 
 The Vice-Legate, after some hesitation, 
 determined to come down, accompanied by 
 fifteen or twenty soldiers and the principal 
 inhabitants of the city. The gate was opened, 
 and the two delegates went forward to meet 
 each other. Vieilleville assured the Vice- 
 Legate of his pacific intentions, and that all 
 the King asked was that he would exclude 
 the Imperial as well as the French troops, 
 and that, as a pledge of this, he would give a 
 certain number of hostages. 
 
 The Vice-Legate consented to give the 
 pledge, but refused to deliver up any host- 
 ages, and as Vieilleville insisted, the discus-
 
 26 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 sion grew warm, and at last became very 
 furious. During this time, the six men 
 who accompanied Vieilleville badly clad, 
 badly shod, and altogether miserable in ap- 
 pearance asked leave to go into the town 
 to have their muskets mended, and buy some 
 powder. When permission to do this was 
 granted, they placed themselves under the 
 gateway, so that the portcullis could not be 
 let down, and several of their companions 
 had joined them from a distance, coming in 
 one by one, and not being noticed in the heat 
 of the discussion. Vieilleville was threaten- 
 ing the Vice-Legate and his followers, that if 
 they persisted in refusing the hostages, he 
 would devastate the country for five miles 
 round, and when he found that the number 
 of his followers had swollen, he struck the 
 Vice-Legate with the flat side of his sword, 
 knocked him down, and forced his way into 
 the city with the few men he had with him. 
 Those inside fired a few shots, and even 
 killed two or three of his followers ; but 
 when they attempted to lower the portcullis, 
 they found it protected by four of the French
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 27 
 
 soldiers, who held their ground until the 
 main body of Vieilleville's troops, warned by 
 the sound of firing what was going on, had 
 time to come forward from their ambuscade 
 in the cornfields. They entered the city like 
 a whirlwind flags flying and drums beating, 
 and all resistance was hopeless. When the 
 city had been captured, the keys were handed 
 to Vieilleville, who kept all the gates closed 
 except that of the bridge over the Rhone, 
 leading to Villeneuve, "in the King's do- 
 main." Vieilleville imposed the strictest 
 discipline upon his troops, slaying with his 
 own hand five or six soldiers and a captain 
 who were inciting to pillage. No act of vio- 
 lence was committed upon the inhabitants ; 
 not even upon the Jews ; and the women 
 were all treated with respect. When order 
 had been re-established, a messenger was 
 sent to inform the King of what had hap- 
 pened. His remark upon it was : " There's 
 a plucky thing ; and I never heard of a city 
 being more adroitly seized and surprised! 
 If Vieilleville goes on like this, upon my word 
 of honour, he will set us all an example."
 
 28 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Thereupon, he ordered the Grand Master 
 Montmorency to descend the Rhone and take 
 command at Avignon, while he himself pro- 
 ceeded to Valence. The Grand Master was 
 met about four miles from Avignon by Vieil- 
 leville, to whom, after making him the cus- 
 tomary greetings, he said : 
 
 " You can safely go to Court, M. de Vieil- 
 leville. It is long since anyone has been 
 as well received there as you will be. It 
 must be said, too, that you have rendered a 
 signal service to the King, and one beyond 
 anything we could have hoped ; seeing that 
 this Vice-Legate is, as we are informed, the 
 creature of Gonzagua, and that the Pope is 
 none too well disposed towards us. But you 
 showed great diligence, and would not let 
 yourself be deceived. Now that we hold this 
 position, we will take care that the Emperor 
 does not get any further. Is this Vice- 
 Legate dead ? " 
 
 " No," replied Vieilleville ; " but he has 
 had a rare fright. I am keeping him under 
 surveillance in a lodging, so that he may not 
 play any tricks; having turned him out of
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 29 
 
 the palace, which I have ordered to be got 
 ready for you, and where you will find your 
 dinner awaiting you. If you would like me 
 to have him sent for, you will see him, and 
 it would be well for you to speak with him, 
 as you might, in tho course of conversation, 
 find out what communications he has been 
 keeping up with Gonzagua a fact which can 
 admit of no doubt." 
 
 In this way, they drew near to the city, 
 and entered the gates. Just as they were 
 doing so, they were met by one of those 
 agents " whom the indiscreet contemptu- 
 ously call spies, failing to understand what 
 great service they render to Sovereigns." 
 Montmorency at once recognized him as 
 having been present at the interview when 
 Francois I. despatched him to the camp, from 
 which he had just arrived. He summoned 
 him to accompany them, and when all three 
 had reached a room to themselves, he 
 ordered him to speak openly before Yieille- 
 ville. The spy then said : 
 
 " Sir, I have just come from the Empe- 
 ror's camp, in which there is a force of so
 
 30 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 many men, with such and such a prince, 
 colonel, noble, and captain (naming them all 
 by their surnames and Christian names, with 
 a detailed account of all the forces, horse and 
 foot). They have determined upon passing 
 into Provence ; but they have not yet crossed 
 the pass of Tende, and I can assure you the 
 Emperor is very vexed. It is with Ferdinand 
 de Gonzagua that he is so angry, and he said 
 to him : 
 
 " ' What, in Heaven's name, does this 
 mean ? this is not what I was promised ? ' 
 
 " And, upon Gonzagua asking what was 
 the matter, the Emperor replied, still more 
 angrily : 
 
 " < What is the matter ? Why, that the 
 French are in Avignon.' 
 
 " Whereupon Gonzagua assured him that 
 this was not so, and showed him a letter 
 which the Vice-Legate had written him. But 
 the Emperor, in a great rage, tore it up, 
 declaring that it was an imposture which the 
 traitor of a Vice-Legate had crammed down 
 his throat, and that he knew for certain that 
 Avignon was in the hands of his enemy.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 31 
 
 And, in consequence of this, they despatched 
 a man to find out the real truth, and to get 
 to communicate, if possible, with the Vice- 
 Legate, whom Gonzagua declared must have 
 been surprised and forced into a surrender. 
 What made me use all haste is that I know 
 this messenger." 
 
 Upon this, the Grand Master ordered the 
 spy to seek out this envoy of the Emperor, 
 and the latter soon discovered him in the vice- 
 regency of Avignon, where he was staying 
 with a cousin of his. He was brought in 
 custody before the Grand Master, who had 
 him " put sharply to the question, whereupon 
 he confessed more than was wished; " after 
 this, he was hung. 
 
 When this execution had taken place, 
 Vieilleville bade farewell to Montmorency, 
 whom he left in possession of Avignon and 
 preparing to fix his camp in the plain, and he 
 went to rejoin the King at Tournai. About 
 two miles below Thym he met a troop of 
 young nobles who had come to meet him, 
 and bestowed " a million caresses " upon 
 him. Among them were his intimate friend,
 
 32 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 St. Andre, afterwards the favourite of 
 Henri II.; La Chateigneraye, for whom such 
 a tragic end was in store ; the eloquent and 
 courageous La Noue, and many others. These 
 young men, who were all serving under the 
 Due d'Orleans, greeted Vieilleville with 
 enthusiasm, and escorted him without delay 
 to the Due d'Orleans, who received him 
 with delight, and himself conducted him into 
 the royal presence. 
 
 "Come to me," said His Majesty, "you 
 gentle light of chivalry. When you are a 
 little older I will call you Sun, for if you go 
 on like this you will shine with a brighter 
 lustre than all the others. In the meanwhile, 
 ward off this blow of your Sovereign, who 
 loves and esteems you."* 
 
 As he uttered these words, Francois I. 
 seized his sword and made him a knight, to 
 the delight of all, and more particularly of 
 the Due d'Orleans. 
 
 Fransois I., after having reconquered 
 Piedmont in 1537, appointed as Governor of 
 
 * " Vieilleville," vol. xxviii., pages 159170.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDUN TIME. 33 
 
 that province Marshal de Montejan, Baron 
 de Sille, and de Baupreau,* the most can- 
 tankerous man in all France. There was no 
 question as to his loyalty and bravery, but he 
 was a man of narrow and haughty ideas, of 
 very violent disposition, and ready to take 
 offence, while his furious passion was always 
 getting him into trouble. A proof of this 
 was afforded at the time of the union of 
 Brittany to France in 1532. The States of 
 that province having been convoked upon 
 this occasion, Montejan, who belonged to an 
 old Anjou family, very devoted to the Crown, 
 was selected to preside over them. The 
 question of the union, sagaciously prepared 
 by the Chancellor Duprat and by Louis des 
 Desert, of the Parliament of Rennes, was 
 sure of passing, despite a certain amount of 
 opposition. But we all know the proverb : 
 " Preserve me from my friends ; as to my 
 enemies, I can protect myself from them." 
 
 * This is how Godefroi styles him in his " Recueil des 
 Marechaux de France." The barony of Baupreau must 
 have come to him through his wife, for a son whom she had 
 from a second marriage, inherited it. 
 
 VOL. I. 3
 
 34 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 When the session opened, the deputies 
 hostile to the plan attempted to speak. 
 Instead of allowing them to state what they 
 had to say, as they were entitled to do, M. de 
 Montejan intervened so violently and treated 
 them so scandalously that the whole assembly 
 protested. The proposal was very near being 
 rejected summarily, but fortunately an ar- 
 rangement was come to.* 
 
 Two years afterwards, M. de Montejan, 
 fighting in Piedmont under the orders of 
 Montmorency, persisted, in spite of the most 
 earnest entreaties, in the most headstrong 
 enterprise. Accompanied by the Sieur du 
 Boissy, he attacked with six hundred men 
 Ferdinand de Gonzagua, who was at the 
 head of eighteen hundred horsemen and six 
 thousand infantry. No amount of bravery 
 could save him, and the disaster was a 
 crushing and a rapid one. Nearly all his 
 men were killed, and he himself, having been 
 made prisoner, was conducted to the Imperial 
 camp, where a violent quarrel occurred 
 
 * "Martin du Bellay," vol. xvii., page 159; Observa- 
 tions, page 341.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 35 
 
 between three chevaliers who were disputing 
 as to his ransom. They were about coming 
 to blows, when the master of the camp, being 
 called in to act as arbiter, awarded it to the 
 one who, having seized the horse's reins, had 
 prevented the prisoner from escaping.* 
 
 Despite these rather discouraging ante- 
 cedents, the King appointed Montejan 
 Lieutenant- General in Piedmon-t, and his 
 arrival was at once marked by the most 
 serious quarrels. First of all, he fell out 
 with Guillaume de Langey, Governor of 
 Turin, whose bodyguard he endeavoured to 
 remove. The proceedings to which he re- 
 sorted were so insulting that the whole 
 province took part against him, and he was 
 compelled to give way. 
 
 Langey writes on this subject to his 
 brother : " He at length made overtures that 
 we should live on friendly terms with each 
 other, and I have endeavoured to put up with 
 everything as long as I am under his orders 
 for the King's service ; still, he has used lan- 
 guage to me that the greatest nobleman in 
 
 * " Guillaume du Bellay," vol. xix., pages 380 and 467.
 
 36 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Christendom would not attempt to apply to 
 anyone who had the title of gentleman. . . . 
 He has already done enough to make himself 
 detested by everybody in the province."* 
 
 The same spirit prevailed in the adminis- 
 tration, and Montejan conducted everything 
 in this headstrong fashion. There was no 
 end to arbitrary imposts, exactions, waste, 
 pillage, and other abuses. Trade was ruined, 
 and agriculture could not meet its liabilities. 
 The population of the province grew very 
 discontented, and the leading men in it 
 sent a deputation to remonstrate with him. 
 " God loves justice," they said, " and princes 
 must love it also if they wish their reign to 
 be a durable one." 
 
 This language made Montejan furious, 
 and he told them all " to go to five hundred 
 thousand devils," adding, "the King cares 
 nothing for your wants. Get out of the 
 country, if you like; I can take care of it 
 without you." 
 
 The Piedmontese, though struck with 
 
 * " Ribier Collection," vol. i., page 192. Martin du Bellay 
 makes no mention of these details.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 37 
 
 consternation, did not lose heart, and re- 
 plied : 
 
 " The country does not believe that the 
 King can have any such feelings ; or that a 
 change has occurred in his goodness, cle- 
 mency, and liberality." 
 
 Thereupon, they sent to Francois I. a 
 notable deputation, headed by a certain 
 Master George, councillor and physician in 
 Turin, to lay before him their grievances. 
 The Governor, who was very loth to let 
 Master George go, had him arrested en route 
 at Brianfon, and thrown into prison at the 
 Castle of Susa, as a traitor and malefactor. 
 The King, being informed of this, ordered 
 him to be set at liberty, and to be allowed 
 to continue his journey. But it was only 
 upon a second and more imperative order 
 from the King that this was done. 
 
 While all this was going on, a revolt 
 broke out at Turin. The soldiers demanded 
 their arrears of pay, and M. de Montejan, 
 who had lost the money at play, tried to 
 quiet them. They mutinied against him, 
 however, and he had to take refuge in his
 
 38 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 castle, and keep very quiet for five or six 
 hours, until the revolt had calmed down. 
 
 As disorder followed disorder, Franfois I. 
 saw that it was necessary to exercise some 
 strict control over him, and determined to 
 send a royal commissioner into Piedmont.* 
 In order to spare Montejan's feelings, he 
 gave this commissioner the title of inspector 
 of fortresses in the province, and he selected 
 for it Vieilleville, who was a near relative of 
 Madame de Montejan. 
 
 It may be imagined what sort of a recep- 
 tion he met with, or rather that he was 
 not received at all. The Governor, instead 
 of going to meet the King's commissioner, as 
 it was his duty to do, shut himself up in his 
 castle, and left Vieilleville to inspect the cities 
 and fortresses by himself. He heard the 
 complaints of the inhabitants, collected all 
 the information he could, and inspected all 
 the military posts. Having completed his 
 
 * Ribier mentions a second letter from Langey, dated 
 Aug. 30, 1538, in which he entreats the King to send com- 
 missioners into Piedmont. " Du Bellay," vol. xviii., page 
 198 ; " Vieilleville," vol. xxviii., pages 178 & 383. There is a 
 great deal of confusion in this part of Vieilleville's Memoirs.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 89 
 
 tour, he arrived at Turin, and went straight to 
 the castle. His reception was a very freezing 
 one. The first words of the Governor were 
 to say that as the King was only anxious 
 to be rid of him, he would anticipate his 
 wishes, and go straight to the King and hand 
 over his functions, which Vieilleville might 
 take upon him forthwith. 
 
 Vieilleville let him talk, and then gradu- 
 ally, with a mixture of affection and adroit- 
 ness, he pointed out to him, as an attached 
 relative, that he would be very wrong to act 
 in this way. Montejan gradually calmed 
 down, and Vieilleville, who went on flattering 
 his amour-propre, came close up to him and 
 said in his ear : 
 
 " Monsieur, do not gamble any more ! 
 You have gambled and lost two " monstres " 
 (money intended for paying the troops) of 
 the Turin garrison, and that was the cause 
 of the mutiny." 
 
 " What ! my cousin," rejoined the Mar- 
 shal, much agitated, " does the King know 
 that?" 
 
 " Yes ; I can assure you," was Vieille-
 
 40 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 ville's answer. " But His Majesty is so at- 
 tached to you that he does not wish you to 
 be aware that he knows it. You will receive, 
 in a week or so, eighty thousand crowns, to 
 make good your deficiency, and set things in 
 order. I am making my report upon the 
 state of the province, and you will find that, 
 as your relative, friend, and servant, I have 
 smoothed things down as much as possible." 
 Montejan, touched by this, spoke to him 
 more cordially ; and when he was preparing 
 to start the next day, he got on horseback 
 to accompany him as far as Veillanne. As 
 they were riding along together, Montejan 
 asked his companion if he did not bear him 
 some little grudge for certain incidents of 
 war, in which he felt that he had been lacking 
 in the fraternity of arms. Vieilleville replied 
 that at the time he felt inwardly grieved at 
 them, but that he bore him no ill-will on 
 that account. They then began to recall 
 the companionship of their early campaigns, 
 their amusements, and their youthful follies. 
 Vieilleville evoking souvenirs particularly 
 dear to his friend.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 41 
 
 The imperious Marshal had, in fact, when 
 a youth, fallen deeply in love with a cousin 
 of Yieilleville's, Madame Philippe de Mon- 
 tespedon, a young orphan, who was the ward 
 and heiress of M. de Chateaubriand.* As 
 she was of very old family, possessed a great 
 deal of property, and would inherit still more 
 from him, her guardian had resolved that 
 she should marry no one under a prince of 
 the blood. It was all in vain, therefore, that 
 Montejan paid her every attention, and that 
 his languishing looks told the story of his 
 love for her. Her guardian was inexorable ; 
 and seeing that Madame Philippe was not in- 
 sensible to these attentions, he forbade her to 
 speak to her " lover," or " attract him in 
 any way." Montejan, much distressed at 
 this, had recourse to Vieilleville, who at once 
 interested himself cordially in the matter. 
 
 M. de Chateaubriand acknowledged his 
 connection with Vieilleville through the 
 Dinan family, from which they both traced 
 their descent, and held him in high esteem. 
 
 * Husband of the well-known countess of that name, 
 mistress of Fra^ois L, page 208.
 
 42 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 The latter took advantage of this to become 
 intimate with him, and worm himself into 
 his confidence. One day, he invited him to 
 come, with his ward, and pay him a visit at 
 his Chateau of St. Michel-en-Boys, where 
 Montejan had already arrived. There, in his 
 own house, and in the exercise of his duties 
 as host, he had many natural opportunities 
 of using his influence. He so charmed M. 
 de Chateaubriand by the attentions which he 
 showed him, that when the time came for 
 asking his assent to the marriage of his ward 
 with Montejan, he carried his point without 
 difficulty. 
 
 The revival of these souvenirs, with all 
 the circumstances and details which accom- 
 panied them, dispelled the last traces of 
 anger, and the ancient friendship which 
 Montejan felt for Vieilleville resumed its sway. 
 He asked him to remove all cause of re- 
 proach with the King; and Vieilleville 
 having promised to do so, "their reconcilia- 
 tion was so ardent that they jumped from 
 their horses to embrace each other over and 
 over again, much to the astonishment of
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 43 
 
 their followers, who could not make out 
 what it was all about." Getting on to their 
 horses again, they rode on to Yeillanne, 
 " where they supped, and slept in the same 
 bed, so as to be able to talk more freely." 
 
 The next day, they said good-bye, and 
 for the last time, as Montejan died in the 
 year following.* 
 
 * " Vieilleville," vol. xxviii., pages 173 to 181, and Obser- 
 vations, page 383.
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 ADVENTURES OF THE MARECHALE DE 
 MONTEJAN. 
 
 T is doubtful, from the way in which 
 she wore mourning for him, whe- 
 ther the death of her husband 
 was a great blow to Madame Philippe. Pas- 
 sionate natures like his fascinate more than 
 they attach. 
 
 She had, moreover, much to console her. 
 " Bright with great beauty and in the flower 
 of youth," as the Memoirs tell us, "Madame 
 Philippe was, moreover, in the possession of 
 an income of sixty thousand livres," without 
 counting the property of M. de Chfiteaubriand, 
 which she was not destined to inherit, after 
 all.* She was, besides, a person of wit and 
 
 * See her adventure with Montmorency, ' Franfois I.," 
 page 272.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 45 
 
 experience, who was well able to make the 
 best of life, and take good care of her own 
 interests ; of a bright and cheerful disposition, 
 without any false assumption, devoid of all 
 sentimental and silly fancies. She treated 
 the male sex with just the mixture of coquetry 
 and reserve which attracts and rivets their 
 attentions, without involving herself in any 
 engagement. If she occasionally' went a little 
 too far, she knew how to withdraw, and her 
 ease and simplicity went a great way to- 
 wards making all things pleasant about her. 
 When once she was free, there was no lack 
 of aspirants for her hand. The first who 
 " offered his services " was the Marquis de 
 Saluce,* brother of the man who had, in 
 1536, given over Piedmont to Charles V.f 
 Very short, stout, and badly built, the Mar- 
 quis did not look like a man whom a lady 
 
 * The Marquisate of Saluce, a movable fief of Dauphiny, 
 was exchanged on the 17th of May, 1601, with the Duke of 
 Savoy, for La Bresse, Le Bugey, Val Romey, and the 
 Barony of Gex. " Vieilleville," vol. xxviii., page 393 ; " du 
 Bellay," vol. xviii., page 462; "Dictionaire Historique de 
 Lalanne." 
 
 f ' Francois I.," page 286.
 
 46 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 would fall in love with ; but for all that, he 
 met with a very amiable and even encou- 
 raging reception. Madame de Montejan had 
 an object in view, and that was to return to 
 France ; but knowing how much she was 
 sought after, she dreaded the journey. It so 
 happened that the Marquis de Saluce was 
 about to repair to the Court, with all his train 
 of followers, and he would of course be an 
 invaluable protector on the road. It was 
 desirable, therefore, to be on friendly terms 
 with him, by leaving the future open. 
 
 The Marechale was inimitable in devices 
 of this kind. By means of a few words, 
 which might be interpreted in a double sense, 
 and which were well weighed in advance, a 
 few timid smiles, and reticences, she achieved 
 her object, M. de Saluce having been made to 
 fall into such a trap. For the Marquis, with 
 the southern qualities of exuberance, im- 
 petuousness, and gush, was made of the vain 
 and self-satisfied material which a woman's 
 supple hand can so well fashion as suits her 
 best. He had taken fire at the first words, 
 not to say at the first silence, of Madame
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 47 
 
 Philippe, and he was at once well assured of 
 success, and ready to undertake anything 
 that might be required of him. ISTot only was 
 he at her orders to escort her to Paris, but 
 being inwardly convinced of marrying her, he 
 was ready to defray all the expenses of the 
 journey. 
 
 She said nothing, and so they started. 
 
 It was no small affair in those days to 
 travel from Turin to Paris, especially for two 
 great personages who had a large train of 
 servants. The Marechale had retained, in 
 addition to her own, the servants of her late 
 husband, and some idea may be formed of 
 their number when it is said that, in addition 
 to the gentlemen, officers, valets, and ladies' 
 maids, " there were fifteen or sixteen needle- 
 women." Added to the servants of the Marquis, 
 with the horses, baggage-waggons, litters, 
 etc., these all formed such a large caravan, 
 that the crowd assembled to stare at it as it 
 passed through the different towns. The 
 Marquis was much pleased at all this display, 
 and gave his orders in a loud tone, as if he 
 and the Marechale were already man and wife,
 
 48 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 or, at all events, betrothed. He strutted 
 about, cracked jokes, and even remarked that 
 it would be necessary to dismiss this man or 
 get rid of that, as the household would be too 
 large. All the time, Madame Philippe kept 
 on smiling, and, though reserved, was so 
 amiable that the poor Marquis plunged 
 deeper and deeper into the mire. 
 
 Travelling by very slow stages, they 
 arrived in April at Lyons, where they had 
 decided to rest for twelve days. There 
 Madame Philippe received letters from 
 Vieilleville, which were so secretly given her 
 by the courier that no one knew anything of 
 it, though the Marquis had set several of his 
 servitors to watch, not because he had any 
 doubt as to the Marechale's feelings for him, 
 but in order to discover whether he had any 
 rivals, and if so to cut them out. 
 
 Vieilleville had always been a very affec- 
 tionate cousin and trustworthy friend for her, 
 and she knew this. His letters, dated from 
 St. Germain-en-Laye, April 6, 1540, where 
 the King was staying, gave her the news of 
 the Court. Everybody was full, he said, of
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 49 
 
 her marriage with M. de Saliice. It was 
 announced that they were both coming to 
 Paris for the wedding, and the King had 
 expressed himself as very pleased at it, 
 thinking that it would be the best means of 
 attaching the Marquis to him, nothing being 
 so potent a tie upon a dweller in a strange 
 land as love. When the Marquis had become 
 naturalized through this alliance, 'there would 
 be no reason for fearing that he would enter 
 into intrigue with the Emperor, or that the 
 latter would endeavour to corrupt and entice 
 him. In fact, people said that Madame de 
 Montejan appeared to be about to marry 
 more to render service to the King than to 
 suit her own fancy and desires. He himself 
 was too sharp to believe in so much disin- 
 terestedness, and he could not think that 
 having been such a good and faithful wife to 
 her first husband, she could so soon have 
 thought of taking a second without first ad- 
 vising him, her near relative and most humble 
 and affectionate servant. He begged her, 
 therefore, to enlighten him upon all these 
 points. Finally, he asked her to let the bearer 
 
 VOL. I. 4
 
 50 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 of the letter also deliver her a verbal message, 
 to which he requested her special attention. 
 
 Madame Philippe, after having read the 
 letter and heard the verbal message, at once 
 replied to her cousin. She thanked him for 
 his good opinion of her, and explained how 
 it was that the difficulties of returning to 
 France had led her to choose the Marquis's 
 company, adding : 
 
 " God has been so good to me that by His 
 great mercy I have returned to France with- 
 out having made any promise, engagement, or 
 contract with living man. The present letter 
 will testify to this before the Church and 
 before Justice. It affects my honour, and you 
 can show my letter to any one you please. 
 
 " I cannot sufficiently wonder at the King 
 for thinking me capable of securing servitors 
 for him at the cost of my good fortune and 
 against my inclination. I never intend to 
 become Italian, and had I any such intent, I 
 should avoid the Marquis for several reasons, 
 which I will give you at some future time, but 
 of which the chief is that he is not French at
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 51 
 
 heart. Although he pretends to be well 
 affected to the King, he is no more to be 
 trusted than his brother, the Marquis Fran- 
 cois, whose treachery placed the lives of so 
 many brave nobles and knights, including 
 several of our relatives, in peril at the siege 
 of Fossan. 
 
 " I have also well considered the message 
 which this gentleman has transmitted to me 
 on your behalf. I see by it that you think of 
 me and care for me far more than I do for 
 myself; and I thank you for it with all my 
 heart, the only recompense I can offer you 
 being to assure you that you may always 
 count upon finding me your most grateful 
 cousin and affectionate friend, 
 
 " PHILIPPE DE MONTESPEDON. 
 
 " Lyons, April 12, 1540." 
 
 The journey of the two travellers was 
 drawing to an end. The Marquis, anxious to 
 make a grand appearance at Court, had pur- 
 chased the finest stuffs, and Madame de 
 Montejan had also bought a great many 
 articles of dress. In addition to this increase
 
 52 A GENTLEMAN OF TflE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 of baggage, M. de Saluce had, out of sheer 
 gallantry, hired a band of musicians to 
 " charm the ennui of the route," so that their 
 cortege was an endless one. The horses and 
 mules were accordingly sent by road to 
 Briare, the Mdrquis and his companion going 
 to Roaune, where they took boat upon the 
 Loire. Their immediate following was so 
 numerous that six boats were required, and 
 the meals were cooked on board. 
 
 Their journey proceeded uneventfully, and 
 when they got close to Paris, Vieilleville, who 
 had been advised of their progress by the 
 King's messengers, who were constantly on 
 the road between Paris and Piedmont, was 
 at Corbeil with eighty horses when they 
 reached Essonne, whither he despatched a 
 courier to take Madame de Montejan's orders. 
 She requested him to meet them at Juvisy on 
 the following day at the dinner hour. He 
 accordingly did so, and the interview was a 
 very cordial one. The two travellers related 
 to him their adventures, and expressed their 
 pleasure at getting back to Paris, which they 
 were to reach the same evening.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 53 
 
 After a short time, Madame de Montejan 
 withdrew to make ready for starting ; but 
 before getting on to her horse, she sent for 
 the head of her household, Sieur du Ples- 
 sis-au-Chat, a gentleman of Brittany, and 
 ordered him, as soon as they reached the 
 Porte St. Marceau, to separate her cortege 
 from that of the Marquis, and to proceed 
 along the fortifications, between that gate 
 and the Porte St. Jacques, while they were 
 taking leave of each other. 
 
 The travellers accordingly passed through 
 the Faubourg St. Marceau, making a very im- 
 posing show, and at the gate of the city, du 
 Plessis-au-Chat obeyed his mistress's orders, 
 and proceeded towards the Porte St. Jacques. 
 The Marquis, much surprised, thought that 
 he had mistaken the road, and asked him 
 where he was going. 
 
 " They are quite right," rejoined the 
 Marechale, "for your lodging is at the Hotel 
 des Ursins, in the cloister of Notre Dame, 
 and mine at the Hotel St. Denis, near the 
 Augustins. My honour prevents me from 
 lodging in the same hotel with you, and this
 
 54 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 is why we must now take leave of each other, 
 but I will not do so without very humbly 
 thanking you for your pleasant company. 
 With regard to the expenses of the journey, 
 I have kept a careful account of them, and 
 your steward and Plessis-au-Chat will settle 
 all that in a week, so that we shall be quits. 
 I mean as regards money, for as to the obli- 
 gation which you have put me under, it will 
 be lasting, and I am afraid that I shall never 
 be able fully to discharge it. I beg you to 
 believe that this is only a bodily separation, 
 for I leave you my heart, which I trust will 
 be in good keeping." 
 
 Whereupon she embraced him, adding : 
 " Adieu, monsieur ; we shall meet to-morrow 
 in the royal presence." 
 
 The Marquis was " so taken aback at this 
 sudden change" that he could not utter a 
 word. But " his sobs and sighs " spoke for 
 him. At last, recovering his presence of 
 mind, he replied : 
 
 "Madame, your farewell tore my heart- 
 strings, but your last words and the kiss you 
 honoured me with give me fresh courage.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 55 
 
 To-morrow, as you say, we shall meet again. 
 But do not forget the promises you gave me, 
 and good-bye." 
 
 Thereupon they parted. 
 
 While the worthy Marquis, hoping against 
 hope, was going over, as he rode along, the 
 many irrefutable reasons which would shortly 
 throw the beautiful Marechale into his arms, 
 she reached her lodging and set to making 
 herself at home with her heart far away from 
 her travelling companion. She was expecting 
 two visits, and it may be surmised that, while 
 giving her orders to her retinue, she had an 
 eye to her prim widow's dress, and was care- 
 ful that she did not appear at her worst ; for 
 the moment was a critical one, as in a few 
 hours time the secret of the message de- 
 livered at Lyons was to be revealed. M. de 
 Vieilleville presented to his cousin the future 
 master of her hand and heart, Prince Charles 
 de la Roche-sur-Yon. 
 
 This Prince, a brother of Louis II., Due 
 de Montpensier, and of Antoine, afterwards 
 King of Navarre, belonged to the younger 
 branch of the Bourbons, which was, as we
 
 56 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 
 
 know, very poor and much out of favour 
 since the treason of the Constable. The 
 Prince was a perfect gentleman, of good 
 presence, very courteous, and of most agree- 
 able manners. Of an amiable disposition, and 
 of an elevated character, he always took a 
 humane and tolerant view, Brantome tells us, 
 in the quarrels of religion. As brave and 
 valiant as he was sagacious and prudent, a 
 man of high honour in all matters, he never 
 deceived any one, and faithfully kept all his 
 promises. " So it was that a young lady of 
 the Court, with whom he was much in love, 
 called him the ' faithful grison,' in allusion to 
 a very handsome grey horse belonging to the 
 King."* 
 
 Vieilleville, his oldest and most intimate 
 friend, regarded this marriage as at once 
 calculated to ensure his happiness and to im- 
 prove his fortunes, while he thought that he 
 was advancing his cousin's interests by ob- 
 taining for her the rank of Princess and 
 relationship to the King through her marriage 
 to the most amiable man at Court. They 
 
 * ' Brantfime," vol. i., page 487.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 57 
 
 
 
 both pleased each other so well that, with 
 Vieilleville's help, they at once came to an 
 understanding, and Madame de Montejan 
 accepted the Prince as her suitor the same 
 evening. 
 
 Vieilleville urged him to press his suit, 
 declaring that any delay would be risky. The 
 situation was, beyond doubt, a rather com- 
 plicated one. 
 
 The next day, the Marquis de Saluce 
 arrived, attired with great splendour, and 
 brimming over with hope, to pay his respects 
 to the charming widow. It was scarcely 
 possible to pull him up short and treat 
 him with contumely, after having travelled 
 all that distance together. The least that 
 could be done was to avoid rejecting him 
 point blank, and to fence with his pressing 
 demands. So the matter was spun out, and 
 fresh suitors appeared upon the scene; 
 among others, Marshal d'Annebaud, who had 
 succeeded M. de Montejan as Governor of 
 Piedmont. " M. d'Annebaud was not much 
 of a courtier, nor was he very eloquent of 
 speech ; in fact, he stuttered slightly ; but he
 
 58 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 was a man of high honour, and very brave 
 into the bargain,"* besides being a great 
 favourite of the Dauphiness, Catherine de 
 Medicis, to whom he confided his aspirations 
 in a long letter, written on his way to take 
 over the government of Piedmont. 
 
 He stated in the letter that there were 
 three reasons which should make Madame 
 de Montejan decide in his favour; the first 
 being that he occupied the same position as 
 her late husband, so that she would not lose 
 in rank ; the second being that, having 
 rendered great and signal services to the 
 King, he stood a good chance of obtaining 
 preferment when there were any honours to 
 be bestowed;! while the third reason was, 
 that as his land in Brittany ran into the 
 property of Madame de Montejan, their 
 marriage would be a great convenience to 
 both. Putting their incomes together, they 
 would have a revenue of 100,000 livres 
 (francs), "which is a rare thing in this 
 
 " Brantome," vol. i., page 286. 
 
 t He was, as a matter of fact, appointed Admiral soon 
 after.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 59 
 
 kingdom, outside the rank of prince." 
 He accordingly entreated Madame la 
 Dauphine to " secure him this good 
 thing." 
 
 Upon receipt of this letter, Catherine, 
 who was very obliging to her friends, and 
 was, moreover, very partial to a display of 
 patronizing influence, took his request up, 
 and sent for the Marechale. The latter at 
 once obeyed the summons, and was informed 
 by the Dauphiness of her desire to arrange a 
 marriage for her. She then, without naming 
 the suitor, set before her all the advantages 
 dwelt upon by Marshal d'Annebaud in his 
 letter. 
 
 The Marechale, who was much less at 
 ease with persons of her own than she was 
 with those of the opposite sex, was taken quite 
 aback. The Dauphiness then said who her 
 protege was, and how much superior he was 
 to the Marquis de Saluce. The latter, she 
 said, Italian by birth, and Imperialist at 
 heart, would, if war breaks out afresh, be 
 out of favour at the least suspicion, and, what 
 is more, would be disgraced, for he would
 
 60 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 be denounced as a traitor. Moreover, "he 
 is very ungainly in his person, pot-bellied, 
 dirty, of a swarthy, bad complexion, and 
 devoid of all grace, while M. d'Annebaud, 
 as you see, is honest and strong, acceptable 
 in all ways." 
 
 Madame de Montejan listened very will- 
 ingly to all the hard things said of the 
 Marquis, but they did not make her any the 
 more favourable to M. d'Annebaud, and all 
 she had in her head for the moment was how 
 to avoid all these benevolent intentions with- 
 out displeasing the exalted personage who 
 had conceived them for her. 
 
 " I cannot say, Madame," she replied, 
 after a short pause, " whether Marshal 
 d'Annebaud or myself should be the more 
 grateful that a great Princess, the most ex- 
 cellent in Christendom, should have deigned 
 to take the trouble to bring us together. 
 How sorry I am that it did not please you, 
 while I was still on my journey, to announce 
 your intention, for then I would have fol- 
 lowed him, esteeming myself only too happy 
 to have been married by such hands as
 
 A GENTLKMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 61 
 
 yours. But now, Madame, I find myself so 
 far advanced in proposals of marriage with 
 some one else, that I could not well draw 
 back without laying myself open to a charge 
 of fickleness and bad faith. I hope, at all 
 events, that it will not be displeasing to you 
 that I should ally myself with one who will 
 one day have the honour of being the very 
 humble servant and near relative of your 
 children, should God grant to you and to us 
 the grace of your having any." 
 
 In reply to the inquiry of the Dau- 
 phiness as to whom she meant, Madamo 
 Montejan told her that it was the Prince de 
 la Roche-sur-Yon, and that her cousin, de 
 Yieilleville " had thrust the irons so far into 
 the fire that I could not draw back without 
 being accused of fickleness and bad faith." 
 
 Disarmed by this way of presenting the 
 matter, Madame la Dauphine congratulated 
 her, and handed her M. d'Annebaud's letter, 
 and promised not to speak on the subject 
 again. She also advised her, as Vieilleville 
 had done, to hurry on the marriage for fear 
 of its being opposed by the King, who was
 
 62 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 very much in favour of M. de Saluce. This, 
 however, was no such easy matter. Clever 
 as a woman may be, she always finds it 
 easier to get herself into an equivocal situa- 
 tion than to get out of it, as Madame de 
 Montejan learnt. Far from renouncing his 
 claims, M. de Saluce continued to declare 
 them to everyone, making himself very con- 
 spicuous in connection with the young widow. 
 He told everybody that she was irrevocably 
 engaged to him ; he styled her in public his 
 "mistress," after the fashion of the time, 
 and called to see her every day. Madame de 
 Montejan, dreading a scene, hoped to tire 
 him out by treating all this as a joke. She 
 laughed at his gallant expressions, affected 
 to regard them as of no significance, and 
 gradually drew further away from him. 
 
 A situation so false and so strained could 
 not last for ever. The dilatory state of affairs 
 irritated the impatience and vanity of the 
 Marquis, especially as whenever he came to 
 pay a visit he found the Prince de la Roche- 
 sur-Yon quietly settled in the room, and 
 apparently quite at home. The Prince was
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 63 
 
 a regular thorn in the flesh to him ; for what 
 could be harder than to find oneself in the 
 presence of a cold, taciturn, and polite noble- 
 man, whose rank of Prince exacted a certain 
 amount of respect., and of the woman with 
 whom you were in love, bright, amiable, and 
 good-natured, but ever intangible, and not 
 to be brought to the point. This is enough 
 to make any man, however convinced he may 
 be of his own merit, lose his head ; and so it 
 was with the Marquis. 
 
 His patience being exhausted, and be- 
 lieving that he was encouraged in his suit 
 by the King, he devised, as a means of 
 settling the matter, the most singular expe- 
 dient to which a suitor could resort that of 
 summoning Madame de Montejan, not before 
 the Official, a religious tribunal, but before 
 Parliament, for her to declare as to whether 
 or not she had promised him marriage. 
 
 The news of this created a great sensa- 
 tion, and it was the talk of the town and of 
 the Court. And Madame de Montejan, it 
 will be said, must have sincerely regretted her 
 coquetry when she was served with the writ.
 
 64 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Fortunately, in those days, when a young 
 and beautiful woman committed a foolish 
 act, there was always certain to be a man 
 ready to come forward and protect her 
 cause. In this case the man was her cousin, 
 and we shall see how he met the attack in 
 in a way that astonished both the Parliament 
 and the Court. 
 
 Upon the day appointed, by order of the 
 King, the Parliament assembled, the Presi- 
 dents and Councillors of the High Chamber 
 being present. The audience was a very 
 solemn one. Madame de Montejan came 
 into the Chamber attended by Vieilleville and 
 a suite of nobles, ladies, and damsels. The 
 First President made her raise her hand, and 
 asked her, in the presence of M. de Saluce, 
 whether she had not promised him marriage. 
 She replied, "No, upon my faith." The 
 President attempted to carry his examination 
 of her further, the Registrar writing down 
 her replies ; but she suddenly checked him, 
 and made the following speech : 
 
 " Gentlemen, I have never before found 
 myself face to face with the law as I do now,
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 65 
 
 and this what makes me apprehensive of con- 
 tradicting myself in my answers. But, in 
 order to prevent any sort of quibbling about 
 what I may say. I declare in your presence, 
 gentlemen, and in that of all here assembled, 
 I swear before God upon the eternal damna- 
 tion of my soul, and before the King upon 
 the confiscation of my life and honour, that 
 I never gave my word, or my pledge, or any 
 promise of marriage to M. de Saluce; and 
 what is more, I never thought of so doing. 
 And if there is anyone here who says the 
 contrary," she added, taking Yieilleville by 
 the wrist, " here is my chevalier, whom I 
 present to them, in order that he may up- 
 hold my word, which he knows to be true, 
 uttered by the lips of an honourable woman, 
 if ever there was one, and of a woman of 
 high repute, who, trusting in God and the 
 justice of her cause, hopes, with all due 
 respect to the Court, that he will prove him 
 to be a foul liar." 
 
 This was equivalent to taking the matter 
 out of the. hands of the gentlemen of the 
 long robe, and bringing it before that ancient 
 
 VOL. I. 5
 
 66 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 court of honour which, it is true, had been 
 allowed to fall into disuse, but the authority 
 of which could not be questioned by any 
 member of the French nobility, least of all 
 by the King chevalier. This the President 
 felt, and exclaimed, " What a check ! You 
 may as well retire, Registrar, for, as far as I 
 can see, there will be no further question of 
 taking down evidence in writing. Madame 
 la Mare*chale has adopted another course, 
 and a much shorter one." Turning to the 
 Marquis, he asked him : 
 
 " Well, sir, what view do you now take of 
 the matter ? " 
 
 The Marquis replied that he had no wish 
 to take a wife by force ; and " if she does not 
 wish to have me, neither do I her." 
 
 He then made a low bow and retired, 
 knowing that he could not attempt to cope 
 with Vieilleville, either in bodily agility, fat 
 as he was, nor as regards skill at fence, or 
 valour. 
 
 Vieilleville then asked the Parliament 
 whether Madame de Montejan was not at 
 liberty to contract marriage with whom she 

 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 67 
 
 pleased, inasmuch as the Marquis had pub- 
 licly withdrawn all pretensions to her hand. 
 The answer being in the affirmative, he 
 turned towards the Court, and said : 
 
 " Gentlemen, if you will be so good as to 
 come to the residence of the Archdeacon du 
 Hardaz, you will meet there the Prince de la 
 Roche-sur-Yon, accompanied by the Dukes 
 d'Etampes, Eohan, and Gie, waiting to be 
 affianced to Madame la Marechale. The 
 Bishop of Angers is quite ready to perform 
 the ceremony." 
 
 The Court, not wishing to be mixed up 
 in the disputes of the great, declined the 
 honour, saying that they must depute one of 
 their number to make a report of the pro- 
 ceedings to the King. 
 
 The Court then rose, and as the mem- 
 bers of it were leaving, one of them called 
 Vieilleville aside, and said to him in a 
 whisper : 
 
 "If you had not put this challenge to 
 combat in the way, the case would have 
 lasted six months, for the Marquis had pre- 
 pared an interrogatory of forty questions
 
 68 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 relating to all that the Marchale had said to 
 him and his suite, and to the kisses which 
 she had given him while on the road, notably 
 at the Porte St. Marceau. The most serious 
 allegation, however, was that of the equerry 
 St. Julien, governor of the Marquis's house- 
 hold, that she had promised him a chain 
 worth five hundred crowns for his wedding 
 uniform." 
 
 "Well," rejoined Vieilleville, "she is a 
 Frenchwoman who has beaten a hundred 
 Italians." 
 
 " Not so," said the other ; " it is you 
 who are the gallant hero of this triumph. 
 You managed the affair so well that it was 
 disposed of in less than an hour, and you 
 have extricated the Mar^chale from a very 
 awkward fix." 
 
 Upon the same day the betrothal was 
 effected, at the residence of the Archdeacon 
 of the Sainte-Chapelle, by the Bishop of 
 Angers, and four days later Cardinal de 
 Bourbon married them at the Church of the 
 Augustins, with very little pomp and cere- 
 mony, as was the custom with widows.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 69 
 
 Thus, the dream of M. de Chateaubriand 
 was in the end realized, and his ward married 
 a prince of the blood, this marriage being 
 also due to Vieilleville.* 
 
 * " Vieilleville," vol. xxviii., pages 197 to 218.
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 DEATH OF M. DE SCEPEAUX. FRIENDSHIP OF 
 VIEILLEVILLE AND THE BOURBON PRINCES. 
 CAMPAIGN IN PROVENCE. 
 
 IEILLEVILLE lost his father about 
 1540.* He then returned home 
 to take possession of his property, 
 and while there he determined to marry. 
 His choice fell upon a daughter of the 
 House of Tour -de - Maines, near Saumur, 
 a "beautiful and virtuous dame," who did 
 not, however, occupy a very large place in 
 his life. When he was about to bring her 
 back to his residence of St. Michel-en-Boys, 
 he asked M. de Chateaubriand, then Governor 
 of Brittany, to honour with his presence the 
 reception commonly known as " the return 
 
 This appears to me, from a comparison of the facts, the 
 mcst likely date.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 71 
 
 from the honeymoon." M. de Chateaubriand, 
 valetudinarian and gouty though he was, was 
 loth to refuse, having a great regard for his 
 young relative, and being anxious to make 
 certain proposals to him. When they were 
 alone, he made two : the first being that 
 he should assume the lieutenancy of his 
 company, with the authority .of captain; 
 and the second that he should have the 
 succession to the Governorship of Brittany, 
 which he felt sure the King would give him 
 the promise of. Vieilleville accepted the 
 offer of the company, and promised* his 
 relative to "lead it into places where it 
 would cover itself with glory " ; but he re- 
 fused the succession to the Governorship, 
 being too young and gallant to accept what 
 would be an honourable retreat, f 
 
 Vieilleville, allied to the Princes of the 
 House of Bourbon, lived upon very intimate 
 
 He did, as a matter of fact, make a very gallant use of 
 it during the campaign in the North, at the sieges of Lan- 
 drecies, St. Dizier, Hesdin, and Therouanne, and at the camp 
 of Marolles. " Vieilleville," vol. xxviii., page 184. 
 
 f "Vieilleville," vol. xxviii., page 181. M. de Chateau- 
 briand died soon after.
 
 72 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 terms with them at Court. The house of 
 the Comte de St. Pol, uncle of the Comte 
 d'Enghien, was like his own. The young 
 Comte d'Enghien was most devoted to him, 
 and treated him with the utmost deference. 
 He always called him his " bel oncle," a 
 term of alliance which was generally em- 
 ployed in France among the princely fami- 
 lies.* Whenever any party or entertainment 
 was got up 'at Court, they were sure to be 
 found upon the same side, and their mutual 
 friendship was as close as that of Damon and 
 Pythias. When they came to talk of serious 
 matters, the young Prince paid great atten- 
 tion to what Vieilleville said, and regarded 
 his word as law. He always called him in 
 public his " bel oncle, whom he loved better 
 than himself." 
 
 In 1543, during the war in Provence, the 
 Comte d'Enghien was sent thither to join 
 Barberousse's troops. Vieilleville, being at- 
 tached to the household of the Dauphin, was 
 
 * The Dukes of Brittany, Berry, Burgundy, Guyenne, 
 Orleans, Anjou, and Bourbon called each other step-uncle, 
 step-nephew, step-cousin.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME, 73 
 
 not one of the nobles selected to go with 
 him, and this was a great disappointment to 
 the young Prince, who set to thinking how 
 he could manage to get over this difficulty. 
 One day, while the Dauphin was playing at 
 tennis, he came to look on, as if by chance, 
 with a very doleful face. The Dauphin began 
 to talk to him about the war, but, suddenly 
 remarking his woe-begone looks, asked him 
 what was the matter. St. Andre, who was 
 always ready with a word, at once said : 
 
 " I would stake my life that it is because 
 he has to leave M. de Vieilleville behind." 
 
 " Why, of course," remarked the Dauphin ; 
 " what could I have been thinking of not to 
 have remembered his step-uncle? " 
 
 And without a moment's delay, calling 
 for Griffon, his valet of the chamber, he 
 asked him where M. de Vieilleville was. On 
 being told that he was in the apartments of 
 Madame d'^tampes, where he was playing 
 flux (a game of cards mentioned by Rabelais) 
 with her and Cardinal de Lorraine, the 
 Dauphin at once went there, and after 
 watching three or four cassades (hands), he
 
 74 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 informed Vieilleville that he was attached to 
 the person of the Comte d'Enghien during his 
 expedition to Provence. 
 
 Great was the joy of the two friends. 
 The Comte d'Enghien asked Vieilleville to 
 come to supper with him at his brother's, M. 
 de Vendome, where he was treated to much 
 good cheer, and sincerely thanked for the 
 " right good will " which he showed in com- 
 plying with his master's orders. The question 
 of their starting was also discussed and settled. 
 
 The two friends went by post straight to 
 Lyons, where they embarked upon the Rhone 
 as far as the village of Cabanes, about eight 
 miles from Marseilles, where they were met 
 by Baron de Grignan, the governor of the 
 province. 
 
 The Baron, upon M. d'Enghien's arrival, 
 asked him for a private audience, and then 
 communicated to him the treason of three 
 Savoyard soldiers, who had offered to deliver 
 to the French the Chateau of Nice, which 
 was the last refuge of the Emperor's ducal 
 ally. All required was that four galleys, 
 carrying the Comte d'Enghien and the most
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 75 
 
 dashing captains and nobles, should advance, 
 under cover of the night, beneath the walls 
 of the castle, when the garrison would make 
 over the fortress. 
 
 M. d'Enghien, being young, ardent, and 
 eager for glory, greeted this proposal with 
 enthusiasm ; but being unwilling to do any- 
 thing without the advice of Yieilleville, he re- 
 ported the matter to him. The proposal, 
 coming from the quarter it did, struck the 
 latter as suspicious and very likely to be a 
 ruse, so he advised the Count not to reject it 
 altogether, but to avoid exposing any of his 
 leading men in the four galleys which were 
 to advance beneath the walls of the Chateau, 
 and to let the remainder of the fleet keep 
 watch over them from a distance. It was 
 well that this advice was followed, for no 
 sooner had the galleys reached the Nice 
 waters, than they were surrounded by Doria's 
 vessels, and it was only by desperate rowing 
 that the Comte d'Enghien himself, who was 
 waiting at Cauroux to see the result, managed 
 to escape. This made him conceive a violent 
 hatred for M. de Grignan.
 
 76 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 But the unhappy Governor, in despair at 
 his blunder, fell ill, fearing that he would 
 be accused of treason, and that when the 
 facts were communicated to the King he 
 would be a lost man. So when Yieilleville 
 went to see him, he threw up his arms out- 
 side the bed, and entreated M. de Vieilleville 
 to effect his reconciliation with the young 
 Prince. Moved to compassion, especially be- 
 cause of his great age, Vieilleville promised 
 to intercede, and he accordingly urged the 
 Comte d'Enghien to go and see the old 
 man. But the Comte d'Enghien refused, 
 adding 
 
 "If he should die, the King will not be a 
 loser; and if the post becomes vacant, you 
 are on the spot to fill it up. Remember, my 
 bel oncle, that he engaged my honour and 
 risked my life. But for you, I should be 
 either dead or a prisoner. As to going to 
 see him, I cannot at all bring myself to do 
 that." 
 
 But Vieilleville returned to the charge, 
 saying 
 
 " You must remember that respect is due
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 77 
 
 to old age and to a lieutenant of the King 
 holding so high a rank. It would be a bad 
 example to set if a young Prince like you 
 were to be implacable. Come, sir, let us go 
 together, and do not let this matter irritate 
 you. In order to assure him that you are not 
 sending a dispatch to the King which is cal- 
 culated to injure him, write it in his presence, 
 and as he may dictate it." 
 
 M. d'Enghien having given way, they 
 went together to see M. de Grignan, in 
 whose presence the dispatch was written and 
 sent off, through Yalencienne, the Prince's 
 secretary. 
 
 Pending the arrival of Barberousse at 
 Marseilles, when the attack was to commence, 
 a succession of fetes served to beguile the 
 impatience of the young nobles. The Impe- 
 rial fleet, commanded by Doria, was not far 
 off, and among the officers with it was his 
 nephew, Count Phillip, Vieilleville's former 
 friend. Yieilleville wrote to him, and asked 
 him to name the ransom for M. de la Tour- 
 du-Maines, his brother-in-law, a prisoner of 
 the Imperial forces. Phillip sent him back
 
 78 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 without payment, in memory of their youth- 
 ful friendship and their happy days at 
 Naples. 
 
 The result of the campaign is well known, 
 how the town of Nice was taken and sacked 
 by the French and the Turks, who failed to 
 capture the Chateau. The Turks passed the 
 winter at Toulon, and sailed away in the 
 spring. M..d'Enghien then returned to the 
 army of the King, who was fighting in the 
 north, and Vieilleville went to reside upon his 
 property. 
 
 A few months later, as the war went on, 
 and things were not going on well in Pied- 
 mont, the King sent M. d'Enghien back there, 
 and the latter at once despatched a mes- 
 senger to Vieilleville, adjuring him to follow 
 him. He would brook no excuses, the only 
 one he " would accept being that Madame de 
 Vieillevelle was at the point of death, which 
 may God forbid ! He should not regard 
 himself as being the King's lieutenant in 
 Piedmont if he had not his ' bel oncle ' at 
 his side." 
 
 Upon reaching the scene of battle, the
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 79 
 
 Prince assumed command of the troops, and, 
 " by way of a start," he captured three or four 
 fortified places, right under M. de Guast's 
 nose. He then laid siege to Carignan, and 
 despatched to the King Blaise de Montluc, to 
 ask his consent to deliver battle.* Montluc 
 himself gives a very curious account of how 
 he fulfilled his mission. He says-: 
 
 " About noon, Admiral d' Annebaud bade 
 me go and see the King, who had already 
 opened his Council, at which were present 
 M. de St. Pol, the Admiral himself, the Grand 
 Equery Galliot, M. de Boissy, etc. The 
 Dauphin was standing behind the King's 
 chair, and the Admiral opposite, upon the 
 other side of the table. As I entered the 
 room, the King said to me 
 
 " Montluc, I desire that you should return 
 to Piedmont with my decision and that of 
 my Council to M. d'Enghien, and I wish you 
 to hear yourself the difficulty (regret) we have 
 in not allowing him to deliver battle as he 
 
 * Vincent Carlay tells us that he sent Captain Blainville. 
 But Montluc relates the scene so explicitly, that he must 
 have been a witness of it.
 
 80 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 wishes." Whereupon he ordered St. Pol to 
 give the reasons for this decision. 
 
 M. de St. Pol pointed out to what perils 
 a lost battle would expose the kingdom. The 
 Emperor and the King of England, allied 
 against France, were at that moment pre- 
 paring an invasion from the north, and it was 
 more important to defend the frontier than 
 to capture the Province of Milan, or assure 
 the conquest of Piedmont. The Admiral took 
 the same view as M. de St. Pol, as did the 
 other members of the Council. 
 
 " I was longing to speak," continues 
 Montluc, "and was about to interrupt M. 
 Galliot, when M. de St. Pol motioned to me 
 with his hand, as much as to say, ' Don't be so 
 hasty ! ' which made me hold my tongue, and 
 I saw that the King began to laugh. The 
 Dauphin did not give his opinion, which is, I 
 believe, the custom; but the King would 
 always insist upon his presence in Council, so 
 that he might become familiar with the con- 
 duct of affairs. ... In the presence of 
 these princes there are always several 
 opinions, and not always honest ones. People
 
 A. GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 81 
 
 speak so as to suit the humour of their 
 master. I should not be of much use in 
 such a Council, for I always say what I 
 think." 
 
 At last the King said : 
 
 " Have you well heard, Montluc, the 
 reasons which move me not to give 
 M, d'Enghien leave to fight or incur any 
 risk?" 
 
 "I answered that I had, but that if it 
 pleased His Majesty to let me give my 
 opinion, I would do so with pleasure. His 
 Majesty said that it would be his pleasure." 
 
 Montluc gives at length his harangue, 
 which was an ardent and voluble plea in 
 favour of war, terminating thus : 
 
 " All that these gentlemen fear is loss. I 
 have heard nothing else but ' if we are beaten! 
 if we are beaten ! ' I have heard no one say 
 ' if we are successful ! if we are successful, 
 what a grand thing it would be ! ' In 
 heaven's name, your Majesty, do not hesitate 
 to grant our request, and do not allow me to 
 return with the shame of having to say that 
 you have been afraid to let us incur the 
 
 TOL. I. 6
 
 82 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 hazard of a battle, we who offer you our lives 
 so willingly. 
 
 " The King, who had listened very kindly 
 to me, and who seemed to be amused at my 
 impatience, then looked across to M. de St. 
 Pol, who said : 
 
 " '"Would you change your mind because of 
 this madcap, who is only speaking of fighting, 
 and who takes no account of the disastrous 
 consequences to you of losing a battle ; that 
 is a calculation quite beyond the brain of a 
 young Gascon.' 
 
 " Montluc went on to advocate his cause, 
 emboldened by the nods of the Dauphin, 
 whom he had already convinced, and who 
 smiled to himself at the allusions he made. 
 M. de St. Pol, losing his temper, returned to 
 the charge, and exclaimed : 
 
 " * "What, your Majesty, is it possible you 
 are going to alter your mind and listen to 
 what this raving madcap says ? ' 
 
 " ' In good sooth, my cousin,* replied the 
 King, * he has given me such good reasons, 
 and represents so well the high spirits of my 
 people, that I hardly know what to say. 1
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 83 
 
 " To which M. de St. Pol rejoined : 
 " ' I see you are already talked over.' 
 " During all this time the Dauphin was still 
 nodding to Montluc, as much as to say, ( go 
 on.' St. Pol, having his back turned, did 
 not see this, but Admiral d'Annebaud did, 
 so when the King called upon him to give his 
 opinion, he said with a smile . 
 
 " ' Does your Majesty wish for the truth ? 
 You are dying to give them leave to fight. I 
 will not undertake to say positively whether 
 we shall be victors or vanquished, for that is 
 a secret known only to Providence, but I will 
 lay my life and honour that they will fight 
 like heroes. As you are half won over, and 
 are inclined to let them fight, offer up your 
 prayers to Almighty God, and entreat Him to 
 guide you to a right decision.' 
 
 " Then the King, lifting up his eyes to 
 heaven, and placing his cap upon the table, 
 said 
 
 " ' My God, I pray Thee to inspire me this 
 day with the right decision as to what is best 
 for the maintenance of my kingdom.' 
 
 " Whereupon the Admiral asked him what
 
 84 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 decision he had come to, and the King 
 answered, ' That they are to fight ! that they 
 are to fight ! ' 
 
 " * Then there is no more to be said,' re- 
 marked the Admiral. * If you are defeated, on 
 you alone be the blame, and if you are vic- 
 torious the same.' 
 
 " Then the King and all that were with 
 him arose, and I was scarcely able to contain 
 myself for joy." * 
 
 Once it was announced that there was to 
 be a battle, all the young men of the Court 
 started to join M. d'Enghien. St. Andre* (the 
 Dauphin's intimate friend), Dampierre, of the 
 Clermont family ; La Chateigneraye and 
 Jarnac, whose duel afterwards created so 
 much stir ; the Vidame de Chartres ; the 
 brothers Bonnivet ; Chatillon ; d'Andelot, 
 and many others. t The Prince was all the 
 more pleased to see them because the 
 treasury was empty, and he made use of 
 their purses to replenish it. The advances 
 
 * " Blaise de Montlnc," vol. rxii., pages 245 to 262. 
 t "Du BeUay," vol. xxi, page 104.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 85 
 
 were paid over to the Treasurer of the Special 
 War Fund, who became responsible for re- 
 payment pending the arrival of the King's 
 money. 
 
 M. d'Enghien's first question was as to the 
 whereabouts of his "bel oncle," and what he 
 was doing, and he was delighted to learn that 
 he might be expected to arrive the next day 
 with fifteen post horses. M. d'Enghien, on 
 hearing of this, took horse and went out four 
 miles to meet him, quite indifferent to any 
 feelings of jealousy which this might excite. 
 When they met, he would not allow him to 
 get off his horse, but they embraced each 
 other from the saddle, and rode back to- 
 gether to the Prince's quarters, where Vieille- 
 ville found himself treated like a brother. 
 
 The battle was preceded by numerous 
 skirmishes and countermarches, in which each 
 side endeavoured to deceive the other. Upon 
 Monday, April 14th, the two armies met near 
 Ceresoles. 
 
 The French numbered from twelve to 
 fifteen thousand men, while the Imperial 
 forces ranged from fifteen to twenty thousand.
 
 86 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 The Marquis de Guast was so confident of 
 success that he had had chains made for the 
 French, and locks to fasten them with at the 
 galleys. When he showed these chains to the 
 ladies at Milan, the latter entreated him to 
 deal mercifully with the Comte d'Enghien, 
 " because he was so good-looking ;" but he 
 roughly replied that "the day of knight 
 errants had gone by." 
 
 When the Imperial forces were routed, M. 
 de Guast fled, and among the enemy's baggage 
 the French found more than four thousand 
 locks, which had been intended to secure 
 them to the galleys. The Marquis de Guast, 
 after this ludicrous collapse of his boastings, 
 never ventured to show himself to the ladies 
 of Milan again.* 
 
 An incident which occurred during the 
 retreat was near to costing the Due d'Enghien 
 his life. As the Prince of Salerno, with eight 
 or nine hundred cavalry, which had hardly 
 been engaged at all, was retreating in good 
 
 * "Observations aux Me"moires de du Bellay," vol. xxi., 
 page 297.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 87 
 
 order, M. St. Andre and Chateigneraye 
 set out in pursuit with scarcely more than a 
 hundred horsemen, and M. d'Enghien wished 
 to join in with them. But Vieilleville stopped 
 him by reminding him how Gaston de Foix 
 met his death by being stabbed while pursuing 
 fugitives at Eavenna. To which M. d'Eng- 
 hien rejoined 
 
 " Stop MM. St. Andre and La Chateig- 
 neraye, and I will stop too." 
 
 "In heaven's name, Monseigneur," ex- 
 claimed Vieilleville, " you forget your station, 
 and are simply anxious to cut out the two 
 others." 
 
 M. d'Enghien then threw his arms over 
 Vieilleville' s neck, and said 
 
 " All right, my bel oncle, we will say no 
 more about it." 
 
 He had scarcely spoken when St. Andre 
 and la Chateigneraye came back at full 
 gallop, as the Prince of Salerno, seeing how 
 matters stood, turned round and charged the 
 small French detachment. 
 
 Then Vieilleville remarked 
 
 "Now is the time to march and fight,
 
 88 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 inasmuch as the enemy is facing us ; not when 
 he has his back turned." 
 
 But on seeing the forces collecting around 
 M. d'Enghien, the Prince of Salerno again 
 beat a retreat.* 
 
 * " Vieilleville," vol. xxviii., pages 263 to 291. Poem by 
 Ronsard on the Battle of Ceresoles, edition of 1623, in folio, 
 vol. i., p. 341.
 
 CHAPTER Y. 
 
 HENRI II. DIANE DE POITIERS. MONT- 
 MORENCY. ST. ANDRE. 
 
 ENRI II. succeeded Ms father on 
 the 15th of March, 1537, being 
 then twenty-eight years of age. 
 The numerous portraits of this sovereign* 
 represent him as having coarse and common- 
 place features, very undecided lines of coun- 
 tenance, no expression, no light or fire in the 
 eyes. One can read upon this inexpressive 
 
 * See in the Louvre, No. Ill, the portrait by Clouet, and 
 the copy of it. See also the statue attributed to Jean 
 Goujon, and that by Germain Pillon, in the Salle de la 
 Renaissance, Nos. 101 and 129, at Versailles ; two portraits 
 on wood, of the sixteenth century, one of them attributed 
 to Quesnel, Nos. 3177 and 3178 ; two imitations of Clouet, 
 Nos. 3175 and 3176. See also the curious drawings in the 
 Gower, Niel, Gaignieres, and Lenoir Collections. All these 
 portraits depict exactly the same type of countenance.
 
 90 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 and melancholy face all the misfortunes of his 
 past life : his early years devoid of maternal 
 affection, and then the misfortunes of his 
 country, which came upon him while still a 
 child. 
 
 Henri d' Orleans was seven years old 
 when called upon, with his brother, to take 
 his share of the burden of royalty. Of a 
 timid disposition, he had to face exile and 
 imprisonment at an age when he most needed 
 the care and the comforts of home ; having a 
 fortress for a residence, with thick bare walls, 
 and iron-barred windows, admitting little 
 light and less air. Instead of being able to 
 play in the sunshine, to mount his horse, and 
 to take part in the games of boyhood, he was 
 shut up in solitude with the Dauphin, the 
 only pastime which they had being to colour 
 a few rude drawings, which, as their jailer 
 contemptuously put it,* was "a poor amuse- 
 ment for so mighty a Prince." His servitors 
 had been sent to the galleys, captured by the 
 Turks, or reduced to slavery, and he saw 
 
 * "Fransois I.," page 193.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 91 
 
 nothing around him but hostile faces, and 
 heard nothing but words of mistrust or 
 denunciation. Fear and cruelty were his 
 masters, and when the hour of deliverance 
 arrived, he, who had so long been broken to 
 a regime of isolation and silence, suddenly 
 found himself in the midst of a country which 
 was overflowing with delight at his return. 
 The shouts of joy, the acclamations and the 
 triumphant greetings dazed him,* and all the 
 faces he saw were new to him. He assumed 
 his proper rank in the kingdom, and his 
 household was chosen from among the 
 greatest in the land ; but all these honours 
 were a burden to him. A stranger among 
 his own people, the witty and learned con- 
 versation of this brilliant Court, its cleverness 
 and bon mots were lost upon him. Married 
 at the age of fifteen to a wife for whom he felb 
 nothing but aversion, he avoided her to the 
 utmost, isolating himself as far as possible, 
 while his timidity and awkwardness were 
 regarded as proofs of his stupidity. His 
 
 * " Fran?ois I," page 199.
 
 92 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 courtiers despised him, and made fun of him 
 among themselves ; and when the death of 
 the Dauphin brought him a step nearer to the 
 throne, his father was quite in despair at 
 thinking what a poor successor he would have. 
 
 Upon one occasion, towards the end of 
 1536, when Francois I. was speaking in this 
 sense to the Grande Sene'chale of Normandy, 
 one of the principal ladies of the Court, she 
 said in joke that the best way would be to 
 make him fall in love, and that she would 
 get him to do so with her. The King told 
 her to do so, also as a joke.* 
 
 Diane, born on September 3rd, 1499, was 
 nineteen years older than Henri II. t Her 
 father, Jean de Poitiers, Seigneur de St. 
 Vallier, was a gentleman of the province of 
 Dauphiny, of very old family he claimed to 
 descend from the last Dukes of Aquitaine 
 but of very scanty fortune. Diane, being the 
 eldest of three daughters, was considered 
 
 * " Addition aux Mdmoires de Castelnau," page 276. 
 
 f "Dictionnaire Historique de Lalanne,'' page 1472. Bran- 
 tome assigns as the date of her birth 1496 ; Duchesne, 1500 ; 
 Pere Anselme, 1499." Fontanieu," 290 and 291.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 93 
 
 very Incky to have been able to marry when 
 about fifteen March 29th, 1514 Louis 
 de Breze, Comte de Maulevrier, Grand 
 Senechal of Normandy, who was fifty- 
 four years of age. M. de Breze descended, 
 through his mother, from Charles VII. and 
 Agnes Sorel.* The early youth of Diane is 
 enveloped in much mystery, and she is 
 first brought into notice at the trial of her 
 father in connection with the Bourbon con- 
 spiracy. 
 
 The question as to whether Diane was the 
 mistress of Francois I. before becoming the 
 mistress of Henri II., is one which has given 
 rise to much discussion, and is still un- 
 settled, f It implies, moreover, the apprecia- 
 tion, not of the virtuous character of Diane, 
 
 * The marriage of Louis de Breze"'s father, which took 
 place in 1462, was followed by a terrible drama. Fourteen 
 years later, upon July 14th, 1476, M. de Brez6, finding his 
 wife in the arms of his huntsman, stabbed them both. For 
 this he was prosecuted, and condemned to pay the King 
 (Louis XI.) a fine of a hundred thousand crowns, to satisfy 
 which debt he had to abandon his domain to the Crown. 
 But after the King's death, he got the judgment annulled 
 by Parliament. 
 
 f See the discussion quoted by M. Guiffrey in his intro- 
 duction to the " Lettres Inedites de Diane de Poitiers."
 
 94 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 but of a particular circumscribed fact, and it 
 must be borne in mind, in discussing it, that 
 the love of scandal is no more a principle 
 of criticism than an optimism of innocence. 
 
 At the time of the St. Vallier trial 
 (1523), Diane, who had been nine years 
 married, was the mother of two daughters. 
 Attached to the household of Queen Claude 
 during her life, she then formed part of the 
 household of the Regent as lady in waiting, 
 her husband exercising the functions of 
 Grand Master. By a strange and painful 
 coincidence, it was M. de Bre*ze, warned by a 
 priest,* who revealed to the Queen Regent 
 the Bourbon conspiracy, little thinking that 
 his father-in-law was concerned in it. One 
 can easily imagine the grief and shame of 
 husband and wife, their remorse, perhaps, 
 when this came to light. 
 
 The St. Vallier of history is very unlike 
 the St. Vallier of story. Drawn into the 
 Bourbon conspiracy by the promptings of 
 
 f This priest had been confided this secret in the confes- 
 sional by two Norman gentlemen, Matignon and d'Argonge, 
 who had authorised him to reveal it.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 95 
 
 unsatisfied ambition, he was unable to hold 
 up his head as soon as ever he was detected. 
 Conducted first of all to Tarare, and after- 
 wards to Loches, he was overcome with 
 terror, weeping and humiliating himself to 
 such an extent that he fell positively ill with 
 despair at his situation. 
 
 " If you want to know what sort of treat- 
 ment my master is receiving," writes one of 
 his servants who accompanied him to prison, 
 " I can assure you that since he has been in 
 the hands of M. d'Aubigny, no poor wretch 
 was ever so maltreated, and I have to tell 
 you that not a day has passed that he has 
 not cried his eyes out. I much fear that, 
 unless God intervenes to alter things, he has 
 not long to live, for his clothes hang looser 
 on him every day, and he is so wasted that 
 he would fill you with pity for him, and to 
 make matters worse, they have lodged him 
 right up at the top of the dungeon, where 
 criminals are generally placed, which is 
 enough to break his heart."* 
 
 * French MS., 5109, folio 105, quoted by M. Guiffrey.
 
 90 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 St. Vallier applied to all his acquaint- 
 ances, entreating them to ask for his pardon; 
 to the Master of the Queen Regent, to the 
 Bishop of Lisieux, and to the Grand Veneur. 
 He appeals even more pressingly to his 
 children, and his letters, still extant, over- 
 flow with humility and despair. 
 
 "Writing to the Senechal, he says : "I 
 think, Monsieur mon Fils, you need not be 
 told what has befallen me; viz., that the 
 King has had me arrested without any just 
 cause, and had me lodged here in the Castle 
 of Loches as if I were a wretched traitor, the 
 which gives me so much pain that it is kill- 
 ing me. You being the person dearest to me 
 in the world, and in whom I place the most 
 trust, I hereby notify to you my trouble, so 
 that you may have pity upon me and extri- 
 cate me from my misery. ... I am told 
 that the King has been asked to confiscate 
 my property. You will see to this, as it 
 affects your interests as well." 
 
 To his daughter he writes : " Madame, 
 since I last wrote to you, I have arrived here 
 at the Castle of Loches, and am as badly
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 97 
 
 treated as any poor prisoner can be. . . . 
 And as all my hopes are centred upon your 
 husband and you, I beg of him that he will 
 come and see me, ... or that you will 
 come and see me, so that we may settle what 
 you had best say to Madame. ... I implore 
 of you to have enough pity upon your poor 
 father to be willing to come and see him. 
 It breaks my heart not to be able to give you 
 better news."* 
 
 Not very heroical this ! 
 
 It was not surprising that his children, 
 whose functions attached them to the per- 
 sons of royalty, should have exerted them- 
 selves to the utmost to save their father, 
 especially after having been the involuntary 
 means of denouncing him. It would have 
 been strange too if Francois I., who was so 
 easily moved as a rule, had been altogether 
 deaf to their supplications. 
 
 "Nothing," Belleforest tells us, "moves 
 the King so much as the tears and prayers of 
 Diane de Poitiers, who, having been brought 
 up in the service of the King's mother, as 
 
 * French MS., 5109, folios 103 and 104. 
 
 VOL. I. 7
 
 98 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 well as of Queen Claude, urged her suit so 
 well that the King accprded the pardon of 
 the father to the daughter, who was ready 
 to follow him to the grave if he had been 
 executed."* 
 
 This feeling of pity failed, however, to 
 deliver her father from his judges and his 
 jailers. In spite of Diane's efforts, the trial 
 was proceeded with, and Francois, who was 
 not blind to the peril in which a revolt of the 
 nobility placed the Crown, had it conducted 
 with the utmost rigour. He wrote himself 
 to the judges to press them on, to excite their 
 zeal, and to put them on their guard against 
 an indulgence which would be fatal to the 
 kingdom. The King writes : " We have 
 had your letters, my friends and loyal sub- 
 
 * Belleforest, " Annales de la France," vol. ii., pages 14 
 and 145. Contemporary writers, if they refer to the matter 
 at all, agree with this account. Neither Le Ferron nor the 
 brothers Du Bellay, nor Vieilleville, nor Montluc, nor Ta- 
 vannes, nor Villars, nor Etienne Pasquier attribute the 
 King's action to any other motive than pity. It was only in 
 the second half of the sixteenth century, thanks especially 
 to the loose humour of Brantome, and the hatred of Pro- 
 testant historians, that these accusations were sown broad- 
 cast.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 99 
 
 j and taken cognisance of the acts and 
 procedures, as well as of the confession which 
 St, Yallier made before you, but from which 
 we gathered nothing not previously known 
 to us." The King went on to speak of the 
 dangers arising to the kingdom, and of the 
 necessity of discovering all the guilty parties. 
 " Thus we see no reason why we should be 
 moved to pardon St. Yallier, nor why his 
 confession should be kept secret, the which 
 we order to be communicated to the Presi- 
 dent You must not proceed coldly, 
 
 but with vigour and zeal, and not spare those 
 who have been evil, cowardly, disloyal, per- 
 jurers and traitors. . . . We by no means 
 approve of your proposal to submit the whole 
 matter to our Parliament. . . . We have 
 chosen and selected you to hear the said 
 case according to your knowledge and wis- 
 dom. . . . Do not leave us to imagine that 
 from pusillanimity you are anxious to rid 
 yourselves of the responsibility of this affair. 
 We must know at once, by means of torture, 
 if necessary, who are the conspirators. . . . 
 St. Yallier and d'Escar know all about it,
 
 100 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 and, seeing this and the imminent peril at 
 your gates, act accordingly. . . . After all 
 this has been done, the next thing is to pass 
 final sentence upon the guilty and have it 
 promptly executed." * 
 
 The examination of the accused was, there- 
 fore, proceeded with without any intermission. 
 The apparatus for putting him to the ques- 
 tion was brought out, and if he was not actu- 
 ally put to it, the reason was that the doctor 
 certified that, old and ill as he was, his body 
 trembling with fear and fever, he would suc- 
 cumb under the test.f Sentence of death 
 was passed on him, and he was taken out to 
 the Place de Greve for execution. Here, it is 
 true, his pardon arrived, brought by one of 
 the King's archers ; but it was a strange 
 kind of pardon ! In consideration of the 
 services rendered by his family, and especi- 
 ally those rendered by M. de Breze, who had 
 revealed the plot to the King, the sentence 
 
 French MS., No. 1509, folio 111. 
 
 f " Proces de Saint- Vallier : Sa Confession." Brienne, 
 186, folios 11, 17, and 27; "Arret," folio 28; "Degrada- 
 tion," folio 29.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 101 
 
 of death was commuted to one of imprison- 
 ment for life "between four stone walls, 
 bricked up above and below, and having only 
 one small window through which his food 
 and drink should be passed to him." * And, 
 so far was this from being a merely formal 
 sentence that two years afterwards, in July, 
 1525, in a memoir which the Constable de 
 Bourbon addressed to the King of Spain, we 
 find him asking, as one of the conditions of 
 the Madrid Treaty, that St. Vallier should be 
 released from prison and have his property 
 restored to him. 
 
 This is scarcely the favour which a lover 
 such as Francois I. would have accorded to a 
 mistress such as Diane. In order to get 
 over this difficulty, it has been said that the 
 connection between them was of later date. 
 But I should like to know when, for there is 
 no trace of it. We are asked to believe that 
 the Comtesse de Chateaubriand and the 
 
 * Brienne, 186, folios 30 and 34. See also Dupuy, 480, 
 folio 46 ; and French MS., 1509, folios 216, etc., and 18,450. 
 It may be remarked that all the other conspirators were 
 respited, not one of them being executed.
 
 102 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Duchesse d'Etampes, both of whom were 
 openly the King's mistresses, would have put 
 up with such a rival without a murmur, and 
 that not a whisper of any outbreak of temper 
 or of any quarrel would reach us. We are 
 further asked to believe that Diane herself 
 was so discreet and disinterested as not to 
 let a word escape her, and to envelope the 
 whole affair in mystery. We know that she 
 was very different from that. 
 
 An unknown collector produces seventeen 
 letters without any address, signature, or 
 date, and tells us that they were written by 
 Diane and addressed to Frangois I. No one, 
 after reading them and comparing them to 
 the authentic correspondence, can assert 
 that they are of the same style, or breathe 
 the same spirit ; and Sainte-Beuve, one of 
 the most incisive critics of our time, has 
 dealt with this question far more effectively 
 than I could.* 
 
 * M. Champollion himself, who has published these 
 letters as a sequel to the poems of Francois I., is doubtful as 
 to their origin. He says in his introduction : " With 
 regard to Diane de Poitiers, it is from a contemporary MS. 
 note that we learnt that they were written by this cele-
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 103 
 
 The justification of Diane consists, to my 
 mind, in the obscurity in which she passed 
 her life after her father's trial, and in which 
 she remained until the death of her husband 
 in 1533. During these ten years there was 
 nothing to call public attention to her 
 neither social scandal and intrigue, nor the 
 munificent gifts of a Sovereign. She lived, 
 unheard of, in the country, and it was only 
 after her widowhood that she came back to 
 reside at Court. 
 
 "We have four portraits of her (two draw- 
 ings, a medallion, and a statue) which are 
 considered to be authentic.* None of them 
 
 bra ted woman and addressed to the King. I have accepted 
 this version, though several passages of the letters them- 
 selves render it a very problematic one." The writer of the 
 letters, for instance, speaks of her father-in-law, and Diane 
 had lost hers. Sainte-Beuve, "Journal des Savants," 1847, 
 page 289, has also set his face against this interpretation of 
 their origin. M. Guiffrey, publisher of the " Correspondence 
 de Diane de Poitiers," will not hear of it. 
 
 * The oldest, which appears to date from the year 1520, 
 is a drawing in the Mejanes Library, at Aix, with the 
 following inscription upon the border in the handwriting of 
 Frangois I. : 
 
 " Bele a la veoir 
 Oneste a la anter." 
 
 It has been very carefully copied by the librarian. The
 
 104 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 give one the idea of the perfect beauty which 
 her name evokes. They denote, rather, 
 strength, vigour, rude health, an energetic 
 and resolute disposition. The features are 
 very pronounced, and the physiognomy 
 haughty. The narrow forehead denotes 
 rather decision and adhesion to a fixed prin- 
 ciple rather than elevation of character. The 
 lips are sarcastic and disdainful, the look 
 domineering, and there is no sign of any self- 
 abandonment, tenderness, or sensuality in 
 this strong-willed and self-asserting nature.* 
 
 second, in the Kiel collection, was done when she was about 
 thirty-five years of age, and bears the ancient inscription : 
 " La Grande Sene"chale." The third, a medallion of the time, 
 is in the Cabinet des Medailles. The fourth is the stone 
 statue upon the tomb at Versailles, where she is represented 
 upon her knees. There are many others in the Louvre, 
 Rouen Cathedral, Chenonceaux, Chaumont, Versailles, Fon- 
 tainebleau, Hampton Court, and private collections; but 
 nothing certain is known as to their authenticity. " Lettres 
 In&lites," page xx. 
 
 * She had, as we gather from a note by Fontanieu, very 
 black and curly hair, a very white skin, admirable teeth and 
 hands, a very tall figure, and fine carriage. She never knew 
 what it was to be in bad health. In the coldest weather she 
 washed her face with rain-water, and never used pomades. 
 She got up at six, and often rode five or six miles, coming 
 back to bed, and reading there till noon. "Fontanieu," 
 pages 290 and 291.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 105 
 
 We find her the same in her correspon- 
 dence* of a cold temperament, hard at 
 heart, and of a very positive and calculating 
 disposition. The keen passion for power, 
 honours, and money absorbed the whole 
 nature of this ambitious woman, and in the 
 conduct of affairs she displayed marvellous 
 surety of judgment and great practical 
 sagacity. Very characteristic of this are the 
 letters addressed to her cousin, M. du Bou- 
 chage. Always slow to pay her debts, inex- 
 orable and unrelenting in the recovery of 
 what was due to her, we find her discussing 
 each detail with all the acuteness of a pro- 
 curator. Perfectly familiar with all the 
 particulars of the various properties which 
 she owed to the munificence of the Sovereign, 
 she weighed carefully the advantages of each, 
 and considered how she could best augment 
 the profits of it. She even took care to make 
 the best bargain possible out of the Spanish 
 prisoners who had been captured at sea and 
 reduced to slavery. She even sold them to 
 
 " Lettres Incites." Published by M. Guiffrey, 1 vol. 
 Eenouard.
 
 106 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 the highest bidders, who happened to be the 
 Genoese, though they were the enemies of 
 France, and were likely to use them as 
 soldiers, justifying her conduct by the follow- 
 ing piece of casuistry : 
 
 " If," she writes, "the Genoese should so 
 employ them, it cannot be said that they will 
 thereby be adding to their strength, but 
 rather weakening themselves by the with- 
 drawal of the money they have paid for 
 them."* 
 
 This is a true test of her character, but, 
 at the same time, this woman was gifted with 
 a very remarkable intelligence, with much 
 culture and a high artistic taste, and she 
 also possessed a well-balanced mind, great 
 tact and adaptability, together with no 
 little suppleness and ease of deport- 
 ment. 
 
 Her daughters being of a marriageable 
 age, Diane came, after her husband's death, 
 to live at Court. She assumed a very retiring 
 attitude, keeping herself almost entirely to 
 
 * " Lettres Inedites," by M. Guiffrey, 1 voL Renouard.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 107 
 
 herself, and living in great retirement. Her 
 mourning, black and white, which she wore 
 for the rest of her life, suited her to perfec- 
 tion ; and this severe attire, added to a 
 youthful aspect, which, as Brantome tells us, 
 resisted all the ravages of time,* ensured for 
 her a prominent and respected , position at 
 the Court of Francois I., who had known her 
 when young in the households of Queen 
 Claude and of his mother, and who was 
 much attached to her. The narratives of the 
 Venetian Ambassadors, so full of anecdotes 
 and gossip about the Court just at this 
 period, mention this friendship without 
 putting any evil interpretation upon it. 
 Diane had at that time got beyond her early 
 womanhood, and seemed immersed in her 
 
 * " I saw Madame de Valentinois at the age of 70 she 
 is said to have died when 66 only as handsome, as fresh, and 
 as agreeable as at 30. She would have stirred the coldest 
 heart, though she had shortly before broken a leg by a fall 
 from her horse at Orleans. She had a naturally white skin, 
 and this without the aid of powder or any other cosmetics, 
 though it is said that she employs a certain broth made of 
 liquid gold and other drugs." "Brant6me," vol. ii., page 
 395. This broth consisted of cold water and perhaps 
 indifference.
 
 108 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 souvenirs, nor did she display any sort of 
 pretension or coquetry. Francois appreciated 
 her cleverness, and enjoyed conversation with 
 her, for Diane understood politics, and was 
 fond of Art, interesting herself in the King's 
 affairs as if they were her own. They used 
 to hold long conferences together, and it was 
 in this way that he one day, half in jest, 
 entrusted her with the education of the 
 Dauphin, little thinking what a wise thing he 
 was doing. 
 
 It is doubtful whether, at first, Diane had 
 any ambitious plans upon this point. Life is 
 fertile in surprises, and the one which awaited 
 her in this instance was due not to any 
 stirring of her heart, but to the success of her 
 enterprise. 
 
 In accordance with the King's instruc- 
 tions, Diane set to work in quite a maternal 
 way. Having to mollify the savage nature of 
 this wayward youth, she employed gentle 
 means, and sought to attract him by bright 
 and insinuating ways. She succeeded in 
 riveting his attention and in accustoming 
 him to come to her of his own accord. She
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 109 
 
 was not in the least impatient, and played 
 with him as tenderly as an angler with a 
 difficult fish. By means of delicate play, she 
 opened up the hidden recesses of his mind, 
 and so gradually established her influence 
 over him. In a short time a wonderful 
 change was noticed in the person of the 
 Dauphin. 
 
 " The young Prince, with his pale, sallow, 
 and melancholy face, whom, as I told you, 
 few of those who knew him best had ever 
 seen laugh heartily," writes the Venetian Am- 
 bassador, Dandolo, "has, I can assure you, 
 grown to be quite cheerful, and is in excellent 
 health."* 
 
 Owing, however, to the age of Diane 
 who was old enough to be his mother to her 
 reputation for prudence and her air of 
 severity, the Court at first believed in the 
 maternal nature of their relations. " The 
 Dauphin Henri," writes Michel Susiane, 
 " cares little for women. His own wife is 
 quite enough for him. In regard to conver- 
 
 * Baschet, " Diplomatic Vnitienne," page 432.
 
 110 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 sation, the only woman he is at all intimate 
 with is Madame la Senechale of Normandy. 
 He is really devoted to her, but it is not con- 
 sidered that there is anything sensual about 
 their intimacy ; they are like mother and 
 son. It is said that this lady has undertaken 
 to advise, direct, and correct the Dauphin, 
 and to impel him towards all that is worthy 
 and befitting his station. She is performing 
 her part to perfection."* 
 
 Whether or not Diane had calculated her 
 effects, it is certain that she did not scruple 
 to take advantage of her situation. But she 
 at all events kept up outward appearances, 
 and during the whole of her life she main- 
 tained that she had been no more than the 
 friend of Henri. But a Court is not easily 
 deceived in these matters, and the happiness 
 which the Dauphin displayed would alone 
 have sufficed to betray the secret. The 
 change in his attitude soon excited suspi- 
 cions, and the outcome of many enquiries and 
 investigations brought the truth to light. 
 
 " Ambassadeurs Venitiens," vol. ii., page 287.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. Ill 
 
 There was no little talk over the matter, as 
 may be imagined, and it is said that the 
 King, finding how far his instructions had 
 been exceeded, was not at all pleased. The 
 courtiers could not conceal their amusement, 
 but the Duchesse d'Etampes was furious. It 
 was unendurable that this elderly woman, 
 who was married upon the day she was born,* 
 should be the mistress of the young Dauphin, 
 while she belonged to the aged and decrepit 
 father. Orders were given that the shameless 
 widow should be made the target of endless 
 epigrams ; one of these, composed by Marot, 
 running : 
 
 Que voulez-vous, Diane bonne, 
 
 Que vous donne 
 
 Vous n'eustes, comme j'entends, 
 Jamais tant d'heur au printemps 
 
 Qu'en automne.'f 
 
 At the same time, the susceptibility of 
 the Dauphin being thus discovered, all sorts 
 
 * " Additions aux Memoires de Castelnau," vol. iii., page 
 553. This was an exaggeration, for Diane was not more 
 than ten years the senior of the Duchesse d'Etampes. 
 
 t "Marot, Edition St. Marc," vol. i., page 431. This 
 epigram shows that Marot did not believe in the liaison of 
 Diane with Fra^ois I.
 
 112 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 of devices were resorted to for enticing him 
 from his new passion. The ladies of the 
 Court made it a point of honour to do this, 
 and they were well seconded by the courtiers. 
 The Duchesse d'Etampes was at the head 
 of this cabal, but it was all in vain, for the 
 Dauphin cared only for Diane, who, anxious 
 to avoid anything like a scandal, paralyzed 
 the attack by the most imperturbable self- 
 possession. The most irritating acts and 
 the most pointed insults were all of no effect 
 upon her. The point she had in view was 
 to retain the favour of the King, who was 
 very touchy in regard to his heir. This she 
 succeeded in doing, thanks to her good- 
 humoured and fanciful way of treating 
 serious things lightly. It was difficult, 
 moreover, for Frangois I. to act otherwise, 
 for he was not much of a hand at moralising, 
 and so he remained friendly with Diane. 
 
 She then set herself to strengthening her 
 position by marrying her daughters into two 
 illustrious houses the Lamarks and the 
 Guises. She thus created for herself power- 
 ful supporters at Court, and the number of
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 113 
 
 her friends increased as the King's health 
 declined, a regular party being formed, of 
 which she was the centre.* She exhibited 
 wonderful skill in her dealings with the 
 Dauphin. Instead of showing petty and 
 irritating jealousy for all that did not relate 
 immediately to herself, she entered into the 
 sentiments of the young Prince, into his 
 relations with his friends and family, even 
 into his duties. 
 
 The Dauphin had a strong antipathy for 
 his wife. The marriage had, politically, been 
 a great disappointment for the King, and as 
 there did not seem likely to be any issue 
 from it, there was much talk of a divorce. 
 Catherine remained isolated and neglected at 
 Court, but Diane, feeling that she could do 
 more with her than she could with any fresh 
 wife, took her under her protection, and not 
 only stood out against a divorce, but recon- 
 ciled her husband to her. She induced him 
 to show her more attention, and when 
 
 * See " Fransois] I.," page 331, for an account of the 
 divisions and disputes which embittered the last years of 
 Fra^ois I.'s life. 
 
 VOL. i. 8
 
 114 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 children were born to her, Diane attended 
 her in her confinements, assumed the manage- 
 ment of the household, and selected the 
 nurse, as well as the governor and governess 
 for the children, of whose education she had 
 the superintendence. Henri being a very 
 good father, this gave her an additional hold 
 upon him. 
 
 The King had formed two great friend- 
 ships, before he knew Diane, with Mont- 
 morency and St. Andre, and she, instead of 
 seeking to break them off, set herself to 
 making them serve her ends. 
 
 The Dauphin, attached to Montmorency 
 from his childhood, had a filial regard for 
 him. During his six years exile, he wrote to 
 him constantly, keeping him fully informed 
 as to the doings of the Court, and treating 
 him as the future minister of the kingdom.* 
 Diane, being aware of this, made advances to 
 Montmorency, and, as they had common 
 interests, they became very intimate. They 
 had many points of contact, both alike being 
 
 * Source of the affection of the King for Montmorency, 
 "Me"moire sur Henri II.," folio 1737, page 13.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 115 
 
 endowed with firm and dogged will, a perti- 
 nacious and positive mind, and an implacable 
 and grasping disposition. Diane, however, 
 had the advantage over Montmorency in 
 respect to moral scepticism, for though the 
 latter had a very formal and convenient sort 
 of faith, still he had religious opinions of a 
 kind which at times weighed upon his mind 
 and made him heavy and awkward ;* while 
 Diane, untrammelled by any such beliefs, 
 made light of prejudices and principles, 
 smiling cynically out of the corners of her 
 disdainful lips. Her conscience was as hollow 
 as that of other royal courtesans, who, 
 making it their boast and their business to 
 renounce the virtues of their sex, annihilate 
 in themselves the source of all virtue. 
 
 St. Andre, who belonged to the ancient 
 house of Albon, in the South of France, was 
 of much inferior calibre to both of these, but 
 circumstances had served him well.f His 
 
 * See, for the portrait of Montmorency, " Franois I." 
 page 290. 
 
 t For the description of St. Andre, see "Me"moire Bur 
 Henri II.," folio 4737, page 14.
 
 116 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 father having been governor of the Dauphin, 
 the two lads had been brought up together, 
 and being of the same age, having slept 
 in the same room, and joined in the same 
 games, they were inseparable. St. Andre's 
 was one of those sensual, vain, egotistical 
 and yet captivating dispositions which do 
 homage to themselves and expect everyone 
 else to do the same. St. Andre's great aim 
 was not political influence, but the satisfac- 
 tion of his sensual appetites and the display 
 of his vainglorious fancies. It was he, 
 according to Brantome, " who introduced at 
 Court the luxuries of the table, in the shape 
 of rare and costly dishes of fish and meat 
 which had never been seen before. He even 
 outdid the magnificence of the King in the 
 way of handsome table ornaments, and of 
 rare and exquisite furniture, his residence at 
 St. Valery being one of the most luxurious 
 in France."* 
 
 The very contrasts between his nature 
 and that of the Dauphin contributed to knit 
 
 * " BrantCme," vol. i., page 488.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 117 
 
 them closer together. As easy in manners, 
 as open and as gay as Henri was awkward, 
 reserved, and timid, no one was more apt at 
 forming a merry party than he was ; and he 
 displayed in his pleasures the frank good- 
 humour, the " go," and the expansion which 
 made the feeling contagious. Of only mo- 
 derate intelligence, of a weak and unsettled 
 character, devoid of the sang-froid and pro- 
 foundly calculating spirit which go to make 
 up the perfect courtier, St. Andre had suf- 
 ficient suppleness and address to keep him- 
 self in the favour of those whom he had 
 fascinated. His good looks,* his bravery, 
 and his dash filled the Dauphin with admira- 
 tion; his engaging manners, his brisk ges- 
 tures, and ready wit stirred up Henri's 
 morose and taciturn nature, and tempted 
 him to join in pleasurable pursuits. Henri 
 could not do without him, and while load- 
 ing him with promises when Dauphin, he 
 
 * See his portrait in the Versailles Gallery, Northern 
 Attic, No. 30,202 ; also in the Salle des Marechaux, No. 
 1004, after the Louvre portrait and the Gower Collection, 
 No. 110.
 
 118 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 bestowed on him all the promised gifts when 
 he became King. 
 
 The great friendship between the Vieille- 
 ville and St. Andre may perhaps create 
 surprise ; but it is to be attributed to the 
 fact, that with St. Andre there was all the 
 outward appearance of frankness and open- 
 heartedness, and no one possessed to a 
 greater degree the gift of assuming an air 
 of juvenile expansion, and of disarming truly 
 generous natures, which were thus delivered 
 over to him without defence. It was a long 
 time before Vieilleville got to understand his 
 character ; and even when he did, he did not 
 cease to like him. 
 
 If Henri II., subjected to the influence 
 of these three favourites, did not lose his 
 natural good qualities, it was because they 
 knew that these qualities were likely to be 
 useful to them, and were worth nursing. 
 
 Brantome says of him : " This Prince is 
 very kind, and nothing pleases him more 
 than to show kindness to anyone in trouble. 
 He won the hearts of all strangers, whether 
 great or lowly, by his pleasant way of talking
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 119 
 
 to them." Brantome also says that he knew 
 all the gentlemen of his Court, and when he 
 learnt of their having done any doughty 
 deed he was delighted, ts proclaiming their 
 exploits in a loud voice at table, and before 
 all the world," for he was " the Prince who 
 gave the most publicity to a service ren- 
 dered, and to the valour of him who had 
 rendered it." Of martial tastes, he was very 
 fond of warfare, and was always to be found 
 at the post of danger, risking his life like a 
 common soldier. He was passionately fond 
 of horses and bodily exercise ; his stables, 
 especially those of Les Tournelles, being 
 full of beautiful animals. A fine horseman 
 himself, Brantome says that " strangers 
 were never weary of admiring his noble 
 attitude on horseback, his majesty, his grace, 
 and his kingly bearing." Very fond of 
 hunting, when not pursuing the stag, he 
 amused himself with a species of bird-hunt, 
 called " La Valerie," of which, however, no 
 precise description is extant. He was very 
 fond of tennis and fencing as well, but at 
 tennis he never played in the front rank. If
 
 120 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 successful, lie gave all the winnings to the 
 men on his side, and if beaten, he paid all 
 the stakes. In cold weather he used to in- 
 dulge in skating, especially at Fontainebleau, 
 and also used to make up snowball parties. 
 
 He was also very fond of ladies' society. 
 "As soon as he had dined, he went, with 
 the gentlemen of his suite, into the Queen's 
 chamber, and finding there a cluster of 
 human goddesses, the one more lovely than 
 the other, each of them conversed with the 
 one he admired most. The conversation 
 lasted two hours. When the ladies did not 
 accompany him to the tennis-court, he would 
 insist upon their looking on from the win- 
 dows above, and giving their opinion. In 
 the evening, after supper, the conversation 
 was renewed when there was no ball.* The 
 Prince also spent a part of the day in 
 transacting business, and attended Mass 
 every day very devoutly. 
 
 * " BrantSme," vol. i., pages 296 to 313. The Venetian 
 Ambassadors, Dandolo and Contarini, speak of Henri II. in 
 the same way. " Baschet," page 433. " His Majesty," says 
 Matheo Dandolo, " is very religious, and does not ride on 
 Sunday mornings. Madame la Senechale, his favourite, told
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 121 
 
 These traits of character may make a 
 charming young man, but they do not con- 
 stitute a Prince. Henri, quite as deficient as 
 his father in the faculties of a statesman, had 
 not, like him, the strong and original per- 
 sonality which sometimes serves as a substi- 
 tute for it. He had no force of. mind, and 
 his very qualities made him subservient to 
 others. Dominated by tender feelings, he 
 allowed himself to be led and dictated to by 
 those he liked, and surrendering his own 
 individual judgment, he ceased to be master 
 of his own conscience and reason. In fact, 
 he was destined to be a slave all his life. 
 
 a lady of honour, who repeated it to me, that, remarking on 
 what a profound state of devotion the King was when he 
 received the Crown, and having asked him to tell her for 
 whom he was .praying, he said that he was praying God to 
 give him long life if his reign was . likely to be for the 
 benefit of the people, but, if not, to take it quickly from 
 him."" Baschet," page 234.
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 VIEILLEVILLE'S MISSION TO ENGLAND. 
 INTRIGUES AT COURT. 
 
 sooner was the breath out of the 
 body of Francois I. than " Henri 
 Dauphyn, become King," ordered 
 it to be taken to St. Cloud for the ceremonies 
 of what was called "the quarantine." Being 
 anxious to escape these lugubrious scenes, 
 he then left Rambouillet and went direct to 
 St. Germain-en-Laye. The Constable, who 
 had been expecting this change for the last 
 six years, had preceded him, and together 
 they set to work to put everything in due 
 order.* 
 
 * " Upon the very day that the King arrived, the Con- 
 stable also arrived, and at once assumed all the weight of 
 affairs." Letter from Bochetel to his son-in-law, Claude de
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 123 
 
 Upon the 3rd of April the new Royal 
 Council was appointed, and it met every 
 morning. Among those summoned to it, 
 according to their rank, were the King of 
 Navarre, the Cardinal de Lorraine, the Due 
 de Vendome, Charles de Guise, Archbishop 
 of Rheims, the Constable and his eldest son, 
 the Comte d'Aumale, the Chancellor Olivier, 
 Humieres, Sedan, St. Andre and his father, 
 Bertrandi, President of the Parliament of 
 Paris, and the Sieur de Yilleroy.* As the 
 King of Navarre and the Due de Vendome 
 usually reside in their provinces, the Con- 
 stable, the Guises, and St. Andre had to 
 decide everything. 
 
 The first act of the new Council was to 
 gratify the hostilities accumulated under the 
 previous reign by the Dauphin's party. The 
 Duchesse d'Etampes had anticipated these 
 reprisals, and had already left the Court, 
 having first of all restored by order the 
 Crown diamonds, which her too weak-minded 
 
 I'Aubespine, dated from St. Germain-en-Laye, April 4th, 
 1547." Fontanieu," 258 ; " Brienne," 246, folio 297. 
 * "Fontanieu ,"258.
 
 124 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 lover had given her.* She withdrew into 
 the country, where she lived in obscurity, 
 and, it is said, became a devoted adherent 
 in secret to the Reformed faith. Gilbert 
 Bayard, a worthy soldier, very attached to 
 the defunct King, for the sole offence of 
 having made some joking remarks about the 
 age of Diane, was cast into prison, where 
 he died of grief. Bochetel, writing to his 
 son-in-law : " Poor General Bayard has been 
 sent to the right-about in a very singular 
 way, as I will explain to you ; and I can 
 assure you, that whatever reason I may 
 have had to complain of him, I feel very 
 sorry for him. There have been many other 
 
 * It has been alleged that her husband, after having 
 benefited by her liaison with Franfois I., brought a suit 
 against her, in which Henri II. gave evidence against his 
 father. This is not so. But in 1566, in a suit instituted by 
 the Due d'Etampes against Odet de Bretagne, in regard to 
 some inheritance, it was proved that the Duchess and the 
 Comte de Longueval had disposed of the Duke's fortune as 
 they pleased, without any regard to his rights. The deposi- 
 tion made by Henri II. consisted in stating that the Duke 
 had often complained that " the said lady received the 
 revenues of his functions as Governor of Brittany, and he 
 got nothing.'' "Additions aux Memoires de Castelnau,'' 
 vol. iii., page 832. Edition of 1731.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 125 
 
 changes, of which I will say nothing just 
 now." * 
 
 The Cardinals de Tournon and d' Anne- 
 baud, who had loyally remained at Ram- 
 bouillet to keep watch over the King's body, 
 were sent off to Rome under the pretext of 
 maintaining French influence there. The 
 First President, Lizet, who had offended the 
 Guises by refusing them the title of Prince, 
 was soon compelled to resign under the 
 threat of dismissal. Chancellor Olivier, re- 
 nowned for his loyal and upright dispositipn, 
 occupying a post from which he could not be 
 removed, retained his title ; but the seals 
 were given to Bertrandi, a creature of Mont- 
 morency and the Guises. Then the Constable 
 chose four of his creatures as Secretaries of 
 State for Finances and Foreign Affairs, and 
 he filled the Parliament with persons upon 
 whom he could rely, in view of the numerous 
 suits which, as usual, he had pending. When 
 all this was done, the affairs of the kingdom 
 were taken into account. 
 
 * ' ; Fontanieu," page 58. " Vieilleville," vol. xxviii., 
 page 416.
 
 126 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Boulogne, which had been treacherously 
 made over to the English at the time of the 
 signature of peace, had not been mentioned 
 in this document, and so it remained in their 
 hands without the French having recognized 
 the validity of the conquest. This equivocal 
 situation led to endless raids and acts of 
 plunder ; so, in order to put a stop to them, 
 it was determined to come to an under- 
 standing with the new King of England, 
 Edward VI., who was still a child. Vieille- 
 ville was selected for this mission, and left 
 immediately for London. The day following 
 his arrival, he presented himself before the 
 Council, which was dominated by the Duke 
 of Somerset, the King's uncle, and a bitter 
 enemy of France. A discussion arose about 
 Boulogne, Somerset questioning the honour 
 and the courage of the French, and was 
 sharply called to account by Vieilleville. As 
 Somerset, who was very unpopular with the 
 Council, was not supported, the discussion 
 calmed down, and as the English did not 
 wish, amid the embarrassments and divi- 
 sions of the Regency, to have a fresh war
 
 V 
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 127 
 
 with France, a modus vivendi was agreed 
 upon. 
 
 After the Council, Lord Coban (sic), 
 appointed to accompany Vieilleville during 
 his stay in London, escorted him back to his 
 lodging, called Darompler (sic), near that of 
 the King at Westminster, both being on the 
 Thames, " in the quarter of London near to- 
 wards Richmond." 
 
 Vieilleville passed a week in London amid 
 much gaiety. Dining one day, at the King's 
 table, he was much surprised to find the first 
 personages in the kingdom, Knights of the 
 Garter, doing duty as pages of honour, and 
 that in a very humble attitude. They carried 
 the dishes bare-headed, and when close to the 
 table they went down on their knees, the 
 dishes being then taken from them by the 
 Grand Master. In France, the pages of 
 honour, even when on service before the 
 King, had only to make a bow when entering 
 and leaving the presence. 
 
 The amusements, moreover, did not con- 
 sist, as with us, of dancing, jousting, tourna- 
 ments, and putting the ring, but of hunting.
 
 128 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Vieilleville, mounted on a richly-caparisoned 
 Sardinian horse, accompanied by forty or fifty 
 lords and gentlemen, was taken to large deer 
 parks, and it was quite a sight to see the 
 English galloping at full speed, with swords 
 in their hands, and killing the deer as they 
 ran sometimes as matiy as fifteen or twenty 
 at once. They shouted, too, at the top of 
 their voices, using the same expressions as 
 they might in warfare, when executing a 
 brilliant charge ; and they were all the more 
 pleased to show off their skill before the 
 French, as the latter were known to be very 
 apt at the chase. 
 
 There were also fights between dogs and 
 bears or bulls ; a dozen dogs being set upon 
 one bull or bear, as the case might be. 
 Vieilleville took so kindly to this sport (?), 
 that he determined to import it into Prance. 
 Several animals were given him, while he 
 purchased others and sent them all across the 
 Channel.* 
 
 The King took such a liking to these pastimes, that 
 they flourished at the Court until the beginning of the reign
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 129 
 
 The review of the fleet at Greenwich 
 brought these receptions to a close. Vieille- 
 ville was accompanied on this occasion by 
 the Duke of Somerset and his brother, the 
 Admiral. They showed him two hundred 
 line-of-battle ships ready for combat, sixty 
 barges, and a number of other -vessels, all 
 armed ; at the head of which were four of 
 enormous size. Upwards of six thousand 
 sailors and marines, ranged in due order 
 around the sides of the vessels, preserving 
 the most complete silence ; and when the 
 review was over, the roar of the guns as they 
 saluted was like loud thunder. 
 
 When he remembered that this fleet was 
 but a portion of the naval forces of England, 
 Vieilleville could not but be struck by their 
 superiority to those of other European 
 countries, and he was very sorry that 
 France had not set herself to achieve a like 
 result.* 
 
 of Charles IX. They then disappeared, together with all 
 other pastimes and amusements, amid the troubles of civil 
 warfare. 
 
 * Contemporary writers say nothing about this mission, 
 which was doubtless of a private description. Details of it 
 VOL. i. 9
 
 130 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Vieilleville, embarking at Dover, landed 
 at Calais, and took the road to Paris, which 
 did not touch Boulogne. At Marquise he 
 was met by a King's messenger, to whom he 
 handed detailed despatches describing his 
 journey, and from whom he gathered all the 
 news of the Court. He learnt from him that 
 the Constable had the King at his beck and 
 call, and that he was just then taking him to 
 visit his castles at Chantilly, Isle- Adam, and 
 Ecouen, no one being admitted to the King's 
 presence save by his favour. It was at 
 Ecouen that Vieilleville was instructed to 
 render an account of his mission, so he made 
 the best of his way to Luzarches, where he 
 passed the night. 
 
 Just as he was sitting down to supper, 
 who should come in but St. Andre, accom- 
 panied by the Sieur d'Apchon, his brother- 
 in-law, the Sieurs de Soult, de Senneterre, 
 and other young men who followed his 
 fortunes. 
 
 will be found in " Vieilleville," vol. xxviii., page 419. I have 
 not quoted the debate of the English Council, because of its 
 apparent improbability.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 131 
 
 Delighted at the arrival of one whom he 
 regarded as his best friend, Vieilleville threw 
 himself into his arms, made him take a seat 
 beside him, and thanked him for having 
 come, while St. Andre congratulated him 
 upon the success of his journey. He was 
 loud in praise of his dexterity "in driving 
 the nail so well home into the body of the 
 Duke of Somerset in an open Council of 
 England before the Sovereign himself, for 
 which His Majesty (of France) was scarcely 
 able to contain himself for joy." 
 
 After supper, the two friends withdrew, 
 and St. Andre confided to Vieilleville a matter 
 which had given him great concern. St. 
 Andre had for a long time been anxious to 
 obtain the charge of Marshal. The patent 
 of M. de Biez, accused of having given up 
 Boulogne, was about to fall vacant, and as 
 he had obtained three promises from the 
 King, one signed when he was Dauphin, the 
 second two days after his accession, and the 
 third quite recently, his success seemed cer- 
 tain, until Diane crossed his path, and claimed 
 it for her son-in-law, M. de Lamarck. She
 
 132 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 had complained to the King that she was 
 being thwarted, and dwelt upon the many 
 services which the ancestors of M. de La- 
 marck had rendered the Crown by adhering 
 to the French party against the Empire. 
 " Their fortress of Sedan," she said, " was a 
 key and a rampart of the kingdom, and was 
 even then being carefully guarded by her son- 
 in-law, who had provided it with fortifications 
 and ammunition at his own cost and for the 
 King's service. Moreover, although he was 
 perfectly free from all vassaldom, holding his 
 lands only of God and his own trusty sword, 
 he was willing to place himself under the 
 French Crown and do homage." All this 
 and much more she had alleged in her son- 
 in-law's favour, and the King was sorely 
 puzzled to know what to do, as he did not 
 like to disappoint her upon the one hand or 
 to go back from his word. The quarrel was 
 getting more envenomed every day, and St. 
 Andre went on to say, " I told her that I 
 thought it very strange she should seek to 
 injure my prospects in this way, and that 
 having all my life long been her affectionate 

 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 133 
 
 friend and servant, I would never have 
 believed she would treat me so. To which 
 she replied that she had received a promise 
 before me, but that she had not been suffi- 
 ciently familiar and well-versed in Court 
 affairs to exact a written promise from the 
 King, being content with his mere word, 
 and that as soon as the dismissal of Marshal 
 de Biez was carried into effect, she would 
 call upon the King to carry out his promise, 
 reminding him of the place where he gave 
 his promise and of the persons in whose 
 presence he had several times reiterated it. 
 If he failed to fulfil it, she and her son-in- 
 law would quit not only the Court but the 
 kingdom of France, for the old motto of the 
 Seigneurs de Lamarck, ' Si Dieu ne me veult, 
 le diable me prye* was not yet dead, to- 
 gether with much else that one might expect 
 from an imperious woman, who considers 
 that everybody and everything should bow 
 
 down before her For my own part, 
 
 I will die rather than allow a piece of good 
 fortune, which was voluntarily offered me by 
 the King's own inspiration, to be ravished
 
 134 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIMK. 
 
 from me. All mv friends advise me not to 
 
 
 
 give way, and you will doubtless be of the 
 same opinion, especially because everybody 
 at Court, great and small, already call me 
 Marshal de St. Andre." 
 
 Upon hearing this, the prudent Vieille- 
 ville shook his head and observed : 
 
 " How impetuous you are ! And should 
 the King give way to you, and should Count 
 de Lamarck leave the kingdom and turn his 
 arms against it, have you thought of how 
 angry he will be at the loss of so powerful a 
 servitor, who, placed upon the confines of 
 France and of the Empire, is in a position to 
 choose his own side ? Have you thought, 
 too, of the misfortunes which would ensue, 
 and of which ycu would be regarded as the 
 author ? You may be sure that the King, 
 in spite of his friendship for you, wishes that 
 you had already abandoned your claim, ' in 
 order that he may content his fair dame ! ' 
 If you are wise, you will not * thrust your- 
 self between the nail and the flesh.' I advise 
 you, of your own accord, to withdraw your 
 demand in the presence of the Grande Sene-
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 135 
 
 chale, and to make a merit of so doing. 
 Perhaps, too, there is another way of secur- 
 ing your aim. There are at present only 
 three Marshals in France. Why not, as you 
 have the King's ear, induce him to create 
 a fourth, in accordance with ancient custom, 
 and ask to have the patent conferred upon 
 you, instead of waiting to step into the 
 shoes of a wretched traitor to the Crown. 
 Put your irons into the fire at once, and, 
 considering how friendly the King is, you 
 will not need much coal in order to forge 
 this weapon to your fancy." 
 
 St. Andre was delighted with the sugges- 
 tion, but did not quite see how he was to 
 follow it up after what had passed between 
 the Duchess and himself, and the pertinacity 
 with which he had insisted upon his claims. 
 
 " Leave this to me," replied Yieilleville, 
 " and I will not go to bed to-morrow until 
 I have reconciled you. Nothing can be 
 easier. I will tell her that you lay down 
 your arms to her, very grieved at having 
 stood out against her so long. I will even 
 hand her over your written promises from
 
 136 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 the King torn through and effaced. While 
 I am doing this, profit by the King's good 
 will to obtain letters of mark, take the 
 oath immediately befor.3 him, doing this 
 with as much secrecy as possible, and I will 
 undertake to say that you will be Mar- 
 shal before her son-in-law, as the trial of 
 Marshal de Biez is not yet finished." 
 
 Matters being thus arranged, St. Andr 
 embraced Vieilleville, and the whole party 
 retired to rest, the only persons who had 
 been present at the conversation being their 
 two brothers-in-law, M. de Thevalle and M. 
 d'Apchon. Very early the next morning 
 they started for Ecouen, and when about 
 half way they met a body of nobles, who 
 had been sent by the Constable to welcome 
 Vieilleville, at their head being M. de Gordes, 
 who was much surprised and vexed to find 
 that St. Andre had distanced him. After an 
 interminable number of salutes and huggings, 
 they rode on together, Vieilleville and M. de 
 Gordes leading the way. As they approached 
 Ecouen, they were met, just below Villers- 
 le-Veuf, by the Prince de la Roche-sur-Yon
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 137 
 
 and M. d'Engliien, who had come to meet 
 Vieilleville. This entailed another halt and 
 more huggings, but in due time this brilliant 
 troop of more than .five hundred horsemen, 
 headed by the Princes, Vieilleville, and St. 
 Andre, entered the castle gates. The Princes 
 proposed that they should go and meet the 
 King as he came out of church, but Vieille- 
 ville, .remembering that they were in the 
 house of the Constable, and that he alone 
 was present when the King gave him his 
 mission, proceeded at once to his apartments, 
 where, as a matter of fact, he found him 
 awaiting him. 
 
 As he entered the room, the Constable 
 came forward and embraced him with an air 
 of good humour, saying how pleased he was 
 to welcome him for the second time at 
 Court.* He congratulated him in the name 
 of the King upon the success of his journey, 
 and upon his. bravery before the English 
 Council, his attitude being not free from 
 peril, as the Duke of Somerset was " a good 
 
 * The first was after the capture of Avignon.
 
 138 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 for nothing," who might well have got up 
 some plot to make away with him upon his 
 departure from the kingdom or while at sea. 
 " But, thank God ! you are safely back ; and 
 now let us go to His Majesty and tell him all 
 the rest." 
 
 As they were about to leave the room, 
 the King, who had been informed of all that 
 had occurred by the nobles of the escort, 
 came in, and greeted Vieilleville with much 
 effusion, calling him in joke " Duke of 
 Somerset," passing his arm round his neck, 
 and going with him and the Constable into 
 his study, where they remained for a couple 
 of hours in consultation. Henri then went 
 to his dinner, while the Constable detained 
 Vieilleville to dine with him, after which they 
 again repaired to the King's study. 
 
 While all this was going on, Vieilleville 
 had not forgotten his friend, and at St. 
 Andre's request he had thrown out some 
 hints to the King as to the creation of a 
 fourth Marshal. The King received them 
 very well, but observed that the question was 
 a somewhat complex one, as the fourth title
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 139 
 
 of Marshal existed, and was in the posse"s- 
 sion of Montmorency, who had not, in accord- 
 ance with custom, resigned it when promoted 
 to the dignity of Constable. The King did 
 not quite know how this was : whether it was 
 that Montmorency wished to enjoy the pen- 
 sion which was attached to it, or whether he 
 was anxious to keep it in reserve for his 
 eldest son. But, in any event, there could 
 be no doubt that he held it. Vieilleville 
 proved to the King that the two functions 
 were incompatible, one being for the control 
 of the other. Clear as these reasons were, 
 the King was too easy-going to like giving 
 an excuse to his servitors "to diminish their 
 zeal in his employ," especially in the case of 
 the Constable, whom " he liked even better 
 than he did his own self," and of whom he 
 was, it may be, slightly afraid. The pros- 
 pect of having to discuss such a topic made 
 him feel very uncomfortable, and he gladly 
 accepted Vieilleville' s proposal to broach the 
 subject. The offer was a bold one, and it 
 seemed as if even Vieilleville would scarcely 
 venture to propose to one so enslaved by
 
 140 A GENTLKMAN OF THE OLDEX TIME. 
 
 honours aud wealth that he should strip him- 
 self of his rank and pension. Montmoreucy, 
 when his temper got the better of him, was 
 quite capable of showing it before the 
 greatest in the land, and the Due de Nevers, 
 who was greatly attached to Yieilleville, felt 
 very apprehensive of what would come of it 
 far more so than Vieilleville himself. 
 
 Montmorency had just finished his sup- 
 per, and was still sitting at table in conver- 
 sation with some friends who had shared his 
 meal, when Vieilleville came in. Thinking 
 that the latter had come to speak to him 
 about his mission to England, he took him 
 upon one side, and the pair retired into a 
 corner. Vieilleville began by exacting his 
 promise not to repeat what he is about to 
 say, nor to ask for any names. This, Mont- 
 morency, laying his hand upon his heart, 
 promised, and Vieilleville went on to say : 
 
 " I have just heard an argument before 
 the King as to the incompatibility of the 
 functions of Constable and Marshal of 
 France, both of which you hold ; and the 
 matter was so thoroughly discussed that it
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 141 
 
 was made quite clear to His Majesty that 
 you cannot retain them both." 
 
 / 
 
 This made the Constable very angry, and 
 he exclaimed : 
 
 " Vertu de Dieu ! the late King was never 
 so particular. When he ordered me to retire 
 to my country residence he never, during my 
 six or seven years' absence, called upon me 
 to resign the one or the other ; and even 
 when he appointed M. de Montejan in Pied- 
 mont, he created a fresh title of Marshal 
 rather than deprive me of mine. I should 
 very much like to know who were audacious 
 enough to question my title and before the 
 King, too ! Madame Diane was of the party, 
 I suppose ? " 
 
 " I cannot, if you will remember what 
 you yourself promised, tell you that," re- 
 joined Vieilleville. "But that is not all. 
 The King has decided to ask you at once to 
 surrender the rank of Marshal, having only 
 put off doing so till now because he was re- 
 luctant to vex you. And as you would rather 
 die than refuse his request, I have thought 
 that you would anticipate his wishes by
 
 142 A GENTLEMAN OF TEE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 offering him the resignation of your own 
 accord." 
 
 Whereupon he took leave of Mont- 
 morency, having produced the desired effect 
 upon the latter, who was very perplexed and 
 anxious, for he was very much afraid of 
 Diane de Poitiers, in spite of their intimacy. 
 Leaning over one of the window sills, he 
 called the Sieurs de Gordes and de Guiches, 
 his two principal advisers and favourites, and 
 began a discussion with them, the main point 
 in which was the danger of being on bad 
 terms with women. He said that he had had 
 ample experience of this, and that he knew it 
 was Madame Bryon-Chabot who had rooted 
 him out of the heart and friendship of the 
 late King, in consequence of his quarrels 
 with the Admiral. The Constable was so 
 high in favour with the King that he had 
 distanced his rival, had driven him from the 
 Court, and deprived him of his property. 
 But the Admiral's -wife wheedled the King so 
 successfully that her husband was recalled to 
 favour, and the Constable virtually banished 
 in turn. Knowing, moreover, the fierce
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 143 
 
 quarrel which had taken place between Ma- 
 dame de Poitiers and the Sieur de St. Andre 
 with regard to this function of Marshal, 
 Montmorency felt no doubt that she had had 
 a hand in the affair, and an incident which 
 occurred soon after strengthened this convic- 
 tion on his part. 
 
 Two days before, a Franciscan monk, 
 named Hugonis, a doctor in theology, had 
 preached before the King a sermon upon the 
 four greatest forces in the world wine, the 
 King, woman, and truth the whole taken 
 from the third chapter of Esdras. The 
 preacher had "amplified the text with such 
 admirable doctrine, especially in regard to 
 woman," that Montmorency and his two 
 associates were agreed that the monk was 
 referring to Diane, and that she had herself 
 suggested the development of this thesis, in 
 order to intimidate those who were inclined 
 to intrigue against her. Knowing her power, 
 Montmorency determined to lose no time, 
 and he sent for the Sieur de Thiers, the 
 King's Secretary, to receive his resignation, 
 after which he went to see the King, who,
 
 144 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 advised by Vieilleville of what had taken 
 place, awaited his visit with no little trepi- 
 dation. He said to the King : 
 
 " Seeing, as I do, that the principal ser- 
 vitors of your Majesty are fighting with each 
 other for the rank of Marshal of France, and 
 are forming leagues and plots which may 
 light a fire difficult to extinguish, I have of 
 my own accord, in order to restore peace, 
 determined to make over to your Majesty my 
 title of Marshal of France, relying upon your 
 bounty not to forget the claims of my son to 
 a like function, when he shall be of an age to 
 render you service." 
 
 To this the King, very much relieved, 
 replied : 
 
 " What, my worthy friend, do you think 
 I should ever forget a Montmorency ? Not 
 only to him, but to my god-son, d'Amp- 
 ville,* I hereby promise the two first places 
 vacant when they reach an age which will 
 qualify the same to occupy. I further wish 
 that you should remain in possession of 
 
 * D'Ampville was Montmorency's second son.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 145 
 
 the pension of the said function all your 
 life." 
 
 Thiers at once drew up the patents of 
 these gifts, promises, and reserves, and they 
 were signed the next day.* 
 
 * " Vieilleville," vol. xxviii., pages 311386. 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 10
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 OBSEQUIES OF FRANQOIS I. CONSECRATION OF 
 HENRI IL 
 
 CCORDING to the ancient cere- 
 monial observed at the death of a 
 French king, there was an interval 
 of forty days between the day upon which he 
 expired and the burial. During this period, 
 his widow remained shut up in her apart- 
 ments, which were kept in almost com- 
 plete darkness, and were draped in black. 
 The new sovereign transacted indispensable 
 business, but without any ostentation or 
 ceremony. 
 
 In obedience to this tradition, the body 
 of Francois I. was removed to Haute- 
 Bruyere, accompanied by the principal 
 officers and servants of his household. It 
 remained there till the llth of April, when it
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 147 
 
 was taken to St. Cloud, where the lying-in- 
 state began. 
 
 " The effigy, having been made after 
 nature, and life size," was placed upon a 
 state bed,* in a room magnificently decorated 
 with his arms and colours. Here he was 
 attended upon for eleven days, as. if he was 
 still alive, in presence of the magnates of the 
 Court, and with all the pomp and circum- 
 stance of royalty. " The said apartment was 
 then converted from its aspect of grandeur 
 and triumph into that of mourning and 
 woe," and all the visitors came there to shed 
 tears. 
 
 In the eyes of the public, this was not a 
 mere matter of form. The ceremonial made 
 a deep impression upon them, and they made 
 no distinction between what was real and 
 imaginary in it, for they were passionately 
 devoted to their King, and their tears were 
 shed in all sincerity. 
 
 A wax figure, representing the body of the Sovereign, 
 was placed upon the state bed instead of the corpse itself. 
 The cast of the face and hands was taken by Frangoia 
 Clouet. " Gower Collection."
 
 148 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 As the Dauphin Francois and the Due 
 d'Orleans had not been interred in state, 
 Henri II. determined to have their bodies 
 placed beside that of the defunct King, and 
 surround the ceremony with the utmost 
 pomp. Three weeks before the day ap- 
 pointed, the nobles and the people were con- 
 voked by " public crier and by banns " to be 
 present at the funeral.* No expense was 
 spared to honour the memory of the defunct 
 King, the outlay of the Crown being not less 
 than 500,000 deniers, exclusive of what was 
 spent by the Parisians, " as the true, natural, 
 and first subjects of the Crown." The pre- 
 parations, therefore, were on a very large 
 scale, and the crowd enormous, the onlookers 
 being so grieved that the hardest hearts were 
 moved to tears. 
 
 The order of the ceremony was as fol- 
 lows: Upon the 21st of May, the three bodies 
 were exposed in their coffins, and over each 
 coffin was placed the effigy of the body. The 
 equeries and grooms first conveyed them to 
 
 Letters relating to this Convocation. " Fontanieu," 
 page 258.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 149 
 
 Notre Dame des Champs,* and upon the fol- 
 lowing day to the Porte St. Jacques, where 
 they were made over to " the merchants and 
 provosts of the city," who conducted them, 
 in accordance with their privilege, to the 
 cathedral of Notre Dame. The body of the 
 Due d' Orleans opened this funeral march, 
 and then came that of the Dauphin, with the 
 body of the King last. All the courtiers, 
 princes, cardinals, and other notable person- 
 ages followed, each according to his rank, in 
 deep mourning, and carrying a burning torch 
 in one hand. The councillors and presi- 
 dents of the Court alone wore their scarlet 
 robes, which were devoid of mourning, to 
 show that they are the sovereign administra- 
 tors of justice under the authority of the 
 King, and that the Crown and Justice never 
 die. All the corporations of the city also 
 appeared in the procession, with their various 
 costumes, and preceded by their banners, 
 
 Notre Dame des Champs was then outside the walls of 
 the city. This church was built upon the ruins of a temple 
 erected to Mercury. " Topographic de la France : Curiosites 
 de Paris," by Estienne Chollet.
 
 150 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 while all along the line of route were dense 
 masses of spectators, who rendered the side 
 streets impassable. In this way the proces- 
 sion reached Notre Dame, where the religious 
 service commenced. After the offertory, the 
 funeral oration was delivered * by Pierre 
 Chastel, Bishop of Macon, who was a great 
 friend of Francois I. At the conclusion of 
 service, the assembly separated to " go and 
 get their dinner," and after that, about 
 twelve o'clock, the procession was formed 
 anew in the same order to go to St. Denis. 
 The journey was done on foot as far as St. 
 Ladre, where " each and all were allowed to 
 
 He also pronounced that of St. Denis. Having said 
 that, considering the Christian virtues of the King, it might 
 be hoped that his spirit would go direct to heaven, the 
 Faculty of Theology in Paris regarded this as an attack upon 
 the dogma of Purgatory, and was so much concerned, that a 
 deputation was sent to the Court to complain. This was not 
 very discreet, and a facetious maitre d'hotel, having received 
 the deputation, and provided it with a good dinner, said : 
 "Everyone here is too busy to consider this matter just 
 now, but I can assure you that I knew the late King very 
 well, and that he was not a man to stop long in one place. 
 If he went to purgatory, you may depend upon it he did not 
 remain there long." The deputation, amazed at this reply, 
 withdrew without further demur.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 151 
 
 mount on horseback, to rest their bodies, as 
 far as the Leaning Cross.* 
 
 At that point, the Cardinal de Bourbon, 
 Abbot of St. Denis, came forward to receive 
 the bodies, and the four Presidents of the 
 Court took over from the provosts and mer- 
 chants the four corners of the pall. 
 
 When the King's body had been placed 
 in the tomb, the heralds deposited upon the 
 coffin their coats of arms, the commanders of 
 the various sections of the royal household 
 their insignia, and the great officers of State 
 the other attributes of royalty, the herald 
 proclaiming : " The King is dead ! Long live 
 King Henri, second of the name, to whom 
 may God grant long life."f 
 
 * A stone cross, upon the road to St. Denis, in the form of 
 a pryamid, placed there by Philippe III. to commemorate the 
 funeral procession of his father, Louis IV. In the two arms, 
 and at the foot, were the effigies of three kings, and at the 
 extremity, that of the crucifix. " Topographic de la France : 
 Bemarques Singulieres sur Paris," by Estienne Chollet. 
 
 f" Relation des Obseques de Franois< I.," by Pierre 
 Chastel, quoted in " Vieilleville," vol. xxix., page 343. 
 * Ceremonies observers aux enterrements des rois, princeSj 
 et grands. Le trespas, obseques et enterrement du Roy 
 Fra^ois I." Old French, 4317.
 
 152 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 It was not customary for the new King 
 to appear at the obsequies of his predecessor. 
 Henri II., however, wishing to witness the 
 ceremony, had a room hired for him in the 
 Rue St. Jacques, along which the procession 
 was to pass, and he repaired thither incog- 
 nito, after having taken off the violet cos- 
 tume, which was the usual mourning attire 
 of the French kings. His only companions 
 were St. Andre and Yieilleville, who were 
 careful not to address him in such a way that 
 he would be recognized, and when they 
 reached the room, he went to one window 
 and both of them to the other. 
 
 When he perceived, at the corner of the 
 street, the cars which bore the bodies coming 
 into sight, he was about to withdraw, " his 
 heart coming into his mouth," and his eyes 
 filling with tears. Vieilleville, thereupon, 
 came away from the window where he was 
 standing, and went up to the King, speaking 
 to him of the grandeur of the preceding 
 reign, and his father's doughty deeds. The 
 late King had descended into the tomb amid 
 such a halo of glory, that it was his son's
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 153 
 
 duty not to mourn for him, but to seek 
 rather to imitate him. As for the Due 
 d'Orleans, his death was probably a great 
 boon for the repose of the State, as his ambi- 
 tious character and the rich appanage which 
 had so imprudently been conferred on him, 
 were a standing menace to the State. 
 
 As this did not arrest the emotion of the 
 King, St. Andre begged Vieilleville to relate a 
 certain unbrotherly act which, coming from 
 the Due d'Orleans, would lessen his regrets. 
 The young King, surprised at this observa- 
 tion, turned towards Vieilleville as much as 
 to ask him what he meant, whereupon the 
 latter replied : 
 
 " Do you remember, Sire, when, owing to 
 the foolhardiness of La Chateigneraye, Dam- 
 pierre, and Daudoin, the late Dauphin and 
 yourself fell into the Charente, and the boat 
 turned over upon you ? Genlis at once came 
 to tell the King of it. Believing you to have 
 been drowned, the whole of the Court was 
 much shocked, and the King retired to his 
 chamber in a state of great distress. At the 
 same time, the Due d'Orleans then M.
 
 154 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 d'Angouleme went to his room, quite over- 
 come with joy. I myself arrived almost at 
 the same moment, and knocking, without the 
 usual respect, at the King's door, I told him 
 that you were both alive and well. The King 
 ' nearly ate me up with caresses,' and sent me 
 to give the news at once to M. d'Angouleme. 
 I knocked at his door with no more ceremony 
 than at the King's, and called out to him : 
 ' Good news, sir ; your brothers are alive, 
 and you will soon see them ; they are being 
 carried home by the Swiss.' If I had come 
 to bring him a piece of bad news, or to tell 
 him something reflecting on his honour, he 
 could not have received me worse. Having 
 informed me in very cold terms that he was 
 pleased to hear it, he begged me to go back 
 and tell the King that he would come and join 
 him in his thanks to God, and, turning round 
 to Tavannes, without giving me time to leave 
 the room, he let the following expression 
 escape him : * God's malediction on the news. 
 I repudiate God ; I shall never be any better 
 than a fool.' He was afterwards stricken 
 with a very intense fever, which { very expert
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 155 
 
 doctors ' attributed to the sudden change 
 from joy to sorrow, these two opposite feel- 
 ings having fought a terrible combat in his 
 very entrails. The late King and yourself 
 nursed him on his death-bed, and if you had 
 known the source of his illness you would 
 not have shown so much grief, or shed so 
 many tears." 
 
 Upon hearing this, the sorrow of the 
 young King was converted into anger, and he 
 exclaimed ; 
 
 " Oh ! what an evil-hearted disposition in 
 a brother ! My greatest regret was on his 
 account, for the King was so upset by his 
 illness, that I wept over him a hundred times 
 before his death. As for M. le Dauphin, I 
 had almost forgotten his loss, seeing what a 
 long time had elapsed since his death. But 
 as to him, I could not, at the end of sixteen 
 months, banish him from my memory, the 
 more so as, a short time before, he had 
 assured- me of his friendship, and had * also 
 asseverated upon oath that being secure in 
 his appanage, and in the hearts of his new 
 subjects, we might govern peaceably together
 
 156 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 and have the whole of Christendom at our 
 mercy.' ' 
 
 " It was all the more treacherous," chimed 
 in St. Andre, " to beguile you with this 
 promise, because he had formed a league with 
 the Prince of Spain to attack you after the 
 death of your father, and if he had lived, he 
 would have had the will and the power to do 
 so." 
 
 Upon the King asking him who was at 
 the head of this league, he said : 
 
 " Madame d'Etampes and the Comtesse 
 d'Arenberg, who, under the pretext of 
 marriage, wrote each other all sorts of fine 
 letters, and were, so to speak, the bankers of 
 the fortune of these Princes." 
 
 The King's surprise increasing, St. Andr6 
 promised to show him one day the cyphers 
 used in this correspondence, which he had 
 got from one of the Due d' Orleans' secre- 
 taries. 
 
 Vieilleville added that the said Madame 
 d'Etampes had not made the Duke her heir 
 for nothing. He had promised to make her 
 Governor of the Low Countries when he
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 157 
 
 became Duke. " And if he were still alive, 
 your Majesty would not have recovered from 
 this lady the diamonds worth 50,000 crowns, 
 so famous in France, and they would probably 
 be worn at this hour by the daughter of the 
 Emperor." 
 
 By means of these and similar remarks, 
 St. Andre and Vieilleville, who were called 
 two fingers of his hand, so effectually dis- 
 pelled the melancholy of their master, that 
 he went back to his place and looked at the 
 three effigies over the coffins, and when that 
 of the Due d'Orleans passed under the win- 
 dow, he disdainfully exclaimed : " So there is 
 the good-for-nothing who leads the body- 
 guard of my felicity.* 
 
 The coronation at Rheims, celebrated 
 with great pomp, took place two months after 
 the obsequies, and it was characterised by a 
 singular incident.f 
 
 " Vieilleville," vol. xxix., pages 10 to 23. Cost of these 
 obsequies. National Archives, Cartons des Rois (Henri II.) 
 K=190. No. 11. 
 
 f See for the description of this Coronation the 
 " Ceremonial," by Godefroy, vol. i., page 278. The date given 
 by Godefroy is July 28th, 1547.
 
 158 A GENTLEMAN OF THE .OLDEN TIME. 
 
 The origin of the Sainte- Ampoule is well 
 known. Guillaume le Breton relates that, 
 just as St. Remi, after having received 
 Clovis into the Christian faith, was about to 
 perform the rite of consecration, the vessel 
 which contained the holy oil was broken. 
 Great was the joy of the Pagans, who saw in 
 this an evil omen, and endeavoured to dis- 
 suade the King from embracing the Christian 
 religion. But at the instance of St. Remi, 
 an angel brought down from heaven a fresh 
 vessel, the gift of God, filled with inexhaus- 
 tible oil, which was henceforth to be used for 
 the consecration of the French kings. This 
 was the Sainte- Ampoule which was jealously 
 preserved in a gold reliquary with an outside 
 casing of crystal, and deposited in the Abbey 
 of St. Remi, at Rheims, under the custody 
 of the abbots and monks.* When the coro- 
 nation was about to take place, the Arch- 
 bishop and Duke of Rheims, the premier peer 
 of France, accompanied by the other bishops, 
 
 * The Sainte-Ampoule was dashed to pieces in 1793, upon 
 the pavement at Rheims, by the Conventionalist, Rhul. 
 Cheruel's "Institutions de France," vol. i., page 21.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 159 
 
 dukes, counts, and ecclesiastical dignitaries, 
 repaired to the Abbey of St. Remi, in order to 
 fetch the Ampoule, which was only delivered 
 to them by the abbot and monks in exchange 
 for four barons, who were left with them as 
 hostages. These barons, who were selected 
 as hostages by the King as a special mark of 
 favour, remained in the abbey until the 
 Sainte- Ampoule was brought back, and in 
 memory of the honour which had been con- 
 ferred upon them, they left their banners in 
 the cathedral these banners being hung up 
 on each side of the altar, two and two, above 
 each other, according to the rank and 
 antiquity of their families, this being decided 
 by the Grand Master of the Ceremonies, 
 assisted by the Heralds. 
 
 The four barons selected by Henri II. 
 were Franois de Montmorency, the eldest 
 son cf the Constable ; M. de Rieux, Comte 
 .d'Harcourt ; M. de Martigue ; and M. de la 
 Tremouille.* It so happened that the banner 
 
 National Archives. Carton des Rois (Henri II.). 
 K=90. No. 2.
 
 160 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 of M. de Montmorency, beyond question the 
 premier baron of France, was planted upon 
 the right or Gospel side of the altar, with 
 that of M. de Rieux immediately below it ; 
 while on the other, or Epistle side of the 
 altar, were placed those of M. de Martigue 
 and M. de la Tremouille. M. de Rieux 
 learning what had been done, and being of 
 opinion that his banner had not been put in 
 its proper place, went to complain about the 
 matter to Vieilleville, who was nearly related 
 to him through the d'Harcourts, whose arms 
 they both used. Vieilleville quite agreed 
 with him, and went at once to the cathedral, 
 where he found the Grand Master completing 
 the arrangement of these banners. Having 
 asked by whose authority he had thus 
 arranged the banners, the Grand Master 
 replied to him, with much irritation, that he 
 knew what he was about, and that the 
 banners would remain as he had placed them. 
 Unable to brook this answer, Vieilleville 
 ordered the gentlemen of his suite to pull 
 them all down, except that of M. de Mont- 
 morency, and this they did with no little
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 161 
 
 violence. The Grand Master and heralds at 
 once went off to complain to the King and 
 Constable. Montmorency, thinking that his 
 son's banner had been pulled down with 
 the others, entreated the King to reprimand 
 Vieilleville for his "intolerable audacity"; 
 and hearing this, and remarking how angry 
 the King was, several courtiers came to tell 
 Vieilleville, and advise him to keep out of 
 sight for a little. But Vieilleville' s custom 
 was not to shrink from answering any charge, 
 and instead of keeping away, he boldly pre- 
 sented himself before the King, and not 
 waiting to be questioned, began to complain 
 on his own account, and ask for justice. In 
 a long and animated discussion upon genea- 
 logy, he began by admitting the validity of 
 the claim made by the Montmorencys, whose 
 banner he had not interfered with, and when 
 the Constable, who was considerably molli- 
 fied when he learnt this, asked him if he 
 was ignorant of the merit of the House of 
 Luxemburg, to which M. de Martigue 
 belonged, and out of which three or four 
 Emperors had proceeded, he replied in the 
 
 VOL. I. 11
 
 162 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 affirmative. "But then,'* he said, " M. de 
 Eieux descended from a younger son of the 
 second Duke of Burgundy, and as foreign 
 princes had no recognized rank in France, 
 they could not at a coronation take prece- 
 dence of those who belonged to the crown." 
 The King, not well up in the genealogy of his 
 own family, was unaware of this relation- 
 ship of the Bieux, observing 
 
 ""We had never heard of this, and did 
 not know the Eieux family was of such rank 
 or condition." 
 
 The King then summoned the Chancellor 
 Olivier, who was " familiar with all the 
 French families," and M. du Tillet, the 
 deputy of the chatelet, " which was another 
 registry of the ancient histories and anti- 
 quities of France." They confirmed the 
 truth of what Vieilleville had said, adding 
 some observations of their own, so the King 
 allowed that he was right, ordering, at the 
 same time, the Grand Master to plant the 
 banner of de Eieux opposite that of Mont- 
 morency, with that of le Tremouille below 
 that of de Eieux.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 163 
 
 This being done in the cathedral church 
 as well as in the Abbey of St, Remi in the 
 presence of the King's guard, peace was 
 restored at Court, despite some little display 
 of ill-humour on the part of the Sieur de 
 Martigue.* 
 
 On leaving Rheims, the King halted at 
 St. Marcoul, in order to spend, in obedience 
 to the ancient tradition of the kings after 
 their coronation, the well-known " neuvaine " 
 (nine days of prayer), during which they 
 obtain the virtue enabling them to heal the 
 king's evil. St. Marcoul, who suffered much 
 from this malady during his life, had obtained 
 by his prayers the power to cure others of it 
 after his death, and during this period of 
 nine days he transmitted it to the kings of 
 France. Howbeit, when the King touched 
 the sufferers, at the four great festivals of 
 the year, by placing his hand upon them in 
 the shape of a cross, he merely said, without 
 invoking St. Marcoul, "The King touches 
 you; God heals you." But the dignitaries 
 
 * " Vieilleville," vol. xxix., pages 76 to 84.
 
 16-A A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 of the church, who marched in front of him, 
 mentioned the saint in their prayers. 
 
 It was customary to spend this period 
 of nine days in great devotion. The King 
 prepared for it by fasting for three or four 
 days, and by prayer with the bishops and 
 abbots who accompanied him. During his 
 stay he appeared very little in public, and 
 no sort of amusement was heard of. The 
 ladies of the court and the Queen's maids 
 of honour were very simply attired. 
 
 Henri II. carried out the ceremonial in 
 its entirety. When he had " completed his 
 devotions," he repaired to Commercy, where 
 he had ordered his " companies of Germans, 
 horse and foot, to be drawn up in battle 
 array." He passed them in review, congra- 
 tulated them upon their soldierly bearing, 
 thanked them for their zeal in his service, 
 and after having presented a gold chain to 
 each officer, dismissed them until he should 
 require them for an attack on Boulogne, 
 which he was secretly planning. Not being 
 ready for this, however, he determined 
 first to make a tour in the provinces, and
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 165 
 
 went back to Fontainebleau to prepare 
 for it. 
 
 Before following him in this tour, I will 
 first notice a singular event which occurred 
 between the death of the father and the 
 coronation of the son the celebrated judicial 
 duel of Jarnac and La Chateigneraye.* 
 
 * ' Yieilleville," vol. xxix., page 84.
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 THE JUDICIAL DUEL OF JARNAC AND 
 LA CHATEIGNERAYE. 
 
 HE "tests," or "judgments of 
 God " water, fire, single combat, 
 etc. date from the earliest days of 
 French history. The object of this singular 
 legislation was to give God an opportunity 
 of enlightening justice by designating the 
 guilty. In the Middle Ages it was constantly 
 observed ; but the abuses which resulted from 
 it were so flagrant, that it gradually fell into 
 disuse. The only test which was allowed to 
 survive for some little time was the judicial 
 duel, and this because it was in harmony 
 with the manners of the time, though since 
 the twelfth century the Crown had endea- 
 voured to limit the application even of this.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 167 
 
 In 1108, a royal decree restricted ifc to dis- 
 putes which exceeded five sous (a consider- 
 able sum in those days). St. Louis forbade 
 it in his dominions, and his successors made 
 the use of it subject to the King's authority.* 
 
 In the sixteenth century these combats 
 were very rarely resorted to, though, as no 
 law or ordinance had abolished them, they 
 remained part of the feudal tradition and 
 public law of the kingdom. 
 
 The most celebrated of all was that of 
 Jarnac and La Chateigneraye, which had all 
 the character of a political event ; for behind 
 the frivolous pretexts involved stood the two 
 parties which had so long divided the Court : 
 
 * One of the capitularies of Dagobert I. contains the 
 formalities usual in these kinds of combats: "If two neigh- 
 bours,' 5 it is said, " are at variance as to the boundaries of 
 their fields, let a piece of turf be cut out at the spot in 
 dispute ; let the judge take it to the malle (place where 
 justice is meted out), and let the two parties, touching it 
 with the point of the sword, take God to witness as to the 
 justice of their claims ; let them combat afterwards, and let 
 victory decide the right.' " Philip the Bold and Philip-le- 
 Bel decreed what the form of combat should be. The ordi- 
 nance of the first will be found in the u Coutumier," 
 published in 1283 by Philippe de Beaumanoir. Vieilleville, 
 " Observations," vol. xxix., page 347.
 
 168 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 the party of the King, the Due d' Orleans, 
 the Duchesse d'Etampes and de Brion- 
 Chabot, against the party of the Dauphin, 
 of Diane de Poitiers, of Montmorency and 
 the Guises.* Death had terminated the 
 rivalry of the two brothers, and granted a 
 complete victory to the Dauphin, by placing 
 him on the throne. But the .quarrel was 
 kept alive by the rancour of the survivors, 
 and the duel in question was an echo of the 
 enmities which it had excited. 
 
 Guy de Chabot, who was also called 
 Jarnac, to distinguish him from his father, 
 Baron de Chabot, was a near relative of 
 the Admiral, and allied to the Duchesse 
 d'Etampes. Brought up in the household 
 of Francois I. as a page of honour, the King 
 had attached him to the person of the Due 
 d' Orleans. As a matter of fact, therefore, 
 he belonged to the party of that Prince, 
 though no one could be less of a party man 
 than he was. Jarnac, though not deficient 
 in courage, was not of a quarrelsome dispo- 
 
 * " Fran9ois I.," page 331.
 
 .A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 169 
 
 sition. Not very robust, tall and thin, by 
 nature timid and reserved, more inclined to 
 musing than to action, he had never though 
 like most young men of his class he had 
 received a military training acquired much 
 honour or proficiency in arms. Devoid of 
 ambition, too, and a stranger to- Court in- 
 trigues, he -had, from his early youth, de- 
 veloped mystical tendencies, and displayed a 
 fondness for solitude and communing with 
 God. He eventually turned Huguenot. 
 
 Francois de Vivonne, Sire de La Chateig- 
 neraye, ten years younger than Jarnac, 
 brought up like him in the King's house- 
 hold, and attached to the person of the 
 Dauphin, was of the very opposite nature. 
 Rather under the average height, very full- 
 blooded, with brown hair, and a complexion 
 which, pink and white when he was a boy, 
 had gradually become scarlet, he had from his 
 youth given evidence of a very active and 
 impetuous disposition. Witty and bright, very 
 frank, and full of " go," he was a great favour- 
 ite with the late King, who often called him 
 " mon filleul " or " ma nourriture." From
 
 170 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 his childhood, La Chateigneraye had shown a 
 liking for warlike games and tactics, and had 
 displayed his address therein. "He be- 
 came,'* as his nephew Brantome informs us, 
 " one of the strongest and most adroit gen- 
 tlemen in France with all kinds of arms and 
 at all kinds of athletics. He could throw 
 the best. Breton wrestler, and he was very 
 fond of his abilities and very quick to take 
 offence. His wife having given birth to a 
 daughter, he was much disappointed, and 
 while she was still an infant in the cradle he 
 always put a sword and a naked dagger in 
 her hand, saying that if he had failed to 
 beget a man, at all events he would have an 
 amazon."* 
 
 He was singularly presumptuous, being 
 very fond of boasting loudly as to what he 
 could do. It is true that he had much dis- 
 tinguished himself at the camp of Avignon, 
 the capture of Coni, at Landrecy, Therouanne, 
 and other places ; and the Dauphin was so 
 fond of him that he liked always to have 
 
 * " Brantome," voL i., pages 506 to 714.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 171 
 
 him in attendance, and made him very fine 
 promises for the future. 
 
 The natural hostility between Jarnac and 
 La Chateigneraye was augmented by the hos- 
 tilities of party. These La Chateigneraye 
 liked to fan by an ostentatious display of 
 his sentiments for the Dauphin. - There was 
 some whisper, too, of his being a favourite 
 of Diane, but nothing is known on the subject 
 beyond Court gossip. 
 
 The quarrel which led to this famous com- 
 bat dates from the last years of Francois I. 
 " The pretext," according to Le Laboureur, 
 was derived from the licence of the time, 
 everyone making himself out worse than he 
 really was, and when it was not thought to 
 reflect on a gentleman to accuse him of any- 
 thing relating to gallantry.* 
 
 The truth was that Baron Chabot, the 
 father of Jarnac, who had not much money 
 himself, had recently contracted a second 
 marriage with Madlle. de Puy-Guyon, who 
 was very rich. They lived in a very un- 
 
 * " Additions aux Memoires de Castelnau."
 
 172 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 ostentatious way, in proximity to the 
 Court. 
 
 One day, when some one remarked to 
 young Jarnac that he was spending a good 
 deal of money, he replied that his step-mother 
 was very good to him, and that she " kept " 
 him. This remark, having been repeated 
 before the Dauphin and several young nobles, 
 was interpreted by them in a manner most 
 insulting to Jarnac and Madame de Chabot. 
 The Dauphin, grossly distorting the meaning 
 of this simple remark, made great fun of it, 
 and when this came to the ears of Jarnac, he 
 was very indignant, declaring that he had 
 never said anything of the kind, and that who- 
 ever stated that he had was a deliberate liar. 
 This placed the Dauphin in a great fix, as he 
 did not like to declare himself, for fear of 
 displeasing his father. La Chateigneraye at 
 once put himself forward as a cover for his 
 master, and took the whole affair upon him- 
 self, saying that he had heard the story and 
 repeated it to the Dauphin, and that if Jarnac 
 denied it, he would insist upon satisfaction. 
 
 The affair might have been settled by an
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP TBE OLDEN TIME. 173 
 
 ordinary duel, as so often happened in those 
 days. But this did not suit La Chateig- 
 
 nerave's views, as he was anxious to create a 
 
 / 
 
 sensation, and to dazzle the Court by crush- 
 ing an adversary whom he regarded as in- 
 capable of offering any great resistance. He 
 accordingly applied to the King to permit a 
 judicial combat, but Francois I. hesitated to 
 give his assent, declaring that " Kings and 
 Princes should not sanction a combat, the 
 issue ol which can bring no profit to the 
 kingdom."* Moreover, he formally forbade 
 the two adversaries to fight at all. Thus they 
 had their hands tied for two years, and were 
 obliged to keep their angry feelings in check, 
 and merely glare at each other. La Chateig- 
 neraye was so infuriated, that his friend, 
 Pietro Strozzi, advised him to disregard the 
 royal interdict, to kill his man, and to take 
 refuge at Venice until the King was dead, or 
 until his anger had cooled down, offering him 
 150,000 crowns to carry out this very Italian 
 proceeding. But La Chateigneraye preferred 
 
 *"Brant6me."
 
 174 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 to wait, knowing that it could not be for 
 long. As a matter of fact, no sooner had 
 Franois died, than the first request which 
 Henri II. received was, that he would permit 
 this combat. Jarnac, feeling how scandalous 
 it was, did all he could to prevent it. He 
 went to Compiegne and begged the King to 
 say a word which would repair the insult and 
 bring the quarrel to an end. But the matter 
 had excited such violent passions, that the 
 whole of the Court insisted upon the duel 
 taking place, Diane being especially vindic- 
 tive, while the King, personally involved in 
 the matter, could not well intervene to bring 
 about an arrangement. It was decided, 
 therefore, that the duel should take place, 
 and La Chateigneraye wished it to be hurried 
 on, so that he might air his victory, of which 
 every one felt confident, at the coming coro- 
 nation. The challenges were exchanged, and 
 they were as follows : 
 
 La Chateigneraye addressed the King 
 thus : " Sire, having learnt that Guy Chabot 
 has recently been to Compiegne, and said 
 that whoever declared he had boasted of
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 175 
 
 having misconducted himself with his step- 
 mother was a mischievous wretch, I reply, 
 if it please your Majesty, that he has lied; for 
 he has several times made this boast before 
 me. In this matter, I think only of the up- 
 holding of my own honour, without wishing 
 to cast any slight upon that of ladies, whom 
 I would rather defend than accuse. This 
 is why I humbly pray your Majesty to be 
 pleased to give me full licence to prove by 
 the sword to the said Chabot the truth of 
 what I have said. May it please you also to 
 allow me to send him letters of combat with 
 the contents of the proof which I propose to 
 offer, so that by my right arm may be puri- 
 fied the offence he has committed against 
 God, his father, and justice." 
 
 " Sire," replied Jarnac, "I came expressly 
 from my house to defend myself against the 
 false imputation of which I spoke to you at 
 Compiegne, and I pray of you to believe in 
 my honour. Sire, with your good pleasure 
 and permission, I maintain that Francois de 
 Vivonne has made a false imputation upon 
 my character, and I therefore pray you to
 
 176 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 
 allow him free course to meet me in com- 
 bat." 
 
 To this La Chateigneraye rejoined : " Sire, 
 you have been pleased to consider the differ- 
 ences between Guy Chabot and myself. I 
 have seen a letter signed by him in which he 
 offers at once to enter into camp and bear 
 arms against me. He adds, too, that his 
 bravery will testify to the sustenance and 
 honour which he has received from the late 
 King and yourself. As he has therefore come 
 at last to the point to which I wished to 
 bring him, I very humbly pray of you to give 
 me full liberty in your kingdom to settle 
 our quarrel, or to meet in combat else- 
 where." 
 
 The King's reply was : " The King, wish- 
 ing to settle the point of honour raised 
 between Francois de Vivonne, Sieur de La 
 Chateigneraye, assailant, and Guy de Chabot, 
 Sieur de Jarnac, defendant, laid the matter 
 before his Privy Council, the Constable, the 
 Marshals of France, and several Captains. 
 There being no other means of settling the 
 question and protecting the honour of these
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 177 
 
 two nobles, the King, after deliberation and 
 advice of his Council, has granted the letters 
 patent which they demanded. By these 
 letters, he has intimated to the pursuer and 
 pursued that they are to present themselves in 
 the said camp upon the fortieth day after the 
 issue of these letters, which will be on the 
 10th of July, 1547, for the verification of 
 their honour."* 
 
 The character of the two adversaries 
 came out in their respective preparations for 
 the combat. La Chateigneraye, inebriated 
 by his own exuberance and by the sensation 
 which the affair was causing, became quite 
 unendurable. Far from seeking to conciliate 
 the Divine favour, he regarded the Church 
 and its offices as being at his disposal. God 
 could not refuse His favour to the champion 
 of the King and of the Court. He was 
 here, there, and everywhere, announcing his 
 
 * The minutes of the whole affair are to be found in the 
 " Additions aux Memoires de Castelnau," which are closely 
 followed above, with some further details later from 
 " Vieilleville." See also " Fontanieu," 258, and " Be"thunes," 
 8615, folio 95, and 8651, folio 9. 
 
 VOL. i. 12
 
 178 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 coming triumphs, strutting about, boasting 
 of his prowess, and treating his adversary 
 "as a lion would a dog." No expressions 
 were too insulting, and they were, of course, 
 retailed by the young courtiers who sur- 
 rounded him, and who were only too pleased 
 to add fuel to the fire. He ordered in 
 advance a grand supper to celebrate his 
 triumph, which supper was to take place on 
 the field of battle, and to which he invited 
 the whole of the Court. A tent was to be 
 erected, and a host of serving men were 
 engaged ; and in inviting his friends, he said, 
 " I invite you to my marriage feast ; and it 
 will be a feast ! " 
 
 Jarnac, the while, was getting ready to 
 meet his fate with the quiet courage which 
 persons of timid disposition sometimes 
 exhibit when driven to an extremity. Main- 
 taining a calm attitude and a proud silence 
 in face of the insults of his adversary, he 
 went resolutely on his way without being 
 blind to the peril in which he stood. His 
 chances of success were small; but he 
 neglected nothing which was calculated tc
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 179 
 
 improve them, and he took fencing lessons 
 from a very skilful Italian professor, who 
 taught him several thrusts very little known, 
 and also to use old arms, among others, a 
 certain armpiece, without articulations, which 
 keeps the right arm extended and stiff. 
 Jarnac, as the challenged party, . had the 
 choice of arms, and he selected swords, which 
 gave him all the greater an advantage over 
 La Chateigneraye, that the latter, wounded 
 in the right arm at the assault on Coni, had 
 never quite regained the free use of it.* 
 
 Thus Jarnac, while preparing for the 
 combat as one prepares for death, retained 
 in his heart the supreme hope which is in- 
 spired by faith. He knew that the strength 
 and skill of man is not everything, and he 
 
 placed himself in the hands of God. As the 
 
 * 
 
 hour of the combat drew near his piety ac- 
 quired fresh force. " He was constantly in 
 the churches and monasteries, praying himself 
 and getting others to pray for him." Upon 
 the morning of the combat, he took the 
 
 * Brantome's " Discours sur les Duels," vol. i., page 714.
 
 180 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 sacrament, after having devoutly assisted at 
 mass. 
 
 It must not be imagined that, for all the 
 inflexible determination of the King, the 
 whole of his entourage were pleased at this 
 duel taking place. Upon the contrary; 
 those who were not part and parcel of the 
 Dauphin's original faction, repudiated it as 
 being compromising to the monarchy, which 
 ought not to have condescended to so scan- 
 dalous a quarrel. Moreover, the insolent 
 bearing of La Chateigneraye made many 
 friends for Jarnac even outside his own 
 party. The Princes of the younger branch 
 made no secret of their sympathies for him. 
 M. de Vendome asked the King for permis- 
 sion to be one of his seconds, and when it 
 was refused him he withdrew from the 
 royal presence, followed by the other 
 Princes. M. de la Roche-sur-Yon refused the 
 invitation to the triumphal feast prepared by 
 La Chateigneraye, and Vieilleville accepted it, 
 much against his inclination, being too in- 
 timately connected with the King's household 
 to be able to refuse it.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 181 
 
 At the same time, this duel, which was 
 in keeping with all the traditions of chivalry, 
 created a deep impression in the kingdom. 
 The provincial nobility more especially, which 
 was beginning to cordially dislike the nobility 
 of the court, sided with Jarnac. They had 
 remained true to the memory of the late 
 King, and, moreover, Jarnac represented the 
 principle of family honour. The middle 
 classes and the people, having no personal 
 interest in the event, looked forward to it 
 as to a spectacle, and displayed great anxiety 
 to witness it. 
 
 The day appointed, July 10th, at length 
 arrived. The heralds mapped out the camp 
 ^.t St. Germain-en-Laye, in the royal park, 
 which extended from the extremity of the 
 terrace above the plain facing Paris. At 
 leach end were the tents of the combatants, 
 decked with their colours and with all kinds 
 of mottoes, flags, and streamers ; and in 
 jthe centre, occupying the most conspicuous 
 position, the royal tribune, magnificently 
 decorated, with another stand at the side for 
 the ladies of the Court. At the foot of the
 
 182 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 stands places were reserved for the Constable 
 and the Marshals who formed the court of 
 honour. 
 
 From sundawn, spectators began to pour 
 in from all the country round. In contiguity 
 to the noble warriors, who gazed upon the 
 field of combat with eager eyes, recalling the 
 deeds of prowess which they had done in 
 their youth, was the crowd of common 
 people, surging in upon the barriers of the 
 enclosure. Vieilleville tells us that all Paris 
 was there : " An endless array of people of 
 all sorts, students, artisans, and vagabonds. 
 They were all anxious to enjoy the pastime." 1 
 
 A sudden hum announced the arrival of 
 the King, gorgeously attired ; and then came 
 the ladies, who filled the side-stand, arrayed 
 in their most brilliant toilettes. The two 
 combatants then came forward, each with 
 his second. The second of La Chateigneraye 
 was the Comte d' Aumale, Francois de Guise,t 
 
 * " Vieilleville," vol. xxix., page 27. 
 f He did not take the title of Due de Guise until after 
 the death of his father, in the following year.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 183 
 
 while Jarnac was, in the absence of the 
 Due de Vendome, supported by the Grand 
 Equerry de Boissy. In their train were 
 the relatives and friends of each, La 
 Chateigneraye having a following of five 
 hundred young nobles and squires, wearing 
 his colours of white and scarlet. They were 
 " the elect of the Court," and they marched 
 behind their leader, carrying their heads very 
 high, and with an air of disdain for the 
 other side; 
 
 Jarnac had a following of about a hun- 
 dred, also wearing his colours white and 
 black ; but they did not " sniff the odour of 
 victory in advance," and were modest and 
 retiring in their demeanour. 
 
 Both of these groups came close up to 
 the barrier, but did not enter the field of 
 combat. A silence came over the vast mul- 
 titude, and the herald, Guyenne, coming for- 
 ward, made the following proclamation : 
 
 " This day our lord the King has pro- 
 mised and granted full freedom of the camp 
 to Erangois de Vivonne, Sieur de La Chateig- 
 neraye, assailant, and to Guy Chabot, Sieur
 
 384 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 de Jarnac, defender and pursued, to settle by 
 arms the question of honour at issue between 
 them ; and I do hereby make known to all 
 that it is the King's order that they shall not 
 hinder the course of the present combat, nor 
 give aid nor interfere with either of the com- 
 batants under pain of death." 
 
 After he had uttered these words, the 
 herald withdrew, and the assailant stood 
 forward. He was conducted to his tent on 
 the right, by his second and the men in his 
 train, to the sound of the drum and the 
 trumpet. The same ceremonial was observed 
 with his adversary, and then, in the presence 
 of the court of honour, the seconds pro- 
 ceeded to measure out the camp and examine 
 the weapons. 
 
 After having decided that if one sword 
 broke, another should be substituted for it, 
 the series of arms was presented by the 
 Sieur d'TJrfe, upon behalf of Jarnac coats 
 of mail and sleevelets, gauntlets, helmets, 
 etc., a list of which had been communicated 
 to La Chateigneraye some days before. No 
 objection was made to any of them except
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 185 
 
 the sleevelets of the Italian fencing-master, 
 and a buckler which was held to be heavy 
 and too large ; M. d'Aumale maintaining 
 that these arms were not generally used. 
 The question was submitted to the arbitra- 
 tors, who gave ifc against M. de La Chateig- 
 neraye. 
 
 The herald then made the following 
 announcements : 
 
 " By order of the King, I expressly com- 
 mand all those who are present at the 
 combat not to make any noise ; not to speak ; 
 not to cough or spit ; not to make any sign 
 with the foot, hand, or finger, which may aid 
 or injure either of the combatants. More- 
 over, I hereby enjoin, by the King's order, 
 upon all present, of whatsoever rank or 
 quality they may be, that they are not to 
 enter into the camp to assist either of the 
 combatants, under any circumstances what- 
 ever, without the permission of the Constables 
 and Marshals of France ; and this under 
 penalty of death." 
 
 This proclamation being made, the 
 seconds, accompanied by the heralds, pro-
 
 186 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 ceeded, to the sound of dram and trumpet, 
 to fetch the combatants in their respective 
 camps, and bring them out towards the 
 camp. The latter greeted them upon the 
 threshold, and then, passing in succession 
 before the royal tribune, where the King 
 was seated on a bench covered with a cloth 
 of gold, reaching to the ground, they re- 
 newed, in his presence and in that of the 
 other princes and nobles, the solemn oaths 
 which they had already taken before the 
 Constable. The assailant said : " I, Fran- 
 cois de Vivonne, swear upon the Holy Gos- 
 pels, upon the True Cross, and the faith of 
 baptism, that in a just and good cause I have 
 come to do battle with Guy Chabot, who has 
 a wrongful and unjust cause to defend against 
 me. I also swear that I have not upon my 
 person, nor among my arms, any words, 
 charms, or incantations, with which I can 
 injure my adversary. My sole confidence is 
 in God and in my right in my body and in 
 the strength of my right arm." 
 
 Guy Chabot took a like oath ; after which 
 their weapons of attack were, upon due
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 187 
 
 examination, handed back to them : viz., two 
 short pointed daggers, attached to tags upon 
 the thigh; two swords in their hands, and 
 two reserve swords given in charge of the 
 Constable. When they were thus armed and 
 equipped, their seconds took leave of them, 
 and the heralds shouted, " Let the honour- 
 able combatants proceed to battle." 
 
 They then both rushed furiously forward, 
 making several thrusts, and hewing and 
 hacking at each other. One of these thrusts 
 wounded La Chateigneraye in the leg, while 
 he pierced Jarnac in the arm. But Jarnac 
 dealt him a second thrust in the same 
 place, and gradually got him to the 
 ground. 
 
 In combats of this description, the van- 
 quished foe became, as in war, the property 
 of his victorious adversary, who had the 
 right to kill him, to hold him to ransom, to 
 make him over to a third person, or to set 
 him at liberty. Jarnac, accordingly, finding 
 that he had so soon got La Chateigneraye at 
 his mercy, said : " Render me back my 
 honour, and implore God and the King to
 
 188 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 pardon you for the insult you have put upon 
 me ; render me back my honour ! " 
 
 As La Chateigneraye made no reply, and 
 as he could not get up, Jarnac left him, went 
 up to the King's tribune, and kneeling before 
 him, said : " Sire, I pray of you, give me 
 happiness by showing me that you consider 
 me to be a man of honour. I give you La 
 Chateigneraye. Take him, your Majesty, and 
 let my honour be restored to me. It is our 
 youth which is the cause of all this. I am 
 anxious that no calamity should befall him or 
 his, on this account. I give him to you." 
 
 The unexpected outcome of this affair had 
 struck the King, the Court, and the crowd 
 dumb with surprise. No one could realize 
 what had taken place. The King made no 
 answer, and Jarnac went back to where La 
 Chateigneraye was lying prostrate. Seeing 
 him still in the same position, he went down 
 upon both knees before him, and, raising 
 both his hands and his face heavenward, he 
 exclaimed : " Domine, non sum dignus I It 
 is not to my own arm that I give thanks ! " 
 
 As he spoke, he smote his breast with
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 189 
 
 his gauntlet. He then leant over upon La 
 Chateigneraye, and endeavoured to bring him 
 to. La Chateigneraye then made a move- 
 ment as if to rise, and to open a fresh attack 
 upon his adversary. But Jarnac, holding 
 out the point of his sword, said : "If you 
 move, you are a dead man ! " , To which 
 La Chateigneraye rejoined : " Well, kill me 
 then." As he spoke, he fell back again. 
 Jarnac, without saying another word, again 
 went down upon his knees before the King, 
 and said : " Your Majesty, I give him to you, 
 and entreat you to accept in remembrance of 
 having brought him up, and as a proof that 
 you esteem me to be a man of honour. All I 
 ask is that my honour be restored to me. I 
 am your servant. If ever you engage in battle 
 and I am employed in your service, no knight 
 will defend your cause with a more willing 
 heart. I give you my word that I love you, 
 and I am anxious to prove to you my grati- 
 tude for the sustenance I have received from 
 the late King your father and from you. 
 Take him, therefore, your Majesty ! " 
 
 The King was still too much surprised to
 
 190 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 reply, and Jarnac once more went back to 
 La Chateigneraye, who was lying at full 
 length on the ground, his sword having 
 slipped out of his hand, saying to him : 
 "Chateigneraye, my old comrade, acknow- 
 ledge thy Creator, and let us be friends ! " 
 Finding that he was still making a movement 
 as if to turn upon him, he picked up his 
 sword and one of his daggers which had 
 dropped out of the sheath, and handed them 
 to the Angouleme herald. Then, seeing that 
 La Chateigneraye was in a very critical state, 
 he went to the King for the third time, and 
 said : " Your Majesty, I pray of you to accept 
 him for the love of God, as you will not do 
 so otherwise ! " 
 
 The King still remaining silent, the Due 
 de Vendome came forward and said : " Sire, 
 accept him, inasmuch as Chabot offers him to 
 you." 
 
 The Constable, who had accompanied 
 Jarnac to where La Chateigneraye was lying, 
 added : " Sire, give reply, for he must be re- 
 moved." "While they were speaking, Jarnac, 
 turning his face towards the ladies' stand,
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 191 
 
 and addressing one of them, said : " Madame, 
 you always told me that it would be so." 
 
 The King was at last moved to pity, and 
 said to Jarnac : " Then you give him to 
 me ? " To which Jarnac replied : " Yes, 
 your Majesty. Am I not a man of honour ? 
 I give him to you for the love of God." 
 
 The King rejoined : " You have done 
 your duty, and your honour may be rightly 
 rendered to you." 
 
 He then ordered the Constable to have 
 La Chateigneraye removed, and the heralds- 
 at-arms entered the camp with four gentle- 
 men to carry him back to his tent, so that 
 he might be relieved of the weight of his 
 armour. Soon after he was taken back to 
 his house. 
 
 Jarnac having remained standing before 
 the King, the Grand Equerry, his sponsor, 
 came forward and embraced him. Then the 
 Constable, the Marshals, and the Admiral, 
 turning towards the King, observed that it 
 was only right to afford Jarnac the custom- 
 ary triumph, and to escort him back in pomp 
 with his followers, the heralds leading the
 
 192 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 way, and the drum and trumpets sounding. 
 But the Grand Equerry refused this upon his 
 principal's behalf, saying : " Your Majesty, ho 
 does not desire any triumph. It is enough 
 for him to have been received into your 
 good graces." Jarnac spoke in the same 
 sense to the King, who called him up to the 
 stand with his sponsor, and as he was about 
 to go upon his knees, the King embraced 
 him, and remarked : " You have fought like a 
 Caesar and spoken like an Aristotle." 
 
 Jarnac returned hearty thanks to the 
 King, and also to his sponsor, to whom, next 
 after God, he ascribed his triumph. 
 
 While this scene was being enacted before 
 the royal tribune, the young men who formed 
 La Chateigneraye's suite, when they had 
 recovered from the stupor into which their 
 chiefs unexpected humiliation had plunged 
 them, were moved to violent anger. They 
 could not make up their minds to accept the 
 defeat, and were inclined to do some violent 
 deed. With shouts of rage, they brandished 
 their arms, burning to enter the field of 
 battle, overthrowing the guards and the
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 193 
 
 whole Court, and to take vengeance upon the 
 partisans of Jarnac. If M. d'Aumale had 
 given them the slightest encouragement, or 
 even if Jarnac had consented to a triumphal 
 procession, "the game would have been 
 played with much effusion of blood, and with 
 much disgrace for the Court."* The modest 
 demeanour of the victor prevented all this. 
 There was some fighting and disturbance, 
 but it had its origin elsewhere. 
 
 The motley crowd of spectators, irritated 
 at being deprived of the grand triumphal 
 procession which was to have followed the 
 combat, was surging tumultuously around the 
 arena, and giving signs of great discontent. 
 Close beside them was the tent put up for La 
 Chateigneraye's supper, and their eyes lighted 
 upon the provisions which had been spread 
 out, and which had not been consumed, with 
 the serving men standing about and not 
 knowing what to do. In the twinkling of an 
 eye the crowd rushed in, and carried the tent 
 by assault. The supper was seized upon, still 
 
 " Brant6me," vol. i., page 716. 
 VOL. i. 13
 
 194 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 uncooked, for the fires had not been lighted 
 until the ceremony was over. " The pots 
 and pans were upset," the soups and sauces 
 were either devoured or upset by "an infinity 
 of harpies." The cooking utensils, the silver 
 plate, the handsome sideboards which had 
 been borrowed from seven or eight establish- 
 ments of the Court, were broken, pillaged, 
 and stolen, amid a scene cf indescribable 
 disorder and confusion, and " the desert 
 consisted of a. hundred thousand blows with 
 javelins and batons," dealt out by the 
 captains, archers of the guard, and provosts 
 who tried to pull something out of the fire.* 
 
 As soon as the combat was over, Jarnac 
 went as quickly as possible to St. Cloud, 
 where his father and stepmother were 
 awaiting him, in order to give them an 
 account of this marvellous victory, all the 
 glory of which he ascribed to God. 
 
 La Chateigneraye's wounds were not 
 mortal. Although weakened by the loss of 
 blood, he recovered consciousness, and there 
 
 * " Vieilleville." vol. xxix, page 27.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 195 
 
 were good hopes of his recovering. But he 
 did not care to survive the loss of his reputa- 
 tion as the boldest man at the Court, and 
 when he had recovered consciousness, he 
 made away with himself, by tearing off the 
 bandages from his wounds. The King did 
 not appear to take the death of his champion 
 and friend much to heart, and it may be that 
 he felt a certain amount of relief, for if he 
 had survived, a great deal of trouble would 
 have been caused by his despair and anguish, 
 whereas the whole business may have been 
 said to have been buried with him. Jarnac, 
 from this time forward, was a favourite with 
 the King and the whole Court.
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 GREEDINESS OF THE COURT DISINTERESTED- 
 NESS OF VIEILLEVILLE M. DE ST. ANDRE'S 
 COMPANY THE KING'S JOURNEY REVOLT 
 OF LA GUYENNE. 
 
 ROM the very date of his accession 
 to the throne, Henri II. gave 
 proof of his extreme weakness 
 towards his favourites by making 
 Diane and St. Andre two presents, the value 
 of which it was impossible to estimate off- 
 hand. 
 
 At the commencement of every reign, the 
 holders of venal offices, functions, and privi- 
 leges, were wont to pay a special tax, in 
 order that they might be confirmed in it. 
 The King handed over the proceeds of this 
 tax to Diane, and at the same time he made a 
 grant to St. Andre of all the lands in France
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 197 
 
 which were occupied by persons who had 
 a defective title to them, and of the unoc- 
 cupied lands which belonged de jure to the 
 Crown. This was equivalent to making over 
 the whole kingdom to him. One gift suc- 
 ceeded another. In the following year, Diane 
 received the freehold of the castle and 
 domain of Valentinois, which had formerly 
 belonged to her family,* with the title of 
 Duchess ; as well as Chenonceaux, Chaumont, 
 Limours, Beynes, Breuil, Arcy-sur-Aube, 
 Rouvray, Chevrier, Pinet, Pizancon, etc., etc., 
 hotels in Paris, large sums of money stowed 
 away in strong boxes, appointments and 
 abbeys for all her friends and relatives. St 
 Andre, Montmorency, and the Guises were 
 equally favoured, and they stood like a body- 
 guard around the throne to prevent anyone 
 else coming near it. When they had kept all 
 the others at a distance, they quarrelled for 
 
 * The lordship of Valentinois had been raised to a duchy 
 by Louis XII., in favour of Caesar Borgia, upon his marriage 
 with Isabelle d'Albret (1488). Borgia having afterwards 
 formed an alliance with the enemies of France, this lordship 
 was taken away from him.
 
 198 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 the plums among themselves, just as pioneers 
 in a mine dispute for the gold nuggets. 
 
 They were, as Vieilleville tells us, " so 
 unabashed and covetous to make their 
 families flourish, that appointments, dignities, 
 bishoprics, and abbeys, no more escaped them 
 than the fly does a swallow. The dainty 
 bits were always snapped up in a moment. 
 They had, in all parts of the kingdom, paid 
 agents to give them notice of any crimes or 
 deaths, so that they might profit by any con- 
 spiracy or vacant inheritance. Moreover, 
 they had doctors in Paris who always kept 
 them informed as to the progress of the 
 malady of any patient who was rich, and in 
 some cases these doctors were not slow to get 
 rid of a patient in consideration of a gift of 
 a thousand crowns, or a yearly pension."* 
 
 It was especially with the unfortunate 
 Protestants that their conduct was so odious 
 and cruel. The decrees issued against them 
 were very severe, but as a rule they were 
 allowed to lie dormant. The favourites, how- 
 
 " Vieilleville," vol. xxix., pages 1 to 5.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 199 
 
 ever, called them into activity as a means of 
 
 V 
 
 extorting money. As a sentence of death was 
 always followed by the confiscation of pro- 
 perty, the " hungry pack " got such-and- 
 such a province made over to it, in return for 
 which it undertook to discover and root out 
 heresy in it. Lawyers of the lowest type, 
 such as Boys, the despised judge at Perigueux, 
 were entrusted with the prosecution. Eeady 
 to discern heresy, and indefatigable in their 
 search of it, they spread suspicion every- 
 where, discovered and denounced the guilty, 
 inventing evidence if necessary, and compel- 
 ling the magistrates to pass severe sentences. 
 The favourites of the favourites also 
 received sometimes the small change of a 
 confiscation, as a reward for their services. 
 Finding that Vieilleville was on very good 
 terms with the King, some of them conceived 
 the idea, upon one occasion, of using his 
 credit towards carrying out one of these in- 
 famous acts. M. d'Apchon, brother-in-law of 
 St. Andre, MM. de Senneterre, de Biron, 
 de Fargueil, and de La Noue, brought him a 
 patent from the King, with his name at the
 
 200 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 head, conferring upon them a share in the 
 confiscations of La Guyenne, the Limousin, 
 the Quercy, the Perigord, the Saintonge, and 
 the Aunis districts. They asked him to 
 contribute towards the payment of Boys, 
 their agent, whom they were sending into 
 the country to set the ball rolling. Boys 
 had undertaken that each of them should 
 receive more than twenty thousand crowns 
 in less than four months ; he had even offered 
 to pay down half the amount in advance 
 within a month. 
 
 Vieilleville indignantly refused, exclaim- 
 ing, " What ! enrich myself by such odious 
 and sinister means ; ruin whole families often 
 upon unfounded accusations ; have my name 
 bandied about in courts, in police offices, and 
 other places of legal resort, in presence of 
 the accused ; to hear the maledictions of a 
 number of women, maidens, and children, 
 who will die in a hospital ; and, moreover, 
 to entrench upon the duties of the advocates 
 and procurators, to whom alone these re- 
 searches belong, would be to incur the pains 
 of hell for next to nothing." Suiting tha
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 201 
 
 action to the words, lie drew his dagger, ran 
 the point of it through his name, and de- 
 parted. MM. d'Apchon and Biron, feeling 
 at once shame and annoyance, also took their 
 departure, in high dudgeon. But the three 
 others, all of them very young, who had no 
 money of their own, and had been- reckoning 
 upon the proceeds of this patent to secure 
 a little amusement, were very much disap- 
 pointed. They picked the document up, and 
 would have much liked to have had it re- 
 newed in their own names. But as they had 
 not sufficient influence for that, they had to 
 content themselves with tearing it up into still 
 smaller pieces, and indulging in furious in- 
 vective against Vieilleville for having spoilt 
 the whole affair.* 
 
 So weak-minded was the King that he 
 could scarcely give any assistance to any but 
 his favourites ; or else, when the latter asked 
 him for any benefice, he was obliged to tell 
 a falsehood, and say that he had already dis- 
 posed of it. Even this did not always settle 
 
 * " Vieilleville,'' vol. xxix., page 174.
 
 202 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 the matter, for they would argue with him 
 that this could not be, as they knew that 
 they had been informed of the vacancy almost 
 as soon as it had occurred. 
 
 Thus, for instance, the Abbey of St. 
 Thierry-lez-Reims fell vacant. It was a fine 
 domain, consisting of a large house, called 
 Lafere, and of a vineyard which yielded, in 
 an average year, two hundred measures 
 (queues) of an excellent white wine ; the in- 
 come being about twelve thousand francs. 
 The late abbot was a priest, and held the 
 abbey for life, so that at his death the whole 
 of his property, under the denomination of 
 roblc morte, lapsed to the King. When he 
 learnt this, the Due de Guise applied for the 
 domain, upon behalf of Charles de Lorraine, 
 who was in holy orders ; while Montmorency 
 wanted it for his nephew, the Cardinal de 
 Chatillon, and Diane for a relative of her 
 late husband, M. de Breze. But the King, 
 having in his mind an absent friend who 
 never asked for anything, said that it was too 
 late, as a courier had started two hours be- 
 fore, with a message, granting it to Vieille-
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 203 
 
 ville, at his residence of St. Michel-en-Bois. 
 Having said this, lie sent for his secretary, 
 Bochetel, and ordered him to lose no time 
 in preparing the necessary dispatches for 
 Rome and other places, and for advising the 
 new holder. 
 
 Vieilleville, much touched by this mark of 
 his Sovereign's affection, learning the avidity 
 of the " three harpies " who had been, un- 
 known to each other, " harassing " the King 
 all the morning, in order to " snap up " this 
 benefice, was not sorry to have this opportu- 
 nity of showing them how a gentleman should 
 behave when thus honoured by the King's 
 generosity. He gave the abbey to his brother, 
 who was in the Church,* without keeping 
 back anything for himself, in the form of 
 income or pension. He distributed one hun- 
 dred and twenty measures of wine, then in 
 the cellars, to the noblemen at Court ; a 
 quantity of corn to the monks and to the 
 poor ; the furniture, the tapestry, and the 
 kitchen utensils to the family of the late 
 
 * A brother on the mother's side, M. de Mas.
 
 204 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Abbot, and the linen of Flanders, which was 
 very fine and delicate, to Madame Diane, and 
 the Countesses de Tonnerre and St. Aignan, 
 his own relations. All he kept for himself 
 was a couple of Champagne greyhounds, 
 which were reputed to be very swift of foot, 
 for the pursuit of the hare and other game.* 
 Soon after this, the King again remem- 
 bered Vieilleville. The trial of Marshal de 
 Biez drawing to a close, and it being evident 
 that he would be found guilty,! the King 
 made over fifty men of his company to M. de 
 Humieres, Governor of the Dauphin, and re- 
 served the fifty others to Vieilleville. Henri 
 II. informed St. Andre of this, but asked him 
 to keep it a secret, as the Constable had 
 already applied t to him upon behalf of one of 
 his lieutenants. 
 
 * " Yieilleville," vol. xxix., pages 5 to 10. 
 
 f He was sentenced to death upon the 3rd of August, 
 1551, but the sentence being commuted, he was imprisoned 
 in the Chateau de Loches. He seems, however, to have 
 been set at liberty, and to have died in his own house in 
 Paris. During the reign of Henri III., his memory, and 
 that of Verveins, his son-in-law, were re-established by 
 letters dated Sept. 1575. " Montluc," vol. xxv., page 66.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 205 
 
 St. Andre, with his usual selfishness, 
 asked the King to reconsider the matter. 
 His own company was in a very unsatisfac- 
 tory condition, and he would like the King 
 to order Vieilleville to take the lieutenancy of 
 it, so as to bring it into good order. The 
 King shook his head, saying that it was full 
 time to make Vieilleville captain, after eight 
 years' lieutenancy at Chateaubriand. It 
 was only the other day that M. de la Roche- 
 sur-Yon, having a lieutenancy to dispose of, 
 did not venture to offer it to him, but merely 
 asked him if he could suggest a suitable 
 person for the appointment. It was only 
 fair to give him the step. St. Andre could 
 not insist after this, and the King sent for 
 Yieilleville to inform him of his promotion. 
 But Vieilleville declined with thanks ; and 
 when the King pressed him for his reasons, 
 he said : " Your Majesty, I should think 
 that I had married the widow of a man who 
 had been hung if I accepted the inheritance 
 of a traitor. I am not in any hurry ; more- 
 over, you have determined to recapture 
 Boulogne, and it may be that ' some honour-
 
 206 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 able captain ' may be killed during the attack 
 whose succession you will confer on me 
 unless, indeed, I am killed myself; in which 
 event I should not want any company.'* 
 
 As the King still insisted upon his accept- 
 ing the offer, he went on to say : "I would 
 sooner be lieutenant of M. de St. Andre 
 here present than have the hundred men of 
 Marshal de Biez." 
 
 On hearing this, St. Andre joyously ex- 
 claimed, " Don't forget what you have just 
 said, Monsieur mon meilleur ami " (he always 
 called him by this name), " and that you 
 have said it in the King's presence." 
 
 " But I put my own interpretation upon 
 it," added Vieilleville. " I will never be lieu- 
 tenant under any one, not even a prince of 
 the blood, unless I have as absolute authority 
 in his company as I had in that of Chateau- 
 briand. During the wars in Picardy I lost 
 four ensigns, six standard-bearers, and nine 
 marshals, whose places I always filled with 
 gendarmes of the same company, and in the 
 same way I replaced those who had died by 
 the oldest archers, whose places I filled with
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 207 
 
 the flower of the youth of Anjou and Brittany. 
 I would rather have died than have lent 
 myself to any unworthy compromise or 
 makeshift.'* 
 
 "You must," rejoined the King, "have 
 been very much liked and respected by your 
 
 men." 
 
 " Yes, indeed, your Majesty. This due 
 observance of rank, and the hope common 
 to all that they might one day carry the 
 standard, animated them with so much 
 courage in combat, that they were ready 
 literally to lay down their lives." 
 
 " And how about the captains' purchase- 
 money ? " inquired St. Andre. 
 
 "M. de Chateaubriand never touched a 
 penny of it. I used it for helping some of 
 the poorer archers, or for assisting those 
 who had lost their horses in battle, to buy 
 fresh ones, or else as an instalment of 
 ransom money." 
 
 The King continued to express his ap- 
 approval, whereupon St. Andre clinched the 
 matter by addressing the King as follows : 
 " Inasmuch as M. de Yieilleville has offered
 
 208 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 in your Majesty's presence to accept my lieu- 
 tenancy, I accord him all the conditions and 
 authority which he had in that of M. de 
 Chateaubriand." Vieilleville, who had only 
 made this offer to get out of succeeding to 
 the traitor Marshal, found himself caught in 
 his own trap ; and as St. Andre went on to 
 say that he would not henceforward give an 
 order, even as to the colour or shape of a 
 jacket, and would only concern himself with 
 the company to give it good pay and get it 
 favoured in the way of garrison quarters, 
 Vieilleville said that he was ready to obey 
 the King's orders. His age, name, wealth, 
 and credit seemed far above the post he con- 
 sented to occupy, so that his acceptance 
 created great surprise at Court. The ladies 
 extolled his humility ; but his brother-in- 
 law, M. de Thevalle, who had reckoned upon 
 the lieutenancy if he had been appointed 
 captain, and M. d'Apchon upon that of St. 
 Andre, could not conceal their vexation. M. 
 de la Koche-sur-Yon also said to him, with 
 much ill-humour : " Really, my cousin, if I 
 had known you had such a weakness for a
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 209 
 
 lieutenancy, I would have given you a taste 
 of mine, and you would have found that the 
 sauce of a Prince of the blood is at least 
 as good as that of a Marshal of France." 
 When Yieilleville had told him all the details 
 of the affair, the Prince added : 
 
 "You may say what you please ; you are 
 playing your last card, for St. Andre will do 
 all he can to prevent the King from raising 
 you in rank, so that he may not lose your 
 services as lieutenant. I know the man's 
 disposition, and you will see by the end of 
 the year whether I am not right." 
 
 "We must leave all this to Providence," 
 rejoined Vieilleville, who went off to sup with 
 the Cardinal de Bourbon. 
 
 This celebrated company had been given 
 to the father of St. Andre, Governor to the 
 Dauphin, together with the city of Lyons, as 
 a compensation when his pupil attained his 
 majority. He, caring only for the profit 
 accruing from the office, had gone to reside 
 upon his property and obtain a little rest, 
 appointing as lieutenant a gentleman of the 
 long robe named Peyrat, who had never so 
 
 VOL. I. 14
 
 210 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 much as had a lance in his hand. The latter, 
 who was left to do as he pleased, formed the 
 company in a very curious fashion. Most of 
 the men-at-arms were the valets of the 
 commissioners of taxes and farmers-general, 
 sons of concierges, or tavern keepers, whose 
 parents could do nothing with them, the 
 latter being a particularly numerous class. 
 As most of the hotels and inns in France 
 were named after some saint, the young men 
 enlisted under these names, as being more 
 stylish than their own, such as St. Andre, St. 
 Germain-sur-Allier, St. Vincent, St. Martin, 
 etc. The inhabitants of Lyons, who knew all 
 about them, jeered at this " scum," as they 
 called them, thanking Providence for having 
 sent a " company from out of Paradise," and 
 giving them the nickname of " the gendarmes 
 of the Kyrielle." None of them knew their 
 business. Most of their arms and horsea 
 were borrowed, and only put in an appear- 
 ance at reviews. So that, however much the 
 King might be pressed for men, young St. 
 Andr6 made use of his credit at Court to get 
 his father's company exempted, under the
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 211 
 
 pretext that he required it to maintain order 
 in such a large and motley city as Lyons. 
 The controller of the company was the secre- 
 tary of M. de St. Andre, while the treasurer 
 was his late silversmith. The War Com- 
 missary had been appointed Provincial of 
 Dauphiny through his son's influence, and the 
 payments of men and arms were made at the 
 Lyons treasury, which was under his own 
 control. So the whole business was confined 
 to his family, and there was a conspiracy of 
 silence with regard to the pilfering and cor- 
 ruption which impoverished the Crown. 
 
 This had been going on for ten years 
 under the reign of Frangois I., and when St. 
 Andre the elder died, the company was given 
 to the son. The latter, however, refrained 
 from having anything to do with it, "being 
 quite sure of how much mud would be stirred 
 up if the bottom of the pool was moved." 
 This is why he was anxious to secure Vieille- 
 ville for lieutenant, knowing his brother-in- 
 law, Apchon, to be incapable of carrying out 
 the necessary changes. 
 
 The patent had scarcely been issued
 
 212 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 when, according to the general publication 
 of the reviews (monstres) of gendarmerie, 
 Vieilleville assigned St. Andre's company to 
 Clennont-en-Auvergne, in order to avoid the 
 borrowing of horses and arms, which was so 
 easily done at Lyons, where the men had all 
 their friends. He then selected between 
 seventy-five and eighty young men, all of 
 high spirit, good family, and well trained, to 
 complete his company, and started for Cler- 
 mont. Upon his arrival, he was presented 
 with thirty or forty medical certificates, stat- 
 ing that the persons whom they concerned 
 were ill; but he declined to accept them, and 
 cashiered the whole of the men. He also 
 struck off the roll all the serving men who 
 had been put on the list by favour, and as 
 there remained twenty-five or thirty gen- 
 darmes drawn up in battle array, he ordered 
 them to manoeuvre upon their horses so that 
 the Commissary might see what they were fit 
 for. As they could not ride, the horses ran 
 away with them, and threw them all, much 
 to the delight of the veterans present. So 
 they were in turn sent back to their taverns,
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 213 
 
 and were too much ashamed of their exhibi- 
 tion to ask for any indemnity. Three only, 
 including St. Agathe, of the Dauphin Inn, 
 at Roanne, attempted to protest ; but four or 
 five of the gentlemen present fell on them 
 with sticks, and they made off in all haste. 
 
 Vieilleville, having thus " don good ser- 
 vice to the Crown," selected with great care 
 his men at arms and officers, and drilled 
 them so well that at the next review, at 
 Moulins, his company was considered a 
 model one. Well satisfied at the result, he 
 went to stay with the Court at Fontaine- 
 bleau, and to look after his property, while 
 in the spring of 1548 he rejoined the King at 
 Troyes, and accompanied him during his tour 
 through the Eastern Provinces, principally in 
 Savoy and Piedmont. 
 
 Henri II., for whom it was very impor- 
 tant to retain these faithful provinces, made 
 a state entry into Chambery, in order to mark 
 his sense of its worth, and the next day he 
 resumed his journey, intending to cross the 
 Alps in hunting attire. But the town of 
 St. Jean de Maurienne was also anxious to
 
 214 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 witness a state entry, and induced the King 
 to grant its request by promising him a 
 novel form of enjoyment. 
 
 While the King was walking beneath the 
 canopy, a troop of about a hundred men 
 suddenly appeared, clothed in the skins of 
 bears, " head, body, arms and hands, thighs, 
 legs, and feet, and so clever was the disguise, 
 that they might have been taken for real 
 bears." They came from out of a side street, 
 with drums beating and flags flying, carrying 
 a boar-spear on their shoulders, and forced 
 their way in between the King and his Swiss 
 guard, following him on all-fours, to the in- 
 finite astonishment of the Court and the 
 people. They accompanied him in this guise 
 as far as the church, where the bishops and 
 clergy were awaiting him with the Cross and 
 with relics, in their copes and other orna- 
 ments, " chanting some bars of very good 
 music." At the church door, the King alighted 
 from his horse to make his devotions, and 
 the men who had disguised themselves in 
 this fashion afterwards escorted him back to 
 his residence, simulating the movements of
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 215 
 
 bears, climbing up the walls of houses and 
 the columns of the markets, and imitating 
 their cries and howlings. Seeing that their 
 gambols amused the King, they wound up 
 their display with such a din that the horses, 
 who were tied up, pending the arrival of their 
 riders, broke loose, and trampled upon all 
 who came in their way, many people being 
 severely injured. This did not prevent a 
 round dance, called the " carrolle," being got 
 through in the evening, at which the Swiss, 
 " being compatriots in their mountains called 
 the Alps, joined in with the bears. The 
 King confessed that he had never in his life 
 been so much amused. 
 
 The next day, he started, by way of Susa 
 and Veillane, for Turin. The Governorship 
 of Piedmont, comprising from twelve to 
 fifteen strongly fortified towns, and a gar- 
 rison always on the alert, was one of the 
 most . important in the kingdom. The late 
 King had given it to the Prince de Melfi, 
 who, through the influence of Yieilleville, had 
 given his allegiance to the French flag, and 
 whose wife and children had been saved by
 
 216 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Vieilleville during the Italian campaign. The 
 Prince had never forgotten this, so when he 
 heard that his benefactor was accompanying 
 the King, he secured for him a very luxurious 
 lodging, next to his own, with the hotel of 
 the Three Kings for his suite. As ill luck 
 would have it, the messengers sent on in 
 advance by the Constable had already got the 
 lodging ready for the Cardinal de Bourbor, 
 and the hotel for the suite of the Due de Ven- 
 dome. This gave rise to a very hot dispute, 
 the result of which was, that the Governor 
 turned out the persons who were acting for 
 the Constable, the latter, when he heard of 
 what had occurred, being, of course, very 
 angry. 
 
 The Prince of Melfi went out to Veil- 
 lane to meet the King, to whom he presented 
 Vieilleville, saying : 
 
 "Your Majesty, I am under greater 
 obligations to him than to anyone alive. In 
 order to have him near me at Turin, I acted 
 as a house-agent for him. I am told that 
 this has given offence, but neither fear nor 
 hope will ever make me ungrateful."
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 217 
 
 As this seemed likely to bring about a 
 dispute with the Constable, the King put an 
 end to it by observing that it would be very 
 hard if a Governor could not "accommo- 
 date a friend as he pleased " in his own 
 town. 
 
 Throughout the whole of Vieilleville's 
 stay at Turin, he was treated with great 
 distinction by the Prince, who even asked 
 him each day to give the pass-word, though 
 Vieilleville only consented to do so once, for 
 fear of creating jealousy. 
 
 While the honours which the city of 
 Turin was showing the King were in full 
 progress, came the news of the revolt in 
 Guyenne, Saintonge, and Angouleme in con- 
 nection with the salt tax. This tax, which 
 touches so directly the poorer classes, was 
 in former times the most unpopular of all, 
 especially among the inhabitants along the 
 sea coast. Nothing, indeed, could be more 
 annoying for them than to be compelled to 
 go, at great expense, to the royal granaries 
 for what salt they wanted, when the sea 
 brought it to their very doors. The way in
 
 218 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 which the tax was collected made it all the 
 more odious. 
 
 "All along the coast of Guyenne you 
 met numbers of ravenous men who swept 
 down like grasshoppers upon these unfortu- 
 nate provinces, devouring the substance of 
 the people, and only going away when they 
 had made enormous fortunes."* 
 
 Those whom the people nick-named the 
 "gabeleurs," went about, as Paradin tells 
 us, day and night, keeping watch upon the 
 dealers called " faulx saulniers," who con- 
 veyed the salt from the islands to other 
 places without any certificate or licence from 
 the receivers. . . . They confiscated all the 
 salt they found on them, together with 
 their horses and mares, and detained them 
 in custody. For each horse load they had 
 to pay a fine of seven livres fifteen sols to the 
 parish to which they were going, besides a 
 heavy fine. The collectors, moreover, were 
 able to increase or relax their severity, as the 
 
 " Continuateur de la nouvelle histoire de France," 
 quoted in the " Observations aux Memoires de Vieilleville," 
 vol. xxix., page 376.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 219 
 
 fancy took them, and committed so many 
 abuses, that " their insolence was more un- 
 bearable than the tax itself." In addition, 
 " those who had charge of the salt depots 
 were accused of mixing sand with the salt."* 
 The populace, driven to extremities by 
 this treatment, rose in rebellion-, and the 
 feeling of discontent, which at first did not 
 go beyond a lawful form of remonstrance, 
 gradually developed into open revolt. The 
 rebels were joined by a number of beggars, 
 highwaymen, and bad characters. The tax- 
 collectors were the first to suffer ; and when 
 a small body of regular troops endeavoured 
 to put down these lawless proceedings, they 
 were soon beaten back. Emboldened by 
 success, the rioters got out of all control, 
 and began to set fire to the castles of the 
 landed gentry, to pillage the houses of the 
 tradesmen, and to massacre the residents in 
 both. " All rich men were tax-collectors in 
 their eyes." The term was a signal for 
 murder and devastation. They chose leaders 
 
 * Paradin's "Histoire de notre temps,'' pages 710 to 714.
 
 220 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 to whom they gave the title of colonel. 
 " And no traveller in the country was safe, 
 for the most respectable of traders and gen- 
 tlemen were robbed under the pretence that 
 they were ' gabeleurs' ; nor were the scoun- 
 drels content with despoiling them, but must 
 needs also address them familiarly in the 
 second person singular, without any rhyme 
 or reason, so enraged was the populace at 
 the abuse of the tax."* 
 
 The rebellion reached Bordeaux. The 
 magistrates, greatly alarmed, sent for Tris- 
 tan de Monneins, a nobleman in the Basque 
 country, related to the Constable, and Lieu- 
 tenant of the King of Navarre in Guyenne. 
 He answered to their appeal, and, not choos- 
 ing to concert any measures with the Parlia- 
 ment, he summoned a general meeting of the 
 inhabitants at the Hotel de Ville. He spoke 
 to them in a very haughty and threatening 
 tone, and informed them that the gibbet 
 would be the fate of all the rebels. The 
 meeting displayed great indignation, and a 
 
 * " Paradin," page 714.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 221 
 
 lawyer apostrophised Monneins in very inso- 
 lent terms, reproaching him with treating as 
 rebels those who were merely asking for 
 justice. He suggested that Monneins should 
 be dismissed from his post ; and the latter, 
 amazed at this bold proposal, imagined the 
 rebels to be strong enough to carry their 
 point, and shut himself up in the Chateau 
 Trompette. The tocsin was at once sounded, 
 the whole city rose, and everyone supposed 
 to be connected with the salt tax was put to 
 death. The tax offices were plundered, and 
 upon the Parliament assembling in haste, a 
 deputation was sent to confer with the rebels, 
 headed by President Chassagne, renowned 
 for his virtues, and very popular. He ad- 
 dressed himself to the leaders, pointing out 
 the folly and danger of the enterprise upon 
 which they had embarked, and finally in- 
 duced them to lay down their arms and come 
 with him to see Monneins, who, believing the 
 riot to be at an end, returned with them to 
 the town hall. But the disturbances broke 
 out afresh in another part of the city, and 
 Chassagne went off to try and quell it. Some
 
 222 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 of the rioters, taking advantage of his 
 absence, surrounded Monneins, and upon a 
 locksmith cutting open his cheek with a hal- 
 berd, a number of others stabbed him with 
 their daggers. While they were doing this, 
 Chassagne returned, and, in attempting to 
 defend Monneins, was stabbed himself. He 
 had a narrow escape of sharing Monneins's 
 tragic fate ; for, according to Paradin, " a 
 priest only just managed to drag him off, 
 more dead than alive, to a neighbouring 
 house ; he had tasted no food or drink all 
 day." * When Chassagne came to, he was 
 in despair at having let this crime be com- 
 mitted through his overweening confidence, 
 and he took refuge in a church. The muti- 
 neers dragged . him out of it, and, with their 
 swords at his throat, called upon him to be- 
 come their leader. Chassagne, though hor- 
 ror-stricken at the idea, finally accepted the 
 proposal, as the sole means of establishing 
 some sort of order, and his parliamentary 
 colleagues followed his example. 
 
 "Paradin," page 699.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 223 
 
 " It was a grievous thing," writes the 
 author of the " Annales de France," who was 
 an eye-witness of these events, " to see the 
 senators stripped of their robes of justice, 
 wearing a doublet, with a sailor's cap on 
 their heads, carrying a pike, and insulted by 
 this vile horde, if they did not bear their 
 arms properly. . . . Nameless were the 
 cruelties, inhumanities, murders, pillages, 
 ransomings, larcenies, and other sanguinary 
 excesses committed in this sea of population, 
 lashed by all the winds of sedition."* 
 
 It was not long, however, before the 
 bourgeoisie, alarmed by the excesses of the 
 mob, against which they were helpless, went 
 over clean to the side of the magistrates, 
 who, fortified by their help, recovered their 
 authority and put down the rebellion with a 
 high hand. The leaders were seized, and 
 Lavergne, who had given orders to sound the 
 tocsin, was broken at the wheel. 
 
 It was after this that the Parliament 
 wrote to the King, sending him a copy of 
 
 * "Paradin/'page 705.
 
 224 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 their register from day to day. Order was 
 re-established, and with the help of a few 
 troops the magistrates would be able to re- 
 store complete peace, so they implored the 
 royal clemency for the repentant offenders. 
 
 This message moved the King very much. 
 His natural impulse was to deal mercifully 
 with them ; but the Constable, who had no 
 patience with popular rebellion, and who was 
 especially angry at the murder of Monneins, 
 his relative, urged him to be stern. " He 
 pointed out to him that this was not the first 
 time that the populace had been capricious, 
 rebellious, and mutinous." During the reign 
 of the late King there had been revolts at 
 La Rochelle and the country round. To pre- 
 vent their recurrence, it would be necessary 
 to exterminate the population and settle a 
 fresh one upon the soil, a task which he < 
 himself offered to undertake With ten com- 
 panies of trained troops and as many of lans- 
 quenets, " he would undertake to do the job 
 and satisfy the King." The King, however, 
 moderated his fury, and said that, though he 
 should have the troops, the repression must be
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 225 
 
 ik 
 
 effected in a legal way. Unless it met with 
 open resistance, the army was to do no deed 
 of violence was neither to slay nor to plun- 
 der ; and the provosts of the King and of the 
 Constable were alone -to have the power of 
 carrying out executions. Fran?ois de Guise 
 was to accompany the Constable. . 
 
 Having arrived at these decisions, the 
 King crossed over into France with all his 
 suite, and came to Lyons, and it was from 
 that city that the two leaders started for 
 Bordeaux : the Constable by the Rhone and 
 Toulouse; Francois de Guise by the Loire, 
 Tours, and Poitiers Vieilleville accompany- 
 ing the latter.* 
 
 * " Vieilleville," vol. xxix., pages 105 121. See also, in 
 the Fontanieu Collection, 259, 260, the letters from the King 
 to M. de Humieres and from the Constable to M. de la 
 Eochepot, with reference to these disturbances. " Bethunes," 
 8639, folio 65, and 8635, folios 5155 
 
 VOL. i. 15
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 SUPPRESSION OF THE REVOLT IN GUYEXXE. 
 MARRIAGE OF MADEMOISELLE DE SCE- 
 PEAUX. SIEGE OF BOULOGNE. MISSION OF 
 ST. ANDRE TO ENGLAND. 
 
 [PON hearing of the Constable's 
 arrival, the inhabitants of Bor- 
 deaux, knowing how cruel he was, 
 were much alarmed. They endeavoured to 
 appease him in advance by sending to meet 
 him at Langon " a large and very magnifi- 
 cent boat, which contained rooms and saloons 
 with glass windows, painted in gold and 
 azure, and decorated with his arms," to bring 
 him down the river. Three or four deputies 
 presented it to him, taking the opportunity 
 to deliver an eloquent harangue in order to 
 excite his sympathy and pity. But Mont- 
 morency haughtily refused the present, and, 
 casting a glance at the twenty pieces of artil-
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 227 
 
 lery which he had with him, declared that 
 " he would not enter Bordeaux by water, or 
 by the gates, and that he had got something 
 with him to effect an opening." * 
 
 However, despite this charitable frame of 
 mind, he could not, finding its inhabitants 
 perfectly peaceful and submissive when he 
 entered the city, do more than disarm them, 
 and order a Master of the Requests notorious 
 for his severity, Charles de Neuilly, to pro- 
 ceed against the rebels. 
 
 The judgment pronounced was a crushing 
 one.f " The city, the corporate bodies, and 
 the University " were to be deprived of all 
 privileges, franchises, liberties, rights, actions, 
 exemptions, immunities, juries and councils, 
 steeples, justice, and jurisdiction. The letters, 
 charts, transactions, and documents relating 
 to the said privileges were to be burnt in 
 
 presence of the wardens, the steeples were 
 
 . 
 
 * De Thou, Mezeray, and subsequent writers, say that 
 the Constable made a breach in the walls, through which he 
 1 entered with his army ; but Paradin, Belleforest, and other 
 contemporary writers, are silent on the point. 
 
 t See " Fontanieu," pages 255260." Be'thunes," 8665, 
 folio 27.
 
 228 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 to be pulled down, the town hall to be razed 
 to the ground, and the inhabitants compelled 
 to fortify, at their own cost, the Chateau 
 Trompette, and maintain an armed fleet for 
 the protection of it and of the garrison. The 
 body of the Seigneur de Mouneins was to be 
 removed from the Carmelite Church by the 
 wardens and members of the town council, 
 arrayed in mourning robes, with bared heads, 
 and carrying in their hand a lighted torch, 
 with the arms of the defunct. The body 
 was to be taken to the Cathedral of St. Andr 
 by the above, accompanied by all the inhabi- 
 tants, male and female, halting on the way at 
 the different churches. When they reached 
 the residence of the Constable, they were all 
 to go down on their knees and implore in a 
 loud voice : " Pardon from God, the King 
 and Justice, crying for mercy." The funeral 
 service was to be held in the Cathedral, and 
 the defunct buried in the choir, with an 
 inscription over the tomb to commemorate 
 the crime and its punishment, a chapel being 
 afterwards built to perpetuate the recollec- 
 tion of it. This judgment was carried out
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 229 
 
 to the letter, except the clause relating to the 
 demolition of the town hall ; the tower from 
 which the tocsin was sounded being alone 
 pulled down. The Parliament was dissolved, 
 and a new one chosen, and the hapless 
 Chassagne was loaded with irons, and re- 
 mitted for trial before the Parliament of 
 Toulouse, which, however, let him off. Then 
 began the executions. More than 140 persons 
 were hung from the clappers of the bells 
 which they had rung. Others were decapi- 
 tated, broken on the wheel, impaled, torn to 
 pieces by four horses, or burnt. In fact, new 
 forms of punishment were invented for the 
 most guilty of the offenders.* 
 
 The Saintonge did not get off any 
 better, f 
 
 In the meanwhile, all that Francois de 
 Guise, who had rejoined the Constable just as 
 he entered the city, did, was to seek to 
 
 * " Vieilleville,'' vol. xxix., page 122. " Paradin," pages 
 730742. 
 
 f Paradin has preserved for us the letters - patent 
 addressed by the Constable to the Seneschal of this province, 
 dated October 26th, 1548.
 
 230 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 mitigate the severity of the punishment.* 
 Vieilleville, who was of his following, had 
 kept his company in a high state of discipline 
 during the journey. When within three 
 leagues of Bordeaux, his grooms, while pre- 
 paring his billet, discovered in a barn, con- 
 cealed beneath the straw, a quantity of 
 very fine arms : pikes, arquebuses, halberds, 
 javelins, corslets, etc., but all of them old- 
 fashioned in make. There were enough to 
 arm a whole troop. 
 
 Vieilleville, upon receiving information of 
 this, sent for his host, who was the mayor of 
 the village, and who answered the summons 
 in great fear and trembling, for this was more 
 than enough to hang a man in those days. 
 Upon being questioned, he stated, speaking 
 in quite a natural tone, but with a scared 
 look in the eyes, that they had been given 
 him to take care of, and, in order to mollify 
 
 * Letter from Cardinal de Guise to the Dnc d'Aumale, 
 regarding the revolt of Bordeaux, October 17th, 1548 ; 
 " Gaignieres," page 465 ; French MS., 20.577. In the same 
 MS. is a long memorandum upon the apparent clemency of 
 the Due de Guise, who eventually obtained pardon for the 
 city on certain terms.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 231 
 
 Vieilleville, he added that he had also walled 
 up in the cellar thirty-five boxes and chests 
 which had been entrusted to his keeping, and 
 which contained very valuable articles. 
 
 Convinced of his innocence, Vieilleville 
 had the arms locked up in a room of which 
 he retained the key, but he did, not touch 
 the valuables, and dismissed his host, with a 
 recommendation to hold his tongue about 
 them, for fear he should come across some- 
 one more unscrupulous. 
 
 The next day Vieilleville slept at his last 
 halt, a league and a-half from Bordeaux. 
 He left his company in charge of one of his 
 officers, and on the following day took up his 
 quarters in the city, at a lodging which his 
 servants had prepared for him in the house 
 of M. de Valryn, a Councillor of Parliament. 
 M. de Valryn received him at the doorway, 
 expressing the pleasure he felt at having a 
 nobleman of such mark in his house, at the 
 same time pouring out his grievances. He 
 was, he said, a prisoner in his own house, 
 and was threatened with the most severe 
 punishment for having lodged during six
 
 232 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 days a colonel of the Commune. The truth 
 was that this colonel was a relative, and that 
 part of the house belonged to him ; besides 
 which, he had at his back five or six thou- 
 sand men, to resist whom was, of course, 
 impossible. 
 
 Vieilleville replied that, under the cir- 
 cumstances, confinement was the best thing 
 which could happen to him ; but as regarded 
 other matters he would enquire into them, 
 and see what could be done. Upon going 
 into the house, he found there " Mademoi- 
 selle" de Valryn, her two daughters, and her 
 two nieces, " all of exceeding beauty." The 
 nieces had sought refuge with their aunt, as 
 the house of their widowed mother had 
 been attacked the previous night. All these 
 ladies, half wild with fright, sought to throw 
 themselves at Vieilleville' s feet and implore 
 his protection. But he would not hear of 
 their putting themselves in this posture, 
 telling them that he had daughters of his 
 own, and would protect them from all danger. 
 Upon being questioned, Madame de Valryn 
 said that the culprit was the gentleman who
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 233 
 
 had been quartered upon her sister, and 
 whom she called the Comte de Sancerre. She 
 said that he had tried to burst open the 
 door of her nieces' bedroom, and that they 
 had jumped out of the window on to some 
 faggots, in order to make their escape. 
 Vieilleville asked them if they did not mean 
 the Bastard de Bueil,* and they at once 
 replied that they had heard him called by 
 that name. 
 
 " This being the case, you must not be ' 
 surprised at his behaviour, for he is the son 
 of a loose woman, and this is such a source 
 of humiliation to him that he would like all 
 honourable damsels to be like his mother." 
 
 Vieilleville was then informed that his 
 dinner was served, whereupon he asked his 
 hosts to share it with him, and after it was 
 over he took leave of them, and went to pay 
 his respects to the Constable. 
 
 Montmorency received him very cordially, 
 and took him back to the Council. The 
 Comte de Sancerre was among those present, 
 
 * Louis de Bueil, natural son of the Comte de Sancarro
 
 234 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 and Vieilleville told him how his son had 
 misconducted himself. The Count sent at 
 once for the young man, and when he came 
 " they both gave him such a dressing that 
 he wished himself below ground." He after- 
 wards accompanied Vieilleville to the house 
 of the Valryn family to ask for forgiveness, 
 and to entreat the young ladies to return to 
 their home, assuring them that they should 
 not have reason to complain again. How- 
 ever, they preferred to remain under the 
 protection of Vieilleville, and it was lucky for 
 them that they did so. 
 
 Upon the day when the people had to do 
 penance, each man being responsible for his 
 neighbour, the neighbours of Valryn, fol- 
 lowed by the provost's bailiffs, appeared at 
 his door to compel him and his family to 
 accompany them to the public square. Val- 
 ryn gave as an excuse that he had been 
 ordered to remain under custody, and his 
 womenfolk concealed them selves, while Vieille- 
 ville, who was very much opposed to the 
 severe measure which had been ordered, took 
 the part of his hosts, and turned the archers
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 235 
 
 out. The matter was reported to the Con- 
 stable, who was very much annoyed, and told 
 Vieilleville that he considered " his conduct 
 very strange, and that his hosts must comply 
 with an ordinance which had been made 
 public, if only to avoid setting a bad ex- 
 ample." Vieilleville rejoined that if they 
 were compelled to make amends in public, 
 he would accompany them, and that would 
 create no little stir. " Though these were 
 strong words, and spoken in great wrath to 
 one who was regarded as the Second King of 
 France," the Constable, knowing how popular 
 Vieilleville was with the captains of the 
 trained bands which kept the city gates, and 
 anxious not to quarrel with him, took no 
 notice of the threat. He merely requested 
 that nothing might be said about the matter, 
 so as not to create a precedent. The next 
 day Vieilleville asked him to grant Valryn a 
 written pardon, so that it might not be re- 
 tracted. This was granted at once, and 
 Vieilleville took his host to the Constable, 
 at whose knees Valryn threw himself in 
 gratitude.
 
 236 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Another anecdote relating to Vieilleville 
 may also be worth telling. Having left his 
 company about a league from Bordeaux, the 
 gensdarmes and archers came into the city 
 by turns, with leave granted by the ensign 
 or standard-bearer, to receive his orders, 
 hear the news, and witness the executions. 
 Three of them, two men-at-arms and an 
 archer, went to the priest and informed him 
 that, while looking on at the executions, they 
 had heard two of the culprits denounce him 
 for having had the tocsin sounded from his 
 belfry, and that the judge had ordered him to 
 be arrested and cast into prison. They 
 offered, however, to facilitate his escape if he 
 would give them a good round sum, and they 
 proceeded at once to seize him by the collar, 
 and half-strangled him. 
 
 The unhappy priest, knowing by the re- 
 ports he had heard of what was going on at 
 Bordeaux, that people were put to death upon 
 the strength of a simple denunciation, and 
 without a shred of evidence, handed them 
 over a sum of eight hundred crowns, and, 
 as they had a dagger at his throat, told them
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 237 
 
 where they would find the chalices, crosses, 
 relics, communion-plate, and the gold and 
 silver ornaments of the church, which he had 
 hidden away. The soldiers seized all this, 
 and began to pack it up, drinking a little in 
 the course of their proceedings. 
 
 In the meanwhile, the priest's nephew, 
 who had got out of the house, went to see 
 Vieilleville, and told him what was taking 
 place. The latter at once got on to his 
 horse, and rode up to the priest's house, 
 "much to the discomfiture of the varlets," 
 who had already got three horses loaded 
 with their spoil. Vieilleville killed one of 
 them in an instant, exclaiming : " Poltroon ! 
 are we Lutherans to attack priests and pil- 
 lage churches in this fashion ? " The two 
 others, being unable to make their escape, 
 were arrested, and two of their comrades who 
 wore the same uniform killed them, to avoid 
 the humiliation of seeing them hung. 
 
 The nephew, who had shown Vieilleville 
 the way through the garden, so that he 
 might enter the house without knocking at 
 the door, then took him to the room in which
 
 238 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 his uncle was tied to a bench, two men 
 threatening him with a dagger to prevent 
 him calling for help. Vieilleville set him at 
 liberty, restored his goods to him, and had 
 the two men hung on the spot. 
 
 When the executions were over at Bor- 
 deaux, and the whole country had been 
 brought into subjection to the King, the 
 Constable ordered a grand review just before 
 he left. Knowing how well Yieilleville had 
 reorganized the St. Andrd company, he said 
 to him one day, in jest, that he would like to 
 be his commissary ; that he had heard that 
 the company was not in a condition to do its 
 service, and that it did not number twenty 
 sound horses. Vieilleville thanked him, with 
 a modest smile, begging him to show no 
 favour to him or his companions. He ad- 
 vised him, however, to be careful, for he 
 should treat him as he did the other com- 
 missaries. 
 
 " And how is that, pray ? " inquired the 
 Constable, whose curiosity was excited. 
 
 "I ask them to dinner," replied Vieille- 
 ville. " If you will do me this honour, you
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 239 
 
 will not find it at all out of your way, as the 
 village in which I have my quarters is upon 
 your road when you leave this city." 
 
 The Constable, laughing heartily as 
 heartily, at least, as it was in his nature to 
 do at once accepted the invitation. 
 
 The review, which was held two days 
 afterwards upon a large plain, near Bor- 
 deaux, was a great triumph for Vieilleville, 
 and not less so was the dinner which fol- 
 lowed it, served in a field near the village. 
 M. de Guise was present at it, with the Con- 
 stable, and there was both good cheer and no 
 lack of good humour. At the end of dinner, 
 Vieilleville' s company amused his guests with 
 some gymnastic exercises, and then escorted 
 them back to Bordeaux, the leave-taking 
 being accompanied by a grand flourish of 
 trumpets. 
 
 Vieilleville returned to his quarters, and, 
 as was his habit, paid the expenses, so as 
 to satisfy all the inhabitants before leaving. 
 He then conducted his company to Saintes, 
 where it was in garrison, and left it in the 
 hands of his officers, after having come to
 
 240 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 an understanding with the authorities of the 
 town. This done, he set out for his property 
 at Duretal, having arranged to pay a visit on 
 the way to the Prince and Princesse de la 
 Roche-sur-Yon. 
 
 These latter had him to thank for their 
 good fortune, and they had not forgotten it ; 
 so they were delighted to receive him in 
 their chateau at Montaigne. As soon as he 
 had alighted from his horse, without giving 
 him time to go to his room, they took him 
 to see their son, only three months old, to 
 whom his brother, M. de St. Thierry,* had 
 stood proxy for the King the child being 
 named after the Sovereign. 
 
 " My cousin," said the Princess, with 
 great pride, as she entered the room, " here 
 is Henri de Bourbon, who will prevent you 
 from being my heir. The Prince and myself 
 have so much reliance upon your friendship, 
 that you will pray God that such may be the 
 case, and that He will cause our son to in- 
 crease in happiness and all prosperity." 
 
 * The brother, on the mother's side, to whom Vieille- 
 ville had presented the abbey of that name.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 241 
 
 To which Yieilleville replied that they 
 would do him a grievous wrong " if they 
 thought otherwise; but that none the less, 
 he wished them at least one more son, to 
 render his succession all the more unlikely." 
 
 The child, however, was somewhat ailing, 
 and Yieilleville, strange to say, gave the 
 parents some very matronly advice. He said 
 that there was not enough air in the room 
 with the windows closed ; and that the cur- 
 tains were too heavy. Then, again, the wet- 
 nurse a woman of good family was too 
 advanced in vears, too thin, and two melan- 
 
 I 
 
 choly, being often obliged to resort to apothe- 
 cary's drugs to increase her supply of milk. 
 He would advise a peasant girl in rude health 
 and with a hearty appetite, to be substituted 
 for her. This advice was taken, and the 
 child did all the better for it. 
 
 The Prince and Princess then took him to 
 their chateau de Baupreau, which had just 
 been created a duchy in favour of the infant 
 Prince, and showed him the magnificent cos- 
 tumes prepared for the entry of the King . 
 into Paris, and the coronation of the Queen. 
 
 VOL. I. 16
 
 242 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 The Prince was particularly proud of the 
 trappings made for his Spanish horse, and 
 the Princess of her gold crown a present 
 from Catherine de Medicis, in accordance 
 with the custom of the French Queens to 
 make these presents to Princesses of the 
 blood, after a coronation. 
 
 WhenVieilleville's visit was over, he asked 
 his hosts to honour him with their presence 
 at an approaching family festival in his own 
 household the marriage of his daughter. 
 
 Yieilleville had no son ; but the elder of 
 his two daughters was gifted with many 
 charms. The contemporary chronicler does 
 not, nevertheless, follow the custom of his 
 age, and compare her to the sun, the moon, 
 and the stars. He is content to tell us that 
 she was tall, upright, and well made, with 
 "bright" fair hair, and with a complexion 
 of white and pink, without any speckles ; 
 that she was of a gentle and graceful dispo- 
 sition, and, by way of a finishing touch, 
 barely sixteen. She had been asked in mar- 
 riage the year before by M. d'Epinay, for his 
 eldest son and heir. M. d'Epinay, who had
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 243 
 
 been a friend of Yieilleville's from boyhood, 
 was of good family ;* with an income of 
 about forty thousand livres, and a fine castle 
 in Brittany. The marriage was in every 
 respect a very suitable one. 
 
 The Prince and Princess accepted the in- 
 vitation with pleasure, and Yieilleville re- 
 turned home, where his family was anxiously 
 awaiting him, to commence the preparations 
 for the wedding. As a matter of fact, a 
 wedding of this kind was quite a business. 
 The Princes and Princesses invited to attend 
 it comprised the greatest names in the king- 
 dom, so that as the date selected was the 
 14th of February, 1549, guests began to 
 arrive in the early part of the month. 
 
 The houses in the neighbourhood, for 
 three leagues round the chateau, were called 
 into requisition for the guests. The villages, 
 hamlets, farmhouses, etc., were filled with 
 the retinue of the personages of distinction, 
 and there was not a corner that had not its 
 contingent of men and horses. It might 
 
 * See his coat of arms, French MS., 1473, folio 539.
 
 244 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 have been imagined that the neighbourhood 
 had been selected for the encampment of a 
 royal progress, or even of an army. The 
 chronicler candidly confesses his inability to 
 " undertake the specification of the great 
 things which were done at this wedding, 
 the variety of the pastimes, the sumptuous 
 diversity of the dresses, the opulent abund- 
 ance of the food (there being fourteen tables 
 constantly served), and the stately arrange- 
 ment of the service." He merely adds that 
 " among so many nations French, Bretons, 
 Normans, and natives of Anjou, Mayenne, 
 and Poitou," and upon an occasion when 
 wine flowed like water not a single quarrel 
 occurred, even among the serving-men, who 
 "drank without stint from morning till 
 night." This harmony was considered to be 
 of good omen for the happiness of the 
 wedded pair. 
 
 When the wedding was over, the guests 
 separated rather sooner than usual, as Vieille- 
 ville had received a courier from the King, 
 summoning him to the Court. A great dis- 
 cussion then arose as to what should be the
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 245 
 
 destination of the bridegroom. Yieilleville 
 was anxious that he should accompany him, 
 as an attack on Boulogne was projected, and 
 M. d'Epinay, who had received from the 
 King as a wedding gift the rank of Gentle- 
 man of the Chamber, should, he thought, 
 establish his claim to this distinction. But 
 it was, upon the other hand, hard that the 
 young people should be separated within a 
 fortnight of their wedding. They did not 
 give expression to their sorrow themselves, 
 but their respective mothers spoke up for 
 them, Madame de Vieilleville being particu- 
 larly angry, and going so far as to say that 
 she formally forbade her son-in-law to go. 
 Her husband's determination, however, was 
 not to be shaken, and so he took off M. 
 d'Epinay with him.* 
 
 When they reached St. Germain, they 
 found the Court absorbed in preparations 
 for the state entry into Paris, which was to 
 take place with great pomp on the 16th of 
 June. The whole of the nobility summoned 
 
 * " Vieilleville," vol. xxix., page 164.
 
 246 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 to it flocked in from all parts of the king- 
 dom, marching at the head of the cortege. 
 Two thousand pages preceded the knights, 
 carrying lances, pikes, short swords, bour- 
 guignotes, etc., riding handsome horses, 
 and attired in all the colours, motley de- 
 vices, and embroideries of their masters. 
 The Princes and nobles each walked accord- 
 ing to his rank, and then came twelve hun- 
 dred sons of merchants and traders, in 
 equipages as rich and sumptuous as those 
 of the nobles, and riding their horses, and 
 making them caper and rear "as if they had 
 passed all their lives in the stable of the 
 Prince." The inhabitants, bearing arms, 
 about twelve or fifteen thousand of all 
 classes, also took part in this entry. 
 
 The city had gone to great expense on 
 this occasion, there not being a single square, 
 cross-way, or open space which had not its 
 theatre, triumphal arch, pyramid, obelisk, or 
 "colossal figure of the ancient kings very 
 ingeniously constructed, with no stint of gold 
 and azure." The whole city was decorated 
 with festoons, trophies, emblems illustrated
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 247 
 
 with learned Greek or Latin verses, and 
 French odes by Ronsard, the Poet Laureate. 
 
 The mass of people on foot also marched in 
 very good order, " with a very bold, and mag- 
 nificent accoutrement, which need not create 
 any surprise," for at that time there were in 
 Paris at least twenty households with in- 
 comes of from fifty to sixty thousand livres, 
 either in land or securities ; a hundred with 
 incomes of thirty thousand ; two hundred 
 with incomes of ten thousand ; and four or 
 five hundred, not to speak of the ecclesias- 
 tical property, with incomes of from five to 
 six thousand livres.* 
 
 Upon the following days, some magnifi- 
 cent tournaments took place, notice of which 
 had been given in advance throughout Italy, 
 Germany, Spain, and England, so that the 
 nobles from those countries might come and 
 take part in them. The full particulars of 
 these tournaments are to be found in the 
 chronicles of Tavannes, who, much as the 
 King and his Court distinguished themselves, 
 
 " Yieilleville," vol. xxix., page 177.
 
 248 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 was the real hero of them. He broke as 
 many as sixty lances a day, and after all this, 
 he would soak his arm in oil of sweet 
 almonds, and bind it up tightly, to prevent it 
 from getting stiff, so that he might go to a 
 ball and dance, while the others, their limbs 
 blackened and aching, had gone to bed. He 
 was considered to have maintained the 
 honour of France better than any of his 
 companions. 
 
 After pleasure came business, and first of 
 all came the disputes between England and 
 Scotland, in which France found herself 
 mixed up. These two kingdoms, whose 
 natural frontiers seemed to destine them to 
 be united, were separated by long-standing 
 rivalry. England, more powerful and more 
 highly developed, was longing to absorb 
 Scotland, and Scotland, unable to exercise 
 any influence over England, was most 
 jealous as to the maintenance of her national 
 independence. Several attempts at fusion 
 had, however, already been made. In the 
 reign of Henry VIII., a treaty had been con- 
 . eluded, under the date of March 12th, 1543,
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 249 
 
 containing a covenant of marriage between 
 the heiress to the Scottish throne, Mary 
 Stuart, who was then only just born, and 
 the heir to the English throne, afterwards 
 Edward VI., who was but a few years old. 
 But Henry died before the covenant could be 
 executed, and the two countries, with minors 
 as sovereigns, and under the government of 
 Regents, found themselves even more divided 
 by the religious question than by national 
 antagonism. Somerset was a partisan of the 
 Eeformation, which, freed from the theolo- 
 gical pretensions of Henry VIII., was making 
 rapid progress. In Scotland, the national 
 tendency was in the same direction, but the 
 two Regents, the Earl of Arran, and especi- 
 ally the Queen Dowager, Marie de Guise, 
 opposed it with all their might. An ardent 
 Catholic, Marie showed no scruple in perse- 
 cuting those, whom she regarded as heretics, 
 and when the Duke of Somerset insisted 
 upon the marriage of the two youthful 
 sovereigns, in accordance with the treaty of 
 1543, she peremptorily refused, and offered 
 the hand of the young Princess to the
 
 250 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Dauphin Francois. The Guises, to whose 
 ambition this scheme was probably due, 
 warmly supported it, and there was little 
 difficulty in obtaining the King's consent, by 
 showing what a hold he would in this way 
 obtain in Scotland as against England. 
 
 The Scotch Protestants at first were in 
 favour of the marriage with Edward VI., but 
 when Somerset sought to impose it upon 
 them with an English army, the national 
 pride rose, and the whole country rose 
 against him. The Earl of Arran, at the head 
 of thirty thousand Scotch troops, went to 
 meet him, but sustained a crushing defeat at 
 Musselburgh on the 10th of December. 
 Fortunately for Scotland, the Duke of 
 Somerset, a prey to Court factions, could not 
 follow up his victory, and had to return to 
 England. The Queen Regent then took 
 refuge with her daughter in, Dumbarton 
 Castle, and availed herself of the fear of an 
 English invasion to press on an alliance with 
 France. She even proposed to. send her 
 daughter to the Court of Henri II., to be 
 brought up there until she and the Dauphin
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 251 
 
 were old enough to be married. Henri ac- 
 cepted her proposal, and sent a force of from 
 six to eight thousand men, under the com- 
 mand of Andre de Montalembert, Baron 
 Esse, to bring Mary Stuart, then six years 
 old, back with them. The French landed at 
 Dunbar on the 18th of June, 1548, and 
 Durand de Villegagnon, Commander of 
 Malta, who had command of the fleet, appre- 
 hending an attack of the English vessels, 
 deceived the enemy by a stratagem, and 
 making suddenly for the North, received the 
 young Queen in his charge at Dumbarton, 
 and got back to France by St. George's 
 Channel, landing her in Brittany on the 13th 
 of July. She was accompanied by her ille- 
 gitimate brother, James Stuart, and on 
 landing, was received by Philippe de Maille- 
 Breze upon behalf of the King. 
 
 In the meanwhile, d'Esse, who had re- 
 mained in Scotland, was defending the 
 frontier against the English, but as he 
 treated the Scotch as if they were so many 
 barbarians, displaying the utmost contempt, 
 he became so unpopular that the Queen
 
 252 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Regent got alarmed as to the consequences, 
 and induced her brother to recall him. He 
 was succeeded by Termes, who got on very 
 much better with the Scotch. 
 
 Henri II., who took every advantage of 
 the difficulties in which Somerset was placed, 
 commenced secret preparations for an attack 
 upon Boulogne, and upon July llth, 1549, 
 Leo Strozzi started from the port of Havre 
 with twelve galleys, took the English fleet by 
 surprise, sinking several vessels, compelling 
 the rest to take refuge at Guernsey. The 
 King, getting his troops together, proceeded 
 to Abbeville, Vieilleville and d'Epinay being 
 in his suite, and the Constable began to con- 
 centrate his army at Neuchatel, near the 
 Forest of Ardelot. As the Imperial forces 
 were just then in motion along the Flemish 
 frontier, before getting beyond Abbeville, 
 Vieilleville was sent to reconnoitre in the 
 neighbourhood, and while he was gone, a 
 herald from the Emperor came to Montreuil 
 to complain to the King that his soldiers had 
 crossed the frontier in search of forage. 
 This herald, a native of Mons, in Hainault,
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 253 
 
 detested the French, and when he was 
 delivering his message, he added, with much 
 insolence, that if the King did not keep his 
 soldiers in order, the Emperor, his master, 
 would treat him "as a youth." The King 
 felt a strong inclination to have a good 
 drubbing administered to him, . but at the 
 advice of the other princes, he merely replied 
 to the herald that if his master applied to 
 him, personally, he should treat him as "an 
 old dreamer."* 
 
 Vieilleville, upon returning from his expe- 
 dition, reported satisfactorily to the King as 
 to the state of the country, and then abruptly 
 added : 
 
 " I was very sorry, your Majesty, to have 
 been unable to capture the bastard de 
 Myrande." This bastard, it should be ex- 
 plained, was commanding a troop of Italians 
 under his father. 
 
 "What ! " said the King, " did he insult 
 the camp with his troop ? He is quite 
 capable of it." 
 
 " Vieilleville," vol. xxix., page 182. This anecdote is 
 only to be found in these memoirs.
 
 254 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 " "Worse than that/' rejoined Vieilleville. 
 " The fellow has abandoned your service for 
 that of England, and has taken his company 
 with him. If I had been made aware of his 
 treachery an hour sooner, I would have 
 charged and worsted him with the forty or 
 fifty horsemen I had with me, for he had not 
 more than 120 men with him, and they were 
 encumbered with baggage. I have seized a 
 dozen of them, and have brought them back 
 with me." 
 
 " And what was the cause of the defec- 
 tion ? " enquired the King. 
 
 "He asserts that it was the refusal to 
 grant him a patent of gentility, the refusal 
 being accompanied by an intimation from a 
 secretary of the Chamber that the King does 
 not grant such a patent to bastards, unless 
 they are Princes." 
 
 Upon this, the Count de la Myrande, who 
 was a great gambler, and had won the night 
 before 6,000 crowns from M. de Nevers, came 
 in a great state of mind to see the King, and 
 said, in a mixture of French and Italian : 
 " Corps de Dieu, your Majesty, I am ruined !
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 255 
 
 That wretched bastard of mine has robbed 
 me of 30,000 gold crowns and of all my most 
 precious valuables, including the collar and 
 mantle of the Order. He has also taken off 
 my mules and trunks, and has gone over to 
 the King of England. "What am I to do ?" 
 
 The King, perceiving that the theft was 
 the real cause of the desertion, merely 
 laughed, and the nobles imitated his example, 
 much to M. de Myrande's disgust. When 
 the soldiers who had been captured were 
 brought before the King, he questioned them 
 as to their motives, asking whether Trench 
 money was not as good as English. They 
 said that they were natives of Parma, and too 
 good patriots not to follow the fortune of 
 their master to the death. 
 
 "Very good," rejoined the King, "if I 
 had your master here, I would hang him 
 most assuredly ; so you shall go on in 
 advance." 
 
 All twelve of them were then handed over 
 to the provost, and hung up to the branches 
 of the first oaks in the Forest of Ardelot. 
 
 The King and his army at length arrived
 
 256 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 before Boulogne, on the 23rd of August, and 
 the King entered his camp, and was received 
 by " a wonderful thunder of artillery." Early 
 the next day, the attack on the forts began. 
 It was conducted with great vigour, and the 
 ardour of the troops was such that they 
 even gained possession of Ambleteuse and 
 Blacquenay. Some Flemish vessels which 
 were assisting the English also fell into the 
 hands of Leo Strozzi. " We cannot doubt,'* 
 wrote Cardinal de Lorraine, who was follow- 
 ing the operations, " that in this enterprise 
 we have God with us, for in the course of a 
 single day He has favoured us in respect of 
 no fewer than four elements : in water, as 
 exemplified in the spoils taken by the frigates ; 
 in earth, by the capture of two fortresses ; in 
 air, by the fine weather ; and in fire, by the 
 burning of the lower town."* 
 
 But with all this, the Tower of the Order, 
 built by Francois I., the most important of 
 all the forts, remained in the hands of the 
 English. This tower, which was a very high 
 
 " Eibier," vol. ii., page 241.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 257 
 
 one, commanded a very wide range, and it 
 was not easy to come within approach of it. 
 The King accordingly encamped in a village 
 called Huyville, within half a league of the 
 tower, and the trenches were commenced. 
 
 While these operations were in progress, 
 Yieilleville, remembering his quarrel with the 
 Duke of Somerset, determined to send him a 
 challenge. He accordingly proceeded, in 
 great state, accompanied by M. d'Epinay, 
 three gentlemen and a trumpeter, to the 
 gate of Boulogne, on the Montalernbert side. 
 Upon his giving the usual signals, he was 
 asked what he wanted, whereupon he replied 
 that his name was Vieilleville, and that if the 
 Duke of Somerset was there, he should like 
 to break a lance with him. He was told 
 that the Duke of Somerset was detained by 
 illness in London ; and to this he replied 
 that perhaps there might be some son of a 
 Lord who would like to measure strength 
 with a young Breton noble, named d'Epinay, 
 not yet twenty ; if so, he asked him to step 
 forward, so that they might not have to 
 return to the camp without having shown of 
 
 VOL. I. 17
 
 258 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 what metal they were made. The honour of 
 the nation, he added, was involved in this 
 challenge being accepted. 
 
 The son of Lord Dudley* who was 
 of the same age as d'Epinay then very 
 generously accepted the challenge, against 
 the wish of all the English present. He 
 came forward, mounted upon a high-mettled 
 Spanish horse, accepted the challenge, and 
 rode out of the town, accompanied by quite 
 a bevy of nobles. Taillade, however, one of 
 the gentlemen in Vieilleville's suite, said to 
 d'Epinay, " I leave this lord for you to deal 
 with. Look how unsteadily he rides. His 
 knees touch the saddle-bow. Keep steady; 
 and don't lower your lance until you are 
 within three paces. If you lower it from a 
 distance the tip gets unsteady, and you do 
 not see clearly from the visor." 
 
 The conditions of the combat were 
 arranged, one of these being that the one 
 who brought his adversary to the ground 
 
 Dudley, Earl of Warwick, bad four sons ; the eldest 
 married the Duke of Somerset's daughter, and the youngest, 
 Lady Jane Grey.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 259 
 
 should hold him prisoner, and that the horse 
 and arms should also be his. 
 
 The young men advanced against each 
 other, their suite following up in their rear. 
 At the first attack, M. d'Epinay overthrew 
 Dudley, striking him in the side, about six 
 inches above the saddle-bow. Dudley's lance 
 failed to touch d'Epinay, and dropped out of 
 his grasp as he fell. Taillade at once dis- 
 mounted, seized Dudley's horse and got on 
 to it ; while Chesnay, the other gentleman in 
 attendance on Vieilleville, got Dudley to 
 mount his own horse, with every mark of 
 respect, and bestrode himself his com- 
 panion's horse, the pages and lacqueys of 
 the suite lending their assistance. The trum- 
 pets then sounded the retreat, and the 
 French left the English very much humi- 
 liated, and returned to their camp, taking 
 with them their prisoner, who was slightly 
 wounded in the arm-pit, though he was more 
 stunned by the blow than anything else. 
 They were met soon after by the King, who, 
 having learnt what had happened, had come 
 out to meet them. They all alighted from
 
 260 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 their horses, and M. d'Epinay presented his 
 prisoner to the King, begging him to accept 
 him as a gift. The King consented ; but at 
 once restored him to d'Epinay, whom he 
 made a Chevalier on the spot. They then 
 parted, and Dudley remained with the gentle- 
 men of Vieilleville's suite, who treated him 
 with the utmost courtesy. 
 
 The siege of Boulogne dragged on, and 
 the King began to be tired of it, when a ter- 
 rible thunderstorm burst over the camp, not 
 a single tent or pavilion being left standing. 
 
 Most of the occupants were obliged to 
 swim for their lives, and nearly all the horses 
 were drowned and the baggage lost. The 
 storm lasted all night, and was so intense 
 that the earth seemed " changed into water." 
 The rain lasted two days and nights without 
 stopping. The King, in disgust, then raised 
 the camp, and after having well armed the forts 
 taken from the enemy, he disbanded the army 
 and returned to the interior of his kingdom.* 
 
 * See in " Ribier, 1 ' vol. ii., page 245, a letter from 
 Henri II. to the Cardinal de Ferrare, giving particulars of 
 this siege.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 261 
 
 Young Dudley, finding that the French 
 army was retiring from Boulogne, entreated 
 d'Epinay to ransom him. 
 
 " You bore yourself then, in our society, 
 do you ? And would you not like to come as 
 far as Paris, at all events, with us ? " 
 
 The young lord refused, offering to pay 
 double if he could get away at once, as he 
 had very important business on hand in 
 England within a month. 
 
 At the same time, one of his gentlemen, 
 taking d'Epinay upon one side, gave him to 
 understand that the business in question was 
 his marriage with the daughter of the Earl of 
 Bedford, and that Dudley was so much in 
 love with her that he would certainly fall 
 ill if he was kept in captivity. D'Epinay 
 thereupon declared that he was at liberty to 
 go, and that he would give him a passport. 
 With regard to ransom, as this was their 
 maiden combat, he would not accept any 
 money, and would not even keep his horse. 
 All that Dudley need send him was four 
 guilledines (hackneys) from England, and he 
 hoped that he would remember that the
 
 262 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 d'Epinays went into battle not for money 
 but to gain honour. 
 
 Dudley, full of gratitude, threw himself 
 into d'Epinay's arms, and swore him friend- 
 ship and service. He refused, however, to 
 take back his horse, but asked d'Epinay to 
 call it Bedford, out of compliment to his 
 betrothed, after which they parted. 
 
 On returning to London and telling his 
 father of what had occurred, they picked out 
 six of the best hackneys they could find and 
 sent them, with six bulldogs, to M. d'Epinay, 
 while, in recognition of his courtesy, they 
 combined his arms with theirs in all the 
 windows of their residence. 
 
 M. d'Epinay himself had gone back to 
 his young wife, proud to be able to give her 
 this token of his prowess, and as he had been 
 made Chevalier, she was entitled to the rank 
 of Dame. But she declined to use it, out of 
 deference to her mother-in-law, as long as 
 the latter was alive.* 
 
 * The title of Dame was reserved to the wives of Cheva- 
 liers. The wives of equerries had, like the wives of the 
 burghers or bourgeois, the right to the title of Demoiselle 
 only.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 263 
 
 The Boulogne affair, under the conduct 
 of the Constable, ended in a compromise, 
 much to the annoyance of Vieilleville, who 
 looked upon the town as being to all intents 
 and purposes taken. He accordingly refused 
 to have anything to do with the negociations, 
 large as were the bribes given on such 
 occasions. Montmorency was not sorry 
 for this, and he appointed for this purpose 
 his brother, the Sieur de la E/ochepot.* 
 
 In the end, the English Ambassadors 
 came to France to sign a fresh peace. The 
 King received them at Orleans, so that they 
 might be able to judge of the prosperity of 
 the kingdom, for from Paris to Nantes the 
 country seemed like the outskirts of a great 
 city, so numerous were the castles, small 
 towns and villages. f The embassy paid a 
 four days' visit to Vieilleville upon his domain 
 
 * See in " Fontanieu," pages 259260, and in "Be- 
 thunes," 533, folios 8635 to 8653, the collection of letters 
 from the Constable aud Henri II. upon this business. See 
 also a letter from the Constable to the Due de Guise, 
 " Gaignieres," page 465, French MS., 20,577. Extract. 
 
 f See an ode by Ronsard with reference to this peace. 
 Vol. i., page 232, edition of 1623, folio.
 
 264 A GENTLEMAN OF T1IK OLDKX TIME. 
 
 at Duretal, where they were received with 
 great hospitality.* Soon after this, Henri IT. 
 returned the compliment by sending 
 Andre on a special mission to thank Kin 
 Edward VI., when he was accompanied 
 Vieilleville. 
 
 As they apprehended an attack of the 
 Flemish fleet, they decided at the last 
 moment to embark at Dieppe, so they landed 
 at Eye instead of at Dover, where they were 
 expected. No preparations, therefore, had 
 been made for their reception, and it was 
 with the utmost difficulty that twenty-four 
 transport horses were found for the heads 
 of the Embassy, the others being obliged 
 to corns oil as best they could. They 
 were very thankful to get bullock waggons, 
 for some of them, attired in satin and 
 velvet, had to walk, including the Comte de 
 
 * Among other details of this hospitality, the chronicler 
 relates that in order to entertain all the suite, 120 pipes of 
 excellent Anjou wine were broached in the cellars, and given 
 out in jugs, barrels, and bottles like water from a spring- 
 The suite appreciated it so much that they emptied the 
 cellar. " VL-illeville,'' vol. xxix., page 268.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 265 
 
 Montgommeiy, whom M. d'Epinay took up 
 behind him part of the way. 
 
 A grand reception was given them in 
 London. They resided at first in Westmin- 
 ster, and afterwards at Eichmond Palace. 
 They were asked,' however, not to have Mass 
 said there on account of the religious differ- 
 ences which were then so intense. Vieilleville 
 went to stay, as before, at Darornpler (?). 
 
 The young King, being very anxious to see 
 this brilliant Embassy, of which he had heard 
 so much, readily fixed an early date for grant- 
 ing it an audience at Hampton Court, while 
 preparations were being made for the state 
 reception. Upon the day appointed twelve 
 Chevaliers of England, in sumptuous equi- 
 pages, came to fetch St. Andre, and conducted 
 him to the audience chamber, where the King 
 was awaiting him, " in very great majesty." 
 St. Andre advanced, walking between Vieil- 
 leville and M. de Gie, the ordinary ambas- 
 sador, and made a deep obeisance ; but the 
 King, unable to contain himself for joy, em- 
 braced him very heartily, and said to him in 
 French that his presence was very welcome
 
 266 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 for three reasons : the first, because it con- 
 firmed the peace concluded with his brother 
 of France ; the second, because the King had 
 deputed for that purpose the nobleman whom 
 it gave him the most pleasure to receive ; 
 and the third, because as the compact was 
 sealed by, so great a friend of the King, he 
 would use his influence to render it unalter- 
 able. Having repeated his welcome, he then 
 took Vieilleville, whom he had recognised 
 again, by the hand, and honouring him 
 "with a very cordial caress," said : " I take 
 you as witness of all I have said ; and feel 
 sure that you, on your part, will never have 
 cause to stir up France against England." 
 Speaking again to M. de St. Andre, he went 
 on to say : "But as you are going, I know, 
 to deprive me of M. de Gie for which I am 
 very sorry, as we like him extremely will 
 you not leave M. de Vieilleville in his 
 place ? " 
 
 St. Andre said no ; and, upon the King 
 asking who was to be the successor of M. de 
 Gie, he was told that his name was the Seig- 
 neur de Bois-Dauphin. This personage was
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 267 
 
 so stout that he could not mount a horse, 
 and he was the first of the French nobles 
 who used a carriage. St. Andre having 
 called him up, the King could not help smil- 
 ing, and, taking them all three on one side, 
 observed jocularly that this ambassador would 
 give England a bad name, for, "as he would 
 not be able to live as well as he would in 
 France, he would lose flesh." 
 
 This joke made them all laugh, and the 
 gentlemen of the suite, " who could not help 
 staring at a gentleman so tall, so large, and 
 so fat," joined in the merriment. 
 
 The King, with outstretched arms and 
 bare head, afterwards embraced all the noble- 
 men, each according to his rank, and they 
 were all of them charmed with this Prince, 
 who, in his early youth, spoke French, 
 Italian, and Spanish, in addition to his own 
 language. He also spoke a little Latin, and 
 was well grounded in Greek. 
 
 Upon the following day the state recep- 
 tion took place, with great pomp, in the same 
 audience chamber at Hampton Court. St. 
 Andre, upon entering the room, between
 
 268 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Vieilleville and M. de Gie, had in his train 
 sixty French nobles and six pages of the 
 King's Chamber, all of the highest families 
 and magnificently attired. The King of Eng- 
 land was at the farther end of the room, and 
 his beauty, his youth, and the singular charm 
 of adolescence which he possessed, exercised 
 so much prestige that, as he appeared at 
 the head of his nobles so covered with 
 diamonds, rubies, pearls, emeralds, and sap- 
 phires that the room literally glistened, he 
 " might have been taken for an angel in 
 human form." He came forward with his 
 gracious smile to meet St. Andre, took him 
 by the hand, and led him to the chapel, each 
 of them followed by his suite, between the 
 two lines cf the guard, which was made up 
 of four hundred very tall and powerful men, 
 all upright and fair of complexion, arrayed in 
 crimson velvet doublets embroidered with 
 golden roses. 
 
 The Chancellor of England then brought 
 the Bible, upon which the King, in a kneel- 
 ing attitude, attested the confirmation of 
 peace. Upon his rising, St. Andre placed
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 269 
 
 round his neck the collar of the Order of 
 France, the King then embracing first him, 
 as a Brother of the same Order, next M. de 
 Gie, as ambassador, and lastly Vieilleville, as 
 a witness of the transaction ordering, too, 
 that his name should be inserted in the 
 official record. 
 
 The trumpets and hautbois sounded 
 lustily, while English lords and French nobles 
 were " embracing each other so warmly and 
 affectionately that several of them wept for 
 joy." The whole company then repaired to 
 the royal banquet, all the seats at which were 
 reserved for the French, while M. d'Apchon, 
 the brother-in-law of St. Andre, received the 
 English at his table. 
 
 The remainder of the day was passed 
 amid manifestations of joy and salutes, not 
 only at Hampton Court but in London. The 
 next day the King took all the French noble- 
 men to Windsor, where three days were de- 
 voted to feasting, hunting, and pastimes of 
 every kind. When the time came for saying 
 good-bye, Edward presented to the Embassy 
 two hundred hackneys, one hundred and
 
 270 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 twenty of which had saddles and trappings of 
 velvet and the rest of morocco leather of all 
 colours black, grey, tan, sea-green, pink, 
 and pale yellow together with gilt stirrups. 
 Fresh assurances of peace and friendship 
 were exchanged at parting. 
 
 Vieilleville and d'Epinay, on their way 
 through Richmond, met Lord Dudley and his 
 son, who presented them with eight hackneys 
 as white as snow, with saddles and harness, 
 six greyhounds with collars, and six bulldogs, 
 besides a dozen bows aind as many quivers 
 filled with arrows to match the saddles ; the 
 whole of this having been manufactured in 
 Turkey, and being of the very finest quality. 
 
 The Embassy, in due course, embarked at 
 Dover, and was escorted across the Channel 
 by the English fleet. On reaching Amiens 
 most of the nobles left St. Andre, and Vieille- 
 ville and d'Epinay, who followed him to 
 Court, then took leave of the King and re- 
 turned to Duretal.* 
 
 * "Vieilleville," vol.xxix., pages 219245.
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 THE GENERAL CONDITION OF EUROPE PRE- 
 PARATION FOR WAR BETWEEN FRANCE 
 AND THE EMPIRE. 
 
 HE religious questions which, in the 
 sixteenth century, were so mixed 
 up with politics in Europe, led to 
 utmost confusion and trouble. Not 
 only were Roman Catholicism and the Re- 
 formation at war, but upon the one hand 
 the interests of the German Princes clashed, 
 while, upon the other, the rivalry of the Pope 
 and Emperor was a perpetual cause of 
 intrigue and strife. If the common hatred 
 of heresy united them for the moment, they 
 had no sooner overcome it than they began 
 to regard each other with suspicion, and 
 often called in the aid of the adversary whom 
 they had just combined to crush. Guelphs
 
 272 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 and Ghibellines were still in existence, and 
 Italy was, as before, the prize at stake. 
 France, siding first with one and then with 
 the other, made confusion worse con- 
 founded. 
 
 This policy, without principle or con- 
 formity, which characterised the reign of 
 Francois I., went on under Henri II. with 
 the difference that the hatred of the King 
 against the Emperor never relaxed. 
 
 The first idea of a general council, for the 
 purpose of conciliating opposite doctrines, 
 had been put forward by the Diet of Spire, 
 convoked by Charles V. in 1526, in order to 
 form a barrier against the Pope, just at the 
 time that Bourbon was marching upon Rome. 
 This Diet had asked for the formation of a 
 council, composed in part of Lutherans and 
 in part of Catholics, and pending its assembly, 
 had declared that each Prince should be free 
 to govern his State, so far as religious ques- 
 tions were concerned, in the way that pleased 
 him best. This phase of tolerance lasted 
 four years, and they were very favourable to 
 the progress of the Reformation. After the
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 273 
 
 peace of Cambrai, and the Coronation at 
 Bologna, Charles V., reconciled to the Pope, 
 turned round upon the Protestant Princes, 
 who then formed a confederation for their 
 mutual defence, in the famous League of 
 Smalkalde.* The Emperor retorted by 
 maintaining his decrees, and assembling a 
 Diet at Cologne to elect his brother, 
 Ferdinand, King of the Romans, and so 
 assure to the Emperor a Catholic survivor. 
 The Confederates protested against the elec- 
 tion, and prepared for war. They were, 
 however, drawn together by a common 
 danger the invasion of the Turks and in 
 presence of this, Charles V. reverted to the 
 policy of Spire, and even renewed it in 
 the pacification of Nuremberg (July 23rd, 
 1532), which remitted the decision of re- 
 ligious questions to some future council. 
 At the same time he confirmed the expropri- 
 ation of ecclesiatical property, and composed 
 the Imperial Chambers, in part of Catholics, 
 and in part of Lutherans. The whole of 
 
 * " Francois I.," page 254. 
 VOL. i. 18
 
 274 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Germany then united against Soliman, and 
 drove him back without a struggle to Con- 
 stantinople. Two years afterwards, in view 
 of France arming for combat, the pacification 
 of Nuremberg was confirmed by the treaty 
 of Kadan, and in return for this the Princes 
 recognized Ferdinand as King of the 
 Romans. 
 
 In the same year (1534) the ardent 
 Farnese succeeded, under the title of Paul 
 III., the sceptical and lettered Medicis upon 
 the Papal throne. A new era dawned for the 
 Catholic faith, as Paul III., who was of a 
 morose and fanatic disposition, of a resolute 
 and persevering character, began the internal 
 reform of the Church, and endeavoured, with- 
 out, to unite Christendom against the Turks. 
 After having induced Charles Y. and Fran- 
 cois L to sign the truce of Nice, he en- 
 deavoured, at the Diet of Ratisbon, to win 
 back the Protestants, but he was checked by 
 the opposition of the Princes, who felt that 
 beneath the unity of the Church lay concealed 
 Imperial despotism, and that they were 
 secretly supported by Francois I. The Diet
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 275 
 
 separated without coming to any conclusion, 
 and Charles V., who was afraid of throwing 
 the Princes back into the arms of France, 
 confirmed the treaties of Nuremberg and 
 Kadan, while undertaking, as a token of his 
 religious zeal, the Tunisian and Algerian 
 expeditions. The Pope was indignant, but 
 all to no purpose, and there was no help for 
 it. Continuing, at the same time, his apos- 
 tolic work, Paul III. created the Order of 
 the Jesuits, reorganised the Inquisition, and 
 convoked at Trent, in 1542, a Council, the ob- 
 ject of which was not to conciliate opposing 
 doctrines, but to crush heresy. So, when 
 the time arrived, the Lutherans refused to 
 attend it, and as the foreign bishops were 
 prevented from going to it by the war be- 
 tween France and the Empire, it could not 
 be held until three years later, opening on 
 the 13th of December, 1545. 
 
 Charles Y. had just signed the Peace of 
 Crespy. Feeling himself at Liberty in regard 
 to France, he made no attempt to conceal his 
 hatred of the Reformation, and joined with 
 the Pope in shaping the deliberations of the
 
 27G A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 Council, the first decrees of which unhesita- 
 tingly and sternly condemned the Protestant 
 doctrines. Immediate preparations were 
 made for war. Charles V. at the head of the 
 Catholics, obtained from the Pope a body of 
 12,000 men, under the command of his 
 grandson, Ottavio Farnese, but asked him to> 
 keep the matter secret in order to gain time- 
 and lure the Princes on to their ruin. But 
 the fanaticism of Paul III., who always re- 
 proached Charles V. with being equivocal m 
 his policy, could not brook this mode of 
 action, and he divulged the treaty in order to 
 make an irreparable breach between the 
 Emperor and the Protestants. The effect 
 was magical ; for Germany, who was still 
 undecided, rose as one man, and the Princes 
 and the free cities got together an army, and 
 negociated with Venice, Switzerland, Eng- 
 land, and France, in order to obtain aid. The 
 Emperor thereupon hurried on his action, and 
 put under the ban of the Empire the Princes 
 of Saxony and Hesse, who were at the head 
 of the Reform party, declaring them to be 
 rebels and proscripts, confiscating their
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 277 
 
 property, and inarching against them with 
 his army. 
 
 The Confederates had plenty of troops, 
 but they were lacking in cohesion. The 
 death of Luther was a blow to them, and the 
 desertion of Maurice of Saxony, the son-in- 
 law of the Landgrave, and the first cousin of 
 the Elector, whose property he coveted, put 
 a finishing touch to their disunion. They 
 dispersed before Charles V. without striking 
 a blow. The Duke of Wurtemberg demanded 
 pardon on his knees, and the different cities 
 offered their submission. The Landgrave, 
 and the Elector of Saxony alone remained in 
 the field, and as the negociations dragged 
 along slowly, the fortune of war changed. 
 The Elector succeeded in ousting Maurice 
 from his states, and the Pope, still very dis- 
 satisfied, recalled the forces under Ottavio 
 Earnese at the expiration of the term for 
 which they were engaged, while he seized the 
 excuse of an epidemic having broken out, to 
 transfer the Council from Trent to Bologna, 
 where it was outside the Emperor's influence. 
 He also stirred up the irritation of Francois I.,
 
 278 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 who was preparing to break the Peace of 
 Crespy by negociating with the Protestants 
 and the Turks, and by sending money to the 
 Princes. Moreover, agitation began to assume 
 a dangerous form in Italy. 
 
 In the winter of 1547, the situation, 
 therefore, was beginning to be a very critical 
 one for Charles V., when the death of 
 Francois I. liberated him from the peril in 
 which he was placed, by dispersing the feel- 
 ings of hatred which were accumulating 
 against him. The opening of a new reign, 
 the change of ministers, the disgrace of one 
 set of favourites and the accession of another 
 set, were all calculated to bring about delay 
 and uncertainty in the course of affairs. 
 Charles V. took advantage of this, and ad- 
 vancing promptly against the Princes, he 
 won a great victory over them, on the 28rd 
 of April, at Muhlberg.* The Elector of 
 Saxony was made prisoner, and the Land- 
 grave had to fly for his life. The whole 
 country submitted itself to his authority, 
 
 * For an account of this battle see " Papiers d'Etat de 
 Granville," vol. iii., page 262.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 279 
 
 and Maurice, the son-in-law of the Land- 
 grave, even prevailed upon his father-in-law 
 to deliver himself up to Charles V., and sue 
 for pardon on his knees. 
 
 The Emperor, thinking that he was the 
 absolute master of Germany, treated his 
 vanquished foes with the ut ; rnost rigour. 
 The Elector was put into chains and con- 
 demned to death, only escaping with his life 
 by abandoning all his property ; while the 
 Landgrave was cast into prison, in spite of 
 the promise made that he should be granted 
 his liberty. Charles V. then made a trium- 
 phal progress through the country, dragging 
 them both in his train, and he displayed the 
 true Spaniard's contempt for the Germans. 
 Acting in concert with his brother, Ferdi- 
 nand, he suppressed the privileges enjoyed 
 by the towns, destroyed the charters, in- 
 creased the taxes, and put a price upon the 
 heads of the leaders of the Reformation. 
 A Diet was convened at Augsburg on the 
 9.th of Sept., 1547, and Charles V., entering 
 the city at the head of his soldiers, took 
 possession of the Cathedral, had it purified,
 
 280 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 and re-established the Roman Catholic rite. 
 In his opening speech, he insisted upon the 
 necessity of submission to the Council, and 
 the Diet, in fear and trembling, undertook 
 to do as he bade it, and even entreated the 
 Pope to bring it back to Trent. 
 
 Further difficulties were, however, raised 
 by the Holy See. The duchies of Parma 
 and Piacenza, which formerly were part of 
 the Milanese State, had been reunited to 
 the States of the Church. But Paul III., in 
 his anxiety to invest the sovereignty of them 
 in his son, Paul Louis Farnese, constituted 
 them into a separate province. Charles V. 
 refused to assent to this change, and claimed 
 the duchies for himself, as master of the 
 Milanese State. The Pope angrily declined 
 to accede to the Emperor's demand, and 
 maintained his son in the duchies. The 
 latter, however, was so cruel and tyrannous 
 a ruler, and made such an open display of 
 his crimes and debauchery, that the nobles 
 and people alike execrated him. So it was 
 that Ferdinand de Gonzagua, who was Go- 
 vernor of Milan for Charles V., had no
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 281 
 
 difficulty in getting up a conspiracy against 
 him. He was stabbed, and his body hung 
 out from one of the windows of the palace, 
 Gonzagua taking possession of Piacenza in 
 the Emperor's name. He attempted also to 
 seize Parma, but the population declared in 
 favour of Ottavio Farnese, son pf Paul Louis 
 and proclaimed him Duke, Gonzagua agree- 
 ing to a suspension of arms.* 
 
 The Pope was infuriated beyond descrip- 
 tion when he heard of all this. He refused 
 to let the Council return to Trent, and nego- 
 ciated against the Emperor with France and 
 the Protestant Princes. Charles V. there- 
 upon declared that, failing the Pope, he 
 would attend to the wants of the Church 
 himself. With this view, he summoned a 
 diet at Augsburg, for the 15th of May, 1548, 
 and caused to be adopted, pending the Coun- 
 cil, a rule of doctrine universally compulsory 
 
 * See, with regard to the affairs of Parma, a letter from 
 Simon Benard, the Emperor's Ambassador in France, to 
 M. de Vergy, dated Amboise, April 21, 1650, and two others 
 from the Emperor and the Bishop of Arras to Simon 
 Eenard. " Granville," vol. Hi., pages 522, 537, and 562.
 
 282 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 under the style of interim. This ambiguous 
 arrangement, which left certain contested 
 points in doubt, but upheld all the main Catho- 
 lic principles, failed to satisfy either the Pro- 
 testants or the Pope, the latter of whom was 
 most indignant at this usurpation of his 
 authority by a layman. Charles V., feeling 
 himself assured of being able to do as he 
 pleased, then resolved to make the Empire 
 an hereditary one ; and he went to Brussels, 
 whither he summoned Prince Philip of Spain, 
 who had just attained his majority (twenty- 
 one), in order to show him to his subjects. The 
 young Prince travelled by way of Italy and 
 Germany ; but being devoid of all the charm 
 of youth, as of all affability, grace, or cordial- 
 ity, his sombre and haughty demeanour, and 
 his marked partiality for Spaniards, made him 
 very obnoxious to everyone else. Charles V., 
 moreover, was unsuccessful in his efforts to 
 induce Ferdinand to abdicate. Fortune, how- 
 ever, smiled upon him in another direction. 
 Paul III. died on the 10th of November, and 
 Julius III., who succeeded him, and who was 
 devoid of all character and moral courage,
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 283 
 
 was a mere tool in his hands. The Council 
 was again transferred to Trent, and Charles Y. 
 went to reside at Inspriick, so as to be in a 
 position to dictate to it. But, in the mean- 
 while, the insults which he had put upon her, 
 awakened the indignation of Germany. Mau- 
 rice himself was moved to wrath, and the 
 want of good faith displayed towards his 
 father-in-law, the Landgrave, provoked more 
 than all else, profound resentment in him.* 
 His ambition, too, had been satisfied by the 
 despoiling of the Electorate; so he made 
 advances to the Princes, while outwardly 
 professing devotion and fidelity to the Em- 
 peror. The League of Smalkalde was re- 
 vived in secret, and assistance was sought 
 from France. The only reason why Henri II. 
 did not, immediately upon his accession, 
 declare war against the Emperor, was that 
 
 Letter from King Ferdinand to the Emperor, in which 
 he urges him to be moderate in his treatment of the Land- 
 grave and the Duke of Saxony. He advises him to release 
 them in order to secure peace, apologizing at the same time 
 for speaking out so freely ; which he would not have done 
 if the Emperor had not asked his opinion. " Correspondance 
 des Kaisers," vol. iii., page 84.
 
 284 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 he was not prepared. But be lent his aid to 
 the latter' s enemies in every direction ; 
 seconding the efforts of those who were 
 rebelling in Italy against the Imperial yoke ; 
 favouring the conspiracy of Fieschi, at 
 Genoa; the insurrection against the cruel 
 Don Pedro, at Naples, and the plot of Gon- 
 zagua, against Peter Louis Farnese, at Milan. 
 He affected to sympathize with all the 
 angry protests of the Pope ; and did his 
 utmost, through his ambassador, M. de Mor- 
 villiers, to induce the Republic of Venice 
 to depart from its neutrality, and declare 
 against the Emperor. It was by means of 
 the Parma business that he found an occa- 
 sion for regaining a footing in Italy. 
 
 After the death of Paul III., Charles V., 
 having no longer any need to conciliate 
 Ottavio Farnese, his son-in-law though he 
 was,* sumn.oned him to make over Parma to 
 
 Marguerite, natural daughter of Charles V., recognized 
 as such by him, who was born in 1521, was married first to 
 Alessandro de Me"dicis, and afterwards to Ottavio Farnese. 
 She had been brought up under the care of her aunts, Mar- 
 garet of Austria and Mary of Hungary. After this, in 1559, 
 her brother, Philip II., having inherited the Low Countries,
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 285 
 
 him. Ottavio, at a loss what to do, applied to 
 France ; and Henri II., by a treaty signed on 
 May 17th, 1551, promised him two thousand 
 foot soldiers, two hundred horsemen, and a 
 yearly grant of twelve thousand gold crowns.* 
 Thermes and Strozzi reached Italy in disguise, 
 and succeeded in raising at Parma and Mi- 
 randola, with the money sent from France, 
 two small Italian armies, which made good 
 the independence of these cities, and ravaged 
 the Komagna, while in Piedmont, Brissac 
 commenced warlike operations, without 
 making any formal declaration, and seized 
 several towns, situated beyond the frontier.! 
 
 presented her, on the 6th of April, to the States of Ghent, as 
 governor. "Papiera d'Etat de Granville," vol. iii., page 540. 
 
 See, with reference to these negociations, the letters of 
 the Bishop of Arras to Simon Renard, the Imperial Ambas- 
 sador to France, dated Augsburg, March 7th, 1550. 
 "Papiers de Granville,'' vol. iii., page 496. See also the 
 letters of M. de Selves, dated Venice, May 16 and 18. 
 " Negociations dans le Levant," vol. ii., page 144. OttavioV 
 brother, Horatio Farnese, lived at the court of Henri II., 
 whose natural daughter, Diane, he married in 1558. 
 
 f Letter from the Emperor to Queen Mary of Hungary, 
 in which he relates the entry of the French into Piedmont, 
 and his reasons for taking up his residence at Inspriick. 
 " Correspondance des Kaisers/' vol. iii., page 75.
 
 280 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 The same policy was pursued in the East, 
 where a difference of opinion had already 
 declared itself between M. de Wetwick, the 
 Imperial Ambassador, and M. d'Aramon, the 
 representative of France, who, after the 
 peace of Crespy, had proceeded together 
 to Constantinople in order to obtain a 
 truce from the Sultan. M. d'Aramon was 
 now hostile to the truce which M. de Wet- 
 wick continued to urge upon the Sultan. 
 
 The death of Frangois I., which rendered 
 a change of policy very possible, together 
 with the victory gained by the Emperor at 
 Muhlberg, led the Sultan to grant the truce.* 
 A few months later, M. d'Huysen arrived at 
 Constantinople as an Ambassador of Henri 
 II., by way of Germany and Venice, and en- 
 deavoured to enlist the Sultan in an armed 
 co-operation against the Empire.! But it 
 
 * Two letters written by M. d'Aramon from Constanti- 
 nople, on the 15th and 20th of July, 1547, attribute the con- 
 clusion of the truce to the mistrust which Soliman felt as to 
 what would be the policy of the new King, and to the 
 victory of Muhlberg. See also the contemporary correspon- 
 dence of M. de Morvilliers, Ambassador at Venice. " Nego- 
 ciations dans le Levant," vol. ii., page 21. 
 
 f See bis letters from Venice, whence he sailed for Con-
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 287 
 
 was to no purpose, as palace intrigues * 
 had induced him to undertake an expedition 
 against the Persians, and all that he would 
 agree to was that France should be admitted 
 to the truce, despite the objections raised by 
 the Emperor. f 
 
 As the Sultan arranged to start for 
 Persia on the 29th of March, 1548, M. 
 d'Aramon received orders to accompany him, 
 as much for the purpose of keeping up 
 French influence with him as to maintain 
 abroad the impression of an alliance calcu- 
 lated to favour the poKcy of France. Ches- 
 neau, who belonged to the Embassy, gives 
 the following account of the preparations 
 made for the voyage : 
 
 stantinople in October. He draws favourable conclusions 
 from the discontent which he found everywhere displayed 
 against the Empire by the Swiss, the Germans, and the 
 Italians. Upon arriving at Yenice, he was received with 
 much magnificence by the Signoria. "Negotiations dans le 
 Levant," vol. ii., pages 32 66. See also, " Bibier," vol. ii.. 
 page 138. 
 
 * The Sultan Yalide, whose influence was all-powerful, 
 wished to get him away from Constantinople so as to favour 
 the elevation of his son, Selim. 
 
 f " Negotiations dans le Levant," vol. ii., pages 56 66. 
 " Eibier," vol. ii., page 138.
 
 288 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 " We were between sixty and eighty in 
 all, well mounted and in regular order, all 
 carrying arras Turkish fashion, some arque- 
 buses, and others lances and javelins, with 
 streamers embroidered with fleur-de-lis ; and 
 never in our time did an Ambassador pro- 
 ceed in such order and state. We left behind 
 us at Constantinople, for the despatch of 
 current business and for the forwarding of 
 official documents, etc., the Sieur de Cambrai, 
 Canon of St. Etienne, at Bourges, a man of 
 great wit, and much appreciated for the 
 variety of languages which he spoke, among 
 others, the vulgar Greek, which is as familiar 
 to him as French." 
 
 The travellers reached the Sultan's camp, 
 in Persia, upon the 8th of July, 1548. " The 
 next day," Chesneau goes on to say, " we 
 continued our journey with the said camp, 
 which was quartered near Cassancala, a 
 wooden castle built upon a mountain. Hither 
 assembled several Georgian nobles, mounted 
 upon small horses, very well dressed in the 
 costume of the country. They came to kiss 
 the hand of their suzerain, and to do homage
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 289 
 
 to him as his subjects, offering him their 
 persons and everything which their country 
 contained as being at his disposal. They 
 presented him with sheep, cheese, and fruits. 
 Hearing that the Ambassador of France was 
 with the Sultan, they came to pay him a visit, 
 and said that, hearing he was the representa- 
 tive of the greatest of Christian Kings, they, 
 being Christians themselves, wished to see 
 him. They gave us a little cheese and some 
 barley for our horses, and we, in return, gave 
 them a bottle of Malvoisie to drink, which we 
 had left. They had never tasted any before, 
 and were delighted with it, going back quite 
 pleased to their native land, which was not 
 far distant."* 
 
 M. d'Aramon entered Aleppo upon the 
 23rd of November, and spent the winter with 
 the Sultan, and as Soliman left Aleppo on 
 the 8th of June, upon his return to Persia, M. 
 d'Aramon, thinking it useless to follow him, 
 took advantage of the opportunity to visit 
 Damascus, Jerusalem, Cairo, and Alexandria. 
 
 *" Voyage de M. d'Aramon," by Chesneau. "Negocia- 
 tions dans le Levant," vol. ii., page 68. 
 
 VOL. i. 19
 
 290 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 " Upon reaching Jerusalem," writes 
 Chesneau, " M. d'Aramon found the Governor 
 and Lords of that city coming out to meet 
 him with more than a hundred and fifty 
 horsemen, followed by the whole population, 
 and I do not believe that there was a single 
 inhabitant, even among the Christians, but 
 was there to greet the said Ambassador, who 
 was awaited by the cordeliers of Mount Sion 
 Monastery, even as the Jews awaited the 
 Messiah." The Grey Friars were at logger- 
 heads with certain santons (Turkish priests), 
 who had taken possession of a part of their 
 church, and were constantly inflicting all 
 sorts of annoyances upon them. M. d'Ara- 
 mon induced the Governor to have them 
 expelled, but though he complied with the 
 request, the santons returned as soon as he 
 had left, and the monks were obliged to go 
 to Bethlehem. 
 
 M. d'Aramon then went to Egypt, re- 
 turning to Jerusalem on the 9th of Novem- 
 ber, where he met the learned Guillaume 
 Pastel, who attached himself to his embassy. 
 Meeting there another learned scholar, Petrus
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 291 
 
 Gilleus, the two fell out, and Chesneau states 
 that it was a very difficult matter to get 
 them to settle their differences.* 
 
 The travellers, having overtaken the 
 Sultan, joined his suite, and reached Con- 
 stantinople on the 28th of January, 1550. 
 
 During these long peregrinations, the 
 corsair Dragut, recognized by Soliman as Bar- 
 barossa had formerly been, was, at the in- 
 stigation of Henri II., infesting and pillaging 
 the coasts of Sicily and Spain ; while Charles 
 V. had, by way of reprisals, seized the town 
 of Africa, upon the coast of Barbary.f 
 Desiring, nevertheless, to avoid a rupture of 
 the truce, J the Emperor, as soon as the 
 Sultan returned, sent him from Brussels an 
 Ambassador loaded with presents, together 
 with a letter accusing Dragut of having, at 
 the instigation of the King of France, 
 attacked him the first. Soliman did not pay 
 
 * " Negociations dans le Levant," vol. ii., page 110. 
 
 t Ibid., page 131. 
 
 | Ibid., pages 84 and 85. 
 
 " Correspondance des Kaisers," vol. iii., pages 3 5. 
 Letters from M. de Morvilliers, Ambassador at Venice, to 
 Henri II., dated June 4th and July 3rd, advising him of the
 
 292 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 any heed to this, and being annoyed by the 
 capture of Africa and by certain intrigues 
 of Ferdinand of Hungary, he received the 
 Emperor's envoy very coldly, and replied to 
 him in making several complaints as to his 
 master's conduct. At the same time, partly 
 on account of his great age, and partly on 
 account of palace intrigues, he put off going 
 to war until 1551, in which year only, M. 
 d'Aramon, who had had time to come and 
 arrange matters with Francois I., induced 
 him to undertake a maritime expedition 
 which would support in Italy the attack 
 initiated by France.* Dragut sailed for the 
 Mediterranean, and after an incursion into 
 
 arrival of that Ambassador. A few days after, Venice sent 
 Bernard Navagero to the Sultan to congratulate him and 
 request him to come to an understanding with M. d'Aramon 
 on all subjects. " N^gociations dans le Levant,'' vol. ii., 
 page 114. Upon the 27th of September, in the same year, 
 Henri II. wrote a long letter to the Sultan, couched in very 
 friendly terms, to inform him of the purchasing back of 
 Boulogne, of his successes in Scotland, and his treaty of 
 peace with England, which enabled him to dispose of all his 
 forces against the Empire. " Bibier,'' voL ii., page 286. 
 
 * Letter from the Confessor to Ferdinand, which dis- 
 plays great uneasiness as to the movements of the Turkish 
 fleet. " Correspondance des Kaisers," vol. iii., page 68.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 293 
 
 Sicily, where he burnt the city of Agosta, 
 instead of following up his attack upon the 
 possessions of Charles V., made a diversion 
 upon Malta, which had been given by the 
 Emperor to the Order of St. John of Jeru- 
 salem after his defeat in Cyprus, and the . 
 Grand Master of which was completely 
 devoted to him.* The attack having been 
 very pluckily repelled, Dragut pillaged the 
 island of Gozzo, and upon the 5th of August 
 laid siege to Tripoli, which belonged also to 
 the Order. M. d'Aramon, on his way from 
 Constantinople to France, was then at Malta, 
 and he protested in the most emphatic terms 
 that his master had no intention of arming 
 the infidel against the religion of St. John 
 but against the Emperor, and at the request 
 of the Grand Master he repaired to Tripoli 
 as a mediator. But it was to no purpose, as 
 the Turks entered the city on the 15th of 
 August, by virtue of a capitulation which 
 they failed to respect, and M. d'Aramon had 
 
 * Departure of the Turkish fleet related in a letter from 
 M. de Selves, 9th to 17th June. " Negotiations dans le 
 Levant," vol. ii.. page 146.
 
 294 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 great difficulty in bringing back forty cheva- 
 liers and two hundred soldiers,* all the rest 
 being massacred. 
 
 All this caused a great outcry to be raised 
 in Europe against France, and, as in the pre- 
 vious reign, Charles V. openly accused the 
 French King of delivering over the Christians 
 into the hands of the Infidel. Henri had 
 great difficulty in exculpating himself, for the 
 religious question had always been the stum- 
 bling-block in the politics of French sove- 
 reigns. Henri, who was passively submissive 
 to the Church, had not the liberality of mind 
 or the yearning of spirit which so often 
 created a feeling of friendship between Fran- 
 901 s I. and the Protestants, nor had he the 
 necessary concentration of mind and energy 
 required for making religious fanaticism a 
 system of government, after the fashion of 
 Charles Y. As the necessities of the Imperial 
 War compelled him, at the same time, to 
 seek the alliance of the Protestants, his reign 
 is marked by the same vacillations as that of 
 
 " Negotiations dans le Levant," vol. ii., page 154.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 295 
 
 his father. " From the beginning of his 
 reign," says Theodore de Beze, " Henri II. 
 was bent upon carrying out to the last ex- 
 tremity the persecution and destruction of 
 the churches begun by the King his father. 
 In pursuance of this resolution, the fires 
 were lighted more often than before, and the 
 Chamber of the Paris Parliament more especi- 
 ally, which was called the Chambre Ardente, 
 condemned to the stake all who fell into its 
 clutches. Jean Morin, upon the one hand, 
 was constantly making captures and sending 
 them to trial ; while Pierre Lizet, the First 
 President, upon the other hand, did not let 
 one of them escape."* 
 
 So much was this the case, that when the 
 King made a state entry into Paris, in July, 
 1549, with a grand procession to Notre 
 Dame, this very day was chosen for the 
 burning of a number of heretics upon the 
 Place de Greve in his presence. Their mar- 
 tyrdom was accompanied with great cruelty, 
 for, according to Mezeray, "they were hoisted 
 
 * Theodore de Beze, " Histoire Ecclesiastique," vol. ii., 
 page 78, quoted by Sismondi, vol. xvii., page 345.
 
 296 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 up into the air with a pulley and iron chain, 
 and then dropped into a roaring fire, this 
 being repeated several times."* The com- 
 piler of the " Histoire des Cinq Rois " relates 
 that among these victims was a former ser- 
 vitor (" cousturier," he calls him) of the 
 King. A few days before, Diane, knowing 
 that he was accused of heresy, had sent for 
 him to cross-examine him and make fun of 
 his answers ; but he had replied to her in 
 such a fashion that she at once had him 
 put in the list for execution. During his 
 execution, "this man, having identified the 
 King, fastened his eyes on him in such a way 
 that nothing could take them off the King, 
 not even the lighting of the fire. The King 
 was compelled to withdraw, and he was so 
 moved that he confessed the man's shadow 
 haunted him everywhere."! 
 
 These persecutions, creating a very hos- 
 
 * " Mezeray," vol. v., page 582. 
 
 f " Vieilleville," vol. xxix., page 398. Mezeray adds that 
 the piercing shrieks of one of these poor men, who had been 
 valet to the King, so haunted his imagination that during 
 the whole of his life he was from time to time very much 
 upset by the thought of them.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 297 
 
 tile feeling among the Protestants in other 
 countries, made it very difficult to conclude 
 an alliance with Switzerland. They were, 
 therefore, brought to an end, and a year 
 later, when he wanted to form a league 
 against the Emperor to conciliate the Ger- 
 mans, perhaps also because he, was not sorry 
 to annoy Cardinal de Tournon, who was 
 rather too attached to his father, Henri went 
 so far as to take into consideration the re- 
 monstrances of Madame de Cental against 
 the C orate de Grignan and the Baron 
 d'Oppede with respect to the massacres of 
 Merindol and Cabrieres, which inspired uni- 
 versal horror. He had the matter laid before 
 his Council, and sent on for examination to 
 .the Full Chamber of the Parliament of Paris, 
 the discussion on which brought to light the 
 atrocity of these crimes.* At the same time, 
 the Council, brought back to Trent by Julius 
 
 * Owing, however, to the clannish feeling of the Paris 
 Parliament, and the protection of M. de Guise, the guilty 
 were absolved, with the exception of the Advocate-General, 
 Guerin, who was a scapegoat for them all, and was beheaded. 
 "Brienne," 204, Evocation de la Cause, Plaidoyer, Arret de 
 la Cour, folios 19, 29, and 382. " Collection Dupuy," 346,
 
 298 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 III.,* had been opened on May 1st, 1551, 
 adjourned to the 1st of September, and fur- 
 ther to the llth of October, owing to there 
 not being a quorum of members. The 
 French King accused it of partiality, because 
 it was under the control of the two enemies 
 of his Crown the Pope and the Emperor. 
 He recalled all the French bishops, and for- 
 bade any money to be sent to Rome ; and 
 then, in order to evade the censure which he, 
 of course, anticipated, he appealed to some 
 future Council. He also met in a friendly 
 spirit the overtures of the Protestant princes, 
 and, after [some negociations, an alliance was 
 signed on October 5th, 1551. 
 
 The treaty at the outset/ announced the 
 object of the League of Smalkalde as follows : 
 " Charles V. having set himself to extirpate 
 their religion, which they hold to be just, 
 true, and beyond the pale of doubt, the 
 
 Plaidoyer et Arrt, folios 10, 252, and 368. French MS., 
 16,642, Le Proces et la Revision du Proces. French MS., 
 fresh acquisitions, 2402, Plaidoyer et Procedure, folios 86 
 and 117. 
 
 * Letter from M. de Selves to Henri II. on this topic. 
 " Negociations dans le Levant," vol. ii., p. 135.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 299 
 
 Princes have combined with one another to 
 defend it, and they ally themselves with 
 France to resist the devices of the Emperor, 
 who is anxious to degrade their dear country, 
 Germany, into a bestial, intolerable, and per- 
 petual servitude, as he has done in Spain 
 and elsewhere." 
 
 By this treaty, Henri II., having under- 
 taken to grant a subsidy to the Princes and 
 to attack the Emperor in the Low Countries, 
 was authorised, in return, to assume the 
 protectorate of the cities which are not Ger- 
 manic in their language, such as Cambrai, 
 Toul, Metz, and Yerdun, and to treat them 
 in his capacity of Yicar of the Holy Empire.* 
 Germany was to give the signal for the 
 attack. 
 
 These arrangements were made in the 
 utmost secrecy through the agency of 
 Maurice, whose superiority was acknowledged 
 by the Confederates, and whom they had 
 chosen as their leader. The winter was 
 
 * This treaty, negotiated on behalf of the King by 
 Jean de Fresse, Bishop of Bayonne, was ratified at Cham- 
 bord on the 15th January, 1552.
 
 300 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 spent in making preparations. George of 
 Mecklenburg, under the pretence of claiming 
 a portion of his inheritance, had placed an 
 army on foot while Maurice disbanded his 
 excellent Saxon forces, being sure of his 
 ability to call them together again as soon 
 as he required them. Maurice pretended to 
 be exclusively engaged in securing the ad- 
 mission to the Council of Trent of the 
 Protestant theologians, who asked for safe- 
 conducts similar to those of the Hussites at 
 Basle, and he renewed his declarations of 
 devotion to the Emperor, who suspected 
 nothing wrong. 
 
 I have already pointed out, in reference 
 to the Treaty of Madrid,* how devoid of 
 foresight Charles V., suspicious as he was, 
 showed himself to be when he was* absorbed 
 by his passion and his ambitious designs. 
 At this juncture, in order to subject the 
 Reformation to the Council, and to govern 
 the one by the other, it was necessary, upon 
 the one hand, to deprive Germany of her 
 
 * "Francois I.," page 160.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 301 
 
 civil and religious liberties, and, upon the 
 other hand, to make use of Germany to 
 alarm and bring to reason the Pope. It was 
 scarcely possible that the setting in motion 
 of such complicated machinery, with all the 
 intrigues and subtleties which this implied, 
 could leave him the clearness ,of views, the 
 liberty of observation, and the sureness of 
 judgment which go to make up the true 
 statesman. Thus it was that he was never 
 more than half of a great man, of which we 
 shall presently have a fresh proof. 
 
 It was in vain that the Duke of Alva and 
 the German prelates called his attention to 
 the preparations made by George of Meck- 
 lenburg, whose army was in the main com- 
 posed of the soldiers of Maurice and the 
 burghers of the towns. It was in vain, too, 
 that Queen Mary of Hungary warned him of 
 the movements of the young Landgrave.* 
 
 * Letter from Mary of Hungary informing her brother 
 that the son of the Landgrave was preparing to invade the 
 Electorate ; he had made an alliance with the King of 
 France, who had assumed the title of Protector of the Ger- 
 manic Liberties, while Duke Maurice and his adherents took
 
 302 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 He would not listen to anything, and the 
 Chancellor Granville, replying to these warn- 
 ings, even asked, with disdain, how these 
 dull Germans, always in liquor, could expect 
 to deceive so keen-witted and so consummate 
 a politician. 
 
 From the beginning of November, 1551, 
 Charles Y. had taken up his residence at 
 Inspriick, three days' journey from the 
 Council, and within easy reach of Hungary 
 and Italy. In December, while in bed 
 with a severe attack of gout, he received 
 a formal embassy from Maurice, and from 
 the Princes who demanded the release of 
 the Landgrave. Thinking that this step 
 was brought about by the necessity which 
 Maurice, as son-in-law of the Landgrave, 
 felt himself to be under, to make things 
 smooth in his family, he replied that 
 he would come to an arrangement with 
 
 that of Defenders of the Gospel. She advised the Emperor 
 to take action against this movement, March 9th, 1552. 
 Upon the 12th of March, she wrote a second letter on the 
 same subject. " Correspondance des Kaisers," vol. iii., 
 pages 113 and 125. 

 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 303 
 
 him when he arrived at Inspriick him- 
 self.* 
 
 The negociations dragged on, while the 
 Princes were continuing their preparations 
 for war, and suddenly, upon the 18th 
 of March, at the head of an army of 
 twenty thousand infantry, and five thou- 
 sand cavalry, Maurice marched upon the 
 Tyrol, having first issued a manifesto, in 
 which he demanded full liberty for the 
 Protestant religion, the restoration of the 
 ancient German rights, and the release of the 
 Landgrave. At the same time, he advanced 
 towards the south, and presented himself as 
 the champion of the cities, which opened 
 their gates to him, and received him with 
 acclamation. Wherever he went, he re- 
 established the ministers in their pulpits, the 
 magistrates upon their bench, and restored 
 their ancient liberties to the people. Before 
 
 * Letter from the Emperor to King Ferdinand with 
 reference to his disputes with the Landgrave and the Duke 
 of Saxony, dated March llth, 1552 ; instructions from the 
 Emperor to M. de Bye, in view of a war with the Princes, 
 March 3rd and 22nd. " Correspondance des Kaisers," vol. iii., 
 pages 114 and 133.
 
 304 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 the 1st of April he reached Augsburg, and at 
 his approach, the Council of Trent broke up 
 in dismay. The Protestant theologians re- 
 turned home; the Italians fled across the 
 Adigio, and as the Legate of the Pope was 
 ill, the Nuncios asked for a Bull to adjourn 
 the Council. Adjourned it was, too, for many 
 a long year. 
 
 This piece of news came like a thunder- 
 clap upon Charles V., who was at that time 
 confined to his bed with gout, besides being 
 bereft of money and troops, having sent all 
 his forces into Italy and Hungary. 
 
 "Writing to his brother Ferdinand, under 
 date of April 4th, 1552, he says* : " Having 
 learned that Duke Maurice is at Augsburg in 
 person, and seeing that, with very slender 
 means of defence, I might be captured here 
 one morning in my bed, I have decided to 
 get off as soon as I can." 
 
 * Upon the 6th of April, he also wrote to Queen Mary, 
 urging her to detain the Landgrave in Flanders, as he in- 
 tended to send him Ito Spain. He meant to make his 
 release one of the conditions of the treaty of peace. " Cor- 
 respondance des Kaisers," vol. iii., page 183.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 305 
 
 Nevertheless, lie put off Ms departure, 
 being unable to bring himself to believe that 
 the case was so desperate, and his 'brother, 
 Ferdinand, endeavoured to arrest the advance 
 of Duke Maurice, by asking him to hold a 
 conference at Linz. Maurice accepted the 
 proposal, but without allowing his army to halt 
 in its march.* Ferdinand thought it prudent 
 to try and gain time, so, under the pretence 
 of having to consult his brother after their 
 first interview, he adjourned the conference 
 till the 26th of May, at Passau, the armistice 
 to commence on that day. But Ferdinand 
 had not taken account of the rapidity and 
 decision with which his adversary was about 
 to act. 
 
 For Maurice, who rejoined his army on 
 the 9th of May, forced the passage of Passau, 
 at the entrance to the Tyrol, upon the 10th, 
 and seized the Castle of Ehremberg, which 
 made him the master of Inspriick. The 
 Emperor was advised of this in the middle of 
 
 * The aforesaid Maurice, having reached Leuz upon the 
 19th of April, the conference commenced the next day. 
 " Correspondance des Kaisers," vol. iii., page 183. 
 VOL. I. 20
 
 .306 A GENTLEMAN OP THE OLDEN TIME. 
 
 the night, so, though it was raining in 
 torrents, and though his sufferings were intol- 
 erable, he had himself placed in a litter and 
 removed to Villach, in Carinthia, by a moun- 
 tain path. So precipitate was his flight, that 
 the litter bearers could only avoid falling over 
 the precipices by setting fire to straw as they 
 went along, while the courtiers followed as 
 best they could some on horseback, or 
 on donkeys, but the greater number on 
 foot. 
 
 " Duke Maurice, and the other German 
 Princes," wrote M. de Selves from Venice to 
 the Constable De Montmorency, " continuing 
 their miracle, which consists in making the 
 lame to walk, will have succeeded in com- 
 pelling the Emperor to do what never an 
 Emperor did before, if he has many more 
 such days' journeyings. The daughters of the 
 King of the Romans are coming, it is said, to 
 this city, as the safest place of refuge for 
 them." 
 
 Upon the morning of the 23rd, a few 
 
 * " Negotiations dans le Levant," vol. ii., page 194.
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLDEN TIME. 307 
 
 hours after his flight, Maurice entered 
 Inspriick with his army. Finding the palace 
 empty, he abandoned his pursuit, and re- 
 turned to Passau, where he arrived upon the 
 26th, according to his engagement. A 
 truce was declared, and the conference 
 began. 
 
 END OF VOL. I. 
 
 SIMMONS AND BOTTEN, PRINTERS, SHOE LANE, E.Ci 
 
 G.CUCo.
 
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