Catherine De Medici. Оноре де Бальзак

was in question, and her uncle then revealed to her the fact that the first ambitious project of his house had aborted, and that the hand of the dauphin had been refused to her. Alessandro still hoped that the Duke of Albany would succeed in changing this decision of the king of France who, willing as he was to buy the support of the Medici in Italy, would only grant them his second son, the Duc d’Orleans. This petty blunder lost Italy to France, and did not prevent Catherine from becoming queen.

      The Duke of Albany, son of Alexander Stuart, brother of James III., king of Scotland, had married Anne de la Tour de Boulogne, sister of Madeleine de la Tour de Boulogne, Catherine’s mother; he was therefore her maternal uncle. It was through her mother that Catherine was so rich and allied to so many great families; for, strangely enough, her rival, Diane de Poitiers, was also her cousin. Jean de Poitiers, father of Diane, was son of Jeanne de Boulogne, aunt of the Duchess d’Urbino. Catherine was also a cousin of Mary Stuart, her daughter-in-law.

      Catherine now learned that her dowry in money was a hundred thousand ducats. A ducat was a gold piece of the size of an old French louis, though less thick. (The old louis was worth twenty-four francs—the present one is worth twenty). The Comtes of Auvergne and Lauraguais were also made a part of the dowry, and Pope Clement added one hundred thousand ducats in jewels, precious stones, and other wedding gifts; to which Alessandro likewise contributed his share.

      On arriving at Livorno, Catherine, still so young, must have been flattered by the extreme magnificence displayed by Pope Clement (“her uncle in Notre-Dame,” then head of the house of the Medici), in order to outdo the court of France. He had already arrived at Livorno in one of his galleys, which was lined with crimson satin fringed with gold, and covered with a tent-like awning in cloth of gold. This galley, the decoration of which cost twenty thousand ducats, contained several apartments destined for the bride of Henri of France, all of which were furnished with the richest treasures of art the Medici could collect. The rowers, magnificently apparelled, and the crew were under the command of a prior of the order of the Knights of Rhodes. The household of the Pope were in three other galleys. The galleys of the Duke of Albany, anchored near those of Clement VII., added to the size and dignity of the flotilla.

      Duke Alessandro presented the officers of Catherine’s household to the Pope, with whom he had a secret conference, in which, it would appear, he presented to his Holiness Count Sebastiano Montecuculi, who had just left, somewhat abruptly, the service of Charles V. and that of his two generals, Antonio di Leyva and Ferdinando di Gonzago. Was there between the two bastards, Giulio and Alessandro, a premeditated intention of making the Duc d’Orleans dauphin? What reward was promised to Sebastiano Montecuculi, who, before entering the service of Charles V. had studied medicine? History is silent on that point. We shall see presently what clouds hang round that fact. The obscurity is so great that, quite recently, grave and conscientious historians have admitted Montecuculi’s innocence.

      Catherine then heard officially from the Pope’s own lips of the alliance reserved for her. The Duke of Albany had been able to do no more than hold the king of France, and that with difficulty, to his promise of giving Catherine the hand of his second son, the Duc d’Orleans. The Pope’s impatience was so great, and he was so afraid that his plans would be thwarted either by some intrigue of the emperor, or by the refusal of France, or by the grandees of the kingdom looking with evil eye upon the marriage, that he gave orders to embark at once, and sailed for Marseille, where he arrived toward the end of October, 1533.

      Notwithstanding its wealth, the house of the Medici was eclipsed on this occasion by the court of France. To show the lengths to which the Medici pushed their magnificence, it is enough to say that the “dozen” put into the bride’s purse by the Pope were twelve gold medals of priceless historical value, which were then unique. But Francois I., who loved the display of festivals, distinguished himself on this occasion. The wedding festivities of Henri de Valois and Catherine de’ Medici lasted thirty-four days.

      It is useless to repeat the details, which have been given in all the histories of Provence and Marseille, as to this celebrated interview between the Pope and the king of France, which was opened by a jest of the Duke of Albany as to the duty of keeping fasts—a jest mentioned by Brantome and much enjoyed by the court, which shows the tone of the manners of that day.

      Many conjectures have been made as to Catherine’s barrenness, which lasted ten years. Strange calumnies still rest upon this queen, all of whose actions were fated to be misjudged. It is sufficient to say that the cause was solely in Henri II. After the difficulty was removed, Catherine had ten children. The delay was, in one respect, fortunate for France. If Henri II. had had children by Diane de Poitiers the politics of the kingdom would have been dangerously complicated. When the difficulty was removed the Duchesse de Valentinois had reached the period of a woman’s second youth. This matter alone will show that the true life of Catherine de’ Medici is still to be written, and also—as Napoleon said with profound wisdom—that the history of France should be either in one volume only, or one thousand.

      Here is a contemporaneous and succinct account of the meeting of Clement VII. and the king of France:

      “His Holiness the Pope, having been conducted to the palace, which

       was, as I have said, prepared beyond the port, every one retired

       to their own quarters till the morrow, when his Holiness was to

       make his entry; the which was made with great sumptuousness and

       magnificence, he being seated in a chair carried on the shoulders

       of two men and wearing his pontifical robes, but not the tiara.

       Pacing before him was a white hackney, bearing the sacrament of

       the altar—the said hackney being led by reins of white silk held

       by two footmen finely equipped. Next came all the cardinals in

       their robes, on pontifical mules, and Madame la Duchesse d’Urbino

       in great magnificence, accompanied by a vast number of ladies and

       gentlemen, both French and Italian.

       “The Holy Father having arrived in the midst of this company at

       the place appointed for his lodging, every one retired; and all

       this, being well-ordered, took place without disorder or tumult.

       While the Pope was thus making his entry, the king crossed the

       water in a frigate and went to the lodging the Pope had just

       quitted, in order to go the next day and make obeisance to the

       Holy Father as a Most Christian king.

       “The next day the king being prepared set forth for the palace

       where was the Pope, accompanied by the princes of the blood, such

       as Monseigneur le Duc de Vendomois (father of the Vidame de

       Chartres), the Comte de Sainct-Pol, Messieurs de Montpensier and

       la Roche-sur-Yon, the Duc de Nemours (brother of the Duc de

       Savoie) who died in this said place, the Duke of Albany, and many

       others, whether counts, barons, or seigneurs; nearest to the king

       was the Seigneur de Montmorency, his Grand-master.

       “The king, being arrived at the palace, was received by the Pope

       and all the college of cardinals, assembled in consistory, most

       civilly. This done, each retired to the place ordained for him,

       the king taking with him several cardinals to feast them—among

       them Cardinal de’ Medici, nephew of the Pope, a very splendid man

       with a fine retinue.

       “On the morrow those persons chosen by his Holiness and by the

       king began to assemble to discuss the matters for which the

       meeting was made. First, the matter of the Faith was treated