Christina Of Denmark, Duchess Of Milan And Lorraine, 1522-1590

CHRISTINA OF DENMARK DUCHESS OF MILAN AND LORRAINE 1522-1590

BY JULIA CARTWRIGHT (MRS. ADY) AUTHOR OF "ISABELLA D'ESTE," "BALDASSARRE CASTIGLIONE," "THE PAINTERS OF FLORENCE," ETC. NEW YORK E. P. DUTTON AND COMPANY 1913 [Pg iv] [Pg v]...

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PREFACE

Christina of Denmark is known to the world by Holbein's famous portrait in the National Gallery. The great Court painter, who was sent to Brussels by Henry VIII. to take the likeness of the Emperor's niece, did his work well. With unerring skill he has rendered the "singular good countenance," the clear brown eyes with their frank, honest gaze, the smile hovering about "the faire red lips," the slender fingers of the nervously clasped hands, which Brantôme and his royal mistress, Catherine de' M

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I.

The 19th of July, 1507, was a memorable day in the history of Malines. A solemn requiem Mass was sung that morning in the ancient church of S. Rombaut for the soul of Philip, King of Castille and Archduke of Austria, and, by right of his mother, Duke of Burgundy and Count of Flanders and Brabant. The news of this young monarch's sudden death at Burgos had spread consternation throughout the Netherlands, where the handsome, free-handed Prince was very popular with the subjects who enjoyed peace a

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II.

While her nieces were still children Margaret was busy with plans for their marriage. Her views for them were ambitious and frankly expressed. "All your granddaughters," she wrote to her father, "should marry Kings." The old Emperor himself was an inveterate matchmaker, and the House of Austria had been proverbially fortunate in its alliances. Tu felix Austria nube had passed into a common saying. By his marriage with Mary of Burgundy, Maximilian entered on the vast inheritance of Charles the Bo

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I.

Christian II., King of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, as the proud title ran, was in many respects a remarkable man. His life and character have been the subject of much controversy. Some historians have held him up to admiration as a patriot and martyr who suffered for his love of freedom and justice. Others have condemned him as a cruel and vindictive tyrant, whose crimes deserved the hard fate which befell him. Both verdicts are justified in the main. On the one hand, he was an able and enlight

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II.

The death of Christian II.'s mistress, Dyveke, in the summer of 1517 produced a change in the situation at Copenhagen. This unfortunate girl, a victim of her ambitious mother's designs, died very suddenly one afternoon after eating cherries in the royal gardens. The King's suspicions fell on his steward, Torben Axe, who was brutally put to death in spite of his protestations of innocence. But the Queen's position was distinctly improved. Christian now treated his wife with marked kindness, and a

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I.

The troubles of the Danish royal family were not over when they left Copenhagen. A violent storm scattered the fleet in the North Sea, and drove several of the ships on the Norwegian coast, where many of them were lost with all their cargo. The remaining eleven or twelve ships entered the harbour of Veeren, in Walcheren, on the 1st of May. Here the King and Queen were kindly received by Adolf of Burgundy, the Admiral of the Dutch fleet, who kept them for a week in his own house, and then escorte

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II.

The exiled monarch, now compelled to realize the hopelessness of his cause, returned sorrowfully with his wife to the Low Countries, and Isabella had at least the joy of embracing her children once more. During this long absence the faithful servants who had followed their King and Queen into exile had kept her well supplied with news of their health and progress. "Prince John," wrote Nicolas Petri, Canon of Lunden, "learns quickly, and begins to speak French. He is already a great favourite wit

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III.

The news of the Queen of Denmark's death reached her brother, the Emperor, on the eve of his marriage to Isabella of Portugal. Guillaume des Barres, the bearer of Margaret's letters, found him at a village in Andalusia, on his way to Seville, where the wedding was to take place on the following day, and had a long interview with his imperial master before he left his bed on the 9th of March. Charles spoke with deep feeling of his sister, and inquired anxiously if the Regent had been able to obta

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IV.

King Christian, as the Emperor hinted, was still a thorn in the Regent's side. Although, since his wife's death, most of his time had been spent in Germany, he remained a perpetual source of annoyance. In July, 1528, he induced his sister Elizabeth to leave her husband, Joachim of Brandenburg, and escape with him to Saxony. All Germany rang with this new scandal, and while the Marquis appealed to Margaret, begging her to stop Christian's allowance as the only means of bringing him to his senses,

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I.

In the letter which the Emperor wrote to Mary of Hungary on his nephew's death, he remarked that the best way of consoling his little nieces for their brother's loss would be to find them husbands. The marriages of these youthful Princesses had already engaged his attention for some time past. While Christina was still a babe in her nurse's arms, the Regent Margaret had been planning marriages for her great-nieces. In 1527 Wolsey proposed King Henry's illegitimate son, the Duke of Richmond, as a

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II.

When the Emperor wrote this letter to his sister, Count Massimiliano had already started on his journey. He left Milan on the eve of St. Bartholomew, taking Count Francesco Sfondrati of Cremona and Pier Francesco Bottigella of Pavia with him, and travelled by Trent and Spires to Louvain, where he arrived on the 12th of September. The next day he was conducted to Ghent by Monsieur de Courrières, the Captain of the Archers' Guard, and met at the palace gates by Monsieur de Molembais, the Queen's G

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III.

Christina had now completed her twelfth year, and Mary of Hungary could no longer invent any excuse to delay her journey to Milan. The bridal party finally set out on the 11th of March, conducted by Monseigneur de Praet, the Emperor's representative, and Camillo Ghilino, the Duke's Ambassador, with an escort of 130 horse. Madame de Souvastre, one of Maximilian's illegitimate daughters, whose husband had been one of the late Regent's confidential servants, was appointed mistress of the Duchess's

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IV.

At six o'clock on the evening of the 4th of May the marriage of the Duke was finally celebrated in the hall of the Rocchetta, which was hung with cloth of gold beautifully decorated with garlands of flowers. Among the illustrious guests present were the Cardinal of Mantua, the Legate Caracciolo, Antonio de Leyva, and the chief nobles and senators. The Bishops of Modena and Vigevano chanted the nuptial Mass, and Monseigneur de Praet delivered a lengthy oration, which sorely tried the patience of

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V.

The chief event of Christina's brief married life was the marriage of her elder sister, the Princess of Denmark. Dorothea was by this time an attractive girl of fourteen, shorter and slighter than her sister, and inferior to her in force of character, but full of brightness and gaiety. She was very popular in her old home at Malines, and often shot with a crossbow at the meetings of the Guild of Archers. Several marriages had been proposed for her, and King James of Scotland had repeatedly asked

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VI.

Before the Palatine and his bride reached Heidelberg, Europe was thrilled by the news of the capture of Tunis, and the flight of the hated Barbarossa before his conqueror. It was the proudest moment of the Emperor's life. Twenty thousand Christian captives were released that day, and went home to spread the fame of their great deliverer throughout the civilized world. The news reached Milan on the 2nd of August, and was hailed with universal joy. Te Deums were chanted in the Duomo, bells were ru

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I.

Christina's short married life was over. At the end of eighteen months she found herself a widow, before she had completed her fourteenth year. But the brief interval which had elapsed since she left Flanders had sufficed to turn the child into a woman. From the moment of the Duke's death, her good sense and discretion won golden opinions from the grey-headed statesmen around her. The senators and Ambassadors, the deputies from Pavia and the other Lombard cities, who came to offer their condolen

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II.

The city of Pavia had always been loyal to the House of Sforza. In no part of the duchy was there greater rejoicing on the restoration of Duke Francesco II.; nowhere was his premature death more deeply lamented. Several of Christina's most faithful servants were natives of Pavia; among others, Benedetto da Corte, the master of her household, and Bottigella, who had been so active in the preparations for her reception. Now the people of Pavia welcomed her coming warmly, and exerted themselves to

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III.

On the 15th of October Christina and her suite left Pavia, and started on their long-deferred journey to Flanders. When she first set foot in Italy as a bride, three and a half years before, the Lombard plains were in the first flush of spring, roses and myrtles were breaking into bloom, and the flowers sprang up under her feet. Now the autumn rains fell in such torrents that Cardinal Caracciolo was seriously alarmed, and wrote to Benedetto da Corte and Monsignore di Corea, asking if it might no

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IV.

Christina's return was impatiently awaited at Brussels. The courtiers who remembered her mother, and had known her as a child, were eager to see the young Duchess, whose courage and wisdom had been shown in such trying circumstances. All through the summer her coming had been expected, and the Regent was seriously annoyed at the prolonged delays which had hindered her niece's departure from Milan. Her heart yearned over the child from whom she had parted with so much reluctance. More than this,

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I.

The Widow of Milan's fate still hung in the balance. While Mary of Hungary had not yet lost all hope of marrying her to the Duke of Cleves, and Queen Eleanor was no less anxious to see her the wife of a French Prince, fresh proposals reached Brussels from an unexpected quarter. This new suitor was none other than the Emperor's bel oncle , King Henry of England. This monarch, who had openly defied the laws of the Church, and after divorcing Charles's aunt, had pronounced Queen Katherine's daughte

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II.

The ball was now set rolling, but, as Chapuys foretold, there were many difficulties in the way. For the moment, however, all went well. Henry sent Hutton orders to watch the Duchess closely, and report on all her words, deeds, and looks. In obedience to these commands, the Ambassador hung about the palace from early morning till late at night, was present at supper and card parties, attended the Queen out riding and hunting, and lost no opportunity of entering into conversation with Christina h

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III.

On the 27th of March the Imperial Ambassadors dined at the Lord Privy Seal's house, to meet Archbishop Cranmer, Chancellor Audley, Thomas Brandon, Duke of Suffolk, the Lord High Admiral Southampton, and two other Bishops, who were the Commissioners appointed to treat of two royal marriages. One of these was the long-planned union of Princess Mary with the Infant Don Louis of Portugal, brother of the reigning King, which was the ostensible object of Don Diego's mission to England. The other was t

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IV.

The meeting of the Emperor and King of France at Aigues-Mortes in July, 1538, produced a marked change in the political situation. This interview, which the Pope had failed to bring about at Nice, was finally effected by Queen Eleanor, and the two monarchs, who had not met since Francis was a prisoner at Madrid, embraced each other, dined together, and ended by swearing an inviolable friendship. The truce was converted into a lasting peace, and several marriages between the two families were dis

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V.

By the end of October the English Envoys were back at Brussels, rejoicing to be once more in comfortable quarters. Here they found great fear and distrust of France prevailing, and much alarm was expressed lest the Queen should have been induced to give the Duchess of Milan in marriage to a French Prince. This, however, was not the case, and the English Ambassadors were satisfied that beyond feasting and merrymaking nothing had been done. A friendly gentleman, Monsieur de Brederode, told them th

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VI.

At length the eagerly-expected courier reached Brussels, but, as usual, the Queen and Duchess were away hunting, and it was only on the 1st of February that the Ambassadors obtained their desired audience. Mary received them in her bedroom between seven and eight in the morning, and told them that the Emperor had decided to await the arrival of the Count Palatine, who with his wife, the Duchess's elder sister, was shortly expected at Toledo, in order that he might discuss the subject fully with

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VII.

While London was full of alarms, Wriothesley and his colleagues were spending a gay Shrovetide at Brussels, all unconscious of the clouds that were darkening the horizon. During the last few weeks nobles and courtiers had vied with each other in paying them attentions. Visitors of the highest rank honoured their humble lodgings. Madame de Berghen, Aerschot's lively sister—"a dame of stomach that hath a jolly tongue"—dined with them. The Queen herself was expected to pay them a visit, and great p

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I.

The negotiations for the King of England's marriage with the Duchess of Milan were broken off. But there was no lack of suitors for Christina's hand. During the winter and spring of 1539 the Emperor's niece received offers of marriage from three princely bridegrooms. The first of these was Antoine, Duke of Vendôme, whose courtship of the Duchess on the journey to Compiègne had aroused King Henry's jealousy. The second was William of Cleves, who since the old Duke Charles's death had taken posses

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II.

King Henry's marriage to Anne of Cleves, as Southampton told his master, was exceedingly unpopular in the Netherlands. The alliance of so powerful a monarch with Duke William was fraught with danger, and the people bitterly resented the insult which, in their eyes, had been offered to the Duchess of Milan. The merchants of Antwerp said openly that, if King Henry chose to break faith with their Princess, he should not enjoy the company of another wife, and declared they would not allow the Lady A

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III.

Among all his political anxieties and preoccupations, the Emperor had not forgotten his niece. Before he left Spain on this perilous journey through his old enemy's country, he drew up a paper of instructions to be given to his son Philip in case of his own death. A large part of this advice was devoted to the choice of a wife for the Prince himself, the heiress of Navarre being on the whole, in Charles's opinion, the most eligible bride for his son. After suggesting various alliances for his li

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IV.

The Court spent the next three weeks at Bruges, the beautiful old city which was always a favourite with Charles and his sisters, in the ancient Prinzenhof where their mother had died. During these summer days many important events took place, and startling news came from England. On the 10th of June Cromwell was suddenly arrested and sent to the Tower on a charge of high-treason. A fortnight later the new Queen, Anne of Cleves, left Whitehall for Richmond, and on the 9th of July her marriage wa

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V.

The vaunted alliance between Charles and Francis did not last long, and less than a year after the Emperor and King had parted at St. Quentin, vowing eternal friendship, a renewal of war seemed already imminent. Francis was bitterly disappointed to find that none of the great results which he expected from Charles's visit had come to pass. The Emperor firmly declined to marry his daughter, and gave no signs of surrendering Milan to the Duke of Orleans. All he would offer was the reversion of the

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I.

The ducal house of Lorraine, into which Christina had now married, was one of the oldest and proudest in Europe. The duchy took its name of Lotharingia from Lothair, a great-grandson of Charlemagne, who reigned over a vast kingdom stretching from the banks of the Scheldt and Rhine to the Mediterranean. After this monarch's death, his territories became the object of perpetual contention between the German Empire and France, and were eventually divided among a number of Counts and Barons who owne

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II.

The King of France's ill-temper was the one drawback to the general satisfaction with which Christina's marriage had been received. The coldness with which he treated the Duke of Lorraine and his son, the sacrifice of their rights on Bar, rankled in the old man's heart. His surprise was the greater when he received a courteous invitation to bring his son and daughter-in-law on a visit to the French Court. His brother the Cardinal wrote saying that Queen Eleanor was anxious to see her niece, and

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III.

All through the winter of 1541-42 preparations for war were actively carried on in France, and intrigue was rife among the Courts of Europe. Francis was determined to profit by his rival's misfortunes, in spite of the remonstrances of the Pope and of the deputies who were sent by the Imperial Diet to adjure him not to trouble the peace of Christendom while the Emperor was fighting against the Turks. By the end of the year he succeeded in forming a strong coalition, which included Scotland, Denma

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IV.

Soon after her return from Spires, on the 20th of April, 1544, Christina gave birth, at Nancy, to a daughter, who was named Renée, after the late Duchess. But her happiness was clouded by the illness of her husband, whose health had become a cause of grave anxiety. Fighting was renewed with fresh vigour in the spring, and unexpected success attended the imperial arms. Luxembourg was recovered by Ferrante Gonzaga, and the French invaders were expelled from most of the strongholds which they held

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V.

The Prince's death threw a gloom over the imperial camp, but did not diminish the warlike ardour of his battalions, who swore with one voice that they would avenge their leader. On the 17th of August St. Dizier at length surrendered. "A right dear-bought town," wrote Wotton, "considering the number of men lost in the assault, and chiefly the inestimable loss of that noble Prince." Ferrante immediately sent a troop of light horse, with Francesco d'Este at their head, against Joinville, the splend

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I.

The premature death of her husband left Christina in a position of exceptional difficulty. Everything combined to add to her distress. She herself was in delicate health, expecting the birth of another child in a few weeks, her only son was an infant of two years and a half, and she had not a single near relative or tried Minister to give her the help of his counsel and experience. The Duke had appointed her Regent of Lorraine during his son's minority, but even before he breathed his last, her

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II.

The Duke of Guise and his family now stood higher than ever in the King's favour. His eldest son, Aumale, was dangerously wounded in the siege of Boulogne by an English spear, which penetrated so deeply into his forehead that the surgeon could only extract the steel by planting his foot on the patient's head. After this ordeal the Count lay between life and death for several weeks, and owed his recovery to the tender nursing of his mother, who preserved as a trophy at Joinville the English spear

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III.

Of the three great monarchs whose fame had filled the world during the last forty years, only one remained alive, and he was engaged in a desperate struggle. Throughout the autumn and winter of 1546-47, Charles V. carried on a vigorous campaign against the coalition of Princes known as the League of Schmalkalde. Christina watched the progress of the war with keen anxiety, and saw with distress that her brother-in-law, the Palatine, had joined the rebel ranks. Frederic had never forgiven the Empe

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IV.

Christina's absence from her brother-in-law's wedding had been a great disappointment to her aunts, and she received a pressing invitation to come to Brussels for the fêtes in honour of the Prince of Spain, whose arrival was expected early in the spring of 1549. Accordingly, on the 28th of March the Duchess reached Brussels, attended by the Princess of Macedonia, and was received by the Grand-Écuyer Boussu and a brilliant escort of gentlemen. One of these was the Marquis Albert, whose name of la

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V.

Charles V. had long cherished a wish to remove the bones of his ancestor Charles the Bold from the church of St. Georges at Nancy, where they had been buried after his defeat, and bring them to rest in his daughter Mary's tomb at Bruges. At first Christina hesitated to give her consent, fearing to arouse the resentment of her subjects, who were proud of possessing this trophy of King René's victory, but the urgent entreaties of her aunts at length induced her to yield, and, after ascertaining th

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VI.

While the eyes of all Europe were fixed on the imperial family at Augsburg, Christina waited anxiously for news in her palace at Nancy. She had sent two of her Italian secretaries, Innocenzo Gadio and Massimo del Pero, to wait on the Queen of Hungary, with strict orders to keep her informed of all that was happening. Gadio's cipher letters have unluckily disappeared, but some of those addressed to him by Niccolò Belloni have recently been discovered in a private library near Pavia. [440] Belloni

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I.

Michaelmas Day, 1551, was memorable, both in France and Germany, for a snowstorm of extraordinary severity, followed by an alarming earthquake and violent tempest, omens, as it proved, of impending disasters. In this same month of September, Henry II. recalled his Ambassador from Augsburg. Ten days later he declared war. For some time past he had been supporting Ottavio Farnese, who was in open revolt against his father-in-law, and carrying on secret intrigues with Maurice of Saxony and the Prot

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II.

Eastertide, 1552, was a sad and memorable epoch in the annals of Lorraine. At two o'clock on Maundy Thursday, Henry II. entered Nancy at the head of his troops, with trumpets blowing and banners flying. For the first time in the last hundred years, foreign soldiers were seen within the walls of Nancy. The Cardinal and the Duke of Guise rode on before, to inform the Duchess of the King's coming and see that due arrangements were made for his reception. Christina nerved herself for a final effort,

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III.

The invasion of Lorraine and the harsh treatment which the Duchess suffered at the French King's hands were keenly resented by her imperial relatives. Mary wrote indignantly to Charles at Innsbruck, complaining justly of Henry's violation of the neutrality of Lorraine and of the young Duke's [464] capture. To Christina herself she expressed her anger at the King's wicked act, at the same time advising her to bow to the storm and retire to Blamont for the present. This the Duchess did three days

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I.

Christina was at Brussels on the memorable day when the Emperor set foot once more on his native soil. She heard the shouts of joy which rent the air, and joined with the Queens in the welcome which greeted him on the threshold of his palace. Early in January she had left Heidelberg and travelled safely down the Rhine and through the friendly states of her Cleves cousins to Brussels. Here she occupied the suite of rooms where she had lived before her second marriage, and to a large extent resume

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II.

While the war dragged on its weary course, and Mary and Christina vainly tried to bring it to an end, on the other side of the Channel the new King of England and his spouse were holding high festival. They came to London in September, and remained there through the winter, trying to win the love of their subjects by a series of popular displays and festivities. Tournaments were held at Whitehall, hunting-parties were given at Windsor and Hampton Court, and a succession of distinguished guests t

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III.

Charles V.'s intention to abdicate his throne had long been declared. For many years he had looked forward to the time when he should lay down the burden of public affairs and retire from the world, to end his days in some peaceful cloister. The increasing infirmities under which he groaned, his inability to attend either camp or council, and finally the death of his mother, Queen Joanna, in April, 1555, all helped to hasten the execution of his resolve. Only the continuation of the war and the

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IV.

When her uncle and aunts were gone, Christina felt that there was nothing more to keep her at Brussels. She had already thought of retiring to her dower city of Tortona, but the castle was occupied by a Spanish garrison, and while the war lasted the Lombard city was hardly a safe place. This being the case, she asked Philip's leave to take up her residence at Vigevano, the summer palace of the Sforzas, which the Duke had bequeathed to her, but was told that this house was required for the Vicero

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I.

The lull that followed the decisive battle of St. Quentin afforded the Duchess of Lorraine a favourable opportunity for resuming her efforts to open negotiations between the contending monarchs. The Constable, after fighting like a lion and receiving a severe wound, had been made prisoner, and was taken to the Castle of Ghent, where Christina and her daughters were staying. The Duchess paid him daily visits, and brought him letters of condolence from her aunt Eleanor, who wrote that she wished s

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II.

On the 17th of October, 1558, a fortnight's truce was proclaimed. Both armies remained encamped on their own territories, while the two Kings withdrew respectively to Arras and Beauvais. The next day the Commissioners met at one o'clock in the Duchess's lodgings. The Prince of Orange, Alva, Ruy Gomez, Arras, and Viglius, the President of the Council, represented Philip; while the Constable, the Cardinal of Lorraine, St. André, the Bishop of Orleans, and Secretary l'Aubespine, were the five Frenc

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III.

The Commissioners who had attended the Conferences at Cercamp were unanimous in refusing to return to this unhealthy and inconvenient spot, and at the Duchess of Lorraine's suggestion the small town of Câteau-Cambrésis, belonging to the Bishop of Cambray, was chosen for their next meeting-place. The Bishop's manor-house at Mon Soulas, which had been damaged in the war, was hastily repaired by the Duchess's fourriers , the rooms were furnished anew, and paper windows were inserted in place of the

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IV.

The question of Calais having been settled, the French and Spanish Commissioners met again on the 13th of March, and conferred for six hours on their own affairs. The Duke of Savoy's marriage treaty was the chief point under discussion. Madame Marguerite's own eagerness for the union was well known. She had repeatedly asked her friend the Constable to press the matter, and on the 25th of March she sent her maître d'hôtel , Monsieur de l'Hôpital, to Câteau-Cambrésis to sign the contract on her be

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I.

During the last year the Duke of Savoy had repeatedly begged to be relieved of his post as the King's Lieutenant in the Low Countries. By the Treaty of Câteau-Cambrésis he recovered his dominions, and set out on the 15th of June for Paris with a great train of gentlemen and servants, to celebrate his marriage with King Henry's sister. At the same time, the death of the Emperor made Philip's return to Spain necessary. The appointment of a new Regent of the Netherlands became imperative, and every

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II.

Christina's return to Lorraine took place at an eventful moment. The death of Henry II. and the accession of Francis II. placed the supreme power in the hands of the Guise brothers. As the saying ran, "So many Guise Princes, so many Kings of France." The elder branch of the House of Lorraine shared in the triumphs of the younger. The reigning Duke, Charles, had grown up with the young King and Queen, and was tenderly beloved by them. Francis could not bear his brother-in-law to be absent from hi

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III.

On the death of Christian II. of Denmark, his elder daughter, Dorothea, the widowed Electress Palatine, assumed the royal style and title. But as she was childless herself, and lived in retirement at Neuburg, in the Upper Palatinate, the faithful subjects who still clung to their rightful monarch's cause turned to Christina, the Duchess-Dowager of Lorraine, and begged her to assert her son's claims to the throne, saying that they regarded him as their future King. Chief among these was Peder Oxe

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IV.

In July, 1564, Christina fell dangerously ill, and Silliers told Polweiler that his mistress was suffering from a grave internal malady. In November she had a severe relapse, and her death was hourly expected. Her children and servants nursed her with untiring devotion, and her friends at Brussels were deeply concerned. Anne d'Aerschot, Margaret d'Aremberg, Egmont, and the Prince of Orange, made frequent inquiries; and even Queen Mary wrote from Scotland to ask after the Duchess's health. Philip

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V.

While civil war was raging all round, and Christina's best friends were dying on the scaffold or the battle-field, the marriage of her daughter Renée brought a ray of light into her life. The tale of Renée's courtships almost rivals that of her mother's. The Kings of Sweden and Denmark, William of Orange and Henri de Joinville, were only a few among the candidates who sought her hand. Granvelle once proposed the Duke of Urbino as a suitable match, and Philip was anxious to marry her to his hands

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I.

The marriage of her last remaining daughter, and the removal of her granddaughter to the French Court, loosened the ties that bound the Duchess-mother to Lorraine. The failure of the high hopes which Don John's coming had aroused were a grievous disappointment, and, after her dangerous attack of illness in the spring of 1578, Christina decided to follow her doctor's advice and seek a warmer climate. Her thoughts naturally turned to her dower city of Tortona, whose inhabitants still paid her alle

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II.

This last phase of Christina's life was on the whole peaceful and happy. Brantôme pitied this great lady, a daughter of Kings and niece of Emperors, and the rightful Queen of three kingdoms, who, after reigning over Milan and Lorraine, was reduced to hold her Court in an insignificant Lombard town, and was known in her last years as "Madame de Tortone." [654] But after her troubled life Christina was grateful for the peace and repose which she found at Tortona, and would have been perfectly cont

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III.

The good citizens of Tortona were sorely distressed when they learnt that the remains of their beloved liege Lady were not to rest among them. But Christina's heart was in Lorraine, and her children laid her body in the crypt of the Cordeliers' church, in the grave of the husband whom she had loved so faithfully and so long. Twenty-one years later her ashes were removed with those of Duke Francis and his parents, Antoine and Renée, to the sumptuous chapel begun by her son Charles in 1607, and co

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I. Christina, Duchess of Milan, to Francesco II., Duke of Milan.

Monsignore mio cordialissimo marito: Ho bene veduto voluntieri, come sempre sono accostumata, le sue care littere del 20, ma di molto megliora voglia haveria voluto veder la presentia sua, come speranza mi fu data di breve esser, et per dire la vera verita ormai quelli Signori com̄inciano haver puì che torto. Pur mi voglio contentar di quello che la ragione consiglia che si faci, et quella dimora che V. S. judicara esser bene per tutti, lo havero anche io per accepto, ringratiandola de le sue co

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II. Christina, Duchess-Dowager of Milan, to Cardinal Caracciolo, Governor of Milan.

Quello affettione chio conosco V. R ma S ria portarmi, et il buon conto che la tene di me fa ch'io non possi cessar de desiderar' ogn' hora la salute et comodo lei: Ver ho la prego esser contento darmi nova come la si è p̄ortata in questa sua andata et di prēste si trova. Che di resto maggior consolatione no' potreî havere che saper di sua bona valetudine. Appresso: benchè sappia non essere bisogno, nondimeno no' cessero di' ricordar à V. R ma Sig ria el caso mio. Per il quale pregola a far pres

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III. Christina, Duchess-Dowager of Milan, to Cardinal Caracciolo, Governor of Milan.

R mo et mio quanto Patre honorando: Ho presentito per certo che in la hosteria de la Fontana se gli ritrova una bellissima chinea learda, manco bona che di apparenza bella, et perchè me ritrova haverne bisogno de una per la Persona mia, ho voluto cū ogni confidenza indrizzar' questa et el presente mio lachayo a V. S. R ma pregandola che se consensi di contentarme che l' habia; et cometti el pagamento fuori di la spesa ordinario del rollo stabilito, perchè se potea mettere nel numero de li debiti

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IV. Antoinette de Bourbon, Duchesse de Guise, to Mary, Queen of Scotland.

. . .La santé de votre petit fils est aussi bonne que lui fut onques. Il mange fort bien, et l'on le mène souvent a les ébats que me semble lui fait grant bien. Il me semble vous trouverez cru et devenu gras. Quant au reste de n're ménage, v're sœur est toujours malade de sa fièvre et a été cette semaine passée bien mal d'un flux de ventre qui l'a fort affoiblie. Il y a bien huit jours qu'elle ne bouge point du lit. Depuis hier le flux com̄àse a passer, de la fièvre je ne vois pas grant amendeme

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V. Antoinette de Bourbon, Duchesse de Guise, to Mary, Queen of Scotland.

Madame: J'ay tardé plus longuement que je ne pensais à vous escrire, mais les noces de Mademoiselle de Lorraine nous ont tant ameusées que jusque à cette heure on a peut avoir le loisir. Nous departismes hier de la compaignye qui a esté bien grosse. Les noces furent Mardy passé. Mons r le Prince y est venu bien accompaigné et je vous assure c'est un bien honeste Prince et de bonne grâce. Il se contente fort de sa mye, et aussi elle de lui. Ils s'entendent aller chez eux dans xv. jours. La feste

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VI. Antoinette de Bourbon, Duchesse de Guise, to Mary, Queen of Scotland.

Madame: L'on m'a tant assuré qu'on envoye les lettres sûrement par le moyen des Marchands d'Anvers, que je les ai mis à l'entrée pour en apprendre le chemin. Vostre sœur en doit estre la messagère. Je vous ai escrit la conclusion de son mariage et envoyé les articles et depuis ses noces par vostre brodeur. Je viens de la mener en ménage, en une belle et honneste maison et aultant bien meublée qu'il est possible, nommé Beaumoult. Son beau-père la receuillit tant honorablement et avec tant de gens

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VII. Louise de Lorraine, Princesse de Chimay, to Mary, Queen of Scotland.

Madame: Depuys que Dieu a tant faict pour moi que de me donner un bon Mary, je n'ai point eu loisir de vous en faire la part. Vous pouvez estre assurée que je me tiens en ce monde heureuse d'estre en la maison ou je suis, car avec la grandeur qu'il y a en tout, j'ai un seigneur et beau-père que je vous puis nommer bon, car il me faict un bien bon traitement, accompagné de tant de beaux présents, qu'il me faudroy employer trois feuilles de papier avant que je vous pourrais en rendre bon conte et

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VIII. Antoinette de Bourbon, Duchesse de Guise, to Mary, Queen of Scotland.

Madame: Je suis très aise que ce porteur soit venu par ici, pour s'en retourner vers vous, car je vous voullais escrire et envoyer un paquet. . . . Je desire bien fort savoir comme vous vous serez porté en v're couche et aussi comme le Roy et v're petit prince se portent. Je prie a N. S. à tous donner bonne santé et longue vie. Quant à notre costé, tout se porte bien, Dieu mercy! Mon r v're père est revenu depuis huit jours pour quelques bastyments et fortifications que le Roy lui a ordonné fair

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IX. Christina, Duchess-Dowager of Lorraine, to Mary, Queen of Hungary.

18 Avril, 1552. Madame: J'ay escrit une letter à votre Majesté pour avoir moyen d'avertir celle-ci et la Reine vostre sœur de la méchancetè que le Roy de France m'a faict, que sur ombre de bonne foy me emmène mon filz avecque grande rudesse, comme Vostre Majesté entendra par ce présent porteur plus au long. Suppliant Vostre Majesté ne prendra de mauvaise part sy je ne faict ceste lettre plus longue, car la grande fâcherie que j'ay, m'en garde. Sy esté, Madame, que je supplie à Vostre Majesté avo

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X. Anne, Duchess-Dowager of Aerschot, to Mary, Queen of Hungary.

Madame: Je ne saurais vous escrire la grande désolation en laquelle est presentément Madame ma sœur, constitué par la grande rudesse et cruauté que le jour du grand Vendredy luy a esté faicte par le Roy de France, qui est qu'il esté venu icy sous ombre de bonne foy et vrai amitié, comme dernièrement il nous avoit fait entendre. À son arrivée, il a esté reçu avecque tous les honneurs possible, et le meilleur traistement, et le dit jour du grand Vendredy il fit entendre à Madame comme pour satisfa

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XI. Christina, Duchess-Dowager of Lorraine, to the Emperor Charles V.

A l'Empereur. Monseigneur: A la prière de Monseigneur de Vaudemont mon frère et de la Duchesse d'Aerschot ma sœur, j'ay pris la hardiesse de demeurer, encore que Vostre Majesté m'avait escript et commandé que je me retirasse vers les Roynes, ce que j'éspère que Vostre Majesté n'aures pas pris de mauvaise part. Car la grande instance et prière que mon dit frère et sœur m'ont faict, ont esté la cause, non pas pour aller contre son commandement, le voulant obéir toute ma vie, et je vous supplie, de

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XII. Christina, Duchess-Dowager of Lorraine, to the Emperor Charles V.

A l'Empereur. Monseigneur: J'ay reçu la lettre qu'il a plu à Vostre Majesté m'èscrire par le Seigneur de Carondelet, et par luy ay entendu la bonne souvenance qu'il a plu à Vostre Majesté avoir de moy et mes filles, de la bonne visitation, dont très humblement la remercie, et aussi de la charge que Vostre Majesté luy a donné pour me dire ce qu'il me faudra ensuivre. Votre Majesté m'oblige tant de l'honneur qu'elle me faict, que toute ma vie je seray preste à obéir à ses commandements, comme cell

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XIII. Dejanira Commena Contessa Trivulzio to Messer Innocenzio Gadio.

Magnifico Signore, Innocenzio: Ho ricevuto un altra vostra, inteso la morte del Magnifico Signor Belloni, che certo mi ha dato molto fastidio. Io sono certa che la Signora mia madre me haverà havuto grandissimo dispiacere, come risentirà la morte e privatione di tale amico. Però non si può resistere al Divino volere. Mi maraviglia molto non habbiati avuto la littera mia qual mandai alli di passati, in mane di Barile, però di novo vi dico che ho ricevuto la corona ed altre cose per Andronica, et

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XIV. Christina, Duchess-Dowager of Lorraine, to Mary, Queen of England.

April, 1555. Madame: Je supplie V tre Maj tè me pardonner si je prends tant d'audace que d'escrire à icelle, mais tant d'honneur et de faveur que je recois de V tre Maj tè en est cause. Car je ne puis laisser d'avertir que le Capitaine de mon vaisseau qui me mène a si bien faict son devoyr, sans nul hasart, comme V tre Maj tè lui a faict commande, que je ne puis laisser d'en avertir V tre Maj tè et la supplier de l'avoyr en souvenance. Et puis j'assure V tre Maj tè , que je n'en ai reçu que d'en

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MANUSCRIPT SOURCES

Archivio di Stato, Milano : Autografi di Principi; Carteggio Diplomatico, 1533-1535; Carteggio con Montmorency, Conte di Corea, 1537-1538; Feudi Camerali, Tortona; Potenze Sovrane, 1533-1534. Biblioteca Ambrosiana : Continuazione della Storia di Corio, O. 240. Museo Civico di Storia Patria, Pavia : No. 426, Lettere dell' Oratore, 1535; No. 546, di B. d. Corte, 1536. Biblioteca del Conte Antonio Cavagna Sangiuliani a Zelada, presso Pavia : Archivio Sezione Storico, Diplomatico. Mazzo n. 127, Tort

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PRINTED SOURCES

Alberi, E. : Le Relazioni degli Ambasciatori Veneti nel Secolo XVI. Serie 2. 5 vols. Florence, 1839-1863. Altmeyer, J. : Isabelle d'Autriche. Brussels, 1842. Altmeyer, J. : Relations Commerciales des Pays-Bas. 1840. Archæologia , vols. xxxix., xl. (Society of Antiquaries). Brussels 1865. Archæologia Cambrensis , xxiii. 1877. Aretino, P. : Lettere. 6 vols. Paris, 1609. Armstrong, E. : The Emperor Charles V. 2 vols. 1902. Ascham, R. : Works, ed. Giles. 1864. Ashmole, E. : The Order of the Garter.

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