CHA P. great duty of enfuring the fafety of his country. Nor XXIX. could it be imagined, that Francis would be fo romantic in his principles, as not to hearken to a cafuiftry, which was fo plaufible in itfelf, and which fo much flattered all the paffions, by which, either as a prince or a man, he was strongly actuated.

1526.

18th

March. Francis

recovers

SUCH was the reafoning of feveral of Charles's minifters, particularly of Gattinara, his chancellor M, who counfelled him to treat Francis with more generofity, and to give him his liberty on fuch terms, as would engage him, not by the feeble band of treaties, but by the more forcible tye of honour, to a ftrict and faithful performance, But the emperor's avidity prevented him from following this wifer and more honourable council; at the fame time that the profpect of a general combination of Europe hindered him from detaining Francis in captivity, and taking advantage of the confufions, which his abfence must neceffarily occafion in his kingdom. Still fufpicious, however, of the fincerity of his prifoner, he took an opportunity before they parted, of afking him privately, and as a friend, whether he feriously intended to execute the treaty of Madrid; protefting, that, in all cafes, he himfelf was firmly determined to restore him to his liberty, and that the profpect of obtaining this advantage needed no longer engage him to diffemble. Francis was too well acquainted with Charles's character to trust to the fincerity of this proteftation; and therefore renewed his affurances of fidelity, and a ftrict obfervance of his word. The emperor replied, that Francis was now his best friend and ally'; but if he should afterwards break his engagements, which he could not fufpect, he fhould think himfelf entitled to reproach him with a conduct so base and unworthy: And on thefe terms the two monarchs parted.

FRANCIS, on entering into his own dominions, delivered his two eldeft fons as hostages into the hands of the bis liber- Spaniards. He mounted a Turkish horfe, and immediately putting him to the gallop, he waved his hand over his head, and cried aloud feveral times, I am yet a King. He foon reached Bayonne, where he was joyfully received by the regent and his whole court. He immediately wrote to Henry; acknowledging that to his good offices alone he owed his liberty, and protesting, that he fhould

Guicciardini, lib. 16.

1526.

should be entirely governed by his councils in all tranf- CHA P. actions with the emperor. When the Spanish envoy de- XXIX. manded his ratification of the treaty of Madrid, now that he had fully recovered his liberty, he waved the propofal; under colour, that it was neceflary to affemble previously the ftates both of France and of Burgundy, and obtain their confent. The states of Burgundy foon met; and declaring againt the claufe, which contained an engagement for alienating their province, they expreffed their refolution of oppofing, even by force of arms, the execution of fo ruinous and unjust an article. The imperial minifter then required, that Francis, in conformity to the treaty of Madrid, fhould now return to his prifon; but the French monarch, irftead of complying, made public the treaty, which, a little before, he had fecretly concluded at Cognac, against the ambitious 22d May. schemes and ufurpations of the emperor N.

THE pope, the Venetians, and other Italian states, who were deeply interested in these events, had been held in the most anxious fufpence with regard to the refolutions, which Francis fhould take, after the recovery of his liberty; and Clement, who fufpected, that this prince would never execute a treaty fo hurtful to his interests, and even destructive of his independency, had very frankly offered him a difpenfation from all his oaths and engagements. Francis remained not in fufpence; but entered immediately into the confederacy propofed to him. It was ftipulated, by that king, the pope, the Venetians, the Swifs, the Florentines, the duke of Milan, among other articles, that they would oblige the emperor to deliver up the two young princes of France on receiving a reasonable sum of money; and to restore Milan to Sforza, without farther conditions or incumbrances. The king of England was invited to accede, not only as a contracting party, but also as protector of the holy league, so it was called: And if Naples fhould be conquered from the emperor, in profecution of this confederacy, it was agreed, that Henry should enjoy a principality in that kingdom of the yearly revenue of 30,000 ducats: And that cardinal Wolley, in confideration of the services, which he had rendered to Chriftendom, fhould also, in fuch an event, be put in poffeffion of a yearly revenue of 10,000 ducats. FRANCIS

N Guicciardini, lib. 17.

HAP. FRANCIS was extremely defirous, that the appearXXIX. ance of this great confederacy fhould engage the emperor

Sack of

Rome.

ge

to relax fomewhat of the extreme rigour of the treaty of 1527. Madrid; and while he entertained these hopes, he was the more remifs in his warlike preparations, nor did he fend in due time reinforcements to his allies in Italy. The duke of Bourbon had got poffeffion of the whole Milanefe, of which the emperor intended to grant him the investiture; and having levied a confiderable army in Germany, he became formidable to all the Italian potentates; and not the lefs fo, becaufe Charles, deftitute of money, had not been able to remit any pay to the forces. The neral was extremely beloved by his troops; and in order to prevent thofe mutinies, which were ready to break out every moment, and which their affection alone for him had hitherto reftrained, he led them to Rome, and promited to enrich them by the plunder of that opulent city. 6th May. He was himself killed, as he was planting a ladder to fcale the walls; but his foldiers, rather enraged than difcouraged by his death, mounted to the affault with the utmost valour, and entering the city, fword in hand, exercifed all thofe brutalities, which may be expected from ferocity excited by refiftance, and from infolence which takes place when that refiftance is no more. This renowned city, expofed by her renown alone to fo many calamities, never endured in any age, even from the barbarians, by whom fhe was often fubdued, fuch indignities as fhe was now constrained to fuffer. The unrestrained maffacre and pillage, which continued for several days, were the leaft ills, to which the unhappy Romans were expofed. Whatever was refpe&table in modesty or facred in religion feemed but the more to provoke the infults of the foldiery. Virgins fuffered violation in the arms of their parents, and upon thofe very altars, to which they had fled for protection. Aged prelates, after enduring every indignity, and even every torture, were thrown into dungeons, and menaced every moment with the most cruel death, in order to engage them to reveal their fecret treafures, or purchase liberty by exorbitant ranfoms. Clement himself, who had trufted for protection to the facredness of his character, and neglected to make

Guicciardini, lib. 18. Bellay. Stowe, p. 527.

make his escape in time, was taken captive; and found CH A P that his dignity, which procured him no regard from the XXIX. Spanish foldiers, did but draw on him the infolent mockery of the German, who, being generally attached to the Lutheran principles, were pleated to gratify their animofity by the abafement of the fovereign pontiff.

WHEN intelligence of this great event was conveyed to the emperor, that young prince, habituated to hypocrify, expreffed the most profound forrow for the fuccefs of his arms: He put himself and all his court into mourning: He ftopped the rejoicings for the birth of his fon Philip And knowing that every artifice, however gross, is able, when feconded by authority, to impofe upon the people, he ordered prayers, during feveral months, to be put up in all the churches for the Pope's liberty; an event, which, all men knew, a letter under his hand could in a moment have procured.

Р

1527.

THE Concern, expreffed by Henry and Francis for the calamity of their ally, was much more fincere. These two monarchs, a few days before the fack of Rome, had concluded a treaty at Westminster, in which, befides renewing former alliances, they agreed to fend ambassadors to Charles, requiring him to accept of two millions of crowns as the ranfom of the French princes, and to repay the money, borrowed of Henry; and in cafe of refufal, the ambaffadors, attended with heralds, were ordered to denounce war against him. This war, it was agreed to profecute in the Low Countries, with an army of thirty thousand infantry and fifteen hundred men at arms, two thirds to be fupplied by Francis, the reft by Henry. And in order to ftrengthen the alliance between the princes, it was ftipulated, that either Francis or his fon, the duke of Orleans, as should afterwards be agreed on, fhould efpoufe the princess Mary, Henry's daughter. No fooner did the monarchs receive intelligence of Bourbon's enterprize, than they changed, by a new treaty, the fcene of the projected 29th May. war from the Netherlands to Italy; and hearing of the Pope's captivity, they were farther ftimulated to undertake the war with vigour for restoring him to liberty. Wolfey himself croffed the fea, in order to have an in- 11th July. terview with Francis, and to concert measures for that

P 30th April.

purpofe;

CHA P. purpose; and he difplayed all that grandeur and magnifiXXIX. cence, with which he was fo much intoxicated. He was

attended with a train of a thousand horfe. The cardinal 1527. of Lorraine, and the chancellor of Alançon, met him at Boulogne: Francis himself, befides granting to that haughty prelate the power of giving in every place, where he came, liberty to all prifoners, made a journey as far as Amiens to meet him, and even advanced fome miles from the town, the more to honour his reception. It was here ftipulated, that the duke of Orleans fhould espouse the princess Mary; and as the emperor feemed to be taking some steps towards affembling a general council, the two monarchs agreed not to acknowledge it, but, during the interval of the pope's captivity, to govern the churches in their dominions, each by his own autho rity. Wolfey made fome attempts to get his legantine power extended over France, and even over Germany; but finding his efforts fruitless, he was obliged, tho' with great reluctance, to defift from thefe ambitious enterprizes &

18th Sept.

League with

France.

THE more to cement the union between these princes, a new treaty was, fome time after, concluded at London; in which, Henry agreed to renounce for ever all claims to the crown of France; claims, which might now indeed be deemed chimerical, but which often served as a pretence for exciting the unwary English to wage war upon the French monarchy. As a return for this conceffion, Francis bound himself and his fucceffors to pay for ever fifty thousand crowns a year to Henry and his fucceffors; and that a greater folemnity might be given to this treaty, it was agreed, that the parliaments and great nobility of both kingdoms should give their affent to it. The marefchal Montmorency, accompanied with many perfons of diftinction, and attended by a pompous equipage, was fent over to ratify the treaty; and was received at London with all the parade, which fuited the folemnity of the occafion. The terror of the emperor's greatnefs had entirely extinguished the antient animofity between the nations; and Spain, during more than a century, became, though a more diftant power, the chief object of jealoufy to the English.

Burnet book 3. coll. 12, 13.

THIS