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ENGLISH CLASSIC SERIES.— No. 146 
 
 Four 
 Mediaeval Chroniclers 
 
 Giraldus Cambrensis 
 John Froissart 
 
 Philip de Comines 
 Benvenuto Cellini 
 
 Edited with Introduction and Notes 
 
 by ,^,.-"""_.___;_^ 
 
 Isabella ¥^BI^^r1gh^^^^^ 
 luG 22 1894 
 
 
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 Copyright, 1894. 
 Ev MAYNARD, MERRILL & CO. 
 
 ,V/ i 
 
if 
 
 3V 
 
 \ 
 
 Introductory 
 
 There is a great charm for all of us in what Mr. Howells 
 calls "the quality of contemporaneousness" in literature. 
 The reason is not far to seek : writer and reader have at 
 least one bond of sympathy to start out with, no matter how 
 soon they may fall out by the way. The daily paper serves 
 us up a record of to-day's facts ; the magazine or review 
 gives us the thought, feeling, study, of our own time. What 
 books put us most en rapport with the people of the past, 
 their words, ways, and doings.^ 
 
 First and foremost, the great original writers. They are 
 for all time and for all countries ; because they saw human 
 nature truly, and set down what they saw. No matter about 
 details belonging to other centuries ; no matter about faulty 
 science or halting philosophy : grateful as he is for the aid 
 of learned and skillful editors, the general reader, blessed 
 with fairly quick perceptions and a hearty appetite for books, 
 — and unless he has some measure of both blessings, his 
 reading will never be general, — does not need them to help 
 him get at the heart of Plato, Dante, Shakespeare, Cer- 
 vantes. 
 
 And after the mighty masters, certainly the men who 
 chronicled their own time, and for a like reason : dull and 
 prolix as the chronicler often is, he set down what he saw ; 
 and his matter-of-fact narrative, simply because it is matter- 
 of-fact, strikes deep root in the minds and hearts of a later 
 day. So we introduce our young readers to the lively Welsh- 
 
 3 
 
4 INTRODUCTOKY 
 
 man, Gerald de Barri, — in Latin, Giraldus Cambrensis, — with 
 his portrait of Henry II. of England, whom Bishop Stubbs 
 calls " the first of the three great kings — Henry II., Edward 
 I., Henry VIII. — who have left on the Constitution indelible 
 marks of their own individuality" ; to John Froissart, 
 traveler, courtier, delightful gossip, and story-teller; to 
 Philip de Comines, courtly and diplomatic, who had need 
 to walk v,^arily, whether he served the headstrong Charles 
 of Burgundy or the crafty Louis of France ; last of all, to 
 that " capital I incarnate," a story-teller indeed, whether the 
 story be plain truth or picturesque lie — Benvenuto Cellini, 
 worker in precious metals to the notable personages of his 
 time. 
 
 Isabella White. 
 
Four Mediaeval Chroniclers 
 
 Giraldus Cambrensis 
 
 (1147-1223) 
 
 From the country of his birth Giraldus derived the 
 surname of Cambrensis^ or the Welshman, by which he is 
 popularly known ; but his family name was de Barri. 
 Having left us an autobiography, we know more about 
 5 him than about most mediaeval writers. Allied in blood 
 with the first conquerors of Ireland, which country he 
 visited himself, he wrote an admirable history of its con- 
 quest. Like Geoffrey of Monmouth, he was a very im- 
 aginative Welshman, a lover of wonders, and a retailer of 
 10 extraordinary stories ; but in no other mediaeval historian 
 do we find writing so animated and so picturesque, paint- 
 ing of person and character so careful and minute. — 
 Early Chronicles of Europe: England; Gairdner. 
 
 The King 
 (1154-1189) 
 
 {From Sttibbs' Const. Hist, of England.) 
 Henry II., son of Geoffrey of Anjou and the Empress 
 15 Matilda, was born in Le Mans, in the French province of 
 
6 FOUR MEDIEVAL CHRONICLERS 
 
 Maine, in 1133, when his grandfather (Henry I.) was de- 
 spairing of an hein He was brought to England when 
 eight years old, to be trained in arms ; at sixteen he was 
 knighted by his great-uncle, David of Scotland ; in 1151 
 he became Duke of Normandy, and soon after succeeded 5 
 his father in Anjou. Marrying Eleanor, the divorced wife 
 of Louis VII., he added Poitou and Guienne to his do- 
 minions. In 1 153 he undertook the recovery of England; 
 brought Stephen, partly by war and partly by negotiation, 
 to terms which insured his own succession ; and in less 10 
 than a year succeeded to the English throne. The prin- 
 cipal events and transactions of Henry's reign may be 
 summarized as follows : 
 
 Subjugation of the Barons. 
 
 War of Toulouse. 15 
 
 Contest with Becket. 
 
 Constitutions of Clarendon. 
 
 Conquest of Ireland. 
 
 Rebellion of King's Sons. 
 
 Description of Henry II. in Barri's Expugnatio 20 
 
 HiBERNIAE 
 
 (TV. in Barnard's Strongbow's Conquest of Ireland, and Gairdner's 
 England. ) 
 
 Well, Henry II., King of the English, was a man with 
 reddish hair, a big bullet-head, bloodshot gray eyes that 25 
 in anger flashed fiercely, a fiery face, and a broken voice. 
 He had a bull neck, a square chest, muscular arms, and 
 a fleshy body, which last was due rather to natural ten- 
 dency than to the over-gratification of his appetite at 
 table. His figure was portly, but not absolutely of huge 30 
 and unwieldy bulk — thanks to a certain limit which he 
 
GIKALDUS CAMBEENSIS 7 
 
 observed even in his excesses. For he was abstemious 
 in food and temperate in drink, and, so far as a prince 
 may be, in everything inclined to be frugal. 
 
 Nay, in order to do all he could to check and minimize 
 5 this injustice of nature, and by force of will counteract 
 his constitutional inclination to corpulence, just as though 
 he had conspired against himself to wage an intestine 
 war with his belly, it was his custom to harass his body 
 with excessive exercise. So not only when war was going 
 
 lo on — and that was very often — would he scarcely allow 
 himself for rest the few hours that were not devoted to 
 business, but even in time of peace there was no repose 
 for him. For he was attached beyond measure to the 
 pleasures of the chase, and he would start off the first 
 
 15 thing in the morning on a fleet horse, and now traversing 
 the woodland glades, now plunging into the forest itself, 
 now crossing the ridges of the hill, used in this way to 
 pass day after day in tireless toil ; and when in the even- 
 ing he reached home, he was rarely seen to sit down, 
 
 20 whether before or after supper. In spite of all the fa- 
 tigue he had undergone, he would keep the whole court 
 standing till they were worn out. But, as the adage 
 says, " To observe the happy mean in everything is the 
 first rule in life," and since even a remedy if carried to 
 
 25 excess ceases to be beneficial, these habits, by inducing 
 frequent swellings of the feet and lower leg, which were 
 aggravated by the restive motions of the high-spirited 
 horses he rode, brought on further disorders ; and, if they 
 did no other harm, they certainly hastened the approach 
 
 30 of old age — the origin and promoter of all the ills of cor- 
 poreal humanity. 
 
 As for his stature, he was of medium height ; and in 
 
8 FOUR MEDIEVAL CHEONICLEES 
 
 this he differed from all his sons, for the two elder were 
 somewhat taller, the two younger shorter, than most 
 men. 
 
 In his unruffled moods, and when not excited by 
 anger, he was remarkably eloquent, and, as came out at 5 
 such times, well learned. An affable man too, who could 
 be influenced, though of a ready wit ; indeed, he was 
 second to no one in courtesy, whatever the real senti- 
 ments his outward bearing might conceal. 
 
 He was a prince of such admirable religious sense, that 10 
 whenever he conquered in battle, it was only to be over- 
 come in turn by his gratitude to Heaven. Though 
 strenuous in war, he prudently tried to avoid it when at 
 peace; for during hostilities he always had a wholesome 
 apprehension of the uncertainty of the issue, and from 15 
 his extreme caution he would, in the words of the comic 
 poet, "try all means rather than resort to arms." Those 
 whom he lost in fight he mourned as princes rarely do, 
 and showed greater tenderness of feeling for the fallen 
 than for the survivors; he was far less demonstrative in 20 
 his care for the living than in his grief for the dead. No 
 one was kinder in the hour of trouble; when all was well 
 again, no one more severe. Severe to the unruly, but 
 clement to the humble; hard toward his own household, 
 but liberal to strangers; profuse abroad, but sparing at 25 
 home; those whom he once hated he would hardly ever 
 love; and from those he loved he seldom withdrew his 
 regard. .. - ' - 
 
 He was inordinately fond of hawking and hunting, 
 whether his falcons swooped on their prey, or his. saga- 30 
 cious hounds, quick of scent and swift of foot, pursued 
 
 I. All his sons. Sons of Hemy II.: Henry; King Richard I.; Geoffrey; 
 King John. 
 16. The comic poet. Terence. 
 
GIKALDUS CAMBRENSIS 9 
 
 the chase. Would to God he had been as zealous in his 
 devotions as he was in his sports. 
 
 His belief that the grievous injuries offered him by his 
 sons had sprung from the instigation of the queen, led 
 5 him after their revolt to live in open violation of his 
 marriage vow. Still he was by nature not a truthful 
 man, and would habitually break his word without the 
 slightest excuse. For whenever he found himself in a 
 difficulty he preferred that his honor should suffer 
 lo rather than his interest, and thought it better to lose his 
 reputation for honesty than to miss an advantage. In 
 the transaction of business he was always so cautious 
 and so circumspect, that for this very reason, carrying 
 his prudence to an extreme, he was dilatory in the ad- 
 
 15 ministration of justice; and to the great inconvenience 
 of his subjects very slow in coming to a final decision in 
 any matter. Both God and right demand that justice 
 should be administered gratuitously; yet all things were 
 set to sale, and brought great wealth both to the clergy 
 
 20 and laity; but their end was like Gehazi's gains. 
 
 He was a great maker of peace, and kept it himself; 
 a liberal almsgiver, and an especial benefactor to the 
 Holy Land. He loved the humble, curbed the nobles, 
 and trod down the proud; filling the hungry with good 
 
 25 things, and sending the rich empty away; exalting the 
 meek, and putting down the mighty from their seats. 
 He ventured on many detestable usurpations in things 
 belonging to God, and through a zeal for justice (but not 
 according to knowledge) he joined the rights of the 
 
 30 Church to those of the Crown, and therein confused 
 them, in order to center all in himself. Although he 
 was the son of the Church, and received his crown from 
 her hands, he either forgot or affected to forget the 
 
10 FOUR MEDIEVAL CHEONICLEES 
 
 sacramental unction he had received. Scarcely could 
 he spare an hour to hear Mass; and then, forsooth, so 
 great was the press of public business, that he spent the 
 time more in discussion and conversation than in prayer. 
 The revenues of the churches that were vacant it was 5 
 his habit to pay into the public treasury, laying hands on 
 that which belonged to Christ; and he was always in 
 fresh troubles and mighty wars: he expended all the 
 money he could get, and lavished upon unrighteous 
 soldiers what was due to the priests. 10 
 
 In his great prudence he devised many plans, which, 
 however, did not all turn out according to his expecta- 
 tions; but no great mishap occurred which did not origi- 
 nate in some trifling circumstance. 
 
 He was the kindest of fathers to his legitimate children 15 
 during their childhood and youth, but as they advanced 
 in years looked on them with an evil eye, treating them 
 worse than, a stepfather; and although he had such dis- 
 tinguished and illustrious sons, whether it was that he 
 would not have them prosper too fast, or whether they 20 
 were ill-deserving, he could never bear to think of them 
 as his successors. And as human prosperity can neither 
 be permanent nor perfect, such was the exquisite malice 
 of fortune against this king, that where he should have 
 received comfort he met with opposition; where security, 25 
 danger; where peace, turmoil; where support, ingratitude; 
 where quiet and tranquillity, disquiet and disturbance. 
 Whether it happened from unhappy marriages or for the 
 punishment of the father's sins, there was never any 
 good agreement of the fr*:her with his sons, or of these 
 sons with their father, or between themselves. 
 
 Surrounded though the King was at all times by crowds 
 of faces, features that he had scanned but once he never 
 
JOHN FROTSSAKT 11 
 
 forgot. Whatever on any occasion he had heard and 
 thought worth noting, never escaped his memory. 
 AVhence he always had available a ready recollection of 
 nearly the whole course of history, as well as of most of 
 5 the facts that his own wide experience had taught him. 
 And, to conclude in a few words, had he been one of 
 God's elect and inclined himself to yield obedience to 
 His commands, his natural endowments were such that 
 he would have been unequaled among the princes of the 
 lo world. 
 
 From the Chronicle of John Froissart 
 
 {1337-1400) 
 
 The Times and their Chronicler 
 
 In the year that Froissart was born — 1337 — Edward 
 III. of England was at war both with France and Scot- 
 land. The child is father of the man, and probably the 
 boy of ten was quick to learn the details of the battles of 
 
 15 Cressy and Neville's Cross, and the later capture of 
 Calais. Before twenty he was writing, at the desire of a 
 noble patron, the history of the wars of his own time ; 
 and from this time forward his Chronicle has all the value 
 of contemporary observation. He held a post in Queen 
 
 2oPhilippa's household from 1361 to 1369, and under this 
 influence produced in 1373 the first edition of his well- 
 known Chronicle. 
 
 The Battle of Cressy, August 6, 1346 
 
 The night before the battle, King Edward " made a 
 
 supper to all his chief lords of his. host and made them 
 
 25 good cheer. And when they were all departed to take 
 
12 FOUR MEDIEVAL CHRONICLERS 
 
 their rest, then the king entered into his oratory, and 
 kneeled down before the altar, praying God devoutly 
 that if he fought the next day, that he might achieve 
 the journey to his honor. 
 
 " Then about midnight he laid him down to rest, and 5 
 in the morning he rose betimes and heard Mass, and the 
 prince his son (the Black Prince) with him, and the 
 most part of his company were confessed and houseled. 
 And after the Mass said, he commanded every man to 
 be armed, and to draw to the field, to the same place lo 
 before appointed. 
 
 " Then the king caused a park to be made by the 
 woodside, behind his host, and there was set all c^rts 
 and carriages, and within the park were all their horsss, 
 for every man was afoot ; and into this park there was 15- 
 but one entry. 
 
 After arranging the army in three battalions, " the king 
 leaped on a hobby, with a white rod in his hand, one of 
 his marshals on the one hand, and the other on the other 
 hand : he rode from rank to rank, desiring every man to 20 
 take heed that day to his right and honor : he spake it 
 so sweetly, and with so good countenance and merry 
 cheer, that all such as were discomfited took courage in 
 the seeing and hearing of him. And when he had thus 
 visited all his battles (battalions) it was then nine of the 25 
 day : then he caused every man to eat and drink a little, 
 and so they did at their leisure ; and afterwards they 
 ordered again their battles. Then every man lay down 
 on the earth, and by him his salet and bow, to be the 
 more fresher when their enemies should come. 30 
 
 7. Black Prince. Wore black armor. 
 
 8. Houseled. Received the Eucharist. 
 18. Hobby. A strong, active horse. 
 
 29. Salet. Helmet. 
 
JOHN FEOISSART 13 
 
 " The Englishmen, who were in three battles, lying on 
 the ground to rest them, as soon as they saw the French- 
 men approach, they rose upon their feet, fair and easily, 
 without any haste, and arranged their battles, the first, 
 5 which was the prince's battle ; the archers there stood in 
 manner of a herse (harrow), and the men-of-arms in the 
 bottom of the battle. The Earl of Northampton and the 
 Earl of Arundel, with the second battle, were on a wing 
 in good order, ready to comfort the prince's battle, if 
 
 10 need were. The lords and knights of France came not 
 to the assembly together in good order ; for some came 
 before and some came after, in such haste and evil order 
 that one of them did trouble another. 
 
 " When the French king saw the Englishmen, his 
 
 15 blood changed ; and (he) said to his marshals, ' Make 
 the Genoese go on before, and begin the battle in the 
 name of God and St. Denis.' There were of the Gen- 
 oese crossbows about fifteen thousand ; but they were so 
 weary of going afoot that day a six league, armed with 
 
 20 their crossbows, that they said to their constables, 'We 
 be not well ordered to fight this day, for we be not in the 
 case to do any great deed of arms, as we have more need 
 of rest.' These words came to the Duke of Alengon, 
 who said, ' A man is well at ease to be charged witli 
 
 25 such a sort of rascals, to be faint and fail now at most 
 need.' 
 
 " Also at the same season there fell a great rain and 
 eclipse, with a terrible thunder ; and before the rain 
 there came flying over both battles a great number of 
 
 130 crows, for fear of the tempest coming. Then anon the 
 
 8. "Wing. The flank or side of an army. 
 
 16. Genoese. From Genoa, a city of Italy. 
 
 17. St. Denis. Patron saint of France. 
 
 18. CrossboTvs. Archers. 
 
14 FOUR MEDIEVAL CHRONICLERS 
 
 air began to wax clear and the sun to shine fair and 
 bright, the which was right in the Frenchmen's eyes and 
 on the Englishmen's backs. 
 
 " When the Genoese were assembled together and 
 began to approach, they made a great leap and cry to 5 
 abash the Englishmen, but they stood still, and stirred 
 not for all that. Then the Genoese again the second 
 time made another leap and a fell cry, and stepped for- 
 ward a little, and the Englishmen removed not one foot ; 
 thirdly, again they leaped and cried, and went forth till lo 
 they came within shot, then they shot fiercely with their 
 crossbows. 
 
 '* Then the English archers stept forth one pass (pace), 
 and let fly their arrows so wholly and so thick that it 
 seemed snow. When the Genoese felt the arrows press- 15 
 ing through heads, arms, and breasts, many of them cast 
 down their crossbows, and did cut their strings, and re- 
 turned discomforted. 
 
 " When the French king saw them flee away, he said, 
 * Slay these rascals ; for they shall lett (hinder) and 20 
 trouble us without reason.' Then ye should have seen 
 the men-of-arms dash in among them and kill a great 
 number of them ; and ever still the Englishmen shot 
 whereas they saw thickest press ; the sharp arrows ran 
 into the men-of-arms and into their horses, and many 25 
 fell, horse and men, among the Genoese ; and when they 
 were down, they could not relyne again, the press was so 
 thick that one overthrew another. And also among the 
 Englishmen there were certain rascals that went on foot, 
 with great knives, and they went in among the men-of- 30 
 arms, and slew and murdered many as they lay on the 
 ground, both earls, barons, knights, and squires, whereof 
 
 8. Fell. Savage. 
 
JOHN FROISSART 
 
 15 
 
 the King of England was after displeased, for he had 
 rather they had been taken prisoners. 
 
 " The valiant King of Bohemia, called Charles of 
 Luxembourg, son to the noble emperor Henry of Luxem- 
 5 bourg, for all that he was nigh blind, when he under- 
 stood the order of the battle, he said to them about him,, 
 * Where is the Lord Charles, my son ? ' 
 
 " His men said, ' Sir, we cannot tell, we think he be 
 fighting.' 
 
 lo " Then he said, * Sirs, ye are my men, my companions 
 and friends in this journey ; I require you bring me so 
 forward that I may strike one stroke with my sword.' 
 
 " They said they would do his commandment ; and to 
 the intent that they might not lose him in the press, 
 
 15 they tied all the reins of their bridles each to other^ 
 and set the king before to accomplish his desire, and so 
 they went on their enemies. The Lord Charles of Bo- 
 hemia, his son, who wrote himself King of Bohemia and 
 bare the arms, he came in good order to the battle ; but 
 
 20 when he saw that the matter went awry on their party, 
 he departed, I cannot tell you which way. The king his 
 father was so far forward that he struck a stroke with 
 his sword, yea and more than four, and fought valiantly, 
 and so did his company, and they adventured themselves 
 
 25 so forward that they were all slain, and the next day 
 they were found in the place about the king, and all their 
 horses tied to each other. 
 
 " The prince's battalion at one period was very hard 
 pressed ; and they, with the prince, sent a messenger to 
 
 30 the king, who was on a little windmill-hill ; then the 
 knight said to the king, ' Sir, the Earl of Warwick and 
 
 3. Bohemia. A kingdom of Eastern Europe, 
 28. The prince's. The Prince of Wales. 
 
16 FOUR MEDIEVAL CHRONICLERS 
 
 the Earl of Oxford, Sir Reynold Cobham, and others, 
 such as be about the prince your son, are fiercely fought 
 withal, and are sore handled, wherefore they desire you 
 that you and your battle will come and aid them, for if 
 the Frenchmen increase, as they doubt they will, your 5 
 son and they will have much ado.' 
 
 " Then the king said, ' Is my son dead or hurt, or on 
 the earth fell'd ? ' 
 
 " ' No, Sir,' quoth the knight, ' but he is hardly 
 matched, wherefore he hath need of your aid.' 10 
 
 " * Well,' said the king, * return to him and to them 
 that sent you hither, and say to them that they send no 
 more to me for any adventure that faileth, as long as my 
 son is alive ; and also say to them that they suffer him 
 this day to win his spurs, for, if God be pleased, I will 15 
 this journey be his, and the honor thereof, and to them 
 that be about him.' Then the knight returned again to 
 them, and showed the king's words, f/ie which greatly en- 
 couraged the?n, and they repined in that they had sent to 
 the king as they did." 20 
 
 The King of France stayed till the last. It was not 
 until the evening that he could be induced to acknowl- 
 edge that all was lost. Then, when he " had left about 
 him no more than a threescore persons, one and other, 
 whereof Sir John of Heynault was one, who had re- 25 
 mounted once the king (for his horse was slain with an 
 arrow), then he said to the king, * Sir, depart hence, for 
 it is time ; lose not yourself willfully ; if ye have loss this 
 time, ye shall recover it again another season ; ' and so 
 he took the king's hOrse by the bridle and led him away 30 
 in a manner per force. 
 
 *' Then the king rode till he came to the castle of La 
 Broyes ; the gate was closed, because it was by that 
 
JOHN FROISSART 17 
 
 time dark ; then the king called the captain, who came 
 to the walls and said, ' Open your gate quickly, for this 
 is the fortune of France.' The captain knew then it was 
 the king, and opened the gate and let down the bridge ; 
 5 then the king entered, and he had with him but five 
 barons. Sir John of Heynault," and four others. The 
 unhappy king, however, could not rest there, but " drank, 
 and departed thence about midnight." 
 
 At the Count of Foix's House at Orthes 
 
 lo " At midnight, when the count came out of his cham- 
 ber into the hall to supper, he had ever before him 
 twelve torches burning, borne by twelve varlets, stand- 
 ing before his table all supper. They gave a great light, 
 and the hall was ever full of knights and squires, and 
 
 15 many other tables were dressed to sup who would. 
 There was none should speak to him at his table, but if 
 he were called. His -meat was lightly — wild fowl, the 
 legs and wings only ; and in the day he did eat and drink 
 but little. He had great pleasure in harmony of instru- 
 
 2oments ; he could do it right well himself ; he would have 
 songs sung before him. He would gladly see concerts 
 and fantasies at his table, and, when he had seen it, then 
 he would send it to the other tables bravely ; all this I 
 considered and advised. And ere I came to his court 
 
 25 1 had been in many courts of kings, dukes, princes, 
 counts, and great ladies, but I was never in none that so 
 
 8. About ixiidniglit. " The defeat became a rout ; twelve hundred knights 
 and thirty thousand footmen— a number equal to the entire English force— lay 
 dead upon the field."" — Green. 
 
 9. Foix. A county in Southern France. 
 
 g. Orthes. A town in the county of Beam, 
 
 12. Varlets. Servants. 
 
 23. Bravely. Gallantly, politely, finely. 
 
18 FOFR MEDIAEVAL CHEONICLERS 
 
 well liked me. Nor there was none more rejoiced in 
 deeds of arms than the count did : there was seen in his 
 hall, chamber, and court knights and squires of honor 
 going up and down, and talking of arms and of amours ; 
 all honor there was found, all manner of tidings of every 5 
 realm and county there might be heard, for out of every 
 county there was resort, for the valiantness of this 
 count." 
 
 How Gaston, the Count's Son, died 
 
 " True it is," quoth he, " that the Count of Foix and 10 
 my Lady of Foix, his wife, agree not well together, nor 
 have done of a long season, and the discord between 
 them was first moved by the King of Navarre, who was 
 brother to the lady : for the King of Navarre pledged 
 himself for the Duke Dalbret, whom the Count of Foix 15 
 had in prison, for the sum of 50,000 francs ; and the 
 Count of Foix, who knew that the King of Navarre was 
 crafty and malicious, in the beginning would not trust 
 him, wherewith the Countess of Foix had great displeas- 
 ure and indignation against the count her husband, and 20 
 said to him : 
 
 *' ' Sir, ye repute but small honor in the King of 
 Navarre, my brother, when ye will not trust him for 
 50,000 francs ; though ye have no more of the Armag- 
 hacs, nor of the house of Dalbret, than ye have, it ought 25 
 to suffice. And also. Sir, ye know well ye should assign 
 out my dower, which amounteth to 50,000 francs, which 
 ye should put into the hands of my brother, the King of 
 Navarre ; wherefore. Sir, ye cannot be evil paid.' 
 
 4. Amours. Love adventures. 
 
 13. Navarre. Province in Northern Spain. 
 
 24. Arniagnac. A county in Southwestern France ; also, a partisan of the 
 Count of Armagnac, contending with the Duke of Burgundy for the rule of 
 France. 
 
JOHN FROISSART. 19 
 
 " * Dame,' quoth he, * ye say truth ; but if I thought 
 that the King of Navarre would stop the payment for 
 that cause, the Lord Dalbret should never have gone 
 out of Orthes, and so I should have been paid to the last 
 5 penny, and since ye desire it, I will do it — not for the 
 love of you, but for the love of my son.' 
 
 " So by these words, and by the King of Navarre's 
 obligation, who became debtor to the Count of Foix, the 
 Lord Dalbret was delivered quit, and became French, 
 
 lo and was married in France to the sister of the Duke of 
 Burbon, and paid at his ease to the King of Navarre the 
 sum of 50,000 francs for his ransom, for the which sum 
 the king was bound to the Count of Foix, but he would 
 not send it to the count. 
 
 15 " Then the Count of Foix said to his wife, ' Dame, ye 
 must go into Navarre to the king your brother, and show 
 him how I am not well content with him, that he will not 
 send me that he hath received of mine.' 
 
 " The lady answered, how that she was ready to go at 
 
 20 his commandment. And so she departed, and rode to 
 Pampeluna to the king her brother, who received her 
 with much joy. The lady did her message from point 
 to point. 
 
 " Then the king answered, * Fair lady, the sum of 
 
 25 money is yours, the count should give it for your dower ; 
 it shall never go out of the realm of Navarre since I 
 have it in possession.' 
 
 " ' Ah, Sir,' quoth the lady, ' by this ye shall set great 
 hate between the count my husband and you ; and if ye 
 
 30 hold your purpose, I dare not return again into the 
 county of Foix, for my husband will slay me. He will 
 say I have deceived him.' 
 
 9. Quit. Clear, free. 21. Pampeluna. Capital of Navarre. 
 
20 FOUR MEDIEVAL CHRONICLERS 
 
 a i 
 
 I cannot tell/ quoth the king, ' what ye will do — 
 either tarry or depart ; but as for the money, I will not 
 depart from it : it pertaineth to me to keep it for you^ 
 but it shall never go out of Navarre.' 
 
 " The countess could have none other answer of the 5 
 king her brother, and so she tarried still in Navarre, and 
 durst not return again. The Count of Foix, when he 
 saw the dealing of the King of Navarre, he began to hate 
 his wife, and was evil content with her ; howbeit she 
 was in no fault, but that she had not returned again lo 
 when she had done her message. But she durst not, for 
 she knew well the count her husband was cruel where 
 he took displeasure. Thus the matter standeth. 
 
 " The count's son, called Gaston, grew and waxed 
 goodly, and was married to the daughter of the Count i5 
 of Armagnac, a fair lady ; and, by the conjunction of 
 that marriage, there should have been peace between 
 Foix and Armagnac. The child was fifteen or sixteen 
 years of age, and resembled right well to his father. On 
 a time he desired to go into Navarre to see his mother, 20 
 and his uncle the King of Navarre ; which was in an evil 
 hour for him and all his country. When he was come 
 into Navarre he had there good cheer, and tarried with 
 his mother a certain space, and then took his leave ; but 
 for all that he could do, he could not get his mother out 25 
 of Navarre to have gone with him into Foix. For she 
 demanded if the count had commanded him so to do, or 
 no ; and he answered, that, when he departed, the count 
 spake nothing thereof. Therefore the lady durst not go 
 thither, but so tarried still. 30 
 
 " Then the child went to Pampeluna to take his leave 
 of the king his uncle. The king made him great cheer, 
 and tarried him there a ten days, and gave him great 
 
JOHN PROISSART 21 
 
 gifts, and to his men. Also the last gift that the king 
 gave him was his death. I shall show you how. 
 
 *' When this gentleman should depart, the king drew 
 him apart into his chamber, and gave him a little purse 
 5 full of powder, which powder was such if any creature 
 living did eat thereof, he should incontinent die without 
 remedy. Then the king said, ' Gaston, fair nephew, ye 
 shall do as I shall show to you. Ye see how the Count 
 of Foix, your father, wrongfully hath your mother, my 
 
 10 sister, in great hate ; whereof I am sore displeased, and 
 so ought ye to be ; howbeit, to perform all the matter 
 and that your father should love again your mother, to 
 that intent ye shall take a little of this powder and put 
 it on some meat that your father may eat it ; but beware 
 
 15 that no man see you. And as soon as he hath eaten it, 
 he shall intend to nothing but to have again his wife, 
 and so to love her ever after, which you ought greatly to 
 desire ; and of this that I show you let no man know, 
 but keep it secret, else ye lose all the deed.' 
 
 2o " The child, who thought all that the king said to him 
 had been truth, said, 'Sir, it shall be done as ye have 
 devised ; ' and so he departed from Pampeluna and 
 came to Orthes. The count his father made him good 
 cheer, and demanded tidings of the King of Navarre, 
 
 25 and what gifts he had given him ; and the child showed 
 how he had given him divers, and showed him all except 
 the purse with the powder. 
 
 " Ofttimes this young Gaston and Juan, his bastard 
 brother, lay together, for they loved each other like 
 
 30 brethren, and were like arrayed and appareled ; for 
 they were near of a greatness and of one age ; and it 
 happened on a time, as their clothes lay together on 
 
 6. Incontinent. Immediately. 
 
22 POITR MEDIEVAL CHRONICLERS 
 
 their bed, Juan saw a purse at Gaston's coat, and said, 
 ' What thing is this that you bear ever about you ? ' 
 Whereof Gaston had no joy, and said, 'Juan, give me 
 my coat ; ye have nothing to do herewith.' All that day 
 after Gaston was pensive. 5 
 
 " And it fortuned a three days after, as God would 
 that the count should be saved, Gaston and his brother 
 Juan fell out together, playing at tennis, and Gaston gave 
 him a blow, and the child went into his father's chamber 
 and wept. And the count as then had heard Mass, and lo 
 when the count saw him weep, he said, * Son Juan, what 
 ailest thou ? ' ' Sir,' quoth he, ' Gaston hath beaten me, 
 but he were more worthy to be beaten than me.' ' Why 
 so?' quoth the count, and incontinent suspected nothing. 
 ' By my faith. Sir,' said he, ' since he returned out of Na- 15 
 varre, he beareth privily at his breast a purse full of 
 powder. I wot not what it is, nor what he will do there- 
 with, but he hath said to me once or twice that my lady 
 his mother should shortly be again in your grace, and 
 better loved than ever she was.' 'Peace!' quoth the 20 
 count, ' and speak no more, and show this to no man 
 living.' * Sir,' said he, 'no more I shall.' 
 
 " Then the count entered into imagination, and so 
 came to the hour of his dinner ; and he washed, and sat 
 down at his table in the hall. Gaston, his son, was used 25 
 to set down all his service, and to make the essays. And 
 when he had set down the first course, the count cast his 
 eyes on him, and saw the strings of the purse hanging at 
 his bosom. Then his blood changed, and he said, * Gas- 
 ton, come hither; I would speak with thee in thine ear.' 30 
 And the child came to him, and the count took him by 
 
 26. Make tlie essays. Taste the dishes, to prevent the poisoning of the 
 prince. 
 
JOHN FEOISSART 23 
 
 rne bosom, and found out the purse, and with his knife 
 cut it from his bosom. The child was abashed, and 
 stood still, and spake no word, and looked as pale as 
 ashes for fear, and began to tremble. 
 5 " The Count of Foix opened the purse, and took of the 
 powder, and laid it on a trencher of bread, and called to 
 him a dog, and gave it to him to eat ; and as soon as the 
 dog had eaten the first morsel, he turned his eyes in his 
 head and died incontinent. 
 
 lo " And when the count saw that, he was sore displeased, 
 and also he had good cause, and so rose from the table, 
 and took his knife, and would have stricken his son. 
 Then the knights and squires ran between them, and 
 said, 'Sir, for God's sake have mercy, and be not so 
 
 15 hasty ; be well informed first of the matter ere you do 
 any evil to your child.' 
 
 " And the first word that the count said, ' Ah, Gaston, 
 traitor ! for to increase thine heritage that should come 
 to thee, I have had war and hatred of the French king, 
 
 20 of the King of England, of the King of Spain, of the 
 King of Navarre, and of the King of Arragon, and as yet 
 1 have borne all their malice, and now thou wouldst 
 murder me ; it moveth of an evil nature ; but first thou 
 shalt die with this stroke.' 
 
 25 " And so he stepped forth with his knife, and would 
 have slain him ; but then all the knights and squires 
 kneeled down before him weeping, and said, ' Ah, Sir, 
 have mercy for God's sake ; slay not Gaston, your son. 
 Remember you have no more children ; Sir, cause him 
 
 30 to be kept, and take good information of the matter; 
 peradventure he knew not what he bOre, and perad- 
 venture is nothing guilty of the deed.' 
 
 21. Arragon. A province of Northern Spain, east of Navarre. 
 
24 FOUR MEDIEVAL CHRONICLERS 
 
 " ' Well,' quoth the count, * incontinent put him in 
 prison, and let him so be kept that I may have a reckon- 
 ing of him.' Then the child was put into the tower. 
 
 "And the count took a great many of them that 
 served his son, and some of them departed ; and as yet 5 
 the Bishop of Lescar is out of the country, for he was 
 had in suspect, and so were divers others. The count 
 caused to be put to death a fifteen, right horribly ; and 
 the cause the count laid to them was, he said it could be 
 none otherwise but that they knew of the child's secrets, lo 
 wherefore they ought to have showed it to him, and to 
 have said, ' Sir Gaston, your son beareth a purse at his 
 bosom.' Because they did not this, they died horribly ; 
 whereof it was great pity, for some of them were as fresh 
 and jolly squires as were any in all the country : for ever 15 
 the count was served with good men. 
 
 "This thing touched the count near to the heart, and 
 that he well showed : for, on a day, he assembled at 
 Orthes all the nobles and prelates of Foix and Bierne, 
 and all the notable persons of his country ; and when 20 
 they were all assembled, he showed them wherefore he 
 sent for them, as how he had found his son in this de- 
 fault, for the which he said his intent was to put him to 
 death as he had well deserved. 
 
 " Then all the people answered to that case with one 25 
 voice, and said, ' Sir, saving your grace, we will not that 
 Gaston should die ; he is your heir, and ye have no 
 more.' And when the count heard the people, how they 
 desired for his son, he somewhat restrained his ire. 
 Then he thought to chastise him in prison a month or 30 
 two, and then to send him on some voyage for two or 
 three years, till he might somewhat forget his evil will, 
 
 19. Bierne. B^arn, a county in Southwestern France. 
 
JOHN FROISSAET 25 
 
 and that the child might be of greater age and more 
 knowledge. 
 
 " Then he gave leave to all the people to depart, but 
 they of Foix would not depart from Orthes till the count 
 5 should assure them that Gaston should not die ; they 
 loved the child so well. Then the count promised them, 
 but he said he would keep him in prison a certain time 
 to chastise him; and so upon this promise every man de- 
 parted, and Gaston abode still in prison. 
 
 lo " These tidings spread abroad into divers places, and 
 at that time Pope Gregory the Eleventh was at Avignon. 
 Then he sent the Cardinal of Amiens in legation into 
 Bierne, to have come to the Count of Foix for that busi- 
 ness ; by that time he came to Beziers he heard such 
 
 15 tidings that he needed not to go any farther for that 
 matter, for there he heard how Gaston, son of the Count 
 of Foix, was deado Since I have showed you so much, 
 now I shall show you how he died. 
 
 " The Count of Foix caused his son to be kept in a 
 
 20 dark chamber, in the tower of Orthes, a ten days ; little 
 did he eat or drink, yet he had enough brought him every 
 day, but when he saw it he would go therefrom, and set 
 little thereby. And some said that all the meat that had 
 been brought him stood whole and entire the day of his 
 
 25 death, wherefore it was great marvel that he lived so 
 long, for divers reasons. The count caused him to be 
 kept in the chamber alone, without any company, either 
 to counsel or comfort him; and all that season the child 
 lay in his clothes as he came in, and he argued in him- 
 
 11. Avignon. A city of Southeastern France, on the Rhone; the residence 
 of the Popes from Clement V., 1305, to Gregory XI., 1375, a period known as 
 the Babylonish Captivity. 
 
 13. Amiens. A cathedral town in Northern France. 
 
 12. In legation. As ambassador. 
 
 14. Beziers. A town in Southern France. 
 
26 FOUlt MEDIEVAL CHEONICLERS 
 
 self, and was full of melancholy, and cursed the time that 
 ever he was born and engendered, to come to such an 
 end. 
 
 " The same day that he died, they that served him of 
 meat and drink, when they came to him, they said, 5 
 * Gaston, here is meat for you,' he made no care thereof, 
 and said, 'Set it down there.' He that served him re- 
 garded and saw in the prison all the meat stand whole as 
 it had been brought him before, and so departed and 
 closed the chamber door, and went to the count, and lo 
 said, ' Sir, for God's sake have mercy on your son Gas- 
 ton, for he is near famished in prison where he lieth. I 
 think he never did eat anything since he came into pris- 
 on, for I have seen there this day all that I ever brought 
 him before, lying together in a corner.' 15 
 
 " Of these words the count was sore displeased, and 
 without any word speaking, went out of his chamber and 
 came to the prison where his son was, and in an evil 
 hour. He had the same time a little knife in his hand 
 to pare withal his nails. He opened the prison door 20 
 and came to his son, and had the little knife in his 
 hand, and in great displeasure he thrust his hand to his 
 son's throat, and the point of the knife a little entered 
 his throat, into a certain vein, and said, ' Ah, traitor ! 
 why dost not thou eat thy meat ? ' And therewith the 25 
 count departed, without any more doing or saying, and 
 went into his own chamber. The child was abashed, and 
 afraid of the coming of his father, and also was feeble of 
 fasting, and the point of the knife a little entered into a 
 vein of his throat, and so he fell down suddenly and 30 
 died. 
 
 " The count was scarcely in his chamber but the keeper 
 of the child came to him and said, ' Sir, Gaston, your 
 
PHILIP DE COMINES 27 
 
 son, is dead.' 'Dead?' quoth the count. * Yes, truly,, 
 Sir,' answered he. 
 
 " The count would not believe it, but sent thither a 
 squire that was by him, and he went, and came again 
 5 and said, * Sir, surely he is dead.' Then the count was 
 sore displeased, and made great complaint for his son,, 
 and said, ' Ah, Gaston, what a poor adventure is this 
 for thee, and for me ! In an evil hour thou wentest to 
 Navarre to see thy mother : I shall never have the joy 
 
 lothat I had before.' Then the count caused his barber 
 to shave him, and clothed himself in black and all his 
 house, and with much sore weeping the child was borne 
 to the Friars in Orthes, and there buried. 
 
 " Thus, as I have showed you, the Count of Foix slew 
 
 15 Gaston, his son ; but the King of Navarre gave the occa- 
 sion of his death." 
 
 Philip de Comines 
 I 
 
 The Chronicler 
 
 Philip de Comines was by birth a Fleming, and a 
 
 subject of the Duke of Burgundy, Vi^ho at that time was 
 
 at least equal in power to his suzerain, the French king. 
 
 20 In 1464, when De Comines was only nineteen years old, 
 
 13. Friars. Members of the two great religjious orders of the thirteenth 
 century, Franciscan and Dominican, differing from the older monks, in that 
 they were to go from place to place preaching the Gospel, instead of being 
 shut up in the monasteries ; but " the Friars," here, means their convent and 
 graveyard at Orthes. 
 
 17. Fleming. Citizen of Flanders. 
 
 18. Burgundy. A province of Eastern France^ whose extent has greatly 
 varied during its history. 
 
28 FOUR MEDIEVAL CHRONICLERS 
 
 he entered the service of Charles the Bold, whose father 
 was then living, and who, consequently, was only Comte 
 de Charolais, The character and tastes of the Bur- 
 gundian prince — a man of frank violence, passionately 
 fond of war, and preferring the sword to the pen, the 5 
 battle-field to the council-chamber — could scarcely suit 
 a man of De Comines' disposition. He left the service 
 of Charles for that of his rival and mortal enemy, Louis 
 XI., who promoted him, kept him much about his per- 
 son, and employed him in some of the most confidential 10 
 and important of his state matters. In the succeeding 
 reign De Comines was at first suspected and imprisoned 
 in one of the dreary cages which he describes, but was 
 afterwards employed as a negotiator. He died in 1509. 
 
 Although as a statesman or political agent De Co- 15 
 mines had much of the cunning and indirectness of the 
 king his master, he is as a rnemoir-writer exceedingly 
 frank and straightforward. His accuracy and impartial- 
 ity have been admitted by all historians. His genius for 
 narration is of a first-rate order ; his style is deliciously 20 
 quaint, and characteristic of the times in which he 
 lived. 
 
 C. Knight. 
 
 II 
 
 The King (Louis XI) 
 (1461-1483) 
 
 Of all the princes that I ever had the honor to know, 
 the wisest and most dexterous to extricate himself out 25 
 of any danger or difficulty in time of adversity was our 
 master. King Louis XL He was the humblest in his 
 
 1. Suzerain. Overlord. 
 
PHILIP DE COMINES 29 
 
 conversation and habit, and the most painful and inde- 
 fatigable to win over any man to his side that he thought 
 capable of doing him either evil or good. Though he 
 was often refused, he would never give over a man 
 5 that he once undertook, but still pressed and continued 
 his insinuations, promising him largely, and presenting 
 him with such sums and pensions as he knew would 
 satisfy his ambition : and for such as he had discarded 
 in the time of peace and prosperity he paid dear (when 
 
 lo he had occasion for them) to recover them again ; but 
 when he had once reconciled them, he retained no pique 
 to them for what had passed, but employed them freely 
 for the future. 
 
 He was naturally kind and indulgent to persons of 
 
 15 indifferent condition, and morose to such as he thought 
 had no need of him. Never prince was so conversable 
 nor so inquisitive as he, for his desire was to know every- 
 body he could ; and, indeed, he knew all persons of any 
 authority or worth in England, Spain, Portugal, and 
 
 20 Italy, the territories of the Dukes of Burgundy and Bre- 
 tagne, and in his own country ; and by those qualities he 
 preserved the crown upon his head, which was in much 
 danger by the enemies he had created to himself by his 
 inadvertency upon his accession to the crown. But 
 
 25 above all, his great bounty and liberality did him the 
 greatest service. 
 
 And yet, as he behaved himself wisely in time of dis- 
 tress, so when he thought himself a little out of danger, 
 though it were but by a truce, he would disoblige the 
 
 30 servants and officers of his court by mean, trifling ways, 
 which were little to his advantage ; and as for peace, he 
 
 20. Bretagne. Province of Western France, 
 89. Truce. Agreement. 
 
:30 FOUR MEDTJEVAL CHRONICLERS 
 
 could hardly endure the thoughts of it. He spoke 
 slightly of some people, and rather before their faces 
 than behind their backs, unless he was afraid of them — 
 and of that sort there were a great many, for he was 
 naturally timorous. 5 
 
 When he had done himself any prejudice by his talk, 
 or was apprehensive he should do, to make them amends 
 whom he had injured, he would say to the person whom 
 he had disobliged, " I am sensible my tongue has done 
 me a great deal of mischief, but, on the other hand, it 10 
 has sometimes done me good ; however, it is but reason 
 I should make reparation for the injury." And he 
 never used those kind of apologies to any person but he 
 did something foi the person to whom he made it ; and 
 it was always considerable. It is certainly a great bless- 15 
 ing for any prince to have experienced adversity as well 
 as prosperity, good as well as evil, and especially if the 
 good outweighs the evil, as it did in our master. I am 
 of opinion that the trouble he was involved in in his 
 youth, when he fled from his father, and resided six 20 
 years together in the Duke of Burgundy's court, was of 
 great service to him ; for there he learned to be com- - 
 placent to such as he had occasion to use, which was 
 no little improvement. 
 
 Some five or six months before his death he began to 25 
 grow jealous of everybody, especially of those who were 
 most capable and deserving of the administration of 
 affairs. He was afraid of his son, and caused him to 
 be kept close, so that no man saw or discoursed with 
 him but by his special command. At last he grew 30 
 suspicious of his daughter and his son-in-law, the Duke 
 
 20. His father. Charles VII. 
 
 88. His son. Afterwards Charles VIII. 
 
PHILIP DE COMINES 31 
 
 of Bourbon, and required an account of what persons 
 came to speak with them at Plessis, and broke up a 
 council which the Duke of Bourbon held three by his 
 order. At the time the Comte de Dunois and his son- 
 5 in-law returned from conducting the ambassadors, v/ho 
 had been at Amboise to congratulate the marriage be- 
 twixt the dauphin and the young queen, the king being 
 in the gallery, and seeing them enter with a great train 
 into the castle, called for a captain of the guards, and 
 
 lo commanded him to go and search some of the lords' 
 retinue, to see whether they had any arms under their 
 robes, and that he should do it in discourse, and so as 
 no notice might be taken. Behold then, if he had 
 caused many to live under him in continual fear and ap- 
 
 15 prehension, whether it was not returned to him again ; 
 for of whom could he be secure when he was afraid of 
 his son-in-law, his daughter, and his own son ? 
 
 He was- still attended by his physician, Doctor James 
 Coctier, to whom in five months' time he had given 54,000 
 
 20 crowns in ready money, besides the bishopric of Amiens 
 for his nephew, and other great offices and estates to him 
 and his friends ; yet this doctor used him so scurvily, 
 one would not have given such unbecoming language to 
 one's servants as he gave the king, who stood in such awe 
 
 25 of him he durst not forbid him his presence. 'Tis true 
 he complained of his impudence afterwards, but he durst 
 not change him as he had done all the rest of his ser- 
 vants, because he had told him after a most audacious 
 manner one day, " I know, some time or other you will 
 
 30 remove me from court, as you have done the rest ; but 
 be sure (and he confirmed it with an oath) you shall not 
 
 2. Plessis. A castle near Tours, in Central France. 
 II. Ketiiiue. Company in attendance. 
 22. Scurvily. Meanly. 
 
32 FOUR MEDIEVAL CHEONICLERS 
 
 live eight days after it." With which expression he was 
 so terrified, that ever after he did nothing but flatter and 
 present him, which must needs be a great mortification 
 to a prince who had been obeyed all along by so many 
 brave men much above the doctor's quality. 5 
 
 The king had ordered several cruel prisons to be made, 
 some of iron, some of wood but covered Avith iron plates 
 both within and without, with terrible cages about eight 
 foot wide and seven high. The first contriver of them 
 was the Bishop of Verdun, who was the first that hand- lo 
 seled them, being immediately put in one of them, where 
 he continued fourteen years. Many bitter curses he has 
 had since for his invention, and some from me, having 
 lain in one of them eight months together, in the minor- 
 ity of our present king. 15 
 
 He also ordered heavy and terrible fetters to be made 
 in Germany, and particularly a close ring for the feet, 
 which was extreme hard to be opened, and like an iron 
 collar with a thick weighty chain, and a great globe of 
 iron at the end of it, most unreasonably heavy, which 20 
 engines were called " The King's Nets." However, I 
 have seen many eminent and deserving persons in these 
 prisons, with these nets about their legs, who have after- 
 wards been advanced to places of trust and honor, and 
 received great rewards from the king. As in his time 25 
 this barbarous variety of prisons was invented, so before 
 he died he himself was in greater torment and more ter- 
 rible apprehension than those whom he had imprisoned, 
 which I look upon as a great mercy towards him, and 
 part of his purgatory. And I have mentioned it here to 30 
 
 3. Present. Give presents. 
 
 10. Verdun. A town in Northeastern France, 
 
 10. Handsel. To use for the first time. 
 
 13. Our present king. Charles VIII. 
 
PHILIP DE COMINES 33 
 
 show that there is no person, of what station or dignity 
 soever, but is punished some time or other, either pub- 
 licly or privately, especially if he has been the cause of 
 other people's sufferings and misfortunes. 
 5 The king, towards the latter end of his days, caused 
 his castle of Plessis-les-Tours to be encompassed with 
 great bars of iron, in the form of a grate, and at the four 
 corners of the house four watch-towers of iron, strong, 
 massy, and thick, to be built. The grates were without 
 
 TO the wall, on the other side of the ditch, and went to the 
 bottom. Several spikes of iron were fastened into the 
 wall, set as thick by one another as was possible. He 
 placed likewise ten bowmen in the ditches to shoot at 
 any man that durst approach the castle till the opening 
 
 15 of the gate ; ordered they should lie in the ditches, but 
 retire into the watch-towers upon occasion. 
 
 He was sensible enough that this fortification was too 
 weak to keep out an army or any great body of men, but 
 he had no fear of such ; his great apprehension was, that 
 
 20 some of the nobility of his kingdom, having intelligence 
 within, should attempt to make themselves masters of 
 the castle by night, and having possessed themselves of 
 it, partly by affection, partly by force, should deprive 
 him of the regal authority, and take upon themselves the 
 
 25 administration of public affairs, upon pretense he was 
 incapable of business and no longer fit to govern. The 
 gate of Du Plessis was never opened, nor the drawbridge 
 let down, before eight in the morning, at which time the 
 courtiers were let in ; and the captains ordered their 
 
 30 guards to their several posts, with a main guard in the 
 middle of the court, as in a town upon the frontiers that 
 
 27. Drawbridge. A bridge which can be moved up, down, or to one side, 
 so as to allow or torbid passage. 
 
34 POUR MEDIEVAL CHRONICLERS 
 
 was closely besieged. Nor was any person admitted to 
 enter but by the wicket, and those only by the king's 
 order unless it were the steward of his household and 
 such officers as were not admitted into the presence. 
 
 Is it possible, then, to keep a prince (with any regard 5 
 to his quality) more strictly confined than he kept him- 
 self ? The cages which were made for other people 
 were about eight foot square ; and he (though so great 
 a monarch) had but a small square of the court of the 
 castle to walk in, and seldom made use of that, but gen- 10 
 erally kept himself in the gallery, out of which he went 
 into the chambers, and from thence to mass, but not 
 through the court. Who can deny but he was a sufferer, 
 as well as his neighbors ? considering his being locked 
 up, guarded, afraid of his own children and relations, and 15 
 changing every day those very servants whom he had 
 brought up and advanced ; and though they all owed 
 their preferment to him, yet he durst not trust any of 
 them, but shut himself up in those strange chains and in- 
 closures. If the place where he confined himself was 20 
 larger than a common prison, his quality was as much 
 greater than a common prisoner's. 
 
 It may be urged that other princes have been more 
 given to jealousy than he, but it was not in our time, and 
 perhaps their wisdom was not so eminent nor their sub- 25 
 jects so good. They too might probably be tyrants and 
 bloody-minded, but our king never did any person a mis- 
 chief who had not offended him first. I have not re- 
 corded these things purely to represent our master as a 
 suspicious and mistrustful prince, but to show that, by 30 
 the patience which he expressed in his sufferings (like 
 those which he inflicted on other people), they may be 
 
 2. Wicket. A small gate. 
 
PHILIP DE OOMINES 35 
 
 looked upon, in my judgment, as a punishment which 
 God inflicted upon him in this world, in order to deal 
 more mercifully with him in the next, as well in those 
 things before mentioned, as in the distempers of his 
 5 body, which were great and painful, and much dreaded 
 by him before they came upon him ; and likewise that 
 those princes who are his successors, may learn by this 
 example to be more tender and indulgent to their sub- 
 jects, and less severe in their punishments than our mas- 
 
 loter had been. I will not accuse him, or say I ever saw 
 a better prince, for, though he oppressed his subjects 
 himself, he would never see them injured by anybody 
 else. 
 
 In hunting, his eagerness and pain were equal to his 
 
 15 pleasure, for his chase was the stag, which he always run 
 down. He rose very early in the morning, rode some- 
 times a great way to his dogs, and would not leave his 
 sport, let the weather be ever so bad ; and when he came 
 home at night, was always very weary, and generally in 
 
 20 a violent passion with some of his courtiers or huntsmen, 
 for hunting is a sport not always to be managed accord- 
 ing to the master's direction ; yet, in the opinion of 
 most people, he understood it as well as any man of his 
 time. He was continually at his sports, lying up and 
 
 25 down in the country villages as his recreations led him, 
 till he was interrupted by the war. 
 
 14. Pain. Care, trouble. 
 
36 FOUR MEDIEVAL CHRONICLERS 
 
 Benvenuto Cellini 
 
 ( 1 500-1570) 
 
 Benvenuto Cellini, a celebrated sculptor, engraver, and gold- 
 smith, was born at Florence in 1500. Excelling in his art, he was 
 employed by Pope Clement VII., the Grand Duke of Florence, and 
 Francis I. of France. His autobiography is his most valuable 
 literary production. He died in Florence in 1570. — From Symonds' 5 
 Introduction to Life of Benvenuto Cellini. 
 
 I seem to know Cellini first of all as a man possessed 
 by intense, absorbing egotism ; violent, arrogant, self- 
 assertive, passionate ; conscious of great gifts for art, 
 physical courage, and personal address. To be self- 10 
 reliant in all circumstances ; to scheme and strike, if 
 need be, in support of his opinion or his right ; to take 
 the law into his own hands for the redress of injury or 
 insult — this appeared to him the simple duty of an hon- 
 orable man. But he had nothing of the philosopher's 15 
 calm, the diplomatist's prudence, the general's strategy, 
 or the courtier's self-restraint. On the contrary, he pos- 
 sessed the temperament of a born artist, blent in almost 
 equal proportions with that of a born bravo. Through- 
 out the whole of his tumultuous career these two strains 20 
 contended in his nature for mastery. Upon the verge of 
 fifty-six, when a man's blood has generally cooled, we 
 find that he was released from prison on bail, and bound 
 over to keep the peace for a year with some enemy 
 whose life was probably in danger ; and when I come to 25 
 speak about his homicides, it will be obvious that he 
 enjoyed killing live men quite as much as casting bronze 
 statues. 
 
 Both the artist and the bravo were characteristic and 
 
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BENVENUTO CELLINI 37 
 
 typical products of the Italian Renaissance. The genius 
 of the race expressed itself at that epoch even more 
 saliently in the fine arts than in scholarship or literature. 
 At the same time the conditions of society during what 
 5 I have elsewhere called " The Age of the Despots " fa- 
 vored the growth of lawless adventurers, who made a 
 practice of violence and lived by murder. Now these 
 two prominent types of the nation and the period were 
 never more singularly combined than in Cellini. He 
 
 lo might stand as a full-blown specimen of either. Sensi- 
 tive, impulsive, rash of speech, hasty in action, with the 
 artist's susceptibility and the bravo's heat of blood, he 
 injured no one more than himself by his eccentricities of 
 temper. Over and over again did he ruin excellent 
 
 15 prospects by some piece of madcap folly. Yet there is 
 no trace in any of his writings that he ever laid his mis- 
 adventures to the proper cause. He consistently poses 
 as an injured man, whom malevolent scoundrels and 
 malignant stars conspired to persecute. Nor does he do 
 
 20 this with any bad faith. His belief in himself remained 
 as firm as adamant, and he candidly conceived that he 
 was under the special providence of a merciful and lov- 
 ing God, who appreciated his high and virtuous quali- 
 ties. 
 
 25 He has painted a vast picture-gallery of historical por- 
 traits. Parini, while tracing the salient qualities of his 
 autobiography, remarked : " He is peculiarly admirable 
 in depicting to the life by a few salient touches the 
 characters, passions, personal peculiarities, movements, 
 
 I. Renaissance. Revival, second birth : the name apphed to that period 
 of European history which includes the Revival of Learning and the Second 
 Birth of Art. Its limits are hard to define ; but we shall not go astray if we 
 think of it as really beginning with the Crusades and extending to the Refor- 
 mation. It will be seen that Symonds reckons Cellini, born in 1500, as emi- 
 nently a Renaissance figure, as does the historian of Fontainebleau Francis I. 
 
38 FOUR MEDI.IlJVAL v HRONICLERS 
 
 and habits of the people with w;iom he came in contact.'' 
 Only one who has made himself for long years familiar 
 with the history ol Cellini's period can appreciate the 
 extraordinary vividness and truth of Cellini's delineation. 
 Without attempting to do more than record his recollec- 5 
 tion of what happened to himself in commerce with men 
 of all sorts, he has dramatized the great folk of histories, 
 chronicles, and diplomatic despatches, exactly as our 
 best authorities in their more colorless and cautious style 
 present them to our fancy. He enjoyed the advantages 10 
 of the alcove and the antechamber ; and without abus- 
 ing these in the spirit of a Voltaire or a valet, he has 
 greatly added to our conception of Clement VII., Paul 
 III., Francis I., and Cosimo de' Medici, Grand Duke of 
 Tuscany. Clement driven to his wits' end for cash dur- 15 
 ing the sack of Rome ; Paul granting favors to a cardinal 
 at the end of a copious repast, when wine was in his 
 head ; Francis interrupting the goldsmiths in their work- 
 shop at the Petit Nesle ; Cosimo indulging in horse-play 
 with his buffoon Bernardone, — these detach themselves, 20 
 as living personages, against the gray historic back- 
 ground. Yet the same great people, on more ceremoni- 
 ous occasions, or in the common transactions of life, 
 talk, move, and act precisely as we learn to know them 
 from the most approved documentary sources. 25 
 
 Cellini Revenges the Murder of his Brother 
 
 I took to watching the arquebusier as though he had 
 been a girl I was in love with. The man had formerly 
 been in the light cavalry, but afterward had joined the 
 arquebusiers as one of the Bargello's corporals; and 
 what increased my rage was that he had used these 30 
 
 26. Arquebusier. A soldier carrying an arquebuse, a kind of gun. 
 
BENVE^jUTO CELLINI 39 
 
 boastful words: " If it .h..d not been for me, who killed 
 that brave young man, the least trifle of delay would 
 have resulted in his putting us all to flight with great 
 disaster." When I saw that the fever caused by always 
 5 seeing him about was depriving me of sleep and appetite, 
 and bringing me by degrees to sorry plight, I overcame 
 my repugnance to so low and not quite praiseworthy an 
 enterprise, and made up my mind one evening to rid my- 
 self of the torment, 
 lo The fellow lived in a house near a place called Torre 
 Sanguigna, next door to the lodging of one of the most 
 fashionable courtesans in Rome, named Signora Antea. 
 It had just struck twenty-four, and he was standing at 
 the house-door, with his sword in hand, having risen 
 
 15 from supper. With great address I stole up to him, 
 holding a large Pistojan dagger, and dealt him a back- 
 handed stroke, with which I meant to cut his head clean 
 off, but as he turned round very suddenly, the blow fell 
 upon the point of his left shoulder and broke the bone. 
 
 20 He sprang up, dropped his sword, half-stunned with the 
 great pain, and took flight. I followed after, and in four 
 steps caught him up, when I lifted my dagger above his 
 head, which he was holding very low, and hitJaim in the 
 back exactly at the junction of the nape-bone and the 
 
 25 neck. The poniard entered this point so deep into the 
 bone that though I used all my strength to pull it out l' 
 was not able. For just at that moment four soldiers with 
 drawn swords sprang out from Antea's lodging, and 
 obliged me to set hand to my own sword to defend my 
 
 30 life. 
 
 Leaving the poniard then, I made off, and, fearing that 
 I might be recognized, too k refuge in the palace of Duke 
 
 16. PIstoJa. A town of Tuscany. 
 
40 FOUR MEDIEVAL CHEONICLEKS 
 
 Alessandro, which was between Piazza Navona and the 
 Rotunda. On my arrival I asked to see the Duke; who 
 told me that if I was alone, I need only keep quiet and 
 have no further anxiety, but go on working at the jewel 
 which the pope had set his heart on, and stay eight days 5 
 indoors. 
 
 He gave this advice the more securely, because the 
 soldiers had now arrived who interrupted the completion 
 of my deed; they held the dagger in their hand, and 
 were relating how the matter happened, and the great 10 
 trouble they had to pull the weapon from the neck and 
 head-bone of the man, whose name they did not know. 
 Just then Giovan Bandini came up, and said to them: 
 " That poniard is mine, and I lent it to Benvenuto, who 
 was bent on revenging his brother." The soldiers were 15 
 profuse in their expressions of regret at having inter- 
 rupted me, although my vengeance had been amply sat- 
 isfied. 
 
 More than eight days elapsed, and the pope did not 
 send for me, according to his custom. Afterward he sum- 20 
 moned me through his chamberlain, the Bolognese noble- 
 man I have already mentioned, who let me, in his own 
 modest manner, understand that his Holiness knew all, 
 but was very well inclined toward me, and that I had 
 only to mind my work and keep quiet. 25 
 
 When we reached the presence, the pope cast so men- 
 acing a glance toward me that the mere look of his eyes 
 made me tremble. Afterward, upon examining my work, 
 his countenance cleared, and he began to praise me be- 
 yond measure, saying that I had done a vast amount in 30 
 a short time. Then, looking me straight in the face, he 
 
 4. Jewel. A wrought ornament, of which precious stones form a 
 21. Bologna. A university town of Northern Italy. 
 
 part. 
 
BETSfVENUTO CELLINI 41 
 
 added: "Now that you are cured, Benvenuto, take heed 
 how you live." I, who understood his meaning, promised 
 that I would. 
 
 Immediately after this I opened a very fine shop in the 
 5 Banchi opposite Raffaello, and there I finished the jewel 
 after the lapse of four months. 
 
 Cellini comes to Francis I. at Fontainebleau 
 
 {Life of Benvenuto Cellini : Stand. Edition Popular Authors.) 
 
 We found the court of the French monarch at Fon- 
 tainebleau, where we waited directly on the cardinal, 
 who caused apartments to be assigned to us ; we spent 
 
 lo the night very agreeably, and were well accommodated. 
 The next day the wagon came up, so we took out what 
 belonged to us, and the cardinal having informed the 
 king of our arrival he expressed a desire to see me di- 
 rectly. 
 
 15 I waited on his Majesty accordingly, with the cup and 
 basin so often mentioned ; being come into his presence 
 I kissed his knee, and he received me in the most gra- 
 cious manner imaginable. I then returned his Majesty 
 thanks for having procured me my liberty, observing that 
 
 20 every good and just prince like his Majesty was bound to 
 protect all men eminent for any talent, especially such as 
 were innocent like myself; and that such meritorious ac- 
 tions were set down in the books of the Almighty before 
 
 \ any Other virtuous deeds whatever. 
 
 24. Cellini had been imprisoned by the pope ; but the cardinal of Ferrara, 
 coming- to Rome from France, asked his liberation as a favor to the French 
 king. The boon was granted, and the artist set to work on a silver-gilt cup 
 and basin for the cardinal ; these were so beautiful when finished that the 
 cardinal presented them to the king, receiving in return the income of some 
 church lands, worth 1000 crowns a year. 
 
43 FOUR MEDIEVAL CHEONICLERS 
 
 The good king listened to me till I had made an end 
 of my speech, and expressed my gratitude in terms wor- 
 thy of so great a monarch. When I had done, he took 
 the cup and basin, and said to me : " It is my real opin- 
 5 ion that the ancients were never capable of working in 
 so exquisite a taste ; I have seen all the masterpieces of 
 the greatest artists of Italy, but never before beheld any- 
 thing that gave me such high satisfaction." This the 
 king said in French to the cardinal of Ferrara, at the 
 
 losame time paying me other compliments greater even 
 than this. He then turned about and said to me in 
 Italian : " Benvenuto, indulge yourself and take your 
 pleasure for a few days; in the mean time I shall think 
 of putting you into a way of making some curious piece 
 
 15 of work for me." The cardinal of Ferrara soon per- 
 ceived that his Majesty was greatly pleased with my ar- 
 rival, and that the specimens he had seen of my abilities 
 had excited in him an inclination to employ me in other 
 works of greater importance. 
 
 20 Whilst we followed the Court, we may justly be said 
 to have been in great straits, and the reason is that the 
 king travels with upwards of twelve thousand horses, 
 his retinue in time of peace being eighteen thousand. 
 We sometimes danced attendance in places where there 
 
 25 were hardly two houses, were often under a necessity of 
 pitching tents, and lived like gypsies. 
 
 I frequently solicited the cardinal to put the king in 
 mind of employing me ; he made answer that it was best 
 his Majesty should think of it himself, advising me to 
 
 30 appear sometimes in his presence, when he was at table. 
 
 This advice I followed, and the king one day called 
 
 me to him whilst he was at dinner. He told me in 
 
 Italian that he proposed I should undertake some pieces 
 
BENVENUTO CELLINI 43 
 
 of great importance, that he would soon let me know- 
 where I was to work, and provide me with tools and all 
 things necessary. He at the same time conversed with 
 me in a free, easy manner, on a variety of different sub- 
 5 jects. The cardinal of Ferrara was present, for he almost 
 always dined with the king: the conversation being over, 
 his Majesty rose from table, and the cardinal said in my 
 favor, as I was informed afterwards: " May it please your 
 Majesty, this Benvenuto has a great desire to be at work, 
 
 10 and it would be a pity to let such a genius lose his time." 
 The king made answer that he was very right, and de- 
 sired him to settle with me all that concerned my sub- 
 sistence. 
 
 The cardinal, who had received the commission in the 
 
 15 morning, sent for me that night after supper, and told me 
 from the king that his Majesty had resolved I should 
 immediately begin to work ; but that he desired first to 
 know my terms. To this the cardinal added: "It is my 
 opinion that if his Majesty allows you a salary of three 
 
 20 hundred crowns a year, it will be abundantly sufficient. 
 Next 1 must request it of you, that you would leave the 
 whole management of the affair to me, for every day I 
 have opportunities of doing good in this great kingdom, 
 and I shall be always ready to assist you to the best of 
 
 25 my power." 
 
 I made answer : " Without my ever soliciting your 
 Reverence, you promised, upon leaving me behind you 
 in Ferrara, never to let me quit Italy, or bring me into 
 France, without first apprising me upon what terms I 
 
 30 was to be with his Majesty. But instead of acquainting 
 me with the terms, you sent me express orders to ride 
 post, as if riding post were my business. If you had then 
 
 31. To ride post. To ride with speed, as a messenger with despatches. 
 
44 FOUR MEDIEVAL CUKONICLERS 
 
 mentioned three hundred crowns as a salary, I should 
 not have thought it worth my while to stir for double the 
 sum ; I notwithstanding return thanks to Heaven and to 
 your Reverence, since God has made you the instrument 
 of so great a blessing as my deliverance from a long im- = 
 prisonment. I therefore declare that all the hurt you 
 can do me is not equal to a thousandth part of the 
 great blessing for which I am indebted to you ; I thank 
 you with all my heart, and take my leave of you; and in 
 whatever part of the world I shall abide, I shall always ic 
 pray for your Reverence." 
 
 The cardinal then said in a passion : " Go wherever 
 you think proper, for it is impossible to serve any man 
 against his will." Some of his niggardly followers then 
 said : *' This man must have a high opinion of his merit, 15 
 since he refuses three hundred crowns." Others among 
 the connoisseurs replied : " The king will never find an- 
 other artist equal to this man, and yet the cardinal is 
 for bating him down as he would a fagot of wood." It 
 was Signor Luigi Alamanni who said this — the same who 20 
 at Rome gave the model of the salt-ceilar, a person of 
 great accomplishments, and a favorer of men of genius ; 
 I was afterwards informed that he had expressed him- 
 self in this manner before several of the noblemen and 
 courtiers. This happened at a castle in Dauphine, the 25 
 name of which I cannot recollect, but there we lodged 
 that evening. 
 
 Having left the cardinal, I repaired to my lodgings, 
 for we always took up our quarters at some place not far 
 
 17. Connoisseurs. Persons learned in the fine arts. 
 
 21. The salt-cellar. Made in gold later, a companion to the cup and 
 basin. . 
 
 25. Dauphin^. A province in Southeastern France, giving its title to the 
 eldest son of the French king, who was called the Dauphin. 
 
BENVENUTO CELLINI 45 
 
 from the court, but this was three miles distant. I was 
 accompanied by a secretary of the cardinal of Ferrara, 
 who happened to be quartered in the same place. By 
 the way, this secretary, with a troublesome and imperti- 
 5 nent curiosity, was continually asking me what I in- 
 tended to do with myself when I got home, and what 
 salary I should have expected. 
 
 I, who was half angry, half grieved, and highly pro- 
 voked at having taken a journey to France, and being 
 lo afterwards offered no more than three hundred crowns 
 a year, never once returned him any answer ; I said 
 nothing to him, but that I knew all. 
 
 Upon my arrival at our quarters I found Paolo and 
 Ascanio, who were waiting for me. I appeared to be in 
 15 great disorder, and they, knowing my temper, forced me 
 to tell them what had happened. Seeing the poor young 
 men terribly frightened, I said to them, " To-morrow 
 morning I will give you money enough to bear your 
 charges home, for I propose going by myself about some 
 -20 business of importance : it is an affair that I have long 
 revolved in my mind, and there is no occasion for your 
 knowing it." 
 
 Our apartment was next to that of the secretary, and 
 it seems very probable that he might have acquainted 
 25 the cardinal with all that I intended and was firmly re- 
 solved to do, though I could never discover whether he 
 did or not. 
 
 I lay restless the whole night, and was in the utmost 
 impatience for the break of day, in order to put my 
 30 design in execution. As soon as morning dawned I 
 ordered my horses should be in readiness, and having 
 got ready myself likewise, I gave the young men all that 
 I ha4 brought \yitii me, with fifty gold ducats over, and 
 
46 FOUR MEDIEVAL CHRONICLEKS 
 
 kept as many for myself, together with the diamond, 
 which the duke had made me a present of ; taking with 
 me only two shirts, and some very indifferent clothes 
 to travel in, which I had upon my back. 
 
 ... I took a delightful path through a wood, intend- 5 
 ing to ride at least forty miles that same day to the most 
 remote corner I could possibly reach. I had already 
 ridden about two miles, and in the little way I had gone 
 formed a resolution to stop at no place where I was 
 known ; nor did I ever intend to work upon any other 10 
 figure but a Christ about three cubits high, willing to 
 make as near an approach to that extraordinary beauty 
 so often displayed to me in visions. Having now set- 
 tled everything in my own mind, I bent my course 
 towards the Holy Sepulchre, thinking I was now got to 15 
 such a distance that nobody could overtake me. 
 
 Just at this time I found myself pursued by men on 
 horseback ; and upon the near approach of the horse- 
 men I perceived them to be one of the king's messen- 
 gers, accompanied by Ascanio. The former on coming 20 
 up to me said, " I command you in the king's name to 
 repair to him directly." 
 
 I answered, "You come from the cardinal of Ferrara, 
 for which reason I am resolved not to go with you." 
 
 The man replied, that since I would not go by fair 25 
 means, he had authority to command the people to bind 
 me hand and foot like a prisoner. 
 
 Ascanio at the same time did his utmost to persuade 
 me to comply, reminding me that whenever the King of 
 France caused a man to be imprisoned, it was generally 30 
 five years before he consented to his release. The very 
 name of a prison revived the idea of my confinement at 
 Rome, and so terrified me that I instantly turned my 
 
BENVENUTO CELLINI 47 
 
 horse the way the messenger directed, who never once 
 ceased jabbering in French till he had conducted me to 
 court : sometimes he bullied me, sometimes he said one 
 thing and sometimes another, by which I was provoked 
 5 to such a degree that I was at my wits' end. 
 
 In our way to the king's quarters we passed before 
 those of the cardinal of Ferrara, who being at his door 
 called me to him and said : " The most Christian King 
 has of his own accord assigned you the same salary that 
 
 lohe allowed Leonardo da Vinci the painter, namely, seven 
 hundred crowns a yean He will pay you over and above 
 for whatever you do for him. He likewise makes you a 
 present of five hundred crowns for your journey ; and 
 it is his pleasure that they should be paid you before 
 
 15 you stir from hence." 
 
 When the cardinal had made an end, I answered that 
 these were indeed favors worthy of so great a monarch. 
 The messenger, who did not know who I was, seeing such 
 great offers rnade me in the king's name, asked me a 
 
 20 thousand pardons. Paolo and Ascanio said, " It is to 
 God we owe this great good fortune." 
 
 The day following, I went to return his Majesty 
 thanks, who ordered me to make him models of twelve 
 silver statues which he intended should serve as candle- 
 
 25 sticks round his table ; he desired they should be the 
 figures of six gods and six goddesses, made exactly of his 
 own height, which was very little less than three cubits. 
 When he had given me this order, he turned to his 
 treasurer and asked him whether he had paid me five 
 
 30 hundred crowns. The treasurer made answer that he 
 had heard nothing at all of the matter ; this the king 
 was highly offended at, as he had commanded the car- 
 dinal to speak about it. He at the same time desired 
 
48 FOUK MEDIEVAL CHRONICLEIiS 
 
 me to go to Paris, and look out for a proper house to 
 work at my business, telling me I should have it directly. 
 I received the five hundred gold crowns, and repaired to 
 Paris to a house of the cardinal of Ferrara's, where I 
 began to work, and made four little models half a cubit 5 
 high — one in wax — of Jove, Juno, Apollo, and Vulcan. 
 
 I must not omit to say that his Majesty took me into 
 his service in the year of our Lord 1540, and I was then 
 exactly forty years old. 
 
 How Cellini settled his Lawsuits in France 
 
 When certain decisions of the court were sent me 10 
 by those lawyers, and I perceived that my cause had 
 been unjustly lost, I had recourse for my defence to a 
 great dagger w^hich I carried ; for I have always taken 
 pleasure in keeping fine weapons. The first man I at- 
 tacked was the plaintiff who had sued me ; and one 15 
 evening I wounded him in the legs and arms so severely, 
 taking care, however, not to kill him, that I deprived 
 him of the use of both his legs. Then I sought out the 
 other fellow who had brought the suit, and used him in 
 such wise that he dropped it. 20 
 
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